BCNN1 Bloggers

Obama's Racial Politics

2012-02-06T16:10:30Z

By Walter Williams

February 6, 2012

There's been a heap of criticism placed upon President Barack Obama's domestic policies that have promoted government intrusion and prolonged our fiscal crisis and his foreign policies that have emboldened our enemies.

]]> Any criticism of Obama pales in comparison with what might be said about the American people who voted him in to the nation's highest office.

Obama's presidency represents the first time in our history that a person could have been elected to that office who had long-standing close associations with people who hate our nation. I'm speaking of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama's pastor for 20 years, who preached that blacks should sing not "God Bless America," but "God damn America." Then there's William Ayers, now professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago but formerly a member of the Weather Underground, an anti-U.S. group that bombed the Pentagon, U.S. Capitol and other government buildings. Although Ayers was never convicted of any crime, he told a New York Times reporter, in the wake of the September 2001 terrorist attack, "I don't regret setting bombs. ... I feel we didn't do enough." Obama has served on a foundation board, appeared on panels, and even held campaign events in Ayers' home, joined by Ayers' former-fugitive wife, Bernardine Dohrn. Bill Ayers' close association with Obama is reflected by his admission that he helped write Obama's memoirs, "Dreams from My Father."

Many Americans thought that with Obama's presidency, we were moving to a "post-racial society." Little can be further from the truth. Victor Davis Hanson, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, in a National Review (1/18/2012) article titled "Obama's Racial Politics," says that Obama's message about race and his charges of racial bigotry are "usually coded and subtle." Criticizing Republicans, before a Mexican-American audience, Obama said that he ran for office because "America should be a place where you can always make it if you try -- a place where every child, no matter what they look like (or) where they come from, should have a chance to succeed." If you don't get it, "no matter what they look like" is code for nonwhite. Hanson says that Obama's attorney general, Eric Holder, has "found race a convenient refuge from criticism -- most recently accusing his congressional auditors of racism, for their grilling him over government sales of firearms to Mexican cartel hitmen."

Obama's racial politics are aided and abetted by a dishonest news media. When Republican candidate Texas Gov. Rick Perry referred to "a big black cloud that hangs over America, that debt that is so monstrous," he was dishonestly accused of racism by MSNBC's Ed Schultz, who said, "That black cloud Perry is talking about is President Barack Obama." Schultz omitted the second half of Perry's quote. Chris Matthews referred to Perry's vision of federalism as "Bull Connor with a smile."

The media have help from black congressmen in stirring up racial dissent. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo., said white presidents must be "pushed a great deal more" to address black unemployment than would a black president. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, said that argument over the debt ceiling is proof of racial animosity toward Obama. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., said that Republicans are trying to deny blacks the vote. Rep. Andre Carson, D-Ind., said the tea party wishes to lynch blacks and hang them from trees. Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., said Perry's job creation in Texas is "one stage away from slavery."

All of this places a heavy burden on people who care about our nation. We must ensure that the 2012 elections are the most open and honest elections in U.S. history. Should Obama lose, I wouldn't put it past leftists, progressives, the news media and their race-hustling allies, as well as the president, to fan the fires of hate and dissension by charging that racists somehow stole the election, thereby giving support and excuses for the kind of violence and lawlessness that we've witnessed in flash mobs and Occupy Wall Street riots.

BIO & CONTACT INFO FOR WALTER WILLIAMS

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Website: www.walterewilliams.com

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Race and Economics: How Much Can Be Blamed on Discrimination?

Publisher: Hoover Inst Pr | ISBN: 978-0817912451

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Getting Nowhere, Very Fast

2012-02-06T16:08:39Z

By Thomas Sowell

February 6, 2012

California has a huge state debt and Washington has a huge national debt. But that does not discourage either Governor Jerry Brown or President Barack Obama from wanting to launch a very costly high-speed rail system.

]]> Most of us might be a little skittish about spending money if we were teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. But the beauty of politics is that it is all other people's money, including among those other people generations yet unborn.

The high-speed rail system proposed for California has been envisioned as a model for similar systems elsewhere in the United States. A recent story in the San Francisco Chronicle used the high-speed rail system in Spain as an analogy for California.

Spain is about the same size as California, and has a similar population density -- and population density is the key to the economic viability of mass transportation, from subways to high-speed rail.

It so happens that I have ridden on Spain's high-speed rail system. It was very nice, especially since I did not have to pay the full costs, which were subsidized by the Spanish taxpayers.

While the Spanish government has been subsidizing the passengers on its high-speed rail system, the European Union has been subsidizing the Spanish government. Someone once said that government is the illusion that we can all live off somebody else. Spain's high-speed rail system is not even covering its operating costs, never mind the enormous costs of setting up the system in the first place. One reason is that half the seats are empty in the high-speed trains in Spain.

That is what happens when you don't have the population density required for passengers to cover the operating costs. You would need the hordes of Genghis Khan riding the high-speed rail system to cover the additional costs of the rails and the trains.

An economics professor at the University of Barcelona says that Spain "has not recovered one single euro from the infrastructure investment."

The most famous high-speed rail system is that in Japan, one of the most densely populated countries in the world. The "bullet train" between Tokyo and Osaka has 130 million riders a year. Tokyo alone has more than three times the population of San Francisco and Los Angeles put together.

In California, an element of farce has been added to the impending economic tragedy, if the envisioned high-speed rail system actually materializes.

The first leg of the system is planned to run between Fresno and Bakersfield. If those names don't ring a bell with you, there is a reason. They are modest-sized communities out in the agricultural San Joaquin Valley, well removed from San Francisco or Los Angeles.

You can bet the rent money that high-speed rail traffic between Fresno and Bakersfield will never come within shouting distance of covering the operating costs. Some people have analogized putting such a rail line between these two towns to the infamous "bridge to nowhere" in Alaska.

Why are they doing it? Because they can.

If they began this project where they want it to go -- between San Francisco and Los Angeles -- they would run into so much opposition from the environmentalists, and from local politicians influenced by the environmentalists, that the delays could take the high-speed rail advocates beyond the time limit for using the federal subsidy money. But the green fanatics have not yet taken over politically out in the San Joaquin Valley.

The only reason for even thinking about building a high-speed rail line between Fresno and Bakersfield is just to get the project underway with federal money, making it politically more difficult to stop the larger project for a similar rail line between San Francisco and Los Angeles.

In other words, they are going to start wasting money out in the valley, so that they will be able to waste more money later on, along the coast. This may not make any sense economically, but it can make sense politically for Jerry Brown and Barack Obama.

An old song ended, "You've been running around in circles, getting nowhere -- getting nowhere very fast." On high-speed rail.

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Memo to Romney: Whole Nation Is On Government Plantation

2012-02-06T16:06:51Z

By Star Parker

February 6, 2012

Here's free advice for Mitt Romney.

]]> Before bringing up the poor again, read my book "Uncle Sam's Plantation."

Romney has been taking a drubbing about his remarks in a CNN interview that he is "not worried about the very poor...we have a safety net there...If it needs a repair, I will fix it." And then going on to say it is "..middle income Americans...that are really struggling..." that are his concern.

What the now Republican presidential frontrunner missed in his off-the-cuff economic analysis of American class is that the cause driving the struggle among both low and middle income Americans is the same.

Economic stagnation and social breakdown caused by welfare state socialism.

As I explain in "Uncle Sam's Plantation," America's inner cities offer laboratory results for what is wrong today with the whole country.

If you want to know why America is failing, look at why our inner cities are failing.

Governor Romney is incorrect to label as a safety net welfare state programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training, Emergency Assistance to Needy Families with Children, Section 8 Housing, and Food Stamps.

A safety net is what is provided when a free person, acting on their own initiative, falls and we offer assistance to help them get back up and start again.

The welfare state amounts to wholesale takeover of individual lives. As opposed to government stepping in to soften the blow, the welfare state assumes from the start that individuals won't make it without government managing their lives.

It is not an accident that despite some ten trillion dollars spent on anti-poverty programs since the 1960's there is little discernable change in our poverty rate.

The problem was made worse because the broken families and broken spirits resulting from government plantation dependence have institutionalized inner city poverty.

If America is going to get back on track, we must appreciate that we are doing to our whole country what we did to America's poor.

Seventy percent of government spending today consists of transfer payments - government redistributing funds from one set of individuals to others.

Even before the Obamacare government takeover, our health care market was already dominated by government. About ten percent of our healthcare expenditures today are out-of-pocket expenditures by individuals. About half of health care expenditures in 1960 were individual out-of-pocket expenditures.

Despite the central role that government sponsored enterprises - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac - played in the recent housing collapse, their role in the housing market today has become even greater.

In 2011, 95% of all new mortgages were bought or guaranteed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or FHA.

And, of course, just about every working American is part of Social Security and Medicare, both of which are now fiscally untenable.

Now layer on to all this Obamacare, a trillion dollars in spending on stimulus programs, and bailouts of banks and auto companies. And five trillion in new debt, a 45 percent increase, over the last four years as a down payment on it all.

The bigger role government plays in our lives, the more America resembles the Post Office rather than FedEx.

And the bigger role government plays, the harder it is to fix the problem because individuals become used to these programs and fear fundamental change.

Mitt Romney touts his business experience as his qualification for the presidency.

That business experience amounted to turning companies around, improving their performance by making more efficient use of their assets.

This is exactly what our country needs today. A reallocation of our assets from government to private sector efficiency.

Getting off Uncle Sam's Plantation is no longer a problem limited to our poor. It is a problem and challenge for the whole country.

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Uncle Sam's Plantation: How Big Government Enslaves America's Poor and What We Can Do About It

Publisher: Thomas Nelson | ISBN: 978-1595552235

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Romney's Campaign GPS Ignores The Poor

2012-02-06T16:04:39Z

By Roland S. Martin

February 6, 2011

In the 1,257 GOP debates we've had to sit through, poverty and the poor has rarely come up. So it was no surprise that Mitt Romney would be dismissive of them in an interview this week with CNN's Soledad O'Brien.

]]> If Romney and his fellow Republican candidates haven't bothered to shed much attention on the poor (the same goes for the debate moderators), why should we think the richest guy in the field would really give a flip about them?

"I'm not concerned about the very poor," Romney said. "There's a safety net there, and if it needs repair, I'll fix it. I'm not concerned about the very rich; they're doing just fine. I'm concerned about the heart of America, the 95 percent of Americans who are right now struggling."

In his comment, he appeared to be clueless. Oh, sure, he said he wasn't worried about the rich as well, but clearly he has made no attempt to advance a plan that speaks to the poor in the country.

When given a chance by O'Brien to clarify the comment, Romney just doubled down. And later, on his campaign plane, he screwed it up again.

"Wealthy people are doing fine," Romney said. "But my focus in the campaign is on middle-income people. Of course I'm concerned about all Americans -- poor, wealthy, middle-class -- but the focus of my effort will be on middle-income families who I think have been most hurt by the Obama economy."

Seriously, do the guy's dollars signs prevent his brain from understanding the real plight of the poor in this country? So he's "concerned" about all Americans, including the poor, but the "focus" of his effort will be on the middle-class. Why can't the focus be on those not rich?

The fundamental problem with these candidates is that the poor in America are often ignored. Last year, I was highly critical of President Barack Obama for not even saying the word "poor" in his State of the Union speech.

All of these candidates, including President Obama, love to go to manufacturing facilities, hold chats in the living rooms of suburban homeowners, and target their messaging to the vaunted middle class.

But when was the last time we saw a president or presidential candidate go into rural America and speak to the poorest of the poor? How often have we seen them visit a public housing complex or another venue where a true light can be shone on those most affected?

When Bobby Kennedy decided to run for president in 1968, he got out of his rich, Hyannis Port, Mass., environment and went on a listening and seeing tour of the most depressed areas in America. For the first time, Kennedy got a sight of the America that he had never envisioned.

President Obama knows what that looks like. As a community organizer, he had to go into those places and work with people there to improve their plight. Does the GPS in Mitt Romney's car even know where those areas are?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 15.3 percent of Americans live in poverty on a salary of a little bit more than $22,000 for a family of four. Trust me, those families pulling in $30,000 wouldn't think for a second they were a part of the nation's middle class.

If Romney truly wants to be president, he sure as heck needs to not be dismissive of the nation's poor. In fact, he should be willing to listen to them, understand how hard many of them work, and determine what policies he can advance that will help them graduate from poverty to the next level. Romney -- and all of the candidates -- should make discussions with the poor a part of their agenda.

America must stop appealing to the nation's middle class just in an effort to grab votes. Yeah, that's exactly what it is; a pandering exercise. We can't treat the poor as if they are invisible and not worth our time and attention.

Unfortunately, the poor don't have lobbyists, and a lot of people really don't want to hear their stories. But they are our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, nephews and nieces. Are we so cold and callous that we'll treat them with such disregard?

BIO & CONTACT INFO FOR ROLAND S. MARTIN

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The First: President Barack Obama's Road to the White House as Originally Reported by Roland S. Martin

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Why Applying Scripture Is So Tough

2012-02-06T16:03:03Z

By Rick Warren

February 6, 2012

"I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit." (Ephesians 3:16 NLT)

]]> Applying Scripture to our lives isn't easy. If it were easy, more people would be doing it. Most people who read the Bible don't really apply what they read to their lives. Why?

It's hard work! But what makes applying God's Word so hard? Here are three reasons it's hard for you and me to apply Scripture to our lives.

Application requires serious thought. It takes long periods of concentrated prayer and thought before you can apply the Scripture you're learning. You won't always understand the application immediately. You have to think about what you've read. You have to meditate on it. That takes time most people often don't want to give.

Satan fights application. He fights it viciously. The devil's strongest attacks are going to come in your quiet time when you're trying to apply what you've studied. Satan knows that as long as you're content with merely hearing the Word or reading the Word, you are not much of a threat to his plans. But as soon as you get serious about making changes in your life, he's going to fight you tooth and nail because he hates doers of the Word.

We naturally resist change. It's human nature; no one likes to change. But that's God's main purpose with his Word. He wants it to change our lives. He wants to make us more like Jesus. The key to making us more like Jesus is applying God's Word. That's why most churches focus on interpreting Scripture and learning about the Bible's background. Most people are happy to do that. You can learn all about the people of the Bible, the background of the Bible, and the doctrines of the Bible, and still live carnally. We're happy to apply God's Word to other people, but we don't like doing it to ourselves.

We grow spiritually and become mature Christians by applying God's Word to our lives. You and I need to ask the Holy Spirit to give us the strength, because we don't have the strength on our own to obey. The Bible calls us to ask God to empower us through his Spirit: "I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit" (Ephesians 3:16 NLT). These obstacles will get in our way every time in our own power. But God has "unlimited resources" to help us apply his Word to our lives. We just have to ask him.

Talk About It:

What are the distractions today that are keeping you from deeper meditation on God's Word?

When you pray for strength, God may use people in your life to provide the support you need. Do you have people in your life with whom you share your struggles and who will hold you accountable to grow spiritually?

BIO & CONTACT INFO FOR RICK WARREN

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Forgiveness Leads to Freedom

2012-02-06T14:19:22Z

by Beth Moore

February 6, 2012

Click here to read previous articles by Beth Moore

The son of man has authority on Earth to forgive sins. (Luke 5:24). Never in all scripture does Christ resist the repentant sinner.

]]>
When we approach GOD in genuine repentance, taking full responsibility for our own sins, our prison doors swing open. Tragically, we can sit right there in our prison cells for years and years by refusing or not knowing to stand on GOD's promises and walk forward in HIS truth. And since Satan knows that forgiveness leads to freedom, he will do everything he can to see that we don't forgive ourselves. But Christ has already forgiven us.

BIO & CONTACT INFO FOR BETH MOORE

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Website: www.lproof.org

Beth Moore's books may be bought at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and wherever fine books are sold.
Publisher: Tyndale

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So Long, Insecurity is available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and wherever fine books are sold.
Publisher: Tyndale

God's Plan for the Family and Society

2012-02-06T14:11:54Z

by Natalie A. Francisco
February 6, 2012
Click here to read previous articles by Natalie Francisco

God has a perfect plan for the family according to His Word. Husbands and wives are called to operate not independently, but interdependently as the two become "one flesh" in the holy institution of marriage (Matthew 19:5-6).
]]>

I believe that God desires for us to experience an abundant quality of life as translated by the Greek word perissos in John 10:10, which means: superabundant in quantity or superior in quality; exceeding abundantly above, more abundantly, very highly, beyond measure, more, superfluous. This kind of life is to be experienced in all of our relationships with God and others.

This series of articles will focus on experiencing abundant life in parent-child-educator-church relationships so that all involved can be strengthened through strategic partnerships with purpose. As partners, we must work together to ensure that our children are the best and brightest that they can be for the common good of all.

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Natalie Francisco's book may be bought at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and BlackCBC.com and wherever fine books are sold.
Publisher: St. Paul Press

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Wisdom for Women of Worth and Worship is available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and BlackCBC.com and wherever fine books are sold. It is also available as an ebook on Amazon KINDLE and in other ebook formats.

Publisher: St. Paul Press

3 Actions You Can Take Now to Shift Your Emotional State

2012-02-06T14:05:09Z

by Michael Hyatt
February 6, 2012
Click here to read previous articles from Michael Hyatt

A few weeks ago, I had to speak five times in one day. I knew it would require a lot of me mentally and emotionally. My goal is always to give 110 percent. I want nothing left on the table when I finish. ]]> But, for some reason, I woke up that morning in a funk. I don't know why. It was one of those things I couldn't explain. But I didn't like it and knew I needed to get myself in a better place if I was going to deliver on my goal.

There was a time when I thought I couldn't change my attitude. I viewed myself as the victim of mysterious forces that shaped my emotional state. It never occurred to me that I could shift it--almost instantly.

But as I have learned since, we have more control than we think. Moreover, Tony Robbins taught me how to apply this principle to my emotional state. Without question, it is the single most important life skill I have acquired.

Let me elaborate.

You can instantly shift your attitude by taking the following three actions:

BIO & CONTACT INFO FOR MICHAEL HYATT

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Jesus Is Coming Back

2012-02-06T11:30:05Z

by Ergun Caner

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The Qur'an claims that Jesus was born peacefully and will die peacefully. Jesus is credited with saying, "So Peace is on me the day I was born, the day that I die, and the day that I shall be raised up to life (again)" (sura 19:33).

]]>

The generally accepted Muslim view affirms that Jesus did not die, but that Allah raised (rafa'u) Him to himself. The Qur'an explains that "People of the Book...must believe in Him before his death" (sura 4:159).

According to Islam, since Jesus, a human just like Adam, has not died, His ministry cannot be complete. Tradition explains that He will appear to all just before the final judgment. He then will battle the Antichrist, defeat him, confess Islam, kill all pigs, break all crosses, and establish a thousand years of righteousness. Some expand on this notion and explain that Jesus will subsequently die and be buried beside the prophet Muhammad.

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Ergun Caner's books may be bought at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and wherever fine books are sold.
Publisher: Kregel Publishers

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Unveiling Islam is available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and wherever fine books are sold.

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Obedience to God

2012-02-06T11:27:50Z

by Kathi Macias

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In English and Spanish

"Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice"

-1 Samuel 15:22, NKJV

]]> Obedience. It's a word I've struggled with since I was a toddler. No one knew that better than my parents. I flopped my toe across every line they drew in front of me--and I nearly always paid a price for my disobedience. But at 26 I became a Christian. Surely disobedience wouldn't be a problem any longer...right?

Wrong. I still struggle with it to this day, though I know I've made a lot of progress--not because I'm faithful but because God is. I've learned this "obedience thing" is a lifelong process, and God is committed to teaching us how to walk in it.

There are reasons for that, one of them being that when we walk in obedience, God does amazing things through us. I used to think it was some sort of magical formula: I'd obey God, and He'd reward me with something wonderful. Wrong again. (I suppose I've been slow in understanding this concept because, somehow, I still think it's all about me. I'm the only one who's ever thought that, right?)

And then a couple of days ago I came across the journal my mom was using just before she died. She filled scores of them through the years, but this one is especially meaningful, as it gives me a glimpse into her thoughts and prayers, her communication with God in her last days on earth. The final entry, in her shaky handwriting, reads, "Obedience is the key word of miracles. Sometimes we feel prompted by God to do something that makes no sense, but if we do it, it becomes a miracle."

Wow. Mom was 90 years old when she penned those words, and she had no idea how they would bless me after she was gone. I now have them in the top drawer of my desk, where I can pull them out and read them often--each time I'm tempted to flop my toe across God's line. Do I need a miracle in my life, either for myself or someone else? Most of the time, I do. And now I know the key to seeing that miracle come to pass: be obedient to that still, small voice inside that prompts us to obey God, whether it makes sense at the moment or not. God, in His faithfulness, will accomplish the rest.

"¿Acaso se complace Jehová tanto en los holocaustos y sacrificios como en la obediencia a las palabras de Jehová? Mejor es obedecer que sacrificar; prestar atención mejor es que la grasa de los carneros"

Samuel 15:22 RV

Obediencia. Es una palabra con la que hemos luchado desde que yo era una niña. Nadie sabía eso mejor que mis padres. Ponía el dedo del pie a través de cada línea que ellos ponían delante de mí -- y yo casi siempre pagaba un precio por mi desobediencia. Pero a los 26 años me hice Christian. ¿Seguramente la desobediencia ya no sería un problema... ¿verdad?

Incorrecto. Todavía lucho con ello hasta este día, aunque sí sé que he progresado mucho -- no porque soy fiel, pero porque Dios si lo es. He aprendido que esta "cosa de obediencia" es un proceso de toda la vida, y Dios está cometido a enseñarnos a caminar en ella.

Hay motivos para esto, uno de ellos siendo que cuando andamos en la obediencia, Dios hace cosas asombrosas por medio de nosotros. Yo solía pensar que esto era alguna clase de fórmula mágica: si yo obedecía a Dios, y Él me recompensaría con algo maravilloso. Incorrecto otra vez. (Supongo que he sido lenta en el entendimiento de este concepto porque, de alguna manera, todavía pienso que todo se trataba de mí. ¿Soy la única quién ha pensado eso alguna vez, ¿verdad?).

Y luego hace un par de días me encontré con el diario que mi mamá estaba usando justo antes de que ella muriera. Llenó tantos de ellos a través de los años, pero éste es sobre todo muy significativo, ya que me da una vislumbre a sus pensamientos y oraciones y su comunicación con Dios en sus últimos días en la tierra. La entrada final, en su inestable letra, lee, "la Obediencia es la palabra clave para los milagros. A veces nos sentimos provocados por Dios a hacer algo que no tiene sentido, pero si lo hacemos, esto se convierte en un milagro."

Wow. Mi mamá tenía 90 años cuando ella escribió esas palabras, y ella no tuvo ni idea como ellas me bendecirían después de que se fuera para siempre. Ahora los tengo en el cajón superior de mi escritorio, donde yo puedo sacarlos y leerlos a menudo -- cada vez que me siento tentada poner el dedo de mi pie a través de la línea de Dios. ¿Necesito un milagro en mi vida, para mí o alguien más? La mayor parte del tiempo, así es. Y ahora sé cuál es la clave que sale a la vista para que el milagro se convierta en realidad: ser obediente de todos modos, a la pequeña voz dentro de nosotros mismos que nos promueve a obedecer Dios, si tiene sentido en ese momento o no. Dios, en Su fidelidad, llevará a cabo el resto.

BIO & CONTACT INFO FOR KATHI MACIAS

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Website: www.kathimacias.com
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Kathi Macias' books may be bought at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and wherever fine books are sold.
www.newhopepublishers.com

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Red Ink is available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, wherever fine books are sold.

Publisher: New Hope Publishers

Grounded in Truth

2012-02-06T11:25:02Z

by Charles Stanley

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Read | Psalm 25:4-10

If we'll let the truths of Scripture fill our minds, guard our emotions, and influence our conduct, God will richly reward us.

]]> I'm talking about spiritual blessings here (though He at times chooses to bless materially as well). By reading and meditating on His Word, you'll learn to understand His ways. This isn't something we can figure out on our own, because His ways are unlike ours--they are higher, bigger, and eternal.

Also, your relationship with the Lord will grow increasingly more intimate because He chooses to reveal Himself to those who seek Him and obey His instructions. When you see that God always keeps His promises, your confidence in His faithfulness will soar. No matter what the situation, you'll know you can trust Him. Then He'll transform your worries into joyful anticipation about what He's going to do next in your life. Even if hard times await, you'll be convinced that the Lord will work them out for good.

A life grounded in truth is powerful. Those who live by the Word develop spiritual discernment, which guides their choices and guards against deception. Because they demonstrate wisdom and godliness, the Lord enables them to impact others greatly. Since He knows they can be trusted, He also gives them greater responsibilities and opportunities for service in His kingdom.

With all this available to us, wouldn't it be wise to invest our time and energy in building the truth of God's Word into our lives? The other activities which clamor for our attention seem so important or pleasurable, but none of them can offer us the spiritual riches of a life grounded in truth.

BIO & CONTACT INFO FOR CHARLES STANLEY

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Publisher: Thomas Nelson

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Turning the Tide: Real Hope, Real Change is available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and wherever fine books are sold.

Publisher: Howard Books

The Attitude of Stewardship

2012-02-06T11:23:48Z

by Tony Evans

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In His Presence: When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you. Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes (Deuteronomy 8:10-11).

]]> Once you clarify who the author of all things is, it will clarify your attitude about stewardship. Genesis 1:28 defines our attitude when God said mankind should "subdue" and "rule over" the earth. The Hebrew words used here literally mean to trample underfoot and bring under control. God supplied it, and He put it under us to manage. We are to function as managers based on God's purpose for allowing us to have all that we have.

The attitude of the steward should reflect the belief that God put him where he is to rule what belongs to God. Man's stewardship is limited and delegated by God, and he must not forget the source of all he has. Job 23:13 tells us that God does what He pleases with what He owns.

The attitude of a steward should reflect thankfulness. One reason we go to church on Sunday is out of gratitude to God for sustaining us and keeping us through the week. We have many earthly blessings from the Lord, and we have eternal spiritual blessings as well. We should never cease to thank Him for all He has given and done for us. It is a privilege to manage His creation, and everything we have goes back to Him. The paper money in our wallets was made from trees He planted. The diamonds on our fingers came out of the earth that He created. It all points back to His provision, for which we should be thankful.

One Minute Please

You may think you don't have everything you want, but God expects you to be grateful for what you have.

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Tony Evans' books may be bought at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and BlackCBC.com and wherever fine books are sold.
Publisher: Moody Publishers

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Victory In Spiritual Warfare is available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and BlackCBC.com and wherever fine books are sold.

Publisher: Moody

What is Your Story?

2012-02-06T11:22:47Z

by T.D. Jakes

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What is your story? Have you been pulled back far enough to earn the right to be positioned to prosper by what you endured?

]]> If you feel you have not been positioned correctly, I have good news. It's not too late to go back through the process of reservation (taking the time to meditate on new goals and ideas, getting around people who do what you do), retraction (going into hibernation and getting the skills you need for the dream you have), and then, with the force of a groom who waited, go for the dreams that have eluded you before. This time the union has been prearranged and is not left to chance and happenstance. Repositioning is a second chance to realign what wasn't properly directed the first time.

From Reposition Yourself: Living Life Without Limits.

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http://www.simonandschuster.com/

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Strength to Stand is available at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and BlackCBC.com and wherever fine books are sold.

Publisher: Destiny Image

Mitt Romney's Oy-Gevalt Line

2012-02-06T11:22:30Z

by David Brody

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The oy-gevalt line of the campaign spoken by Mitt Romney:

"I'm not concerned about the very poor, we have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I'll fix it."

]]> Read more here.

So Mitt Romney doesn't care about poor people? I'm sure that's not exactly how he feels but that's not the point. There are three major problems with this line.

First of all, from an evangelical standpoint, has Romney revealed how he really feels about the role of the federal government when it comes to taking care of the poor? It appears that he is saying that the federal government (not local and state governments) have a responsibility to provide a safety net for poor people. Yet the conservative Christian viewpoint tends to be that the poor does need help but that it should be provided by the individual not the government.

Indeed, the Bible commands that we are to take care of the poor but the "we" isn't the government. Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council once told me the following: "When Jesus encountered the rich young ruler he told him to go and sell all that he had and give it to the poor. He didn't tell him to give it to government and let the government redistribute it. It was his responsibility."

Thus, it's a legitimate line of inquiry to find out more about how Romney views the role of the federal government when it comes to its responsibility to poor people.

Secondly, this is yet another example of Romney's penchant for making glaring mistakes on the campaign trail (Remember, "I like to fire people"). Pretty soon (if not already) a narrative will begin to form about Romney that he actually isn't as electable as many think because he has a tendency to put his foot in his mouth. Not only that, these types of comments play into the stereotype that Romney is a rich guy who just can't feel people's pain.

Finally, Romney is starting to sound like he's playing the class warfare card a little bit. He doesn't play it the way Obama does but some of what he's doing is similar. He talks a lot about helping the middle class, which makes sense because that's where his political bread is buttered, not to mention a vibrant middle class is needed for a sound economy.

Yet we've heard Romney say repeatedly how he's not worried about the rich and that under Romney's vision, people making fewer than $200,000 would get a capital gains tax cut. That makes it seem like Romney may be open to some sort of compromise on taxes for people making over $200,000.

And of course now we have this comment about the poor. I'm not sure if that's going to go over well in conservative circles either.

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Rewriting History: The Victor's Privilege

2012-02-06T11:21:38Z

by Harry Jackson Jr.

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The last few years, I have been repeatedly disappointed by the bickering and pettiness displayed by our legislators, political pundits, and candidates for office. I have longed for representatives who are informed and articulate, who habitually seek the best laws and results for the land. Unfortunately, the history I have reviewed recently suggests that we may be more like our forefathers than we would like to believe.

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For example, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. has loomed larger than life in the hearts and minds of Americans since his assassination in 1968. The massive monument which now stands on the National Mall in Washington, DC is a physical manifestation of the spiritual giant he has been to so many of us over the past two generations. Today's leaders can only hope to capture a fraction of the respect from his followers and fear from his opponents that Dr. King commanded during his lifetime. Yet this was never the life that he sought for himself. Indeed, if there is one lesson we can learn from this man today, it is that the best leaders are often reluctant to bear the burden of leadership, because they understand the cost is so high.

Those who have studied Dr. King's life know that he came to a crossroads in his life in Montgomery, Alabama in 1956, after two years of pastoring Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. Before accepting that position, he had intended to pursue a quiet academic career filled with teaching, studying and writing. After moving to Alabama he was made head of the pastors' association that led the famous bus boycotts and found that he and his family were facing growing harassment by local police. One day in 1956 he stopped what he was doing and prayed at his kitchen table, asking the Lord whether such activism was worth the risk to himself and his family. These are the words he heard in response: "Stand up for righteousness. Stand up for justice. Stand up for truth. And lo, I will be with you. Even until the end of the world."

All of the events that followed in his life--the ones that we remember--reflected his obedience to these words. How many of our political and community leaders today can say honestly that such obedience has been the driving force of their careers?

Those who worked with Dr. King on a daily basis remember more than the fiery speeches that captured a nation's attention and stirred its moral conscience. They remember a soft spoken, thoughtful man who was keenly focused on the task at hand. They remember a man who worked late into the night and rose early; someone who came across as genuine and accessible to the people around him. Dr. King didn't seek the spotlight as so many would-be celebrities do today. He was thrust into the spotlight by the demands of his times. He didn't hunger for attention, but he used the attention directed at him to further the cause he fought for, not his career.

Think about King's quality of leadership in light of the petty politics we observe today, where members of both parties are willing to sacrifice principles and progress to score cheap points with the special interest groups. While we can't know for certain what Dr. King would have said about the economy, healthcare, taxes or Social Security, we can be confident he would not have switched positions on these issues for opportunistic reasons. He would likely have had some choice words for the numerous elected officials caught in ethics and corruption scandals over the past months and years as well.

With today's emphasis on political correctness, it is easy to forget how often Dr. King spoke of "moral law," "natural law," or even "God's law" in his writings and speeches. Would such a man have embraced the current wholesale removal of God from the public square by secularist totalitarians? I think not. Dr. King was radically different from leaders in either party today. He was committed to making things happen. His ideology was not self-centered or self-serving.

It is difficult for us to remember the raw physical courage it took during that era; members of the movement were not only being arrested and thrown in jail, but murdered on a regular basis. Most of us remember Medgar Evers and Dr. King, but how many remember Ben Chester White, Wharlest Jackson or Oneal Moore? We must pray that God will raise up a new generation of leaders who will have as much intellectual courage as our ancestors. We need innovators, businessmen, and problem solvers who will be willing to give their lives to the cause of restoring America to everything God has called it to be.

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The Truth in Black and White: A New Look at the Shifting Landscape of Race, Religion, and Politics in America Today is available at Amazon.com and wherever fine books are sold.

Personal Faith, Public Policy is available at Amazon.com and wherever fine books are sold.