Tag: America

The Case for Prayer

America stands at a crossroads.

From classrooms to newsrooms, from civic centers to courtrooms, from town malls to the halls of Hollywood, institutions, which once encouraged society to hold fast to shared moral boundaries, now consistently undermine them.

Cultural trends are heavily contributing to the erosion of the family unit, the re-defining of human nature, and the vilifying of religious convictions.

For too long a stretch, media outlets have been routinely re-branding time-honored Christian teachings as “bigoted,” while turning a blind eye to violence, corruption, and the breakdown of civic order.

Scandals, fraud and abuse, and undue influence on the part of the political class have become so pervasive that many folks no longer expect those who govern to have integrity.

At a time such as this the response for people of faith, as well as those who don’t know what else they can possibly do, is to not merely be involved politically, but to be actively engaged spiritually, knowing that something more powerful is necessary.

I suggest that the answer is to get down on our knees.

The Old Testament records God’s promise to Solomon: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

In the New Testament, the Apostle to the Gentiles instructs believers to pray “…for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”

(1 Timothy 2:2)

The scriptural encouragement to pray for our leaders is not limited to individuals whom we happen to like. Rather, it extends to all those in positions of power and authority.

When major media organizations function less as reporters of fact and more as advocates for one particular set of assumptions, public trust is undermined and people are left without a common understanding of the reality of their current situation.

Corruption on the part of our leaders is a serous betrayal of the public trust, and the very concept of self-government is weakened in the process. This is not just about a discontent regarding policies. This is a symptom of a deeper disregard of the moral order upon which the American experiment presupposes.

For the spiritually inclined, prayer is something that typically precedes as well as undergirds civil and/or cultural engagement.

People of faith are called to “…seek the welfare of the city” (Jeremiah 29:7) in which they dwell. This welfare includes working to establish and maintain fair laws, honest institutions, and protections for the vulnerable.

Intentional prayer encompasses an acknowledgement that such virtuous goals, and the fruits thereof, are ultimately gifts from above.

Now is the time to lock hands in praying for America. Any and all who are willing and able are most welcome into the fold.

Those of us who from the youngest of age were fortunate enough to be schooled in the evils of communism (or its precursor, socialism) are praying that America never falls under the iron-fisted rule. The system has a proven record of incompatibility with the dignity of the individual, the free exercise of faith, and the liberty to live free and unfettered from governmental overreach.

Communism views religion as an enemy of the state. The ideology rests on a materialist denial of God and reduces persons to instruments of the collective. Private property, the family as an independent sphere, and the right to dissent are all subordinated to party control. The result has been a systematic crushing of the human conscience.

America’s constitutional order presupposes that a people shaped by biblical morality can govern themselves under limited powers. To pray against communist rule is, at its core, an act of love of neighbor.

For what should we pray?

Pray for the restoration of families and the welcoming of children into the world.

Pray for journalists and educators to regain a commitment to truth.

Pray for judges and officials to exercise their authority under the mantle of the Almighty.

Pray for the protection of religious liberty, so that individuals and religious institutions may continue to speak and live according to their consciences.

Pray that the good people among us will model humility and integrity and that the virtues will be multiplied.

The founding ancestors of our nation knew full well that the survival of free institutions is dependent upon an upright people.

When a country drifts away from this recognition, persistent prayer has a mysteriously mystical way of leading it back.

May prayer make a miraculous collective comeback.

And may God cast out negativity, turn hearts back to the truth, raise up faithful leaders, extend His mercy upon this great land of ours, and bless all of our people.

The Crawl toward Communism

Communist ideology should have been sidelined decades ago.

That’s what so many of us thought was going to happen after the Soviet Union collapsed back in 1991.

Instead the malignant ideas and strategies of communism, derived from the twisted mind of Karl Marx, gained a significant academic, institutional, and cultural foothold in the Western world.

Here’s a brief summary of how things played out.

Just about the time when the 1970s counterculture appeared to be fading away, a quiet yet insidious revolution was set in motion here in the United States.

There was no red flag waving in the air bearing a hammer and sickle. Rather, a long march through American universities began to take place.

New Left radicals weren’t storming barricades. Instead they were earning PhDs. Humanities and social science departments became ideological echo chambers.

Drawing from Antonio Gramsci’s theory on how the ruling class maintains power, and also the Frankfurt School’s critical theory that derided capitalism and promised social liberation, communist principles became the blueprint for how to deconstruct a societal framework, with the ultimate goal of supplanting it with a Marxist one.

In order to accomplish this, a battlefield had to be set up. The one chosen was that of “The Oppressors vs. the Oppressed.”

Through the fomenting of class envy and the assigning of victim status, members of society were pitted against one another.

What was already entrenched in the halls of our universities quickly spread to our elementary and high schools. Then like dominoes in a row, our federal and local governments, corporate boardrooms, news agencies, internet platforms, and even our Hollywood studios simply gave way.

Communism has been described by some as progressivism, democratic socialism, etc. But call it what you will, it’s just plain old communism, forever seeking the gradual ideological capture of the systems that comprise our societal pillars.

Which systems? Government, legal, education, economic, business, and media, to name some major ones.

Looking back, it seems that for America communism was custom-tailored to focus on culture and identity, a relatively easy way of conditioning our society to turn against neighbor.

It was then marketed, i.e., propagandized, to an already-primed public in order to reshape institutions from within.

We need look no further than our universities to see how the reshaping from within worked to our country’s immense detriment.

The faculties of almost all of the elite universities in our nation have come to lean decidedly to the far-left politically. In most cases, there are entire departments that are devoid of any dissenters to the dominant ideology.

As would be expected, graduating students of these institutions are highly knowledgeable on the topics of “systemic oppression,” “equity,” and “decolonization.” But they are woefully ignorant with regard to the death toll in the millions, which occurred at the hands of history’s most notorious communist regimes.

Sadly, the same communist-laced curriculum easily made its way into our preschools, elementary, and secondary schools. Consequently, far too many of our youth now find socialism and communism acceptable, and sometimes even preferable, than the representative republic that has secured our freedom for just short of 250 years.

Of course, a sizable portion of our Democrat politicians, major corporations, news media outlets, entertainment industry, and internet platforms have played a major role in the crawl toward communism.

We have heard a whole lot of talk over the last few years about existential threats.

It appears that we are currently facing a potential “Mother of All Existential Threats”; that being that communism could seep into our hearts, minds, and souls under the cover of virtue.

Whether the unthinkable occurs in a single stroke or bit-by-bit, the end result is the same. The America we love and cherish ceases to exist.

This is why we are duty-bound to reverse the trajectory.

A good place to start is to hold accountable the politicians who are already out of the communist closet.

This is an imperative since having avowed communists holding public office is a fairly new occurrence. Even Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders didn’t cozy up to communist candidates until somewhat recently.

Another idea is to join in on the religious revival that’s been going on, if you haven’t already. Nothing like faith, hope, and love to turn your world around.

May God bless America, now and forever.

Time to Reopen Main Street USA

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Main Street USA is the heart of America.

From big cities to small towns, Main Street USA tells the story of where we came from, where we are going, and who we will always be—holders of the dream.

When the pandemic hit and Main Street USA shut down, our shared heart sank. Shaken yet ever sanguine, we gently sighed, looked to the ones we love, and vowed to carry on.

As Main Street USA boarded up, holders of the dream went to work in their kitchen-schoolrooms, walk-in closet offices, and backyard workshops. For many, the work seemed harder than ever and the reward more distant. But as voices of loved ones long ago reminded us, patience will prevail and morning will come. Holders of the dream tightened their grasp.

Small business is merely an academic word for Main Street USA.

So who is small business?

Just take a moment and think back to all the small business folks you have relied on over the years to help fill the gaps in the average everyday needs of life:

-the sitter who took care of you when mom fell ill

-the music teacher who lit the spark

-the roofer who kept the house dry in the storm

-the appliance repair tech who in mid-July raced to fix the freezer

-the veterinarian who lit candles, played sweet music, and helped you say good-by

-the local pharmacist who gave an inexperienced youth a job as a delivery boy

-the jeweler who readied your bride-to-be’s engagement ring

-the tailor who altered the suit from Goodwill that helped you nail the interview

-the furniture store owner who rushed to make the loveseat for mom and dad’s first visit

-the auto mechanic who traded the car you pushed into his shop for one he had already restored

-the florist who brought the flower-filled beach chair to your best friend’s memorial six states away

-the baker who designed the Princess Warrior cake for a friend who had beaten cancer

Holders of the dream have millions of stories such as these to share. So tragic that many of our leaders don’t care to listen.

The truth is the largest and most successful companies in America started out as small businesses. It wasn’t always this way, but as the Democratic Party moved further and further to the left, the notion that there is intrinsic value in saving Main Street USA was tossed to the wayside.

Now Democrats and their fierce allies in the media are resisting reopening and advocating for the continuation of the lockdown of Main Street USA.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., recently spoke to the Democratic Socialists of America about opposing the reopening of the country.

“When we talk about this idea of reopening society, you know, only in America does the president — when the president tweets about liberation — does he mean go back to work. When we have this discussion about going back or reopening, I think a lot people should just say ‘no’ — we’re not going back to that,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

The freshman representative also laid the groundwork for a future general strike.

“The majority of Americans don’t know what a general strike is and so our responsibility is to talk about it, expand consciousness about it, and to actually create the conditions in which working people can generate and really exercise their own power, the power that they already have,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

Retail shops, restaurants, and other local concerns in every community across our land have been hit harder than anyone could have imagined. If the shutdown continues much longer, most of the small businesses in our country will simply be wiped out.

Add to this the tens of millions of independent contractors, freelancers, and self-employed individuals, and it becomes apparent that there is a huge number of working folks that are on their last leg.

The manner in which the Democrats and their willing media accomplices are misleading people is cruel and contemptible. They continue to heighten anxieties over the possibility of more COVID-19 deaths, while simultaneously characterizing the reopening of “non-essential” businesses as a reckless choice of money over lives.

What holders of the dream keep tightly in their grasp isn’t about money. It’s about worth.

A little soundtrack: