Monday, March 26, 2012

sharing....

Spurgeon's preaching...

The following words of B.H. Carroll, commemorating Spurgeon's preaching, 
"Mr. Spurgeon was pre-eminently a preacher. He preached more sermons, perhaps, than any other man. More people have heard him than have heard any other man. More people have read and do read his sermons than the sermons of any other man. More of them have been translated into foreign tongues than any other sermons. More people have been converted by reading them, in more countries, than by, perhaps, all other published sermons. Livingstone had one of them in his hat when he died, having carried it through Africa. A widow was found half frozen on an Alpine mountain peak, reading one of them through her tears. A bush-ranger in Australia was converted by reading one, blood-stained, which he had taken from the body of a man he had murdered."
(Wade Burleson)

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Myths vs Facts.....

Myths and Facts:
The North Carolina Marriage Protection Amendment
Myth: The amendment isn’t necessary.
Fact: Unless North Carolina passes the Marriage Protection Amendment, our present marriage laws are vulnerable to politicians and activist judges overturning them and imposing same-sex marriage here. This is what occurred in New York, New Hampshire, California, Massachusetts, Iowa, District of Columbia, Vermont and Connecticut. Already, lawsuits have been filed in North Carolina to invalidate our marriage laws! We need the Amendment to ensure that lawsuits like this are not successful.


Myth: The amendment is just more big government telling people how to live their private lives.
Fact: The amendment will prevent government from re-defining marriage for us without our input or our vote. Marriage has a definition that predates government, and the amendment will insure that government, either through an activist judge or legislative action, cannot redefine marriage. Once the amendment passes, only another vote of the people of North Carolina can change the definition of marriage.


Myth: Marriage is simply about loving couples making a public commitment of their love.
Fact: Marriage certainly provides an opportunity for a couple in love to declare their commitment to each other, but the government doesn’t regulate marriage to provide a forum for public commitment simply because two people love each other. Marriage is unique because it is the social institution we recognize to channel the biological drive of men and women with its inherent capacity to produce children into the ideal family units. Marriage provides the best opportunity of ensuring that any children produced by that sexual union are known by and cared for by their biological parents, and that benefits us all. It is because of children that government regulates and licenses marriage.


Myth: The amendment prohibits same sex couples from entering into private contractual agreements.
Fact: No. The Marriage Protection Amendment is very clear: “This section does not prohibit a private party from entering into contracts with another private party; nor does this section prohibit courts from adjudicating the rights of private parties pursuant to such contracts." Thus, the Amendment allows same-sex couples and others to enter into, and enforce, private legal agreements. For instance, a private company could agree to provide health benefits to any couple it chooses, and the couple could enforce this agreement in court.


Myth: The measure strips important public benefits for same-sex partners of city and county employees.
Fact: Government benefits that are currently received by unmarried couples can continue to exist, even with the passage of the Amendment. Universities and other local governments, under the Amendment, can grant benefits to an individual government employee that he or she could share with another person of his or her choice.


Myth: The measure contains vague language that could have profound unforeseen consequences.
Fact: The amendment is two sentences and easy to read and understand. It means, simply, that marriage will continue to be only between one man and one woman and that private parties can enter into enforceable contracts with other private parties. 



Myth: The amendment could invalidate domestic violence laws as they are currently applied to unmarried couples.
Fact: This myth is an example of the length to which opponents of the amendment are going to attempt to trick voters into opposing the amendment. No state with a similar amendment has ever ruled that it has any impact on domestic violence laws. In Ohio, their Supreme Court made clear that their marriage protection amendment would not impact the application of the state domestic violence laws. The same is true in North Carolina.


Myth: The amendment could interfere with existing child custody and visitation rights that seek to protect the best interests of children.
Fact: The amendment has nothing to do with child custody laws or arrangements.


Myth: The amendment could result in courts invalidating trusts, wills, and end-of-life directives– which are not “private contracts” – in which an unmarried partner is a beneficiary and/or is entrusted with the care of a loved one.
Fact: The amendment has nothing to do with trusts, wills and end-of-life directives. The amendment puts our existing definition of marriage into the constitution where it will be safe from future legislative or judicial tampering. It will not interfere with private agreements governing the end-of-life decisions made by same-sex partners.


Myth: The amendment should be called the “anti gay amendment.”
Fact: The amendment is pro-marriage, it is not anti-anyone and doesn’t even use the words “gay” or “homosexual.” Our current marriage laws limit marriage to only one man and one woman. The amendment does not change that.


Myth: The amendment signals to gay people that they are second-class citizens.
Fact: Thousands of gays and lesbians have chosen to make North Carolina their home, where marriage has always been defined as the union of one man and one woman. All citizens of our state gay and straight – are respected and welcomed, but that doesn’t mean that marriage should be redefined.


Myth: The amendment is bad for business.
Fact: Marriage is not only good for families and children, but also good for business. Research shows that states with a marriage protection amendment in their state constitution are the nation’s top performing economic states. This includes eight of the top ten “best states for business” (according to a survey of 556 CEOs) and eight of the top ten states for job growth (according to Moody’s Analytics, Nov. 23, 2011).


Myth: Polls show that the amendment is trailing badly and will fail.
Fact: Every legitimate poll of likely or actual North Carolina voters has shown the marriage amendment has extensive support in the Tar Heel state. This includes polls by PPP, the Civitas Institute, and Public Opinion Strategies. The only survey claiming that the amendment is trailing is an outdated Elon University Survey, but this poll admits that it “does not restrict respondents by voter eligibility or likelihood of voting.” Every state in the nation to consider a marriage amendment has approved it, including states like California, Wisconsin, and Maine. In fact, among southern states, the average vote in favor of a marriage amendment is 74%! 
www.VoteFORMarriageNC.com   

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Friday, March 2, 2012

Assuming- DeYoung

Don’t Assume

It may be the best known Bible verse in our culture: “Judge not, that you be not judged” (Matt. 7:1).
As one of our society’s most popular verses, it is also one of the most misunderstood. Too many people, non-Christian and Christian, take Jesus’ words to be a blanket rejection of all moral evaluation. But given that Jesus alludes to his opponents as dogs and pigs five verses later, it’s safe to think Jesus wasn’t condemning every kind of judgment. We see from the rest of the Gospel that Matthew 7:1 is not inconsistent with strong criticisms, negative statements, church discipline, and warnings about hell. Judgmentalism is not the same as making ethical and doctrinal demands or believing others to be wrong.
And yet, after all the necessary qualifications, we must not mute this important command. As sinners, we are apt to assume the worst about people. We are eager to find favorable comparisons that make ourselves look good at the expense of others. We are quick to size people up and think we have them figured them out. But I have learned over the years–both as the giver and receiver of judgmental assumptions–that it’s best not to assume.
Don’t assume you know all the facts after hearing one side of the story.
Don’t assume the person is guilty just because strong charges are made against him.
Don’t assume you understand a blogger’s heart after reading one post.
Don’t assume that famous author, preacher, athlete, politician, or local celebrity won’t read what you write and don’t assume they won’t care what you say.
Don’t assume the divorced person is to blame for the divorce.
Don’t assume the single mom isn’t following Jesus.
Don’t assume the guy from the Mission is less of a man or less of a Christian.
Don’t assume the pastor looking for work is a bad pastor.
Don’t assume the church that struggles or fails is a bad church.
Don’t assume you’d be a better mom.
Don’t assume bad kids are the result of bad parents.
Don’t assume your parents are clueless.
Don’t assume everyone should drop everything to attend to your needs, and don’t assume no one will.
Don’t assume the rich are ungenerous.
Don’t assume the poor are lazy.
Don’t assume you know what they are all like after meeting one or two of their kind.
Don’t assume you should read between the lines.
Don’t assume you have interpreted the emotions of the email correctly.
Don’t assume everyone has forgotten about you.
Don’t assume they meant to leave you off the list.
Don’t assume everyone else has a charmed life.
Don’t assume a bad day makes her a bad friend.
Don’t assume the repentance isn’t genuine.
Don’t assume the forgiveness isn’t sincere.
Don’t assume God can’t change you.
Don’t assume God can’t love you.
Don’t assume God can’t love them.
(gospel coalition)