Study Reveals Decline in Teen Pregnancies & Abortions

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a new study has revealed record drops in the rates of teenage pregnancies and abortion. According to the results, both abortion and teenage pregnancies have been steadily dropping since 1990. Overall, the total number of abortions fell 24 percent to 1.22 million in 2004 from a historical high of 1.61 million in 1990. Teenage pregnancies also declined during the same period, accounting for only 12 percent of all pregnancies in 2004 – a drop from 15 percent fourteen years earlier.

Stephanie Ventura, the lead researcher of the study, noted that among the reasons for a decline in abortion rates and teenage pregnancies was the overall decline in total pregnancies and a new tendency among women “to postpone child bearing and delay the start of their families.” Lower abortion rates reflect “a lot of different reasons: changes in access to abortion, changes in attitudes about having a baby and a decline in teenage pregnancies, which end in abortion in many cases,” she added, according to Bloomberg News.

More details in the original article on The Christian Post.

Christian Photographer Accused of ‘Discriminating’ Against Lesbian Couple

The Human Rights Commission of New Mexico ruled on Wednesday that an evangelical Christian photographer discriminated against a lesbian couple because he refused a job to photograph the couple’s same-sex commitment ceremony. The commission ordered Elaine and Jon Huenins, owners of Elane Photography in Albuquerque, N.M., to pay the lesbian couple $6,600 in attorney fees.

“It is just a stunning disregard for the First Amendment,” said Jordan Lorence, a senior legal counsel for the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Alliance Defense Fund, which is representing the photographer couple in court. “W e will appeal this ruling to state district court,” Lorence told Cybercast News Service.

A couple of observations. First of all, if the lesbian couple was only awarded what it cost to sue the photographer, then what is the point? It seems that the only benefactor here is the lawyer who sued. Secondly, am I susceptible to a future lawsuit because I won’t provide my business services to a web site promoting homosexuality for example because it conflicts with my religious beliefs? Ludicrous I say!

Church Ordered To Remove Controversial Anti-Liquor Advertisement

Waynesville town officials told a local church on Monday to take down an anti-liquor display featuring a car demolished in a deadly wreck because it broke local sign rules. The N.C. Highway Patrol even got involved, sending a trooper by twice to tell church leaders that the display in front of their building would be towed if it wasn’t moved from the public right of way.

The church’s pastor said the real reason wasn’t the law but politics. “This is about the mayor and the Board of Aldermen,” said the Rev. Jack Holland, of Barberville Baptist Church on Russ Avenue. “They just wanted it out of the public view. It is just part of the spiritual warfare.”

The advertisement urges people to vote against “liquor by the drink” in the May 6 referendum. Church member Jerry Hightower hopes the church’s message sinks in with voters. “We hope people will look at it and realize what liquor can do or what drinking can do, not just liquor but any type of alcohol,” he said. “When it’s consumed to the body, the body don’t think, the mind don’t think.”

Kenneth Copeland Ministries Refuses To Cooperate In Senate Probe Targeting ‘Prosperity’ Christians

Kenneth Copeland Ministries, one of six mega-churches at the center of a U.S. Senate Finance Committee investigation, has informed the committee that it will not cooperate with the probe, citing its concerns about the government targeting certain Christian churches, as well as concerns about privacy and potential First Amendment violations.

“The church is deeply concerned that the information Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is seeking could be used to subject the church and its members to public stigma, scorn, and obloquy,” Lawrence Swicegood, communications director for Kenneth Copeland Ministries (KCM), said in a letter responding to the committee’s request for a range of financial data and other information, including the names and addresses of board members and the names and addresses of people responsible for the church’s audio and video production.

So, is this a case of government prying too deeply into private religion or large profitable ministries not being fully accountable for the funds they receive? Or one could also ask when does a “non-profit” ministry that is not subject to income tax become a “for-profit business” that is subject to income tax?

He Is Risen! Happy Resurrection Day (Easter)

He is risen!

Matthew 28:1-7:

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

It was one thing that Jesus was crucified for all the word’s sins. It is another that He rose from the dead. By Jesus’ act of offering up His life on Calvary’s cross, our sins can be forgiven. The fact that He rose again after the crucifixion shows us that we too can have new life.

What this means is that we do not have to be the same. For myself, it means that I no longer have to be a drug addict, a thief and a liar, a person without hope and without purpose. In the same way Jesus died on the cross, my old man or sinful nature died with Him. In the same way he rose again, I too have risen in newness of life. In other words I am no longer that former person I was before I met Christ. I am a brand new creature in Christ and now I can not only be orgiven my past, but I can walk in the power of His love.

While many celebrate Easter with bunnies, candy and egg hunts or even take it as an opportunity to vacation or participate in some recreational activities, let us who call ourselves Christians remember that He is risen. We do not serve a dead deity or a faceless name in a book. We serve a living and powerful God, Who has given us the opportunity to start over if you will - the opportunity to erase the mistakes of our past and start afresh in a new life with Him. Praise be to God that He is risen!

Catch Up On Audio Sermons

Where has the time gone? I’m a bit behind on updating the Audio Teachings section of our site. The good news is that it has just been updated. I typically like to accompany updates to that section with a summary here on the blog of what each sermon contains.

Seeing that I got a bit behind, I’m going to include links to the five messages that were just added with a summary of what each message is about. Here we go.

• Repentance
  No matter how bad I mess up my life it can be repaired! The changes you seek, need, want are yours through repentance. The Gospel is an untapped power in your life unless released through repentance. Psalm 51 is a Psalm of repentance.

• Idolatry
  What’s wrong with the human race? Why are we so messed up? Our Problem is sin! Sin is giving my heart to anyone or anything more than God, which is idolatry.

• Pride
  What’s wrong with the human race? Why are we so messed up? World’s answer: Man is basically good and his problem is biology, or sociology, or psychology (Humanism). God’s answer: Spiritual – our problem is sin! The essence of sin is pride. Pride is an inaccurate and inflated view of my self. Pride is trying to fill the emptiness inside apart from God.

• Distrust
  Sin is not so much a violation of a list of rules as it is a distrust of God. We violate the list of rules in direct proportion to our distrust of God.

• Skin
  Our self-image is the compass we use to follow the life map that has been laid before us. With an unhealthy self-image we will find ourselves lost trying to live a life we were never intended to live. God has a better way.

There you have. We are now all caught up! Enjoy.

Note: You will need a player such as Real Audio Player or Microsoft Windows Media Player to listen to the audio teachings and Adobe Reader to open sermon notes. You most likely have these applications already installed on your computer but if not, they are free to download form each respective site.

California Home-Schooling Ruling Is An ‘Assault on the Family’

From Crosswalk.com, a ruling by a California appeals court that parents “do not have a constitutional right to home-school their children” drew harsh criticism from religious conservatives on Friday, one of whom said the decision makes tens of thousands of parents into criminals - “the equivalent to drug dealers or pick-pockets.”

“The court is guilty of an imperious assault on the rights of parents,” James Dobson, chairman of Focus on the Family, said in a press release responding to a three-judge panel from the 2nd District Court of Appeals, which ruled on Feb. 28 that parents without teaching credentials cannot home-school their children. He goes on to say, “How dare these judges have the audacity to label tens of thousands of parents as criminals - the equivalent to drug dealers or pick-pockets - because they want to raise and educate their children according to their deeply held values.”

The article points out that one of the main reasons for the case involves a Southern California couple who home-schooled their children through a program at the Sunland Christian School in Sylmar. The family came to the attention of Los Angeles County social workers when one of the children claimed the father was physically abusive. It was then discovered that all eight children in the family were home-schooled, and an attorney representing the two youngest children asked the Juvenile Dependency Court to order that they be enrolled in public or private school to protect their well-being.

Parents who fail to comply with school enrollment laws “may be subject to a criminal complaint against them, found guilty of an infraction and subject to imposition of fines or an order to complete a parent education and counseling program,” wrote Justice H. Walter Croskey, whose decision was joined by the other two members of the panel.

But the case before the judges “involved one couple - the ruling should have been confined to that one couple, not used to punish an entire class of people, the vast majority of them religious conservatives,” Dobson said.

Some have the opinion that many home schools are run by well-meaning but gullible parents, including those who educate their children according to their “religious convictions” and see home-schooling as the best way to combat our nation’s “ungodly” public schools. However, these parents are really not qualified to teach and would be wise to help their children and themselves by leaving the responsibility of teaching math, science, art, writing, history, geography and other subjects to those who are knowledgeable, trained and motivated to do the best job possible.

I can see their point but to classify “all” parents who home school as criminals is just wrong and in reality is an attack of the family.  Rather laws should be focused on making sure that parents who wish to home school are qualified  as opposed to removing their right to home school altogether.

This is especially important seeing that public schools are becoming more liberal all the time, teaching not only the fundamentals (reading, writing and math) but trying to incorporate  sexual education, theories of evolution, homosexuality as a choice and other non-Christian ideals.

Dobson noted that he views the court’s decision an all-out assault on the family, and it must be met with a concerted effort to defend parents and their children. “We will team with key allies and use every means at our disposal to make sure that not just every Californian, but every American, is aware of this miscarriage of justice,” Dobson said. “And we’re hopeful that, in the end, common sense and legal sanity will prevail.”

That battle may not be far off, since Phillip Long - the father in the original case - has already vowed to appeal the decision to the state Supreme Court. “I have sincerely held religious beliefs,” he told the Los Angeles Times on Thursday. “Public schools conflict with that. I have to go with what my conscience requires me to do.”

Another legal showdown we as Christians will want to keep an eye on as we continue to see our values attached through the legal process.

Fighting To Make A Difference

“Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.” - II Timothy 2:3-4

The Word of God is full of promises and blessings. Its pages contain the plan of salvation and allow us to see God’s grace, His mercy, and His everlasting loving-kindness. It is a book of commandments and instruction. It tells us of what is to come that we may prepare and of what has already been done so we may learn from past mistakes. With all that said, we cannot overlook the indisputable fact that the Word of God is also a book of war. It is a book that is full of blood.

In II Timothy 2:3-4, we see Paul giving instructions to Timothy concerning the duty of a soldier. In fact, throughout Paul’s writings, we see a consistent pattern of referring to Christianity in “warlike” terms. Statements like “we can conquer through Him who loved us” and “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds” are just a couple of examples. He tells us to “put on the full armor of God that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” At the end of his life he says, “I have fought the good fight of faith. I have finished the course.”

Throughout the Bible, we see character after character who fought and engaged in battle for the advancement of the kingdom of God. There’s Joshua and the children of Israel conquering the promised land, Gideon and his three hundred men, Jonathan and the Philistines, David and Goliath, Elijah and the prophets of Baal, and many more examples.

In Hebrews we see these words penned:

And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, in order that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.

If this is the heritage of those who have gone before us, then it ought to be ours as well. This is even more true for us because we are in the very end of the age, right before the second coming of Christ, where it is more important than ever to advance the kingdom of our God into all of the earth. Many might look at Christianity as some kind of social club but in reality it is God’s army and we are soldiers enlisted for battle.

A.W. Tozer said, “Yes, we want to forget that most of God’s people in the early days of the church did not have the peace of mind. They did not seek it. They knew that a soldier does not go to the battlefield to relax - he goes there to fight!”

The Call To Fight

Every Christian is called to fight. I remember when I first realized this and took up the challenge and how it revolutionized my life. It gave my Christianity real meaning and purpose and not merely something to satisfy myself. It changed my prayer life. It changed the way I viewed church attendance. It changed the way I viewed evangelism, because I realized that this thing was real. It was life or death, for myself and those in my sphere of influence.

Ephesians 6:11-12 stays, “Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Note the following observations:

1. This letter was written to all of the Christians at Ephesus, not just the elite.
2. The devil has schemes.
3. There is a battle — and it is not with each other.

The Mindset of a Soldier

The difference between a soldier and a civilian is this - the soldier understands that the battle is raging all around him. He understands that at any moment, he may be called to fight yet another battle, either for himself or those around him. The soldier understands that he must stay in top physical condition so that he may be able to destroy his enemy. The civilian does not posses the same mindset.

In the kingdom of God there are soldiers and there are “spectators.” The soldiers are actively involved in advancing God’s kingdom while the spectator is watching. In the church today, there are far to many spectators. They are more interested in fighting each other than the devil. They are more interested in tasting sermons than allowing sermons to mold them. They are Sunday Christians, totally blind to the spiritual realm and the war going on around them. They often don’t sense the battle because there is no battle against them - the devil doesn’t kick a dead dog.

John Maxwell described these Christians as such:

“Allow me to define fat. It involves scores of passive parishioners sitting week after week, soaking up what is in some cases gourmet preaching, but who are still infected with a disease called “spectatorism.” This mass of untapped potential is generally educated far beyond their level of obedience, and is not translating Christian theory into practice. Spectatorism generally creates flabby, weak, spoon-fed believers who have grown old, but not up, in the Lord. They know more about church policy than evangelism, and are better acquainted with parliamentary procedure than with discipleship.”

Choosing the Right Battlefield

It is not that Christians do not fight for things but all too often it is on the wrong battlefield. In fact, here are a few issues, that while noble, are on the wrong battelfield:

1. The abortion issue
2. The Disney boycott
3. The political fight Christian (Republicans) vs. Democrats
4. Saint vs. Saint

The Right Battlefield - Souls (yours & others)

God is interested in one thing - souls, yours, mine, and especially those out there who have not been won to Him yet. He has saved us so we could know Him and make heaven our home. He has left us here for one reason - those “other” souls.

The Bible says that Satan is the prince and power of the air. What we see therefore is that God has placed us right behind enemy lines in order that we might set the captives free. This is the Christian’s battlefield then - his own soul and those around him. The soldier sees every non-Christian soul as “conquerable territory.” He sees fellow Christians as territory subject to attack. So the soldier is constantly watching and waiting for open opportunities to conquer and situations where conquered territory is under attack.

1.) We Should Get Involved With a Local Church

“We ought to regard the church not as a luxurious hostelry where Christian gentlemen may each one dwell at ease in his own inn, but as a barracks in which soldiers are gathered together to be drilled and trained for war. We should regard the church not as an association for mutual admiration and comfort, but as an army with banners, marching to the fray, to achieve victories for Christ, to storm the strongholds of the foe, and to add province after province to the redeemer’s kingdom.” - Charles Spurgeon

2.) It Is Everyone’s Job To Follow Up On Other Christians

Napoleon conquered many territories in his day. Whenever he did so, he set up a government and developed the country into a better place. This was his specialty; not only his military might, but his ability to govern and better yet appoint others to assist him in developing the conquered territory. Those he appointed did well in their positions because of their love for Napoleon.

The question we must ask ourselves is this: If Napoleon’s men could do it for him, can we not do it for Jesus?

The Daily Duties of a Soldier

1.) Discipline in Prayer - Prayer is our spiritual exercise. It is where we actually fight the battle that is on our knees.

A couple of quotes remind us of the importance of prayer.

“The explanation is that prayer is not primarily God’s way of getting things done. It is God’s way of giving the church ‘on the job training’ in overcoming the forces hostile to God.”

“The prayer closet is the arena which produces the overcomer.” - Paul E. Billheimer

Prayer reminds us of our dependency on God. It reminds us that the battle is the Lord’s. It reminds us that the battle is spiritual and not in the flesh. It disciplines our lives.

2.) Read the Word - This is where we receive our instruction. This is where we learn about our weapons. It is where we learn about our enemy.

3.) Go to Battle

Audio Sermon: Skin

Our self-image is the compass we use to follow the life map that has been laid before us. With an unhealthy self-image we will find ourselves lost trying to live a life we were never intended to live. God has a better way.

In this message, Associate Pastor, Scott Fameli covers three points regarding our self image:

1. Defining Healthy Self-Image - A healthy self-image can only be found by reconciling my realities with the truth – my life past, present and future.
2. Enduring the Demands of Reality - My self image must be fortified by faith.
3. Building a Healthy Self-Image - I must realize a healthy self-image is based on the truth of who God is, who God says I am and what I do with it.

Click here to listen to sermon in audio format.

Note: You will need a player such as Real Audio Player or Microsoft Windows Media Player to listen to the audio teachings and Adobe Reader to open sermon notes. You most likely have these applications already installed on your computer but if not, they are free to download form each respective site.

How Does the Church Handle Crisis Communication?

If you have been in a church for any length of time, you have no doubt seen or experienced first hand a crisis. Things like the pastor retiring, interpersonal conflict among members, moral failure of church leaders and even changing the color of the carpet can lead to a crisis. While such crisis situations will come, the real test is how will the church handle them. Is there a plan in place or do most churches just try to cope with them as they occur?

That is what Karen Legg, a Ph.D. student at Regent University aims to discover with a survey she is conducting. As the Christian daughter of a pastor and a church member of more than twenty five years, Karen is looking to discover what types of crises occur in the local church and how they are managed.

“My research in crisis communication indicates that most public relations specialists either do not mention the church setting (which is most common), or they assume there is no difference between the church and other organizations in the types of crises that occur or the way they should be handled,” says Karen. She goes on to say, “Furthermore, a pilot study I conducted on this topic a few years ago indicated that a shockingly large number of churches had not prepared for future crises, and those that had, had based their plans on a business model of crisis management and communication. I believe there are important, fundamental differences between churches and other organizations, and I hope to illustrate this fact through my research.”

The survey she has put together has the following goals:

• Find out from pastors what types of crises they have experienced

• How often each crisis has occurred

• What is unique about the church environment as it relates to handling and communicating in a crisis

• How they view the role of media in a crisis

• To what extent they have planned for future crisis scenarios.

She believes that this information will prove quite valuable to both scholars and church leaders in helping them to plan and manage future crisis situations.

So, if you are in a pastoral position, I would encourage you to take a few moments and complete the survey. It will take about 10-15 minutes of your time and may even bring to light some issues you haven’t planned for should a crisis occur in your church.

Survey located at:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=pORRlm05v81hRIRZNsESUA_3d_3d