JOSHUA TIME 864

FROM A MYSPACE BULLETIN

Why Do Evangelicals Ignore Ron Paul?
Body: Why Do Evangelicals Ignore Ron Paul?


by Chuck Baldwin

Evangelical Christians are already beginning the process of selecting the Republican presidential candidate whom they can anoint as their successor to George W. Bush. Somehow, evangelicals have this deluded idea that President Bush is one of them. How they came to this delusion both fascinates and escapes me. Bush is anything but one of them. However, most evangelicals believe he is, and today it seems that illusion is greater than reality, anyway. Bush proves that more than anyone I have ever known. But enough about Bush.

The question burning in the minds of evangelicals today is: Which Republican candidate for president will we anoint? There are several possibilities, but apparently Congressman Ron Paul is not one of them.

For example, Jerry Falwell's widely distributed National Liberty Journal, in its March 2007 edition, had a major section entitled "Campaign 2008-Identifying the Republican Presidential Candidates." A total of ten Republicans made the Journal's list. The ten listed were Sen. Sam Brownback, Newt Gingrich, Rudy Giuliani, Sen. Chuck Hagel, Gov. Mike Huckabee, Rep. Duncan Hunter, Sen. John McCain, Gov. George Pataki, Gov. Mitt Romney, and Rep. Tom Tancredo.

However, even though Rep. Ron Paul has also formed a presidential exploratory committee (something Gingrich has not even done yet), his name was conspicuously absent from Falwell's list. Why is this? Why do evangelicals ignore Ron Paul?

Ron Paul received his Bachelor's degree from Gettysburg College. He received his MD from Duke University. He began his OB/GYN career in 1968. He was also an Air Force Captain and a member of the Air National Guard.

Ron Paul has served as a conservative congressman from Texas for over 16 years. He currently has a 100% rating from The Conservative Index, which is probably the most relevant and accurate reflection of a congressman's true conservative record out there.

Furthermore, unlike most Republicans, Paul's commitment to the life issue is more than rhetoric. For example, during the 2005 congressional session, Rep. Paul introduced H.R. 776, entitled the "Sanctity of Life Act of 2005."

Had it passed, H.R. 776 would have recognized the personhood of all unborn babies by declaring, "human life shall be deemed to exist from conception." The bill also recognized the authority of each State to protect the lives of unborn children. In addition, H.R. 776 would have removed abortion from the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, thereby nullifying the Roe v Wade decision, and would have denied funding for abortion providers. In plain language, H.R. 776 would have ended abortion on demand. (It is more than interesting to me that none of the evangelicals' pet politicians, including George W. Bush, even bothered to support Paul's pro-life bill.)

In addition, Ron Paul has been the most outspoken defender of constitutional government in the entire congress-bar none. He has often stood virtually alone against federal abuse of power, corruption, and big government.

Currently, Ron Paul is one of only a handful of congressmen that dares speak out against the emerging North American Union, NAFTA superhighway, and the Security and Prosperity Partnership agreement, all of which are being promoted by the White House in concert with the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR).

Speaking of the CFR, two of the U.S. senators listed as presidential candidates in Jerry Falwell's Liberty Journal, Chuck Hagel and John McCain, are current members of the CFR.

For his entire political career, Ron Paul has served foursquare upon the principles of constitutional (limited) government, less taxation, right to life, and personal liberty. Ron Paul is a conservative's conservative, a principled constitutionalist of the finest order. How is it, then, that Jerry Falwell and other evangelicals ignore him?

The answer to the above question is not easy to determine. Maybe today's evangelicals are more concerned about being accepted by the GOP establishment than they are supporting principled, conservative candidates. After all, Paul's willingness to openly oppose his own party has caused him to be blacklisted by party loyalists and apologists. Therefore, it might be that our illustrious evangelical leaders are unwilling to be identified with Paul lest they share the same ostracism.

Another reason might be that today's evangelicals are extremely shallow in their discernment. They seem to love Republican candidates who wear religion on their sleeve. Whether the candidate walks the walk does not seem to matter near as much as whether he talks the talk.

Hence, evangelicals are already warming up to John McCain, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, and even to Rudy Giuliani. Falwell's National Liberty Journal (NLJ) calls Gingrich "a true American statesman." McCain is called "pro-life." Already, McCain has spoken for Dr. Falwell at his Liberty University. (Don't be surprised if Falwell becomes one of McCain's strongest proponents.) The NLJ quotes Evangelicals for Mitt as saying, "Gov. Romney . . . shares our values." Of Giuliani, NLJ states, "On issues such as national security, battling terrorism and combating crime, Mr. Giuliani is very popular with conservatives."

However, the truth is, neither Gingrich, Giuliani, Romney, nor McCain deserves the support of principled conservatives. Each of these men has numerous examples of failure and compromise of essential conservative values.

Another trap evangelicals seem to fall into is the puerile desire to "pick a winner." Wanting to be sure that they are seen dancing with the last man on the floor, evangelicals are trying to figure out who that man will be so as to be ready to receive their invitation to the dance. And since they don't expect to see Ron Paul issuing dance invitations, they have already written him off.

However, rather than letting themselves be used as dupes by the GOP machine, if America's evangelicals would determine to stand on principle by supporting only those candidates who most courageously champion our principles (regardless of their popularity, or lack thereof, with the Republican hierarchy), they might actually be able to bring real change to American politics.

As it is, evangelicals continue to call George W. Bush "one of us," they continue to drink Kool Aid from the faucet of Republican propaganda, and they continue to ignore Ron Paul.

(c) Chuck Baldwin


http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/23154.html

JOSHUA TIME 863

THINGS I'VE LEARNED ABOUT LIVING IN KENTUCKY > >
Possums sleep in the middle of the road with their feet in the air. >
There are 5,000 types of snakes and 4,998 live in Kentucky. >
There are 10,000 types of spiders. All 10,000 live in Kentucky plus a couple
no one's seen before. >
If it grows, it sticks; if it crawls, it bites. >
Onced and twiced are words. >
It is not a shopping cart; it is a buggy. >
People actually grow and eat okra. >
Fixinto is one word. >
There is no such thing as "lunch." There is only dinner and then there is
supper. >
Iced tea is appropriate for all meals and you start drinking it when you're
two. We do like a little tea with our sugar! >
Backards and forwards means "I know everything about you." >
"DJeet?" is actually a phrase meaning "Did yo u eat?" > >
You don't have to wear a watch because it doesn't matter what time it is. You
work until you're done or it's too dark to see. >
You don't PUSH buttons, you MASH them. > >

YOU KNOW YOU'RE FROM KENTUCKY IF: > >
You measure distance in minutes. >
You've ever had to switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day. >
You use "fix" as a verb. Example: "I'm fixing to go to the store." >
All the festivals across the state are named after a fruit, vegetable, grain,
insect or animal. >
You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.
>
You know what a "DAWG" is. >
You carry jumper cables in your car . . . for your OWN car. >
You only own four spices: salt, pepper, Tabasco and ketchup. >
The local papers cover national and international news on one page, but
require 6 pages for local gossip and sports. >
You think that the first day of deer season is a national holiday. >
You find 100 degrees Fahrenheit "a little warm." >
You know all four seasons: Almost Summer, Summer, still Summer and Christmas.
>
Going to Wal-mart is a favorite past time known as "goin' Wal-martin" or off
to "Wally World." >
You describe the first cool snap (below 70 degrees) as good pinto-bean
weather. >
A carbonated soft drink isn't a soda, cola or pop. . it's Coke, regardless of
brand or flavor. Example: "What kinda coke you want?" >
Fried catfish is the other white meat. >
We don't need no stinking driver's ed . . . if our mama says we can drive, we
can drive. >
You understand these jokes and forward them to your friends from Kentucky (and
those who just wish they were). >
Not EVERYONE can be a Kentuckian; it's an art form and a gift from God!

--

JOSHUA TIME 862

JESUS LOVES ME







Many years ago, while watching a little TV on Sunday instead of going to church, I watched a Church in Atlanta honoring one of it's senior pastors who had been retired many years...
He was 92 at that time and I wondered why the Church even bothered to ask the old gentleman to preach at that age. After a warm welcome, introduction of this speaker, as the applause quieted down, He rose from his high back chair and walked slowly, with great effort and a sliding gate to the podium....Without a note or written paper of any kind, he placed both hands on the pulpit to steady himself and then quietly and slowly he began to speak....
"When I was asked to come here today and talk to you, your pastor asked me to tell you what was the greatest lesson ever learned in my 50 odd years of preaching.....I thought about it for a few days and boiled it down to just one thing that made the most difference in my life and sustained me through all my trials. The one thing that I could always rely on when tears and heart break and pain and fear and sorrow paralyzed me......The only thing that would comfort was this verse..........
"Jesus loves me this I know. For the Bible tells me so. Little ones to him belong, we are weak but he is strong.....Yes, Jesus loves me...The Bible tells me so." When he finished, the church was quiet.
You actually could hear his foot steps as he shuffled back to his chair. I don't believe I will ever forget it.


Senior version of Jesus Loves Me
A pastor once stated, "I always noticed that its was the adults who chose the children's hymn 'Jesus Loves Me' (for the children of course) during a hymn sing, and it was the adults who sang the loudest because I could see they knew it the best."
Here is a new version just for us who have white hair, or no hair at all.
For us over middle age (or even those almost there) and all you others....Check out this newest version of "Jesus Loves Me". It is quite cute, so read, sing and enjoy:"


JESUS LOVES ME
Jesus loves me, this I know,
Though my hair is white as snow.
Though my sight is growing dim,
Still He bids me trust in Him.
(CHORUS)
YES, JESUS LOVES ME... YES, JESUS LOVES ME...
YES, JESUS LOVES ME FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO.

Though my steps are oh, so slow,
With my hand in His I'll go.
On through life, let come what may,
He'll be there to lead the way.
(CHORUS)
Though I am no longer young,
I have much which He's begun.
Let me serve Christ with a smile,
Go with others the extra mile.
(CHORUS)
When the nights are dark and long,
In my heart He puts a song.
Telling me in words so clear,
"Have no fear, for I am near."
(CHORUS)
When my work on earth is done,
And life's victories have been won.
He will take me home above,
Then I'll understand His love
(CHORUS)
I love Jesus, does He know?
Have I ever told Him so?
Jesus loves to hear me say,
That I love Him every day.


If you think this is neat, please pass it on to your friends.
If you do not pass it on, nothing bad will happen, but you will have missed an opportunity to "Reach out and Touch" a friend or a loved one.

JOSHUA TIME 861

THE BELL
I KNOW WHO I AM
I am God's child (John 1:12)
I am Christ's friend (John 15:15)
I am united with the Lord(1 Cor. 6:17)
I am bought with a price(1 Cor. 6:19-20)
I am a saint (set apart for God). (Eph. 1:1)
I am a personal witness of Christ (Acts 1:8)
I am the salt & light of the earth (Matt.5:13-14)
I am a member of the body of Christ(1 Cor 12:27)
I am free forever from condemnation (Rom. 8: 1-2)
I am a citizen of Heaven. I am significant (Phil.3:20)
I am free from any charge against me (Rom. 8:31-34)
I am a minister of reconciliation for God(2 Cor.5:17-21)
I have access to God through the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:18)
I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms (Eph. 2:6)
I cannot be separated from the love of God(Rom.8:35-39)
I am established, anointed, sealed by God (2 Cor.1:21-22)
I am assured all things work together for good (Rom. 8: 28)
I have been chosen and appointed to bear fruit (John 15:16)
I may approach God with freedom and confidence (Eph. 3: 12)
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13)
I am the branch of the true vine, a channel of His life (John 15: 1-5)
I am God's temple (1 Cor. 3: 16). I am complete in Christ (Col. 2: 10)
I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3). I have been justified (Romans 5:1)
I am God's co-worker (1 Cor. 3:9; 2 Cor 6:1). I am God's workmanship(Eph. 2:10)
I am confident that the good works God has begun in me will be perfected (Phil. 1: 5)
I have been redeemed and forgiven (Col. 1:14). I have been adopted as God's child(Eph 1:5)
I belong to God
Do you know
Who you are!?


Please Keep This Bell Ringing...!

JOSHUA TIME 860

Little Red Hen Modernized ...

Once upon a time, on a farm in Texas , there was a little red hen who scratched about the barnyard until she uncovered quite a few grains of wheat. She called all of her neighbors together and said, "If we plant this wheat, we shall have bread to eat. Who will help me plant it?"



"Not I," said the cow.



"Not I," said the duck.



"Not I," said the pig.



"Not I," said the goose.



"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen And so she did; The wheat grew very tall and ripened into golden grain. "Who will help me reap my wheat?" asked the little red hen.



"Not I," said the duck.



"Out of my classification," said the pig.



"I'd lose my seniority," said the cow.



"I'd lose my unemployment compensation," said the goose.



"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen, and so she did.
At last it came time to bake the bread.



"Who will help me bake the bread! ?" asked the little red hen.



"That would be overtime for me," said the cow.



"I'd lose my welfare benefits," said the duck.



"I'm a dropout and never learned how," said the pig.



"If I'm to be the only helper, that's discrimination," said the goose.



"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen. She baked five loaves and held them up for all of her neighbors to see. They wanted some and, in fact, demanded a share. But the little red hen said, "No, I shall eat all five loaves."



"Excess profits!" cried the cow. (Pelosi)



"Capitalist leech!" screamed the duck. (Boxer)



"I demand equal rights!" yelled the goose. (J. Jackson)



The pig just grunted in disdain. (A. Sharpton)



And they all painted "Unfair!" picket signs and marched around and around the little red hen, shouting obscenities.



Then a government agent came, he said to the little red hen, "You must not be so greedy."



"But I earned the bread," said the little red hen.



"Exactly," said the agent. "That is what makes our free enterprise system so wonderful. Anyone in the barnyard can earn as much as he wants.
But under our modern government regulations, the productive workers must divide the fruits of their labor with those who are lazy and idle,"



And they all lived happily ever after, including the little red hen, who smiled and clucked, "I am grateful, for now I truly understand,"



But her neighbors became quite disappointed in her. She never again baked bread because she joined the "party" and got her bread free.



And all the Democrats smiled. 'Fairness' had been established.
Individual initiative had died, but nobody noticed; perhaps no one cared.....as long as there was free bread that "the rich" were paying for.



Bill Clinton is getting $12 million for his memoirs.



Hillary got $8 million for hers.



That's $20 million for memories from two people, who for eight years, repeatedly testified, under oath, that they couldn't remember anything.



IS THIS A GREAT COUNTRY, OR WHAT?

JOSHUA TIME 859

Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end,
Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.

And I never see my old friends face,
For life is a swift and terrible race,
He knows I like him just as well,
As in the days when I rang his bell.
And he rang mine but we were younger then,
And now we are busy, tired men.

Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name.
"Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on Jim
Just to show that I'm thinking of him."
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
And distance between us grows and grows.
Around the corner, yet miles away,
"Here's a telegram sir," "Jim died today."
And that's what we get and deserve in the end.




Around the corner, a vanished friend.
Remember to always say what you mean.
If you
love someone, tell them.
Don't be afraid to express yourself.
Reach out and tell someone what they mean to you.
Because when you decide that it is the right time it might be too late. Seize the day. Never have regrets







And most importantly, stay close to your friends
and family, for they have helped
make you the person that you are today.
SMILE, even through your
tears!!!!!

JOSHUA TIME 858

FROM MYSPACE BULLETIN

Homeland Security Warns of Increased Summertime Al Qaeda Thr
Body: Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff Warns of Increased Summertime Al Qaeda Threat
Wednesday, July 11, 2007



WASHINGTON —

U.S. counterterror officials are warning of an increased risk of an attack this summer, given Al Qaeda's apparent interest in summertime strikes and increased Al Qaeda training in the Afghan-Pakistani border region.

On Tuesday, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told the editorial board of The Chicago Tribune that he had a "gut feeling" about a new period of increased risk.

He based his assessment on earlier patterns of terrorists in Europe and intelligence he would not disclose.

"Summertime seems to be appealing to them," Chertoff said in his discussion with the newspaper about terrorists. "We worry that they are rebuilding their activities."

Click here to read The Chicago Tribune article.

Other U.S. counterterrorism officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, shared Chertoff's concern and said that Al Qaeda and like-minded groups have been able to plot and train more freely in the tribal areas along the Afghan-Pakistani border in recent months. Osama bin Laden and his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, are believed to be hiding in the rugged region.

"The threat coming out of there is very real, even if there aren't a lot of specifics attached to it," one of the officials said.

Chertoff's department has not made any move to increase the nation's color-coded terror alert system. Now, airlines are under orange — or high — alert, which is the second most serious level on a five-point scale. The rest of the country remains a step below at yellow, or elevated.

Chertoff said he is convinced that terrorists are regrouping. "Our edge is technology and the vigilance of the ordinary citizen," he said.

The secretary also urged Americans to be watchful for suspicious activities in the wake of recent terror incidents in England and Scotland. On June 29, two cars packed with gas cylinders and nails were discovered in London's entertainment district. The next day, two extremists smashed their flaming Jeep Cherokee into security barriers at Glasgow Airport's main terminal.

Al Qaeda and its sympathizers have shown an interest in summertime attacks. Some examples from recent years:

— In 2005, London faced two separate sets of transit attacks. The July 7 attacks on three trains and a bus killed 52. A second attack on July 21 was bungled when the detonators failed to light the explosives.

— Last summer, international counterterror authorities said they foiled a plot to use liquid explosives to take down roughly 10 U.S.-bound airliners leaving Britain.