My "Trip" to Peru

OK, I just got back yesterday from a trip to Peru with Compassion International. Compassion is beginning to team up with churches and wanted to have some ministers go and see what the programs look like on the ground in the countries where Compassion works. I was vry fortunate to go on this trip to Lima, Peru from Monday to Saturday(or in my case, Tues-Sat You will learn why in a second.) There are really two main parts of my trip that I want to blog about. I wanted to do them separately, because neither one is connected to the other. Sandwiching one of the most amazing weeks of my life was one of the most frustrating travel experiences of my life. I want to talk about the travel first, because that is simply factual and not the result of introspection. In all honestly, a trip that may be as life-changing as this one was is not ready to be constrained to words yet. My travel experience in no way affected the impact of the trip on me. I just think the story is worth telling.

I got to the ATL airport on Monday in plenty of time to make my 12:30 departure time on that morning. I knew that my turnaround in Houston was short, but I thought that I would certainly make my 3:55 flight to Peru with the rest of the team. Due to weather in both Atlanta and Houston, the flight wsa delayed by 2 1/2 hours. I knew by the time we took off that I would miss the flght, but all I could do was go on. I arrive on the ground in Houston at 4:30 CT, having missed my 3:55 flight. I went straight to the Continental desk to see what my options were. Turns out that someone in ATL had booked me on a straight flight from ATL to Lima getting there about the same time as the other flight. The problem was that no one had bothered to tell me about it. Ironically enough, the 3:55 flight was still on the runway in Houston and was an hour late leaving, so I guess we all did make it to the airport at the same time. Since there is only one fight from Houston to Peru a day, I had no choice but to get a hotel in Houston and wait until Tuesday to fly down. I missed an entire day in Peru, but I did roll in at 10:30 Tuesday to be greeted by the trip director Ronnie Brown. A local pastor has bought his van and we had to push it to get the van started. Seriously, was there no transportation on this trip I didn't an adverse effect on?

So that was my getting there story. Surely, I thought that would be the end,but it turned out to be only half the story( and even the more boring). We were scheduled to leave Peru Friday night at 11:45. I knew that the turnaround time was very short and that I had to clear customs, get my bag, recheck it, go through security, AND change concourses. That was enough in the hour and a half I had, but we didn't even leave Lima until 12:30 a.m. Saturday morning. I had a half an hour when we touched down in Houston. I was busting it to get through Customs, when the homeland security officer asked me to step aside after he scanned my passport. With no apparent concern for my connecting flight, I was taken to a large room full of chairs and made to sit while a HSA officer worked with my passport and case. After a while, the agent(who was very nice, but still not concerned about my connection) came out and asked me to come into the office to answer some questions. She wanted to know what my parents names were and my SS#. As frustrated as I was, I simply asked her why I was being detained and she told that they were verifying my identity. I was sent back out to the big room and every so often the officer came back out to ask me a question, such as my place of birth or marital status. After 45 minutes, they finally agreed with me that I was who I said I was and I was released. Apparently, someone else with my name is somewhat suspicious and I paid the price.

Needless to say, my connecting flight home was long gone and I was 0 for 2 on connecting flights on this trip. I retrieved my bag and headed over to have it inspected. In Continental's defense, they were aware of the situation and had already rebooked me so that they handed me a new boarding pass when I picked up the bag. I was then subjected to the most thorough baggage check that I have ever seen. Everything in my carry on and regular was examined. Following that fun, I then had to go through security again, which was incredibly redundant. I did make the next flight out of Houston, but boy did my day get extended.

So, there is my travel story. Both legs made for excitement, but I did make it home. It sure made for an adventure, but wait until I post about the time in Peru. Let me just say that I would go through what I experienced again in a heartbeat to have the time that I did in Peru. I am just not ready to try and put that part into words just yet.

This is funny. Who knew even Sesame Street would get in on the healthcare debate? Actually, it was a spoof from Conan, but it is still quite amusing.

If My People

"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 will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

I have been thinking about this verse a lot today. It is resonating with me more in the last little while than it has before. Our country is very much at a crossroads. Many of us have grown used to living in a country that allows us to live pretty much as we want, but that is very much in danger as things are rapidly changing. People that have never been politically active are standing up to demand their freedom, pushed to the edge and feeling the need and urgency to do something. What is it that we have allowed to bring us to this point?

I was reminded today by a radio commentator that I greatly respect that we have allowed the government to be overrun by corruption. And before you read partisanship into that statement, it is rampant on BOTH sides of the aisle. Morals are thrown out, money and power is the ultimate goal. The government is crumbling from within and taking the country in its wake.

If any change is going to happen at all, corruption has to be rooted out. The idea that was floated by the radio host is to try and find 56 men that will stand up and help "re-found" the United States. That is same number of men that signed the Declaration of Independence. Surely, out of 535 reps and all the other people in D.C., 56 people are willing to put their "lives, fortunes and sacred honor" up for the world to see. They have to come forward.

Here is what is so beautiful. If these people are willing to forsake(confess) the things that they have done that are wrong, willing to root out the massive corruption in the government, then there can be hope. We CANNOT forget grace and redemption. There can be a second chance, but the past must be renounced and adherence to the virtues that founded America must be embraced. There is no other way to do this.

So that brings me back to the verse. God called His people to "humble themselves." Our leaders need to be reminded of what they should be doing. God called us to pray and seek His face. We need to seek His leadership for our country. We are also called to "turn from our wicked ways." Until corruption is eliminated from the personal and public lives of our leaders, we have no hope. But, when it is, through God's mercy, we can have direction and a hope for this nation.

Which One Is It?

I was flabbergasted last week to hear that President Obama had convened a conference call with various religious leaders to help get traction on his push for healthcare overhaul. I certainly don't mind that the president wants to involve religious leaders in his policies, but the event itself was opportunistic at best. Here is a link to a write-up of the event and some of the the things that PBO said.

PBO stated that some people, who he claims are propagandizing lies about his healthcare overhaul are "bearing false witness." Now, I know what he meant, but when is the last time that you actually said that someone bore false witness when you meant they lied? Really? That sounds a little like a contrived catchphrase, that was intended to hit that audience. A little too over the top for me.

PBO also stated that we have a "moral obligation" to insure that everyone has healthcare. Without spending time arguing the obvious fact that everyone already has access to health care in this country, I want to talk about the President's attempt to take on this mantle on as a moral leader. This is the same man who told Rick Warren, at the Saddleback event, that defining when a life began was "above his paygrade," yet voted against a bill in the Illinois senate that would protect babies born from a failed abortion attempt. Apparently, he knew then whether or not it was a life.

PBO also rescinded the Mexico City Policy, which kept foreign organizations that receive federal money (aka US tax money) from performing abortions. PBO doesn't have any problem allowing the US tax payers from having their money sent ( whether or not they find it abhorent) to fund abortions.

Finally, I have hard time following the moral leadership of a man that conspiciously failed to meet with religious leaders on the National Day of Prayer, a major event among the religious community in America. PBO did find time to meet with the LGBT pride groups and assure them that he was working hard on their behalf. The president himself said that you can judge him by the people that he associates himself with. In my eyes, his omission of the National Day of Prayer was a major mistake.

I have said all that to say this. I have seen mostly inconsistency in the message that the White House projects toward any sort of moral leadership on any issue. From my perspective, this meeting with the religious leaders is nothing more than an opportunistic chance to gather some help for his much(and rightly)-maligned health care overhaul plan. It concerns me that there are people that won't see that event for what it was.

Christians, Wake Up!!

"All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent."
-Thomas Jefferson


I have been struggling with an attitude that I am seeing more prevalently among my church friends and the church at large. I am sensing a slide into the fatalistic attitude of thinking that since God is control(which I firmly believe that He is), we don't need to worry about what is going on in our country. I have heard them say "Well, it's all in His hands, so I am just not going to worry about it." I cannot accept that that is a correct way to view our roles as citizens. I know that my allegiance is to a God that is bigger than any country, leader or movement, but time and time again, God has used individuals to shape His plan throughout history and I firmly believe that He wants to do the same today.

I think back to the story of Mordechai and Esther in the Bible. Mordechai learned of a plot to kill the jews and He came to Esther, because she had access to the king. He told her that perhaps she was born for such a time as this. (Could this be a reminder?)Esther determined in her heart that she would go see the king, even if it cost her life. I cannot imagine what would have happened if she had simply said, "Well, God is in control, so I will just ignore it and hope that somebodyelse does something about it." God could certainly had accomplished His will another way, but that was the way He had chosen.

Folks, we are losing our freedoms right and left. If you don't think so, look at this overview of the health plan(HR 3200). First, it forces us onto the gov't health plan, where our medical service is controlled completely by the gov't. That is scary enough for many reasons, but this plan also includes gov't sanctioned abortion and health care rationing. That means that your and my tax money will be going to help fund the ending of life. I cannot live with that. In my opinion, that should be enough to stand against this plan.

Look back to the cap and trade bill that the house snuck through late on a Friday afternoon when nobody was watching. Not only will that take money out of our pockets by increasing our energy expenses, it will make America less competitive on the global market and weaken us, both economically and militarily. This bill is a disaster for any country that loves freedom.

These may seem like relatively minor "freedoms' to give up and maybe you don't care. You think " I can live with that." Let me remind you that this is how liberty is lost. Remember what Benjamin Franklin said "Anyone who trades liberty for security deserves neither liberty nor security." Now is when we must stand up. If we don't, we may not have a voice later to speak out. Today, Hugo Chavez is stating that there can be no freedom of speech in Venezuela. You're thinking "Yeah, but that's those crazy Latin American countries." Remember, that not too long ago, Chavez praised what Obama had done to that point and joked with Castro, that they may end up on Obama's right. Don't think it can't happen here. We would lose our right to speak out against what we disbelieve and what we do believe.

And do not fool yourself into thinking that we couldn't lose our freedom to worship, one of America's hallmarks and something most of us, take for granted. The progressive movement, which is largely in power right now is tied closely to the idea of evolution, as they believe that man evolves and so does his form of gov't. The Constitution, that gives us our right to worship freely, is seen by progressives as an outdated document that needs to be scrapped. The very idea of the evolution of man is predicated on the idea of no God. Progressives have to hold tightly to that idea to succeed. The Founders rightly stated that we get our rights from God and we just loan them to the gov't. If the progressives can destroy the belief in God, then our rights can only come from the gov't, and we are enslaved. Keep in mind that attacks on the church have happened, but they are going to be seen more and more. Do you remember hearing about this? A measure was introduced the New Hampshire house to give the gov't oversight of the church's budget. It failed, but it will be back. And we will see them with more frequency and more intensity. The idea of a "crisis" is one of the ways that will be used to steal our freedom.

Martin Luther King, Jr once said "The hottest place in Hell is reserved for those who remain neutral in times of great moral conflict." I am aware that hell is only reserved for those who do not accept Christ as their one and only Savior, but his quote rings true in that God has called us to be watchmen, not only over his Body, the church, but the world He has placed us in. He has given us an amazing and wonderful country to live in and enjoy great freedom. But that freedom comes with great responsibility. We must be vigilant to attempts to usurp our God-given rights. They are being threatened today and we CANNOT remain neutral. For the sake of those that come after us and for the rest of the world, we may have been put here for "such a time as this."

I implore you to stand up and make your voice be heard. We cannot be loud enough. The time is drawing near.

Is This What We Have To Look Forward To?

We need to wake up and see what is going on. We may be headed to this if we don't do anything.

How Much Is A Life Worth?

To say that I am deeply concerned about Obama's healthcare proposal may be an understatement. As I understand the proposal, Obama wants to start a gov't backed plan to compete against the private insurers. My first thought is that the gov't should never be involved in what the private market can handle. The numbers being thrown about with 50 million uninsured is wildly overstated. The correct number is probably about 10 million when you take out the non-citizens and 18-30 years olds that opt not to have coverage. That's really only about 3% of the population. Yes, the health care in America can be better, but gov't is not the answer.

Assuming that the plan goes through, the gov't will have endless funding(thanks to us, the tax payers) and should have no problem putting the private insurers out of business. Or, as the media will report, "the private sector has failed." The ensuing "crisis" will them lead us to a single-payer system.

What happens then scares the mess out of me. What was once the best healthcare in the world will be another gov't run program. I challenge anyone to name one government program that is run well and not on the edge of collapse. It can't be done. Bloated gov't bureaucrats will start thinking in terms of finances and how to save costs, not what is best for the patient or preserving quality of life. Healthcare rationing is the obvious result.

This leads me to the question that haunts me in all of this. How do they draw the line at who will receive healthcare? At what point does it cease being cost-effective for the government to take care of someone? Who has the moral authority to make that decision? Is it when a person can no longer contribute to the collective or costs more to keep alive than the benefit they bring to the society? These are questions we should not be asking.

Here is where I radically differ from the progressives and their ideas on society. I am unashamedly a Christian. I know that I am made in the image of God. Every person is made in that image and their life is given sanctity. We are given our rights by God, not the gov't. This is why I am completely against abortion and rationing. We have no right to terminate an innocent life, at either end of the spectrum. This sounds harsher than it will be presented, but the result is the same.

I am praying that these things never come to pass. It will be a horrible day in the history of the greatest country in the world when a group of politicians try to put a value on my or anyone else's life. My value does NOT come from what I can for the collective, but the fact that I am made in God's image. My life's trajectory comes from that value.