April / May 2006

Dear ones,

Six months after the hurricane we are still having to make adjustments, physical and emotional, but God is very good to us, and we have been overwhelmed with the willingness of others to help. I am still working daily on the Bible Survey, revising and expanding the entire Old Testament portion, and the more I learn, the more I am confronted with how little I know. Your encouragement has been priceless, and now we have much to share.

URGENT CORRECTION!
In the last issue, I published what were believed to be toll-free telephone numbers for Congress. They are not only invalid, but if called, they can connect you to a telephone pornography site. Do not call those numbers! That little article came from my overset copy file, which consists of articles that are not time-critical. This means that they can wait indefinitely for a spot in the newsletter and they sometimes wait for years before being used. Laying out the newsletter is somewhat like working a jigsaw puzzle; and I took this little piece out of mothballs because it was the right size to fill a small space in the layout. How I wish I had left the space vacant! That little article was set so long ago that I cannot remember where I got the information; it probably came via e-mail in my early days with a computer, before I learned how untrustworthy such information can be. Please forgive me for this carelessness! I repeat: the toll-free numbers are not only false, but are poison! My heartfelt thanks to Pastor Dan Bates in Millican, Texas, for alerting us to the truth of this.

FRIENDS LOST AFTER KATRINA
Among the things lost to us by Hurricane Katrina has been contact with most of our friends on the Gulf Coast. With so many homes destroyed and families displaced by Hurricane Katrina, many on the Gulf Coast who were on our mailing list to receive this newsletter no longer receive it. Many of those addresses (like ours there) simply no longer exist; but we don't want to lose contact with old friends. If you know of anyone along the Gulf Coast with new addresses, please let us know--or ask them to let us know-and we will take care of the rest.

"DEADLY DECEPTION" AND "PLEASE TELL ME"
The publisher who published our books on Freemasonry, "Deadly Deception" and "Please Tell Me," went bankrupt and allowed the books to go out of print. We bought all the copies the publisher had in stock, but they are long gone. It took a long time for me to regain written publication rights, but we finally have them. I am looking for another publisher, but most publishers are reluctant to take on a book that has already been published. It would help if we had a large number of advance orders for the books, so if you could use them, or know of friends and churches who would, please pass the word and we will begin compiling numbers. One way or another, we intend to begin filling orders soon. If I cannot find another publisher, we will publish both books, and as soon as possible.

CREATION SCIENCE: SAD NEWS AND GOOD NEWS
The field of Creation Science is experiencing steady growth, as the flawed theory of evolution is more and more discredited in the face of a growing body of evidence. Henry Morris, Ph.D., founder of the Institute for Creation Research in California, died 25 Feb. Dr. Morris is considered by many to be the father of Creation Science, and he will be sorely missed.

Meanwhile, however, more than 500 prominent scientists have signed a statement proclaiming doubt about the validity of Darwinian evolution. Scientists with doctorates in biology, chemistry, medicine, physics, mathematics, statistics and related disciplines have joined in "A Scientific Dissent from Darwinism" which rejects the idea that the complexities and perfections in living creatures and the Universe around them could have arisen by chance, without an intelligent Creator. (BP)

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT OUR FREEDOM?
The First Amendment to our unique Constitution guarantees five fundamental freedoms; these are freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and freedom of petition for redress of grievances. According to a recent study reported in USA Today, only one-tenth of 1 percent (that is one in 1,000) of the population can name all five freedoms. On the other hand, 22 percent (that is, 220 in 1,000) can name all five members of TV's dysfunctional Simpson family. With what are your children feeding their minds? (USAT/BP)

A MAJOR VICTORY FOR LIFE IN THE SUPREME COURT
As the pendulum in the legislatures and courts appears at last to be moving in the direction of protecting unborn and newly born babies, a stunning victory for life has been won in the Supreme Court. The RICO (Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations) law, designed to fight organized crime, has for 20 years been used by the National Organization for Women (NOW) and the abortion industry as a basis for lawsuits to intimidate and punish pro-life demonstrators at abortuaries. On 3 March, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that RICO could not be applied in this way, coming down on the side of common sense and upholding our freedoms of assembly and speech. (BP, et al)

SOUTH DAKOTA OUTLAWS ABORTIONS
In South Dakota there is only one abortuary in the state, and no South Dakota physician will perform abortions (they are performed by abortionists from out of state). In late February, the South Dakota legislature passed, and the governor signed into law, a bill that makes abortion a crime in South Dakota, with the only exception being when it is necessary to save the life of the mother. This law, and a similar one in the works in Mississippi, may at last be the beginning of events that will eventually overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision by the Supreme Court that legalized abortion in the United States. The South Dakota law will undoubtedly be contested in the courts, and is likely to find its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, a very different court from the 1973 court that based its decision on a spurious lawsuit by imagining a "right to privacy" in the Constitution which doesn't exist. (ANS, et al)

ABORTION SURVIVOR NOW RUNS MARATHONS
Gianna Jessen is an abortion survivor. In 1977 her mother underwent a saline abortion in a Planned Parenthood abortuary in Southern California. The lethal concentration of salt injected into the uterus is designed to result in the birth of a dead baby within 24 hours. But God had a better idea, and tiny Gianna didn't die; severely injured, she was born alive. Because the abortionist wasn't present to finish the job of killing her when she was born, a nurse sent her to a hospital. Eighteen months later, rescued from an abusive situation in a foster home, she was diagnosed with cerebral palsy due to oxygen deprivation during the abortion. She weighed 32 pounds and was expected never to lift her head, crawl or walk; experts predicted that she would remain in a vegetative state. But loving care by a new foster mother, surgery, therapy and prayer slowly worked miracles. She grew up to be a key witness before Congress concerning the 2002 Born-Alive Infants Protection Act and was invited to be with President Bush as he signed the bill into law. Now, in April 2005, in Nashville, Tenn., 28-year-old Gianna has run her first marathon. It took her 7 1/2 hours, but she never quit. She says, "I adore the Lord...He is my Father. There is unbelievable, beautiful treasure in the midst of pain and weakness." The life of every tiny, helpless baby is precious, and with God all things are possible. (ANS)

NEW HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER IS STRONGLY PRO-LIFE
Congressman John Boehner (R-Ohio) was elected in February to be the new Speaker of the House. Mr. Boehner's voting score on pro-life issues is 100 percent according to the National Right to Life Committee and the Family Research Council; Planned Parenthood gives him a score of Zero. One can't do better than this. Not only is Boehner strongly pro-life, but so were the two closest vote-getters behind him, Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and John Shadegg (R-Ariz.). Blunt, who will continue to serve as House Majority Whip, was formerly president of Southwest Baptist University. (BP/ANS)

"BOOK OF DANIEL" BITES THE DUST
In the last issue, I reported on the radically anti-Christian TV program being introduced by NBC. I am happy to announce that it died being born; by the time the newsletter reached you, it was already cancelled. Its creator, Jack Kenny, a homosexual, grieved at the cancellation; but because of a storm of protests to the advertisers, all dropped the show but one (Burlington Coat Factory), and a growing number of NBC affiliates refused to air it. (ANS/BP)

THE WORLD'S LEADING OPPRESSORS OF CHRISTIANS
The watchdog ministry, Open Doors USA, annually reports on the nations that are the World's leading oppressors of Christians. For the fourth straight year, North Korea tops the list as the worst; and, also for the fourth straight year, Saudi Arabia is No. 2. Others in the Top 10 include Iran, Somalia, Bhutan, Yemen, Communist Vietnam and Communist China. (ANS)

AN EXCELLENT WEB SITE FOR PARENTS
Pediatrician Dr. Alma Golden of the U.S. Deparstment of Health and Human Services is praising a new Web site to help parents and children with issues of sexual and reproductive health, including abstinence education. The Web site, www.4parents.gov, was developed at the request of President Bush. I have visited the site and the following quote from the section on sexually transmitted disease is illustrative: "In reality, 'safe sex' does not exist outside of a committed, monogamous relationship with an uninfected partner, preferably marriage." We should all thank God for this new site, and take encouragement from the fact that it is the work of, and reflects the policies of, the President of the United States. (ANS/4parents.gov)

POLITICAL CORRECTNESS, SOCIALISM AND AN AMERICAN HERO
The late Col. Gregory ("Pappy") Boyington, USMC, shares with Eddy Rickenbacker the highest number of victories in aerial combat in American history (actually he surpassed Rickenbacker with his last two, but he was shot down in that battle and they were not recorded). Before the U.S. entered World War II, he fought in China with Claire Chenault's Flying Tigers, getting his first five victories there. After Pearl Harbor, he went to the Pacific and fought the desperate air battles over Guadalcanal and Bouganville as commander of Marine Fighter Squadron 214 (the "Black Sheep"). On his last mission, he was shot down and captured. He survived the hell of Japanese prisons for two years, tortured, beaten senseless eight times, and forced to watch the murder-executions of six of his friends. Along with his other decorations, Boyington was awarded the Navy Cross and the Medal of Honor. He was a graduate of the University of Washington (1930-34) with a degree in Aeronautical Engineering.

In February, the Student Senate at the University of Washington rejected a proposal to allow a memorial to Col. Boyington to be placed on the UW campus. Spokesmen for the Student Senate said that they didn't want to memorialize a man who had killed people; one stated that she "didn't believe that a member of the Marine Corps was an example of the sort of person UW wanted to produce." Another student senator argued that there are already too many memorials on the campus to "rich white men." "Rich white man"? Pappy Boyington was half American Indian, and he looked like an Indian; his mother was a Sioux (some accounts say Apache), and he lived out the rest of his life in varying degrees of financial distress. He died in 1988 with little or nothing, and is buried in Arlington Cemetery.

This rejection of a genuine American hero by his alma mater should be a shock warning to all of us concerning the anti-military, anti-Western civilization, anti-American, socialist values with which our universities are indoctrinating young Americans. They don't seem to realize that if it weren't for Boyington, and men like him, they would be speaking Japanese today at the University of Washington, under a military dictatorship, and worshipping its Emperor without freedoms they enjoy today. Those college kids, who probably think walking to class in the rain is a hardship, aren't fit to tie Greg Boyington's boondockers! (WND/Fox News)

LOST SOULS AND POLITICAL CORRECTNESS
In the 18th Century the ministry of John Wesley set Britain ablaze with the fire of the gospel of Christ, and the resulting revival probably saved England from a bloody nightmare like the one which accompanied the French Revolution. The Methodist fire then crossed the Atlantic and blazed across the American frontier. Along with missionaries of other traditions, Methodist circuit riders braved the dangers from wild beasts, robbers, murderers, hostile Indians and deadly weather, proclaiming the Good News. Churches sprang up everywhere, and a solid foundation of godly values was laid down for the new nation and its emerging culture; the value of what those men did is beyond calculation.

In the past 30 years, as I have traveled from coast to coast, I have noticed a significant thing: there are little Methodist churches everywhere, with their cemeteries spreading outward, over the lawns and into the woods, but most of them seem to be dead or dying. In this I see evidence of two things: 1) that once the great gospel proclaimed in those churches spread ever-outward, like a blazing brushfire across this land; and; 2) that, later, something went wrong.
One must wonder why, and I think the answer is simple. Although there are many dedicated, God-loving, Bible-believing Methodists, including many pastors, giving all that they have to build their churches and reach out to those around them, the hierarchy in highest levels of authority long ago abandoned the Bible as its authority and the Great Commission as its calling. In place of the gospel, this power structure has embraced social and political causes and, increasingly, they have been causes in direct opposition to the clear teachings of the Bible. The same is true of most of the other old, "mainline" denominations.

The General Conference, Methodism's top governing body which convenes in a different city every four years, will meet in Dallas in 2008. The 2012 General Conference was scheduled to meet in Richmond, Va., but that is no longer the case; the conference will be moved to Tampa, Fla. Why the change? Richmond is unacceptable, because it has been discovered that there is a minor league baseball team in Richmond called the Braves; and, to the politically correct Methodist hierarchy, this is unacceptable.

And so, while the hierarchy spends its time, and wastes its people's money, obsessing over matters of political correctness, it closes its ears to the sound of all those doors slamming permanently shut on empty Methodist churches across the land. And these same leaders seem not to understand the multitudes of lost, needy people who desperately need the words of life, once proclaimed without apology by John Wesley and his followers, as they go elsewhere to find answers to life's vital questions and don't look back. (ANS)

GOD IS THE STRENGTH OF ISRAEL
In the Old Testament there are many names and titles used for our God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; and each name or title expresses something important about Him. Each time He uses another divine appellation, He teaches us something else about Himself ("The Lord our Peace," "the Lord our Redeemer," "the Lord our Shepherd," etc). In telling King Saul that God is rejecting him as king and will replace him with someone better, the prophet Samuel refers to God as "the Strength of Israel" (I Sam. 15:29). Of approximately 90 names and titles of God the Father in the Old Testament, this is the only place in the Bible where this one occurs. This is fascinating, because it seems to me to express one of the most important foundational facts of life for Israel: that the key to their success was not their own strength, numbers or wealth, but was the limitless power of God. This vital lesson is one with which the ancient Israelites were confronted, time after time, but never learned; and it is one that present-day Israel, a secular, atheist nation, has never even considered.

SHILOH: A PLACE OR A PERSON?
"Shiloh" is an important word in the Bible, but is a somewhat mysterious word. It is a name, a proper noun, and its meaning in Hebrew is "tranquil or peaceful." In the time of the Judges of Israel, Shiloh was a place, about 25 miles north of Jerusalem. There was no political capitol for all Israel, for the Israelites had lost their concept of themselves as a unified nation, and "everyone did that which was right in his own eyes." Shiloh was, however, the spiritual capitol of Israel; the Tabernacle, built by Moses in the Wilderness, was there, with its altars of continuous sacrifice and the Ark of the Covenant. Eli, Judge and High Priest, lived and presided there, and it was to the Tabernacle at Shiloh that religious Israelites made an annual pilgrimage. When Eli was old, the Israelites, in a battle with the Philistines, foolishly brought the Ark of the Covenant to the battlefield, lost the battle, and the Ark was captured. Eli died upon receiving the bad news, and Samuel replaced him as Judge. The Ark was never returned to Shiloh, and the city was never again an important place. Although the city of Shiloh was destroyed and has faded from history, the significance of the name is undimmed, and has an even more brilliant future. Why? Because it is also a name for the coming Messiah, prophesied by Jacob to come from the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10). Thus "Shiloh" is a name of everlasting significance; but the name will not assume its divine, eternal, significance "until Shiloh come," fulfilling Jacob's prophecy in the return of Jesus in the last days. He will then rule and reign on Earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords; and this is the true meaning of "Shiloh."

WHAT BECAME OF THE TABERNACLE?
In the Sinai desert, the Lord directed Moses to build a tabernacle as a centralized place of worship, and promised that His presence would be there to inspire, guide and correct the Israelites. The Tabernacle was a very special tent, divided into three parts: the Court of the Congregation, the Holy Place, and the Most Holy Place or Holy of Holies. The Tabernacle would be furnished with very special implements of worship, and the most sacred would be the Ark of the Covenant, a gold-plated box with a solid gold lid ("Mercy Seat") topped with the images of two angels, sculpted from solid gold. Here, between the two golden angels, atop the Mercy Seat, would be the actual glory of God in the midst of His people. During the next 39 years of wandering and waiting in the wilderness, the Tabernacle moved with the people; and it continued to move with the people under Joshua during the conquest of the Promised Land. As the children of Israel spread out by tribes and adjusted to the new, separated, settled life, the Tabernacle was set up in Shiloh, about 20 miles north of Jerusalem. It remained there during the entire period of the Judges (350-400 years) until the capture of the Ark of the Covenant by the Philistines and the death of Eli and his wicked sons.

At this point, the historical record goes virtually silent and a curtain of mystery descends upon the Tabernacle. It is most probable that the Philistines soon overran Shiloh and burned it; archeological evidence supports this probability. At any rate, Shiloh was never again an important place. From this point on we know what became of the Ark of the Covenant, and in great detail; but what became of the Tabernacle and the rest of the furnishings? The Scriptural account is at best fragmentary, but it appears that Samuel and his followers escaped with the Tabernacle and the rest of its furnishings and that some or all of it continued to be used, in various places of centralized worship, until David became king. When King David unified the divided people into one nation, he established the Tabernacle on Mt. Zion in Jerusalem, probably combining what remained of the original Tabernacle and its furnishings with at least a new outer tent. And to this Tabernacle he then brought, with great celebration, the Ark of the Covenant.

When Solomon later built the first Temple on the same spot, the Tabernacle was disassembled and probably stored in a tunnel under Mt. Zion; but if so, its parts have never been found.

MARTY'S CORNER
A recent editorial in World magazine entitled "Being Mocked" addressed the violent Islamic demonstrations by comparing the difference between Christ and Muhammad. In essence, the difference is that the work of Jesus is based on humility and accepting scorn while that of Muhammad is based on being honored and venerated. The end result is that Islam is destined to bear the impossible load of upholding the honor of one who was just a person promoting himself and demanding deification by bloodshed. The truth is that if Jesus had not been insulted and crucified, there would be no salvation and we would be lost and undone. Jesus, having died for us and risen again, is the only hope of peace with God and with man. When events and times such as these come, we must be prepared, be willing to carry His sufferings, and remember...that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death. (Phil. 3:10,NKJV)

Katrina Saga Continues: Everyone can recount the negative emotions of being around a whining, demanding child who blames everyone else for his mishaps while the "good guy" gets overlooked. You can then understand the frustration of the people of Mississippi (and even the rural areas of Louisiana) when they see and hear the constant press coverage of New Orleans with its whining and blaming of someone else. Rest assured that Mississippians, with the help of thousands of Christian volunteers from all over the United States, have been working constantly to recover. The irony is that the morning after Hurricane Katrina devastated the entire Mississippi coast, the word out of New Orleans was "we dodged the bullet"...a day later the floods came because of poor local levee management. It seems that the press and politicians only identify with the whiners and blamers while the good guys, once again, get overlooked. Nevertheless, Mississippians offer their thanks and appreciation to everyone who has helped by physically coming to rebuild, by financial help and by prayers. May the Lord be with you and may He be glorified.

WE ARE ENLARGING THE PRINT
In recent years, we have reduced the print size in order to get more material in each issue. This has made it difficult for some to read so, beginning with this issue, the print will be one size larger. Please let us know how the readability is for you now.

A FINAL WORD
Treasure and use each day as if it were your last, and never give up hope; God has a limitless supply of new beginnings, and He makes beautiful things out of broken pieces.

You are precious,

(Sources: AFAJ-American Family Journal; AFRN-American Family Radio News; ANS-Agape News Service; AP-Associated Press; BP-Break Point; BPr-Baptist Press; C-Charisma; CBN-Christian Broadcasting Network; CR-Congressional Record; CSN-Calvary Satellite Network; DR-Drudge Report; EP-Evangelical Press; Fox (Fox News); FOF-Focus on the Family; FRC-Family Research Council; GN-Good News Magazine; HC-History Channel; LAT-L.A. Times; Mil-Military Magazine; NR-National Review; NewsMax.com (NM); NW-Newsweek; NYP-New York Post; NYT-New York Times; PBS-Public Broadcast System; PWB-Pastors' Weekly Briefing; RTLB-Right to Life Education Foundation Bulletin; RTLGC-Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati; USAT-USA Today; USNWR-U.S. News and World Report; VOM-Voice of Martyrs; W-World Magazine; WND-World Net Daily; WT-Washington Times; WW-Washington Watch.)