The Great Separation

Disturbing Hitler-isk Barack Obama Video.

Be afraid, be very afraid. - I found this video via Drudge Report.

The headline was a bit provactive, "Obama kids sing for dear leader." But I was like, "So what?" It's not unusual for politicians to have kids sing for them when they show up at events.

So I clicked over to see what the big deal was all about. Here's the video:

It's not so much that they were singing for Obama. They are sing of Obama. It reminded me instantly of Hitler's Youth program and the children that monster had singing in propaganda and adoration of him. That's truly scary to me, that someone would raise a fallen man to such heights. I write fallen in the Biblical sense. Ie, sinful, like me, and needing of the redemptive blood of Jesus Christ, the only means unto heaven - something that Obama has stated he doesn't believe.

I also couldn't help but think as I looked upon these young children, that given Obama's stance on infanticide that they are very lucky to be alive.

Buddhist's paying $6 to be Reborn.

Heart breaking - I found this video the other day by accident, but after viewing it I was left feeling heart broken for these people led into an illusion of Satan.

Buddhist monks are charging followers about six dollars to lay in coffins and be re-born.

Born Again in Thailand.

I hope that Christ will reveal His salvation to these people so that they can know true re-birth and redemption in Him and Him alone.

Face lift for TGS.

snip, stitch, snip, ow! - Okay, some have already noticed the face lift. Thanks for your input guys.

Over the weekend I implemented a nice clean template to The Great Separation. I'm still tweaking things here and there and probably will be for weeks to come.

But I do like the layout. I may change the banner at the top, but right now it suits my mood.

Feel free to let me know what you think and what should change.

Economic Crisis 101 on How We Got to Where We Need a Bailout using Music and Pictures!

Let the good times roll - Hat tip on this goes to Randy at ETC: Everyday Thoughts Collected.

The Experience of a Christian Woman in Laos.

They hate you because of me - I read a heart wrenching but encouraging report on the trial that a Christian woman and her family are going through in Laos; indeed, the trials that many Christians are facing in Laos.

Here's the link to the story and a snippet:

Laos: Widow forgives husband’s killers.

The Lao authorities have arrested or detained at least 90 Christians in recent weeks following raids on three provinces.

In one incident, villagers killed a Christian by pouring rice wine down his throat until he drowned. When family members buried him and put a wooden cross on his grave, village officials accused them of ‘practising the rituals of the enemy of the state’.

And instead of tracking down the killers, they rounded up 17 Christian families and locked them up without food for three days to try to force them to renounce their faith.

We need to remember our Christians brothers and sisters in prayer and to pray that their persecutors would come to freedom in Jesus Christ.

The Great Separation continues.

For further information on Christian persecution around the globe the Christian Persecution Blog is a good source.

Change and Where Hal is.

Need some? - I really feel the need for a change of look for my weblog here. I've had this template for sometime now and in recent weeks I've been contemplating a need to do something new. Clean out the old, one might say, and bring in a fresh look.

Trouble is I just haven't had the time to invest in working on it.

I ventured out into a new area of work on the Internet and picked up a client through a very good friend of mine - she knows who she is. Thank you! She and her husband are wonderful Christians and have blessed me.

But the extra work which I love, my other paid work, and the unpaid work in my church have both zapped my time and energy. That's not a complaint by the way, just an observation.

At church I've been putting out proverbial fires and trying to help out the best I can as the adult Bible study leader, grounds maintenance dude, and pastoral assistant. Our tiny church is struggling right now too, so time has been spent on that issue.

A lot of my personal stuff, like writing, disc golfing more than once a week, and exercise, have been casualties. Those are complaints, particularly the writing bit.

I did have some great moments in the last couple of weeks where I was able to serve an elderly woman in need of food stuffs, witness of Jesus to a Muslim man, and invite a neighbor to our up coming church community picnic as well as to church. Also great were comments from a couple of people in the adult Bible study who told me how good the current lesson has been for them. I really hadn't been sure if this was a lesson that was making an impact for spiritual growth in the Lord. But those comments proved very good for me when I find myself getting discouraged when others who seem so gung-ho for being part of this body of believers - saying things like how much they love it here, the people, and Godly focus - suddenly stop coming without an explanation.

Those sort of things really depress, sadden, and hurt me I must admit.

Hmmm.... This post has taken a turn I didn't intend, but I'll leave it as this is a weblog.

Coming back to that weblog issue... a new look. I need one. I think I'd like to trim this down. Sidebar wise. clear out a lot of the links perhaps. Get rid of one of the sidebars and go to a two column format.

I think I'll take the next few minutes and finger through some of the templates TypePad offers and see what I can come up with. This particular template was one of their's too. I just modified it some.

Stay tuned. Perhaps a face change is on the way.

Carry This. Remembering 9/11.

Today I remember the attack upon America. That attack targeted the freedom that God has given men and women. Evil men attacked the truth that all men are created equal by the Creator. Evil men attacked not just a nation but individual people, harming families and friends.

So I will not forget. I will not forget the sounds of military jets and helicopters patrolling the free skies over head in the days that followed. I will not forget the silence left in the wake of the military aircraft because the nation's civil airways were shut down.

I will continue to hold in prayer those men and women who stand in the gap, flying our nation's colors, defending us and keeping more evil men away from our shores.

I pray too, that those evil men would be convicted in Jesus' holy name and find redemption and salvation through His blood upon Calvary's tree.

This morning I looked back into the recesses of an old folder on my hard drive and I found a short flash I made on the 29th of September, 2001. The words of President Bush echoed my own thoughts and I believe galvanized this nation giving us hope in the midst of tragedy.

Here it is.

I do not have a physical symbol that I carry. But I do carry the images with me from that day. I will not forget.

What do you carry?

Politics, Politics, Politics....

The dirt is flying. - I must say that I think the political climate is going to churn and churn and look more like a hurricane over the next several months.

The Obama and Biden ticket and the McCain and Palin ticket is going to prove to be quite the boxing match over the next couple of months. I think it'll be fun to watch. Frankly, I think it may be a lot like some of the politics of old. I'm thinking of early America when some politicians actually got physical with gun and sword duals.

Certainly I'm not implying that such a thing will take place here. Frankly, all these candidates are far more civil and, haha, it's hard to do things with so much press following them around. Of course there's Biden who sometimes shoots from his hip with his mouth. But I've noticed the Democratic folk have been keeping him quiet rather well so far. Well, except for this article where he says that maybe Hillary would have been a better pick for Vice President then himself. I wonder what that says about his confidence in Obama's decision making capabilities or the chance of making it to the White House? LOL I love it. That's just too funny.

I think it's also very interesting that so many on the left seem so afraid of Palin. It's almost laughable. Oh, heck, it is laughable. The spiteful comments like South Carolina Democratic chairwoman Carol Fowler who said that Palin's “primary qualification seems to be that she hasn’t had an abortion.” Good grief!

And of course their the mainstream media with their magazine covers and headlines which demonstrate to me a group of people quaking in their boots.

And this for the Vice Presidential pick! That's very intriguing.

Book Review: Awaken the Dragon by David Aikman.

For your reading pleasure - I handed David Aikman's book, Awaken the Dragon, over to my mother to review, or rather she saw it and asked me if she could read it because it looked really intriguing. I, swamped with writing of my own and work, obliged. The following is her review.

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Awaken the Dragon was a great read. Aikman does an incredible job of embedding Chinese culture, politics, religious, and the underground Church in an action filled fiction story.

Given today's international tones this book was all the more interesting. The author's background and knowledge with China helped to give a stronger feel of reality to each aspect of the book.

The characters were all well developed and brought to life. As were the character qualities of Christianity, especially in places of our world where it is under suspicion and attack. As a sideline, this book reminded me of my responsibility as a Christian to be faithful in my prayers for the faithful in China.

The main story plot, that of a missing American, was exciting. The steady development of the action made this book very hard to put down. Even when I finished it, I wanted more. I would recommend this book to anyone.

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In author David Aikman's, Awaken the Dragon, Richard Ireton is a Hong Kong-based foreign correspondent for an American weekly news magazine. When he is sent to Guangdong, the Chinese province adjacent to Hong Kong, to investigate the disappearance of Chuck Mchale, a missing American, he discovers there are dangerous new political currents flowing through South China.

In the middle of these developments are practitioners of Qigong, a Taoist meditation and martial arts movement, who are rallying around their Great Master Wu. These fiercely anti-foreign Qigong adherents have allied with renegade forces of the Chinese army, and Ireton learns that together they pose a dangerous new threat to peace in Asia and relations with the United States. Ireton's hunt for McHale, who has run afoul of these Qigong army elements, brings him into the heart of China's underground "house church" movement, where McHale has sought refuge.

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Dr. David Aikman is an award-winning print and broadcast journalist, a best selling author, and a foreign policy consultant based in the Washington, D.C.- area. His wide-ranging professional achievements include a 23-year career at TIME magazine. More recently, he authored two ground-breaking books, A MAN OF FAITH: THE SPIRITUAL JOURNEY OF GEORGE W. BUSH, a best-seller published in April 2004, and JESUS IN BEIJING: HOW CHRISTIANITY IS TRANSFORMING CHINA AND CHANGING THE WORLD BALANCE OF POWER.

With special expertise in China, Russia, the Middle East, Mongolia and religious freedom issues worldwide, Dr. Aikman is frequently invited to deliver expert testimony at Congressional hearings and is a popular speaker at conferences, seminars, panels and to academic, church and professional groups at events all over the world.

Visit his website at www.davidaikman.com.

Press Release: Christian Barely Recognizable to Friends Because of Persecution.

They hate you because of me -

Beijing- CAA has learned that Christian bookstore owner and house church leader, Mr. Shi Weihan, was transferred to the Beijing Haidian District Detention Center. Shi’s case has been transferred from the Public Security Bureau to the Beijing Procurator. According to personal acquaintances who have visited Mr. Shi, his health has degenerated to the point that he is hardly recognizable to his closest friends. Shi was first detained on November 28, 2007 then acquitted of charges on January 4, 2008. On March 19, of this year he was detained for the second time and has been incarcerated until now.

CAA President Bob Fu, strongly condemned the Beijing authorities for their cruel and unjust treatment of Shi Weihan. Mr. Fu urged Beijing authorities to release Mr. Shi as soon as possible to avoid adversity amongst the international community.

To express your concern over the unjust treatment of Shi Weihan, contact:

Tang Long, City of Beijing Deputy Secretary General of the Municipal People’s Government.
Phone: 011-86-10-62362008

Liu Jianchao, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Director of Information Department.
Phone: 011-86-10- 6596334

The Great Separation continues.

For further information on Christian persecution around the globe the Christian Persecution Blog is a good source.