Category Tail Feathers

Bits and bytes of randomness found along the flyways of cyberdom

Things Are Bad and Getting Worse: There is an Election Coming

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

 

Psalm 37:3 “ Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.”

Times are tough in America. Unemployment teeters around 10%, those receiving government assistance is at an all-time high, more Americans are finding themselves homeless than at any other time in American history, the dollar continues to decline in value, the national debt has climbed past 13 trillion dollars with no end in sight. What are we to do?

 

In The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, completed in 1787, Edward Gibbon (English historian and Member of Parliament) lists the following reasons for that fall:

  • The rapid increase of divorce; the undermining of dignity and sanctity of the home, which is the basis of human society.
  • Higher and higher taxes and the spending of public money for free bread and circuses for the populace.
  • The mad craze for pleasure; sports becoming every year more exciting and more brutal.
  • The building of gigantic armaments when the real enemy was within: the decadence of the people.
  • The decay of religion—faith fading into mere form—losing touch with life and becoming impotent to guide the people.

Sound familiar? Are we headed for the same destiny? Is there any hope for America?

 

Well I can tell you were you will not find any hope or help… the federal government. Thomas Sowell once said “there is nothing so bad (in America) that politics cannot make worse.” To which I have to nod my head in agreement. He was not the only one who took humorous potshots at the government. Listen to what Will Rogers said about the government of his day. He died on August 15, 1935.

  • – A fool and his money are soon elected.
  • – About all I can say for the United States Senate is that it opens with a prayer and closes with an investigation.
  • – Anything important is never left to the vote of the people. We only get to vote on some man; we never get to vote on what he is to do.
  • – Be thankful we’re not getting all the government we’re paying for.
  • – I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.
  • – If I studied all my life, I couldn’t think up half the number of funny things passed in one session of congress.
  • – It’s easy being a humorist when you’ve got the whole government working for you.
  • – Last year we said, ’Things can’t go on like this’, and they didn’t, they got worse.
  • – On account of being a democracy and run by the people, we are the only nation in the world that has to keep a government four years, no matter what it does.
  • – Our constitution protects aliens, drunks and U.S. Senators.
  • – The only difference between death and taxes is that death doesn’t get worse every time Congress meets.

No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan

Ernest Benn is quoted as saying:

“Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy.”

To which you might add politicians then go around telling you that they fixed the problem only to come back next election cycle and tell you the problem they fixed with the last fix needs to be fixed again with a new fix. Sounds like someone is in need of a fix alright. Politics is opium to those who seek power over a people. And just like opium politicians are always in search of their next fix.

 

It is time for an intervention. Government needs to be cured of it’s addiction. By instituting voter enforced term limits upon each and every politician the damage they can ultimately cause will be limited by the length of time they get to remain in office. Although there seems to be no end to government meddling and tomfoolery at least if ‘we the people’ continue to vote out incumbents each election they may soon learn who is actually supposed to be running this country. My motto is simple: “One Term Until They Learn: it is government of, for, and by the people.” There should be no such thing as a career politician.

Gerald Warner said:

“We should be long past applauding politicians of any hue: they got us into this mess. The best deserve a probationary opportunity to prove themselves, the worst should be in jail.”

Two weeks from today the polls open for the mid-term elections. And hopefully the polling places will be overrun by fed up American’s pulling the lever to oust incumbent congressmen and women and replace them with solid constitutional conservative candidates. We need to send a clear message to the remainder of the incumbents that they are next on the chopping block unless they get back to representing the people and not ruling by fiat.

 

What’s our hope then? Not in government of that we can be certain. The only thing that government has accomplished is to increasingly make matters worse. Therefore we should go into this election cycle knowing full well that politicians are not the answer. They are the cause of most of our problems. The best we can hope for is to place these rascals on very short leashes and make sure that we monitor their every activity and hold their feet to the fire when they deviate from the Constitution of the United States, that is our responsibility as good citizens.

If there is any hope then it is this:

Again in the words of Ronald Reagan:

Within the covers of the Bible are the answers for all the problems men face.

 

Without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure.

And from the holy scriptures we read: “I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2

 

Like Rome of old and Israel before that the people chose to be ruled by a king and not by God and reaped the rewards of their folly. The only hope for America, or any nation for that matter, can only be found in the King of all kings, and the Lord of all lords, Jesus Christ.

Come November 2 as a good citizen of the United States I will cast my vote to remove from office anyone who has been there for more than one term. But as a Christian I shall continue to lead my life by the precepts found within the covers of the bible. I will reject any policy or regulation enacted by any government that does not uphold the precepts outlined in the bible. In addition I will call upon the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to have mercy on us and to continue to bless America. Will you join me in this prayer for America?

And that is this week’s tail feather. Think about it.

But those who are waiting for the Lord will have new strength; they will get wings like eagles: running, they will not be tired, and walking, they will have no weariness. Isaiah 40:31Open Link in New Window (BBE)


Along for the journey



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Tweets from last Week

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

# This Week’s Golden Eagle Award Winner: Manuel Gonzalez: To go where no man had gone before, to enter into the da… http://bit.ly/aQST4T 6:23 PM Oct 17th via twitterfeed

“Fed Mulls Raising Inflation Expectations to Boost Economy – Bloomberg” http://j.mp/92wXDO Proving again how badly the Feds fiscal bailouts have failed. Inflation is coming and these guys have no clue how to fix the economy. __2/2 10:46 PM Oct 14th via Social.com

“Gold Prices: Gold Settles at Record High Above $1,370 – CNBC” http://j.mp/cuexJv while the dollar sinks to record lows. Could the two be connected? __2/2 10:43 PM Oct 14th via Social.com

Did you know? Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid eat up 41% of all non-interest federal program spending. Unchecked, this will grow to 62% over the next decade. http://j.mp/9sVMBX and this is before Obamacare kicks in full bore __2/2 10:35 PM Oct 14th via Social.com

Bloomberg reports that the U.S. DOT is working on a plan to ban all cell phone use by drivers, incl hands-free tech. http://j.mp/bsO6Rz Heck why not just ban driving and then the highways will be accident free. __2/2 9:52 AM Oct 11th via Social.com

“Economy Watch – True unemployment rate rises to 16.8%” http://j.mp/8ZME8H although the WH report says it is at 9.6%. Deceptive? Lying? 9:48 AM Oct 11th via Social.com

“Barack Obama: Do As I say Not As I Do http://j.mp/9qwsiV talk about arrogance and hypocrisy. 9:44 AM Oct 11th via Social.com

Learning to Live Without By Living Within God's Laws

Allen Frederick Leave a comment


God didn’t give us a cowardly spirit but a spirit of power, love, and good judgment. 2 Timothy 1:7


In July 2010, the results of a Pew Survey of over 1,000 Christian households found an interesting result. The survey found that for those who consistently read their Bible every day, they have less mortgage payments, car payments, or unpaid credit cards. The less people read their Bible the more likely they were to have more debts among survey participants. There are two potential reasons for this clear difference.

The first reason is the discipline in one’s spiritual life often leads to greater disciplines in other areas of one’s life, including how someone manages their finances.

The second reason is those who consistently spend time in the scriptures are tapping into God’s wisdom and guidance for their daily financial decisions.

The survey found that daily Bible readers are more than twice as likely to give 10% or more of their income to God’s work at their church and other ministries. Daily Bible reading leads people to a conviction that God is their true Provider, and they are to be generous with whatever resources God entrusts to them during their lifetime.

Perhaps if the bible was not a forbidden book in our classrooms and public squares, more people would grow up fiscally responsible. Maybe if more people were exposed to the wisdom found in the pages of the bible, society as a whole would fair far better. If ‘we the people’ held our elected officials to a higher standard and required of them to demonstrate biblical values, perhaps our country would not find itself overdrawn, and overtaxed. Having more of our society engaged in bible study would possibly lead to an increase in charitable giving and therefore more resources would be available for the poor and sick among us.

No wonder the government wants to ban bible reading from as many places as possible because if more people tapped into the power of God available to them through the study of sacred scriptures there would be less need for government intervention in our daily lives.

And that is this week’s tail feather. Think about it.

But those who are waiting for the Lord will have new strength; they will get wings like eagles: running, they will not be tired, and walking, they will have no weariness. Isaiah 40:31 (BBE)

Along for the journey

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Getting Ready for Game Day

Allen Frederick 2 Comments

Everyone who enters an athletic contest goes into strict training. They do it to win a temporary crown, but we do it to win one that will be permanent. 1 Cor 9:25 (GW)

Brett Favre
Image by Jvstin via Flickr

Thursday September 9th was the kick-off of the 2010 NFL football season with the Saints and Vikings taking to the field. The Saints easily handed Brett Favre and company a 14-9 loss, as the Vikings showed a great deal of miscommunication on the field. There were many missed passing patterns, and mental errors leading to a number of penalties from which the Vikings could not recover. Favre looked rusty, or old depending on your perspective, as he labored behind center not able to connect with receivers. Play was lumbering and appeared un-rehearsed, which as it so happens was the case.

It’s hard not to think Favre’s late arrival is at least in part to blame for the Vikings’ stagnancy. And because he is nearly 41, it seems inevitable that it will take him more time to round into form. But after Thursday, it’s fair to wonder if Favre can get back to the form that generated perhaps his greatest season instead of regressing to the kinds of seasons that spelled his departure from Green Bay and the Jets after just one year.

During the off-season Favre was nursing the damaged ankle he sustained in the N.F.C. Championship game for which he has said he is receiving regular lubricating injections to get through the season. He missed all the off-season and training camp and barely appeared in the preseason, and it showed Thursday night. He was rusty and wildly off target, and if he didn’t go down as often as he did in the championship game, he also didn’t come up with as many of the jaw-dropping plays that keep Favre, and fans, coming back for

Favre finished 15 for 27 for 171 yards, with one interception and one touchdown. It wasn’t the way anyone imagined a rematch of last year’s high-flying National Football Conference championship game going. Some of Favre’s passes were so far from their intended targets that the incompletions could be chalked up only to a lack of practice, but the Saints entered the game with a simple plan: make Favre dink and dunk his way downfield, which broadens the opportunities for a mistake.

Success is more likely to arrive after intense preparation. When you have done all you can then it is time to enter the competition, not if you only half-heartedly participated in the practice drills.

The Saints on the other hand looked like a finely tuned automobile hitting on all cylinders and they ended up winning the game.

As Christians we are also engaged in a win or lose fight to the finish. Our adversary has played this game for a long time and is highly developed in his tactics and defenses. He is looking to exploit any weakness he sees in our game plan and will stop at nothing to end our lives not to mention our game. As a result we are instructed to be well prepared to enter the game of life with the full knowledge of what obstacles we must face and overcome. Unlike Brett Favre we are not left to our own limited abilities because we can call upon the strength of the Lord to come to our aid.

Continue reading “Getting Ready for Game Day” →

What We Spend Our Time Talking About

Allen Frederick 2 Comments

 

Here is a pictorial representation of the topics discussed here at Journey Across the Sky. You can get a pictorial image of your blog by going to wordle.com. As you can see there is a large number of topics discussed here at this blog but one of the biggest entries is God. My aim is to talk about current events in light of scripture and see how we are to respond to these events. As a Christian I think it is important that we filter everything through the scriptures to see how God views these issues. There is nothing new under the sun as Solomon stated so well. And therefore every issue we face in life there are scriptures to help us sort through them and find out how God instructed Israel to deal with these same issues.

Regardless how hard I try to maintain purity in my posts I am sure from time to time I may err in my speech. The bible tells us:

 

When words are many, sin is not lacking; so he who controls his speech is wise. The tongue of the righteous is like pure silver, but the mind of the wicked is worth little. The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense.
Proverbs 10:19-21

Idle talk can pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise can heal. Truthful words will stand forever, lying speech but a moment.
Proverbs 12:18-19

The wise man’s heart teaches his mouth, and to his lips it adds learning. Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweet to the taste and healing for the body.
Proverbs 16:23-24

He who belittles another lacks good sense, whereas a person of discernment stays silent.
Proverbs 11:12

It is not my intention to offend anyone nor is it my heart’s desire to share untruths with the world, my aim is to be a blessing and encouragement to others. May God bless you as you travel with me as we Journey Across the Sky.

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