Election Day in the USA has passed once again and many voters (50% or so) are very upset with some, if not all, of the results. The following article from www.gotquestions.org provides valuable insight into God and politics.

“If there is anything that will spark a spontaneous debate, if not an outright argument, it is a discussion involving politics—even among believers. As followers of Christ, what should be our attitude and our involvement with politics? It has been said that “religion and politics don’t mix.” But is that really true? Can we have political views outside the considerations of our Christian faith? The answer is no, we cannot. The Bible gives us two truths regarding our stance towards politics and government.

The concept of influencers (influencer is someone who has the power to affect the decisions of others because of his or her authority, knowledge, position, or relationship with his or her audience) has been around for quite some time, but the modern idea of social media influencers really took off in the early 2000s.

Before social media, influential figures like celebrities and public figures used traditional media (newspapers, radio, TV) to sway public opinion. The early 2000s saw the rise of influential bloggers. Platforms like MySpace and the blogosphere allowed individuals to amass followings through their niche content. The launch of YouTube in 2005, followed by Twitter in 2006 and Instagram in 2010, supercharged the influencer phenomenon. These platforms enabled anyone with a smartphone and a vision to build a following.

I never had any thoughts growing up that Halloween was bad and evil; it was only a good night where we got lots of candy. Since my family was poor, we most of the time had homemade costumes. On some I remember being Superman with only a dish towel pinned around my neck tracking the streets of my West Texas town yelling “Trick or Treat” as every door was opened. I never entertained a thought of a trick if I didn’t get candy. It was just what you said to get candy. Some older kids were very aggressive “with their big hands” in their candy accumulation and would get 20 to 30 pounds of candy in a few hours of door-to-door hustling. I am sure that our town’s dentists loved those kids. The town’s slogan, “Town Without a Toothache”, was temporarily put on hold every Halloween.

In my football playing days in the 1960s our helmets were unlike the protective headgear today. They were only hard plastic with suspensions which were “supposed to help” keep your head from hitting the hard plastic during contact. All coaches trained players to lead with their heads in tackling opposing players. (This is now called “targeting” and results in the player being ejected from the game.) Minor concussions were called “ringing your bell” and were very common. I got my bell rang almost every practice and game in high school and college. In a few practices and games, I obviously had major concussions because I have little or no memory of those but basically continued “playing mentally unconscious”. Finally, the doctors in my college junior year told the coaches that my playing days were over—too many concussions in addition to a neck injury.

With all the natural disasters, such as Hurricanes Helene and Milton, that have happened recently and are continuing to happen worldwide, the question is being asked, “How could God allow natural disasters?”

Randy Alcorn, author of over 50 books and founder of Eternal Perspective Ministries, addresses this question in his book “If God Is Good”. The following March 25, 2010 edited article by him is based on this book:

In the Bible the common description of hell is an everlasting/eternal punishment prepared specifically for Satan, his angels and nonbelievers in the salvation offered through Jesus Christ. Many scriptures which also talk about hell “may” be a visual expression of the magnitude of eternal suffering sinners will experience rather than being a literal depiction.

It’s no secret that life can feel unfair sometimes. You’re scrolling through news feeds and see another story of a person who had their life taken away too early. You think to yourself, “What kind of world is this?” It’s a question that many of us have asked at some point in our lives. We live in an unjust world, and it can be hard to process why things are the way they are. Dealing with life’s injustices can weigh heavily on your heart and mind.

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world. Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions. Imagination is the most powerful force in the universe.” — Albert Einstein

Do you remember using your imagination as a child? Perhaps you imagined you were a princess or a superhero. When we grow into adults, we may be discouraged from using this ability, because it’s not viewed as a grown-up realistic use of our minds.

Now if you were the Devil (Satan, Lucifer), and you are limited by being created without the omniscience of God and you can only be in one place at a time; the same being true of your demon (fallen created angels) followers, where would you make your attack on humans to have the most impact? What would be your schemes and wiles?

 “Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world.” Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Everyone experiences fear in their life. The dictionary defines fear as an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

Top Fears in the U.S. (2020/2021):

• Corrupt government officials: 79.6% of Americans reported being “Afraid” or “Very Afraid” of this.

• People they love dying: 58.5%

• Loved ones becoming seriously ill: 57.3%

• Pandemic or major epidemic: 55.8%

• Economic/financial collapse: 54.8%

• Cyber-terrorism: 51%

• Not having enough money for retirement. 55%

I've learned that it's very important to understand what fear is and how it works against us because if we don't, it can keep us from becoming what God created us to be, which means we won't fulfill our purpose in life. The best definition that I have ever heard for FEAR is “allowing someone or something to control you”.

The world today appears to be out of control. When you watch or listen or read about the news, we are having global tumult. Has all this chaos happened just recently? The apparent answer is “No!” Just in my 80+ years on this earth, I have been a witness to:

1940s-World War II and the Great Depression

1950s-Cold War between the Soviet Union and the USA (even caused us to have nuclear war drills at school-hiding under our desks), the Korean War, racial segregation eruption.

1960s-Vietnam War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Civil rights movement.

Charlie Brown in the Peanuts comic strip made this dramatic statement, “I just love all mankind; it is the human beings that I can’t stand.” We have all had similar thinking. Human beings are not perfect and there is a tendency to focus on their faults. When we focus on the faults of others, we miss the opportunity to truly understand and appreciate them. It’s like looking at a beautiful painting and fixating only on the tiny smudge in the corner. My younger son humorously relayed to his wife early in their marriage that he was 98% awesome and for her to please have grace on the 2%. Even though the percentages may be questionable, she has become a role model at focusing on the strengths of her spouse.

Paradise is the place that God always intended man to live eternally. However, one of His created beings, Lucifer also known as Satan and the devil, wanted to be God himself so he rebelled against God. He convinced one third of the created angels to follow him and also wants all created humans to follow him. Satan’s schemes almost always revolve around deception and lying. As we can read in the Bible in Genesis 3 Satan used his deceiving words to cause Eve to question God’s Word and His Goodness. He used the enticing appeal of physically eating a fruit as his instrument to cause humans to separate themselves from the Creator God. Man chose to disobey God in the one no-no that God provided. Even though eating a fruit seems innocent and does not rank on our radar screen of crime, it was a deliberate choice to disobey God- which was a sin which caused the separation from God.

Millions of viewers have watched this year’s Olympics and have been amazed at the feats achieved by the bronze, silver, and most notably, gold medal winners. The medal ceremony models a practice began by the ancient Greeks, who instituted the Olympics in the eighth century B.C. A judge sat at what they called the Bema at a respective race’s finish line. It was that judge who determined the winner and gave him an award immediately after the completion of the race.

Neuroscientists answer “No, evil does not exist today”. These brain scientists say there is no such thing as “free will” with which to decide to commit evil. They proselytize that autonomous, conscious decision-making itself may well be an illusion. And thus, intentional evil is impossible. That we are all innocent, some afflicted with defects—“brain bugs” as one new pop-neuroscience book calls them—that cause the behavior formerly known as evil.

The United States has become a country consumed by anxiety. It can realistically be stated that 100% of all humans, to some extent, have worried in the past and will worry in the future. However, the anxiety epidemic has grown to the point where 19% of Americans in 2019 — before COVID — reported an “anxiety disorder” every year since 2010. That's over 50 million people. Anxiety affects the teen population even more, with 31% of U.S. adolescents 13-18 meeting the criteria for a diagnosable anxiety disorder by age 18, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. According to the U.S. Census Bureau Household Pulse Survey, nearly one third of adults (32.3%) reported anxiety and depression symptoms in 2023. Currently, about 300 million people worldwide have reported problems with anxiety.

On July 8, 2024, the Houston area lost power for 2.26 million people. Hurricane Beryl with the fury of its strong winds and rain wreaked havoc in the lives of these and millions of other people. The loss of power caused dramatic changes in every affected person’s existence.

Some even lost their earthly lives due to the terrible powerless conditions. The health of the weak and the homeless was greatly endangered. This power outage disrupted hospitals, traffic signals, internet/communication networks, and gas stations. Businesses suffered financial losses due to disrupted supply chains, and lost sales. Spoiled food due to refrigerator/freezer failure was a common costly problem.

On the 4th of July, Independence Day for the USA, we celebrate freedom and independence, two words that describe our understanding of liberty from tyranny. The written Bible predates the Declaration of Independence by about 1680 years. The books that make up the Bible were completed around 96 A.D., with the Apostle John’s writing of the book of Revelation. Interestingly, America’s Founders studied the Bible extensively, and their political speeches and sermons often drew from biblical stories, examples, and quotes. For instance, the Declaration of Independence’s emphasis on equality and unalienable rights aligns with biblical principles…

All humans would like to have a life that is free from problems, troubles, and suffering.

When I was playing competitive sports, we spent most of our time training to be equipped to play the best game possible. Training was hard work and most times not too enjoyable. The coach would force us to run the same play repeatedly until we could be ready to do it effectively in a game. To “get us in shape” he would exercise us for hours each week running and doing calisthenics. This always caused lots of misery and complaints. The coach was doing what he thought was best for his players to win.

The ripple effect describes how small changes or actions can have far-reaching consequences over time. It illustrates the interconnectedness of our actions and their potential to influence far beyond their initial impact.

On the entry wall of our family office building, we have an oil painting that includes the result that is caused by dropping a small pebble into the water and watching the ripple effect of that small rock spread throughout the lake.