THYME Magazine Special Advent Edition

Citizen Journalism with a Better Flavor


Volume VI, Issue XXVIII

The Forgotten Season

The turkey leftovers were still cooling when the much media hyped 'Black Friday' events began. In a Long Island Wal Mart, a young associate was trampled to death as bargain hunters literally broke down the doors. A young man had to die because twenty dollars could be saved on flatscreens. Managers closed the store and someone actually was irate that he couldn't get in. Come on, if a colleague has died, its 'Game Over' on the shopping frenzy. Close the store and try to help the poor man's significant others. To hell with reopening for the remainder of the day! Management reopened the store at one o'clock that afternoon. Satirical publication 'The Onion' came out with a story where thousands were 'reported' to have died in Black Friday shopping. I did not find it funny. One death to satisfy the greed gods is too many. Our prayers go out to the family and friends of this young man. May they find comfort.

Lost in the madness of Black Friday, Cyber Monday and yes, even Small Business Saturday is the wonderful celebration of Advent. The high churches still celebrate it. It is a time of waiting and preparation for the miracle to come. It is so un-modern! It ties us to history. The traditions of Judaism are full of waiting. Abraham and Sarah saw the child of promise when they were way past the age of child bearing. I sometimes think of one-hundred year old Sarah as a preschool parent and join her in her laughter! Then there was Joseph and his imprisonment, followed by hundreds of years of exile in Egypt. We often think about the Promised Land, but we forget that all Promised Lands seem to require a prep!

In fact, there came a time when people forgot the lessons of the brick kilns and lost the Promised Land to the Babylonians and the Persians. The Temple, center of worship, was destroyed. But it was in this time of living as expats that the community of the Synagogue strengthened the people anew. Ezra and Nehemiah presided over a return to the land of promise. Again, the promise required a prep. As the exiles built the prosperity of Persia, they prepared themselves for the time when they would build their own.

A second Temple was built. The exiles returned. Then came the great empires of the Greeks and the Romans. The Temple was rebuilt, but the heavy hand of Roman rule presided over a time of trouble. Many looked to the future Messiah to put things aright. Indeed, there were many who claimed to BE Messiah. They came and went. But in a time when Heaven seemed so distant, there came another child of promise... to a couple way past child bearing. John the Baptist, a "Voice crying in the wilderness," came saying: "Prepare ye the way of the Lord." At the same season of history, his mother Elizabeth's cousin Mary came to visit.

Mary had been visited by an angel and told that she, a virgin, would bear the child of promise. Though this was an incredible blessing, she faced the prospect of unwed motherhood... in a culture that stoned you for it. Her betrothed, however, had also been given a message from Heaven, that he should take her for his wife. What incredible faith and love! When I chose my Confirmation name, as a boy, I took the name Joseph. It was not that I ever thought I could match such selfless love, but that I so admired it! Even to this day, some of the people I admire the most are those men who have stepped into the lives of children they did not physically father, and yet have earned the name Dad nonetheless! These men live as both an example and a challenge to me. Some of them are my juniors in years, but they far surpass in their maturity!

Such are the lessons we miss if we merely content ourselves with instant gratification. There is an old saying: "Rome wasn't built in a day." Indeed our own nation cast off from its sure position as an English colony to pursue an uncertain future. In 1812 England returned to burn the young country's capital. The White House is so called because its sandstone outer walls had to be painted after the burning left them permanently blackened. By the middle of the Nineteenth Century, however, Isambard Kingdom Brunel was building great ships to strengthen Bristol's trade with America. A hundred years after barely surviving her revolution, the nation we know had taken her place as a world power.

Why Advent is Important to Artists [click to read]

We do well to celebrate Advent, though it is largely forgotten in the popular narrative, because it causes us to pause and prepare. In a world where preparation is limited to four years it does us good to remember the lessons of centuries. Advent allows us to step back from our busy lives and ponder timeless truths... like the man that the Bethlehem baby grew to be. He too died, some say on a Friday, but his death was not just his own. Did He indeed carry the sins of the world? The account of His Resurrection causes us to ponder mysteries far greater than ourselves and our puny wants. In our next issue of THYME we will ponder more wonders and present some compelling evidence that we should indeed consider the life of this man. (to be continued)

THYME Magazine

Citizen Journalism with a Better Flavor


Volume VI, Issue I

"Arise and Build"

“The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem.” -- Nehemiah 2:20

The 'other' weekly news magazine this week features the story: How Service Can Save Us [click to read]. Indeed, service can be therapeutic, but it can be a component of something much bigger.

This week youth from the area's churches joined together for the Nehemiah Project [click to read]. Hundreds of Middle and High School students went out to build wheelchair ramps, replace leaking roofs and generally improve conditions for their neighbors. Four years ago I participated in a crew building a very long ramp for Comfort Care Women's Health Center. Local agency: Rebuilding Together coordinates projects, volunteers and materials. Local churches provide meals. Local contractors participate as team leaders. [1.]

The project takes its name from Nehemiah, the rebuilder of Jerusalem's ruined walls. His story gives important context to the work done by our young people this week. Nehemiah was one of the people living in captivity, the cupbearer to the Persian king, who when he heard of the condition of his people in Jerusalem took action. First he prayed. The situation looked bleak. The city's defensive walls were in ruins. The people were discouraged and lacked resources.

Nehemiah wept. The king then noticed Nehemiah's sadness and a conversation took place in which the king was moved to allow Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem with the resources to rebuild. Arriving in Jerusalem, Nehemiah surveyed the extent of the problem in the solitude of an evening. It was a huge task, to be sure. The rubble of the wall hindered his tour around the city. Nehemiah prayed.

A plan came to the great man. Each family would need to participate in the rebuilding of the wall near their house. Progress drew the attention of enemies, who tried to discourage Nehemiah. He prayed again. When his enemies tried to call him away from the work, he sent them this message: "I am involved in a great endeavor, so I can't leave. Why should the work stop while I leave it to come down to you?" -- Nehemiah 6:3 The wall was rebuilt.

Indeed, Nehemiah has much to say to us in our present day. We live in dangerous times as well. The walls of our city have been broken down in the areas of moral protection. Human trafficking, drugs, gangs and other dangers threaten our young people. We must pray. Then we must look for Ways to Rebuild Our Defenses. Indeed, we must look beyond ourselves, to G-d, for the resources to do it. Then we must involve ourselves in the great endeavor of our day!


Hollyhocks bloom along Churchville Avenue at Springhill Road. Every Summer they appear!, remnants of a garden planted long ago that continue to brighten the drive into Staunton. What a great living legacy for a gardener! 

THYME Magazine

Citizen Journalism with a Better Flavor


Volume V, Issue XXI
  
"The true great works are rooted in love and born in prayer" -- Unknown

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." -- Galations 5:22,23

A Great Work... Ushering in the World to Come

Who among us has not at some point imagined themselves involved in some great work? We love the stories of triumph and bravery and wonder if it might be our lot to ever be part of such a tale? So-called 'Realism' raises a hand at this point and argues that most men live in obscurity and live lives that are insignificant. Yet the belief that significance is something to be desired presses the possibility of it being attained. Travelling to Bolivia last year, I sensed there were a thousand stories in search of a Hemingway.

I saw an amazing medical mission that grew out of one woman's loving heart. She herself survived breast cancer and when most people would have started savoring retirement, this soft-spoken RN was G-d's instrument to bring decent medical care to the poorest people in Santa Cruz and now Sucre. (Her SECOND clinic just opened in February)! Cindy Thacker is doing a great work, as are the comitted staff of Mission of Hope Bolivia. It was a priviledge to hear their stories and by our work there to contribute to them.[1.]

In a South American slum there is a man who creates orchestra instruments from trash! 'Landfill Harmonic' brings beautiful music to young people who would otherwise know only the sound of despair. [2.] Redemption! all the great stories tell of it. Is it a false hope?, or something that the great stories hold out to us because its realization could be nearer than we dare imagine?If we can imagine something, is it possible that that ability to imagine is rooted in sound reasons?

These are the stories the media rarely report to us. One hears so much about the dysfunction in our world... and it is real. Yet, quiet your heart. You will find amazing stories around you. You might even find yourself a part of one! Great works abound in our own back yard. How shall we find them... be still, watch and listen!

Watching Kristina Elaine Riley paint her latest mural depicting "Acts of Kindness Rooted in Love," it was clear that she was engaged in a great work. [3.] The painting she is completing with elementary and middle school children in the Farrier Court Community center carries a redemptive message. Indeed, it could be seen as an extension of her "Journey to Jesus," [4.] where she took ordinary children's photographs, often in places of great hardship, and painted them as princes and princesses of the New Heaven and the New Earth spoken of in Isaiah 60, Isaiah 61 [5.] and Revelation 21 [6.]

Audio Aredrenalin's "Kings and Queens" echos that message [7.] To love "the least of these" is to make kings and queens in G-d's Kingdom. Empowering children to be noble by rooting themselves in love... an unseen foundation upon which to build a noble edifice!

Hebrews 11 talks of Faith: "The evidence of things hoped for, the substance of things not seen," and tells of Abraham, who wandered and lived all of his life in tents, longing for "that city who's architect and builder is G-d!" Those who share in the hope that Abraham had have a stake in the greatest of works... joining G-d in building His Kingdom!

Nehemiah engaged himself in a great work... rebuilding the walled city of Jerusalem. Just as he became a man of singular purpose, we too should consider the ruined state of our own culture and "arise and build!" A study of Nehemiah's life reveals that he didn't begin by sorting stones or drawing plans, he PRAYED. Scripture is clear that he began by seeking G-d and the mighty work sprang from that prayer [8.]

 In the Nineteenth Century, Evangelist George Müller was moved by the plight of unwanted children. He prayed. Without asking for a penny, he saw G-d provide the means to care for thousands of children and build fine homes for them to live in [9.]

In a world of chaos, we seek order, beauty and truth. These things will elude us if we do not seek the AUTHOR of order, beauty and truth. Great works do not just happen, they spring from the hand and mind of purposeful authorship. If purposeful authorship is evident in Creation, then it behooves us to seek to learn from the Author of purpose.

Pastor Chuck Balsamo of Destiny Fellowship in Stuarts Draft invites all who would to join in a time of Prayer, Fasting and Worship [click to read]. The purpose, not unlike Nehemiah's, is to seek G-d in a world where order, beauty and truth are all too rare.

My point in writing this is that G-d has a great work and the promise is clear. The murky uncertainty of our post-modern world is all too evident and threatens to obscure OUR view of that purpose. If we as a people will come away to seek His face, we will find ourselves in the very presence of G-d. Perhaps it is time to stop saturating ourselves in the news and MAKE news... led by the same fire that "turned the world upside down" in the First Century [10.]

That is key. This is not about growing bigger churches or merely creating a moral superiority, or economic prosperity, it is about unleashing the power of G-d's Holy Spirit to build G-d's Holy Kingdom! How does one describe the Kingdom of G-d and His promised presence there? It is like describing a mountain vista to a blind man. Where do you begin? Yet this is a picture that I as an artist feel compelled to paint! Mankind needs this vision. How does one begin to paint it?

Does one start by descriptions rooted in the scents of seasons... the smell of leaves and lavendar, the deep smell of Earth beneath the firs? One CAN deduce from what one CAN percieve that there is more unseen. That is the artist's mission. Just as a visual artist creates depth with line and shadow and aerial perspective, we can point to that which is beyond our ability to literally render.

Can we "see" the promise, pushing onward. and offer relationship with G-d Himself to a world of lonely and injured pilgrims? Can we join together as G-d seeks to rebuild lives and bring His Kingdom to Earth? Can we see that G-d is at work, purposefully authoring the promised Kingdom? In the combined sense of PEACE and PURPOSE found in communion with the Divine, might we have a part in ushering in the World to Come?

Therefore We His Servants Will Arise and Build

Advice to the People of Jerusalem Still Guides Us


Le Château de St. Albain.

"The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build" -- Nehemiah 2:20

The first day of 2013 is about to dawn and I am reading the book of Nehemiah. This book was the subject of a Sunday School class I once taught and it has much advice for us today. The story opens with Nehemiah, one of the Jewish exiles in the Persian court, receiving a visitor from the ruined city of Jerusalem. Hanani, one of his brethren, tells him of the sorry state of the people in the once great city. They are defenseless and troubled by enemies all around them. The walls that once protected the city have been reduced to piles of charred rubble.

But what can a man in exile do? Nehemiah weeps when he learns of the plight of his beloved people, but he is a servant to the king. A man in exile, what can he possibly do to help them?

Nehemiah begins with prayer. His heart is not suddenly lifted, for he appears before the king with great sorrow showing in his countenance. Normally such kings tolerated no sorrow before them -- you were supposed to look overjoyed at the opportunity to serve the ruler, but Nehemiah had obviously served well and gained the respect of the king. The king asks him directly why he is so sad and when Nehemiah describes his sorrow at the plight of his beloved city, he finds an unlikely ally in an even more unlikely chain of events.

Nehemiah finds himself traveling to Jerusalem with letters of introduction and financial support for the rebuilding! He arrives in the city and makes an inspection of the ruins by night.

Now each family begins work on the section of wall nearest their houses. The third chapter of the book of Nehemiah lists family after family, all joined in the work of building. Shallum, one of the rulers of Jerusalem, is assisted by his daughters, but the nobles of the Tekoites won't work. Nonetheless, the Tekoites, without their nobles, rebuild two sections.

The work was not without opposition. In fact, the people had to work with their swords by their side. Some of Nehemiah's enemies tried to distract him. They called for him to meet with them:  

"Now it came to pass when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein; (though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates;) That Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me, saying, Come, let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief. And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?" -- Nehemiah 6:1-3.

So today, I will seek G-d, beseeching Him on behalf of my own troubled country. Then, when I see where He is working, I will rush to join Him. Indeed, whatever our times hold for us, He is building His Kingdom:

"And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest." -- Matthew 9:35-38.



 Le Château de St. Albain.


Archer slit.

Nehemiah: Competing Visions for America

We Must Strive for Civil Debate, but Not Compromise


A sign on L. E. Woods heavy equipment dealership in Fishersville, Virginia says it clearly: Pray for recovery.

"There are now two Americas. Not a rich one and a poor one; economic status plays little role in this division. There is a red one and a blue one." --Dennis Prager

Politicians of all persuasions express a desire to bring Americans together bound by a common vision for the common good. Dennis Prager Points Out the Fallicy of this Reasoning [click to read] in Jewish World Review. Really, it's time to admit that there are two different ideologies out there and they are in fierce competition for the heart and soul of the Nation. Without this basic understanding of the conflict it is impossible to understand why it must be debated. Indeed the political manifestation of this conflict is merely the tip of a cultural rift caused by very different world views.

Our founders looked to the order of Judeo-Christian principles as they framed a government based on a balance of tensions that would reign in human tendencies in order to create an orderly society. Individual liberties and individual responsibilities played a large part and government was purposely limited to avoid tyranny. Certain Truths were held to be self-evident. Man was seen as a special creation who bore the mark of his Creator, yet was fallen in nature--often acting along the lines of these baser inclinations. Thus government sought at once to reign the base and give liberty and expression to the higher aspirations of mankind.The secular humanism that has come to replace a sense of Divine order has given rise to a new paradigm where government, individual liberties and individual responsibilities are re-prioritized. Thus we no longer see the Divine stamp, Imagio Deo, on humanity. On one hand we have created arguments that if man is all there is [no G-d], then man's self-actualization is the main thing. A sense of greater purpose such as that that drove the American Revolution is impossible but we can grab for the highest experiences to justify ourselves. On the other hand, if man is the end of things, then what's so special. The extinction of some rare snail can be elevated above the plight of starving children in Africa. Indeed some radical environmental groups are making that exact argument.

The American left is actually a coalition of many of these often contradictory conclusions and yet they are strongly united in the desire to cast off the "old" constricting beliefs of our forefathers. That is why you will see those who promote the value of free speech in most areas suddenly veer into an irrational supression of religious speech in the public square. The state is now asked to take an even greater role in promoting the well-being of its citizens. The answer must for them be secular, not spiritual. If there is no higher authority it is left to us to pragmatically define and enforce 'virtue.' How else can you explain the fact that after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac failed from reasons stemming from corruption in government oversight, the answer can only be more government oversight

The Left and Right See 'Freedoms' Differently

The ACLU was founded ninety years ago by Roger Baldwin. He was a socialist thinker who said things like: "America must follow the example of Stalin's Soviet Union where greater freedoms exist than anywhere else in the world". Wow, I never would have known from the history I read! Knowing America would never follow the path to 'social u[dys]topia because of her Judeo-Christian foundations, Baldwin set out to diminish the influence of Christianity in America.

For 80 years the ACLU has twisted the Constitution to exclude Christianity from the public square and the public discourse. That sense of mission is what drives the endless stream of lawsuits against prayer and Christian expression. That is why your kid's 'religious' message is excluded from the poster contest. That's why the school 'Winter Holiday' assembly is devoid of sacred traditional music. Thankfully there is the Alliance Defense Fund [click to read] which was founded to counter this destructive movement.

The Left and Right See Different Americas Altogether

First you have President Obama saying: "You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing’s replaced them. … And it’s not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

Or consider this quote from Senator Mark Warner: "One of the things you are going to see is a coalition that is just about completely taken over the Republican Party in this state and if they have their way it’s going to take over state government. It is made up of the Christian Coalition, but not just them. It is made up of the right-to-lifers, but not just them. It’s made up of the NRA, but not just them. It is made up of the home-schoolers, but not just them. It’s made up of a whole coalition of people that have all sorts of differing views that I think most of us in this room would find threatening to what it means to be an American."

What does Senator Warner mean: "threatening to what it means to be an American?" Dennis Prager [click to read] writes in his columns that there are two visions for America in competition. One is the vision passed down to us by our WWII parents, the other: a diminished America and an increased role of government, (in a secularized society), we might take a lesson from Nehemiah, chapter 4:

“But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews. And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned?

Now Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall. Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity: And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders.

So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work. But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it.

Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them. And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall. And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. And it came to pass, that when the Jews which dwelt by them came, they said unto us ten times, From all places whence ye shall return unto us they will be upon you. Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows. And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their counsel to nought, that we returned all of us to the wall, every one unto his work.”

Indeed, those of us who are involving ourselves in this great work must not be distracted. The rebuilding needs to begin with prayer and revival. Our greatest woes are not economic. Yet that does not free us from the task of rebuilding our section.

That should not preclude civil debate, but there are times when, like Nehemiah, we must say to those who oppose us: “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?” — Nehemiah 6:3.

Nehemiah Had the Right Idea

Prayer is the Place to Begin


A sign on a heavy equipment dealership in Fishersville, Virginia says it clearly: Pray for recovery.

We have often relied so much on our own self-reliance that we face the problems before us with great anxiety. The actions of a handful of men in Washington and in corporate offices have had consequences that have been beyond our ability to overcome.

Nehemiah faced great problems and opposition when he set out to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, yet he began wth prayer. He won the monitary support of a hostle king, overcame opposition close to home and led each family in rebuilding the section of wall by their house.

If that sounds like what we face today, join in prayer.

40 Days of Prayer is a call to fervent prayer for our elections. We are in desperate days as a nation as the spiritual, moral and financial fabric of our nation is disintegrating around us. Believers need to pray as never before. America's National Prayer Committee and its member organizations are putting out a call to pray 40 days prior to the elections (September 28 - November 6). Here you will find information and links to other prayer initiatives that are focusing on this election. We are not endorsing these initiatives, but making you aware of them. Our intent is to stay far away from anything that looks like an endorsement or movement for any particular candidate or party. What we are asking for is the intervention of G-d on behalf of our nation.

The United States is clearly a nation in trouble. A battered economy, political divisiveness, the culture wars, racial uneasiness, and a sidelined church, provide the dry tinder for an inflammatory national election in November of 2012. Many stake their hopes or fears on the outcome.

While believing in and encouraging the importance of exercising our right to vote, we also call the Christian Church in America to do that which is even more critical in these days... to pray. The seriousness of our day requires an intensity of prayer that is unprecedented. Accordingly, we call for 40 days and nights of unrelenting intercession on behalf of our nation, immediately preceding the Nov.6th election (September 28 - November 6).

Join Us For 40 Days of Prayer [click to read].

Nehemiah Project

More Pictures of Our Ramp...

Nehemiah Project

New Ramp at Comfort Care Women's Health


Here is an example of what a handfull of dedicated young people can achieve in a week.

The Nehemiah Project is finished. It was a week of furious work and fabulous team spirit. Our team built this ramp and the pergola for the entrance to Comfort Care. The vision of some of our youth ministers became a wonderful reality as 200 youth worked with adult leaders to build twelve different projects.

Nehemiah Project

200 Volunteers Take On Augusta Projects

Tomorrow 200 young people will do something radical. They'll be out in our community building porches, wheelchair ramps and a scooter shed for a disabled lady. I haven't done a Milestone Monday in a while... Blogger's Block, so here's at least a salute to area Pastors Seth Hankee and Rick Miller who have seen this vision through to fruition.

Here's the Newspaper's Write Up [click to read] of this project, which brings together eleven local churches for a week long effort to bless twelve area residents with much needed construction services.

I'll be out with a crew, so blogging may be sporatic for the next week or so.

The Nehemiah Project

Transformative Projects at the Grassroots Level



Take the young people from ten city churches, bring them together to rehabilitate houses in the city under the supervision of Rebuilding Together and you have a revolution in the making! Youth pastor Rick Miller of Staunton Alliance Church had a dream... this Summer, from July 12 to 17 the dream will become a reality. Staunton Alliance has participated in house rehabilitation on a smaller scale in the past two Summers.

Modern Day Nehemiah

Noam Bedein's Mission is Unique, But It's Not New

"But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. "What is this you are doing?" they asked. "Are you rebelling against the king?" -- (Nehemiah 2:19)


Noam Bedein, Founder of Sderot Media

I frankly expected someone much older. Thewebsite I discovered while trying to get perspective on the situation in Southern Israel Sderot Media, is the creation of Noam Bedein, a young man in his twenties. Just like Nehemiah of old, Bedein saw the perilous situation of his beloved city and became both advocate and activist to change things. In the face of opposition from the Western Media, Uninformed pressure from Western Leaders and downright hostility from Hamas, the young photojournalist found his mission to tell Sderot's story and work for the healing of her people. Bedein’s ultimate goal is: "to make people aware of the crisis and present the Israeli perspective that is not often portrayed accurately in the media."

Bedein has lived through about 7000 rockets raining down on the city, who's population consists largely of new immigrants [many from Russia] who are simply too poor to move elsewhere. Many of the citizens are dug in to stay, fearing their exodus would simply create a vacuum for terrorists to move in.

Through Sderot Media, he has also founded Sderot Community Treatment Theater. This theatre project helps young residents of Sderot suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome.

Two Irreconcilable Americas

Once Again, Dennis Prager Nails It!


"Right and the left do not want the same America."

Politicians of all persuasions express a desire to bring Americans together bound by a common vision for the common good. Dennis Prager Points Out the Fallicy of this Reasoning today in Jewish World Review. Really, it's time to admit that there are two different ideologies out there and they are in fierce competition for the heart and soul of the Nation. Without this basic understanding of the conflict it is impossible to understand why it must be debated. Indeed the political manifestation of this conflict is merely the tip of a cultural rift caused by very different world views.

Our founders looked to the order of Judeo-Christian principles as they framed a government based on a balance of tensions that would reign in human tendencies in order to create an orderly society. Individual liberties and individual responsibilities played a large part and government was purposely limited to avoid tyranny. Certain Truths were held to be self-evident. Man was seen as a special creation who bore the mark of his Creator, yet was fallen in nature--often acting along the lines of these baser inclinations. Thus government sought at once to reign the base and give liberty and expression to the higher aspirations of mankind.

The secular humanism that has come to replace a sense of Divine order has given rise to a new paradigm where government, individual liberties and individual responsibilities are re-prioritized. Thus we no longer see the Divine stamp, Imagio Deo, on humanity. On one hand we have created arguments that if man is all there is [no G-d], then man's self-actualization is the main thing. A sense of greater purpose such as that that drove the American Revolution is impossible but we can grab for the highest experiences to justify ourselves. On the other hand, if man is the end of things, then what's so special. The extinction of some rare snail can be elevated above the plight of starving children in Africa. Indeed some radical environmental groups are making that exact argument.

The American left is actually a coalition of many of these often contradictory conclusions and yet they are strongly united in the desire to cast off the "old" constricting beliefs of our forefathers. That is why you will see those who promote the value of free speech in most areas suddenly veer into an irrational supression of religious speech in the public square. The state is now asked to take an even greater role in promoting the well-being of its citizens. The answer must for them be secular, not spiritual. If there is no higher authority it is left to us to pragmatically define and enforce 'virtue.' How else can you explain the fact that after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac failed from reasons stemming from corruption in government oversight, the answer can only be more government oversight.

Update: One Nation--Invisible,
With Liberty and Justice for All!


The press prematurely calls elections at their own peril.

Monica Crowley Has This Wisdom as we approach the election. The talking heads have already proclaimed a winner--well, they are pretty close to calling it. Ms. Crowley reminds us that they are forgetting someone.

"But there is another group of Americans out there who are quieter, more reserved, but no less proud of THEIR candidate. They are the great SILENT majority. They are Joe the Plumber. They are us." We don't hear from them until November 4th!

Update:
Governor Palin Speaks with Dr. Dobson

Update: Train of Thought II

Opposition Means You are Making Progress


Another Cheap Shot at Governor Pain
(thanks to SarahforAmerica.com)

Here is more evidence that Governor Palin is actually very effective in bringing home a message that some people find distasteful. Nehemiah was distained by his enemies Sanballat, Tobias and Geshem as well.

But in the end, had there been no Nehemiah, there would have been no rebuilt Jerusalem. In fact, Larry Elder, who marches out of step with the popular mindset gives this bit of wisdom:

You have no enemies, you say?
Alas, my friend, the boast is poor;
He who has mingled in the fray
Of duty, that the brave endure,
Must have made foes! If you have none,
Small is the work that you have done.
You've hit no traitor on the hip,
You've dashed no cup from perjured lip,
You've never turned the wrong to right,
You've been a coward in the fight.

— Charles MacKay (1814-1889)

Here are two thought provoking articles by Mr. Elder:

Part 1, Part 2 that everyone should read before the election. Look at a person's record to see if they have what it takes to rebuild anything, or if they are allies with those who seek to tear down!

Train of Thought

Observations on a Subway Ride


"Never ignore a shoe craving"

The Washington Metro offers a window into the culture of the city. All subways do. I still recall a trip into St. Louis where the ads for the casinos where all over the train. Soon I noticed the public service ads for the gambling addiction hotline. This week I had to go downtown so I noticed these two signs. The first states: "never ignore a shoe craving." Advertising is always great at 'creating a need.' I thought of Nehemia and the proverb about the undisciplined man being like a city without walls. On the return trip I saw the publc service ad for free HIV medication. How sad that our public messages seem to shout at life from the edges.


Ad for free medication

How sad it is that we're brilliant when we gratify our desires, heroic when we care for the victims of plague, but 'intolerant' when we suggest that there may be old wisdom that would actually guide our lives. Something to think about.

Nehemiah Today

His Message is Timeless

The story of Nehemiah begins with his hearing a report about the distress of his beloved Jerusalem. The walls are broken down and the city is at the mercy of attack from enemies. Nehemiah, who is the Persian king's cupbearer, is troubled by the news and finds himself driven to prayer.

Of course, the trouble of Jerusalem begins years earlier when they ignored their divine mission and sought to be more like the nations that surrounded them. Proverbs 25: 28 says: "Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control." Then, as now, there was a drive to throw off traditional wisdom and the results were disasterous. The walls of Jerusalem fell long befor the Babylonians destroyed them.

Senator Jim DeMint and David Woodward speak of the more modern attempt in their book: Why We Whisper: Restoring our Right to Say it's Wrong. Outlining the expense society incurrs running away from traditional values, the authors lament: "As elected officials and judges continue to throw traditions overboard from the ship of state," conspicuously absent from the political debate "is the mounting cost in dollars [and] debt." Consider the costs society bears as a result of the 'sexual revolution' alone. Treating STDs alone is bankrupting our health care system and safety net programs. When you add the costs of bearing the burden of out-of-wedlock child bearing and trying to replace the support once found in traditional ramily structure, there is much to lament. It's been said that "You are not G-d's messenger if the message doesn't break your heart." Its time to honestly lament the distress of our people in this day.

Nehemiah Got It Right

Rebuilding Begins With Seeking Divine Wisdom

One of my favorite people in history is Nehemiah, the rebuilder of Jerusalem's walls after the return from captivity in Babylon and Persia. Today we face challenges, ironically from situations in Iraq and Iran, and Nehemiah is relevant as we face the challenge of the modern Middle-East.

May First is the National Day of Prayer and if you find the news and challenges of the day overwhelming you will find comfort in the life of Nehemiah. The task he faced was too big for him. The Jerusalem he loved was in dissaray and discouraged. The city was defensless from attack and had limited resources. How did Nehemiah begin to deal with the insurmountable obstacles he faced? He prayed first, then set to work, bringing order and security to a troubled people. He faced many difficulties and was viciously opposed, but he prevailed. In his story we may see a model for how to approach problems that is timeless.