Dear KKIM Family,
I was not going to send out a Cup today…….but the Lord moved me to share these stories with you. They will make you think and pray. We must face the truth as to where we are at as a Country.We must face the Truth that the only way to get out of this mess is through Jesus Christ.
Our depression can become the occasion for growth. It’s proof that God never
wastes an experience, even one arising from the travails of a fallen world.
KKIM’s Man on the Mike Frank filed these reports………..
GEORGE BARNA: AMERICA IS BEING DESTROYED INSIDE OUT:
Christian pollster George Barna reached out to members of the Christian press Wednesday night, insisting that United States is being destroyed from the inside and that the way to restore the country is through returning Americans to their core values.
George Barna, founder of The Barna Group, shares ideas presented in his latest book, 7 Faith Tribes, on the opening night of the Evangelical Press Association/Associated Church Press Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana on Wednesday, May 6, 2009.
George Barna, founder of The Barna Group, shares ideas presented in his latest book, 7 Faith Tribes, on the opening night of the Evangelical Press Association/Associated Church Press Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana on Wednesday, May 6, 2009.
The once great United States is decaying, declared Barna to hundreds of Christian journalists on the opening night of the joint annual convention of the Evangelical Press Association and the Associated Church Press.
America’s rates of divorce, abortion, STD transmission, spousal abuse and crime are the highest or among the highest compared to other developed nations, he added. And the percentage of students graduating from high school on time has not changed in 32 years.
“The enemy of America today is not Iraq. It is not Afghanistan or communism. It is not Somalian pirates. It’s the moral degradation and spiritual complacency of Americans,” contended Barna, founder of the research firm The Barna Group. “In essence it is the willingness of Americans to become victims of the imposition of values and objectives that defy our common good.”
Barna pointed to what he sees as the many factors that are leading America to its deterioration, including moving from mass production to mass consumption, moving from common values to now radical individualism with personal values, and competition among faith groups rather than cooperation.
“Just think about the shift in mottos that characterize our nation,” Barna noted. “We talked about one nation under God, but today really we are one nation under self, sometimes aided by one or more gods.
“We shifted from a nation that said ‘In God We Trust’ to ‘Reality and self we trust,’” he continued. “We transitioned from being a land of the free and the home of the brave, to now we are the land of the indebted and the home of the self-indulgent. We also shifted from a land that believes you can be all you can be to now it’s get all you can get.”
According to Barna, the deterioration of American society is fueled by the breakdown in leadership and core institutions such as family, government, and education. The nation as a whole has lost its shared vision and the shared values that help manage society, the well-known pollster said.
But Barna said he believes there is still hope for restoration if the country’s seven faith tribes return to their core values.
The seven faith tribes are the religious groups that Barna categorized based on the more than 30,000 interviews he conducted over the years. These tribes are: casual Christians (66 percent of the U.S. population), captive Christians (16 percent), Jews (2 percent), Mormons (2 percent), pantheists (2 percent), Muslims (0.5 percent), and skeptics (11 percent).
Barna lamented how these groups have for too long contributed to the problem of social decay. Instead of instilling values and morality in their congregants, these groups focus on building more and bigger buildings, offering more programs, establishing more nationally recognized leaders, and raising and spending more money, he noted.
But Barna says it is it is now time for the faith tribes to return to their core values and start restoring America.
Barna believes that=2 0by harnessing the 20 common values shared by faith tribes – including developing inner peace and purity, representing the truth, practicing self-restraint, respecting life, and being a good citizen – Americans can start to rebuild the country to one of civility, accountability, commitment and unity.
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“My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you’ll join with me as we try to change it.” – Barack Obama
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Dr. David Kaiser is a respected historian whose published works have covered a broad range of topics, from European Warfare to American League Baseball. Born in 1947, the son of a diplomat, Kaiser spent his childhood in three capital cities: Washington D.C. , Albany , New York , and Dakar , Senegal . He attended Harvard University , graduating there in 1969 with a B.A. in history. He then spent several years more at Harvard, gaining a PhD in history, which he obtained in 1976. He served in the Army Reserve from 1970 to 1976.
He is a professor in the Strategy and Policy Department of the United States Naval War College and has previously taught at Carnegie Mellon, Williams College and Harvard University . Kaiser’s latest book, The Road to Dallas, about the Kennedy assassination, was just published by Harvard University Press.
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By Dr. David Kaiser
History Unfolding
I am a student of history. Professionally, I have written 15 books on history that have been published in six languages, and I have studied history all my life. I have come to think there is something monumentally large afoot, and I do not believe it is simply a banking crisis, or a mortgage crisis, or a credit crisis. Yes these exist, but they are merely single facets on a very large gemstone that is only now coming into a sharper focus.
Something of historic proportions is happening. I can sense it because I know how it feels, smells, what it looks like, and how people react to it.. Yes, a perfect storm may be brewing, but there is something happening within our country that has been evolving for about ten to fifteen years. The pace has dramatically quickened in the past two.
We demand and then codify into law the requirement that our banks make massive loans to people we know they can never pay back? Why?
We learned just days ago that the Federal Reserve, which has little or no real oversight by anyone, has “loaned” two trillion dollars (that is $2,000,000,000,000) over the past few months, but will not tell us to whom or why or disclose the terms. That is our money.. Yours and mine. And that is three times the $700 billion we all argued about so strenuously just this past September. Who has this money? Why do they have it? Why are the terms unavailable to us? Who asked for it? Who authorized it? I thought this was a government of “we the people,” who loaned our powers to our elected leaders. Apparently not.
We have spent two or more decades intentionally de-industrializing our economy. Why?
We have intentionally dumbed down our schools, ignored our history, and no longer teach our founding documents, why we are exceptional, and why we are worth preserving. Students by and large cannot write, think critically, read, or articulate. Parents are not revolting, teachers are not picketing, school boards continue to back mediocrity. Why?
We have now established the precedent of protesting every close election (violently in California over a proposition that is so controversial that it simply wants marriage to remain defined as between one man and one woman. Did you ever think such a thing possible just a decade ago?) We have corrupted our sacred political process by allowing unelected judges to write laws that radically change our way of life, and then mainstream Marxist groups like ACORN and others to turn our voting system into a banana republic. To what purpose?
Now our mortgage industry is collapsing, housing prices are in free fall, major industries are failing, our banking system is on the verge of collapse, social security is nearly bankrupt, as is medicare and our entire government. Our education system is worse than a joke (I teach college and I know precisely what I am talking about) – the list is staggering in its length, breadth, and depth.. It is potentially 1929 x ten… And we are at war with an enemy we cannot even name for fear of offending people of the same religion, who, in turn, cannot wait to slit the throats of your children if they have the opportunity to do so.
And finally, we have elected a man that no one really knows anything about, who has never run so much as a Dairy Queen, let alone a town as big as Wasilla , Alaska . All of his associations and alliances are with real radicals in their chosen fields of employment, and everything we learn about him, drip by drip, is unsettling if not downright scary (Surely you have heard him speak about his idea to create and fund a mandatory civilian defense force stronger than our military for use inside our borders? No? Oh, of course. The media would never play that for you over and over and then demand he answer it. Sarah Palin’s pregnant daughter and $150,000 wardrobe are more important.)
Mr. Obama’s winning platform can be boiled down to one word: Change. Why?
I have never been so afraid for my country and for my children as I am now.
This man campaigned on bringing people together, something he has never, ever done in his professional life. In my assessment, Obama will divide us along philosophical lines, push us apart, and then try to realign the pieces into a new and different power structure. Change is indeed coming. And when it comes, you will never see the same nation again.
And that is only the beginning..
As a serious student of history, I thought I would never come to experience what the ordinary, moral German must have felt in the mid-1930s In those times, the “savior” was a former smooth-talking rabble-rouser from the streets, about whom the average German knew next to nothing. What they should have known was that he was associated with groups that shouted, shoved, and pushed around people with whom they disagreed; he edged his way onto the political stage through great oratory. Conservative “losers” read it right now.
And there were the promises. Economic times were tough, people were losing jobs, and he was a great speaker. And he smiled and frowned and waved a lot.. And people, even newspapers, were afraid to speak out for fear that his “brown shirts” would bully and beat them into submission. Which they did – regularly. And then, he was duly elected to office, while a full-throttled economic crisis bloomed at hand – the Great Depression. Slowly, but surely he seized the controls of government power, person by person, department by department, bureaucracy by bureaucracy. The children of German citizens were at first, encouraged to join a Youth Movement in his name where they were taught exactly what to think. Later, they were required to do so. No Jews of course,
How did he get people on his side? He did it by promising jobs to the jobless, money to the money-less, and rewards for the military-industrial complex. He did it by indoctrinating the children, advocating gun control, health care for all, better wages, better jobs, and promising to re-instill pride once again in the country, across Europe , and across the world. He did it with a compliant media – did you know that? And he did this all in the name of justice and …. . .. change. And the people surely got what they voted for.
If you think I am exaggerating, look it up. It’s all there in the history books.
So read your history books. Many people of conscience objected in 1933 and were shouted down, called names, laughed at, and ridiculed. When Winston Churchill pointed out the obvious in the late 1930s while seated in the House of Lords in England (he was not yet Prime Minister), he was booed into his seat and called a crazy troublemaker. He was right, though. And the world came to regret that he was not listened to.
Do not forget that Germany was the most educated, the most cultured country in Europe . It was full of music, art, museums, hospitals, laboratories, and universities. And yet, in less than six years (a shorter time span than just two terms of the U. S. presidency) it was rounding up its own citizens, killing others, abrogating its laws, turning children against parents, and neighbors against neighbors.. All with the best of intentions, of course. The road to Hell is paved with them.
As a practical thinker, one not overly prone to emotional decisions, I have a choice: I can either believe what the objective pieces of evidence tell me (even if they make me cringe with disgust); I can believe what history is shouting to me from across the chasm of seven decades; or I can hope I am wrong by closing my eyes, having another latte, and ignoring what is transpiring around me..
I choose to believe the evidence. No doubt some people will scoff at me, others laugh, or think I am foolish, naive, or both. To some degree, perhaps I am. But I have never been afraid to look people in the eye and tell them exactly what I believe-and why I believe it.
I pray I am wrong. I do not think I am. Perhaps the only hope is our vote in the next elections.
David Kaiser
Jamestown , Rhode Island
United States
Chuck Burton, Associated Press – Ap
Rev. Franklin Graham, left, helps his father, Rev. Billy Graham, to a groundbreaking ceremony for the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, N.C., in this Aug. 26, 2005, file photo.
Having taken over their fathers’ ministries, two iconic preachers are coming to town.
By JEFF STRICKLER, Star Tribune
Last update: May 15, 2009 – 5:21 PM
A NIGHT OF HOPE
Who: Joel Osteen and his wife, Victoria.
When: 7:30 p.m., May 29.
Where: Target Center.
Tickets: $15 at www.joelosteen.com.
ROCK THE RIVER
Who: Franklin Graham.
When: 2:30 p.m. Aug. 16.
Where: Harriet Island.
Tickets: $10 at the gate; no advance sale.
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The man often called the new Billy Graham — Joel Osteen — and the man who hates to be called the new Billy Graham — his son, Franklin Graham — are bringing their evangelical road shows to the Twin Cities this summer.
That’s not all they have in common. Both of their fathers launched ministries that became phenomenally successful, both vowed that they would never take over those ministries, both did take over the ministries and, as a result, both have become the religious world’s equivalent of rock stars.
One more thing: They both say that God has had more to do with their success than they have.
“I have to credit God for anything good I’ve accomplished,” said Graham, who will host a Rock the River “evangelistic concert” Aug. 16 on Harriet Island. Osteen, who will lead a “Night of Hope” at Target Center May 29, is of a similar mind: “God has a plan, and things always work out His way.”
Their success flies in the face of common wisdom, which holds that ministries that rely on charismatic founders hit the skids when someone else takes over. Look at Robert H. Schuler, who in October fired his son, Robert A. Schuler, three years after he had handed over the reins to his popular “Hour of Power” ministry.
No such problems loom for either Graham or Osteen.
By the time his father asked him to take over as CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) in 2000, Franklin Graham already was a major player in the faith-based relief community. Starting as a volunteer for Samaritan’s Purse, an organization that funnels $300 million a year to more than 20 developing countries, he worked his way up to president and CEO, a position he still holds in addition to his other duties.
As for Osteen, after the 1999 death of his father, John, he built Houston-based Lakewood Church from a megachurch to a gigachurch, with an average weekly attendance of 43,000 and another 8 million people in 100 countries watching each week on TV or video streamed online.
Don’t call him Billy
Graham’s accomplishments with Samaritan’s Purse allow him to remind people that he’s not just riding his father’s coattails.
“I didn’t even start working at BGEA until 1989,” the 56-year-old said during a recent visit to the Twin Cities to promote his August rally. By that point, he’d already spent nearly 15 years focusing on his own mission.
In his 1995 autobiography, “Rebel With a Cause,” Graham wrote extensively about resenting the pressure that was put on him — literally from the day he was born — to walk in his father’s footsteps. His mother kept the congratulatory telegrams, which said things like, “Best wishes to the young preacher” and, “Your daddy has new help for preaching.”
“Not one of those telegrams or cards ventured that I might grow up to enjoy career success as a cowboy, jet pilot, doctor or motorcycle mechanic,” he said.
The key turning point to his career in ministry was the realization that he could carry on his father’s work without having to become a Mini-Me.
“I’m not Billy Graham, and I never could be,” he said. “Our message is the same, but my style is completely different. I’ve watched the children of other famous people try to emulate their fathers or mothers, and it doesn’t work. They never discover who they are.”
Rock the River is an attempt to reach the younger generation “in a language they understand.” That means music. Starting in Baton Rouge, La., on July 18, the tour will work its way up the Mississippi River, with Harriet Island as the last stop. It will include music from Flyleaf, Decemberadio and Flame.
“They’re head-bangers,” Graham said. “They’re Christian bands, but I still know that I’m not going to like the music. But that’s OK, because the young people do. I’ll just bring Advil and ear-plugs.”
Don’t call him Billy, either
Osteen, 46, isn’t sure where the term “the new Billy Graham” originated in connection with him. Perhaps with talk show host Larry King, who has made the Texas minister one of his frequent guests and trumpets the magnitude of his worldwide following.
“I take it as a compliment, but I prefer that people wouldn’t say it,” he said. “Billy Graham is one of my heroes. I would never compare myself with him.”
Although he followed his father to Oral Roberts University, he had no intention of following him into the pulpit, even though his father often encouraged him to do so. He majored in radio and TV communications and spent 17 years overseeing his father’s TV broadcasts.
“I was perfectly happy producing and editing those shows,” he said. “I never saw myself preaching.”
When his father died unexpectedly of a heart attack, he was thrown into the breach. He had all he could do to keep his knees from shaking, he says now, but the long-term results speak for themselves.
“Sometimes God’s dream is bigger than yours,” he said.
His TV ministry is atypical in that he ends the broadcasts by encouraging viewers to start attending a local church of their choosing. Asked if that might not keep people from being home Sunday morning to watch him, he said that he doesn’t care.
“My goal has never been to see how big of an audience I can create,” he said. “That wasn’t my daddy’s goal, either. He started out with 90 people. We never sat down and said, ‘Let’s see if we can build a megachurch.’ There are enough huge churches out there already.”
Asked to define his mission, then, he said: “To plant seeds of hope. We all face issues: relationship issues or health issues or economic issues. I never talk down to people. I always try to lift them up. All I’ve ever done is try to be the best I can be, and I encourage people to be the best that they can be.”
Let us Pray………………..
Lord, We come to You today on Armed Forces Day. We remember all those who have given their lives for our Country……..Our Country that has fallen away from You in many ways……..Our Country whose flag is weathered from all it’s battles, Our prayer today is that America will once again give it’s hearts and souls to You, Father, just like the founders of the United States of America! You are the only way Father, In Jesus name, AMEN!
In the Love of Christ, Dewey Sharon and family
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