86% favor significant restrictions; Majority believes abortion hurts a woman long-term

Contact: Andrew T. Walther, Director of Media Relations, Knights of Columbus, 203-752-4253, 203-824-5412 cell

NEW HAVEN, July 10 /ChurchFeed News/ — The American people continue to move to the pro-life perspective on abortion according to the latest Moral Compass polling by the Knights of Columbus and Marist Institute.

The poll mirrored findings of other recent surveys, showing that more Americans identify as pro-life than as pro-choice (an 11% shift from October), and that the vast majority of Americans favor restricting abortion.

Among the key findings:

• 86% of Americans would significantly restrict abortion.
   
• 60% of Americans would limit abortion to cases of rape, incest or the life of a mother – or not allow it at all.
   
• 53% of Americans believe abortion does more harm than good to a woman in the long term.
   
• 79% of Americans support conscience exemptions on abortion for health care workers. This includes 64% of those who identify as strongly pro-choice.
   
• 69% of Americans think that it is appropriate for religious leaders to speak out on abortion.
   
• 59% say religious leaders have a key role to play in the abortion debate.

Additionally, the data showed that nearly every demographic sub-group had moved toward the pro-life position except for non-practicing Catholics and men under 45 years of age.

Independents and liberals showed the greatest shift to the pro-life position since October, while Democrats were slightly less likely to be pro-life now than they were in October.

“The data shows that the American people are placing an ever increasing value on human life,” said Supreme Knight Carl Anderson. “Far from the great divide that most people think exists when it comes to the abortion debate, there is actually a great deal of common ground. Most Americans are unhappy with the unrestricted access to abortion that is the legacy of Roe vs. Wade, and pundits and elected leaders should take note of the fact that agreement on abortion need not be limited to the fringes of the debate and issues like adoption or pre-natal care. The American people have reached a basic consensus, and that consensus is at odds with the legacy of Roe.”

The survey of 1,223 Americans was conducted May 28 - 31 and has a margin of error of +/-3%.

Contact:
Andrew T. Walther
Director of Media Relations
(203) 752-4253 (office)
(203) 824-5412 (cellular)

ZHEJIAN, China, June 20 /ChurchFeed News/ — – In collusion with the local state-sanctioned religious organizations and law enforcement, a group of individuals infiltrated Baixiang Town Christian Church to take over the church and bring destruction to the church life of true believers. One church member, Huang Lemin was badly beaten by the infiltrators on April 23, then was placed under criminal detention at Leqing Municipal Detention Center after his attackers told police that he attacked them. Believers from Baixiang Church are asking the international community to speak out for his release, and to expose the true situation of the hostile takeover of their church by individuals working with government officials.

Since 2007, a group of individuals have conspired with the Bureau of Religion to gain power and control of Baixiang Church, a registered church located in Wengzhou Municipality, Zhejiang province. The infiltrators have prevented Sunday gatherings, attacked believers, sabotaged the church’s audio equipment and destroyed the church’s electrical wiring.
 
On March 1, church member Huang Lemin volunteered to repair the audio equipment damaged by the infiltrators. When Huang Lemin went up the church staircase, several of the infiltrators blocked and surrounded him at the top of the staircase.  The attackers pinned Huang Lemin in a corner and began beating him. One attacker, Yang Huaxi, hit Huang Lemin in the face and the left bone of Huang Lemin’s nose bridge, and knocked his glasses to the floor. Huang Lemin was then unable to defend himself, because he has extremely poor vision. Several Christians arrived and witnessed the assault, but were unable to stop it. After the attack ended, Huang Lemin was injured badly and his nose was bleeding. The Christians took Huang Lemin to report the case at the local police station. At the police station, Huang Lemin started losing consciousness and becoming confused, so believers rushed him to Wenzhou Medical Institute, where a later it was found he had: a fracture in his nasal bone, a cerebral concussion and contusion of soft tissues all over his body.

On April 23, Yang Huaxi pressed charges against Huang Lemin for “intentional injury” and police arrested him. The Christians who witnessed the attack told police Huang Lemin was innocent, but the police sided with Yang.

According to the believers, Huang Lemin is “devout in his belief, peaceful, honest and kindhearted and has a good reputation both inside and outside the church.” On the morning of the day when he was detained, he left a message to “forgive, forget the past and think about the Lord Jesus’ words to us: love thy enemies.” On May 11, members of Baixiang Church collected more than 1,000 signatures and demanded that the public security department release Huang unconditionally. View signatures here: http://chinaaid.org/chinese_site/press_release_detail.php?id=8079.

When the family of Huang Lemin and church members tried to get an answer from the police, they were told to “settle the matter privately out of court.” The family of Huang Lemin’s attacker also suggested they “settle the matter privately out of court.”  However, the conditions for the out-of-court settlement would include a series of conditions related to church matters in addition to financial compensation. 

On May 19, two lawyers, Li Baiguang and Li Dunyong met with Huang Lemin in Baixiang Detention Center. The lawyers submitted an application to the Public Security Bureau (PSB) to demand re-identification about the “injury” of Yang Huaxi and to re-evaluate the case. On May 20, the two lawyers submitted a “request to discharge their statutory duties.” The lawyers have also met with witnesses, and have collected investigation records.

Baixiang Church members are asking the international community to speak out on behalf of justice. They issued a letter stating, “A kindhearted and innocent citizen is jailed on wrongful charges! We hope leaders from the relevant departments will come to our church and conduct a detailed investigation and achieve an understanding of the case. We also hope Leqing Municipal Public Security Bureau and Baixiang Township Police Station base their judgments on facts and regard the law as the criteria and enforce the law impartially!”

ChinaAid asks the international community to petition the TSPM authorities to intervene with authorities for Huang Leming’s immediate release and to stop the hostile actions of the infiltrators at Baixiang Church.

Zhejiang Provincial CC/TSPM Committee
No. 132 Jiefang Road
Hangzhou 310009
Tel: +86-571-87061550 or +86-571-87023550

Contact law enforcement authorities in Zhejiang to petition for Huang Lemin’s immediate release:

Public Security Department of Zhejiang Province: +86-571-87286114 or +86-0571-81951080

Hangzhou Public Security Bureau +86-571-87076677 or +86-571-87067119

Wenzhou Public Security Bureau +86-577-88327366

Yueqing City Public Security Bureau +86-577-62535433
Read the Leqing Municipal Public Security Bureau Detention Notice for Huang Leming.

Read a Joint Letter from Believers of North Baixiang Town Christian Church to Relevant Departments.

Contact: Katherine Cason, 267-210-8278, Katherine@ChinaAid.org; 

Washington, D.C. Contact: Jenny McCloy, 202-213-0506, Jenny@ChinaAid.org; www.ChinaAid.org, www.MonitorChina.org

Constitution Party Woos Conservatives Hurt by GOP

Lancaster, PA: The Constitution Party, the fastest-growing third party, is poised to pick up the pieces of the broken Grand Old Party as more Americans consider the option of an alternative choice.

A recent national survey shows almost 70% of Republican voters think party members in Congress are out of touch with the GOP base.

“It’s no wonder party faithful have lost their fervor”, said Constitution Party National Committee Chairman Jim Clymer.

“We are seeing an unprecedented shift in party allegiance as those who’ve been disappointed time and again leave the ranks of the Republican Party”. Clymer noted the party’s shift to the left, away from some of the principles championed by President Ronald Reagan, is the reason for the party’s present struggle.

The Constitution Party, the fastest-growing third party, advocates a return to limited, Constitutional government and sees the Republican Party’s aggressive move away from its platform as the reason for its demise.

“(Former Florida governor) Jeb Bush’s recent comments about Reagan illustrate why so many have left the GOP,” Clymer said.

Jeb Bush recently told Republicans it’s time to give up the notion of returning to a more conservative ideology such as President Reagan often advocated,calling the attachment to past conservative ideals “nostalgia.”

Jeb Bush said President Obama’s “message of hope and change during the 2008 campaign clearly resonated with Americans….” He added,”So our ideas need to be forward looking and relevant. I felt like there was a lot of nostalgia and the good old days in the [Republican] messaging. I mean, it’s great, but it doesn’t draw people toward your cause.”

Clymer said “Those words waved a red flag in front of those of us bullish on liberty. The reason the Republicans lost the White House in 2008 is not because their candidate was too conservative, but because he wasn’t conservative enough. McCain didn’t differ that much from Obama on the isues”, he said, further noting, “Both “Big Box” parties are fast-tracking this country to its economic and cultural demise. It’s long past time to consider the option the Constitution Party offers.”

SOURCE: constitutionparty.com

Sacramento – Leaders of the ProtectMarriage.com – Yes on Proposition 8 campaign today accused legislators of “grandstanding for the cameras” in an inappropriate and misguided publicity stunt designed to influence the California Supreme Court in the lead-up to the Court’s scheduled hearing on the validity of Proposition 8.

“You’d think that these legislators would be focused on resolving the budget deficit or improving the economy. Instead, they seem more interested in grandstanding for the cameras and thumbing their noses at voters who enacted Proposition 8 by a nearly 600,000 vote margin,” said Ron Prentice, Chairman of ProtectMarriage.com – Yes on 8. “Sadly, with an approval rating hovering at an all-time low of 15%, the Legislature continues to disregard their duties to the citizens of California.”

Openly-gay legislators and other members of the GLBT Caucus held a press conference today in Sacramento to announce the introduction of a legislative resolution declaring that Proposition 8 is an illegal “constitutional revision” and thus should be declared invalid by the California Supreme Court. However, the legislators backing the resolution have no apparent qualifications as constitutional scholars to make such a finding, nor does a symbolic resolution have any standing in courts of law.

“This resolution adds nothing to the debate about the validity of Proposition 8. It is simply designed to get press coverage for the legislators involved,” said Andrew Pugno, General Counsel of ProtectMarriage.com. “The California Supreme Court, at our request, has already decided to hear the challenges to Proposition 8. We are confident that Prop. 8 will be upheld, as many legal scholars have recently commented. The Court is not swayed by meaningless legislative resolutions that have no bearing on the outcome of the court challenges.”

The California Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Spring, 2009. The ProtectMarriage.com – Yes on 8 committee will submit briefs to the Court and has been granted the right to intervene on behalf of Prop. 8’s official proponents.

The latest vote count from the Secretary of State shows that Proposition 8 has passed with 52.3% of the vote. By way of comparison, Prop. 8 received approximately 2 million more votes than did Governor Schwarzenegger when he was reelected in 2006. Additionally, Prop. 8 received nearly the same percentage of the vote in California as Barack Obama received nationally.

“California legislators have much important work to do. Introducing meaningless resolutions that insult voters for approving Proposition 8 is not the best way for them to spend their time,” Prentice said.

 Contact: Frank Schubert, 916-448-4234

SOURCE: PROTECTMARRIAGE.COM

WASHINGTON, November /ChurchFeed News/ –Don Feder, editor of the Boycott The New York Times website (BoycottNYT.com), noted that The New York Times intentionally left out most of the relevant details in reporting on the ongoing effort to overturn California’s Proposition 8 (the marriage-protection amendment to the state constitution) in an article the paper published on November 18.“Tuesday’s story is a continuation of The New York Times’ biased coverage of the entire Prop. 8 campaign,” Feder wrote on BoycottNYT.com. “In evaluating The Times’ coverage of any issue, what’s not reported is as important as what is.”

The Times story focuses on California Attorney General Jerry Brown’s request that the State Supreme Court review the constitutionality of Proposition 8 in response to protests and lawsuits.Among the facts The New York Times conveniently left out of the story are the following:

Same-sex marriage was never part of the California Constitution. It was forced on the state in May, by an edict of the same court now being asked to rule on the legality of Prop. 8.

Despite massive opposition by the mainstream media, including The New York Times, Prop. 8 passed by a vote of 52% to 48%. Now, citizens of 30 states have enacted marriage-protection amendments, by an average vote of 68%.

In 2000, 61% of California voters approved Prop. 22, a statute limiting marriage to a man and a woman. The Court swept that aside with its mandate, necessitating the marriage amendment.

Those demonstrations by opponents of Proposition 8 the paper mentioned in passing are often aimed at the Mormon and Catholic Churches and are frequently violent. At one, an elderly woman was assaulted by an anti-Prop. 8 mob.

Feder’s commentary on The Times’ ongoing distortion of the California marriage debate is available at: http://boycottnyt.com/what-the-times-forgot-to-mention-about-californias-marriage-amendment

About Boycott The New York TimesA project of Accuracy In Media (AIM), Boycott The New York Times is the first project to call for a general boycott of America’s most biased news outlet. For more information, go to www.boycottnyt.com and www.aim.org.

To arrange an interview with Don Feder, contact Sarah Schaerr Norton at (202) 364-4401 ext. 107 or sarah.schaerr@aim.org.

SOURCE: ACCURACY IN MEDIA

 

UC Berkeley Department of Public Science Chairman Emeritus Eugene C. Lee: “Specific changes to the California constitution may be proposed by amendment. Substantial changes may be proposed by a constitutional convention or by the legislature as constitutional revisions.”

Sacramento, California — With their vote under attack by liberal county governments, homosexual activists and the ACLU, many Californians are wondering whether they’ve lost the right to amend the constitution. The answer is no, according to the constitution itself and the legislative and legal history regarding the difference between an “amendment” and a “revision.”

“An amendment is when the voters make changes to one or more of the provisions of the constitution,” said Randy Thomasson, president of Campaign for Children and Families, a leading California pro-family organization. “In contrast, a revision is when the legislature and the voters both agree to make numerous, sophisticated changes to the entire constitution. If the constitution were a house, a revision would be an extensive remodel where you knock down all the inside walls and repaint everything; an amendment would be a minor change, like replacing a lamp or a chair in the family room.”

Proposition 8, approved by the voters, added Article 1, Section 7.5 to the California Constitution, reading, “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.”

The City of San Francisco alleges Prop. 8 was a constitutional revision requiring two-thirds legislative approval. Yet in July, the California Supreme Court refused to hear these same arguments when the City of San Francisco urged the court to strip Prop. 8 from the ballot. “This summer, the Supreme Court unanimously refused to hear the claim that Proposition 8 was a revision,” said Thomasson, who is seeking to intervene in the Prop. 8 lawsuits on behalf of the voters. “The Court disagreed that Prop. 8 is ‘a substantial alteration of the entire constitution.’”

“The Supreme Court knows the difference between a single-subject, voter-initiated amendment and a multi-issue, legislature-initiated, whole-scale revision that alters many sections of the state constitution,” said Thomasson. “The first clue is revisions always require a two-thirds legislative vote, but voter-initiated amendments such as Prop. 8 are directly added to the constitution by the people. Thank God that the state constitution tells us ‘all political power is inherent in the people,’ that ‘they have the right to alter or reform it when the public good may require’” (California Constitution, Article II, Section 1).In 1978, the California Supreme Court distinguished between a revision of the constitution and a mere amendment of the constitution, stating that a revision referred to a “substantial alteration of the entire constitution, rather than to a less extensive change in one or more of its provisions” (Amador Valley Joint Union High School District v. State Board of Equalization, 22 Cal.3d 208).

The California Supreme Court last ruled on this issue in 1991, rejecting similar arguments that the City of San Francisco is using now. The Court ruled that Prop. 140 was not a revision:

“As previously noted, petitioners contend that the combined effects of the foregoing term and budgetary limitations on California’s ‘basic governmental plan’ will be as devastating and far reaching as those involved in the provision of Proposition 115 invalidated by us in Raven v. Deukmejian, supra, 52 Cal.3d 336, 276 Cal.Rptr. 326, 801 P.2d 1077. They thus assert that Proposition 140 has achieved a qualitative revision of the Constitution. We disagree.

“Raven invalidated a portion of Proposition 115 because it deprived the state judiciary of its foundational power to decide cases by independently interpreting provisions of the state Constitution, and delegated that power to the United States Supreme Court. (Ibid.) By contrast, Proposition 140 on its face does not affect either the structure or the foundational powers of the Legislature, which remains free to enact whatever laws it deems appropriate. The challenged measure alters neither the content of those laws nor the process by which they are adopted. No legislative power is diminished or delegated to other persons or agencies.” (Legislature v. Eu 54 Cal.3d 492)

The California Constitution itself states that the people may amend the Constitution by the initiative process, where they collect signatures, qualify an amendment to the Constitution, and pass it. No legislative “permission” is required for voter-initiated amendments such as Proposition 8. “The electors may amend the Constitution by initiative” (Article 18, Sec. 3).Explaining the clear distinction between an amendment and a revision is University of California, Berkeley Department of Public Science Chairman Emeritus Dr. Eugene C. Lee, who, in 1991, wrote:”Specific changes to the California constitution may be proposed by amendment. Substantial changes may be proposed by a constitutional convention or by the legislature as constitutional revisions. Regardless of their origin, all changes must be approved by a majority of the electorate voting on the issue. Legislative amendments, the method most commonly used, require a two-thirds vote in each house of the legislature. Initiative amendments may be placed on the ballot by a petition of registered voters equal in number to 8 percent of the total vote cast in the preceding gubernatorial election. By explicit language in the constitution concerning initiatives and by court interpretation with respect to measures arising in the legislature, amendments are required to be limited in scope. As far back as 1894, the California Supreme Court distinguished between a revision of the constitution and a mere amendment thereof (Livermore v. Waite, 102 Cal. 113). As reiterated in 1978, the court held that a revision referred to a ’substantial alteration of the entire constitution, rather than to a less extensive change in one or more of its provisions’ (Amador Valley Joint Union High School District v. State Board of Equalization, 22 Cal.3d 208).”
– Eugene C. Lee, “The Revision of California’s Constitution,” April 1991, commissioned by the California Policy Seminar, UC Berkeley

SOURCE: CAMPAIGN FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

SANTA ANA, Calif., Nov. 14  Leaders representing the broad coalition of Californians who supported Proposition 8 called on leaders of the No on Proposition 8 campaign, in addition to Senator Diane Feinstein and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, to denounce the attacks against citizens who supported the constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman.

“Amidst all this lawlessness, harassment, trampling of civil rights and now domestic terrorism, one thing stands out: the deafening silence of our elected officials. Not a single elected leader has spoken out against what is happening. Where is Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger while churches are being attacked? And where is Senator Dianne Feinstein while people are losing their jobs and grandmothers are being bullied by an angry mob?” said Campaign Co-Manager Frank Schubert.

The statement was made at the first press conference of the Protect Marriage coalition since election night when Proposition 8 was passed by California voters with 52.5% of the vote. In the past ten days, hostility has increased against people whose only offense was to exercise their right to participate in the political process.

Some of the outrageous activities include:

In Sacramento, a musical theater director was forced to resign after he was blacklisted for contributing $1000 to the initiative;

A Mexican restaurant in Los Angeles has been boycotted after a relative of the owner donated to the coalition;

Numerous churches have had their property defaced;

And an unknown white powder was mailed to several LDS temples and the National Headquarters of the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic organization that supported the campaign.

The leadership of the ProtectMarriage.com coalition, a group of interfaith religious leaders, community leaders from a wide range of ethnic groups, and approximately 500 supporters of Yes on Proposition 8 gathered in Santa Ana to voice their opposition to the increasing attacks and harassment against supporters of traditional marriage.

Speaking on behalf of the African American community, Pastor Ed Smith of the Zoe Christian Fellowship of Whittier said: “Marriage is important to members of all faiths and all communities, but an election was held, the outcome was fair and people throughout California should honor it.”

“For 14 months, we have been called bigots and hatemongers and we have not retaliated against these unprecedented attacks,” Pastor Jim Garlow said. “But we will not be silenced.”

SOURCE The ProtectMarriage.com Yes on 8 Campaign

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Inspire magazine – the UK’s largest circulation monthly title serving the Christian community – is to honour individual Christians and churches making a difference in their communities, in the 2008 Inspire Awards.

The winners and runners-up in two categories – Inspiring Individual and Inspiring Church – will be announced at a special reception in Parliament on Thursday 20 November (12.30-2pm).

Over the last year Inspire has invited readers to nominate individuals who are inspiring role models and churches making a positive impact on their communities.

The eight shortlisted candidates – four in each category – were whittled down from nearly 150 nominations by judges drawn from the Inspire editorial team, its publisher CPO and partners CMS, Church Army, Nationwide Christian Trust and Stewardship.

Said Inspire Editor, Russ Bravo: “The media are often full of doom and gloom stories, but we know that so much fantastic work is going on around the UK because of ordinary people believing in an extraordinary God. We want to tell those stories – and celebrate them!”

The winners in each section will receive trophies and a prize of £250 (individual) and £500 of CPO resources (church). The two runners-up will receive a trophy. The prizes will be awarded by CPO CEO Paul Slide and representatives from Inspire’s partner organisations. A number of MPs are also expected to attend the event at the Palace of Westminster.

The winners names will be released after 20 November.

For details of shortlisted candidates in each category please see below. For further information about Inspire Magazine or the Inspire Awards, call Russ Bravo on 01903 604343 or Sharon Barnard on 01903 604358.

www.inspiremagazine.org.uk

Note to Editors

Shortlisted candidates in the Inspiring Individual category:

Lisa Bullock and Esther Peggs (supporting socially excluded youngsters in Holywell, Flintshire through Hope37)

Beverley Carter (from Southampton, who started Bridging the Gap to raise awareness about the dangers of prostitution)

Janis Feely (founder of The Living Room, a Christian-based addiction treatment centre in Stevenage)

Anna and Steve Hartland (who run Loaves ‘n’ Fishes, providing household furniture to the needy in the West Midlands)

Shortlisted candidates in the Inspiring Church category:

Elim Church, Honley, West Yorkshire
King’s Arms Church (King’s Arms Project), Bedford
New Hope Community Church, Southampton
Sandy Lane Community Church, Oldham, Lancs

Inspire Magazine, which started in 2006, is distributed free to more than 80,000 every month in churches across the UK and is funded by partner organisations, advertising and donations.

 By  Scott Whitley

 Are you sensing that there is something different about this presidential election? I was telling someone just recently that it seems like this election is far more serious than those in the recent past. Something in my spirit is very uneasy. In the past I have felt the need to pray for different elections but I have never felt so strongly the urge to pray, and pray fervently, for an election as I do for this one. I truly believe that if the wrong person (Obama) is elected this nation will be changed forever. We may not be able to undo the things that will be unleashed during an Obama presidency.. My concern about an Obama presidency is not based on politics; it is based on righteousness. Look at any of the major moral issues (abortion, homosexuality etc.) and you will find Obama on the wrong side of the issue, and Palin and McCain on the right side of the issue. What makes this so disturbing is that the Obama team has raised far more money than McCain/Palin and the media is unabashedly supporting Obama with every story and headline they write. Currently McCain/Palin is behind in the polls and is having a very difficult time. Some in the media have suggested that the race is over and there is little or nothing McCain can do to change the outcome. Oh how wrong they are!

Let me briefly share a story I recently read in 2 Samuel Chapter 5. David had just become king of Israel and the Philistines went up to wage war against him. So David inquired of the Lord and said, “Shall I go and attack the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?” The LORD said, “Yes I will surely hand them over to you.” So David went and defeated them. He said, “As waters break out, the LORD has broken out against my enemies before me.” After suffering a great loss in the first battle the Philistines must have thought they now knew David defense strategy and they would be ready for him the next time, because once more the Philistines came up to attack David. So once again David inquired of the LORD, but this time the Lord gave different instructions. He said to David, “Do not go straight up, but circle around behind them and attack them in front of the balsam trees. As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, move quickly, because that will mean the LORD has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army.” David obeyed the Lord and was victorious.

This story holds a very important lesson for us at this time. In most presidential elections a frontal assault, a face-to-face battle, is what is needed. But this is no ordinary election. McCain is trying all the normal tactics but he is not prevailing. It seems no matter what he says or does it is not effective. I am convinced this election CANNOT be won using normal methods. Just as the Lord told David to go around behind the enemy and attack him there, so we must go around the face of this election and wage war where the battle is truly raging…in the spiritual realm! The fact that the normal physical methods are not effective this time should tell us that this is a very important spiritual battle and we can only win by using spiritual methods…Prayer!

What about the sound of marching in the treetops? What is that? I have read on the Internet several accounts of fellow Christians being stirred up in their spirits to pray. Many have been drawn into times of deep prayer and weeping as they intercede for Palin and McCain. Some have woke up in the middle of the night and sensed a great need to pray, other have told of how when they heard about Sarah Palin being chosen as VP that something came over them and they wept and felt a need to pray for Her and McCain. Many others are feeling the calling and urging of the Spirit to enter into a time of fervent prayer and fasting for Palin and McCain and our nation. What is this unusually stirring that is occurring? I believe it is the Sound of the Lord marching in the trees, calling his children to act quickly to pray and fast for Palin and McCain. Think about this, what would the marching have sounded like to David? It may have sounded like the rustling of leaves as when wind blows through them, but was this time something was different and out of the ordinary. Maybe it was like the sound of the great wind when the Spirit moved on the day of Pentecost. Also, God’s people are referred to as Trees of Righteous in Isaiah 61. So the sound of the Lord marching in the treetops in David’s time is a portrait of the Spirit of the Lord moving among and stirring up his children today.

So what are we to do when we sense this stirring of the Spirit? Two things, first we are to take it as the sign that the Lord is moving out in front of us. Anytime the Lord calls us to do something he goes ahead of us to prepare the way and fight for us. When Joshua returned from spying out Jericho the Lord gave him insight to see that the Lord had removed the Jericho’s protection so Israel could defeat them. When the Lord calls us into battle he goes ahead of us, removes the enemy’s protection, and fights for us to give us the victory. Secondly, the Lord tells us when we sense the stirring of the Spirit we are to act quickly and join Him in the battle (through prayer, fasting, praise and obedience)

This election is by no means lost. For God would not be stirring up his children all across this nation and indeed around the world, to pray, if he did not want to give us the victory in this election. And he wants us to join him in the battle. God will hear the cries of his children if we will only cry out to him with fervent, earnest, prayers for this election and this nation. If those who are being drawn to prayer by the Spirit will indeed enter into a time of prayer and seeking His face, then God will have mercy on America spare us from having an ungodly leader, I’m sure of it!

One more thought, after the last debate, so-called ‘conservative’ David brooks gushed about Obama,

“I thought Obama had the night he needed to have. You know, through this whole 20 month marathon, I think what struck me is how incredibly even he is. And how frankly reassuring he is. It is like you’re camping, and you wake up one morning, and there is a mountain. And then the next morning, there is a mountain, and there’s the next morning, there’s a mountain. Obama is just the mountain. He is just there. He is always the same, he doesn’t hurt himself. McCain can sometimes lob a cannonball at the mountain, but the mountain doesn’t move, and the mountain doesn’t care. And so I think his steadiness, his temperament has been the dramatic theme of this campaign, dramatic in being undramatic. And it was on display tonight. And the good part of the mountain is that he is reassuring and reliable.”

I’m really glad he used the word ‘mountain’ to describe Obama. It caused me to remember what Jesus said about unmovable mountains. Jesus said, I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

And it only takes a little faith!

This election can only be won by going around the face of the election and attacking the enemy where he is vulnerable, through prayer, fasting and praise. If you hear the sound of the Lord marching in the tree tops, if you feel the stirring of the Spirit calling you to pray, then move quickly into a time of prayer, for God is moving ahead of you at that time to give us the victory. May God give us ears to hear the marching!