Recent Viewpoints

Most of us have heard Jeremiah 29:11 that says, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” But we often neglect the verses that precede it. Chuck Bentley with Crown Financial Ministries explains that those earlier verses provide a blueprint of “Four Steps to End Poverty.” He was on my radio program recently to talk about his article. Step…

A case involving a church sign is headed to the Supreme Court. While that might seem like a trivial case, it illustrates what may become a major battleground between church and state. A small church in Arizona relies on temporary signs to direct worshipers to its services. This Presbyterian Church rents space in various places for its services. So they depend on putting up cardboard signs to direct people to the latest location. The town of Gilbert, Arizona restricts such…

Yesterday I talked about what the agenda for Congress would most likely be. Today I wanted to add a few more issues that many voters and members of Congress believe should also be part of the congressional agenda. For example, a number of newly elected Senators ran against the Environmental Protection Agency rules. Newly elected West Virginia Senator Shelley Moore Capito said her state’s economy is already suffering from new EPA rules on coal. This led to the loss of…

As Congress is about to convene, it is worth considering what will be the congressional agenda for this year. Actually, we don’t have to guess what the Republican leadership has planned for the first few months of the new Congress. Representative John Boehner and Senator Mitch McConnell proposed and solidified their plans right after the November election. First, they plan to get quick congressional action on a number of bills that have been stalled in Congress. One is to approve…

Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that “After years on the back burner of the nation’s educational agenda, civics is making a comeback, with a number of states mandating new classes or assessments and a burgeoning national push for high-school seniors to pass the exam required of new citizens.” Websters Dictionary defines civics as “the study of the rights and duties of citizens and of how government works.” The Wall Street Journal points out that civics lessons cover “the…

The new Congress is about to convene. The new leadership should consider changing a tradition left over from the previous Congress. Columnist Derek Hunter put it this way: “It’s time to kill the lame duck.” He makes a convincing case that it is time to abolish lame duck sessions in Congress. He asks, “why should people whom the voters unambiguously said they no longer wish to have represent them have two full months to do just that in every conceivable…

Let me begin by wishing you a Happy New Year. Have you made any New Year’s resolutions? Whether you have or not, I want to encourage you to “strive for mediocrity.” I have borrowed the phrase from an article written by Tristan Taylor Thomas. His argument is that we should consider a number of things before we make any resolution. His advice to us is not to pick something that is too big to achieve. When we aim lower and…

It is that time of year for many to make New Year’s resolutions. It may surprise you to know that the tradition goes all the way back to before the time of Christ. Janus was the name of a mythical king of early Rome whose face was placed at the head of the calendar. With two faces, Janus could look back on past events and forward to the future. The New Year has not always begun on January 1. In…

When Sony Entertainment decided not to release the movie, The Interview, we talked on radio about the reasons for their decision. In the midst of the charges of cowardice and other criticisms came the legal concern. If they did release the film and something happened in a theater, would Sony be sued? I think we all know the answer to that. Of course, they would be sued. This led to an interesting discussion of whether an artist (writer, musician, producer,…

We’re hearing a lot from politicians about environmental policy.  I haven’t heard any of them mention that one solution might be: promoting marriage. Currently the environmental movement is all about climate, as if we can really affect that. If you don’t think global warming is taking place or is a problem, it doesn’t mean you favor rampant abuse of the earth. One can be a global warming skeptic — as I am —­ and still exhibit concern for the environment….

One day after Christmas, I would like to ask you a question. How much did you spend on Christmas? If you are like most Americans, you probably would answer that you spent more than you planned to spend. Dave Ramsey estimates that half of all Christmas shoppers will spend more  than they planned and will go further into debt. It is understandable. Advertisers started promoting Christmas long before Thanksgiving. It wasn’t uncommon to see some Christmas decorations and ads alongside…