C3 Report: Volume 3 Issue IX (September 2010)
Contents:
- September C3 Lunch Meetings!
- Activities or Actions Worth Pursuing (Selected)
- “The Election and the Gospel” Good News Etc. Article for September
- Minute Ministry Tip #6 Voter Guides
- General Interest: Books Read In August (by Dallas and God)
- Information – Assistance Offer
- Contact information
A warm welcome to new subscribers to the C3 Report: Chris, Karen, Pat, Robert, Gino and Kevin.
September C3 Lunch Meetings!
- 28th of September (Tuesday) -
- 30th of September (Thursday) -
Activities or Actions Worth Pursuing (Selected)
11 September: Patriot Day. The day set aside by act of Congress, and signed by President Bush in 2001 to remember those that died in the 9-11 attacks. Fly the American flag at half mast to honor those lives, and the brave men and women lost since then in defense of our freedoms.
11 September: City Fest (Mission Bay Park). For information about this 12:00 to 9:00 p.m. event with Luis Palau go to http://www.sandiegocityfest.com
12th, 18th, 26th of September: “CPEDG”: The “Cultural and Political Engagement Discussion Group” continues at Grace Bible Church the 1st & 3rd Saturdays at 0900 am, and the 2nd & 4th Sundays at 12:15 pm. For information contact frankkacer@hotmail.com. Current lesson: How to Communicate Effectively
17 September: Constitution Day. Surprise - this does not show up on my Daytimer, but it’s the anniversary of the signing of our national Constitution in 1787. For more information about this day and our Constitution go to: http://www.constitutionday.com
18 September: Salt and Light Training (10:00 to 5:00 pm). Contact Dran Reese at dran@saltandlightcouncil.org to sign up. For info about Salt and Light go to: http://saltandlightcouncil.org/
20 September – 30 October: A Call to Pray and Act for Life, Marriage and Religious Freedom. This call for our nation has gone out to 10’s of thousands of pastors across the nation, as well as countless others. Join the 40 days of fasting and prayer, and the remaining national conference call/webinar events by going to: www.prayandact.com
22 September – 31 October: 40 Days for Life. Around the world pro-life supporters will be meeting for prayer and fasting throughout these 40 days. Go to www.40daysforlife.com/sandiego for more information on local activities.
26 September: Gold Star Mother’s Day. This day is observed on the last Sunday of September each year for people to recognize and honor those who have lost a son or daughter while serving the United States Armed Forces.
October: Does your church have a desire to address the State-wide Propositions on the 2nd of November ballot? For a free booklet on how to do this in a Christ honoring, legal manner contact C3 at the address below.
23 October: Western Center for Law and Policy Banquet (with David Barton!) “An Evening in Florence”. I encourage all of you to attend this wonderful opportunity to: hear about WCLP’s service to us; listen to David Barton (Wallbuilders); and participate in supporting WCLP’s work to protect our faith, family and freedom rights. Cost is $75 per person, or sponsor a table for $650 for 10 people.
Now: Voter Registration! Be sure to be registered to vote this November. Remember that the last day to register is 18 October for the 2 November election.
Now - Family Value Voter Guide Help! If you have volunteer time available, and want to help the greater Christian community there’s a lot that can be done to assist getting this important guide out to our greater Christian community. To volunteer, send an e-mail to FamilyVoterInfo@FamilyVoterInfo.org, or call 888-721-1980.
Now: Preparation for November Propositions Vote. Go to http://www.sos.ca.gov to begin reviewing the 9 state-wide Propositions we will be voting on November 2nd.
Tea Parties in the Area:
- Ramona Tea’d: http://www.ramonatead.com/.
My Recent Good News Etc. Article (September):
“The Election and the Gospel”
Politics is in the air. Tea Party activists have rightly called government to task for unrestrained power grabs and gross fiscal irresponsibility. Everywhere, Christian conservatives are scrutinizing candidates to see if they’re true to our core Biblical principles and values. Like the last election, this November will be a bell-weather for our country’s future. Nothing less than a tipping point between our freedoms and the government’s insatiable thirst for power are at stake. Our right to openly worship, preach and live out God’s word, the prosperity of our children and grandchildren, our national security, and the control of our medical care future are all at risk because apathy and ignorance have enabled ungodly leadership to be enthroned. It’s obvious we can’t sit on the sidelines just waiting for November. What tends to be lost, however, is that this election can be a showcase for the gospel.
Because politics is a contact sport, it can quickly become very divisive. In election battles it’s easy to forget that brothers and sisters in Christ have infinitely more in common through Christ than they’ll ever have in their politics. Not that we shouldn’t strive for unity (1 Peter 3:8) in everything, including our votes, but ultimately our spiritual fellowship shouldn’t be dependent on perfect alignment in the political realm. Remember, the world will know we’re Christ’s disciples by our love, not animosity, towards each other (John 13:35). How we speak about and treat other believers, even when we may differ, will support or degrade the credibility of our gospel testimony and its transcending power over everything else in our lives.
Also, as Christians we should have a deep and abiding concern for the well-being of others. Just as God demonstrated his infinite love for us by giving his Son, shouldn’t we demonstrate our compassion for the lost, powerless, and weak by demanding government restrain itself from devaluing life and creating dependency through class warfare? Where are the sermons equipping us to actively defend truth and the common good against a power-thirsty government (Jer 29:7; Eph 5:11)? Why isn’t every church teaching us how to apply God’s word to restrain evil, how to support good candidates and legislation, and how to not depend solely on the use of political power (Matt 5:13-16)? If preaching the whole Bible doesn’t include exhorting and equipping us to engage in the dominant moral battles of our era – then our spiritual leadership is naïve, weak and possibly blind. Continuing in this state of denial will eventually lead to our comfortable church lives being turned into agony by an oppressive, ungodly government.
Our credibility with unbelievers is impacted by our understanding of the times and ability to express timeless truth in an effective way. As the world watches, if we just curse the darkness how is our credibility ever bolstered in sharing the gospel? Ultimately, it’s not who’s elected to office or which Propositions pass; it’s our personal example and concern to an unbelieving world that will have eternal influence. If we don’t capitalize on the widespread angst and anger towards the incompetent and dangerous leaders we currently have, then we’ve squandered opportunities to apply truth or demonstrate concern for what’s right, and will only reinforce the stereotypical view that the Bible, Christians and the gospel are irrelevant to our world.
Finally, whatever the outcome in November we must recognize that this deadly spiritual warfare will continue. If positive changes begin in this election, our active, gracious involvement gives us credibility with others because of our concern for them, and our love for each other. If the election doesn’t help restrain government, then the moral credibility we gained in the fight will allow us to minister to those that’ll be disillusioned and eventually hurt by government hegemony.
Minute Ministry Tip #6:
Voter Guides. The most used, most complete, local voter guide is the Family Values Voter Guide. This provides great information on many of the races from the local level to state-wide. A discouraging trend over the last several cycles, however, is that even those candidates we like are starting to not respond to the questions asked of them. There may be several reasons for that, but one is not through oversight by their political staff. Don Smith and his volunteers have a rigorous follow-up process to ensure the questionnaire was received, and tries multiple times to gain a response back from each candidate. The FVVG will be posted at http://www.familyvoterinfo.org prior to the election, or you can request copies to distribute for your church by calling 888-721-1980
General Interest - Books Read In August:
“The Bible”: by God Himself (English Standard Version, 1042 pages). I’m on track to complete reading through the entire Bible for this year. I use September 11th as the anniversary date since it helps remind me of the uncertainties and dangers in this world, and the absolute trust I have in Almighty God (through Jesus Christ) that fashioned the universe and holds all nations in His just hands. I encourage each of you to develop a daily routine of Bible reading and prayer.
“Desires in Conflict – Hope for Men Who Struggle with Sexual Identity”: by Joe Dallas (1991, revised 2003) (237 pages). Dallas is past president of Exodus International. His insights into homosexuality from both personal life experience and extensive counseling of homosexuals provides a rich resource to anyone needing to understand this complex sin issue. He balances Biblical grace and truth very effectively, directly addresses those struggling with homosexual desires (and lust) in a compassionate and thoughtful manner, and doesn’t overlook the need for repentance. He also discusses the common attacks on Biblical passages dealing with homosexuality as well the unsupported genetic cause theory. I highly recommend this book to anyone that wants to better understand this multifaceted and life-destroying orientation.
Information – Assistance Offer:
Is there a pastor or ministry leader that’s receptive to establishing a Christian Citizenship (or Salt & Light) Ministry in a legal, Christ-honoring, Biblically balanced way? I’ll take them to lunch to discuss how to go about it. Just let me know.
Contact Information:
Frank Kacer
Executive Director of the Christian Citizenship Council (C3) of San Diego
C3 is a 501(c)3 organization, serving the Christian community since 2004
As always, if you wish to be taken off the distribution list, just let me know.
C3 Vision Statement
“The Christian Citizenship Council of San Diego
(Matt 5:13-16; 16:18; 22:39; Jer 29:7)
“When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan”
(Prov 29:2)
posted by Frank @ September 09, 2010
2 Comments
2 Comments:
You made good ideas here. I done a research on the topic and learnt nearly all peoples will agree with your blog. But that's for down the road.
st kitts economic citizenship
Check out these simple methods for writing a character analysis. You can accomplish anything with their assistance.here are a couple of suggestions to get you started
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home