Vote!  

     Please vote, if you are registered. The era in which many Republicans were satisfied to skip the midterms is over! Done! History! 

     If you are a Democrat, you can vote for people who have taken over the party. Their interest is not the world's greatest constitution. It is a complete uprooting of all America has valued for 250 years. Democratic politicians not favoring Marxism and communism are standing down, rather than oppose them. 

     Sen. Bernie Sanders, age 85, who spent his honeymoon in the communist Soviet Union, may be close to a victory of some sort. He does not love the Democratic Party, but like many communists he - an independent - uses the Dems to get what he really wants. 

     Republicans seldom win the midterms, but Judicial Watch says: "It's clear that if the Left makes big gains in power, they will mount even more schemes to make it easier for illegal aliens and other ineligible voters to vote in our elections. Even if the balance of power doesn't change, the Left will continue its litigation in courts making it harder to stop illegal aliens from voting." 

     Judicial Watch says there are 28 states with liberal laws that register voters either apply for or renew their drivers' licenses. There are 873,092 ineligible California voters, and many "dirty voting rolls" in Illinois. Some left-wing lawyers are funded by the Soros network. 

     To summarize, America is no longer a simple two-party government. We've read that Republican voter rolls now outnumber Democrats. But that means little if we don't exercise our right to vote. So, you're tired of President Trump. And you don't like the Iran affair dragging on. Okay. But let's not allow the socialists to return to their antics - including open borders - of the Biden administration. 

         Jimmy

 

  

American Families?

     We don't recommend the book Hillbilly Elegy, by J.D. Vance in 2016. But we came across a couple pages, 228-229, that might interest you. 

     "By almost any measure, American working-class families experience a level of instability unseen else anywhere elsewhere in the world. Consider, for instance, Mom's revolving door of father figures. No other country experiences anything like this. In France (troubled in 2026) the percentage of children exposed to three or more maternal partners is 0.5 percent - about one in two hundred. 

     "The second highest share is 2.6 percent, in Sweden. In the United States, the figure is a shocking 8.2 percent - about one in twelve - and the figure is even higher in the working class. The most depressing part is that relationship instability, like home chaos, is a vicious cycle. As socialists found, a 'growing body of literature suggests that children who experience multiple transitions in family structure may fare worse developmentally than children raised in stable two-parent families, and perhaps even than children raised in stable, single-parent families.' 

     "For many kids, the first impulse is to escape, but people who lurch toward the exit rarely choose the right door. Out of the frying pan into the fire. Chaos begets chaos. Instability begets instability. Welcome to family life for the American hillbilly. 

     "For me, understanding my past and knowing that I wasn't doomed gave me the hope and fortitude to deal with the demons of my youth." 

     Yours truly received an Ohio State degree in five years. Vance did it in two years, extra courses, all A's, while working two jobs and wearing his military boots. I admit he is better qualified to be our Vice President. 

     Many notable people - 50 in all - wrote praise of Vance's book. I can't recommend the foul language of the first half of the book, the Hillbellies, so we'll leave it there.  

        Jimmy

The Future of Our Past 

     We were going to set aside an article by Lynn Vincent...until we came to her conclusion. 

     "While paper can survive for centuries, digital records last only a decade or two at best. Archivists must wage a rolling battle against 'bit rot' ... file corruption and physical failure and software obsolescence, even as they preserve new material. 

     "Personal archives are also become far less discoverable. Seventy years from now, who will stumble upon important letters in great grandma's attic? She will likely have used email, her missives lost forever to the digital grave. Who will stumble upon our records, imprisoned as most are on laptops, smartphones, cloud services and lapsed subscription appts? 

     "I fear most of us are irrationally optimistic that what matters will somehow survive. I also fear human history could turn increasingly sterile as archivists preserve records of what happened while neglecting records of what it was like to be there when it did." 

The Days After 9/11

     "I didn't want us to lose our soul. I wanted, as we defended our freedoms, I wanted people to remember how precious they are."    

     - Former President George W. Bush 

     

 

Ready for the Gospel

Believe it or not. 

     For nearly 50 years, an oppressive Islamic regime has tried to restrict efforts to spread the gospel. Christian ministries have developed strategies to circumvent the regime's policies. Through satellite TV and internet platforms, ministries engage the population of more than 92 million people, of whom less than 2% are Christian. 

     One person has organized and trained 50 Farsi-speaking pastors who disciple more than 4,000 online. Every participant in the program has studied the Bible and taken online courses. The ministry supports more than 250 underground churches and their courageous leaders. 

     Even as the government cut the internet and tried to jam satellite broadcasts, Christian satellite TV was still viewable in most areas. Coming to Christ and making him known have been costly for new believers. Being a Christian is dangerous. Witnessing is dangerous. Being in a home church is dangerous. A mother of a newborn recently was sent to prison for 17 years for attending a house church. 

     Amid the regional instability and uncertainty, these leaders continue to equip the church, regardless of what Iran's oppressive regime intends. 

PS. In America, we have those who wish to establish an oppressive regime. It's a world conquest in the hearts of (not all) many Muslims.  

Believe it or Not 

Believers in North Korea 

     Recently we blogged about North Korea turning Christian after WW2, only to fall under the dictatorship it is today. There is poverty and people have been stripped of freedoms that many of us take for granted. If Christians are discovered, they face severe persecution. Many are sent off to labor camps, and some are killed on the spot. 

     Still, there are Christians eager to hear the message of Jesus. Owning a Bible, study material or Christian music is forbidden. 

     Trans World Radio (TWR) reaches more than 160 countries and more than 200 languages. For more than 70 years TWR has shared the gospel in some of the world's most difficult places - those that are too dangerous or isolated for traditional missionaries. With transmitters, antennas and partnerships with radio stations around the world, TWR can reach nearly 4 billion people.   

     In North Korea many are desperate to hear the message of Jesus - and for hope to stand strong in their faith. Through untraceable, shortwave radio broadcasts, TWR enables people across North Korea to secretly tune in to a lineup of programs that encourage and disciple believers and those who don't yet know Christ. Programs include Bible School Basics, With You, Light and Life, Women of Hope and Prayer School. 

     Your blogger is taking faith even more seriously. You can learn about TWR on the internet.

Tomorrow: Christians in Iran 

 

Tommy John Surgery 

     While baseball season is coming to an end, we take a break from world events to remember Tommy John, who died in August at 83. A pitcher for the Dodgers and Yankees, he tore an ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow. Until then, that injury ended careers.  

     John underwent an experimental elbow reconstruction surgery by a team doctor who harvested a replacement tendon from elsewhere in John's body. He returned better than before, finishing second in the Cy Young Award in 1977 with the Dodgers, and again in 1979 with the Yankees. He finished his career in 1989 with 288 wins. 

The Border Barrier  

     Have you, like me, wondered how the border wall is coming. Well, it's only 38 percent complete, despite congressional funding. President Trump's 2016 campaign promise to build a wall at the southern border has had building delays and legal issues, despite Congress funding.  

     The border wall completed in Trump's second term is 64 miles. The money authorized by the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act is $46.5 billion. The share of the southern border on private, tribal or state land is 70 percent. There have been legal proceedings to gain title to erect border barriers. The government filed more than 100 eminent domain cases between 2017 and 2020. 

         Jimmy

From War to Peace 

     What's going to happen? Find the answer in Zechariah, chapter 14, written around 480 B.C., give or take. You can open your Bible to Zechariah. Or we can summarize chapter 14 for you. We also have some commentary by experts. This short period in history - yet to come - will change life on earth, for all nations. 

     The world, including many Americans, are being taught lies about Israel. Some wish Gaza was the beginning of the end. Zechariah, a priest and prophet, reveals God's report. Here's what God told him to write:

     All nations will send men to fight Israel, but God will turn them on each other. There will be a great panic. Half the population will go into exile for safety. 

     Christ will return to the Mount of Olives, landing on the great valley east of Jerusalem. The mountain will split in two, half to the Mediterranean Sea and half to the western sea. The Bible says Christ will bring with him all his "holy ones." 

     Land will flatten out, with the land on which Christ will live and rule the world, slightly higher. There will be no daytime or nighttime. There will be "living" water year around, from Jerusalem to the Mediterranean and the Dead seas. When all settles, everyone living on earth will be believers, entering the Millenium. 

     David will take charge of Jerusalem. Christ will engage with the Jewish, year around. Everyone in the world will be expected to attend the annual Feast of Tabernacles. Those who don't attend, will suffer something like a lack of rain. Zechariah doesn't say how everyone in the world will travel to Israel and back. We assume there is a surprise of some sort. 

     Everything and everyone will be holy, dedicated to worship and service of the Lord. No more immorality or wickedness. For more of "living water" you might look up Psalm 46:4, Ezekiel 47:1-12 and Joel 3:18.

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