The "True" State of the Union!

President Bush gave his final State of the Union adddress on Monday, January 28, 2008 before the U.S. Congress, other government officials, special guests, and anyone who chose to listen and view by means of TV.

It was pretty much the usual pattern -- the effort by the president in saying that things are going rather well with some areas needing a bit of attention for improvement, the need for bipartisan cooperation in whatever is to be done for the well being of U.S. citizens, and the country does have a hopeful and bright future.

Republicans clapped and cheered at points while Democrats did not -- what a sight -- Dick Cheney clapping while beside him at the same time Nancy Pelosi remained motionless with a look on her face as though she had half a lemon in her mouth!

Once in a while the camera focused on new bosom "buddies," Barack Obama and Ted Kennedy -- this pair looked like their menu for the last few days had been limited to dill pickles! And maybe they had shared some with Hillary Clinton, or was it vice-versa?

And as usual -- responses and the media "autopsy" after the address was completed -- E. coli is not the only thing that can cause one's digestive system to bring on a myriad of trips to the bathroom!

Let's get to it -- what is the TRUE state of the union?

The president, along with all others who hold elected or appointed office in the federal government, blindly overlooks or refuses to address the ethical, moral and spiritual crises that are causing our republic to resemble a cancer victim in the terminal stages of that deadly disease!

There are at least 8 monumental problems which are taking this country on a path to unprecedented disaster unless sure and certain corrective measures are taken very soon. These are:

• a confounded love
  
  
• a conceding church
  
  
• a contradictory government
  
  
• a contagion of idolatry
  
  
• consigned children
  
  
• a conflagration of immorality
  
  
• contaminated sabbaths
  
  
• contrived origins
  

These are described in detail at Driving the Final Nails! A link at the bottom of that area will bring you back here.

Will a true spirit of repentance, rescue and full recovery take place with the nation getting back from its capsized and sinking position and thus gain the favorable blessing of Almighty God? How do you answer that one?

Most cultures over the centuries failed and experienced total collapse. For a number there was a total disappearance from ongoing existence. For instance, where can you go in this world and find a Babylonian, a citizen in what was once known as one of the greatest and most powerful empires in human history!

The tragedy for us is at least two-fold -- too many assume we shall always be on top in this world -- the richest and most powerful country in the world -- and second, that nothing such as a downfall or major collapse/defeat would ever happen here!

But a very small minority of us look at it this way -- the potential of judgment at the hands of a holy God is increasing with the passing of time! A review of "Driving the Final Nails!" mentioned above supports the position that God does hold this country, which claims to be "under Him" fully accountable and will deal with it according to the fruit of its doings!

"But this is what I commanded them, saying, 'Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.' Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward. Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have even sent to you all My servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them. Yet they did not obey Me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck. They did worse than their fathers. Therefore you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not obey you. You shall also call to them, but they will not answer you. So you shall say to them, 'This is a nation that does not obey the voice of the LORD their God nor receive correction. Truth has perished and has been cut off from their mouth.'" --- Jeremiah 7:23-28

Is That a Hammer in Your Hand?

"Pounding nails in your coffin!"

It's an expression sometimes used that indicates one is doing something by way of a destructive lifestyle and hastening one's departure from this earthly life. Possibilities are virtually unlimited when it comes to social habits, unholy desires, and fatal involvements in this life -- you know, the kinds of things that lead to an early grave! Sometimes cigarettes have been referred to as "coffin nails" which is a rather accurate comparison!

Worse yet -- the "coffin" of a republic known as the United States of America is being prepared and a majority of us citizens with hammer in hand are pounding the nails!

Equally tragic is the fact that a majority of elected officials from the president all the way down to locally elect to school board members along with church leaders are oblivious to the fact that this is happening. And if you look closely, you will see that they too have hammers in their hands and are making a contribution in pounding a nail or two into our nation's "coffin!"

Here are the "nails" that are being driven, with a brief note about each:

• A confounded love -- "love" that is abused, misused, perverted, and destructive!
  
  
• A conceding church -- due to compromise over decades and persistent denials of core doctrines of the Christian faith, large number of churches find themselves foundering and unable to make a significant impact in a world swamped with over 6 billion people!
  
  
• a contradictory government -- main goals of elected officials, especially at state and federal levels, involve retaining their positions plus the lavish perks and salary increases that they "award" to themselves!
  
  
• a contagion of idolatry -- we have not fashioned a host of idols out of precious metals, stone, or wood, but we have managed to establish a bunch that exhibit defiance of Almighty God in ways that are far worse than the heathen of ancient history!
  
  
• consigned children -- what other nation which makes the audacious claim to being civilized and a "nation under God" has ever brutally mutilated and murdered over 48 million unborn children since January 1973? Name one if you can!
  
  
• a conflagration of immorality -- and what nation making that claim of being one "under God" is sanctioning every type of immoral and abominable sexual activity with examples set by high profile celebrities? And some of this abominable stuff is being increasingly accepted and approved within the ranks of the church which claims to be "Christian" in its faith!
  
  
• contaminated Sabbaths -- Sunday should be renamed "Funday" because that would much more accurately reveal what we have become in the "land of the free and the home of the brave!" Less than half of our population is able to make it to a place and experience of worship on Sunday mornings, and of those who do make it, far too many can't wait to get out of church and on to fun, partying, and keeping up with the latest in professional or college sports happenings!
  
  
• contrived origins -- growing concern has been shown regarding increased violence among our children and youth -- but then, what can we expect? We are teaching the vast majority that they are simply products of an evolutionary process with their roots somewhere in a pool of slime millions of years ago! So if animals figure prominently in our ancestry, why should we not act like animals? One who thinks through this a bit with a view of origins as established by Almighty God will have a whole different perspective about life and its purpose!
  

More details are given about this disaster of the first magnitude which now resembles a cancer in its terminal stages at Driving the Final Nails! A link at the bottom of that area will bring you back to this place.

By the way, is that a hammer I see you holding in your hand? You're not going to use that thing the way most people are doing right now, are you?