charity

Chick-fil-A says it will no longer contribute to two charitable foundations that have been criticized by liberal media for their belief that sex outside marriage, homosexual marriages, and other alternative lifestyles are unacceptable to God. Chick-fil-A noted that contributions to the Salvation Army and Fellowship of Christian Athletes will cease and instead, monies will be diverted exclusively to “organizations that focus on education, homelessness, and hunger”. Gay rights organization GLAAD said in a statement that Chick-fil-A customers and employees should "greet today's announcement with cautious optimism". The reason for the more liberal stance may be related to recent expansions into more liberal areas of the country, including the recent opening of their first restaurant in New York City.

It’s a dilemma that grows worse with each passing season – we want to celebrate the birth of our Savior but don’t appreciate the commercialization (or consumerism) of Christmas. We abhor the insolence and pressure of buying ever-more expensive gifts, “keeping up with the Joneses” when decorating our homes, and the hassle of battling materialistic crowds of shoppers - all to enrich greedy merchants who profit from the madness. On the other hand, most people don’t want to forgo Christmas entirely. Who wouldn’t want to hear beautiful Christmas songs or spend time with their family and friends in joyous celebration? But how do we reconcile the anger we feel seeing Christ pushed from the holiday as businesses secularize our celebration? We see Christmas referred to as X-Mas,

The fire Lightning struck my son and wife’s home during the early morning hours of July 4, 2017 - the day they were due to return from the hospital after giving birth to their first child. Theirs was a new marriage, new family, grounded in a hard-earned new starter home. Lightning struck the structure around 3:00 AM. Their home burned to the ground. When my son arrived at the scene, the expression on his face said it all - everything they owned was lost and they would have to start their life anew. The emotions we felt were an odd mishmash. Feelings of happiness over the birth of my first grandchild combined with feelings of sadness were an odd combination I had never felt before. This emotional

During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told his followers: “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others in order to be seen. If you do, you will have no reward from God. For example, when you give to the needy, do not announce it loudly with trumpets as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets so the people will praise them. They have already received their reward in full. When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that your giving may be in secret. Then God, who sees what is done even in secret, will reward you.” What the story means to us today Glory from God or glory from Men Earlier

After Abimeleh issued orders to the citizens that nobody should harm Isaac or his family, Isaac had a very successful year with his crops (despite a famine in the land). Because God had blessed Isaac – he reaped a hundred times what he had sown. Isaac became rich and his fortune continued to grow until he became very wealthy with large flocks, herds, and many servants. The Philistines living in the area began to envy Isaac and despite Abimelek’s orders to not harm his family, they filled his wells with earth (the same wells that his father had constructed). Isaac’s wealth and power threatened King Abimelek too and he told Isaac, “Leave us for you have become much more powerful than we are.” As requested, Isaac moved away and settled in