Follow Up

Police say a man is in critical condition after the deadly toxin ricin was found in his Las Vegas motel room.

Las Vegas police Lt. Lewis Roberts says the man has been in a coma since he was found in his room at the Extended Stay America Motel on Thursday.

He's one of seven people hospitalized after the ricin was discovered. Police have said most were examined as a precaution.

Roberts says police don't think foul play is involved, and the FBI says the case doesn't appear to be terrorism-related.

But authorities aren't sure why the man had a vial of powdered ricin in his room.

Ricin is made from processing castor beans, and can be extremely lethal.

Ricin found in Vegas Hotel

Police in Las Vegas, Nevada, are investigating the discovery of what they said is the deadly poison ricin in a hotel room. Story Here.

Pastor John Hagee Endorses McCain

On Wednesday Texas evangelical leader John Hagee formally endorsed Republican Presidential candidate John McCain, this endorsement could boost McCain's standing among religious conservatives who have been reluctant to embrace him. Hagee, who heads a 19,000-member church in San Antonio, is best known for his outspoken support of Israel and writings on the Middle East, where he envisions a blood-soaked clash between East and West leading to the return of Jesus Christ. Full Story Here.

Limbaugh Urges Republicans to Vote for Hillary

It may be sound unbelievable, but conservative Rush Limbaugh is urging Republicans to cross party lines this Tuesday in primaries in Ohio and Texas and vote for Hillary Clinton. Full Story Here.

Blessing through Restoration

I [will] restore the prosperity of Judah and Jerusalem. (Joel 3:1 )

God doesn’t judge to bring about waste but to bring about prosperity. His hand of discipline doesn’t come to make us less, but to make us more. When God disciplines us, it is a sign of his unmatched love for us, not his wrath or retribution.
The writer of Hebrews reminds us of this truth: “My child, don’t ignore it when the Lord disciplines you, and don’t be discouraged when he corrects you. For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes those he accepts as his children” (Hebrews 12:5-6 ).

I love my children with a passion and would never do anything to harm them. As a father, much of my time is spent seeing to their needs. I want them to be happy and healthy and well nourished. I want them to be protected from harm. I watch over them, hug them, teach them, cherish them, and love them without condition. But there are times when what they most need from me is discipline and correction. I would rather hold them, but love demands that I scold them. I know the harm that can come to them when they are disobedient. I’ve seen what unchecked and rebellious behavior can lead to, and I would do anything to see that my children don’t fall into that kind of lifestyle. My words of caution and discipline come from a heart of complete love and devotion. And they understand that truth.

God wants us to understand that truth about him as well. When God’s prophets bring warnings to his people of his judgment for their sin, there is always a reminder of God’s love. After bringing one of Scripture’s most powerful messages of judgment, the prophet Joel promises restoration on the heels of it. “Rejoice in the Lord your God! For the rains he sends are an expression of his grace. Once more the autumn rains will come, as well as the rains of spring. The threshing floors will again be piled high with grain, and the presses will overflow with wine and olive oil” (Joel 2:23-24 ).

When you find yourself in the midst of God’s discipline, take comfort in the knowledge that his purpose is restoration. His desire is not to harm you but to build you up and bring you even greater blessings than before.

Planned Parenthood Watch

As if parents did not have enough to contend with in protecting their children from the evils for pornography, they now have to face government funded projects. Unfortunately, that's the "net" effect of Planned Parenthood's online venture, teenwire.com. The site, which is so offensive that FRC's Internet filter blocked it, was supposedly created as a resource for kids seeking "medically accurate" information.

According to the nation's biggest abortion merchant, that information now includes normalizing pornography. Although Planned Parenthood is careful to state that it's illegal to ply children under 18 with sexually explicit images, that doesn't stop its "advice columnists" from telling kids that "many people use pornography as part of sex play." On the "Ask the Experts" page, one young visitor says, "I look at porno sites... but people say looking at those sites affects your school work... Should I stop it? If I should, how?" An "expert" responds, "There is no correlation between using pornography and getting bad grades in school."

Among other things, kids are encouraged to play games about issues from bisexuality to birth control. Another page gives teens the lowdown on having an abortion without their parents' consent. To teens struggling with homosexuality, Planned Parenthood says, "Having sex with girls and boys is normal and healthy." With over $300 million in taxpayer funds, the organization has the U.S. government to thank for helping to promote these messages. Contact your leaders and urge them to support Rep. Mike Pence and Sen. David Vitter's bills to zero out funding for groups like Planned Parenthood else Title X programs may soon mean triple X!

A Great American Dies

William F. Buckley passed away today. He was 82. One of his greatest achievements was to clean up the conservative movement of the racists and the wacked jobs that were messing up the movement. Full Story Here.

Thanks

Thanks to those of you who contacted your senators, the pro-life amendment offered by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) to the Indian Health Care bill passed by a 52-42 vote yesterday morning. This is the first time language banning the federal funding of abortion has been written into permanent law. In the past, the Hyde Amendment has simply been a part of the annual appropriations legislation. Congratulations to the leaders who stood up in defense of taxpayers everywhere who agree that they should not be forced to foot the bill for the slaughter of innocent unborn children.

Harvard does it Again

Harvard University has moved to make Muslim women more comfortable in the gym by instituting women-only access times six hours a week to accommodate religious customs that make it difficult for some students to work out in the presence of men. Full Story Here.

Forget Global Warming

The U.S. National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) reported that many American cities and towns suffered record cold temperatures in January and early February. According to the NCDC, the average temperature in January "was -0.3 F cooler than the 1901-2000 (20th century) average." Full story Here.

Power outages caused by nuke plant shutdown

The outages have no connection to terrorism, Homeland Security Department spokeswoman Laura Keehner said. No foul play was suspected, Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez said in a press conference. Full Story Here.

That Scooter is Looking Good

As oil prices spiked last fall, low wintertime gasoline demand helped keep prices in check. But now, experts say, the price of oil is finally showing up at the pump. Full Story Here.

A Real Cuban Hero

With the exit of Cuba's Fidel Castro, pro-life forces are seizing on the opportunity to reverse the culture of death there. The biggest advocate of restoring human dignity to Cuba, Dr. Oscar Biscet, is imprisoned on the island for protesting abortions. Biscet, who is serving 22 years for condemning the government's policy, is so respected that President Bush honored him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom last November. Now that Castro's brother Raul has succeeded him as the country's communist leader, the international community is calling on him to free Biscet. In a nation where six of every 10 pregnancies end in abortion, Cuba has never needed Biscet more. In the 40 years since the government began legalizing and subsidizing abortion, it has become a leading method of birth control there. The risk to women's health is grave and the devastation to the next generation catastrophic. For every politician pushing government-sponsored universal health care, be warned! This is where such a policy could lead.

You Need to Know

When Congress returns this week from its 10-day recess, several pieces of legislation await not the least of which are two bills that could determine whether American taxpayers will become the biggest patrons of global abortion.

As part of the bill to reauthorize health coverage for Native Americans, Senator David Vitter (R-La.) has proposed an amendment to ensure that "health care" does not include tax-funded abortion. Vitter's proposal mirrors that of the Hyde amendment, which prevents the federal government from funding abortion through Medicaid. Because the Indian Health Service (IHS) is subsidized by Interior Department appropriations, the Hyde amendment does not apply.

If the measure passes, the longstanding policy would be codified, and IHS could not use government funds to pay for abortion-on-demand. Please call your senators at 202-224-3121 and ask them to support the Vitter amendment to S.1200. While you're at it, urge them to preserve the ABc model in this week's battle for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

President Bush just returned from an extensive African tour where he was greeted with the deepest appreciation for our efforts in combating HIV/AIDS across the continent. That mission could be compromised if Senate Democrats succeed in replacing the current abstinence and fidelity components of PEPFAR with abortion subsidies and a prostitution clause. The current PEPFAR program, one-third of which is dedicated to abstinence-only programs, is set to expire this year. President Bush has called for Congress to double the initial $15 billion budget, which would raise PEPFAR's 2009-2013 budget to $30 billion, while Democrats hope to more the triple the spending at $50 billion. If the federal government hopes to spare more lives from the devastation of HIV/AIDS, abortion is not the answer. Abstinence and fidelity are.

Obama's Latest Fan

In his first major public address since a cancer crisis, Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan said Sunday that presidential candidate Barack Obama is the "hope of the entire world" that the U.S. will change for the better. Full Story Here.

True Texan

Former Miami Dolphin linebacker Zach Thomas has agreed in principle on a contract with his home-state Cowboys after meeting with team officials at the scouting combine in Indianapolis. Finally he will get the chance to win a championship. And the best thing about it is that he is coming to play for my FAVORITE team DA BOYS. Full Story Here.

Are You Kidding Me???

These shoes believe it or not are being sold in England for 1,800 pounds. Full story Here.

Global Warming? New Data Shows Different

Are the world's ice caps melting because of climate change, or are the reports just a lot of scare mongering by the advocates of the global warming theory?

Scare mongering appears to be the case, according to reports from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that reveal that almost all the allegedly “lost” ice has come back. A NOAA report shows that ice levels which had shrunk from 5 million square miles in January 2007 to just 1.5 million square miles in October, are almost back to their original levels.

Moreover, a Feb. 18 report in the London Daily Express showed that there is nearly a third more ice in Antarctica than usual, challenging the global warming crusaders and buttressing arguments of skeptics who deny that the world is undergoing global warming.

The Daily express recalls the photograph of polar bears clinging on to a melting iceberg which has been widely hailed as proof of the need to fight climate change and has been used by former Vice President Al Gore during his "Inconvenient Truth" lectures about mankind’s alleged impact on the global climate.

Gore fails to mention that the photograph was taken in the month of August when melting is normal. Or that the polar bear population has soared in recent years.

As winter roars in across the Northern Hemisphere, Mother Nature seems to have joined the ranks of the skeptics.

As the Express notes, scientists are saying the northern Hemisphere has endured its coldest winter in decades, adding that snow cover across the area is at its greatest since 1966. The newspaper cites the one exception — Western Europe, which had, until the weekend when temperatures plunged to as low as -10 C in some places, been basking in unseasonably warm weather.

Around the world, vast areas have been buried under some of the heaviest snowfalls in decades. Central and southern China, the United States, and Canada were hit hard by snowstorms. In China, snowfall was so heavy that over 100,000 houses collapsed under the weight of snow.

Jerusalem, Damascus, Amman, and northern Saudi Arabia report the heaviest falls in years and below-zero temperatures. In Afghanistan, snow and freezing weather killed 120 people. Even Baghdad had a snowstorm, the first in the memory of most residents.

If global warming gets any worse we'll all freeze to death.

Is Obama Safe??

There is, of course, no sure answer. But many Afro-Americans across the country, prominent and otherwise, suggest that lingering worries are outweighed by enthusiasm and determination. Full Story Here.

The Pure in Heart

Blessed are the pure in heart. (Matthew 5:8 , niv)

A rabbi was going through his regular ritual of preparing for the Day of Atonement. He was parading around the synagogue and beating his breast, saying, “I am nothing. I am nothing.” A cantor standing nearby decided to join him. He fell in line behind the rabbi and began chanting, “I am nothing.” The two marched diligently through the halls, demonstrating their humility to all who passed by. A janitor witnessed the scene and was touched. Their words convicted him deeply of his own unworthiness and sin. He bowed his head and beat his breast, praying, “Forgive me God. I am nothing.” When the rabbi heard the janitor, he turned to the cantor and said smugly, “Now look who thinks he’s nothing.”

There are two ways to approach the throne of grace, and both look pretty much the same. One man stands before God with his head bowed and his hands folded, with the language of repentance on his lips. Another stands beside him in the same manner. Twin brothers of remorse. On the surface the two seem the same, but God sees a difference.

One holds secrets in his heart, treasured sins buried deep within him. His surrender is partial, sometimes sincere, but never complete. He understands that he needs God but can’t quite let go of the world. An ounce of sorrow, a cup of remorse, that’s all the recipe calls for, he thinks. That should be enough to get me by.

The man beside him stands broken, fully exposed, deeply sorry for the sin within him. He didn’t come to appease his conscience or keep his stature in tact but to pour himself out and beg for God’s mercy. He has nothing to offer but repentance, so that’s all he brings to the throne.

Two men, two stories, two motives. So which one goes away clean?

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:7 , niv).

We are never further from Jesus than in the house of pretense. We are never more near him than in the pit of sorrow.

When do you struggle to come before God pure and exposed? What hidden sin have you not laid on the altar before him? Pray today for a pure heart.

Joseph a Muslim?

In the wake of an attempt by Palestinians to burn down Joseph's Tomb ­ Judaism's third holiest site Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah faction issued a statement denying it will help restore the shrine, referring to both the shrine and the biblical patriarch as "Muslim." "Pay no attention to the rumors that we will work with Israel to restore the burial site of the holy Muslim Joseph," said the statement, issued from Nablus, the biblical city of Shechem. "We are going to guard this holy Muslim site." Joseph's Tomb is the believed burial place of the son of Jacob who was sold by his brothers into slavery and later became viceroy of Egypt. Full Story Here.

Another Attack on Christians

In the latest attack on Christians in Gaza, 16 Palestinians forced their way into the YMCA library, stole everything but Christian books and then burned down the building. According to Palestinian terrorist sources in Gaza, the attack was carried out by Hamas and its ally, the Popular Resistance Committees. Israeli security sources said Hamas knows exactly who was behind the attack. Sheik Abu Saqer, leader of Jihadia Salafiya, an Islamic outreach movement that recently announced the opening of a "military wing" to enforce Muslim law in Gaza, said the YMCA had Muslim children in its nursery program. "Gaza is Muslim, more than 99 percent are Muslim," he said. "We don't need any of these missionary institutions. They have only one goal to convert our sons and daughters to Christianity.".Full Story Here.

Mossad killed Mugniyah

Mossad agents assassinated top Hizb'allah commander Imad Mugniyah in Damascus by replacing the headrest of the driver's seat in his car with another containing a small high explosive charge, the Sunday Times quoted an Israeli intelligence sources as saying.

After successfully completing their mission, the agents headed immediately to the airport and left the country en route to Tel Aviv. The British newspaper added that at the time of his death last Tuesday night, Mugniyah, 45, was working with Syria on planning terrorist attacks against Israeli targets to "avenge the Israeli strike on what was believed to be a secret nuclear site in Syria last year.". Full story here.

I'm Back

As I look at the date of my last post I realized that it's been a while since I last wrote. I asked myself what happened? Well life happened, work, school, family and many other things happened. Now I look and see that is the end of February already, man this year is flying by. But is turning out to be a pretty exciting year. We are in the middle of the primaries getting ready to elect a new president. At my church CCK, we are embarking in a new building project, and recently we have come to find out that Cuban dictator Fidel Castro has resigned and that hopefully a new era of change and freedom will come for the Cuban people. I think I will have some more to say about that in later posts. Anyways is good to be back.