Okay... Here's my take on the media. And keep in mind I've watched both major left and right outlets, and also taken news from papers, magazines... Etc.

It's my opinion that the major media as a whole:
A) is extremely biased toward the left. There are very few centers which see things from a conservative point of view, and I am thankful that such people as Rush Limbaugh and Shawn Hannity are so outspoken. If not for them, the left might have the news media entirely (They already have major news outlets such as CNN, ABC, CBS, etc.).
B)has FAILED miserably in its duty to keep the country informed. They have FAILED to give the country the entire story. For example, the media has managed to report about every single casualty in Iraq, bringing up the total to approx. 1,500 now. BUT!!! What they fail to mention is that the all things considered, the cost of this war has been very, very low. These stats are a few months old, but they'll be relevant enough.

In Iraq, there have been an average of 1.5 casualties per day.
Consider that in the revolutionary war, we lost about 300 per day.
In one battle alone in the civil war, we lost over 40,000.
In World Wars I & II, the average casualty rate per day was somewhere from 2,000 - 3,000.
I'm not entirely sure of what it was in Vietnam.

Now, does that make our Iraqi war deaths any less tragic? Of course not... But the media needs to stop focusing, like the vultures they are, on all the death and start looking at the bright side as well as the dark side... They need to give the whole story!

C) In its current state, the media has become little more than a political propaganda and agenda machine, doing whatever it can to destroy the image of NOT ONLY conservatives and the president, but also we as Christians as well. The only time a Christian gets major air-time is when he screws up. So yes, I think the major media IS a MAJOR pawn in Satan's chess game.

D) Has gone from free-speech to slander. The founding fathers wanted free speech in that they wanted to have a say in their government. If one disagrees with a decision a leader makes and thinks he has a better solution, then that person can try to get it changed. This does NOT mean however that one should be free to disrespect and condemn a leader for certain things which are beyond his control. This ALSO does not mean he should be free to support enemies of freedom, IE, terrorists, Saddam... And the list goes on..

Anyway... Just my little soap-box rant. You want the whole story? You've got to look at the good and the bad, look at the left and the right. It's gotten to the point where one can no longer look to just one single source for all their information.

LOL That is FREAKY! XD

LOL I thought this would be a Bush-Basher's joke... But it's really good!  

My answer? BANG!

Perhaps some of you on my side of the argument (God does exist) are saying, "Wait a minute! We only have to look in the Bible for proof of God's existence!" Fine... Let us go to the Bible. Turn with me if you would to Genesis 1:1 (For those of you without Bibles, I will use a direct quote).

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. -Gen. 1:1-2

Hm... This is interesting. The Bible does not start by trying to prove God's existence at all. It merely assumes that God exists... Let us go to the New Testament. Turn with me if you would to John 1:1-4 (again, I will use a direct quote for those of you without Bibles).

Quote:
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"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life is the light of men. -John 1:1-4
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Hm... Again, the Bible does not try to prove God's existence. It merely starts by assuming His existence. So how are we supposed to do it, dear brothers and sisters, when God Himself did not make the attempt? The answer is simple. We are not. Our job is to proclaim the truth, and from there let the Spirit of God work as He wills.

Now for all this writing, I have probably still not answered your questions about the existence of God... The shadow of doubt still hangs, and it seems like I have only been ranting and wasting your valuable time... And there is a good reason... You already know, deep down, what the answer is, whether you admit it or not. You know whether God exists...

Turn with me if you would to Romans 1:18-24.


Quote:
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The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world, God's invisible qualities- his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what was made so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God, nor gave thanks to Him, but in their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for corruptible images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore, God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped created things rather than the Creator- Who is forever praised. Amen. -Romans 1:18-24
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So what does all this mean? Am I some charismatic teacher condemning all mankind and threatening all with eternal condemnation? Of course not... It is not my place to hand out that kind of judgment. However, let me paraphrase a bit here...

All of us are created in God's image. We all have some form of relationship with our creator, even if it is not a saving relationship. We ALL know deep down. But according to verse 18, we suppress the truth, because we do not like what the truth reveals.

According to verse nineteen, it is evident to ALL of us, deep down. We are all searching for something to hold on to... We all have a void in our lives and hearts that we will try to fill... That is why so many turn to drugs, alcohol, sexual immorality, material possessions... And the list goes on and on... Because we all have a void in our lives that we try to fill... But nothing can truly fill it, dear friends, but God... No not one... No not one...

I will answer other questions as the weeks go on (though not in this particular order)
2) Which is right? Evolution? Or Creation?
3) If God is loving, why would He send people to hell?
4) If God is loving, why is there evil in the world?
5)If God is loving, why is there death?
6) Is Jesus any different from Muhammad or Buddha?

There are four more... But I'll list them later (I can't remember them all now.  )

This is something I've been studying, and I thought I'd share what I've learned with you. Perhaps I'll even be able to answer some of your questions, and allow you to grow to an even closer relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Over the next ten weeks, I will be updating this post (Or topic, if it turns out to be too long), and adding a new question as well as the answer to that question. I welcome any questions/comments, but please keep them constructive and sincere... So... Without further ado, I give you:

QUESTION NUMBER 1:
Does God Exist?
 

Answer: I pose this question first, because it is foundational. It is perhaps the most important because all other questions will eventually lead back to and either support or go against what I tell you here.

It is important to understand that we all have had doubts at some point or another about the existence of God. Even those of us who are Christians are not immune to such things. Discussing this very issue, my friend (A pastor's son), Jesse Gaskill spoke of a time when doubt entered his mind, when his mother lay sick on a hospital bed. She was not expected to live. When my father was killed a couple years ago, I too had my doubts for a time. If God exists, if He is loving and good, then how can He allow suffering and death? This is another question I will pose and attempt to answer later.

Through many discussions and through my own studies, I have seen many reasons given for people to doubt the existence of God: Evil people, moral relativism (I.E. There is no 'absolute right and wrong'), evolution, lack of scientific evidence, or not being able to detect God with our five senses, natural disasters (such as hurricane Katrina), death and suffering (Such as the issues Jesse dealt with), and the fact that there are literally hundreds of religions world-wide which all claim to have 'the truth.'

However, I myself have also come across and experienced many reasons to believe:

1) Miracles. Even if you do not believe in miracles, the fact of the matter is they can and do happen. Jesse's mother was not expected to live. Most of the doctors had been ready to give up on her. Nevertheless, she miraculously survived. There was no explanation for it. A similar situation happened with my uncle Mike, who had gone into a coma and was thought to be dead. But miraculously, he recovered (The doctors were astounded) and lived for another six months! Life itself is a miracle... Whether you believe in Evolution or Intelligent Design, there is simply NO CONCRETE, PROVEN-BEYOND-THE-SHADOW-OF-A-DOUBT ANSWER for how life came to be.

2) There is also the teleological argument (In layman's terms, 'the complexity of creation' argument). Simply put, (and this will not become an evolution debate. This is merely one reason I have listed among many) if evolution were true, there would be no way for us to see the complexity of the world around us as we do. The human body is a marvelous thing, capable of repairing itself without special machinery, the mind quicker than the fastest of supercomputers, with reasoning skill and deeper emotions than any other living creature. On a smaller level, there is the flagellum, the whip-like propeller used by many cells (such as sperm cells). This is made up of approx. thirty-five interlocking parts, which scientists agree could not have come together on their own over time, as taking away one component would render the flagellum absolutely useless. If something is useless, according to evolutionary theory, it is gotten rid of.

3)There is the cosmological, or KALAM argument. This argument is relatively simple. Everything that begins to exist has a cause. The universe began to exist, therefore the universe had a cause. Most scientists agree that the universe could not have been spontaneously generated. It could not have created itself. Therefore, it had to have a cause, and the most logical explanation is A CREATOR.

4) Finally, the forth argument I will make here is the moral argument. The fact of the matter is that each person knows the difference between right and wrong. That knowledge is innate. If there were no God, there would be no right and wrong. This goes back to the moral relativism argument of the atheist. They say that the only standard of right and wrong is the standard set up by society and culture... HOWEVER, if you look at history, you will find (though there have been exceptions if you look hard enough) NO culture has approved of 'murder'. No culture has approved of incest. NO culture has approved of homosexuality. And these are just SOME examples that have been consistent through the human race's entire history! That alone should convince anyone that there IS a right and wrong, and that we all know what it is, even if we refuse to admit it.

I will pause right here to make a statement. Our science and reasoning CANNOT prove God's existence beyond the shadow of a doubt. If they could, that would be putting God within that proverbial box, and therefore be making them greater than God. However, since God is greater than our science and reasoning, God exists OUTSIDE of these bounds. And so in the end, as close as science and logic can get us, there is going to be some measure of faith required. You believe God exists? You have faith. You believe God does not exist? You have faith... Because to have faith, simply put is to believe in what we do not know for sure, believing in what we cannot necessarily prove or detect.

(CONTINUED ON NEXT POST)

 
Thank you all so much. It's good to know there are others out there to pray for us. Afterall, it isn't good for a pilgrim to travel without a companion. Even with God as our guide, it's good to know there are other pilgrims along the same road.

Greetings. I realize many of you do not know me (it was actually a friend that directed me here, but I'm not sure of his user name). I know I am a stranger, but I also realize that even if we do not know one another, we are brothers and sisters in Christ.
I've come to this particular area to request that you all keep a girl by the name of Holli in your prayers. I've known her for several years, and God has seemingly placed a special burden upon my heart to pray for her. She is an atheist and does not believe in our Lord and Savior... And this concerns me deeply. I would like to ask that those of you that see this pray that God would use circumstances and people in her life to draw her to Himself. And also pray for me (My name is Dale), as I continue to try to witness to her. Thank you.