Recently someone asked, “Roy, what are you looking for in 2016 politically?”  I’m glad they qualified the question or I would have answered quite differently.  The question was not what do I expect to happen but what I am looking for or want to happen in 2016 politically.  One reflects my hope and desire the other would reflect what I see in the Spirit and what I am concerned is coming down the pike in America and the world.

Watching the Republican Debate (Audition) a number of things flooded into my mind and I am still reflecting on them.  The one thing that I came away with was what I would like to see in America nationally 2016 and beyond.  I am constantly thinking and rethinking what I believe to be critical politically as well as socially, economically, in National Defense and spiritually.  A number of the candidates offered hope that these things might somehow become part of the GOP platform in 2016 but that would largely depend on the nominee.  If it is another mainstream establishment moderate to liberal the GOP nominates hope goes out the window, but if the nominee is a constitutional conservative there is hope.  I have identified a small number who would qualify as truly constitutional conservatives, some I’m still vetting and some who are polar opposites of that ideological position.

WHAT AM I LOOKING FOR???

GOVERNMENT…

I want to see the size and scope of the federal government reduced dramatically and agree with Rand Paul and a couple others that I’d like to see it so small you hardly notice but that is not going to happen.  Reduced?  Possibly.  Reduced to that size?  Not a Chance. 

I want to see the deficit and spending reduced dramatically and the budget balanced but there are some caveats I must include.  I do not want a balanced budget that uses “baseline budgeting” for that will mean spending is not curtailed even if the budget is somehow balanced.  I want and “zero based budgeting” where we start a zero not where we were last year and give the automatic 5-10% increase and if we reduce the amount of automatic increase call it a cut.  IT IS NOT A CUT it is a paper manipulation that affords opportunity for spin and rhetoric.

I want to see entitlements dramatically reduced and provide a pathway to a person bettering themselves not becoming a professional recipient of government handouts.  Call me whatever you want that is destructive to America, the American dream and human dignity.  Making it more appealing to sit on one’s duff and receive a check than work is morally and fiscally wrong.

MILITARY.

I agree with numerous candidates that we MUST have a strong military and provide them with whatever tools, equipment and weapons needed to protect and defend this nation and our national sovereignty.  However, while I disagree with Senator Paul on funding the military I do agree that we need to do it while reducing and/or eliminating the incredible waste that exists in military spending.  We need to control the proverbial $700 hammer and $150 nut or bolt.  There is incredible waste that we could eliminate and thereby reduce the money given to the military while increasing our national defense and making the military stronger.  That being said, we MUST have a strong military!

AMNESTY.

I do not agree with Jeb Bush or John Kasich and some others that we need to just turn our heads and ignore those here ILLEGALLY.  I also, understand that it is a problem to uproot families and split them.  We must SECURE THE BORDER, first and foremost and after the border is secured we can then work through what we do with the millions of illegals.  It is not a cut and dried problem, in my mind, but it is not as complicated as some would desire to make it.   I agree that it is not humane to ignore our laws and allow a flood of illegals from wherever who want to do whatever in our country.  We are either a nation maintaining its sovereignty or we are not and to fail to protect and secure our borders and enforce our laws would be an assault on law abiding American citizens.

STOP THE MADNESS.

Whether it is global warming/climate change, political correctness run amok or a hell-bent desire to force us into Socialism if not Marxism or Communism must end.  We have more civil unrest in America today than when Barack Obama was inaugurated as president.  It is not by chance this has occurred it is by design and this administration has facilitated the escalation.  We should be light years down the road to energy independence and interpersonal and ethnic relations should be improving rather than digressing.  I am convinced the left wants unrest for it fuels the fire which drives their ideological agenda.  They need an angry base to insure voter turnout, political and economic pressure.  Without it, they would lose every election and every ideological argument.

I do not believe that isolationism is conservatism but rather that it is dangerous.  I do not want us to be the World Police but I do want us to protect and defend our national security and have the backs of our allies in the interest of world peace.  I fully believe that we have the best opportunity to achieve and maintain peace through strength not weakness.  I do believe that our economy could be advanced rapidly if Government’s fingers were dramatically removed from the pie.  I fully support a total elimination of the Internal Revenue Service and believe we can best achieve that via a “Flat” or “Fair/Consumption” tax.

The problems we face are complex and the solutions are not easily placed in a few paragraphs.  However, I believe that if Christians were to truly adopt 2 Chronicles 7:14 as our guide and make it a reality in our lives we would see the hand of God move powerfully.  Would that eliminate the need for our involvement?  No it would not but would provide a base from which to achieve the desired result.  I have contended for a long time that what we need from believers is:  Repent, Return and Prayer. 

America we are on the brink of victory or destruction and what we do in the next few months will largely if not completely determine that.  God bless you and God bless America!

Colossians 2:20-23 – “Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations —  21 “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using — according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.”  NKJV

Through the years of Christian service I have encountered a number of modern day Pharisees.  Truthfully, I was one of the best early in my Christian walk.  I did not mean to be a Pharisee and did not believe I was a Christian bully but I was and when I saw it I wept before the Lord repenting and asking the Lord to help me reject legalism and become the person He desired.  I am still becoming and never want to stop growing in His love and likeness. 

The apostle Paul clearly identifies that if we are IN CHRIST we have been set free from the Laws of Sin and Death.  He reminds those in his audience the fallacy and danger of subjecting oneself to man-made regulations that have no true redemptive value.  In the former days I described above, it made me feel good to compare myself with others and declare, “I don’t do that.”  I gave me a false sense of humility, holiness and purity but as Jesus declared in Matthew 23:25, I was simply washing the outside of the cup but inside I was dirty.  Oh, please understand I loved the LORD deeply and wanted to please Him above all else but I was deceived placing value on the outward that God never placed and honoring regulations above grace without knowing I was doing so.

I recall once preaching in a church and after the service a group went out for lunch.  As I recall virtually everyone at the table had Iced Tea to drink and when it came time for desert I asked for a cup of coffee.  I knew I had done something terribly wrong by the gasps and looks of disdain on many faces at the table.  One of the deacons looked me in the eye and said, “I won’t be back tonight to hear a hypocrite preach” to a chorus of Amen from others at the table.  I was stunned.  On the way back to the home of the pastor he told me what the uproar was about and how he and the congregation viewed coffee as nectar of the devil and should be avoided.  (They drank tea!)  By the reaction of the people in the restaurant you would have thought I asked for a shot of Jim Beam or asked the waitress to go to bed with me.  Remember I was a Pharisee too on many fronts but not that one.

I have long pondered the things I condemned as a Pharisee and how those condemnations only served to satisfy my self-righteousness and had no redeeming value.  I would hear people condemn those who worked on Sunday but would gather at the restaurant after church for lunch.  Many would condemn indulgences of one kind or another and be guilty of overeating.  How many have criticized others for some moral failure while participating in spreading rumors and gossip?   The Pharisee is a self-righteous regulator of all lives but their own. 

I have long prayed that the LORD help me to not be a Pharisee and expose to my heart those areas I am deficient.  I want to LOVE everyone.  I do not mean you have to condone lifestyles contrary to the biblical guidelines but you are to demonstrate love.  Years ago, the Holy Spirit instructed me saying, “Some things you are not to do.”  I took that to mean I was to tell others and He said, “This is for your personal edification not for you to attempt to regulate the behavior of others.”  Do not take that to mean I am passive about things I believe the Bible identifies as sin.  I have come to understand that, like fishing, I first catch the fish then clean them.

            God bless you as you go through your day!

            Wow!  Before you assume I, like the individual occupying the Oval Office, want to bypass the constitution, congress, courts or the American people and impose my vision upon the nation please pause a moment.  If you would be so kind as to allow me to explain, in a very limited fashion, my American vision I think you may largely agree with me.

The drive of both major political parties to CONTROL all branches of government cannot be overlooked and is part of, if not the primary reason, we are in the shape we are in today in America.  Let me state that one party controlling all branches of government is not good or bad in itself but the result has proven to be bad.  It is not necessarily desirable to have one party control the White House, another Congress and share the Courts that could be a good check and balance or could be meaningless as we have seen.

What would I create, if possible for America politically?  That is a great question and I’m so glad you asked.  The founding fathers hammered out a system of government in which they proposed and envisioned significant ‘checks’ and ‘balances’ to insure the Republic would stand and remain free and WE THE PEOPLE would be protected from internal tyranny.  They logically assumed that each branch would steadfastly defend their authority and thus provide a true ‘check’ and ‘balance’ to the other branches so no one branch would run roughshod over the others.  We have seen the failure of that in recent years for whatever reason so just having opposing parties control various branches is not a guarantee of good government or a Republican form of government with ‘checks’ and ‘balances.’

Having one party control the various branches of government of recent years gifted (or cursed) us with the Affordable Health Care Act aka Obamacare.  Republicans were locked out of negotiations and discussions on various issues and even told by the president, “Elections have consequences, you lost!”  We heard the infamous words of Nancy Pelosi, “We have to pass it to find out what’s in it.”  This highlights the danger of ONE PARTY RULE in Washington and certainly one party that is completely ideologically driven to the point of ignoring or despising the Constitution.  Even when the Republicans took back control of the House little was done to stem the runaway train of spending and a rogue executive branch.  The recent return of the Senate to the GOP has not greatly improved that issue so what is the solution?

HERE’S MY DESIRE AND DREAM FOR AMERICA…

The Executive Branch:

A president who so reveres the Constitution that even if he disagrees with its mandate he follows it.  If he wants a change he works with congress and the American people to either ratify a Constitutional Amendment to change the Constitution or a Law Congressionally passed to be signed into law that is within the guidelines of that document.  We have had limited visions of that in modern history but so seldom that most missed it completely.

A president who refuses to bypass Congress, ignore the courts and heeds the wishes of the American people.  One who will not abuse the Executive Order or Action in an attempt to skirt the constitutional guidelines or allow congress to provide ‘check’ and ‘balance’ oversight as designed by the constitution.  Sadly, presidents of both major parties have violated this to a greater or lesser degree and the American Republic suffers as a result.

A president who truly desires to be President of the Entire United States of America not just a political or ideological faction.

Congress:

A congress that recognizes its function and role as Representatives of WE THE PEOPLE not Overseers, Lords or Rulers of the populace.  A congress that will honor the constitution, follow the rule of law without fail regardless of personal ideological belief.  A congress that will staunchly defend and protect its constitutional authority rather than ceding it to a tyrannical executive.  A congress that honors the constitutional constraints on Big Government, limits taxation, spending and infringement upon our unalienable rights as citizens of the United States of America.  A congress that considers service in that branch of government a temporary duty rather than a lifelong job or an inherited right to rule as professional politicians.   Citizen Representatives!

Courts:

A Supreme Court that no longer affords lifetime appointments but limits it to a specified period of time.  A lifetime appointment has become an albatross rather than a benefit for rather than becoming apolitical the court has become partisan and whereas the lifetime appointment was supposed to free them from political pressure it has become a political weapon.  A court where the individuals set aside their personal political preferences and strictly honored the constitution of these United States of America.

That is not an exhaustive detail of my America but gives a brief overview of what I would like to see beginning in the 2016 Elections with regard to the occupant of the White House, Senate, House of Representatives and appointees to the Supreme Court.   I want the Republic that the founders envisioned, offered, and labored to provide.

God bless you and God bless America!

The Bible says in Joel 2:28 that in the last days God would pour out His Spirit and the result would be that ‘old men’ would dream dreams and ‘young men’ would see visions. Joel’s prophesy repeated in Acts 2:17 and although you may completely disregard biblical references concerning the times and your theological beliefs regarding dreams and visions cause you to dismiss any such testimony. I do not know what you believe but I know over 16 years ago I experienced what can only be described as a vision concerning America and the coming chaos in our streets. I won’t get into that right now but want to address what I believe is THE COMING ANARCHY.

The etymology of ‘anarchy’ is interesting. ‘An’ signifies ‘without’ and ‘arkhe’ means ‘ruler or kingdom’ so together we have the word that means ‘without rulers’. I believe that we are rapidly heading toward ANARCHY in American cities and soon. The LAWLESSNESS of this administration, the DOJ, NSA, IRS, EPA, and an almost endless litany of governmental agencies viewed by the baser elements of society and some that are not so base as an ‘open invitation’ and a ‘reason’ to disregard the Law, the Constitution, and become LAWS UNTO THEMSELVES.

Mr. Obama’s ‘pen and phone’ assault on the Constitution and the erasing of our borders is providing a breeding ground for TOTAL ANARCHY. Why would people who come to America ILLEGALLY on the open invitation of this administration in violation to the existing laws care about the law? If the President, the DOJ, Homeland Security, and others do not regard the Law, follow or respect it why should they? If the American Constitution is so disregarded as to allow the free flow of traffic of ILLEGALS without penalty why should it be viewed as anything important? It is not just the ILLEGALS that will cause ANARCHY but their insertion into the mix will help precipitate it and move it along much faster.

When these ILLEGALS become such a drain on our American economy and begin to erode the almost endless dollars for entitlements those now receiving the government dole will become angry like never before. They will view the demonstrated lawlessness of this administration as an open invitation to ‘do whatever you please’ and their sense of ‘entitlement’ will propel them into a false idea that they ‘have a right’ to what you have. They believe it is their right to have your possessions and if you refuse they will feel completely justified in ‘taking it by force’. The President would never admit that is where his policies are taking us but they are.

When the condition exists that cartels, gang members, terrorist, and average citizens openly ignore the Constitution and Laws provides a ready-made CAULDRON containing CHAOS and ANARCHY. I predict it is coming and part of me fully believes that this is the objective of this administration and president. It will plunge our nation into such chaos that he and his ilk will be able to take dictatorial authority, suspend the constitution, and demand total control in the name of restoring order. In this scenario there will be many who agree failing to realize that by allowing this rogue government to destroy our national sovereignty, erase our borders, ignore our constitution, and thumb their noses at our laws is dooming America the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave. Mr. Franklin’s statement that could be a question will be answered, “A Republic if you can keep it.” Can we keep it? We are the only ones who can answer that and at the present rate of decline and disinterest by the populace my answer would be NO! I pray that I am wrong but I know what I saw in the vision and see chaos and war in the streets of America.

Some will drop me like a hot potato for this post and others will relegate me to the ‘kook’, ‘conspiracy theorist’ corner, a few will just ‘shake their heads’, but a precious few will hear me and it will resonate with them. Those are the hope for America! I continue to call for legal, civil, and peaceful resistance to what is happening to America. We must get the attention of the legislators and the public and be willing to stand firm for the Republic called the United States of America.

I believe there is hope and yet I know that it will take a miracle to turn the tide. It will possibly take divine intervention and certainly a change in the mindset of people on both sides of the political spectrum. Tell me you are not political if you please but you will be when your Liberty and Freedom is totally stripped from you but then it will be too late. Politics and Faith are not oil and water they are LIFE.

May God help us and somehow save America. May He bless you and may He bless America again!

Maybe it is just me but have you noticed that the current occupant of the Oval Office seems to operate as though he were King of the United States of America not President of the United States of America. In America we have a ‘three branch’ system of government or we are supposed to according to the United States Constitution ratified by the States. However when the sitting president declares, “I have a pen and a phone” and “I am president I can do what I want” one realizes that the Constitution, Congress, Courts, and Constituents are meaningless to this individual and that is a Constitutional problem of epic proportions.

In the United States Constitution the first three articles outline the three branches of our government and list the powers and limitations they are supposed to adhere. Article II outlines the duties of the Executive Branch. Mr. Obama who claims to be a Constitutional Law Professor should go back and read this once more for he surely has forgotten the limitations. The United States President is elected to a four-year term by the electors from each state plus the District of Columbia. This is called the ‘electoral college’ and is comprised of 538 electors or a number equal to the number of Representatives and Senators in Congress. The citizens of each state vote for a slate of electors who vote for the president on the date established by Congress. In order to become president the requirements are specific. He/she must be a ‘natural born’ citizen not ‘naturalized’. He/she must be 35 years of age or older. Amendment XXII placed a two-term limit on the office of president. Not rocket science and something every child in junior high should know.

The President is Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces and has the power to call into service the state units of the National Guard, and in times of emergency may be given the power by Congress to manage national security or the economy. He/she has the power to make treaties with Senate approval. He/she is responsible for nominating the heads of governmental departments with Senate approval. He/she also nominates federal judges and the justices of the Supreme Court, again with Senate approval. He/she can issue pardons for federal offenses, can convene Congress for special sessions, can veto legislation approved by Congress. It is a limited veto not a line-item veto and a veto can be overridden by a two-thirds vote of Congress. The President is to deliver a State of the Union address annually to a joint session of Congress.

Congress holds the power to declare war yet he/she can send troops to battle without an official declaration of war. In 1973 the War Powers Act sought to define when and how the president could send troops into battle by adding very strict time frames for reporting to Congress ‘after’ sending troops into battle.

Executive Orders are supposed to be for ‘times of emergency’ not the whim of the president. This has become so limitless that it virtually relegates Congress to a meaningless status and elevates the president to an imperial level. Executive Orders have been abused by almost every president in the past and evolved to the place that Mr. Obama’s statement, “I have a pen and a phone” are a revelation of the Imperial Tyrannical Power of the President. Congress could and should take steps to bring this in check but they are not likely to do so. The Democrats enjoy the current power of this action and Republicans envision a time when they will regain power and want it protected for their use. Both, in that sense, are disregarding the Constitution and the responsibilities and duties of Congress to serve as a ‘check and balance’ to the other two branches of government.

It is appalling to watch the Constitution so thoroughly shredded by action or inaction in Washington. I do not wonder what our Founding Fathers would think I believe the existence of the Constitution and Bill of Rights as well as the volumes of quotes and expressions from them tell us they would consider our current state akin to the situation which brought about the initial America Revolution. They would DEMAND the president ‘cease and desist’ and that Congress immediately take the Constitutional steps to insure that this never happens again. Of course, our current legislators and president see it differently and only as WE THE PEOPLE get their attention is there hope!

May God bless you and may God bless America!