It provides a much-needed response to the virtual monopoly public schools have over the education system within the U.S.

Among the many executive orders signed by President Donald Trump in the first weeks of his new administration is one that frees up federal funding in support of school choice. This is great news for many parents and a much-needed pushback against public schools’ virtual monopoly over our nation’s education system.

The president’s Jan. 31 executive order, “Expanding Education Freedom and Opportunity for Families,” directs the Education Department to prioritize school-choice programs through its discretionary grants, in addition to issuing guidance to states about federal allocations to districts and schools.

Bishop David O’Connell of Trenton, New Jersey, the chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Catholic Education, applauded the order, remarking that it “rightly recognizes that parents are the primary educators of their children.”

Bishop O’Connell also used the opportunity to restate the Church’s teaching, laid out most recently in Gravissimum Educationis, that “since parents have given children their life, they are bound by the most serious obligation to educate them and therefore must be recognized as the primary and principal educators of their own children.”

Continued below.

mcarans said:

Is accepting the Bible is God's Word simply a matter of faith or is there also independent objective evidence available?

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Yes. Me.

And my brothers and sisters in Christ.

We are evidence.

God's greatest miracle is removing our hearts of stone and replacing them with His heart of flesh. It begins the day we receive His Son Jesus as Lord and Savior. And He does so through His Living Word - as written and in concert with His Holy Spirit within us.

The other evidences like prophecy and historical are profitable too - but if there weren't anyone walking around testifying that God does exactly as He promises - then these proofs would fall on deaf ears.

God bless!

Oh yes, it IS about faith. Its impossible to please God otherwise. But it is faith that is the instrument through which we are freed from the deceptions of this world and see reality - especially Who God *really* is!

And now 10 people killed at a school shooting!
HERE

Now, this was originally written in a different context than what I am going to be sharing it in, but there are some parallels in this Scripture to the context that I will be sharing. For King David was being pursued by physical enemies who wanted him dead. And in the strength of the Lord he was able to overcome his enemies so that he could live and continue as king.

But when I read these few verses here, I think of where we were before we believed in Jesus Christ. We were under the power of our enemy, Satan, held captive to sin, not able within ourselves to be rescued from the power of sin and of Satan. We were trapped in sin by our enemy, which includes our own human flesh and our sin natures. For we all come into this world born with sin natures in the image of Adam, the first man to sin against God. And we all come up short of attaining the divine approval of Almighty God.

Basically, these are the “deep waters” we are engulfed in from birth, and from which we need delivered (rescued). So, because of God’s great love for us, and not because of our goodness, but while we were yet trapped in sin, he sent his Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ to the earth, ultimately to be the only permanent sacrifice for our sins so that, by genuine God-persuaded faith in him, we might now be delivered (rescued) from our slavery to sin and now walk in obedience to his commands, and serve him with our lives.

But I don’t see this only in the context of when Jesus first delivers us out of a life of slavery to sin, but anytime during our Christian lives when we might stumble and fall, because we gave in to the enemy of our souls, and we need to be lifted out of that pit and restored back to a right relationship with the Lord in walks of obedience to him in holy living. And this can include any time that we are under severe persecution, too, because we are following the Lord, and we need to be delivered from the oppression of the enemy.

But in all cases, we will not be rescued if we resist the Lord and his will and purpose for our lives. He does not rescue those who say “No” to his commands and who refuse to let go of their sinful lifestyles. The Scriptures make that very clear that if we say we are in fellowship with God, but while sin is what we practice, we are liars. And if we claim that we know God, but while obedience to his commands is not our practice, we are liars. For those who practice sin are of the devil. If sin is what we obey, it leads to death.

[1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6,15-17; 1 John 3:4-10; Romans 6:1-23]

So, if we want to be rescued from sin and have the hope of heaven when we die, we must cooperate with God’s work of grace in our lives. He cannot and will not deliver us out of the “deep waters” or out the “pit” if we resist him, and if we do not submit to his will and purpose for our lives. We have to deny self, die to sin daily, and walk (in conduct, in practice) in obedience to his commands (Luke 9:23-26). And then we must follow him wherever he leads us in doing whatever he calls and equips us to do, in his service.

For the faith in Jesus that is required for salvation does not come from ourselves, but it is gifted to us by God, and it is persuaded by God as to his holiness and righteousness, of our sinfulness, and of our need to die with Christ to sin and now walk in obedience to his commands. And the word “fellowship” means partnership, cooperativeness. We do nothing to earn or to deserve our salvation, but to be saved we must live as though we have been delivered from slavery to sin and as though God is Lord of our lives.

We must live as though we have been lifted up out of the pit or out of the deep waters, and as though truly we have been rescued from our lives of slavery (addiction) to sin, by God’s grace. For his grace is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for our Lord’s return. For Jesus Christ “gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.”

[Titus 2:11-14; Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-21; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; 1 Peter 2:24]

Your Grace Divine

An Original Work / November 6, 2011
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

All I have is Yours, Lord.
You gave all to me,
When You died at Calv’ry
On that cruel tree.
Crucified for my sins;
You paid what I owe,
So I’d be forgiven;
My God come to know.
All I have is Yours, Lord.
You gave all to me,
When You died at Calv’ry
On that cruel tree.

Lord, I am so thankful
For Your grace divine.
I invited You, Lord,
In this heart of mine.
I have been forgiven
For all of my sins,
So I’d live with Jesus;
His grace flow within.
Lord, I am so thankful
For Your grace divine.
I invited You, Lord,
In this heart of mine.

Growing in Your grace, Lord;
Live for You each day;
How I love to worship
You throughout my day.
Sitting at Your feet, Lord,
List’ning to You speak,
Leads me to love You, Lord,
More throughout the week.
Growing in Your grace, Lord;
Live for You each day;
How I love to worship
You throughout my day.

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Out of Deep Waters
An Original Work / February 4, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Mr. M said:

Matthew 5:
27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looks on a woman to lust after her has
committed adultery with her already in his heart.

Many who read these comments of Jesus think that He was changing the Law, but this is not the case. The Lord is defining the reaction of a righteous person to the Law. This is what the apostle Paul refers to as “the righteous requirements of the Law”.

Romans 8:
3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending
His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,
4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk
according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

What Paul is teaching is actually very simple.
Commandment: You shall not commit adultery.
Judgment: Anyone found guilty of adultery is put to death.

We see how the Law can inform us of sin, as well as ones that are unto death.

1 Timothy 1:
8 But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully,
9 knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person,
but for the lawless and insubordinate…

On the other hand, if someone lived their life without ever committing adultery,
can they be declared righteous? Absolutely not!

Galatians 2:21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law,
then Christ died in vain.

So then what is the righteous requirement of the Law pertaining to adultery?
“Don’t even think about it!”

Galatians 3:21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not!
For if there had been a law given which could have given life,
truly righteousness would have been by the law.

By living in righteousness, the Saints establish and magnify the Law and make it honorable unto God.

Isaiah 42:21 The Lord is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honorable.

Romans 3:31 Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.

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The title seems to be rhetoric; do WE really magnify the Law or do we modify it.

d taylor said:

-
​

I believe, the belief that statues of Mary preforming miracles would fall into the, of being worshiped

'Miracle' in US church as Virgin Mary statue is filmed 'blinking'

Just read the comments on the youtube video

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I disagree. The statue, nor the blessed mother, is being worshipped.

Michie said:

Do you believe there are valid reasons for annulment?

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In my opinion, yes.

Thanks for posting!

Yeshua HaDerekh said:

Yes, finally a POTUS with a backbone!

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Thanks be to God!

Michie said:

I saw how the crowds converged. Extremely scary.

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Lord have mercy!

They should be ashamed of themselves.

Would God be proud?

chevyontheriver said:

Or maybe God shows his glory while the Church is all but defeated. I donno. It is in God's hands. It's like pope John XXIII said, "Lord, it's your Chruch. I'm going to bed."

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Amen. My daily prayer as well!

Good. Liberalism has nothing to do with the Church.

May God have mercy upon him.

tonychanyt said:

And it is even more stunning if you read it out loud in Hebrew

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I have never heard that, but I bet it feels like the start of the universe. It would be stunning.

As Christians, who is our greatest enemy? Satan. And we will not be fully free from his attacks until we die and we go to be with Jesus for eternity. But the Lord does give us relief from his attacks, or I think we would not survive. The Lord does deliver us from the enemy’s attacks on our minds and on our bodies and on our hearts when we call out to him and we pray for mercy and for deliverance. But like in Job’s case, the deliverance is not always immediate, for the Lord does allow us to go through trials to test our faith.

And we will have physical enemies, too. We will have people who will be against us for one reason or another. Especially if our lives are sold out to Jesus Christ, to doing his will, we will be opposed even by others who profess faith in Jesus Christ, and even by pastors of “churches” who have surrendered to the will of the people and who are diluting the message of the gospel in order to not offend the ungodly with the truth, and so that they can “draw in large crowds of people from the world” into their gatherings.

For the “Christian world” here in America has become so worldly. Therefore, if you follow the Lord in obedience, and you take the teachings of the Scriptures (taught in context) seriously, and you walk in obedience to the commandments of the Lord with steadfastness, and so you share the truth of the gospel with the people, as a matter of practice, you are likely to be regarded as an oddball or as a non-conformist, or as a legalist or as an extremist or as being critical and not loving, because you speak the truth.

Those who “play by the rules,” according to the world, and according to society and culture, who blend in with all people, who “play it safe,” and who say nothing to “rock the boat” or to “stir up feathers,” will likely be well received and well liked and well appreciated in the world and in the worldly “church.” For they are not controversial. For they are fairly worldly themselves by how much of their lives and time is spent on the things of the world versus how much dedication they give to the Lord and to his service.

But Jesus Christ is our example that we are to follow and to model our lives after, and he didn’t play by the rules of society. He didn’t “play it safe” in order to not “ruffle feathers” or in order to not “rock the boat.” He did not blend in with the culture in order to be widely accepted and appreciated. In fact, he did the opposite. Why? Because he didn’t come to the earth to be accepted by the world. He came to deliver us from our slavery to sin so that we would now obey him and do his will and become like him in character.

And so he upset a lot of people. And he was opposed continuously by the religious and by the rulers in the temple and in the synagogues. They hated him, in fact, so much so that they went on the all out attack against him regularly. And eventually they carried out his death on a cross. But God the Father did not deliver Jesus from that death. Why? Because he came to this earth to die on that cross to put our sins to death with him so that we will now die with him to sin and walk in obedience to his commands.

And the Bible teaches us that we are destined to be hated and persecuted as he was, and that we should expect to be hated and mistreated if we are following Jesus with our lives in submission to his will and purpose. For being a follower of Jesus Christ means that we are becoming like him in character, in heart, in mind, in purpose, and in actions. So we are going to be doing the kinds of things that he did that got him hated, persecuted, and put to death. Suffering for the sake of the gospel is what we are called to do by the Lord.

So, although the Lord will deliver us through our trials and tribulations, and he will give us the strength to endure, and he will deliver us from giving in to those circumstances, and he will empower us to remain steadfast in faith despite our circumstances, we may not always see physical deliverance from our enemies, or at least not always immediate deliverance physically. So don’t let that discourage you if you have prayed and you are still suffering. Let the Lord work his will and purpose in your life, and submit to his will.

Sufferings: [Matthew 5:10-12; Matthew 10:16-25,34-39; Matthew 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-17; John 15:18-21; Ephesians 6:10-20; Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 7:9-17; Revelation 11:1-3; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 13:1-18; Revelation 14:1-13]

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897
Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,
Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,
Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,
Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,
Holy and harmless, patient and brave;
Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,
Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

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My Fortress and My Deliverer
An Original Work / February 4, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Praying for comfort and healing for your family.

Here is an update. Apparently the shooting took place after most had gone home and the gunman was not known to law enforcement and has no known links to terrorism at this time.

Who is the violent side of politics? Democrats or Republicans?

Evangelist Franklin Graham endorsed Tulsi Gabbard on Monday to be director of national intelligence (DNI), despite other pastors and Christian groups voicing concern over the former Democratic congresswoman's ties to Hindu nationalists.

"Tomorrow the Senate Intelligence Committee is scheduled to vote on Tulsi Gabbard's nomination as the Director of National Intelligence," Graham, the son of legendary evangelist Billy Graham, posted on his social media accounts Monday evening. "I've known Tulsi for many years and have a deep respect for her. I attended her confirmation hearing last week. I've always found her to be honest, incredibly smart, and a tough soldier."

"Tulsi understands the world in which we live. She's a great American who loves this country and will put America first. The confirmation process has been challenging because of her more conservative views in recent years," Graham added. "Would you join me in praying that God will strengthen her, guide her, and give her favor?"

Continued below.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is one step closer to securing a role in the Trump administration as a key legislative committee voted to advance his nomination to serve as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services to the full Senate.

Nearly a week after contentious confirmation hearings, the Senate Finance Committee voted Tuesday 14-13 along party lines to advance Kennedy’s nomination to the full Senate. All Republicans on the committee voted in favor of his nomination, while all Democrats opposed.

Kennedy, the son of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, challenged former President Joe Biden in the 2024 Democratic presidential primary before switching to an independent and then dropping out to endorse Trump in the 2024 presidential election.

Continued below.

I love Jesus. I used to wrestle with sin but now I wrestle with mental illness. It was a good trade if you ask me. Physical and mental llness is just a weakness and no sin, but sin is a spiritual illness.

ARBITER01 said:

Depends.

Truth from others is mostly limited. Truth from GOD is unlimited. Which do you find to be important?

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Simplicity is the truth I see.