I do believe God CAN use anyone to further His plan. That's different than He WILL use anyone. WILL implies force. CAN does not.
Actually... God used Pilate's wife to put Pilate in a frame of mind where he let the Jewish leaders and people decide Jesus' fate. That was a better option than turning Jesus loose, and risking an uprising that would incur consequences from Rome. That's why Pilate washed his hands of the situation.
Pilate, Nebuchadnezzar, Pharoh, Goliath... all of them did not know their role in God's plan. Nor did they ask to be the means by which God's plans would be furthered. But God did.
If Pharoah had let the Israelites go right off the bat, God would not have the chances He did to show the Israelites His power and might. If Goliath had said, "Okay. You win," God could not have used David the way he did.
As the parent of a special needs daughter, I don't appreciate the use of the term "short bus of the party". The term "short bus" (or "little yellow bus") is generally used as an insult to special needs students who ride the "short bus." To equate the lack of intelligence of Alvin Bragg and other progressives really insults students with legitimate special needs - like my daughter.
A third option could be Bragg thinks that, since promising to go after Trump got him elected, indicting Trump may help in a bid for reelection - or in a campaign for a higher office (maye AG of NY.)
It's getting harderd and harder to figure out who is the least intelligent Dem.
"This country is facing enemies from without as well as from within. While Governor DeSantis is an admirable potential President, today we need someone in office with experience in both arenas. To know our enemies (China, Russia and Iran) as well as within, namely those who wish to destroy our country's rule of law and the precepts set forth in the Constitution. Therefore I would ask you to consider Mr. Pompeo instead as a potential candidate instead of President Trump. Oh, and Nickki Haley as his VP."
In America "You are innocent until proven guilty", unless you are a Republican. The Democrats under the guidance of George Soros want to divide children vs. parents; race vs. race; government vs. Christians; parents vs schoolboard; free speech vs. censorship and the U.N. and NIH pushing policy vs. American ideals.
The "fat lady" is on deck, but she hasn't sung yet. Much time for crazy things to happen. i'm an adamant evangelical Christian independent conservative. i know God uses unlikely people in government leadership for His purpose. Example: Donald Trump's combative style vis-a-vis his effective policies. Another example: Joe Biden's 'aw-shucks' style vis-a-vis his immoral policies and corrupt behavior. i'm worried for the country i spent a military career to serve. i pray the Sovereign Lord of all creation will orchestrate--or allow--a Republic ticket like Trump+Desantis, or Desantis+Pompeo...and not--shudder the thought--Biden+Harris or Newsome+Schiff. Hopefully the fat lady isn't also trans?
No, that's not what I believe. As he used Pharoh, Pontius Pilate, et. al., he can--and does--use anyone for His purpose. As Sovereign Lord of everything, nothing happens that He doesn't cause or allow, nor does anything happen that He doesn't know in advance. There is no impotence in that! Our challenge is to discern His purpose and to allow ourselves to align with His will! Right!
Because you think God is angry about covid mask mandates?
I think God is embarrassed my house shallow and spineless Christians in America are. There is real oppression of Christians around the world and he looks at us and shakes his head at how we seem to feel we're the victims of something
A toss from left field? where did i say anything about covid or mandates?? i don't think God gets 'embarrassed.' You are right about oppression of Christians...more so in other countries than here. And He told us that would be the case.
As Sovereign, He doesn't have to get 'permission' to use anyone--good, bad, or ugly--for His purpose, right. Yes, He gives us free will to choose to follow His guidance, but He also allows us to choose un-wisely...and live (or die) with the consequences of our choice.
Yes, God is all-powerful. But whether you call it "Agency" or "Free Will"- like any parent, God wants us to choose to trust in Him - not be coerced into submission. He doesn't want to have to say, "Because I said so" when we ask "Why?"
Even Jesus didn't want to to go through what He knew God had planned for Him. ("Father, if it be Thy will, let this cup pass from me.") Jesus COULD have said "No" and God would have had to come up with another plan. But Jesus said, "Not my will, but Thine be done."
I think God chooses people that he knows will act in a way that will allow a situation to work out the way He wants it to. But people are imperfect. They make mistakes and bad decisions. So nothing is certain until an action is taken.
But God can use anyone to further his plan. You either believe that God can do that, and is genuinely omnipotent, or you don't.
That person does not have to know they are furthering God's work. Do you believe Pilate understood he was setting up Christ to forgive the sins of all mankind? He was conscious of his role in creating a new covenant? I highly doubt it.
Do you think all of the Old Testament rulers that conquered Israel realized they were being used by God as a form of Judgement? Do you think on the eve of conquering Judah that Nebuchadnezzar was praying to God that he would he used as an instrument of God?
I do believe God CAN use anyone to further His plan. That's different than He WILL use anyone. WILL implies force. CAN does not.
Actually... God used Pilate's wife to put Pilate in a frame of mind where he let the Jewish leaders and people decide Jesus' fate. That was a better option than turning Jesus loose, and risking an uprising that would incur consequences from Rome. That's why Pilate washed his hands of the situation.
Pilate, Nebuchadnezzar, Pharoh, Goliath... all of them did not know their role in God's plan. Nor did they ask to be the means by which God's plans would be furthered. But God did.
If Pharoah had let the Israelites go right off the bat, God would not have the chances He did to show the Israelites His power and might. If Goliath had said, "Okay. You win," God could not have used David the way he did.
Right. God can use a person for His purpose even if that person chooses to ignore His guidance. He knows what happens before it happens, because He doesn't live IN time (He created it!). We may think Biden is good (or bad) and Trump is bad (or good), but Who counts is God. We may discern His purpose by observing (discerning) the behaviors of our leaders; e.g., is He punishing us for polices which encourage abortion by giving us a leader that tells us we can choose our gender or ignore Biblical admonitions against unnatural sex? We may have opinions, but He knows.
I appreciate the policies that Trump put in force and, being a businessman, he knows what our capitalist system needs. But, I agree with you, at this point we need a strong steady leader for the next 8 years. Not chaos and drama for the next 4 and who knows what after that.
His economy helped us rise, become stronger, hold our head up in the world and become an exporter of energy. Look where we are now in comparison. Biden has taken us down hill and made us a pariah on the world stage. No one respects us. For the first time EVER, the dollar has taken second place to China's yuan. Yes, I would gladly take Trump over the socialism we have now. This government is rapidly taking away our freedoms in search of power for themselves.
Yet his behavior made me hang my head in shame. He acted like a schoolyard bully...to allies and friends. And was even worse to those he perceived as enemies.
It is a special kind of terrible person that tells elected members of Congress to go back to their country because they have a different point of view on issues.
Oh, and this economy is a direct result of a decade of policies that continued right through the Trump administration. Policies designed to make money easy to get by keeping interest rates artificially low and borrowing massive amounts of money to spend. (Look at how much was added to the debt between 2010 and 2020)
Trump is a clown and it baffles me that people still support that joke. It isn't funny anymore.
I was so hoping we could move on from Trump in 2024 but that hope is rapidly fading each day. It's disheartening going on Twitter these days and reading tweets from the only-Trump folks who will not even consider voting for another candidate if Trump isn't winner of the primary. Now that he has been indicted, it's as if he's some kind of a religious figure. To me, that kind of thinking is disturbing from folks from this side of the political fence. Bragg has certainly cemented Trump's status among supporters even more and pushed some of those who were on the fence towards supporting him.
The primary is over. Its Trump and I am still voting all RRRRRRRRRRR.
Trump is taking nothing for granted. Yesterday I saw an advert from a Trump PAC where they attacked Desantis for being against Social Security and Medicare. They used his voting record while in Congress. Can you imagine the cheering from the lefties. Repub primaries are the best form of tested oppo research, and it costs them nothing.
I am expecting Trump will have dozens and dozens of charges in multiple states by summertime. It won’t matter. It won’t deter him from running, or his base from writing checks and showing up at rallies. My bet is most of it will end up being a nothingburger.
But I am truly scared that the world we know will not be the same in 2 years. We have Brandon for 2 more years and that makes me feel unsafe. Too many bad things out there brewing for it all to calm down.
The smart folks hopefully figure out we are not in charge. Easter week is coming up. It’s a good time to rethink/renew/repent and accept.
Liberals can't even agree on what exactly Trump did here that's criminal. Some are saying that paying hush money is illegal, but parties to contract disputes or even tort claims routinely pay more in return for a nondisclosure agreement, aka hush money. Other liberals claim that NOT paying the lawyer who paid the alleged hush money is the crime as it allegedly creates an in-kind contribution from the lawyer to Trump's campaign in excess of the individual campaign contribution limit. It seems rather odd, however, for a state official to trying to bring federal criminal charges. Really they just hate Trump, and want him to be guilty of something. He pretty much admitted during the 2016 campaign that he uses illegal alien construction workers ("you can't do construction without them") so why don't they go after him for that? (We know why, but it's funny. :-D)
My concern is long term, beyond the immediacy of indicting Trump because they hate him. We have now gone after not only a former President, but someone who is running for office. Republicans will not forget this and when old Joe is out of office if he is still alive or Kamala drifts away don’t be surprised if they find some DA in the country that will indict them for something. And then the Democrats will retaliate…God help us from ourselves.
I have never voted for Trump and cannot envision a time when I can do so in good conscience. I voted none of the above in 2020. If events change things, I’d like the event to be Trump saying he won’t run. Unlikely, but can you imagine how dumbfounded the democrats would be? They’d have to shift their whole strategy.
Here is the hard truth: none of the investigations will result in a conviction.
1. NY must prove the payment was made with the intent to cover up another felony. There is precious little evidence of that INTENT. They paid her to keep quiet for a few months. The intent was purely political and not to cover some other felony
2. The GA Grand Jury report has been to the DA for months without any action at all. Even though the DA herself said indictments were “imminent.” It seems like some people lied to the grand jury, but if she had something on Trump she would have made a move by now.
3. The strongest legal case is the Federal records case. But one document a showed up at Pence’s house and Biden’s house, the air went out of that whole case. It won’t be hard to call any indictment politically motivated if Trump is indicted, but not the other two.
He may walk on all three cases and thereby reinforce the image of his invulnerability.
I for one am incensed that our legal system would allow for a political stunt such as this. If there is no case as you pointed out in one of your shows, then move past the emotional bigotry of the grand jury. One party in our political system seems to dominate against all rationale and moral integrity. Where are the voices of common sense and righteousness?
I do believe God CAN use anyone to further His plan. That's different than He WILL use anyone. WILL implies force. CAN does not.
Actually... God used Pilate's wife to put Pilate in a frame of mind where he let the Jewish leaders and people decide Jesus' fate. That was a better option than turning Jesus loose, and risking an uprising that would incur consequences from Rome. That's why Pilate washed his hands of the situation.
Pilate, Nebuchadnezzar, Pharoh, Goliath... all of them did not know their role in God's plan. Nor did they ask to be the means by which God's plans would be furthered. But God did.
If Pharoah had let the Israelites go right off the bat, God would not have the chances He did to show the Israelites His power and might. If Goliath had said, "Okay. You win," God could not have used David the way he did.
"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity."
Erick,
As the parent of a special needs daughter, I don't appreciate the use of the term "short bus of the party". The term "short bus" (or "little yellow bus") is generally used as an insult to special needs students who ride the "short bus." To equate the lack of intelligence of Alvin Bragg and other progressives really insults students with legitimate special needs - like my daughter.
A third option could be Bragg thinks that, since promising to go after Trump got him elected, indicting Trump may help in a bid for reelection - or in a campaign for a higher office (maye AG of NY.)
It's getting harderd and harder to figure out who is the least intelligent Dem.
"This country is facing enemies from without as well as from within. While Governor DeSantis is an admirable potential President, today we need someone in office with experience in both arenas. To know our enemies (China, Russia and Iran) as well as within, namely those who wish to destroy our country's rule of law and the precepts set forth in the Constitution. Therefore I would ask you to consider Mr. Pompeo instead as a potential candidate instead of President Trump. Oh, and Nickki Haley as his VP."
In America "You are innocent until proven guilty", unless you are a Republican. The Democrats under the guidance of George Soros want to divide children vs. parents; race vs. race; government vs. Christians; parents vs schoolboard; free speech vs. censorship and the U.N. and NIH pushing policy vs. American ideals.
The "fat lady" is on deck, but she hasn't sung yet. Much time for crazy things to happen. i'm an adamant evangelical Christian independent conservative. i know God uses unlikely people in government leadership for His purpose. Example: Donald Trump's combative style vis-a-vis his effective policies. Another example: Joe Biden's 'aw-shucks' style vis-a-vis his immoral policies and corrupt behavior. i'm worried for the country i spent a military career to serve. i pray the Sovereign Lord of all creation will orchestrate--or allow--a Republic ticket like Trump+Desantis, or Desantis+Pompeo...and not--shudder the thought--Biden+Harris or Newsome+Schiff. Hopefully the fat lady isn't also trans?
So you believe God can use Trump but not Biden?
Got it.
I don't like the idea of such an impotent God
No, that's not what I believe. As he used Pharoh, Pontius Pilate, et. al., he can--and does--use anyone for His purpose. As Sovereign Lord of everything, nothing happens that He doesn't cause or allow, nor does anything happen that He doesn't know in advance. There is no impotence in that! Our challenge is to discern His purpose and to allow ourselves to align with His will! Right!
So God can use Biden to accomplish his will just as easily as he can use Trump.
Absolutely. And His will may be to punish us for electing him.
Lol. Sure.
Because you think God is angry about covid mask mandates?
I think God is embarrassed my house shallow and spineless Christians in America are. There is real oppression of Christians around the world and he looks at us and shakes his head at how we seem to feel we're the victims of something
A toss from left field? where did i say anything about covid or mandates?? i don't think God gets 'embarrassed.' You are right about oppression of Christians...more so in other countries than here. And He told us that would be the case.
God can only use a person who allows themself to be used.
As Sovereign, He doesn't have to get 'permission' to use anyone--good, bad, or ugly--for His purpose, right. Yes, He gives us free will to choose to follow His guidance, but He also allows us to choose un-wisely...and live (or die) with the consequences of our choice.
Like I said, my God is not that impotent.
And Trump allowed Christ to use him? Lol. Wow.
So you believe Pilate allowed himself to be used by God?
Then we don't believe the same thing about God.
Yes, God is all-powerful. But whether you call it "Agency" or "Free Will"- like any parent, God wants us to choose to trust in Him - not be coerced into submission. He doesn't want to have to say, "Because I said so" when we ask "Why?"
Even Jesus didn't want to to go through what He knew God had planned for Him. ("Father, if it be Thy will, let this cup pass from me.") Jesus COULD have said "No" and God would have had to come up with another plan. But Jesus said, "Not my will, but Thine be done."
I think God chooses people that he knows will act in a way that will allow a situation to work out the way He wants it to. But people are imperfect. They make mistakes and bad decisions. So nothing is certain until an action is taken.
But God can use anyone to further his plan. You either believe that God can do that, and is genuinely omnipotent, or you don't.
That person does not have to know they are furthering God's work. Do you believe Pilate understood he was setting up Christ to forgive the sins of all mankind? He was conscious of his role in creating a new covenant? I highly doubt it.
Do you think all of the Old Testament rulers that conquered Israel realized they were being used by God as a form of Judgement? Do you think on the eve of conquering Judah that Nebuchadnezzar was praying to God that he would he used as an instrument of God?
I do believe God CAN use anyone to further His plan. That's different than He WILL use anyone. WILL implies force. CAN does not.
Actually... God used Pilate's wife to put Pilate in a frame of mind where he let the Jewish leaders and people decide Jesus' fate. That was a better option than turning Jesus loose, and risking an uprising that would incur consequences from Rome. That's why Pilate washed his hands of the situation.
Pilate, Nebuchadnezzar, Pharoh, Goliath... all of them did not know their role in God's plan. Nor did they ask to be the means by which God's plans would be furthered. But God did.
If Pharoah had let the Israelites go right off the bat, God would not have the chances He did to show the Israelites His power and might. If Goliath had said, "Okay. You win," God could not have used David the way he did.
Right. God can use a person for His purpose even if that person chooses to ignore His guidance. He knows what happens before it happens, because He doesn't live IN time (He created it!). We may think Biden is good (or bad) and Trump is bad (or good), but Who counts is God. We may discern His purpose by observing (discerning) the behaviors of our leaders; e.g., is He punishing us for polices which encourage abortion by giving us a leader that tells us we can choose our gender or ignore Biblical admonitions against unnatural sex? We may have opinions, but He knows.
I think she's warming up... running through the scales.
I appreciate the policies that Trump put in force and, being a businessman, he knows what our capitalist system needs. But, I agree with you, at this point we need a strong steady leader for the next 8 years. Not chaos and drama for the next 4 and who knows what after that.
So.our system needed record spending increases? Rising deficits and debt? Increased spending while cutting taxes?
His economy helped us rise, become stronger, hold our head up in the world and become an exporter of energy. Look where we are now in comparison. Biden has taken us down hill and made us a pariah on the world stage. No one respects us. For the first time EVER, the dollar has taken second place to China's yuan. Yes, I would gladly take Trump over the socialism we have now. This government is rapidly taking away our freedoms in search of power for themselves.
Yet his behavior made me hang my head in shame. He acted like a schoolyard bully...to allies and friends. And was even worse to those he perceived as enemies.
It is a special kind of terrible person that tells elected members of Congress to go back to their country because they have a different point of view on issues.
Oh, and this economy is a direct result of a decade of policies that continued right through the Trump administration. Policies designed to make money easy to get by keeping interest rates artificially low and borrowing massive amounts of money to spend. (Look at how much was added to the debt between 2010 and 2020)
Trump is a clown and it baffles me that people still support that joke. It isn't funny anymore.
I was so hoping we could move on from Trump in 2024 but that hope is rapidly fading each day. It's disheartening going on Twitter these days and reading tweets from the only-Trump folks who will not even consider voting for another candidate if Trump isn't winner of the primary. Now that he has been indicted, it's as if he's some kind of a religious figure. To me, that kind of thinking is disturbing from folks from this side of the political fence. Bragg has certainly cemented Trump's status among supporters even more and pushed some of those who were on the fence towards supporting him.
The primary is over. Its Trump and I am still voting all RRRRRRRRRRR.
Trump is taking nothing for granted. Yesterday I saw an advert from a Trump PAC where they attacked Desantis for being against Social Security and Medicare. They used his voting record while in Congress. Can you imagine the cheering from the lefties. Repub primaries are the best form of tested oppo research, and it costs them nothing.
I am expecting Trump will have dozens and dozens of charges in multiple states by summertime. It won’t matter. It won’t deter him from running, or his base from writing checks and showing up at rallies. My bet is most of it will end up being a nothingburger.
But I am truly scared that the world we know will not be the same in 2 years. We have Brandon for 2 more years and that makes me feel unsafe. Too many bad things out there brewing for it all to calm down.
The smart folks hopefully figure out we are not in charge. Easter week is coming up. It’s a good time to rethink/renew/repent and accept.
Cheers
Do you mean "backfire?" :-)
Liberals can't even agree on what exactly Trump did here that's criminal. Some are saying that paying hush money is illegal, but parties to contract disputes or even tort claims routinely pay more in return for a nondisclosure agreement, aka hush money. Other liberals claim that NOT paying the lawyer who paid the alleged hush money is the crime as it allegedly creates an in-kind contribution from the lawyer to Trump's campaign in excess of the individual campaign contribution limit. It seems rather odd, however, for a state official to trying to bring federal criminal charges. Really they just hate Trump, and want him to be guilty of something. He pretty much admitted during the 2016 campaign that he uses illegal alien construction workers ("you can't do construction without them") so why don't they go after him for that? (We know why, but it's funny. :-D)
John 8:1-11
In this story an adulterous woman was brought before Jesus to be stoned to death.
Jesus wrote in the sand the individual sin of each man until there was no one left to stone her.
Then Jesus forgave her and told go and sin no more.
So as I see it a bunch of sinners in New York want to prosecute a sinner for a consenting sin.
My concern is long term, beyond the immediacy of indicting Trump because they hate him. We have now gone after not only a former President, but someone who is running for office. Republicans will not forget this and when old Joe is out of office if he is still alive or Kamala drifts away don’t be surprised if they find some DA in the country that will indict them for something. And then the Democrats will retaliate…God help us from ourselves.
The timing on this indictment announcement is pretty deliberate as well.
Notice how this indictment has knocked the "Transgender School Shooter" stories off the front page headlines?
That's what you call a "red herring".... Something designed to distract folks away from asking important questions about something else.
Otherwise, this indictment is a nothing-burger.
And if Trump ends up the nominee again, I will not vote for him.
I have never voted for Trump and cannot envision a time when I can do so in good conscience. I voted none of the above in 2020. If events change things, I’d like the event to be Trump saying he won’t run. Unlikely, but can you imagine how dumbfounded the democrats would be? They’d have to shift their whole strategy.
Here is the hard truth: none of the investigations will result in a conviction.
1. NY must prove the payment was made with the intent to cover up another felony. There is precious little evidence of that INTENT. They paid her to keep quiet for a few months. The intent was purely political and not to cover some other felony
2. The GA Grand Jury report has been to the DA for months without any action at all. Even though the DA herself said indictments were “imminent.” It seems like some people lied to the grand jury, but if she had something on Trump she would have made a move by now.
3. The strongest legal case is the Federal records case. But one document a showed up at Pence’s house and Biden’s house, the air went out of that whole case. It won’t be hard to call any indictment politically motivated if Trump is indicted, but not the other two.
He may walk on all three cases and thereby reinforce the image of his invulnerability.
Get ready for four more years....
I for one am incensed that our legal system would allow for a political stunt such as this. If there is no case as you pointed out in one of your shows, then move past the emotional bigotry of the grand jury. One party in our political system seems to dominate against all rationale and moral integrity. Where are the voices of common sense and righteousness?