The LORD is a jealous and avenging God.

-Nahum 1:2

Believer, your Lord is very jealous of your love. Did He choose you? He cannot bear that you should choose another. Did He buy you with His own blood? He cannot endure that you should think you are your own or that you belong to this world. He loved you with such a love that He would not remain in heaven without you; He would sooner die than have you perish, and He cannot endure that anything should stand between your heart's love and Himself.

He is very jealous of your trust. He will not permit you to trust in yourself. He cannot stand the thought of you hewing out broken cisterns and neglecting the overflowing fountain that is always free to you. When we lean upon Him, He is glad; but when we transfer our dependence to another, when we rely upon our own wisdom or the wisdom of a friend-worst of all, when we trust in any works of our own-He is displeased and will chasten us, that He may bring us to Himself.

He is also very jealous of our company. There should be no one with whom we converse so much as with Jesus. To remain in Him alone, this is true love; but to commune with the world, to find sufficient satisfaction in our earthly comforts, to even prefer the company of our fellow Christians to secret fellowship with Him, this grieves our jealous Lord. He longs to have us abide in Him and enjoy constant fellowship with Himself; and many of the trials that He sends us are for the purpose of weaning our hearts from created things and fixing them more closely on Him who created everything. Let this jealousy that would keep us near to Christ also be a comfort to us, for if He loves us so much as to care about our love, we may be sure that He will allow nothing to harm us and will protect us from all our enemies. May we have grace today to keep our hearts in holy purity for Christ alone, with sacred jealousy closing our eyes to all the fascinations of the world!

Another FOTF Update.

Dear Friends,

While much of the nation's political attention is focused on the health care debate, a bill that threatens the rights of people of faith is again gaining momentum.

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA)--a bill which clearly places Christian beliefs on the wrong side of the law--is expected to be voted on this fall. ENDA is a threat to the rights of Christians and would grant special workplace protections to people based on sexual orientation. As a result, Christian business owners could be faced with choosing between their religious beliefs and violating a federal law. ENDA would also prevent religious employers from making hiring and employment decisions based on their moral convictions.

Learn more about ENDA by watching this week's Focus Update video.

Our federal-issues team frequently meets with U.S. senators, congressmen and key staffers to make your voice heard in Washington, D.C. When our team began to recognize the ENDA threat could easily sneak "under the radar," I sent a letter to every member of the House of Representatives urging them to consider seriously the dangers of ENDA and to vote against it when the time comes.

I know that with so many pressing issues facing our nation--this threat to our religious liberties and the health care reform plan that currently mandates abortion coverage and taxpayer funding--it can be difficult to know what's really happening in Washington, D.C. That's why we're sending these weekly updates--so you can stay abreast of important family news.

For faith and family,

Tom Minnery
Senior Vice President, Government & Public Policy

Ethics for Discussion

So I'm taking an Ethics course this semester(most things have to do with nursing), but I thought I would post a couple 'situations' a week, that I get for homework, to get to know what you all think about these things. If you have an opinion and would like to share it I would appreciate it! I figured it would help me get to know you better and also spark some good Biblical discussion about these things (because at school the discussions are not Biblically based). So, if you would like to share your opinions, thoughts, and beliefs it would be awesome! If you're not interested that's fine too! Just so you know, I will not use what you say for my homework answers, or even talk about it in class; it will stay here :)


#1. People have the right to request assistance in dying from health care professionals, and the health care team should be able to assist in the person's death while being protected from the law?

#2. Capital punishment is unethical?

#3. Abortion is ethical?

#4. Basic healthcare needs should be accessible to everyone in a country that claims to be concerned about it's people?

#5. You will donate your organs after death?