Qualifications for Federal Elected Office

Friends, anyone that runs for federal elected office should have to demonstrate that they have a COMMAND understanding of the United States Constitution. That is their job manual if they get elected. Don't let them simply tell you that they are a Constitutional Conservative, make them PROVE IT to you! Ask them questions about the Constitution and specifically if they know what their limits are, and ask them to explain to you if they know how to use this manual. Its a popular thing for pseudo conservatives today to also try to use their "faith" to shore up the "Christian" voter population. Don't fall for spiritual talk, if they don't know the Constitution, they simply cannot perform their function of handling the controls of a nation ordained by God. The Church has fallen for way too much of this in recent years. Simply because someone talks like a Christian, or actually is a Christian, does not equip them to be be elected to Federal office no more than it would equip them to pilot an aircraft.

All this talk about the "fiscal cliff". Its pathetic that we have so few people that call themselves Conservatives understand how to take on the left. The left has coined this term in order to freak out the public to soften us up for the President and his ilk to raise taxes. Folks, if you look at the balance sheet for our nation right now...we have already gone off a cliff. There is pain coming...that's a simple fact because of what we have done. Raising more revenue for a behemoth government that has an insatiable appetite for spending will do nothing.

We simply MUST stop selecting and voting for people that give us lip service that they are Conservative and hold to the Rule of Law, then as soon as they are elected they begin coalescing with those that are already entrenched in power and the lust for more. Dont fall for the trap that "they all do that", there are honorable men that can hold to their word as long as they understand that they need accountability and to be held accountable. Elect NO one, vote for NO one that does not prove this to you. Make anyone that wants your vote for federal elected office demonstrate that they have a command understanding of the United States Constitution. That is their job manual if they get elected. Dont let them simply tell you that they are a Constitutional Conservative, make them PROVE IT!

How Important Is It For a Federal Congressional Office Holder To Have Command of The Operating Manual?

While speaking on the RadioFree Rocky D show a couple weeks ago, the radio show host Rocky D who is a staunch conservative himself...kind of asserted to me that its not important for a Congressional candidate to really have a great understanding of the Constitution because as he said, they can "look it up". I'm glad he went ahead and voiced that...sort of makes my point...or at least gives me the chance to drive it home.

Friends, I disagree completely. I agree that folks dont have to have it memorized....but my point is that the people we elect ought to have what I call a "command understanding" of the document...it is enough for you or me or joe citizen to be able to pick up a copy of it and look something up. But for people we are going to elect to this high office and pay them a very large salary by the way...., I think the standard ought to be higher, much higher as a matter of fact. The individuals that we elect, we are entrusting a tremendous amount of responsibility to be faithful to the intent of the Framers of our Government. These individuals need to be able to have a complete understanding of the Constitution and the intent of the Framers...or how to discern the intent of the Framers. That is a "command understanding" of the document. If they are scrambling to look something up like a third grader everytime the libs are raping the document...they are going to be severely behind the power curve. Why would we elect people like that? Our standard for these offices ought to be much higher, as a matter of fact the absolutel baseline ought to be a firm grip on this "government manual".

This kind of thinking that we just say ..."oh yea...I know about the Constitution, thats that little booklet some citizen gave me a copy of while I was running for office" and then they summarily dismiss it like its some old piece of history. That has to STOP! If we are serious about getting our government back inside its "fence"...we can no longer give this lip service.

Laws vs Regulations

Permit me to provide just a little heads up and training this morning. The President, is now going to try to ram gun control legislation through the Congress. I doubt he can get it through the House, but the majority of the GOP over there continues to not be who they say they are...so you never know. If he cannot get gun control legislation through the Congress, I expect him to attempt to use Executive Orders to enact regulatory schemes through Executive Branch agencies like the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BATF).

So, here is a relevant piece of information about our Constitution that many of our elected officials either do not know, or choose to ignore. Like I have said before, it has to be one of those two things; ignorance, or gross dereliction of their oath. All of these agencies that now fall under the Executive Branch are not mentioned in the Constitution. All of these agencies are authorized by statutory law enacted by the United States Congress, the Legislative Branch of our government. The framers of this brilliant document we call the Constitution vested ALL legislative power in the Congress. This is found in the very first sentence in the Constitution, Article I, Section 1. All of my former students young and old, know this as “the first principle of American Government”. Article I, Section 1 is made up of one sentence: “All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.” Therefore, per the Federal Constitution, and the brilliance of the framers, we have only one branch of government that can constitutionally make law. I point out “constitutionally” because many times people tell me: “well that’s not the way it is now”, to which I answer, “precisely my point, thanks for making it”. The reason that’s “not the way it is now” is due to our collective ignorance, silence, and inaction.

But on to my point, whenever one of these Executive Branch agencies makes a regulation, it is made behind closed doors by bureaucrats that are unelected, and therefore unanswerable to the people. The reason Article I, Section 1 says what it says is because the framers intended for laws to only come from people that had to answer to you and me at the ballot box. They intended for federal laws to be enacted by a deliberative body that would openly debate the merits of each law considered. Ok, so back to these things called “regulations”. Regulations enacted by Executive Branch agencies like BATF will carry the force of law with monetary or incarceration type penalties for violating them in exactly the same way a law passed by the Legislative branch would. Therefore, even though they are referred to as “regulations”, they are in effect laws. Good case in point, the Healthcare law that was passed (I call it ZeroCare) contained almost 3000 pages of statutory law enacted by people we voted for. To implement that behemoth law (the largest single law in our nation’s history), unelected bureaucrats have written almost 10,000 pages of regulatory dogma to date. Those regulations will be the undoing of most of our current healthcare system and many of our businesses.

What I am describing to you is just one way that our government has grown way beyond the Constitutional fence that the framers designed to keep the branches of our government separated and “in check”.

So why do I take the time to write all this out for you. Glad you asked. If the Presidnet and his cohort the Vice President are not able to get their wishes by enacting more firearms laws through the congress, they will probably turn to some other Executive type regulatory scheme with the BATF. When this happens, our lawmakers (Senate and House) are going to tell us that they did their job and refused to pass the legislation, and therefore we ought to thank them and pat them on the back and that its all the President's fault. I want to encourage you to be prepared to hold their feet to the fire and ask them why they permit the Executive branch to run roughshod over them by passing regulations that they (the Congress) have not passed into law. Here’s where knowledge of the workings of the Constitution comes in. Article I, Section 7 states that all bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives. In other words the House of Representatives has first and final say on anything to do with spending. This is a very powerful “check” that virtually goes unused today. If an agency of the Executive Branch does something that violates the Constitution, like making law where they have no authority to make law, then the Congress can hit back (check) by defunding that agency. It actually is that plain and simple. So you might ask, Bob, why don’t they ever do that? We can only surmise why they never utilize this “check”, more than likely its fear of being accused of shutting down an important agency, or keeping federal workers in that agency from getting their paychecks, myriads of things not to which the least of them would be the leftist media excoriating them.

But folks, this is where we are today, for years of dereliction of duty, of Congress looking the other way while these agencies torment the citizenry with more and more regulations. The Congress enacted these agencies and turned them over to the Executive Branch, and now refuses to keep them in check.

Be informed and hold our elected officials accountable for their oath to the Rule of Law, the United States Constitution.

Most Important Qualification for SCOTUS Nominee

In an effort to provide a little training in what does and doesnt make a good nominee for a Supreme Court position...or any federal judge for that matter, I want to offer up the following information. This is CRUCIAL at the SCOTUS level.

When Justice Sotomayor was nominated by the President a few years ago...she stated that as a Latina woman she would make a better justice than a man because she could provide "empathy". That was a very telling moment friends because that is precisely what should have DISQUALIFIED her for that seat on the SCOTUS in the eyes and ears of an astute United States Senator that understands how the U.S. Constitution works. Something Senator Graham from SC either does not have, or chooses to ignore. You might ask: "Bob, why on earth should her having "empathy" disqualify her?" I'm glad you asked that question. You see "empathy is a good thing, a very good thing....for a local family court judge to have, maybe a local magistrate, etc. But my friends, "empathy" has absolutely NOTHING to do with the job of a SCOTUS Justice. As a matter of fact to do that job....it takes a VERY special individual.

It takes someone that can divorce their own feelings from all decision making and simply hold the issue in question/before the court up to the text of the federal Constitution and determine Constitutionality in light of the framers intent in 1787. Period! Thats it. Nothing more, nothing less. Their "empathy" will lead them to disregard the intent of the framers in most instances because of the limited nature of the federal government that was clearly intended in this document that bestows so very few powers upon the federal government. I have been teaching this long enough to know what you may be thinking at this point...yep...your thinking..."thats a dream world Bob, no one can do that". Let me introduce you to one of the very best justices...who can do it. No, Im not saying Justice Scalia is perfect, he is not. He is human...but let me show you how this is supposed to work. Watch it several times if you have to in order to understand what is being said. Its worth your time to get this down...and get it down good.

Justice Scalia on the "Confrontation Clause"

Accurately Placed Respect

As you can see from the image on the left, the 226 years that have passed since Jacob Shallus put quill to animal skin, has taken its toll on the physical properties of the United States Constitution. But sadly, a heavier and much more dangerous toll has been inflicted upon what is still today our primary governing document. The toll inflicted by ignorance and wickedness among those governed by it, is threatening our Republic unlike no other time in history.

I often get push back from well meaning Christians for not respecting the President. When this happens, it makes me wonder how anyone can honestly pay attention to what the current President is doing, and what he proposes to do, and still honestly tell me they respect him...If you fall into this category...you have a serious problem. I make no secret of the fact that I have no respect whatsoever for the President. However, I have great respect for the office of the President of the United States, which makes it all the more imperative that I call him out for his statements and his actions.

Permit me to explain a little bit more in depth about this. To do that, we have to start with some basic facts about our Constitution. We are a nation of laws…the United States Constitution sets forth the Rule of Law for our nation. It establishes the parameters under which our federal government can operate, no more, no less. By its very nature, the United States Constitution or Federal Constitution as it is sometimes referred to, is a document of limited powers (ceded up by the states in order to create a limited central government) and a list of "enumerated" individual rights to be retained by all the citizenry. The framers of the document set forth the premise in Article VI that the United States Constitution is the Supreme Law of the land. From this fact comes the principle that the United States Constitution is the Rule of Law. Article VI states that there is no higher law, the United States Constitution is supreme to all federal law. Consequently, all federal law enacted must be enacted “pursuant” to the Constitution. This means that federal law cannot contravene (violate) the Constitution. Article VI also states that the United States Constitution is supreme above all state Constitutions and state laws. I mention this to remind us that there is NO law, NO office, and NO individual office holder that is above the United States Constitution. Indeed all Federal Office holders swear an oath to the United States Constitution.

Law Above Men

The idea that "we need to respect the President", or any other office holder for that matter, no matter what they say or do...while it may sound moralistic and high minded…reveals very deep ignorance of the United States Constitution and how our government works. Our founders set up a system unlike no other in history...we respect law above men. The founders came from a worldview where subjects were required to respect men (a King) above law (Rex Lex), so they implicitly and intentionally set up a system from a biblical worldview wherein we respect law above men (Lex Rex). The United States Constitution is the highest law of the land, again, that’s why officials take an oath to it. Therefore you are required...and as a Christian...it is your duty to respect the highest man made Law (Constitution) above any man.

The well meaning Christians I mentioned above will frequently quote or mention the thirteenth chapter of the book of Romans for a warning to be "subject to the governing authorities”. The problem here is that the "authority" in the context of Romans 13 is not a man under our system of government...it’s the law. We have rampant ignorance of this simple but profound truth in our country today. If you hold the position that you respect the President of the United States...three things are in play...(1) you are grossly ignorant of current events, (2) you are ignorant of our Constitution and our Republic, and (3) most importantly if you’re a Christian, you are ignorant of your responsibility under God's law.

The larger question that we should be asking ourselves here is why are there so many that think this way today? How did we get to the point where so few understand this very basic information? I am reminded of an event that took place in the heat of June 1788. The place was Richmond, Virginia, the setting…the Virginia Ratification Convention for the new United States Constitution. The elected delegates from all over the commonwealth had assembled to determine whether or not Virginia would ratify the new Federal Constitution. The list of delegates is legendary, men like Patrick Henry, James Madison, John Marshall, George Mason, and James Monroe, I could go on and on…a virtual who’s who of framers and founders. Heated debate was the order of the day. On one hand the Federalists were pushing the new Constitution due to the utter failure of the Articles of Confederation, the fledgling nations first set of bylaws. On the other hand were Anti Federalists, men who feared an all too powerful central government. After much heated debate, which in one instance almost produced a duel…a man little known to us today, a man by the name of George Nicholas rose to his feet to address the raucous assembly.

George Nicholas's comment that sweltering day was simple but contained a profound message that rings powerful 226 years later… a message we need to hear loud and clear today. His statement…“An enlightened people will never suffer what was established for their security to be perverted to an act of tyranny.” Do you see the operative word in Mr. Nicholas’s statement? He said “an enlightened people”. The premise of Mr. Nicholas statement was absolutely correct...that is, if we had an enlightened citizenry. An enlightened citizenry would be needed to safeguard the Constitution against men that would ignore it, or pervert it. Today we have a completely unenlightened citizenry; therefore many of our elected leaders...not only the President...but many in the congress and the judiciary blatantly ignore the Rule of Law in carrying out the duties of their office.  Ultimately we bear the responsibility for permitting them to do this without holding them accountable.  But how can an unenlightened citizenry hold anyone accountable?

My friends, today instead of getting upset or agitated at my position of not respecting the President, or any other elected official for that manner…it’s time to get educated on the truth of the Rule of Law, the truth about what authority we respect above all others in our government, and the truth that we are a nation of “unenlightened” citizens. We need to become an enlightened citizenry with respect to the Rule of Law and how our government is supposed to operate under it. The Constitution of the United States is not difficult to understand. While Constitutional Law can be deep...it is not always deep. One does not have to be a Constitutional attorney in order to understand its principles and to be able to identify when it is being ignored, perverted, and violated.

Honor God for what he has given us...a Rule of Law, higher than men.  No other nation on the face of the earth has this kind of Constitutional government founded and set up under God's principles. Worship Him today by using your time and opportunities to learn it. There are many ways to do this, and I would be glad to point you to my free course online to help facilitate your "enlightenment" today.

462 Years Ago Today - "Play the Man Master Ridley"

The Martyrs' Memorial stands partway down St. Giles street in the city of Oxford, England. It was built in the mid-19th century to commemorate the lives of Oxford Bishops Thomas Cranmer, Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley. I walked right past this memorial one Saturday morning while exploring this historic and incredible city about 13 years ago with my good friend Jim Dewitt.

I have to admit, I had not heard of these three men prior to that morning. These three men, sometimes referred to as “Prelates of the Church” were bishops in the Anglican Church of England. All three men were involved in the Protestant Reformation. Latimer began to preach publicly on the need for the translation of the Bible into English. This was a dangerous move because the first translation of the New Testament by William Tyndale, had recently been banned. When the Church of England moved from Anglicanism back toward the Roman Catholic Church under Queen Mary in 1553, these three men came under intense persecution.

Eventually these three men were burned at the stake right near the spot of this memorial. Ridley and Latimer first in October of 1555 and then Cranmer in March of 1556. It is interesting to note that Cranmer was executed a little over five months later because the Queen ordered these men to “recant” or take back their statements and renounce their beliefs. Ridley and Latimer refused…Cranmer on the other hand, recanted, but could not live with himself afterwards…and then recanted his recant. While preparations were being made to burn Cranmer at the stake, he asked if his right hand could be untied so that he could put that hand first into the fire. That was the hand that he had used to sign his original recant that spared him the fate of his friends five months earlier at the very same spot in Oxford.

Ok, so why the church history lesson Bob? Well, it occurs to me that we take an awful lot for granted today in the times in which we live. How many of us believers have multiple copies of the Bible around our homes? How many of you now have the Bible on an App, either for your Iphone, your Ipad, or your laptop? We have incredible access to the Word of God that these men and many others like them gave their lives for us to have. They gave their very lives for us to be able have the Bible in our own language. These men believed that God’s word was meant for you and I to have in order that we might come directly to God. They believed that, because they understood that the Bible contained the powerful, living, Word of God! Do we really understand what we have on those pages? If we do, we will make it part of our everyday lives, both in the practice of reading and in the practice of telling others what it says.

I think about the mindset of men like this…and I ask myself if I can measure up to them. We are called to take Christ to a world around us that is entirely hostile to the Christ of the Bible…I say the “Christ of the Bible” because many today are offering a “christ” that is foreign to the Christ of the Bible. But make no mistake about it; the world around us is hostile towards Him. Even so, we are reminded that in this world, God is always at work…He is about the work of drawing His people to Himself all the time. Our job is to be faithful to point others to Him, not knowing upon who’s hearts He is working. In a time of increasing hostility towards Christ, we must not shrink back from proclaiming the truth.

Hugh Latimer is quoted as having said to Nicholas Ridley as the fires were being lit: “Play the man, Master Ridley; we shall this day light a candle, by God’s grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out.” Take the time to read about men like this…let God use these fallen but great men from history to put “steel” in our spine to engage the world around us with the truths of the scriptures.

The Bear Bible

A few years ago while on a business trip to New England I had some time to visit the historical society in the small town of Windsor, CT.  I had discovered this place on a previous trip and was back to take a few pictures. Taking the pictures was something I had worked out...you see most museums prohibit the taking of photos of very old artifacts due to the deterioration caused by the momentary, but intense light produced by a camera flash.  But I just had to have a photo of one particular item. I had written the society curator a few weeks before and of course had laid it on pretty thick about how much I loved history and had really enjoyed visiting their museum on my previous visit and that I really wanted a photo of one particular item. I must have hit a heartstring, or maybe she sensed I was was a "historical" kindred spirit, or maybe she was just thrilled that someone from out of town was so excited about their small historical society. Anyway, she agreed to let me bring my camera and take a photo.

The item, shown in the photo above...was the object of my photo quest that day, an almost 400 year old Geneva Bible (circa 1625). This was the family bible of the Jonathan Gillete family who came over to America on the ship "Mary and John" in 1630 as part of the Puritan congregation that settled Windsor in 1634. It is known as the "Bear Bible" from the scratches on its ends, which, according to family history, was made by a bear clawing at a window propped open by the bible.

So, why the fascination with an old bible you ask? Well, I'd be lying if I didnt admit that I am fascinated by objects and artifacts from early colonial America, and having a nearly 400 year old bible just inches from my fingertips was really cool...but what really made an impact on me was the realization that this bible represents much more. The Geneva Bible was the bible produced by the Reformers in the late 16th century and indeed if one was privileged enough to own a copy of an english translation in early colonial New England, it would have been the Geneva edition. This Bible had a huge influence upon the founding of America as did the Reformers that translated it. Long before America declared its independence, many of the Reformers defended principles that birthed liberty in the modern world.

Recently while studying Calvins "Institutes on the Christian Religion", I was struck by the fact that Calvin had so much to say about civil government. John Eidsmoe, a noted scholar on the impact of Christianity on the United States Constitution writes that scholars on both sides of the Calvin "theological" divide agree that he might be the father of modern liberty as well as the intellectual founding father of America. John Adams, agreed with this sentiment and issued this pointed charge: “Let not Geneva be forgotten or despised. Religious liberty owes it much respect”. The Reformers wrote about and modeled many of the principles of liberty later embraced by our own Founders: Anti-Statism, the transcendent principles of law as the foundation of an ethical legal system, the principle that man must be ruled by a system of law higher than himself, free market economics, decentralized authority, and an educated citizenry as a safeguard against tyranny. You see, the cause of American self government did not begin in 1776, but rather it began with the Protestant Reformation, indeed one could argue it began with the scriptures themselves!

So, in essence this bible that I was priveleged to photograph is a mark of time gone by, but that mark bears the indelible fingerprint of the Providential hand of Alimighty God as he orchestrated events in the founding of our country.  Give Him glory today!

Efficiency or Abdication of Responsibility?

Little known to most of us, last Tuesday evening the United States House of Representatives voted on and passed legislation known as the “Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act of 2011” (S. 679). Members of the United States Congress have figured out that most of us are paying no attention whatsoever to what they do, but for the few that are, they like to use words in the titles of legislation that fool us into thinking they are doing good things. After all, who could be against our government doing something to make itself more “efficient” and “streamlined”? It almost seems un-American to oppose something named like that. This legislation originated in the United States Senate back in June of last year and was sent to the House where it sat in legislative limbo...until Tuesday that is. The bill eliminates close to 200 positions that normally require Senate approval under the Constitutional process of Senate "advise and consent" normally referred to as "Confirmation". What this means is that the President (any President) will be able to simply appoint people to these particular positions without any congressional review.

Now to be clear, obviously all federal employees are not required to be confirmed by the United States Senate. The United States Constitution gives authority to the President of the United States to appoint "Officers of the United States" in his administration to various positions.  Article II, Section 2, directs that these appointments be confirmed or "checked" by the Senate. The same section also prescribes that the congress can "vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone".  In other words, all officers must be confirmed unless the congress provides exception by statutory law. Congressional review or Executive branch appointees is a crucial "check" in the framers intent for Separation of Powers and Constitutional "Checks and Balances".

Back to the law I mentioned above that was passed this past Tuesday evening (S. 679). This bill which began in the Democrat controlled Senate, was sponsored by one of the biggest liberals in the Senate, Chuck Schumer.  Indeed the list of cosponsors is a veritable who's who of leftist Senators. Why a Republican controlled House of Representatives would vote on this piece of legislation ever, much less right now is so incomprehensible it boggles the mind. At a time when our Constitution is being eviscerated, the Republicans not only undercut themselves...more importantly they have weakened Separation of Powers and weakened the "Appointments" clause in Article II, Section 2.

The Republican line on this is that these are "minor" positions. Really? Again, they assume most of us out here have left them on autopilot...and sadly...they are right. I, however, have NOT left them on autopilot...I watch them like a hawk...becuase I dont trust them. I know that the vast majority in the Republican Party are not Conservative, oh...they like to call themselves Conservative...but they are not. So I took the time to pull up the bill and see who these people (positions) are. There are powerful positions on this list....and of course, why would they have been on the list to start with if they were deemed important enough before?

Upon further investigation into what the Senate had to say last year when they introduced this bill you find that their reason for introducing the bill is not because they think the positions are so minor as to not merit Senate confirmation, but rather their stated reason is that they say they don’t have "enough" time to perform their duty in this area. Right, this from the legislative body that torments us (the people) with strangling legislation about what kind of light bulbs we can use and cannot use, what kind of toilets we must use, and other nonsensical proclamations and resolutions. Yep, they don’t have time for the important stuff of PROTECTING our Constitution! This bill is very, very bad no matter who is the President...the issue isn’t who's in power...but the issue is the SEPARATION of powers.  But there is no way to ignore the bad timing of this bill, this President has gobbled up power left and right since being in office, he has appointed Czar after Czar, he has appointed radical self described Communists, Homosexual activists, and radical environmentalists to strategic posts and for these Republicans to increase his authority is extremely negligent.

What I don’t understand as a Conservative is this...why do the Republicans continually stab us in the back? Why a vote on this bill now after it sat in limbo for more than a year?  Why did the House leadership buckle on this?  There is no getting around it, a look at the Roll Call on this bill is very revealing, it shows us who understands the gravity of this law and who does not understand "checks and balances", it shows us who is serious about checking the unbridled power of a radical Marxist President, and who is not.  Once again, we see that it is we the people that have to be vigilant, Thomas Jefferson said "Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves, therefore, are its only safe depositories."

The so called “Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act" now sits awaiting signature into law on the President’s desk.  A Christmas Present for the President in August, all wrapped up in a bow from a Republican controlled House of Representatives!

Making The Connection

As Christian citizens living in a land that God has bestowed liberty unlike no other in history, there is a crucial need for us to get a clear understanding of the United States Constitution and American Government. The times in which we live make it imperative that we understand how our government is supposed to function under the Federal Constitution. The Bible commands us to take “every thought captive to obey Christ (2 Cor 10:5).

Unfortunately, for far too many Christians today, the last thing they think about when it comes to spiritual things is their government and the United States Constitution. A proper understanding of the Establishment and Free Exercise clauses is something every American Christian should seek to have in order to protect these special God given liberties. In order for us to develop our Christian Worldview, it is imperative for us to understand the truth about history and make the Biblical connection to the truths about limited government under the Rule of Law (United States Constitution).

Lets strive to understand this subject from a Biblical Worldview in order to bring Glory to God with our thoughts and actions concerning our government. To that end, I hope to begin posting short essays and blogs pertaining to thinking biblically not only about government and the Constitution but also about a wide range of issues.