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• George Tiller Slain In Wichita - (Read)
• Sri Lanka After the War - (Read)
• To See Or Not To See? The Movie Question - (Read)

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GEORGE TILLER SLAIN IN WICHITA - (Print)

"But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf."

 - 1 Peter 4:15-16

Late-term abortionist George Tiller was shot to death on Sunday, May 31st at the Lutheran church he attended in Wichita, Kansas. While abortion rights groups are celebrating Tiller as a martyr, pro-life groups have stepped up consistently to denounce the man's murder.

In the first abortionist slaying in over a decade, George "The Killer" Tiller was shot in the lobby of Reformation Lutheran Church where, ironically, he was serving as an usher. A man identified as 51-year-old Scott P. Roeder of Merriam and Kansas City, Kansas was arrested about 3 hours after the shooting along I-35; his car matched the description of one that drove away from the church at the time of the murder.  Roeder's ex-wife has described him as having a serious "eye-for-an eye" religious view, and there is evidence he believed in justifiable homicide. 

Pro-life groups have consistently criticized and protested against Tiller's performing abortions on fetuses old enough to live outside the womb. For decades, groups of pro-life activists have picketed Tiller's clinic and have followed the various legal cases against the abortionist. Yet, pro-life groups across the country have also come out in strong condemnation of Tiller's murder. On a sign placed outside Tiller's clinic, a local group wrote:

"The Kansas Coalition for Life respects every human life, including the life of Abortionist Tiller. We prayed for his conversion to the prolife viewpoint, not for his murder." The sign was signed Mark S. Gietzen, who leads the coalition.

The Kansas Coalition for Life is not alone. The same sentiment has flooded from the pro-life community across the United States. LifeNews.com has collected a list of statements from pro-life organizations denouncing Tiller's murder:

For instance, Melinda Delahoyde, president of Care Net, an organization that includes pregnancy care centers across America, told LifeNews.com, "It is never consistent with the pro-life ethic to take the life of another human being made in the image of God. Those responsible for the murder should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law."

Brian Gibson of Pro-Life Action Ministries said, "But as horrific as abortion is and heinous the acts of the abortionists are, we must always remain peaceful and act with the mind of Christ. There is no room in our work for thoughts or acts of hatred, anger, bitterness, or violence. To the contrary we must boldly speak the truth in love, with peace and faith in the mercy of God."

These positions have been echoed by a multitude of pro-life groups, which, while condemning the thousands of abortions committed by George Tiller, have also affirmed Tiller's rights to life and legal recourse.

This was not the first time Tiller was attacked. He survived being shot in the arms in 1993 and had to build up security around his clinic. He even wore bullet proof vests and hired a bodyguard. His clinic was bombed over two decades ago, and he has received many threats over the years. Yet, he persisted as one of a handful of abortion providers in America who performed late-term abortions. His was the first slaying of an abortionist since 1998, when Barnett A. Slepian was shot outside of Buffalo, NY. 

Both Tiller and his alleged killer Scott Roeder have friends and family members who love them and who have spoken well of them publicly. George Tiller's friends and colleagues have described him as a calm, good-humored individual who decorated his walls with the photos of family members. Abortion rights groups lauded him as a caring individual who helped women.

On the other hand, Scott Roeder's brother David told the Topeka Capital-Journal in a statement, "We know Scott as a kind and loving son, brother and father who suffered from mental illness at various times in his life. However, none of us ever saw Scott as a person capable of or willing to take another person's life."

The irony is that both men believed they were doing the right thing.  George Tiller claimed he performed late-term abortions to help women.  His killer justified murder in the name of bringing an abortionist to justice.  George Tiller ended the lives of unborn babies, and Roeder allegedly ended the life of George Tiller... 

During the Age of Reason, people argued that human beings were capable of using their excellent brain power and reasoning skills to come up with morality.  Yet, during the past 100 years all manner of evil and horrific acts have been "justified" by human reason.  In the end, we human beings have a tendency to use our brain power to argue in favor of doing whatever we want to do.  And what we want to do is often completely contrary to the Word of God.

"There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." -Proverbs 14:12

Tiller and his murderer both followed ways which seemed right unto themselves, but which led to death.  Lest we get too puffed up, we ourselves can easily fall into similar traps in the different areas of our lives.  We can all choose destruction rather than life, pride rather than humility, hatred rather than righteous love.  The safest way to determine right and wrong is to prayerfully and honestly study the whole counsel of the Word of God (not just favorite sections), with the leading of the Holy Spirit who wrote it.  Thousands of years after it was penned, the Bible is still "profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness."  Through a strong understanding of God's heart through His Word, we can be "throughly furnished unto all good works." 

Which...most certainly do not include dispatching abortionists.

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SRI LANKA AFTER THE WAR - (Print)

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord."

-Luke 4:18-19

The civil war in Sri Lanka mercifully ended in the second half of May when the government defeated the Tamil Tigers after 26 years. But while the war is officially over, the suffering remains. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes, have lost loved ones, or deal daily with injuries and mutilation from the war. In the meanwhile, Gospel for Asia and other missionary groups are stepping into the fallout to give assistance and the mercy of Christ to these people as they struggle to get their lives back.

In 1976, Velupillai Prabhakaran founded the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or Tamil Tigers) with the goal of seceding and forming a Tamil homeland in the northern part of the island of Sri Lanka. The violence between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government escalated into a full out civil war in 1983, and some 80,000 people were killed during the next 26 years.

The LTTE became famous for its terrorism. The Tamil fighters targeted civilians and used them as human shields. They kidnapped and recruited child soldiers and perfected the use of suicide bombers long before Al Qaida came on the scene. Prabhakaran was as shrewd as he was ruthless, and his Tigers succeeded in slaughtering their enemies in battle and even in carrying out high profile assassinations, like the murder of former Indian premier Rajiv Gandhi in 1991. Prabhakaran was not particularly motivated by religion, but by a very motivated Sri Lankan Tamil nationalism.

The war ended as the Tamil Tigers finally admitted defeat on May 17th, 2009. Prabhakaran was shot to death while fleeing Sri Lankan troops on the 18th, and thereafter almost 10,000 Tamil rebels – many of them women and children – began to surrender.

The aftermath of the war is not pleasant. Almost 300,000 people now live in relief camps where they need food and water, shelter, basic healthcare and sanitation. Most bear emotional wounds and anger and grief that will not be healed by a simple bowl of rice. The government is busy shuttling those Tamil militants who have surrendered into rehabilitation camps, looking to return the island to some form of normal life. After 26 years, that will be no easy task.

In the meanwhile, missionary workers have stepped in to help the refugees and keep more from dying.

"Our country is in huge suffering," said Lal Vanderwall, Gospel For Asia's Sri Lanka country leader. "We are praying for God to intervene so that many more will not die in the aftermath of this surrender."

Suicide is a big concern. "People are committing suicide out of despair," reported GFA President K.P. Yohannan. "When they lose hope, many will just kill themselves. So there is a very real fear of increased suicides."

Disease is also a threat as thousands flood into refugee camps, where they live in cramped living quarters with poor sanitation and rampant malnutrition.

Missionaries and church pastors, both Tamil and Sinhalese, are working together to gather food and supplies for the survivors of the war. People will need their houses rebuilt and their loved ones buried. They will need all manner of assistance over the next months as they try to reassemble their lives. Groups like Christian Aid and World Vision are also stepping in to help.

Please pray for the missionaries and churches that are reaching out to the people of Sri Lanka.  Pray that the Holy Spirit will work in the hearts of these torn people.  The refugees need their physical needs met, but they also need their emotional and spiritual needs attended to so that they can begin to heal from the traumas of the past many years. This is a difficult time, but it is also an opportunity for people to hear the Gospel and know the One who gives them living water and who offers "beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;" (Isaiah 61:3).

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TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE? THE MOVIE QUESTION - (Print)

Land of the Lost, Night At The Museum: Battle Of The Smithsonian, and Terminator Salvation are some of the newest flicks awaiting avid moviegoers streaming to the box office for their two hours worth of entertainment. Most people enjoy a good movie. However, too often movies that promise to be good are littered with extreme violence, foul language, gratuitous sex scenes or inappropriate humor that can ruin an otherwise interesting story. Happily, there are ways to find out which films are fun and wholesome, which films contain questionable scenes, and which films are just plain lame before spending money on a dose of Hollywood.

It is difficult from previews or from most movie reviews to know which movies are going to throw in "that one scene" that tarnishes the whole thing. At the same time, it’s difficult to know which are going to inspire the viewer to greater faith and courage. To deal with this problem, a number of Christian-oriented sites offer reviews of movies. These sites not only note the film-making quality and the excellence of movie plot lines, but also give potential viewers fair warning of undesirable scenes or language. These sites often allow web surfers to give their personal reviews as well, so that one can find a variety of Christian-oriented opinions of movies before buying a ticket. Some sites also offer reviews of less well-known, notably good films that deserve a viewing despite their smaller budgets.

Maybe you would have preferred your kids not to see Captain Kirk in bed with a green skinned Orion chick before you went to see JJ Abram's Star Trek – or would have liked to have been warned about the foul language or the bar reference to country boys and their affinity for farm animals. How does the newest Night At The Museum movie treat Egyptian pagan mythology, and on the other hand, how does it treat references to Jesus Christ? Does Up compare well to Pixar’s long list of excellent family films? And how many ways did the Wayan brothers manage to be completely offensive in Dance Flick? There are a plethora of Christian movie review sites – all with unique styles – which can give viewers specific information before they head to the theater.

The producers and writers in the film industry are no more righteous or unrighteous than their viewers. If movies packed with garbage do poorly and relatively "clean" films do well, film makers will take note and focus their efforts on what sells. If families want to be able to see more moral filmmaking, they need to only spend their money on those types of films.  Christian review sites give movie-goers the tools to make those decisions before they buy a ticket.

The Bible tells us to think about true, honest, just, pure and lovely things - things that have virtue and that are praiseworthy (Phil 4:8). In working to apply that verse to our lives, it helps to cut out even entertainment that is not true and just and praiseworthy. See the links below for several sites useful in screening films before heading to the theater.

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Pravda Opinion Piece Mourns Demise of US Capitalism - June 02, 2009
A commentary published in the once-official newspaper of the Soviet Union heralded America's "descent into Marxism" citing the United States' takeover of General Motors, poor education standards, and the election of Barack Obama as president. The opinion piece in Pravda, one of the Soviet-era newspapers still published in Russia, carried the headline, "American Capitalism Gone with a Whimper," and was written by Stanislav Mishin, who runs the blog "Mat Rodina." CNS News

Court Rules No Reading Bible To Kindergarten Class - June 02, 2009
A kindergartner's mother cannot read Scripture during show and tell, even if the Bible is the boy's favorite book, a US appeals court said Monday in the latest challenge over religion in public schools. Schools can more tightly control speech presented to younger students, who may not distinguish a parent from their teacher, the ruling said. Busch argued that the class heard stories related to Passover, Christmas and other religious holidays, but the court concluded there was a "significant difference" between identifying such holidays and reading from Scripture. AP

The Swine Flu Confirmed in 10,000 Americans - June 02, 2009
Cases of the new H1N1 flu virus have now been found in all 50 U.S. states and tests have confirmed the virus in more than 10,000 people across the nation, (though the actual number of cases may be 20 times that). Seventeen deaths in the United States have been definitively linked to the swine flu virus, the CDC said Fox News

Dow Jumps 221 Points Despite GM Bankruptcy - June 01, 2009
Inspired by fresh signs the US economy is slowly healing, the Dow climbed more than 200 points on Monday even as General Motors became the largest industrial bankruptcy in American history. "Obviously people knew [the GM filing] would happen. Now that it's out of the way, there's almost some relief. Everyone can stop focusing on it," said Ryan Detrick, equity analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research. Fox Business

"Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32

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