Category: Patriotism

Fall

It’s nice to live in an area where we (usually) have 4 seasons. I love Spring, with budding trees and flowers popping up new everywhere; baby animals bounding about, and the new smell of overturned earth as gardens and fields are prepared for planting. My favorite holiday of the year is Easter, because we get to reflect on the sacrifice that Jesus made in order to save us from ourselves and from eternal damnation.

 I love Summer, too. I love to soak up the heat on a lazy afternoon when the smell of freshly cut grass abounds and the birds are singing and in the background, the sounds of kids playing outside; pool parties and cookouts, vactions to the lake or the ocean or the mountains. Celebrating the birth of our country and the freedoms we enjoy as Americans on the 4th of July. I love fireworks displays and parades; festivals and fairs. 

I have a love/ hate relationship with Winter. I adore Christmas and celebrating the birth of our Savior. I love snow and winter activities….. but I really don’t like being cold. I love being snuggled in soft blankets with a crackling fire, spiping a hot drink….. but I really don’t like being cold. The feeling of the brisk, fresh winter air on my cheeks is so invigorating, and the thrill of skiing down a hillside is hard to describe….. but I really don’t like being cold! Can you tell that Winter is a dilemma for me???

Fall – change is in the air. There is a riot of colors and textures as the flowers and grasses and trees seem to explode with late season fruits and seed pods to prepare for winter. There is a flurry of activity in the animal kingdom as they gather food and fortify themselves for the coming winter. The light changes in a subtle but distinct way, softer and more diffuse than the glare of summer. The winds begin to blow more from the north, bringing cooler temperatures and inviting us outside to enjoy the changes.

Fall has been my favorite time of the year for as long as I can remember. Why is it my favorite? The most obvious reason is that my birthday is in the Fall! Thanksgiving, too. It is such a joy to be able to gather with friends and family and to give thanks for who we have in our lives. There were years in my life that I wasn’t thankful for my family, or for the countless times God has stepped in and protected me from serious harm – even death. Of course, being human, I continued to put myself in harms ways, and was hurt physically and emotionally because of my actions. But that story is for another day. 

November is a great month to write a gratitude list. Add one thing to it each day. Not everyone has a family to be thankful for – I know how blessed I am to have one – but everyone has someone and something to be grateful for. Being a gratitude list can be difficult when you are in a bad place. I know, because I’ve been there. A friend made an excellent point once as we were discussing gratitude and some of our group were having difficulty thinking of anything to be grateful for. Even little things make our lives better. She said “We can always be thankful for toilet paper!” Yes, we laughed, but the point was well taken. Start with the seemingly little things …. it might be that they are really big things! 

  “Submit to GOD, and you will have peace; then things will go well for you. Listen to His instructions, and store them in your heart. If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored – so clean up your life. If you give up your lust for money and throw your precious gold into the river, the Almighty Himself will be your treasure. He will be your precious silver!” – Job 22:21‭-‬25 NLT (http://bible.com/116/job.22.21-25.NLT)

Love God and love life. Anticipate heaven and live in preparation for eternity.


From a Pinkish-tan, Hillbilly born, Native American

​If I don’t manage to offend you with this post, well….. it ain’t for lack of speaking the truth! African-American, Native-America, Greek-American, Russian-American, Chinese-American, Vietnamese-American Mexican-American. Black skinned, yellow skinned, brown skinned…. Everybody has to be treated with kid gloves so we don’t inadvertently offend someone. Heaven forbid! I take issue right off the bat with being called “white.” The only white humans (or animals, for that matter) are albinos, who are white due to lack of pigmentation in the skin and hair. I’m so sorry to disappoint, but I am not white.

Oh HELL yeah I’m gonna rant! I am so sick of all the ridiculous, I’m-so-scared-I’m-gonna-offend-somebody, political correctness going on. People! There is ONE race! ONE! It’s called the HUMAN race! ONE people! Cut us, and we ALL bleed the same. Peel away the skin, and we are all built the same! Check our DNA, and we ALL come from the same ancestors! God spoke and here we are:

Then God said, “Let Us make human beings in Our image, to be like Us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” So God created human beings in His own image. In the image of God He created them; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.” – Genesis 1:26‭-‬28 NLT (http://bible.com/116/gen.1.26-28.NLT)

I am a pinkish-tan human, female in gender, born in the U.S. of A. My parents were born in America, and so were their parents. I think I have to go to the great-great great-greats or even further back to get to the generations that immigrated here from Ireland,  Scotland, England, Wales… and others. That makes me a Native-America, right? It doesn’t take anything away from anyone else to claim my birthright does it?

You want to know what offends me? Probably not, you’re saying, but I’m going to tell you anyway. It offends me deeply when I have to check a box and choose what kind of American I am on applications. I am deeply offended that I have to “Press 1 For English” during a phone call. I am offended that I have to pay higher and higher taxes so that people who are perfectly able to work collect welfare and government assistance – they can stand in line at the grocery store with their manicured nails and tattoos and hair extensions with a basket full of steaks, when I work hard just to try to make ends meet. It offends me beyond description that so many of our elderly and our veterans are subsisting, or are homeless, but we sent billions in aid to other countries, and reward illegal immigrants with food and homes.

What is going on, America? When did it become okay to disrespect our flag and what it stands for? How did we reach the point where rapists and murderers in prison are treated better than our parents and grandparents? There are so many things that offend me, but because I am a pinkish-tan human who happened to be born in America, I’m not allowed to be offended. So, from a pinkish-tan, hillbilly born, native AMERICAN…… that’s my rant for tonight.

“Then if My people who are called by My Name will humble themselves and pray and seek My Face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14 NLT (http://bible.com/116/2ch.7.14.NLT)

Ah, the blessings of insomnia! 

If I haven’t offended you lately…I’ll get there eventually 

  “After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the LORD or remember the mighty things He had done for Israel. They abandoned the LORD, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the LORD. They abandoned the LORD to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth. This made the LORD burn with anger against Israel, so He handed them over to raiders who stole their possessions. He turned them over to their enemies all around, and they were no longer able to resist them. Every time Israel went out to battle, the LORD fought against them, causing them to be defeated, just as He had warned. And the people were in great distress.” – Judges 2:10‭, ‬12‭-‬15 NLT (http://bible.com/116/jdg.2.10-15.NLT)

This sounds so much like our country today. Replace “Israel” with “the United States,” and realize who Ba’al and Ashtoreth are. According to an article from http://www.breakingisraelnews.com, the temple to Ba’al in Palmyra, Syria, “…was originally dedicated to the Mesopotamian god Ba’al, whose principal forms of worship were burning babies alive and bisexual orgies. Symbolizing a major religion that challenged Judaism, Ba’al was mentioned in the Bible over 90 times, becoming the archetype of worshipping evil. The devotees of Ba’al believed he was the source of rain and universal bounty. Promiscuity was not penalized, as unwanted children could be offered up to the god [abortion, child abuse], nor was procreation valued, as homosexual relations were encouraged. Pantheistic, they worshipped Mother Nature while rejecting the concept of a creator.” (www.breakingisraelnews.com)

Considered the moon-goddess, Asherah [Ashtoreth] was often presented as a consort of Baal, the sun-god (Judges 3:7, 6:28, 10:6; 1 Samuel 7:4, 12:10). Asherah was also worshiped as the goddess of love and war and was sometimes linked with Anath, another Canaanite goddess. Worship of Asherah was noted for its sensuality and involved ritual prostitution. The priests and priestesses of Asherah also practiced divination and fortune-telling. (www.gotquestions.org)

(Emphasis added)

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, the former Chief Rabbi of Great Britain, made a prescient comment on the new moral reality in an article in the the Wall Street Journal in 2011, warning, “A tsunami of wishful thinking has washed across the West saying that you can have sex without the responsibility of marriage, children without the responsibility of parenthood, social order without the responsibility of citizenship, liberty without the responsibility of morality and self-esteem without the responsibility of work and earned achievement.” (http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/64582/temple-baal-ancient-idol-worshiped-biblical-times-will-stand-times-square-biblical-zionism)

I think Rabbi Sacks was very accurate in his statement. We have no respect for life. Witness the number of abortions performed every day, and the acts of violence across the country. Human life has little value to so many people. The lives of animals are placed above children in so many cases, and the presence of drugs and human slavery are decimating. We want the government to support us so we don’t have to work. We expect the government to supply our health care; and we expect the government to take care of us when we get old. But mostly, we expect to be left alone to do whatever we please, without the constraints of morals or ethics or rules.

How’s that working out for you?
It’s time we stand up for what is RIGHT. Morally, ethically, and lawfully. Whether at work or at play, it is up to each individual to live righteously and without expectation that someone else will provide for us. Responsibility is not fun, but it is a necessity. There are different definitions of “right,” so I submit mine. It is right to work and then to enjoy the fruits of my labor. If I choose to have a nice house, it is my responsibility to pay for it and to maintain it. If I want a nicer vehicle, then I need to work for the privilege of ownership. Same with anything else I want. If I choose to have children or animals, it is my RESPONSIBILITY to take care of and provide for them. It is not up to any government to provide these things. There are legitimate instances where people need assistance. For example, I lost my job in April and have been unable to find equivalent work since then. I am fortunate to have earned unemployment benefits, but those are very limited. I am even more blessed to have a partner whose income keeps us going financially for now. Neither of these things prevents me from being responsible to find another job. I have friends who have made the choice to raise their children without the dad because of abuse, and others who have adopted unwanted children. They still work and struggle to maintain a “normal” life, and I believe they should be helped if they desire it. Many make the choice to do their lives without government help.
For those who cannot earn an adequate living through no fault of their own, because of physical or mental disability, or because they are a widow or orphan, we as a community of Christians bear the responsibility to care for them. Not the government. It is not the right of anyone or anything government to take what I have achieved in order to “spread the wealth” – or any other euphemism, including Socialism or Communism or just plain stealing because they don’t want to work.
We are at war today, my friends. In our homes, in our neighborhoods, in our jobs, in our lives, wherever it takes us. Take this scripture to heart:
  “Then if My People who are called by My Name will humble themselves and pray and seek My Face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14 NLT (http://bible.com/116/2ch.7.14.NLT)

Obey My Commands 

​  “As the Father has Loved Me, so have I Loved you. Now remain in My Love. If you keep My commands, you will remain in My Love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in His Love. I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have Loved you. Greater love has NO ONE one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends…” (http://bible.us/John15.9-13.NIV)

Jesus said “Obey my commands…” and then He gives us the ONE command that supercedes and yet includes all of the previous law: “Love each other as I have Loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

There could come a time in our lifetimes – and it could come very soon – when we are called to do this; to actually lay down our lives for our friends and family and our faith. It is happening all around the world today, even as I write this. Are you prepared? Are you prayed up and armored by the Word of God?

  “The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very Power of God…. God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made Him to be Wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; He made us pure and holy, and He freed us from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the LORD.” – 1 Corinthians 1:18‭, ‬30‭-‬31 NLT (http://bible.com/116/1co.1.18-31.NLT)

This is apparent in the world, and I think it is especially true here, in the United States. There are so many lies being pushed aside truth in the media. Preachers are teaching that one color or one style of life is more important than others. What happened to “All men are created equal?” Do black lives matter more than red or brown or yellow or white? Do blue lives matter more than any other? Then we have the disparities between life styles and economic and academic classes. Where does it end? Read all of 1 Corinthians, chapter 1. We are foolish to think that we are any better than anyone else. It is only by keeping the ONE command that Jesus gave us that we can honor Him. If God has united you with Jesus Christ as your Savior, then you should understand. If we in thought and in deed love others as Christ loves us, then there is no inequality in our treatment of others. 

Unfortunately, we are human and as such are incapable of the kind of LOVE that Jesus has. Yet again, when we are united with Christ, and we allow ourselves to be in Him, then, and only then, can His Love shine in us and through us. As broken people, the Light of Jesus can shine through all of the cracks and holes of our brokenness and imperfections. So if we are to boast on anything, let’s boast on Jesus. So  “If you want to boast, boast ONLY about the LORD,” and be prepared to lay down your life in order to boast of Him. There IS no greater Love. 

How I would like to see our politicians (from the city level all the way to Washington) understand the importance of God’s Word and the power that is to be gained by following the example of Jesus Christ instead of their own selfish and self-righteousness….

God, Prayer, and Politics

“What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our GOD is near us whenever we pray to Him?” – Deuteronomy 4:7 NIV (http://bible.com/111/deu.4.7.NIV)

I found this online, and before anyone jumps me and claims it’s all propaganda and the words are twisted, just hang on. Maybe these words aren’t an exact quote for this speech, but she has made these and similar comments many times. Maybe worded slightly different, but her stance remains.

Hillary Clinton, speaking at the Women in the World Summit on April 23, made the statement:

“Far too many women are denied access to reproductive health care and safe childbirth, and LAWS DON’T COUNT FOR MUCH IF THEY ARE NOT ENFORCED.” (Emphasis mine) She continued: “Rights have to exist in practice — not just on paper. Laws have to be backed up with resources and political will. And deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases have to be changed.”

For once, she and I agree on something. NOT abortion, because that is morally wrong, it murders a living human being, and causes deep emotional scarring in the mother. Constitutional laws need to be enforced. CONSTITUTIONAL laws. So many of the laws on the books are fundamentally unconstitutional and are deeply oppressive to We the People. Our “deep-seated cultural codes” are what make us – excuse me, MADE us – such a great country. The world laughs at us now because of people like her who’s goal is to change us from a Republic and a world leader to an oligarchy or even a dictatorship. We are not a socialist or communist country, despite the changes that Washington is trying to force down our throats. Our “deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases” don’t have to be changed. They need to be supported and emphasized by the people we put in Washington.

Make no mistake, friends. WE put them there. We did did by voting- AND by ignoring it all and not voting. Eldridge Cleaver said: “There is no more neutrality in the world. You either have to be part of the solution, or you’re going to be part of the problem.”

Are  YOU going to be part of the solution this November? We, as Christians and as Americans, need to be on our knees going forward and prayed for God’s guidance and His will. We have His promise:

“…If My people, who are called by My Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My Face and turn from their wicked ways, THEN I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV (http://bible.com/111/2ch.7.14.NIV)

NOW my rant is over….

We, the Peoples of these United States…..

​  “Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:

  Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.

  Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

  Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,

  To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.” – Jude 1:1‭-‬3‭, ‬24‭-‬25 KJV (http://bible.com/1/jud.1.1-25.KJV)

Jude wrote these words almost 2000 years ago. The more I read God’s Word, the more I realize how timely and appropriate it is for us now, in 2016. We have some really difficult decisions to make before the elections this coming November. Before you shut this off, I’m not here to stump for any of the Presidential candidates. This is not a Republican or Democrat or Independent blog…. it is intended to be a Christian blog. Consider these words from Jude and tell me he wasn’t speaking directly to Christians today:

  “For there are certain men {and women} crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

  Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.  How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.

  These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.” – Jude 1:4‭, ‬8‭-‬8‭, ‬18‭-‬19 KJV (http://bible.com/1/jud.1.4-19.KJV)

It sounds as though God is directing Jude to speak to us about our leaders and potential leaders today. Not voting in the election is not an option…. but who to vote for? This calls for some serious “knee time!” We the people of these United States have some hard decisions to make. Will you make a knee-jerk reaction, or spend time in prayer and meditation, listening for God’s guidance? God bless America, because she certainly needs those blessings. Amen.

Holy Father, under your direction and with the Holy Spirit guiding us, help us to discern the path You want us as followers of Your Son Jesus Christ to take. We need to be humble and in Your Word, Lord. I pray understanding over me and my house; Amen.


Going All Political 

I’ve been staying off of social media for the past few days because of all the negative news and posts. I know there are a lot of positive posts and people are coming together, too, but even within many of the “positive” messages there seems to be an underlying hatred. Our beautiful country is being destroyed in a systematic fashion by both those in power and in radical fringe groups. God – not Mohammed, not Buddha nor Mother Earth or any other god – God the Almighty, Creator, was at the center of the founding of our nation, and He is being pushed aside for all other gods. Professional athletes and musicians are treated with more respect than we give almighty God.

People sit in lines and even camp out in parking lots in order to be first in line for the best deals and the best tickets…. Have you EVER seen anyone waiting in line for the church doors to open? America, without God, we are nothing. This nation is heading for an EPIC fail. Our so-called leaders, from small town mayors to the White House continually undermine the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. We the people are having to go into survival mode. 

It is so easy to fall into the hatefulness and prejudice that is being preached from Washington, but we as Christians MUST overcome those emotions and attitudes. Yes, I know how easy it is to say, and what a difficult challenge to do. It can only happen when we follow the Words of Jesus. Love the ones who want to hurt us, and PRAY for them. That is NOT what I want to do!

Father God, LORD of ALL, have Mercy on me. You are The Almighty; The  Forgiving and Merciful GOD. Help me to leave Judgment to You, and with Your help, I will forgive and pray for those who would do me and this great nation harm. I pray for clarity and for a contented spirit. It is only with You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, that I can have peace in this world. It is only through You, LORD Jesus,  that this nation, and our world, will ever have peace. Thank You, Father God, for Your continued presence in my life. Amen.

Are you willing to pray this prayer, too?

ALL Lives Matter

​Black lives. Blue lives. Red lives. Brown lives. Yellow lives. White lives…..

ALL lives matter to God! 

April 4, 1968 – Robert Kennedy gave this speech in Indianapolis, Indiana, after he received word of Martin Luther King’s death. The words are so appropriate for us regarding the events of the past weeks and years.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,

I’m only going to talk to you just for a minute or so this evening, because I have some — some very sad news for all of you — Could you lower those signs, please? — I have some very sad news for all of you, and, I think, sad news for all of our fellow citizens, and people who love peace all over the world; and that is that Martin Luther King was shot and was killed tonight in Memphis, Tennessee.

Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice between fellow human beings. He died in the cause of that effort. In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, it’s perhaps well to ask what kind of a nation we are and what direction we want to move in. For those of you who are black — considering the evidence evidently is that there were white people who were responsible — you can be filled with bitterness, and with hatred, and a desire for revenge.

We can move in that direction as a country, in greater polarization — black people amongst blacks, and white amongst whites, filled with hatred toward one another. Or we can make an effort, as Martin Luther King did, to understand, and to comprehend, and replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand, compassion, and love.

For those of you who are black and are tempted to fill with — be filled with hatred and mistrust of the injustice of such an act, against all white people, I would only say that I can also feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man.

But we have to make an effort in the United States. We have to make an effort to understand, to get beyond, or go beyond these rather difficult times.

My favorite poem, my — my favorite poet was Aeschylus. And he once wrote:

Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.

What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love, and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.

So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King — yeah, it’s true — but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love — a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke.

We can do well in this country. We will have difficult times. We’ve had difficult times in the past, but we — and we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; and it’s not the end of disorder.

But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings that abide in our land.

And let’s dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world. Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country and for our people.

Thank you very much.”

Christian and Being PC – ???

I am a Christian, a follower of Christ Jesus; Son of the Almighty God Who spoke the universe in existence. Second, but very important, I am a Patriot. I probably offend a lot of people as I speak my beliefs, and if I haven’t offended you yet…. hold on because I  probably will.

What does it mean to be a Christian? For a lot of people, it means they believe there is a God, and He has a Son named Jesus. Being a Christian is so much more than that! We aren’t capable of being good enough for God’s forgiveness, and we cannot earn our way into heaven. There isn’t a mortal man who can intercede for us. There is only ONE way, and it is by accepting Jesus as my personal Savior. Jesus wasn’t a good man, and He wasn’t a prophet. He is the Son of God, Who left a glorious and indescribably beautiful place next to His Father, to come to earth and live as a man. His purpose in coming was to be beaten and humiliated and to die on the cross as a sacrifice for my sins. He did it for your sins, too.

As a young child I recognized the truth of Jesus Christ as the One way, the ONLY way, to salvation. I wanted to know that I would be with my Daddy forever. As I became an adult I walked away from the Truth, letting circumstances and decisions take me away from God. Many years later, I  confessed my sins and let the Holy Spirit clean out the closets of secrets in my heart. I’m far from perfect, but I know the Truth and I have to proclaim it. Unless you accept Jesus Christ as the Son of God, part of the Triune God – the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, the supreme Advocate, and as your personal Savior – you won’t be in heaven for eternity. You will spend it in hell. Eternity is a long, long time, and I want you there with me!

I’m a Christian Patriot. This country was founded on Christian principles. It was done by imperfect men (there aren’t any other kinds) so there were, and still are, plenty of injustices. As a Christian Patriot, it is my responsibility to uphold the ideals set forth in the Constitution of the United States. I wish the elected leaders would do what they have sworn to do, but unless they are a Christian, I don’t believe they are capable of it. We are to support the downtrodden, and to help the weak and the frail. We are to love others – that doesn’t mean let them walk over us, and it doesn’t mean we love or support  their actions. Being a Christian will never be easy as long as we are on this earth, and I look forward to the new heaven and the new earth with Jesus! Love others…. it may be the alcoholic or drug addict, could be the person you know who is cheating on their spouse; your friend who steals from the boss by padding their hours or taking office supplies home to use, lying to get what they want…. there are many ways to sin besides the “big” ones. If we are not living in God’s law, we are living in sin, and I am as guilty as anyone. Jesus said that if you even have the THOUGHT, then you are guilty.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
Matthew 5:43-44 NIV (http://bible.com/111/mat.5.43-44.NIV)

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It’s easy to be politically correct these days…