YCLA site update!

Well, thank God, the YCLA hosting site is accessible once again from my house!

I put a new feature on the home page: "This Week's Activity." The site reports showed the "What's in Progress" page way, way down in visits with hardly anyone looking at it for the most part. This is interesting. So anyway, having more emphasis on action at the home page will likely increase results.

I also changed the "Getting Involved" page to be under "What To Do," changed "LIL Coalition" to be under "Links," and deleted the useless "Constitution" page. Then, I added a place under "About Us" for each of the words in the name, Young Christian Leaders' Alliance. Please check it out!

A final major improvement is creating a "President's Corner" near the middle of the "About Us" page, with a much better picture of myself, and also the web banner for this site. Hopefully I will be able to make this a good area on the site. If you have any ideas for it, let me know.

Our group is not exactly growing, but we are still gaining opportunities and making a difference in an increasing manner. Let's keep praying, and praising God too for all His blessings! :-)


Thanks! From Josiah

Rating our Representatives

Today I found a list of perhaps more "traditional" conservative Congressional ratings. http://www.acuratings.org/ It is not near as Constitutionally accurate as, for instance, the Freedom Index, nor is it updated as often, but it gives a much better feel for how Congressmen and Senators are perceived by the majority of the right.

It is interesting noting the similarities and differences. The two indexes in some cases have the same approximent placings, just not by the same proportions. For instance, this American Conservative Union (ACU) system places our SC junior Senator, Jim DeMint, at 98.0 overall (first place in the Senate!) while the Freedom Index places him at 90 overall (second place).

A sharp difference may be seen, however, in the treatments of people such as Lindsey "Grahamnesty" Graham, with an ACU rating of 90.6 overall but a Freedom Index rating of 56 overall.

Rep. Bob Inglis has shown a dramatic shift towards constitutional positions after Dr. Cobin ran against him in 2006. He went from around a 30 at election time to an 80 in the latest Freedom Index! However, he will go from an 84 in the ACU ratings to what will presumably be lower when they update it for 2007. This is good though! Keep it up, Mr. Inglis!

If you want to compliment him for the improvement, you can email him at bob@inglisforcongress.com. I would wait until after the next Freedom Index comes out in a month or so though, just to be sure, and so it's not old news (i.e. back from July) :-).

DeMint has done an excellent job too as a Senator, much better than he did as Congressman I believe. He has spearheaded the fight against the Law of the Sea Treaty, and played an important role in defeating the amnesty last year. He has also been a great advocate for free trade and pro-life causes. Kudos to Jim DeMint, too!!!

The one man who made 100% on both rating systems is Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. Wow. For the overall rating, however, he still ranked lower than DeMint in the ACU.


From Jos

Nehemiah 6

Now it came to pass, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem the Arabian, and the rest of our enemies, heard that I had builded the wall, and that there was no breach left therein; (though at that time I had not set up the doors upon the gates;) That Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me, saying, Come, let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief. And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you? Yet they sent unto me four times after this sort; and I answered them after the same manner.

Then sent Sanballat his servant unto me in like manner the fifth time with an open letter in his hand; Wherein was written, "It is reported among the heathen, and Gashmu saith it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel: for which cause thou buildest the wall, that thou mayest be their king, according to these words. And thou hast also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying, 'There is a king in Judah: and now shall it be reported to the king according to these words.' Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together."

Then I sent unto him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart. For they all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done. Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands.

Afterward I came unto the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabeel, who was shut up; and he said, Let us meet together in the house of God, within the temple, and let us shut the doors of the temple: for they will come to slay thee; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee. And I said, Should such a man as I flee? and who is there, that, being as I am, would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in. And, lo, I perceived that God had not sent him; but that he pronounced this prophecy against me: for Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. Therefore was he hired, that I should be afraid, and do so, and sin, and that they might have matter for an evil report, that they might reproach me.

My God, think thou upon Tobiah and Sanballat according to these their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the prophets, that would have put me in fear.

So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days. And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God.

Moreover in those days the nobles of Judah sent many letters unto Tobiah, and the letters of Tobiah came unto them. For there were many in Judah sworn unto him, because he was the son in law of Shechaniah the son of Arah; and his son Johanan had taken the daughter of Meshullam the son of Berechiah. Also they reported his good deeds before me, and uttered my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters to put me in fear.

Misc. Update

Today I changed some stuff around again here. This site now has a more patriotic theme. How does it look?

I pre-ordered Dr. Paul's newest book on Amazon.com. Please go to RonPaulBookBomb.com for info on it, and pledge to buy it! It will be a good read if nothing else. I think it will be a collector's item besides. :-) We need to have it debut at #1 in as many venues as possible; I think it is #3 on Amazon.com right now, so it needs some more purchasers!

Hmmm... oh yes, Mitt Romney endorsed McCain of course. This is not surprising, since Rudy McRomney was the front-runner all along. Ron Paul is the only one who believes in the Constitution.

And here is a direct link to write a letter to Li Mei, a persecuted believer in China we are featuring this week. I have not yet been able to get it up on the YCLA site, because of the technical problems... :-/ Oh well.

Special thanks too for visiting here today! God Bless!


From Josiah

Are you a "Proservative?"

The modern conservative movement has clearly drifted from the ideas of Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan. It is now considered "unconservative" or even "liberal" to oppose undeclared wars, foreign aid or encroachments on civil liberties.

We need a new name for Christian political principles. "Constitutionalism" is good, but for many it is a big, vague word. "Libertarian" is also a good concept, but it is already associated with the normally pro-abortion, pro-gay rights Libertarian Party.

Here's an idea: Proservative. This would be a political movement (or almost a third party of sorts) organized out of the Ron Paul platform and its supporters. Its' name was derived from the telescoping of "conservative" with four key principles: Pro-life, Pro-family, Pro-sound money, and Pro-freedom. It is meant to emphasize the positive nature of our message. Incidentally, the name also conveys the servant-oriented spirit of Dr. Paul and all true leaders.

Please go to the link and check it out! Address: www.proservative.us

Also on this same theme regarding positiveness, I was thinking about the difference between the Obama campaign and the Paul campaign and Obama's mantra of "change." What America needs is not "change," but hope. Obama and Paul are in a battle for the hearts and minds of American young people, as this article and picture show. Obama thinks we need more gun control and more welfare and a new global UN tax. Ron Paul knows that the only Hope for America is in enforcing the Constitution and protecting our God-given rights. It is an almost quintessential contest of Democracy vs. Republic.

So, join the Republic side! Support Ron Paul, and do not support Barack Obama. I am convinced he is the very worst candidate for President.

In the mean time, how about considering "proservative?" :-) I might set up a poll here on it...


Thanks From Josiah

Now Anything Can Happen

Mitt Romney is out of the race for President!!! This interesting and unexpected occurence is being debated everywhere as to whether it benefits the good Dr. Paul or not.

Romney said that one of the reasons he is dropping out is because he did not want to be part of a cause which aims to "surrender to terror." In other words, he is trying to avoid a brokered convention in which Ron Paul would have a shot. (By the way, another of Romney's patent falsehoods is that Ron Paul believes terrorists "don't exist." In actuality, he simply wants to defeat them constitutionally.)

The mainstream media is now trumpeting a McCain-Huckabee ticket. But the other man in the race, our hero, is not done yet.

Here is a scenario, which could be more than likely: First, McCain gains several close victories against Huckabee. Huckabee drops out in early April or so; or perhaps even after Texas in March. Second, there is a two-man race, and attention must turn to Ron Paul. I would not doubt if the media would try to continue the blackout, but people such as Rush Limbaugh, James Dobson, and others who have stated complete mistrust in McCain will no doubt keep their eyes on him. Third, Paul will then win against McCain in some of the last few primaries. This will give him momentum coming into the convention. Finally, many Romney and Huckabee delegates will vote against McCain, thus casting a vote for Ron Paul and sealing him the nomination.

On the other hand, if Huckabee begins to do better, he may not drop out until later and we may see a race split three ways for a while. This case might be all the better. The more delegates Huckabee can win against McCain, the more votes Ron Paul will have when Huck drops out. Of course, Huck will not endorse Ron Paul, but his people are more conservative than he is and I think they will not appreciate a ticket with him as McCain's VP.

Whatever the case, it is IMPERATIVE that Ron Paul win those final few states. It would also be wonderful if he could win Texas. If he has no momentum at the convention, I believe he will be soundly defeated, and this cause will be lost for the present.

There are three things which will benefit us greatly if they were implemented:

1. Hammer down NOW on the issue of illegal immigration. With Romney gone, Ron Paul is the only candidate who has any semblence of strength on border security, ending birthright citizenship, and opposing amnesty. There needs to be an immediate campaign documenting McAmnesty and Huckster's records on this issue.

2. Zone in more than ever on the principle of fiscal conservativism. Emphasize that Huckabee DID NOT believe in Biblical monetary policy before he came up against Ron Paul in the debates. Continue stating that belief in less government is the traditional Republican position.

3. Stop campaigning against Rudy Guiliani. He is out of the race, and has been since at least the middle of January. Do not talk about 9-11, and do not voluntarily bring up the "humble foreign policy" concept to Republican voters, as they have shown that this is not something they currently agree with. Emphasize, instead, Ron Paul's belief in a strong military and personal gun rights.

We must also learn that we cannot count on the official campaign to implement these things. We must do them ourselves. Even so, we should try to contact them and see if they will listen. By now they should be realizing their strength is in the ideas of the grassroots.

Please join me in giving to the Ron Paul campaign, or (perhaps better) to a conservative grassroots program which can gain publicity and propel Dr. Paul and his ideas of republicanism, the Constitution, and unalienable rights from the Creator, to the GOP nomination.

The insiders and Mitt Romney may think they have just pushed Ron Paul out into no-where, but they may have done the best thing for him yet. We can win! Keep up the great work, everyone.

Thanks!


-R. Josiah Magnuson

Graphics for the YCLA

Here are some new graphics for our prayer projects. We will probably make "Supplications for the Saints" our theme through 2008; even if we do nothing else, at least this can keep us busy! I hope to write my first letter either this evening or tomorrow.

These pictures actually turned out smaller than I thought they were. Hmmm...

From Josiah

Unity Through Principle

A Plea for Peace, Truth, and Focus Among Christian Activists

Envision the American situation. The Constitution, the pinnacle of centuries of Christian toil and the supreme Law of the United States, is disregarded. It is incessantly steam-rolled under the fancies of political machinery, only to be occasionally picked up and dusted, and its' supposed virtues of democracy and "We The People" lauded and complimented.

There is almost constant taking of life through abortion and the effects of gun laws, millions of children being indoctrinated in Evolution and sinful behavior, and the economy on the verge of collapse due to our system of false weights and measures.

And thousands of activists are ready to work, but nothing happens. Instead, they sit on the sidelines, oohing and ahhing at how big the battle is. Worse, many become restless and take sides on petty issues.

Why?

The truth is, those who love freedom and morality must stand up for principle. There must be a common goal among us.

The Ron Paul campaign is a prime example of how people from every philosophical and doctrinal postition can unite behind one purpose: to restore individual rights as given by the Creator, not the State. The passion to get Ron Paul elected is the kind of passion which needs to be displayed for winning souls to Christ, ending Federal control of education, stopping the national ID card, and every other cause with Biblical foundations.

Another example of successful co-operation and focus is that of two creation science ministries, AiG and ICR. While these organizations are completely separate, they are working together to proclaim the message of God's Creatorship. A nation-wide network is thus now imerging of people who believe in reforming America, and ideas are being ignited and solutions worked out with their basis in a truly Christian worldview.

So, what is to be done? In order to see results, we must first acknowledge that God's Words are the inerrant, preserved, final authority. We must hold to the fundamentals of the faith and the Constitution, not attacking each other on secondary issues. Finally, we must be willing to break with any traditions, churches, or (especially) political parties which are working contrary to these goals.

We must be willing to let God work in us, and we must take action creatively for His principles.

It is then that we will see our freedoms renewed, and our Republic restored.

Envision the American possiblities.


-R. Josiah Magnuson

Nehemiah 5

And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews. For there were that said, We, our sons, and our daughters, are many: therefore we take up corn for them, that we may eat, and live. Some also there were that said, We have mortgaged our lands, vineyards, and houses, that we might buy corn, because of the dearth. There were also that said, We have borrowed money for the king’s tribute, and that upon our lands and vineyards. Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children: and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters are brought unto bondage already: neither is it in our power to redeem them; for other men have our lands and vineyards.

And I was very angry when I heard their cry and these words.

Then I consulted with myself, and I rebuked the nobles, and the rulers, and said unto them, Ye exact usury, every one of his brother. And I set a great assembly against them. And I said unto them, We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, which were sold unto the heathen; and will ye even sell your brethren? or shall they be sold unto us? Then held they their peace, and found nothing to answer.

Also I said, It is not good that ye do: ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies? I likewise, and my brethren, and my servants, might exact of them money and corn: I pray you, let us leave off this usury. Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them. Then said they, We will restore them, and will require nothing of them; so will we do as thou sayest.

Then I called the priests, and took an oath of them, that they should do according to this promise. Also I shook my lap, and said, So God shake out every man from his house, and from his labour, that performeth not this promise, even thus be he shaken out, and emptied. And all the congregation said, Amen, and praised the LORD. And the people did according to this promise.

Moreover from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year even unto the two and thirtieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that is, twelve years, I and my brethren have not eaten the bread of the governor. But the former governors that had been before me were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God. Yea, also I continued in the work of this wall, neither bought we any land: and all my servants were gathered thither unto the work.

Moreover there were at my table an hundred and fifty of the Jews and rulers, beside those that came unto us from among the heathen that are about us. Now that which was prepared for me daily was one ox and six choice sheep; also fowls were prepared for me, and once in ten days store of all sorts of wine: yet for all this required not I the bread of the governor, because the bondage was heavy upon this people.

Think upon me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.

Drink Lemon Juice!

I had been feeling like a piece of fried chicken for some time now, which is one reason I didn't start posting here again sooner. However, yesterday I re-discovered in the fridge some lemon juice I bought a few weeks ago. Wow! A couple swigs of it, and my focus and energy seemed to boost right up! I have been drinking it on and off today and have done much better in my schoolwork, etc.

When I looked at the sidebar of this site here, I couldn't believe how uninteresting it looked. So, I re-did it and I think it turned out better. Please tell me what you think. :-)

Please do also try drinking lemon juice. I recommend buying the "ReaLemon" concentrate brand, but some people like to just squeeze their lemons. If you do that it will be more sour.

Thanks, and Happy Thinking!

:-D


From Josiah

Investments

I am amazed at how high silver and gold have become. When I bought some silver ounces back about 2003 sometime, they were worth $7.50. Now, they are worth almost $17.00! Please do buy precious metals if you can because I think our time is fairly short for the U.S. economy.

Let us also be remembering to invest in eternal things whenever we can. It is amazing what a little thing can do, like a smile or tract, etc. :-)

Encourage someone for Christ today! From Jos

YCLA Update

OK. We have been having quite a time with the YCLA site again. The hosting program usually shuts down on us. Please pray that that stuff will be solved.

We have been quite successful with our tract expeditions of late. It is great to be able to see people introduced to the Truth and realizing someone cares about them!

Our theme for the month of February (and maybe for longer) is "Supplications for the Saints in 2008." We are working to write letters of support to persecuted believers around the world. If you would like to join us, please go to www.PrisonerAlert.com and click on the info they provide. You may also go to www.YoungChristianLeaders.org/inprogress.aspx or www.YoungChristianLeaders.org/Feb29.aspx to learn more about our projects for this month.

Thanks!


-R. Josiah Magnuson

Finally Back!

Well, here I am again after a two-month break. :-)