Former Lesbian Turned Christian: ‘We’ve Made God Little if We Believe He Cannot Change People’

 
ST. LOUIS, Mo. – A former lesbian turned Christian is coming out about her conversion from living as a homosexual, and is testifying about the power of God to change a life.

Jackie Hill Perry, 25, is a spoken word poet, and is expecting her first child, a girl, next month along with her husband, poet Preston Perry.

“I think we’ve made God very little if we believe that He cannot change people,” Perry declared on Wade-O Radio last year. “If He can make a moon, stars and a galaxy that we have yet to fully comprehend, how can He not simply change my desires?”

Perry has become increasingly outspoken about her testimony, as she was once in romantic relationships with other women. The poet says that she was sexually abused at age five, and as a result, developed gender confusion throughout her youth, not knowing if she wanted to identify as a man or a woman. However, she hid her urges as her family attended a church that had biblical beliefs about morality.

In her late teen years, Perry began experimenting with homosexuality, and became sexually active with a girl. She continued in this lifestyle, moving on to a second girlfriend, who encouraged her to dress more masculine. Perry also frequenting “gay” clubs and attending homosexual pride events.

But in 2008, at age 19, she became convicted about her behavior, and she knew that she was heading down the wrong path. Perry said that God spoke to her one day as she lay in bed, the day after she had engaged in sexual activity with her girlfriend.

“The girl who you’re with will be the death of you,” she recalled Him saying. “At that time, my eyes were opened to that it wasn’t just homosexuality that would be the death of me. It was my complete and entire lifestyle. It’s not just, ‘You’re gay. You’re [also] lustful, you’re prideful, you’re a thief, you’re rebellious, you’re a masturbator and you’re a porn addict.’ I saw all of these things that deserved Hell and I really believed and saw that God would be just in sending me there.”

“The Scriptures came alive to me,” Perry told the Christian Examiner. “They said for the wages of sin is death, and I perceived it as real. But [Scripture] also said those who repent and believe will inherit eternal life. And I thought, ‘Ok God, I trust you. I believe You.'”

She knew she had to walk away from her girlfriend and stop giving into whatever her flesh wanted. Perry then sat down and penned a poem called “My Life as a Stud.”

“Instead of me dying to myself, I was willing to die for myself,” she wrote. “There was no fairy whispering in my ear/Only me and the devil telling me what I wanted to hear.”

“The more my will to sin would grow, I could see it in my face …. I could see Him stretched out on the wood…/Being the disgrace for the sin I was committing in His face,” Perry continued. “Seeing Him take on the wrath of the Father on the wood in my place/I still spat in His face.”

Perry has performed the song at numerous outlets nationwide, and has sometimes faced resistance for her stance. Her video performance of the poem, first performed live in 2010, now has over 400,00 views.

“No, my friend, you were not born gay,” she declares. “You were born into sin and shaped in iniquity/When Eve ate that fruit, we were cursed to do anything/ We were open for murder, we were destined to lose/We were given free will/You chose to choose/You chose to defy God’s rules ’cause inside of you, you wanted to be like Him and make them.”

Perry has since gone on to sign with Humble Beast Records, where she released her debut album “The Art of Joy” this month, which is also available for free online. Earlier this year, she married fellow poet Preston Perry. But she said that marriage isn’t the panacea—Christ is.

“That’s so not true,” Perry said. “What’s true is that when you’ve been united with Christ by faith, when you know Him and have been made righteous in His sight, that is your goal. Working from that, it’s going to be to live a life that is pleasing to Him whether through marriage or singleness.”


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Bad Nuke Deal Would Mean a 'Dangerous New World'


by Chris Mitchell
CBN News Middle East Bureau Chief

JERUSALEM, Israel -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry reportedly proposed an extension of the nuclear talks with Iran. The deadline for the talks is midnight Monday, Nov. 24.

Even with an extension, Israeli officials are warning the six world powers negotiating with Iran that a bad deal now or later would endanger the world.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu believes the West needs to keep up the economic pressure on Iran.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu       

"I think the key principle is this: Don't dismantle sanctions before you dismantle Iran's capacity to make a nuclear bomb. And as I understand it, the Iranians are nowhere near to accepting that and if for any reason the United States or the other powers agree to leave Iran with that capacity to breakout, I think that would be a historic mistake," he warned.

Netanyahu says a bad deal would be one that allows Iran to keep its thousands of centrifuges.

With those centrifuges, Iran could enrich enough uranium in a very short time to build a nuclear bomb.

Yuval Steinitz, Israel's minister of intelligence and strategic affairs, told reporters Tehran is not being flexible.

"On the core issue on the uranium enrichment capability, they made almost no concessions," he said.

Steinitz says the current deal has dangerous loopholes.

"If these loopholes are not totally closed it enables the Iranians to bypass the agreement and to make the agreement meaningless," he said.

Steinitz emphasized what's at stake.

"This is going to change the world forever. This is going to create a new, dangerous world for decades. This is really about the future of the world, not just about the future of Israel or the Middle East or the security of the Europe and the United States," he said.

Netanyahu says the proof is that Iran is developing ICBMs, intercontinental ballistic missiles.

"Why in heaven's name does Iran need intercontinental ballistic missiles? They don't need those missiles to reach Israel. They need it to reach Europe and the United States," Netanyahu said. " And the only thing you carry on intercontinental ballistic missiles are nuclear warheads."

For Israel, Netanyahu said all options are on the table.

"Israel itself will always reserve the right to defend itself against any threat with its own power," he said.


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Right to Pray in the Name of Jesus Restored in North Carolina

Right to pray in the name of Jesus restored in North Carolina.
A federal district court lifted its order against the prayer policy of Forsyth County, North Carolina, Thursday in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision affirming prayer before public meetings in Town of Greece v. Galloway.

After winning that lawsuit in May, Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing Forsyth County asked the district court to lift its order against the county's prayer policy. The order required the county to censor the way people pray to ensure only generic prayers are offered at public meetings.

"All Americans should have the liberty to pray without being censored, just as the Supreme Court found only a few months ago, and we are delighted to see this freedom restored in Forsyth County," said ADF Senior Counsel Brett Harvey. "The Supreme Court affirmed the freedom of Americans to pray according to their consciences before public meetings. For that reason, the district court was right to lift its previous order against Forsyth County's prayer policy, which is clearly constitutional."

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit upheld the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina's order in Joyner v. Forsyth County in 2011. Although the Supreme Court declined to review the case, it upheld a similar policy from the town of Greece, New York, on May 5 and affirmed that Americans are free to pray according to their own beliefs at public meetings. That cleared the way for uncensored prayers to resume in Forsyth County.

In March 2007, the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State sued the Forsyth County Commission on behalf of three individuals because they claimed to be offended by simply hearing the invited speakers deliver prayers that included a reference to Jesus Christ or any other named deity. They demanded the county discourage or prohibit invited speakers "from including references to Jesus Christ, or any other sectarian deity, as part of their prayers."

In its opinion in Town of Greece v. Galloway, the Supreme Court rejected the argument "that legislative prayer may be addressed only to a generic God" and warned that attempts to limit the way people pray are unconstitutional.

"Our tradition assumes that adult citizens, firm in their own beliefs, can tolerate and perhaps appreciate a ceremonial prayer delivered by a person of a different faith," the court wrote.



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Marine Dad Takes Stand After Daughter Gets 'F' for Refusing Islamic Indoctrination

John Wood is taking on the administrators of his daughter's 
school because they refused to let her opt out of
 Islamic indoctrination. (Thomas More Law Center)
by CATHERINE MCMILLAN

The Thomas More Law Center (TMLC) today announced its representation of John Kevin Wood, and his wife, Melissa, in their battle with La Plata High School in Maryland over the Islamic indoctrination of their 11th-grade daughter in her World History class. Their daughter was required to complete assignments where she had to affirm that "There is no god but Allah" and the other Five Pillars of Islam.

The case gained national attention when the school banned John Wood from entering school property after he objected to the religion of Islam being taught in his daughter's history class and demanded that she be given an alternative assignment. The school refused.

Wood, a former Marine who served in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm and lost friends in that action, saw firsthand the destruction caused in the name of Allah and that Islam is not "a religion of peace;" and he would not budge from his position.

The Thomas More Law Center is a national public-interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. TMLC Senior Trial Counsel, Erin Mersino, and Maryland attorney, Michael F. Smith of The Smith Appellate Law Firm, represent the Wood family. Yesterday they filed a request for records relating to the case under Maryland's Public Information Act.

On Oct. 22, 2014, John Wood discovered that his daughter was being forced to repeat religious tenets of Islam as a part of her World History class assignment. She was required to write how the prophet Muhammad was visited by the angel Gabriel and preached that there is only one true god, who is Allah. The assignment made her write that Mohammad is the messenger of Allah and that the Quran is holy text.

The assignment required her to affirm that "Allah is the same god that is worshipped in Christianity and Judaism" and that the "Quran is the word of Allah revealed to Mohammad in the same way that Jews and Christians believe the Torah and the Gospels were revealed to Moses and the New Testament writers." The assignment also forced young women such as the Woods' daughter, to fill in the following sentences: "Men are the managers of the affairs of women" and "Righteous women are therefore obedient."

When John Wood discovered the Islamic propaganda and indoctrination, he was rightfully outraged, and that evening unsuccessfully tried to contact the school by phone to voice his objections. Wood witnessed firsthand the destruction caused in the name of Allah and knows Islam is not "a religion of peace." He served in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, and lost friends in that 
action. On 9-11, Wood responded as a firefighter to the smoldering Pentagon. He refused to allow La Plata High School to subject his daughter to Islamic indoctrination despite the threatened academic consequences. 

The next day, Oct. 23, Wood had a phone conversation with a La Plata vice principal where he again reiterated his objections to his daughter being indoctrinated into the religion of Islam. The vice principal indicated that his daughter, a high school junior with college hopes, would receive zeros on her assignments on Islam if she did not complete them. He asked how the religion of Islam could be taught when schools are prohibited from teaching the religion of Christianity.

The following day, Oct. 24, John Wood again spoke with the vice principal. She again refused to allow an alternative assignment.

Commenting on the case, Richard Thompson, TMLC's President and Chief Counsel stated: "Adding insult to injury, in an arrogant and unnecessary display of power, La Plata's principal issued a written "No Trespass" notice, which denied this former Marine who stood in harm's way defending our country—which included the principal and her staff—any access to school grounds. The school's actions not only dishonored John Wood's service, but the service of all men and women in our Armed Forces who defended our nation from Islamic violence. True to his Marine training, John Wood stood his ground. He did not retreat. Yes, his daughter has received a failing grade in her World History Class. 



But the story is not yet over.


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STUDY REVEALS BETTER MATERNAL HEALTH WHERE ABORTION PROHIBITED BY LAW


A report based on new research from Chile demonstrates that legal abortions are not any safer than illegal abortions. Researchers at the MELISA Institute have analyzed data which shows “that not only abortion-related mortality continued its decreasing trend in Chile after its prohibition by law in 1989, but also hospital discharges due to abortion have significantly decreased during the last decade.”

The scientific study, conducted by Doctor Elard Koch, epidemiologist and Director of Research at the MELISA Institute, states that the Chilean experience supports what is to many the paradox that “even under a less permissive abortion legislation, maternal health indicators can be significantly improved by other factors, including a noteworthy reduction in mortality and morbidity associated to abortion.”

An ongoing study by the institute also suggests that pregnant women who feel coerced and fearful (accounting for 70% of over 3,000 in the study who have an unplanned pregnancy) are at a higher risk of terminating the pre-born child. To prevent abortion, the data suggests the development and promotion of maternal support programs to address vulnerable women’s needs, resulting in 69-94% giving birth to their babies at full term.

Chile is a model of successful, advanced maternal health care. Compared to the United States, which kills on average almost 3,000 pre-born babies per day through legalized abortion, Chilean numbers estimate between 13,000 to 18,000 illegal abortions, or 49 pre-born babies per day, are conducted every year, with most self-administered using misoprostol.

Koch’s findings point to maternal health policy interventions in Chile — such as better prenatal care and education, diet and training for birth attendants — that reduce the mortality and morbidity of women who undergo abortion. With an exemplary “death risk of 1 [out of every] 4 million women of fertile age,” the data supports health-directed policies which exclude abortion services saves lives.

“As this new research reveals, Chile and other countries that choose life-affirming maternal health interventions over legalized abortion build a Culture of Life, as babies and women both receive the best care possible,” said Father Shenan J. Boquet, HLI president. “These findings show that countries with bans on abortion can be far more successful in promoting maternal health, recognizing that abortion is the destruction of a developing human being and does nothing to improve the health of the mother.”



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KEYSTONE PIPELINE SUPPORTERS AWAIT VOTE


By John Waage
CBN News Sr. Editor
The Keystone XL Pipeline is finally making its way through Congress this after six years of debate. But the White House still suggests the president will veto the bill, despite strong bipartisan support.

On Monday, a few dozen protesters chanted "No XL!" outside the Washington home of embattled Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu, filling her yard with an inflatable pipeline.

One of the protesters, Karthik Ganapathy said to cheers, "If she wants this pipeline so badly, it can go through her yard and not any one of ours."

But Landrieu's pushing hard for it because it may be her only hope for winning a runoff election next month. Her Republican opponent Bill Cassidy sponsored a House bill to build Keystone, which could mean 30,000 Louisiana jobs.

The Obama administration and Senate Democrats have blocked a vote on the $5.4 billion pipeline from Canada for years. Landrieu's Senate Republican colleagues say it's high time that stopped.

"Canadians are going to produce the oil," South Dakota Sen. John Thune said on Fox News Sunday. "The only question is whether or not America is going to benefit from it and we're going to get the jobs that come with it, and whether we're going to replace the oil, the same type of oil that's coming in from Venezuela, which is what the State Department said this project would do."

The Heritage Foundation's Nick Loris said the president's people have studied Keystone long enough:

"President Obama himself said he would make his determination based on whether it would contribute significantly to climate change, which has been the big issue around this pipeline," Loris told CBN News. "And his own State Department even concluded that this pipeline won't contribute significantly to climate change because the Canadian tar sands oil is coming out of the ground whether this pipeline is built or not--so why not bring that oil down to the Gulf Coast refineries and create the jobs here?"


House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) kept the focus
on jobs in his weekly press conference with Republican
leaders today, discussing the upcoming House vote on
a manufacturing jobs bill, and keeping the heat on
President Obama and Senate Democrats to approve 
the Keystone pipeline.

But environmental activists say that given oil spills in the Gulf, Landrieu should know better than to back the project. And they're worried about environmental damage in states like Nebraska, which would house the pipeline.

"Unfortunately, cleaning up the Gulf was a piece of cake compared to what it's going to be to clean up a tar sands spill in the Ogalalla Aquifer," Nebraska Farmer Art Tanderup said.

But with people hurting for jobs, the votes may be there even to override a potential veto by President Obama.

"The public wants it, it has bipartisan support," Loris said. "It is much-needed economic growth and much-needed oil coming to the United States. So you know, I think it's all economic benefits for building this pipeline. So I can't imagine what the good reason for vetoing Keystone XL would be."



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IRAN'S AYATOLLAH KHAMENEI TWEETS SHOCKING 9-POINT PLAN FOR THE ANNIHILATION OF ISRAEL AS HE NEGOTIATES A NUCLEAR DEAL

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei called for the annihilation of Israel on Twitter.
(Photo: Foundation of Holy Defence Values, Archives and Publications/Wikimedia Commons)


By Sean Savage/JNS.org

Iranian Supreme Leader the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is known for his anti-Zionist rhetoric, has issued perhaps his most detailed tirade to date in a Twitter post titled “9 key questions about the elimination of Israel.”

“Why should & how can #Israel be eliminated? Ayatollah Khamenei’s answer to 9 key questions. #HandsOffAlAqsa,” read the introduction to Khamenei’s tweet, posted Saturday.

The hashtag #HandsOffAlAqsa referred to the recent tensions between Arabs and Jews at the Temple Mount. Last week, masked Arab rioters threw rocks and shot fireworks at Israeli security personnel at the holy site in Jerusalem, marking the latest outbreak of violence there.

As part of the tweet, Khamenei proposed a referendum that would serve as a means for the elimination of Israel.

“So far as I know, Khamenei’s idea of a referendum has not been proposed by the Islamic Republic of Iran until now. It suggests that the Iranian leadership wishes to make common cause with the leftists also wanting to see Israel disappear,” Dr. Daniel Pipes, founder and president of the Middle East Forum, told JNS.org.

The first answer provided within Khamenei’s nine points accuses “the fake Zionist regime” of trying to achieve its goals via “infanticide, homicide, violence & iron,” with the only solution to these “Israeli crimes” being the “elimination of this regime.”

The “practical & logical mechanism for this,” according to Khamenei, is through a “public and organized referendum” for all the “original people of Palestine including Muslims, Christians, and Jews,” excluding “the Jewish immigrants who have been persuaded into emigration to Palestine,” who “do not have the right to take part.”

In addition to the referendum, the Iranian leader called for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza to fight against Israel, rejecting any U.N.-moderated negotiation.

On Monday alone, a 26-year-old Israeli woman was killed in a stabbing attack near the Jewish community of Alon Shvut in Judea and Samaria, and an Israeli soldier was stabbed to death at the entrance of the Hagana train station in southern Tel Aviv. Two vehicular terror attacks also recently took place near light rail stations in Jerusalem, causing Israeli civilian deaths and many injuries.

Earlier this year, Iran had announced that it was increasing its effort to arm Palestinians in the West Bank.

“Arming the West Bank has started and weapons will be supplied to the people of this region,” said Iranian paramilitary network chief Mohammad Reza Naqdi, the Times of Israel reported.


The timing of Khamenei’s tweet also comes as the P5+1 nations—the U.S., U.K., France, Russia, China, and Germany—are nearing a negotiated solution with Iran ahead of the Nov. 24 diplomatic deadline. On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cautioned world powers not to rush into a bad deal with Iran on its nuclear program.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s nine-point list 
for destroying Israel. (Photo: Twitter
)

Referencing Khamenei’s plan, Netanyahu said in a statement that he sent a letter to the P5+1 countries that highlights Iran’s desire to destroy Israel.

“[Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei is] publicly calling for the annihilation of Israel as he is negotiating a nuclear deal with the P5+1 countries,” Netanyahu said.

“There is no moderation in Iran,” he added. “It is unrepentant, unreformed, it calls for Israel’s eradication, it promotes international terrorism, and as the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) report just said, it continues to deceive the international community about its nuclear weapons program. This terrorist regime in Iran must not be allowed to become a nuclear threshold power. I call on the P5+1 countries—don’t rush into a deal that would let Iran rush to the bomb.”

Last week, the IAEA said that its investigation into the potential weaponization of Iran’s nuclear program has stalled due to the Islamic Republic’s refusal to cooperate with the probe. President Barack Obama, meanwhile, sent a letter to Khamenei in mid-October expressing the countries’ shared interest in the fight against Islamic State jihadists in Syria and Iraq.


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Myles Munroe's Family Makes a Statement on Fatal Crash

Myles Munroe Jr
The family of Dr. Myles Munroe is speaking out about the plane crash that killed the prominent evangelical pastor.

Pastor Munroe, his wife and co-pastor Ruth Munroe, and three other ministry leaders were killed in the crash.

The ministry's website indicates its senior vice president Dr. Richard Pinder, youth pastors Lavard and Radel Parks, their son Johannan, and an unborn child were all among the 10 people on board the small, private plane that crashed Sunday night in the Bahamas.

During a press conference surrounded by his sister and other loved ones, Munroe's son, Myles Munroe Jr., read a statement from the family.

"We are not sure how or why something like this would be allowed to happen to such great individuals, but still, God is in control," Munroe said.

"The last few days have been the most difficult times for my sister and I, my family and all of those affected by this loss," he said.

"We are saddened by this tragic event, but we are comforted and encouraged by the outpouring of love and support from around the country and those around the world at large," he said.

 

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Meanwhile, the cockpit voice recording from the plane has been found.

Authorities hope the recovery of the black box will lead to answers about how the jet crashed into a construction crane in Freeport.

:
http://www.cbn.com

ACTOR KIRK CAMERON IS ON A SPECIAL QUEST TO SAVE CHRISTMAS

by Michael Ireland : Nov 13, 2014 : ASSIST News Service

"Christmas is for everyone because everyone needs a Savior," says Kirk Cameron in a broad interview addressing not only his new film (in which St. Nicholas "looks a lot more like Willy Robertson) but also the crisis of Christian persecution and other ills afflicting today's world."

In an interview with Assist News Service founder, Dan Wooding, for his Front Page Radio show, Cameron shared about his latest movie, "Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas," that will open in select theaters on November 14, 2014, for two weeks only.
(Santa Ana, CA)—Hollywood actor
 Kirk Cameron is on a special quest—
to save Christmas.

The popular actor said he thinks Christmas is the most important holiday of the year. "I love Christmas," he said. "I love everything about it. It's my favorite time of year—I just love when all the Christmas cookies are being baked, love the smell of chestnuts being roasted over a fire. I love Christmas trees and the Christmas carols setting up the nativity, everything. But Christmas is falling on hard times these days.

"It seems more and more commercialism and secularism is pushing 'the Baby in the manger' to the back seat. And while many might like to see Christmas deleted from the calendar, I think that Christmas ought to be put front and center especially at this time of year."

Cameron then commented that his new feature film, which he says, is going to teach people a lot about the true meaning of Christmas.

"This is a story about my sister who is throwing a Christmas party at her house and everyone's having a great time—except her husband who is sitting in his car in the driveway sulking and complaining that all the decorations and festivities are not what Christmas is all about. And so I go out to the car and teach him how to see Christmas through new eyes.

This is my real sister, named Bridget—many people know my sister Candace from Full Houseand Dancing With The Stars—but my sister Bridget is in this movie with me, and if people thought Candace was a great dancer in Dancing With The Stars, wait till they see my sister Bridget doing some of her hip hop dance moves and me joining in with some break dancing!"

The movie is going to be released in theaters all over the country November 14. "So that is opening weekend, and the important weekend for people to get their tickets," he said. " In fact, we're encouraging them to get their tickets early and plan ahead with their family or their church and they can get their tickets now at www.Savingchristmas.com. If they go to the website they can type in their zip code and the theater near them will show up on the screen."

Kirk Cameron said he doesn't star as himself in the movie, but plays a different character with a different name, and added that he wrote it together with a couple of other people on his team. The movie, he stated, has been in production since last Christmas.
(Photo via SavingChristmas.com)

What is his message to people who've become sick of watching all the Christmas ads on TV?

"Well, that's what Charlie Brown said in his Charlie Brown Christmas special that he's really not sure what Christmas is all about, and he kept asking people to tell him. 'Will someone please tell me what Christmas is all about because all these other things seem to have gotten in the way?' We can see that again today where so much of the commercialism and all of the advertisements can really crowd out the baby Jesus.

"But there's also a group of people that want to say that we shouldn't celebrate the birth of Christ at all and secularists would love to pull down every manger scene and get rid of it. And there's even people in the church [who] want to say if you want to honor Christ you should not celebrate Christmas because Christmas originally, they say, was a pagan holiday. So Christmas trees are bad, and St. Nicholas is bad, and gift giving really misses the point. And I strongly disagree—that's my point in Saving Christmas."

Cameron continued: "I think that there is an increasing hostility towards, not just Christmas, but all things Christian here in America. Now you know, I'm believing for a revival in the hearts of people. You can see a culture that's turned its heart away from God. We look at the founding of our country, and Benjamin Franklin said that it was very difficult to go anywhere and find someone who was not a Christian. And so, we've certainly made a big shift, but I think Christmas is a story that is so powerful that it can turn the hearts of a nation back. And that's why I want to highlight it in Saving Christmas."

If Cameron was one of the Wise Men, visiting the baby Jesus, and he could have said something is there anything he would have liked to have said to Jesus?

"Oh, I don't think, I don't believe so, I don't think I would have said anything, but I would have simply fallen on my knees in worship!"

How does the story of Christmas trees and St. Nicholas relate back to God's ongoing story for his children and the birth of Jesus?

"When I grew up, I certainly knew all about Santa Claus, but I didn't know anything about St. Nicholas. And what I bring out in 'Saving Christmas' is the truth behind the real Santa Claus. And Santa Claus is a character wrapped up in fairytale packaging over the centuries. But when you take all of that away you actually have a man named Nicholas who was a faithful Christian man who defended the doctrine of the trinity at the council of Nicaea and got into a fight with a heretic in order to keep the Nicene Creed intact, with Jesus remaining God in human flesh. So Nicholas was a very important man in church history and he was also famous for giving gifts to children and helping the poor."

Does he bring that out in the movie?

"Well, we reenact the church council of Nicaea, and Nicholas getting into an altercation with the heretic at the church council. We reenact this whole thing."

He then quipped, "In 'Saving Christmas,' St. Nicholas looks a lot more like Willy Robertson.

So what does Cameron hope people will take away from it besides being astounded that he's a good dancer?

"Well, I hope that people will walk out of the theater and break into uproarious celebration and wrap both their arms around their Christmas trees, and get out their cook book and cook the most delightful meal they've ever made, and tell everyone about the story of this great king's kingdom and invite them in," Cameron said.

About Cameron's sister, Bridget, being in the movie, he said she's never been in the movies before, "but being in a family with two actors, me and my sister Candace [Cameron Bure], we've always said that the real entertainer in the family is our sister Bridget and she's never been on a television program. So we're excited for people to watch Bridget and I together, not just dancing, but acting
(Photo via SavingChristmas.com)
together as well."

Cameron was asked what was Christmas like growing up for him?

"Christmas for me growing up was a great time of year," he told Wooding. Like I said, it's always been my favorite time of year. And so we had the house decorated and my mom would always go to great lengths to make the Christmas tree just perfect with bows and ribbons and lights. We always looked forward to presents under the tree Christmas morning. You know, we've taken a lot of those Christmas celebrations and traditions and brought them into our house.

"My family today what we add to it is the Christmas carols all about the birth of Christ Christmas Eve. We have the great big dinner at our house and we talk to our kids about the angels and the shepherds and the wise men and the birth of Christ and Mary and Joseph and really use it as a time to celebrate this holy season."

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"Christmas is for everyone because everyone needs a Savior. I'd start there, and then I'd get tickets to see 'Saving Christmas' on November 14th with your family, and let that give you inspiration to make this the best Christmas ever."

As most Americans will be celebrating Christmas here in relative freedom, what does Cameron think about the people in Syria, Iraq or Pakistan who won't be able to sit down for a nice meal like we do and open gifts—they'll be in a refugee camp, they'll be suffering an awful lot of pain? How can we as Christians here in the West encourage them? Is there anything we can do?

"I think we need to be praying for them," he replied. "It's so easy to overlook what's going on in other parts of the world when we live in such relative freedom and abundance and prosperity. So we need to be praying for them. And what should give us great hope is that there are missionaries that go to these places to bring aid and to bring the Gospel.

"And remember America got to be what it is today because of some persecuted Christians. When you look at the separatists who were facing terrible persecution under the tyrant of their day and what they did is ultimately they wrapped their arms around their Bible and their children and they got on a boat and they went somewhere and they started a new community as families as churches which grew into the greatest nation on the planet that sent missionaries out all over the world to bring Heaven to the four corners of the Earth.

"My hope and prayer is that countries that don't know the Gospel, that don't know Christ, will have just a few who will be faithful and will share the Gospel. Even if it's not publicly, if they'll do it privately, treasure these things in their own heart like Mary did and share it with their children and the power of that Gospel is the power that will bring Heaven to Earth over time.

"So we need to be working together through prayer, through support, and through a big celebration here in America where we still do have that freedom, because that's important as well. We cannot hide it under a bushel. We should not NOT celebrate Christmas because others in other places cannot celebrate it. We should celebrate it more loudly and pray for those there so that they will have the strength to be able to hold on during these difficult times until freedom comes."

For more information or other inspiring articles visit:
http://www.breakingchristiannews.com/

SCHOOL TELLS KIDS: STOP PRAYING TO JESUS

 Todd Starnes


C
hristian students at a Colorado public high school were told they could no longer meet to pray, sing religious songs or discuss religious topics during free time – because such activity violated the U.S. Constitution, a lawsuit filed in federal court alleges.
Chase Windebank, a senior at Pine Creek High School in Colorado Springs.
(Courtesy of Alliance Defending Freedom)

Chase Windebank is a senior at Pine Creek High School in Colorado Springs. Three years ago he started meeting together informally with his classmates for prayer and religious fellowship. The young people would meet in an unoccupied choir room to sing songs like “Amazing Grace” and discuss the issues of the day from a religious perspective.

But all that changed on Sept. 29th when Chase was summoned to the office of Assistant Principal James Lucas.

“He was told that he could no longer pray with his fellow students during free time because of the separation of church and state,” said Jeremy Tedesco, an attorney representing the teenager.

Tedesco is with Alliance Defending Freedom, a law firm that specializes in handling religious liberty cases.

“He was told that he could pray before the school day begins or after the school day ends but he could not do it during the school day,” Tedesco told me.

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To make sure Chase got the message – he was hauled into Principal Kolette Back’s office the following day where it was “reaffirmed that his religious speech could not take place during the open time” known as a “Seminar” period.

The lawsuit states: “Defendants Back and Lucas stated that because of the separation of church and state and because they regarded the Seminar period as instructional time, they were banning students’ discussion of issues of the day from a religious perspective during the open time of Seminar period.”

Pine Creek is a part of Academy School District No. 20. A spokesperson for the district confirmed that the group was told to disband in accordance with state law.

“Students were told that, according to state law and district policy, they could meet during non-instructional time,” the spokesperson told me in a written statement. “That is before or after school.”

In other words – the only theology allowed between 7:45 a.m. until 2:45 p.m. is the government’s theology.

The school district’s paltry explanation doesn’t make much sense. So I sent the spokesperson a list of follow up questions:

- Why were the students allowed to hold religious gatherings for the past three years if it was against the rules?

- Was there a change in district policy?

- Or was it possible the district had simply ignored their own policy and allowed the kids to meet anyway?

- Why the sudden crackdown on the religious gathering? Did someone complain?

I’ll let you know when the district spokesperson gets back to me with the answers. So far, it’s been radio silence.

“Public schools should encourage the free exchange of ideas,” Tedesco said. “Instead, this school implemented an ill-conceived ban that singles out religious speech for censorship during free time.”

And that seems to be the case at Pine Creek High School – and here’s the proof – Chase and his Christian friends are still allowed to meet – provided they don’t talk about anything religious or pray.

“Students have the right to pray during the school day and they certainly have the right to use free time to engage in religious expression – like prayer,” Tedesco told me.

The school district’s attorney has also weighed in on the matter – defending the school’s decision to crack down on religious speech and denying they’ve violated Chase’s constitutional rights.

Their argument hinges on a rule that non-curriculum related groups may only meet during non-instructional time. And since Jesus is not a part of the curriculum at Pine Creek High School – His followers must do their worshipping after hours.

“No non-curricular clubs are permitted to meet during that time period at Pine Creek High School,” attorney Patricia Richardson wrote in a letter to Tedesco. “Therefore, Mr. Windebank may resume his prayer meetings at Pine Creek High School, but he must do so during non-instructional time, that is before 7:45 a.m. when classes begin, and after 2:45 p.m., when classes end for the day.”

If that’s the rule, why are they allowing Chase and his friends to meet during free time – provided they don’t mention the name of Jesus?

I’ll let you know when the district gets around to answering that question.

Chase and his fellow Christians are still meeting but their numbers have dwindled in the wake of the ban – in part because they’ve agreed to abide by the school’s demands.

So if you happen to be walking by the choir room at Pine Creek High School you will no longer hear young people praying for their classmates. You will no longer hear teenagers reading from the Bible. And you will most certainly not hear the sweet sounds of Christian young people singing about that Amazing Grace.

Public school administrators and their lawyers have succeeded in suppressing and oppressing the Christian voice at Pine Creek High School.


Todd Starnes is host of Fox News & Commentary, heard on hundreds of radio stations. Sign up for his American Dispatch newsletter, be sure to join hisFacebook page, and follow him on Twitter. His latest book is "God Less America."