A Woman Who Fears the Lord

It has been estimated that approximately 60,000 students were home educated in the state of Illinois with a national estimate of 1,376,804 homeschooled students in 2010/2011 . And in most states the number of home schooled students is growing annually. This article will explore why many parents are opting to teach their children at home and some of the helpful resources available to help home-schoolers. The Illinois State Board of Education states on its Illinois Home-Schooling page : Home-schooling in Illinois is considered to be a form of private education. Parents who choose to educate their children at home are under a legal obligation to meet the minimum requirements stated in Illinois’ Compulsory Attendance Law (Section 26-1 of the Illinois School Code). Parents who choose to educate their children at home are obligated to teach their children “…the branches of education taught to children of corresponding age and grade in the public schools” and they are further obligated to

By Angela Wittman Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let men say among the nations, The Lord reigneth. (1 Chron. 16:31, KJV) I recently entered into a discussion with some well-meaning conservatives about pluralism in America. The general consensus appears to be that they want pluralism and believe that having a poly-theistic nation is desirable. What surprises me is that they say they want America to return to her Christian roots, but also believe that people of all religious faiths should have freedom to worship their false gods. Perhaps I am just an old-fashioned puritan at heart, but this view of “freedom” by honoring multi-gods sounds double-minded to me. My hope and prayer is the conservatives who believe this will think a little harder and dig a little deeper into Scripture and see that their thinking is not founded on the Rock called Christ Jesus, nor is true liberty to be found anywhere but in Christ Jesus alone, who is an exclusive and jealous God. On pag

By Angela Wittman Life Network of Southern Illinois located at 224 N. Main St. in Waterloo, Illinois has been helping those in need of unplanned pregnancy care, and providing education and referrals to helpful resources since 1995. Services offered for both males and females are free and confidential. These services include: Pregnancy Tests Baby Resources STD Test/Treatment (for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea) Options Counseling Earn While You Learn Client Education Program Ultrasound Community Referrals Abortion Recovery Support Abstinence Education Male Mentoring Program Child Birth, Breastfeeding, and Newborn Care Classes Upcoming events include a Trivia Night to be held on January 28th at Gibault High School in Waterloo and their annual Spring Banquet with guest speaker Shawn Carney (co-founder of 40 Days for Life) scheduled for April 19th and April 20th at Turner Hall in Columbia, IL . The Life Network of Southern Illinois annual Li

 January 22, 2012 marks the 39 th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision which opened the floodgates to the holocaust of the Preborn. Abort73.com reports on its Facts About Abortion: U.S. Abortion Law page that: The history of abortion in the United States is far more complicated than most people imagine. It has been an issue of varying contention in this nation for the last 200 years. Nevertheless, abortion has never enjoyed such universal protection under the law as it has for these last three decades. As it stands today, American women have the legal right to obtain an abortion in all 50 states, through all nine months of pregnancy, for virtually any reason at all. This has been true since January of 1973 when the Supreme Court declared that autonomous abortion rights are built into the Constitution, and that any legal barriers which prevent mothers from aborting their children are unconstitutional. This ruling was arrived at on the premise that the 9th and 14th

As the New Year begins, a Christian can find great comfort and encouragement by reflecting upon what God has done in their life during the previous year.   And while one can find peace while tracing the hand of God in their circumstances, hope for the future can also be found by looking at the history and triumph of God’s Church in this world. One of the best loved passages of Scripture is Hebrews, chapter 11 , which is also referred to as the chapter of the “Heroes of the Faith.” One can find hope in the stories of others who faced persecution, adversity and severe trials for their faith, but who remained steadfast and did not waver in their faith. Here is an excerpt from the King James Bible, beginning at verse 32:   32 And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:   33 Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths

A study of The Barna Group conducted in April of 2011 reports that nearly one out of three Americans feel they aren’t living up to their “fullest potential” while three out of ten adults report they are “dealing with unresolved emotional pain or conflict in life.”   And 15% of Americans are questioning God due to “their experiences with religion.” The director of the study 70 Million Americans Feel Held Back by their Past concludes the report by saying “the research shows that internal doubts about fulfillment, faith, emotion and personal history significantly define millions of the nation's residents."   Clearly many Americans are not content with the current status quo and are seeking truth, meaning and purpose for their lives. One can find direction from the Westminster Assembly of Divines . The Westminster Larger Catechism composed in April of 1648 begins with this question: What is the chief and highest end of man? And responds with the answer: Man's chief and hi

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. James 1:27, ESV Due to be released in February of 2012 is the documentary “ Rescued: The Heart of Adoption and Caring for Orphans ” created by Wintons Motion Pictures and Hedrick Brothers Productions. The film challenges the Church and Christians to take a greater role in caring for orphans through adoption while exploring its common “thread” with missions: "Today, over 130 million children have lost one or both parents, and every 18 seconds, another child in the world becomes an orphan. In America, 114,000 children in the foster care system are currently waiting to be adopted, and an estimated 65,500 of those children have been adopted by homosexual parents. These staggering statistics should cause Christians to ask some probing questions. What would Christ’s church look like if we acted upon James 1:27 which states th