Blessed by the family and friends with whom I share the journey. This is my personal account. I talk about life, liberty, and the Lord (No obligation to agree:)
Sanctification is not my idea of what I want God to do for me; sanctification is God’s idea of what He wants to do for me.
-Oswald Chambers
Author: “My Upmost for His Highest”
God have mercy on your souls. The evil involved in this decision- and to announce it to the world as if you are in some twisted way heroic- shows a level of depravity that should cause our entire nation to grieve. “What kind of heathenism has our society produced?”
This week, my wife and I made the very difficult decision to terminate the pregnancy due to Trisomy 21.
The choice was not made lightly. We really appreciate all of the personal stories that you guys shared with us, especially the unconditional support we received from fans with no matter what we decided.
I know some of you may be very disappointed to hear this news. We are devastated. This has been extremely traumatic for both of us, especially Ashley.
She underwent the procedure earlier this week and is on the mend. Thankfully, everything went smoothly, but emotionally we are drained.
Trisomy 21, also known as Down Syndrome, is caused by an extra chromosome. It is caused by an error in cell division, like a glitch. The odds of a baby having it is 1 in 1000.
When I first confronted this news, I was shocked but optimistic. If they’re a little slow intellectually, then we’ll make it work. I signed on to be a parent, come what may…but I just didn’t fully understand what Down Syndrome entailed.
Once we made it public, it became clear that MOST people don’t know what Down Syndrome entails (and no, it’s not the same as Autism):
50% of babies with DS have heart defects. 75% will have hearing challenges. Over 50% will have vision problems. Impaired immune function, developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, delayed physical development, poor muscle tone, structural issues with face, decreased lifespan, etc…Sadly, the list is long, feel free to look it up…Down Syndome isn’t a “blessing”, it is objectively shitty from a health perspective.
I didn’t realize just how rough it is for the child, let alone the family…more often than not, they would be fully dependent on others for the rest of their life.
The miscarriage risk is also close to 50%, which made matters worse…they may never see the light of day and it puts Ashley further at risk.
We spoke with doctors, friends, family and genetic counselors and learned that up to 90% of women terminate their pregnancy after learning the baby has Trisomy 21.
This was WAY higher than I expected, I thought it would be lower given that I hear so many say they kept or would keep the baby. I believe that’s because most terminations happen privately, it feels shameful. A lot of judgment being cast.
You never think you’d be in this type of situation until it happens to you and then things change.
To all of my fans who have weighed in on this topic who have Autism, Down Syndrome or any other conditions…we appreciate you. You matter a lot and we’re glad you’re here. I commend you and your families for having the strength and courage to push forward.
As for us, we made a difficult decision that we believe in the long-run will be beneficial for our family. Thankfully, we had a choice.
It will take a little time to move on, but we are excited to try again in the future and hopefully have a better outcome.
Love you guys & thank you for understanding. ❤️
If you have quit your midweek service or Sunday night service, you are on the wrong side of history.
•It’s the wrong decision at the wrong time.
•Do more. Not less.
•If no one comes, you need it more than anyone. Pray to God and Preach to Yourself.
Church history shows that the moderates/progressives never win. They might bark for a time, but in the end their cause will always fizzle out. Unfortunately, it's often not until they gut whole churches & denominations.
Bless the Lord. On the 7th of June, 1890, a tree of perfect love sprang up from the bottom of my soul with sanctification written all over it, grapes and pomegranates on every limb and honey dripping from the leaves. Glory to God.
-Bud Robinson, Church of the Nazarene, his vivid testimony of the moment he received the second blessing.
I agree with this. It is a spiritual war in America- for the soul of our country. Charlie Kirk was on the front lines… the awful aftermath of his passing. The bizarre rise of Jewish hatred and innuendo against the Kirk’s reeks of hell.
Holiness, sanctification, purity, perfect love, burning out on every page of God’s Word.
I weep before God…
If you don’t come in yourselves,
for Christ’s sake,
don’t keep other people out.
-Catherine Booth
The Salvation Army
“In so far as any man has the remains of indwelling sin in him, he has opposition to holiness within him. We heard a minister say not long since that ‘he found something in himself that kicks against holiness.’ We did not doubt it, carnal nature always ‘kicks against holiness.’ When men are opposed to holiness it is because holiness is opposed to them.” — John Allen Wood
We are to come to God as well for an instantaneous and complete purification from all sin as for an instantaneous pardon… If the Methodists give up preaching entire sanctification, they will soon lose their glory.
-Adam Clarke
This is one of the best things that has happened in a long time. A Bible curriculum for schools and home schools that is written by our people, for our people. So long overdue. Not available until now… and an ongoing project. Thank you, my friend, for all you have done and to everyone who is working hard to make it a reality.
HSBC Press has just received the second printing of Apologetics! The initial print run sold quickly, and we are grateful for the enthusiastic response to the curriculum.
It is encouraging to see the growing impact these resources are having in Christian education.
Elon Musk memorized the entire Encyclopedia Britannica as a child.
Not parts of it. The entire thing. His brother Kimbal said he would read for ten hours a day. Not children's books. Encyclopedias. Physics textbooks. Science fiction. Anything he could find. By the time other kids were learning long division, Elon had read more than most adults read in a lifetime.
His mother Maye said the other children called him the encyclopedia because he would recite facts nobody asked for. At dinner. At school. In the middle of conversations that had nothing to do with what he was reciting. He couldn't stop. The information came in and it needed to come out.
This is the part of the Musk origin story that everyone skips because it's not dramatic.
Nobody makes a movie about a child reading. Nobody writes an article about ten thousand hours in a library. But that library is the foundation under every rocket, every factory, every company. The man who argues with NASA engineers about propulsion chemistry learned that chemistry from a book he read at age eleven.
Most people who want to be like Musk study his companies. His management style. His tweets. They skip the reading because reading doesn't look good on camera.
The secret was never the rockets. The secret was the ten year old who read the entire encyclopedia and never stopped.
Always good to look at the context.
Not a thing to explain away.
No “vain frame”
The Word of God is well able to stand on its own two feet.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
1 John 1:9
So thankful the Cross was sufficient, the Sacrifice perfect, the Christ victorious.
Theologians explain things in different ways and I have great charity towards all Believers who may have different understandings— as long as sin is as defeated in your life as Christ made defeat possible through His death.
I praise God for the reality of sins forgiven and heart cleansed in this life. I give testimony to the precious grace of God that enables a victorious Christian life, as promised in the Holy Scriptures.
The Double Cure is Gods remedy for the ‘ups and downs.’ Many Christians suffer from this disease. Today victorious, tomorrow defeated. ‘Sinning and repenting,’ instead of ‘keeping themselves from evil,’ and being ‘kept by the power of God.’ To such the Double Cure comes with tidings glad of perfect soul health and the growth and stability which follow it.
-Martin Wells Knapp
Why break your neck seeking after novel doctrinal revelations? The Gospel is always fresh, the Bible is spirit and life, and our God is the living God. Pray that you may see and believe afresh in Him and what He has already revealed.
“Decline is a choice. And decline is a choice we refuse to make.” Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said this on the world stage in regard to freedom and America.
I wish for every pastor, every board member, and every conference leader to stop making the “decline choice”for our ministries.
Stop closing churches.
Stop planting “For Sale” signs on what belongs to God.
You are smart enough and called enough to develop a working plan that breaks free from outdated systems that are making your ministry irrelevant year after year after year after year…
God did not choose you for defeat—He chose you for victory. Dig up that one talent buried in the ground and begin investing it fully in the Kingdom.
The old paths are still so true—forever. But those “old paths” refer to doctrine and holy standards, not to stagnant committees, outdated structures, or passive attempts to fill empty pews.
The “old fashioned way” is a good way. The Bible calls it “the old paths.” But that’s never referring to a lazy, obstinate holding to procedures that are as swampy as the government bureaucracy. “It’s always been done this way.”
Worry is not work. Wringing our hands each conference session or committee meeting must stop. Fretting that “no one wants to come anymore” must give way to living hope when we:
1Believe that decline is a choice—and we simply refuse to make it. Take the “For Sale” signs down.
2Have faith, even if it’s only the size of a mustard seed.
3Make a plan. Craft a smart, Spirit-led plan tailored for THIS church in THIS time.
4Work again. It’s spiritual to actually work. Real, diligent, joyful work. Faith without works is dead. As Walt Hedstrom said, “Everything you need to grow a church is on the end of your wrist.” Knock on doors.
I have been known to make this simple observation: “Do something—and something will happen. Do nothing—and nothing will happen.”
Decline is a choice.
Ichabod is a choice.
Moving to Sodom is a choice.
Living with broken walls is a choice.
Being morbidly content with death, decay, doubt, defeat, devastation is a choice.
With God, we can do this. He personally chose us for this exact moment. He knows us by name. He has numbered every hair on our heads.
The idea that He would start something He cannot finish, or demand something from us that we cannot do with His help, is nonsense.
One more soul. One more preacher boy. One more mission station. One more church. One more city for Christ.
Decline is a choice.
And by the grace of God, it is a choice we must boldly refuse to make.
I walked past this monument every day for two years while I worked in the Senate.
The monument was boarded up with plywood and the area was overrun with drug addicts that would constantly accost congressional staffers on their way to work.
In 2024, it became so bad that on several occasions I saw staffers attacked and had their bags ripped away from them. We reported this to Capitol Police but they legally couldn’t go beyond the congressional buildings to secure the area.
Every day it felt like I was walking among ruins of a once great people.
The change today is undeniable. The area is safer than it has been in years and our statues have been brought back to life.
Decline is a choice. Civilization is a choice. It’s great to see this change.
For reference, here’s a photo of it I took after work in 2024. Notice the plants growing out from behind Columbus. Quite an improvement today!
MAKE AMERICA CHRISTIAN AGAIN
in 1777, Congress called the people to pray that God would forgive their sins “through the merits of Jesus Christ”
and advance “that kingdon which consistent in righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost”
Talarico responds to criticism over saying “God is nonbinary”:
“If someone’s got a problem with that statement…they should take it up with the Apostle Paul.”
No, Mr. Talarico, we’ll take it up with you because you are distorting Scripture and denying God’s self-revelation.
1. Galatians 3:28 is not talking about God’s nature but about those who are “in Christ”—i.e. followers of Christ. The text isn’t denying that some Christians are male and some are female. It’s denying that male and female receive more or less of a heavenly inheritance based on their sex. We are all “one” in Christ no matter what sex we are. But we are nevertheless still either male or female biologically, and we will be male or female for all eternity.
2. “Non-binary” is a fictional category made up by queer theorists to refer to people who don’t identify with either male or female gender identity. While God does not have a body and therefore does not have a biological sex, He reveals His essential nature in masculine terms. “Father” and “Son” properly name the divine essence and are essential to orthodox trinitarian theology. The Bible always refers to Father and Son with masculine pronouns. Sometimes even the Spirit (a term which is grammatically neuter) has masculine pronouns (John 16:13-14).
To describe this revelation as “non-binary” is to cast the Deity into a sacrilegious, profane, abominable, queer-theory paradigm that is completely antithetical to Scripture.
The most important thoughts a person can have are their thoughts about God, but you are encouraging people to believe in a false god that looks nothing like the God of the Bible.