Will Our Passion Turn Back To Apathy After The Election?

Will Our Passion Turn Back To Apathy After The Election?

One of the most positive things I have seen from this election is passion. There seems to be something about this election, more than any other I have seen in my time, which brings out a passion in this generation. The unfortunate thing about this is that it also sheds light on the apathy that has plagued us for so many years.

Most of my friends know that I am not your typical “right wing voter”. I have not voted for a major party for President in the last three elections. I have always said that I vote more for whom or what I believe in, than just to win or beat the other party. I personally don't believe that either of the mainstream political parties truly represents my beliefs very much at all.

This election for me is different from any of the other ones I have been involved with. I honestly believe that there is more at stake than any other time I can remember and I have wrestled more than I ever have about whom to vote for. Some may even say that I am compromising or being somewhat pragmatic when I never have before.

As much I am not a pragmatist, I have to look at the reality what could actually happen in the next four years. I believe in my heart that we could see a devastating attack on life and innocent children like we have never seen before.

Knowing how much this election has troubled me and how it has affected my vote more than any other, I also see what it has done to this generation. I have seen an awakening of passion, commitment, drive, boldness and pure excitement that I have not seen before. I have seen this on both sides of the political coin, and I am ecstatic about this. In an age when apathy seems to flow through the veins of America's youth, we are seeing action take over.

I talked to some friends the other day about some of the political talk I have been hearing around town. I told them about people wanting to fly their flag upside down if a certain candidate was elected. You may think that is disrespectful to the flag, but is actually is an accepted signal for a nation in distress; there is no disrespect in this action.

I decided to see what kind of reaction I would get if I posted this idea on Facebook. I simply changed my status to this and let the fireworks begin. Now I post a lot of things on Facebook, from contests to win free stuff to praise reports about what God has done through our ministry at Stand True. I was guessing that this would cause a stir, but would not reach the fever pitch that I get when I post that I will be giving away free stickers. Boy was I wrong.

Just one political comment brought out the passion in everyone and my status became a heated discussion in no time. I sat and watched people speaking out and engaging in discussion about something that meant so much to them. I got private e-mails from people who thought I was being a bad Christian witness for talking about flying my flag upside down. It was awesome; people were passionate.

I am not going to tell you who to vote for. I am going to beg you to vote. However I am not just talking about this election; I am talking about your life. I hate the fact that after an election so many people seem to shrink back into their apathy and just ride out the next four years until we get to cast another vote. Why can't this passion and action last past Election Day?

The results of this election will have an effect on everyone, no matter the outcome. Foreign policy, the economy, abortion, health care and so many more issues will be affected by who is the White House, but one thing will not. On January 20 th , when our new President is inaugurated, one thing will remain the same. God will still be on the throne and His sovereignty will not remain intact. God does not fear any Presidential administration and He can and will work in our nation no matter who sits in the White House.

No matter who ends up in the White House this January, we should not let this passion we have die down. People seem to think that depending on who wins things like abortion, hunger, poverty, war or anything we are concerned about will be magically fixed by our next President. They will not.

Imagine if we saw the same passion and action we are seeing towards this election being focused on feeding the hungry, giving water to the thirsty, standing for the voiceless or sharing the Gospel of Christ. What if all the volunteers from all the campaign offices of both parties decided to spend the same amount of time at soup kitchens, homeless shelters, homes for unwed mothers or youth outreaches? What if the amount of money that everyone donated to the candidates was not being donated to charities and ministries?

I want to issue a challenge everyone who is reading this. Have you volunteered, donated money or spent time talking to people about either candidate? Why not do the same when the election is over? Volunteer in your community and make a difference. Donate to a charity or ministry so they can continue to help people. Tell people about getting involved; don't let apathy take over this generation again.

More important than anything else is our passion for Christ. While a President may affect our lives here on earth, it is eternity that is most important. No politician can assure us of anything when it comes to eternity, only Christ's Blood can give us the hope we need. Imagine if we had the same passion for sharing the Gospel of Christ, as we do for sharing why our candidate is so important.

Deny apathy and embrace passion.

For Christ I stand,

Bryan Kemper - bryankemper@standtrue.com

What To Say To A Woman Considering Abortion - Words and Reactions for the Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity

What To Say To A Woman Considering Abortion - Words and Reactions for the Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity

I am often asked what people should say to a woman who is considering abortion. I wish there were a magic answer that I could give that would help change the mind of every woman thinking about aborting her baby, but there is not. As you take a stand next Tuesday during the Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity there will be times when talking is necessary. Not just next Tuesday, but any time you participate in pro-life activism there are important things to remember.



When answering this question I also have to address what not to say. I have stood outside abortion mills for over 18 years praying and protesting and I have even been arrested many times for praying in front of the doors. I have watched thousands of women walk into abortion mills and seen many different approaches by pro-lifers trying to save the babies.



The first mistake I see is anger. Pro-lifers can become so angry about abortion that they sometimes take it out on the women and just scare them right into the abortion mill. I have heard people call women murderers, whores, Jezebels, devil worshipers, and so much more. I have seen anti-abortion protesters so angry that they actually spit while they scream at people. I have never once seen this kind of behavior convince a women to stop and talk and change her mind.



I will admit that in the early years I used to scream and wave signs in people's faces. I let the frustration get to me as I watched these many young girls being taken in to the abortion mill by their parents or boyfriends. I would see the boyfriends leave and go to get food and sit in the parking lot and eat and smoke while their child was being killed inside that building. I let the frustration get to me and began to rely on myself for results instead of relying on God.



I want to make it clear that not all people that go to abortion mills to minister and pray act like this. We at Stand True strongly encourage people to go to the abortion mills for prayer and witnessing. There are highly effective ways of reaching women and helping them to make the right decision.



When a woman is going to an abortion mill she is usually scared and frustrated. She believes there is no other option for her other than abortion and there is no one to help her. These girls do not need someone yelling at them and telling them how evil they are; they need someone to love them and let them know how precious they are in God's eyes. They need someone to address their needs, not just the baby's needs. They need someone to approach them in the same way Christ would approach someone who was hurting and scared and about to make a huge mistake.



The first thing we tell people if they are going to try to talk to girls entering abortion mills is to not be holding a sign or wearing pro-life messages on their shirts. You should be dressed very friendly so you won't immediately scare the women away. We believe the first words to a woman entering the mill should be geared towards her and how she is doing, not just about the baby. Let her know you care about her.



The most powerful thing you can do when going to the abortion mill is pray. There is nothing more effective than prayer. When we go to our local abortion mill we spend the first hour as a group reading the Bible out loud, not shouting, but just reading out loud the Word of God. We then walk around the building praying for the women, the doctor, the nurses, the escorts, and everyone involved. We also look for opportunities to witness and share, not only with the women going in, but with the escorts and whoever is around. Not calling them names or condemning them to hell, but sharing Christ's love with them.



These ideas and principles are not just for the abortion mill, but for our every day life when we run into situations like this. Situations like the ones you may run into on the Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity. I recently read an article about a young girl at a Catholic school who got pregnant and was told she could not walk the stage at her graduation, while the young man was allowed to. Not only was this total hypocrisy, but it was a dangerous way to treat this young girl. It is exactly that kind of reaction and treatment of girls that drive them to abortion.



Our words, especially our first words, to a girl who gets pregnant can determine the path she takes and can be the difference between life and death. As a father of three daughters I do wonder how I would react if one of my daughters came home one day and told me she was pregnant. What would I say? Would I blow up and lose my temper? Or would I love her no matter what mistake she made?



When we go to God in prayer and confess our sins, do you think He screams and yells and has a huge fit? I don't think so. Do you think he yells at us and tells us how horrible we are, and how much of a disgrace we are to the family? I don't think so. When we go to Him, He is faithful to love and forgive us. I pray that I never have to go through this with my daughters, but if I do, I pray that my first words to her are those of love.



Yes, we do know that abortion is the act of killing a human person and can never be permitted. Yes, we know that abortion is a sin and is detestable in God's eyes. Yes, we know that we need to stand up against this evil and be there to try to help people from making such a tragic and horrific mistake. But more importantly than all of that, we know those people need Christ and we need to love them as Christ would.



1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Don't forget to register at the web site http://www.silentday.org

For Christ I stand,

Bryan Kemper - bryankemper@standtrue.com

God Gives My Wife and Me Another Blessing - His Heritage

God Gives My Wife and Me Another Blessing - His Heritage

Psalm 127 3 Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,

          The fruit of the womb is a reward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,

          So are the children of one's youth.

5 Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;

          They shall not be ashamed,

          But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

It always breaks my heart when I hear pregnancy talked about in a negative way or referred to as a burden. I have often heard negative remarks when I have told people about my wife having another child, even from family members. I look at each of my children as a blessing from God, a heritage from Him, and once again He has chosen to bless us with another precious child.

Carrie is pregnant with number 6, due some time in early June. I am as excited with this new baby as I have been with all of our children. I am already bugging my wife with all of my crazy ideas for names. I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas; I just can't wait to hold my new baby.

Please pray for Carrie and me (especially Carrie) as we take this journey towards the birth of our new baby. There will be a lot of things the kids and I will need to do to help Carrie as we prepare for a new member of the Kemper Family.

One of the most important things we will need prayer for is finances as we do not have health insurance. Stand True does not have enough money to pay for health insurance so we will have to raise the money separately to pay for the midwife. I know that God will provide; He always does.

For Christ I stand,

Bryan Kemper and the Kemper Family - bryankemper@standtrue.com

Tough Questions: Christians should be spreading the Gospel, not worrying about political issues like abortion.

Tough Questions: Christians should be spreading the Gospel, not worrying about political issues like abortion.

I cannot tell you how many pastors throw this at me as an excuse for not getting involved with pro-life work or even talking about it from the pulpit.  It actually surprises me that a pastor would even try to justify his apathy and lack of involvement in standing up for life.

Obviously we all know that as a Christian s our main focus is to spread the Gospel and share the hope we have in Christ.  We are commanded to “ Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all creation.” Mark 16:15  

The idea that taking a stand for the almost 4,000 children that are being ripped limb from limb every day by surgical abortion is contrary to the Gospel , is simply ludicrous. In fact, I would say that when we do not stand up for the voiceless or love our neighbor as ourselves, we are not truly preaching the Gospel.  

I remember one pastor in particular who told me that I had no business telling anyone that abortion was wrong.  He said I should only tell people about Jesus and nothing else.  I laid out a situation for him to answer using his logic.  What if you came upon a man beating a woman in an alley?  Would you walk up to the man and tap him on the shoulder and tell him about Jesus or would you first stop the man from beating the women and make sure she was taken care of? 

He tried to wiggle out of answering the question at first but eventually said he would first stop the man from harming the woman and make sure she was ok.  I asked him why he would not just tell them man about Jesus and not worry about his behavior?  He said because the woman was in imminent danger and needed to be rescued.

The fact is we are also called in Scripture to “Deliver those who are being taken away to death. And those who are staggering to slaughter, Oh hold them back. If you say, "See, we did not know this," Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts?” Proverbs 24:11-12

We are also called to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27

We can also look at Matthew 25 where we are taught that when we do not feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty and clothe the naked then we are not doing that for Christ.  I could fill this commentary with pages of Scripture references that would show us that preaching the Gospel is more than just mere words.

When babies are being killed by the thousands every day, are we loving our neighbor as ourselves when we ignore this? Is our neighbor just the guy who lives next door?  Did the Good Samaritan stop to see if he knew the man in the ditch or ask God if he was called to a ditch ministry before he helped the man?  No, he saw his fellow human person in distress and he stopped and helped him.   

So many people tell me that their pastor will not talk about abortion from the pulpit.  They don't want to talk about political issues or possibly offend anyone in the church. 

Here is a question I would ask them: if you were told as you were walking up to the pulpit to deliver your sermon that a man with a knife was heading to the nursery to stab all the children in the nursery, would you warn people from the pulpit or would you say that the pulpit is only for preaching the Word ?  Of course they would warn people, I don't know a single pastor in the world who would not jump up and immediately warn everyone about the danger the children were in.  

If that same pastor were told before his sermon that they were opening a new abortion mill down the street where about 20 babies a day were going to be aborted daily, would he feel the same urgency to warn his congregation about the danger facing those children?  

Most of the time it would have to go through some kind of committee or vote to see if the church wanted to have some kind of official outreach to that abortion mill.  There would be so much red tape that it may take a year to even get an announcement in the bulletin about a possible ministry team being formed. 

Are the children that would die in the nursery more valuable than the children that would die in the abortion mill?  Why are we not just as horrified about children being killing in an abortion mill as we would be about children being killed in a church nursery?

There is no excuse for the apathy and lack of involvement of the church when it comes to abortion.  We have allowed the government to politicize abortion to the point that we just don't pay attention any more.  We are more than happy to let our votes on Election Day be our only action we ever take as we leave it up to politicians who never deliver on their promises.  

Preaching the Gospel is not just leaving cheesy Bible tracts with a lousy tip on the table at Applebee's after church.  Preaching the Gospel is not just saying “ Jesus loves you” to your friends as work after laughing at all their dirty jokes.  Preaching the Gospel goes far beyond our words and must also include action.  Feeding the poor, giving water to the thirsty and yes, speaking up for the voiceless IS preaching the Gospel.  



What do you think?

To read all of the Tough Questons Series, go to www.standtrue.com and click on the "educate yourself" section.

For Christ I Stand,

Bryan Kemper - bryankemper@standtrue.com