The Latest Dsicovery "Proving" Evolution

Normally I don't comment on matters of science but earlier this week ABC News reported that scientists report discovering the "god particle." The god particle is what gives all matter in the universe its size and shape. They discovered it while smashing atoms together, breaking them down into their sub-atomic components.  When the two protons are smashed together, resulting in a tremendous release of energy and sub-atomic particles, this "god particle" is right there.  And this particle is supposed to be at the heart of the "Big Bang Theory."  The Big Bang Theory postulates that 13.7 billion years ago the universe rapidly expanded to eventually become the world as we know it.  This particle puts the bang into the big bang by supplying the energy needed to drive start the bang.
What does this matter to a pastor and family counselor?  Well, if evolution is true, then the Bible is false.  And if the Bible is false, I need to find a new profession.  Am I concerned that it is time to start checking the help-wanteds?  Not at all.  Here are some questions that evolutionist never seem to answer:
1.  Where did the god particle come from?  According to the laws of thermodynamics, it could come from nothing.  Seems to me you need a creator for that. 
2.  How can anything as intricate, complex, and ordered be the result of an explosion?   When you look at any explosion, it results in disorder, not order.  Oops, there's are those pesky laws of thermodynamics again. 
3.  Here is a new one just for the good people at the labs which discovered the god particle.  How did this explosion in your labs happen in the first place?  Was it a random, change event that took place on its own?  Not hardly, scientists worked for years creating the conditions for this to take place.  In other words, it took intelligent minds with a purpose to actually create this explosion.  Seems to me this, at the very least, supports the theory of intelligent design. 
So I will continue to live very secure that God is, and He is the creator of all that exists. 
Blessings,
Dr. Paul

Supporting Our Troops

USA Today reports on a disturbing new Pentagon finding that the second leading cause of death for our troops deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq is suicide, second only to combat itself.  According to this report, since 2010, more soldiers die from suicide than traffic accidents, heart disease, cancer, homicide and other forms of death.  Suicides are happening at a rate of about 1 per day this year.  There were 154 confirmed or suspected suicides this year through June 3, while 127 soldiers died in Afghanistan.  Last year, 26% of military deaths took place in combat, 20% by suicide, and 17% in traffic accidents.  The percentage of suicide in 2005 was 10% lower compated to today.  Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, told Congress that he has directed all of the militray branches to "immediately look at that situation and determine what's behind it, what's causing it, and what we can do to make sure it doesn't happen."  He went on to say that suicide is "one of the most complex and urgent problems" he has to deal with.  This year the army alone is spending $75 million to understand why it is happening and what to do about it. 

In my ministry with Insight Christian Counseling and at Davisville Church I have worked with a number of soldiers who have come back from the front who have struggled with depression and suicide.  Just last week I was contacted by the parents of a 21 year old Marine who just completed his first combat tour.  Thankfully he is not struggling with suicide, but he is very depressed and very anxious compared to how he was prior to going into combat.  What strikes me as I talk to people in the military is how unequipped it is to deal with these issues.  In the USA Today article, Army Col. Carl Castro is quoted as saying, "We were slow to react (at first) because we weren't sure it was an anomoly or it was a real trend.  Then it just takes time to program the money and get the studies up and going.  Everything we do in suicide prevention, there's no evidence it works."  What a striking admission from the man who is leading the army's efforts to find effective forms of treatment and prevention. 

Pray for me as I work with this young Marine, and pray for all of our troops as many of them will be returning to life here in the US or leaving the military and adjusting to civilian life.  There are answers, and they are found in God and His word.  I have seen God transform a depressed, suicidal, angry soldier into a someone who is at peace with himself and a blessing to others. 

Blessings,
Dr. Paul

The Ugly Reality of Sex Trafficing

If you ever take a moment think about places in the world where girls and young women are forced into prostitution, what country comes to mind?  Maybe a country like Thailand, or Cambodia, or some other third world location.  But let's take a look at the United States.  Our government estimates that between 14,000 and 18,000 people are trafficked in the United States each year.  The Department of Justice estimated in 2005 that approximately 150,000 girls and young women had been forced to labor as sex slaves since 2001.  In New York city alone, thousands of women are sold for sex every day.  Assistant District Attorney Lauren Hersh recently indicted 32 gang members who targeted young girls from a Brooklyn playgroud and then used them to recruit their peers from school.  The sex trafficking unit she leads also successfully prosecuted a school mom who was coercing students to sell sex over the internet. 
Child prostitution is a problem the FBI says is getting worse. "The money involved in prostituting children is much higher than just regular prostitution," said FBI agent John Gillies. Morgan Perry, a Christian, is the executive producer of the recently-released documentary entitled Sex and Money. She found that the average age of entry for a prostitute in the United States is 12-years-old, 12 to 13.  So we're looking anywhere from 11 to 17- years-old. Every once in a while, the public hears about human trafficking in the U.S., like the raids that took place in October in 36 cities. Nearly 1,600 agents and officers worked together to bring federal and state charges against 691 suspects. According to the Children at Risk website, globally around 800,000 people are trafficked each year and become victims of commercial sex exploitation and forced labor. Eighty percent of these victims are women and children.

Many people are surprised to hear that human trafficking is such a big problem in the United States.

"We were shocked to discover that the same injustice was happening in our own backyards," the documentary's narrator explained. "Across America, thousands of children are bought and sold for sex each day. Meanwhile, most Americans are completely oblivious to this form of modern- day slavery."

"We've definitely found that it's a greater problem than what we were expecting," Perry said. "We've had a hard time solidifying statistics at first, because research in the United States is not as collected as international statistics so we have found that 100,000 to 300,000 American children are sex slaves in the United States, and that's a very big statistic for us, so that's hit home." The FBI says pimps are advertising more on social networking sites, including Facebook and MySpace, to attract the children.

"The Internet's being used widely now for juvenile prostitution," said one undercover police officer. "The girls of you know, the pimps, the handlers have now taken it off the street where it can be seen and have now concealed it on the Internet."

According to Jimmy Lee, Executive Director of Restore, a New York city based ministry that provides long term shelter for women who have been rescued out of sex trafficking, public education, federal law, and better law enforcement all provide a part of the solution.  Lee says it is primarily the church that needs to step in.  For starters, the church can contend against the cultural influences that make prostitution a viable industry: pornography, poverty, commercializaiton of sex in the media, and break-down of the family.  "As a Christian organization, we are able to offer true hope that other organizations can't provide.  We provide the option to know the Lord," says Lee. 

What can you as an individual do?  Get informed, and support through your prayers and finances ministries that are working to help these women escape from this modern day slavery.  Let your state and national leaders know that you are concerned and raise their awareness of this problem. 

Blessings,

Dr. Paul

Living Together Before Marriage

I have always been against couples living together prior to marriage. My problem with it is three fold. First, it is against the teaching of Jesus and other places in scripture. Second, there are many practical reasons why it is a bad idea (allows the guy not to make a true, lasting commitment, it puts too much emphasis on performance, and it makes the relationship based on condition rather than unconditional love, just to name three). Third, all fo the studies show that couples who live together first have more and deeper conflict, have worse sex lives, and have a higher divorce rate compared to couples who marry first.
Recently the New York Times featured an interesting article on the topic. Now I never thought I would encourage people to read the NYT, and I don't agree with everything the author says, but she makes some good points that are worth reading. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/15/opinion/sunday/the-downside-of-cohabiting-before-marriage.html?pagewanted=1&_r=3&ref=general&src=me


Blessings,
Dr. Paul

A Mother's Decision

Here is a mother's true story that involved a decision of life and death.

Pam and her husband Bob were serving as missionaries to the Philippines and praying for a fifth child. They made a pledge to God that if they were given a son, they would name him Timothy and raise him to be a preacher.

Pam then contracted amoebic dysentery, an infection of the intestine caused by a parasite from contaminated food or drink. After going into a coma, she was treated with strong antibiotics … before they discovered she was pregnant. Doctors urged her to abort the baby for her own safety and told her that the medicines had caused irreversible damage to her baby. Despite nearly losing her baby four different times, Pam refused an abortion, citing her Christian faith as the source of her hope that her son would be born without the predicted devastating disabilities.

Pam spent the last two months of her pregnancy in bed before giving birth to a healthy baby boy on August 14, 1987. Pam's youngest son is indeed a preacher. He preaches in prisons, makes hospital visits, and serves with his father's ministry in the Philippines. He also plays a little football. You may have heard of Pam and Bob's son: Tim Tebow, quarterback for the Denver Broncos.

Blessings,

Dr. Paul

A Profoundly Moving Film

This weekend my wife and I went to see one of the most profoundly moving films I have ever seen. To be honest, I don't go to see that many movies due to the poor quality and the high prices. This movie was an exception, a big exception. The movie is October Baby, and it touched me on an emotional and spiritual level that rarely happens to me. The movie is about a young woman who discovers that her medical and emotional problems are rooted in the fact that she survived a failed abortion. I don't want to say much more about the plot in case you have the opportunity to see it.

I hope you will take the time to see a movie that will touch your heart and leave you with many toughest about the price our nation pays for abortion on demand and the impact it has on the lives of the women who abort their child.

Blessings,

Dr. Paul

Government Tyranny

I never thought I would see this day, a day when the federal government would violate the freedom of religion by forcing a church to go against it's religiously based moral beliefs. The Obama administration is vehemently seeking to enforce its view of health care on every business and institution in America, including churches. Obama Care includes insisting that employers pay for birth control and abortifacients. The problem is that the Roman Catholic Church does not believe that birth control is morally proper. This is a not a matter of convenience, money, or the whim of the church. It is a matter of faith. The bishops are holding firm in their opposition to being forced to pay for something that goes against their beliefs, and so they should. Recently the Obama administration told the media they are looking for a compromise. But last Friday night they unloaded a further expansion of their policy to include all catholic institutions including day care centers, colleges, etc.

I am obviously not a Roman Catholic priest, and I personally have no problem with people of faith choosing to use birth control. But I respect the Roman Catholic Church's right to hold this belief. It is too bad our current President does not. This is the first time in American history that a President has tried to force his views on a church to go against their beliefs. If the American people allow this, there will eventually be no limit to what the government will dictate to people of faith. So much for the Constitution and freedom of religion.

Blessings,

Dr. Paul