As many others have stated, I believe that we should be respectful of our president and we should pray for him and all of our other officials. However, I also believe that we should try to influence our leaders and encourage them to make better decisions, that is, godly decisions. Here are some links to our various leaders.
http://www.whitehouse.gov
http://www.house.gov
http://www.senate.gov
I would like to encourage everyone to personally write to our president, your congressman, and your senators, and whoever else you would like to influence with your views. Mass mailings, petitions, and so on can help, but they need to hear from countless individuals who are interested in the direction our country is heading.
For example, our president has immediately upon being inaugurated (January 23rd to be exact), rescinded government limitations on funding that would directly contribute to the promotion of abortion as a legitimate form of “family planning”. The memorandum is listed on the White House website. Many of us saw this coming, although I did not expect it to be this bold, or this quick. I have two main issues with this memorandum. First of all it contributes to abortion (a nice way of saying murder). Our country hits people with huge fines for tampering with bald eagle eggs, but human fetuses (a term that tries to say it isn’t really a baby yet) are fair game. I guess this is because humans are not an endangered species. My second issue is an economic one. If we are in such bad trouble financially, the please explain to me what business we have funding “family planning” in another country. Let’s pull our funding from all such nonsense and let other countries be responsible for themselves while we get our own house in order (although I do not expect either of these things to happen).
I was going to say something about Speaker Pelosi and her comments on the stimulus package and birth control, but the post is long enough already. Maybe next time…
Please let’s make sure we conduct ourselves properly when we address our officials. And let’s not get so wrapped up in these things that we fail to study and grow daily for ourselves.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas. Enjoy yourselves with family and friends and appreciate every minute of it. Be careful while traveling too! Merry Christmas!!!!

Luke 12:15 - And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."

I Timothy 6:6 - Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.

I Timothy 6:17 - Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. 18 Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, 19 storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

Let's face it. Someone has already been trampled to death. People have gotten in fistfights over the last game system in the store. People are spending more than they have, and are racking up debt that many of them will never be able to pay off. Why? It comes down to greed and selfishness. It is also rooted in an unwillingness to say no to our children, and to ourselves. Do we really believe that this is what God expects from His children? It’s not good for us to get everything we want, when we want, and because we want it. It’s good for us to be content and appreciative for the material things we have been blessed with. Then we are responsible for being good stewards of those things. Granted, it is more blessed to give than to receive, and it is enjoyable to give someone something they want or need. Let’s just keep it in perspective and well within reason. Let’s make sure we are seeking first the kingdom of God rather than the pleasures of earth.

Some of you may be wondering about my user name. If you can't tell already, I really like drums. Unfortunately, I never had the opportunity to take lessons. However a few years ago, my wonderful wife was crazy enough, I mean sweet enough, to get me a drumset for Christmas. I have gotten better, but most people have no idea how difficult it is to play the drums. I put my headphones on and try to play to some of my favorites and I am amazed at how fast and intricate these guys are. The most important thing is that I have a lot of fun and it is a great stress reliever.
Also I wanted to share some pics of my hunting success this year. Some of you saw these already on Jill's blog, and some of you just won't care. For those of you who do, I was blessed with a good deer and plenty of meat in the freezer. I haven't had the time to hunt the last couple of years, so to get this deer on our own land was very gratifying. I hope all of you are as blessed in the things you are interested in.