Common Core: My Thoughts!!

Common Core: Goodbye to the America We Knew

Common Core centers around “College and Career readiness” which defines hypocrisy because common core seeks to dumb down and simplify materials for students to better understand it. The government today seems to believe that education no longer requires knowledge of history or literature. The Common Core initiative aims to make students into bureaucrats rather than fulfill the true role of being a student. An educator’s responsibility is to foster and encourage students in the ability to learn and become productive individuals in society. Look at the list of the best entrepreneurs in American History, how many of them went to college?? The American Public School system has failed in encouraging parental responsibility in the growth and education of their students.

Should the entire approach to American education be focused on world peace and global unity? What happened to learning about the Greek virtues, or Shakespeare, or the history of the Romans? What happened to encouraging students to make a life for themselves and to do what they love? Hasn't anyone noticed that, as government has become more and more involved in public education over the past 60 years, educational standards have plummeted, students dislike education now more than ever, our high school graduates are less prepared for the future, and our parents have been excused from their traditional role as parents in training their children for a responsible life as an adult.

Above all, the message to students to conform to the universal globalism approach to education destroys individual identity and promise. Why don’t we let students decide their path in life rather than telling them where they are going? It eerily sounds and looks similar to the approach taken in the USSR and in many other socialist regimes in the mid to late 20^th century. If we learned anything from history, we know that dumbing down standards and forcing everyone into the middle ground on issues and beliefs, always ends in a society that believes whatever they are told, regardless of truth.

Read about Common Core people! Students should be given the freedom to learn, to make mistakes and take chances, rather than memorizing how to “play the system.” 

Praise You In This Storm

Growing up in the United States, we are told, by society, just what to do to be "successful." It is drilled into us from a young age that we need to get a good job, get married, and buy a house. This all leads to a "good" life. To many college aged individuals like myself, this task can be daunting because too often we lose sight of what is truly important in this life. Yes, I want a good job so I can live comfortably. I want to get married and live "happily ever after," but more times than not, we find ourselves getting discouraged when these accomplishments/events seem to be beyond the reach of our grasp. We cringe at the thought of having a job we will hate or not getting married and ending up single.

Going to college at Hillsdale College is no exception, the same fear of failure follows me around here daily. Recently, there have been a number of engagements or new relationships springing up like wildflowers. It is frustrating because the thought of leaving college without a girlfriend brings a sense of failure to my life. People in my situation feel like losers because we do not have that significant other at the time we graduate. We are faced with leaving this place where we are surrounded by such wonderful,Christian women and venturing out into the world where it is more difficult to find the type of individuals we grow so accustomed to at this college. As I sit here typing this, I have no job, at the moment, for after graduation and I am single yet, I have everything I could ever need in Jesus. Too often we try to go through life with our struggles without putting them before the Lord. Isaiah tells us in Chapter 40:28-31,

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

I sit here depressed and sad about the lack of what I perceive to be important in life but whoever said these things would come when I wanted them to. God has plans for me and I know that He will provide for me all that I need at a time of His choosing. All I can do is continue to grow in my faith. I think this is what this time is for. I think it is why I may not have a girlfriend right now. Either way God will provide.

This storm we see in our lives may just be our own imperfections getting in the way of our relationship with God. I need to refocus my walk with God and this must take priority above everything else. Only through this process can I accomplish God's plan for my life.

The storm is here...what will we do???

Fiscal Crisis: What has the past taught us?

As I sit at home listening to and following online the battle in the U.S. House of Representatives between the "right" and the "left" over the looming fiscal cliff, I can only think about how far left the nation has truly gone. 

There was once a time when government spending was minimal and a federal deficit was considered bad. Contrast that with today where our president just signed an executive order granting congress pay raises even as the poor and middle class are about to be hit with tax hikes which has the probability of throwing the U.S. economy back into a recession again. I stop and consider what would happen if instead of voting themselves a raise, Congress voted themselves a 5-10% pay-cut to help manage the federal deficit. That coupled with a decrease in the rates of Corporate income taxes, income taxes, and a reduction in Medicare/Medicaid, could potentially stem the ever-growing federal debt total.

Back in the 1920s, President Harding took office facing a massive deficit following WWI as well as high tax rates. His secretary of State Andrew Mellon came up with a plan to massively reduce the tax rates as well as cut federal spending. These actions enabled Harding's administration to go from yearly deficits to surpluses throughout his time in office. The point here being that lowering tax rates, especially the corporate tax rate, actually leads to higher government revenue because firms actually gross more profits yearly and this leads to firms expanded and bringing in more taxable revenue every year. Smaller taxes lead to higher government revenue.

On the flip side, examine the affects of higher tax rates and higher government spending during Franklin D. Roosevelt's time in office. At its height, Dr. Fulsom, a Hillsdale College professor, tells us that FDR raised income taxes to 94% for everyone making more than $200,000 a year. The Corporate income tax was also at 90%. This restrictive tax policy crippled small business growth and the economy because business owners were being taxed so high that they were unwilling to take on new projects and invest because they knew that whatever profits they made would inevitably be taxed.

This is the question we face today. Are we going to stand up for individual and fiscal responsibility or let Congress continue to take us down the "road to serfdom?" We live in a society where 47% of the population pays no taxes while the top 10% pay over 70%. We live in a society where millions of poor and illiterate accept federal welfare money without understanding that A.) this is designed to keep them poor and reliant on the government for their everyday needs and B.) the money which funds these programs is being forcibly taken from hard-working Americans. We live in a society where war has become a hobby and big defense firms bank on the U.S. being in a conflict in order to turn a profit. We live in a society where people wrongly believe government jobs equate to private sector jobs We live in a society that no longer recognizes the power of individual human action and the importance of non-restrictive tax policy. Mises once said, "The consumers suffer when the laws of the country prevent the most efficient entrepreneurs from expanding the sphere of their activities. What made some enterprises develop into big business was precisely their success in filling best the demand of the masses." Lets look to the past to determine the appropriate action to take to respond to this looming fiscal crisis because we have tried higher government spending with higher tax rates before and it did not work.

The ONLY way to get away from deficits and move towards surpluses is a concentrated effort to reduce tax rates and government spending at the same time.

Why are Christians afraid to die???

Tim Keller in his sermon "The Cosmic King" says God is the "Beginning and the end in everything." So the question is how do we face death as Christians?? To answer this question we must look at the beginning and what should be the ONLY purpose of our lives. "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God." God existed before all else and He was our Creator and our only worth. He brought mankind into the world and the whole of the Old Testament leads up to that climatic moment in history, the birth and death of His Son Jesus! Keller says that everything is created for God and that "the future is rushing into His lap." The future rushes onward yet God has forseen it all and is ever present in all.

With this in mind, how should we, as believers, view death? The apostle Paul writes in 2Timothy 4: 6-8, "For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing." Knowing that his death was at hand, Paul portrayed the attitude towards death we, as believers, should live for!! Death is not something to be feared!! It is the final frontier and the LAST journey we take in our earthly existence. It is that ultimate and final step in our re-unification with God!!

The world we live in constantly talks about death in a negative fashion and makes every effort to stave off the inevitability of the finality of one's existence. We can be comforted to know that Jesus and God are the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end!! The goal of our lives is to glorify God in all that we do, there is no room for error. It is both frightening and calming!!

Too often, we view God as the Answerer of our prayers. We go through life asking God to give us good jobs, a relationship, etc. In all of this, we lose sight of the fact that God is the beginning, the end, and the center of our universe!! While God does answer our prayers, if that is the way we view Him, we are failing! HE is EVERYTHING!! When others look at us, they should not see our individualality but the light of God's grace!!!!

So what will it be?? Are you afraid of death?? This is our time to glorify our God and whether its by our life or death, if God is the center of our universe, He will be glorified!!!

You are Everything!!!

Driving back to Hillsdale today, I heard this song on the a christian radio station. It is an awesome song by Matthew West calld You are Everything!!

The lyrics are below and speak so true in my life!! To God be the GLORY!!


I'm the one with two left feet
Standing on a lonely street
I can't even walk a straight line
And every time you look at me
I'm spinning like an autumn leaf
Bound to hit bottom sometime

Where would I be without someone to save me?
Someone who won't let me fall

You are everything that I live for
Everything that I can't believe is happening
You're standing right in front of me
With arms wide open
All I know is every day is filled with hope
'Cause You are everything that I breathe for
And I can't help but breathe You in, and breathe again
Feeling all this life within
Every single beat of my heart

I'm the one with big mistakes
Big regrets and bigger breaks
Than I'd ever care to confess
But You're the one who looks at me
And sees what I was meant to be
More than just a beautiful mess

You're everything good in my life
Everything honest and true
And all of those stars hangin' up in the sky
Could never shine brighter than You

Beautiful day!!!

I woke up this morning to clear skies, a beautiful sunrise, and 45 degree weather. I look at days like today and God's hand is so easily seen in the beauty of His creation. I love waking up to mornings like these because it gives me such a positive outlook on each day and it puts a beautiful picture to God's love!

God is truly good!!

No Facebook for a week and counting!!

Well I did it, a week ago tomorrow I decided to get rid of my Facebook because I felt I spent far to much time on it and that time I could be using for so many other things. Prior to this week, the longest I had ever gone without Facebook, outside of vacations, was 3 days. I used to think there was no way I could go without it because it had become a part of each and every day. I would would wake up in the morning and go FB and go on it throughout each day whenever I was bored and had nothing to do.

A week has gone by and I have not gone on Facebook once, I deactivated my account and have been using the extra time to read and do more blogging!! Each of these activities are so much more fulfilling than just going on the FB to "FB stalk." I praise God for giving me the strength and encouragement to withstand the urge to go on Facebook. I am looking forward to all the new time I am going to have and being able to use that either to spend time with people or with God!!

To God be the GLORY!!!