In 4 days America will have elected a new president. What is in store for the next administration is yet to be seen. But I am convinced that the past 8 years with George W Bush as president was no by accident. Only God could have so ordained that the right person was in the right place at the right time. God has done this many times in the past… Moses, Joshua, David, Esther, Elijah, Mary, Paul, Peter, Washington, Lincoln, Roosevelt, Regan…on and on.

My perspective comes from a country boy Ohio childhood in the 1950′s; a high school and college student in the radical 60′s; an adult family builder in the 70′s thru the 90′s. Life was generally good with little concern for security, safety, and provision.

When George W. Bush was elected in 2000 by the narrowest of margins, I really don’t think we expected much from him. We would have been satisfied with him if he just restored some order and morality to the White House after Clinton’s immoral sexual escapades while in office. George W. Bush took the helm of a prideful, self satisfied, smug America.

The events of September 11, 2001 changed all that.. War was declared on America by a truly evil enemy. The perpetrators of that evil called US the "Great Satan" and Evil. We, America, are guilty of much… overindulgence, arrogance, over expectation of wealth, and more. But we were not the evil ones here…not even a little bit. Radical murderers supported by radical nations attacked us; killed thousands of us; declared war on us.

Only God could have known that this President, George W. Bush, was the man for such a time as this. Nothing in his background could have revealed his willingness and ability to pilot the U.S. into and through this turning point in history. I am convinced that it is President Bush’s willingness to submit to God and do the best he could that has kept us as a nation safe from further harm from the terrorist evil that assaulted us on 9/11/01.

I, for one, want to say "THANK YOU PRESIDENT BUSH".

THANK YOU.. for stepping up the days following the 9/11 attacks and rallying us as a nation to confront the evil of radical terrorism.

THANK YOU.. for clearly stating the simple fact that the attackers are wrong and evil and that the U.S. is right and righteous in this fight.

THANK YOU.. for narrowing your focus to the clear and present danger, and putting into place the measures to stop the evil in its tracks and insure eventual victory of good over evil.

THANK YOU… for mustering the forces and taking the measures necessary to invade, defeat, and hold Afghanistan and Iraq, the central supporters and safe harbors of Al-Qeda and the Taliban; the perpertrators of Evil.

THANK YOU… for staying the course for RIGHT even to the point of ridicule from your detractors.

THANK YOU… for recognizing that we must support Afghanistan and Iraq with military, rebuild infrastructure, build democracy, feed and house the innocent until they can stand strong and democratic on their own.

THANK YOU… for keeping focus on the greater evil of terrorism, even though I and others suffer slightly from having to tighten our belts in this current economy.

THANK YOU… for not bowing to political pressure and unpopularity. This is the key to victory in this war instead of the shameful outcome of Vietnam.

THANK YOU… for demonstrating that right and wrong are as clear as black and white, not shades of gray.

THANK YOU… for stand up clearly for  God, Family,Country, Right, Good.
THANK YOU… for being a righteous Commander in Chief that my son in law, a decorated navy hero, wounded in Iraq, proudly salutes as "Mr. President"

THANK YOU… for showing US and the world that the Americal heart is resolved in Right and Victory, not in slinking away in defeat as Washington DC and liberal educators in the 60′s caused us to do from Veitnam.

THANK YOU… most of all for standing strong for all us Americans, for following God’s lead and doing your best for what is right regardless of what others say.

President Regan left office with his head high even though his detractors held him to ridicule and derision. It took only a few years for America and the world to realize that he is among the few giants who have held the office of President of the United States. I am convinced that you, President George W. Bush, are the first great President of the 21st. century and will be counted as one of the greatest in our history.

Again I say, "THANK YOU, PRESIDENT BUSH’.
Dave Howell
DeLand, Florida

I just read an article where evangelist and pastor Greg Laurie, gave a sermon to more than 109,000 people.

In the sermon he spoke about the sudden loss of his son in a car accident that happened on July 24th, he talks about his loss and how he is dealing with his grief.

He told the attendees the following:

“Heaven is not the default destination when you die. You have to choose it. Jesus Christ paid your way to heaven when he died on the cross for you, but you must make your own choice to follow Him”.

So somehthing to think about, what have you chosen as your final destination?

In war, every great successful battle plan has an equally well planned retreat plan. The retreat plan was planned along with the battle plan. Sometimes things change in the course of the battle campaign and require changes in the battle plan as well as the retreat plan, but retreat must always be considered and planned. Only the suicide missions,(i.e. Kamikaze, etc.) have no plan for retreat or return to safety. It is a fact that all wars have included victories and defeats. The definition of the winner of the war is which side wins the final battle. In order to get to the final battle, the winner must be prepared to retreat from the defeats in such a manner that he can live and prepare to fight the next battle.

Life, marriage, family, etc. are not significantly different from war. Life in total is the ultimate personal war. We war for our very survival (food, clothing, shelter, etc.). We battle to get ahead; to provide well for ourselves, family, marriage, loved ones. In that war, there will be defeats/failures. It’s important that we prepare for the defeats by planning our retreats. It is inevitable that we will have to retreat, perhaps several times when income dries up; when illness or injury occur; or when numerous other negative conditions come about in our lives.

In a perfect world, we would have money set aside, or have insurance policies that would save us from emotional and social pain when we are defeated in one of life’s financial battles. In the real world where most of us live, those protections do not exist. In those cases it is critical that we have the mental attitude that it is ok to retreat with our emotions, health, and relationships (marriage and loved ones) healthy and in tact. That way, we can live to attack life and love again.

In these retreats, the most expendable things are possessions. It is critical that we be emotionally ready to let stuff go. The planning for this would set a priority of possessions. What are the most important thing to keep? What must we have to survive now and start again? Always the top items are spiritual, relational, health, and emotional in nature. With those strong, the physical hardware and property things can be regained. A place to live, food, and transportation are obvious physical things needed, but we can set other item/type of item in order after that. However, we alone cannot always set that priority. Sometimes lenders or others upset the priority…. payments get behind or a specific payment is not possible to make, etc.

The reality though, is that the battles never do stop in this lifetime on Earth. God is in charge, and will have His way in spite of my own shortcomings, doubt, and bad decisions. I believe God is guiding us in a different direction for the next phase of our lives here on Earth. I must remember that the old adage… “God helps those who help themselves” is not Biblical. The Bible teaches clearly that God helps those who depend on Him.

Most important though is that marriage, mental health, emotional health remain strong as we go through letting go of possessions, property, etc. Pride and shame (both are the same like hot and cold) are the things which get in the way most of the time. Humility and honesty are the greatest tools to control pride and shame. It is ok to fail. It is painful, but ok, to not be able to perform (ie pay bills on time, fulfill a promise to a friend or loved one regarding a loan, etc.) as promised or expected. It is very important that communication continue and that restitution be made if and when it is practicable (making sense, not to the destruction of recovery).

Again, above all make sure that Christ, marriage, mental, spiritual, and emotional health, family relationships, be prioritized in that order before all else, especially property and possessions. Opportunities for possessions and property will come again so long as we keep our faith in God and our spouses through our current temporary retreats.