Watchmen Ministry North Idaho

(The Federalist) Americans ought to be thinking a lot harder about their local, down-ballot races. This year, more than any other in recent memory, we got a bitter taste of the power of local officials to enable, and even promote, rioting and mayhem in America.

Many of us have watched aghast as mayors of blue cities like Portland, Seattle, Chicago, and New York turned a blind eye or even encouraged mob rule that resulted in wide-scale violence, vandalism, looting, injury, and, yes, murder. They have flatly rejected all offers by President Trump to bring it under control by calling in the National Guard. Let’s not forget that these mayors — along with the many other officials close to them — were elected locally.

Recall, it’s local elected prosecutors, district attorneys, state’s attorneys, and attorneys general that have the power to allow violent criminals to roam free after an arrest.  (Read More)

(FRC) Just seven short months ago, it seemed unthinkable that local governments in America would openly ban churches from opening while allowing other facilities to remain open. But then the coronavirus pandemic happened, which revealed the anti-religious nature of many in the seats of power in our country.

On Sunday, October 11, the church declared: “Enough.” “It is time. It is time for the church to be the church in America again,” said FRC President Tony Perkins during Freedom Sunday: It’s Time at a packed service from Calvary Chapel Chino Hills in California that was also livestreamed. Numerous speakers joined the service both live and remotely in a chorus of prayer and encouragement for believers across America to stand for their beliefs and their freedom.  (Read More)

(Daily Signal) Add up everything we know about the ongoing violence in America’s cities, and you get a troubling picture.

It has nothing to do with law-abiding, peaceful demonstrations in favor of civil rights and police reform. No, the violence that exploits these well-intentioned activities—which often occurs after night falls and demonstrations have ended—is part of an organized effort to implement a radical political agenda.

For starters, the violence is organized criminal activity. The same destructive activists have been identified at different times in different cities around the country. For example, in August, eight members of the Seattle-based group Riot Kitchen were arrested after wreaking havoc in Kenosha, Wisconsin.  (Read More)

(California Family Council) President Donald Trump has ignited a national debate about Critical Race Theory (CRT), after he recently banned his federal agencies and federal contractors from teaching this ideology as part of employee diversity training. Trump called CRT a “malign ideology” that “threatens to infect core institutions of our country” because it teaches, among other things, “that men and members of certain races, as well as our most venerable institutions, are inherently sexist and racist.”  (Read More)

We cannot allow this to come to Idaho! Please read this article as it contains actual materials used by CRT advocates.

(Faith & Freedom) Probably the only thing the right and the left agree on these days is that our culture is in a state of chaos.

A survey, earlier this year by Barna, found that 52% of church-going people who claim to be “evangelicals” say they no longer believe in absolute moral truth.

Barna says the study “finds that the nation’s four main Christian groups—evangelicals, Pentecostals and Charismatics, and Catholics—are creating new worldviews that are only loosely tied to the biblical teachings that have traditionally defined them.”

Alarming. Therein lies the problem in our culture.  (Read More)

(FRC) In an ideal world, you would always have the option to vote for really great people that you agree with in every respect. In the real world, however, your ballot may give you choices that make you feel less like you’re choosing someone to represent your values and more like you are choosing a cancer treatment. In that situation, what you want most is a different option. But sometimes there is no different option. What should you do then?

For a lot of people, the answer is “nothing.” Instead of voting, they choose to be absent from the process, absolve themselves of responsibility, and blame God for allowing it to come to this.

One reason it’s sometimes difficult to vote is because we want to support someone without reservation. On social media, we “like” people that we care about, things that makes us laugh, or ideas that we agree with. Our “like” is our stamp of approval. If we only like it a little bit, we’re likely to move on to something else.  (Read More)

(American Greatness) A mayoral candidate in Texas was arrested October 8 and charged with 84 counts of mail application ballot fraud; Zul Mohamed, running for mayor of Carrollton, forged nearly one hundred voter registration applications. “At the time of arrest, Mohamed was in the process of stuffing envelopes with additional mail ballot applications for neighboring Dallas County,” law enforcement officials reported. He also was charged with 25 counts of “unlawful possession of an official mail in ballot” and faces up to 20 years in prison.

The incident was just one more in a string of reports last week about rampant voter fraud.

But facts are a tough thing for our Big Tech overlords to accept. The day after the Texas arrest, Twitter issued another election-related decree allowing the company to censor and suppress posts critical of mail-in voting.  (Read More)

(FRC Action) “If there is a silver lining in the coronavirus pandemic, it may be the education that parents have received about what their children are being taught in government schools.” As FRC President Tony Perkins made clear in the introduction to the sixth episode of FRC’s Pray Vote Stand 2020 webcast series, government classrooms are where “kindergartners are learning that sex is encouraged but God is taboo” and kids are taught that America is a toxic, fundamentally unjust place.

“Parents need to know that they’re being cut out of the conversation, that teachers and administrators have an agenda,” said Maria Keffler, a Virginia mom who formed the Arlington Parent Coalition to fight back against the radical Left’s public school agenda. “My first experience with this was at a working group meeting where the director of counseling at Arlington Public Schools said that the school needs to ‘help parents along’ if they’re not there yet.  (Read More)

(FRC) In an age where we’re constantly told to follow “the science,” everyone wants their decisions to be data driven. We study and research to ensure that what we are doing does not simply feel helpful, but actually is helpful.

At the same time, we’re all told we should vote because every vote makes a difference. We’re often told this by the same people who tell us that our decisions should be data driven. Sometimes the idea that every vote makes a difference isn’t actually supported by the data. For example, in the 2016 election, 139 million people voted in the presidential election. That’s a lot of people.

Those of us who followed the law only voted once. You don’t need to be a math major to realize that one vote out of 139 million isn’t going very far to determine who the president is. Let’s be honest, if you or I had decided not to vote, we would still have the same president. But our vote still matters. Here’s why.  (Read More)

(Idaho Freedom Foundation) When times get tough, teachers unions roll up their sleeves and … walk out on 35,000 students.

On September 23, James Orr, the vice president of the West Ada Education Association (WAEA), sent a survey to all union members. He asked if they want to participate in a “work action” until the West Ada School Board meets WAEA demands. A work action is a strike, walk out, or march to force employers into compliance with union demands. The union’s board members will review the results of the survey after September 2 at their monthly meeting.

According to Orr’s email to union members, the threat of a work action is a response to the current “climate of the district and state.” This climate is one of pressure from hundreds of parents protesting school closures and lawmakers advocating for reopening of West Ada county schools.   (Read More)

(Daily Signal) What has gotten into the water in Virginia?

The commonwealth has quickly gone from a purple-state battleground to embracing a kind of left-wing extremism that makes California seem almost normal by comparison.

The latest insanity comes from Loudoun County, where the school board is set to vote on a radical new code of conduct policy that is akin to something you may see in the defunct Soviet Union or in Communist China.

According to a draft of a policy, “Any comments that are not in alignment with the school division’s commitment to action-oriented equity practices” will be subject to punishment.  (Read More)

(LifeNews) A new national poll shows Americans support the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett by double-digit margins.

A new Morning Consult poll shows Americans support Barrett on a 46-31% margin and that 15% margin of support is an increase from the polling firms last national survey in September following her nomination. That poll had Americans backing Barrett 37-34%, a resulting 12% increase from the 3% margin previously.

“Democrats are losing the Supreme Court messaging war, new polling indicates, with support for Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation trending in the GOP’s direction,” the polling firm indicated.  (Read More)

(FRC Action) He meant it as an insult, but when Chris Rock mentioned the president’s condition on “Saturday Night Live” and said, “my heart goes out to COVID,” the White House probably chuckled in agreement. If there’s one person the virus probably regrets infecting, it’s a fighter like Donald Trump. From the minute he announced his diagnosis to every upbeat video since, the president isn’t flinching in the face of this test. He’s doing what he’s done since the very beginning: confronting the virus head-on.

Other men might have hidden behind their doctors’ assessments. President Trump has not. He’s taken every opportunity to reassure the American people. “We’re getting great reports,” he said, looking a little more like his old self on Sunday. “It’s been an interesting journey,” he admitted. “I learned a lot about COVID. I learned it by really going to school. This is the real school. This isn’t the let’s-read-the-books school. And I get it. And I understand it.”  (Read More)

(FRC) It isn’t a crime to be a Christian — but according to the Biden campaign, it is a crime to nominate one to the Supreme Court. In an eye-opening exchange, one of the Democrat’s staffers seemed appalled that Amy Coney Barrett’s resume includes a stint as a trustee of an Indiana Catholic school. The scandal, at least to liberals, isn’t that the school is Catholic — but that it acts like one.

Like Karen Pence, Barrett is under fire for daring to associate with a school that rejects things like homosexuality and premarital sex. Maybe the self-professed Catholic Biden and his staff never got the memo that this is what orthodox Catholics do!  (Read More)

(OneNewsNow) The coronavirus pandemic has hurt many Christian organizations including one that is raising up girls in Christ.

This year, American Heritage Girls is celebrating its 25-year anniversary after it was launched when the Girl Scouts dropped God and faith, and took a hard left turn on social issues.

Heritage Girls co-founder Patti Garabay tells OneNewsNow that Heritage Girls celebrated the birthday as expected: with a day of service to others.  (Read More)

(Redoubt News) Gov. Brad Little was handed a major opportunity last week to defend religious liberty in his own state, but he punted. After three people were arrested for singing church hymns in a Moscow, Idaho, parking lot, Little’s office issued what had to be the weakest possible statement imaginable, designed not in defense of the poor worshipers who now find themselves facing fines and jail time, but in support and defense of the governor and his handling of the coronavirus.

The statement , “Governor Little has worked closely with religious leaders to ensure Idahoans’ spiritual needs are met during this historically difficult time.”  (Read More)

(LifeNews) It’s Monday…and that means it’s time to update the number of babies saved from abortion through your prayers. Today, we know of 102 babies spared from abortion since September 23!

Karen in Downers Grove, Illinois noticed a young couple lingering in the parking lot of the abortion facility.

“It looked like they were struggling,” she reported.

Karen offered the couple pregnancy help resources and shared with them the racist roots of the abortion industry, which she said “sparked their interest.”  (Read More)

(Faith & Freedom) Joe Biden is targeting evangelicals and conservative Catholics this week with a million dollar plus campaign that portrays Biden and running mate Kamala Harris as “the clear moral choice” in the presidential election.

Have you read the Democrat platform regarding abortion—and marriage?

The moral “choice” has been made in that Joe Biden repeatedly says, “I am the Democratic Party.”  (Read More)

(Idaho Freedom Foundation) If you’ve read that three people were arrested in Moscow for singing church hymns, you’d be forgiven for instantly thinking Moscow, Russia. But no, this happened in Moscow, Idaho, USA. The trio were accused of not following government orders that require social distancing and wearing of masks. They were at an outdoor church event — a psalm singalong featuring about 200 people.

I’m old enough to remember when engaging in fellowship with other members of the same church would not have been the stuff of news articles or police action. Today, in the wrong part of the state or country, you are at risk of fines, the possibility of jail time, and a permanent criminal record. It so happens that there are places, even in Idaho, where not wearing a mask is seen as a legitimate reason to throw handcuffs on someone, as Moscow officials have now proved.

Since when do citizens of the United States of America get arrested for attending a peaceful religious service and singing songs in praise and worship of God?  (Read More)

(LifeNews) The discussion/debate/argument over the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court would be high stakes even if we considered only (if confirmed) she would replace an icon of the pro-abortion left, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. But when President Trump formally announced he had selected Judge Barrett, it opened the door to the kind of first principles conversation pro-abortionists loathe.

Of course, for them, first and foremost is the preservation of Roe v. Wade, a talisman of the secular pro-abortion left.  (Read More)

(FRC) With election day less than 40 days away, it is easy to forget that Americans are voting right now. Many states have begun early in-person voting, and Americans are filling out and mailing in their mail-in ballots — including military personnel. Protecting the voting rights of those who protect our right to vote is essential, and that’s why when nine mail-in ballots (seven of which were from military personnel) were discovered in the trash in Pennsylvania, the Department of Justice announced they will launch an investigation.

By now, the contours of our electoral college system are well-established — several key battleground states will likely determine who our next president is. Among the most coveted of these battleground states are former “blue wall” states like Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.  (Read More)

Every Vote Counts!  Take the challenge to pray, vote, and stand at PrayVoteStand.org.

(PJ Media) Three Christian schools and a Christian network of pregnancy centers are suing Attorney General Mark Herring (D-Va.) in order to prevent Virginia from implementing two pro-LGBT laws that force “people of faith to adopt a particular government ideology under threat of punishment.” The two laws purport to prevent “discrimination” against LGBT people but, in reality, they force Christian ministries to choose between violating their sincerely held religious beliefs or paying hefty fines, as much as $100,000 per offense.

The so-called Virginia Values Act (S.B. 868), which Gov. Ralph Northam (D-Va.) signed on Holy Saturday (the day before Easter Sunday) in the middle of a pandemic, compels churches, religious schools, and Christian ministries to hire employees who do not share their stated beliefs on marriage, sexuality, and gender identity.  (Read More)

(RedState) Logic, science, reason, and art used to be exclusive territory of the Church. The Church gave us the heavens, our appreciation for the human form, and apologetics — the study of reason itself. It makes sense because all of these disciplines are nothing but the exploration of the mechanics of God. The Church used to be on the cutting edge of all these things because the Church used to be the counter culture.

Now we are whimpering, weak subjects of a hostile state and our pastoral leaders have left behind the “counter” and joined the “culture.” Instead of looking to the science and the data ourselves, we have been satisfied to simply believe every utterance coming from government, despite the traditionally adversarial relationship between the Church and the state.  (Read More)

(Todd Starnes) Tens of thousands of Christians are gathering in Washington, D.C. today for a prayer march hosted by Franklin Graham and a worship event called “The Return.”

Vice President Mike Pence delivered opening remarks at the prayer march.

“In these challenging times we do well as you do today to remember that in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving that we are to present our requests to God,” the vice president said. “And we can claim the promise that the Peace of God that passes all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus as His grace has through the generations of this nation.”

“We need to be the United States of America, not the divided states of America,” the famed evangelist said before the march.  (Read More)

(Redoubt News) A Catholic Priest in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota has been under fire from the Globalists on the left, including the Archbishop of St. Paul-Minneapolis, who has called the homily “inappropriate”.

“The use of a homily to present medical or scientific speculation … could be seen as an abuse of the cleric’s position of authority to address an issue unrelated to the liturgical celebration.”

I don’t think this fits in with what everyone believes should come from the clergy. People have always wanted their spiritual leaders to guide them in the topics of the day, be it pro-choice vs pro-life, or if it concerns rebellion in Revolutionary War times. The clergy have always weighed in on a number of controversial issues.  (Read More)