Month: February 2014

A Short Historical Look at the United States National Debt


Debt Clock

 

This great nation started in debt. On the 4th of July 1776 our independence was declared; however fighting was necessary. England did not just agree to give us our independence. Untrained men became brave soldiers and fought for the freedom of this nation.

         The conditions were pitiful. There was not enough food, not enough water, no proper clothing or shelter for the rough winters and not even enough proper weapons to fight against one of the most powerful armies in the history of humanity.

         In 1791, as our first President was inaugurated, our national debt was $75,463,477. This is an equivalent of $1,886,586,925 in today’s money. Our founder fathers did not like to be in debt; our first presidents were not comfortable with debt. The national debt was an important issue, year after year, and election after election.

         As we study the national debt of this nation we can also clearly see that wars are too expensive. For example, during the times of Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War, we saw the national debt surpassing one billion dollars for the first time in our history. In 1863 we saw our national debt go up to $1,119,772,139 that is an equivalent of over twenty billion dollars in today’s money. However, just like the war for our independence was necessary, our Civil War was to. For in the first war we fought for our freedom as a nation, but in the second one we fought for freedom that was denied to the slaves. Our founding father’s dealings with slaves; to this day, continues to be our greatest contradiction and hypocrisy as a nation.

         The national debt stood in around two billion dollars until the year 1913. Then we saw a rapid increase in our debt; we saw the three billions, we saw the five, we saw the teens, the twenty billions in debts, the thirty billion, the forty billion, the over seventy billion in debt and then in 1943 we went over 130 billion dollars in debt. That was the point of no return!

         In 1982 we broke another mark; this time our national debt went over a trillion dollars. Republican and Democrat Presidents, both, saw this national debt increasing. Conservatives and Liberal President alike have done nothing to bring this number down.

         See, I love these numbers because Republicans and Democrats all have their favorite Presidents that they love to idolize, but these numbers tell us the truth. If we take Ronald Reagan as a starting point, we can see that the national debt went up every year under his administration. The same pattern continued under George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and our current President.

         By the time George W. Bush became president, our national debt was over five trillion dollars. By the time George W. Bush left office, our national debt surpassed the ten trillion dollars. Under our current Presidents we went over 13 trillion dollars the first year. Today our national debt surpasses 17 trillion dollars. President Obama did not give us change, he gave us more of the same; the pattern of debt continues.

         The question is, has the United States of America ever been debt free? The answer is yes, on January 8, 1835, under President Andrew Jackson, this nation was debt free. By the way, President Andrew Jackson was a Democrat. His dealings with slaves and Native Americans were indeed shameful, but when it comes down to fiscal responsibility, Democrats and Republicans today can learn a thing or two from this man. No other President, in the history of this nation is able to show such success in addressing the issue of our national debt.

         Democrats and Republicans have been sharing in power for a long time; they both have gotten us to this place of debt as a nation. Is it time for a third party? How can we pay off this debt? I don’t know, but I hope that God raises somebody that knows how.

Surpluses in The United States Of America


White House, Sen, House

Surplus
Year President’s Name President’s Party House Senate Amount (B)
1947 Harry Truman Democrat R R  $42.11  
1948 Harry Truman Democrat D D  $114.56  
1949 Harry Truman Democrat D D  $5.88  
1951 Harry Truman Democrat D D  $54.95
1956 Dwight Eisenhower Republican D D  $33.62  
1957 Dwight Eisenhower Republican D D  $28.33  
1960 Dwight Eisenhower Republican D D  $2.36
1969 Richard Nixon Republican D D  $20.38
1998 Bill Clinton Democrat R R  $99.28  
1999 Bill Clinton Democrat R R  $176.16  
2000 Bill Clinton Democrat R R  $320.76  
2001 George Bush Republican R D  $168.16  
So what can we say about these numbers:
1.  Since 1941, that is, in 76 years, the United States has only experimented 12 years of Budget Surplus.
The rest of the 64 years have been deficits.
2. Only Five Presidents are a part of this prestigious group of Surpluses. 7 times under a Democrat President and 5 times under a Republican President.
3. With the exception of Harry Truman in 1948, 1949 and 1951, the rest of the Surpluses took place with both, House and Senate , been of a opposive party that the President.
George Bush actually lost the Senate to the Democrats the year he experience his surplus in 2001. The last surplus ever registered, by the way!
4. President Dwight Eisenhower (Republican) experienced his three budget surplus years with a blue House and Senate.
 Likewise, President Bill Clinton experienced his three budget surpluses
with an opposive House and Senate; that is including the largest surplus ever in the history of this nation, $320 Billion surplus in 2000.
Why do I point these things out? As we look at the condition of our government, I can’t help but experience a degree of sadness and disappointment. We have had 8 years of the greatest deficits in the history of this nation. President Obama accumulated more debt than all of the Presidents in the history of the United States combine. Wow!
Our national debt is now over 20 Trillion dollards and counting.
Donald Trump now has both, the House and Senate; he starts his term as President, just like Obama did. No excuses! Right? However, history has shown us that America is at her best when the President is of a different party affiliation than the House and the Senate. My concern in today’s politics is that the gab between parties is wider than ever and I don’t think they are able to reach out to the other party without feeling that they are compromising their essence. I hope that this President, this House and Senate get things done and start changing these and other foundational numbers related to our economy. If they fail to do so, many Republicans, especially the conservative wing of the party, will send a strong message of our disgust with the current style of selfish politics. A selfishness to a degree that is placing ideologies over the good of the nations.

I don’t know about you, but I will be watching for those numbers that count:

Surpluses or deficits, employment, employment participation rate, home ownership, job creation, the economy, etc.

God bless you!

The Burger King Gospel


jesus-hand-follow-me

Jesus is not someone that you can bring along after you make your plans. Jesus is not obligated to give us everything we want just because we name it and claim it.  We can’t manipulate Him with selfish giving. God knows best and He is not in the business of blessing our mess. He wants what is right for us at the right time and in the center of the right season.

            I am tired of these preachers and want-to-be-preachers that are giving us highly eloquent and homiletically perfect sermons that are filled with doctrines of demons. Beloved, the Gospel is free, but it will cost us everything; that is the truth. The Gospel is not about you having it your way, but about you and I getting out of the way. Beloved, at the end, that is the best way. The Bible tells us in Luke 9:23-24,

23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. (NKJV)

Un Vistazo a Nuestra Historia Como Pueblo de Dios Parte 14


church_history_button

6 Estoy maravillado de que tan pronto os hayáis alejado del que os llamó por la gracia de Cristo, para seguir un evangelio diferente.

7 No que haya otro, sino que hay algunos que os perturban y quieren pervertir el evangelio de Cristo.

8 Mas si aun nosotros, o un ángel del cielo, os anunciare otro evangelio diferente del que os hemos anunciado, sea anatema.

9 Como antes hemos dicho, también ahora lo repito: Si alguno os predica diferente evangelio del que habéis recibido, sea anatema.

10 Pues, ¿busco ahora el favor de los hombres, o el de Dios? ¿O trato de agradar a los hombres? Pues si todavía agradara a los hombres, no sería siervo de Cristo.

11 Mas os hago saber, hermanos, que el evangelio anunciado por mí, no es según hombre;

12 pues yo ni lo recibí ni lo aprendí de hombre alguno, sino por revelación de Jesucristo. Gálatas 1:6-9 (Reina Valera 1960)

 

      Estas palabras fueron escritas por el Apóstol Pablo. Como ven en el verso 6, la verdad de la doctrina del evangelio ha sido atacada desde el principio.

      Pablo le dice a la Iglesia de Gálatas en el verso 6, “Estoy maravillado de que tan pronto os hayáis alejado del que os llamó por la gracia de Cristo, para seguir un evangelio diferente.”

     Los versos 8 y 9 son claves; aquí Pablo declara que si aún ángeles del cielo declaran un evangelio diferente, que los mismos sean considerados anatemas. La palabra Anatema significa, “Maldecido”.

      El verso 10 nos habla de la integridad de Pablo; Pablo era un hombre que deseaba agradar a Dios por encima de los hombres. Estas palabras nos enseñan que nuestra lealtad es, sobre todo, con Dios y no con los hombres.

      Los versos 11 y 12 responden a la realidad de la cual hemos estado hablado en esta serie. Los profetas del Viejo Testamento y los Apóstoles del Nuevo Testamento que fueron utilizados por Dios para escribir la Biblia, no fueron hombres perfectos, mas la doctrina que enseñaron, sí lo fue.

      La edad media, es la edad obscura de la Iglesia Católica. Este largo tiempo de obscuridad representó un tiempo en donde la Bibia fue brutalmente violada.

     De la Iglesia Católica surgió un evangelio extraño, un evangelio que se alejó completamente de la verdad de la Palabra y abrió pasos a herejías, secularismo, arrogancia y atrocidades en contra de la verdad.

      ¿En dónde en la Biblia encontramos que el purgatorio existe? ¿En dónde en la Biblia habla de rezarle a santos? ¿En dónde en la Biblia habla de que podemos pagar dinero para que nuestros pecados sean perdonados y aún los pecados de nuestros familiares y los seres queridos ya muertos? ¿Dónde en la Biblia encontramos la posición o el título de Papa? Mas cuando se perdió el respeto a la Palabra de Dios se abrieron las puertas  a semejantes disparates doctrinales. La Iglesia Católica pasó a ser anatema.

      Es cierto que por más de 1,500 años la Iglesia Católica fue céntrica, con defectos y virtudes, en representar el Cristianismo a través del mundo, pero ¿son ellos mejor que los ángeles del cielo? ¿Estamos acaso llamados a obedecer a la Iglesia Católica o a Dios?

     Nadie está justificado en torno a traer otro evangelio. Nuestra lealtad no es con la Iglesia Católica, Pentecostal, Presbiteriana, Luterana, etc. nuestra lealtad es para con Dios. La Iglesia Católica comenzó bien, mas luego se envaneció por poder y por fortuna.

      Vemos entonces que de aquí en adelante Dios levantaría hombres que con pasión sobrenatural llamarían al pueblo a retornar a las Escrituras. Ese fue el grito de Juan Wycliffe, el grito de Juan Huss y el grito que finalmente nos traería la reforma a través de Martín Lutero.

Continúa…

Everything Gets Old


Lost-interest

 

Everything gets old after while. The new car will lose the new car smell. That new pair of Jordan’s will get some scratches on it, they will really get old when the new pair of Jordan’s hits the market. That iPhone that you can’t seem to be able to take your hands off will be a thing of the past three months later when the new design is introduced. That girl friend will not be as pretty after marriage. Your husband’s six-pack will turn into a gallon. That job that was so exciting in the beginning, but now you can do with your eyes closed, yes, that one will get old to.

      The list does not stop here; the reality is that everything gets old after while. That is indeed a Biblical principle; Ecclesiastes 1:1 tells us,

“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher; 
“Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” (NKJV)

 

      The man that gave life to these words was not a poor man or a man who did not have access to education or great life experiences. The man who wrote these words was the great Salomon. Salomon had everything, he was king of Israel during the best times of this great nation, and Salomon married whomever he wanted. He was surrounded with beauty, fame, riches and an unmatched wisdom. Nevertheless, this man concluded that, all is vanity.

      This article may come across as depressing and hopeless, but is really describing the condition of a life where Jesus is not the center.

      One of the things I am learning is that the center of our lives can’t ever be empty. Something will always be there occupying that space. When that center is not Jesus then an idol is.

      When an idol is at the center of our lives then we have embrace the process of self-destruction and not the abundant life that can only be successfully provided by Jesus. Removing Christ from the center is the greatest tragedy in the history of humanity. Wherever Christ is not embrace as a King, Savior and Lord death reign.

      In the New Testament we have a graphic example of a human heart without Christ. In John chapter four we see the story of the Samaritan woman,

13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 4:13-14 (NKJV)

      The only thing that will never get old is Christ, he said, “…whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.” In John 6:35 Jesus takes this thing further as he declares,

And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” (NKJV)

 

      Jesus is giving us spiritual principles; in Him we will never be spiritually thirsty or hungry. Beloved, Jesus is the hope of this world. I think that many of us are tired of church’s rituals and man made religion. Our church gatherings are also getting old. We are not doing a good job expressing the awesomeness of Christ in our gathering. But I encourage you to be inspired by the Samaritan Woman. Her encounter with Christ, transformed her, and her community.