It has been a while since we had a news segment in this publication, but this time I have two items I need to cover. The first is a change to this publication which I want everyone to know about! It has been our observation that calling this publication a "newsletter" is not advantageous. When people hear you have a "newsletter," they immediately believe it's only for news about your organization and nothing else. Even when we have tried to explain that it's actually a teaching publication, the news idea is simply something they, many times, can't get over. From the beginning we have had this struggle, and the debate has always been that this publication is not really big enough to be described as a magazine. The form in which it's published does fit under the technical description of a newsletter, and so we have went with that. However, as I have prayed for the Lord's guidance on this subject, I feel it's time for a change, and that change will be to give this publication a name of its own.

Another factor in continuing as long as we have in calling this the Living Springs Institute's Newsletter is we want to promote the Institute's name, and with that, the website, www.livingspringsinstitute.org. On that note, I want to make it clear that our website will stay the same. Livingspringsinstitute.org will continue to be our main ministry website where people can find information about us, submit Q&As, order printed materials,read commentaries and access everything we offer!

What this name change will mean to reading this publication is not much. Nothing about its content will change. We will carry on with the "Following the Biblical Stream" series, we will include Q&As and commentaries as the Lord leads. None of that will change! In fact, even the issue numbers will stay in sequence as the name change is made. We want everybody to be clear that this change is nothing more than a tool we hope will increase our ability to get this publication into the hands of as many people as possible!

The biggest concern with this change is the fact we do not want to lose those who pick up this publication at our distribution locations. If a person misses picking up an issue, we don't want that to be a reason for them to believe this publication is no longer available. So, over the next few issues you will be seeing a gradual shift in the graphics and title, mostly at the top of this front page, and nothing else.

Now, we are not going to reveal the new name just yet! I really do not intent to be mean, but I am quickly running out of room for this news segment; and when I tell you the new name, I want to tell you not just what it is but why it was chosen. So, we will talk about that in our next issue. We are excited about this change and we hope you will like it too!

The second thing I wanted to mention is that we actually had a question submitted about something which was said in the "Following The Biblical Stream" segment from issue #25. This question opened the opportunity to further expound on a couple of subjects which are very relevant to our Bible study. The result of this question is an article which fills up the pages of this current issue. In many ways, this article is part of "Following The Biblical Stream" but it's also a Q&A segment. So, if you have picked up this issue looking for "Following The Biblical Stream" or the second installment of DeCoding The Truth, I apologize. Lord willing, both of these featured articles will return in our next issue. For now, I hope you will enjoy the teaching contained in this issue; and as always, if you have questions concerning any of our teaching, please do not hesitate to ask.

Thank You!

In Issue #25 of your newsletter - in the FBS section - you said "through transplant surgery, we find even human bodies can be used for parts, and that's ok, because once death has come, our body is of no use to us?" Can you expound on this subject and where do you stand on the use of aborted babies in the production of cosmetics or commercial goods?

The following is the paragraph from "Following the Biblical Stream" about which the above question was asked - "The only defense you can make for Cain is the fact this was, as far as we know, not only the first murder but the first human death which had ever occurred! This is one of the reasons God made coats of skin to cover Adam and Eve's nakedness. Humans had not existed long enough to understand death, and they needed to know that death was the end of these physical forms. Not to be gory, but using the animals' skins to cover Adam and Eve would emphasize the fact, the animals would no longer be needing them. The animals' physical parts could be used for other purposes! Now, I'm not suggesting that humans fall into this same category. Humans represent something much higher than animals. However, the truth of the physical form is the same. Once we die, our bodies take a huge step forward on their journey back to the dust from which they were made. (Gen. 3:19) Through transplant surgery, we find even human bodies can be used for parts, and that's OK, because once death has come, our body is of no use to us! (I Tim 6:7)"

Understanding this subject in a thorough way requires the understanding of things most churches simply do not teach anymore. If you are still in this flesh, it simply does not matter how many times you say the "sinner's prayer," you are not yet saved nor are you born again! Jesus did not come to save us from dying, Jesus came to save us from death. To be saved, or born again, we must face death, and this is why God took man from the Tree of Life after man fell into sin. Living this life forever would mean no chance at salvation or rebirth. So, God separated us from the Tree of Life that we could face death; and God made a way, through His Son, to save us from death by a process of rebirth. (John 3:1-21)

This means we should dedicate our lives to God. We should seek to build a relationship with Him. That is the description of faith! Abraham had a relationship with God and it was counted unto him for righteousness. (Romans 4:3) However, faith in God is not a way to sidestep death. The flesh you live in will still die and be left behind. Faith in God is the substance of what we hope will only get better and better, and the evidence that God will not allow a thing like death to separate us from Him! (Heb. 11:1)

You see, this flesh is the way in which we interact with others. We were created in innocence, not perfection; and being responsible for the knowledge of good and evil is not something we are born ready to do. The reason we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God, (Romans 3:23) is not necessarily because we have all intentionally rebelled against God directly, but we certainly all fail at more than one point or another to judge justly in our actions toward others. (Gen. 2:16-17) Because all men are made in the image of God, we must also understand when we wrong others, we wrong God, whether we realize it or not. God tells us in Matthew 25:31-46, when we do things for even the "least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Now, Jesus talked about good works, but made it clear that if doing good works unto men was like doing it unto God, it's also true about doing bad works. This is why Jesus says in Matthew 18:5-6, "And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea." Living justly dictates that it's better to give up our lives than to do even the simplest thing wrong! This is the truth Jesus demonstrated through His life.

Why is this true? Because against things which are pure and just there is no law! (Gal. 5:16-26, Phil. 4:8) However, the wages of sin are eternal death. (Rom. 6:23) This was what we were talking about in the "Following The Biblical Stream" segment you are asking about. This flesh has done wrong, and for that wrong it must return to dust just as God told Adam and Eve, after they fell to sin. This is why Paul explains in I Cor. 15:51-58 that we will not stay the same but we will all be changed. Even if we are alive and remain at the time of the Messiah's return, we will have to be changed. I Cor. 15:50 specifically tells us flesh and blood can not inherit the kingdom of God!

Death, as it relates to the flesh, is simply God allowing these bodies to return to dust! (Gen. 3:19) At a point which may differ somewhat from person to person, the parts of us which are not flesh, lose the ability to stay connected to this body. Since the body is as vital a part of us as anything else we are, this is a serious problem. Jesus came to make a way around that problem. Many people misunderstand the work Jesus came to do and still believe our current flesh is important to our eternal life, when in fact, Jesus never came to save this current flesh, Jesus came to give us new forms. (Matt. 16:24-27) This means shedding this flesh no longer has to be a bad thing, it can be a good thing. For those who care nothing about the work of God, death will mean eternal separation from this flesh which connects them to this world. Separation from this world means the loss of ability to harm others, and that is the judgment for failing to be perfectly responsible for the knowledge of good and evil. Now, more importantly, death without faith in God means eternal separation from God. However, for those who desire the things of God, Jesus has provided, not just eternal life, like we have now, but a new incorruptible form without all the problems and vulnerability of this form.

Many Christians do not appreciate just how much pagan thought is still mixed into their theology. Many think it's strange that the ancient Egyptians believed the continuance of these physical bodies even after their death was vital to their continuance in the after life. This is why Egyptians mummified bodies. However, over the centuries, many Christians have believed and taught similar thoughts. Many people believe in things like "grave sleeping," a theology which tells us, everything we are simply lays in the grave with the physical body, or is dormant in someway until the first or second resurrection. This theology believes there remains, even after death, a connection between the body and the rest of what we are.

Not everybody believes in grave sleeping or that my description of grave sleeping is right, but many still hold theology which is very fleshly. Most people's thoughts would have us believe that we are still connected to, at least, time as we know it here, when in fact, death is the loss of all connection to this world. Loved ones are not looking down on us from "above" nor do they guide us from the "beyond." These are all pagan thought patterns which are strictly based on the carnal idea that this world and life is what is important. We just can't seem to give it up!

We should stop and ask ourselves, why does God know the future? The answer is, because He is not living in this one step in front of the other time sequence we are living in. Time, as we know it, simply did not exist until God created it. Time is as much a part of our environment as the sky, water, and land. Now, this is a concept which is understandably hard for us to grasp, and we will never, in this life, fully comprehend what it means to be outside of time. That's OK, but we need to, at the very least, understand that God is not limited by time; and our flesh is what connects us to this world, which includes time. Jesus told us that leaving this world without a relationship with God would send us into "outer darkness." (Matt. 8:12) Even the statement about weeping and gnashing of teeth was the description of emotion not physical action. One step in front of another was how we were created to live, and we only have that capability if we have a foot of some kind to put in front of the other! If we could, in some way, stay connected to these physical forms after death, or this world in general, it would not have been so important that Jesus come and die for our sin. Nor would God have removed us from our physical form's sustaining power - the Tree Of Life! The judgment for sin was that these forms would return to dust. The fact our physical form will cease to be of any use to us is the problem Jesus came to fix for those who still desire a relationship with God. Thus, it's not necessary for these physical forms to stay intact in order for us to be resurrected, that would be a pagan belief like the Egyptians. The very fact it's impossible for any sinful human to hold on to these bodies is why we will have to be born again!

This is the point I was making in talking about the animals' skins being used to cover Adam and Eve's nakedness. While the animal was alive, their skin was their skin, but after the death of the animal, their skin was simply a part of nature. A physical resource good for anything we find useful. As man developed technology, plant material would become a large part of what man would make clothing out of. As technology further developed, whether for good or bad, man would learn he could make clothing out of the same base resource he used to fuel his car - thus, polyester. Physical material is physical material. It's all built from very basic elements. In Genesis, God made the heavens and the earth. After that, God introduced light, then separated the light from the darkness. From there, God separated the more tangible elements He made, by putting some of the "firmament" above and leaving some of it below. God gathers the water below so dry land beneath it could appear. Then, God creates plant and animal life by commanding the air, water, and ground to bring it forth. Genesis conveys a fact we should not miss. Over and over, God creates by simply speaking words. However, after God created everything we know, He does not simply speak us into existence. God does not even speak our physical forms into existence. It was not the ground which would bring forth human life, it would be directly God Himself. God would reach down and form our physical bodies from the dust of the ground. Then, He would breathe the breath of life into humanity. To give humans the opportunity to control the number of humans which would exist, God took a piece of the man and created the woman. Humans are special and set apart! This is what I was saying when I stated in "Following The Biblical Stream," "Humans represent something much higher than animals." (I Cor. 15:39)

When plants and animals do what they do, they are reacting to their surroundings based on a set of built-in instincts. This is why understanding the behavior of even our most domesticated animals, still comes from an understanding of their natural behavior. Dogs, for example, are pack animals. Understanding their nature as a pack animal explains a multitude of problems people have with dogs. Many trainers have even come to say, it's not a "dog problem" but an "owner problem." Many dog owners simply do not respect the natural instincts which guide a dog's actions, nor how to work within those confines. The same is true with plants. Certain plants will only grow in certain areas. They, by their nature, must have certain temperatures for, at least, certain time periods. Sometimes when plants get into an area, they will over populate because the conditions are too favorable to their propagation, with nothing to keep them in check. These plants don't know what they are doing, they are simply propagating. If something doesn't keep plants and animals in this situation from multiplying and/or growing, they have the potential to cause great destruction.

This complexity of dealing with a group of free willed beings is why God tells us it's our actions which are important not the actions of others. We need to choose the right, even when others choose to be wrong, and even when wrong directly affects us. The book of Revelation tells us, when we do this, we may even find ourselves without the ability to interact with society in a normal way, (Rev. 13:16-17) but we are still to choose the right and reject the wrong under these circumstances. Only to those who "endure temptation" will the Crown of Life be given. (James 1:12) This is all part of trusting God with our lives. Our choices need to be to do the right thing before God, first and foremost, then before men. When God created humans, it was no mistake that God created only one. God said it was not good for man to be alone, but that did not take from humanity the individuality which was created in the first place. Our actions, not those of others, are what we will be held accountable for. The choices we make for our lives are the key to living rightly or wrongly. This means men may judge us, but each man must be persuaded in his own mind that he is walking upright, no matter what others say. Our choices should not be dictated by fleshly instinct but by thoughtful consideration and communication with God. Our choices matter!

Once the body has returned to what we would commonly describe as dust, there is no longer a debate, but obviously when we talk about the issue of organ transplant, we are talking about a time long before the body has truly returned to dust as we know it. This means, when we take an organ from one body and place it in another, it may be amazing it ever works, but the surgery itself is mechanics, complex mechanics but mechanics nonetheless. It's the manipulation of physics God created, and it's always up to the life in the recipients body to perform the ultimate healing of, and connections with, the donated organ. As I said in the original writing which spurred this question, upon death, the body is no longer of use to the one whom it originally belonged to, and that is certainly true. In life, you are what you eat, in death, you can no longer eat or process anything; therefore it all comes down to the scripture that tells us, we brought nothing into this world and we can be sure we will carry nothing out! (I Tim. 6:7) However, a body which is still functioning may be able to utilize what another body can no longer sustain; but we are not really here to talk about what man is capable of doing, we are talking about what is truly right and what is wrong.

This brings us to a simple word that is debated much, and that word is "ethics." This word gets debated because men do not want to see right and wrong as simply black and white; thus, we talk about ethics, many times, as it relates to a specific profession or subject. Ethics for a business professional may be considered different from the ethics for a medical professional. However, the only reason there should ever be any difference in ethics for one from another, is only because of the specifics which that profession deals with. Right and wrong, in reality, all stems from very basic principals. It may be about money or it may be about organ donation, but true right and wrong is all based on the same foundation of righteousness. Now, the foundation of righteousness is best shown to us in the Ten Commandments. The first four brake down what it means to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. The next six, give us guidance on loving our neighbor as ourselves. (Matt. 22:37-40, Ex. 20:1-17) As it comes to what is right and wrong on the issue of how to handle the body, we must start in the same place everything starts, with loving God.

This means we must respect what God has said and done. So, I go back to the fact God formed even our physical bodies from the dust instead of simply speaking us into existence. If we love God, we need to respect the fact that humans are set apart and special just as God made us. We may not be able to do anything about the fact we will return to dust, but even the physical form humans leave behind should be respected by those still living these physical lives. Now, I'm not talking about the requirement of large, and definitely not, expensive funerals. In fact, Jesus once had a disciple who wanted to go and bury his father before going forth with Jesus. Jesus' response was simply, "Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead" (Matt. 8:18-22) The work of the gospel even supersedes worldly concerns like burial of a close family member. As believers, we should consider this when planning a funeral. In respecting the fact God made humans special, we should respect the form which is left behind in the aspect that we do not have the freedom to simply use it in anyway we choose, like we would the plants and the animals. The bottom line is this, we were given dominion over the plants and animals, but we were not given dominion over each other. Each human is an individual who must make choices for themselves. God does not simply ask us, He demands it of us. Even if we choose to yield our lives to something or someone, God will hold us accountable for that choice and its results. That is why the only right choice is to repent of your sins and yield your life to one who is perfect. For that, there is only one choice, and that is God!

Upon death, we lose control over the physical form we leave behind, this means doing the right thing in respecting the human form God created is up to those who are still living here in the flesh. Doing the right thing with the body you have found yourself responsible for really comes down to being respectful of the fact it's something God created as special. When we talk about, laying a body to rest, many people think of the kind of false beliefs we talked about earlier, but what it really is all about, is simply leaving the body in a place where within reason, without being disturbed, it can return to the dust. This is what God said the body would do, and we should be respectful of it. However, there is the issue of the individual with a free will, which, as we already talked about, God takes very seriously. Even in death, there is the consideration that we should respect our neighbors decisions in the same way we would want ours to be respected. This means, doing more to a body than simply, for lack of a better term, "laying it to rest," is not respecting the freedom God gave each of us to make choices for ourselves. In following the words of Jesus about the dead burying the dead, we may choose not to honor, or we may have someone else deal with, a request for an extravagant time consuming ceremony or specific request which is hard to fulfill, but in general, it shouldn't be hard to do the right thing.

What all this simply means, to the subject of organ transplants, is that no body should be used for that purpose if someone has said anything from flat out "no" to nothing at all on the subject. The only time it's right to use a body for transplant is when the person has specifically said they desire it. In life, they made choices as to how their body would be treated; and in death, the living should respect the fact the dead are no longer able to make those choices. Only those things not outside what God has asked us, and a person has given specific permission for, should be allowed. This is following the loving God and respecting others, principals which are taught to us in the Word of God.

The point I was making, in "Following the Biblical Stream," was the fact there is nothing wrong with allowing someone else to share what you no longer have need of. Organ transplant is not far removed from the practice of donating blood. What must be maintained in the situation is freedom of choice. While there is nothing wrong with donating your organs, there is also nothing wrong with feeling you do not want to do such a thing. It would be unethical to pass a law, as some have suggested, demanding that all bodies be made available for transplant. The choice is in the hands of each individual. That being said, we should realize much of this discussion is also to understand that if the living do choose actions which you feel violate the body after death, don't be alarmed. Again, each will stand before God for their own actions, and no matter what someone chooses to do with your body after death, it does not affect your walk with God! What is ethical and what is actually done can, many times, be two different things; and that brings us to the second part of our question concerning the bodies of aborted babies.

It's actually very appropriate these questions are asked together, because they are very much the same. We have already talked about how God created us and that we are individuals. All those principals which are the foundation of righteousness apply here just the same. Remember, a discussion about true ethics only differs because of the specific ground which needs to be covered. So the foremost point to make on this issue is the simple fact that life begins at conception. An egg will never be more than an egg on its own, and the same is true for sperm. However, when they come together, all the elements for an individual life exist. Just because there is a process of growth which needs to take place before an individual is fully able to take care of themselves, is no reason to believe they are not human. If we believe that, then we think very much like Adolf Hitler, who believed he could determine who should live and who should die on simple criteria of value to society. Hitler believed in killing the sick, handicapped, and even whole races of people he felt were of lesser quality. In today's world of mass abortion and the conceiving of life simply for medical experimentation and parts, it's clear how a monster like Hitler was able to get so many people to go along with his iniquitous plans!

When talking about the issue of organ donation, it should be made clear that, again, consent is necessary. So, the first issue in using babies bodies in the production of commercial goods or even experimentation is the fact, no child could ever give this consent. Many societies even limit the serious choices children can make with their bodies until they are old enough to have a chance at making an informed decision. Many societies set age limits on things like alcohol and tobacco consumption. We also do not hold children responsible for their actions in the way we do adults. We understand that children perceive things like death differently. For the most part, children do not see death as permanent, and in a thousand different ways, children do not understand the consequences of their decisions. The problem is, we only seem to care about these things as they relate to the future health in the life of the child, instead of respecting the fact children are individuals too!

So, when it comes to the idea of parents being able to give consent for their unborn babies to be use for things, it should be reminded, thinking like that is exactly what causes abortions in the first place. Instead of seeing a child as a responsibility, parents see the child as property. God made His position clear in matters of parent and child relationship. Because parents must be responsible to raise a child and God set it up to be so, children are to honor their parents. (Eph. 6:1-3) However, children are still individuals which parents are responsible to raise in the ways of righteousness, not simply control. In the Torah, God told Israel, children were not to be put to death for the sin of a parent, and a parent is not to be put to death for the sin of their child. Every person should be judged according to their actions. (Deut. 24:16) The sin of a child who has not reached an age to be accountable for their actions is laid on the parents, (Deut. 1:37-39) and this simply speaks to the fact a parent has such control over a child in that state, when a child does something hurtful to others, it's the parents fault for allowing it. In these cases, the child allowed to do harmful actions is an extension of the parents' wrong decisions, not the child's. This should demonstrate to us just what a responsibility children are. God holds parents responsible for all the choices they make concerning their children. So, when a woman makes the statement, "It's my body, my choice;" it's true; but women will be held accountable before God when making the choice to kill the child inside their body, who is dependant on them for its protection and care! If you do not want the responsibility, then choose not to engage in the actions which will possibly result in a child; because once a child has been conceived, you are on the other side of things. If this scares you, seek help, but by all means do not believe it's an excuse to kill the child. As to the argument that killing the child is OK when the woman did not have a choice - such as rape and incest, this is simply wrong. Yes, the choice was made for you, but it's not the child's fault and that is why those who commit such acts are considered criminals. There is much injustice in the world, and the fact you have been a victim of injustice is no reason to be unjust yourself.

At the core of this issue is the disrespect of another human life, both before and after its death. The idea of using babies' body parts in the production of commercial goods is such an appalling disrespect of life, it should make any decent human shutter. When talking about the issue of transplant, we are talking about a person choosing to share a part of their life which they no longer have need of. It's not just the idea it benefits others, it's also the particular that the part is being used in the same manner God created it to be used! When we donate organs and blood for the sake of others' needs, we are sharing our life, not disregarding it. When we choose to donate an organ, it's not so someone in vanity can have softer skin, it's so someone can use that organ because theirs is failing.

We must respect what God has given us, and when the bodies of children are utilized for the vain pleasures of others, it shows a high disregard for the instructions God gave us in His Word. Even in life, we were given instructions by God as to how to treat our bodies. In the Word of God, we are told what we could use for food, which originally did not even include animals. (Gen. 1:29) At the point God gives us permission to use animals for food, we are specifically instructed not to drink the blood. (Gen. 9:1-6) With these truths shown to us in God's Word, how could we possibly believe it's OK to include human parts in the production of products we use on or in our bodies? Again, we were given dominion over the plants, animals, and even the planet itself, (Gen. 1:26) but we were not given the right to do with the human body what we please!

The next point in this discussion is the fact humans have become so depraved in their thought patterns, they will commit murder for the sake of having human parts. It's not bad enough that out of selfishness we, with utter disregard, kill children too weak to defend themselves, but we have to heap sin upon sin by using their dead bodies to selfishly improve the bodies of the living? In the minds of many, the fact body parts are useful in the production of products further justifies the killing of the child in the first place. Companies will spend millions of dollars to keep the practice of abortion legal just so they can continue to harvest the parts they want. There is seemingly no end to the depth of depravity humans will fall to, and if they can make it seem like a good thing, many others simply go right along with them.

Hitler convinced many Germans, and others, that slaughtering the Jews was going to benefit society as a whole. His propaganda machine did a very good job at convincing people that actually turning in your friends and neighbors to be hauled off, simply because of their race, was a good thing! Today, we sit thinking we have somehow outgrown such things, all the while, parents are allowing their children to be carted off for the use of parts. Killing children for the use of their stem cells is where we get to the opposite end of the stick when talking about the teaching segment, which brought up this question in the first place. The original question was spurred by teaching that the physical was going to die someday; thus, emphasizing the fact that focusing on the flesh, its desires, and what pleased it, was not the wise or prudent thing to do. We, as humans, should focus on our relationship with God, not the fleeting pleasures of this world. When it comes to a subject like stem cell research, it shows us just how far removed we are from that message!

Being inventive and exploratory is all part of what God built us to be. It's why we were given not just this planet full of life and mystery, but a universe so large we have not even discovered its boundaries! However, I repeat again, there are limits to our freedom. When man lived in innocence he was fully yielded to God's direction and instruction, much the way a young child is to its parents. When man chose to take of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil he became responsible for his own actions, based on the knowledge he now owned. Whether we choose to ask God for guidance or not is up to us, but we already know the basics. God did not have to come down and tell us, "Thou shalt not kill," for us to know murder was wrong. God told us because He wanted us to know if there was any question as to whether that feeling you have inside was real or just a society stigma - it's real!

Make no mistake about it, destroying what science likes to label as, embryos, is murder, plain and simple. All you have to ask yourself is why do they want to do it so bad? The answer is because man can not create life! The power in those beginning undefined cells of life are like nothing man has ever seen. Man can split an atom to unleash unspeakable energy, and use it to kill millions of people, cause untold suffering, and irreparable harm to his environment, but he can't create life. This is why it's so valuable if someone is willing to share what is left of their life with someone else through organ donation, but there is a reason we call it donation! Of course, the easiest way for a person needing an organ to get one is to simply find a person who's body lines up with their need, kill them and simply take what they want. When we destroy conceived children for the power of their stem cells, we are doing the same thing. It doesn't matter that we say it's all in the name of science and research - it's murder!

Some make the argument that "scientists" only want to use children that are going to be discarded anyway. Now, that may be about the saddest thing I've heard yet. It may sound good to some when politicians and researchers explain that couples who want invitro fertilization, many times, leave behind several "unused embryos" which will be thrown out anyway. It may seem logical under the circumstances to say, "all we want to do is use those for research instead of throwing them away," but that is because we have already accepted the initial wrong! For the sake of giving a couple, or in some cases one individual, the chance to have a child of their own, we accept a process which conceives several children, only to throw in the trash the ones we don't want. It's disturbing enough to hear that women will slather cream filled with the dead baby parts on their skin, but, at the very least, the babies are dead. In the debate over embryonic stem cell research, we are talking about disassembling live children for the sake of bettering or prolonging the lives of others! In that light, does it still make sense to argue, "We are only using children who were going to be thrown in the trash anyway?"

We have come a long way from that day when Cain talked with his brother and rose up to kill him. God tried to get us to put our focus on Him not on our flesh, but we have become so desirous to save our flesh that many people not only have children in an attempt to somehow prolong their existence, some are willing to kill their children to prolong their own existence. We tend to walk day by day and forget just how bad this world has gotten. (James 1:23-25) Then we are asked again to explore the sinful nature of man. (Matt. 24:12) In writing this article, I have been reminded, once again, of just how bad things have gotten, and that is always a good thing. We do not want to be that servant who believes his Lord delays His coming and begins to smite his brother. (Matt. 24:44-51) I don't know about you, but I want to be found ready to meet my Lord and Savior! As I shed literal tears of sadness for the children who are murdered everyday, I take comfort in knowing that they will never have to suffer in this world again. As I think of how dark the heart of man has become and the kind of world his sinful thoughts have built, I am reminded how much I agree with the words to a song I have known from childhood. Its chorus says, "Lately all I've got is leaving on my mind," and in talking about this world it says, "I couldn't care less if I could buy it all with a solitary dime, for what good would a world do me with leaving on my mind!" In light of what this world has come to, we should understand, now more than ever, God is our only hope! So, I close this writing by encouraging you to always seek to walk upright before Him, and when it all seems as if it's too much to bare, take comfort in God's promise that this life will pass!

"Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved." Ps. 55:22