“Keep that blog going!” John MacArthur said after signing my Bible and adding the citation Joshua 1:8:

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”

I met him last night at Grace Community Church’s evening service, where he preached about putting on the whole armor of God, beginning at Ephesians 6:10. I was surprised then glad he didn’t change his morning or evening sermons to factor in the election. He continued preaching on the series’ he began weeks ago.

It was a big deal for me meeting John MacArthur. Non-Christians won’t get it, and neither will Christians of certain denominations. But this Reformed Christian still carries around and studies from her 10-year-old MacArthur Study Bible, New King James version. In fact, I told MacArthur the story behind it. Years ago, my Bible-believing youngest sister guilt-tripped me into buying it (at which point Pastor MacArthur shook her hand). I wasn’t a Christian then, and it remained on my coffee table for a year still wrapped in its plastic packaging.

Since then, I’ve read it cover to cover at least twice, fallen in love with it, developed a deeper understanding of it, thanks to MacArthur’s study notes, and shared my excitement and awe about the overarching themes of rebellion, faith, and redemption within its pages.

Pastor MacArthur doesn’t preach politics from the pulpit, but I thought I’d take a moment to tell him I was a conservative blogger who wrote about politics from a Christian perspective, and I knew his view on Christians and politics. Being involved in politics isn’t the problem; believing politics will save is the problem. We tend to get caught up in the political process, policy debates, and the day-to-day he said/he said drama of it all. Christians know that being a conservative and/or voting for Republicans doesn’t make someone righteous in the way God requires.

MacArthur said (and I’m paraphrasing here) one has merely to look at what happened with the election to see that. Conservatives tried to create a superficial righteousness, a kind of morality devoid of what really matters: the saving grace of Christ. From that perspective, it doesn’t matter who’s in the White House.

I wanted to have a longer conversation with John MacArthur, but I kept my comments brief, as there was a line of people behind us. I thanked him and began to walk away, and he offered encouragement.

“Keep that blog going!”

As long as God’s willing, I’m willing.

I started drinking shortly before turning 18, and I drank almost every day for over a decade. The only time I wasn’t drinking or thinking about drinking was when I was asleep. During those years, I tried to get help at least twice. Both counselors told me, matter-of-factly, that I needed to stop drinking but wouldn’t stop until I wanted to stop. I tried to run my woe-is-me game on them, but no dice. Drunks know drunks.

When I got tired of smelling alcohol on myself, wondering whether others could smell it on me, and hiding how much I drank, I stopped. That’s the surface explanation. The deeper and ultimate explanation is that God intervened. I lay it all out in “A Sobering Truth.”

Strangely enough, after over a decade, I sometimes dream that I’m drinking. I wake up with a sense of dread before I remember it’s just a dream.

Whenever I blog about my sobriety anniversary, I hear from a number of ex- and current drunks. I have no deep wisdom for the current drinkers. I tell them what former drunks told me: no one can convince you to stop, no matter how horrible their rock-bottom stories. Thankfully, I never reached bottom. God had other plans for me.

I’m living proof that putting down that drink will not kill you. No matter how difficult it may be, you must look at yourself in a mirror with sober eyes. The world is full of evil and ugliness, but it contains goodness and beauty, too. You don’t know what you’re missing. Challenge yourself to see it with clear eyes.

Email me at lashawn [at] lashawnbarber.com. I will pray for you.

Update: It should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway. Your e-mail is confidential. I will not post it on the blog.

Previous posts:

• 11 Years Sober
• 9 Lives
• 8 Mile

Abortion Changes You founder Michaelene Fredenburg said it “makes her sad” that pro-abortion groups have called her group “anti-abortion.” (Source)

Ms. Fredenburg must know if you display any concern for the unborn child and/or the consequences the mother faces after killing that child, pro-aborts will call you anti-abortion, an accusation I embrace wholeheartedly. There is no gray area or subtlety.

I think Ms. Fredenburg misses the point when she says the “pain or lack of pain” women experience after killing an unborn baby “shouldn’t be politicized.” Abortion is a moral and political issue. Acts that are legislated are political (but not all “political” things are legislated), and some acts fall into the morality category. For example, stealing is illegal and immoral. It is immoral to lie, but not illegal in all circumstances. Lying to your mother about not eating the last cookie in the jar is immoral, not illegal. The law regulates lying as it rises to the level of giving false statements to officials, misrepresentation, or fraud.

Killing an unborn baby is legal, so says the Supreme Court, but it is an immoral act. What makes it legal in the eyes of the law is that the person is in utero and the mother doesn’t want him.

While the pain a woman experiences isn’t political per se, the act she commits is political. And immoral.

But I’m nitpicking. The important thing is, subway riders will see the Abortion Changes You ads and discuss them, and maybe the ads will influence a few pregnant women to change their minds about killing their babies.

But ultimately, the answer is the One whose name is above all others: Jesus Christ. Listen to former child star Kirk Cameron, whose Way of the Master and Living Waters ministries are top-notch, on ABC’s “Nightline”:

I believe in equal justice under the law for us human females, a principle that covers a multitude of rights. For example, equal pay for equal work, the right to vote, and the right to live.

As I’ve mentioned a few times, I’m writing a novel in the paranormal and Christian genres. I started a year ago, and I’m presently rewriting/revising it. I hope to have it agent-ready by my birthday, May 5. Will I make it? I’ve invested a year writing this story. I’m determined to try.

Every day, whether I’m working on it or not, I discover ways to make the story better, deeper. In the process, I’ve learned tension- and suspense-building techniques, the qualities that keep the reader turning the pages, without being over the top. These things must arise organically from the story you’re trying to tell. So much to learn. I think my idea is good, but the execution? TBD.

If you’re an LBC reader also working on a novel, or you’ve completed one, I’d love to hear from you. No one in my offline life is writing a novel, and I’ve yet to join a writers group. It would be nice to “know” others also aspiring to be published novelists.

(Questions for writers who’ve completed at least two drafts of their work-in-progress: Are you a member of a writers group? Or do you go the critique partner route?)

In the meantime, I’ve become a contributor to The Bible Answer Man Hank Hanegraaff’s Christian Research Journal. My article on Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy, theologically speaking, is the cover story for the February/March 2010 issue. Quite an honor. I’ve never written a cover story before. Two more articles are forthcoming.

I miss football season. Over and out.

Abortion mill workers in Wisconsin must report statutory rape. The story appeared in the local media earlier this week. Defending her abortion mill, CEO Teri Huyck said the woman posing as a pregnant teen didn’t give her name (…therefore, no requirement to report the crime?).

But Lila Rose did give a name. It’s possible Huyck didn’t see the video. If you’re going on the air to deny that your clinic violated the law, wouldn’t it be wise to watch the video?

***

How thick can you get? Planned Parenthood workers are having a hard time catching on. If a teenager comes into your clinic and says she’s pregnant by her adult boyfriend, stop talking immediately and ask somebody, if you don’t know, what the law requires. By all means, don’t ignore it or suggest she cover it up. If you do either, you’re covering it up. Really, it’s not rocket surgery.

If a woman wants to kill her baby, believe me, it’ll get done. Not cover-up required.

Lila Rose keeps cranking out those undercover videos. She reveals new footage from June 2008 in which a Wisconsin abortion mill worker tells a “pregnant” teen with an adult boyfriend that she doesn’t “have to say anything” about his age. “Just give them the information that’s needed.”

In Wisconsin, the law includes abortion mill workers among those required to report statutory rape.

Through the fire, indeed.

One of the clinics, Birmingham Planned Parenthood, has been put on probation for killing the unborn babies of minors without complying with the parental notification law. Steven Ertelt at Life News asserts that the minors were “obviously victims of statutory rape.” Lila Rose’s tape prompted state officials to investigate the abortion mill.

As I said, fetus-hating screws up your brain.

In other news, did you see the Tim Tebow Super Bowl ads? To call Focus on the Family’s pro-life message mild would be an overstatement. I didn’t expect to hear the Gospel, of course, but I expected a stronger message with a clear focus on Pam Tebow choosing to give her baby a chance to live, because his unborn life was precious.

Well, considering the kind of world we’re living in, it’s a miracle anything with Focus on the Family’s stamp on it made prime time. The ads may well plant a seed, and they just might be forerunners of explicit pro-life messages on TV.

At the very least, Focus on the Family and the pro-life movement got a lot of publicity from women’s groups raising a ruckus, and we’re clear that these women frown on the choice to keep, rather than kill, an unborn baby. Beyond odd.

***
I know we pro-lifers keep talking and talking and blogging and writing about Tim Tebow.

We can’t help it!!!

A high-profile, abstinent young Christian is set to appear on the air during the hottest commercial slot in the country to tell the world his mother valued his life so much, she chose to keep rather than kill him, against her doctor’s advice. Yeah, we’re talking about him, and we’ll keep talking about him.

Like all of us, it should be noted, Tebow’s a sinner. But like some of us, he trusts Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

Some pro-lifers, but not all, believe abortion is murder. Regardless, we all agree the slaughter of unborn human beings, especially for convenience, is unconscionable.

Sally Jenkins, sports columnist for the Washington Post, takes feminists, modern-day Pharisees, to task. She’s gonna catch it!

“I’ll spit this out quick, before the armies of feminism try to gag me and strap electrodes to my forehead: Tim Tebow is one of the better things to happen to young women in some time. I realize this stance won’t endear me to the ‘Dwindling Organizations of Ladies in Lockstep,’ otherwise known as DOLL, but I’ll try to pick up the shards of my shattered feminist credentials and go on.”

Sounds like me when I fell out of liberal lockstep. In my case, libs sent ad hominem-laced hate e-mail that was more pitiful than anger-provoking. But enough about me, although the blog is called “La Shawn Barber’s Corner.” Jenkins continues:

“We’re always harping on athletes to be more responsible and engaged in the issues of their day, and less concerned with just cashing checks. It therefore seems more than a little hypocritical to insist on it only if it means criticizing sneaker companies, and to stifle them when they take a stance that might make us uncomfortable.”

Jenkins, who is pro-abortion, resents the “group-think, elitism and condescension” of the gals at the National Organization of Women. She contemplates Tebow’s IQ, and she’s impressed that he’s provoked so many hissy fits before the ad’s even graced the airwaves. Jenkins calls Pam Tebow’s choice to give him a chance to live a true pro-choice story, and pro-abortion feminists would rather call foul on his 30-second ad while neglecting to “protest” beer commercials featuring half-naked women jiggling around.

“You know what we really need more of? Famous guys who aren’t embarrassed to practice sexual restraint, and to say it out loud. If we had more of those, women might have fewer abortions. See, the best way to deal with unwanted pregnancy is to not get the sperm in the egg and the egg implanted to begin with, and that is an issue for men, too — and they should step up to that.”

Sing it, sister (although you should re-think your pro-abortion views and support protecting unborn life).

Rest easy, everybody. May your Super Bowl- and Tim Tebow-watching be enjoyable!

Related post: NYT: Pro-Aborts on “Wrong Track” on Tim Tebow Ad

When I was his age, I was a fornicating, unambitious drunk (sounds really bad when I put it that way; wait a second…it was!) who wouldn’t have spoken about anything in front of anybody, no matter how much you paid me. What a contrast, eh? Super Bowl predictions: New Orleans loses, Tim Tebow shines, and pro-aborts hyperventilate. Good day for football. And for life.

***
Great day in the morning! I can hardly believe my eyes. The New York Times calls pro-abortion groups’ shrieking about a pro-life ad featuring Tim Tebow and his mother “puzzling and dismaying.”

Last week I blogged about Heisman trophy-winning QB Tim Tebow (lives!), whose mother chose to give him a chance to live, despite her doctor’s advice to abort him. Tim and his mother will appear in the Super Bowl ad on Sunday, and pro-abortion groups and individuals are crying foul.

NYT even criticized the Women’s Media Center for sending CBS an hysterical letter that was “a lame attempt to portray the ad as life-threatening.” NYT rightly calls the so-called pro-choice movement on its hypocrisy. Instead of protesting, these groups should welcome the ad as an illustration of what they stand for: the right to choose. Tim Tebow’s mother chose life for her unborn son. Other women have chosen to kill theirs. Almighty choice rears its head!

But pro-abortion groups call the pro-life’s head ugly.

Phonies, every last one of them.

“CBS was right to change its policy of rejecting paid advocacy commercials from groups other than political candidates. After the network screens ads for accuracy and taste, viewers can watch and judge for themselves. Or they can get up from the couch and get a sandwich.”

(Hat tip: Jill Stanek)

I make an exception for right-leaning celebrities. In 2008, I put up a post about Republican-registered Hollywood folks like Kelsey Grammer, Chuck Norris, Bruce Willis, Jon Voight, Pat Sajak, Angie Harmon and her husband Jason Sehorn, former cornerback for the New York Giants, and Gary “The Book of Eli” Oldman. Patricia Heaton, Stephen Baldwin (brother of Alec), and Kirk Cameron also are conservative Christians.

It appears that WCBSTV updated the list. Danny Aiello is conservative. Johnny Ramone of The Ramones is a registered Republican. So are models Kathey Ireland and Kim Alexis. Gloria Estefan, Heather Locklear, and James Earl Jones are Republicans. And so is Dean “Superman” Cain (pictured).

And Tony Danza and Vincent Gallo. Never would have guessed. Adam Sandler is a Republican? Where have I been? Rapper 50 Cent said he voted for George Bush.

Hollywood is a bastion of liberal intolerance, and I’m sure many more actors and artists lean right but have chosen to keep their politics and careers separate. I admit my bias. I don’t want to hear Barbra Streisand ranting and raving about George Bush. But if James Earl Jones or Dean Cain wants to share why he believes conservatism is better for the country than liberalism, I’m all ears.

Addendum: I forgot to include Adam Baldwin, who likes my blog. (Squee x 10.)

Related:

Hollywood Conservatives: Should They Just Shut Up and Entertain?

“Expect to see this kind of hysterical criticism reach a crescendo when the ad airs, and then a quick deflation afterward. It’s just another form of advertising, after all, but instead of a new beer or bar of soap, it advertises faith in a personal and indisputable manner. Personal witness is the most powerful form of testimony that there is, and the most effective … which, again, is why we see the reaction that just the idea of it generates.”

***

By now, most readers know my “radical” views on abortion. I believe an unborn baby should live, even if conceived during rape or incest. I don’t understand how the baby becomes less human because his mother was raped or had sex with a close relative (consensual or non).

No doubt, the act in which the baby was conceived affects the mother’s feelings about him. But when it comes to the baby’s right to live, it doesn’t change a thing.

Pro-life readers have asked me variations of, “What if the mother’s life is danger? What if she has other children to care for and she dies giving birth to this baby?”

I believe such a scenario is so rare, it’s not even worth arguing over. A particular woman may be at a higher risk of health problems because of a pregnancy, but as far as the pregnancy killing her? In 1810, perhaps, but in 2010, it’s a stretch. Regardless, I can’t qualify my position on abortion based on “life of the mother” arguments.

Most women kill the baby because they don’t want the baby.

The doctor tending to the mother of University of Florida’s Heisman trophy-winning quarterback Tim Tebow advised her to kill him. Medication used to treat dysentery caused placental abruption. The doctor thought the baby would be stillborn, anyway, but Tebow’s mother chose to give him a chance to live.

And he did.

America will see the homeschooled Tim Tebow (who wears “John 3:16” on his eyeblack) and his mother during the Super Bowl next month. They’ll deliver a pro-life message in a commercial sponsored by Focus on the Family. Naturally, pro-aborts are having a collective hissy fit:

“Shut up and play ball!”

This country needs more young Christian men like Tebow, men who stand for what’s right and refuse to cave to peer pressure. Young people struggling to live the Christian life (yes, Christians do struggle!) could use more high-profile Christians bucking the system and risking ridicule for God’s glory.

If Tebow decides to go public with a sexually-abstinent-until-marriage message, even better.