Teachers Saving Children® Inc. - National
Newsletter
Volume 9, Number 1
October 1998
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"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
This Scripture verse from the Old Testament is often associated and used when individuals speak about a prayer movement, such as the National Day of Prayer, Concerts of Prayer, or a Prayer and Fasting Gathering of God's people. Often we focus on the importance of "my people" as a nation of people needing to seek the Lord, but how often do we personalize this verse and allow the Lord to speak to each one of us and our own need to seek the Lord?
Over the past three years I have been seeking the Lord regarding my own prayer life. I have been amazed at the number of sermons, devotionals, books, readings, etc. that the Lord has placed before me to teach me more about prayer. I would like to share with you some personal thoughts regarding this verse of Scripture and how the Lord can use it to help us bring revival to our nation regarding the sanctity of life.
"If my people, who are called by my name..." In this passage, the Lord has appeared to Solomon following the dedication of the temple. The Israelites had brought their sacrifices of praise and worship to the Lord. The Lord had heard their prayer. Now the Lord was speaking directly to Solomon as He wanted to share something directly with His people. Today, the Lord is speaking directly to me with this same "if" statement. I must be willing to be open and obedient to what He has to say to me regarding my relationship with Him and the ministry opportunities He places before me.
"...will humble themselves..." Am I willing to humble myself before the Lord? Humility means to live as close to the truth as possible. I must be willing to open myself to the truth about me, about others, about the world in which I live. Am I willing to learn the truth about myself and the world in which I live regarding the sanctity of human life?
"...and pray and seek my face..." Am I willing to spend time in prayer and seek the Lord regarding what He would have me to do as an individual? Too often I pray that the Lord would intervene and stop the Holocaust of abortion, but am I willing to seek the Lord to find out what I am to do to help stop this Holocaust of abortion? Too often I am too busy to spend extended time in prayer. I must be willing to put some things aside and spend time waiting upon the Lord.
"...and turn from their wicked ways..." Am I willing to allow the Lord to search and know my heart, to test me, and to know my thoughts, to see if there is any wicked way within me? This paraphrase from Psalm 139:23-24 is from the passage where David speaks of how fearfully and wonderfully I am made. Yes, the Lord knows everything about me from before the time of conception until He takes me home. I must be willing to allow Him to search me regarding anything I may need to confess and daily recommit my life and ministry to Him.
"...then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." Nothing will limit God from doing what He wants to do, except me - except us. He wants all of us, as individuals, to come before Him and seek Him. As we get involved in prayer and seeking His face, He will hear, He will answer, and He will bring the victorious results of saving precious lives.
For the saving of precious human lives to take place within this nation, revival must start with me - with us. We must first catch the vision of what God wants to do within our own lives; within our churches and our communities; and then within this nation. We must heed the call found in this verse to repentance, fasting, and prayer. As we humble ourselves before the Lord, then the Holy Spirit will move in a powerful way convicting individuals of their sins; their need for repentance; thus bringing healing and restoration to individuals, families, churches, communities, and finally to our nation.
Shirley Dobson has stated "Our greatest problems are not political or economic. They are problems of the heart and only God can change the heart." I am willing through my daily time in prayer and in seeking the Lord to allow Him to search my heart and continue that change within me. Are you?
Editor's Note: Dirk Koorstra is a teacher in the Zeeland Michigan Public School District. This article on euthanasia takes a look at another issue within the TSC purpose statement: "the respect for all human life...to natural death."
Recently an acquaintance of mine went to the Netherlands. One of her pre-trip priorities was to get a thorough physical exam. You see she was afraid of going to a Dutch hospital. About 15 years ago the Dutch acknowledged a person's "right" to die. This soon evolved to the duty to die for the elderly and handicapped. Now elderly citizens carry alert cards proclaiming their desire to live so they won't be killed against their will.
Proponents of assisted suicide argue that it is the individual's personal choice. This raises three issues. First, will the legalization of assisted suicide truly give a person the right to die? Second, what are the physical factors in the person's decision? Third, what are the psychological factors in the decision?
Assisted suicide is actually an oxymoron. Suicide means that you kill yourself. If physician assisted suicide is legalized you won't gain the right to kill yourself. You will be giving that right to doctors and the state to kill you. A doctor could deny your request or the state could say you don't qualify. Or even worse you could end up like a recent Dutch patient who wanted to live but whose doctor killed her because he needed the bed for another patient. Now that doctors have the right to kill in the Netherlands, an average of 3 people per day die of involuntary euthanasia. Forty to sixty percent of euthanized patients are killed without their consent. By gaining their right to die, the Dutch are losing their right to live.
When most of us picture a person who wants to die we picture a terminally ill or crippled person in unbearable pain. This picture is wrong for two reasons. First, the main cause of attempted suicide is depression. Second, pain has become almost totally manageable. Dr. Don Schantz, a member of the Michigan Council on Pain, recently stated that "New research has offered many innovative techniques to alleviate pain.....People who are in pain today can be given a chance to experience their lives with less pain, allowing them to participate more fully in their work place and with their family and loved ones." Other resources indicate virtually all pain is manageable without putting the person in a coma. Instead of "death with dignity" we can give people life with dignity.
Hospice is a group that takes pain management to even higher levels. First, they work closely with a wide variety of experts to tailor and monitor pain medications. Then they work with the psychological, sociological, and spiritual elements of the person's condition. They offer an army of services to the family and friends of the patient. Just as birth is a process, so is death. Proper counseling and care can reduce the anxiety related to the natural closure of life. Hospice workers help patients maintain dignity by giving them hope, meaning, and love.
The most moving testimony given at the Senate hearings on assisted suicide was given by a "severely handicapped" individual. He carefully directed his wheelchair to the table then passionately expressed his fear that assisted suicide could lead to the genocide of handicapped people. The name of his group is We're Not Dead Yet. You have to wonder why this young man who "can't even wipe his own nose" was so passionate about living while others want to die. It is obviously not the pain or physical limitations. This brings me to my next point.
The answer to the question is obvious; it's their mental condition. Contrary to public assumptions, The American Journal of Psychiatry found that only one out of four terminally ill patients wanted to die, and all of them were diagnosed with clinical depression. Many of Kevorkian's victims had little if any life threatening illnesses but they had a history of mental illness. Other studies have found that only 3% to 4% of rescued suicide attemptees go on to kill themselves. Psychologist Joseph Richman reports that all suicides including rational(ized) suicides can be avoidance of, or a substitute for dealing with basic life or death issues. The attempted suicide is really a loud cry for help. The compassionate response should be to mobilize whatever resources and services are necessary to answer the person's cry.
Proponents of assisted suicide will argue that these extreme cases should still have the right to be killed. They all but guarantee that they can set regulations that could not be abused. They deny that we are stepping out onto a slippery slope. This is the same rhetoric used in 1973 to help legalize abortion. Now, over one million unborn babies are killed each year simply because they are an inconvenience. A brief study of Kevorkian's victims reveals that he has gone down the slippery slope. Most of his first victims were terminally ill. Since 1996, however, only four out of the past thirty were terminally ill according to L. J. Dragovic MD, the chief medical examiner of Oakland County. Three of his recent victims had no evidence of physical illness. I've already alluded to the Netherlands slide down the slippery slope. They are now progressing into infanticide.
We can not legally restrict assisted suicide. Attorney Walter Weber reported in the Journal of Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior that the 14th amendment to the U.S. Constitution forbids legislated classifications that restrict constitutional rights. Simply put, if we allow competent patients the right to be killed we could not legally prevent incompetent people of this right. The net result would be that the guardians of infants, mentally impaired, and senile people could have their trustees killed by a doctor.
I would like to conclude with an analogy. Trying to control assisted suicide is like a young child trying to keep a pet lion cub. They look so innocent when they are small. As they grow they create small problems but we can clip their claws and strengthen the cage. But they keep growing. Before you know it they break out of the cage and kill the child that raised them. Like the cub assisted suicide is uncontrollable. We all must work to prevent assisted suicide from becoming legal. Don't be persuaded by shallow philosophies and emotional pleas. Stay informed, talk with your friends, and pray we are never given the right to die but we always retain the right to live.
The TSC Board of Trustees would like to express their thanks to everyone who has taken the time to renew. Your continued support is greatly appreciated. If you have not yet done so, there is still time to join or renew and still receive full membership benefits.
Ohio: The Ohio TSC Board of Trustees will be having their fall board meeting on Saturday, October 31, 1998, in Wooster OH. The Ohio Pro-Life Convention will be held on Saturday, October 17, 1998, in Dayton, OH. TSC Inc. of Ohio plans to have an exhibit booth at this annual convention.
Pennsylvania: The PA TSC Board of Trustees will be having their fall board meeting on Saturday, October 3, 1998, in State College, PA. They had a successful exhibit area at the recent PA Pro-Life Convention in Harrisburg PA.
As we continue to work with state leadership, we ask for your prayers and your patience. If you are interested in getting a TSC Affiliate State Chapter started in your state, please contact TSC for further information.
Dramatic changes within our government are occurring every day, which continue to bring about change in national politics. The NEA continues to be a vital force behind many of these changes. However, over the past several years the American people have stated its conservative roots.
Again this year the general election in November is vital on both the state and national levels. Decisions will be made at the polls regarding representation and critical issues. It is important for all registered voters to go to the polls this year and express their freedom of choice through voting.
The biggest reason people give for not voting is that they do not know enough about the candidates and the issues. It is vital that each individual contact a conservative pro-life/pro-family organization within their state to find out how to receive information about the candidates and the issues within their own state. There are also some national organizations that can put individuals in contact with state and local organizations.
Abraham Lincoln once said, "It is a sin to remain silent when it is your duty to speak up." Past election results have proven that when individuals get involved at the grassroots level, change can take place. May the American people continue to voice their conscience at the polls!
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