Years ago when our kids were elementary age, Terrie and I planned a day to get away in order to articulate the purpose of our family.

After much prayer and Scripture reading, I took out a blank sheet of stationary and wrote these words:

The mission of our family is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ through obedience to His written Word, and by edifying and exhorting one another as we grow to understand our diverse yet compatible personalities.

After each of the children had read the new mission statement for our family, we each signed the bottom to pledge our commitment to live in accordance to it. Terrie and I often look back and remember that day as one of our most precious family memories.

Each day as I leave our house, I walk past our written purpose statement. While we are by no means a perfect family, I am thankful that we have done our best to glorify God and edify each other.

Although a written purpose statement is not necessarily a requirement for glorifying God as a family, raising a Christian family to honor God doesn’t happen on accident. It must take purpose and commitment.

This Sunday, I am looking forward to bringing a message on the family. While culture defies Scriptural principles on the home, God’s Word is still the answer for happy marriages and healthy homes. May we faithfully seek His Word this year for guidance and direction for our families.

There is no doubt we serve a God who loves all people and who desires that all would come to repentance and salvation. There is also no doubt from Scripture that His love begins at the moment of our conception. Jeremiah 1:5 says, “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”

Last week the Associated Press published a story about President Obama’s feelings toward the unborn. “President Barack Obama on Friday struck down the Bush Administration’s ban on giving federal money to international groups that perform abortions or provide abortion information.” President Obama said, “I have no desire to continue this stale and fruitless debate.”

It is ironic to me that in the midst of an economic crisis, U.S. taxpayer dollars will be sent overseas to “family planning groups” that will provide abortions.

Many Americans whom we love and for whom we pray are victimized by the secularization of society and philosophies of pluralism. As a Christian who believes God’s Word, I must continually stand upon its promises and teachings. God’s Word is very clear concerning the subject of the value of life and regarding His desire of inclusion and blessing for the pre-born.

I am greatly anticipating our Winter Revival meetings that will be held this next week. Dr. John Goetsch has preached at our revival meeting for over twenty years, and the messages God has laid on his heart have helped our church family tremendously. As we head into this week, I ask that you would pray for God to do a great work in our lives.

There has never been a revival that did not begin with prayer. The Rochester Revival of 1829 was no different. It was during the evangelistic ministry of Charles Finney that over 500,000 people publicly responded to receive Christ. Businessmen, doctors, lawyers, and others in many different walks of life were converted. It has been said that during the Rochester Revival, “the place was shaken to its foundation.” The far-reaching impact of this revival was felt throughout the state and eventually across the oceans.

Later in life, Charles Finney was interviewed regarding the great revival meetings that took place. Mr. Finney attributed what had taken place to the spirit of prayer. James 5:16 says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Mr. Finney then went on to say, “Prevailing or effectual prayer is that prayer which attains the blessing that it seeks. It is that prayer which effectually moves God. The very idea of effectual prayer is that it effects its objects.”

May we seek to have this kind of effectual prayer throughout this year and throughout this week, especially as we open our hearts to the message of God’s Word.

Four years ago, Terrie and I had the privilege of joining a delegation from California for the inauguration of President George W. Bush. As we met in the morning at Congressman Dreier’s office, you could feel the anticipation for the events of the day.

Truly, America is filled with anticipation on this inauguration morning. Today we celebrate the strength of our democracy and the peaceful transition of power to the 44th President of the United States. When the son of an African immigrant can be elected to lead the most powerful land in the world, we are reminded that America is a land of great opportunity.

It is true that many Christians around the country have concern in their hearts for potential new policies and laws which may be introduced; however, it is our duty and privilege, according to Romans 13, to pray for God’s blessing upon our nation.

Please pray for Barack Obama and his family in the days ahead.  As he feels this new weight of responsibility, pray that God will grant our President wisdom to lead our nation.

Click here to see Pastor Chappell’s comments on ABC’s World News Report regarding Bishop Robinson’s prayer at the Barack Obama inaugural celebration.

President-elect Barack Obama selected Bishop Robinson, the Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire, to open the inaugural ceremonies with a special prayer at the Lincoln Memorial yesterday. Bishop Robinson is an openly practicing homosexual. There were singers at the ceremony, including Stevie Wonder and a gay men’s chorus from Washington. Some see this move on Barack Obama’s part as a way to counteract the anger of the homosexual activists over his choice of Rick Warren to say a prayer at the inauguration.

According to a New York Times article, Bishop Robinson said that he had been reading previous inaugural prayers throughout history and was “horrified” at how “specifically and aggressively Christian they were.” Robinson said that his prayer “will not be a Christian prayer and I will not be quoting Scripture or anything like that.”

The Bishop stated that he would pray to “the god of our many understandings.” This seems to be the god that America wants now more than ever—a god of many understandings. Not the God of the Bible, not the God of truth, not the God Who has blessed America, but a god that will allow men to live however they want to live without consequence. “The god of our many understandings” is a post-modern idol that must be put away if revival will ever return to this country.

May Christians everywhere walk with great discernment in these days and stand unapologetically for the truth of the Gospel.