R. Frederick Riddle's Blog, page 40

Why We Celebrate Resurrection Sunday

Every week I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. This week I am taking a look at We Celebrate Resurrection Sunday.

On Sunday we celebrated Easter or Resurrection Sunday. In either case we
celebrated the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Some people favor the crucifixion as taking place on Friday (Good
Friday). However this is based on a misunderstanding of Scripture. It is true
that it took place the day before the Sabbath, but there was the Passover (a
Sabbath) that week on Thursday.

There is the additional problem of getting three days and nights between Friday and Sunday. There are some pretty fanciful ideas out there to solve that problem. The truth is that we are talking about real days as in 24 hours. You simply can’t get three 24 hour days between Friday and Sunday.

To resolve this some have placed the crucifixion on Thursday. But this
still doesn’t work because the Jewish day started at dusk (around 6 pm). So you’d
have Friday and Saturday (2 days) and Thursday evening, Friday evening, and
Saturday evening (3 nights). An additional problem is that the Passover (a High
Sabbath) was on Thursday.

The only solution that works is the crucifixion was on Wednesday. Passover began at 6 pm, thus beginning Thursday and the Passover. Now you get three days and nights with Jesus rising sometime between Saturday 6 pm (start of Sunday) and Sunday 6 am.

I’ve included a chart to show the events of those days.

However the real point of our celebration is not the name (Easter vs. Resurrection Sunday) or the day of crucifixion. Nor is it just the resurrection. We celebrate His death, burial and resurrection. He died for our sins thus satisfying the holy justice of God and rose on the third day to signify that we have new life in Christ. The two must be together.

It has special significance for believers: It proves the deity of Christ; it fulfills scripture; it proves that what Christ said about Himself and His power to forgive sin is true; it shows there is eternal existence after death; and it shows that ultimately Christ and all believers will have the victory irrespective of politics, etc. here on Earth.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am
always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was
(Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem
(Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), Task
Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book Four), I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an
appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email
make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy
(PDF or ePub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick
Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing
Services providing help to struggling and/or new
authors to write and publish their books. In addition he is the author of
several books and is best known for Christian Historical and Speculative
Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also
co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the
option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

Every week  I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. This week I am taking a look at Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.

The title of this blog is taken from the famous Jonathan Edwards sermon.
That sermon dealt with the fact that the only thing keeping the ungodly
(unsaved) out of Hell is God. In other words, God keeps such people alive and
out of Hell to give them the opportunity to be saved. How long He gives them is
strictly according to His will not theirs!

Just as this truth shook millions of churchgoers who heard or read this
sermon the same should shake those of us who are believers. The same Bible that
teaches the truth about the unsaved also teaches that while the saved are
secure in the Lord they also are kept from a different judgment purely based on
His will and purpose.

What do you mean?

As a believer I am forever secure. I was saved by grace, I am kept by
grace, and I will continue to live according to His grace. But my rewards in
Heaven are based on works.

But before we discuss that let’s take a look at the very first word in
the title, namely Sinners.

Who are Sinners?

Many people believe and some even teach and preach that there are small
sins, medium sized sins, and then the whoppers! Furthermore, they teach that
Hell is the destination of those guilty of the big sins or whoppers. But the
Bible doesn’t teach that.

In fact the Bible says in Romans 5:12, “Wherefore, as by one man sin
entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for
that all have sinned” and in Roman’s 3:10-12, “As it is written, There is none
righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that
seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become
unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” In verse 23 it says,
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” We are all sinners!
And in case you think you are the exception take a look at Revelation 21:8:

“But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and
whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their
part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second
death.”

Did you notice ‘and all liars’? It only takes one lie to become a liar.
And you, my friend, have told at least one lie; and so have I!

Then all will go to Hell?

Without God in your life the answer is yes. The Jonathan Edwards sermon
showed that the unbeliever (aka unsaved) is only a fraction of a second from
Hell. But Roman’s 5:8 says, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that,
while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” and has provided for us a way to
Heaven. In Romans 10:13 it says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the
Lord shall be saved”; in other words, if you sincerely ask Jesus to save you He
will. And He knows whether you are sincere or not!

Then a Believer isn’t under God’s
Wrath?

That is true. However, God sets a very high standard for our behavior. When we got saved He didn’t take us home to Heaven. Instead, He left us here to serve Him. To accomplish that He wants us to triumph over our sins but we live in sinful flesh and will continue to do so until we are raptured or die!

Then we have no hope!

Wrong! If you belong to God (and all
believers do) He loves you eternally. He loves you and will make a way
for you to confess your sins and restore your fellowship. In 1 John 1:9 it
says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Oh, you mean we can sin all we
want as long as we ask forgiveness afterward?

If you approach life with that attitude you will find yourself in a world
of trouble. 1 John 1:9 is not a free pass. It’s talking about real confession
of the heart with the understanding that God can read our hearts and knows
whether it is true or not. And don’t forget, it’s talking about forgiveness not
consequences.

I’m confused.

That’s because you haven’t discerned that the wrath of God and the
judgment of believers are two separate issues. The wrath of God is upon
unbelievers (unsaved) while God’s judgment of works is reserved for His
children (only believers are the children of God; all people are the creation
of God).

So what is this Judgment of
Works?

In the old Roman arenas the victors were rewarded by leis or something of
that nature. The victors would wear them like crowns. The governor or some other
high official would sit upon a seat called the Bema Seat to award the victors.

Just as that governor watched and awarded the winner God is watching us.
When His people (all believers in Christ) do His work He takes notice. Someday
we’ll stand in His presence and He will reward us for what we did for Him. He
will reward us with crowns that we’ll cast at His feet in awe and worship for
Him.

Oh, then our works are involved!

For rewards, yes; for salvation, no. In Ephesians 2:10 it says, “For we
are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath
before ordained that we should walk in them.” Combine that with James 2:18, “Yea,
a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy
works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works” and you get a powerful
statement of faith.

Then we are ordained to work?

Yes. We are saved by grace, ordained to work, and displayed for all the
world to see.

But what if I don’t do good
works?

Good question. In 1 Corinthians 9:27 Paul touched on this issue. Within
that verse is the following phrase: “But I keep under my body, and bring it
into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I
myself should be a castaway.”

Castaway is not the loss of your salvation. Rather it is the loss of usability.
It means to be put on the shelf; to be worthless for service; to be unusable!
It means God will reject your service!

I can’t think of anything worse than that for the believer!

That’s scary!

Yes it is! And some don’t like that idea because it doesn’t fit with
their concept of a loving God. They’ve adopted the Hollywood concept of love
where God ignores our sins because He loves us! But this is not found in the
Bible. He is both a loving God and a holy God. He does and He will judge sin!

God loves me but He hates it when I sin. And then there comes broken fellowship, correction, forgiveness, and restoration. But before forgiveness I must first confess. In 1 John 1:9 it says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” This is a promise from God to all believers. And please note that it’s sin being forgiven, but nothing is said of the consequences! (God promises to forgive a man for drinking alcohol if he repents, but He doesn’t promise the man won’t get Cirrhosis of the liver.)

Conclusion

We who have trusted Christ for our salvation are spared the Wrath of God
which is for an unbelieving world. But God will judge our works that follow our
salvation. And if we are disobedient and thereby sin we are in danger of being
castaways. It means that we could enter Heaven without any crowns to cast at
Jesus’ feet! What a tragedy that would be!

In writing this blog I am very aware of my own sinfulness. I received Christ
as my Savior on May 9, 1973 and have a home in Heaven. The Bible doesn’t teach
sinless perfection. In fact it says in 1 John 1:8, “If we say that we have no
sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” Therefore we need to
trust God, rely on His help and mercy, and worship Him with all our being!

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book
Four), I value your reviews.

If you would
like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with
the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject
line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to
indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – –
– – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services
providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their
books. In addition he is the author of several books and is best known for
Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. For more information on him or
his books visit his Amazon Authors Page.
He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to
any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to
marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook
page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Are They Making the Trump/Pence Space Challenge a Reality?

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Monday’s I try to focus on issues. This week I am taking a look at Are they making the Trump/Pence Space Challenge a Reality?

The following is a posting of a Newt Gingrich article.

On Tuesday, Vice President Mike Pence announced what may prove to be the boldest space challenge since President John F. Kennedy said America would go to the Moon in 1961.

In implementing President Donald Trump’s historic vision for America to go beyond the Moon and Mars, Vice President Pence sent a clear message that Americans were returning to the Moon by 2024 – and we are going there to stay.

The boldness of the Trump-Pence plan can be seen in the fact that this new target is four years sooner than NASA’s most recent estimate. It was a strong response against, NASA’s long history of budget overruns and project delays. Vice President Pence made it clear that “what we need now is urgency,” and that the competition for American leadership in space is “not just competition against our adversaries; we’re also racing against our worst enemy: complacency.”

The Vice President’s
challenge to NASA was remarkably bold and direct. In his words, “failure to
achieve our goal to return an American astronaut to the Moon in the next five
years is not an option.”

His words signaled a
profound move away from the traditional space bureaucracy:

“We’re not committed
to any one contractor. If our current contractors can’t meet this objective,
then we’ll find ones that will. If American industry can provide critical
commercial services without government development, then we’ll buy them. And if
commercial rockets are the only way to get American astronauts to the Moon in
the next five years, then commercial rockets it will be.”

In some ways, Vice
President Pence’s challenge is even greater than what was facing President
Kennedy. It’s true: Kennedy was inventing a new organization and radically
expanding the Washington bureaucracy. But that meant he was building something
young, fresh, excited, and innovative.

Trump and Pence are trying to reinvigorate, reorient, and redirect an existing, deeply entrenched bureaucracy with a long history of great achievements – that is deeply committed to doing things how they’ve always been done.

Furthermore, President
Kennedy was able to use the threat of the Soviet Union to get a massive
increase in space funding. At its peak in 1966, NASA was spending 4.4 percent
of the federal budget. At that percentage in President Trump’s 2020 budget, NASA would have
a budget of $208.8 billion instead of $21 billion. If NASA Administrator Jim
Bridenstine had almost ten times more money in his budget than he does now, he
could do amazing things — but he doesn’t.

Vice President Pence
recognizes that a new approach must compensate for the absence of new money. He
said on Tuesday, “we will call on NASA not just to adopt new policies but to
embrace a new mindset. That begins with setting bold goals and staying on
schedule … NASA must transform itself into a leaner, more accountable, and more
agile organization. If NASA is not currently capable of landing American
astronauts on the Moon in five years, we need to change the organization, not
the mission.”

The
Trump-Pence-Bridenstine team has two great advantages over the Kennedy era
efforts in space.

First, we have a half
century of developing new, better, more reliable, and more flexible technology.
The reusable rockets of SpaceX and Blue Origin are miraculous improvements on
the rockets of the 1960s. Radically smaller microelectronics, breakthroughs in
materials technology, the development of 3D printing, and the emergence of
artificial intelligence all combine to give us a chance to do more in space –
and do it better, faster, and cheaper. However, this is only true if the
bureaucracies can be overcome.

Second, there are now
competitive companies that can undertake dramatic challenges previously
unimagined for the private sector even ten years ago.

Since the bold,
exciting challenge of Vice President Pence’s speech, I have talked with key
people in the private sector space industry. They are prepared to enter a competition
to put astronauts on the Moon — and to stay there. Moreover, they say they can
do so ahead of schedule and under budget.

The Trump
Administration should propose an open competition. It should not be about
planning, engineering, paper pushing, or having meetings. It should be about
flying.

Boeing should be
challenged to fully take over the Space Launch System project — which it has
been paid billions to manage in a traditional cost-plus process. Boeing should
be liberated from NASA’s traditional pattern of management, over-planning, and
underperforming. If Boeing could liberate its designers and engineers to be
mission-oriented rather than process-dominated, the SLS could leap forward, and
its price would drop.

At the same time,
companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin should be invited into the
competition. The central goal would be getting Americans back to the Moon and
keeping them there. Companies that meet the goals ahead of schedule should get
a bonus. The first company to meet the project goals should get an even bigger
bonus.

Furthermore, companies
that come in under budget should be allowed to keep 20 percent of the savings.
And there should be an opportunity for fully funded new entrants to come and
compete.

Importantly,
participants should be paid only for achievement – not for planning or process.
One suggestion I have heard from industry was for companies to be paid a price
per kilo of delivery on the surface of the Moon.

There would have to be
a lot of details worked out, but the excitement of a genuine American space
race – with each company going all out – would inspire a new generation of
Americans to go into space.

At the same time, each
company would acquire new capabilities that would be a resource for our
military, a building block for getting to Mars and beyond, and an enhancement
for low Earth orbit tourism and manufacturing.

This would be a bold
implementation strategy worthy of the bold Trump-Pence vision.

Your Friend,
Newt

In the above article I emphasized words and phrases I thought significant.

Note: This was such a well written article I felt that it should be seen by others. For transparency I had nothing to do with the writing of this article. Personally, I found this exciting news; something that should have happened a long time ago. But we needed a President with vision and the willingness to proceed. We’ve got him and he’s doing it!

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book
Four), I value your reviews.

If you would
like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with
the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject
line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to
indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – –
– – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services
providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their
books. In addition he is the author of several books and is best known for
Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. For more information on him or
his books visit his Amazon Authors Page.
He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to
any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to
marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook
page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Is Democratic Socialism the Hope of America?

Monday
through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog
to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Monday’s I try to focus on issues. This week I am taking a look at Is Democratic Socialism the Hope of America?

That question actually opens up a Pandora’s box of questions, so let’s
dig in.

What is Democratic
Socialism?

Well, it isn’t your traditional socialism, that’s for sure. Let’s
start with a few definitions:

Democratic or democracy
simply means political power resides with all the people and that that power is
exercised directly by the people.
Sometimes we in America get confused and call our American system of government
a democracy, but it isn’t. Our government is a Republic where the political
power resides with all the people and it is exercised by representatives
elected by the people. Thus, we live in a Representative Democracy. Pure
democracy is dangerous and can be demonstrated in mob rule.

Socialism is the public
collective ownership or control of the basic means of production, distribution,
and exchange, with the avowed aim of operating for use rather than for profit,
and of assuring to each member of society an equitable share of goods,
services, and welfare benefits.

Social Democrat is a socialist;
especially, a socialist who emphasizes gradual reform.

The above definitions are according to the dictionary.

It would be easy to confuse Social Democrat with Democratic Socialism
but I think you will see that they are not the same. Below is a definition of
Democratic Socialism found on the internet.

Democratic socialism is a political philosophy that advocates
political democracy alongside social ownership of the means of
production, with an emphasis on self-management and democratic
management of economic institutions within a market or some form of
decentralized planned socialist economy.

The key difference between socialism
and democratic socialism is that democratic socialists don’t want
the government to own the means of production and socialists do. They
believe that certain general social goods like health care should be run by the
government, but otherwise support capitalism.

Are you confused yet?

What
Benefit is there to Democratic Socialism?

I read an interesting article that listed
the pros and cons of this new concept.

Pros

1. It reduces classism within local societies.

In Democratic Socialism, there are not “haves” or “have nots” because
there is a sense of community ownership
in all things. Private production is used
for the public good. At the same time, individuals within the society are
able to elect their government officials freely, without fear of political
reprisal. That means the differences in wealth and culture are reduced because
everyone is working toward a common good. (Emphasis is mine)

2. It gives everyone an opportunity to pursue success.

In a truly capitalistic environment, only
those with means and opportunity can pursue options like good healthcare
coverage or a college education. In the U.S., there is already a form of Democratic Socialism in place with the
public schools offered in the K-12 grade range. This form of governing
simply extends the concepts which are already working in a democratic society
and applies them to other components of it. Each person has an opportunity to
pursue their own definition of success. (Emphasis mine)

3. It eliminates the threat of price fixing.

In Democratic Socialism, the
government either controls, owns, or monitors every organization that provides
goods and services. Instead of using free market demands to raise prices or
form mergers or monopolies, the society is able to govern pricing and
regulations to allow access to anyone who may need those items. There is no
structure available that allows suppliers to alter pricing simply because there
is a high demand for what they have.

4. It creates income equality within society.

In the United States right now, the inequality gap has been growing for
more than two generations. In 1980, only 50% of children earned more than their
parents. In 1940, 92% of children were able to earn more than their parents.
The Top 1% of income earners in the U.S. bring in more than 20% of all income.
In 1970, the bottom 50% of earners brought in more than 20% of all income.
Adults in the top 1% earn 81 times more than adults in the bottom 50%, on
average. Under Democratic Socialism structures, these gaps wouldn’t fully
disappear. They would, however, become
greatly reduced.

5. It reduces the threat of economic
cycles.

During the Great Recession years of
2007-2009, many families around the world struggled to make ends meet. Jobs
were lost. People were forced to find underemployment opportunities just to pay
their bills. Since then, wages have
exploded for the upper income tier, growing as much as 230%. For the bottom
tier of income earners, some individuals haven’t seen a pay raise since 2007. Democratic
Socialism reduces the threat of these economic cycles, making it easier for
households to take care of their basic needs while still having income access
to pursue opportunities.

6. It creates an economy that is more
efficient.

Within the structures of Democratic
Socialism, there is no longer a push to
sell unneeded goods or services to consumers. That means less money is
spent on marketing, allowing for more to be spent on production, innovation, or
wage growth. People still receive what they need for comfort and daily living
without the constant brand messaging demanding to be heard.

7. It offers more room for value
judgments.

Products can be offered in a society
based on Democratic Socialism that are based
on value judgments instead of profit judgments. Even if production creates
a loss, the government can subsidize production to make needed items available
to everyone. In a structure based on capitalism, goods and services are based
on profits first and value second.

Cons

1. It cedes more control over basic needs to the government.

Even though officials may
still be elected, Democratic Socialism is still on the socialism spectrum. That
means the government is given more control over how lives can be lived. There may be added benefits to social access, but that requires money,
which means higher tax rates. Then there are fewer options available because
the government is in control of the competition. At the end of the day, in its
extreme form, the government would be telling everyone what they can do, where
they can work, and what they can purchase. (Compare the highlights here
to the highlights in Pros #1. Whenever the government is in control of
commodities increased taxes seem to be the result.)

2. It could cause a net financial loss instead of gains for families.

Even Bernie Sanders admits that higher
taxes are required in such a system, with a 25% tax rate proposed for the
median income earner in the United States under his plan. In the Sanders plan,
the top tax rate would still be under 40%. That
means a greater tax burden, relative to available income, is given to the
middle- and low-income earners instead of the higher income earners.(as
noted in #1 higher taxes; not only that it is higher taxes for the middle and
low income people!)

3. It would limit the influence of unions, civilian oversight
committees, and similar institutions.

Democratic Socialism would cede the
rights of workers to the government through employment. If the government decides that having a
union is not in their best interest, then they can get rid of it. Public
employees have already experienced this in government structures that are
closer to capitalism. That means there is a greater potential for unsafe work
places, lower wages, and less overall incentive to work if all the physical
needs of an individual are automatically met by the government. (Unions aren’t
perfect and don’t always represent their members, but do you really want to do
away with them?)

4. It can reduce innovation.

There may be an advantage in Democratic Socialism in that people with
specific skills or talents are placed into jobs that directly benefit from that
experience. At the same time, however, production
within a socialism-style government structures tends to focus on domestic needs
instead of new opportunities. That limits innovation because there is little,
if any, competition with the government to develop new ideas. Over time,
that means the society can lag behind others that incentivize innovation. (In
other words, no mom and pop stores, no inventions occurring in the basement;
all of which has had a strong vibrant history in America. It will disappear!)

5. It can create more bureaucracy.

The government will want
to determine who is eligible to receive specific benefits. Applicants must fill out paperwork to prove their eligibility. Ongoing
renewals must be processed. The goal of Democratic Socialism may be to
streamline society and equalize access to services, but more bureaucracy is created in doing so. That means it could
take much more time to make services available to those who need them. (Another
word describing this is Big Government.)

6. It creates more government spending.

For an economy to grow, there must
be a balance between domestic and foreign trade. As innovation declines and
manufacturing grows stagnant, fewer international opportunities develop. That
means the government may be forced to import more items, creating trade
deficits with their neighbors. Without innovation, maintenance and repairs
overages become common as equipment ages. In time, the government spends more
than it would if it had simply invested capital into existing systems to
upgrade them. (Speaks for itself.)

7. It can create a lack of societal
motivation.

There will always be people within
any society that do not participate in the workforce. In the United States
right now, about one-third of all people who are of a working age are choosing
not to join the workforce. Under a system of Democratic Socialism, those
figures could increase even further. If
there is no reward for producing more than someone else, yet both individuals
have their basic needs met, the individual working is more likely to give up
than the individual not working choosing to join the workforce. (Democratic
Socialism fails to take into consideration our human nature. If we don’t need
to work to eat, then why would we work?)

8.It cannot prevent a corruptible
government.

Human
beings are fallible creatures.
We are prone to mistakes. We are also capable of doing abhorrent things to one
another in certain circumstances. Under the structures of socialism, no matter
where it happens to be on the spectrum, there
are fewer checks and balances in place to limit the effects of corruption.
New leaders can be elected by the people, but not immediately. Hierarchies tend
to emerge under this structure, with leaders working to shore up power where
they can. (Where absolute power exists absolute corruption also exists. While
the love of money is the root of all evil, power is the driving force in our
world. And Democratic Socialism breeds a very powerful government sector
supposedly representing the people but actually controlling them to a severe
degree.

In researching this subject I ran
across an article put out by the think tank called niskanen center. This article referenced Kevin Williamson who wrote for the
National Review. Apparently he is a conservative although the article doesn’t
reflect that tag. His ideas and the ideas of the libertarian quoting him seem
impractical and naive. For any political system to work well you need to
consider human nature.

But I would like to respond to one of the ‘Pros’,
namely #2 – It gives everyone an opportunity to succeed. In that item those
supporting Democratic Socialism made this statement: In the U.S., there is already a form
of Democratic Socialism in place with the
public schools offered in the K-12 grade range.

Now I find that interesting. The
United States is nowhere near the top when comparing our education with other
countries. And when you dig down you find that Christian or private schools as
well as home schooling outperform public schools! And that is in spite of
billions of dollars being poured into our public schools! Is that really an
argument for any form of socialistic governance? Not only outperform but
provide a better quality of education instead of the revisionist education
dribble being called education today.

Democratic Socialism may not be
communism but it still represents Big Government, still rewards laziness,
suppresses innovation, and would eventually destroy our country.

So
Capitalism is our Hope?

Capitalism is ‘An economic system in
which the means of production and distribution are for the most part privately
owned and operated for private profit’. (Dictionary definition.) Unfortunately
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and,
I imagine, those who agree with her, apparently failed or outright skipped any
education relating to capitalism. Her characterization of Capitalism is
outright buffoonery.

Still pure capitalism is not desirable.
There needs to be basic regulation and by this I mean ‘basic’. We live in a
world where unscrupulous people live. So I would be in support of reasonable
laws (most of which I believe are already on the books) designed to protect the
people or consumers. The problem as I see it is not capitalism (capitalism allows
me the freedom to write and sell books), but rather men and women who abuse
others. Interestingly enough there are such people on both sides of the
political spectrum. Proper enforcement of the existing laws would go a long way
toward leveling the field.

But we also must deal with the moral problem. Bringing us back to the school issue you can trace much of the problems we have today to the misguided action to kick God out of our schools. Today we are constantly hearing reports where Christianity is being opposed by our school system when they actually need more Christianity. It is very telling when you see that the teaching of the Bible, which is both a holy book and a very practical instruction on proper behavior, is forbidden while other ‘religious’ material is allowed.

Today our school system is exploring a
laundry list of immoral acts and doctrines. To make them palpable they call
these immoral acts moral. This is Democratic Socialism in action! And what are
the results: unwanted pregnancies, shootings, suicide, and more. Yes, we had
those back in the 50’s but nowhere near to what we have now.

In my opinion Democratic Socialism is far
worse than Capitalism. Capitalism can lead to price gouging and many other
crimes. But Democratic Socialism when taken to its ultimate source will steal
our economic success, our economic freedoms, our privacy, our health care, and
ultimately our morals.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book
Four), I value your reviews.

If you would
like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with
the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject
line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to
indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – –
– – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the Editor of TR Writing Services providing help to struggling and/or new authors to write and publish their books. In addition he is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical and Speculative Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Why It’s Wrong for Colleges to Queer the Bible?

Monday
through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog
to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Monday’s I try to focus on issues. This week I am taking a look at Why it’s wrong for colleges to Queer the
Bible?

There is a movement going on today that is taking over our colleges, a movement that attacks God’s Word. It is called Queering the Bible. In doing research on this issue I came across the arguments for queering the Bible and a site that comes out in direct opposition to this movement. The site is called True freedom Trust and it is for those people who have homosexual leanings but take a stand against it. I will be taking excerpts from their site and using them in this blog. I will also add comments throughout the excerpts which will be enclosed [ ].

I am a Christian totally opposed to homosexual, lesbian, transgender, and any other tag these people use. Before I get to the gist of the blog I want to, in my own words, answer the often given reason for such behavior, namely “I was born this way”.

Isn’t It True that People
are Born Gay?

Normally we answer that with an emphatic NO. But let’s take a Biblical
view. Back in the Garden of Eden Adam sinned and ever since we have been born
with a sin nature. With that in mind the answer could be YES!

What?

Let me explain. When you and I were born we were born with a sin nature.
When we get saved we don’t lose that sin nature, it is with us for life. We are
given a new nature which is sinless and wants to please God. But in the
beginning we have a sin nature.

That means we have the ability and tendency to commit any sin! That includes murdering, lying, gossiping, homosexuality, stealing, lesbianism, bullying, transgendering, voyeurism, drunkenness, cheating, and the list goes on. It is sin and we are all capable of the vilest sin!

What is Queering the
Bible?

Let’s define queer first. The term queer is a word that encompasses
homosexuality, lesbianism, and transgender.

Queering the Bible means studying the Bible from the homosexual point of
view. The article I referred to earlier is actually Queer Theology.

What is Queer Theology?

Queer theology is a theological method that has
developed out of the philosophical approach of queer theory, built upon scholars such as Michel Foucault, Gayle Rubin, Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, and Judith Butler. Queer theology begins with an
assumption that gender non-conformity and gay and lesbian desire have always
been present in human history, including the Bible. It was at one time separated into
two separate theologies; gay theology and lesbian theology. Later the two would
merge to become the more inclusive term of queer theology. [emphasis is mine.]

Theology done by and for LGBTQI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex) individuals focusing on their specific needs.Theology that purposefully opposes social and cultural norms regarding gender and sexuality. It seeks to unearth hidden voices or hidden perspectives that allows theology to be seen in a new light.Theology that challenges and deconstructs boundaries, particularly with respect to sexual and gender identity.

Queer theology is inclusive to individuals’ sexual and gender identity
and allows the LGBTQ community to reclaim their space in Christianity.

How Do They Support This?

Well let’s start with Jesus. According to Wikipedia:

In a paper read at the Conference of Modern Churchmen in 1967 titled
“Jesus, the Revelation of God”, Hugh William Montefiore offers a controversial interpretation of
the early life of Jesus. Jesus was not
aware of his vocation as Messiah until approximately age thirty,
Montefiore argues, and this vocation can therefore not explain the celibacy of
Jesus.

[My reply to this: Such a belief completely ignores, dismisses, or misunderstands Jesus’ visit to the synagogue when twelve years of age! Not only that, it completely discounts Jesus’ statement to his parents: “And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business?” Jesus knew Who He was and why He came! Joseph was his step-father, God was His Father; and please note the capital F in ‘Father’s’.]

Montefiore finds the explanation that Jesus was homosexual consistent
with his identification with the poor and oppressed:

All the synoptic gospels show Jesus in close relationship with the
‘outsiders’ and the unloved. Publicans and sinners, prostitutes and criminals
are among his acquaintances and companions. If Jesus were homosexual in nature
(and this is the true explanation of his celibate state) then this would be
further evidence of God’s self-identification with those who are unacceptable
to the upholders of ‘The Establishment’ and social conventions.

One proponent of queer theology was Marcella Althaus-Reid, who drew
on Latin American liberation
theology and interpreted the Bible in a way in which she saw as positive towards women, queer
people and sex. She proposed a theology that centered marginalized people,
including people in poverty and queer people. For Althaus-Reid, theology ought
to be connected to the body and lived experience. She put it this way:

Indecent Sexual Theologies […] may be effective as
long as they represent the resurrection of the excessive in our contexts, and a
passion for organizing the lusty transgressions of theological and political
thought. The excessiveness of our hungry lives: our hunger for food, hunger for
the touch of other bodies, for love and for God. […] [O]nly in the longing
for a world of economic and sexual justice together, and not subordinated to
one another, can the encounter with the divine take place. But this is an
encounter to be found at the crossroads of desire, when one dares to leave the
ideological order of the heterosexual pervasive normative. This is an encounter
with indecency and with the indecency of God and Christianity.

One theme in the theology of her The Queer God
(Routledge, 2003) is the holiness of the gay club, as she explores the
intersection and essential non-contradiction of a strong, vibrant faith life
and sexual desire. An example of finding otherness and desire in Biblical texts
is her reading of Jeremiah 2:23–25 from the Hebrew:

[…] a young camel deviating from her path: a wild
she-ass accustomed to the wilderness, sniffing the wind in her lust. Who can
repel her desire? And you said, No! I love strangers, the different, the
unknown, the Other, and will follow them.

[My reply to this: This is a very convenient quote
particularly when you leave off verse 22. Here’s the KJV version of Jeremiah
2:22 -25.

“For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord GOD. How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways; A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her. Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, There is no hope: no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.”

Please note that this entire passage (plus verses preceding it) are directed at one who is clearly not pleasing to God. This passage condemns the gay life not exalts it. The above highlights are mine.]

The remainder of this blog features excerpts from the True freedom Trust (some words may seem odd but that is because it is
written from the United Kingdom – I have done some editing.)

Introduction

This article offers a brief critique of the movement known as queer
theology, by analyzing two of its main distinctive features. These two
distinctive features are firstly the
broadness of queer theology and its unity of purpose and secondly, its aim of blurring boundaries in the
areas of sex and gender.

Distinctive One – Broadness and Unity

One key distinctive of queer theology is how broad the movement is and
yet how an overarching goal unites it. We will define the goal as a ‘…revision
of the church’s understanding of the Bible, sexual morality and the meaning of
marriage.’

The broadness of queer theology can be seen by contrasting scholars such
as Brooten, who acknowledge that the Scriptures condemn same-sex practice but
in doing so argue that they should be ‘disregarded,’ with those who are
supposedly more ‘evangelical’ in their approach.

An evangelical approach can be seen through the arguments of Vines who
seeks to show that the Scriptures do not prohibit all forms of same-sex sexual
expression. Instead, Vines asserts that ‘Christians who affirm the full
authority of Scripture can also affirm committed, monogamous same-sex
relationships.’ The approach of Vines and others is often argued by attempting
to show that the explicit references to same-sex practice in the Scriptures
should not be taken as applicable to modern, committed same-sex relationships.

Others, like Rudy, would not seek monogamy or commitment as a moral
principle for which to strive. Rudy, for example, claims that non-monogamous
sex can be viewed as a hospitable, progressive ethic.. .Wilson, on the more
liberal wing, talks of ‘bodily hospitality’ where promiscuity is considered a
gift, whereas Jeffrey John articulates an approach which talks of same-sex
relationships being ‘permanent, faithful and stable.’

 John is seeking what he sees as
equal rights for same-sex couples, whereas Wilson is celebrating a more
expressive sexuality. One approach wants a seat at the table of societal institutions such
as marriage, whereas the other is happy to tip the table over. Both,
however, have a minimal aim of encouraging others to see same-sex practice as
honorable to God.

Someone who seeks to argue from the Bible for faithful same-sex
relationships is James Brownson, who states ‘my… commitment to the centrality
of Scripture has not changed’. We can contrast Brownson’s approach with that of
Adrian Thatcher. Thatcher makes it plain that his books are ‘always written
from a progressive, liberal perspective’ with the aim of helping to make
churches ‘more inclusive.’

Thatcher, Brownson, Vines, and Wilson all highlight the broad and
varying hermeneutical approaches taken within the sphere of queer theology.

One lamentable strength regarding the broadness of queer theology is
that it reaches a wide audience. If
for example, queer theology was to exist only in more liberal forms, its
blasphemous conclusions would be dismissed out of hand by many Christians and
would never pose a challenge to many in our churches. Two examples of this are
Boer’s view that God should be understood as a sexual top who engages in
sadomasochistic relationships with humans, and Althaus-Reid’s view that the
Trinity should be understood as an orgy.

Although still assiduously seeking to twist the scriptures, the more
conservative wing of queer theology is much less likely to be dismissed as
quickly as scholars like Boer. This wing at least has what it describes as a
‘high view’ of Scripture, and claims to discern the true meaning of the
biblical texts. As previously mentioned, however, the common goal of validating
same-sex practice within the Church is shared by both ends of this movement.

We have seen that the broadness of queer theology gives it a regrettably
broad reach. Both ends of queer theology do, however, have serious flaws, which
mitigate against it being considered a useful hermeneutic.

The more conservative wing of queer theology has failed in its attempt to reconcile a high view of Scripture
with a consistent hermeneutical approach that highlights how and why the
Biblical prohibitions on same-sex practice are no longer applicable. Even if
this were achieved, however, it would still be in danger of arguing from
silence as there are no positive references to same-sex practice in the Scriptures.
It is hard to reconcile arguments from silence with what many deem to be a
‘high view’ of Scripture, although Wilson does argue that biblical narratives
such as David and Jonathan affirm an LGBT experience.

[It is rediculous to claim David and Jonathan were gay. These were best
friends. Period!]

The work of theologians like Brooten highlights how weak the more
evangelical wing of this movement is. Brooten’s work highlights that it is not
just exploitative relationships which fall under Paul’s condemnation in Romans
1.

Romans 1… establishes the
universal sinfulness of same-sex practice, rather than as merely a culturally
limited prohibition.

[This first chapter of Romans displays the weakness of
the arguments in behalf of queer theology. Verses 26 and 27 clearly describe
female same-sex and male same-sex practices. And it is clearly condemned!
Moreover the references to the Creator take us all the way back to Genesis and
establishes the universal sinfulness of same-sex practice.]

The information above was on the technical side but it
was so good I felt I had to include it with only minor editing.

Conclusion

Queer Theology is simply bankrupt! Try as they might
you cannot truly queer the Bible. It is the Word of God and must be taken as a
whole. God has consistently condemned the queer life-style. On the other hand
He’s never argued against the claim they were born that way. We are all born
sinners, capable of the filthiest sins, including same-sex practices. That
is why we all must be born again!

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book
Four), I value your reviews.

If you would
like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with
the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject
line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to
indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – –
– – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for
Christian Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit
his Amazon
Authors Page. He is also
co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option
of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook
page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Why is the TR Writing Service Great for You?

Republished: See Special Announcement below!

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Monday’s I try to focus on issues. But this week I am taking a look at Why is the TR Writing Service Great for You?

Special Announcement

I am republishing this blog because TR Writing Services (which I am the editor) will be offering a Special Introductory Discount in honor of my 46 years of being a Christian (I got saved in 1973). This celebration of that momentous decision by me means that all plans are discounted 46% beginning immediately. That translates into rates extremely low!

I don’t know how long this special will last. But now is the time to take advantage of this special now! It can’t last forever.

TR Writing Services
is for the Little Guy

Back when I was in my twenties I had a desire to write books. I found
and signed up for a writing course. Although the course was not considered
expensive by the experts I ended dropping out because of lack of money. This
may have been at a time when I was laid off. But it wiped out my savings and
delayed my writing career by decades. I never forgot!

Over the years I have discovered that just about any kind of writers
aid that is out there is beyond the budget of most people. This includes the
art of writing, editing, publishing, and marketing. The “little guy or gal”
doesn’t have much of a chance.

Why We Founded TR
Writing Services

Our first love as far as writing is concerned is writing our own
books. I’ve experienced the highs and lows of writing, whereas my wife is
currently experiencing the same. All writers must face obstacles, overcome them
or change directions. But getting the help they need at the time they need it
is a great need that is often priced out of their reach.

TR Writing Services was established earlier this year with the purpose
of creating a low cost service that addresses the editing and publishing
aspects of being an author.

What is TR Writing
Services?

TR Writing Services is Entry Level Proofing and Editing for the
author(s) who cannot afford the more expensive services you find online. If you
are looking for a professional extensive treatment of your manuscript then this
is the wrong place. We at TR Writing Services are here to expedite your ability
to publish your book at an affordable
price yet with good quality.

This service will focus on such things as grammar, spelling,
formatting, and other quality issues. This is not aimed at academic books but
rather fiction, nonfiction, and how-to.

What Does It Cost?

Cost varies depending on page count and what you the author want.

As the years
have passed we’ve noticed that the high cost of help remains. Some services
advertise a word by word cost. For example, they may charge $0.005 per word.
That sounds great until you do the math. A book of 50,000 words would cost $250
just for the proofing! We at TR Writing Services charge only $0.002 per word
meaning the same book would cost $100 for the proofing, a saving of $150.

A book of
100,000 words at $0.005 costs $500 while TR Writing Services would charge $200,
a whopping savings of $300. In addition, TR Writing Services offers many FREE
services, such as Setup of KDP Account if needed, Copyright page, ISBN (KDP
free), Uploading your manuscript, Uploading Bio Picture for Back Matter, and
more.

That is just the basic costs. But it gives you an idea. (Note: because of the Special these savings will be even greater! For example, in the example above the savings for the proofing goes from $300 to almost $400! In fact the total cost of the Platinum (eBook included) would be less than the cost of proofing at $0.005 per word or $500. That’s BIG!

Can I Use TR Writing Services?

The short answer is yes. Basically we accept anyone who submits a form (found in our free TR Writing Services handbook) plus the first three chapters of your book. We examine the form and the chapters to determine whether you fit the profile that we are looking for. If approved, we send to a letter of approval with a link to a page where you can purchase the service.

What Other Services Do You Offer?

Our services range from layout, ISBN, copyright, eBook, and others. The eBook service is included in the Platinum Plan. See our booklet for details.

What Is Prohibited?

We are a Christian organization that applies Biblical standards.

We do not work with anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, excessive graphics,
profanity, or any work that violates our Biblical stand.

If during the
course of the contract excessive graphics or any profanity is found the author
shall be informed and corrections/deletions required. Failure on the author’s
part to provide this update will constitute a violation of the contract and
subject it to termination.

How Do I Sign Up?

It’s simple. Simply
go to our Facebook page and click on the “Learn More” link. This will take you
to our web page. You can also simply click on tr-indbkstore.com/writing-service.
In either case you arrive at the first step that explains what you need to do
to get started.

Basically you will
email us and seek a free copy of our TR Writing Services booklet. This booklet
describes our services in greater detail and provides a form to fill out. Once
filled out you copy it and post in another email along with the first 3
chapters of your book. No fee at this time.

We will review and
decide. If we decide to accept you we will email you a link and password to get
you into the secure payment page. You then select the plan you want and pay for
it.

Simple as that!

Then What Happens?

We go to work!

We will examine the
entire book. Since we use Kindle Direct Publishing for our books we will
examine your book in the light of their criteria. We will diligently examine
the grammar, spelling, and more depending on the plan.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), or Task Force Hunter (Book Three), I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the
subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line
would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate
your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick
Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for Christian
Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also
co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the
option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Why is the TR Writing Service Great for You?

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I
also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Monday’s I try to focus on issues. But this week
I am taking a look at Why is the TR Writing Service Great for You?

TR Writing Services
is for the Little Guy

Back when I was in my twenties I had a desire to write books. I found
and signed up for a writing course. Although the course was not considered
expensive by the experts I ended dropping out because of lack of money. This
may have been at a time when I was laid off. But it wiped out my savings and
delayed my writing career by decades. I never forgot!

Over the years I have discovered that just about any kind of writers
aid that is out there is beyond the budget of most people. This includes the
art of writing, editing, publishing, and marketing. The “little guy or gal”
doesn’t have much of a chance.

Why We Founded TR
Writing Services

Our first love as far as writing is concerned is writing our own
books. I’ve experienced the highs and lows of writing, whereas my wife is
currently experiencing the same. All writers must face obstacles, overcome them
or change directions. But getting the help they need at the time they need it
is a great need that is often priced out of their reach.

TR Writing Services was established earlier this year with the purpose
of creating a low cost service that addresses the editing and publishing
aspects of being an author.

What is TR Writing
Services?

TR Writing Services is Entry Level Proofing and Editing for the
author(s) who cannot afford the more expensive services you find online. If you
are looking for a professional extensive treatment of your manuscript then this
is the wrong place. We at TR Writing Services are here to expedite your ability
to publish your book at an affordable
price yet with good quality.

This service will focus on such things as grammar, spelling,
formatting, and other quality issues. This is not aimed at academic books but
rather fiction, nonfiction, and how-to.

What Does It Cost?

Cost varies depending on page count and what you the author want.

As the years
have passed we’ve noticed that the high cost of help remains. Some services
advertise a word by word cost. For example, they may charge $0.005 per word.
That sounds great until you do the math. A book of 50,000 words would cost $250
just for the proofing! We at TR Writing Services charge only $0.002 per word
meaning the same book would cost $100 for the proofing, a saving of $150.

A book of
100,000 words at $0.005 costs $500 while TR Writing Services would charge $200,
a whopping savings of $300. In addition, TR Writing Services offers many FREE
services, such as Setup of KDP Account if needed, Copyright page, ISBN (KDP
free), Uploading your manuscript, Uploading Bio Picture for Back Matter, and
more.

That is just the
basic costs. But it gives you an idea.

Can I Use TR Writing Services?

The short answer is yes. Basically we accept anyone who submits a form (found in our free TR Writing Services handbook) plus the first three chapters of your book. We examine the form and the chapters to determine whether you fit the profile that we are looking for. If approved, we send to a letter of approval with a link to a page where you can purchase the service.

What Other Services Do You Offer?

Our services range from layout, ISBN, copyright, eBook, and others. The eBook service is included in the Platinum Plan. See our booklet for details.

What Is Prohibited?

We are a Christian organization that applies Biblical standards.

We do not work with anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, excessive graphics,
profanity, or any work that violates our Biblical stand.

If during the
course of the contract excessive graphics or any profanity is found the author
shall be informed and corrections/deletions required. Failure on the author’s
part to provide this update will constitute a violation of the contract and
subject it to termination.

How Do I Sign Up?

It’s simple. Simply
go to our Facebook page and click on the “Learn More” link. This will take you
to our web page. You can also simply click on tr-indbkstore.com/writing-service.
In either case you arrive at the first step that explains what you need to do
to get started.

Basically you will
email us and seek a free copy of our TR Writing Services booklet. This booklet
describes our services in greater detail and provides a form to fill out. Once
filled out you copy it and post in another email along with the first 3
chapters of your book. No fee at this time.

We will review and
decide. If we decide to accept you we will email you a link and password to get
you into the secure payment page. You then select the plan you want and pay for
it.

Simple as that!

Then What Happens?

We go to work!

We will examine the
entire book. Since we use Kindle Direct Publishing for our books we will
examine your book in the light of their criteria. We will diligently examine
the grammar, spelling, and more depending on the plan.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), or Task Force Hunter (Book Three), I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the
subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line
would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate
your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick
Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for Christian
Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also
co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the
option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Why is the Florida Gospel Crusade an Astonishing Opportunity?

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Wednesday’s I try to focus on the Church. This week I am taking a look at Why is the Florida Gospel Crusade an Astonishing Opportunity?

The Florida Gospel Crusade is HERE!

Well almost. It kicks off this Saturday
night at 7:00 p.m. and runs through next Wednesday (February 20). This exciting
event has been looked forward to since the completion of the Crusade last year.
And that one was a success!

It was a time of commitment, seeking answers, even getting to ask Jesus into their hearts. I am so glad that there is yet another one. Hopefully this will be an annual event.

Here’s a quick look at the festivities:

Saturday (2/16) is the kickoff. The featured speaker is Evangelist Tom Ferrell. A
well known evangelist he will be bringing powerful messages every night (plus
Sunday Morning). This powerful and dynamic speaker will be backed up with the
merged choirs of Calvary Baptist Church of Englewood, First Baptist Church of
North Port, and Tri-City Baptist Church of Punta Gorda led by Evangelist Randy
Merrill. And the children will have activities aimed right at their age level
and led by Evangelist Kevin Walker.

Sunday (2/17) This will be the morning service (11:00 a.m.). Called Friend Day it will be the opportunity to bring a friend. If you live in the
area and read this blog then you can come as my friend. It will be worth it! Or
bring a friend.

Sunday (2/17) All Educators
are to be honored on this night. It doesn’t matter if you teach in the Public
School system, you Home School, you teach in a church school or in Sunday
School, come to the crusade! This is your day!

Monday (2/18) All Veterans
will be honored. I’m a veteran so I certainly don’t want to miss this. Again I
don’t know the how we’ll be honored but I’m looking forward to it. I’m a
veteran of the Vietnam War, but there’s a good chance that there will be
veterans from wars dating back to Korea or maybe World War II.

Tuesday (2/19) First Responders
will be honored. The men and women of our Fire Departments, Police, and whoever
is considered a First Responder. This is your day!

These are the people who protect us, rescue
us, and stand ready to help every day. It will be our opportunity to meet them.

Wednesday (2/20) Prophecy night.
This promises to be very informative as we live in a day when many prophecies
have already been fulfilled yet a few remain. This is always interesting and
chances are we’ll learn something new.

But I asked about an astonishing
opportunity. So let’s delve into this.

Opportunity to hear great preaching.

As mentioned above Evangelist Tom Ferrell is
a powerful and dynamic preacher. Last year I was only able to hear him once
because my wife was sick and I needed to be with her. But I’ve heard him in the
past and this is an opportunity that both of us won’t be missing!

Opportunity to meet and learn.

We’ll have the opportunity to meet educators, veterans, and First Responders. That in itself will be a privilege. As a veteran myself I will have the opportunity to meet other veterans and perhaps share remembrances. And then to meet the men and women who risk their lives daily on our behalf. Or perhaps you’d like to meet educators and hear their stories. There is something for everyone!

Opportunity to get right with God.

Face it, we all have needs. We were all born
sinners, but God has a message for our hearts, our souls. Sometimes it is
difficult to go forward in your own church and let God deal with you, yet it is
also difficult to get with God at home because of a multitude of activities and
responsibilities. A tent crusade is less structured and surprisingly less
threatening. Perhaps you have never asked Jesus into your life. You’ll have an
opportunity to do that.

Opportunity to commit yourself.

If you’ve been a Christian for awhile then
you probably have heard God’s call upon your life. Maybe you’ve been fighting
it or maybe you just need clarity. Something in the messages may touch your
heart strings and the answer will present itself.

Opportunity to see a friend or loved one get saved.

Has the Lord burdened your heart for
someone? Invite them to come. God has promised His Word won’t come back void.
It just may be that the answer to your prayers will be met right here at the
Florida Gospel Crusade.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle

ARE YOU A BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two), World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book Four) I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – – – – – –

R Frederick
Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for Christian
Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also
co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the
option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

Insight: Does This Novel Show How Depraved Man Is?

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Tuesday’s I try to focus on Insights. This week I am taking a look at Insight: Does This Novel Show How Depraved Man Is.

My latest book Black Death doesn’t deal with abortion but rather the
inhumanity of man to man. It shows how men (and women) can treat others so
cruelly that it can cause severe injury and even death. When talking about
abortion we are essentially talking about the same topic.

Recently New York State passed a law that allows the inhumane murder
of unborn babies. It is an atrocity that violates Christian values and Biblical
directives. In fact, it violates all morality represented by Christianity and
even man-made religion. I know of no religion that supports such cruelty.

Yesterday I wrote about abortion and included a link to Mike Higgins who heads up Hope Children’s Home. If you missed his comments you can hear them here.

In Black Death an evil doctor developed a frightening biological
weapon that killed within seconds and then consumed the victim’s body. He hated
Christians everywhere and went to Pauline to further develop and test his
weapon with the ultimate goal of destroying all Christians on Pauline and
Earth. Part of his plan included a camp he named Camp Terror. Here’s an excerpt
from the book.

“Welcome to Camp Terror, ladies. Starting right now you’re my slaves. You are the property of the People’s Brigade and you will work for me doing exactly what I say when I say. I’m sure you have noticed that two of you only have on a bra and panty. Well that’s your uniform from now on until you die. The naked one is for a lesson I’m about to teach.

——-

“You’ll spend your days working for me.
Among your chores will be the erection of a barracks, a mess hall, and camp
headquarters plus a cattle pen and a shower. I have the distinct pleasure of
teaching and assigning your work. Obey me and you’ll live another day.”

She smiled and walked around the girls.

“James here selected you for your
beautiful bodies, but he also selected you because you look healthy. You want
to stay healthy and get fed regularly you obey everything we tell you.”

She squatted down, grabbed Carla by her
scalp and pulled her head back. Sally looked over the girl’s body.

“James and I have different uses for your
bodies, but in both cases we need strong, healthy girls. And you fit the bill.”

By now the girls were again sobbing, this time uncontrollably. Sally watched unpityingly.

——-

Thus began a reign of terror. Not just terror but inhumane treatment
of women simply because they were Christians! Abortion is the inhumane
treatment of the unborn simply because they are inconvenient! Abortion is based
on the wrongful belief that the unborn baby (fetus) is a part of a woman’s
body. This is both scientifically and spiritually in error. That fetus is a
human being dependent upon his or her mother for safety and sustenance. As the
baby grows it develops a heart, brain, hands, and feet. It can feel and maybe
understand.

But there is
something more. In Psalm 22:10 we
read:

“I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s
belly.”

In other words David is saying he worshipped God from his mother’s
belly.

In Psalm 139:3 we read: “For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast
covered me in my mother’s womb.”

In Luke 1:41 we read about John the Baptist who was still in the womb
at six months when Mary, only recently having conceived, visited her cousin
Elisabeth who was six months pregnant with John the Baptist.

“And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of
Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy
Ghost:”

In other words, the Bible clearly tells and demonstrates that an unborn baby is known of God and can at least recognize the presence of God. Liberals deny this of course. To them the baby is a disease, a tumor, and needs to be removed. We, the people of the United States and, indeed, the world have lost how many wonderful people who could have made inventions, developed cures, established governments, and done innumerable things for humanity but were summarily murdered? Simply because they were inconvenient!

The liberal responds that the woman’s mental health is at stake. This has no real merit because once the baby has been born the mother has options to let someone adopt the baby or as seen below raise the child for her. And there is another factor to consider. I have read of women who had their child aborted and then suffered years of anguish and guilt not because someone put the guilt on them but because a feeling of guilt and remorse overtook them.

All this is going on while millions of husbands and wives are yearning
for children and many people travel to foreign countries to adopt babies. Not
because the babies are better than American babies but because our government
makes it almost impossible to adopt in America.

Hope Children’s Home is unique in its willingness to care for babies as well as other children. Their mission is to help the child and the family. But there are other organizations willing to care for the unborn as well. In other words, if the mother doesn’t want the baby there are others who would love to raise that child as their own or, as in the case of Hope, raise them and work with the parents with the idea of being reunited as a family.

But what can we do
about that?

All of us can pray for revival! God wants to revive us. Let’s give Him the chance. But there are other ways as well. For example, you can keep informed and take advantage of those moments when you can let your leaders know that abortion is not a right, but is murder.

You can right a blog as I am doing. Use whatever talents you have. Perhaps you were born for this moment!

I believe the best thing that all of us can do is get our hearts right
with God. Contrary to liberal teaching America was founded on Biblical principles.
Our history books used to document this fact, but our newer history books tend
to delete God’s involvement with America. But we need to turn back to Him.

In line with this thought I invite all of you that live within driving distance of Port Charlotte Florida or will be visiting Port Charlotte this week to visit the Florida Gospel Crusade which will be going on from today February 18 through the 20th. There will be great preaching, music, and more at the crusade. You can find more information here.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), Task Force Hunter (Book Three), or Black Death (Book Four)
I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books contact me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – –
– – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for
Christian Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit
his Amazon
Authors Page. He is also
co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option
of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook
page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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Should We Deny Abortion (Murder of unborn) is Evil?

Monday through Friday I deal with different subjects in this blog. I also post my blog to my Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld. Monday’s I try to focus on issues. This week I am taking a look at Should We Deny Abortion is Evil?

I am against abortion. Period! The only time that I would consider abortion would be in the case of saving the mother’s life – not her inconvenience. Even there I would be hesitant. It would be a last resort!

Last Monday I wrote about the Holocaust which was the attempt by
Hitler’s Germany to destroy Jewish people. Today I’m writing about another
Holocaust, the attempt by liberals to destroy defenseless humans we call the unborn.
Another name is infanticide!

Recently the state of New York enacted a law that was literally applauded by liberals that would allow abortion not only in the tri-semester of a baby’s development up to the very moment before the baby is born! That is evil and should be condemned not applauded. This inhumane act violates all morality completely. It is argued that such abortions must be determined by a licenses medical or health practitioner and for reasons of protecting life or health of mother. Life is one thing, but undefined health is quite another. It is also argued that later term abortions are rare. Excuse me, even one abortion is wrong! The whole idea is to murder unborn children as easily as possible!

My wife and I have not been blessed with children, but we love and
value all children no matter their race or gender. Children are a gift from God
and are precious in His sight. Just recently Teresa and I visited Hope
Children’s Home in Tampa, Florida. What a blessing to see these young children
from babies to teens which are raised in an environment where they experience a
life that could result in being reunited with their families. This is a
ministry that is willing to take in babies that mothers don’t want. From
unofficial sources I heard that if they did it would be with the goal of eventually
reuniting the child with the mother.

Of all the religions in the world I know of none that devalue life like that. But Christianity not only opposes abortion it has Biblical authority to base it on. I will go in to this more in tomorrow’s blog. In fact the only two religions worth considering are Old Testament Judaism and Christianity. In both cases God’s Word is exalted and they both condemn abortion!

My blog appears short today because I believe that missionary Mike Higgins, (title) of Hope Children’s Home comments on this subject better than I can do. Please listen to him here.

VISIT MY AUTHOR’S PAGE TODAY: amazon.com/author/rfrederickriddle.

ARE YOU A
BOOK REVIEWER? I am always looking for book reviews. Whether it is Perished
The World That Was (Book One), World of Noah and the Ark (Book Two),
World of Shem (Book Three), World of Abraham (Book Four) or Death Ship (Book One), Pauline A
New Home (Book Two), or Task Force Hunter (Book Three), I value your reviews.

If you would like to review any of these books email me at marketing@tr-indbkstore.com with the subject line indicating that desire. An example of an appropriate subject line would be: ‘Seek to review [book Title].’ In the email make sure to indicate your email address, your name, and the choice of copy (PDF or ePub).

 – – –
– – – –

R Frederick Riddle is the author of several books and is best known for Christian Historical Fiction. For more information on him or his books visit his Amazon Authors Page. He is also co-founder and Vice President of T&R Independent Books where his books are featured. To reply to any blog you have the option of commenting on a blog and/or sending an email to marketing@tr-indbkstore.com. You may also be interested in his Facebook page at RFrederickRiddlesWorld.

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