Is the truth really being told when commercials claim they can make a 71 year old look like a 17 year old? Perhaps they just got those numbers accidentally reversed. Not! I don’t believe for a minute all those claims about being younger, stronger, live to a 100 or get rich quick schemes actually work. If they did – where are all these amazing old, healthy, beautiful, rich, marathon running hundred year old people? Truth is – nowhere in my neighborhood, unfortunately, or I’d be signing up for all this stuff.

Truth in the Bible is portrayed as an unchanging reality that initially flows from God Himself. God embodies truth. Denying truths lead to all kinds of messes in every area of peoples’ lives. That’s why it’s imperative to get truth. Pr 23:23 advises us to “Buy truth – don’t sell it for love or money; buy (instead) wisdom, buy education, buy insight.”

As I have mentioned before – truth is dying. So it’s imperative that we ask the hard question of “what is truth?” This is truly life’s most important question. Determining what is true is no doubt the most essential and necessary quest of our human existence.

Bottom line here is that we have a huge decision to make during our brief but fun-packed lives. If it’s true that God is who He claims to be, then follow Him. And if you personally decide that God is just not your gig, then follow one of the other hundreds of religions in the world today. But before you decide be sure and ask yourself – but is this true?

If God is true then in the beginning before time started ticking, God spoke words no one could hear because there was none present to hear them and the world spun into existence at the creative word of His power.

If it’s not true then everything is here from an accident. A crash created something beautiful. A wreck caused order and life to come from nothingness.

If God is true He created man in His image. We are breathing in God’s breath. If it’s not true then man is a well-shaven monkey who is his own sovereign. Eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die.

If God is true there is a righteous judge. There is a law-giver to whom we are accountable.

If it’s not true every moral law should be abolished. There is no right or wrong and we should do what is right in our own eyes.

If God is true there is a heaven. There is a hell. There are angels. There are demons.

Jesus Christ was born of a virgin. He lived a sinless life. He lived the life we couldn’t live to be die the death we should have died. He rose from the dead and ascended to the right hand of the Father.

If it’s not true literally centuries of people have wasted their lives believing in and serving an illusion. Martyrs have lost their lives in vain. The 500 witnesses recorded in

the New Testament who saw the resurrected Son of God were all men suffering from great depths of delusion!

So now…where’s ‘the dare?’ You may not believe anything about God, but I dare you to spend just one hour looking into these amazing claims about Him. I’m sure you have spent time house hunting, or looking for a new car, or shopping for new clothes. But how much time have you spent checking out God and your eternity?!

The Duke of Wellington once haughtily drew himself up to his full height and thundered to one of his staff officers, “God knows I have many faults, bur being wrong is not one of them!” We may feel like the Duke a times when it comes to believing in God – “I’m not wrong.” But, just in case…what if you are?! Selah!

Bob and Susan Beckett pastor The Dwelling Place City Church at 27100 Girard Street in Hemet, CA. For more information, you may contact them at DPCitychurch.org

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Recently there’s been an increase in interest in our culture about life after death.

There are many people who claim to have the ability to contact dead relatives reuniting them with family for one last conversation. I certainly don’t advocate this practice of contacting dead people and I believe it’s demonic. But it does demonstrate the curiosity that people have about the afterlife. As the Bible tells us: “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” Death is called the great equalizer – in the end it visits all people.

But death is not the end of existence. We are eternal beings who exist after this physical body is caput. Unfortunately, many people don’t prepare themselves for that moment. They leave it all up to fate. What will be will be.

You have probably heard the phrase – “If these walls could speak.” I say to heck with walls – what if dead people could speak?! Now that would be something!! I have always wondered what people would say to us if they could come back for just a few minutes. Would they magnify the glories of heaven or the miseries of hell? I wonder what Billy Graham would say? Probably a lot different from what the past leader of Iran – Ayatollah Kharmenei, would say! And what about recently departed Ted Turner? Now what would he have to say about eternity?

But, in fact there is a Biblical account of two dead men speaking. The story is told about Lazarus and Dives. This is actually a pre-Christin account. Our first dead man – Lazarus, was not a Christian but was saved on the basis of the Old Testament dispensation so the account is in pre-Christian terms. I won’t take the time to go into all the details here but it’s an interesting study to do on your own.

Basically this is a conversation between a rich man and a very poor man. They were on opposite sides of a great gulf separating those who were ‘saved’ and those who were ‘lost.’ The rich man was in Hades not because he was rich and had fine food, but because he had zero concern about following God’s laws etc. God’s requirement is that we do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with Him. Dives failed to do any of these while alive and was justly condemned.

Dives saw in hell what he never saw on earth. He was raging but not against injustice. When Abraham points out the contrast between his life and that of Lazarus, Dives knows he’s there justly and he knows he never repented.

So now he pleads for his brothers to be warned so they would repent and not end up as he is. For the first time he knows the truth but now it’s too late. Dives wanted Lazarus to return to his five brothers and warn them. But honestly, they would probably kill Lazarus for telling them their brother was in hell. How could he ever prove he was from the land of the dead?

As Abraham told Dives, if his brothers rejected Moses and the prophets, why would

they listen to this former poor man who begged food at their gate every day?! Point taken! If the Old Testament was sufficient then, how much more is our New Testament a sufficient revelation to escape hell and gain heaven by faith now In Jesus Christ?

But if a person rejects this New Covenant then all the evidence in the world will not move him.

One cold night in December of 1959 machine guns blazed and took down one Roger Toughy, a former member of Al Capone’s gang. He was shot down in front of his sister’s house in Chicago. It had been only 23 days since his release from prison but he knew too much about the underworld. They had a saying – dead men don’t talk. So down he went.

But as we have found – dead men do talk. People are still talking about Roger Toughy 65 years later – what exactly did he know? And in fact, Hebrews 11:4 tells us that “he being dead still speaks.” In other words – read the Living Word of God! It and the people therein will speak volumes to you about eternal life -heaven & hell. After all

– what have you got to lose?

Bob and Susan Beckett pastor The Dwelling Place City Church at 27100 Girard Street in Hemet, CA. For more information, you may contact them at DPCitychurch.org

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The post on Trump’s Truth Social platform, which Trump later said was meant to portray him as a ‌doctor, came amid his escalating feud with Pope Leo, who has criticized the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran as inhumane. Shortly before publishing the image, the president posted a lengthy screed against Pope Leo, calling him “WEAK on crime and terrible for Foreign Policy.”

Leo, the first U.S.-born pope, said in response to Trump’s attacks that he had “no fear” of the Trump administration and would continue to speak out. In a forceful speech on Monday in Algiers, he denounced “neocolonial” world powers who ​are violating international law, without specifically referring to the United States.

Sunday’s post, depicting Trump in a white robe with an apparently healing hand on a prone man’s head, could create a ​rift between Trump and the religious right, whose support was critical to his victory in the 2024 election.

In the painting-like image, Trump holds a glowing ⁠orb in one hand and uses his other hand to touch a seemingly sick man on the forehead. The Statue of Liberty, fireworks, a fighter jet and eagles could be seen in the background.

Trump ​denied on Monday that the image was intended to show him as a Jesus-like figure, calling that “fake news.”

“It’s supposed to be me as a doctor making people better, and I do make people better,” ​he told reporters at the White House, soon after the post was deleted.

Brilyn Hollyhand, who served as the co-chair of the Republican National Committee Youth Advisory Council, wrote on X: “This is gross blasphemy. Faith is not a prop. You don’t need to portray yourself as a savior when your record should speak for itself.”

Riley Gaines, a former collegiate swimmer and outspoken critic of transgender athletes in women’s sports who has appeared with Trump at rallies, wrote on X ​she could not understand why Trump posted the image.

“Does he actually think this?” she wrote. “Either way, two things are true. 1) a little humility would serve him well 2) God shall not be mocked.”

Christian ​voters, including Catholics, have formed a critical part of Trump’s political base. Trump, who does not attend church regularly, won large majorities of Christian voters in the 2024 election, including Catholics, who had previously been closer to ‌a split.

After Trump ⁠narrowly survived an assassination attempt in July 2024, some evangelical supporters said it was evidence he had been blessed by God.

‘WATERSHED MOMENT’

David Gibson, the director of the Center on Religion and Culture at Fordham University, a Catholic school, said it was difficult to understand Trump’s motive in attacking Leo and for posting the image, but that it was also hard to say if American Catholics would turn against him.

“Will this move cross a red line for them? Will they finally punish Trump and the GOP and at the ballot box?” he said. “This is a watershed moment – will Catholics in America choose the pope or the ​president?”

Bishop Robert Barron, who serves on a Trump-created ​religious liberty commission, said on X that ⁠the president owed Leo an apology for his “inappropriate” statements on social media. But he also praised Trump in the same post for his outreach to Catholics.

Trump told reporters on Monday he had “nothing to apologize for” to the pope.

In recent weeks, Leo has become one of the most prominent critics of the war in ​Iran, even making an unusual direct appeal to Trump and urging him to find an “off-ramp.”

Leo has also said that Jesus cannot be used to ​justify war and that God ⁠rejects the prayers of those who start conflicts. Those remarks were widely seen as a rebuke to Trump officials like U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who has cited scripture to justify the use of “overwhelming violence” against enemies and likened the rescue of a U.S. airman inside Iran to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Trump also feuded at times with Leo’s predecessor, Francis, who publicly opposed Trump’s deportation campaign as un-Christian. Last year, after Francis’ ⁠death, Trump posted ​an image showing himself as pope, prompting outrage from many Catholics.

But Trump’s attacks on Leo have gone well beyond his swipes ​at Francis.

“American presidents and American Catholics have disagreed with popes in the past,” Gibson said. “But this is disrespect. Disrespect is way different than disagreement, and that’s the danger for Trump here.”

At least eight members of Trump’s cabinet are Catholic, including Vice President ​JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

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Jack Herrera | LA Times Special Feature

A Californian suddenly transported to this South Texas town on a Sunday morning, just in time for the service at the Tree of Life evangelical church, might be hard-pressed to know she wasn’t in California anymore. California has more megachurches than any other state, so the nature of the congregation wouldn’t provide the tipoff.

Rows of pickups in the large parking lot might be a tell, but the percentage of Texans who drive trucks is actually around the national average. Even if the Californian began asking for political opinions, she’d still have trouble proving she was in Texas. “We’re a diverse congregation,” said Kristen Kallus-Guerra, a congregant who serves as a greeter at the church doors. “Around the election, our pastor always reminds us to go out and vote — but he doesn’t tell us who to vote for.”

The most obvious evidence that the Tree of Life Church was in Texas would be the number of Dak Prescott jerseys. At least five congregants wore the Dallas Cowboys’ quarterback’s No. 4 uniform to church on a recent November morning. The diversity of Texas can surprise people used to viewing the state through the lens of its very conservative public policies. The people of the two states do not differ nearly as much as their governance, according to a poll of roughly 1,600 California and Texas residents, conducted by YouGov for the Los Angeles Times.

California versus Texas is a rivalry without parallel. The nation’s two most populous states are political mirror images — the liberal bastion on the left coast, and the conservative Southern garrison on the Gulf. California fervently protects abortion rights; Texas bans nearly all abortions. Texas upholds gun rights; California strictly regulates firearms. California plans to ban new gasoline-powered cars by 2035; Texas has banned companies that divest from fossil fuels from doing business with the state. But a plurality of respondents in both California and Texas identified as moderates — 32% of Californians and 31% of Texans — the poll found. Moderate can mean very different things to different people, but on specific policy questions, residents of the two states were often surprisingly close.

Asked if government should do more to solve problems and help the needs of people, majorities in both states said yes — 61% of Californians and 55% of Texans. The opposing view, that government does “too many things better left to businesses and individuals” was only a bit more popular in Texas, 34%, than in California, 26%. Asked about government benefits, 55% of Californians and 50% of Texans agreed that “poor people have hard lives because government benefits don’t go far enough to provide a decent standard of living.”

Even on the most hot-button issues — abortion, same-sex marriage, climate change — the poll found that the differences between Californians and Texans came down to a difference that’s fewer than 10 percentage points. The poll shows that one demographic group has an outsized role in widening the political gulf between the two states — white residents, who also are more likely to vote than other racial groups. Religious belief is a major factor in why white residents of Texas and California hold opposing views, the poll indicates. Overall, the poll illuminates one of the central aspects of America’s political divide: Rather than huge splits in public opinion, the gap between America’s quintessential red and blue states comes down to tipping points.

Texans, on average, lean a few points to the right, Californians a few more points to the left. Those leanings tip politics in each state, empowering conservative Republicans in Texas and liberal Democrats in California who have driven policy in opposite directions, magnifying differences between two states that otherwise have much in common.

States divided

If it weren’t for their political reputations, it might be easier to see California and Texas as twins, not foils. Both Western states, with their dramatic landscapes, used to be part of Mexico; both have brutal colonial pasts, with Spaniards and later Americans waging wars of removal against Native peoples.

The early economies of California and Texas were defined by cattle and agriculture and later oil. In the last few decades, California, and increasingly Texas, have benefited from a boom in tech and venture capital. Latinos make up the largest group in both states, a little over 40% of the population in each, according to the most recentcCensus. Non-Latino white residents are a minority in both states (34.7% of the population in California and 39.8% in Texas).

Texans are more rural — or more likely to label their communities that way: 30% of Texans, but just 15% of Californians, say they live in a rural area or small town, the poll found. Half of Californians, but just a third of Texans, say they live in an urban area. It’s easy to forget that as recently as the 1990s, Texas was a mostly Democratic state. Democratic control began to crumble in the 1980s, but only ended in 1994 with the political ascension of a popular governor and heir to a political dynasty: George W. Bush. Bush’s rise set the tone for Texas politics over the next three decades.

Take guns, for instance. When Bush ousted Democratic Gove. Ann Richards, it was still illegal to own a handgun in Texas. The year before that election, after the bloody battle in Waco between law enforcement agents and a religious cult known as the Branch Davidians, Richards vetoed a bill that would have made handguns legal. In his campaign, Bush used that veto as a wedge issue. It proved highly successful.

Thirty years later, Texans can legally carry concealed handguns in public — without any license.

Environmental justice

California moved in the opposite direction over roughly the same period. Several issues spurred political organizing that helped drive the state to the left: Then-Gov. Pete Wilson’s campaign in 1994 for Proposition 187, a ballot measure aimed at cutting off social services to unauthorized immigrants, increased voter registration and mobilization among Latino residents.

A revived labor movement led to growing union power and influence — about 1 in 5 California residents have a union member in their family, roughly twice the level in Texas, the poll found. Few issues, however, have had more grassroots impact on the state than environmentalism. When he was 4, Jeremy Terhune’s family moved from Kansas to Stockton, Calif. In the early ’90s, as Terhune grew up, Stockton blended more seamlessly into the ranch and farmland of California’s Central Valley. But in the last 20 years, Stockton has transformed.

With a population of 322,000, it has absorbed thousands of residents priced out of the Bay Area. Stockton is hard to define. It is, by some measures, the United States’ most racially diverse city. While more liberal than the surrounding counties of the Central Valley, the city still elected a Republican mayor in 2020 (albeit in a nonpartisan election).

Terhune has spent more time thinking about Stockton’s political values than most. For over a decade, he worked as a community organizer with environmental groups in Stockton and the Valley. He had to learn a key lesson. “You have to start by asking questions; you have to meet people where they’re at,” Terhune said. “When it comes to people who aren’t what some call traditional environmentalists — like farmers, or hunters, or even the Latino community — I start by asking how they recreate. Where they get outdoors, even if it’s just a park.” Terhune’s work culminated in founding PUENTES, an organization dedicated to making underserved communities environmentally healthier and more sustainable.

The organization’s biggest victory was founding Boggs Tract Community Farm, a large urban garden in a predominantly Black neighborhood. “We took a garbage dump, got the soil tested, and converted it into an organic farm,” Terhune says. “Now all of a sudden, everybody’s a gardener— suddenly urban gardening is a thing in Stockton.” Efforts like that have made environmental values a major part of California culture. As the Democratic Party nationally embraced environmentalism, and the Republicans moved away from it, that helped cement the state’s Democratic identity.

The effect can be seen in how California residents view climate change — 70% percent say climate change is a “serious” issue, including just over half, 51%, who call it “very serious.” In Texas, by comparison, 62% call the issue serious, but less than half, 42%, said it was very serious. Terhune points to a century-long history of community organizing to explain why California is culturally green: The Sierra Club was founded in San Francisco in 1892.

As the environment changes in Texas — the state just had one of its hottest summers in history in the midst of a exceptional drought — attitudes there might change as well, Terhune suggests. He points to the devastating 2021 February winter freeze, which brought the state’s electrical grid to the point of collapse. “I think Texans are just as environmental and just as engaged in environmental justice as we are,” Terhune says. “But it’s about making that connection — and (after these storms), people are more aware of the environment.”

New Braunfels

Like Stockton, New Braunfels has gone through a period of explosive change — it’s one of the fastest-growing places in the country, with a population of roughly 100,000. It’s the sort of place that will define Texas’ future.

Once rural ranchland, New Braunfels has been transformed into a bustling suburb between two of the country’s largest cities — San Antonio is about 20 minutes south, and Austin is 40 minutes north. That makes New Braunfels the sort of place where aspects of Texan culture collide — and that includes politics. San Antonio and Austin each went heavily for Joe Biden in the last election, and rural Texas went strongly for Donald Trump.

New Braunfels was something of a swing district. Of course, politics aren’t the only thing that makes the culture of New Braunfels diverse. At the Tree of Life Sunday service, the choruses to the worship songs were sung in English and Spanish. The Latino — Tejano, more specifically — influence of South Texas is clearly present. After the 75-minute service on the first weekend in November, Kallus-Guerra sat chatting with other members of the congregation.

With the outline of the state tattooed behind her right ear, Kallus-Guerra is proud to be Texan, although she says she has trouble defining what precisely being Texan means. Texas identity matters in this state — 50% of residents said being a Texan was a “big part” of their identity, compared with 44% of Californians who felt that way about their state.

That’s true even though the share of people who are recent arrivals is significantly higher in Texas than in California. “As far as like California-Texas, they can be different, sure,” she said. “But everyone has differences.” Kallus-Guerra has met enough first-time churchgoers coming through the doors that she recognizes that some things about people — their needs, their yearnings — are more universal. “A lot of people are looking for that structure, looking for a higher being to look for rather than it just being random chance, all this craziness — it’s looking for a compass that they can go to,” she said.

Religion

For Texans looking for such a structure, faith is a common answer. Religion is a more important compass for Texans, on average, than Californians, and that’s a major factor in the political differences between the two states.

When asked if it is necessary to believe in God to have good values, 47% of Texans said yes compared with 33% of Californians — a larger gulf than most other questions on the poll. Texans are more likely than Californians to report going to church at least once a week and more likely to call religion important in their lives. Roughly half of Texans say religion is a major part of their identities, compared with just over a third of Californians. Protestants, in particular, are a much larger part of the religious picture in Texas — 32% compared with 19% in California.

Not all religious people are conservative. But religious conservatives, especially evangelical Protestants, play a huge role in politics. Conservative churches serve as a place where like-minded people can share and reinforce each other’s views and mobilize for political action, much as unions, environmental groups and other civic organizations do on the left.

Religious identity has a big effect on many political issues, most notably abortion. Fifty-eight percent of Californians said they believed abortion should be legal in some or most cases, compared with 47% of Texans, the L.A. Times/YouGov poll found. Just 12% of Texans believe abortion should be illegal in all cases, which is essentially what state law currently provides. In California, 9% said abortion should be illegal in all cases.

The gap is far wider between religious and nonreligious residents of both states. In Texas, evangelical Christian groups hold enormous influence in the statehouse, in a way they do not in California. Conversely, abortion-rights advocacy groups like Emily’s List and Reproductive Freedom for All (formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America) are major political players in California. When Gov. Gavin Newsom chose a new U.S. senator to finish the term of deceased Sen. Dianne Feinstein, he chose Laphonza Butler, the president of Emily’s List from 2021-23 who was also formerly the head of the state’s largest union.

Race

Whether the wide gap between Texas and California will persist could depend on the two states’ populations of color.

In both California and Texas, the political priorities of the state government largely follow the preferences of their white residents — a minority of the population, but still a majority of voters in both states. That pushes California further left and Texas further right. That difference shows up on questions about policy as well as basic values.

On the question of whether belief in God is necessary for a person to have good values, for example, Black and Latino Texans closely resemble Black and Latino Californians. In both states, the groups are fairly evenly divided. White Californians, however, overwhelmingly reject that idea, 28% say yes to 65% no. White Texans are split, 42% say yes, 52% no. Similarly, on abortion, a wide gap exists between the two states’ white populations.

White Californians favor legal abortion in all or most cases by 20 percentage points, 58% to 38%; white Texans oppose abortion in most cases, 44% to 52%. By contrast, 48% of Latino Texans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, as do 51% of Latino Californians. Fifty-nine percent of Black Texans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, as do 63% of Black Californians.

A similar pattern of sharper ideological divides among white residents and much greater similarity between Latino and Black residents shows up on other issues, including attitudes toward guns, the poll found.

But change has been coming, slowly, to both states. As the voting populations grow more diverse, the poll indicates, these two states with so much in common could draw politically closer.

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court ’s conservative majority sounded sympathetic Monday to a Christian graphic artist who objects to designing wedding websites for gay couples, a dispute that’s the latest clash of religion and gay rights to land at the highest court.

The designer and her supporters say that ruling against her would force artists — from painters and photographers to writers and musicians — to do work that is against their beliefs. Her opponents, meanwhile, say that if she wins, a range of businesses will be able to discriminate, refusing to serve Black customers, Jewish or Muslim people, interracial or interfaith couples or immigrants, among others.

Over more than two hours of spirited arguments, the justices repeatedly tested out what ruling for the designer could mean, using detailed and sometimes colorful hypothetical scenarios. Those included a Black Santa asked to take a picture with a child dressed in a Ku Klux Klan outfit, a photographer asked to take pictures for the Jewish dating website JDate and also the marital infidelity website Ashley Madison, and a food business called “Grandma Helen’s Protestant Provisions.”

Justice Neil Gorsuch, one of three high court appointees of former President Donald Trump, described Lorie Smith, the website designer in the case, as “an individual who says she will sell and does sell to everyone, all manner of websites, (but) that she won’t sell a website that requires her to express a view about marriage that she finds offensive.”

Where to draw the line for what a business might do without violating state anti-discrimination laws was a big question in Monday’s arguments at the high court.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson asked whether a photography store in a shopping mall could refuse to take pictures of Black people on Santa’s lap.

“Their policy is that only white children can be photographed with Santa in this way, because that’s how they view the scenes with Santa that they’re trying to depict,” Jackson said.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor repeatedly pressed Kristen Waggoner, the lawyer for Smith, over other categories. “How about people who don’t believe in interracial marriage? Or about people who don’t believe that disabled people should get married? Where’s the line?” Sotomayor asked.

But Justice Samuel Alito, who seemed to favor Smith, asked whether it’s “fair to equate opposition to same-sex marriage to opposition to interracial marriage?”

The case comes at a time when the court is dominated 6-3 by conservatives and follows a series of cases in which the justices have sided with religious plaintiffs. Across the street from the court, lawmakers at the Capitol are finalizing what would be a landmark bill protecting same-sex marriage.

The proposed law, which also would protect interracial marriage, has gained momentum following the high court’s decision earlier this year to end constitutional protections for abortion. That decision to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling prompted questions about whether the court — now that it is more conservative — might also overturn its 2015 decision declaring a nationwide right to same-sex marriage. Justice Clarence Thomas explicitly said that decision should be reconsidered.

The case being argued before the high court Monday involves Smith, a graphic artist and website designer in Colorado who wants to begin offering wedding websites. Smith says her Christian faith prevents her from creating websites celebrating same-sex marriages.

“Ms. Smith believes opposite-sex marriage honors scripture and same-sex marriage contradicts it,” Waggoner told the justices.

But offering wedding websites to same-sex couples and refusing to design them for opposite sex couples could get Smith in trouble with state law. Colorado, like most other states, has what’s called a public accommodation law that says if Smith offers wedding websites to the public, she must provide them to all customers. Businesses that violate the law can be fined, among other things.

Five years ago, the Supreme Court heard a different challenge involving Colorado’s law and a baker, Jack Phillips, who objected to designing a wedding cake for a gay couple. That case ended with a limited decision and set up a return of the issue to the high court. Waggoner, of the Alliance Defending Freedom, also represented Phillips.

Like Phillips, Smith says her objection is not to working with gay people. She has had gay clients, her lawyer said. But she objects to creating messages supporting same-sex marriage, just as she wouldn’t create a website for a couple who met while they both were married to other people and then divorced.

Smith says Colorado’s law violates her free speech rights. Her opponents, including the Biden administration, the American Civil Liberties Union and the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, disagree.

Twenty mostly liberal states, including California and New York, are supporting Colorado, while 20 other, mostly Republican,states, including Arizona, Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee, are supporting Smith.

The case is 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, 21-476.

Find your latest news here at the Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle

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Susan Beckett | Dwelling Place City Church

A new game show hit our TV’s back in 1999 with Regis Philbin hosting. “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” was an instant success, with millions (no pun intended) turning in each week to watch one lucky competitor answer questions and win money. Lots of money! Maybe even getting the last question right and winning a million dollars. If you watched the show, you may remember that famous one liner – “Is that your final answer?” – at the end of each question.

Personally, I found it frustrating to sit on my couch and watch these contestants – I just knew if I were in the hot seat I could win the million dollars. How in the world could these people keep missing these easy questions while having lifelines & friends to call on for help? If you thought the same thing, let’s sample out a few of the questions.

The most watched TV episode of all time, the final episode of M*A*S*H, aired on February 1983, following what sitcom? A. Private Benjamin B. Square Pegs C. Alive D. Newhart (Answer: Alive).

The U.S. icon “Uncle Sam” was based on Samuel Wilson, who worked during the War of 1812 as a what? A. Meat inspector B. Mail deliverer C. Historian D. Weapons Mechanic (Answer: Meat inspector) [Sam was a meat inspector from New York. It was there that he supplied barrels of beef to the U.S. Army during the War of 1812.]

And just one more – which insect shorted-out an early supercomputer and inspired the term “computer bug?” A. Moth B. Roach C. Fly D. Japanese beetle (Answer: A moth was found inside the computer of scientist Grace Hopper.)

So – how did you do? It’s harder than we think to be smart. We usually tend to believe, as individuals, that we have all the answers. We don’t, of course, but there is one question that the Bible tells us to always be prepared to answer. In I Peter 3, we are challenged to always be prepared to explain the hope we have in Christ to everyone who asks.

I heard about a man who once had a conversation with a gentleman who was an atheist. ‘John’ – our guy – asked the atheist, “What percentage of total knowledge do you believe you personally possess? 50% 30%?” He replied he wasn’t sure, so John continued, “I heard that Einstein claimed to understand 5% of total knowledge. Let me ask you again: Of everything that can be known, what percent do you believe you know?” This time, he replied, “Okay – maybe 2 or 3%.” John responded, “Then isn’t it reasonable that in the 98% of knowable truth that you don’t know, that God could exist?” His response? “Yeah – I guess that makes a lot of sense.”

Hopefully, that wasn’t his final answer and our atheist friend went on to understand and know Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. The truth is, everyone gives a final answer in the end, and just like the show, that final answer locks you in. No do-overs!

In Matthew 16, we find Jesus asking His disciples an intriguing question: “Who do you say that I am?” After all – many folks in His day thought He was Jeremiah or Elijah come back from the dead. But good ol’ Peter steps up to the plate and knocks it out of the ballpark with this answer, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

This is a confession of faith that can serve as a model for anyone who would seek to make Jesus Lord of their lives. The correct ‘final answer’ might win you a million dollars on TV but there’s a much more important final answer that we all need to get right before our end. I’m 100% with Peter on this one: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God – He is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him.

I have always loved Henry Wadsworth Longfellow quotes (1807-1882) and my very favorite one is this: “Life is real! Life is earnest! And the grave is not its goal; Dust thou art, to dust returnest, Was not spoken of the soul.” And THAT was his final answer!!

Bob and Susan Beckett pastor The Dwelling Place City Church at 27100 Girard Street in Hemet, CA. For more information, you may contact them at DPCitychurch.org

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Touchy. Hypersensitive. Thin-skinned. Do any of these terms sound familiar to you? We are living in a time where people are offended by any little thing. A driver got offended because her friend put on her seatbelt and the driver thought it was a comment on her driving ability. A man in the U.K. was recently arrested and charged after a Facebook post caused someone anxiety. (This is from a platform where 2 billion people from around the world post thoughts & ideas).

Others are offended because someone uses certain pronouns they don’t like. Trust me – it’s a long list these days. Offenses come in four ways: what others say to us, what others didn’t say to us, what others did to us, or what others didn’t do for us. That covers just about everything. I find it extremely interesting that in Matthew 24, Jesus – speaking about end times, said: “And then shall many be offended…and shall hate one another.” Think we’re there?! Some people become so offended they want to destroy others’ lives, or financially wipe them off the face of the map. Jesus warned us in Luke 17: “It is impossible that no offense should come.”

In other words, we are all going to be offended. It’s called life! The word translated as “offended” is the Greek word scandalon. It’s where we get our word scandal. It literally means “a trap stick.” It’s the stick which is baited and used to trap or snare an animal. An offended person is one who falls for the bait, and thus ends up trapped.

Think about it – offense led Judas to betray Jesus. It trapped him, took him captive, and after realizing what he’d done, Judas hanged himself. Being offended today it seems, is the world’s big hobby, but actually, people have always been offended over something or other – good things and bad! People are offended over either truth or trivia. Jesus offended people all the time, and as someone once noted: “Whenever you speak the truth, someone will be offended.” The question for us is this: “Is living in a nation of constantly offended people uniting us or tearing us apart? I recently came across an interesting piece of history. It’s historical reality that all great empires – the Persians, the Trojans, the Greeks, the Romans, and the Egyptians – all rose and perished within 240 years.

They were not conquered by external enemies but became rotten and destroyed from within. America has reached that 240-year mark and our decline is starting to become visible and is picking up speed. Our greatest generation consisted of 18-year-old kids who stormed the beaches of Normandy and now, just two generations later, many 18-year-olds want to hide in a safe room when words hurt their feelings. Proverbs 19 tells us that “A person’s wisdom yields patience and it is to one’s glory to overlook an offense.”

Wise people move on from offenses. F. Lebowitz noted, “Being offended is a natural consequence of leaving the house.” So witty, yet true! Detente should be the name of the game for all of us in this day and age. There’s an interesting story of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia who, one day, encountered one of his generals. This general had offended the king and had long been in his disfavor, but at their meeting, the general saluted the king with great respect. Frederick though, merely turned his back on the officer. The general then spoke a daring but wise remark: “I am happy to see that Your Majesty is no longer angry with me.”

Frederick replied back, “How so?” The general responded, “Because Your Majesty has never in his life turned his back on an enemy.” It was a daring statement, but it was reported to have led to a reconciliation between the two of them. Over 2,000 years ago, Jesus rightly stated that a kingdom divided against itself will not stand, and history has proved Him right over and over! Abraham Lincoln echoed those same words in 1858. Eleanor Roosevelt back in the 1940s, said the following: “Pit race against race, religion against religion, prejudice against prejudice.

Divide and conquer! We must not let that happen here.” She knew – offenses without reconciliation will eventually break our great United States! America needs God again! Bob and Susan Beckett pastor The Dwelling Place City Church at 27100 Girard Street in Hemet, CA. For more information, you may contact them at DPCitychurch.org

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SUSAN BECKETT | Dwelling Place City Church

Way back when I was in junior high, our family had a pet Mynah bird. We purchased him at Sears for a whopping $29.95. We think he was a dude but we named him Babydoll, and boy, was he ever the talker! Mynah’s are known for their verbal skills and this guy picked up everything – so fun!

One day my mom had him outside in his cage for some fresh air and took the opportunity to clean the cage. She had almost finished when she ever so slightly lifted up the bottom edge to clean one last spot when Babydoll swooped down and out – he was gone! Out into the sky he flew, much to the dismay of his heartbroken human family.

I’ve thought long and hard about our winged friend and his flight to freedom. I guess I shouldn’t have been all that surprised he took off. There’s an innate desire for freedom inside of everyone. You can see it in small children not wanting anyone to “be the boss” off them, and then into the teen years where just getting a first car is their path to living free! It’s part of the DNA that God put into each one of us!

Living free can be an interesting dilemma – on one hand, we all have the desire for freedoms and on the other hand we need conditions on freedoms. Both are needed to live peacefully. (Please don’t be yelling “fire” in a crowded theater!)

Galatians 5 reminds us, “Christ has set us free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you.” Freedom, it seems, comes not just in social forms, but also in spiritual form. Both are needed for a peaceful, prosperous, and purposeful life!

God desires for us to live under leaders who evidence truth, morality, and fairness. Psalm 94:16 challenges us with this: “Who will rise up for Me against evildoers? Who will stand up for Me against the workers of iniquity?” Apparently, that job position is still open! The desire to be and stay free is always on the line.

I recently read an article that caught my attention. It’s called: “Opinion From a Former Judge.” It’s thought-provoking and well worth the read:

“I am a student of law whose age is 85. My first year of college was 68 years ago. One class I took was political science. A half-page of my textbook essentially outlined a few steps to overturn a democracy.

1. Divide the nation philosophically.

2. Cause distrust of police authority.

3. Swarm the nation’s borders indiscriminately & unconstitutionally.

4. Engender the military strength to weaken it.

5. Overburden citizens with more unfair taxation.

6. Forment racial strife.

7. Encourage civil rioting and discourage accountability for all crime.

8. Control all balloting.

9. Control all media.

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It should come as no surprise to you that we are living in a time where our basic freedoms are being challenged, and at the sometime, our basic freedoms are being affirmed. Is freedom of speech something we, as Americans, possess or something we repress? I’d venture to say at this point there is a huge chasm between those two camps!

But this is nothing new to mankind. Many of the freedoms we take for granted have been a rarity throughout history. Freedom of speech, thought, and knowledge, have been repressed throughout millennia. During the Middle Ages for example, only ordained clergy could interpret the Bible or even read the scriptures. It took a radical reformation to change that.

In those pre-Reformation days, printing the Bible was forbidden and even in England, to possess one without a license could get you killed. John Wycliffe, who translated the Bible from Latin into English, had all his writings banned. Thirty years after he died of a stroke in 1384, he was declared a heretic and his body was exhumed and burned, with the ashes being thrown into a river. Such a dangerous man!

God is on a search for people today who also get the big picture – those brave souls who are willing to lay it down for His Kingdom of truth. In Matthew 9, Jesus tells us, “The harvest is truly plentiful, but the laborers are few.” That was spoken over 2,000 years ago, but it’s still true today.

We tend to think the U.S. is not a mission field – but unfortunately, we live in a post-Christian world. We have now become one of those “unreached people groups” – disillusioned youth, addicts, the homeless, LGBTQ, disenchanted seniors, and cynical, woke college students. The list goes on.

God never intended for the local church to simply be a quiet, hidden body of believers. He intended for us to be His voice in each community – touching those around us with the power and truth of Almighty God. As Christ-followers, we’re to be a brilliant beacon of light in the midst of dark and troubled communities.

Living in these unstable times, we just can’t do business as usual if we truly believe our profound message of eternity. Fortunately, God has brought people along to confront the misuse of basic freedoms.

There’s a remarkable story of a Romanian pastor, Joseph Tson, who, in 1977, 600 years after John Wycliff, was arrested by the secret police. He published a sermon calling for the pastors to refuse submission to the government’s demand for control over their churches. He was threatened with death if he didn’t rescind what he’d written. But his reply? “No!”

The official, surprised that anyone would respond so forcefully to the secret police, asked, “Aren’t you aware that I can have you killed?” “Sir,” Tson replied, “Your supreme weapon is killing. My supreme weapon is dying. My sermons are spread all over the country. When you kill me, I only sprinkle them with my blood. They will speak 10 times louder after that, because everybody will say, ‘That preacher meant it

because he sealed it with his blood.’ So go on, kill me. And when you do, I win the supreme victory.” The secret police released him, knowing his death would be far more of a problem than his sermons.

We have a sign posted at DP on a gate that everyone reads on their way out the parking lot. It simply reads: “You are now entering the mission field.” As Christ-followers, we have no option but to be involved in the affairs of this world, as Jesus has instructed us to be salt & light while fearlessly moving forward.

Max Lucado once penned these insightful words: “Fear never wrote a symphony, re-initiated a peace treaty, or cured a disease. Fear never pulled a family out of poverty or a country out of bigotry. Courage did that. Faith did that. People who refused to cower to their timidness did that. But fear itself? Fear herds us into a prison and slams the doors.” So, please – go boldly where few men dare to go and enter your mission field.

Bob and Susan Beckett pastor The Dwelling Place City Church at 27100 Girard Street in Hemet, CA. For more information, you may contact them at DPCitychurch.org

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I spent a lot of time, money, and effort childproofing my house…but the kids still get in! What do you get if you cross a parrot and a millipede? A walkie-talkie! Ha! All funny stuff. But believe it or not, there are many who think a good sense of humor is out of place in the same sentence as “God.” Never mind that Ecclesiastes 3 reminds us that there’s “a time for everything” – among that is “a time to weep and a time to laugh.”

Proverbs 17 tells us that “A joyful heart is good medicine.” That should come as no surprise since we have known for sometime that laughter and a good sense of humor have long-term physical & mental health benefits.

A happy heart reduces stress and increases our tolerance to pain, plus scientists have found that smiling is an effective pain reduction strategy. Laughter is extremely important to your immune system and will even increase the number of natural killer cells and activated T cells which help our bodies stay strong.

Laughing, researchers have found, immediately increases the blood flow to our hearts in the same way that aerobic exercise works. Laughing also lifts depression and helps get us through those tough times in life – plus, it makes us more creative! Apparently, laughter is indeed the best medicine after all.

So – with all the above in mind – let me share a piece that I think will make you laugh out loud. Or, at least smile big!

A long time ago, a Pope decided that all the Jews had to leave the Vatican, unless a member of the Jewish community could win in a religious debate with him. Having no choice and no volunteer, a middle-aged Jewish man was sent to represent them.

Speaking different languages, the Pope began by raising his hand to show three fingers. The man raised one finger in return. The Pope waved his finger around in a circle. The man pointed to the ground where he sat. The Pope pulled out a wafer and a glass of wine. The man pulled out an apple. The Pope stood up and said, “I give up. This man is too good. The Jews can stay.”

An hour later, the cardinals surrounded the Pope and asked him what happened. The Pope said, “First, I held up three fingers to represent the Trinity. He responded by holding up one finger to remind me that there was still one God common to both our religions. Then I waved my finger around me to show him that God was all around us. He responded by pointing to the ground, showing that God was also right here with us. I pulled out the wine and the wafer to show that God forgives us from our sins. He pulled out an apple to remind me of original sin. He had an answer for everything. What could I do?”

Meanwhile, the Jewish community crowded around the man and asked, “What happened?” “Well,” he replied, “First he indicated to me that the Jews had three days to get out of here. I let him know that not one of us was leaving. Then he made it clear that this whole city would be cleared of Jews. I let him know that we were staying right here.” “And then?” asked a woman. “I don’t know,” said the man. “He took out his lunch and I took out mine.”

A sense of humor is a great asset, so is it any wonder that Proverbs tells us, “He who has a merry heart has a continual feast?!” So – let’s end this ‘banquet’ with a few notable quotes ~

Milton Berle once said, “Laughter is an instant vacation.” George Bernard Shaw is quoted as saying, “If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you.” Maya Angelou wrote, “I don’t trust anyone who doesn’t laugh,” and Lord Byron penned, “Always laugh when you can, it’s cheap medicine.” Robert Front said, “If we couldn’t laugh we would all go insane,” while Walt Disney let us know that “Laughter is America’s most important export.”

And, our ‘one for the road’ is by Sean O’Casey: “Laughter is wine for the soul – laughter soft, or loud and deep – the hilarious declaration made by man that life is worth living!” So, go ahead – rejoice and let the joy of the Lord be your strength!

Bob and Susan Beckett pastor The Dwelling Place City Church at 27100 Girard Street in Hemet, CA. Fo more information, you may contact them at DPCitychurch.org

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