Connecticut by the number$

The economic outlook for the State isn't too bad at the moment, at least when compared to our neighbors, but still needs help.

From the "You've Got To Be Kidding Me Department," the new Winvian resort opens up soon in Morris. Price tag: up to $2000 a night for double occupancy! And, it looks awesome. This is a great boost for the Litchfield County economy... when I was a kid Morris only had... ummm, one of anything.

Speaking of luxury, Mohegan Sun is planning a massive expansion. How big? $740 million.

Let's continue to pray for the State economy and for the relationship between the Governor and the new Legislature as they deal with taxes and policy in the coming year.

Tags: Connecticut

More on "Obsession" movie and jihad

Hat tip to Sue for this link to a 12-minute, good quality video abridgement of the Obsession documentary on the global jihad movement. Particularly chilling to hear young children talk about hoping that people die in flames and seeing them learn how to handle an AK-47.

Also, CNN host Glenn Beck, who is rapidly rising in popularity, has a special tonight on Islamic extremism. Surprised they still are running Mr. Beck.

Tags: Christianity, Islam

Biggest drug bust in Connecticut history

How big, exactly? Fifteen million dollars' worth of pure heroin, in New Milford. Story and video here from Channel 8.

Let's continue to pray for our towns and cities, specifically praying for the exposure of crime. God answers prayer!

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Prayer, NewMilford

The end of New England Republicans

It may be an exaggeration, but not by much: New England Republicans are becoming extinct, at least according to this AP analysis:

The Democratic tidal wave in Tuesday's elections claimed several victims in seats that had long been in Republican hands. Scholars say the losses may be the death knell for the traditional "rock-ribbed" New England Republican.

Perhaps the best example is Sen. Lincoln Chafee, whose family has represented Rhode Island in the Senate for 30 years.

Both of New Hampshire's seats in Congress switched parties. Six-term Rep. Charles Bass, also part of a political family whose father held the same seat in Congress and whose grandfather was a governor, lost to a Democrat, as did Rep. Jeb Bradley, who served 12 years in the state legislature before winning election to Congress in 2002.

Twelve-term Rep. Nancy Johnson, Connecticut's longest-serving congresswoman, lost by 12 percentage points to a Democrat. Another Connecticut moderate, Rep. Rob Simmons, is fighting for his political life. With a recount under way, Simmons trailed Democrat Joe Courtney by fewer than 200 votes.

Yankee Republicans like Chafee's father, the late Sen. John Chafee, former Sen. Lowell Weicker of Connecticut, or even President Bush's father, former President George H.W. Bush, once were the base of the party. Not anymore.

The defeat of Chafee, arguably the most liberal GOP senator, and Ohio Sen. Mike DeWine, who at times aligned himself with GOP moderates, leaves Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, both of Maine, and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania as perhaps the only reliably centrist Republicans in the Senate.

Amazingly, assuming no changes by way of recount, U. S. Rep. Christopher Shays of Connecticut's 4th District isn't simply the only Republican Congressman from Connecticut - he's the only one in all of New England! A Greenwich Time writer refers to Shays as "unbeatable." How does he do it?

Shays' 7,060-vote victory was so impressive that many politicians and observers are questioning whether Democrats can ever find a way to unseat him.

"I just don't see how (the Democrats are) going to do it in 2008," said state Republican Party Chairman George Gallo. "Congressman Shays fits the 4th District to a T ideologically. He's a moderate, social liberal, fiscal conservative that mirrors the district perfectly."

Democratic state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said "nothing is impossible" in politics, but acknowledged why Shays is tough to beat.

"He is respected and dedicated," Blumenthal said. "His intelligence, insight and devotion to his district is very rare in a public servant. That puts him at a terrific advantage, whatever the political climate is. People may feel hostile toward the Bush Administration, but they still elect the individual."

That speaks volumes about Mr. Shays, but perhaps it also speaks volumes about the failure of Republicans as well.

What does the future hold? Here's an interesting note: the Family Institute of Connecticut (FIC), certainly far to the right politically of Mr. Shays, is very pleased that pro-family candidates it endorsed did well in state elections. The FIC thinks that Connecticut Republican candidates weren't conservative enough, and their old-fashioned pavement-pounding might actually have helped to send a number of conservative Democrats to the State Legislature.

FIC President Brian Brown says, "We won 40 races and lost in 26. That's a 61% success rate in an election year where we saw massive losses in state houses across the country."

This may be more hard evidence that evangelicals and conservative Catholics are now more ready to support people of either party as long as their values are being upheld.

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Evangelical, Catholic, politics, news, Shays, Democrat, Republican, Congress

Christian events in Connecticut this week

Josh McDowell

Well-known Christian apologist and youth speaker Josh McDowell returns to Connecticut. Here's the rest of what's happening here this week:

Tuesday, November 14
***Josh McDowell Youth Seminar (Trumbull)
***Josh McDowell Parent/Adult Seminar (Trumbull)

Wednesday, November 15
***Raymond Mooi (Greenwich)

Friday, November 17
***New Canaan Society Breakfast with Tim Clinton (Stamford)
***Chynna Phillips, Bernie Williams (before you ask me, yes, it is that Bernie Williams) in Concert (New Milford)

Saturday, November 18
***Hartford Intercessors Strategic Meeting (Hartford)
***Kutless in Concert with Red, Disciple, and Run Kid Run (Meriden)
***Christian Coffeehouse (Danbury)

For additional details on these and other events, visit the CT Christian Events Calendar, powered by Google!

Want to submit an event? Write us at info@prayct.org.

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Evangelical, Danbury, Greenwich, Hartford, NewMilford, Meriden, Stamford, Trumbull

Connecticut 2nd District race still unclear

The AP and Channel 8 are reporting that a town official in Lebanon has discovered an error which gave Democrat Joe Courtney 100 extra votes. Mr. Courtney is already headed to Washington for orientation. Stay tuned and continue to pray...

By the way, if a Congressional race can be decided by 60 or 70 votes, don't let anyone ever tell you that your vote doesn't count.

Tags: Connecticut, politics, Lebanon

Oh, there's good Christians, too?

I almost forgot until I saw an editorial in the New London Day, of all places, called "It's A Distortion To Stereotype Evangelicals." Here's a piece:

It was in 1976 — the “year of the evangelical,” according to Newsweek — that conservative Christians burst upon the political landscape. Critics have been warning about the theocratic takeover of America ever since. Thus the plaintive cry of a Cabinet member in the Carter administration: “I am beginning to fear that we could have an Ayatollah Khomeini in this country, but that he will not have a beard ... he will have a television program.”

This election season produced similar lamentations — Howard Dean's warning about Christian “extremism,” Kevin Phillips' catalog of fears in “American Theocracy” and brooding documentaries such as “Jesus Camp,” to name a few. This theme is a gross caricature of the 100 million or more people who could be called evangelicals. But the real problem is that it denies the profoundly democratic ideals of Protestant Christianity, while ignoring evangelicalism's deepening social conscience.

Evangelicals led the grass-roots campaigns for passage of the abolition of slavery and women's suffrage. Even the Moral Majority in its most belligerent form amounted to nothing more terrifying than churchgoers flocking peacefully to the polls on Election Day. The only people who want a biblical theocracy in America are completely outside the evangelical mainstream, their influence negligible.

So as Jerry Falwell and other ministers were jumping into politics, leaders such as Charles Colson — former Nixon aide turned born-again Christian — were charting another path. In 1976 Colson launched Prison Fellowship, a ministry to inmates, to address the soaring crime problem. Today it ranks as the largest prison ministry in the world, active in most U.S. prisons and in 112 countries. “Crime and violence frustrate every political answer,” he has said, “because there can be no solution apart from character and creed.” No organization has done more to bring redemption and hope to inmates and their families.

Well, thanks, although I think the phrase "deepening social conscience" is code language for "Evangelicals do some stuff that I like, too, not just crazy right-wing stuff like trying to block partial-birth abortions." If Charles Colson launched Prison Fellowship in 1976, is it really "deepening?" However, it's worth reading the whole thing if only to gaze in wonderment at a Connecticut newspaper allowing an editorial to tell people to chill out about those crazy Christians.

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Christianity, Evangelical, Politics, News

Who is standing for the faith?

Jude tells us in his letter to contend for the faith once and for all delivered to the saints. Every day around the world, Christians are persecuted for their faith and even suffer rejection from what the first apostles would have called false brethren. So, it's refreshing to read about how African Christians are refusing to worship at the altar of the dollar, choosing instead remain true to a biblical vision of life. The Connecticut Six blog talks about the Anglican Church in Uganda and the stands it is taking:

The church in Uganda, along with churches in Rwanda and Kenya, no longer accepts financial support from the Episcopal Church. Ugandan church leaders said they had declined more than $1 million in contributions since 2003 from U.S. churches that didn't back their rejection of homosexuality.

Without that money, the church has shuttered some theological education programs and has been forced to make other budget cuts, church officials said. In the bishop's offices, the telephones rarely work and electricity is sporadic.

The church still accepts money from congregations that support its stance on gays, however. [Bishop Samuel] Ssekkadde said American money helped with upkeep on the century-old St. Paul's Cathedral, a stately redbrick building perched on a hill, where U.S. priests are now sometimes ordained.

Read it all here.

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Episcopal, Anglican

Blogging Marine Returns Home

We give thanks that First Sergeant Grainger and his Marines have returned home from Iraq. The good 1st Sgt. was writing a fascinating blog for the Courant and was the subject of an earlier post of ours.

Read the "homecoming" blog entry here, and continue to pray for all those serving our nation abroad.

Tags: Connecticut, Iraq, blog

U.S. Christians Guilty of "Political Idolatry," says New Zealand evangelist

New Zealand Andrew Strom is a revivalist with a strong message and, after living in the US for a bit, I think he's had enough of us. I don't recommend all his writings, but in the wake of the elections yesterday I thought you would find his comments today thought-provoking. Ignore the caps if you can:

Something I find a little distressing in America is that the Christians are so often relying on POLITICS to accomplish SPIRITUAL results. Thus they ally themselves fervently with one particular party and treat it like "God has won" if that party wins - and "God has lost" if it doesn't. I almost see this as a kind of BLINDNESS.

The fact is - most of America's problems today are SPIRITUAL problems that can only be solved by a sweeping move of God's Spirit. Yet we are relying on Politics and Politicians to accomplish many of these things?? How bizarre!

How bizarre that we strive and strive to get the "right (worldly) guy" elected. How bizarre that we treat the President like some kind of mega-preacher or mega-minister. We put our "hope" in him and his Political party for all kinds of SPIRITUAL things! What is wrong with us?

I don't know of any other country where the Christians put such hope in worldly political parties for things that ONLY GOD CAN DO. Is this not a kind of IDOLATRY??

Yes - there are issues of righteousness to be concerned with - and it is good to vote. But what is with this OBSESSION with Politics amongst the Christians? Do we not realize it is a kind of "phony war"? Imagine if we spent all that time PRAYING instead of STRIVING for Political victory. We might be actually having a Revival right now!

Can Politics make America truly righteous? NO! Only GOD can do that!

I want to issue a call to all true Christians right now: "REPENT of trusting in MAN instead of God. REPENT of trusting in Politics to do things that only God can do. REPENT of striving and striving to get the "right party" in power - and thinking that will solve this country's SPIRITUAL problems. REPENT of making an IDOL out of any party or any PRESIDENT. The Presidency does NOT equal God's move! REPENT of putting so much energy and effort into things that WILL NOT SOLVE the PROBLEM!

If only the Christians of this nation would PRAY instead of running to POLITICAL ACTIVISM - everything would be different.

What if all of this is a false trust - a false hope - a false gospel? What if our worship of Republicanism is out and out IDOLATRY??

God help us all.

How much truth is there in this? What do you think?

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Christianity, Religion, Revival, Evangelical, Charismatic, Politics, News

After the election, there will still be jihad

Looking past the election, there will still be a War on Terror, no matter how differently it may be conducted or what pressures may be brought to bear upon the President.

Like many people, I watched the Obsession documentary which was shown on Fox - probably the first in-depth exposure to what jihadist leaders are actually saying and doing in translations from their own languages. This is an important film because these threats are not going away no matter who controls the Hill or the White House. Watch this clip from Hannity and Colmes:



Get a copy of the film and continue to pray about this! (Clips from the film can be watched on YouTube as well.)

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Christianity, Islam, jihad, Iraq, politics

Politicized worldviews show the problems we face

I shouldn't be so naive about this sort of thing at my age, but comments posted in response to our story on Connecticut changing from a blue state to a green have convinced me more deeply that the church needs new approaches.

A deeper work of prayer and some good old-fashioned PR (in the form of what we used to just call "neighborliness") are sorely needed if we are to overcome the hurdles which we ourselves have erected to the Gospel.

Here's what I'm hearing. Bear in mind that these are actual recent quotes from comments to this blog:

• Just what we need, more ignorant "evangelical christians".

• I can't tell thus far from what I've read in your blog, but I would really love to know if you're in the crowd of evangelicals who want to make America an official 'Christian Nation' (i.e., religion in schools, fundamentalist legislation) or the kind of Christian who promotes a secular government. I'm just trying to sort Christians into 'enemy' and 'friend' piles at the moment, and I want to know what's behind your blog.

• I think the real issue is the inane belief that if we post a couple Ten Commandments on a building and force kids to robotically regurgitate some prayer or pledge, the World will be right....all I know is that my Religion is considered a farce to the Protestant Evangelical mainsteam. SO let's keep them as far away from politics as possible!

• Hey, man, I don't knock Christians because I am one. But let me tell you, what we don't need in CT or anywhere else -- is more insular, closed places that promote Jesus as some kind of Americanized freak.

To tell you the truth, I'm glad these folks are reading my blog, but here's a more sobering thought: they and millions of others are watching us live and listening to us every day.

Read this article by Charles Colson about the failure of Christians to reach out the way that Jesus did, then let's reflect about how we can better relate to people who are "not like us."

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Christianity, Evangelical

Christian events in Connecticut this week

James Goll

A major prophetic conference takes place this week in Connecticut featuring well-known ministers and authors James Goll, Che Ahn, and Dennis Cramer. Here's what's happening around the State:

Tuesday, November 7
***Election Day (Polls open from 6 am to 8 pm)

Wednesday, November 8
***Fairfield County Pastors' Fellowship Lunch

Thursday, November 9
***New England Aflame Prophetic Explosion (West Haven) (through 11/11)
***Regional Prayer Meeting (New Haven)
***Hopeline Prayer Meeting (Norwalk)

Friday, November 10
***New Canaan Society Breakfast with David Dunbar (Stamford)

Saturday, November 11
***Intercessors Prayer Gathering (Kensington)
***House of Grace Community Coffee House (Milford)

For additional details on these and other events, visit the CT Christian Events Calendar, powered by Google!

Want to submit an event? Write us at info@prayct.org.

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Christianity, Evangelical, WestHaven, Norwalk, NewHaven, Stamford, Kensington, Milford

Win a great Christian book, free!

A top-seller these days: The Power of a Praying Parent

We're picking up a number of new readers these days, so I'm sending out a reminder every so often about our Christian Book Giveaway. All you need to do to enter is e-mail us with the names and authors of the Christian books (up to 10) by evangelical or charismatic authors that have influenced you the most. When you do, you'll be entered into a random drawing to win one of the books that gets the most votes - your choice!

Read full details on our website here.

Already know what you want to say? E-mail us your list here.

Tags: Christian, Christianity, Evangelical, Charismatic, Church, Connecticut, books, Bible, religion, Jesus, God

The Best Thing I've Heard Lately...

Bridgeport Towers

...IS that Bridgeport, that perennial wallflower, is being noticed and then some by the likes of CNN/Money, who named it the Number 3 city in the U. S. in which to buy and hold real estate. They project that over the next five years housing values there will jump outrageously. My mind somehow rebels at the thought of Bridgeport real estate having Stamford prices. Good news if true, but I worry about where the current residents will live. What will rent be in Bridgeport in 2011? Let's continue to pray for the Park City.

Tags: Connecticut, Bridgeport, RealEstate

Around Connecticut (11/3/06)

***Police have arrested a 15-year-old girl in connection with the vandalizing of a war memorial in Bristol, which included swastikas and anti-Semitic remarks.


***Nancy Johnson may be headed home after 12 terms in Washington. Really.


***Yale students discover that not all missionaries are evil oppressors. I take the good with the bad in these stories. For example:

Many Yale students remember being taught in high school about the hypocrisy, cultural insensitivity and occasional cruelty of Christian missionaries in the past.

"I associate the idea of missionaries with people who have no respect for the local culture and are manipulating locals into accepting Christianity," Phoebe Clarke '09 said.

Even though Yale was originally founded as a school for ministers, Susanna Ferguson '09 said she thinks it is odd that students today are still involved in missionary work because she thinks not many Yale undergraduates are extremely religious.

But missionaries are often not as extreme in their religious views as they may be perceived to be.

Well, that's a relief.

***Braving the inevitable scorn of the press, some New Haven clergy support Mr. Lieberman because he opposes gay marriage:

“We will not support a candidate that will go against the values of the traditional family as we know it and the Bible teaches us. This is why, as pastors and leaders that guide our people, we want to publicly support the reelection of Senator Joe Lieberman for the senate,” said minister Abraham Hernandez...

***More Connecticut soldiers headed to Iraq; they need your prayers!

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Christianity, Bristol, Yale, NewHaven, Iraq

What the Left wrongly assumed about Connecticut (Part 1)

In no way was I trying to give our friends at The Family Institute of Connecticut a friendly nudge when I wrote about their blog recently, but in any event they've revealed their traffic for October 2006, and, as I suspected, it is significant even compared to the well-known left-leaning Connecticut sites: almost 7,000 hits a day.

My point, of course, is that Connecticut isn't a political monolith. Many would consider us among the bluest of the blue states, but the success of the FIC and the sheer frenzy they engender is just one thing among several that tells me that the Left did not realize:

1. How much people cherish traditional family values: few people are comfortable just chucking 3500 years of morality out the attic window.
   
2. That pro-family people were not going to roll over and play dead in the face of continued onslaughts against traditional morality.

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, family, liberal, conservative, democrat, republican

Churches Added to Connecticut Church Map (Nov. 2)

Vineyard Church of Guilford pastoral staff members:
Bryan Connolly, Pastor Nancy Curto, Pastor John Reichart

We've added a few more churches to the Connecticut Church Map, and more are on the way. Keep submitting churches you'd like to see on the map and we'll put them on as soon as we can. Here are the churches that are new to the map today:

Bethel: Walnut Hill Community Church

Senior Pastor: Rev. Dr. Clive Calver


Guilford: Vineyard Church of Guilford

Pastor: John Reichart


Milford: Kingdom Life Christian Church

Pastor: Bishop Jay Ramirez


Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Christianity, Evangelical, Charismatic, church, Bethel, Guilford, Milford

This is all I'm going to say about John Kerry

After all, if you recall, this is an apolitical blog.

Danbury and Stamford among country's safest cities

Out of 371 cities ranked, Danbury came in as the 28th-safest city in 2005, and the safest in Connecticut, according to the Morgan Quitno press. Says the Danbury News-Times:

St. Louis was the most dangerous city in the country, and the safest city was Brick, N.J., with a population of about 78,000, followed by Amherst, N.Y.

In Connecticut, Stamford ranked 35th, Waterbury ranked 164th, Bridgeport ranked 209th and Hartford ranked 337th.

Danbury Police Chief Al Baker said it's likely the decreased numbers of burglaries, thefts and homicides in the city made Danbury's ranking improve. In 2005, the city reported 223 burglaries, compared to 287 in 2004. There were 155 motor vehicle thefts in 2004 and 136 in 2005.

Danbury had three homicides in 2004 and one last year.

"My hat's off to the hard work by the men and women of the Danbury Police Department," Baker said. "It makes sense. Danbury has a good economy, education system and good services. All of these factor into it."

This is good news but obviously there's still much to do and much to pray about in Connecticut if Hartford ranks 337 out of 371.

Tags: Connecticut, Christian, Danbury, Stamford, Waterbury, Bridgeport, Hartford