Easter Sunday is a wonderful time to reflect on the life and teachings of Jesus, and to share what they mean to us with our children.  

For those of us who are Christians, no other event compares in importance to the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  

This video is a reverent portrayal of this transcendent event.

When we celebrate marriage, we celebrate the rights and protection of the most precious and vulnerable among us—our children. 

I was reminded of this profound responsibility in becoming a new mother again just four months ago. 

This little soul—who bears the genetic imprint of the father and mother who brought him into being—looks to us for every aspect of his survival. We are the source of his understanding of who he is, who he can trust, and where he belongs in this world.

In seeing such vulnerability, I am reminded of the pain we have all at some time felt looking into the face of a child who learns that one of the parents who brought him or her into being no longer desires to be married to that child’s mother or father—or the face of a child who yearns to know who his father or mother is, what he or she looks like, what their personality is like.

Such images cut through our abstract ideologies and theoretical arguments. They remind me again that the most important thing we can do for a child is to heal and strengthen the relationship that brought him or her into being and that is the foundation for his or her identity. They remind me that each child is entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. They remind me that although adults marry for many reasons—some better than others—the ultimate societal purpose of marriage is “to protect children—our only real future—by uniting them with the man and woman who made them.”

No child can defend these rights him or herself. It is we—as a society—who must ensure that marriage protects children by increasing the likelihood that they will be born to and raised by their own mother and father. In the words of Maggie Gallagher, we must all work together to help build marriages “strong enough that a child’s heart can rely upon them.”

Any discussion about marriage that diverts our attention from that core concern—and focuses on adult concerns—including adult sexual desires and behaviors—has taken us away from what the real moral concern of marriage ought to be. The rights of children, the needs of children must not be divorced from marriage!

Sadly, our current debates about redefining marriage are not focused on the needs of the children. Instead the debate is framed in terms of adult “rights” and “freedoms” to marry. But in the end, it is children, who will be most affected by how we tamper with marriage.

When we genuinely focus on the needs of children, we will see through the false idea that mothers and fathers are replaceable. Children need more than two parents, even two loving parents. For “all the love in the world cannot turn a mother into a father or a father into a mother.” As a mother, I know that my love cannot replace the unique influence and protection of my children’s father. And their father knows that no matter how much he tries, his love cannot replace the tender nurture of their mother.

Fathers and mothers give their children something else fundamental to their well-being. The Chief Rabbi of France, Gilles Bernheim says it well—“To a child, Father and Mother represent more than caring affection, more than love. They represent the clear and coherent genealogy that allows a child to find his place as an individual. They situate him in a generational chain—a chain that guarantees each individual a place in the world in which he lives because he knows where he came from…”

No wonder then when society weakens marriage, children suffer. Decades of social science research has proved this fact in a frightening manner. We have long known that maternal sensitivity is the single most consistent predictor of a child’s development. But research similarly confirms the significance of fathers. Children from fatherless families experience higher rates of incarceration, teenage pregnancy, and various forms of abuse. When children grow up without their mothers and fathers, something happens to their hearts.

We do not have to be against anyone to be for marriage. And it is not discrimination to ensure that, as much as possible, a child be reared by his or her married mother and father. Every generation is tested. Every generation must stand for something. This is our test. Will we stand for marriage? Much is being said in our society now about being on the “right side of history.” When we stand on the right side of children, we cannot go wrong. May God bless us to be on their side.

Dr. Jenet Erickson is an Assistant Professor in the School of Family Life at Brigham Young University. A member of the National Council on Family Relations and a member and reviewer of the Association for Research on Mothering, Dr. Erickson has published a variety of peer-reviewed, family-related articles and presented at the National Council on Family Relations Conference and the Utah Council on Family Relations. She and her husband, Michael, are the parents of two children.

Singing patriotic songs with our children can create fun family memories and
 nurture a love for America and our legacy of liberty.  Hope you enjoy!

This Land Is Your Land
Words and Music by Woody Guthrie

This land is your land This land is my land
From California to the New York island; 
From the red wood forest to the gulf stream waters 
This land was made for you and me.

I've roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps 
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts; 
And all around me a voice was sounding: 
This land was made for you and me.

This land is your land This land is my land
From California to the New York island; 
From the red wood forest to the gulf stream waters 
This land was made for you and me.

When the sun came shining, and I was strolling, 
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling, 
As the fog was lifting a voice was chanting: 
This land was made for you and me.

This land is your land This land is my land
From California to the New York island; 
From the red wood forest to the Gulf Stream waters 
This land was made for you and me.

As I was walking that ribbon of highway, 
I saw above me that endless skyway: 
I saw below me that golden valley: 
This land was made for you and me.

This land is your land This land is my land
From California to the New York island; 
From the red wood forest to the Gulf Stream waters 
This land was made for you and me.

This week the U.S. Supreme Court will be hearing the oral arguments about California's Prop 8 and The Defense of Marriage Act.  

Their decision, which is expected in June, will have an enormous impact on our future, the stability of family and religious freedom.  


The oft-repeated and oft-unanswered question “How does gay marriage affect you personally?” seems to be a rhetorical trump card. Talking heads in the media rarely have the time in our sound-byte driven news cycle to give a thorough answer to that question. Here I will explore why gay marriage, or the more legal terms of “genderless” or “equal” marriage, affects everybody. It has potential to redefine what it means to be a mother, a father, and a child. It places the rights of natural parents at risk. Genderless marriage may actually affect heterosexuals more than homosexuals, for it dismantles traditional family law and replaces it with a new paradigm of genderless union.

Savvy legal minds once insisted that gendered marriage and genderless marriage could co-exist, that everybody could enjoy their rights without interruption or impedance. It is now obvious that such a utopia doesn’t exist. A loss of rights is already taking place. “Equal” marriage is not so equal after all.

Defining Gendered Family

Marriage as an entity is designed to protect those made vulnerable by procreation. First on that list are the infants that are born to women. As Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, founder of the Ruth Institute, has stated, “The child is entitled to a relationship with and care from both of the people who brought him into being. Therefore, the child has a legitimate interest in the stability of his parents’ union. But no child can defend these entitlements himself. Nor is it adequate to make restitution after these rights have been violated. The child’s rights to care and relationship must be supported proactively, before harm is done, for those rights to be protected at all.” (Hearings from the Minnesota state legislature,)

Besides children, women who carry the burden of pregnancy are obviously at greater risk than men in the childbearing process. Historically, gendered marriage has tied men to their children and to the mothers who sacrifice to create them. This arrangement not only overcomes but also compliments the biological differences of men and women.

Finally, gendered marriage addresses the rights of fathers. Fatherhood is the most fragile biological relationship in the father-mother-child triangle. The bond between mother and child is obvious. The father less so. Marriage closes this gap by legally binding a father to a mother and child, giving him both rights and responsibilities in a relationship that, by the way, dramatically affects the successful socialization of children.

I interviewed a lawyer once and asked her to imagine a world without legal marriage. She abruptly responded: “It would be chaos. Women and children would be chattel. They could be abandoned without the slightest thought. They would have no legal recourse.”

By traditional definition, marriage is the protective sanctuary that allows children to have a relationship with both father and mother. That relationship provides them with the stable and long-term care and nurturance they deserve. “Without this public purpose,” Dr. Morse explains, “marriage would cease to exist as a distinct social institution.”

               (Please click the tiny "Read More" link if you are unable to see the rest of the article below.)

Americans today struggle under an annual government regulatory burden of more than 1.75 TRILLION dollars.

What difference does this make?  For Steve Lathrop and his family, it cost them everything.  It destroyed their dreams and now they live on the brink of bankruptcy. 

Although few of us have been mired in bureaucratic red tape for over twenty years, many of us have struggled because of the terrible economic climate caused by excessive regulations and government intrusion in our lives. 

Please help share Steve’s story!  Government oppression of citizens is wrong!  Let’s speak up.  Maybe it will help Steve's family, and help protect others from unreasonable regulations.

Learn More:  

Senator Johnson’s Website  

More about Steve’s Story

Last week, politicians who helped craft the Affordable Care Act (ACA) celebrated in self-congratulatory style the third anniversary of that monstrosity which will soon extinguish health care as we've known it.

The president's promises about the ACA saving money and allowing you to keep your existing health plan are proving false, as many predicted.

The Department of Health and Human Services maintains the law will make health care more affordable and accessible. The Wall Street Journal, reminding readers of that claim, reported last week that health insurers are privately warning brokers: "premiums for many individuals and small businesses could increase sharply next year."

The 2013 Deloitte Survey of U.S. Physicians, a survey of more than 600 physicians from the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, found that "Six in 10 physicians (62 percent) said it is likely many of their colleagues will retire earlier than planned in the next one to three years."

Based on the survey results, Deloitte found that most U.S. physicians believe that, among other worries, under Obamacare, "The future of the medical profession may be in jeopardy as it loses clinical autonomy and compensation" and "Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements may be problematic, prompting many physicians to limit or close their practices to these enrollees." Instead of the established doctor-patient relationship of old, "eight in 10 physicians agree "that the wave of the future in medicine ... involves interdisciplinary teams and care coordinators."

One who thinks he's seen the future and doesn't like it, is my physician, Dr. John Curry of Fairfax, Va. At my request, he sent me the following email:

"Forty years ago, when I began practicing primary care medicine, medical decision-making and its funding were in the hands of patients and their physicians. The only protection patients had lay in the professional ethics of their doctors. In modern terms that sounds pretty skimpy, but think about it for a minute. The first precept was 'Do no harm'. Ask yourself: can you hold your government to that standard?

"The underlying principle was that the physician had to put his patients' interests ahead of his own. This was, of course, the Golden Rule, formalized into standards for professional care. It was also the reason I, and many in my class, applied to medical school. It was the reason my wife's older brother, who practiced medicine in a small town in West Texas, prided himself on the fact that much of the time he 'was paid in peas and pies'. Again, ask yourself, is there any health insurance company or government agency that you can count upon to put your health above their interests?

"The decades have rolled by, and the sea-changes have come. Costs have risen, and personalized care has faded. The monstrosity has been birthed, and soon you will look in vain if you are seeking a personal physician who knows you, cares about you, and to whom you have ready access. You will find only systems, ready to suck you up, give you a number, and provide you with federally approved accountable care in a sterile environment populated by highly regulated strangers. And it will cost you a lot! (Whatever anyone says, prepare for a future where your health costs will be higher and your choices fewer!)

"I am in my mid-70s and have both the capacity and willingness to care for patients for another decade. But I am retiring. I cannot stand it anymore. More than half of my time in the office is spent filling out forms, writing letters, responding to inquiries, and attending to 'urgent' matters that did not exist 10 years ago. And every year my income is less. At this point I would rather be paid nothing and have the freedom to decide what is right for my patients. ACA is only another straw, but for this tired camel, it will break my back."

Neither I, nor the country, can afford to lose doctors like John Curry, but we are and we will. Take two aspirin, but don't call in the morning because Dr. Curry and many like him won't be there to answer the phone.

(c) 2013 TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.

Patriotic Moms everywhere are concerned about our country.  

We care deeply about America and the legacy of liberty we leave for our children.  

Many are asking, “What can I do?  How can I make a difference?”  Here are some simple, yet powerful, suggestions.


Consider Your Situation

Reflect on the Things You Value Most.  Faith, family, freedom...these are things many of us hold dear.  They guide our thoughts and are reflected in our daily activities.  What are the thing you value most?  What are your priorities?

As mothers, I believe one of our first priorities is to nurture our children.  I agree with Ronald Reagan who said, “The family has always been the cornerstone of American society. Our families nurture, preserve, and pass on to each succeeding generation the values we share and cherish, values that are the foundation of our freedoms.” 

When we nurture our children well we prepare them to lead happy, purposeful lives and make the world a better place.  If that’s all we do, we have done something of infinite worth.  It’s hard to overestimate the value of a Nelle Reagan or a Sonya Carson.  These were both humble women in difficult circumstances who changed the course of history.  Any mother who gives her best to teaching her children the “values that are the foundation of our freedoms” leaves a precious legacy.  

Some mothers have other opportunities as well.  You may want to improve the quality of your child's education, make your city a better place to live, help teen moms, teach others about the importance of constitutional government, or help elect good leaders.  We each need to look into our hearts and decide what we can and ought to do to make the world better. 

Decades ago, long before we moved to our community, a group of families decided to work with the public school system to create a school that would provide an outstanding education, with a focus on basic skills and an understanding of history.  It took many years of effort, but they succeeded beyond their dreams.  Their service will have a lasting impact on our family and many others.


Think About Your Season in Life.  At each stage of life we have important things to accomplish that may be difficult or impossible to do at any other time.  What is your season?  What are your current opportunities and constraints?  Where should you focus now?

I recently received a loving letter from my 19-year-old son.  He gently counseled me to give my best efforts to mothering his younger brother (and my youngest child).  He reminded me that I will have all the rest of my life to pursue other interests, but we only have a year and a half before this young son leaves home.  When he added, “Like me.  :),”  his words brought tears to my eyes.  He’s doing exactly what we want him to do, but we really miss him.  I can’t go back and do things for him now that should have been done while he was at home.  Each season is unique.


Assess What You Have to Offer.  What are your talents, resources, and abilities?  Are you a willing worker?  A persuasive speaker?  A cheerful teacher?  Make a list of your gifts, character traits, skills, habits and other things you bring to the table that can help move your cause forward.

Include unique talents and abilities.  One influential leader I know was famous for her home-made chocolates.  With fabulous flavors, fun packaging, and thoughtful notes, this leader created many thoughtful gifts.  Her culinary efforts were an important part of her superb team-building skills. 


Review Your Circle of Influence.  Stephen Covey taught that we each have a circle of concern (consisting of all the things we would like to be able to influence) and a circle of influence (consisting of the things we really can influence)  The paradox is that the more we focus on our circle of concern, the less influence we have.  On the other hand, the more we work within our circle of influence, the larger it grows, and the bigger the impact we can have on our circle of concern.  Don't worry if your circle of influence is small at first.  It will grow.


Decide If You Can Accomplish More Working on Your Own or With Others. 
If you're able to accomplish more working with others, identify who you know (or could meet) who has the most influence in the area(s) you are most interested in.  Contact them and offer to help.  Ask them how you can best support the cause.  Enlist the help of like-minded friends. 


Prayerfully Set Goals 

After you’ve taken time to carefully consider your  situation, use the information and insights you've gleaned to prayerfully set your goals.  Ask yourself, "What do I want to have happen?"  Write down what you want to accomplish.  Be specific.  Set measurable targets.  Review your goals often.  Refine them as needed.  This step gives you clearer vision, purpose, focus, and commitment.

Be sure to pray for God's guidance and help with your efforts.  Throughout our history, miracles have happened when ordinary people did their best and relied on God to help them when their own efforts were not enough.  


Create a Plan 

Your plan is your carefully-crafted, step-by-step map, that guides you from where you are to where you want to be.  It gives direction, commitment, and energy to your efforts.

The plan is where you pull everything together.  

• Give your plan a meaningful title.  
  
• Describe your purpose and values.
  
• Explain your goals.
  
• Create a timeline of measurable milestones.
  
• List the specific tasks you need to complete to reach the milestones, dividing them into easy-to-manage chunks.
• Document key information about schedule, resources, and budget.  

Implement Your Plan

Each week review your plan and prepare to meet your milestones.  

• Set goals for the week.  
  
• Set aside time on your calendar to complete the tasks.
  
• Each evening evaluate your day and plan the next day, listing specific tasks you will work on.
  
• Coordinate with family and team members as needed 

Record and Evaluate Your Efforts  

Keep a journal.  When God guides you, or answers your prayers in other ways, write about it in your journal.  This sacred record will be a great blessing and source of strength for you and your family.  

Keep a record of your efforts -- what you did and what the results were.  Write down and learn from your successes and failures.  Review your journal regularly.  Great people throughout history have tended to keep a journal.  Many believe the insight and refinement of thought they gained from writing in a journal was the secret of their success. 

Making a difference is a lifelong effort, but as you consider your situation, prayerful set goals, create and implement a plan, then evaluate your efforts, you will grow in your ability and influence, and leave a meaningful legacy for those you love!

Lyrics

Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam,
Where the deer and the antelope play,
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day. 

Chorus:
Home, home on the range,
Where the deer and the antelope play,
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
And the skies are not cloudy all day. 

Where the air is so pure, and the zephyrs so free,
And the breezes so balmy and light,
That I would not exchange my home on the range,
For all of those cities so bright. 

Americans today are facing serious challenges, but most of these problems have already been faced by past generations.  And in almost every case answers to these problems have been discovered and taught before.  

America's Founding Fathers diligently studied history and the writings of great leaders and thinkers to find the formula for liberty, prosperity, and peace. 

The Founders' success formula would solve nearly every problem we have in American today if followed. When the United States applies the principles of liberty, it prospers.  When it ignores or violates them, the people suffer. 

Can any other knowledge be more important to the rising generation in America today? 

Posted below this video are links to some of the NCCS lessons Dr. Taylor mentions.  You can also find them by clicking on the LEARN tab above.  

This is a treasure for our families!

National Center for Constitutional Studies


Principles of Liberty (5-10 minute videos)

1. The Principles of Liberty  
2. America’s 5000 Year Leap
3. The Value of Principles
4. The Political Spectrum
5. Natural Law
6. A Virtuous People
7. The Role of Government
8. Protecting People from Their Rulers
9. Property Rights
10. Separation of Powers
11. Local Government
12. Foreign Powers
13. Avoiding Debt
14. Manifest Destiny

Making of America Seminar

Click here to view or download: Making of America Seminar Guide  
   * Answers are on p. 54.
   * The video lessons below take a few seconds to load.

1.  Settling the New World  (p. 5 of Seminar Guide)
        Video Lesson 1  (54:12)
        Audio Lesson 1

2.   The Birth of a Nation  (p. 9)
        Video Lesson 2  (42:00)
        Audio Lesson 2

3.   Discovering America’s Great Success Formula  (p.15)
        Video Lesson 3  (33:05)
        Audio Lesson 3

4.  Founder’s Attempt to Find the Balanced Center  (p. 23)
       Video Lessons 4 and 5  (42:02)
       Audio Lessons 4 and 5

5.  The Miracle at Philadelphia  (p. 25)
       Video Lessons 4 and 5  (42:02)
       Audio Lessons 4 and 5

6.  The Founders Formula  (p. 33)
       Video Lesson 6  (44:33)
       Audio Lesson 6

7.  The States Delegate 20 Powers to Congress  (p. 35)
       Video Lesson 7  (33:07)
       Audio Lesson 7

8.  The Most Powerful Political Office in the World: 
     The Presidency of the United States  (p. 39)
       Video Lessons 8 and 9  (33:07)
       Audio Lessons 8 and 9

9.  The Federal Judiciary  (p. 41)
       Video Lessons 8 and 9  (33:07)
       Audio Lessons 8 and 9

10. Articles IV - VII -- The States and the People  (p. 42)
       Video Lesson 10  (11:35)
       Audio Lesson 10

11. Amendments I - X -- America’s Bill of Rights  (p. 45)
        Video Lessons 11 and 12  (44:33)
        Audio Lessons 11 and 12

12. The Last Seventeen Amendments  (p. 49)       
        Video Lessons 11 and 12  (44:33)
        Audio Lessons 11 and 12 

Ben Shapiro is one of the smartest young people engaged in the political dialog today.  A while back, Ben dominated a debate about gun control with Piers Morgan.  

In this interview, Matt Lewis asks Ben about:
  * Ben's book, "Bullies"  (1:19 - 5:27, 15:44 - 17:02) 
  * How the Liberals won the presidential election  (5:28 - 7:40)
  * How Ben won the debate with Piers  (7:42 - 15:43)
  * Ben's fast track to success  (17:03 - 20:26)

(If you don't have 20 minutes to listen to the whole interview, but are interested in a particular segment, you can drag the bar to the part of the discussion you are interested in.  It shows the time as you drag it.)
 

Learn More:

Ben's Debate with Piers

Ben Shapiro on How to Win a Debate Against a Bully like Piers Morgan