The massive amounts of people from across the United States who participated in the Chick-fil-a Appreciation Day, August 1, 2012, demonstrated that the politically correct agenda that is being forced upon Americans is not being accepted by the vast majority of Americans. On any given day, most people try to avoid traffic traps at lunch time and will look for places to go to eat where they can get in and out quickly. But on Wednesday, August 1, in the middle of a work week, in the morning, middle and end of a work day, thousands of people went out of their way to “get into the traffic”—prepared for the long waits and inconvenience, and in fact, taking delight in them as they understood what it represents. This is a sign of hope. The agenda has been pushed too far, for too long in the face of Christians.
Highway 280 in Birmingham, Alabama, runs past a Chick-fil-A store and traffic was backed up, even at times at a standstill, for several miles on both sides of the restaurant on August 1. The numbers of people who ate a Chick-fil-A sandwich on August 1 tells much more the mind and heart of the people than even voting day. Because of the corruption that exists within the political parties and among the candidates, there is no easy decision as to who to vote for, even within the conservative party. So many compromises are constantly being made, so many promises broken, so few who stand solidly behind their convictions. People responded to the very clear “this is where we stand on our issue,” voting on the statement of Chick-fil-A. In many Chick-fil-A locations across the country, people were flooding in from 6:00 in the morning until closing time at night. Stores even reported running out of food.
Looking at west-bound traffic on Highway 280 in Birmingham, Alabama, this whole line of cars have their red blinkers on to turn into Chick-fil-a restaurant. If one was looking in the opposite direction of east-bound traffic the same scene was displayed. As the traffic lights changed from red to green, incoming cars had to maneuver around outgoing cars in what seemed a never ending line of cars for hours. Traffic in both directions entering into Chick-fil-A was backed up for more than a mile.
With sin and darkness surrounding us as a vast ocean it is easy for us to grow apathetic that our situation is so hopeless that it cannot change. But, today Our Lady tries to wash away all despairing and hopeless thoughts. Our condition causes us to ponder our society which is dying, as aspects of it are already dead. This is fact. True, to what we detect and see, there is no hope for these ways and elements of societies around the world to recover as they are already dead or dying. It is by the judgment of God. Our Lady’s presence is a judgment. Not in the sense Our Lady says, “May your mouth refrain from every judgment” in regards those Jesus has chosen to lead you on the way of salvation, rather the judgment spoken of here is against a system run by people, often good people, that as a system has taken on an evil power in and of itself. Who can come against it? A beast of such proportion that it drives the society of those who make up the culture – those who do, and those who do not, want to be a part of it. Yet both groups, the good and the bad, contribute to its growth, just as an evil cancer grows sapping the health of a body, overcoming it until the whole body becomes unhealthy. Christians must cease contributing to the way society is walking. Our Lady tells us, therefore, “I am not giving up,” and to come to Her Son. Our Lady’s prayer is before God Himself for you to overcome human weakness. You cannot do so by staying attached to things and ways that make you weak. It is the things and ways that make you weak which are going to die as they are the cancers of society of which prognosis has at this moment a judgment of death. But Our Lady’s presence is a judgment of mercy.
If you choose not to break away from those things and directions of the culture you will die with it, and in its death you, if unrepentant, will not be with Our Lady in eternal life. Thank God Our Lady says, “I am not giving up. I desire to have you come to know my Son. I desire for my children to be with me in eternal life.” Her seeds of hope are Her messages seeded out throughout the societies of the world. We can find glimmers of hope of those who are not staying attached to the direction the world follows toward death. Even Protestants, though they may not know it, are touched by Our Lady’s messages and are affected by the grace of Our Lady’s messages. The son of the founder of the nation’s second largest fast food chicken restaurant, Chick-fil-A, has countered the culture for decades not opening on Sunday. They make more profit in six days than any of the other similar fast food chains do in seven. What is in the heart of the owner is lived out in what he does. People have a wrong mentality that “If I’m a Christian, I believe in Christ, it does not have to correlate from my private life to what I am charged with in my public life.” If you are Christian, your company should reflect the attributes of Christian principles that you, as a Christian, are to possess. That means closing on Sunday. It also means that a Christian should do as Chick-fil-A’s President, Dan Cathy, did. As a principle he lives by, he stated that he was for traditional, Biblical marriages.
The dying culture went berserk. They don’t mind companies being for them, but are in deathly fear of any who with the influence of Chick-fil-A could come against normalizing their sin. They do not want to be reminded their way is death. Radical abominables screeched in loud voices across the nation though they are a minute group. The power of one statement, by one man who translates his convictions through his life into his company, is convicting, in the power of exorcism. The reactions of those steeped in the cancer of the sin of abominable lifestyles is because they hate to have their consciences convicted that what they do, what they live, is intolerable to healthy cultures and societies and the family around the world; a lifestyle that is clearly anti-family. Any prayerful study of Romans 1, verses 18-32, clearly shows this. Romans says there will be a penalty within one’s own body for this sin. What is AIDS? Who does it affect? What is it a consequence of? Sin has consequences for the ones who do not renounce their abominable sinful life, a “choice” in this case of not only a death sentence of the body, but also the soul, of the loss of eternal life with God. Living God’s ways has consequences. In Dan Cathy’s case, his principled Christian life translated into what he does, into his work, into an endeavor of goodness through his company. Why should Chick-fil-A not reflect who he is? Chick-fil-A, fueled by its customers, is a contributor of a positive culture of life for society. We need this, and Our Lady calls for it:
January 25, 2009
“…I desire, little children, for each of you to fall in love with eternal life which is your future, and for all worldly things to be a help for you to draw you closer to God the Creator…”
Chick-fil-A, Dan Cathy’s company, is an example of this.
How is it that a culture of death, a wayward way of abominable sin can be promoted by company’s like Home Depot, Time magazine, JC Penny, and a hundred more other companies, and Chick-fil-A repeats the Christian principles of its founder and his son and is condemned? It is as Jesus relayed, “If they condemn Me they will condemn you.” By being a follower of Christ you are a contradiction to the world. It is Our Lady’s desire for people to come and know Her Son. No one who is not willing to become pure can truly know Him. But despite human weaknesses one can get on one’s knees, open one’s heart, implore Jesus to know Jesus and then implore Him to give you a pure heart.
“…I am imploring my Son to give you pure hearts…”
It does not matter if one has not come to know the Father. Not knowing Him does not cease His existence. He exists and is offended by sin, even by those who do not know Him. It is through this basis that Christians who live the Father’s statutes will be offended likewise by the approval of sin not just in others but in themselves also. It, therefore, is not about ‘live and let live’ in the culture if it is to thrive. Where a ‘live and let live’ mentality thrives, culture eventually dies.
In our mission for months we have prayed for purification, for pure hearts unimpeded by weaknesses in order to be strengthened by purification, not only for a personal decision of holiness, but that we become a stronger witness for others. Especially as Our Lady said today:
“…My dear children, only pure hearts know how to carry a cross and know how to sacrifice for all those sinners who have offended the Heavenly Father and who, even today, offend Him, although they have not come to know Him. I am praying that you may come to know the light of true faith which comes only from prayer of pure hearts. It is then that all those who are near you will feel the love of my Son…”
Our life is offered for everyone to come to know the love of the Father, His life of purity and peace. God gives this period of time of grace to pull as many out of a society that will die, and into a new culture that will experience a new springtime for the Church and the world. Make your choice. Grayness is drying up. The light is shining brighter every day, and everyone can see more and more clearly things becoming a black and white decision. You must decide.
With Love,
A Friend of Medjugorje
Please read the entire article with more photos here: http://www.medjugorje.com/medjugorje-today/medjugorje-headlines/1367-august-2...
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