
The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-02/20/2006

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American Idol's Mandisa, now in contest's final 24, makes her faith in Christ known
by Erin Curry Roach
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (BP)--Mandisa Hundley, one of 24 to make the latest cut on television’s No. 1 show “American Idol,” is not ashamed of her faith in Christ and even publicly expressed forgiveness for one of the show’s judges after he sent a biting insult her way.

Mandisa -- who prefers to be known by her first name -- is a regular worship leader at Beth Moore’s Living Proof Live conferences throughout the country and one of 12 women and 12 men still competing for a chance to win the contest. She has made it known that a brief bout with fame is nothing compared to her relationship with Jesus Christ.

In fact, she put her faith into action recently when Simon Cowell, one of the show’s infamously cruel judges, flippantly remarked about her weight.

“Do we have a bigger stage this year?” he asked on camera after she walked away.

Mandisa, of Nashville, Tenn., responded to Cowell’s comment the next time she appeared in front of the judges.

“What I want to say to you is that, yes, you hurt me and I cried and it was painful, it really was. But I want you to know that I’ve forgiven you and that you don’t need someone to apologize in order to forgive somebody,” she said. “I figure that if Jesus could die so that all of my wrongs could be forgiven, I can certainly extend that same grace to you.”

Cowell, getting up to hug her, said, “Mandisa, I’m humbled, really. I’m just so appalling, aren’t I?”

Prior to her involvement with the Living Proof conferences, Mandisa worked at LifeWay Christian Resources in Nashville in the customer service department and then later as a contract worker for the women’s ministry area, making contacts with some of the people who attended their women’s events.

Chris Adams, women’s enrichment ministry and ministers’ wives specialist at LifeWay, told Baptist Press she knows Mandisa and “just loves her to death.”

“I think it’s obvious from what everyone has seen on American Idol that her love for the Lord just oozes out of her, and when she sings, you know she is just praising the Lord as she does it,” Adams said. “You see it on her face. You see it in her demeanor. It’s just really fun to watch somebody who has that much talent to use that for the Lord. She has one of the widest ranges of styles when she sings. She can do anything from Christian swing to Gospel to praise music to hymns to opera.”

Mandisa, Adams said, has recorded an album that’s a sampling of those styles, although the record has been put on hold until her time in the contest is finished.

“I’m just amazed at the variety of style and how beautifully each one is sung,” she said.

On the description of contestants at www.idolonfox.com, Mandisa said she has been singing as long as she can remember, but if she could no longer sing, she’d most “love to be an anointed and effective Bible teacher.” When asked who her American Idol is, she replied, “An author and speaker named Beth Moore. She inspires me to live more like Jesus and I want to do the same.”

Before she performs, Mandisa said she prays, and her hero is Jesus because “He saved my life.” If she doesn’t make it further on American Idol, she said she will continue to sing for a living just as she does now because she loves it. In other words, American Idol fame is not everything to her.

But if she wins, who will she thank first?

“Jesus! He’s so good to me,” she said.

Mandisa, 29, will compete among the Top 12 Girls on the episode airing Tuesday night, Feb. 21, at 8 p.m. Eastern on Fox. Directions on the show will tell fans how they can call or send a text message to vote for their favorite contestant.

American Idol, derived from the British hit “Pop Idol,” became an instant success in 2002 and has increased in popularity each season. Last year, more than 1 billion votes were received throughout the contest, and millions of viewers made it the top show in television. This season, tens of thousands of singers auditioned in seven cities for a shot at becoming the next winner.
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LIFE DIGEST: Talent’s withdrawal from cloning ban ‘strangest gyration,’ ethicist says; Lynn Swann opposes abortion
by Tom Strode
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

WASHINGTON (BP)--Sen. Jim Talent, a reliable pro-life vote in the U.S. Senate, has withdrawn his endorsement of a comprehensive ban on human cloning and elicited multiple reactions, none of which seem favorable to him.

Talent, a Republican from Missouri, announced Feb. 10 he would no longer co-sponsor the Human Cloning Prohibition Act, S. 658, a bill for which he has been a longtime supporter. The measure, sponsored by Sen. Sam Brownback, R.-Kan., would ban cloning for both research and reproductive purposes.

Instead, Talent, while apparently still opposed to cloning, said he would promote a proposed form of technology that could produce embryonic-like stem cells without destroying embryos. 

The senator’s retreat on the cloning ban comes as he seeks re-election in November and as Missourians consider a petition drive for a ballot initiative that would permit embryonic stem cell research (ESCR), which results in the destruction of the tiny human beings. Talent has not taken a stand on the proposed initiative, which has been endorsed by Republican Gov. Matt Blunt.

Pro-life bioethicist Nigel Cameron called Talent’s move “perhaps the strangest gyration of any politician on the cloning question.”

While some believe Talent’s alternative, known as altered nuclear transfer (ANT), may be found ethically acceptable by pro-life advocates, “it is only acceptable if it really does not create embryos -– not if it creates deformed, dying embryos,” Cameron wrote in a Feb. 17 column for Christianity Today. “And if it does not create embryos, then the &#91;Brownback&#93; bill, which bans cloning, would not get in its way.

“Senator Talent may have thought his move a smart one -– taking some political heat off his back while at the same time enabling him to welcome ethical science,” Cameron wrote. “But he now has no political friends on the issue: He’s an army of one, and the sooner he comes back into the fold, the better for the cause of ethical biotech -– and his political career.”

Not only were pro-lifers deeply disappointed with Talent’s decision, but embryonic stem cell research supporters were not fully satisfied with his promotion of a compromise on the issue. He also appeared to provide a line of attack for Democratic opponent Claire McCaskill, Missouri’s auditor and an ESCR supporter. 

“Missourians want clarity and convictions on issues like this.... He’s trying to be all things to all people instead of being principled,” McCaskill said, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 

While pro-life bioethicists are uncertain if altered nuclear transfer will meet the criteria for moral acceptance, Talent said the technology “makes it possible to get out from under this moral dilemma,” the Post-Dispatch reported.

“The problem with doing something like this in a political year is that people are going to speculate as to your motives instead of looking at what you’re doing,” he said. “&#91;I&#93; decided months ago that I would try to figure this out and say what I thought.... I’ve put a lot of effort into this, and I’m trying to come up with a thoughtful and positive approach.”

Without Talent, Brownback’s bill has 31 co-sponsors. All are Republicans except Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana.

Brownback has been stymied in his attempts to ban all human cloning in recent years. Leading Democrats, and some veteran Republicans, have endorsed a measure that would prohibit only reproductive cloning.

Stem cells are the body's master cells that can develop into other cells and tissues, providing hope for the treatment of numerous afflictions.

Cloning of human embryos has been promoted as a means to produce more embryonic stem cells for research, thereby speeding up the work necessary to develop hoped-for therapies. Embryonic stem cell research, however, has failed to produce any successful therapies in people and has been plagued by the development of tumors in lab animals.

Research using stem cells from non-embryonic sources -– such as bone marrow and umbilical cord blood -- has produced treatments for at least 67 ailments, according to Do No Harm, a coalition promoting ethics in research. These include spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis, sickle cell anemia, heart damage and various cancers. Non-embryonic research does not harm the donor.

ALL-PRO SWANN PRO-LIFE –- Hall of Fame football player Lynn Swann has said he would sign a bill banning abortions if he is elected Pennsylvania’s governor and if the Roe v. Wade opinion is reversed.

Swann has the support of state Republican leaders in his campaign to be elected governor in the November election. Swann, 53, is challenging Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell, a support of abortion rights.

On the Feb. 12 edition of ABC News’ “This Week,” Swann said of a future action by the U.S. Supreme Court, “&#91;I&#93;f they send it to the states to decide ... as opposed to making a decision that abortions are illegal, then I would sign &#91;legislation&#93; making abortions illegal,” LifeNews.com reported.

Host George Stephanopoulos asked Swann what it meant to him to be pro-life.

“That you’re in favor of life,” Swann said, according to LifeNews. “That you do not believe in abortion. That you look for alternative measures and means other than having an abortion.”

The Swann for Governor website says until Roe is overturned, he “will continue attempting to create a culture of life, both by using legislation as well as using the bully pulpit of the office. He will work to reduce the numbers of abortions by encouraging alternatives, including adoption and abstinence.”

When asked about stem cell research, however, Swann indicated on “This Week” he did not have a position yet. “It’s a matter of getting information and making an informed decision,” he said, according to LifeNews.

Embryonic stem cell research results in the destruction of an embryo, while non-embryonic research does not harm the donor.

Swann, who played on four Super Bowl championship teams during his nine-year career with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1970s and early 1980s, was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001. He was selected as an all-pro wide receiver three times and won the most valuable player award in Super Bowl X.

PARENTS WIN –- A federal judge has rejected Planned Parenthood’s arguments and ruled a Florida parental notification law is constitutional.

In his Feb. 10 opinion Judge William Stafford described the 2005 law, which requires parents of minor girls to be notified before their daughters have abortions, as “carefully crafted."

The Florida law was enacted after the state’s voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2004 enabling the legislature to pass such a measure. The Florida Supreme Court had invalidated the state’s previous parental notification law.

Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida led the challenge of the law.

“Planned Parenthood cannot claim that it is interested in the well-being of the family when it seeks to draw an iron curtain between parents and children,” said Mathew Staver, president of Liberty Counsel, in a written statement. “It is hypocritical to require parents to incur the cost of an abortion, while at the same time prohibiting them from having any knowledge of this life-and-death event.”

The law includes an exception permitting a judge to grant permission for an under-age girl seeking an abortion, a provision pro-lifers contend is being abused by abortion-rights promoters, according to LifeNews. 
--30--


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New book details religious faith of all 43 U.S. presidents
by Michael Foust
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Andrew Jackson, America's seventh president, never has been remembered as a pleasant fellow. He had a severe temper. He once killed a man in a duel. He supported the removal of American Indians from the South, sparking the infamous Trail of Tears. 

Yet this gruff man may also have been a Christian. Nearing death in 1845, he reportedly told his family, "Death has no terror for me.... What are my sufferings compared to those of the blessed Savior? I am ready to depart when called." Later, he told them: "Be good children, and we shall all meet in heaven."

Such stories are at the heart of a new book, "God and the Oval Office" (W Publishing Group), by John C. McCollister. At 244 pages, it recounts the religious faith of all 43 American presidents, from George Washington to George W. Bush.

The book does not argue that every president -- including the Founding Fathers -- was an evangelical Christian, but it makes clear that the overwhelming majority of presidents expressed a faith in God. 

"The book does not make judgmental statements," McCollister told Baptist Press. "It simply says, these are the facts. You draw your own conclusion."

Some of the book's more interesting stories:

-- Thomas Jefferson rejected the major tenets of Christianity -- including Christ's deity -- and even put together his own compilation of the Gospels, in which he cut out the stories about Jesus' miracles. But Jefferson also saw the need for religion in society, and once was on his way to church when he told a bystander: "&#91;N&#93;o nation has yet existed or been governed without religion. I, as chief magistrate of this nation, am bound to give it the sanction of my example."  

-- John Quincy Adams, the nation's sixth president, read at least three chapters of the Bible each day, and "lamented the fact that neither the clergymen nor their flocks did much to rid society" of slavery. When he died one pastor said, "The slave has lost a champion."

-- James Buchanan, the 15th president, wanted to join a church upon leaving office but had trouble doing so because of his support of slavery on a limited basis. His first attempt at joining a Presbyterian Church was rejected because it supported abolition. It took him nearly four years to find a church.

-- Abraham Lincoln, who succeeded Buchanan, often stood at his pew in church while silently praying -- despite the fact that those around him kneeled. With Lincoln being 6-foot-4, this created quite a sight. He told a parishioner: "When my generals visit the White House, they stand when their commander in chief enters the Oval Office. Isn't it proper, then, that I stand for my commander in chief?"

There are other stories. James K. Polk (11th president) didn't receive visitors on Sunday, out of respect for his wife's beliefs. Andrew Johnson (17th president) may have been a closet Catholic. Woodrow Wilson (28th president) saw every event in world history as being part of God's will.

"Nobody will ever be elected to the presidency of the United States who does not show a strong faith in Almighty God," McCollister told BP. "... There's not going to be any president elected who is an agnostic or refuses to acknowledge that he depends on God."

Americans, McCollister said, want "to make certain that our leader reflects the theme of the Founding Fathers." 

McCollister believes that three of America's first four presidents, George Washington, Jefferson and James Madison, were deists -- that is, that God created the universe and left it to run its own course. In deism, God is distant. Although Jefferson generally is acknowledged by scholars to have been a deist, Washington is viewed by some to have been a Christian. 

"They were deists by their own admission," McCollister said. "But all of these Founding Fathers had two themes -- number one, that they believed in the almighty power of God, and number two -- that America would survive as a nation only if it recognized and depended upon the power of Almighty God."

Studying the beliefs of America's first few presidents, McCollister said, can help in the contemporary debate over the separation of church and state. Americans should embrace a separation of church and state that says no "particular denomination" can "rule the United States at the expense of others," he said.

"But while we have separation of church and state in that regard, we dare never, ever lose light of the fact that we were founded on belief in Almighty God, and that the power of Almighty God and the benevolence of God is the reason that America has survived and will survive," he said.

The current occupant of the Oval Office is the most outspoken Christian president America has ever had, McCollister said.

"George W. Bush says that God speaks to him, and he speaks to God, and that God has a special mission for America," he said. "He is probably the most outspoken person for the faith that we have had. Ronald Reagan comes in a close second, Jimmy Carter maybe a third. Teddy Roosevelt a fourth."

McCollister majored in history at Capital University before receiving a master's degree at Trinity Lutheran Seminary. He has a Ph.D. in communications from Michigan State University. "God and the Oval Office" is his 21st book. Many of his other books have been about baseball.

He decided to write about the presidents after having "never seen a book on something that is becoming increasingly important -- namely a president's faith." 
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"God and the Oval Office" is available online at www.LifeWayStores.com


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2002 gold medalist bobsledder seeks to repeat in Turin
by Tim Ellsworth
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

TURIN, Italy (BP)--Vonetta Flowers had dreamed about competing in the Olympics since she was 9 years old. 

A track and field star in high school and college, Flowers thought the 2000 Olympic trials were her last chance to fulfill that dream. So when she failed to qualify for the U.S. team, she was crushed.

But Flowers now believes God had other plans for her. Applying her track skills to a new sport -– bobsledding -– Flowers took advantage of a new door God had opened in her life. She didn’t just walk through. She raced through.

Qualifying for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City as a brakewoman for the U.S. women’s bobsled team, Flowers and her partner Jill Bakken captured the gold medal, making Flowers the first black woman to win gold in the Winter Olympics.

This year in Turin, Italy, Flowers tries to defend her Olympic championship with a new partner, Jean Prahm -– but they have an uphill climb. After their first two runs today, Flowers and Prahm were in ninth place, .71 seconds behind the German team in first. The final two runs in the women's bobsled competition will come Tuesday, Feb. 21.

“I thought my way to the Olympics would be in track and field through running or jumping in my track shoes,” Flowers writes in her autobiography, “Running on Ice,” a 2005 release from the New Hope Publishers division of Woman’s Missionary Union. “Little did I know that in God’s timing, He planned for me to don start shoes with hundreds of spikes, and I would take up the sport of bobsled.”

Flowers’ book chronicles her journey from shattered dreams to crowning Olympic moment. Throughout the trek, she tells of how she came to faith in Christ, and how that faith sustained her and propelled her to pursue success in bobsledding.

“I began to realize that God wasn’t fooling when He planted that Olympic dream in me as a child,” Flowers writes. “He really did have a plan for my life. He had been constantly preparing me for this opportunity and I was happy that I had had faith even when it seemed foolish to do so.”

She took up the sport almost by freak accident. Immediately after the 2000 track and field Olympic trials, in which Flowers failed to qualify, her husband Johnny noticed a flyer seeking athletes to try out for the U.S. bobsled team.

Given the qualifications listed on the flyer, Johnny thought Vonetta would be a perfect fit for the sport. She wasn’t so sure.

“He kept on talking and talking until I was tired of hearing about it, so I agreed to try out with him,” Flowers writes. “I figured that if I promised to try out then he would quit bugging me every few seconds.”

Flowers impressed Bonny Warner, the bobsled driver who was holding the tryouts. Warner soon called Flowers at her home in Birmingham, Ala., and asked her to take a trip to Germany for the next step in the testing process. Flowers accepted.

“In the same month when my Olympic aspirations had been crushed, I found myself moving hopefully down an entirely new path towards my dream, all because of a husband who wouldn’t give up and a God who gives us all second chances,” Flowers writes.

Warner eventually selected Flowers as her brakewoman, and the two began competing together. But the partnership didn’t last, as partnerships in bobsledding seldom do. In the 2002 Olympic trials, Flowers instead teamed up with Bakken, and the duo qualified for the Olympics in Salt Lake City.

Flowers was beside herself with joy and relying on God to take her the rest of the way.

“The impossible felt possible,” Flowers writes. “I knew that, in my own strength, it would be impossible to do what was ahead for Jill and me. Yet because of my faith in Christ, I knew that as I leaned on God for His help and support, all things were possible.”

The impossible became reality for Flowers and Bakken, as the team captured gold in Salt Lake City. For Flowers, it was the moment for which she had been waiting for a lifetime.

“It was a magical moment,” Flowers writes. “Running on ice had provided a way to Olympic gold that I could have never predicted. I was amazed at how God had honored my simple steps of faith.”
--30--
Vonetta Flowers’ autobiography, “Running on Ice,” from the New Hope Publishers division of Woman’s Missionary Union, can be ordered through Christian bookstores.



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Bobsledder mom awaits twin son’s miracle
by Tim Ellsworth
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

TURIN, Italy (BP)--Training to win an Olympic gold medal is tough. Just ask bobsledder Vonetta Flowers.

After failing in her attempts to make the Olympics as a track and field athlete, Flowers instead turned to bobsledding, where she won gold in the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City.

But such training did little to prepare Flowers and her husband Johnny with another trial they would soon face -– one of their twin sons, Jorden, was born deaf.

“I think I am mentally tough, but there are some times when I break down and I cry,” Flowers said in a recent USA Today story. “To think about Jorden and certain things he is really trying to tell me.... It’s difficult at times.”

In late December, 3-year-old Jordan underwent an experimental procedure in Italy. Dr. Vittorio Colletti is the only surgeon in the world to perform the procedure, which places a device called an auditory brainstem implant into the brainstem.

In an interview with Baptist Press, Flowers provided an update on Jorden’s status, as well as her thoughts on dealing with a deaf son, balancing family and career and competing in the Olympics.

BP: What’s the latest on Jorden’s status? How did the procedure go?

FLOWERS: After three years of waiting for a miracle, we finally got what we had been waiting for. On Jan. 23, the entire family arrived at the hospital in Verona with faith, high hopes and great anticipation. Preparing for this day had been somewhat of a challenge and sometimes frustrating, but we believed that Jorden would finally have a chance to hear what he’s been missing.

We have been working with Dr. Colletti and his staff in Verona, Italy, for the past year and hoped that we finally reached the point where we could finally exhale. We really hoped that when the device was turned on that Jorden’s eyes would tell the story and his body language would confirm that he could hear the sounds around him. Having him respond to sound and seeing a big smile on his face was the Kleenex moment that we imagined and hoped to be able to share with everyone that has followed his story.

In this case we discovered that Jorden’s journey did not end on the 23rd with fireworks, confetti and an upbeat theme song. Instead we learned that the responses that we seek will be told in the next chapter of his life. Dr. Colletti was and has been very optimistic about Jorden’s chances of hearing and responding to the sounds around him.

After the activation he explained that Jorden, as it relates to his hearing, is an infant. He helped us manage our expectations and our emotions so that we didn’t leave there disappointed. He knew that we wanted to pull out the Kleenex and cry happy tears for Jorden, but those tears would have to wait. The reality began to set in for us when he explained that the progress would be slow and his success will depend upon his relationship with the speech therapist in Birmingham, Ala.

The family will continue to train our minds and bodies so that we can prepare for moments that only come around once or twice in a lifetime. More importantly, we will fight to have this procedure approved for children under 12 in the United States and also create a foundation (I Can Hear You Now) that will help others who are battling the same issues. 

In the meantime we will keep a box of Kleenex handy and place the tears on hold. It may take a few days, a few weeks or a few months, but when it happens you may not hear the theme song for Barney or fireworks across the sky, but just know that somewhere, somehow, someday Jorden will eventually tell us, “I can hear you now.”

BP: What’s been the most trying part of having a son who can’t hear?

FLOWERS: We were fortunate that we knew that Jorden had a hearing loss at birth. Some families don’t find out that their child has a hearing problem for months and years. Having this information allowed us to be proactive. We immediately found an audiologist and began taking sign language classes as a family. Because we started sign language at an early age, Jorden was able to communicate all of his needs and we were able to speak to him in a language that he understood.”

BP: How has your faith in God sustained your during this time?

FLOWERS: Our faith is tested on a daily basis. We continue to trust in God that he will allow Jorden not only to hear, but to speak as well. We have no other choice, but to trust in God and believe that He will answer our prayers. Even though the process has taken longer than what we would have liked, we are learning to be patient while He prepares us for another miracle.

My faith has helped me to understand that I’m here to serve a purpose. Growing up I dreamed of competing in the Olympics so that I could fulfill a personal dream, but now I realize that my success was given to me so that I can share it with others. I hope that I can inspire people to believe that anything is possible if they put their faith in God.

As a mom I have been faced with many challenges. My sons were born two and a half months prematurely and because of this one of them suffered from a severe hearing loss. Jorden has been deaf since birth and this has proven to be one the greatest challenges that I’ve ever faced.

BP: What’s the bigger challenge -- training to win a gold medal or dealing with a son who’s deaf? 

FLOWERS: I have been training my body to compete at a high level for over 20 years. I love how I feel after I’m done training because I know that this prepares me for competition ... which I love. Unfortunately, there’s nothing that can prepare you for dealing with a child with a disability. I believe God gives special children to special people. He knew the problems that Jorden would face, how he would overcome them and how his life would be an example to people across the globe. I’m honored that God trusted us to help Jorden reach his potential.

BP: How do you balance your life as a wife and mother with being a world-class athlete? 

My husband, Johnny, is the main reason why I’m able to continue my career. After the 2002 Winter Olympics, Johnny left his job where he worked as a manager for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama for nearly five years and began coaching me fulltime. He not only serves as my husband/coach, he also helps manage the business side of the sport, which gives me more time to focus on training.

Johnny graduated with a degree in marketing from the University of Alabama-Birmingham, therefore his knowledge has helped us better prepare for opportunities. Besides being a great husband/coach/business manager -– he also is a great father. There is no way that I could continue to train at such a high level without his support.

BP: Are there any specific Scripture passages that have meant a lot to you as an athlete and as a wife and mother?

FLOWERS: Psalm 118:8: “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.”

Psalm 75: 6-7: “For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: He putteth down one, and setteth up another.”
--30--
Vonetta Flowers’ autobiography, “Running on Ice,” from the New Hope Publishers division of Woman’s Missionary Union, can be ordered through Christian bookstores.


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OLYMPICS: Bode boasts & bombs; others show faithfulness
by Tim Ellsworth
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

TURIN, Italy (BP)--The Olympics always have their share of drama and compelling stories. After a week’s worth of competition in the Winter Games in Turin, Italy, here are some developments of note:

-- SOBERING PERFORMANCE -- U.S. skier Bode Miller has struck out so far in his events. Miller finished a disappointing fifth in the downhill, sixth in the giant slalom, was disqualified for straddling a gate in the alpine combined and veered off course in the Super-G. 

Prior to the Olympics, Miller boasted of how many times he has competed while drunk. If that’s a practice he’s continuing to employ, perhaps he should try skiing sober for once.

-- COSTLY CLOWNING -- Snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis made a colossal blunder that cost her a gold medal in the women’s snowboard cross.

With an insurmountable lead in the race, Jacobellis decided to do a little showboating by grabbing her board on the next-to-last jump. She fell, allowing Switzerland’s Tanja Frieden to pass her. Jacobellis had to settle for the silver medal.

“I was having fun,” Jacobellis said in a conference call after the race. “Snowboarding is fun. I was ahead. I wanted to share my enthusiasm with the crowd. I messed up. Oh well, it happens.”

-- PRAISEWORTHY SKIING -- Another snowboarder, Kelly Clark, was the subject of a column by Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post, who wrote about Clark’s faith in Christ.

“I love Jesus,” Clark said in Kiszla’s column. “It’s more joyful knowing him than all that snowboarding stuff. And so being able to snowboard for him is amazing.”

On her last run in the halfpipe, in which she finished fourth, Clark rode to the song “O Praise Him” by David Crowder.

-- GOLD & SILVER GIFTS -- Speed skater Joey Cheek has donated all of the winnings from his two medals, $40,000 total, to Right To Play, an athlete-driven international humanitarian organization that uses sports to help disadvantaged children.

Cheek won the gold in the 500 meters, which comes with a $25,000 bonus. His silver medal in the 1,000 meters earned Cheek another $15,000.

“I think we’ve had eight or nine companies or individuals match my original $25,000, and it looks like we’re over a quarter of a million dollars donated -- and more keeps coming in,” Cheek said in an AP story. “I’m much more proud of that than winning a gold medal.”

-- OLYMPIANS’ WITNESS -- Sports Spectrum magazine has been posting a regular feature on “Who to Watch in Torino.” One of those featured, Neil Doese, coach of the U.S. curling team, said, “Once younger people realize that I'm a Christian, they will come up to me and share with me, ‘I’m a Christian too.’ So, they’re very excited about sharing that with me. I’ve had opportunities to sit down and pray with different individuals over situations, but it does open an avenue in a unique sport.”

Canadian speed skater Cindy Klassen, meanwhile, noted on canadianchristianity.com, “Even when you want things ... if it’s not in God’s will, it’s not going to happen. I’ve learned to go along with that. Right now in speed skating I’m having the time of my life, but I have to be ready to move on if He wants me to do something else.”

-- JOIN THE TEAM -- U.S. speed skaters Chad Hedrick and Shani Davis have been embroiled in a spat that continues to get attention. Hedrick, who won gold in the 5,000 meters, was disgusted with Davis for bypassing the team pursuit event. Davis said he didn’t come to the Olympics to compete in a team event, and instead wanted to focus on his individual races –- including the 1,000 meters, where he also won gold.

Hedrick criticized Davis for not being a team player. And without Davis on the team, the United States didn’t make it past the quarterfinals in the team pursuit.

After winning gold in the 1,000 meters, Davis asked what Hedrick would do if the shoe were on the other foot -– would Hedrick compete in the team pursuit if it were held a day before the 5,000 meters?

But Davis conveniently failed to mention that the first round of the team pursuit was a full three days before his 1,000 meters event –- not just one day. For an athlete like Davis, participating in the team pursuit shouldn’t have had any effect on his ability to skate well in the 1,000 meters. 
--30--


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Brunson accepts call to pastor First Baptist, Jacksonville
by Joni B. Hannigan
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (BP)--Members of First Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fla., voted to call Mac Brunson as senior pastor in a Feb. 19 vote.

Brunson has been senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas since 1999.

In a special called business meeting following the morning worship service, Judson Whorton, chairman of the pulpit committee, told the congregation that Brunson was the unanimous recommendation of the committee. The motion was made and seconded to call Brunson and those in favor were asked to stand.

Acknowledging the throng of congregants who stood in favor of calling Brunson, Nelson Sturgill, chairman of the deacons and the moderator of the meeting, asked Brunson to accept the invitation after looking out over the auditorium and noting, “&#91;T&#93;hat looks like the vast majority of us.”

“I can’t imagine God bringing me to such a wonderful place like this,” Brunson said emotionally at being called to the 28,000-member church. “But in my heart, I sense this is where God has called me, and with your help, I will do my best to be your pastor."

First Baptist Jacksonville announced Feb. 12 that Brunson would preach in view of a call Feb. 19. The announcement came five days after Jerry Vines –- pastor of First Baptist Jacksonville for more than 23 years -– preached his final sermon to the congregation, which has been led by a series of co-pastors, starting with Homer Lindsay Sr., and continuing with Homer Lindsay Jr. and Vines.

First Baptist Church in Dallas reported on their Web site that Brunson’s last Sunday there will be March 5.

Brunson was pastor of Green Street Baptist Church in High Point, N.C., from 1992-1999, and previously served in churches in Virginia and South Carolina. He was president of the Southern Baptist Pastors’ Conference in 2003 and president of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina from 1997-1999.

Brunson and his wife, Debbie, have been married for 26 years and have three children: Courtney, Trey and Willis.

A news release from First Baptist Dallas noted, “Our church has grown spiritually and in number under Dr. Brunson’s leadership. We pray for the Brunson family as they prepare for their new ministry at the great First Baptist Church of Jacksonville, and we look forward to the exciting days ahead for First Baptist Dallas as we continue our ministry and mission in downtown Dallas and around the world.”

Brunson was one of the featured speakers at this year’s Pastors’ Conference at First Baptist Jacksonville, and Vines called him out of the audience to pray at the beginning of the Feb. 7 service in which Vines preached. While never mentioning any future plans, some viewed the act as an implicit signal of Brunson’s future call to Jacksonville after months of speculation in Florida and Texas that he would be Vines’ successor.
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Joni B. Hannigan is managing editor of the Florida Baptist Witness, newsjournal of the Florida Baptist Convention, on the Web at www.floridabaptistwitness.com.


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FIRST-PERSON: The faith of George Washington
by Kenyn Cureton
Date: February 20, 2006 - Monday

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--President’s Day is an excellent time to reflect on the Judeo-Christian heritage handed down to us by our Founding Fathers, and especially George Washington, the “Father of our Country.” George Washington was born Feb. 22, 1732 on a modest plantation in Virginia. The son of Augustine and Mary Washington, he was baptized into the Episcopal Church.

Tragically, George lost his father when he was only 11, and his mother worked hard to raise him as a committed Christian. She admonished him before he left home as a young soldier: "Remember that God is our only sure trust. To Him I commend you." She added: "My son, neglect not the duty of secret prayer."

Washington followed the counsel of his mother. The proof is in a well-worn 24-page journal filled with prayers copied in his own hand-writing that he titled: “Daily Sacrifice.” The very first entry, called "Sunday Morning," reads as follows: 

"Almighty God, and most merciful Father, who didst command the children of Israel to offer a daily sacrifice to Thee, that thereby they might glorify and praise Thee for Thy protection both night and day ... I beseech Thee, my sins, remove them from Thy presence, as far as the east is from the west, and accept of me for the merits of Thy Son Jesus Christ...."

In his “Sunday Evening” entry, he wrote the following:

"Let me live according to those holy rules which Thou hast this day prescribed in Thy holy word ... Direct me to the true object, Jesus Christ the way, the truth and the life. Bless, O Lord, all the people of this land."

Other morning and evening prayers, each assigned a specific day, contained such invocations as: "Direct my thoughts, words and work, wash away my sins in the immaculate Blood of the Lamb" and "daily frame me more and more in the likeness of Thy Son Jesus Christ."

Washington’s God was no impersonal force, no distant deity, no celestial clock-maker watching His creation wind down as deists believe, but a personal God, whose Son died on the cross for sinners. Washington's God cared about people, watched over those who followed the example of Jesus, and played an active role in world events. 

America's greatest hero and first President was no deist, but a devout, Bible-believing Christian. “Thou gavest Thy Son to die for me,” wrote Washington, “and Thou hast given me assurance of salvation...."

In addition to his faithfulness to pray, young Washington was also diligent about reading the Scriptures, which he always kept near his bed. It was a life-long practice. According to those close to him at Mt. Vernon, he would get up at 4 a.m., spend an hour in his library, kneeling before a chair, a candle on a stand next to it, with an open Bible on the seat. Then again at 9 or 10 p.m., he would retire to the library for another hour of the same. He spent at least two hours a day in prayer and Bible study. 

George Washington cannot be understood apart from his Christian commitment and worldview. His numerous references to God’s providential hand in the formation of our nation were not just rhetoric, but based on his understanding of Scripture and his personal experience. One of his exploits prior to the War for Independence illustrates his God-centered perspective.

During the French and Indian War, young Washington was appointed as a colonel and assigned to serve alongside British General Braddock in 1755. Braddock's mission was to take the French Fort Duquesne (now Pittsburgh), located at the fork of the Ohio River. 

Before George left, his mother called him in and tried to talk him out of going on this mission. He respectfully reminded her: “The God to whom you commended me, madam, when I set out upon a more perilous errand, defended me from all harm, and I trust He will do so now. Do not you?”

Gen. Braddock led this superior British force of 1,300 cross-country to engage the French. Washington tried to persuade Braddock to use his Indian scouts, as the French did, but Braddock was even more prejudiced against them than he was toward the Colonials assigned to his crack British regiments. Washington also tried to coach Braddock on Indian war strategy of hit and run, hiding behind rocks and trees, but Braddock believed in the civilized way of conducting war: drag along heavy artillery, line up in formation, and attack in waves. 

Braddock paid no attention to Washington, seeing him as an upstart Colonial who had no cultivated understanding of the finer art of European warfare. Consequently, Washington’s warnings fell on deaf ears.

The result proved to be one of the bloodiest days in Colonial history. Braddock had a four-mile long column of soldiers and artillery trekking through the wilderness, and they walked right into an ambush. A hail of bullets tore into the British ranks, their Red Coats, a perfect target for the French and Indians who were hiding in the forest on either side, with the British column caught in the crossfire. 

The whole British army was thrown into confusion while their unseen attackers picked them off. The ground was quickly littered with the dead and dying, horses panicked and tore off with their wagons, trampling the living and the dead. It was an absolute massacre -- and young George Washington was right in the middle of it.

Remember, George Washington was at least 6-feet-3 inches tall and weighed 220 pounds, which were colossal proportions for those times and made for a huge target. Yet somehow, while carrying the general’s orders to the commanders in the field in the heat of that battle, Washington survived. 

Testimony from the battlefield from friend and foe alike pointed to God’s intervention. One of his fellow soldiers testified: “I expected every moment to see him fall. Nothing but the superintending hand of Providence could have saved him.” Washington later reflected: “But by the all powerful dispensations of Providence I have been protected beyond all human probability or expectation; for I had four bullets through my coat and two horses shot under me yet escaped unhurt, although death was leveling my companions on every side of me!”

Indeed, over half (714) were killed or wounded, and only 30 men survived out of the Virginia regiment. Nearly one-third of the officers were killed, including General Braddock -- who died some three days later from wounds received in that battle. 

Who would do the funeral for Braddock? Colonel Washington, now the officer in charge, pulled out his copy of The Anglican Book of Prayers, and conducted a Christian funeral in the middle of a road during their retreat. In fact, throughout the duration of the French and Indian War, he tried desperately to get a chaplain for the Army. After one wasn't granted, he became not only the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Virginia, but their chaplain as well. For two years he conducted worship services for his men on Sundays.

Washington continued to bring his faith to bear on his role as the commander-in-chief of the American army and presidency. His biblical worldview permeated his public and his private life, as evidenced by his orders, his speeches, his conduct, his church attendance, his devotional life. 

After a life full of public service, Washington declared in his Farewell Address: "Of all the dispositions and habits that lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports." In other words the twin pillars that hold up the American government are Christianity and morality. Washington continued: "Therefore, in vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism that seeks to subvert these great pillars." Do not let anyone be called a patriot who tries to remove Christianity and morality from America -- an admonition that needs to be heard in our day.

Indeed, before he became president, Washington sent a letter to the state governors that concluded with these words: "I now make it my earnest prayer that, God ... would most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility, and pacific temper of mind which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion (speaking of Jesus), and without a humble imitation of whose example in these things we can never hope to be a happy nation."

So believed George Washington, the Father of our Country.
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Kenyn Cureton is vice president for convention relations for the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.



