The Olympic torch relay has been an absolute debacle. It’s like the whole world is participating in a big shaming of China. And for good reason. China has been trying to play with the big boys economically for quite some time now but has avoided accountability at all cost. Well, maybe we’ll turn a blind eye just before a business deal, but it seems that when it comes to celebrating sport and the Olympic spirit, all eyes are wide open. China is being shamed by the world, and she deserves it.

China has treated religious freedom as a luxury to be bestowed on the co-operative. China has harassed, imprisoned, tortured, and even executed people for their religious beliefs for decades and continues this oppression without remorse to this day. I’m glad that this torch relay has not been peaceful. This torch carries with it the heritage of oppression and the blood of martyrs. I understand that we try to isolate the Olympics from the brokenness of the real world so that we can focus on something good and honourable, and in that sense, I’m glad the torch is traversing the free world. But in another sense, you cannot honour something good and noble with blood on your hands. In that sense, I’m glad that the Olympic flame is being greeted by protests the world over and I hope it will not have a peaceful stop on it’s journey.

China has chosen this. Shame on China.

Sometimes I log on for fun. Sometimes I log on just because I’m in the mood. Sometimes I log on because I need encouragement. Sometimes I log on because I’m eager to reap from the vast and endless wisdom that flows from the minds of our many posters. But whatever is happening on the surface, there’s always an underlying reason why I log on to givemetruth.net.  Read the rest of this entry »

Reflections on the Baby Bonus
By Jason Harris

For those who aren’t familiar with the “Baby Bonus,” it’s a $4,000 (soon to be $5,000) lump sum currently paid out to women by the Australian government when they have a baby. According to a recent article in the Cairns Post, some are saying that the Baby Bonus may be causing problems which is kind of like saying World War III could cause disunity.

People aren’t stupid. You have kids. You get money. So they’re having kids. Who could blame them. The logic was that we need to get our population moving in the right direction so we need women to have kids. Of course since sacrificing for a family is not likely to happen in our culture, we’ve got to find a way to pay for these kids without making parents sacrifice. Of course that’s easy. We’ll pay parents to raise their own kids. Makes sense.

The problem is, it takes more than money to raise a child. It takes a family. Yes. Family. Remember that thing in the old movies where you have Read the rest of this entry »

Pray for our Prime Minister.

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.”

1 Timothy 2:1-2

A friend posted a link on GMT this morning that I felt would be helpful to Australian believers this election. Australia Votes 2007 lists the position of each party on various issues of interest. It also has a section listing how each MP voted on key moral issues. I trust it will be helpful.

By Jason Harris

Recent years have seen a growing awareness among Independent Baptists in Australia of our responsibility to reach out, not only to the spiritual needs of those around us, but also to their physical needs. Several organisations which promotes such causes have sprung up and gained support within the movement. Let me make it clear at this point:

I support what these organisations are doing.

That said, over the last several months, as I’ve pondered these things, I’ve had a deep sense of heaviness and caution in my soul. History proves the dangerous tendencies of these types of social endeavours. The answer is not to avoid them. I believe that would be wrong. But like many things in life, we have a responsibility to wrestle with duties that at times seem to contradict—or at least conflict with—each other.

Below are some pitfalls that I believe need to be avoided in our desire to meet the physical needs of others.

Pitfall #1: That we would someday succumb to a social morality.

Social morality tells a young person that they shouldn’t throw their rubbish in the street because someone has to pick it up. It tells them they shouldn’t play loud music late at night because how would they feel if they were trying to sleep and someone else was playing loud music. It tells them they shouldn’t have pre-marital sex because of the dangers it poses to their partner and to society by spreading STD’s.

The problem with social morality is that it is Read the rest of this entry »

Thanks to all those who followed our first live blogging adventure. To my knowledge, that was the first time anyone has ever live blogged a fundamentalist conference in Australia. I’ve appreciated the feedback I’ve gotten so far and would like to hear additional feedback on how to make it more effective and useful to those who read. Perhaps we could use the comments section to discuss that a bit.

One comment from the conference has really stuck out to me over the last couple of days. Phil Pinero, in a Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re like me, you recently received a packet in the Post introducing the federal government’s new NetAlert project. The Prime Minister is to be commended for his active approach to online safety. Notes can be sent to the Prime Minister by email or Post from here.

I found it interesting that his letter of introduction addressed many of the exact same issues we at GMT have been dealing with over the last several years in the context of our forums. In fact, the letter was so good that I wanted to reproduce parts of it:

The internet is a window on the world that has transformed the way we communicate. Properly harnessed, it has enormous potential as a tool for education, entertainment, interaction and global engagement.


Just like the real world, though, there is a lot on the World Wide Web that you wouldn’t want your children to see or be a part of. Offensive materials are just a few mouse clicks away and not everyone your children meet online can be trusted.


…


Importantly, we must recognise that while the free services we are providing, such as customisable filters, a web portal and a contact centre, will be useful tools for families, traditional parenting methods are more important than ever. I encourage parents to discuss online safety with each other and with other carers of their children including teachers, baby sitters and grandparents, but most importantly, let’s start the conversation with your children.


John Howard

I’ve generally tended to think of ANZAC day as just another holiday to spend having a picnic and playing cricket with friends, but this year I’ve felt a strong urge, almost a conviction, that if we as a nation are going to take a day off for a particular purpose, that I ought to take that purpose seriously. Whatever the case, that was my rationale for attending this morning’s ANZAC service downtown. I was struck by several things.

First, I realised that those guns the soldiers were carrying and marching with were real guns. The same kind of guns that the original ANZACs carried as they charged courageously up the beach. The kind that shoot real bullets. The kind of bullets that literally rip right through skin and bones leaving blood, gore, and death in their wake. I don’t mean to be unnecessarily explicit, but these soldiers walked toward the beach that day, and continue to walk toward the beach today. Toward the guns. Toward death.

Second, it almost felt like church out there today. Actually, among the crowd of townspeople there were many faces from my church. In fact, just across the street was my pastor and his family. We sang Abide with Me and More Love to Thee, as well as the National Anthem. Indeed, what we were doing was honourable and right.

Finally, I realised that ANZAC day isn’t just about history. Australia is a nation at war. The question of whether or not to enter a war is political. But the question of whether or not to honour those who face the guns to protect us and our freedom is a spiritual matter for all believers. I’m thankful for those who have have given their lives so we could publicly sing “More Love to The, O Lord” and publicly pray in Jesus’ name. I’m thankful for those who are facing the guns in order to preserve and protect Australia.

By Alen Basic

When I got up in the morning of the 9/11 attacks, the first thing I saw when I turned on my TV was a plane flying straight into a building. I told my mother how unusual it was for the TV stations to play movies in the morning. That was no movie.

I then saw the second plane hit into the building, as the newscaster was describing what had happened what was happening, he screamed, almost crying out in horror when the second plane hit. The anguish in his voice was incredible, and just like the rest of the world, he was scared.

As an unsaved person at the time of those attacks, one thing dawned on me, that is: We are no longer safe. We no longer have the assurance of our safety, when we catch a bus, when we catch a train, when we catch a… plane.

Being in Australia, the thought on everyone’s mind since Read the rest of this entry »

9/11: A Memorial
By Jason Harris

When I sat through History of Civilisation class in 2000, the biggest event in modern history was Pearl Harbour. People used to ask “where were you when you heard about the attack on Pearl Harbour?” Today, we ask a different question. Read the rest of this entry »