Nah, It’ll Never Happen Here...   by Carl McMurray

 In Daniel chapter 6 the counselors of Darius, King of Babylon, came to him with an unusual proposal. They appealed to his high, kingly office and flattered him into passing a 30 day moratorium on prayer, except for those prayers that were directed towards him. We see that the egos of those in power seemingly have no bounds as Darius agreed to this exaltation of himself to the rank of deity. However, his pride had blinded him to the real consequences of his decision. His counselors had an agenda and they used the law of the Medes to attack Daniel, that elderly, but still faithful believer.

I’m sure you know the rest of the story—of Daniel’s unswerving dedication, the Kings late awakening of good sense, the Lord’s rescue of His esteemed one, and the end of those deceitful counselors. For most of my life I have heard and read and taught the above Bible account as a tremendous statement of faith on the part of Daniel. He sets a great example of remaining true to God, even when threatened by stupid laws designed only to attack God’s children. But, I never realized how relevant that Bible account really is.

President Obama signed the “Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. “Hate Crimes Prevention Act” in October 2009 after Democrats strategically attached it to a “must-pass” $680 billion defense-appropriations bill, the World Net Daily reported. What is covered under the “Hate Crimes Act” you might ask? Well for one thing, any denunciation of homosexuality as being (according to Romans the first chapter) unnatural and unacceptable. And going farther, a Maryland school board threatened to bring suit against a local organization for passing out flyers (answering the flyers passed out by homosexual promotion groups) for even suggesting that if any gay/lesbian student was uncomfortable with that lifestyle, that there was literature and help available. Note, they didn’t suggest changing, only that if change was desired, it was available. That is now deemed “hate speech” to the homosexual lobby.

The bill signed by the President was opposed by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, which called it a “menace” to civil liberties. Congress was assured at the time of debate  that this law would never be used to silence the right to free speech. And then it was attached to a “must-pass” defense bill to get it through Congress, because it couldn’t stand on its own. Our leaders are deceived, the agenda of those lobbying for such bills is now revealed as another way to threaten and silence those who teach God’s truth, no not even to offer help to poor souls who might be unhappy with their lives and desire to change. Daniel’s example IS relevant. Does anyone hear a lion roaring off in the distance?