 "Photo: Alfredo Linares")
| Staff Editorial |
A great man said, “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” In Amarillo, there’s a group that is standing and trying to change the “evil” ways of more than 65,000 people in the Panhandle, from Muslims to Buddhists to Scientologists to Methodists, even Episcopalians. Homosexuals, Masons, New Age believers, pro-choice advocates and the sex industry. No group is safe from the scrutiny of Repent Amarillo.
Now this desire to save people is no longer confined to the Panhandle. The citizens of Houston recently elected Annise Parker as mayor. Why should that affect people more than 700 miles away? Is it because Parker is the second female ever elected mayor in Houston? Maybe her political aspirations to bring Houston more prosperity in her years in office?
No, Parker being elected mayor in Houston has nothing to do with her qualifications or her political positions. The only thing that matters about this monumental election to Repent Amarillo is that Parker is the first ever openly gay individual elected mayor of a U.S. city of more than a million people. And that is something that cannot be, according to Repent Amarillo.
This religious group claims to be an army for God fighting on the front lines, fighting for Jesus Christ through prayer. However, its “holy war” seems more like an exercise in ignorance and intolerance than a real effort to spread the message of Christianity.
Pastor David Grisham, director of Repent Amarillo, has called for a boycott of Houston for allowing an openly gay mayor and the largest Planned Parenthood center to be established in the same city.
According to the Web site, www.boycotthouston.com, since the “Christians of Houston” allowed it to happen without taking proper action, and “Have failed to be faithful to the cause of righteousness in Christ Jesus, others must step in and fight the battle that (they) lacked the courage to fight. Now apparently others must “Struggle to rid your city of these two evils.”
Obviously Grisham and his followers are exempt from one of the main pillars of Christianity: to “Love thy neighbor.” The writers of the Bible surely meant “Love thy neighbor as I have loved thee unless thy neighbor elects a gay and allows people to make their own decisions about their lives.” We all must have been reading it wrong all these years.
Here are a few examples of how Grisham and his followers plan to show Houstonians the error of their ways:
Avoid traveling to Houston or layovers while flying. If it is unavoidable, then supporters shouldn’t spend any money in the airport or within the city limits. Supporters of the boycott also should not spend money with companies based in Houston or with online retailers that are shipping from Houston.
Boycott Houston also recommends that if you are offered employment in Houston to not accept it and go elsewhere and to avoid having medical procedures in Houston unless not doing so will endanger your life.
Not only does this ‘boycott’ of Houston seem unfeasible, it also makes everyone in the Amarillo and surrounding area, even those of us not associated with Grisham, seem supportive. This group of extremists is shaping the nation’s view of us. To put it in perspective, Amarillo is the 119th largest city in the United States. Houston is the fourth. Houston is the headquarters for the highest number of Fortune 500 companies outside New York City.
Companies such as Halliburton, ConocoPhillips, Shell. Pennzoil and Kinder Morgan are in Houston.
It’s like this group is trying to bring down a skyscraper with pebbles. Even if the protest reaches 100,000 people, Houston is a city of more than 2.2 million. They aren’t going to make a dent in the economy of Houston.
Strangely enough, in Grisham’s emphatic plea against Houston, nowhere does it say for people in the Texas Panhandle to not sell products and materials to companies in Houston or to turn away customers from Houston. The boycott is completely one-sided, and we are the ones with the most at stake. In this area, there are more people who depend on the very same Fortune 500 companies that headquarter in Houston to feed and clothe their families than there are members of both Repent Amarillo and its boycott.
Instead of being Christlike and helping the less fortunate such as the victims of the Haiti earthquakes or even the homeless in the Texas Panhandle, these people are more concerned about a city 10 hours away. Yet isn’t it in the Bible that no man can judge another, only God?
Let the people of Houston live their lives as they see fit. What we need as a nation is to support one another and not point out the flaws in others while ignoring our own.
Let it be known that we refuse to fall for this intolerance. This is not a topic that will go away if ignored. Groups such as these believe they have the right to tell others they are leading lives that oppose God. Saying people aren’t loved for being different is wrong and should not remain unchallenged. Will you stand up? Or like so many others, will you fall?
28 comments
Since no one bothered to call me for comment, I will just respond here. There are three reasons for the website:
1. Evangelism- you can either go to the sinner or bring the sinner to you to be witnessed to for Jesus Christ. On the website's home page there is an article entitled "Houston we have a problem" This page walks the reader straight through the Gospel. We have had about 600,000+ hits on our site and literally tens of thousands of people have read that Gospel message. God's Word never comes back void. We have also personally answered hundreds of e-mails and preached the Gospel to them as well.
2. To wake up Houston Christians- Houston Christians need to wake up and see the devil at work in their culture. The innauguration of the first openly homosexual mayor and the largest abortion clinic in the nation opening within the same month needed to be addressed in a way that would be provocative enough to get their attention. Mission accomplished. If Christians do not get up off of their "blessed assurances" and start engaging the culture with the Gospel of Christ as Jesus commanded then they will surrender the culture to evil. Homosexuality and abortion are sins and thus, evil. Christians are called to more than mere church attendance.
3. To give those outside Houston a voice- Houston is the biggest city in the state and what happens there, the doors that get opened, lead to the rest of the state. Those who oppose these two abominations outside of Houston cannot vote in their city elections but they can vote with their dollars.
We will leave the economics of the boycott up to God, whether it has an economic impact or not. That is the least of our concerns. What is of greater concern is to stand for righteousness......or fall prey to evil.Pastor David H. Grisham
Director: RAVEN/Repent Amarillo
4 If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church.
5 I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren? you probly should read Mt 7:1 ¶ Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye. as you see it dose not say not to judge it says" FIRST" : first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye. this is why you read the hole thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!! so don't you think you should fallow your own advice?did you even talk to this pastor david grisham . well it obvious not ! JUST MAKE IT UP AS YOU GO ?Ro 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
(KJV)
if a person is a christian he must tell people right and wrong. not set on the sideline and go with what popular.
Jesus is the truth and the truth is if your not saved by the blood of jesus you will go to HELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!