If there’s one thing President Obama has done for evangelicals, it’s motivate them. Frustrated by almost eight years of attacks on their faith and their values, America’s Christians are fired up to make a difference in the 2016 election. And with record turnout numbers, they are. In South Carolina, conservative voting was up 12 points — shattering the marks set in 2012. In the southern states where the race rolls next, schools in Virginia and elsewhere are so concerned about the number of primary voters that they’re canceling classes — a move usually reserved for the general election.

As CBN’s David Brody points out, their anger is about a lot more than President Obama. “Evangelicals are upset with the Republican Party too. They’ve felt like cheap political pawns for years, constantly being used by the GOP to get out and vote and then having nothing to show for it.” But if pundits thought they could predict where these conservatives would channel their exasperation, they were wrong. Three very different men lead the Republican field, and it’ll take broad evangelical support for any of them to win the nomination.

There’s no doubt that evangelicals have the influence — but are they using it wisely? Some aren’t so sure. Any conservative who watched the returns from South Carolina had to be troubled by these two takeaways: 1) the evangelical vote is split; and 2) many of their votes are going to candidates inconsistent with the values evangelicals embrace. Supporting Planned Parenthood, debt-ballooning entitlements, pro-abortion Supreme Court justices, and the Obamacare mandate is hardly the stuff of conservatism. It’s obvious, George Will wrote, the frontrunner of the Republican Party is not, as President Obama suggested, “saying in more interesting ways what the other [GOP] candidates are saying.” In what universe is giving money to liberal campaigns, praising the “very good work” of the nation’s biggest abortion business, or owning strip clubs and casinos conservative?

Still, the nomination race, as John Fund explains on National Review Online, is far from decided. But for a party very much on the edge, Saturday should have been a wake-up call to America. It’s time for every voter — evangelicals especially — to go beyond rhetoric to records. Just because a candidate channels your frustration or speaks to your fears doesn’t mean he shares your values. And in the end, values are what policies are based on. Not good intentions, not zinging soundbites, not even campaign promises. What Barack Obama said in 2008 was far more moderate than what President Obama did in 2009 and beyond.

South Carolina, the editors of NRO warn, should “only increase the urgency and focus of conservatives who believe that our ideas and principles are the only way to make America great again.” If voters want to undo the mess of the last two terms, it will take a principled leader with a solid record. Does your candidate qualify? Check out FRC Action’s Presidential Voter Guide to find out.

Originally published here.

Scalia’s Son Points to God’s in Moving Tribute

“We cannot depart here unchanged.” How right Father Paul Scalia was. His homily at the funeral of his father, perhaps the greatest Supreme Court justice of a generation, may have been one of the most powerful events Washington has ever seen. From the first minute of the ceremony, it was obvious to everyone that something was different. Chief Justice William Rehnquist’s funeral was not like it. President Reagan’s, though large and presidential and “stately,” was not like it. This was the Gospel of Jesus Christ on display in a service so inspirational that even the liberal media stood in awe.

And it’s not difficult to understand why. Father Scalia defined the day almost immediately, saying, “We are gathered here because of one man, a man known personally to many of us, known only by reputation to many more; a man loved by many, scorned by others; a man known for great controversy and for great compassion,” and then he turned: “That man, of course, is Jesus of Nazareth.”

All of the cable channels were silent for two hours as if they were speechless, FRC’s Cathy Ruse observed. “It was as if the ‘hounds of hell’ were kept at bay. The nation and world were taught the central meaning of our faith and of Scalia’s — that Jesus died for his sins personally. And everyone watched quietly and learned. Tragic deaths often seem inexplicable and we long to learn God’s plan but usually we have to wait until the general judgment before all will be made clear. But perhaps we have been given a glimpse of the Divine plan in this tragedy.” Father Scalia made it clear from the beginning of the Mass for his father that, instead of honoring his dad, they were there to “reflect what God did for Dad. How he blessed him!”

It was a remarkable time of respecting Justice Scalia’s own wishes, which he wrote to an evangelical pastor years earlier: “Even when the deceased was an admirable person, indeed especially when the deceased was an admirable person, praise for his virtues can cause us to forget that we are praying for and giving thanks for God’s inexplicable mercy to a sinner.” Father Paul’s message more than accomplished that. It spoke encouragement and comfort to believers and pointed those outside faith in Christ to the source of hope. Which I am certain is exactly what Justice Scalia would have wanted. He lived his life loving God and his country. And in death, he brought America closer to both.

Originally published here.

Calvary Calls in the Cavalry on Prayer

The Freedom from Religion Foundation may like to pick fights with local school districts – but Chino Valley Unified is no ordinary place. Unlike a lot of schools boards in the country, this one isn’t afraid to stand up for what it believes — including the Christian faith that several members practice. A majority of the board’s members attend the church of a good Watchmen pastor friend of ours: Jack Hibbs’s Calvary Chapel Chino Hills (CCCH).

[Sunday], I had the privilege of once again preaching the Sunday services at CCCH where I encouraged them to live their lives as followers of Jesus with no fear. And that is exactly what they planned to do. They have no plans to retreat from the challenge of any anti-Christian organization. “Whether people like or not,” Pastor Jack has said, “religion is part of the fiber of America. And we encourage our congregation to speak the truth in the public square.” That courage starts at the top and has continued through the church’s 10,000-person congregation.

So when FFRF sued the school board for opening the meetings with prayer and reading from the Bible, it shouldn’t be a surprise that members of Pastor Jack’s church didn’t back down. With help from the Pacific Justice Institute, the board’s Christians refuse to give in to this secular arm-twisting and have taken their convictions to court, where they argued that the Supreme Court’s recent Greece decision about public prayer not only applies to local legislatures but school boards as well!

Last week, a judge disagreed, temporarily ordering the board to stop injecting faith into meetings, claiming it was an “unconstitutional endorsement of religion.” For now, District Judge Jesus Bernal is banning the members from “conducting, permitting, or otherwise endorsing school-sponsored prayer.” Well, FFRF may have had the last word, but they won’t have the final one. Chino Valley Unified is vowing to fight the ruling — and even defy it, if necessary. “No law is going to stop people from praying,” Pastor Jack vowed. America would be a different place if there were more churches like Calvary Chapel Chino Hills – unafraid to use their religious freedom to preserve their freedoms and touch the lives of those living in their communities.

Originally published here.