I want to begin by thanking everyone who sent a birthday wish this week. Deborah surprised me with a (frankly, enormous) card containing all of your messages, and I was so touched to see how many of you stopped to send me a personal note on my birthday.
As you can imagine, having a birthday near the end of the year leads you to start thinking about the changes you’ve seen in the past year … as well as the ones you’re planning in the year ahead. And there’s one thing in particular that I keep returning to.
People on both sides of the aisle have noticed it. And you’ve probably seen it on social media or interactions with friends, family, or neighbors.
It’s the loss of civility. A sense of brinksmanship and hostility has crept into our national discourse. And while everyone seems to recognize it, few are doing anything to change it.
But for those of us who work to spread Christian values, it’s obvious what we need to do. We must shift our nation back to its fundamental principles. We need to recognize the centrality of the family and the value of the community. And we must lead by example, using our faith as a guide and a lesson to others.
This is the time when we start thinking about resolutions for the coming year. And my biggest resolution is an ambitious one. I want to create a cultural and spiritual shift in this nation – one that will recognize the rights of Christians and the way that our fundamental values helped build a generous, prosperous, community-oriented nation.
In the coming year, CAAP will be putting the rights of Christians front and center as part of our campaign to change this nation. The far Left has been trying to silence and marginalize people of faith. The atheists and extremists think people of God should have no place in shaping politics. We say that faith is the only way to make this country great.
That’s why CAAP will focus on defending our Christian civil rights in 2018.
Won’t you join me in resolving to make 2018 a year for faith and family? We need your prayers and support to change the dialogue in the our country. We must drown out the negative influences through the power of Christ’s love and our own commitment to His teachings.
Of course, such high ambitions mean that we will have a lot of work to do in the coming year, and we want to get off to a good start. Though it’s only a start on what we will need to keep operating through 2018, CAAP has a modest goal of raising $30,000 by the end of this year. Will you help us by making your donation today?
We need to do more than just shift towards more civility and understanding in our national discourse. We need to show that our principles remain as steadfast as ever. And we need to show the biased media and extremists that there are more of us than they realize … and that Christians will not be silenced or driven out of the public square.
The Supreme Court decision on religious freedom will come in the next few months (they will be deciding whether a cake decorator can refuse to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple). And there are also the midterm elections ahead of us. We cannot afford to ignore the constant effort to undermine our values and drive the U.S. to a more secular and materialist society.
Please help CAAP today with a donation that will help us continue our mission!
Though most other organizations rely on large foundations and deep-pocket donors, CAAP has always depended on the support of our hard-working and committed partners. We know that you understand the unique voice that CAAP brings to the national debate and appreciate our efforts to support faith and family.
Will you show your support with a tax-deductible gift to CAAP? No donation is too small, and every donation is deeply appreciated.
For those of you who have already given to this campaign, please accept my heartfelt thanks.
If you have not yet donated, I ask that you prayerfully consider a donation as we end the year on a strong note and prepare our resolutions for a transformative 2018.
