California Family Council - Update - April 1

Dear Praying Friend,

In Sacramento, after a winter of cold, dreary weather, spring arrives with an abundance of vibrant blooms and warm sunshine. The air is fresh and clean, and life begins anew. Easter reminds us of the same, as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord, Christ Jesus.

Also, in Sacramento, staff at California Family Council spends the winter months of December, January and February sorting through hundreds of bill introductions only to find – once again – a dearth of bills negatively impacting California laws and culture. Yet, along with these hostile, menacing bills – often even worse than the preceding year’s – there are nuggets of hope.

• Legislators introduce dozens of bills that would protect parental authority, the sanctity of life, and marriage as between a man and a woman. These legislators and their staffs speak up to promote the voices of citizens – parents and pastors – in Capitol halls.
• Citizens remain engaged with the legislative process and actively voice their opinions on pieces of legislation.
• Last month, Assembly members heeded the voices of parents and agreed to rewrite legislation that would mandate seventh-grade girls receive a vaccine for a sexually transmitted disease.
• Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger intends to veto homosexual “marriage” legislation should it again pass the Legislature.

With Easter and spring, hope is born anew in our hearts, spurring us to continue in the struggle to protect the Judeo-Christian principles in our laws and culture. We serve a powerful God, one who cares, who is all-sufficient, and who delights to work wonders in our lives. Pray for sustained optimism and unrelenting obedience along with a long endurance in the efforts to work continually to recast California laws and culture in a manner befitting God’s best.

This month, pray for a rejuvenation of citizen involvement, and that legislators, who are on break March 29-April 8, will return to the Capitol with fresh inspiration and insight, and resolve to respect and to protect their constituents’ interests.

Happy Easter!

California Family Council

P.S. CFC’s bimonthly prayer guides can also be found online at www.californiafamily.org.

Please Pray...

· and praise God this Easter for His gift of new life – through Christ’s death and resurrection!

...for the protection of life

· that physician-assisted suicide legislation (Assembly Bill 374) would again meet defeat in the Legislature. Tuesday, instead of protecting the sanctity of life, legislators in the Assembly Judiciary Committee were swayed by arguments favoring “freedom” and “autonomy.” They passed this legislation that would threaten the frail and the disabled onto the Assembly Appropriations Committee. Pray that God would convict legislators of the truth that He is the author and sustainer of all human life; even those whom humans might deem “worthless” are valuable in God’s view. Pray that Californians would not be swayed by judgments promoting the value of one life over another.

· for legislation being considered in Sacramento that would maximize the abstinence message with our young people. Although millions of federal dollars are available for abstinence education, California is the only state never to have accepted it. Pray that, as legislators in the Assembly Health Committee consider the matter on April 17, they will honestly debate AB 708 and the discussion would bring an added awareness to the public and to policy makers.

...for the sanctity of marriage

· that churches and parents would be faithful in instructing children and youth about marriage as God designed it – between one man and one woman. Pray for those enslaved by prideful, homosexual behavior and promiscuity.

· for legislators on the Assembly Judiciary Committee who will consider the latest homosexual “marriage” bill on April 10. Should the legislation again pass the California Legislature, pray for the governor’s unwavering resolve to veto it.

...for parental authority

· that legislators would honor parental authority and responsibility in considering bills that impact what a child learns about sexuality and homosexuality. Pray that parents would accept the responsibility they have for raising moral, God-honoring citizens and that they would not abdicate their rights to the state and public education.

...for California families

· for those who attended Focus on the Family’s the Truth Project in Sacramento March 23-24. Pray they would take what they learned about Christian worldview back to their churches and communities, that they would apply their new understanding, and that the seeds of that knowledge would permeate California communities and culture. Pray also for those who will attend the upcoming southern California Truth Project conference in Yorba Linda on April 27-28.

· for the many Californians who deny God’s truth and callously replace it with self-centered lies and rationalizations favoring homosexual “marriage,” abortion, physician-assisted suicide, divorce, abuse, and pornography.

“For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly moved.” – Psalm 62:1-2

United in passionate, effective prayer for California families

www.californiafamily.org