New Word: Quadricentennial

We just landed on the shores of Virginia Beach this evening... so to speak. We're here for a celebration to commemorate the 400-year anniversary of the first settlers arriving here on April 26, 1607. Those first people humbly spent 3 days in prayer and fasting aboard their ship anchored in Chesapeake Bay before going ashore. They built a wooden cross, and their first order of business on the beach was to plant it and pray. On Sunday morning we will join with countless others to once again plant crosses on that beach. Lou will be speaking tomorrow morning along with many of our other friends throughout the weekend.

This is my first time to Virginia Beach. It's beautiful here. I would like to get over to Jamestown before we leave.

Today is a Good Day

Yes. It is a great day indeed. I'm glad I got to be here in DC, in front of the Court, when this ruling came down.

4 Days in DC

Please pray for me as I am in DC for four days to pray and attend some meetings. On Wednesday morning I'll be meeting with Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council along with a handful of youth leaders from around the country. The team has been developed to explore ways to bridge the gap between this youth generation and the public policy being decided in this day. The goal is to mobilize young people to become active voices (both in heaven and on earth) in determining the kind of government they and their children will live under for decades to come. I brought a team up with me from our base in SC. The consensus is that it's good to be back home.

Fetal Position on HOUSE

I have not seen this episode myself (thanks to no TV), but I received an email from a friend that this show took an unpopular life-afirming stand last week. In the episode "Fetal Position" on Fox's House the show featured a story about a woman faced with aborting her baby to save her own life. Different measures are taken in order to save both lives.

I'm not a regular watcher of this show, and I've heard that they've argued the case for abortion in other episodes, but this video clip is well worth watching. The scene is a virtual re-enactment of the inutero surgery performed on Samuel Armas, whose spina bifida was repaired by doctors at Nashville's Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Samuel's extended hand grasping the surgeon's finger was captured in Michael Clancy's famous photo.

Warning: The video does feature a surgical situation, and blood and tissue are visible up close.

Separated at Birth?

OK OK, like 12 people have come up to me in the last week to tell me that I look just like King Leonidas in the movie 300. If anything, I'd say he looks like me.

Frankly, I don't see the resemblance.