When I first open my eyes, the darkness feels thick with the concerns of the world. I feel the strain of troubled families, the confusion shaping our culture, the fear that fills the news, and the quiet burdens that people carry without speaking. The night holds all of it. The silence seems to echo with the brokenness of a world that has forgotten truth and lost its way. It is heavy, and at times it feels overwhelming.

Yet when I turn my thoughts toward God, the atmosphere begins to shift. His presence does not burst in loudly. It enters gently, like a soft and steady light touching the edges of a dark room. The heaviness loosens. The shadows pull back. The darkness that once felt familiar begins to lose its power, not because I am strong, but because He is with me. His nearness changes everything.

In that quiet hour, it feels as though I am walking through the private corridors of my own soul. Every thought is clearer. Every fear is exposed. Every hidden concern rises to the surface. Yet nothing in me feels alone. God speaks in the silence, not with audible sound, but with a certainty that settles deep inside. He reminds me that He remains steady when the world shakes. He reminds me that His truth stands when everything else shifts. He reminds me that His light is stronger than any darkness.

These minutes before dawn become a place of release. I lay down the burdens I have carried. I offer Him the things I cannot fix. I allow Him to speak clarity where the world has spoken confusion. It is in this stillness that new thoughts begin to form—thoughts shaped by His presence rather than my worry. They come gently, but they come with weight and purpose. They are reminders that God is here, God is listening, and God is speaking.

By the time the hour passes, the darkness no longer feels threatening. The heaviness no longer feels crushing. The world outside has not changed, but something inside me has. Light fills the places where fear once lived. Peace settles where pressure once pressed. The silence becomes holy rather than hollow.

It is in these four o’clock moments—when the world is heavy, the night is deep, and the Lord draws near—that “Just Some Thoughts” are born.

This is why the common claim of the liberal left — “If you were a real Christian, you would accept every illegal immigrant; Jesus welcomed everyone” — collapses under the weight of Scripture. Jesus welcomed people, yes. But He did not bring entire populations into Israel and reshape the nation around them. He went to them. He met their needs where they were. His compassion traveled outward, not inward in a way that would destabilize the community around Him. He healed the sick in their towns. He fed the hungry in their fields. He restored the broken in their own homes. This is real compassion: choosing to carry the burden yourself rather than demanding others pay for your convictions.

The disciples followed the same pattern. They left their homes. They crossed borders. They went into other nations with the message of Christ. They brought truth into the world — they did not drag the world into Israel. Their compassion had direction. It moved forward with purpose. It did not require the laws or identity of their homeland to be rewritten.

This same truth exposes what is happening in America today. The legal changes in certain cities are not accidental. They are happening because large numbers of people are arriving without the desire to become American. When that desire is absent, laws shift. School calendars change. City ordinances adjust. Civic structures bend. The legal identity of the city moves toward the expectations of those who came with no intention of joining the American way of life. Laws become the result, not the cause — the natural outcome of people who want America’s benefits without America’s identity. Scripture states the principle plainly: “A little leaven leavens the whole lump” (Galatians 5:9). Influence grows. Influence spreads. Influence transforms whatever it enters.

But compassion and truth are not enemies. A nation can care without surrendering. A Christian can love without losing wisdom. Jesus proved this. He showed mercy without weakening the mission God gave Him. He reached people without demanding others carry His load. His compassion was not a political agenda — it was a personal calling.

So the question is not, “How should America change?”

The real question is, What would Jesus do?

Jesus would go.

Jesus would act.

Jesus would serve.

Jesus would meet people where they are — not demand others sacrifice everything to meet Him.

“True compassion is not forcing a nation to change — true compassion is what you are willing to do to reach people where they are.”

But the real reason hope is fading is because people place their hope in things that cannot save them. The world defines hope as a wish for better circumstances—a belief that people will improve, systems will stabilize, or life will finally become fair. But this kind of hope collapses easily. Economies fail, leaders fall, relationships break, and human promises fade. When hope is built on the world, it will always crumble with the world.

That is why so many wake one day feeling empty. The things they trusted—jobs, leaders, relationships, security—prove they cannot hold the weight of a human soul. The heart grows tired and begins to whisper, “Maybe nothing is going to get better.” This is life without true hope.

But the Bible reveals a different kind of hope—one found in a Person, not in circumstances. True hope is not built on human promises but on Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. The world offers wishes; Jesus offers certainty. He said, “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart; I have overcome the world.” He does not change. His Word does not fail. His promises do not crumble under pressure. And as Corrie Ten Boom once said, “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”

When a heart turns toward Him, something inside begins to breathe again. The heaviness lifts. Prayer becomes trust instead of panic. The world may still shake, but the soul no longer does. Hope stops being a fragile feeling and becomes an anchor, just as the Scripture declares: “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.”

Looking back, the person realizes that Jesus was carrying them even when they could not see Him. What felt like the end becomes the beginning of a new strength. And the storms that once threatened to destroy them become the very places where faith grows deepest. Jesus Christ did not simply help them survive; He transformed them through the trial.

And now their life stands as living proof: Hope built on the world fails. Hope built on Jesus Christ stands forever.

So, this Thanksgiving, lay down the hopes that have disappointed you and take hold of the hope found in the Savior who never changes. The world shifts, but Jesus Christ stays the same yesterday, today, and forever.

“My hope is not in what changes.

My hope is in Jesus Christ, who never does.”

God explains this reality clearly in the book of Leviticus, where He warns Israel that the sins of a nation can defile the land beneath their feet. He describes how the previous inhabitants polluted the soil by their wickedness, and because of that corruption, the land itself “vomited” them out. This is not figurative language. It is divine explanation. The land reacts to sin in the same way a body reacts to infection. When wickedness spreads unchecked, creation begins to push back.

This is why I do not believe the modern explanation that climate change is primarily caused by carbon emissions. The world is not convulsing because of carbon. The world is convulsing because of sin. The true pollution suffocating this planet is not fossil fuel exhaust but moral exhaust. Sin defiles the soil. Sin poisons the atmosphere. Sin destabilizes the world far more violently than any greenhouse gas ever could. Every time humanity crosses a new moral boundary, creation trembles. Every time innocence is taken, creation cries out. Every time a nation rejects God, creation responds with a voice we can no longer ignore.

Look at what is happening around us. We see storms so fierce they are described as “the worst in recorded history.” We see heat waves breaking century-old records. We see wildfire seasons that devour entire regions. We see drought so prolonged that reservoirs disappear into dust. We see floods sweeping through cities with sudden fury. We see earthquakes shaking places long considered stable. We see volcanic eruptions awakening after centuries of silence. The world calls these events “natural disasters,” but Scripture calls them the earth’s groaning. These are not random accidents of nature; they are the earth’s God-designed white blood cells rising to confront the infection of human sin.

And what sins cause the land to groan? Scripture defines them without hesitation. The first is the rejection of God and the refusal to acknowledge His Son, Jesus Christ. When a nation denies its Creator, it tears itself away from the very foundation of life. Another is idolatry—worshipping creation instead of the Creator, elevating the earth above the God who formed it. Sexual immorality in all its expressions defiles the land, just as it did in ancient societies. Violence, corruption, injustice, greed, deceit, and lawlessness seep into the ground like poison, slowly destroying the moral fabric of a people. But above all these, Scripture declares that the shedding of innocent blood is the sin that cries from the ground for justice. It stains the land in a way nothing else can.

This is where America stands with a terrifying clarity. Since the year nineteen seventy-three, the United States has taken the lives of approximately sixty-five million four hundred sixty-four thousand seven hundred sixty unborn children. That number is not exaggerated. It is carefully calculated from nearly fifty years of official state reporting, combined with professional estimates for the states that do not fully report their annual abortion totals. Every reported case is recorded, and the unreported cases are estimated using nationwide medical trends and historical patterns. When all of these numbers are brought together, the result is staggering: more than sixty-five million innocent lives ended within one nation.

To grasp the magnitude of this, consider that the most widely accepted historical estimates show that between fifty and fifty-six million people died during the entirety of World War Two through direct warfare. In other words, America, through abortion, has taken more innocent lives than the deadliest war in human history. More lives than global conflict. More than armies and battles and bombs. The blood of the unborn has soaked into the soil of this nation in quantities that defy imagination. Scripture says that innocent blood does not disappear—it calls out to the Lord from the ground, and the land itself groans beneath its weight.

So America now faces the very reality God warned Israel about. We have rejected God. We have denied His Son. We have worshipped creation while ignoring the Creator. We have mocked purity and celebrated immorality. We have let corruption and violence spread unchecked. And we have shed innocent blood on a scale that dwarfs the death tolls of entire wars. Is it any wonder the earth is reacting? Is it any wonder creation itself seems to be rising in revolt? The fires, the storms, the upheavals, the climate quaking beneath us—these are not merely environmental events. They are the earth’s immune system responding to a world drowning in sin.

But the question remains: can this land be healed? And if so, how? The answer is found not in environmental policies or technological solutions but in repentance. Only repentance can cleanse a land. Only turning back to God can heal soil soaked in sin. America must acknowledge its Creator once again. It must bow before the Lord Jesus Christ. It must repent for the sins that have defiled this nation—especially the shedding of innocent blood. It must reject the idolatry of worshipping the earth and return to worshipping the God who made it. It must humble itself, turn from wickedness, and choose righteousness over rebellion.

If sin can defile a land, then repentance can restore it. If rebellion can bring destruction, then returning to God can bring healing. The prophet Isaiah described a world trembling beneath the weight of its own iniquity, while the apostle Peter urged believers to walk in holiness as they await the restoration God has promised. America stands at that same crossroads today. If we continue down this path of corruption, the land will continue to convulse. But if we repent, if we return to God, if we honor His Word, then the same creation that groans today may one day rejoice.

Proverbs 27:19 (NLT)

When you look into calm water, it shows the truth. There is no hiding, no filtering, and no reshaping the image. The reflection reveals the real you. God says the heart works the same way. The heart reflects the truth about a person—whether they admit it or not. God sees the heart clearly, but the challenge is whether we will look honestly at what He already knows.

This truth matters deeply when we consider leadership. People often choose leaders based on charisma, confidence, or polished speeches. But if a leader has a corrupt heart, that corruption will eventually show in every decision they make. A leader with a rotten heart will lead people into confusion, fear, division, and instability. It does not matter how strong their image is on the outside—a corrupt heart always produces corrupt results.

At the same time, we must also recognize another danger: the media often tries to twist the reflection. When a leader stands for godly values, moral standards, or righteousness, the media will sometimes paint that leader as hateful, dangerous, or corrupt—not because of their actions, but because the media despises the truth they represent. A leader who protects biblical principles is often portrayed as the villain simply because their heart stands against the darkness of the age. The world cannot recognize a godly heart because it does not want the conviction that truth brings. In this way, the media tries to make a clean heart appear dirty, and a righteous stand look like corruption.

This becomes even clearer in leaders who demand sacrifices from everyone else but give themselves a free pass. They speak of limits for the people while living in luxury themselves. They preach rules they refuse to follow. They call for unity while stirring conflict. They tell others to “do what is right” while excusing their own wrongs. This is the spirit behind the old phrase, “For thee, but not for me.” Their behavior rises to the surface like a reflection in water. No matter how carefully they hide, the heart always reveals itself.

But this truth does not stop with leaders. Proverbs calls us to examine our own heart as well. Many people avoid the reflection of their own heart by blaming stress, circumstances, or other people for their attitudes and actions. Yet our lives reveal the truth. If anger controls us, something inside is unsettled. If fear dominates us, something is unanchored. If bitterness lingers, something is wounded. If sin does not bother us anymore, something is hardening. Just as water reflects the face, our daily life reflects the condition of our heart.

Facing the truth about our heart is uncomfortable, but it is the only way to change. God already knows every hidden thought and motive. He waits for us to see what He sees. A heart does not change through willpower or pretending to be better. A heart changes only when it is brought honestly before God. He does not heal what we hide, but He restores what we surrender.

When we bring our heart to God, everything begins to shift. Scripture exposes what we overlook. Prayer softens what life has hardened. Truth reshapes our desires and reactions. A heart once ruled by anger begins to show peace. A heart once filled with fear finds courage. A heart once held by bitterness learns compassion. A heart shaped by God becomes steady and clear in a world filled with confusion.

This is why the heart matters. A leader with a corrupt heart can lead a nation into destruction. A person with a neglected heart can lead his own life into the same place. But a heart surrendered to God becomes strong, wise, and dependable. It stands firm when others fall apart. It sees truth when others are blinded by emotion. It reflects God instead of chaos.

Abraham Lincoln once said, “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” Power exposes the heart. And once exposed, the reflection tells the truth without hesitation.

Just as water reflects the face, life reflects the heart. The reflection never lies.

But today, the world has stepped into that role because the family is stretched thin. Most households need two incomes just to survive. With both parents working, the school system becomes the cheapest, easiest, and most available option. Parents drop their kids off early, pick them up late, and hope the system is preparing them for life. Yet the results show the opposite.

Academically, this generation is collapsing. Colleges across the nation report that incoming freshmen are the least prepared they’ve ever seen. A national survey shows that 96% of colleges now enroll students who require remedial classes in basic math or English before they can even begin true college-level work. Professors say students struggle with reading comprehension, writing, logic, and even simple problem-solving. With more hours in school than any generation before them, our children are performing worse than ever.

So the question becomes unavoidable: If not truth… if not knowledge… if not the values of the family—then what are they being taught?

This is where the real battle lies. Schools are not neutral. They shape worldview, identity, morality, and beliefs—not always through curriculum, but through culture, peer influence, and the subtle, constant drip of values that contradict the home. And once parents try to push back, they discover quickly how hard the fight truly is. They run into political agendas, embedded activism, and systems that resist accountability at every level. Changing a school district—let alone a statewide system—is like trying to turn a battleship with your bare hands.

As the old saying goes, “The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.” Whoever shapes the children shapes the future. And right now, that shaping is happening outside the home far more than within it.

This is why spiritual maintenance cannot be ignored or postponed. If parents do not intentionally pass on their values, the world will eagerly replace them. If the home does not teach truth, the culture will teach confusion. If we do not guard our children’s hearts, someone else will capture their minds.

Spiritual health requires constant maintenance because the next generation is being shaped every single day—either by us, or by a world that has no interest in their souls.

You are growing up in the last days, and because of that, you must know what is true. Jesus is the Word of Life. His voice brings clarity where the world breeds confusion, and His Spirit gives you the strength to stand when the world collapses around you. If you stay close to Him, you will see the path ahead even when everything around you grow dark. But if you try to blend in with the world, the fog of its lies will settle over your mind, your ears will close to the truth, and sooner or later you will fall. The world cannot lead you—only Jesus can.

And because the world is growing darker, the battle for your heart will grow stronger. Darkness always looks for an opening, and one of its easiest entrances is hate. Do not let hate take root. Hate poisons the soul. It steals joy, peace, and the ability to hear God clearly. People may reject you, laugh at you, or wound you because you stand for truth—but let them go. Their opinion holds no weight in eternity. When your life is built on God’s Word, lies fall apart the moment they reach your ears. Do not shrink away from Him. Do not trade truth for acceptance. Nothing is more devastating than standing before the Lord knowing you denied Him in the moments that mattered.

My granddaughters, if the Lord waits to return and you one day marry, listen to me deeply. A strong, beautiful marriage grows when you help your husband walk in God’s will. Do not wear him down with constant complaints or demands. These things drain a man’s heart and weaken the home God wants to bless. Bring every hurt, longing, and unanswered question to the Lord in prayer. God Himself will build something lasting and good if you hold onto faith, hope, and love. Remember this always: a woman’s greatest strength is not her beauty or charm—it is her reverence for God and the quiet power of her prayer life.

My grandsons, be real men—men who walk with God and lead with steady courage. You do not lead your family by force or loud words. You lead by stepping out first, seeking God’s direction, and moving in the path He sets before you. When you walk with God, your family will trust your steps. Never neglect the Scriptures and never let prayer leave your life. Without them, you are like a man walking blind—unable to see danger, unable to see the future God wants to give you. Do not let this world chain you to a life of empty struggle with no joy, no peace, and no blessing. Many men trust in their own strength and lose everything because their pride blinds them. A true man rises every morning to meet with God, listens for His voice, and obeys what He says. Stand for truth even when you stand alone. Teach your sons to be men of God. Cherish your wife and daughters as the precious, gentle vessels God made them to be. And whenever someone crosses your path in need, help them without hesitation.

Children, remember this above everything else: Jesus is your Rock, your Salvation, and your mighty Fortress. If you let Him lead you, you will not be shaken. Trust Him with your whole heart. Listen for His voice. Pour out everything inside you to Him. He will be your strength, your shelter, and your safety in the days ahead.

The first truth is blunt and undeniable: the powerful did not flock to Epstein out of ignorance. They knew exactly who he was. They knew what he was doing. They knew he kept lists, collected secrets, and used influence like a man trading in human currency. Yet they still approached him—not because they were strong, but because they believed themselves untouchable. Their downfall did not begin with lust or greed. It began with weakness they refused to confront, a weakness polished into arrogance.

But while the predators used their power to hide in the shadows, the girls they targeted were already hurting in daylight. That is the second truth these files reveal—not only what the men did, but what the girls had already endured. These were not carefree girls who stumbled into danger. Many came from fractured homes, carried scars from early abuse, lived with neglect or desperation. And layered on top of that was a culture that teaches young girls their worth lies in being desired. Our society sexualizes them early, praises their appearance, and tells them—subtly and openly—that attention from wealthy men is a pathway to success. By the time a predator appears, the foundation is already cracked.

As one survivor said, “They didn’t break me the day I met them—they broke me long before, and he just stepped into the pieces.”

But if we stop with the predators and the victims, we miss the danger unfolding right now. Because as the nation debates names and connections, another corruption creeps in. The truth itself is being twisted. The release of the files has become a political battlefield where trauma is turned into ammunition. Victims’ stories are being repackaged and weaponized for advantage. People who stayed silent for years now shout—not from conviction, but from convenience. And in all the noise, the actual victims risk being buried again beneath agendas they never consented to join.

This is where the conversation must shift—because exposing Epstein is not enough. Identifying the predators is not enough. Even punishing the guilty, as necessary as that is, does not strike the root of the evil. If our culture remains fractured, predators will rise again. If our daughters remain unprotected in identity and spirit, the cycle will repeat. We cannot simply react after the damage is done. We must change what makes the damage possible.

We must rebuild what this culture has stolen. And that begins with how we see our young girls.

If we want to protect them, we must teach them their worth long before the wolves come.

We must show them how God sees them—loved, valued, purposeful, and irreplaceable.

Not objects. Not ornaments. Not trophies for powerful men.

But daughters with a dignity that cannot be bought, borrowed, or stolen.

A girl who knows her worth is not impressed by wealth.

A girl who knows her identity is not swayed by charm.

A girl who knows her purpose cannot be manipulated by a predator.

As it’s been said, “When a girl knows who she is in God, she becomes the one thing a predator fears—unbreakable.” And even untouchable.

The Epstein files have forced truth into the open—but what we choose next will decide whether this becomes justice or just another moment the world forgets. If we walk away, the cycle begins again. If we stay silent, the darkness reforms itself. But if we confront the culture that weakens our daughters—if we strengthen them in truth and identity—then we do more than expose predators… we take away their power before they ever strike.

Real change does not begin in the files.

It does not begin in headlines.

It begins in the hearts of the next generation—girls who know their worth so deeply that the shadows no longer tempt them.

As I reflect on Your provision, I realize You have given me far more than circumstances or opportunities—You have given me people. You placed mentors, friends, and companions in my path at exactly the right moments, shaping my character and strengthening my walk. And among all Your gifts, You blessed me with a helpmate who has walked beside me with courage, wisdom, and love. She has been a reflection of Your grace in my life, a steady presence through joy and hardship, and one of the clearest reminders that You know exactly what I need.

Through all of this, You have shaped who I am today. You have taught me how to listen for Your voice, how to trust Your timing, how to get back up after failure, and how to find purpose in every season. You surrounded my life with truth and beauty, gave me a conscience to guide me, and resilience to endure. And through Jesus Christ, You lifted the weight of my past and gave me the freedom to walk in forgiveness and peace. These gifts have formed the foundation of my life.

Because I have experienced Your goodness so personally, it is hard to watch people I care about move through life without seeing what You have offered them. I have seen loved ones chase meaning in things that fade—success, possessions, distractions—while the deeper longing inside them remains unmet. I have watched them enjoy moments of beauty or blessing without realizing there is a loving God behind it. I can hear the restlessness in their questions and see the longing in their eyes, even when they do not understand what is missing. It burdens my heart, because I know that a life lived without You now becomes an eternity lived without hope later. They were created for so much more.

Yet even this world’s brokenness cannot overshadow what You have promised. You have prepared a future far greater than anything we can experience here—a world restored and made whole, free from sorrow, confusion, and decay. You will give us new bodies, unshakeable joy, and a peace nothing can interrupt. You will wipe every tear from our eyes, set every wrong right, and welcome us into a life where nothing fades, nothing breaks, and nothing is lost. You will give us eternity in Your presence, where every longing finds its fulfillment.

Everything You have given me in this life—Your protection, Your provision, the people You placed around me, the helpmate You blessed me with, and the grace You poured out through Jesus—has prepared me for what You will give me in the life to come. The hope You stir in me, the strength You supply, and the joy You place in my days are only glimpses of the glory ahead. The God who has walked with me faithfully all these years is the same God who will welcome me into forever.

The recent events at the University of California, Berkeley showed this very clearly. When Turning Point USA held its rally, hundreds of protesters gathered outside. Many were angry before the event even started. Some shouted that the group was “spreading hate,” and one protester told the press, “We cannot let voices like this get a platform on our campus.” Liberal-leaning news outlets repeated this idea, describing the event as harmful rather than debating the issues. Instead of challenging ideas with facts, they treated the presence of differing opinions as a danger.

This is where the importance of free speech becomes clear. A famous quote often attributed to the philosopher Voltaire says, “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” This is the heart of a free society. You do not have to agree with someone in order to allow them to speak. In fact, protecting speech you disagree with is the true test of freedom.

History shows that when people are afraid of open discussion, they often turn to silencing rather than reasoning. In the early nineteen thirties, leaders in Germany refused to debate anyone who disagreed with them. They shut down newspapers, banned other political groups, and punished critics. They acted this way because their ideas were built on lies and hate. Open debate would have exposed the truth, and they were afraid of that. Strong ideas welcome questions. Weak ideas hide from them.

We see something similar today when protesters shout down speakers rather than discuss issues. It rarely shows moral courage. More often, it reveals fear. People who know they stand on truth are not afraid of words. People who are unsure often are.