The Life Cycle of a Democracy

Let's look at Alexander Fraser Tytler's exact full quote: A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence: From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance; From abundance to complacency; From complacency to apathy; From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage.

They're dying next door.

What would you think of someone who had money, and next door there was a building full of children dying by the hour of starvation, and all they needed was a little money each, for bread, but he was using his money to play, say, internet games? Is that what we Christians in America are doing as tens of thousands PER DAY die of starvation and disease in Africa, and worse, several hundred thousand die per day worldwide, and pass into eternal hell...while we could take significant amounts of our discretionary dollars and invest them in ministries like Samaritan's Purse (which has vast numbers of workers meeting both physical and spiritual needs around the globe)??!! This used to not bother me at all. I would hear stuff like this and push it away into some "Not important for me" category. After all, I tithes a tenth. I'll take virtually uninterrupted comfort, throw a little bone, and they can suffer and die, and somehow I'm fine! Out of sight, out of mind. (Some of you will do this right now. And I, myself, am NOT going to do all I can.) But more and more I think this is God's heartbeat and He lives with our apathy, but we could give him so much more pleasure if we shattered our idols and invested like we will wish we did (soon) on That Day! Help me, Father, do whatever it takes to change me! I'm going to give a chunk here right now. In Sudan, children are sting, churches are being burned, and pastors are being nailed to trees (yes): (May have to copy and paste this address to Samaritan's Purse) http://links.mkt1529.com/servlet/MailView?ms=Mzk2NjU4NTAS1&r=MzMyOTc2NTYzNzkS1&j=MTU2ODM4NDgyS0&mt=1&rt=0 Scott "In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore."-Psalm 16:11