Human trafficking is out of control in Ukraine.

More Ukrainian men,
women and children have been trafficked abroad and forced into
indentured labor or prostitution than in any other Eastern European
country since the Soviet collapse.

EFCA’s Reach Global
missionary Amy Richey says traffickers target the most vulnerable: “The
most vulnerable in Ukrainian society today are kids currently living on
the streets, and/or kids that are just coming out of the orphanages. Fifty percent to 60 percent end up in some sort of a trafficked situation.”

That can mean being sold to a labor group or prostitution in Ukraine, or being trafficked across International borders.

Richey says street kids are most vulnerable: “Street kids are not
registered in the country of Ukraine. There’s no good way to know they
exist and no good way to know they disappear.”

Worldwide, many believe there are 27 million people currently victimized by human trafficking.

Sadly, Richey says, “Ukraine is considered a source country: meaning
that’s one of the places that’s the easiest to take people from. It’s
usually listed at the top two or three countries.”

Richey says her job is to assist Ukrainian churches in helping kids around them.
Her local church in Kiev is involved in a local orphanage. She says
Christ is the answer to human trafficking. Knowing that Jesus “loves me
and that I’m adopted by Him gives children a very firm foundation to
say, ‘No, I don’t need some stranger’s approval,’ or ‘I don’t need this
hope and dream of becoming a model in some far away country.'”

Human trafficking has just recently come to the attention of the church.
“Five or 10 years ago, people were very afraid to talk about it [in
the church],” says Richey. “Fear paralyzed them. Thankfully today, the
sentiment is different. The church, as a whole, is much more engaged.”

Richey says the church is getting involved in HIV/AIDS —another
previous taboo —”as well as getting involved in trying to guard their
children against human trafficking.” Some of their children have
disappeared.

Richey described a situation where college students were promised a year
of studies overseas. They completed that, then went back home. The trip
was then promoted again, and Richey says, “The group that those
students recruited were actually sold into modern day slavery.”

Pray that the church in Ukraine will begin to provide orphans and street
kids with the tools they need to avoid human trafficking predators,
that they will come to Christ, and that churches would be planted as a
result of that harvest.

AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli

First, gay marriage in New York. Now, civil unions in Rhode Island.

On a vote of 21-16, the Rhode Island state Senate on Wednesday approved legislation sponsored by Rep. Peter J. Petrarca to allow civil unions for same-sex couples there. In May, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved the bill on a vote of 62-11.

The civil union legislation grants legal rights to same-sex partners without the historical and religious meaning associated with the word “marriage.” The measure now heads to the governor for consideration.

“I am very proud of my colleagues in the General Assembly for recognizing that this is the right piece of legislation at the right time,” said Representative Petrarca, who supports same-sex marriage. “We have made great progress in our goal of providing increased rights, benefits and protections for gay and lesbian couples. This bill is a step forward to ensuring equality and improving their quality of life.”

Petrarca’s comments signal that he is not willing to stop pushing the gay rights envelope at civil unions in Rhode Island. In response to the onslaught against biblical marriage between a man and a woman, Christian leaders are calling for repentance and prayer—and action by working to amend the U.S. Constitution.

“Whether by judicial activism or backroom politics, homosexual activists continue to attack and redefine natural and God-given notions of family and marriage. Just as counterfeit currency weakens the real dollar, giving same-sex relationships the status of ‘marriage’ counterfeits and devalues real marriage between a man and a woman,” says Roy Moore, former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court and president of the Foundation for Moral Law.

“This is a nationwide movement to destroy marriage itself by divorcing it from all its biblical, moral, and historical foundations,” Moore continues. “In no state of the Union have the people ever sanctioned by popular vote same-sex marriage. An Amendment to the U.S. Constitution declaring marriage between one man and one woman would pass the legislatures of at least three quarters of the states, as required, and could become the 28th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.”

Amid a heavy push for gay marriages in some states, the U.S. government is doing something a little more traditional: funding responsible fatherhood and healthy marriages.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services just announced $150 million in funding for Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood grants. The grants aim to help fathers meet their parenting and financial responsibilities and assist married couples or people considering marriage in building strong relationships with each other and their children.

“To invest in the success of fathers is to invest in the future of our children, our economy, and our communities,” says HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “This funding provides organizations in underserved communities with the tools they need to promote responsible parenting, to encourage healthy marriage and relationships, and to remove barriers to financial security and self-sufficiency.”

The Responsible Fatherhood program has $75 million in new funding intended to promote or sustain responsible parenting, marriage and economic stability. The Healthy Marriage program has $75 million in new funding intended for pre-marital education, marriage enhancement programs, divorce reduction programs, marriage mentoring programs, and skills programs that may include parenting skills, financial management, conflict resolution, and job and career advancement.

“We recognize the need for fathers to be present in their children’s lives,” says George Sheldon, HHS acting assistant secretary for children and families. “These funding opportunities bring us closer to preparing more fathers to nurture and take full responsibility for their children and for couples to sustain healthy relationships.”

You’ve heard of bullies harrasing kids in the schoolyard, but how about the gay agenda bullying schools? That’s what’s happening in Minnesota’s Anoka-Hennepin School District.

The Southern Poverty Law Center and National Center for Lesbian Rights sent a letter to the school district last month threatening a federal lawsuit if the district does not repeal a policy that requires staff to remain neutral on “sexual orientation.”

The groups actually expect the district to mandate that students and staff attend training “to prevent bullying based on sexual orientation and gender identity,” and inject “issues related to LGBT people” into the curriculum.

The question is, who is bullying who? The Alliance Defense Fund is getting in the middle.

The ADF on Monday sent a letter to the district explaining that these threats “have no basis in law” and that demands made by these groups rely primarily on “appeals to emotion.” So far as the ADF is concerned, “the district should not be swayed by these unfortunate tactics.”

“School districts should not be bullied into taking the side of homosexual activists,” says ADF Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco. “Parents rightly believe that public schools are a place for education, not sexual indoctrination. The Anoka-Hennepin School District’s policy is entirely appropriate and legally sound.”

Specifically, the district’s policy states, “Anoka-Hennepin staff, in the course of their professional duties, shall remain neutral on matters regarding sexual orientation including but not limited to student led discussions. If and when staff address sexual orientation, it is important that staff do so in a respectful manner that is age-appropriate, factual and pertinent to the relevant curriculum.”

The ADF letter points out that the school district’s neutrality policy does not prohibit the legitimate discussion of issues related to sexual orientation and does not target students who identify as homosexual, bisexual or transgendered for mistreatment.

“SPLC and NCLR’s letter plainly misinterprets the district’s policy, is inaccurate as to the law, and is heavy on hyperbole,” the ADF letter states, adding that the two groups appear to be “more concerned with pushing their agenda than with offering real solutions to the problems of bullying and suicide, which … are faced equally by all students, regardless of their sexual orientation.”

“Indeed, bullying is not unique to students who identify as homosexual, bisexual or transgendered,” the ADF letter continues. “Accordingly, anti-bullying policies should broadly prohibit bullying against all students, regardless of the reason for the bullying, while at the same time carefully protecting the free speech rights of all students as well.”

The father-daughter abortionist team of Herbert Hodes and Traci Nauser filed suit in Federal Court on Tuesday to block the implementation of a new Kansas abortion clinic safety law that requires offices that supply five or more abortions per month to pass inspections and become licensed by the state.

The abortionists have cancelled a scheduled inspection of their Center for Women’s Health abortion clinic in Overland Park, Kan., and are seeking a temporary restraining order to block implementation of the new law. No hearing date had been set as of this writing.

The federal magistrate assigned to the case is K. Gary Sebelius, the husband of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, who is also the former governor of Kansas. While governor, Sebelius vetoed similar clinic safety bills on at least three occasions.

“We were shocked to learn that Mr. Sebelius could have anything to do with this case. His wife’s administration worked actively to shield abortionists from any accountability under the law. We call on Mr. Sebelius to immediately recues himself,” says Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

The head of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment on Tuesday issued a statement saying that none of the clinics inspected so far have passed. If Hodes and Nauser fail to block implementation of the law, Kansas could become the first abortion-free state as of July 1.

Besides the Hodes clinic, there are two other abortion clinics in Kansas. Aid for Women in Kansas City has already been denied a license based on information in their application. Planned Parenthood of Overland Park was inspected last week and still contends that it can be in compliance with the new law by the July 1 deadline, but the KDHE has not yet issued it a license.

“Kansas has a history of having some of the worst abortion clinics in the nation. The abortionists have fought licensing and inspections for years because they know they provide substandard services that simply cannot meet up to even the most basic health and safety standards,” says Newman.

“Can you imagine any other business refusing to comply with the law? What if a restaurant suddenly stopped submitting to health inspections, or a factory barring OSHA from inspecting, or a coal plant telling the EPA to jump off. Abortionists want to be in a different category, one that is above the law, and that is a dangerous attitude to have in any profession. If abortion clinics cannot or will not clean up as required by law, they deserve to be closed.”

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday ruled two-to-one in favor of the federal government in the case of Thomas More Law Center v. Obama, challenging the national authority of the government to mandate the purchase of healthcare insurance.

The Thomas More Law Center case, argued on June 1, was the second case to be argued at the court of appeals but the first one decided. The case drew a dissenting opinion that attacked the far-reaching dangers this law could impose on the American people.

Liberty Counsel’s case, Liberty University v. Geithner, was argued on May 10, at the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. The decision should come any day.

The decision drew three separate opinions. Judge Martin upheld the law under the Commerce Clause. Judge Sutton appeared more troubled by the law but, nevertheless, wrote a separate opinion upholding ObamaCare on the basis that the case was a facial challenge and not “as applied.”

Under a facial challenge, the law has to be unconstitutional in every conceivable application. He found the law could be upheld, for example, in a state like Massachusetts, where people are mandated under state law to purchase health insurance. Judge Graham dissented and wrote that the mandate exceeded congressional authority under the Commerce Clause. All the judges acknowledged that the mandate was novel, without any prior historical precedent.

“Today’s ruling is not the final word on ObamaCare. Our case in Liberty University v. Geithner and others will soon be decided. Everyone agrees the final round will be fought at the United States Supreme Court. I am confident that ObamaCare will eventually be struck down,” says Mathew Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel and dean of Liberty University School of Law.

“Congress clearly exceeded its authority when it sought to force every American into the health insurance market by forcing them to buy insurance from a private party. Such reach by the federal government is unprecedented and, if allowed, would leave no boundaries on the government’s power to regulate private decisions. The Founders would have been astounded. They thought they had left that kind of centralized government behind when they penned the Constitution.”

Kevin Wolf/NBC Universal, Inc. via AP Images

MSNBC political analyst Mark Halperin said President Obama
was acting like, well, an unseemly part that is unsuitable for exposure. Now,
he may be out of a job.

“I thought he was kind of a d— yesterday,”
Halperin said about Obama. Apparently, he thought it would be bleeped out. But
it wasn’t, and the entire MSNBC viewing world heard the foul language.

“Mark Halperin’s comments this morning were completely
inappropriate and unacceptable. We apologize to the president, The White House
and all of our viewers,” MSNBC said in a statement. “We strive for a
high level of discourse and comments like these have no place on our air.
Therefore, Mark will be suspended indefinitely from his role as an
analyst.”

Obama has not responded to the controversy, though the
president once called hip hop artist Kanye West a “jackass” in an off
the record comment during an interview with CNBC. Although most people laughed
at Obama’s off-the-cuff reaction to the way West treated Taylor Swift at the
MTV Video Music Awards, Halpern isn’t getting the same reaction. Halperin, who is also an editor-at-large and a senior political analyst for Time magazine, issued a quick apology.

“I completely agree with everything in MSNBC’s
statement about my remark. I believe that the step they are taking in response is
totally appropriate,” Halpern said in a statement. “Again, I want to
offer a heartfelt and profound apology to the president, to my MSNBC
colleagues and to the viewers. My remark was unacceptable, and I deeply regret
it.”

CNN’s Jack Cafferty has advice for the GOP: Park your morality at the door.

On June 14, Cafferty expressed surprise that, in the previous night’s presidential debate, “social issues—like abortion, gay marriage, ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’—still
manage to work their way into the conversation. And that may prove to
be a problem for Republicans. … These are not the issues that middle
America is worried about. They would like to be able to find a job.”

I submit that these so-called “social issues” mean more to “middle
America” than Cafferty realizes. We call them “moral issues.” To us,
abortion is the slaughter of innocent human life, on a moral level with
genocide or the slave trade.

What Cafferty doesn’t understand is that every issue is a moral
issue. The current bad economy didn’t just happen. It was the direct
result of immoral choices made by our leaders.

The national debt, national security, taxation, the welfare state,
border security—there’s not a single issue that doesn’t have a moral
component. The government has a moral obligation to live within its
means, to protect its citizens, to encourage industriousness and
discourage indolence, and to secure our borders against terrorists and
drug cartels.

When voters consider a candidate for public office, they should not
just ask, “Can this person manage the economy?” They need to know, “Does
this person have the values and character to hold public office?”

A candidate who doesn’t value innocent life shouldn’t be president. In 2002, Barack Obama voted to oppose the Induced Birth Infant Liability Act,
outlawing infanticide of babies who survive late-term abortions. Obama didn’t merely vote in favor of abortion, but in favor of killing
babies outside the womb. A man whose moral compass is this defective
cannot make moral decisions.

He promised an end to earmarks, a secure border, no lobbyists in his
administration, no recess appointments, airing the healthcare debate on
C-SPAN, elimination of failed programs—and he didn’t keep even one of
those promises. Candidate Obama opposed “same-sex marriage,” but as
president he nullified the Defense of Marriage Act. A record of broken promises does not equal moral leadership.

Cafferty says that middle America doesn’t care about “same-sex
marriage.” But polls show Americans overwhelmingly oppose it—not because
they hate or feel morally superior to homosexual people. They simply
want to preserve God’s plan for marriage. Marriage should remain what it
has been throughout recorded history—a covenantal union between a man
and a woman. Here are three reasons why Americans object to redefining
marriage:

1. The best environment for children is a traditional family—one mom,
one dad. Children from stable two-parent homes are significantly less
prone to depression, addiction and suicide than children from
non-traditional families. A moral society should encourage the family
structure that best nurtures children.

2. Marriage ideally brings together two people—one male, one female—who complement each other. Mothers are generally protective and
nurturing while fathers tend to challenge children to confront risks and
embrace opportunities. Children need both influences. Two “mothers”
can’t teach boys to become men; two “fathers” can’t teach girls to
become women.

3. Children need to feel connected to their biological origins
whenever possible. Yale psychiatrist Kyle Pruett found that children
“hunger for an abiding paternal presence.” They struggle with questions
about their biological origins and identity.

As a Christian pastor, I have nothing but compassion for homosexual
people. I understand that it hurts to know that society doesn’t accept
your relationship as “normal” and “natural.” But you can’t force society
to accept your way of life through court rulings.

The 2012 election is not just about jobs. It’s about the moral
choices America must make. If we hold our elected leaders to a high
moral standard, there will be prosperity and plenty of jobs to go
around. Leaders with a strong moral compass for the sanctity of life and
the sanctity of marriage will generally make sound moral decisions on
every other issue affecting our lives.

In October 1789, John Adams, America’s first vice president, gave a
speech to the Massachusetts militia. “Our Constitution,” he said, “was
made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to
the government of any other.” I pray that these wise words would become a
motto for our nation—but I fear that they may become our epitaph.

Dr. Michael Youssef‘s expertise on the Islamic culture and the Middle East in today’s post-modern world is actively sought by hundreds of thousands of followers around the globe. With a Ph.D. from Emory University in social anthropology, his Egyptian heritage gives him particular insight into the cultural and religious entanglements of international affairs. ? It is estimated that over 10 million viewers/listeners around the world are tuned in every week through an international Christian media ministry founded by Youssef, . It broadcasts via radio and television to over 200 countries and in over 20 languages. Follow Youssef, a common sense intellectual and renowned author of 24 books,? on twitter @michaelayoussef and through his news blog .

You’ve heard of bullies harrasing kids in the schoolyard, but how about the gay agenda bullying schools? That’s what’s happening in Minnesota’s Anoka-Hennepin School District.

The Southern Poverty Law Center and National Center for Lesbian Rights sent a letter to the school district last month threatening a federal lawsuit if the district does not repeal a policy that requires staff to remain neutral on “sexual orientation.”

The groups actually expect the district to mandate that students and staff attend training “to prevent bullying based on sexual orientation and gender identity,” and inject “issues related to LGBT people” into the curriculum.

The question is, who is bullying who? The Alliance Defense Fund is getting in the middle.

The ADF on Monday sent a letter to the district explaining that these threats “have no basis in law” and that demands made by these groups rely primarily on “appeals to emotion.” So far as the ADF is concerned, “the district should not be swayed by these unfortunate tactics.”

“School districts should not be bullied into taking the side of homosexual activists,” says ADF Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco. “Parents rightly believe that public schools are a place for education, not sexual indoctrination. The Anoka-Hennepin School District’s policy is entirely appropriate and legally sound.”

Specifically, the district’s policy states, “Anoka-Hennepin staff, in the course of their
professional duties, shall remain neutral on matters regarding sexual
orientation including but not limited to student led discussions. If
and when staff address sexual orientation, it is important that staff
do so in a respectful manner that is age-appropriate, factual and
pertinent to the relevant curriculum.”

The ADF letter points out that the school district’s neutrality policy
does not prohibit the legitimate discussion of issues related to sexual
orientation and does not target students who identify as homosexual,
bisexual or transgendered for mistreatment.

“SPLC and NCLR’s letter plainly misinterprets the district’s policy, is inaccurate as to the law, and is heavy on hyperbole,” the ADF letter states, adding that the two groups appear to be “more concerned with pushing their agenda than with offering real solutions to the problems of bullying and suicide, which … are faced equally by all students, regardless of their sexual orientation.”

“Indeed, bullying is not unique to students who identify as homosexual, bisexual or transgendered,” the ADF letter continues. “Accordingly, anti-bullying policies should broadly prohibit bullying against all students, regardless of the reason for the bullying, while at the same time carefully protecting the free speech rights of all students as well.”

AP Photo/Stephen Jones

The
father-daughter abortionist team of Herbert Hodes and Traci Nauser
filed suit in Federal Court on Tuesday to block the implementation of a
new Kansas abortion clinic safety law that requires offices that supply
five or more abortions per month to pass inspections and become licensed
by the state.

The abortionists have cancelled a scheduled inspection of their Center
for Women’s Health abortion clinic in Overland Park, Kan., and are seeking a
temporary restraining order to block implementation of the new law. No
hearing date had been set as of this writing.

The federal magistrate assigned to the case is K. Gary Sebelius, the husband of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius,
who is also the former governor of Kansas. While governor, Sebelius vetoed similar clinic safety bills on at least three occasions.

“We were shocked to learn that Mr. Sebelius could have anything to do
with this case. His wife’s administration worked actively to shield
abortionists from any accountability under the law. We call on Mr.
Sebelius to immediately recues himself,” says Operation Rescue President
Troy Newman.

The head of the Kansas Department of Health and
Environment on Tuesday issued a statement saying that none of the clinics inspected
so far have passed. If Hodes and Nauser fail to block implementation of
the law, Kansas could become the first abortion-free state as of July
1.

Besides the Hodes clinic, there are two other abortion clinics in
Kansas. Aid for Women in Kansas City has already been denied a license
based on information in their application. Planned Parenthood of
Overland Park was inspected last week and still contends that it can be
in compliance with the new law by the July 1 deadline, but the KDHE has
not yet issued it a license.

“Kansas has a history of having some of the worst abortion clinics in
the nation. The abortionists have fought licensing and inspections for
years because they know they provide substandard services that simply
cannot meet up to even the most basic health and safety standards,” says
Newman.

“Can you imagine any other business refusing to comply with the
law? What if a restaurant suddenly stopped submitting to health
inspections, or a factory barring OSHA from inspecting, or a coal plant
telling the EPA to jump off. Abortionists want to be in a different
category, one that is above the law, and that is a dangerous attitude to
have in any profession. If abortion clinics cannot or will not clean up
as required by law, they deserve to be closed.”