April 2002 Newsletter

April 2002

GIVIN' EM HEAVEN AT YALE UNIVERSITY

Our invitation to Yale had been in the planning stages for three years. The faithful work of Marilyn Carroll and Carmen Vasquez had finally paid off. Yale Professor B.T. Chu would be our sponsoring professor along with the PLL (Pro-Life League), a Yale University student group. Everything was a go for the lecture on Friday, March 8, and then we dropped the Operation Save America press release:

OPERATION RESCUE CONFRONTS YALE UNIVERSITY
Leader of controversial anti-abortion group to speak on Yale Campus. Rev. Flip Benham, the National Director of Operation Rescue/Operation Save America, will be taking the abortion battle right to the very gates of Yale University.

"On January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court of the United States of America declared that a child in his mother's womb was not fully human and therefore not entitled to the full protection of the laws of our land," said Rev. Flip Benham. "Because of this open rebellion and blatant disregard for the Law of God and for life, our nation is suffering under the remedial judgments of God Himself. Blood is coursing down the corridors of our schools, work places, and streets. If the shedding of blood in the womb does not cease in America, September 11, 2001 will prove only a harbinger of judgments and disasters that are to come!"

Founded in 1701 as one of America's premier Christian colleges to train up ministers of the Gospel of Christ, Rev. Benham believes that Yale has strayed far from its roots. "We have a university founded upon Biblical principles that has expelled God from school and banished Him from the yard. Yale University has forgotten the God of her founders and, as a result, has become a wide gate of hell, murdering thousands of little boys and little girls in its university-sanctioned and sponsored abortion clinic!"

All hell broke out and all heaven came down as the Gospel battle began to unfold on this historic campus that had long since forgotten its rich Christian heritage. From 1701 to 1898 every single president of Yale had been not only a dynamic Christian, but a clergyman. Elisha Williams, Ezra Styles, and Timothy Dwhite were a few of the notable past presidents. A building on the campus bearing Ezra Styles name has come under attack recently by students because they believe Styles was a slaveholder and a "Christian bigot." There is a move afoot to remove his name from the building. The Yalies are doing all they can to erase the school's Christian roots. A student of the Pro-Life League at Yale wrote:

"This press release is extremely confrontational … Did the OSA people not understand what I meant when I said that (1) This talk cannot be only addressed to Christians, and (2) the topic should be "Civil Disobedience and the Pro-Life movement"? OSA seems to be trying to convert all of Yale to Christianity. As laudable a goal as that may be, that is not why I asked Rev. Benham to come and speak here… And these are still the tactics we insist upon: (1) Use of natural law arguments for the right to life, not reliance on Christianity. (Many of the PLL's members are atheist or Jewish; I am not willing to alienate 15 of my members!); (2) Graphic photos and other media may only be shown to people who consent to see them; and (3) The topic will not be on how far Yale has strayed from God, the topic will be on "Civil Disobedience and the Pro-Life Movement." I am very upset, and am considering rescinding the invitation unless I receive further assurance from Rev. Benham that this talk will conform to our requirements."

It became immediately apparent that the school had no problem debating the abortion issue so long as God was not brought into the equation and onto the campus. Sounds like the National Right to Life! Yale was stirred into such a frenzy over the fact that God, an uninvited guest, was going to enter her hallowed gates that the pro-abortion lobby began calling its troops to battle. They wrote articles about us in the school newspaper that we were bombers, shooters, and a part of the Christian Taliban. But, because there was such a controversy, the president of the student Pro-Life League said she couldn't cancel the lecture. God is so good!

When the saints of Bridgeport and I arrived at Yale, there were about thirty students holding placards outside the William Harkness lecture hall. We immediately entered into conversation with them and found them to be brilliant yet spiritually dead. They had miles and miles of knowledge with little depth and devoid of wisdom. One young man informed me that he had scored a 1600 on his SAT's, was a senior, and didn't need God to tell him what to do.

The lecture hall was packed. Several kids from Christian Heritage High School joined us as we took this Gospel battle to the very gates of hell and began to realize just how important it is to be able to give a reason for our faith. They were able to see with their own eyes the spiritual shallowness of those attending Yale and the unadulterated antipathy they have toward anyone who would dare proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord. They also began to realize during the "question and answer time" that the real debate was not about abortion at all - it was about who is Lord and whose laws reign. Yes, whenever we go to a college campus we have found that the kids will talk to us about abortion for a short period and then the conversation will inevitably move to what is really on their minds: "Is there a God? Can I know Him? Can you give me reasons why I should believe in Him? Is Jesus really the only way into heaven? Isn't that utterly intolerant? What about evolution?"

Several Yalies approached us after the lecture and thanked us for being there. Some of our foes became our friends. One young man from Longview, Texas, told me that he was a senior and couldn't wait to graduate because the views expressed during the lecture were not tolerated at Yale. Every "god" is tolerated here but the One who truly is God, Jesus Christ!

The spiritual bankruptcy we found at Yale in indicative of the spiritual bankruptcy we have found at college campuses across our land. The kids in these schools are being violently robbed of the knowledge of Almighty God. It is our privilege and our duty to bring God back to school - the gates of hell cannot prevail against Him!

Professor Jim B.T. Chu had this to say about our visit to Yale:

"I thought Rev. Benham's presentation was excellent. Thanks be to God! I was especially impressed by the respect and truly Christian manner he treated his critics. It is abundantly clear that he loves them just as Christ has commanded us to. This is not easy when our fallen nature would rather strike back, especially since we know for certain what is the truth and the facts. His talk verifies every words Lauren Mutti wrote about him! All the people I know on our side have the same opinion. We are all impressed by his faithfulness to Christ and genuine love for all!"
CONNECTICUT REPORT by Marilyn Carroll

We want to give all the glory to God for all the awesome things He is doing here in Connecticut! The battle is being won as gentle Christians go out to the gates. The fierce gates of hell cannot prevail when the Church of Jesus Christ comes out to the streets.

On Thursday, March 7, 2002, we had chapel services in the day and a youth rally at night at Christian Heritage School (CHS) with Pastor Randy, Rev. Flip Benham, and Rusty Thomas. Two teens received salvation that night. Two busloads of students came the next morning to pray at the killing center and a van came to Yale with us on a class trip. PTL!

We went to Yale University on Friday, March 8, 2002, to bring the Gospel of truth and life. There were a group of pro-abortion advocates who greeted us at the front of William Harkness Hall on campus with signs and noisemakers. A lot of the signs had slogans against Flip and against "our" God. We approached these students in love and invited them into the lecture hall. Most of them took us up on the invitation and came in. The room was packed!

Flip explained the battle between two seeds - the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent (Genesis). He touched on many subjects including evolution, civil disobedience, false religions, etc. The students were politely vocal and Flip was very articulate as he answered all their questions. It was a learning experience for all. The CHS students were so totally engrossed in the question/answer time that they didn't want to leave. The truth was unveiled at Yale through God's Holy Scriptures. We believe it was a divine appointment from God.

In Bridgeport, the lone abortuary in our city is planning to relocate to the center of town. Pastor James Miller of Gospel Light Church held a press conference on Wednesday, March 20, calling pastors and Christians to take a stand against childkilling in their community. The conference went very well. Three pastors and one priest spoke out. The whole group knelt on the ground in the cold, damp weather, asking forgiveness for our sins and our complacency in the Church. We pled to God to stop this horrific abomination. This press conference was widely covered in the newspapers and on radio. The president of the City Council was outraged that the clinic would even think of moving this center to a high traffic area. Many local businesses have stated their opposition to the baby-killing center moving into their district. We are taking a stand for the love we have for God and the children that He created in His image.

Esther 4:14: "For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"

We have a responsibility to God, to our community, to our neighbors, and to the babies to tell what this abortion mill is planning. All citizens of Bridgeport have a right to know that a baby-killing center is coming to their neighborhood. We want little baby boys and little baby girls to be safe. We cannot be silent at a time like this!

The battle is being won as we get the Gospel out. God is doing it; I am humbly lowered to the ground as He gets greater and we get smaller. We are falling on our faces in gratitude to our awesome mighty God who does hear our prayers and does answer them. God has done such powerful and mighty things, it is hard for Carmen and I to contain ourselves. We give Him all the glory.

Ephesians 3:20-21: "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

We have had many threats hurled at us in the last twelve years, including a three-year battle with the Justice Department and the State of Connecticut in federal court. Satan tried to use the court and the government to shut God's people up and bludgeon gentle Christians right off the streets. But God saw us through it all! He was there with us through every battle. He promised He would never leave us or forsake us. I feel His presence stronger and stronger as we follow hard after Him. We believe by faith that our Lord is going to end child sacrifice in our community! Jesus has already saved over 1,012 babies from slaughter at this location through His Church and 341 adults have received salvation. There is lots more to come. Please pray and fast. Thank you.

CHARLES RITCHIE CALLED HOME TO BE WITH THE LORD

"He who fears the Lord has a secure fortress, and for his children it will be a refuge." Proverbs 14:26

Our precious brother, Charles Ritchie, went home to be with the Lord at 11:00 a.m. on March 19, 2002. Charles had complications with his diabetes. From what we understand, he died of cardiac arrest. Although his body went into toxic shock and could not be revived, he is alive with the Lord and has finished the race marked out for him. Charles finished well! He and his wife "Miss Cindi" have become very dear to our hearts in these past months. Though our courses have not paralleled long, our hearts were knit together with the same passion and vision that comes from engaging in our Lord's great battle.

Charles and Miss Cindi are well known by those in Fayetteville, North Carolina, who have needed to know the love of Jesus. The poor, the fatherless, single moms, and the pre-born have been touched by their lives. "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27. They have become living parables of this Scripture.

Please keep Miss Cindi, the children, and grandchildren in your prayers. Charles has left a secure fortress for his family. His life will be a refuge for his children and his children's children, because He served the Lord Jesus with all of his heart. The memory of this blessed saint will serve as a goad for all of us who are following hard after Christ to run the race marked out. He has left a sure foundation for those coming behind him.

"Miss Cindi, you are a lady of tremendous faith in the Lord. You know your strength lies in our faithful Redeemer Jesus, and that your lap of the race is not yet finished. Run hard the race marked out for you! Remember the Lord Jesus Himself is holding you up and will bring you to the finish. Charles has joined that great cloud of witnesses to cheer you, the children, the grandkids, and the rest of us home. We love you!"

STORM THE "GATES OF HELL" WITH US IN DALLAS, TEXAS, July 13 - 21, 2002

We pray that you are preparing to join us in Dallas this summer as we bring the Gospel of Christ to the gates of hell. Saints from across the nation, those living out their faith in the streets of their cities and fighting the devil at every turn, will be joining us. The greatest preaching, the greatest teaching, the greatest praying, the greatest praise and worship, and the greatest fellowship always accompany us whenever we are storming the gates of hell together. If you are looking for a way to pass the rich heritage of our Christian faith into the hearts of your children, there is no better way than to bring them to the battle in Dallas for our National Event. Allow them to experience for themselves the mighty works of God as we wield the Sword of the Spirit (the Word of God) and tear down the strongholds of the enemy. We're not gonna just sing about going to the enemy's camp!

We are convinced that abortion will end in America when the Church of Jesus Christ makes up her mind it will come to an end, and not one second sooner. Believing this, we are compelled by our Savior to speak for His preborn children. Theology must move out of the Church house and become biography in the streets.

We have been and we will remain at the abortion mills, speaking for the children. We have been and will remain at the high schools and college campuses, speaking for the unborn. We have been and will remain at the legislatures and courts of this land, speaking for the pre-born. We have been and will remain on the highways and byways, speaking for those waiting to be born. Now we are going to the one institution ordained by God to bring an end to the abortion holocaust that is savaging our land - the Church of Jesus Christ!

When we humble ourselves, pray, seek the face of the Father, and turn from our wicked ways, God promises to hear from heaven, forgive our sin, and heal our land. We need God to heal our land. There is hope in no one else. He has allowed enemies from within (child-killing, radical homosexual agenda, feminism, a one-world church, etc.) and, enemies from without (Islam), as stern rebukes for us to repent and turn to Him. Our repentance will bring forth His marvelous redemption and grace. We hold the keys! Matthew 16:19. Let's loose repentance on the earth that God may loose His grace and mercy from heaven. It is His amazing grace that is so desperately needed in America today!

Check the remittance card to see some of the saints who will be joining us!

Hotel information: Holiday Inn Select 11350 LBJ Fwy Dallas, TX 75238 1-800-346-06 Double Rooms - $64.00 per night (tax incluced). Continental Breakfast included.
When making reservations, please ask for the "Operation Save America" block.

See ya at the gates of hell in Dallas,
Flip