New Release – A Legend and a Legacy

Last night, my family and I watched an excellent new film from the makers of Remember Alabama. A Legend and a Legacy tells the life story of Leonard Holifield, the bodyguard of former Chief Justice Roy Moore. Dr. Holifield is a master of martial arts and is considered one of the world’s deadliest men because of his strength and fighting skill. But the thing that stands out to me is that Dr. Holifield is a Christian gentleman. This shines through in the film.

A Legend and a Legacy is a well made documentary featuring Leonard Holifield, Cleveland and Ruth Holifield, Chief Justice Roy Moore, Doug Phillips, and others. It’s a quality production – very professional. The film keeps your attention all the way through. I believe it is well worth the watch.

Coming Soon...

Spring Sale: Everything in Stock 20% Off!

I am pleased to announce that our storewide spring sale is now underway. Everything in stock is 20% off. I hope you’ll take advantage of this sale and enjoy the savings. The sale ends at midnight on March 31st.

Officials Declare War on Our Nation’s Christian Heritage as Part of America’s 400th Birthday

JAMESTOWN, Virginia, Mar. 8 /Christian Newswire/ — As America turns 400 this year with the founding of Jamestown in 1607, officials leading America’s 400th birthday commemoration have banned the term “celebration” in conjunction with their efforts and sought to discredit the Christian influence of the Jamestown Colony in keeping with politically correct dogma. Countering the claims of the Left, Vision Forum Ministries is hosting an alternative event on June 11-16 in Virginia’s historic triangle that will celebrate God’s providential hand in the founding of America four centuries ago.

“For nearly two centuries, our leaders have recognized the importance of celebrating the providential goodness of the Lord Jesus Christ through our nation’s birth at Jamestown in 1607,” observed Doug Phillips, President of Vision Forum Ministries, “But this year during America’s Quadricentennial, officials are intent on belittling our nation’s Christian past and painting the Jamestown settlers as blood-thirsty cannibals, environmental terrorists, and worse. They have even gone so far as to ban the word ‘celebration’ because, after all, as one official stated, ‘You can’t celebrate an invasion.’”

The Jamestown 2007 is hosting ten signature events as part of their year-long effort to commemorate the Jamestown Settlement. These events include a diversity of politically charged topics that implicate the Jamestown founders in everything from “environmental injustice” to genocide.

At one of the signature events launching the official commemoration, “The State of the Black Union Jamestown Conference,” Rev. Otis Moss — as part of a panel discussion with the Rev.’s Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson — invoked a highly charged comparison to Nazism and the Ku Klux Klan. Moss declared that the Jamestown settlers were guilty of a mass “holocaust” and “lynchings.”

“This leftist spin coming from event organizers and their featured guests concerning the legacy of Captain John Smith, Pocahontas, and the rest of the Virginia Company is grossly misleading and utterly irresponsible,” said Phillips. “The message of these speakers is certainly a sharp contrast to the message of hope presented by the great educator Booker T. Washington, who delivered a keynote at the 1907 Jamestown celebration, and who evaluated the Jamestown legacy in terms of the journey of black Americans from paganism to Christianity.”

Motivated by a desire to encourage the children of today with a message of hope from the historic record of God’s providential faithfulness, Vision Forum Ministries is hosting a week-long celebration: The Jamestown Quadricentennial: A Celebration of America’s Providential History in Virginia’s historic triangle on June 11-16. “The event is in the spirit of the best of America’s historic jubilee and centennial celebrations,” Phillips said.

The Jamestown Quadricentennial: A Celebration of America’s Providential History will include orations by some of America’s leading Christian historians and teachers, Faith and Freedom mini-history tours, dramatic reenactments, fife and drum music, boat and balloon rides, a memorial dedication, and more. The week-long event will culminate with a large celebration event on the grounds of Fort Pocahontas — located a short distance from Old Jamestown Island, where the original colonists settled in 1607.

“We recognize that history involves bumps and bruises. Jamestown is certainly an example of imperfect men who were used mightily by God to lay the foundations of a Christian people. However, unlike the politically correct scholars and outspoken revisionists who are at the center of the state-sponsored Jamestown 2007 events, we are not embarrassed by our nation’s Christian heritage,” remarked Phillips, “And it is our prayer that grateful Americans from sea to shining sea will join us in Jamestown this June as we offer hope to this generation, even as we remember the many providences of God in the lives of our forefathers.”

To learn more about the Jamestown Quadricentennial: A Celebration of America’s Providential History, visit www.jamestown400th.org.

Christian Filmmakers & Hollywood

I read an article last week that begins with the following headline: “More on Christian Movies in Hollywood.” This headline implies that Christian filmmakers are expected to work with Hollywood. That’s just the way it’s supposed to be, according to the site master. He is a filmmaker, and has let on numerous times that he sees it necessary for Christian filmmakers to work in conjunction with Hollywood. To some Christians, it is not only necessary, but it is also desirable to work with Hollywood. It’s a Christian filmmaker’s dream to land a three picture deal with one of the major studios.

Someone please tell me, why is it that Christians are supposed to join Hollywood to make “faith-based” films? When Christians work in/with Hollywood, we will undoubtedly work on Hollywood’s terms. This will always result in compromise at some level, because it forces Christians to bow to the wishes of pagans. Why are we choosing to eat scraps from the pagans’ table?

Unequally Yoked

2 Corinthians 6:14, “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?”

Scripture makes it clear that Christians are not to be yoking with unbelievers. This verse is most often used in reference to marriage, which is a proper application. However, this verse can (and should) also be applied to other things, such as business alliances. I’m not sure how strictly we should apply this verse to Christian partnerships with Hollywood, but there are certainly some instances when Christians have “yoked” with unbelievers in Hollywood, and this is wrong.

A Counter-culture Movement

There is a movement in development that is poised to eventually topple the mammoth Hollywood system. This movement is called the independent Christian film industry. It is still in its infant stage of development, but it is a burgeoning industry. Each year, dozens of Christian filmmakers are kissing Hollywood goodbye.

Doug Phillips, founder of the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival, has written an article which is excerpted below:

The Independent Christian Film Revolution

We live on the threshold of a revolution in independent Christian filmmaking. For the first time in more than half a century, Christians have the opportunity to change the terms of debate for this crucial medium of cultural influence by challenging the Hollywood giant. Like David’s sling before Goliath’s enormous sword, the weapons of this warfare are unconventional by industry standards, but when wielded with accuracy and faith, they can strike a devastating blow to the modern pagan elites who seek to crush the very witness of God in this nation. At least four factors fuel this revolution in filmmaking:

First, America needs a permanent break from Hollywood. The need for alternatives to “Babylon Central” is not only recognized within the Christian community, but by typical Americans who are disenchanted with the present state of affairs. The domination of the film industry by Christ-hating, family-denigrating elites, and the general absence of family-affirming, spiritually truthful media — at a time when the family is being redefined out of existence — has created a vacuum in our culture. Christians with a spirit of innovation who take the field and step up to the plate with courage and wisdom have an opportunity to fill this vacuum by communicating life, hope, and beauty from God’s perspective.

Second, we can market our products without selling our souls to the enemy. In the past, the only way a film could be financially viable was by getting the blessing of the Hollywood studios that influenced the distribution process. At bare minimum, this has usually meant sacrificing the spiritual and creative integrity of the project. The growing availability of alternative distribution networks means that independent Christian filmmakers have the ability to encourage the Body of Christ and influence the culture as a whole, while generating a dollar return sufficient to finance their projects.

Read the article in its entirety here.