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Ruth Smith

CWA of Florida to Host Morning Coffee Talk

By | Florida | No Comments

Do you or someone you know live in the Largo/Tampa area? If so, I invite you to join me for coffee and conversation on Monday, February 27!

 

Mary Meens is hosting a Morning Coffee Talk and I will be speaking about the hard issues that impact our nation, state, and communities and proactive ways to engage from a Biblical perspective.

 

God has been stirring believers to pray and get informed about the issues affecting life, faith, and family. Learn how to use your voice to influence policy.

 
Here are the details:
Date: Monday, February 27
Time: 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Location: Indian Rocks Church Café, 12685 Ulmerton Rd., Largo, FL 33774
(Enter behind the main sanctuary on the north side of the rear building. There will be a sign to designate the entryway.)
RSVP Mary Meens: [email protected]

Mark your calendar, make plans to attend, and be sure to invite some friends!

 
If you do not live in the Largo area, and would like to host a Coffee Talk in your area, and/or would like more information about CWA of Florida, contact me! I’m happy to let you know of the many opportunities for involvement in our great state.

 
I look forward to hearing from you!

Sincerely,
 
Ruth Smith
State Director

A Prayerful Perspective from Fort Myers

By | Florida | No Comments

My heart has been heavy and hurting, as I am sure yours has been, too, for those who suffered from Hurricane Ian. A week before the hurricane hit, I attended the Fort Myers Prayer/Action Chapter meeting and met the lovely ladies who are Spirit-filled, powerful, praying women, who love what God loves, hate what God hates, fight for the vulnerable, and stand for righteousness.

 
Fort Myers took a direct hit from the hurricane, which devastated the community. I was eager to hear from them when they got cell service and respond to my texts about how they were doing and how we could help. The following responses give you a feel for what some endured and how to pray.
 

Nancy Mastous, Fort Myers Prayer/Action Chapter secretary: We feel the prayers – we fared fair, but that was the scariest day of my life. My daughter and her family, who live two doors away, stood for almost three hours in sewage and spent three hours in the attic with their girls and two dogs with floaties from their pool. As the water receded, they walked, tied together, in raw sewage to my house. We tore up the carpet and have a mess, but thanks be to God, we are livable. It’s heartbreaking but being safe is amazing. Our God has protected most bodies, and most things can be replaced.
 

Karen Dorfman, Fort Myers Prayer/Action Chapter Leader: The hurricane has left me feeling many emotions. Tears flow over the sadness that so many around me have lost everything. Their entire life is out on the street to be thrown into the garbage. Worse, some have lost loved ones. Yet there is a sweetness in the midst of it. The endless stories of people helping dig mud from homes, pull up carpets, and tear out drywall. Washing sewage from a friend’s clothes. Giving strangers meals and churches piled high with supplies. We are on mission. This is what missionaries do. I thank the Lord that He has given me the gift of Hurricane Ian. The Lord has provided, strengthened, and shown His steadfast love throughout this tragic act. Tragedy changes hearts. It is easy to be complacent and take simple things like water and electricity and to be able to read your Bible for granted. When our electricity came on after five days and the water after nine days, both times, I instantly fell to my knees in tears and thanked the Lord. My heart will never be the same after this, and that is exactly what God wanted all along. My Heart.
 

I am proud of these ladies and their faithfulness and trust in God. They decided they would still hold their monthly meeting in October and not let anything stop them from interceding in prayer for our nation. May we pray for them. May we follow their example.
 

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble…The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Psalm 46:1,7

 

Serving together,

Sincerely,
Ruth Smith
State Director

Florida Governor Protects Female Athletes

By | News and Events, Sexual Exploitation, Women's Sports, YWA | No Comments

(L-R: Annabelle Rutledge, Gov. Ron DeSantis, Terri Johannessen)

Concerned Women for America (CWA) of Florida State Director Terri Johannessen and Young Women for America (YWA) National Director Annabelle Rutledge joined a host of female athletes and other supporters of girls’ athletics at a bill signing ceremony with Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday. June 1. It was an important and energetic win for female athletes in Florida, and we applaud the boldness of Gov. DeSantis in signing the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act. Refusing to bow to leftist bullies and the NCAA is a sign of true leadership, and we are thankful to every governor who is standing for truth on this issue.

It was a special Day for CWA and YWA, and we are grateful to have had a presence in the room for such a historic moment for women and for truth! Gov. DeSantis had his sweet little girl handing him pens as he signed, a reminder that protecting women isn’t only about our athletes competing today, but it is paving the way for future generations.

No Reason for Nelson to Oppose Gorsuch

By | Florida | No Comments

Sen. Bill Nelson has now met with President Donald Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, Judge Neil Gorsuch.  It’s time for Nelson to reject the Democratic Party’s political manipulations and support Gorsuch’s confirmation.

Floridians are tired of the partisan bickering and gridlock in Washington.  And in the case of Gorsuch, it is readily apparent that those pushing for rejection are grasping at straws.

As longtime Progressive Democratic lawyer David Frederick wrote for the Washington Post, there is just “no principled reason” to vote against Gorsuch.  Frederick said he has no doubt that he will disagree with some decisions Gorsuch makes as a Supreme Court Justice, but that is not the basis upon which to oppose a nominee.  He concluded saying, “[M]y hope is to have justices on the bench such as Gorsuch and Garland who approach cases with fairness and intellectual rigor, and who care about precedent and the limits of their roles as judges.”

These are the words of someone who served in the Clinton Justice Department and who serves on the board of the ultra-liberal American Constitution Society.

After Nelson’s meeting with Gorsuch, his spokesman wrote in an email, “The two discussed several topics and Nelson expressed his concerns about the suppression of voting rights and the amount of undisclosed, unlimited money in campaigns.”  The statement is a bit ironic, since a considerable amount of money seems to be driving Gorsuch opposition.  The same coordinated anti-Trump efforts seem to have just shifted to a new target to oppose the president, no matter the nominee’s actual record.

As reported by several news outlets, as soon as Gorsuch’s nomination was made public, there were protesters at the Supreme Court.  Only these protesters were so driven by anti-Trump sentiment, they had signs printed with “Stop” on the top and a blank space where they could write the name of whomever the president nominated.

Those who oppose Gorsuch oppose him for reasons beyond his record.  Some are desperately trying to paint him as outside the mainstream, but they look foolish.  The left-leaning American Bar Association just recently gave Gorsuch its highest rating: unanimous well qualified.

In a recent letter, more than 50 law school classmates spanning the political spectrum expressed their support for Judge Gorsuch.  They wrote:

We are Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians and independents; progressives, conservatives and moderates; religious and non-observant; married, single and divorced; men and women; straight and gay. … What unites us is that we attended law school with Judge Neil Gorsuch … and we unanimously believe Neil possesses the exemplary character, outstanding intellect, steady temperament, humility and open-mindedness to be an excellent addition to the United States Supreme Court.

In a similar letter, more than 150 of his Columbia classmates expressed their support.  A diverse group ideologically, they stood “united in [their] belief that [Gorsuch] would serve our country with honor and distinction on the Supreme Court.”

All these bi-partisan efforts to support Judge Gorsuch square neatly with the overwhelming bi-partisan support he received when he was nominated for the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals — the second highest court in the land.

He was unanimously confirmed by a voice vote in 2006, and Floridians would be surprised to see some of the Democrats who supported him. Among them, then-senators Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, and John Kerry, and current senators Chuck Schumer, Ron Wyden, Dianne Feinstein, Patrick Leahy, Patty Murray, Dick Durbin, Jack Reed, Tom Carper, Debbie Stabenow, Maria Cantwell, Bob Menendez and, believe it or not, our very own Bill Nelson.

Given the overwhelming weight of the evidence, there is just no principled reason for Nelson to oppose Gorsuch.  Let us pray he does the right thing and does not fall prey to the radical special interest groups pressuring him to abandon reason (and his constituents) for the sake of party loyalty.