The Lord has been kind to give citizens in Idaho legislators who long to honor Him. Senator Brandon Shippy has introduced the Idaho Prenatal Equal Protection Act of 2026. He has also been told by the chairman of the Senate State Affairs Committee that he will not print this bill. Printing a bill is the language used in legislative sessions that moves an idea through the process.
The first step is that a legislator introduces his idea. The second step is that his idea is given a routing slip number (RS). The third step is that the idea is assigned to a committee, the committee chairman then decides if his committee will print the RS. If the chairman decides to print the RS, it will be given an official bill number. In Idaho, the chairman of a committee holds the power to decide what to do next. If the chairman can be persuaded to give the bill a committee debate, the committee decides what to do with it next. If it passes through the committee, it will be assigned a spot on the Senate (or House) floor agenda for debate. When a bill passes one side of the statehouse, it moves to the other side to go through the same process.
Pray with us for the committee chairman of the Senate State Affairs Committee, Jim Guthrie.
I’m asking you to help us put reasonable persuasion on the chairman to print the Idaho Prenatal Equal Protection Act and give it an opportunity for debate in the Senate State Affairs Committee. Join me in our first phase of handwriting. We are sending letters to every member of the State Affairs Committee, requesting that they encourage Chairman Guthrie to print this as a bill and place it on the committee agenda for debate.
The following are the names, emails, and physical mailing addresses of the State Affairs Committee. Please join us, especially by writing physical letters. Timing is critical. Please write your letters and mail them by Saturday, January 30, 2026. By Monday, February 2, all members will face many letters from citizens across the state.
Share this with everyone you know.
Members of the Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee
Are you registered for our Strong Families = Strong Churches Conference, March 13-14, 2026? We expect to close registration soon due to seating capacity.
Let’s reclaim the art of handwritten letters for the glory of God and on behalf of all preborn children in the great state of Idaho.
Idaho Senator Brandon Shippy of District 9 has draft legislation ready to be introduced early in the legislative session, which begins on January 12, 2026. This legislation calls for the state of Idaho to acknowledge “the sanctity of all innocent human life, created in the image of God” by following the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Idaho, and give equal protection to preborn persons with the same protections of the law given to all citizens.
The desire for equal protection for the preborn is not new for the Idaho legislature. Similar bills have been introduced several times in recent years. The normal course of action among legislators is to deny these bills an opportunity to be heard in committee or to be voted on. Will you help us this year by writing handwritten letters to legislators to give a formal hearing and a vote on the “Idaho Prenatal Equal Protection Act”?
We believe it is important to send emails as well, but handwritten letters from Idahoans cannot be ignored. When the statehouse begins to receive snail-mail letters to the extent that the mailroom cannot keep up, and legislators have bags and bags of letters to physically deliver to the committee, it will be unavoidable. They may still choose to ignore the preborn in Idaho, but they will have to lie to their own conscience to do so.
One thing is certain during the legislative session: we sometimes have only a day’s notice of the need for citizen action. This is why we’re asking you, and others you know, to act now.
Some things to do now…
Pray; ask God to give favor to Senator Shippy when he introduces this bill.
Contact your Senator and Representatives now via phone call, text, or email and request them to cosponsor Senator Shippy’s Idaho Prenatal Equal Protection Act.
Share this letter with everyone you know who will act with us.
Purchase enough paper, envelopes, and stamps to write every Senator in Idaho (35 total). A list of all 35 senators will be attached. (Consider having every member of your household write a letter, even the children.)
Purchase enough paper, envelopes, and stamps to write committee members.
Have your letters ready to mail as soon as we hear word that the Act has an official bill number.
When this bill is scheduled for a committee hearing, try to attend in person.
Plan a “letter writing” party with your family or with your church family (schedule this even before the bill is introduced so that the letters are ready to go). Plan to pray together. Prepare a meal, envelopes, paper, stamps, pens/pencils, and consider a coloring sheet for children to color and include in their letter.
Take a picture of you, your family, or church family while writing your letters and share them on social media with information on how others can participate.
If you do this, plan to avoid social media spats with those who disagree.
Share the gospel and leave the conversation at that, for the glory of God.
Letter content to help you draft your own personal letter.
Proper decorum: It is appropriate to address the legislator with a formal greeting. Senator_____________ or Representative____________________.
Informal greeting: Something to personalize your letter
Purpose of your letter: The purpose of this letter is to request support of the Idaho Prenatal Equal Protection Act.
Salutation: include a respectful conclusion and a statement related to the glory of God. Also, a statement related to you, your family, and your church praying for the Senator (and/or Representative).
(Sample Letter: Use this as a sample: Making it personal is better than a bunch of form letters.)
Dear Senator __________________ ,
I am writing to you from (your hometown), Idaho, and I appreciate your diligent work in the Senate on behalf of our state.
I understand that Senator Shippy from District 9 has introduced the Idaho Prenatal Equal Protection Act. I strongly urge you to co-sign this important legislation and provide your full support and encouragement for its passage. Specifically, I ask that you vote in favor of the bill when it comes before the full Senate.
It is my hope that this legislation will be passed, bringing glory to God and cause for rejoicing among all citizens.
Respectfully, your neighbor,
(your name)
Mailing Address: Address the letter to Senator__________________ followed by the address below.
Names of all 35 Senators
Ben Adams(R) BAdams@senate.idaho.gov District 12 Committees: Local Government & Taxation – Vice Chair State Affairs Transportation
Treg A. Bernt(R) TBernt@senate.idaho.gov District 21 Committees: State Affairs – Vice Chair Commerce & Human Resources Local Government & Taxation
Camille Blaylock(R) CBlaylock@senate.idaho.gov District 11 Committees: Agricultural Affairs Health & Welfare
Cindy J. Carlson(R) CCarlson@senate.idaho.gov District 7 Committees: Education Finance
Lori Den Hartog(R) LDenHartog@senate.idaho.gov Majority Leader District 22 Committees: Local Government & Taxation State Affairs
Kelly Arthur Anthon(R) KAnthon@senate.idaho.gov President Pro Tempore District 27 Local Government & Taxation State Affairs
Carl J. Bjerke(R) CBjerke@senate.idaho.gov District 5 Committees: Health & Welfare – Vice Chair Finance
Van T. Burtenshaw(R) VBurtenshaw@senate.idaho.gov District 31 Committees: Resources & Environment – Chair Education Transportation
Kevin Cook(R) KCook@senate.idaho.gov District 32 Committees: Education – Vice Chair Finance Resources & Environment
Daniel D. Foreman(R) DForeman@senate.idaho.gov District 6 Committees: Commerce & Human Resources – Chair Judiciary & Rules
Codi Galloway(R) CGalloway@senate.idaho.gov District 15 Committees: Finance Transportation
Jim Guthrie(R) JGuthrie@senate.idaho.gov District 28 Committees: State Affairs – Chair Commerce & Human Resources Resources & Environment
Phil Hart(R) Phil.Hart@senate.idaho.gov District 2 Committees: Resources & Environment – Vice Chair Finance Transportation
Last night I had the privilege to give the invocation at the Twin Falls City Council meeting. I strive to be a happy citizen, an active citizen, a well-informed citizen, and a responsible citizen. Jeremiah’s letter to the captives in Babylon was to pray for the well-being and the prosperity of the city they were in.
“Seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace.” Jeremiah 29:7
We come before you again with gratitude for this day right now.
May your glory be seen in our beloved city in this new year. We thank you for the blessing of the past year and we look forward with anticipation for your blessings to come upon our city in 2026.
Bless Mayor Brown and all members of the city council, bless their homes and business ventures. Thank you for the city management and all who work for the citizens. Keep all public works employees safe during this year. Thank you that they give attention to the routine and emergency situations.
Keep law enforcement honest, diligent, and vigilant as they patrol and respond to real and developing situations. Provide protection for first responders, addressing every home and business with interest as though it were their own.
I ask that you bless businesses and churches throughout the city, giving aid and shelter for our neighbors in need during the cold and wet nights. Bless Valley House and the Warming Center with resources to meet every need.
And we also ask for the provision of natural moisture during these critical months for every need of water when the hot and dry months arrive in several months.
Give us this day our daily bread and let us not forget you or curse you. Give peace to neighborhoods and safety to homes. Provide employment for households as they live and move and have their being. Bless households with an increase of patient spouses and intentional parents and obedient children. Bless the education of the children and may they have reason to think fondly of the city.
Bless the city with influence, businesses with success, and may the sound of honesty and joy be normal in both private and public.
May your glory advance, Your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.
The first-ever radio broadcast took place on December 24, 1906, an achievement by the Canadian-born inventor Reginald Fessenden, who conducted his work in the United States. He specifically engineered a wireless transmission system using amplitude modulation (AM).
By Daderot – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=70392719
From AM and FM to short-wave and even pirate broadcasts, the diverse forms of radio have united the world, bridged continents, penetrated authoritarian regimes, promoted democracy, and, most importantly, disseminated the gospel. Its reach is not easily stopped by physical barriers, censorship, or vast distances, making it a truly revolutionary and enduring form of communication.
One of our missionary friends still uses radio broadcasting to preach the Gospel into Muslim strongholds in West Africa. I’ve personally listened to a radio broadcast in the Arabian Peninsula preaching the gospel. I’ve listened to J. Vernon Magee in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. I’ve heard John MacArthur in London, England. By the kindness of God, I produced a radio program locally with other pastors for over eight years. This medium has been used to preach the same gospel that the angels preached on that sacred night.
It is remarkable that the first sounds transmitted over what would become the world’s greatest broadcast medium heralded the birth of the Savior. Two thousand years earlier, the Son of God was born humbly in a stable and laid in a manger. The only immediate welcoming party that night consisted of a few humble shepherds tending their flocks.
During this inaugural broadcast, Fessenden played the Christian hymn “O Holy Night” on his violin and concluded with the scripture from Luke 2:14: “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men of good will.” The only ones hearing this broadcast were a few seamen off the coast of Massachusetts.
The angels appeared to a few shepherds and said the words recorded in Luke 2:14. These humble few heard this celestial announcement that night, marking a deeply humbling entrance for the Christ child. However, the news of this birth would eventually spread throughout the world and continue to expand long after the child’s eventual death and resurrection.
(Sources: Pulpit and Pen, wikipedia.org)
O HOLY NIGHT
1 O holy night, the stars are brightly shining; it is the night of the dear Savior’s birth. Long lay the world in sin and error pining, till He appeared and the soul felt its worth. A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices, or yonder breaks a new and glorious morn! Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices! O night divine! O night when Christ was born! O night divine! O night, O night divine!
2 Led by the light of faith serenely beaming, with glowing hearts by His cradle we stand. So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming, there came the wise men from Orient land. The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger; in all our trials born to be our friend. He knows our need, to our weakness is no stranger. Behold your King; before Him lowly bend! Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!
3 Truly He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His gospel is peace. Chains shall He break, for the slave is our brother, and in His name all oppression shall cease. Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, let all within us praise His holy name. Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever! His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim! His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!
I’ve been blessed by a subscription to SermonAudio where all of my sermons are archived on the internet. Today marked a major milestone. SermonAudio has just recently unlocked a new feature called “Global Sermons”. My sermons can now be transcribed and translated to many languages around the world. I have ministry connections in Haiti, Senegal, and India (French and Telugu).
All four of my Advent sermons are being converted from English to French and Telugu as we speak. Three of them are available and ready for use. I’m waiting on confirmation from native speakers of French and Telugu before we begin transcribing and translating more sermons.
At this point, by adding French and Telugu, this increases my gospel reach by nearly 500 million people around the world.
Listen to my Advent sermons in French, Telugu, or English.
Advent Week #3: Behold, the Lamb of God Sunday morning at 10:30, Eastside Baptist Church, Twin Falls, ID
Transcript for this Podcast:
Welcome back to the Behold the Lamb of God podcast. This is part three of a four-part podcast series. This episode is titled Behold the Lamb of God. It’s focused upon John’s message whenever he’s at the Jordan River and Jesus comes. And when he’s there, John looks at him. And it’s in John chapter one, verse 29, that John the Baptist points to Jesus and says, behold, the Lamb of God.
Now what’s happening here is that this is a significant moment for us. This is the announcement to everyone who’s gone out to the river to hear what John has to say. And what does John do the moment he sees Jesus the Christ? But he points to him and he makes the declaration, the Lamb of God.
Now this is actually a beautiful moment of combining Old Testament and New Testament. This is the language of the Passover, the Passover lamb. The lamb is broad. Everything in it is to point to the promise that God has preserved you, God has saved you, God has rescued you. So that’s what’s happening here. John the Baptist looks at the Lamb of God and he acknowledges and he points to him and he announces to everyone who is hearing, there he is, the Lamb.
When John makes this acknowledgement, This is actually even still even more foreshadowing. It is John acknowledging the Lamb is here for the kingdom of heaven has come. It’s right now. He’s also pointing to the sacrificial moment that is still in front of the ministry of Jesus Christ. And that is the time when Jesus will lay His life down on the cross, and Jesus will bear the sin of the world. And here He does this in a way that is completely glorious. and is worthy of our praise.
So this Sunday as we come to the Lord’s house on December the 14th, don’t forget we start at 10 30. I really want to encourage you to make every effort to get there on time. I don’t want you to miss any part of this gathering that we’re going to have on the Lord’s day. We’ll gather, the first thing we’ll be doing is singing a song unto the Lord, essentially a call to worship. And then we’ll sing a psalm together. And then what we’ll do, we’ll read that psalm. And then from there, we’ll humble ourselves as the Bible instructs us to do so. We’ll humble ourselves and confess our sins before the Lord. And then, before long, we won’t have to stay in that moment of wondering, did God hear our prayer? Has God truly forgiven us of our sins? We’ll know because He’s already promised that. We already hold that promise secure in our hands. Not because we’re strong enough to grasp it, but because the Word of God has told us, it’s promised us, that whoever confesses their sins, that God forgives them.
Oh, behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. So John’s declaration, it fulfills the Old Testament promise of that, or that Old Testament Passover promise that if you have the blood across the doorpost of your home, that the death angel will pass by. And here’s the promise that Jesus, the one who sheds his blood for the sinner, and bears that weight upon himself. He takes your own sin and he exchanges your sin for his righteousness. This is beautiful. Behold the Lamb.
This phrase, behold, it really serves as a command. It’s it is in the text in the way it’s used. It is instructing the hearer to do something now. Behold the Lamb of God. Look at him. There he is. Don’t miss him. Don’t delay. Don’t be late. Don’t suffer anything to get in the way of looking. Beholding. being saved and rescued. You know, it’s the Apostle Paul to the church in Colossae where he says to them, where he makes this beautiful statement of how we’ve been rescued because of Jesus. We’ve been rescued from the domain of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of the beloved son. This is what John’s saying. Here is your moment. Here is your Savior. Here is your Redeemer.
So on December 14th, when we gather at the church house, we’re going to focus upon this. We’re going to hear what John has to say there at the river. We’re going to draw all the connections. We’re going to see the connections that exist that Jesus is this Messiah. He’s not just a prophet. He’s not just a priest. He is also the King of the universe. Nobody says it better than the Gospel of John. And so we’ll focus upon this on this coming Lord’s Day.
Hey, we’re getting closer, aren’t we, to the day where we’ll celebrate the birth of our Savior. These events that we’re looking at here in this podcast are really more toward the beginning of the ministry of Jesus when he’s baptized by John the Baptist. Everything moves forward from there to the cross. What’s happening here, while we’re focusing upon the start of that ministry, all of this is really ignited on the night in which Christ is born. We’re getting close, aren’t we? I’m anticipating the celebration of that moment.
Hey, the city looks like Christmas. It sounds like Christmas. I hope your home is looking like Christmas. Your church has the sound and the air of Christmas. The reading of the Word is all about Jesus. May the Lord bless you. May the Lord bless your household. May the Lord bless the church with a pouring out of the Holy Spirit in our day and the spread of the gospel like never seen before.
I look forward to gathering with you on December 14th at 1030. May the Lord bless you.
