Articles by Paul

Gather at (204 Eastland Drive North, Twin Falls, ID) Eastside Baptist Church today (11/10) for morning and evening preaching.

Sunday morning 10:30 a.m.: Drip Down – Isaiah 45:8-15
Sunday evening 6:30 p.m. : Wisdom – Proverbs

One thing I love about pastoring a church who loves children as much as they love making children is to hear the story behind why they name their children as they do. It is among the things that puts a smile on this pastors face.

There is something we all have in common, a name that identifies us. Names have history with a unique – one of a kind story if we are willing to be good listeners and are also like a blank slate to those we’ve never met.

In a modern day like ours where facial recognition technology is advancing on privacy issues, the technology always wants to attach a name to a face. That name is everything.

Sometimes our names are trendy. Sometimes our names are attached to family ancestry. Sometimes our names are connected to influential people, historic heroes, Biblical characteristics, or we just like the way the name sounds.

A few things you may not know about me and Renee.

• Renee’s first name is her mother’s name, Teresa.
• My middle name is my father’s middle name, Robert.

This week I was thinking about my dad. Still to this day, hearing or seeing his name floods my mind with unexpected memories and emotions. He died 5 years ago. In my personal library I have some books and items from his office. These are items that have no monetary value to anyone, and yet they are priceless because they tell part of the story of a legendary man.

Today, my heart is filled with joy to have known the man I called dad, Clyde Robert Thompson, and at the same time filled with excitement to soon meet Clyde Red Thompson, grandson due in March, 2020.

It’s a big day. There is much to ponder about when I think about election day. I could express thoughts about the mystery of how temporal man entangles in the sovereign directing hand of the Almighty eternal God; the one who establishes all things and does as He, the infinite God, does without the counsel of finite man.

I’ll do that another time.

Today, I thought I would just layout a few of the things I do on days like this.

• With only one exception, when I was out of the country on election day, I always vote on election day. This is not a moral issue for me, this is a tradition. I can respect the benefit it is to be able to vote early or to vote without having to wait in long lines or mailing in a ballot. For me, this is more about the atmosphere. Perhaps like the difference of watching a sporting event at the stadium or sitting at home on a monitor. The outcome of the game is the same but the experience is completely different.
• When I had children in the home I always took them with me. I wanted my children to witness what well informed and responsible citizens do. I wanted them to never miss the experience of what free men do.
• I dress up for the event. I don’t always wear a tie, but I do wear dress shoes, dress pants, button shirt and jacket. This is how I dress for important things. I think voting is that important. Again, that’s not a moral issue, it is simply a practice I do on election day.
• With very few exceptions, I vote with Renee. This is a practice I have enjoyed for decades now. It is a practice that we prepare for and plan together.
• I vote with an understanding that this right to participate in a representative republic is a rare practice experienced among the sons and daughters of men in global history. Of the temporal experiences, voting is an anticipated activity in my household.
• I am a values voter not a party voter. It may be said that one party is closer to my values than another, but my voting practice is not dictated by a party.
• One of the things I enjoy on election day is when the volunteers at my voting center confirms my vote when I place my paper ballot in the voting box with a hearty “Paul Thompson has voted!”
• Today, my vote will be with the ongoing reality that over 2,000 babies have been murdered in my city since 2008, the more than 60 million babies murdered in my country since 1973, and the cowardice of politicians and voters alike. If local elections are the most important then may the holy God give us courageous men and women who will no longer fear men and fear God alone.
• At the end of the day, I will go to the poll, exercise my understanding of duty, and then return home with joy in the Lord who puts all people in all places for His glory.

For the glory of God, alone. See you at the ballot box!

For several years I’ve been engaged in pressing my state and national legislators to act on behalf of babies in the womb. In the city of Twin Falls, since 2008, over 2,000 babies have been murdered in broad daylight, under special permission of regulated law. If my local representation won’t speak out on this why not my city council who does have the duty and jurisdiction of public safety within the city.

Tonight, October 28, 2019 I will ask my city to put action to their words and consider drafting a proclamation/resolution sending a clear message to state legislators to act on the Abortion Human Rights Act of Idaho during the coming legislative session.

This is an invitation to all to consider adjusting your schedule today and join me at the city council chambers of the City of Twin Falls at 5:00 p.m.
203 Main Ave E, Twin Falls, ID.

If you are willing, please help spread this via email, social media, personal invites, etc…

On Thursday, October 24, 2019, voters in the city of Twin Falls had an opportunity to ask questions of candidates running for city council. The following video is the recorded history of this event.

Be a well informed and responsible voter.

Family Values Vimeo.

Be sure to listen closely to the questions and to how the candidates answered the question or the question they wanted to answer.

November 5, is fast approaching. Everyone tells us that local elections are the most important ones to participate in, yet this is where the lowest voter turnout is usually found.

We’ve made arrangements for Twin Falls voters to get to know the candidates running for city council.

Here are some things I recommend you consider doing.

• Pray.
• Learn how to talk about politics responsibly.
• If you are on Facebook, consider inviting your friends in the city of Twin Falls to attend the Family Values Forum at the College of Southern Idaho on Thursday, October 24, at 7 p.m. Here is a link to invite them: https://www.facebook.com/events/1151049761757199/
• Attend the forum.
• If you have children, bring them with you and teach them how to responsibly participate and be an informed voter. Especially if they are teenagers.
• Support candidates that match your values.
• Invite your fiends over to meet a candidate you are supporting.
• When discussing politics on social media be disciplined to not distract conversations. If you enter a discussion on another persons thread, use extreme caution and be courteous and not accuse others of things, call other people names, or make judgments about their motives without full awareness. Go into the conversation carefully.
• enjoy the discussion with respect.
• If you have children, compile a list of questions you could send to all of the candidates. Explain what you are doing and that you are teaching your children ways to become well informed on important issues to your family.

The Pastors Round Table on KLIX is an hour long segment Thursday mornings from 9-10 a.m. on Magic Valley this Morning with Bill Colley. Christopher Folkerts, Bear Morton, and I are working on hosting a “Family Values” public forum on October 24, at 7 p.m. with all willing candidates running for Twin Falls City Council seats. The venue for the forum will be announced soon and we will communicate with you as soon as we have this secured

Bill Colley of KLIX will be the moderator. The forum will focus on faith and family issues facing the city of Twin Falls.

If you are a pastor of a church in city of Twin Falls, please attend this forum. If you attend a church in the city of Twin Falls, please attend this forum. Invite. Invite. Invite.

Consider yourself invited and wanted at this public forum to hear from the candidates who will attend. We will know soon who will attend and location as we sort out details.

To be transparent:

• We want you to address the personhood of babies in the womb and if the potential city council members would be willing to support city code abolishing the inhumane actions against our neighbors or visitors to our fair city.
• There is growing popularity of drag queen story hour at public libraries across the country, how can our city be prepared to not allow this kind of event?
• We will also address ways we see having gospel preaching, bible believing, Christ obeying churches in our community are helpful to our city

We are currently working on a venue, but please save the date October 24 at 7:00 p.m. and consider attending. We know that it may not be possible for all candidates to attend, but we hope they will.