If true, your emails, phone calls and other private data that are seized by the government through its Prism program, under the auspices of protecting us from terrorists, is a clear violation of the Constitution.  That aside, what strikes me about this scandal du-jour, is that Prism started in 2007 under G.W. Bush when he signed the Protect America Act (my Congressman Joe Pitts of Lancaster and Chester Counties voted in favor of this Act).  At the time, 75% of the GOP was in favor of this type of data gathering.  From the Washington Post:  "On Sept. 11, 2007, the National Security Agency signed up Microsoft as its first partner for PRISM, a massive domestic surveillance program...That’s barely a month after Congress passed, and President George W. Bush signed, the Protect America Act."  At the time, the DEMs were in opposition to this program by 61%.  Now, in 2013, the DEMs are 64% in favor.  Why?  My theory is that now they control the White House.  Sadly, 56% of Americans are OK with this type of domestic spying.  While some in the GOP are alarmed, most are OK with this spying.

If you believe the polls and how Congress voted, partisanship in Washington trumps liberty.  You're civil rights are slowly dying and those in power are helping it happen.  Civil liberties are what our founding fathers, cobblers, farmers, blacksmiths and inn keepers fought about, beginning in 1774.  How do I know this?  I give you an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence signed by 56 brave men in 1776:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

• BELIEVE that we have a God-given right to liberty
  
• ACT by taking a stand against our tyrannical, out of control government
  
• SERVE by rallying around like-minded individuals who are against this type of government invasion
  

"Government is not reason. It is not eloquence. Government is force; like fire it is a dangerous servant-and a fearful master."  George Washington

So, the government now controls our medical records (Obamacare), our money, our emails, our personal data, and our private conversations made via phone calls. 

How can it end?  It begins by voting the current power brokers and their minions out of office.  The problems is, those in power will do anything to stay in power, including voting to allow government intrusion into your life.

If you haven't turned to God yet, now is the time.

My oldest daughter Hannah recently became an ambassador at her college.  Her primary duties in this role will be to act as a tour guide through the campus for prospective students and their parents.  Without her leading, visitors to the college would wander throughout the grounds without direction, most likely, strike that college off of their list.

While thinking of my daughter's important job to her college's longevity, I was reminded of this passage from Exodus 13 in the Old Testament:  21 "By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people."

Without God giving direction to His people, the Israelites would have wandered around in the desert not knowing where they would end up.  Although they got frustrated, God's children still looked toward their guide who eventually lead them into their promised land.  

God is still guiding us everyday, not with a pilar of fire, but through His Word - the Bible.  The Bible is the means by which God tells us how to act, how to treat others and how to survive by adhering to a set of rules that stresses love above anything else.

A year ago, I reduced my television watching by about 85%, especially the news.  Instead, I turned to books, blogs and web sites for my news and information.  I read a lot.  My reading has convinced me that our founding fathers looked to God as the guide to establishing this country.  As a result, we were blessed as a nation.

Most recently, our society as a whole has turned to other guides for their lives: government, social media, professional athletes, Hollywood, money, and I could go on and on.  It is no wonder why this nation is in the trouble that it is in, considering the following: the breakdown of the family, deficits, senseless murders, poor work ethic, handouts, corruption, and I could go on and on.

• BELIEVE that individuals must have God and His Word as their guide
  
• ACT by reading, digesting and living out the Bible
  
• SERVE others by loving them first and telling them about the one true guide
  

I firmly believe that we as individuals need to start and/or return to looking to God as our nation's guide in order to right the ship so-to-speak.  He will steer us in the right direction and will bless us for it.

Isaiah 58:11 "The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail."

If we fail to seek His guidance, we will be like those students and parents looking at my daughter's college without a guide.  Eventually, they will get lost and wander away, never to return.

Who is your guide?  Restoring this country starts with the answer to that question.    

During the recent IRS Congressional Hearings, it was noted that the Iowa Coalition for Life organization in 2009 of Iowa received a letter from the IRS Tax exemption office in Cincinnati.   Now consider that:

•   $4 Trillion is the annual government expenditure
•   The U.S. tax code is intricate and obscure
•   Congress is afraid to lose tax money
•   The IRS targeted conservative groups
•   16,000 new IRS employees have been hired to oversee Obamacare
•   No one at the IRS has lost their jobs over the recent scandal
•   Several IRS superiors have in fact received promotions since the scandal came to light
•   Americans seem to be numb to the disaster that is the IRS

The letter requested the following details from the organization: 1) how often members pray and  2) are their prayers "considered educational...Please explain how all of your activities, including the prayer meetings held outside of Planned Parenthood, are considered educational as defined under 501(c)(3)...Please explain in detail the activities at these prayer meetings. Also, please provide the percentage of time your organizations spends on prayer groups as compared with the other activities of the organization."

If we do not stand up for this obvious abuse of power and control, I'm afraid the prayer below may soon be recited across this land:

Our IRS overlords, who art in Washington DC,
Hallowed it be your agency
Thy money come,
Thy will be done,
In private as it is done in public.

Give us this day our daily ration of money,
And forgive us our lack of caring,
As we fail to pay our fair share.

And lead us not into success,
And deliver us from ourselves,
For the United States is your kingdom,
And power, and the glory of the collective
Forever and ever, Amen.

• BELIEVE that big government = bad government
  
• ACT not by complaining about government, but discussing ways to make it more accountable to the people
  
• SERVE others in need regardless if the government helps them or not  
  

So, I've had a little fun with the IRS Prayer.  Sadly, it's no laughing matter.  It's time we start standing up for what is right and just.  We are losing our freedoms in this country.  The IRS is basically saying that our prayers to the Creator of the universe are not private.  I just don't recognize the United States anymore.

Heed these words from former Olympic medalist Nadia Comaneci, "Don't run away from a challenge. Instead run toward it cause the only way to escape fear is to trample it beneath your feet."

Will you challenge or just pray...to the IRS?