Thomas Umstattd Jr.

The Benefits of Praying Aloud: Power (Part 2)

Power of the Tongue We live in a world spoken into existence. The power of God’s tongue created the world. He made us in His image and our tongues have power as well. In fact, of all of the faculties imparted to mankind the tongue may be the most powerful. “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” - King Solomon “The tongue that brings healing...

Why March?

Someone recently asked me what the point was to all these pro-life marches. We have marched a lot in recent weeks so the question is valid. I would like to submit the following 5 reasons why we should march and rumble for life. Marching Encourages our Leaders One of the challenges of leadership is that the higher you rise the more out of touch you become. Leaders rely on the media to clue them in...

The Benefits of Praying Aloud: Agreement (Part 1)

Someone once asked me. “Why should we bother to voice our prayers when God already knows our thoughts?” In response I have come up with four benefits to praying aloud. This is an adaptation from a series I did on my old blog. Silent Prayer is Fine Using our tongue to pray is by no means the only way to pray. In fact, it is possible to pray aloud for the wrong motives Matthew 6:5-8. We...

Killing Off Black Americans

There are some issues that define a generation. For our grandfathers that issue was the Nazi slaughter of the Jews. For their grandfathers the issue was slavery. Our generation faces a similar defining issue. Will you be remembered as those who stood up or vegged out? Please watch this 2 minute video: Because of abortion there are 100,000 fewer black Americans each year than the year before. This...

Hello 2010 (Thomas’ New Years Predictions)

Last year I made 9 predictions about 2009. My score for 2009 was 4 out of 9 predictions correct. Here are the predictions I made last year. 9 Predictions for 2009 Prediction 1 “Obama will pass the Fairness act but it will only apply to political talk. It will be the best thing to happen to the conservative movement. Conservative talk radio needs to die.” Outcome: Fail! Obama chose to take...

Goodbye 2009

It’s that time of year again. Time to look back and see if we learned anything. Here is a summary of what I have been up to during the past year. 2008 Was a Hard Year In 2008 my business failed, my dad had a heart attack, my grandfather died and Grace and I called off our courtship. I began 2009 with an expectation that things would start looking up. Spring 2009 – New Beginnings In January...

My Adventure at Hope Chapel’s Christmas Choir

After over 10 years of doing choir in school I swore I would never sing in choir again. I put aside my musical side for  occasional beat boxing and perhaps singing with my family. No more the answers “no” thank you. But this was not to be. After my dad asked me for the seventh time to join the Hope Chapel Christmas choir I relented. I had a great time! Despite my expectations I might...

Tax Funded Abortions in Austin

On December 10th 2009 the Texas Health District Board had a hearing on whether to approve funding to pay for abortions for poor Austin Women. Austin is the only town in Texas to use tax dollars to pay for abortions. About 1000 per year. My Sister and friends praying after the vote. Photo by Austin American Statesman. We felt and still feel that this was a battle we could win. Harris County recently...

Looking Back on 24 Years…

Today I turn 24. Please permit me to change pace a bit for a post and do some self reflection. Here I am in an ancient Russian church tower Looking Old It seems surprise people when they learn I’m only 24. There are two ways to take this. Either that I look old or that I seem seem old for my age. Is this caused by sorrow, weight or wisdom? I don’t know. Probably a mixture. Looking forward...

New Site: PracticalCourtship.com

I have started a new website Practical Courtship! The goal of the website is to help make courtship work. So in a way it is a critique of courtship but it is also a guide. So far, it has received a fair bit of traffic and a ton of great comments. I encourage you to come by and check it out. Leave a comment and join the conversation. Also, let me know if you are interested in writing an article for...