Hobby Lobby May Close All 500+ Stores in 41 States

January 24, 2014

Via: Tom O Halloran
By: David Green, the founder and CEO of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.

When my family and I started our company 40 years ago, we were working out of a garage on a $600 bank loan, assembling miniature picture frames. Our first retail store wasn’t much bigger than most people’s living rooms, but we had faith that we would succeed if we lived and worked according to God’s word.

From there, Hobby Lobby has become one of the nation’s largest arts and crafts retailers, with more than 500 locations in 41 states. Our children grew up into fine business leaders, and today we run Hobby Lobby together, as a family.

We’re Christians, and we run our business on Christian principles. I’ve always said that the first two goals of our business are (1) to run our business in harmony with God’s laws, and (2) to focus on people more than money. And that’s what we’ve tried to do.

We close early so our employees can see their families at night. We keep our stores closed on Sundays, one of the week’s biggest shopping days, so that our workers and their families can enjoy a day of rest.

CONTINUED. 

A Message from our Chairman: Hobby Lobby

Friends,

As a Christian, you should share this. 

This is what happens when the church sits back in apathy and refuses to get involved or to stand up for God. If you don’t identify and vote for principled leaders, Christian leaders, those who would stand and defend your religious freedoms and rights, then YOU are part of the problem. 

If you don’t get out of your comfort zone and stand up yourself, then YOU are part of the problem. 

If you prefer being a sheep instead of a Lion for Jesus, then YOU are part of the problem. 

If you prefer being politically correct instead of biblically correct, then YOU are part of the problem and you will reap what you sow. Unfortunately, so will your children and grandchildren. 

If you think that I and my message are too political, then I pray you will someday see the light but I do not apologize for taking a stand for what our founders built for us. I am a Christian American, husband, father and grandfather and I am proud to be all of them and will gladly give all that I have to my last breath to defend and protect them. 

I am not ashamed to say God Bless America. I am not ashamed to claim Jesus is Lord. I know why we have Christmas and I will share that with anyone willing to listen. If this offends you, then delete me from your email list, remove me as a Facebook friend, politely ask me to leave your church or your organization. 

But if it in anyway convicts you or inspires you to take a stand, then join me in praying for David Green, the founder and CEO of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. His story is depicted below. I pray for an outcry from Christians for Divine intervention that will stop what is happening to our brother and his family and our once great country. I will be praying for the Green family and I will be praying for you.

Merry Christmas,

Rick Hopkins

Chairman, CCTA

Hobby Lobby May Close ALL Stores (July 2013)

http://www.vtxoa.com/forums/showthread.php?348951-Hobby-Lobby-Founder-May-close-ALL-stores

The Hobby Lobby Case Explained

When the Supreme Court agreed last week to hear Hobby Lobby’s lawsuit against the Obama administration over the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate, conservatives hoped the court would blow another deal to the president’s signature legislation.

The case appeared to concern a clear First Amendment principle, freedom of religion. Additionally, the uproar over the mandate requiring that all insurance plans cover contraception—including abortifacient drugs that many Christians see as immoral—has been steady and strong. And Hobby Lobby won before an appeals court recently.

CONTINUE READING:  http://freebeacon.com/the-hobby-lobby-case-explained/

ObamaCare’s Muslim Exemption

ObamaCare uses the Social Security language of the Internal Revenue Code to determine who is eligible for “religious conscience” objection to the insurance mandate. Specifically, the law provides exemptions for adherents of “recognized religious sects” that are “conscientiously opposed” to accepting benefits from any insurance, public or private.


As a consequence of this provision, Muslims may claim a religious exemption that is denied Christians and Jews. Since Islam believes insurance is haraam (forbidden) and likens insurance to gambling, the religion is excluded from requirements, mandates, or penalties set forth in the bill. Others who fall into this category are the Amish, American Indians, and Christian Scientists. Although the U.S. Constitution grants all Americans equal protection of the law, some Americans are more equal than others.

ObamaCare is specifically written not to apply equally to everyone. It is in most respects a law intended to discriminate — what some might call an extended Jim Crow law. If this seems exaggerated, consider: Jim Crow laws were based on racial discrimination, while ObamaCare is predicated on religious discrimination. Government acted based on a preconceived and arbitrary understanding of what is right.

CONTINUED:  http://pjmedia.com/blog/obamacares-muslim-exemption/

TPN: Church versus State

There is an organization that promotes the separation of church and state (Americans United for the Separation of Church and State). While their avowed purpose appeals to me, I share their desires but for totally different reasons and without banning the church from the market place. The AU believes that the church is a negative force in the social and political culture of the United States. My view, on the other hand, is that the government (state) is too restrictive regarding the church’s role in the society…particularly of the Christian faith. Any faith that attempts to evangelize without the use of force or intimidation should be welcome in the public square.


For Christians who may be fearful about such an open position, please recall the Hare Krishna movement of a few decades ago. My encounters with them were primarily limited to airports, and while I found them a tad annoying, they were harmless. And I never fell under their evil spell. There may be some Krishnas lurking around somewhere, but their movement seems to have lost its impetus and is no longer a visible presence. My view is that a state-enforced religion is inherently more ominous than a religious free-for-all in the marketplace. I have confidence in the truth of my faith, in the power of Almighty God and in the salvation message of Jesus Christ. State intervention is neither needed nor desired. If the state were to “implement” the Christian faith as an “official” government policy, then the distortions would begin immediately. I suspect that politicians and bureaucrats have no more respect for God and his Word than they do for the Constitution of the United States of America.

If the United States is indeed a Christian nation, the evidence will be in the fruits of the people….not in the laws, rules and regulations of Big Brother. The more involved the government becomes in defining the faith and its practices, the more likely it is that the government-approved Christian faith will be an abomination in the eyes of God. Freedom of religion in the United States should include the right to openly profess one’s faith….or no faith. It should allow one to question other belief systems without fear of reprisal or government punishment. Faith and belief are internal contracts with the Supreme Diety that often involve public professing. Public coercion, however, should never be part of the worship because the listeners’ hearts will be hardened and unwilling to hear the truth. In addition when a state endorses or promotes a singular faith, the priests either become politicians or the politicians become clergy as the two power centers are merged.


A state-mandated or state-endorsed faith is detrimental for another reason. Belief, faith and adherence are by their very nature individual matters. To collectivize them under the auspices of the state places another party between the believer and the Lord. We can note that within the evangelical Christian community there are differences or variances regarding doctrine, emphasis, organizational structure and ritual. Will the state mandate Methodism, Catholicism or Pentecostalism as the “official” practice of the state. What about all those independent bodies of believers who do not belong to any formal denominational organization? Will the state insist on pre-tribulation or post-tribulation teaching? Will baptismal immersion be required or forbidden? These are the types of issues that when incorporated into official governmental policy or protection can truly destroy the vibrancy of numerous congregations and their members.

CONTINUE READING:  http://www.teapartynation.com/profiles/blog/show?id=3355873%3ABlogPost%3A1972665&xgs=1&xg_source=msg_share_post