Affinity4 Community Blog

232 years ago this Friday, the founding fathers of our country adopted the Declaration of Independence. Within this document our country was founded upon the beliefs “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…”

The 4th of July is the only holiday that celebrates the United States. This Friday we celebrate the birth of our country and the survival of these rights that we are guaranteed as Americans. Although the fight to protect our rights and liberties will never end, we have a lot to be thankful for. We exercise our civil liberties every day- by speaking out on our political views, voting in the recent primaries, attending church or any religious service of our choice, and even by reading the news sources of our choice.

There are many ways to celebrate the 4th of July whether it be with a BBQ for family and friends, a picnic, or a trip to see the local parade and fireworks. What are you looking forward to this 4th of July? I know I’m looking forward to a long weekend, hot dogs, hamburgers and fireworks with my family and friends!

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Should we be concerned about the legalization of homosexual marriage in this country?

Yes, we should!

1. Marriage is a sacrament unto God bringing Man and Woman together as one in unity and without sin to multiply God’s Kingdom. God’s word says in Genesis 2:24, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” The purpose of marriage is to build families to increase the kingdom of God. The legalization of homosexual marriage will be yet another factor in the breakdown of traditional families in this country.
2. Homosexuality is an abomination to God. According to His word, “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.” (Leviticus 18:22). Sex was created to be shared and sanctified within a lifelong committed relationship (marriage) between a man and a woman.
3. The legalization of gay marriage, and the subsequent breaking down of traditional marriage and family structure, will detrimentally affect our youth. A study conducted in Sweden in 2003 found that children of single parents have more than doubled the rates of mortality, severe morbidity, and injury than children in two-parent households. We as Christians know that marriage was designed for the procreation and perpetuation of children, family, and humankind. Marriage encompasses a natural and biological responsibility to care for, provide for, and protect children. Homosexual marriage is naturally and biologically different since children cannot be produced within the bonds of such matrimony. This simply validates egocentrism as individuals demand that their lifestyle be accepted as normal through the legalizing of homosexual marriage. Children of course then become a mere afterthought.

We should keep in mind that legalization of gay marriage would have a significant and profound affect on Christianity and Judaism. To reject any aspect of religion is to reject the legitimacy of the whole package. The end result: Judeo-Christian tradition could become a “lifestyle” rather than the very foundation on which our society was built and has existed for centuries.

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I just signed up for Affinity4’s new wireless service and I’m so excited to get my new phone. My plan is only $29.99 a month and I’ll have night and weekend minutes starting at 7pm- they didn’t start until 9pm on my last plan!

I chose the RAZR phone and signed up for a text messaging plan too. Affinity4 even spends $100 towards paying off my old contract- so I can switch for free! I’m also keeping my old phone number so I don’t have to worry about contacting all my friends and family with a new number.

I decided to choose the ACLJ as my charity to support, so every month Affinity4 will donate 10% of their proceeds to ACLJ- and I won’t have to spend any more money!

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A few weeks ago, our building, Dominion Tower, announced to all offices that we had to be using commercial microwaves. So soon thereafter we ordered a new commercial microwave to be used in our kitchen which came in last week. The only thing left to decide was what to do with the perfectly good microwave we already had, but could no longer use. One Affinity4 employee came up with the idea of auctioning off the microwave to any interested employees, which was exactly what we did.

All this week we held a silent auction on the microwave in which employees could write down their bids. At the end of the week, the highest bidder was to receive the microwave, and the money from their bid would go to the charity of their choice.

Announced today, the winner was Lora Teague, the executive assistant for Affinity4! She bid $40 for the microwave and decided to donate the money to the local H.E.R. shelter. H.E.R. stands for Help and Emergency Response. H.E.R.’s mission is to help battered women and children and eliminate domestic violence in the local Hampton Roads area. H.E.R. offers an emergency shelter, a 24 hour hotline, court advocacy, a children’s program and community education and awareness programs. H.E.R. has been serving the Hampton Roads area for over 15 years. Congratulations Lora on winning the Affinity4 microwave! For more information on H.E.R. please visit www.hershelter.com.

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We are pleased to announce that Affinity4 now offers High Speed DSL service! Now you can enjoy faster Internet access and the great feeling that comes with knowing you are supporting your favorite charity or ministry every time you log on to the Internet.

Affinity4 High Speed DSL is just $34.95 per month and comes with FREE features like parental controls, up to 10 email addresses, virus and spam protection and free 24/7 technical support. With Affinity4 DSL you will enjoy download speeds up to 3mbps and you can easily install the service yourself and be online in just minutes!

Best of all- Affinity4 DSL comes with our 10% GiveBack to your favorite charity. As an Affinity4 customer you will be able to connect to more than the Internet- you will be connected with a community of caring individuals dedicated to making a difference in our world.

What charity will you support through this new Affinity4 service?

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After a long primary season, Americans finally know who the major party candidates will be for this November’s election. McCain has been the assumed Republican candidate for weeks, however, on the Democratic side; Barrack Obama finally clinched the nomination yesterday. Despite the end of the primaries, there is no rest for the candidates. Obama and McCain are both already full swing into their campaigns for the presidency. Both candidates claim to be running on a platform of “change” so it remains to be seen what issues they will focus on and what changes they hope to implement for America.

This primary was history in the making. Since John Edwards dropped out of the race months ago, the nation realized that this election would be the first time our country would see a major party candidate that was either a woman or an African American. Obama has made history as the first African American presidential nominee to run on a major party ticket.

Now many Americans are beginning to wonder if we will soon know who McCain and Obama will select as their running mates. Both candidates concede that the key to winning in November is winning over the independent voters, and both candidates will likely have that in mind when they select their running mates.

Clinton has not yet officially conceded the race and this has left many people wondering if she has hopes of becoming Obama’s running mate. She is one of many possible choices including other names such as Senator Jim Webb from Virginia, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius or Delaware Senator Joseph Biden. On the Republican side, likely contenders for the No.2 position include Mitt Romney, a former presidential candidate and the Governor of Massachusetts, former NYC mayor Rudy Guliani and Florida Governor Charlie Crist. Whomever they select, we should know by the national conventions which are being held in late August and September.

Who do you think would make a winning VP?

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After two devastating natural disasters this month, a recent AP article discusses how Americans are experiencing what is being called “disaster fatigue”. This is similar to what charities call “donor fatigue”. Donor fatigue is a drop in charitable giving and it can occur for a number of reasons. The most touted reason in recent months has been the shaky economy.

“Disaster fatigue” however, is a newly coined term used for the decrease in giving by Americans for natural disasters because there have been so many recently. First there was the devastating cyclone in Myanmar with a death toll of 77,738 people (as of 5/27)¹ with an additional 55,917 people still missing¹. A little over a week later came the earthquake in China that now has an estimated death toll of over 68,000 people¹, and the aftershocks of this disaster still haven’t ended. Just this week China experienced two aftershocks that injured 63 people and destroyed over 400,000 homes². It seems like there is no end to these devastating events, which is what causes the so-called “disaster fatigue”. When the 2nd and 3rd large disasters come around, people think ‘I just gave money to an international disaster’ so they don’t donate to each one separately. These two recent catastrophes have gathered a significantly lower amount of charitable donations from Americans than previous natural disasters such as the Tsunami in Asia back in 2004.

Although there has been a decrease in giving for these recent disasters, Americans have donated $12.2 million so far to help the victims of the Myanmar cyclone, and that is no small number. Here at Affinity4 we think our customers are proof of how willing Americans are to contribute to helping others in our world. Thank you to all of our caring customers, because of you we have been able to donate over $75 million to charities worldwide. If you would like to help aid the victims of these recent disasters, please click here and you will be able to select where you would like your donation to go.

Sources:
¹ Associated Press
² CNN

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According to a recent survey released by AAA, the number of Americans traveling over 50 miles from home over Memorial Day Weekend should fall by about 1% from last year. Honestly, I can’t believe it’s only dropping by 1%! Gas prices are now up to $3.80 per gallon for regular unleaded gas (national average as of today). Last year over Memorial Day Weekend, the price of gas was $3.11, so in one year there has been a 22% increase in the price of gas.

Despite the soaring prices, the overall demand for gas in the U.S. has not decreased significantly. Americans have been cutting back in other areas instead. Many families are cutting back on going out to eat, trips to the movies and family vacations. For others, the gas prices even mean cutting back on clothing and grocery budgets. Many of us, experts included, are left wondering how high do the prices have to go before the demand for gas will decrease? I don’t have an answer for that, but I know many people who are trying to cut back on gas by carpooling, running errands all at one time and using public transportation.

Several states (West Virginia and Arizona are examples) are considering switching to a 4 day work week and urging employers across their states to do so as well. It is estimated that a switch like this nation-wide would cut gas consumption by 20% and decrease pollution at the same time.

Back to the question of travel…. I will be staying here at home this Memorial Day Weekend. Are any of you cancelling trips due to the rising gas prices? Please share your story on how cost of gas is affecting you and your family, or any tips you have on how to save money!

Happy Memorial Day!

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Today Israel celebrates its 60th anniversary! Israel declared its independence on May 14, 1948. Before that date, Israel had been under British control based on a League of Nations mandate.  Israel is a parliamentary democracy with a population of just over 7 million people.

In celebration of Israel’s 60th anniversary, the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) is organizing a group trip to the Holy Land.  The goal of this trip is to provide ACLJ supporters with the chance to show their support for Israel by actually traveling there! The 11 day trip will depart from New York June 17th and return on June 27th.

Travelers, including ACLJ Chief Counsel, Jay Sekulow, will visit biblical and historical sites and stay in both Jerusalem and Haifa. Travelers will have the opportunity to spend time with Israeli military leaders, members of the Israeli Parliament and other Middle East experts. Each day on the trip has its own theme such as “Connecting to the Land” and “Connecting to Christian Jerusalem.”  After the trip, there are optional extension trips to Egypt, Jordan, Turkey and even Greece.

The ACLJ has also drawn up a “Proclamation of Solidarity” with Israel which can be signed on their website. Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow will personally deliver this proclamation to Israeli officials. To find out more about this exciting trip visit the ACLJ Group IST page.  If any of you are planning on going, we would love to hear from you!

Happy Independence Day, Israel!

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A recent article sent out by LifeNews.com stated that a group of Swiss experts are arguing that plants deserve the right to life and that killing them is morally wrong except when it comes to saving humans. And in a report on “the dignity of the creature in the plant world”, the federal Ethics Committee on non-human Gene Technology condemned the decapitation of flowers without reason. While this may baffle many, it truly doesn’t surprise me. It is unfortunate that we reside in a world that fights so strongly for the supposed “good of all people” without regard to God’s law for the people. Activists get so caught up in their “rights issues” that they totally disregard the effect that these rights are imposing on society. Homosexual marriage, abortion, euthanasia, animal cloning, animal rights…..and now the right to life of plants….

I will have to agree with bioethicist Wesley Smith when he stated that the accelerating rejection of Judeo-Christian worldview, which upholds the unique dignity and moral worth of human beings, is driving us crazy. And so while a baby in the womb should have no rights to life, it is now being suggested that the roses in our flowerbeds should? Crazy… to say the least! To read the original article click here.

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