December Newsletter
Throughout this past year, I’ve often had to remind myself that my salvation is not found in government, but in Jesus Christ. My hope is not in the national, but in the eternal. It goes without saying that it has been a difficult year for civil liberties and religious freedom. But 2021 has also been a challenging year for me personally.
Earlier this year, my son and daughter-in-law’s baby, June Madison Tyler, was stillborn at 38 weeks. June is my first grandbaby, and I look forward to meeting her in heaven. In August, my wife, Kathy, had a close brush with death and spent 13 days fighting for her life in the hospital with Covid-19. Thankfully, she pulled through and is doing well.
Despite the trials and tribulations we all face, we know God is still good and is calling all Christians to find our joy and peace in Him.
My mission in founding Advocates for Faith & Freedom over fifteen years ago was to defend the First Amendment right to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ until the Lord returns. Just as Paul was compelled by the spirit in Acts 20:22, I feel the Lord compels me to continue Advocates’ mission, no matter how difficult things get.
Praise be to God, 2021 has also brought us an abundance of blessings. I witnessed a great harvest of souls occur because of the challenges of 2020-21. The time is ripe for the Good News of Jesus Christ to be shared, and many of our church clients are actively reaping the harvest. It has been an honor defending these churches and witnessing God work mightily through them.
We have been blessed with numerous victories through settled lawsuits where state and county defendants were forced to agree to allow churches and schools to remain open. Likewise, we have been able to successfully push back against vaccine mandates on behalf of students and employees.
We have never seen such attacks in the United States on our liberty as we are seeing today. And our ministry has never experienced the desperate demands that we face today. Over 18,000 people have downloaded the vaccination religious exemption request from our website. We are dedicated to actively defending the right of individuals to make their own choice as to the Covid-19 vaccines, through both lawsuits and self-help resources published on our website.
Two days before Thanksgiving, we filed a new lawsuit on behalf of the Orange County Board of Education to end California’s state of emergency. The basis of that lawsuit is Governor Newsom’s public admission that the early rationale for declaring a state of emergency no longer exists.
In New York, we are continuing to litigate against the “big tech industry” as they claim Section 230 provides them immunity from unlawful discrimination. No other business has the right to engage in class-based discrimination, so why should big tech?
We also continue to represent churches and Christian schools in California to ensure that they are allowed to remain open and free from unconstitutional government interference.
These are the fruits of your partnership. We invite you to praise God with us over the opportunities, blessings, and victories God has granted this ministry. Looking ahead into 2022, we already have some major cases we are involved in, and we can only imagine what other unique challenges 2022 will bring. One thing we know for certain is that God is in control, and He has equipped this ministry for such a time as this!
From my family, and the entire Advocates’ family, to yours, we wish you a very Merry Christmas.
In His Service,
Robert H. Tyler
