Happy New Year! With fresh starts in mind – hiring is up and the U.S. recently experienced a 50-year low in the national unemployment rate, for instance – the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2020’s Best & Worst States to Raise a Family as well as accompanying videos.
To determine the best states in which to put down family roots, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 50 key indicators of family-friendliness. The data set ranges from median family salary to housing affordability to unemployment rate.
| Best States for Families | Worst States for Families |
| 1. Minnesota | 41. Arizona |
| 2. Massachusetts | 42. Georgia |
| 3. North Dakota | 43. South Carolina |
| 4. Vermont | 44. Oklahoma |
| 5. New Hampshire | 45. Arkansas |
| 6. New York | 46. Alabama |
| 7. New Jersey | 47. West Virginia |
| 8. Nebraska | 48. Louisiana |
| 9. Connecticut | 49. Mississippi |
| 10. Washington | 50. New Mexico |
Best vs. Worst
- Minnesota has the highest median family annual income (adjusted for cost of living), $89,217, which is 1.5 times higher than in New York, where it is lowest at $58,794.
- Utah has the lowest divorce rate, 15.89 percent, which is 1.6 times lower than in Nevada, where it is highest at 26.10 percent.
- New Hampshire has the lowest share of families living in poverty, 4.70 percent, which is 3.2 times lower than in New Mexico, where it is highest at 15.10 percent.
- Mississippi has the lowest average annual cost of early childcare (as a percentage of median family income), 7.08 percent, which is 2.3 times lower than in Nebraska, where it is highest at 16.42 percent.
- Maine has the fewest violent crimes (per 1,000 residents), 1.12, which is 7.9 times fewer than in Alaska, the state with the most at 8.85.
To view the full report and your state’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/best-states-to-raise-a-family/31065/
More from WalletHub
- Best & Worst Places to Raise a Family
- Best & Worst States to Have a Baby
- Best Places to Get Married
- Best & Worst States for Working Moms
- Best & Worst States for Working Dads
- States with the Best & Worst School Systems
- Best & Worst States for Children’s Health Care
- Team Jesus, pray for a better Judaical system, better ethics, better judges, better public officials in New Mexico!New Mexico needs to get a backbone! Stand for God’s Truth! Stand for Justice! Stand for Life, not DEATH! Stand for Ethics, Good behavior, Stand against the evils of booze and drugs! STOP KILLING GOD’S BABIES! Come on New Mexico! Come on Church! Too much sugar! Put SALT back on the table! Quit pretending everything is hunky-dory!New Mexico glorifies booze, its everywhere…..New Mexico glorifies gambling, casinos everywhere! Temptation is everywhere for your young people. Then they see a state official get off with 5 days in jail for drunk driving!!!???? Many in New Mexico dance with the devil.
When will New Mexico answer God’s wake up call? He’s been calling……….He’s gotta be weeping at us aborting his babies……
This is not a Republican or Democrat problem, it is a New Mexico problem, Both parties have had the opportunity to clean up this state and failed.
This seems to me to to be a very light sentence! Drunk Driving is a HUGE PROBLEM in our state, and I am sorry, but to drive drunk and have a weapon like a car, and then hit another vehicle and cause injuries, 5 days in jail? I really beleive this sends the wrong message to us! I forgive you Mr. Martinez, but you need to sit for a longer time.
Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 1 Corinthians 4:2
State Sen. Richard Martinez will serve five days in jail before the start of New Mexico’s legislative session, under a drunken driving sentence handed down Tuesday by a state judge.
I really believe this shows the problem we have here in New Mexico, there is no deterrent to crime. In my old fashion book, Mr. Martinez is to be an example to us all, he is an elected official. Way too many times our elected officials have behaved badly! Who will ever forget Governor Martinez and her pizza party and beer bottles being thrown off the balcony of the Hotel and her calling off the police!
Bad behavior by public officials is a huge problem! ABQ Journal Report
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“But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift…The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.”
—Ephesians 4:7, 11-16
Where is the deterrent to bad behavior? New Mexico is number 5 in the nation in DRUNK DRIVING DEATHS! What message does the sentence of Mr. Martinez send to our children?
I always have to remember our state aborts God’s babies and now thew Governor is pushing to legalize pot, we kill with drunk drivers, now maybe pot heads? Where is the value for life in New Mexico? We are also at the bottom in the well-being of our Children.
FGGAM NEWS ALERT JUST IN: NM FOUND TO BE WORST PLACE TO RAISE A FAMILY
The Church needs to put salt back on the table and reduced the sugar bowl.
For Heaven sakes there is no deterrent to violent crime in New Mexico! Catch and release! New Mexico Teen Gets 30 Days for 2nd-Degree Murder
From Dec 31st:
I have come to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable, that is part of my calling by our Lord.
Our hearts are broken once again with a record amount of homicides in Albuquerque this year! ABQ Journal Report
New Mexico ranks 5th on list of states with most impaired driving deaths
Our government leaders need to clean house on those that drink and drive that are in our government! Way too many in the Legislature have been arrested for drunk driving! DRUNK DRIVING: Sen. Richard Martinez (D-District 5)
If the Governor has her way, we will have Pot Heads driving! She wants to legalize pot! We have a horrible problem with drunk driving and then Pot Heads!!!!???? We are becoming hell on earth.
We continue to abort God’s babies.
It certainly is hell on earth for those babies that God sent here to live, not to be killed. I would read up on the wrath of God if I was you.
So many think they are smarter than God, above God, trying to get on the throne of God.
So many will not preach about the Wrath of God
Too many want to hold a high school pep rally!
Too many do not preach heaven and hell.
Where is the salt Church? “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. Matthew 5:13
Isaiah 62:6
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and all the night they shall never be silent. You who put the Lord in remembrance, take no rest,
Can’t people just behave themselves? Is that too simple? I grew up with a Daddy and Mommy that always said to us kids, “Now, kids behave yourselves.” We did, because we knew the consequences of bad behavior!All this is like a bad movie playing out before our eyes? Who is guilty? Who is innocent? What are the people of New Mexico to beleive? Who are the people of New Mexico to trust? GOD is the one to put our trust in.
My heart sinks when I read about crime and corruption. We have had so much corruption in New Mexico…….Now this…..New Mexico Mayor Charged With Crimes
This news is out and what are we to beleive? Who is telling the truth? So very sad…….New Mexico Governor Lujan Grisham is accused of sexual mistreatment of a former staff member.NM Governor Accused of Sexual Mistreatment What a mess. Will we ever know the truth? Former NM Governor Susana Martinez left a mess for taxpayers when she left office on all sorts of payments made for ‘monkey business’ that happened during her term. Will we ever know the truth about all the claims against the Martinez Administration and the former Head of the State Police?
Former Governor Susana Martinez did not tell me the truth live on the air on KKIM the first time she was elected that she would stand for life in New Mexico and end abortion. I waited 30 minutes one time for her to see me as promised by her assistant Keith Gardner, it never happened.
I think one of the worst examples of bad behavior to us taxpayers and our children was Governor Martinez’s ‘beer drinking, throw the bottles of the balcony, call off the police, pizza party.’
You see, this line of broken promises by politicians is by both parties, Republicans and Democrats. We don’t pick sides here at FGGAM, we are a non-partisan news reporting ministry. The problem with most all American media nowadays, is that they pick sides, that is not journalism. That is not good for our nation. I started out in radio news in the late 70’s, and I look at the media reporting today in America, and it makes my head swim.
This all…… is just not of God……….Our God is a God of love and peace.
And the New Mexico State Football Coach is under investigation. What is going on at NM State?
Killer of NM State Police Officer to be Released From Prison
Our God is not a God of Chaos.
I had a very hard time typing this story………I weep for all people……I love all people……every life is valued by our Creator God.
When I saw this on the front page of the Albuquerque Journal on Monday, I could not beleive what I was reading? TEEN GETS 30 DAYS FOR 2nd-DEGREE MURDER…I had to read that headline several times, I could not put the paper down. Right now I am having trouble even typing this report to you. Who wants to report news like this?
But what happened here? I do not know all the circumstances. My heart went to the victims family and also to the young man’s family who killed this other man. Families changed forever, torn apart by violence. More lives lost here in Albuquerque, because of all this evil.
What message does this 30 Day Sentence send? Days later I am still having a hard time digesting this….I have gone to the Lord on this several times…….Are we saying that a life taken by murder equals 30 days in jail?
Of course our state aborts babies all the time.
I am heart sick.
New Mexico Teen Gets 30 Days for 2nd-Degree Murder
THIS PREACHES! WOW! Today, FGGAM held its year end board meeting. Pastor Bill Ruhl, Vice-Chair of FGGAM always blesses us with a tremendous message before we start. I had to share Bill’s message with you all! Pass it one! WOW WEE!FGGAM DECEMBER 2019
What are we up against in the Body of Christ?
The scripture warns us: Matthew 12:25 …Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.”A divisive spirit seems to enjoying itself as it runs rampart through all levels within the Church.Unfortunate advances in technology have just amplified the voice of division by utilizing Facebook, google, twitter… you name it… as long as there is an available audience to stoke the flames of divisive discourse… as long as the platform of response is listening and gullible… the spirit of division will grow.What is the driving power behind the divisive spirit… well it seems it has a band of little minions to keep the atmosphere stirred up.Who are these little foxes? Well they all have the same nickname… “Dis”It’s a haughty little band of malcontents… most of us come across them every day.DisacordaciordDisagreementDisappearanceDisappointmentDisapprovalDisassociateDisasterDisbeliefDiscardDiscomfortDiscordDiscouragementDisdainDisenchantmentThe list goes on and on… all of them leading to intenseDissatisfaction and a Disturbed mind and spiritThey all result in an allegiance to two Dread Champions on the battlefield of divisionTheir names are Dishonor and Disrespect.…………………………………………Dis… what does that little three letter prefix symbolize… Negativity!Dis – to affront, to belittle, to criticizeA Latin prefix meaning “apart,” “asunder,” “away,” “utterly,” or having a privative, negative, or reversing forceInterestingly in classical mythology “dis” is the god of the under worldSo what do we do in 2020?The church needs to stand together in unified prayer.Eph 6:10-1810 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,2020 needs to be a year of focused prayer. Focused on the Word and on the declared outcome of the Word.We spend too much time in discord instead of unity of prayer which brings us all into to one accord with God.Time to focus with 20/20 vision on the victory proclaimed in a His Word in 2020!Bill Ruhl
Tribune Content Agency Why do people easily believe in Heaven but not Hell?
Dec 30, 2019
From the writings of the Rev. Billy GrahamQ: Why do people easily believe in Heaven but not Hell? Does it really change anything? — H.H.A: Most people accept that Heaven is real, according to a Fox News poll. Many religious and non-religious believe they will go there because God is a God of love.Many of these same people, however, reject that Hell is real. Yet they reserve Hell as a very real place for people who have perpetrated some of the most hideous crimes in history and have absolutely no remorse in wanting some of the most infamous criminals to “go to Hell.” What does it reveal about people’s hearts when they want someone condemned to Hell? They are obviously judging that person’s actions against their own merit. They believe they’re good enough to pass judgment on another person, but they accuse God who is holy of condemning people to this foreboding place because they reject His Word.“Please… write on anything but Hell!” This comes from bloggers in cyberspace who claim to be Christians. Responding to those who are sounding the warning about Hell, they write, “This makes Christians look like they serve a God filled with anger and wrath.” No matter how hard we try, we cannot escape the righteous judgment of God. But God, in His mercy and grace, wants to impart His righteousness through salvation to all people. Yet there are those who refuse such a gift and want to make light of Hell, the place that intrigues and inflames such passion.
Herein lies the problem — we see ourselves as good and refuse to see that we, too, harbor wickedness within. The Bible says that “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Don’t let Satan deceive you with his lies. Turn to God and live for Him.
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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)
(c)2019 BILLY GRAHAM DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
From Dr. Jim Denison:One of Satan’s subtlest strategies
Reflecting on Christmas, Oswald Chambers asked: “Have I allowed my personal life to become a ‘Bethlehem’ for the Son of God?” Then he noted: “The characteristic of the new birth is that I yield myself so completely to God that Christ is formed in me. Immediately Christ is formed in me, His nature begins to work through me.”
Chambers concluded: “God manifest in the flesh—that is what is made profoundly possible for you and me by the Redemption.”
Here’s the point: we cannot be like Christ without the help of Christ.
God’s ambition for us is not that we would try harder to avoid sin and imitate Christ. The character of Jesus—”love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”—is the “fruit of the Spirit” and thus made possible by the power of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23).
It is only when we “walk by the Spirit” that we “will not gratify the desires of the flesh” (v. 16). As Chambers notes, “To walk in the light means that everything that is of the darkness drives me closer into the center of the light.”
One of Satan’s subtlest strategies is tempting us to resist his temptations in our strength. In this way, he uses our desire to be godly against us. The more we resolve to do better, the less we depend on the only Power that can truly make us better.
Then Christianity becomes just another religion—another attempt by humans to reach up to God—instead of a relationship in which our Father transforms us to “become like his Son” (Romans 8:29 NLT).
“The central miracle asserted by Christians”
How can we be certain that our Father can do this? Because of the reality of Christmas.
C. S. Lewis: “The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation. They say that God became Man. Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this.”
Lewis explains: “Every natural event is the manifestation at a particular place and moment of Nature’s total character”—i.e., gravity, three-dimensionality, the laws of physics, etc. In the same way, “every particular Christian miracle manifests at a particular place and moment the character and significance of the Incarnation”—i.e., the fact that God can enter nature and do in it what he wishes.
If he could enter human flesh, he can heal human flesh. If he could feel physical pain, he can help us with physical pain. If he could withstand temptation, he can empower us to withstand temptation.
In short, if God could become one of us, he can make us one with himself.
What Kirk Douglas told Johnny Carson
A number of years ago, the actor Kirk Douglas was a guest on Johnny Carson’s late-night television show. The two celebrities discussed the experience of being recognized everywhere they went, with people pestering them because of their fame.
Then Douglas told about the time he was driving his car and stopped to pick up a hitchhiking sailor. When the sailor opened the door, looked in and saw the famous actor, his jaw dropped and he exclaimed, “Do you know who you are?”
Douglas said that it was a good question, one he’d been thinking about ever since.
Christmas tells us who God thinks you can be. Do you agree?
NOTE: Today, it’s challenging not to think about what 2020 may hold, but I know one fact will remain true: “God reigns over the nations; God sits on his holy throne” (Psalm 47:8). Because he is in control, we can confidently yet compassionately seek to change the culture for his glory and our culture’s good. When you join our movement of building culture-changing Christians by giving today to the Denison Forum, your donation will be DOUBLED (up to $175,000) by a generous matching grant. So, please join the movement today.
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