There is little doubt that 2009 was a year filled with dreadful events - but so was 2008 and 2007 and 2001 and 1941 and well, you get the point. Death, mendacity and tyranny were the modus operandi of everyone from the politicians to the corporations to the religious establishment. What was most shocking this year to me was how naked and open evil has become; there was no attempt by the enemy to disguise his intents or for his henchmen to finesse their plots through to fruition. Evil was bold and unfettered as if it expected no opposition of any consequence.
As the secular calendar turns the page to a new year, it seems as if there may be some who are persuaded that there is reason to believe that the road to serfdom we are marching down can be blocked and that we can be returned back to the rightful path.
I wish I could agree.
Frankly, I don't see the efforts of the so-called patriot movement and the mainstream political opposition have accomplished any more than providing a false sense of empowerment to the people involved. They are doing the same things they have been doing since I came out of the TV stupor and began to understand where the real battle was and to recognize the false paradigms imposed on the world. The alarms are sounded, everyone scurries around, guns are sold, food is hoarded, gold and silver become scarce commodities, fear gives way to panic and then...nothing happens and it starts all over again the next week.
So, what is going to happen during the next 12 months?
The Health-care usurpation is still on track. Carbon regulation is about to take place by fiat rather than legislation. The state will soon actually, legally, take control over life and death and place it in the hands of bureaucrats whose only interest is to maintain their job, not solve problems.
Will the democrats be run out of office and replaced with republicans? Will the President declare martial law? Are we all getting bar codes?
Frankly, I don't see much changing.
Health-care will more than likely become law - and it will be a disaster. Yet I see the democrats retaining power because the real effects won't be felt until well after the election.
Don't be surprised if there are several million newly registered voters to make certain that happens as, by law or fiat, many currently illegal migrants are made citizens.
Journalism will still suck, but some of those who believed in the hope and change are becoming disillusioned and there will be some prominent defections this year.
Global warming and/or climate change will fall from favor and carbon taxes will start to take a back seat to other issues: inflation, fuel shortages, more terror (by someone) short credit, higher unemployment, a second wave of real estate failures, regional strife and the political battles moving to the local level and not in a peaceful way.
There's no better time for the believer to disengage from the system as much as possible.
What do you see for the coming months?
Friday, December 25, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Sorting It Out
I come from a long line of ordinary people - common folk - from among those who conform to the world because that is what you do. You conform and hope that with some sweat and toil, with yes sir and yes ma'am, giving it all up, that everything will work out. The American dream can be had if you only do it right.
There was just one small issue: I couldn't do it. I really tried! Really I did! But there was nothing in the world, at least the ordinary world, that attracted me.
Don't take that the wrong way. I'm not saying I wasn't attracted to worldly things...pretty women, exotic ideas, mind-alteration - big things, weird things.
All I knew then was that I couldn't do what I saw everybody else doing, the way they did it, for the reasons they had.
And most of my life I have paid for it.
For years and years I was convinced that my problem was that I was lazy, or rebellious, or, sometimes, stupid. I'm still not sure that there isn't some truth there. But I find that when I start to work on something that is interesting or that I enjoy or important to me, I can work hard and long and well.
Rarely, however, do I find that what I want to do coincide with what I know the world deems to be important.
I am very dysfunctional in the ordinary world.
So the question before me is one of sorting out priorities - separating responsibilities from conformities, desires ffrom needs, right from wrong.
I am not even sure how to go about that, well, perhaps I really know, but I am finding distractions to keep me from the really hard work - the work of turning away from the world and turning to God.
The full truth is that I am sitting on the proverbial fence...and I despise myself for doing that.
What I really need to do is throw everything at the feet of Jesus and wait for Him to tell me what to pick up and work on.
Can I do that?
I don't know, but I think it is a matter of life or death.
There was just one small issue: I couldn't do it. I really tried! Really I did! But there was nothing in the world, at least the ordinary world, that attracted me.
Don't take that the wrong way. I'm not saying I wasn't attracted to worldly things...pretty women, exotic ideas, mind-alteration - big things, weird things.
All I knew then was that I couldn't do what I saw everybody else doing, the way they did it, for the reasons they had.
And most of my life I have paid for it.
For years and years I was convinced that my problem was that I was lazy, or rebellious, or, sometimes, stupid. I'm still not sure that there isn't some truth there. But I find that when I start to work on something that is interesting or that I enjoy or important to me, I can work hard and long and well.
Rarely, however, do I find that what I want to do coincide with what I know the world deems to be important.
I am very dysfunctional in the ordinary world.
So the question before me is one of sorting out priorities - separating responsibilities from conformities, desires ffrom needs, right from wrong.
I am not even sure how to go about that, well, perhaps I really know, but I am finding distractions to keep me from the really hard work - the work of turning away from the world and turning to God.
The full truth is that I am sitting on the proverbial fence...and I despise myself for doing that.
What I really need to do is throw everything at the feet of Jesus and wait for Him to tell me what to pick up and work on.
Can I do that?
I don't know, but I think it is a matter of life or death.
Friday, October 30, 2009
History Lesson
When Amenhotep II returned from his triumphant suppression of a Syrio-Palestinian uprising (at least he claimed a victory), he did not return to a land euphoric with his display of Egyptian power - instead, he found his father, Thutmose III, dead, his older brother, Thutmose IV dead, his oldest son dead, and the nation in mourning at the mass death which had just occurred, a devastated economy, and a major portion of the national workforce gone.
What should have been a ticker-tape parade through downtown Luxor turned into a rampage through Egypt that would have made Sherman' s march through the South seem compassionate.
A crazed general and his battle-fatigued troops found that all that they had fought to defend and uphold with blood and treasure had completely disappeared while they were out of town and they reacted with madness and violence. Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of innocents died, cities were razed, a trail of smoke and rubble marked Amenhotep trek home.
Do we really know why Amenhotep attacked his own land? Not really. But can we imagine that in his search for answers and reasons, finding only platitudes and non-answers, that he struck out blindly at those he deemed responsible and the quest rolled over targets and blameless alike; can we not envision the psychic shock he and the army must have experienced?
We do know that Egypt never truly recovered and the civilization began an unchecked decline.
For over eight years in Afghanistan, and six years in Iraq, our soldiers and our Generals have waged war in an asymmetrical environment, against an uncertain enemy, to achieve polemical and contradictory goals.
When our exhausted fighters return home, they do not find themselves heralded as conquering heroes, or defenders of freedom, or even recognized publicly as the special and courageous people they are, but are avoided and labelled as threats to domestic tranquility, denied the most basic of care and restoration...thrown away to die from the poisons they were administered and the psychological trauma they experienced.
At home they find their families poorer, their neighbors spys, the freedoms they believed they were defending diminished, and their prospects limited.
Some even suggest they find more comfort on the battlefield than in the home.
Our putative leaders need a history lesson - from Egypt.
Is there an Amenhotep in the American army? If there is, the regime needs to be aware (as if they were not already) the threat is not against the American people.
What should have been a ticker-tape parade through downtown Luxor turned into a rampage through Egypt that would have made Sherman' s march through the South seem compassionate.
A crazed general and his battle-fatigued troops found that all that they had fought to defend and uphold with blood and treasure had completely disappeared while they were out of town and they reacted with madness and violence. Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of innocents died, cities were razed, a trail of smoke and rubble marked Amenhotep trek home.
Do we really know why Amenhotep attacked his own land? Not really. But can we imagine that in his search for answers and reasons, finding only platitudes and non-answers, that he struck out blindly at those he deemed responsible and the quest rolled over targets and blameless alike; can we not envision the psychic shock he and the army must have experienced?
We do know that Egypt never truly recovered and the civilization began an unchecked decline.
For over eight years in Afghanistan, and six years in Iraq, our soldiers and our Generals have waged war in an asymmetrical environment, against an uncertain enemy, to achieve polemical and contradictory goals.
When our exhausted fighters return home, they do not find themselves heralded as conquering heroes, or defenders of freedom, or even recognized publicly as the special and courageous people they are, but are avoided and labelled as threats to domestic tranquility, denied the most basic of care and restoration...thrown away to die from the poisons they were administered and the psychological trauma they experienced.
At home they find their families poorer, their neighbors spys, the freedoms they believed they were defending diminished, and their prospects limited.
Some even suggest they find more comfort on the battlefield than in the home.
Our putative leaders need a history lesson - from Egypt.
Is there an Amenhotep in the American army? If there is, the regime needs to be aware (as if they were not already) the threat is not against the American people.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Take No Thought for the Morrow...a Question on the Parameters of Faith
Okay, I am venturing out into new and unexplored territory...for me.
Some are probably already here, by choice or by circumstances, patiently waiting for me to arrive. Well, here I am.
The subject is health insurance. Paying for healthcare is the uppermost topic of conversation all over the nation and has been for the past few months. If you are reading this, it is likely you are familiar with all sides of that debate, and just as likely you are tired of the fight and worried about the outcome.
And that leads to the issue I wish to consider in this article: Is it appropriate for a believer and follower of The Way to purchase health insurance in any form?
Up until a few days ago, there was no doubt in my mind that it was irresponsible and imprudent not to carry health insurance if at all possible financially - especially if I had others to provide for (spouse, children)who depended on my provision and care. Frankly, I don't believe I would have given a suggestion to the contrary a moment's consideration.
Yet, here I am, seriously questioning it.
What happened?
For a number of years I have been researching what is generally called alternative medicine - primarily herbalism and traditional medicine but also including modern concepts which are outside of the mainstream of medical practice yet relatively recent and similarly presented (vitamin therapy, chelation, sound therapy, and the like). An inevitable corrollary of this research is uncovering a great deal of information about the process and problems of contemporary allopathic medicine.
Most insurance will not cover herbal, traditional or any other natural or alternate approach to health and healing. Likewise, most mainstream physicians are ignorant about traditional or alternative therapies - a large percentage reject them outright and it is not uncommon for one to reject or terminate a relationship with a patient who chooses alternative medicine as a supplement to or instead of generally accepted practices.
The same goes for insurance. Patients who refuse to adhere to allopathic methodology can find themselves cancelled, and, in effect, blackballed, uninsurable for choices ranging from refusing vaccines to forgoing chemotherapy.
Insurers dictate to patients which courses of treatment are acceptable and covered by the policy. Deviation from the approved parameters are refused payment.
Fear of accumulating large medical debt forces patients to conform to the system and take what is offered - even if they don't believe in the effectiveness of the treatment.
My questions are derived from this understanding of how the system works:
1. We are told that we are not to be conformed to the world, but to Yashua. If we have health insurance which prevents us from using treatments we think are more effective or requires us to accept measures we know are ineffective or even harmful, aren't we conforming to the world?
2. Believers are not supposed to be in debt because the debtor becomes the slave of the lender. Isn't health insurance in a very practical sense the creation of debt - both because we commit to the payment of the costs of the coverage (premiums and deductibles, copays, fees) and because we are pre-paying for a surety against future debt. Are we then slaves to the insurer and, possibly, the employer?
3. Then there is Revelation 9:21 which warns us of the evil of "pharmakea" - drugs - termed in some translations as "sorceries". Modern medicine is very much a practice of sorcery using chemical compounds as magic potions. If you have health insurance, this is the predominant treatment option you will have.
4. The issue of faith. Do you trust Yahweh or will you make your own provision? The letter to Laodicea is very much about this. They had such great substance that they thought they had no need to depend on Yahweh for provision. They became spiritually poor as they ceased to act in faith. If we carry health insurance is that an act of self-reliance and placing our faith in ourselves and other men?
Yashua says we have not because we ask not.
The Scripture says by His stripes we are healed.
Insurance companies are deeply rooted in the world system of materialism and financial manipulation. Insurance is a core business of the worldwide financial order that demands conformity or else be excluded.
If we are to be in the world but not of it, is health insurance one of those deceptions formed by the adversary for the purpose of directing us away from God and strip us of faith and power?
I can't say for certain my family and I have decided in fact to go without insurance and rely totally on Yahweh for health and provision, but we are leaning that way.
Any ideas?
Some are probably already here, by choice or by circumstances, patiently waiting for me to arrive. Well, here I am.
The subject is health insurance. Paying for healthcare is the uppermost topic of conversation all over the nation and has been for the past few months. If you are reading this, it is likely you are familiar with all sides of that debate, and just as likely you are tired of the fight and worried about the outcome.
And that leads to the issue I wish to consider in this article: Is it appropriate for a believer and follower of The Way to purchase health insurance in any form?
Up until a few days ago, there was no doubt in my mind that it was irresponsible and imprudent not to carry health insurance if at all possible financially - especially if I had others to provide for (spouse, children)who depended on my provision and care. Frankly, I don't believe I would have given a suggestion to the contrary a moment's consideration.
Yet, here I am, seriously questioning it.
What happened?
For a number of years I have been researching what is generally called alternative medicine - primarily herbalism and traditional medicine but also including modern concepts which are outside of the mainstream of medical practice yet relatively recent and similarly presented (vitamin therapy, chelation, sound therapy, and the like). An inevitable corrollary of this research is uncovering a great deal of information about the process and problems of contemporary allopathic medicine.
Most insurance will not cover herbal, traditional or any other natural or alternate approach to health and healing. Likewise, most mainstream physicians are ignorant about traditional or alternative therapies - a large percentage reject them outright and it is not uncommon for one to reject or terminate a relationship with a patient who chooses alternative medicine as a supplement to or instead of generally accepted practices.
The same goes for insurance. Patients who refuse to adhere to allopathic methodology can find themselves cancelled, and, in effect, blackballed, uninsurable for choices ranging from refusing vaccines to forgoing chemotherapy.
Insurers dictate to patients which courses of treatment are acceptable and covered by the policy. Deviation from the approved parameters are refused payment.
Fear of accumulating large medical debt forces patients to conform to the system and take what is offered - even if they don't believe in the effectiveness of the treatment.
My questions are derived from this understanding of how the system works:
1. We are told that we are not to be conformed to the world, but to Yashua. If we have health insurance which prevents us from using treatments we think are more effective or requires us to accept measures we know are ineffective or even harmful, aren't we conforming to the world?
2. Believers are not supposed to be in debt because the debtor becomes the slave of the lender. Isn't health insurance in a very practical sense the creation of debt - both because we commit to the payment of the costs of the coverage (premiums and deductibles, copays, fees) and because we are pre-paying for a surety against future debt. Are we then slaves to the insurer and, possibly, the employer?
3. Then there is Revelation 9:21 which warns us of the evil of "pharmakea" - drugs - termed in some translations as "sorceries". Modern medicine is very much a practice of sorcery using chemical compounds as magic potions. If you have health insurance, this is the predominant treatment option you will have.
4. The issue of faith. Do you trust Yahweh or will you make your own provision? The letter to Laodicea is very much about this. They had such great substance that they thought they had no need to depend on Yahweh for provision. They became spiritually poor as they ceased to act in faith. If we carry health insurance is that an act of self-reliance and placing our faith in ourselves and other men?
Yashua says we have not because we ask not.
The Scripture says by His stripes we are healed.
Insurance companies are deeply rooted in the world system of materialism and financial manipulation. Insurance is a core business of the worldwide financial order that demands conformity or else be excluded.
If we are to be in the world but not of it, is health insurance one of those deceptions formed by the adversary for the purpose of directing us away from God and strip us of faith and power?
I can't say for certain my family and I have decided in fact to go without insurance and rely totally on Yahweh for health and provision, but we are leaning that way.
Any ideas?
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Why the Health-care Problem is not with the Insurance Companies
You are limiting the private sector to insurance.
The problem is that insurance is a symptom, not a cause of the current problems and was initially applied as a patch to a perceived problem.By creating a single-payer system, or government/public option, or nationalized health-care (whichever, if any comes to pass) you are once again pasting a patch on a worn package hoping to hold it together a little longer.
If you want to resolve the inefficiencies of the market, the first task is to work back past the results of previous policies and legislation and market disruptions to find where the market began to "fail" and find the root causes.
You will not find the cause here to be market but government.Perceived inequities were used to impose non-market solutions which increasingly distorted and limited market options.
I am certain that by imposing any of the systems mentioned above, you will not remove inequities from the system but rather redistribute the costs and benefits. If the system is actually, practically, egalitarian, then the outcome will be a distribution which results in less than optimal satisfaction for all consumers...and, the black market which will result will create greater inequities than exist now.
If the system is not egalitarian, but distributes services unequally, it will by nature have to use factors other than price to determine that distribution. Such a non-price distribution will inevitably be political and be determined by politicians interests. As such, the benefits and costs will fall on separate populations and be unequally borne or received. The population bearing the costs will then have a disincentive to contribute and will find ways to hide or diminish taxable resources. The beneficiaries will have an incentive to increase their use and grow the cost in proportion. As revenues decrease, demands increase, the government will be forced to expand the tax base, ration care, or remove health care from any private market and nationalize it, nominally providing it for free, but in fact disguising the cost by alternate funding or inflation.
The problem is that insurance is a symptom, not a cause of the current problems and was initially applied as a patch to a perceived problem.By creating a single-payer system, or government/public option, or nationalized health-care (whichever, if any comes to pass) you are once again pasting a patch on a worn package hoping to hold it together a little longer.
If you want to resolve the inefficiencies of the market, the first task is to work back past the results of previous policies and legislation and market disruptions to find where the market began to "fail" and find the root causes.
You will not find the cause here to be market but government.Perceived inequities were used to impose non-market solutions which increasingly distorted and limited market options.
I am certain that by imposing any of the systems mentioned above, you will not remove inequities from the system but rather redistribute the costs and benefits. If the system is actually, practically, egalitarian, then the outcome will be a distribution which results in less than optimal satisfaction for all consumers...and, the black market which will result will create greater inequities than exist now.
If the system is not egalitarian, but distributes services unequally, it will by nature have to use factors other than price to determine that distribution. Such a non-price distribution will inevitably be political and be determined by politicians interests. As such, the benefits and costs will fall on separate populations and be unequally borne or received. The population bearing the costs will then have a disincentive to contribute and will find ways to hide or diminish taxable resources. The beneficiaries will have an incentive to increase their use and grow the cost in proportion. As revenues decrease, demands increase, the government will be forced to expand the tax base, ration care, or remove health care from any private market and nationalize it, nominally providing it for free, but in fact disguising the cost by alternate funding or inflation.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
God's Work
This is going to be a post following-up on the previous interogatory about a Christian System of Economics.
The question was whether or not there was a clear, definable, operable statement of economic principles by which existing theory could be analyzed or a unique theory developed.
On-going research and study has been quite remarkable.
Arguments can be found on the part of nearly every economic/political/social theory which cherry-pick amongst the writings of the Bible to demonstrate that Christianity favors that particular idea being promoted. Thus the Scripture has been used to defend both the Divine Right of Kings and democracy.
In truth those who attempt to prove a divine approval of their pet priciples are always wrong and, further, missing or ignoring a fundamental truth: Christian standards of behavior cannot be applied to a secular world.
It is true that God would prefer that the material society operate by the spiritual code revealed in the Bible; it is also true that God neither expects nor requires that it do so.
Only those professing to be of Christ are obligated to conform to the divine plan and even they obligate themselves by choice and by confession of a desire to be like Jesus.
Thus, in sum, Christian economics is not about how to organize the global economy but about how the Christian is to live in obedience to the Father.
If that is understood, then the next posts on Christian economics will be seen in a new light, with a peculiar view and a different purpose.
The question was whether or not there was a clear, definable, operable statement of economic principles by which existing theory could be analyzed or a unique theory developed.
On-going research and study has been quite remarkable.
Arguments can be found on the part of nearly every economic/political/social theory which cherry-pick amongst the writings of the Bible to demonstrate that Christianity favors that particular idea being promoted. Thus the Scripture has been used to defend both the Divine Right of Kings and democracy.
In truth those who attempt to prove a divine approval of their pet priciples are always wrong and, further, missing or ignoring a fundamental truth: Christian standards of behavior cannot be applied to a secular world.
It is true that God would prefer that the material society operate by the spiritual code revealed in the Bible; it is also true that God neither expects nor requires that it do so.
Only those professing to be of Christ are obligated to conform to the divine plan and even they obligate themselves by choice and by confession of a desire to be like Jesus.
Thus, in sum, Christian economics is not about how to organize the global economy but about how the Christian is to live in obedience to the Father.
If that is understood, then the next posts on Christian economics will be seen in a new light, with a peculiar view and a different purpose.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Education
Growing up in the spiritual world is similar to growing up in the material world in the sense that you start out young, lacking knowledge and experience, and in need of care and protection. In the Spirit, God is our parent and the members of the Church are our siblings.
God assumes responsibility for our care and education - duties he then delegates to one extent or another, to our brothers and sisters.
We, in return, are to be loyal and diligent, looking to our Lord for direction and to our spiritual family for edification and fellowship.
Similarly, just as the physical child gains wisdom and understanding as he develops intellectual maturity, acquires information and experiences the several common and uncommon life events, so too does the spiritual child grow and develop through study and spiritual interaction.
Recognizing that spiritual growth is a process that takes time and demands dedicated effort with education is vital to the Christian fellowship. We should no more expect that a new believer have the discernment and understanding of an older Christian than we would expect a three-year-old to operate a car like a fifty-year-old adult would.
Spiritual growth is also dependent on the relationship between the individual believer and the Godhead. Data flows and rote memorization are dry and lifeless without the inspiration of the Christian by the Spirit of God.
Because understanding and discernment become more complete and more acute as the believer grows and learns, it is reasonable to expeect that young believers will have simpler, less-developed theologies than older believers. New Christians will not perceive the spiritual natures of people nor the nature of the spirit informing events as readily as a more mature Christian. Thus it is not surprising that as we grow up in the Spirit we will find that people, acts, events, or things once viewed as benign or even acceptable in previous times may one day, perhaps in a sudden flash, be recognized as a temptation or a source of evil.
Spiritual immaturity is blindness.
Those of us who are further along in our spiritual life are as obligated to bringing light to the believers oppressed by the darkness of this material world as we are to shining the light of Christ into the physical world at large.
God assumes responsibility for our care and education - duties he then delegates to one extent or another, to our brothers and sisters.
We, in return, are to be loyal and diligent, looking to our Lord for direction and to our spiritual family for edification and fellowship.
Similarly, just as the physical child gains wisdom and understanding as he develops intellectual maturity, acquires information and experiences the several common and uncommon life events, so too does the spiritual child grow and develop through study and spiritual interaction.
Recognizing that spiritual growth is a process that takes time and demands dedicated effort with education is vital to the Christian fellowship. We should no more expect that a new believer have the discernment and understanding of an older Christian than we would expect a three-year-old to operate a car like a fifty-year-old adult would.
Spiritual growth is also dependent on the relationship between the individual believer and the Godhead. Data flows and rote memorization are dry and lifeless without the inspiration of the Christian by the Spirit of God.
Because understanding and discernment become more complete and more acute as the believer grows and learns, it is reasonable to expeect that young believers will have simpler, less-developed theologies than older believers. New Christians will not perceive the spiritual natures of people nor the nature of the spirit informing events as readily as a more mature Christian. Thus it is not surprising that as we grow up in the Spirit we will find that people, acts, events, or things once viewed as benign or even acceptable in previous times may one day, perhaps in a sudden flash, be recognized as a temptation or a source of evil.
Spiritual immaturity is blindness.
Those of us who are further along in our spiritual life are as obligated to bringing light to the believers oppressed by the darkness of this material world as we are to shining the light of Christ into the physical world at large.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Infiltration
Those of us born in the post-war era (so-called boomers) are unacquainted with the actual practice of the many unique concepts imbedded into the nascent nation following the Revolutionary War - ideas which the Founders attempted to make actual principles of governance. Each succeeding generation drifted further off the foundation to the degree that today's nation has completely lost contact with it.
In case you may be unfamiliar with the fundamental principles underlying the philosophy of our republican system, they were stated in the Declaration of Independence:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, 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. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security
Not a complex philosophy. One could restate this; but it could not be said more eloquently.
Sadly, in this day, to take the position of the Declaration, even to believe in the principles upon which this nation was built, principles derived from the Christian philosophy, at the least, is not to be acting with honor in the eyes of this and previous regimes, but is defined as unpatriotic, if not outright treason.
How horrified would Jefferson, Madison, Washington, be to see what we have become - not surprized as they knew how fragile the balance was and many warned, even predicted these very moments.
In case you may be unfamiliar with the fundamental principles underlying the philosophy of our republican system, they were stated in the Declaration of Independence:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, 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. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security
Not a complex philosophy. One could restate this; but it could not be said more eloquently.
Sadly, in this day, to take the position of the Declaration, even to believe in the principles upon which this nation was built, principles derived from the Christian philosophy, at the least, is not to be acting with honor in the eyes of this and previous regimes, but is defined as unpatriotic, if not outright treason.
How horrified would Jefferson, Madison, Washington, be to see what we have become - not surprized as they knew how fragile the balance was and many warned, even predicted these very moments.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Blessing
Some of us are going to be called to martyrdom...prison and death are near for a few. Now is the day to be sure of your calling. Do not desire to be a martyr; rather pray that you may be a vessel for the gospel and be bold. To die is to be blessed - to live is to be a blessing. Long to bless those around you. Ask Jesus what it is you are to be about and get busy. The time is short and the fields are white.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
For one walking by faith and not by sight, it would be very easy to see spooks behind every rock and tree along the trail...and there may be, in a manner of speaking, as we know we are, each of us, solitary lights in a world of darkness. But the evil lurking and stalking us comes from the other dimensions and is merely channeled through human beings.
I used to say that we blamed far too much of the blackness of this world on Satan and his crew; now I realize that it is not possible to attach too much blame to the fallen ones. Those rebellious angels never rest in the seeding of their intentions into the minds of men. In fact, I have come to believe that not enough recognition is given to the successful infiltration of satanic philosophy and traditions into all arenas of human society.
All of us are corrupted, but most of us are not manifestly evil. The greater number of people are not inclined to devious, destructive behavior (except as regards ourselves) and are, in the main, friendly, at times compassionate, and non-violent. Unfortunately, we are also selfish, greedy and lazy - and therein is where the problem lays.
As Paul has said, we all have a knowledge of God, and we deliberately, knowingly act against that knowledge when we choose to align ourselves with the world system to any degree. It truly is black and white, yes or no, right or wrong.
Either you, and I, are with God or you are against God.
I used to say that we blamed far too much of the blackness of this world on Satan and his crew; now I realize that it is not possible to attach too much blame to the fallen ones. Those rebellious angels never rest in the seeding of their intentions into the minds of men. In fact, I have come to believe that not enough recognition is given to the successful infiltration of satanic philosophy and traditions into all arenas of human society.
All of us are corrupted, but most of us are not manifestly evil. The greater number of people are not inclined to devious, destructive behavior (except as regards ourselves) and are, in the main, friendly, at times compassionate, and non-violent. Unfortunately, we are also selfish, greedy and lazy - and therein is where the problem lays.
As Paul has said, we all have a knowledge of God, and we deliberately, knowingly act against that knowledge when we choose to align ourselves with the world system to any degree. It truly is black and white, yes or no, right or wrong.
Either you, and I, are with God or you are against God.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
In But Not Of...
After a period of forced silence, I return with a refined message.
Separation.
The Lord wants us to understand what separation means; how we are to understand and live in separation.
The first understanding is to know that God has created, is creating and will create all that exists in the moment of the bereshith of His choice to make and remake the universe. Because creation is in the mind of the Lord, spoken forth through His Word, implemented by His Spirit is and always is, that which He purposed is already accomplished.
In simple linear terms, the future is set, the outcome assured, the battles won.
We cannot see with our limited physical senses on up the timeline, however, with the spiritual senses of the regenerated mind we may see that Babylon the Great has fallen...and we should rejoice to see that day.
Thus we are separated from the world for what they see as destruction we know to be regeneration, the renewal promised from the beginning, the salvation given before we are born.
We are separate in Spirit and cannot be united with the spirit of this world. Our spirit is with the Spirit and we know who is of this world and who is of His Spirit.
We must recognize this separation - those on the other side do. That is why they play with you, tease you, persecute you and kill you. The world knows who, and what, you are...it is His will that you recognize as well.
We owe no loyalty to the world and to the spirit of the fallen. This is why Paul says all things are permissible: we could legitimately take spoils of the conquered without guilt. The reason we do not is because all the riches and materials of this world are meaningless and tainted and we reject them for the eternal reward of the promise...as Paul says...not all are expedient. We desire only that which enhances.
If we are aware that we are separate and not of this world and that our citizenship is in another land (a land far away and yet among us), we are no longer concerned with the worries of this land. Our only interest here is to remain separate and to find our fellow citizens of the Kingdom.
In this is the instruction on how to interact with this world: give to them only what is theirs and only what is not opposed to the requirements of our land and leave them to themselves. Wait on orders from our King.
Separation.
The Lord wants us to understand what separation means; how we are to understand and live in separation.
The first understanding is to know that God has created, is creating and will create all that exists in the moment of the bereshith of His choice to make and remake the universe. Because creation is in the mind of the Lord, spoken forth through His Word, implemented by His Spirit is and always is, that which He purposed is already accomplished.
In simple linear terms, the future is set, the outcome assured, the battles won.
We cannot see with our limited physical senses on up the timeline, however, with the spiritual senses of the regenerated mind we may see that Babylon the Great has fallen...and we should rejoice to see that day.
Thus we are separated from the world for what they see as destruction we know to be regeneration, the renewal promised from the beginning, the salvation given before we are born.
We are separate in Spirit and cannot be united with the spirit of this world. Our spirit is with the Spirit and we know who is of this world and who is of His Spirit.
We must recognize this separation - those on the other side do. That is why they play with you, tease you, persecute you and kill you. The world knows who, and what, you are...it is His will that you recognize as well.
We owe no loyalty to the world and to the spirit of the fallen. This is why Paul says all things are permissible: we could legitimately take spoils of the conquered without guilt. The reason we do not is because all the riches and materials of this world are meaningless and tainted and we reject them for the eternal reward of the promise...as Paul says...not all are expedient. We desire only that which enhances.
If we are aware that we are separate and not of this world and that our citizenship is in another land (a land far away and yet among us), we are no longer concerned with the worries of this land. Our only interest here is to remain separate and to find our fellow citizens of the Kingdom.
In this is the instruction on how to interact with this world: give to them only what is theirs and only what is not opposed to the requirements of our land and leave them to themselves. Wait on orders from our King.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Separation
Materialism, legalism, worldliness.
The manners of the pulpits persistently warn us to be wary of these traps. "Don't let the world pull you in," they warn us, "Don't be judgemental (fill the plate)."
They lie.
But, don't judge. The ministers of deceit have a job to do.
Materialism is everywhere and subtle in its strategy.
Do you have debt? Gotcha. How about your credit rating...do you know your score? Gotcha. Upgrading? Remodeling?
Do you rely on God for the electric bill? or are you on a budget?
What are you going to do when the Father says to give your money to the family on the corner? Argue with Him?
You want the rewards of a life of faith?
Give it all away and watch the Lord replenish ... I dare you!
The manners of the pulpits persistently warn us to be wary of these traps. "Don't let the world pull you in," they warn us, "Don't be judgemental (fill the plate)."
They lie.
But, don't judge. The ministers of deceit have a job to do.
Materialism is everywhere and subtle in its strategy.
Do you have debt? Gotcha. How about your credit rating...do you know your score? Gotcha. Upgrading? Remodeling?
Do you rely on God for the electric bill? or are you on a budget?
What are you going to do when the Father says to give your money to the family on the corner? Argue with Him?
You want the rewards of a life of faith?
Give it all away and watch the Lord replenish ... I dare you!
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
And Another Thing...
While I am on a soapbox, let me add one more item:
If there is a church out there wherein a member is going to bed hungry or living in a shelter or suffering from abuse and that congregation has not worked to the limits of their ability to resolve these needs, then that is a failed church.
If you say, we did not know, then further shame on you.
I have grown weary of the endless campaigns for political positions and sniping at the opinions of others while two pews back, one of yours is in pain.
If the churches had done their job, there would be no socialism rampant today.
That's right, Mr. Christian...I blame you!
Repent now and fall on your face before an almighty God!
If there is a church out there wherein a member is going to bed hungry or living in a shelter or suffering from abuse and that congregation has not worked to the limits of their ability to resolve these needs, then that is a failed church.
If you say, we did not know, then further shame on you.
I have grown weary of the endless campaigns for political positions and sniping at the opinions of others while two pews back, one of yours is in pain.
If the churches had done their job, there would be no socialism rampant today.
That's right, Mr. Christian...I blame you!
Repent now and fall on your face before an almighty God!
A Short Word
I will second that!
As if Zeph needed a word from me, but let me shoot out a confirming thought on the last audio.I have been quite uncomfortable with the survivalist meme growing among the underground church - awhile back I told an aquaitance who is building a compound in an isolated area that he was building his and his family's coffins, because the NWO would find them and target them.More importantly, to think you could outlast the world, store enough wheat and weapons, and ride out the tribulation - what a silly notion!If God can protect us from poison and vipers, can He not keep us safe from chemtrails and MSG?It is time we lambs decided to put our whole trust in Christ no matter the outcome.Listen for His voice, let Him tell you what to do. If He says to put in food for the neighbors, then we seem to be able to do that. But, if He says to sell it all and follow Him to Duluth or stay put and wait on Him...well that seems much harder.Hiding in the hills is not faith - we are to be ready to minister and be bold.The time is for prayers for strength and compassion, courage and mercy.With all that most of us have experienced, the coming tribulation will be like old times.Pray for me; I will pray for you!
As if Zeph needed a word from me, but let me shoot out a confirming thought on the last audio.I have been quite uncomfortable with the survivalist meme growing among the underground church - awhile back I told an aquaitance who is building a compound in an isolated area that he was building his and his family's coffins, because the NWO would find them and target them.More importantly, to think you could outlast the world, store enough wheat and weapons, and ride out the tribulation - what a silly notion!If God can protect us from poison and vipers, can He not keep us safe from chemtrails and MSG?It is time we lambs decided to put our whole trust in Christ no matter the outcome.Listen for His voice, let Him tell you what to do. If He says to put in food for the neighbors, then we seem to be able to do that. But, if He says to sell it all and follow Him to Duluth or stay put and wait on Him...well that seems much harder.Hiding in the hills is not faith - we are to be ready to minister and be bold.The time is for prayers for strength and compassion, courage and mercy.With all that most of us have experienced, the coming tribulation will be like old times.Pray for me; I will pray for you!
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Sacrifice?!
President-elect Obama says there will need to be sacrifices...what do you think that means?
I just bet there will be - don't you?
I just bet there will be - don't you?
Friday, January 9, 2009
Double-Cross
Just wondering...
What if the New World Order, the Fascist/socialist government structure we all see building around us, is not the real end-game. What if it is a double-cross.
The socialist elitists get their wish and, for all practical purposes, gain world-wide control of the governments and the economics and the disaster beginning now keeps growing and growing and growing and everyone, even the elites figure out the plans have failed.
Then, with every aspect of human life seemingly at the lowest possible point, voila!, up steps a messiah who, with signs and wonders, promises to restore the world to the good old days of prosperity and apparent liberty.
Of course, to begin with, to appease the masses, the old elites are destroyed (some of them anyway), peace reigns, the markets begin to work, and then he springs the trap.
Just thinking...
What if the New World Order, the Fascist/socialist government structure we all see building around us, is not the real end-game. What if it is a double-cross.
The socialist elitists get their wish and, for all practical purposes, gain world-wide control of the governments and the economics and the disaster beginning now keeps growing and growing and growing and everyone, even the elites figure out the plans have failed.
Then, with every aspect of human life seemingly at the lowest possible point, voila!, up steps a messiah who, with signs and wonders, promises to restore the world to the good old days of prosperity and apparent liberty.
Of course, to begin with, to appease the masses, the old elites are destroyed (some of them anyway), peace reigns, the markets begin to work, and then he springs the trap.
Just thinking...
Christ is Life
Sometime, some how, you think the incessant pounding could stop - just a break, a respite. No wonder Paul said that for him death was gain, but living was Christ. He had to be dependent for every breath; Christ had to breathe for him.
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