My father, William LaBarge, was a fighter pilot during WWII, flying Spitfires out of Northern Africa. After 6 months of combat his war ended in December of 1944 when he was shot down over the Mediterranean Sea, barely surviving a bailout at 400 feet during a snowstorm with winds at 25 mph.
Flying combat missions in WWII was extremely dangerous . While he was there his unit experienced a casualty rate of 150%. Rookie pilots were the most likely not to make it and the veterans would usually wait a couple of weeks before they would even try to get to know the new guy. Just as in the book Catch 22, a pilot had to complete a certain number of missions before they could get transferred out. The number was 50 when my father started and bumped up to 80 missions later on. Bill did not know one person who achieved that.
Here are three stories my dad wrote later in his life about the war which reflect not just the dangers but also the craziness of it all.
GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE
Early in 1943 I was flying P 39's out of Santa Rosa, California. Five of us had been told that we were being sent over to North Africa as replacements. We also were told that we could fly as much as we wanted until our orders came.
The P 39 was made for strafing and dive bombing. Neither of these were habit-forming occupations. One Friday I led a flight of three planes and we flew down to San Francisco. We flew under the Golden Gage Bridge and then put a real buzz job on the Navy ships in the harbor. (The three of us were married and were hoping we would be grounded so we could spend more time with our wives until our orders came).
Strangely, nothing happened and that night Eileen and I drove down to San Francisco for the weekend. My uncle , Vincent LaBarge, lived in Berkley (across the bay from San Francisco), and we were having dinner at his house. Who was also there, but my uncle, the Navy Commander. He said, "Bill, what are you flying?" "P 39's, sir." "Well", he said, "I'm sure it wasn't you, but three 39 's put a buzz job on me today, and those damn fools were below me and I was on the bridge. It must have been that yellow nosed squadron out of Oakland. Those ships are full of ammunition", he said. "I have the whole squadron out on the ramp, standing at attention until the guilty ones confess".
I almost choked, and when I looked at Eileen, she was looking in her lap, trying not to grin. I said, "I'm sure they didn't know you were full of ammunition". I didn't know what he would have done if he had known it was me, and I sure wasn't going to find out!
FIGHTER TRAINING BASE, AFRICA
When we arrived in Africa we were sent to a distribution center for fighter planes. There were P 40 's, P 39's and P 38's and Spit Fires. We soon learned that the P 39 was a real dog compared to the other fighter planes. We were based about 20 miles outside of Casablanca. They had a rule that you must not dog fight under 10,000 ft.
One day while flying alone I was hopped by two P 38's at about 10,000 feet. I couldn't out turn them so my only chance was to hit the deck. While trying to get away my head set came off. Suddenly I realized I was shaking the P 38. I put on my headset and heard, "The P 38's and P39 that have been dog fighting on the deck land immediately".
When I landed and parked the plane there was an M P and another Officer waiting. I was informed that I was under arrest and to go to my tent and await further instructions.
Shortly a general assembly was announced and we all went to see what was going to happen. The C.O. was very dramatic. He told about a pilot that had crashed about a week ago and his parents were just getting a telegram announcing the news. It had happened because he was disobeying orders. He said that the pilots on the base would never again have to look at us as we would never again fly for Uncle Sam. He said we would be court marshaled and sent home in disgrace. Then he said that the three of us should decide how we wanted to be punished and report to his tent when we decided.
Needless to say, things didn't look too rosy. However, I thought anyone so dramatic as this C.O. might fall for a good story so what did I have to lose? So I went and knocked on his door. He said, "It didn't take you very long to make up your mind." "No Sir" said I. "What have you got to say for yourself?"
"Sir", it was all my fault. I was losing the dog fight as a P 39 cannot turn with a P 38. My only chance was to hit the deck. This desert all looks alike and I didn't realize I was over the field. Naturally they followed me. There is no reason to court marshal the P 38 pilots".
"My boy, I couldn't court marshal a man like you. It took a lot of guts to come in here and say what you did. Come over here and sit down. You stick with the 39's. At Kaserine Pass the Germans were coming thru in force. We sent 12 39's out in the morning and 3 came back. Ten more went out at noon and 2 came back. There are only 5 left. They went out and none came back, but they plugged the gap. You stick with that aircraft. But what will I tell the 38 pilots?" "I said, they are trained to be killers. Don't do anything to them".
About a half an hour later the 38 pilots came by the tent. They said said they didn't know what I told the C.O. but it must have been good. Later they came back with a bottle of good Scotch.
The next morning I went out and transferred to Spit Fires.
EARLY MORNING
One day I was scheduled on an early morning recon flight with flight officer Montgomery. We had information that something was going on around Cannes and were supposed to check it out. We flew over on the deck so the radar wouldn't pick us up. We flew right into the harbor and it was absolutely quiet. But then all hell broke loose. They were not only shooting at us, but would lob shells into the water and the spouts were murder if you flew into one. Only my laundry man would know how scared I was. "They're mad at us Willie, let's get the hell out of here", came from Monty. Fortunately we got out without getting hit in a vital spot. When we landed back at Calvi, both Monty and I had from forty to fifty holes in our planes and while I was there neither plane was able to fly again.
When we were briefed afterwards the C.O. wanted to know what we saw. We said that all we saw were tracers and water spouts and there was no doubt something they didn't want us to see. Later we found out that Hitler was there on a yacht. That was never confirmed, but obviously, there was something they didn't want us to see.
Monty was one of the finest men I knew. He had the ability to lead the whole group into combat. If they had been able to get his promotion from flight officer to 2nd Lt. he would have been promoted to a least a Major as fast as possible. He had been shot down (mostly by flak) several times but always survived.
They tell the story about when he was in Naples on leave. He was stopped by a group of M.P's and had to show the color of the underwear he had on. Army regulations said everyone had to wear khaki colored underwear. Monty's underwear was white. This was a Major that stopped him and started to write up a penalty of some type. Monty grabbed him by his collar and actually shook him and said, "Sir, if you don't have anything better than this to do, why in the hell don't you go home!"
The following week Monty was killed in combat.
The week following that the C.O. received a letter from M.P headquarters in Naples instructing Captain Huston (he was our C.O. and should have been a light Col.) to court martial Flight Officer Montgomery for being disrespectful to a superior officer, etc. Captain Huston wrote back that he could not comply with request, Montgomery had been killed in action and he was putting him in for the D.F.C.
Monday, May 27, 2019
Monday, May 20, 2019
Abortion Questions
My soul aches
my body trembles
my sleep has been disturbed
this last week I have been sick with no relief
Thoughts of a judgment have flashed before my eyes
and the realization of their blindness overwhelms me
how they can support those who take innocent life
and remain hardened of heart to the Spirit of Life
And I wonder if those who should know better
who have had the Word opened before them
and the sacred boundary stones revealed
will they ever see with open eyes
Can old knees become calloused
can dark sins be forgiven
will mercy be received
and mercy given
my body trembles
my sleep has been disturbed
this last week I have been sick with no relief
Thoughts of a judgment have flashed before my eyes
and the realization of their blindness overwhelms me
how they can support those who take innocent life
and remain hardened of heart to the Spirit of Life
And I wonder if those who should know better
who have had the Word opened before them
and the sacred boundary stones revealed
will they ever see with open eyes
Can old knees become calloused
can dark sins be forgiven
will mercy be received
and mercy given
Tuesday, April 30, 2019
One Of The Reasons Vice President Biden Will Not Be The Next President
Is is right for someone while in a high political office to use that position to make or to enable financial deals that benefit themselves or their family?
Is it right for that person or group of people to make foreign policy decisions which result in them or their family having a direct financial benefit?
In 2011 Vice President Joe Biden took an official trip to China accompanied by his son. Hunter Biden had just formed an investment group in partnership with Secretary of State John Kerry's son-in-law and the son of famous mobster Whitey Bolger. Shortly afterwards the Chinese government funneled a deal worth 1.8 billion dollars to that new investment group. There was of course a quid quo pro which allowed Chinese investment for a 51% ownership in a company that produces goods for our military.
Hunter Biden was later put on the board of an Ukrainian oil company with Russian mob connections that paid his firm 3 million dollars. When that oil company came under investigation by Ukrainian officials Vice President Joe Biden flew to the Ukraine and threatened to pull a billion dollars of U.S. aid if they didn't fire the people engaged in that probe.
If you are actually interested in reading about the depth of corruption check out the articles below.
Here is a May 1st John Solomon's article in The Hill about the Bidens and Ukraine.
Here is a Zero Hedge article from last month on the same subject.
And here is a recent John Bolden article in The Hill on the Bidens and China.
Vice President Biden will have a lot of other stuff to worry about as we race toward the elections of 2020, but don't underestimate the importance of these.
Is it right for that person or group of people to make foreign policy decisions which result in them or their family having a direct financial benefit?
In 2011 Vice President Joe Biden took an official trip to China accompanied by his son. Hunter Biden had just formed an investment group in partnership with Secretary of State John Kerry's son-in-law and the son of famous mobster Whitey Bolger. Shortly afterwards the Chinese government funneled a deal worth 1.8 billion dollars to that new investment group. There was of course a quid quo pro which allowed Chinese investment for a 51% ownership in a company that produces goods for our military.
Hunter Biden was later put on the board of an Ukrainian oil company with Russian mob connections that paid his firm 3 million dollars. When that oil company came under investigation by Ukrainian officials Vice President Joe Biden flew to the Ukraine and threatened to pull a billion dollars of U.S. aid if they didn't fire the people engaged in that probe.
If you are actually interested in reading about the depth of corruption check out the articles below.
Here is a May 1st John Solomon's article in The Hill about the Bidens and Ukraine.
Here is a Zero Hedge article from last month on the same subject.
And here is a recent John Bolden article in The Hill on the Bidens and China.
Vice President Biden will have a lot of other stuff to worry about as we race toward the elections of 2020, but don't underestimate the importance of these.
Sunday, April 28, 2019
The High Places
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12)
Yesterday while reading on-line a prophetic word, an image popped into my mind. It was only there for for a brief second but I knew right away what it represented and also what its meaning was.
The person had mentioned what has been commonly referred to as "the seven mountains of influence". The idea, first purposed in the 1970's by Bill Bright and Loren Cunningham (Campus Crusade for Christ) is that the enemy is trying to shape our society and culture by inserting his twisted ideas into and then dominating areas that affect each and every life.
These areas have been identified as - Family, Church, Education, Government, Media, Arts & Entertainment and Business.
You have to be spiritually blind not to notice or at least suspect that the enemy has taken a lot of territory during your life time over each of those areas. The family and even the definition of what family is has taken a serious hit. Many churches are now nothing more than social organizations with a 501c tax exemption, afraid to boldly speak out against sexual immorality, abortion and many other types of sin. Schools get more liberal each day. The vast majority of professors at colleges and universities, even at many Christian schools, lean not only liberal in their viewpoints but Marxist as well. Free speech and open discourse has given way to shouting down and safe spaces.
Time does not permit me to innumerate further on corruption in government, the extreme liberal bias of the press or the values presented every waking second electronically, across the air waves and in theaters. The regression in those areas in just the last decade has been breathtaking. Is there good in any of these? Yes, very much so. Are there more pitfalls appearing every day designed to ensnare you and me? You better believe it.
All of this combined makes one think that we as a country are on a sure path to judgment. The opposition to God's will seems too vast, too interwoven, too far gone for anyone or any group to change even a little. Compromise comes little by little, step by step and our views become with each step down not to radically change things but rather to hold on to what little we can. We almost seem resigned to form together in little groups and then watch while the world burns. We want to have hope for the future but we also earnestly pray - Come quickly Lord Jesus!
In the last decade there have arisen intercessory groups who are in constant prayer for our nation (and other nations as well) who specifically target those spheres of societal influence. People like Lou Engle, Dutch Sheets and Chuck Pierce come to mind, traveling to every U.S. state, training and organizing intercessors, holding large city wide conferences, speaking boldly the Word of God to tear down enemy strongholds.
I believe God is saying to us today that He is not yet through with America. He desires to have before He returns a great harvest of souls. And for that purpose He desires to reverse, for a season (I do not know how long that season will be) much of what the enemy has been accomplishing over the last several decades. I am also sensing that it is God's will not to just stem the tide and hold back the waters of rebellion but that He wants those areas of rebellion defeated, destroyed and annihilated.
This of course will not initially be pretty. It will be a battle, albeit one with the supernatural help of God on our side. There will be great opposition with each victory and many things will not look the way they did before, including our churches. Those who are lukewarm will need to make decisions and many will not choose wisely.
The prophecy I read talked about speaking out against ruling powers in high places over the seven mountains of influence. As I read it I saw a picture of a part of a town. There was a large and very black scaffold like structure erected from the ground that rose up and over the city. All the beams looked charcoal black, like they were made of wood that had survived a fire.
It was only there for a flash but I knew that it represented the spiritual high places over each area of influence. I think we, each as God directs us, are called to be intercessors to come against ruling spirits in the high places, to declare those spirits to be bound and for God to release His angels to defeat and remove those foul creatures. Our authority as followers of Christ has been granted us through the shed blood of Jesus.
Let us not remain discouraged but rather go forth boldly in the name of Jesus to rebuke and bind the works and lies of the evil one. We have won! They have lost! We have won! They have lost! We have won! May it all be for the glory of God.
Below is a poem I wrote about this.
In High Places
It was a type of scaffolding
tall, black, burnt out looking posts
connected by more of the same, dark, ugly beams
interspersed throughout an ordinary looking town
They overshadowed pleasant homes, busy businesses
neighborhood schools, eating places, entertainment venues
radio stations, churches, parks and the old city hall
those occupants seemingly unaware of the structure
On top dark shadows contrasted against blue sky
in constant motion, side to side, up and down
their forms like rancid smoke from burning tires
some descending into lungs of those below
I despaired when first noticing this horrendous edifice
was shocked as it continued to grow wider and higher
when I yelled warning the people went about their business
traffic continued to flow smoothly on path and road
One unexpected Spring, after many years of anxious prayer
the air stilled, temperature dropped, snow fell straight down
everything covered with thick layers of white
a voice boomed from side to side across the valley
Vibrations from the sound frightened darting wisps
as platforms shook they tumbled down and scurried away
then one after another, those platforms came crashing down
crushing into dust much of what was built below
From midst of the haze came forth a new song
drowning out weeping and gnashing of teeth
mountains sent strong winds to freshen the air
latter rains from which sprung forth new gathering places
Watchmen with authority were placed round and about
to teach and declare, to warn and to sweep away the rubble
gardens full of fresh flowers and delicious fruits were planted
then shared in celebration with every neighbor
Thus it continued for several more years
barns and storage houses were filled and then dispersed
when troubles began all high places were clear
and remained so until the last sound of a trumpet
Yesterday while reading on-line a prophetic word, an image popped into my mind. It was only there for for a brief second but I knew right away what it represented and also what its meaning was.
The person had mentioned what has been commonly referred to as "the seven mountains of influence". The idea, first purposed in the 1970's by Bill Bright and Loren Cunningham (Campus Crusade for Christ) is that the enemy is trying to shape our society and culture by inserting his twisted ideas into and then dominating areas that affect each and every life.
These areas have been identified as - Family, Church, Education, Government, Media, Arts & Entertainment and Business.
You have to be spiritually blind not to notice or at least suspect that the enemy has taken a lot of territory during your life time over each of those areas. The family and even the definition of what family is has taken a serious hit. Many churches are now nothing more than social organizations with a 501c tax exemption, afraid to boldly speak out against sexual immorality, abortion and many other types of sin. Schools get more liberal each day. The vast majority of professors at colleges and universities, even at many Christian schools, lean not only liberal in their viewpoints but Marxist as well. Free speech and open discourse has given way to shouting down and safe spaces.
Time does not permit me to innumerate further on corruption in government, the extreme liberal bias of the press or the values presented every waking second electronically, across the air waves and in theaters. The regression in those areas in just the last decade has been breathtaking. Is there good in any of these? Yes, very much so. Are there more pitfalls appearing every day designed to ensnare you and me? You better believe it.
All of this combined makes one think that we as a country are on a sure path to judgment. The opposition to God's will seems too vast, too interwoven, too far gone for anyone or any group to change even a little. Compromise comes little by little, step by step and our views become with each step down not to radically change things but rather to hold on to what little we can. We almost seem resigned to form together in little groups and then watch while the world burns. We want to have hope for the future but we also earnestly pray - Come quickly Lord Jesus!
In the last decade there have arisen intercessory groups who are in constant prayer for our nation (and other nations as well) who specifically target those spheres of societal influence. People like Lou Engle, Dutch Sheets and Chuck Pierce come to mind, traveling to every U.S. state, training and organizing intercessors, holding large city wide conferences, speaking boldly the Word of God to tear down enemy strongholds.
I believe God is saying to us today that He is not yet through with America. He desires to have before He returns a great harvest of souls. And for that purpose He desires to reverse, for a season (I do not know how long that season will be) much of what the enemy has been accomplishing over the last several decades. I am also sensing that it is God's will not to just stem the tide and hold back the waters of rebellion but that He wants those areas of rebellion defeated, destroyed and annihilated.
This of course will not initially be pretty. It will be a battle, albeit one with the supernatural help of God on our side. There will be great opposition with each victory and many things will not look the way they did before, including our churches. Those who are lukewarm will need to make decisions and many will not choose wisely.
The prophecy I read talked about speaking out against ruling powers in high places over the seven mountains of influence. As I read it I saw a picture of a part of a town. There was a large and very black scaffold like structure erected from the ground that rose up and over the city. All the beams looked charcoal black, like they were made of wood that had survived a fire.
It was only there for a flash but I knew that it represented the spiritual high places over each area of influence. I think we, each as God directs us, are called to be intercessors to come against ruling spirits in the high places, to declare those spirits to be bound and for God to release His angels to defeat and remove those foul creatures. Our authority as followers of Christ has been granted us through the shed blood of Jesus.
Let us not remain discouraged but rather go forth boldly in the name of Jesus to rebuke and bind the works and lies of the evil one. We have won! They have lost! We have won! They have lost! We have won! May it all be for the glory of God.
Below is a poem I wrote about this.
In High Places
It was a type of scaffolding
tall, black, burnt out looking posts
connected by more of the same, dark, ugly beams
interspersed throughout an ordinary looking town
They overshadowed pleasant homes, busy businesses
neighborhood schools, eating places, entertainment venues
radio stations, churches, parks and the old city hall
those occupants seemingly unaware of the structure
On top dark shadows contrasted against blue sky
in constant motion, side to side, up and down
their forms like rancid smoke from burning tires
some descending into lungs of those below
I despaired when first noticing this horrendous edifice
was shocked as it continued to grow wider and higher
when I yelled warning the people went about their business
traffic continued to flow smoothly on path and road
One unexpected Spring, after many years of anxious prayer
the air stilled, temperature dropped, snow fell straight down
everything covered with thick layers of white
a voice boomed from side to side across the valley
Vibrations from the sound frightened darting wisps
as platforms shook they tumbled down and scurried away
then one after another, those platforms came crashing down
crushing into dust much of what was built below
From midst of the haze came forth a new song
drowning out weeping and gnashing of teeth
mountains sent strong winds to freshen the air
latter rains from which sprung forth new gathering places
Watchmen with authority were placed round and about
to teach and declare, to warn and to sweep away the rubble
gardens full of fresh flowers and delicious fruits were planted
then shared in celebration with every neighbor
Thus it continued for several more years
barns and storage houses were filled and then dispersed
when troubles began all high places were clear
and remained so until the last sound of a trumpet
Wednesday, April 17, 2019
Using The Spiritual Authority God Has Given You
One of the earliest statements of the Charismatic Renewal, to address the fear that being filled with the Holy Spirit will somehow make us do things we don't want to do, is that the Holy Spirit is a gentleman. He does not force Himself on anyone. He will not make you do anything you don't want to do. He is not going to send you to be a missionary in Africa if that is not your desire.
The Holy Spirit does not give us a new personality. What He does do is make who we are a better who we are. He changes our desires. He gives us a greater hunger to be more Christlike and to experience more of the presence of God. We stop engaging in the same old patterns of sin, not because of law but because it now grieves us to do so. We start worshiping more (like throughout the day) because it gives us joy and that's just what happens. Reading the Bible (although always a discipline) becomes fun because the words seem to jump off the page and they now speak to the deepest parts of our being.
So it should be no surprise that if you have a sense of humor then you will find out that God does as well. In fact He LOVES to demonstrate (if you watch for it) just how awesome He is in ways that just make you shake your head.
Let me give you three examples. The third is my teaching for today.
When my youngest daughter Becky was going to college in Milwaukee we would talk a lot about spiritual things via email, phone or when she came home. One Spring Becky was at our house in the woods and she quoted a Scripture verse by giving me the initial few important words and then indicated there was more to the verse by ending with "blah, blah, blah". Teasing her I replied: "Becky, are you blah blahing God!" "Don't worry Dad", Becky said, "Gods got a sense of humor and He always gets me back."
A little later we are going out for a walk and as we begin she notices yellow dandelions in our yard and says something like - 'those sure must be a pain in the rear'. We get about a half mile in and up ahead of us is an old couple. As we approach the old man wanders to the edge of the woods, leans over and picks something, then walks over to Becky with a nice bouquet of dandelions. Smiling he says; "Here, I picked these just for you". Becky looks at me, I look at her, she shakes her head and says; "What did I tell you?"
I watched a video by Dutch Sheets today. Dutch is one of the main leaders in the intercessory prayer ministry movement for our country. He was giving examples showing that we are now entering a major move of God in our land. In one of those he told about being at the end of a church service he spoke at and they were going to have a free will offering for the speaker. People started coming to the front to place their offering in a box. There was one young girl who he had noticed during the worship time and she came forward with a plastic baggie filled with change, only she didn't place it in the box. Instead she went directly to him and gave him the bag.
Dutch thought that was very sweet, thanked her, said there was about five dollars in the bag that she must have been saving up and was quite touched by it. The next week comes, different church, different person, but someone gives him a baggie filled with change. Now this starts to get his attention. In 35 years of ministry there are the first two times he has been given a bag of change. The same thing happens two more times in the next two weeks.
This starts to drive Dutch Sheets crazy. This must be God, there must be some meaning to it but he can't figure it out. One night he is praying about it and finally it just pops in his brain. He said it was like God saying - Is it that hard to figure out? Change is coming.
A week ago I have a dream just before its time to get up for the day. I thought it was pretty funny so I told Jackie and then shared it on Facebook. Then I get a few comments. One friend agreed with me and thought it was really funny. But another asks, have I thought about any possible interpretations? And yet another asks, is this like a public prophetic word given that you don't provide an interpretation for?
Well, think I, I do have a book on Christian dream interpretation so I might as well check it out, pray a bit, and see if the dream goes anywhere beyond funny. So here is the dream followed by what I believe God actually was teaching me through it.
I am in a back yard somewhere which is filled with people sitting around a bunch of round tables. President Trump comes forward from a table in the back and meets me up front where we are going to play a game. There is a white wall about 20 feet in front of us and the object of the game is to take a metal folding chair and toss it with one hand toward the wall, trying to stick the chair on the wall. If the chair sticks in a scoring area you get a point. The President throws first, sticks his chair, but it is low of a scoring position. I toss mine and it sticks in a scoring position.
On his next toss the President sticks his chair, but it lands high, half in a scoring position and half out. From the top of the chair come forth a bouquet of flowers. I stick my next toss in a scoring position. We each throw a couple more, some stick, some don't and we are down to the last round and I am ahead. However there is a man on the top of the wall and he jiggles the wall which causes the President's high toss to go lower into scoring position.
Trump gives the guy a nasty look then tosses his last chair wide of the wall so as not to take advantage of what happened. I tell him that it wasn't a problem and insist he take another toss. So President Trump makes someone get out of their chair, takes the chair and whips it hard against the wall, trying to knock one or two of mine off. The chair misses my chairs, bounces hard off the wall and comes back at us. Trump is in front of me. He jumps, I jump, the chair flies under our feet and passes between the tables. We look at each other and both smile like - that was close. Then I hear a beep, beep, beep which sounds like a garbage truck on a road next to us. The beep, beep happens to be my alarm clock and I wake up.
Symbols in dreams usually have several meanings. The meaning I am providing here are what struck a cord with me. When I checked them out it became quite clear that there was a definite theme and story to the dream that I believe God was showing me. I believe that the teaching here was for me personally but that there certainly are aspects that apply to all believers.
According to the book a yard is a place where I have authority. A chair is a position of authority. The right arm (with which I tossed the chair) indicates an area that I have authority over. Do you notice a theme here? Tables and chairs indicates a place I receive teaching from. Persons in a dream can represent the actual person but usually represent something else. Usually in a dream the President represents God, which makes sense here.
So the theme is that God is teaching me (or you) by the game that we were playing how to use spiritual authority in the areas that have been assigned to us. An interesting meaning for wall is that it represents faithful people joined as a barrier to evil. God's first toss against the wall was low. Low represents humility or being humbled. We should exert the authority God has given us from a position of humility. God's next toss was partly high and flowers came out of the chair. Flowers represent blessings or gifts and high means toward God.
This of course is one of the most basic principles of all. Whenever exercising any of the spiritual gifts, or using spiritual authority for that matter, we need to keep our eyes on Him. If shaking or resistance comes and we took away it's like the chair being tossed wide. Wide means the way of the world. The gifts and blessing decline and the authority doesn't stick. Shaking can also represent the removal of things that need to be removed which is the purpose for using spiritual authority.
God was showing me by the chair ricocheted off the wall that there will at times be great resistance when using our spiritual authority. He was in front of me, when He jumped I jumped, the chair missed us and we both smiled. We should expect a blow back at times but God will always be there with us as our protection. We should expect it but not worry. It's just part of the game.
Pray about the areas where God has or will give you the authority to combat the things of the world, flesh and the devil. If you are a believer and have yielded to the power of the Holy Spirit in your life you have that authority. Change is coming. I believe we are entering an age where we will be like Paul who said in 1 Corinthians 2: 4-5;
my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstrations of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men but on the power of God.
The Holy Spirit does not give us a new personality. What He does do is make who we are a better who we are. He changes our desires. He gives us a greater hunger to be more Christlike and to experience more of the presence of God. We stop engaging in the same old patterns of sin, not because of law but because it now grieves us to do so. We start worshiping more (like throughout the day) because it gives us joy and that's just what happens. Reading the Bible (although always a discipline) becomes fun because the words seem to jump off the page and they now speak to the deepest parts of our being.
So it should be no surprise that if you have a sense of humor then you will find out that God does as well. In fact He LOVES to demonstrate (if you watch for it) just how awesome He is in ways that just make you shake your head.
Let me give you three examples. The third is my teaching for today.
When my youngest daughter Becky was going to college in Milwaukee we would talk a lot about spiritual things via email, phone or when she came home. One Spring Becky was at our house in the woods and she quoted a Scripture verse by giving me the initial few important words and then indicated there was more to the verse by ending with "blah, blah, blah". Teasing her I replied: "Becky, are you blah blahing God!" "Don't worry Dad", Becky said, "Gods got a sense of humor and He always gets me back."
A little later we are going out for a walk and as we begin she notices yellow dandelions in our yard and says something like - 'those sure must be a pain in the rear'. We get about a half mile in and up ahead of us is an old couple. As we approach the old man wanders to the edge of the woods, leans over and picks something, then walks over to Becky with a nice bouquet of dandelions. Smiling he says; "Here, I picked these just for you". Becky looks at me, I look at her, she shakes her head and says; "What did I tell you?"
I watched a video by Dutch Sheets today. Dutch is one of the main leaders in the intercessory prayer ministry movement for our country. He was giving examples showing that we are now entering a major move of God in our land. In one of those he told about being at the end of a church service he spoke at and they were going to have a free will offering for the speaker. People started coming to the front to place their offering in a box. There was one young girl who he had noticed during the worship time and she came forward with a plastic baggie filled with change, only she didn't place it in the box. Instead she went directly to him and gave him the bag.
Dutch thought that was very sweet, thanked her, said there was about five dollars in the bag that she must have been saving up and was quite touched by it. The next week comes, different church, different person, but someone gives him a baggie filled with change. Now this starts to get his attention. In 35 years of ministry there are the first two times he has been given a bag of change. The same thing happens two more times in the next two weeks.
This starts to drive Dutch Sheets crazy. This must be God, there must be some meaning to it but he can't figure it out. One night he is praying about it and finally it just pops in his brain. He said it was like God saying - Is it that hard to figure out? Change is coming.
A week ago I have a dream just before its time to get up for the day. I thought it was pretty funny so I told Jackie and then shared it on Facebook. Then I get a few comments. One friend agreed with me and thought it was really funny. But another asks, have I thought about any possible interpretations? And yet another asks, is this like a public prophetic word given that you don't provide an interpretation for?
Well, think I, I do have a book on Christian dream interpretation so I might as well check it out, pray a bit, and see if the dream goes anywhere beyond funny. So here is the dream followed by what I believe God actually was teaching me through it.
I am in a back yard somewhere which is filled with people sitting around a bunch of round tables. President Trump comes forward from a table in the back and meets me up front where we are going to play a game. There is a white wall about 20 feet in front of us and the object of the game is to take a metal folding chair and toss it with one hand toward the wall, trying to stick the chair on the wall. If the chair sticks in a scoring area you get a point. The President throws first, sticks his chair, but it is low of a scoring position. I toss mine and it sticks in a scoring position.
On his next toss the President sticks his chair, but it lands high, half in a scoring position and half out. From the top of the chair come forth a bouquet of flowers. I stick my next toss in a scoring position. We each throw a couple more, some stick, some don't and we are down to the last round and I am ahead. However there is a man on the top of the wall and he jiggles the wall which causes the President's high toss to go lower into scoring position.
Trump gives the guy a nasty look then tosses his last chair wide of the wall so as not to take advantage of what happened. I tell him that it wasn't a problem and insist he take another toss. So President Trump makes someone get out of their chair, takes the chair and whips it hard against the wall, trying to knock one or two of mine off. The chair misses my chairs, bounces hard off the wall and comes back at us. Trump is in front of me. He jumps, I jump, the chair flies under our feet and passes between the tables. We look at each other and both smile like - that was close. Then I hear a beep, beep, beep which sounds like a garbage truck on a road next to us. The beep, beep happens to be my alarm clock and I wake up.
Symbols in dreams usually have several meanings. The meaning I am providing here are what struck a cord with me. When I checked them out it became quite clear that there was a definite theme and story to the dream that I believe God was showing me. I believe that the teaching here was for me personally but that there certainly are aspects that apply to all believers.
According to the book a yard is a place where I have authority. A chair is a position of authority. The right arm (with which I tossed the chair) indicates an area that I have authority over. Do you notice a theme here? Tables and chairs indicates a place I receive teaching from. Persons in a dream can represent the actual person but usually represent something else. Usually in a dream the President represents God, which makes sense here.
So the theme is that God is teaching me (or you) by the game that we were playing how to use spiritual authority in the areas that have been assigned to us. An interesting meaning for wall is that it represents faithful people joined as a barrier to evil. God's first toss against the wall was low. Low represents humility or being humbled. We should exert the authority God has given us from a position of humility. God's next toss was partly high and flowers came out of the chair. Flowers represent blessings or gifts and high means toward God.
This of course is one of the most basic principles of all. Whenever exercising any of the spiritual gifts, or using spiritual authority for that matter, we need to keep our eyes on Him. If shaking or resistance comes and we took away it's like the chair being tossed wide. Wide means the way of the world. The gifts and blessing decline and the authority doesn't stick. Shaking can also represent the removal of things that need to be removed which is the purpose for using spiritual authority.
God was showing me by the chair ricocheted off the wall that there will at times be great resistance when using our spiritual authority. He was in front of me, when He jumped I jumped, the chair missed us and we both smiled. We should expect a blow back at times but God will always be there with us as our protection. We should expect it but not worry. It's just part of the game.
Pray about the areas where God has or will give you the authority to combat the things of the world, flesh and the devil. If you are a believer and have yielded to the power of the Holy Spirit in your life you have that authority. Change is coming. I believe we are entering an age where we will be like Paul who said in 1 Corinthians 2: 4-5;
my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstrations of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men but on the power of God.
Wednesday, March 20, 2019
Prophecies of Debra and Esther For America
The Jewish feast of Purim begins today in Israel. This post is about prophecies concerning women who, like Queen Esther did in Persia, will arise to great influence in our country. Women who will be instrumental in bringing about massive revival, racial healing and restoring the spiritual foundations of this land. But first let me start with an event this week that demonstrates part of the spiritual war that we currently are engaged in. A war that God will for His purpose use certain women to great effect.
Coverage of the recent massacre of 50 Muslims at a mosque at Christ Church, New Zeeland by the mainstream media is interesting in both how they got it wrong but also in what the evil one has planned for America. To be honest I have not actually read or watched any of that coverage but what I have heard about it sounds like the way I would have imagined, so you may correct me if I am wrong.
Analysis I have heard from conservative voices who had access to the killer's 70 page manifesto present this story. The Australian man who did the killing was a loner who like most mass killers was without a father figure since a young man. Although he had traveled widely his life was centered upon hate groups on the Internet. His religious and political beliefs were pagan reflecting his Ayrian theology that whites are the dominate race and there are certain lands allocated to whites that are intended for whites only. He liked President Trump only for his color but hated all of his policies except for certain parts regarding immigration. He considered himself an Eco-terrorist which is someone willing to do almost anything to enforce strict environmental laws and wanted a strong government (think National Socialism, the Nazi party, which also by the way was very big on the environment) to implement these beliefs. Thus his political views (except on immigration) did not reflect any of those by Christian Conservatives or the vast bulk of other Conservatives.
He had a definite, well thought out purpose for using guns instead of gas or bombs or vehicles to kill Muslims. It had little to do with their religious beliefs. He saw Muslims as non white, non native intruders with birthrates 4 times higher than whites and believed they would eventually become dominate in New Zeeland. That is why they were the target. He also believed that one day there would be a racial civil war in the United States and thought that his action would help contribute to an eventual action by those on the Left to confiscate all guns in America. Because most guns owners would not want to give up their guns that would be the trigger event leading to the hoped for racial civil war. This racial civil war would naturally be won by the whites and thus he would be considered in the halls of Valhalla a hero or a martyr to that grand victory.
I'm not too sure, on the networks and print media that have daily for the last dozen years been pushing upon us identity politics and trying to high-lite racial tensions, that you would have gotten this perspective. Identity politics has a pecking order. In the pecking order a person or group on a lower level cannot criticize anyone on a higher level. At the bottom of the pecking order are white male Christians. Strangely also somewhere near the bottom, despite thousand of years of hatred and murder directed against them, are the Jews. Both groups are now actually considered as oppressors.
Currently at the very top of the list (virtually impervious to criticism) are immigrant, black, female, Muslim congresswomen. Thus when one of those with a long history of virulent anti-Semitic associations and comments is called out yet again, the same woman who sat with a sneer on her face at the State of the Union address while a Holocaust survivor who also survived the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting was recognized with a standing ovation, the Left led House of Representatives cannot censor or even issue a direct condemnation of her anti-Semitic statements. Instead they come up with a broad, let's not hate anybody (then listing every possible identity group) piece of worthless tripe.
I'm also not sure that you would have seen from the main stream media a fraction or even any of the following stories that also happen during the same time frame, perhaps because of the same identity pecking order.
In Nigeria Muslims wiped out 12 villages of Christians, killing 280. In Egypt a Coptic church was bombed by Muslims, killing many. In Manila Muslims set off 2 bombs at a Catholic cathedral, killing 20 and wounding 111. In the Mid-East Muslims fired 10 rockets into Israel and a Muslim terrorist shot 2 Israelis, prompting the Palestinians to pass out candy to everyone. Iran's Muslim's military flew 50 armed drones in an exercise called Flight to Jerusalem.
The above is not meant to be anti-Muslim. It is just an example about how biased the main stream media chooses to be. They have either chosen sides or perhaps their owners are the real power brokers behind a particular side. Either way they actually are being used by the enemy to advance his plans to destroy our countries Judeo-Christian foundations and incite racial and identity hatred so as to weaken us enough that we will no longer be a force for evangelism in both our country and further out to the world.
Let there be no misunderstanding. The spiritual struggle we are currently engaged in, one that manifests itself in the natural, and God's intervention into our history, is really all about souls. I believe that there is a great world wide harvest of souls coming. It has already begun and is now beginning to swing into a higher gear. But it might not come without much prayer, without much spiritual warfare, without new Spirit led leaders, or within our comfort zones.
I believe there is a great shaking coming upon us and upon many of the nations of the world. The evil one has a plan with a time frame but so does God. And anyone with eyes to see and ears to hear should not miss some of the obvious signs that God have been giving us.
For the last couple of years I have been checking out a variety of people who have given prophetic words nationally and/or internationally. There are several who have been consistently accurate and whom I feel good about. I want to share with you parts of prophetic words from two of them which talk about women who will arise to great influence in our country.
The first prophet is a guy named Charlie Shamp. He has a prophetic ministry to the nations, publishes his prophetic words on his web site and one can easily access them to check out how accurate his words have been. This comes from a prophecy he had on 6/30/2018. He believes that when the next Supreme Court justice steps down (and I think he means during Trump's presidency) they will be replaced by a women whom he calls a Debra (He called Kavanaugh a Samuel) There will be tremendous opposition to her during the hearings but she will get in. Shamp says she will be very instrumental in shifting the court's stand away from abortion and will also become a champion for children.
He also has a prophecy, 9/26/17, about Kamala Harris which I will paraphrase for you.
She has been hand picked by some in power to be a bridge between East and West and a queen to try and trump Trump. They will set her on a course to make major waves in the country for awhile. She will realize they have used her as a pawn in a political game only to put forth a rook in an attempt to upset a king. The plan will fail, she will be broken. God will open her eyes and she will have a difficult choice - to become a bridge builder into enemy lines. In the end she will be remembered for the advancement of civil rights and economic justice among Americans.
In 2006 Kim Clement (who died a month after Trump was elected) started prophesying that Donald Trump would become President. Clement said that he would be both God's trumpet and a wrecking ball and he would raise a wall of protection for our country. He would not be a religious man but he would be a praying man. Then on 3/25/2011 he prophesied the following:
I see a president who shall come, and this is not to speak bad about this one . . . God says that he will absolutely have no fear. He will be decisive . . . and in the midst of the restoration of America . . . because of energy . . . because of medical breakthroughs . . . because of agreements between nations, especially China . . . God says at the beginning of the restoration there shall be a woman that rises up - a woman that shall be strong in faith; virtuous, beautiful eyes, and her eyes shall be so beautiful, her eyes shall be round and big. I have crowned her . . . as I crowned Esther. And the people shall receive her. She have have the oil of gladness for the pain and the mourning that has taken place . . and she shall pour out the oils . . on this nation.
God says they will say we hated her, but now we love her. For she shall take the oil of healing and she shall put it on the scars of those left and those right and on the new party that has come forth and emerged where they shall say, Christ will reign and we will not implement Socialism at all. Where they have said, we will make history without God. No, you will not , , , says the Lord. For I choose this nation before it was founded . . . to send my gospel to the entire earth. Do you think I have changed my mind? Therefore the healing that is needed for this nation shall come at a time, in the middle of the presidency . . . If you as a nation believe . . . If you as a nation want this . . . shout - Yes to Esther! Yes to Esther!
Prophecy is given as an encouragement. Sometimes as a call for us to engage in a more positive way by prayer into a situation. It should be a confirmation to us of what God has already been speaking into our hearts. I have no idea how the prophecies above will play out but they do give me hope.
There have been a lot of doom and gloom words for our land and someday we may indeed experience them. We do know that we are in the last days but we do not know the timing of His judgments. Yet for now I sense God saying that healing, hope and restoration are possible, that darkness is being exposed for what it is, that truth and justice will prevail for a season, that there is a harvest that will be great and we are called as workers for that harvest.
May the Lord unleash righteous women into the battle to pour out His oil of healing and gladness, to be the Debra and the Esther for America in a time such as this.
Coverage of the recent massacre of 50 Muslims at a mosque at Christ Church, New Zeeland by the mainstream media is interesting in both how they got it wrong but also in what the evil one has planned for America. To be honest I have not actually read or watched any of that coverage but what I have heard about it sounds like the way I would have imagined, so you may correct me if I am wrong.
Analysis I have heard from conservative voices who had access to the killer's 70 page manifesto present this story. The Australian man who did the killing was a loner who like most mass killers was without a father figure since a young man. Although he had traveled widely his life was centered upon hate groups on the Internet. His religious and political beliefs were pagan reflecting his Ayrian theology that whites are the dominate race and there are certain lands allocated to whites that are intended for whites only. He liked President Trump only for his color but hated all of his policies except for certain parts regarding immigration. He considered himself an Eco-terrorist which is someone willing to do almost anything to enforce strict environmental laws and wanted a strong government (think National Socialism, the Nazi party, which also by the way was very big on the environment) to implement these beliefs. Thus his political views (except on immigration) did not reflect any of those by Christian Conservatives or the vast bulk of other Conservatives.
He had a definite, well thought out purpose for using guns instead of gas or bombs or vehicles to kill Muslims. It had little to do with their religious beliefs. He saw Muslims as non white, non native intruders with birthrates 4 times higher than whites and believed they would eventually become dominate in New Zeeland. That is why they were the target. He also believed that one day there would be a racial civil war in the United States and thought that his action would help contribute to an eventual action by those on the Left to confiscate all guns in America. Because most guns owners would not want to give up their guns that would be the trigger event leading to the hoped for racial civil war. This racial civil war would naturally be won by the whites and thus he would be considered in the halls of Valhalla a hero or a martyr to that grand victory.
I'm not too sure, on the networks and print media that have daily for the last dozen years been pushing upon us identity politics and trying to high-lite racial tensions, that you would have gotten this perspective. Identity politics has a pecking order. In the pecking order a person or group on a lower level cannot criticize anyone on a higher level. At the bottom of the pecking order are white male Christians. Strangely also somewhere near the bottom, despite thousand of years of hatred and murder directed against them, are the Jews. Both groups are now actually considered as oppressors.
Currently at the very top of the list (virtually impervious to criticism) are immigrant, black, female, Muslim congresswomen. Thus when one of those with a long history of virulent anti-Semitic associations and comments is called out yet again, the same woman who sat with a sneer on her face at the State of the Union address while a Holocaust survivor who also survived the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting was recognized with a standing ovation, the Left led House of Representatives cannot censor or even issue a direct condemnation of her anti-Semitic statements. Instead they come up with a broad, let's not hate anybody (then listing every possible identity group) piece of worthless tripe.
I'm also not sure that you would have seen from the main stream media a fraction or even any of the following stories that also happen during the same time frame, perhaps because of the same identity pecking order.
In Nigeria Muslims wiped out 12 villages of Christians, killing 280. In Egypt a Coptic church was bombed by Muslims, killing many. In Manila Muslims set off 2 bombs at a Catholic cathedral, killing 20 and wounding 111. In the Mid-East Muslims fired 10 rockets into Israel and a Muslim terrorist shot 2 Israelis, prompting the Palestinians to pass out candy to everyone. Iran's Muslim's military flew 50 armed drones in an exercise called Flight to Jerusalem.
The above is not meant to be anti-Muslim. It is just an example about how biased the main stream media chooses to be. They have either chosen sides or perhaps their owners are the real power brokers behind a particular side. Either way they actually are being used by the enemy to advance his plans to destroy our countries Judeo-Christian foundations and incite racial and identity hatred so as to weaken us enough that we will no longer be a force for evangelism in both our country and further out to the world.
Let there be no misunderstanding. The spiritual struggle we are currently engaged in, one that manifests itself in the natural, and God's intervention into our history, is really all about souls. I believe that there is a great world wide harvest of souls coming. It has already begun and is now beginning to swing into a higher gear. But it might not come without much prayer, without much spiritual warfare, without new Spirit led leaders, or within our comfort zones.
I believe there is a great shaking coming upon us and upon many of the nations of the world. The evil one has a plan with a time frame but so does God. And anyone with eyes to see and ears to hear should not miss some of the obvious signs that God have been giving us.
For the last couple of years I have been checking out a variety of people who have given prophetic words nationally and/or internationally. There are several who have been consistently accurate and whom I feel good about. I want to share with you parts of prophetic words from two of them which talk about women who will arise to great influence in our country.
The first prophet is a guy named Charlie Shamp. He has a prophetic ministry to the nations, publishes his prophetic words on his web site and one can easily access them to check out how accurate his words have been. This comes from a prophecy he had on 6/30/2018. He believes that when the next Supreme Court justice steps down (and I think he means during Trump's presidency) they will be replaced by a women whom he calls a Debra (He called Kavanaugh a Samuel) There will be tremendous opposition to her during the hearings but she will get in. Shamp says she will be very instrumental in shifting the court's stand away from abortion and will also become a champion for children.
He also has a prophecy, 9/26/17, about Kamala Harris which I will paraphrase for you.
She has been hand picked by some in power to be a bridge between East and West and a queen to try and trump Trump. They will set her on a course to make major waves in the country for awhile. She will realize they have used her as a pawn in a political game only to put forth a rook in an attempt to upset a king. The plan will fail, she will be broken. God will open her eyes and she will have a difficult choice - to become a bridge builder into enemy lines. In the end she will be remembered for the advancement of civil rights and economic justice among Americans.
In 2006 Kim Clement (who died a month after Trump was elected) started prophesying that Donald Trump would become President. Clement said that he would be both God's trumpet and a wrecking ball and he would raise a wall of protection for our country. He would not be a religious man but he would be a praying man. Then on 3/25/2011 he prophesied the following:
I see a president who shall come, and this is not to speak bad about this one . . . God says that he will absolutely have no fear. He will be decisive . . . and in the midst of the restoration of America . . . because of energy . . . because of medical breakthroughs . . . because of agreements between nations, especially China . . . God says at the beginning of the restoration there shall be a woman that rises up - a woman that shall be strong in faith; virtuous, beautiful eyes, and her eyes shall be so beautiful, her eyes shall be round and big. I have crowned her . . . as I crowned Esther. And the people shall receive her. She have have the oil of gladness for the pain and the mourning that has taken place . . and she shall pour out the oils . . on this nation.
God says they will say we hated her, but now we love her. For she shall take the oil of healing and she shall put it on the scars of those left and those right and on the new party that has come forth and emerged where they shall say, Christ will reign and we will not implement Socialism at all. Where they have said, we will make history without God. No, you will not , , , says the Lord. For I choose this nation before it was founded . . . to send my gospel to the entire earth. Do you think I have changed my mind? Therefore the healing that is needed for this nation shall come at a time, in the middle of the presidency . . . If you as a nation believe . . . If you as a nation want this . . . shout - Yes to Esther! Yes to Esther!
Prophecy is given as an encouragement. Sometimes as a call for us to engage in a more positive way by prayer into a situation. It should be a confirmation to us of what God has already been speaking into our hearts. I have no idea how the prophecies above will play out but they do give me hope.
There have been a lot of doom and gloom words for our land and someday we may indeed experience them. We do know that we are in the last days but we do not know the timing of His judgments. Yet for now I sense God saying that healing, hope and restoration are possible, that darkness is being exposed for what it is, that truth and justice will prevail for a season, that there is a harvest that will be great and we are called as workers for that harvest.
May the Lord unleash righteous women into the battle to pour out His oil of healing and gladness, to be the Debra and the Esther for America in a time such as this.
Monday, March 4, 2019
I Know Who I Am In Christ
Thoughts from this Sunday.
During one of the worship songs in church Sunday I closed my eyes and imagined myself standing in a very large field with a road running a little lower through the middle. Each side of the road was packed with thousands of people as far back as I could see. Jesus was in front of us walking on the road and all the people were joyfully singing about the wonder and power of God. There was such a depth and deep vibration to the sound.
Reflecting on this later I thought how the Church rightly talks about the glorious grace that God gives each of us through Jesus, even as we so often fall short. But I also thought that He is still God of the universe, perfect and holy beyond my comprehension. If I was really there could I actually stand, singing with my arms up, or would I instead fall down trembling in awe at His majesty?
Checking Face Book today I saw a share from a friend of mine of an article which gave some statistics suggesting that there may be some data tampering by scientists in an effort to make climate statistics more alarming. His only comment was that he found that article interesting.
My friend is outspoken in his Christian beliefs and perhaps because so his share elicited several other comments which stated things like (1) He should concentrate on his business instead of using the Bible to make scientific conclusions, and (2) DO THESE PEOPLE ALSO BELIEVE THAT THE EARTH IS FLAT!
Sadly very rude negative responses when sharing Christian and conservative views (or in this case scientific views) on line has been commonplace these last two years. It seems there are many with a certain view of religion and politics who not only do not want to have a civil and rational discussion of our differences but actually seem personally offended when hearing any and feel compelled to lash out with name calling.
I posted a supporting comment and received a personal message back from my friend saying that because of this type of reaction he normally does not share such articles. He also said that the reaction really doesn't bother him because he knows who he is in Christ Jesus.
I fell the same way. All of this after all is really part of a spiritual battle for the souls and hearts of man. I am caught between the tension of presenting truth in the darkness and not wanting to offend because we are called to be all things to all men for the purpose of winning them over to the good news that Jesus is the Christ, the perfect and only way to salvation.
The mother of the husband of one of my cousins recently died at 89 and Sunday afternoon Jackie and I went over to the funeral home to pay our respects. The lady had eleven children, her husband previously passed away at 40 and my cousin told us that afternoon that when mom breathed her last, even though she had been sick and feeble for a long time, it was very difficult for some of the kids.
I have seen that a lot over the years. When someone, even if they are church going, doesn't have a personal relationship with Jesus, death of a loved one seems not like a wonderful graduation to the glory fields above, but rather like an awful separation. Once again I was reminded that in knowing who I am in Jesus there has for me been joy, peace and hope, even in the midst of the grief of losing a family member.
Finally I had a reflection on what I have been reading in the Book of Numbers. The Jewish nation had been brought out of bondage and slavery from the nation of Egypt. Caught at the shore of the Red Sea the waters parted, walled up on both sides, and all the people walked through, after which the seas crashed in on the Egyptian army, The people had seen the fire and the glory cloud of God, experienced the miracle of the daily manna, and many other things, and despite those awesome miracles the people grumbled, and many of the grumblers died because of God's anger.
They get to the promised land and send in 12 spies who give a report that indeed it is a land flowing with milk and honey but the cities are fortified and there are giants in the land. 10 of the spies convince the people that they will not be able to take possession of the land. For not trusting that God would be with them to overcome those obstacles, despite seeing first hand miracle after miracle, God kills the 10 and promises that none of the other over 600,000 military aged men except for Caleb and Joshua would live to enter the land.
Even after that the people keep grumbling a very large group from the tribe of Levi (who are in charge of setting up and tearing down the tabernacle and receive in turn a tithe from the rest of the nation) grow jealous of the position and authority of Moses, Aaron and Aaron's two surviving sons who will preform the priestly functions. Here you have Moses, daily hearing directly from God, and everything he says or judgment he pronounces from God happens just as he says, and these people are jealous, desiring the status of the priesthood for themselves so they can then lord it over the others. A whole group of them won't even come to a meeting Moses calls. In response God causes the ground to open up which swallows every man, woman and child of that group.
What surprises me in all of this was not the severity of God's judgment of His own people. The world was created by Him and for Him and rebellion from His will leads to all the woes and ills of the world.
His purpose and calling for the Jewish nation was part and parcel to what His ultimate intention still is for today.
One of the reasons we are created is to declare from our lips and by our lives the glory, the greatness and the wonder of God. The chosen people should have been a reflection of that and thus lead to the eventual redemption of mankind. I think God was looking for much more than just a righteous line from which the Savior would eventually appear.
But here were a people whose ancestors had received both a promise from and a covenant with God. Yet they were born and raised in a pagan land surrounded by the pagan gods of Egypt. They had their beliefs and traditions but most did not have a relationship with Almighty God. The promises of God, if not sunk deep in the heart, could easily be shaken by harsh conditions, multiple fears and carnal urges. The desires for the onions and leeks of Egypt and the false comfort of Egyptian deities were still strong.
We find ourselves today living in a land which is progressively becoming more secular and hostile to both Christian and socially conservative views. For many there is a comfort that comes from religious traditions that can only take one so far when a great shaking comes. I believe we are in the beginning of a great shaking that will take all of us out of our comfort zones and will require us to trust in the true Lord of all.
As the darkness grows more dark may His brightness shine brighter. May each heart that does not actually know Jesus surrender to Him as Lord and Savior. May we experience both the grace of God and the fear of the Lord which leads to wisdom. And may we all truly know who we are in Christ.
During one of the worship songs in church Sunday I closed my eyes and imagined myself standing in a very large field with a road running a little lower through the middle. Each side of the road was packed with thousands of people as far back as I could see. Jesus was in front of us walking on the road and all the people were joyfully singing about the wonder and power of God. There was such a depth and deep vibration to the sound.
Reflecting on this later I thought how the Church rightly talks about the glorious grace that God gives each of us through Jesus, even as we so often fall short. But I also thought that He is still God of the universe, perfect and holy beyond my comprehension. If I was really there could I actually stand, singing with my arms up, or would I instead fall down trembling in awe at His majesty?
Checking Face Book today I saw a share from a friend of mine of an article which gave some statistics suggesting that there may be some data tampering by scientists in an effort to make climate statistics more alarming. His only comment was that he found that article interesting.
My friend is outspoken in his Christian beliefs and perhaps because so his share elicited several other comments which stated things like (1) He should concentrate on his business instead of using the Bible to make scientific conclusions, and (2) DO THESE PEOPLE ALSO BELIEVE THAT THE EARTH IS FLAT!
Sadly very rude negative responses when sharing Christian and conservative views (or in this case scientific views) on line has been commonplace these last two years. It seems there are many with a certain view of religion and politics who not only do not want to have a civil and rational discussion of our differences but actually seem personally offended when hearing any and feel compelled to lash out with name calling.
I posted a supporting comment and received a personal message back from my friend saying that because of this type of reaction he normally does not share such articles. He also said that the reaction really doesn't bother him because he knows who he is in Christ Jesus.
I fell the same way. All of this after all is really part of a spiritual battle for the souls and hearts of man. I am caught between the tension of presenting truth in the darkness and not wanting to offend because we are called to be all things to all men for the purpose of winning them over to the good news that Jesus is the Christ, the perfect and only way to salvation.
The mother of the husband of one of my cousins recently died at 89 and Sunday afternoon Jackie and I went over to the funeral home to pay our respects. The lady had eleven children, her husband previously passed away at 40 and my cousin told us that afternoon that when mom breathed her last, even though she had been sick and feeble for a long time, it was very difficult for some of the kids.
I have seen that a lot over the years. When someone, even if they are church going, doesn't have a personal relationship with Jesus, death of a loved one seems not like a wonderful graduation to the glory fields above, but rather like an awful separation. Once again I was reminded that in knowing who I am in Jesus there has for me been joy, peace and hope, even in the midst of the grief of losing a family member.
Finally I had a reflection on what I have been reading in the Book of Numbers. The Jewish nation had been brought out of bondage and slavery from the nation of Egypt. Caught at the shore of the Red Sea the waters parted, walled up on both sides, and all the people walked through, after which the seas crashed in on the Egyptian army, The people had seen the fire and the glory cloud of God, experienced the miracle of the daily manna, and many other things, and despite those awesome miracles the people grumbled, and many of the grumblers died because of God's anger.
They get to the promised land and send in 12 spies who give a report that indeed it is a land flowing with milk and honey but the cities are fortified and there are giants in the land. 10 of the spies convince the people that they will not be able to take possession of the land. For not trusting that God would be with them to overcome those obstacles, despite seeing first hand miracle after miracle, God kills the 10 and promises that none of the other over 600,000 military aged men except for Caleb and Joshua would live to enter the land.
Even after that the people keep grumbling a very large group from the tribe of Levi (who are in charge of setting up and tearing down the tabernacle and receive in turn a tithe from the rest of the nation) grow jealous of the position and authority of Moses, Aaron and Aaron's two surviving sons who will preform the priestly functions. Here you have Moses, daily hearing directly from God, and everything he says or judgment he pronounces from God happens just as he says, and these people are jealous, desiring the status of the priesthood for themselves so they can then lord it over the others. A whole group of them won't even come to a meeting Moses calls. In response God causes the ground to open up which swallows every man, woman and child of that group.
What surprises me in all of this was not the severity of God's judgment of His own people. The world was created by Him and for Him and rebellion from His will leads to all the woes and ills of the world.
His purpose and calling for the Jewish nation was part and parcel to what His ultimate intention still is for today.
One of the reasons we are created is to declare from our lips and by our lives the glory, the greatness and the wonder of God. The chosen people should have been a reflection of that and thus lead to the eventual redemption of mankind. I think God was looking for much more than just a righteous line from which the Savior would eventually appear.
But here were a people whose ancestors had received both a promise from and a covenant with God. Yet they were born and raised in a pagan land surrounded by the pagan gods of Egypt. They had their beliefs and traditions but most did not have a relationship with Almighty God. The promises of God, if not sunk deep in the heart, could easily be shaken by harsh conditions, multiple fears and carnal urges. The desires for the onions and leeks of Egypt and the false comfort of Egyptian deities were still strong.
We find ourselves today living in a land which is progressively becoming more secular and hostile to both Christian and socially conservative views. For many there is a comfort that comes from religious traditions that can only take one so far when a great shaking comes. I believe we are in the beginning of a great shaking that will take all of us out of our comfort zones and will require us to trust in the true Lord of all.
As the darkness grows more dark may His brightness shine brighter. May each heart that does not actually know Jesus surrender to Him as Lord and Savior. May we experience both the grace of God and the fear of the Lord which leads to wisdom. And may we all truly know who we are in Christ.
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