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.
Wednesday, April 17, 2019
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.
Sunday, February 10, 2019
Declaration For Our Nation
From the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these thing ought not be this way. James 3:10
What we speak and confess is very powerful. It can affect us and others physically as well as spiritually. Those with positive attitudes often accomplish much because what the say can effect them internally as well as the atmosphere around them. Likewise those who always complain, even if justified in their complaints, can actually be working against their own best interests. Scripture is clear that often times it is better to bridle the tongue than to say negative things about others.
On a national scale that is not easy. Everyday we observe injustice and the acting out of hate, slander and violence. But what is happening is much more than a contest between one group of men and women against another group. The overriding conflict is between what is God's will for us and our nation and what is the ancient enemy's will.
In that regard there is not one side that is holy and another side that is evil. There are good people on each as well as bad people. But there definitely are some things said and some actions done or advocated that are clearly not in the will of God. I would say that the taking of an innocent life by abortion is one of those. And I would say that how people stand on abortion is a pretty good indicator as to how accurate that person's spiritual radar is in knowing what God's will is for our land.
I would also say that outward displays of hate, knowingly twisting or altering the truth to put someone else in a bad light and acting or inciting violence toward others or another group are signs that those who do so may be being influenced by evil spirits. And I would also throw in the ever advancing attacks on the family, traditional moral values and the Christian faith.
Mike Thompson is a pastor/prophet I follow. He is a white haired guy about my age whom I find to be both insightful and encouraging. About two weeks ago he said he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to call for Christians to begin to verbally speak out some specific things into the atmosphere. That means when we are in our prayer time we verbally declare, by the authority given us in Jesus name, the following things listed below. By the way, these are things that believers on any side of the political spectrum should be able to declare.
Note on what binding, releasing and rebuking do. When we declare into the atmosphere (the air around us) for something not in the will of God to be bound, we, as representatives of Christ on this Earth, help release the activity of angels to engage in spiritual warfare against principalities and powers in the high places as well as against evil spirits on our level. So we bind the activity of evil spirits, we release angelic activity and godly truth, and we rebuke or silence other evil spiritual activities or forces.
There are three spiritual forces that Pastor Thompson calls the "dogs of war".
In Jesus name
We bind the Spirit of False Witness.
We bind the Spirit of Hate.
We bind the Spirit of Murder (character assignation).
(Now we need to release a spiritual counter balance to those)
In Jesus name we release Truth and Justice into the atmosphere.
Next we rebuke three other major evil spirits.
In Jesus name
We rebuke the Spirit of Self-Righteousness
We rebuke the Spirit of Judgmentalism
We rebuke the Spirit of Ungodly Control
(Again we release a spiritual counter balance)
In Jesus name we release Truth and Justice into the atmosphere.
Finally Pastor Thompson suggests we say the Our Father but replace the words "on earth" with "the USA.
This really resonated with me. For a couple of days before I heard his message I had been waited down with concern about the floodgates for the above that seemed to open up two years ago. My dear friends, we are in a spiritual battle and this is something that we all can do to help bring about what God desires in our country.
Time to start using the spiritual authority that God has blessed you with in Jesus name!
What we speak and confess is very powerful. It can affect us and others physically as well as spiritually. Those with positive attitudes often accomplish much because what the say can effect them internally as well as the atmosphere around them. Likewise those who always complain, even if justified in their complaints, can actually be working against their own best interests. Scripture is clear that often times it is better to bridle the tongue than to say negative things about others.
On a national scale that is not easy. Everyday we observe injustice and the acting out of hate, slander and violence. But what is happening is much more than a contest between one group of men and women against another group. The overriding conflict is between what is God's will for us and our nation and what is the ancient enemy's will.
In that regard there is not one side that is holy and another side that is evil. There are good people on each as well as bad people. But there definitely are some things said and some actions done or advocated that are clearly not in the will of God. I would say that the taking of an innocent life by abortion is one of those. And I would say that how people stand on abortion is a pretty good indicator as to how accurate that person's spiritual radar is in knowing what God's will is for our land.
I would also say that outward displays of hate, knowingly twisting or altering the truth to put someone else in a bad light and acting or inciting violence toward others or another group are signs that those who do so may be being influenced by evil spirits. And I would also throw in the ever advancing attacks on the family, traditional moral values and the Christian faith.
Mike Thompson is a pastor/prophet I follow. He is a white haired guy about my age whom I find to be both insightful and encouraging. About two weeks ago he said he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to call for Christians to begin to verbally speak out some specific things into the atmosphere. That means when we are in our prayer time we verbally declare, by the authority given us in Jesus name, the following things listed below. By the way, these are things that believers on any side of the political spectrum should be able to declare.
Note on what binding, releasing and rebuking do. When we declare into the atmosphere (the air around us) for something not in the will of God to be bound, we, as representatives of Christ on this Earth, help release the activity of angels to engage in spiritual warfare against principalities and powers in the high places as well as against evil spirits on our level. So we bind the activity of evil spirits, we release angelic activity and godly truth, and we rebuke or silence other evil spiritual activities or forces.
There are three spiritual forces that Pastor Thompson calls the "dogs of war".
In Jesus name
We bind the Spirit of False Witness.
We bind the Spirit of Hate.
We bind the Spirit of Murder (character assignation).
(Now we need to release a spiritual counter balance to those)
In Jesus name we release Truth and Justice into the atmosphere.
Next we rebuke three other major evil spirits.
In Jesus name
We rebuke the Spirit of Self-Righteousness
We rebuke the Spirit of Judgmentalism
We rebuke the Spirit of Ungodly Control
(Again we release a spiritual counter balance)
In Jesus name we release Truth and Justice into the atmosphere.
Finally Pastor Thompson suggests we say the Our Father but replace the words "on earth" with "the USA.
This really resonated with me. For a couple of days before I heard his message I had been waited down with concern about the floodgates for the above that seemed to open up two years ago. My dear friends, we are in a spiritual battle and this is something that we all can do to help bring about what God desires in our country.
Time to start using the spiritual authority that God has blessed you with in Jesus name!
Thursday, January 24, 2019
Blood Sacrifice
Sacrifices
day after day
hour after hour
minute after minute
heartbeat after stopping heartbeat
flesh and blood to feed our nation's strong man
lusting for the lives of the unborn
innocent blood to empower
to send out his minions
to blind and deceive
to blaspheme
to corrupt
to kill
Who will weep for the children?
ripped, torn and flushed from their mother's womb
some to be tossed aside into the garbage
some to have their little parts harvested
some to be chopped up or burned
none to be held in love
or buried by family
or cherished
There is a sound rising from the earth
blood crying out to the Perfect One
When will the strong man be cast out
his strongholds tron down
his lies brought to light?
Who will mourn for the little innocents
offer compassion to the grieving
demand that the killing stops
stand strong in the gap
and tremble at the
presence of a
Holy God?
day after day
hour after hour
minute after minute
heartbeat after stopping heartbeat
flesh and blood to feed our nation's strong man
lusting for the lives of the unborn
innocent blood to empower
to send out his minions
to blind and deceive
to blaspheme
to corrupt
to kill
Who will weep for the children?
ripped, torn and flushed from their mother's womb
some to be tossed aside into the garbage
some to have their little parts harvested
some to be chopped up or burned
none to be held in love
or buried by family
or cherished
There is a sound rising from the earth
blood crying out to the Perfect One
When will the strong man be cast out
his strongholds tron down
his lies brought to light?
Who will mourn for the little innocents
offer compassion to the grieving
demand that the killing stops
stand strong in the gap
and tremble at the
presence of a
Holy God?
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Killing England And Other Fun Stuff
I happen to be a bit of a history geek. Although while in college I majored in political science, history was my minor. Even today when I'm looking for reading material, my choice after spiritual and current events (with a slice of humor and poetry of course!) is always history. And many times history is my first choice.
As evidence of that I offer you the events of last week. On Friday I worked my last day at our Wyoming location. Needing to take a bathroom break I walked over to the nearby Goodwill store which has their bookshelf just outside the restrooms. I found two wonderful selections. The first was - The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged - New Updated Edition, translated by William Whiston. What a find! I am giddy beyond belief. Nine hundred and thirty pages in small print.
Josephus was a Jewish historian who was born in Jerusalem about the time of Jesus death and was present as an observer on the Roman side during Titus's siege and destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. His writings include a history of the Jewish nation and a history of their wars beginning with the Maccabees around 165 BC and extending to the last Jewish stand at Masada. I have seen him cited often but most recently in some articles I've read which speculate about four possible locations of the Jewish Temple.
His mention of Jesus Christ is important because the stories about Him would still have been recent history and it's possible that Josephus could have even talked to eye witnesses. Here is a quote taken from his Antiquites of the Jews:
Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works - a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was (the) Christ, and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principle men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those who loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared alive to them the third day as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct to this day.
My second selection from Goodwill was the Oxford - Atlas of World History: From the Origins of Man to the Year 2000. Oh my gosh! Three hundred sixty-eight glorious 10" x 13" pages of photos, colored maps and coordinated historical timelines plus articles showing step by step the world's empires, migration of peoples and such as they relate from one region to another and progress through time.
Goodwill sells their books for 99 cents and after my senior discount I carried over ten pounds of joy for way less than two dollars.
Not knowing that things could possibly get better, when I got home there was a present waiting for me on our dinning table. A week before I had pulled out from our bookshelf one of the series of history books authored by Bill O'Reilly, called Killing Patton. Jackie noticed that and when I opened my present it was another one of his books, Killing England (history of the Revolutionary War) that one of my daughters brought over. Then Jackie presented me with 3 more of O'Reilly's NY times best sellers; Killing Lincoln, Killing the SS and Killing Jesus. Oh the joy!
Now you might be thinking that Jackie, whose eyes glaze over when I talk about history, is like the best wife ever. And she is, although I did notice that when our little grand kids came over with my daughter, Jackie found the thick Josephus book with it's small print and no pictures, handed it to one of them and said with a glint in her eye - "Here, you want to have some fun? Read this."
As evidence of that I offer you the events of last week. On Friday I worked my last day at our Wyoming location. Needing to take a bathroom break I walked over to the nearby Goodwill store which has their bookshelf just outside the restrooms. I found two wonderful selections. The first was - The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged - New Updated Edition, translated by William Whiston. What a find! I am giddy beyond belief. Nine hundred and thirty pages in small print.
Josephus was a Jewish historian who was born in Jerusalem about the time of Jesus death and was present as an observer on the Roman side during Titus's siege and destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. His writings include a history of the Jewish nation and a history of their wars beginning with the Maccabees around 165 BC and extending to the last Jewish stand at Masada. I have seen him cited often but most recently in some articles I've read which speculate about four possible locations of the Jewish Temple.
His mention of Jesus Christ is important because the stories about Him would still have been recent history and it's possible that Josephus could have even talked to eye witnesses. Here is a quote taken from his Antiquites of the Jews:
Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works - a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was (the) Christ, and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principle men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those who loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared alive to them the third day as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct to this day.
My second selection from Goodwill was the Oxford - Atlas of World History: From the Origins of Man to the Year 2000. Oh my gosh! Three hundred sixty-eight glorious 10" x 13" pages of photos, colored maps and coordinated historical timelines plus articles showing step by step the world's empires, migration of peoples and such as they relate from one region to another and progress through time.
Goodwill sells their books for 99 cents and after my senior discount I carried over ten pounds of joy for way less than two dollars.
Not knowing that things could possibly get better, when I got home there was a present waiting for me on our dinning table. A week before I had pulled out from our bookshelf one of the series of history books authored by Bill O'Reilly, called Killing Patton. Jackie noticed that and when I opened my present it was another one of his books, Killing England (history of the Revolutionary War) that one of my daughters brought over. Then Jackie presented me with 3 more of O'Reilly's NY times best sellers; Killing Lincoln, Killing the SS and Killing Jesus. Oh the joy!
Now you might be thinking that Jackie, whose eyes glaze over when I talk about history, is like the best wife ever. And she is, although I did notice that when our little grand kids came over with my daughter, Jackie found the thick Josephus book with it's small print and no pictures, handed it to one of them and said with a glint in her eye - "Here, you want to have some fun? Read this."
Sunday, January 13, 2019
How To Pass Your Driving Test (without scaring the crap out of the examiner)
The above is a working title for a book I will be writing about my 20 years experience as a examiner for people taking their driving test. I can see it being sold at the offices of organizations that conduct driving tests. Someone comes in to sign up, are a bit nervous about being able to pass, see the book and think, oh yeah, I could use any help I can get. And if that doesn't get them then maybe the implied humor of the title will. Which is good because, although I will provide a list of driving test do's and don'ts, the book will be a lot more about humor than about driving.
If it sells then maybe I'll get it translated into Spanish. That would be a big market although I'm not sure how the humor will come across. Unfortunately for me there is not only one African or one Asian language. I could incorporated hand gestures - but it wouldn't be the same.
The title came into my head in the middle of last night after having a dream about beginning to work on a project I knew nothing about and a guy says to me; "Why don't you just start on something you already know?" I woke up and realized that doing writing and driving tests is what I know and now is probably a good as time as any to get started on that book. Beginning this year I've already cut back to testing only 3 days a week so I might as well take advantage of the available time.
Which brings to mind a person that came in for a test yesterday. The only English he seemed to know was a smile and a nodding of his head, which was about the extent of his translator's English as well. He drives in, I walk up to his car and motion for him to roll down his window, introduce myself and ask to see his permit.
Middle age Kami smiles, nods his head yes and does nothing. "I need to see your permit" I repeat slowly and a look of understanding crosses his face and he presents me with the information sheet that our office hands out when a person makes an appointment. I shake my head no, give the sheet back to him and repeat "DRIVING PERMIT" while putting my hands on an imaginary steering wheel and turning it right and left.
"Ah!" exclaims Kami. He gets out his wallet, looks through every part of it, handing me in turn his state ID, his voter registration card, a picture of some nice lady and finally a tightly folded white paper out of one of the inside pockets which is indeed his driving permit.
That settled I ask to see his vehicle registration and proof of insurance. Kami does not understand what I am asking for until I again turn the imaginary steering wheel and point to his glove box. He and the "translator" scour through it and they first hand me a pink sheet of paper which is the application for vehicle title and registration that one gets when they buy a car, Next I'm handed the vehicle title, followed by a utility bill and on and on. At last out of nowhere they do produce first the insurance and a bit later the registration, both of which are actually up to date.
When I do the vehicle inspection Kami and the translator figure out I mean horn when I push my hand on an imaginary one and say "beep", do not catch on to the turn signals until I reach through the car window to move the signal rod up and I don't have to worry about Kami understanding "put your foot on the brake" because the entire time it has never left the brake.
When I am reading the instructions for how the parking lot portion of the test works Kami puts the car into drive and begins to go forward. He evidently knows what he thinks I am going to tell him and would like to now demonstrate his ability to master it. At this point I stop him and try to see if perhaps there is another person coming who can translate. It would be one thing for me in the parking lot to point with my finger which section to do but a totally different thing to get out on the road with someone and not be able to have them understand when I want them to safely lane change or do an urgent STOP if the need arises.
The test ends there. As the title suggests, I really would like them to pass the test, just not at my expense. Perhaps advice number 7 in my new book will be - If you can't read this you must bring a translator who can.
If it sells then maybe I'll get it translated into Spanish. That would be a big market although I'm not sure how the humor will come across. Unfortunately for me there is not only one African or one Asian language. I could incorporated hand gestures - but it wouldn't be the same.
The title came into my head in the middle of last night after having a dream about beginning to work on a project I knew nothing about and a guy says to me; "Why don't you just start on something you already know?" I woke up and realized that doing writing and driving tests is what I know and now is probably a good as time as any to get started on that book. Beginning this year I've already cut back to testing only 3 days a week so I might as well take advantage of the available time.
Which brings to mind a person that came in for a test yesterday. The only English he seemed to know was a smile and a nodding of his head, which was about the extent of his translator's English as well. He drives in, I walk up to his car and motion for him to roll down his window, introduce myself and ask to see his permit.
Middle age Kami smiles, nods his head yes and does nothing. "I need to see your permit" I repeat slowly and a look of understanding crosses his face and he presents me with the information sheet that our office hands out when a person makes an appointment. I shake my head no, give the sheet back to him and repeat "DRIVING PERMIT" while putting my hands on an imaginary steering wheel and turning it right and left.
"Ah!" exclaims Kami. He gets out his wallet, looks through every part of it, handing me in turn his state ID, his voter registration card, a picture of some nice lady and finally a tightly folded white paper out of one of the inside pockets which is indeed his driving permit.
That settled I ask to see his vehicle registration and proof of insurance. Kami does not understand what I am asking for until I again turn the imaginary steering wheel and point to his glove box. He and the "translator" scour through it and they first hand me a pink sheet of paper which is the application for vehicle title and registration that one gets when they buy a car, Next I'm handed the vehicle title, followed by a utility bill and on and on. At last out of nowhere they do produce first the insurance and a bit later the registration, both of which are actually up to date.
When I do the vehicle inspection Kami and the translator figure out I mean horn when I push my hand on an imaginary one and say "beep", do not catch on to the turn signals until I reach through the car window to move the signal rod up and I don't have to worry about Kami understanding "put your foot on the brake" because the entire time it has never left the brake.
When I am reading the instructions for how the parking lot portion of the test works Kami puts the car into drive and begins to go forward. He evidently knows what he thinks I am going to tell him and would like to now demonstrate his ability to master it. At this point I stop him and try to see if perhaps there is another person coming who can translate. It would be one thing for me in the parking lot to point with my finger which section to do but a totally different thing to get out on the road with someone and not be able to have them understand when I want them to safely lane change or do an urgent STOP if the need arises.
The test ends there. As the title suggests, I really would like them to pass the test, just not at my expense. Perhaps advice number 7 in my new book will be - If you can't read this you must bring a translator who can.
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