The “main stream” sees trouble ahead

In April, 2015, Ann Graham Lotz, daughter of evangelist Billy Graham, wrote, in her blog, about a talk she’d recently given on Joel 1:1 through Joel 2:17.

“The messages almost made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. Why? Because God was clearly warning that His judgment is coming on America and on our world, and it’s going to be ugly. I knew it then, and I know it now,” she wrote.

Her blog referenced two scriptures, Matthew 24:21 Psalm 107:19:

For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now. . .Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress.

Ms. Lotz understands the times in which we live are in fulfillment of scripture, and are clear warnings to the entire world. She also understands that believers have a responsibility to cry out to the Lord, Who can save.

“I believe Jesus is soon to return to take all of His followers to Heaven with Him in what is referred to as The Rapture. While this will be deliverance for His people, can you imagine the impact on our nation, let alone the world, when suddenly every single authentic Christian disappears?” Ms. Lotz wrote.

Ms. Lotz goes on to describe the chaos that ensues after Christians depart Earth, rescued from the wrath that comes to Earth.

“Institutions will collapse. Banks will close. The Stock Market will plunge. Planes will fall out of the sky. Cars will crash on the road. Government in America at every level will disintegrate. Families will be torn apart. In the unprecedented turmoil, our nation will be vulnerable for our enemies to seize the moment and attack us. There will be mass chaos, confusion, fear, grief, despair, anger, threats, danger. . . judgment,” she wrote.

This view is similar to the way the rapture is depicted in a film I watched not long ago. Christians leave and chaos follows. Sounds arrogant, don’t you think? Things are already falling apart, and we’re still here. On the other hand, we need to look at Israel while stuck in Egypt. Ms. Lotz points out that before the Exodus, Israel experienced three of the ten plagues.

“God may allow His people today to go through a time of distress and trouble before The Rapture takes place,” She wrote.

There are three views that I know of that describe the relation between the rapture and the time of tribulation, which is seven years. One view has Christians leaving Earth before the tribulation; another view says after the tribulation, just before the coming of the Lord. One other view is that Christians experience the first half of the tribulation only. I suppose Ms. Lotz’s views would be for a mid-trib rapture.

I don’t know. I do know that a prudent person desires rescue before trouble, but is prepared for staying around during time of distress. Look at Israel, Exodus 6-8, and we see the people experiencing the first three plagues while being protected, shielded from the remainder—then the were rescued. And they were rescued in style. G-d let them stay for the remaining plagues just to show His control over the situation. Only Egyptians experienced the troubles, the wrath of G-d. And by the time Israel left, the people took with them lots of silver and gold and livestock, all given to them by the Egyptians.

When is this all going to happen? G-d hasn’t revealed the precise day or time yet. We see signs of the times, as the cliché goes. And one might argue, as I’ve heard, that the cycle of events depicted in the Book of Revelation occur every hundred years. But it feels as if something is afoot now. That something is happening soon. Thee’s a tension, a troubling. . . Things just don’t feel right.

Psalm 64 and Daniel and the Lion

Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,
from the throng of evildoers. . . Psalm 64:2

This I found very interesting. It is a commentary on Psalm 64 from Daily Tehillim.

“In this prayer David petitions God to protect him “from the secret of evildoers” (verse 3), the devious plots and schemes of his adversaries. He compares his ruthless conspirators to an archer who hides at a distance and then catches his unsuspecting victim by surprise. David’s enemies, too, hide behind a veneer of innocence and shoot “arrows” in the form of false allegations and slanderous rumors. David prays that God should respond by sending His own “arrows” to destroy them and ensure that the very falsehoods they speak should bring about their own downfall.

“Several commentators cite a Midrashic tradition that interprets this chapter as a prophetic reference to the story of Daniel, who, as Rashi notes, was a descendant of David. (In the Book of Yeshayahu 39:7 the prophet makes reference to descendants of King Hizkiyahu who would serve as officers in the Babylonian government, and the Sages teach that Daniel was among these descendants. Hizkiyahu was a king from the Davidic royal dynasty, and thus Daniel was a descendant of King David.) The Book of Daniel (chapter 6) tells of Daniel’s rise to prominence in the government of the Persian emperor Darius, and Darius’ particular admiration for him. His stature aroused the jealousy of the other officials who sought to discredit him in the king’s eyes. Unable to find any flaws in Daniel’s conduct or indications of disloyalty, the officials deviously persuaded the emperor to enact a decree outlawing prayer to any person or deity other than the emperor for a period of thirty days. Violators of this edict, they recommended, should be cast into a lions’ den. The officials claimed that this provision would help solidify the new emperor’s authority and stature among the people, but in truth, this was a plan designed to kill Daniel, who prayed to God three times each day. Daniel paid no attention to the decree and continued his prayer routine, and the officials reported him to the emperor. Despite his affection for Daniel, Darius had no choice but to obey his own edict and have him cast into the lion’s den; of course, God performed a miracle and Daniel emerged from the den unscathed. The emperor then cast Daniel’s conspirators into the lions’ den, and they were immediately devoured.

“The Sages thus explain that when David speaks here of schemers and conspirators who cast false allegations, he refers to the Persian officers who conspired against Daniel and brought false accusations against him to the emperor – all out of sheer envy and selfish greed.

“Towards the end of this Psalm (verse 10), David prays that after God’s deliverance everybody will fear Him and speak of His praises. Indeed, the Book of Daniel tells (6:27-28) that after Daniel’s miraculous emergence from the lions’ den, Darius decreed that all his subjects must worship the God of Daniel. The miracle of Daniel demonstrated to one and all the Almighty’s unlimited ability to bring deliverance in even the most dire and otherwise helpless situations, and that ultimately justice prevails and retribution is visited upon the wicked.”

Give me that old time religion

There’s a song that cries out “give me that old-time religion.” If you’ve never experienced an ‘old-time’ sermon, here’s one I just watched on YouTube by Pastor Charles Lawson. It’s about hell.

If you can view YouTube, click here to display the video.

“Hear my Singing, O G-d. Listen to my Prayer,” says King David

Hear my singing, O G-d,
listen to my prayer;
from the end of the earth I call to you
when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
that is higher than I,
for you have been my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.
Let me dwell in your tent forever!
Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!
Selah
For you, O G-d, have heard my vows;
you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.
Prolong the life of the king;
may his years endure to all generations!
May he be enthroned forever before G-d;
appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!
So will I ever sing praises to your Name,
as I perform my vows day after day.
—Psalm 61

This brief psalm of King David “speaks of the sense of security that faith affords a person under any and all circumstances. It reminds a person that wherever he finds himself on earth, and when he faces situations of uncertainty, he can turn to the Almighty in prayer and find comfort in the knowledge that the fate of all men rests in His hands. As David declares in verse 3, God is capable of lifting a person to heights he never thought attainable; when challenges and hardships seem too difficult to surmount, one can turn to the Almighty and rely on His ability to lift him over even the most formidable obstacles.” —Daily Tehillim

Your Life has Purpose. . .

and for a small fee/donation, our company/agency/ministry will help you find it. And for an additional very modest fee/donation, we can assist you in fulfilling it.

Huh!

I cry out to G-d Most High,
to G-d who fulfills his purpose for me.
—Psalm 57:2

There, that was simple wasn’t it? Takes all the exasperation away. Doesn’t cost us anything (Y’shuaJesus already paid the price).

So. with what are we left? Listen to this great gospel song, it says it all:

I just want to Praise You Lord
I lift my hands to say I love You
You are everything to me
And I exalt Your holy name, (2x)
I exalt Your name, O Lord.

Abundant Life

Christian persecution is a real and terrible part of our lawless world. The chaos of the world is carried into our homes, too, as it causes family discord. But greater than the physical and emotional toll is what happens to our spiritual peace. For we have an enemy that would steal our peace, our spirit, leaving us without hope, in utter despair. Our Lord Y’shuaJesus is the remedy. He said:

I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. —John 10:10

“Christ is a good Shepherd; many who were not thieves, yet were careless in their duty, and by their neglect the flock was much hurt. Bad principles are the root of bad practices. The Lord Jesus knows whom he has chosen, and is sure of them; they also know whom they have trusted, and are sure of Him. See here the grace of Christ; since none could demand his life of him, he laid it down of himself for our redemption. He offered himself to be the Savior; Lo, I come. And the necessity of our case calling for it, he offered himself for the Sacrifice. He was both the offerer and the offering, so that his laying down his life was his offering up himself. From hence it is plain, that he died in the place and stead of men; to obtain their being set free from the punishment of sin, to obtain the pardon of their sin; and that his death should obtain that pardon. Our Lord laid not his life down for his doctrine, but for his sheep.”—Matthew Henry Commentary.

I like the way the Jamieson, Fausset, Brown Commentary describes Abundant Life : “[It is] not merely to preserve but impart LIFE, and communicate it in rich and unfailing exuberance. What a claim! Yet it is only an echo of all His teaching; and He who uttered these and like words must be either a blasphemer, all worthy of the death He died, or “God with us”– there can be no middle course.”

When the chaos of darkness intrudes we face the loss of our exuberance. . .
I like Andrae Crouch’s song Take Me Back. The chorus is:

Take me back, take me back dear Lord
To the place where I first received You.
Take me back, take me back dear Lord where I
First believed.

King David offered this pray, that we can make our prayer:

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.
—Psalm 51:7-12

Don’t mess with our G-d!

King David, before he was crowned king, was pursued by King Saul. Taking refuge in the town of Zif, King David was betrayed by the local people, who reported his whereabouts to King Saul, then sent spies to follow David’s trail, assisting King Saul in his attempt to capture King David. It was regarding this time that King David wrote Psalm 54 (or a psalm that we now know as Psalm 54), which begins:

O God, save me by your name,
and vindicate me by your might.
O God, hear my prayer;
give ear to the words of my mouth.

For strangers have risen against me;
ruthless men seek my life;
they do not set God before themselves.
Selah

Behold, God is my helper;
the Lord is the upholder of my life.
He will return the evil to my enemies;
in your faithfulness put an end to them.
—v.1-5

So here’s the thing. King David had found a place of security and relative peace in his flight from King Saul, who had already given up the pursuit. Then all of a sudden, King David is betrayed. It would be easy to despair. But King David looked to the L-rd, the G-d of Israel, asking to be vindicated by G-d’s Name. King David didn’t say that he was blameless or that he didn’t deserve what was happening. He simple placed himself in G-d’s hands. King David knew the L-rd as his L-rd. The G-d of Abraham, the G-d of Isaac, the G-d of Jacob, the G-d of David. Personalized.

Today, we can personally know the L-rd who is G-d, when we let go of our false sense of self, yielding to the Son of G-d, the Messiah, Lord Y’shua. Savior. We are vindicated by the G-d of Israel through Lord Y’shua. Those, like the betrayers of King David, who come against us “do not set G-d before themselves.” King David’s enemies, like our enemies of today, did not realize that their efforts were doomed from the start. Though it may appear that they might win, they lose. King David knew what we must know and understand, his enemies as our enemies have the evil turned back upon themselves.

If you have a sense that this is leading somewhere else, you are right. Check out who’s going to find herself in the angry hands of a Holy G-d: “Far too many women are denied access to reproductive health care and safe childbirth, and laws don’t count for much if they’re not enforced. Rights have to exist in practice—not just on paper. Laws have to be backed up with resources and political will. And deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases have to be changed,” said Hilary Clinton at an address at the Women in the World Summit. Hilary Clinton is out to change the religious beliefs of Christians.

More to think about—an article in CharismaNews interprets Ms. Clinton’s comment, saying: “It used to be, you were considered compassionate, caring and humble to embrace the values of the Bible. Now you are the enemy … according to Secretary Clinton and President Obama. It is only going to get worse.”

Provoking Fear

As I’ve followed more closely current events and reporting over the last several months, I see three broad divisions in news reporting originating here in America. The first is what has become to be known as the mainstream media (MSM). These include corporately owned outlets such as CNN, Fox, ABC, CBS, NBC, and the major newspapers and magazines that publish online, such as the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and my favorite, the Christian Science Monitor. While there are hundreds of television networks and print media, I’ve read that all are owned by only six corporations. Interesting, if true.

Generally, all media in this division report the news in a journalistic fashion, using a variety of sources, are written in a news-reporting style, and, unless in an opinion column, leave out opinions except where quoted by a source. Can these news outlets slant the news? Of course. How a report is put together, the various sources and what they say, and IF an event is even reported, all work toward a particular self-interest.

The second group are not outwardly owned by corporate media, are relatively well written and well reported, yet occasionally contain some reporter opinion within the main articles. An example would be Breitbart. These sites offer their own take on the news that is reported in the mainstream, as well as adding news that isn’t generally covered, or is covered in a limited way.

Then there are the individuals and small teams that say they report the news that the mainstream media isn’t telling us. They know something that the mainstream either doesn’t know, isn’t paying attention to, or doesn’t want you to know. At least that’s what they’ll tell us. This group is collectively referred to as “conspiracy theorists.” Yet while they aren’t corporately owned, many are heavily sponsored by one company. My favorite in this category is Steve Quayle. Most of the articles are links to other, similar, news sources. Of those written by Mr. Quayle, I read that he’s a Christian, believes that satin with come to Earth through a stargate, and will do so very soon, perhaps in September during the final blood moon. Many in the category of news quote each other. Mr. Quayle becomes an expert that is quoted by the All News Pipeline, for instance.

These news outlets have in common a lack of journalistic style, poor grammar, dubious sources or un-named sources, and after an article or two, leave me wanting to run, not walk, for the hills in abject fear of any of a hundred very horrible things that are about to happen, and happen especially to me. Often, we are called “shepple,” and ridiculed for not believing in what they write, by believing the mainstream media, whom they say are liars. We all, we are told, are being lied to by government officials. One of these websites that foretells of the fall of money, that the banks will soon close their doors along with our access to what we though was our money, will sell us silver and gold. Mostly they give away fear.

The thing about these sites, another common bond, is that there is a thread of truth to their writing. Take the simple fact that our own government is spying on us, has set up fake cell phone towers to listen in on our phone conversations and read our texts, and does have a very large database that tracks us. This we know, if we are any bit an American citizen, is completely against our rights under the Constitution. From this simple fact of spying conducted against Americans by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), these blogger newsies tell us our names are compiled into a “red list.” They say this list that will be used this summer to raid our homes and drag us all off to concentration camps. They say there are thousands of “disposable coffins” stashed for ready use. Wait, disposable coffins? Does that mean there are also reusable coffins?

But wait, there’s more. To continue the Orwellian nightmare, the military exercise this summer know as Jade Helm 15, has train cars with shackles in the floors traveling to the southern states, foreign troops being smuggled into America through our southern border, and lots of stuff is being stored in closed-down Walmarts in several states. There are even tunnels beneath most Walmarts we are told, that lead to airports and connect other Walmarts and military bases. All of this so troops can freely move about. (Back in the day I used to shop at the Post Exchange, but maybe Walmart is under contract.) And the reason for the military exercise coming up? Well, if we wouldn’t bury our heads in the sand, if we’d wake up, these newsies tell us, then we’d know that the military is practicing for martial law and confiscation of our guns. Well, confiscating guns somebody’s, that is. Can’t get guns from homes where there are none.

NOTE TO NSA, or to whomever: See, I’ve just been doing some research. Really. Please take my name of the Main Core watch list now. Thanks in advance. Yours Truly, Wil Robinson.

Seriously, though. There are things happening that aren’t explainable. There are wars and rumors of wars. There are earthquakes and Tsunamis. Fish are dying in the Pacific Ocean, chickens and turkeys in several northern states of America. There are riots and there is lawlessness in the land. And don’t forget the desertification of my home state of California, the once-great Republic of California that we so affectionally called the ROC. And what about the spiritual forces, dark forces, that are moving gullible men and women to commit acts, or support them, that are abominable in the eyes of our Lord Y’shuaJesus. Certainly we are on the eve of destruction, and the Second Coming is, well, coming.

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: a waste of desert sand;
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Wind shadows of the indignant desert birds.

The darkness drops again but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

—Second Coming, by William Butler Yeats

For some interesting notes and links to “end time” fulfillment of Biblical prophesy see Running from Babylon.

Let us pray that we not fall prey to fear, that we look to the Lord and to His Word, which is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path. The lamp that shows us where we are, where we stand; the light thats illuminates the path upon which we are to journey.

Let us pray we look not to the hills to rescue us, but the Lord of Heaven, the Creator, the Father of our Lord Y’shuaJesus.

Let us pray we have the strength and wisdom to act in accordance with the will of our Lord Y’shuaJesus. We are not to simple stand by, watching and waiting, but we are called to some action, or will be soon.

Let us be prudent and store up that which is appropriate against the day in which there will be nothing left in stores, or that we are not allowed to buy (see Revelation 13.)

May G-d have mercy upon us in these troubled times.

The Staff of G-d, the Sword of Joshua

Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’s hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.

—Exodus 17:8-13

It makes sense that Moses should stand upon a hill, above the battle, with upheld arms. The symbolism seems clear. Moses raising his arms, yielding to the will of G-d, his own strength wanes. Aaron and Hur support Moses, allowing him to continue to hold high the staff of G-d. The staff symbolizes authority. It is upon G-d’s authority that Moses sends Josua and the people of G-d into battle. Somewhere I read that the names Aaron and Hur meant Praise and Word. This, too, makes sense. For holding up the arms of Moses, supporting the waning strength is:

Praise of G-d
Word of G-d

But let us not deceive ourselves into thinking that all it takes to gain victory over an enemy is to stand upon the authority of G-d, holding up the Word of G-d as our justification, lifting our hands, our arms in praise. For there, below Moses, boots hit the ground, weapons found their mark. The people of G-d fought for liberty from their enemy, an enemy that would enslave them.

And some 3,000 years later—two-hundred and forty years ago—farmers on what is now American soil stood together against another form of enslavement: British imperial tyranny. They stood together for Liberty. They stood together for Justice. And so it began in Lexington, not far from Boston, that well-trained British soldiers were ordered to move against the colonial people, against farmers and craftsmen. They were ordered to subdue men and women, untrained in the art of war. But the colonist stood bravely against the “red coats.’ Ordered to give up their arms, they refused. Shots were fired. Shooting continued into their backs as they ran. Men died, including their commander. This was the battle, really a massacre, of Lexington. But. . .

. . .came Concord. On April 19th, 1775, things would be different. It began a mile out of Concord, at Meriam’s Corner, as the red coats crossed a bridge, still exuberant from their victory and sacking of Lexington. They marched toward Boston. They met more untrained farmers and craftsmen. But this time, the red coats faced a different tactic, one we call guerrilla warfare.

“By the rude bridge that arched the flood
Their flag to April’s breeze unfurled,
Here once the embattled farmers stood
And fired the shot heard round the world.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Even now, the significance of Lexington and Concord awakens a response in Americans that goes far beyond the details of the day or the identity of the foe. An unmilitary people, at first overrun by trained might, had eventually risen in their wrath and won a hard but splendid triumph.” —Author Willard Wallace

Who will we turn to in times of trouble?

The world as we know it is about to end. We face devistating geological upheavals, increasing in number and scope. The Pacific Ocean is becoming radioactive, fish are dying. Chickens and turkeys are being killed, millions so far, as they are diagnosed with avian flu. We face and imminent monetary collapse, and not just in Greece. Riots rattle America. Racial tension is at an all-time high, like a pot about to boil over. A spirit of control pervades the world, as liberty is sent packing for a long, lonely holiday. We face tyrannical individuals that have allied themselves against the people of G-d. Islamic terror spreads its ugliness, its lawlessness throughout the world. We face deception from within our own ranks, within the Church. And in these times of trouble, to whom shall we turn? We must remember—we must not forget—how David responded:

Behold, God is my helper;
The Lord is the upholder of my life.
He will return the evil to my enemies;
In your faithfulness put an end to them.
— Psalm 54:4

Matthew Henry commented that “If we are for him, he is for us; and if he is for us, we need not fear. Every creature is that to us, and no more, which God makes it to be. The Lord will in due time save his people, and in the mean time he sustains them, and bears them up, so that the spirit he has made shall not fail. There is truth in God’s threatenings, as well as in his promises; sinners that repent not, will find it so to their cost. David’s present deliverance was an earnest of further deliverance. He speaks of the completion of his deliverance as a thing done, though he had as yet many troubles before him; because, having God’s promise for it, he was as sure of it as if it was done already. The Lord would deliver him out of all his troubles. May he help us to bear our cross without repining, and at length bring us to share his victories and glory. Christians never should suffer the voice of praise and thanksgiving to cease in the church of the redeemed.”