It’s a crazy world these days

Ferguson, MO. According to news reports, out-of-town agitators are entering the town and stirring up trouble. These reports say police arrests are being made of mostly people from out of town, many from out of state. Coming from outside, stirring up trouble, isn’t new. I remember Watts, the major riot in the 1960s. While living in Augusta, GA, in the early 1970s, I was told about protests and subsequent riots there. Local folks were peacefully protesting some issue and agitators came from the north stirring up trouble, turning the protests into riots.

These days, Riot-control techniques include using spotters to locate, and quickly subdue such agitators. The difficult thing is entering a crowd of people to arrest one agitator, who may quickly turn the entire crowd against the arresting officers.

This outside interference–or support, depending on your outlook–is told in the Book of Acts.

But when the Jews of Thessalonica had knowledge that the word of God was proclaimed of Paul at Beroea also, they came thither likewise, stirring up and troubling the multitudes. Acts 17:13

As Believers, as Elect, as People of G-d, we know there are fallen angels from Heaven here to trouble the people of this world, both Believers and non-believers. We know this. The agitators in Ferguson, MO, are themselves being stirred up. Any love of peace is being driven out of them.

These are troubling times; these are crazy times. Weird things are happening throughout the Earth, not just in Ferguson, MO. Ebola in Africa, with potential cases popping up in other countries outside of Africa. The U.S. is entering the ware in Iraq–again. There is trouble throughout the Middle East. And Arabs broke a short stay of violence in Gaza. There’s a volcano possibly erupting in Iceland. Muslim scholars are now calling for a ‘global uprising’ against Israel. Evan as we are building complex computer networks throughout the world, becoming technologically advanced, Al Qaeda is targeting U.S. infrastructure for a digital 9/11. And then there’s California, the state in which I was born and lived most of my live: California breaks drought record as 58% of state hits driest level. Are the Horsemen of Revelation upon us? I don’t know. I only know that we have a response to make, action to take. It is this:

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Eph 6:12

The warfare in which we engage is spiritual. Our weapons are spiritual. And our prayers are not based upon our strength, our courage, our righteousness; we pray in the Name of the Lord our Messiah.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine upon y’all. . .

Zombie Apocalypse Revisited

In his book, The Return Man, V.M. Zito has a character explain about the zombie brain: “Basically, our memories are stored in the higher section of our brain, the part that only more evolved mammals like humans have. But experiences in our lives that take place under strong emotion are tagged before they’re stored, by a more primitive part of our brain–a part that predates our evolution, back to the lower animals. This primitive brain is a pretty scary place. Aggression, rage, hunger. . . all the basic survival instincts originate here.”

Brain Injury (journal) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The character continues with an illustration from a case in the 1800s, in England. “Three men in a lifeboat after a shipwreck, facing starvation, killed and ate the cabin boy. What happened was that their malnourished bodies conserved energy by shutting down the higher brain, then operated out of the lower brain. The reptilian brain, it’s often called. Evolved functions, like ethics and compassion, went right out the window. The men’s reptilian brains saw a simple choice–eat a boy, or die. So they ate.”

The fall season of Walking Dead just concluded. Last season’s final episode revealed a startling development: whenever a non-zombie dies, the body reanimates into one of the walking dead. Everyone is infected. While this isn’t normally the case in zombie movies and books, it isn’t new. Mira Grant, in a zombie trilogy wrote about viral loads in humans that were kept in check by the bodies immune system. It was only if those loads exceeded a certain point, or increased through a bite, that the person died and reanimated.

So a few nights ago, it dawned on me that these people having a virus that can explode at anytime is a perfect analogy for our sin nature.

For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

Galations5:17

It seems to me, there are an awful lot of zombies walking around, operating out of their lower brains. Or operating without any brain. Brain Dead! Who builds a couple bombs and plants them at the end of the Boston Marathon? Brain Dead, Lawless, Wicked People. But that’s obvious. They have been given over to an evil nature. Their higher brains starved so long they simple don’t reason, only act in senseless, evil ways.

Then there is the momentary lapse of consciousness, falling to the primal brain functions. There’s the law enforcement officer leaving his loaded sidearm on his bed, where a child finds it and shoots a woman, killing her. Or the Special Ops Soldier that is showing off his weapon to a woman and ends up firing it into himself, and dying as a result? And there is the normally good driver making a poor judgement, and running into someone, and that person being injured?

They fell victim, became a casualty, of the war of the flesh of which the Apostle Paul spoke. The remedy?

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

Galatians 5:16

Paul makes it sound as if we have a choice. Just walk in the Spirit. We must walk with discernment. We must walk with consciousness. We must walk with our heads up, our eyes wide open, and our hands ever ready to be raised to the Lord. We need to stop thinking about tomorrow, or wallowing in the mistakes of the past, and we must walk in the Spirit, TODAY, NOW!

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Of Lawlessness, Last Days, and Dreams

We are told that in the Last Days before the return of our King, lawlessness will increase. Looking back throughout our human history, we can see periods of war, famine, plague. Certainly. But something is afoot these days that sets us beyond what has come before.

This week in the news North Korea tells foreigners to leave South Korea as it struts its stuff like a roster before a cock fight. The Mid East is bathed in blood as secular dictators are being pushed aside so that a religious government might rise in the ashes. And then there is Iran. In America violence seems rampant, erupting in the most unlikely places. Throughout, ordinary people are frustrated, angry, rude, unkind, and don’t even know why.

It feels like the Spirit of G-d is departing–that no longer is evil somewhat reigned. We are left to suffer the consequences of our sins.

This is just the way it happens. Does a father forever continue to treat his children as infants? At some point a father looks at his child through tears and says, “You are on your own now.”

Yet we are also told that:

. . .in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. . .

Acts 2:17

So between what feels as with drawl of the Spirit and a pouring out of the Spirit?

It is a time for us to learn endurance, patient waiting, faith. We have not lost the Spirit of G-d within us. G-d has not departed from us. We are anointed with the oil of gladness, and can, if we choice, revel in the joy of the Holy Ghost. Today. But we must make an effort to seek G-d, through His Son Y’shuaJesus, by the power of the Spirit. We must rest in the LORD now, find His peace amidst the lawlessness of this present world.

As things fall apart, we must recognize that the Lord is with us. We must rally beneath His Banner of Love. We must be holy, must be wholly His. We must forgive insults and act wisely. We must not be alarmed. And when we dream dreams we must pay attention to them, be encouraged by them. For it is when the dreams come to us, G-d may speak His quiet voice, encouraging us, healing us, changing us, and instructing us.

Lord Bless, Keep, and Shine upon you and yours. . .

A pastor in Pakistan wrote the following letter:

Shalom,
I think END TIME started since 2013 beginning in Pakistan.
I personally visited Joseph Colony and talked to the people about the number of homes burned in this tragic incident, but exact number is missing, yet Govt. will prepare 257 homes there.

Introduction.
This is a pure Christian colony, only one Muslim family was staying there at rent with a Christian family, and at last this association become a conflict, and it created such a terrible incident.

Reason.
Thursday last[7th March] both of these families quarrel with each other at drinking table and insulted and humiliated, blaming and abusing each other, and in the end it become Blaspheme. The very Christian person Sawan Masih was arrested under rule, he was in police station at that time, mean while it was planned by Muslims and police requested the people to exit the colony and save themselves. People do so and took refuge in their relatives homes in Lahore considering we will come back when all the matter will resume.
After 36 hours the mob gathered and they have a special ammunition material with them as well as equipped with guns, revolvers, and all type of arms run over the colony. They looted first and then set fire each home, not a single left.

Damages.
The mob looted their household things first, and which they could not able to take with them they burned at the place. The burned things are TVs, Fridges, Washing machines, Almarahs, sewing machines, bikes, cycles, boxes, clothes, household utensils, wooden beds, blankets and quilts, gas pipe lines and electricity connections, fans burned and melted on the ceiling, double and triple stories buildings are destroyed in such a manner that they are no more in use. Iron was melted and bricks were in powder form.

Help.
Government has announced to make new homes for them, and PKR 500000/= as help. Now people from all over Pakistan visit them and serve the with food and other necessities of life. Even Govt. is also providing necessities of life for them. At this time they are sitting and living in tents provided to them by different agencies.

Recommendation.
They all are needy so being brothers and sisters in Christ we must help them and pray for them.
In Him

[Name Withheld for the Pastor’s Protection]

teotwawki: the end of the world as we know it

There’s really nothing new under the sun, as King Solomon was inspired to write. So it is with the idea that we should always be prepared for the end of the world as we know it.

In a recent article published in The Trumpet, the author, Joel Hilliker, praises James Wesley, Rawles, and Survival Blog, and his compassionate approach to preparing for any calamity. The author wrote:

“Survivalist thinking is often associated with paramilitary activities, racism and religious extremism. But as global stability deteriorates and threats to civilization increase, it is becoming more mainstream. For his part, Rawles is avowedly anti-racist, and apparently moderate in his religion. He emphasizes preparing in a way that enables a person to fulfill the “moral imperative” of charity, giving to the needy in times of crisis.

“There is something to be admired in the clear-eyed pragmatism of those taking steps to face calamity. Unlike the far more common head-in-the-sand approach, it acknowledges the seriousness of the times, and recognizes the need to do something—to work while it is day, since the night is coming.”

In the article, Mr. Hilliker spends some time and citing scriptures that say that we should be aware of the potential for disasters, especially the End Time Tribulation period, The Last Days. He rightfully urges us to “to condition our minds for catastrophes, because they [The Last Days] are coming. It is because of the human tendency to ignore such realities that Jesus Christ warned,

[T]ake heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day”—that is, the period of destruction just ahead of us—“come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.

(Luke 21:34-35).

That said, Mr. Hilliker goes on to totally disagree with practical preparedness, citing various scriptures beginning with this one:

Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal,” Christ instructed. “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also

(Matthew 6:19-21).

In his conclusion, Mr. Hilliker states, “In a 1966 article, “Don’t Store Up Large Quantities of Food,” Herbert W. Armstrong wrote, “Do not spend extra money on foodstuffs above your normal supplies and perhaps some few ‘staples’ which could carry you through a temporary food shortage on a vastly curtailed and reduced diet, in a severe and temporary emergency, for only a few WEEKS! … If you ever store more food than the normal laying up in summer for winter—you’re hoarding, and God Almighty may well withdraw His protection from you!” [emphasis added]

Wait Just One Minute, Please! Take a look at Israel living off G-d’s handouts in the desert waiting for an entire generation of Israelis to die off before it can cross over into the Promised Land. Mr. Hilliker uses that experience in his justification for Faith Alone as the key to Being Prepared. He says Spiritual Preparedness, not physical, is Being Prepared. I disagree. I respect the view that being right with our Lord Y’shuaJesus is all that is required to physically survive in a long-term survival situation, a situation where help will never come from any human. G-d can intervene. G-d can provide. We can trust G-d. But did Israel leave Egypt with nothing? And did Israel plan to spend forty years in a desert with no provisions? Israel left Egypt with wealth given to them by the people of Egypt. Israel left fairly well off for a trek though the desert to the Promised Land. It was disobedience that resulted in an extended stay in the harsh conditions of the desert. It was disobedience that required G-d to provide sustenance to prevent the all the people from dying off in the desert.

It seems to me we need a more balanced approach, and we need to look at a few other scriptures. How about starting with Y’shuaJesus’s parables for instance that tell us that we are to be practical in our approach to live. It was the foolish bridesmaids that didn’t come prepared to wait for entrance into the festival hall for the Feast of the Groom. It was the the man who failed to invest his “talent” that was chastised by the Returning Lord of the Land.

And let us not forget that it was Joseph who had Egypt store up seven years of grain for the seven years of famine that would come about. And it was stored up in preparation for Israel to come down to Egypt to live, though Joseph didn’t realize it at the time.

There was a pretty good movie that circulated in the mid-1980s that pitted the Spiritual with the Totally Practical, the peaceful protest with the armed protest. I don’t recall the name, but it was set during the time of the Spanish conquest of South America. Two priest, two friends, each choice a different approach to protect the inhabitants of a village. One priest gathered villagers to pray, the other trained villagers to protect themselves. In the end both priest died as the Spanish conquest of the land was completed. The end left the viewer to decide which priest took the most appropriate defensive strategy. In a purely rational view, neither priest failed, neither priest succeeded. Both died. It leaves one understanding, however, that each is judged later, by the Lord. That each did what he thought right. There was a special moment at the end of the movie that showed the two dying priests crawling toward one another, to grasp hands. I, as a viewer, felt there was no judgement of one toward the other for his way of protest. They did what they had to do.

And so it is with us, today. Pray now before the coming collapse of our delicately intertwined society, which is dependent upon a fragile supply chain. We must, as Mr. Hilliker points out, repent and trust in G-d. G-d will provide! It is for you to decide if G-d will provide your sustenance now or later. If now, so be it. If later, okay. In the end, we it is our mandate to trust G-d and follow what He places in your heart.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Take time to pray for Sudan and South Sudan

The following came from Renewal Ministries Fellowship:

Sudan suffered seventeen years of civil war during the First Sudanese Civil War (1955–1972) followed by ethnic, religious and economic conflicts between the Muslim Arabs of Northern Sudan and the mostly animist and Christian Nilotes of Southern Sudan. After the Second Sudanese Civil War in 1983 and following a referendum held in January 2011, South Sudan (The Republic of South Sudan) seceded on 9 July 2011 with the consent of Sudan.

Despite this result, many crucial issues are yet unresolved. Pres. Bashir, like many of his predecessors, is pushing for a 100% Islamic state in Sudan. Deliberate attempts to eliminate a viable Christian presence are extreme and include bombing of Sunday church services, destruction of churches and hospitals. Persecution is especially severe in the Nuba Mountains, whole areas have been laid waste and lands seized and given to Arabized northerners leading to extreme poverty and famine in these areas.

The threats to people of South Sudan after the referendum are numerous. Christians, in particular, have for many years been experiencing some or other form of oppression. At times there has been persecution. None of them quite anticipated the intensity of persecution that hit during the past 5 months. Some Christians underwent incredible levels of persecution, including extensive physical and emotional torturing.

Pray :

Pray for Unity in the Church. It is incredibly hurtful to hear that some pastors have played into the hands of Sudanese security forces by creating immense difficulties for fellow pastors. Pray for unity in the Sudanese Church and also for wisdom in how to deal with so called “traitors” within the church playing willfully into the hands of evil forces.

Pray for a spirit of prayer. Pray that the Holy Spirit would strengthen the body of believers in Sudan to stand firm and united in prayer.

Pray for the Sudan Council of Churches (SCC) to be able to fulfill their difficult role during this time. Christians in Sudan are in desperate need of strong leadership. Pray that the SCC would not be so paralyzed with fear that their actions would become irrelevant during these extremely difficult times.

Pray for Christian families from Muslim background as conversion to Christianity is punishable by death.

Pray for boldness in Christian believers especially for Church leaders. Acts 4: 29 – 31

And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

Pray for the persecutors. Many of the lower levels of the Sudanese security personnel actually tasked for the implementation of deeds of persecution and torture apologize to those they persecute.

Pray that the Sudanese Christians would not stop fulfilling their mandate of reaching out to Muslims with the love of Christ.

Pray for the multitude of Sudanese who are deeply dissatisfied with their government and in their dissatisfaction, are seeking alternative solutions, e.g. turning to Christ. Pray that this move towards Christ will increase.

Pray that God would reveal Himself to the extremely radical and dangerous groups of people in Sudan, like He did with Saul of Tarsus, in such a way that there would be people among them that turn to Christ.

For more information and regular updates on the situation in Sudan, visit: Sudan 4 Jesus

May God bless you as you pray
Norman Johnson
Sudan Support Network

==================================>>

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Violence in America, and elsewhere

“When is anyone going to get serious? The problem is violence, a violence of monstrous and horrific proportions that has infected America’s popular culture,” wrote L. Brent Bozell III, in his column, ‘Dialogue’ Required for Violent Video Games, published February 22, 2013, in a column on CNSNews.com

Well, yes, it is obvious, violence has infected America. But when did this infestation of violence begin? Has this epidemic taken hold only recently with rampages resulting in school shootings? What was index case, as it the first instance of a disease is called? Was it the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, when on Dec. 14, 2012, a gunman killed 26 people, including 20 children between the ages of 6 and 7, at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., about 65 miles northeast of New York City, an event that reignited a national debate over gun control.

But wait, a timeline of school shootings shows the first to be Feb. 2, 1996, in Moses Lake, Washington, when Two students and one teacher killed, one other wounded when 14-year-old Barry Loukaitis opened fire on his algebra class. (Source: Time Line of Worldwide School Shootings.

Perhaps this epidemic of violence began with something much larger in scope, such as the horrific violence done to Americans on September 11, 2001, when a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks launched by the Islamist terrorist group al-Qaeda upon the United States in New York City and the Washington, D.C. areas on September 11, 2001. On that Tuesday morning, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four passenger jets, intending to fly them in suicide attacks into targeted buildings. Two of those planes, American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175, were crashed into the North and South towers, respectively, of the World Trade Center complex in New York City. Both towers collapsed within two hours and falling debris, combined with fires that the debris initiated in several surrounding buildings, led to the partial or complete collapse of all the other buildings in the World Trade Center complex, also causing major damage to ten other large structures in the immediate area of the complex. A third plane, American Airlines Flight 77, was crashed into the Pentagon (the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense), leading to a partial collapse in its western side. The fourth plane, United Airlines Flight 93, was targeted at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., but crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania after its passengers tried to overcome the hijackers. Almost 3,000 people died in the attacks, including all 227 civilians and 19 hijackers aboard the four planes. (source: Wikipedia)

Maybe we need to go back well beyond our recent history. Perhaps we should look at the beginnings of humankind.

And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand.

Genesis 4:8-11

G-d cursed Cain for this evil, this violence. Here we are some 5700 years later and violence is rampant upon the Earth. It seems to me, one of the issues is that we choose to forget the origin of violence. If Cain slew Able today, we might examine Cain to see why he did what he did. We might declare that he was mentally incompetent, and society let him down by allowing him access to a club. Some might even blame Able for provoking his poor brother.

The thing is, it goes beyond the index case of violence in the world. It goes to the heart of the matter, and influences upon the human heart. Paul put it this way:

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Ephesians 6:12

Looking to blame individuals, looking to deter violence taking away what we perceive as the cause of that violence, misses the point. There is violence in America, as there is violence throughout the world. This violence has a source in spiritual wickedness in high places. Spiritual beings unchecked by the lack of Christian Watchmen.

Take a minute today, and tomorrow, and the next tomorrow, to recognize there are unseen forces unleashed upon our communities. Take just a minute to ask the Lord Y’shuaJesus to come “against the principalities, against the powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

These are the forces of evil that are ruining our communities, our nations, our world.

Come, Lord Y’shuaJesus. Come Back and conquer and rule.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine upon y’all. . .

Iranian-American Pastor Jailed

Iranian-American Pastor Saeed Abedini with his wife, Naghmeh, and his two children. While visiting his parents in Iran in July 2012, Abedini was arrested by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard for his previous Christian work in the country. (Photo: American Center for Law and Justice)

January 22, 2013

On day two of American Pastor Saeed Abedini’s trial in Iran, news has emerged that the Iranian-born pastor has not even been allowed to attend the day’s proceedings.

“It’s unlike any judicial system in the world,” Jordan Sekulow, Executive Director of the ACLJ, said in a press release shared with The Christian Post on Tuesday.

“Pastor Saeed and his attorney were shut out of today’s proceedings. Not permitted to attend his own trial. We have been told that the court summoned other pastors to testify today. We do not yet know what was said in court, but we do know that the Iranian government often uses threats and intimidation to get the testimony it wants,” Sekulow added.

The law group has called the trial a “sham,” especially considering that the pastor’s lawyer in Iran was only allowed 24 hours to speak with the defendant before court proceedings began.

Pastor Abedini converted to Christianity in 2000, and married Naghmeh Abedini, an American citizen. He has helped underground Christian churches in Iran, who are a strict minority, and for the past several years has made trips back and forth between America and Iran working to establish an orphanage for underprivileged children in the Middle East country.

He was arrested by Iranian officials in Sept. 2012 and has been in Evin Prison in Tehran ever since, awaiting trial allegedly for trying to convert other Islamic youth to Christianity in 2000, which is a crime punishable by long term imprisonment or even death.
The ACLJ, which is representing Naghmeh Abedini and the couple’s two children in America, noted that on Monday, during Pastor Abedini’s first day of trial, his lawyer was allowed to present a strong case before the Revolutionary Guard Court in Tehran, but that all changed on Tuesday during the second day of the trial when the pastor wasn’t even allowed to attend the proceedings.

“Today, there was a confirmed hearing with a Christian believer who had worked alongside Saeed. Saeed’s judge, without Saeed or his lawyer present, questioned this individual about converting to Christianity, working with Saeed, and involvement in the house churches,” Naghmeh Abedini shared in a statement about day two of the trial.
“The judge told this individual to expect a summons within a month to return to testify against Saeed. What was released by the Iranian media yesterday was clearly a lie.

As Saeed told me during one of our conversations, he suspected the regime planned to hold him in prison for a long time. This testimony today is further proof that Iran was just trying to silence the media and has no intention of releasing my husband anytime soon,” Mrs. Abedini added.

On Monday, Iranian authorities claimed that the pastor had been released on bail, but his wife maintained that the story was a lie by the Iranian media.

“We have presented bail. After the Judge told Saeed’s lawyer that bail was back on the table, the family in Tehran ran around in circles today to make sure Saeed was let out on bail. But again the bail officer rejected bail. This is a game to silence the international media,” said Mrs. Abedini on Monday.

“The ACLJ is doing all that we can to get the U.S. government to fully engage in Pastor Saeed’s case. Sadly, there’s still silence from the State Department and Secretary of State Clinton. No public call for his immediate release.
No condemnation of the imprisonment of this U.S. citizen,” Sekulow added.

However, the U.S. National Security Council (NSC) has spoken out on Pastor Abedini’s case. The NSC is used by President Barack Obama for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisers and cabinet officials.

“We remain troubled by the case of U.S. citizen Saeed Abedini, who was arrested by Iranian officials more than three months ago on charges relating to his religious beliefs,” NSC spokesman Tommy Vietor has said. “We call upon Iranian authorities to release him immediately.

According to the ACLJ, more than 180,000 people have signed a petition demanding Pastor Abedini’s release and are monitoring his trial closely.

URL: http://www.christianpost.com/news/pastor-saeed-abedini-shut-out-of-court-proceedings-as-sham-trial-continues-88699/

[This article has been distributed by Renewal Ministries Fellowship.]

And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. -Acts 5:27-29

Surprized at the Violence?

Things seemed to be going so well. The weather wasn’t perfect, but tolerable. People up in New York were starting to get clear of the destruction of their double whammy storms. The election is over. Whether we celebrate or mourn, at least we know now were we stand for the next four years. Here in Georgia it’s raining. And it’s about time, too. And on the XMRadio I’ve been listening to “Radio Hanukkah.”-eight days of music celebrating the Maccabees Victory and beginning again of worshiping G-d in The Temple. It celebrates the miracle of light, a light that stayed lite eight days when there was only enough oil for one.

Then a young man barely out of his teens shoots a bunch of kids and six adults. Defenseless kids. Defenseless adults. Law enforcement officers comb the man’s house, where he also murdered his mother, for clues to how and why. The murdered children and adults are mourned–by us all.

How long will we all remember, though? Certainly parents of slaughtered babies will not soon forget their anguish, their loss. But we move on, CNN moves on, the world moves on, live goes on. There may be superficial answers offered us to our questions of “Why?” We will be told that the boy played too many violent video games too often. We will be told the boy watched violent television. We will told the boy was brilliant, but somehow damaged goods.

Even after we move on “solutions” will be proposed. Advocates will cry out for our attention, trying to get our ears. The “solutions” will include taking away any implement that might be used to cause harm. Take away access to evil guns. Curb violence on television. Restrict video games.

This month Christians celebrate the birth of a Savior. Not just any savior. The Savior. This is the time we need more than ever to understand that controls upon our liberties lead only to tyranny and that solutions only lay in accepting the only true savior, the only true peace that there is–Y’shuaJesus.

Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned–every one–to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 53

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

A Golden Retriever’s Trick or Treat

Here’s a simple story that I find lots of truth: A Golden Retriever’s Trick or Treat By Terence P. Jeffrey

In other news conservative commentator Glenn Beck says it’s time for conservatives in America to leave liberal states. He sites Israels Babylonian exile as an example of how a people who are exiled can build, prosper, and bless others.

Gotta Run. Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .