Make Jesus Famous Again

Oh my gosh, like really? I so want to make Jesus famous again, kind of like he was in the olden days, ya know, when people like, followed him around, and he made them fish sandwiches, and knew stuff about them: he reminds me of my psychic, cuz he used to say things to people that no one else knew about them! Like wow, imagine someone knowing everything about you, without you having to tell them one thing?

Anyways, I was scrolling through my insta feed and came across this movement, this idea, to Make Jesus Famous Again, and I couldn't help but think, What made him un-famous in the first place? Was it something he said, or something he posted, or something he did, I mean, What, ya know? I do think a great guy like Jesus should be famous and popular, cuz he loves everyone so much, and some say he even died for everyone's sins, which I don't completely understand, but anyways, that's what I have heard a couple of times. 

So, based on what I know, I think I am going to post some things about how cool Jesus was, with the walking on water thing he did, and plus he did some mad awesome stuff with people that couldn't see or hear ... he sounds like a doctor of some sort to me, like a GP, not a specialist or anything, cuz he helped a lot of people with a lot of things wrong with them. I have some girlie problems, I wonder if he can fix me up too, or is that just an olden days kind of thing? 

Anyways, you know, if we can all make Jesus famous again, maybe people will think of him differently, see him the way he really is, and not be so harsh, right? Right?! Jesus is like my friend, a bestie that loves me no matter what I do, even that thing I did the other night that my parents would kill me for ... Jesus loves me for me, unconditionally, and that's why I love to love him too! Now, how do we go about making Jesus popular in a good way? There are so many nice things to say about him that we can fill up our feeds with Jesus stuff like crazy ... lots of mood music in the background will help people feel the feels, so that they can feel differently about him, cuz he is awesome sauce! 

I did see a post about sin a couple of times ... what the heck is that about? If we can keep any mention of sin out of our media posts, then Jesus has a chance to be Mr. Famous, all out popular again! I have learned from some pastor and priest type men and women, that Jesus is all for unity, so we get to be close to everyone, no matter their religion. Now that, is a relief: God wouldn't leave anyone out of his inner circle, that would make him a cruel bully and too cliquey. God is inclusive, and there is no way he would keep anyone out of his presence, just because they call him different names. Oh my god, can mean so many things to so many people, and I am pretty sure God knows what they are talking about. 

Anyhow ... I am wanting to spread Jesus consciousness wherever I go, as an option, even if there are many ways and roads to God. I think Jesus is kind of the coolest option, so I am hitching my wagon to that fella, hoping I can be part of the Make Jesus Famous Again, movement. Of course, I will have to put on a sweet smile whenever I mention him, and maybe sing some popular Christian songs on my insta and Tic Toc, but it will be worth it, when I can say, I did my part to get this guy up off dem charts! 

Gooooo Jesus! 

P.S: Maybe some swag, you know, hats, t-shirts, sweatshirts, bags. Make Jesus Famous Again could actually earn me some cash ... I am ON IT! 

1 Timothy 6:10

For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 

Face Off

Let us say that you are gearing up for a confrontation of mammoth proportions: How do you prepare for such an event? Does it depend on who you are facing off with, or against? What if you are facing off with yourself, then what?

We are all two faced, dear reader. There is the face we present to the world, the one we present to ourselves in private while we are pretending, and then there is the real you and me, just under that masquerade, the one that hides just beneath the surface of the skin we are in, lurking and wondering, Can anyone see me, and this eeeck realization: I can see myself. 

Many years ago my mother was asked why she doesn't go in the pool nestled in our backyard, she replied, This body is for my eyes only. Clothes offer a cover, a protective layer to prying eyes, but they are a thin type of skin, and so is facade, when I compare the two. It may very well be that a bathing suit reveals far too much, but clothes don't hide everything either. It may very well be, that pretending we are good and kind people that make decisions that are wholesome for self and other, cover enough of our sin to make us pleasing to observing eyes, but alas, our words and deeds reveal far more than we care to acknowledge and admit to. 

Go before God and try to hide your nakedness. Go and stand tall before your maker and suggest that your body, your mind, your heart, your soul, are for your eyes only. I laugh hysterically at the idea while almost simultaneously, I weep without breath at the suggestion. My God, how can we possibly hide from him? How mortifying the thought, to have him see me in the raw, the ugly parts of me revealed without the possibility of covering myself. 

I periodically have dreams of being half-naked in front of many people during a disaster. In the dreams I desperately try to figure out, Where do I place my hands?; Which parts am I most shy about others seeing?; How do I cover myself for goodness sakes? Perhaps you have had similar dreams? Exposure to the elements without protection is terrifying; exposure to others without cover is also terrifying; exposure of our true selves before God, now that, that is unspeakably horrifying. God gave coverings to Adam and Eve to give them a sense of security under scrutiny after their fallen from grace sin, but they knew that he knew, how they had sinned against him, and themselves, via disobedience. 

Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD (Jeremiah 23:24)

So I ask you again, dear reader, about the grandest, most tremble inducing face off of your lifetime: You, and your sin, looking each other in the eye. While sin stares you down, quietly demanding you hold eye contact, try as you might, you will not be able to. You will want to look away, tell it to SHUT UP, and LEAVE ME ALONE, but it will silently remain, and won't go away, until of course, you say, I see you, yes, that was me saying and doing and being all the things that now repulse me and sicken my mind, and heart, and soul. Oh how ashamed I am, sin, at how grotesque you are: Why did I like you and even love you enough to embrace you and hold you close? 

If I am being clever, to relieve the tension a tiny bit, I will suggest you take that fake face off, the one that you pretend is yours when you look in the mirror, the one that has you making excuses for self-indulgence that injures you and many others, the very one that denies God as your Judge. There will come a time when you are truly naked without a chance to cover yourself or hide from eyes that do not need to pry to see you, inside and out. Wouldn't it be better for you, to face off with your sin, by confessing all before the Living God, that sees you no matter how you try to fish tail swish your way out of being pinned down? It really doesn't matter how clever we are, dear reader, we simply cannot escape accountability; we are the choices we have made, and they have etched scratches and scars into our psyche, that God is fully aware of. 

The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good (Proverbs 15:3)

Jesus was tempted and yet, while in human flesh, chose not to sin. This is my great hope, that while I live in this skin, this covering, this shell that houses my soul, I can choose not to sin, even when I am tempted, because he lives in me as my strength, as my guide, and my Holy Ghost Redeemer, from a carnal world given over to fakery, fraud, self, and other deception. I did a face off just this morning, dear reader, and I suggest you do so too, for the humbling of your soul before an Almighty all knowing God. There is only one God, and you, and I, simply cannot hide, from him.

For mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity hid from mine eyes (Jeremiah 16:17)

2 Chronicles 7:14

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins, and will heal their land.

Seek the face of God. Humble yourself and pray ... turn from your wicked ways, and God will hear your repentant heart, forgive your sins, and heal ... that is the hope we have in Christ as the one that died for the sins of the world. 

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved (John 3:16-17)

Lastly, a statement and a warning regarding believing in Jesus as Saviour:

He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten son of God (John 3:18)

God Ain't Bothered One Bit

Daniel 2:43

And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men, but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

Jesus spoke Aramaic, not Shakespearian english. Jesus was a Hebrew, not an Englishman. Jesus is the Ancient of days, and yet is the I AM of today. Jesus isn't old, he is the forever and ever, Amen, Amen. 

Today I try to tightly grasp what God wants me to learn. I plead with him, Help me retain what you teach, so that I recall Whom it is to trust, to go to, to depend upon, when the world looks a little too crazy for me to behold. I really want to look away most of the time, dear reader, preferring to un-see what has been seared into my memory. Alas, while I reside here on planet earth, I do not have the option of ostrich like, sticking my head in the sand. I must see, I must hear, and then I must do as all the faithful have done before me: remember, that God is superimposed on all that there is, and ever will be, and ever has been. God is the modern, Ancient of days. 

Neurolink is a bizarre concept to me but since people have had breast, cheek, butt, calve and chin implants, a chip in the brain is not a strange concept to them. Trusting in strangers to make me smarter, faster, more efficient, is an oddity to me, but it isn't to those that believe scientists have found a way to make human upgrades possible, by inserting bionic mechanisms to give them an edge, and even to protect them from nature, from things like dangerous wayward unpredictable and deadly viruses ... Herd immunity is a weird suggestion, for someone like me: I know I am not an animal, that I was created in the image of God, and that just because you get sick, it does not logically immediately follow, that I must get sick too. Sin is a form of sickness that seems contagious, and yet I don't have to catch yours, dear reader. I have God given strength to resist what ails you. 

God is not an expired old timer, too antiquated to understand modern times and modern men - calling men modern, if I think of evolution as a form of advancement from our supposed neanderthal beginnings, preceded by our crawling out of a primordial goo as some kind of self-actualizing creature that eventually magnificently manifests it's own greatness, I see that "evolution" stopped abruptly on the continuum, as evidenced by man's continued barbarism. Men have managed to come up with more efficient ways to steal from one another, to over-power, impose and kill, more conveniently, but they certainly haven't travelled far from the first savage and ruthless murderer, Cain, just because they make quick work of the job of destroying others. 

The idea of God as antiquated with an Out of Service sign hanging about his neck, is laughable. God does not need to prove himself to mere men, and yet he has condescended to speak to and encourage, those that long to learn The Way. I delight in knowing that he knows everything, including what is coming down the pike, missile fast, heading in humanities direction. Shrug ... God ain't bothered one bit. 

Above, I placed scripture for you to scroll back to. God's Word is a foretelling, a foreshadowing, a forecasting, and it gives you and I insights we would never have if he wasn't graciously merciful in the sharing of what will transpire, and the establishing of his will for all that exist and ever have, existed. God does not need to prepare, or preplan, but you and I certainly do. We must know what is coming so that we can know, where to turn for wisdom, when facing troubling times.

Now think with me about facial surgeries that give an impatient person the impression that they can stave off aging and death, and somehow beautify better than the Creator that chose their unique features for their faces. Preposterous monkey business, I tell you. Is this why evolutionists believe we evolved from apes? I jest, but I have to say, that the mingling of miry clay, with iron, which would be you in the flesh, mixed with metals and strange alloys, does not preserve or improve, it mangles and misshapes, and that is a Satanic plan suggested to the masses, to give the impression that they get to choose all over the place, without any regard for God as Sovereign. Satan likes to kill us softly, tapping into our vanity with subtly. 

Read your Bible, dear one. Discover there the before, the now, the after. There is nothing new, as Solomon wrote repeatedly, under the sun, or the Son, as it were. God knows exactly what is going on, and while we may be in real time learning, he resides in majesty as overseer and ruler, in heaven. 

Look up, and be blinded by his brilliant light. 

John 1:1-5

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.  

God Ain't Bothered One Bit

Daniel 2:43

And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. 

Jesus spoke Aramaic, not Shakespearian english. Jesus was a Hebrew, not an Englishman. Jesus is the Ancient of days, and yet is the I AM of today. Jesus isn't old, he is the forever and ever Amen, Amen.

Today I try to tightly grasp what God wants me to learn. I plead with him, Help me retain what you teach, so that I recall Whom it is to trust, to go to, to depend upon, when the world looks a little too crazy for me to behold. I really want to look away most of the time, dear reader, preferring to un-see what has been seared into my memory. Alas, while I reside here on planet earth, I do not have the option of ostrich like, sticking my head in the sand. I must see, I must hear, and then I must do as all the faithful have done before me: remember, that God is superimposed on all that there is, and ever will be, and ever has been. God is the modern, Ancient of days. 

Neurolink is a bizarre concept to me but since people have had breast, cheek, butt, calve and chin implants, a chip in the brain is not a strange concept to them. Trusting in strangers to make me smarter, faster, more efficient, is an oddity to me, but it isn't to those that believe scientists have found a way to make human upgrades possible, by inserting bionic mechanisms to give them an edge, and even to protect them from nature, from things like dangerous wayward unpredictable and deadly viruses ... Herd immunity is a weird suggestion, for someone like me: I know I am not an animal, that I was created in the image of God, and that just because you get sick, it does not logically immediately follow, that I must get sick too. Sin is a form of sickness that seems contagious, and yet I don't have to catch yours, dear reader. I have God given strength to resist what ails you. 

God is not an expired old timer, too antiquated to understand modern times and modern men - calling men modern, if I think of evolution as a form of advancement from our supposed neanderthal beginnings, preceded by our crawling out of a primordial goo as some kind of self-actualizing creature that eventually magnificently manifests it's own greatness, I see that "evolution" stopped abruptly on the continuum, as evidenced by man's continued barbarism. Men have managed to come up with more efficient ways to steal from one another, to over-power, impose and kill, more conveniently, but they certainly haven't travelled far from the first savage and ruthless murderer, Cain, just because they make quick work of the job of destroying others. 

The idea of God as antiquated with an Out of Service sign hanging about his neck, is laughable. God does not need to prove himself to mere men, and yet he has condescended to speak to and encourage, those that long to learn The Way. I delight in knowing that he knows everything, including what is coming down the pike, missile fast, heading in humanities direction. Shrug ... God ain't bothered one bit. 

Above, I placed scripture for you to scroll back to. God's Word is a foretelling, a foreshadowing, a forecasting, and it gives you and I insights we would never have if he wasn't graciously merciful in the sharing of what will transpire, and the establishing of his will for all that exist and ever have, existed. God does not need to prepare, or preplan, but you and I certainly do. We must know what is coming so that we can know, where to turn for wisdom, when facing troubling times.

Now think with me about facial surgeries that give an impatient person the impression that they can stave off aging and death, and somehow beautify better than the Creator that chose their unique features for their faces. Preposterous monkey business, I tell you. Is this why evolutionists believe we evolved from apes? I jest, but I have to say, that the mingling of miry clay, with iron, which would be you in the flesh, mixed with metals and strange alloys, does not preserve or improve, it mangles and misshapes, and that is a Satanic plan suggested to the masses, to give the impression that they get to choose all over the place, without any regard for God as Sovereign. Satan likes to kill us softly, tapping into our vanity with subtly. 

Read your Bible, dear one. Discover there the before, the now, the after. There is nothing new, as Solomon wrote repeatedly, under the sun, or the Son, as it were. God knows exactly what is going on, and while we may be in real time learning, he resides in majesty as overseer and ruler, in heaven. 

Look up, and be blinded by his brilliant light. 

John 1:1-5

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.  

Judas, An Infidel

Fidelity matters

Consider with me, dear reader, loyalty as a character trait, and how rambunctiously destructive infidelity can be. 

● How many people do you trust? Can you count them all on more than two hands? No? Okay then, how about one hand?

● Are there five people living in this world that you know assuredly, will always speak highly of you when you are out of earshot, will forever protect you from any slander or disparagement, will be there for you when no one else is willing to risk association with you? Not even five, huh? 

● Let's try three then. Can you count using three of your digits, people that you can and do trust with your inner most thoughts, three people that you know would never betray you or turn their backs on you in your time of need? You have heard the expression, I've got your back ... do these three, have your back? No again? 

● Oh my, how about one person, just the one ... is there someone that no matter what, loves you with soul soaked loyalty, that would never ever, betray you? 

Judas is infamously known as an infidel, a traitor, a betrayer of most sacred trust. There is no name that compares to his, when one considers his willingness to forsake an innocent, sinless man, that also happens to be God incarnate. Think with me for a moment: Judas betrayed God, in the flesh. Does this not strike you as horrendously strange and sorrowfully sad? Judas witnessed miracles, meaning he saw Jesus command nature to conform to his will; he watched the formerly lame leap, the once tongue tied and muted speak, the blind given sight, the demon tormented set free, all by the hand and word of the living God, and yet, all he could think of was earthly gain. It is torturously regretful to think that someone given the privilege of witnessing what Judas witnessed, would think only of what he could gain financially via betrayal of the prophesied Messiah, that came to earth to die for the sins of the world. Judas literally chose death over life. He chose murder of his Master over following him into eternity ... Judas was an enemy of the Saviour, and in his end, he was his own worst enemy. He was none the richer for his infidelity, in fact, he is notoriously the biggest loser and poorest of souls, and forever will be thusly renowned while we have on earth, human history. 

John 14:6

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 

Judas has kindred, his kind, his type of people. They love money, prestige, and what this dying world has to offer them in the way of self-indulgent pleasure. The flesh is forever itching to be scratched, always wanting gratification, and we humans are very good at giving in, giving ourselves permission to satisfy our every urge and desire. Jesus proved it is possible to resist temptation, to resist the flesh, to stave off from sinning because the temporary glee isn't worth the long term loss and eventual, perpetual suffering, for having gone against God's grain. 

Are you, dear reader, an infidel? 

Would you take thirty pieces of silver to sell out the Saviour? Is this an obtuse question for you to be asked and then be required to answer? Do you refuse to consider the possibility that you would ever do such a thing? Okay, how about cheating on your spouse, or lying to your children, stealing from your employer, or maybe hiding money from the tax man? Perhaps you harbour envy in your heart, or covet your neighbours wife, property, and life, or you secretly fantasize the satisfaction you would experience if you saw your mortal enemy suffering for all the wicked things they have done to you and others ... I just described the carnal life, and while we are on the subject, are you a flesh indulgent sinner that runs from the thought of being accountable to God, and to the people he has placed before you? 

Betrayal is the most painful form of persecution and dare I say, it is precisely what Jesus told us we would experience when we started after him on The Way. Jesus' people, the chosen ones of God, had the benefit of having him in their midst, and yet they were the ones that could not stand to hear him say he is the I AM. Can you stand it, dear one? Is he the I AM, to you? or are you just like Judas, willing to forsake your own soul, for some pennies that tarnish, and can never buy you the joy of life and life abundant. We are fading flowers, wilting with every day that passes, and while we breathe, eat, drink, sleep, work, play, we also march to the grave: death is calling and it does not give a damn how much money we have made, or what clothes we wear, or the circles we have travelled ... death doesn't, give a damn. 

So, I ask you again, are you an infidel, like Judas? You don't have to be, you can switch your loyalty from being all about you, to being all about Jesus, the lover of your soul. Jesus will never forsake you, nor will he betray you or speak harshly behind our back, or give you up for another. Jesus will always be by your side and love you through your sadness, weariness, suffering. He will give you comfort and be balm for your wounded soul, and he will be your shield in times of tribulation and trouble, standing before you so that you can hide in the shadow of his power. Jesus can be your everything, your all in all, if you let go of that tight grip you think you have on this life you are losing, while residing in that shell of a body. You have no say, dear reader, none at all, in the aging and dying process! It is laughable to think otherwise, and to pretend that you will not go where all your ancestors ended up ... you will return to the dirt from which you were sculpted, and so will every other human being you currently know. Does this terrify you? It doesn't have to ...

Ecclesiastes 12:7

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

The soul belongs to God. God placed your soul within a human frame. Your soul animates you while you reside in that body of yours, and you can do what you wish, because you have freedom of will. But you do not own yourself, your soul is not yours, dear one, it belongs to God, who gave it. He will do with it as he sees fit, based on what you have seen fit to do with it, while you breathed and lived in this world. If you have been an infidel toward Jesus, he will turn his back on you when the time comes to determine where your soul will spend eternity. 

Jesus' fidelity is never in question, but ours, is.

Accused

If you were accused of a heinous act of violence, including assault that caused the death of one, two, three ... even thousands of people, and you were innocent of the charges, how would you respond? 

● Would indignation rise up from the pit of your stomach and usher forth an aggressive denial, in self-defence against your accusers?

● Would you absorb the insults and hold your tongue hostage with your lips pursed tightly shut, keeping control over your reactions, biding your time, and knowing that the facts, when they are borne out, will be your advocates, representing you as innocent? 

● Would you plead and beg for your accusers to believe you couldn't possibly have done the things they are saying you have done? 

● Would you gravel for clemency, despite your innocency, seeing your accusers as too powerful for you? This is a tricky question to ask and answer. Sometimes a person has been weakened over time due to the oppression they have suffered, and they just want to be released from tyranny, and will look to their captors for kindness. We won't go down the road of Stockholm syndrome, but that is the feverish flavour of emotional and mental illness I hint at here. 

Slander and libel are actionable insults, meaning if you or I say things about another person, or write things about another person publicly, that are not true, that can damage their reputation, they have legal recourse, and can hold us accountable by the arm of the law, for the damages they have suffered. 

What I have observed, is that very few of the culprits that have been accurately accused of poisoning, injuring and finally, killing many a man, woman, and child, via poison injections, are not defending themselves, saying they did not do such things; rather, they admit to the crimes they are accused of, and vainly want to take credit for the role they played. Does this make them innocent, or just obviously devoid of conscience? 

Last night I wrote about prostituted pastors. There is a church I attended for many years, and I found a youtube video that is proof positive that they fell for the covid fraud, hook, line, and sinker. I want to badmouth them, call them out, say, Listen and look. Listen to what they said; look at what they did! How dare they call themselves Christians? How dare they take the stage, or stand behind a podium and pretend to speak edification to a waiting and wanting audience? How dare they speak as though they are God's ministers ... but I know this, dear reader, that the facts will act as the prosecuting attorney, and they will be held to account, more severely then most, because the Word of God was to be their authority, but they chose to be mealy mouthed men, licking the boots of their oppressors and begging for clemency, rather than trusting in God as their Sovereign.  

And so the story goes, as the world turns. I think of evolution and laugh a little at the ridiculous suggestion of universal auto creation ... of you and me and everything else just suddenly appearing one day. I think of covid and my laughter stops immediately ... the outrageous suggestion that suddenly the entire world is endangered by a virus that is so deadly, we all must hide our faces from each other, and hide in our basements until we are told by perfect strangers that it is safe again to live outside of our little boxes, is ludicrous to me. 

Do you know the word ludicrous, dear reader? Ludicrous means so foolish, so unreasonable, or out of place as to be amusing ... that is the nonsense of evolution, that is the criminality of covid, and the masses continue to fall for both. 

I want to see hearts broken for the wounded. I want to see public pleas and requests for forgiveness. I want to hear people confess their crimes, with pastors leading the way, because they are the ones that callously shut their doors on the reaching hands of those that longed for the Word of God to be shared on Sundays. If you are a Christian and cannot find a church to attend because all the pastors are apostate, then you are not alone, dear reader. You are not alone in wanting to join the assembly of the saints, but they are few and far between, and maybe, just maybe, you don't belong in the goat tribe, because you are clearly, one of God's little lambs, and you must be situated back into a flock. 

I will use the word ludicrous once more, to end our time together. It is ludicrous to me, to be committed to Christ verbally, but not in the body. In other words, people have managed to pay lip service to their pretend faith, but when push comes to shove, they drop their Jesus like he is a hot potato, as though being one of his followers is optional, depending on the circumstances, and what is at stake for them in a given moment in time. Since sin has been erased from our vocabulary, and pastors refuse to see their own vile violations of God's commandments, it makes perfect sense that whole congregations, minus a remnant, there is always a remnant that are discerners of spirits and the times, have been hoodwinked. 

I will pray for contrition for the wayward, especially the pastors that lead their flock astray; it is the best possible practice to exercise my faith. Souls hang in the balance, and I want people to make it to heaven through Christ our Lord. He saves, and it is our duty to pray, and pray some more, for the saving of the lost and otherwise damned. 

Pretend Pastors

I don't need to be right and make you wrong ... this is a sentence I heard recently. A similarly strange statement formed as a request, that has rattled around for years like dried up tumbleweed, is: Can we agree to disagree? I must consider both of these odd concepts, as incongruent with my belief system, and here is why: There does indeed exist, righteousness, and its deadly alternative, known as wrongness: they are the tangible untouchables of morality and immorality. There is a moral code built into the human soul that dictates what we ought to do, and conversely, what we ought not do. Confusing right and wrong as though they are equally valuable, interchangeable options, can be labelled sinful, plain and simple. 

Sin is that thing we do that later on in life, causes us flashbacks of shameful memories, with a whole lot of regret and remorse attached to the choices we made that were combative with God's will for us, and contemptible in his sight. You and I can ignore the noisome regret and remorse, making ourselves not right, or wrong for what we have done, but it does not change a thing. When we pretend we have done no wrong, we give ourselves permission to embrace the badness within, the ugly part of ourselves that is indulgent and wants what it wants no matter the cost. Embracing badness does indeed, make everyone that embraces goodness, wrong! We can label this nonsense simply too, as rationalized excuse making. 

Now, let us get down to business regarding the reason for this piece of writing. There are some people that propagated the idea that getting covid injections was a matter of conscience, and that each person had the right to figure out whether or not it was the right thing for them to do. What a load of guff, dear reader. I am not irritated one bit (anymore that is) with the criminals that pushed the poison, using psychology and marketing to promote what they were selling ... they will be rewarded for the crimes they committed against humanity; I take my water gun loaded with liquid pepper spray, and aim at the blinded eyes of pastors, that spouted and shot mouth fulls of b#llsh!t in all directions at their congregants. The outrageous wrongness of what they did to the flock, screams like a banshee of collateral damage from the pews or cushy theatre seats, and is directed immediately back to the pulpits, across this country and the one next door. The hireling "pastors" did the people a whole bunch of wrong, and have yet to admit it, which brings me to this point:

● How can anyone that closed their church when ordered to by the big bad government wolf, call himself a priest, pastor, or shepherd of the people? Oh, and virtually churching the congregation via live streaming, is a wicked, wicked, and poor excuse for the real thing. For shame - how do they live with themselves after forsaking the assembly of the saints?

● How can anyone that got the injections - or did not but told their church attendees that it was okay to do so if they wanted to, or "needed to" to remain employed - and had their congregants mask-up, hand sanitize, socially distance, and even subjected them to the humiliation of temperature gun gauging or vaccine passport proof for reentrance into the building after the wolfish government gave them "permission" to resume religious services, continue to live with themselves without crumbling and confessing how viciously culpable they are, and how they have sinned against God and man?

You see, dear reader, how insidious sin is, how it lingers and festers and how the people desire to be united in God but the leaders are so far gone from being men of the cloth that they do not know they have sinned heinously, often, and without any signs of regret, remorse, or repentance. It is reprehensible and disheartening, for me to think of all the pastors I know personally, because I have attended many a church in my city, that haven't an ounce of humility in them and haven't once admitted to their wicked wrongness. 

Covid carries on, dear reader. It is not a past event, because the injections are still promoted and pushed without any signs of remittance. The sin of sacrilege is aging, but unlike good wine or cheese that improves in scent and flavour as it gets older, the sin of the men that take their places behind podiums and pulpits every Sunday, is wretched and raunchy, stinking up their reputations to high heaven as hirelings and traitors of the faith. Oh how I would love to name some of them here, but need I do this? There are but few church men, real men of God, that did not acquiesce to the devils demands during, and after, the fraud known as covid. These real men of God were willing to get arrested, willing to stand out and risk martyrdom for the sake of their flocks, and darn it all dear reader, there are only two pastors in the area in which I live, that I can count as being courageous on this front ... all the rest were, and continue to be, cowards, because they refuse to confess their sins of being willing to sacrifice their congregants to the covid gods (demons) to save their own thin and yellow skins. 

If you are curious about the church you attend, go back in time and see how the pastor and the staff he employs, handled "covid" and the lock-downs. 

● Did your pastor run like a scared bunny, and hide in the shadows until the big bad government wolf retreated? 

● Did he speak against the maniacal tyrannical menace that masqueraded as a threat but was a manmade machination meant to cow people into compliance? 

● Did he cut through the c-rap and tell the people what was really going on, and to not be tempted to believe blatant lies meant to divide, conquer, emotionally frighten, and manipulate the populace?

What, pray tell, did your pastor do during the most critical time in their pastoral career? If they caved and went with the mandates, dear reader, then they are not living a calling from God, they are money makers that have jobs, They may as well be time-card punchers working for the man, because they are not shepherds of flocks, but are simply, cash in the pocket self-indulgent criminals pretending to give a damn about the people. 

Do I sound harsh to your reading ears? Too bad ... it does not matter to me if I sound harsh. Peter denied Jesus three times before Jesus went to the cross to die for the sins of the world. Peter betrayed his Saviour, was disloyal to his Redeemer and friend, but he was willing to sorrowfully live with his sin, unlike Judas, that coward, that knew he shed innocent blood but instead of owning his wickedness and repenting, and sinning no more, he killed himself. I see modern day pastors in a similar light: they have sinned against the living God by forsaking the Saviour and preferring the favour of mere men, over living God's commandment:

Matthew 22:27

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Dear reader, we aren't done. There will be more drastic challenges ahead, and I warn you now, that if your weak willed and sissy pastors did not stand tall and strong in their faith during "covid", they cannot be counted on to do so when the next soon to arrive temptation comes their way. They will crumble like legless fools, like twin towers that drop following detonation, if they don't repent for their hideous display of cowardice, during our first time round this devilish block we have travelled. 

Covid taught us there are sheep and goats, pastors and pretenders, and that Satan would love to sift us one and all: and he has done just that. My prayer is that people repent for believing lies, they sin no more, and live a life marked by faith in Jesus Christ as the Saviour of the world. 

1 John 4:14

And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the son to be the Saviour of the world. 

P.S 1: How can you stomach a man in the pulpit preaching from the Word of God, once you know that he was/is so easily and readily deceived, and hasn't a clue that there wasn't really, a "pandemic" ... are those pretend pastors immune to the Truth? 

Have they been inoculated against the gifts of discernment and wisdom? And do you dare continue following them where they lead?

P.S 2: Believe me when I tell you I searched for a picture that would indict a local pastor or two that fully embraced the covid lie ... I found far worse than one or two pictures, I found videos that enticed viewers to make light of the "quarantine life" young and old were subjected to. Let us keep in mind the mental illnesses the loneliness caused during those dark days, and all the elderly that died devastatingly alone, believing they had been abandoned, because their family members were not permitted visitation rights and were illegally denied access to their ailing loved ones. 

The fallout continues: the walking wounded are everywhere and need the salve that soothes. People need a Saviour, and they can't count on their prostituted pastors to speak the love of Christ to their needy souls. 

Unaware, Undisturbed, Unafraid

This morning my eyes opened to 8:09 on the clock. I consider this sleeping in, and was shocked to see how late it was. Looking outside, I noticed raindrops on the windows and in my backyard, the patio furniture pillows were soaked, and garden wood chips were strewn about. Apparently, we had quite the storm last night, but I didn't even hear a whisper of the wind, despite my bedroom windows being opened. Is this how it was for Jesus while he slept peacefully during a storm, on a boat being bandied about with waves threatening to drown the wide awake men on board?

Mark 4:35-38

And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest not that we perish?

● Was Jesus unaware, and therefore undisturbed, and unafraid? 

You and I are not in charge of the weather, but their are human beings trying to take charge, and they have had some success in their manipulations of rain and wind. Today the sun shines brightly: the wicked ones would love to blot out the golden ball of heat and light, to chill and darken our world, dimming it so that we cannot see God's glory. 

● Is God aware of their plots and plans? Is he disturbed and afraid of their machinations?

We are promised trouble and tribulation in this world while we reside here, and the disciples experienced first hand what terror felt like in the presence of the Lord. While he slept, they panicked, and wondered how he could possibly repose so easily while they felt as though death was imminent. They were aware of a threat, and they wondered, Is he completely oblivious?

● Does it seem to you that God is oblivious and napping, while humanity goes up in hell fire flames? Is God resting while we are reacting?

Jesus was on a ship, and there were other little ships out on the water that evening: waves filled these vessels, and perishing seemed a real possibility for the sailors. Imagine there surprise, when: 

Mark 4:39

And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

I was astonished to learn that my son, and my morning client, did not sleep last night because of the harshness and brutality of the storm. I picture the faces of the sailors in the boat with this astonishing passenger, and the faces of the sailors in the other little ships, when suddenly and abruptly, the wind ceased, there was great calm, and all because Jesus spoke the words, Peace, be still to the raging wind and sea. 

● How aware are you that God is all powerful, and that he tells us repeatedly, Biblically so, to be undisturbed, and unafraid? Surely we can grieve, because Jesus wept; surely we can sorrow, because many a man of God did so also, but not having faith, isn't an option (please excuse the double negative English majors). Believers know going to Jesus is our only option to calm the storms that threaten to drown us in our despair. 

And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? (Mark 4:40)

Jesus' response to the disciples panic makes it seem as though fear is silly and unnecessary. The question is, if I may be so bold as to extrapolate just a little for our clarity on the subject while we are together, Aren't you aware that when I am with you, you need not be disturbed or afraid? 

● When you are in God's presence, do you feel the still and great calm? Does being with him give you the peace you need to perceive that he is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent? The disciples were in the presence of God and observed his Masterful control over the elements; we have the benefit of learning from them, What manner of man Jesus was, and What manner of God, he is: 

And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? (Mark 4:41)

Proverbs 9:10

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding

Dear reader, if the wind and the sea obey him, I suggest it is foolish for you and I, to disobey the Master of the universe. He holds in his mighty hands the power to give and take life, and that ought to stir up some revert fear and trembling in mortal mankind. 

May the Son shine brightly in your soul, illuminating your mind, filling your heart with brilliant light, and giving your spirit a God glow that marks you as unmistakably, his. 

Egyptian Mentality

The little guy is moving fast with his mother trailing not far behind. I know where they are going, and my heart grows heavy with the knowledge. We pass them going in the opposite direction, and once we have completed our loop, we see them again. The toddler has a blue mask riding just below his nose, and his mother is donning one of linen colour. The weight of my heart has it sinking to the floor, and I resist an urge to shout at her and grab him away, to rescue him from what I know goes on in that medical centre. I have seen parents and children going in, and coming out, and I always pray for the little ones. 

I feel ashamed of myself, because I know I should say something, do something? Do I give the parent information and plead with them to not do this thing that they feel is the right thing to do? Do I accuse them of being an ignoramus, someone that ignores the facts, and is ignorant of them and therefore is stupid? Are they stupid, or deceived? I decide here and now that deception can stupefy us, so that we cannot think or feel properly. A spell has been cast, and the dark magic continues to work its ugly wonders on the unsuspecting. 

My shame fades and swaps out tag team like, with a feeling of desolation. I cannot rescue or save anyone that does not perceive danger. I am the crazy one for not believing lies: in the eyes of the deceived, people like me are just nuts. I do not look to the potions and poisons that the medical magicians have concocted to heal or protect me: in fact, I am very well aware, of what the witches brew does to the human mind, spirit, and body ... I hear a bird happily chirping outside my window, and the sun is beaming in. It is on days like this that I too, can pretend that all is well in the world, danger is abated, and I can simply enjoy the gift of a new day. In the back of my mind the scenario plays out, and I get previews periodically of what will be. God's Biblical foreshadowing informs believers, and while I appreciate this lovely spring day, I also anticipate bad getting worse. I have never been an optimist, I am more pragmatic then romantic, but the hope I have felt for the majority, has waxed and now wanes: my belief in them is limping and lame. When there is refusal to acknowledge the spiritual realm, doom and gloom pervades and prevails, and that is precisely what thickens the air with sick anticipation of the horrors of suffering and dying that crouch at each doorstep. 

The Israelites were told to paint with hyssop, the blood of a lamb on their lintels, their doorframes, so that the angel of death would not enter in and take their first borns; alas, the blood of the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, saves no one, when it is not counted on to rescue us from our own sins. Without acknowledging our blackened hearts, repenting for behaving wickedly, and then receiving remission following contrition and confession, our fate is sealed, as the saying goes.  

Exodus 12:1-8

And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt saying, This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: and if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: and ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. And they shall eat the flesh in the night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. 

There are instructions on how to cook and eat the lamb ... 

Exodus 12:12-13

For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. 

The first passover foreshadows the coming Messiah. For those that believed and heeded the instructions and warning, lives were preserved. When I compare and contrast the ancients to our modern day men and women, I see that we once again live in a time when and where, Egyptian mentality has taken over the masses. They prefer spells, potions, trusting in witch doctors, wearing masks that bespeak of slavery to a demonic dominion they seem to know nothing about, and submitting to strange authorities that prefer death over life eternal. Humanity has debouched itself by willfully handing over their existence to all that is unholy, and goes against the will of God. People want to preserve themselves here and now, and in their madness, they submit to mind and body poisoning that saturates the soul with sickness: and they give their children the very same "medicine" believing that by doing so, they are being good parents ... nah, not so, not so. 

Perhaps you have heard this or read this numerous times too:

I went for tests, but they do not know what is wrong with me ... What is going on?

"They", the technicians, doctors, and nurses, do know what is wrong, and "They", are seeing what is wrong, day in and day out, because there is commonality amongst the suffering. "They", got injected with poison, and "They", administer poison, and "They", now live their days seeing the devastating affects, and yet "They", refuse to acknowledge their role in murdering the people that came to them as patients. That, is what is going on, dear reader. 

Clearly I am not completely without hope, otherwise I would give up writing and publishing my work entirely. I am hopeful for you, and for your children, that you discern exactly what is happening, and recognize that The Bible is the greatest book of instruction given graciously to man, from God's own mind and hand. Jesus did not die in vain, that is an impossibility! Jesus died for you and for your offspring, and that means you can go to him for healing and for guidance as you face the future. I could say more, but the best advice is short and sweet ... find yourself a Bible believing reading friend, ask some questions, read The Bible after asking God to help you see and hear what he wants you to learn, and turn away from worldly, deadly wickedness, in favour of a relationship with the Saviour. 

I got my angst out, my encouragement in, and now I leave you to enjoy the sunshine. 

Sin Dodgers Abound

See here how those who with a great deal of presumption will do an evil thing yet cannot bear to hear of it afterwards, nor to have it charged upon them. When they were in the heat of the persecution they could cry daringly enough, "His blood be upon us and upon our children; let us bear the blame for ever." But now that they have time for a cooler thought they take it as a great affront to have his blood laid at their door. Thus are they convicted and condemned by their own consciences, and dread lying under that guilt in which they were not afraid to involve themselves (Matthew Henry Commentary, Acts To Revelation, Volume 6 page 52).

They vehemently viciously shouted, Crucify him, CRUCIFY HIM, but man alive, after Jesus rose from the dead and was the talk of the town, despite the evil intentions of spawn of the devil villainous men that thought killing the Saviour would salvage their pompous and pretentious positions of power, the very same fellas did not appreciated being accused of killing Jesus, despite having publicly displayed their hatred for him, over and over again. The establishment wanted to shut up to shut down God's Word on earth, and nothing has changed in all the time that has passed since Jesus died for the sins of the world. The Pharisees and Sadducees, the high priests and their low to the ground underlings, hated God, hated his Son, hated the Holy Ghost, and most definitely, hated anyone and everyone that threatened their authority by speaking of them, thereby glorifying the three in One, as Sovereign. 

Simple, isn't it, when looked at from the two sides point of view. Aren't there always two sides, dear reader? Rivalry is like a coin, heads or tails, two options and only two; except the coin toss does not determine winning or losing, it just decides who goes first. Victory goes to those that play by the rules, even when cheaters put up more points on the score board ...Thus are they convicted and condemned by their own consciences, and dread lying under that guilt in which they were not afraid to involve themselves. 

Sin dodgers abound, don't they dear one? We all sin and come short of the glory of God, but some of us actually admit to this almost fatal flaw of self-indulgence. Wilful sinning is disobedience to God's commands, his rules for the good life, and when you and I register that when we sin, it is against the Father, it is an almost crushing realization. Why and how could we have said and done such horrifyingly wicked things, we ask ourselves? When a person belongs to the family of God through the saving grace of Christ and his sacrificial death on the cross for our sins, it is unbearable to hide from and pretend that we haven't committed crimes against ourselves and against the One that made us in his image. We cannot stand our accusing conscience, and confession is so necessary and urgent we feel we might bust wide open with the pressure of containment, if we do not speak our contrition to his listening ears. Mercy is the relief we receive when we repent. The unrepentant, on the other hand, that do not want to acknowledge or hear that they have done wrongly, are slain by their own sin; their sin is fatal, and they do not, will not, refuse to, own it; self and other deception via denial gives them a sense of temporary reprieve but alas, justice will be served. The wicked ruin their own reputations, making fools of themselves before an observing Almighty God, and amongst his people.

I still see in my mind's eye, Justin Trudeau's face when he incited Canadians to hate their fellow citizens if they did not comply with mandates. I am curious about Justin and his whereabouts? Justin earned himself quite a nasty reputation world wide. When he turned to shake the hand or have a quiet word with a "world leader" sitting or standing near-by, they would turn away from him, disregarding him and ignoring him as though he did not exist. One by one, the puppets in the pulpits, the preachers of iniquity, the prime ministers of sedition against the Authority, have stepped down and away from their roles, to be replaced by equally empty and wicked minded mouth pieces. They too will have their say and day in the darkness that surrounds them; but we that see, know them for who they are and to whom they belong, and nothing they say or do will convince us that they are innocent of heinous maiming and killing crimes. His blood be upon us and upon our children; let us bear the blame for ever ... Justin and his cohorts do what the devil their daddy bids them, and the blood flows in rivers to fill the seas, and will continue to gush until God says, Enough. 

Every person that attempted to command their fellow citizens to go against the conscience God placed in each of us when he created us, is responsible for grievous sin committed - it is unconscionable to lead others astray, especially when evil is leading a person this way and that by the nose. In other words: If you thought you were right believing in the fraud of covid, and you shamed and blamed resistors for choosing to maintain their autonomy by trusting in the living God for their health and well-being rather than stupid, demeaning, and demoralizing masks and lethal injections as "protection" against a make-believe patented laboratory invented monstrosity designed to injure and kill, then you were dead wrong, and I do not use the word dead lightly. 

If you are reading this and you fell for the fraud, then please know that I have wept for you, and prayed for you to repent, and to confess your sin of rebellion to the only One that can save you from yourself. If you are still here with me, I also pray that you ask for forgiveness for damaging relationships in your rebellion: you demanded compliance from people that answer only to God, and for this, you have caused great pain and suffering to those that loved you and plead for your soul with sorrow and weeping before God the Father.  

If you are a sin dodger, meaning you do not hold yourself accountable for sinning against God, but rather, excuse what you do, favouring the feigning or justifying of your wicked ways, then you have some reckoning of your accounts to do while you still have breath ... if you don't do it now, dear reader, God will do it for you when you stand before him on the day you pass from this life into the next. Your soul is at stake; perhaps now is a good time to stop bobbing and weaving to dodge t punches in the nose coming your way. Maybe you can stand still, see your sin, suffer for all that self-indulgence that has ruined your life, and see Jesus on the cross, loving you past the crimes you committed at his expense, and embracing the salvation he mercifully offered through his life, death and resurrection. 

John 8:36

If the son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed

Dead Stop Statements

... for we can call nothing our own, but sin. There it is, dear reader, one of those dead stop statements that make it almost impossible to move forward past the thoughts that crowd into the mind and stampede the heart. What a startling and heart rending concept.

Here I directly quote Matthew Henry as he gives commentary regarding the first and freshest Christians, that immediately experienced the newness of life following the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, the Redeemer. 

They did not take away property, but they were indifferent to it. They did no call what they had their own, in a way of pride and vainglory, boasting of it, or trusting in it. They did not call it their own, because they had in affection, forsaken all for Christ, and were continually expecting to be stripped of all for their adherence to him. They did not say that aught was their own, for we can call nothing our own but sin. What we have in the world is more God's than our own, we have it from him, must use it for him, and are accountable for it to him (Matthew Henry, Acts to Revelation, page 42).

My mom told a story recently of a relative that cried when she was out in the open market in their home town. When the relative was asked why she was crying, she replied, I want it all. All she saw was all she wanted. Do you find this strange, or can you relate? Mine, all mine, is a sickness that needs curing; emptiness that needs filling cannot be fixed with things, or experiences, or people. Void is ravenous, and impossible to satiate. 

When I read about the first Christ followers, I long for their zeal and fellowship. They were one in the spirit, they were one in the Lord, and while they walked the earth, they were on a heavenly mission; knowing God personally made everything else fade into insignificance. Striving, establishing, accumulating, making a name and reputation as a very important person (VIP), being some kind of big deal and proving worth, just didn't matter to these guys and gals that were filled with God's grace. 

● How attached are you, dear reader, to the pride of life that screams of vainglory and self-importance? 

● Do things matter to you more than God's will and way for you?

Matthew Henry humbles me in his humility. Let us look again, at what he observed and recounted regarding the earliest of believers:

They did not take away property, but they were indifferent to it. Have you heard the expression, sharing is caring? It is somewhat easy to sell and give away what you and I have, if we know that what we have, was freely given to us first, and that it all comes from God. I recently prayed to not be attached to things, to not have affection for stuff that I like: imagine Job with me, dear reader ... many a person has lived through Job like experiences, and it is admirable when they refuse to forsake God, and cling to him all the more, in their times of trouble and tribulation. The disciples were indifferent to property, seeing it as disposable and the proceeds distributable to those in need. They showed their caring when they were sharing as family members with Christ as their head. 

● Do you say these words when severely challenged, Your will, not mine Lord?

They did not call what they had their own, in a way of pride and vainglory, boasting of it, or trusting in it. Man alive, the earliest of believers saw past themselves didn't they? Ownership, pride, vainglory, boasting, trusting in what they had, were the furthest things from them! I scrunch my face and clench my teeth while wrinkling my nose at the thought of bragging ... I have been prideful in the past, but about eight years ago, I got flattened out, and in my minds eye, I see myself splattered and stuck to the floor in my basement office. I was made inept, incapable, helpless, and almost hopeless, stripped bare of any delusion that I could fix what was broken. God was my spatula, and scraped me up and off that floor, and I know it was his voice instructing me every step of the way, that revived me, giving me the strength to take tiny steps toward restoration. I learned poignantly then, what I know unquestionably now: but for God go I, and I thank him for all that I have every single day. 

● If you had ten minutes to take whatever you wanted from your home before it got pulverized, what would you retrieve? 

● What do you hold so dear that parting with it would hurt your heart?

They did not call it their own, because they had in affection, forsaken all for Christ, and were continually expecting to be stripped of all for their adherence to him. Can you relate to this statement, dear reader? My son is 28 years old today, and I recall thanking God for him and saying, He is not mine, God, he is yours. Thank-You for giving him to me to raise! I have given my son to God over and over again throughout the years, knowing he belongs to his Creator, just as you and I do. We cannot love our children more than God does, but we sure can love them enough to trust that God the Father has their best in mind, and when we pray for our children, wanting them to be like their Saviour, we can know and believe that God hears our prayers; we can trust too, that putting our children figuratively into the hands of the Almighty, is the best place for them. I realize that is not what Matthew Henry is referencing here, but I do think it necessary to remind parents that their children are not possessions; children are precious gifts from God, and it is our duty to raise them up according to God's commandments. 

My very best examples of losing our affection for the world and what we can accomplish and accumulate while in it, is forsaking all for Christ when we simply cannot, will not, refuse to, stop speaking about him, no matter the threats or consequences. My marriage ended because I spoke the words I love Jesus more than anyone and anything; my businesses took a massive hit when I refused to collude with the covid criminality; I was ejected from a board of directors for publicly speaking out against the second greatest hoax committed in human history, again referring to covid (the first greatest hoax occurred in the garden of Eden, when a slithery snake convinced Eve to take and eat forbidden fruit, and man alive, we the people have followed in our parental footsteps ever since, haven't we?); my Bible study attendees slowly one-by-one, backed out from gathering together, preferring the safety of hiding behind screens to study God's Word, rather than boldly continuing to meet; lastly, the church we attended as a family made it clear that they belonged to the devil, when they shut the church, pretending to continue worshipping Jesus on Sundays via the internet, and eventually opened up as an injection location for the administering of covid shots. Imagine that, it wasn't safe to stand side-by-side to hear scripture read or sing in unison while worshipping God, but it was safe for would-be-sick people to line up, masked, and readied to be injected with poison. Sounds like a synagogue of Satan event to me. 

Dear reader, I expect to be stripped of all for my adherence to Christ, because it is promised in The Bible that this very thing will happen, as it did to the first followers, and to every generation that came after them. God's people would rather die than bow to the god of this world, or his minions for that matter.  

● Do you, dear reader, cling to your King, forsaking all, come what may?

They did not say that aught was their own, for we can call nothing our own but sin. This is the dead stop statement that had me weeping in contrition. My sin is my own, and so is yours. What a concept. I own all I have said and done, since I chose every word, every deed. Oh yikes, this brings to mind of a fresh, some of my lip curling ugly choices that make me want to hide in shame! Ha, thank God for our conscience, repentance, confession, and forgiveness ... I am washed in the blood of Christ, and redeemed from having been wicked and wayward. I am still here to live another day to glorify God, and for this, I am grateful. 

What we have in the world is more God's than our own, we have it from him, must use it for him, and are accountable for it to him. This last sentence slows my thinking and typing down. Do you agree with Matthew Henry? He is speaking Biblical truth, and yet, we must decide if what we are reading makes sense rationally. I start this discussion on this last point with my son, delivered this day 28 years ago. I did not knit him in my womb, I am incapable of this feat, but I did feed, clothe, and shelter him. Am I responsible for all he says and does? Is it me, or is it him? I do not pump his heart with oxygen rich blood, or help him fall asleep and then rise in the morning. I cannot control his thoughts or what he does ... he is an entity unto himself, making decisions all the live long day. He is mine and yet he does not belong to me. 

● Do I or don't I take credit, or blame, for how he turns out? 

● Do you or don't you take credit, or blame, for how your children turn out? 

Here is what The Bible says in the book of James 1:17:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

• What you and I have in the world is more God's then our own
• What you and I have, we have from the Father of lights
• Every good gift and perfect gift is from above
• We must use these gifts for God's glory
• We must be accountable to him
• He never varies and there is no dark shadow he can cast

I ask you, dear one, Are you willing to forsake all you have for Christ, speaking of him as oft as possible, because you love him more than life, more than liberty, more then property and possession, and all for the sake of souls that need saving? 

Imagine the days leading up to the crucification. Was there a sense of foreboding? Now imagine the days following the resurrection. Was there a sense that the kingdom of heaven was indeed, at hand, and near?

Dear reader, I have a sense of foreboding mixed with a sense of hope as the days march on. We are still here, and that means there are souls that have yet to be claimed for the kingdom. Believers were given a ministry of reconciliation, and it is a delightful duty, to share the gospel, and pray that God's words go directly into waiting ears, opening up the mind and soothing the soul with holy truth. 

The foreboding is that feeling that pertains to the lost ... many seem to prefer wandering in the wilderness over the security of salvation. 

Hope is the feeling that many will hear the gospel and just like the very first Christians, they will feel sorrow for sinning against God, ask What can we do, and will repent and sin no more, willing to forsake all they have as they adhere for their lives, to Christ. 

Where, are you, in the mix?