I guess the readers of folkpotpourri probably think the old man who posts here has finally gone off the rails, but I’ve been trying to get a couple of points across lately, and it’s my heartfelt intent to communicate them in a way that sinks in. Never mind then, that you might be reading an essay written by a crazy old codger from the hills, and just pay attention to what he is saying.
While the US has been relatively unaffected by most of the events going on in faraway places thus far, if people think it’s going to stay that way, they are tripping. Our leaders have gone stark-raving mad, and it’s just a matter of time until they make the granddaddy of all mistakes. Right now, as you read this in the comfort and safety of your living room (assuming the incredible tornado outbreaks, floods, and other weather anomalies of late have left you with a living room in which you may sit and read) there are human-designed processes taking place which threaten to turn our world into nightmarish hellscape, a horrific series of events which could transpire within any given few minutes. I did a post a while back on what it might be like. A Time of Unimaginable Sorrow is Upon Us – Folk Potpourri
Go ahead and change the channel if you don’t like confronting your likely future if things continue as they are going. It’s understandable that one might prefer not to think about such frightening possibilities, and much more desirable to turn to the latest distractions, the reality TV shows that the US congresspeople have begun to air where some AIPAC shill congressman or senator pretend to tear into some hapless cabinet member in a “congressional investigation”. Or there’s always football. Whatever bread and circus you choose – until the very end. Or stick around and see where I’m going with this.
The truth is, that if the governments of NATO and other western nations continue to push the Russians, there is going to be hell to pay. Same thing for aggravating Xi and the Chinese. The whole world is thoroughly fed up with the US and Israel, who controls the US, dictating to everyone how things are going to be. They will all get enough. There’s not a living soul in the world with a functioning brain who still believes the US didn’t blow up the Nordstream pipelines. Germany, or at least the German people watch their country sinking in the ocean of global economics because of the loss of cheap Russian gas. How long will Scholz and the rest of his servants of global Zionism be able to keep up the facade? What I’m trying to say is that our brilliant leaders and think tanks are going to be unpleasantly surprised when the SHTF and they find that many of our trusted allies, even in NATO, have chosen to join with our adversaries. Türkiye is already alluding that they will not join any aggression against Russia.
The American people themselves are rapidly waking up to the fact that they have long been deceived by their own government. Now that the genocide lies are buzzing around the noisome cesspool that is the US government, folks are asking the obvious questions, such as, “Now that we realize they constantly lie to us about everything from the Minsk accords to Israel acting in “self-defense” in Gaza, what else have they been lying to us about?” Could 9/11 actually have been an inside job? What about Covid and the horrific results of the inoculations? It’s becoming plainly obvious for everyone with eyes and ears that EVERYTHING that comes from the US government is a bald-faced lie. And who, pray tell has been named as the father of all lies?
The second major point this post is aiming for is that there is a way to defeat this evil. This dark and ominous cloud that threatens to enshroud the world will eventually bring about the total destruction of human existence. It’s going to happen – you can see it coming like the proverbial slow-motion train wreck. We continue to live as though it won’t affect us, but it assuredly will. There is however, a sure way to avoid this catastrophe that is coming upon the world, and that is through faith in Jesus Christ. It is the only way. We have been warned over and over that the tribulations of the end times will bring about the ultimate destruction of our world, yet we try and convince ourselves that somehow things are going to go back to normal. They won’t! With all the mistrust that has been sown, there’s no way they can.
We have infallible prophecy in the Bible that predicts exactly what is going on right now. The love of many grows cold, and there are those who do not love at all. Wars and rumors of wars – Jesus warned us of these things, and He said not to fear them, yet all we see in the world is fear. Perfect love casts out fear. Love is what we should strive for, because love is the most potent force in all of creation. It is the consummate weapon that will prevail over all of the destructive efforts of Satan and his minions on earth. God is Love. His love was on full display on Calvary Hill over two thousand years ago when He allowed His Son to be sacrificed for each and every one of us. From Highland shepherds, African truckers and rickshaw drivers in Mumbai to fishermen in Japan and Russia, Jesus stands ready to accept us into a Kingdom not made by the hands of men, we can trade this ominous fear of the happenings in the world today for a new expectation of a life of unimaginable peace and joy if we but give Him the keys to our life and follow His cross.
Satan has worked since the advent of mankind for exactly what the world is right now. He is spreading hatred and fear, destruction of nations and deaths of people, just as he has planned for centuries. He has no love or loyalty to anyone, but his servants don’t know that, or maybe they’re just ignoring it like so many people are ignoring the horrible future of this world. How can people be so deceived as to follow entities that could not care less for their well-being? Look at Diem of South Vietnam, Khadafi, Saddam Hussein, Daniel Noriega, Ferdinand Marcos, Shah Pahlavi, and all of the other (former) friends of the US and how things turned out for them. They all met with bad endings when the US was through being their ally. Look at Germany now, sans Nordstream, with the devastation to their economy. My point is that evil entities such as Satan or the US government care not for anyone, even their friends or servants, and when things get thick, they invariably abandon them or even turn on them. None other than the first-class war criminal Kissinger said that being an adversary of the US is dangerous, but being a friend is fatal.
What you need is a friend who will not abandon or turn on you but stick by your side, especially when things go south. Jesus is that Friend and considering that He is THE MOST POWERFUL BEING in all of creation, He is the very best Friend we can have. A Friend Who loves us enough that He willingly laid down His life for us. Now that we are facing these hard times, we need a Friend like that, but there’s only One who can be that Friend – Jesus Christ.
Give Him your trust – you have a lot to gain when you do and everything to lose if you don’t.
God bless all – it’s going to be a rough ride – at least for a while.
It’s just shy of 4:00 am and I’ve been up since 3:15, and it looks like I won’t be going back to bed. We had a nasty storm come through from the west – it was one of those you’d swear was bringing the end of the world. I have four dogs, all some border collie and Australian shepherd mix, they learn things really fast, and I guess if I’ve taught them anything, it looks like how to be scared of storms has been among their most successful lessons.
I’m hard of hearing, but when they come running in and jump up on my bed in the middle of the night, I always know there’s a storm coming. They can hear thunder a long way out – long before I can. There’s no arguing, I just have to get up and assume my God-given role of their comforter. They know I will, it’s part of my job. It’s all good though, because I love my four-legged family and I enjoy being there for them.
There are other storms raging in our world today, storms that are close enough to us that we all know they are here, and these ones threaten everything we hold dear. In many places, the gale is already savaging them. It’s heartbreaking to hear news of so many innocent people losing their homes, their livelihoods, their families, and their very lives and it always seems to be because of someone’s greed for money and power. Unlike my dogs, these unfortunate folks don’t have a master to whom they can go for comfort – or do they?
Those little bodies wrapped for burial, soaked in innocent blood and the piteous tears of mothers, who themselves are usually injured and bleeding, the heart-wrenching wails of aggrieved family members whose losses can only be understood by the Master and fellow travelers of good heart, are forever recorded within great tomes of human events to be addressed on the terrifying Day of His vengeance. How do they expect to escape, who bring such devastation, such sorrow, upon innocent fellow humans? For the prayers and tears of those mothers have reached into the Heavens, to God’s very ears and He will show mercy to the perpetrators of this evil in proportion to the mercy they showed their victims. It won’t be pretty for them.
As difficult as it is to understand, the innocent who endure these troubled times indeed have a Master to whom they can turn, a Loving Father Who hears their mournful supplications. It’s difficult to comprehend because we can’t see far into the storm, only the part we are in, but He sees all the way to the other side of it. Innocent victims of atrocity are hard-pressed to make any sense of what’s happening, and perhaps there is no sense to be made, but He is there nevertheless for their succor if they but turn to Him. He accepts the departed children into His Heavenly abode, never for them to fear again. They shall see no more sorrow in that place of unimaginable joy. There’s no need to grieve for them, for they are in His arms now. But we must grieve for ourselves, for our loss; it’s human nature. We shall miss them immensely. There are multitudes of good, humane people in the world who grieve with you.
Jesus said that it won’t go down well for anyone who harms the little ones, and that’s putting it mildly. He told His followers to let the children come unto Him, for He loves them profoundly. While it is possible to repent of one’s evil ways and ask forgiveness, the people who perpetrate evil on those little ones and do not repent for it are going to suffer some of the worst of God’s wrath. There are no words to describe the terror that will fill the hearts of those who experience His fury. And that terror, anguish, pain, and sorrow are going to last for all of eternity.
The evil that’s taking place in Gaza is being done right out in the open for all the world to see. It’s a black and white issue, like another evil man said on one of those rare occasions when he stumbled onto the truth not that long ago, “You’re either with us or against us.” At least it’s true for our occasion, there’s no middle ground here, and I firmly believe if you are even willing to look the other way, you’re indicting yourself on this issue. Leaders throughout the west have openly admitted their support for this unfolding tragedy. They have come up with the lamest of justifications so they can sound like they believe what they are doing is right, while their own people in all of their nations hang their heads in shame for having these monsters running their countries. Such is their fealty to their Zionist masters, leaders in the US are ordering a most vicious reaction to the sane and humane college kids who are bringing attention to the Gaza travesty. Everyone in the world, including those leaders sending arms and ammunition, know that what’s going on is wrong – dead wrong. Every lying spokesperson who mouths off some pathetic justification or rationalization can be seen for the evil monsters he/she is. Every cop who slams a peaceful protester to the ground is putting his/her seal of approval on an actual genocide. I really don’t think the people doing the talking realize the world is onto them, otherwise they’d just shut up and stop sounding so embarrassingly ridiculous, awkwardly trying to act as if they actually don’t know they’re speaking perfidiously.
Like all storms, the one that rages in today’s world will pass. No one knows just how bad it’s going to get, but until Jesus returns to take up His scepter and set things right, we know from prophecy there are going to be some dark times. Meanwhile, His light is there for us, to guide us through all calamity if we but trust Him. When we hear the thunder approaching, we ever have a Master to go to for comfort. He’s waiting. And the very least we can do is to pray for those already caught up in the maelstrom.
We all die. Lots of people claim to have all the answers about life and death, including a lot of Christians, but very few, if anyone of us know, provably with our knowledge and science, what is on the other side. There are some who claim to have seen things beyond, as during out-of-body, or near-death-experiences, but even though some of them sound plausible, and maybe some are real, I have seriously come to doubt most of these stories. By and large, unless we are believers, we do not know what awaits us, and if we are believers, we only know it through our faith.
People of every stripe and nationality all wonder the same things. Why are we here, what should we be doing, and what happens next? We search and research every available source of information, but to no avail. People put their trust in government leaders, many of whom only “lead” as far as their bank accounts allow. Sadly, it’s the same for most of today’s religious leaders.
As I write this post, I wish I could provide some definitive answers, but unfortunately, such is God’s plan that we cannot provide proof of His promises for us, that they must be exclusively accepted by faith. Can you imagine how crowded the ark would have been if Noah could have proven the things of which God warned him? Now for those of us who have been blessed with faith (which comes as a result of His Word), we understand the infallible truth that GOD ALWAYS DOES THE RIGHT THING! We might not understand what He’s got going on, and we might not even agree with what we think is His plan, but any time our understanding gets cross-threaded with God, we have to step back and just take that proverbial deep breath; we have to realize that whatever happens according to God’s plan, it is the right thing.
There is hope. When we choose to stop worrying so much over the predicament that has become our world, I have found, no I have been blessed to come to the realization, that Jesus is real – very real. No matter the intricacies of the world’s condition, the deception always challenging our sensibilities, we have a friend. Jesus Christ is waiting at the door with a patient and gentle knock. The world is sliding into chaos, and if we can’t see it, we’re blind by choice. Jesus can and will open our eyes and lead us through every obstacle before us.
This post is directed to those who are frightened and confused at the impending destruction of the world they have come to call home. Look at Gaza, at Kosovo, at the Ukraine, at Iraq – all those people watched as bombs destroyed their homes, killed their loved ones. What hopelessness must have raged in their hearts to see their whole world destroyed? The fact is that more nations await this same level of destruction, it’s just a matter of time. The great dragon, the enemy of God and mankind, has made these things happen. His work is there for all to see, just look at pictures in the news of Gaza right now. This is what Satan’s work looks like. Satan brings only destruction. Beyond his control, however, is the authority and power of God, who is able to render Satan’s viciousness of no threat to those who trust Jesus.
As followers of Christ, we are given the option to “zoom out”; to see the bigger picture, both in time and space. If one zooms out far enough, the dividing line between this world and the next life becomes invisible. We are able to see more of God’s immaculate plan, that when you step back far enough it’s easier to understand that we can already be in His kingdom in this life, if we so choose.
He gives even the most evil among us the opportunity to repent of wayward lives and come to the cross in preparation for the next existence. We are able to better understand that God does indeed have a plan and His plan is that through acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Son of God Who came to the world and created a church, a highway if you will, that leads us to Him.
It has become impossible nowadays, to see anything on the news, either mainstream or social media, that doesn’t involve unbelievable destruction. We are faced with the end of our very human existence, it’s undeniable now. Yet there is still hope, at least for this last short while, to reach an understanding that in the end, God will take control of this world and mete out justice to His enemies and the enemies of His people. He will also reward His people who stood by Him in an evil world. Jesus Christ very much wants us to be His people, He offers shelter from this insidious storm that Satan has contrived.
Jesus Christ created a ministry about two thousand years ago. It has lasted, and will last, forever. It’s important to understand that His ministry and His words have been under the most intense scrutiny of all studies of mankind, and if even one untruth could have been proven, His ministry could not have stood, but Jesus did not lie about anything. Sadly, false prophets have arisen through the years and we still have plenty of them, but the true church itself is founded on consummate truth, and its Founder, Jesus Christ said that He is able and willing to forgive us of our awful lifestyles and by His own blood, cleanse us spiritually whereby we are able to come into His Kingdom, a place of unimaginable joy and peace. With the world spinning out of control, that’s quite an encouraging promise.
If you’re tired of fretting and worrying about the piteous state of the world and the threats we face, try opening the Bible – start with the 5th chapter of Matthew – read His message and get to know Him, as mentioned earlier, there’s no way to prove He exists, for if there was, we wouldn’t have to have faith. Faith is important to Him. Find a Christian preacher and get yourself baptized and fasten your seat belt, because we’re all in for an eventful ride, but in His care, we need not worry anymore. Especially about what’s on the other side.
Once, a long time ago, there was a man who lived over in the Middle East. He was a particularly good man and he had several friends. His mother knew him better than most mothers know their sons, and even when he was very young, as a matter of fact before he was born, she knew he would grow up to be a very special person. He had an aunt and a cousin who were also privy to who he was and they were pretty excited about him too.
This man did grow up to be a special individual, in fact he became the most influential person who ever lived. Not much is known about his childhood, other than a few snippets – things that his mother probably remembered and passed along to one or more of the multitude of writers who chronicled his life. Although he must have been an extraordinary child, if there had been many mentionable things concerning his youth, surely some of the many writers of his life’s stories would have known and related it in their journals. There’s this one story about him being left behind in Jerusalem when his family left to go home from an event there and they had to go back and find him, and that’s about it. His family went back to look for him and where they found him and what he was doing was a very remarkable event. Other than that, my guess is that he wasn’t that unusual as a kid.
When he got grown however, he gathered several followers from among the peasantry of the area. Fishermen and other guys who had shown curiosity and interest in things he had to say were so enthralled by this fellow that they determined to put their lives aside and hang out with him. Lifelong fishermen just walked away from their nets and boats, such was his righteous allure to them. Little did they know at the time that this new direction would be a permanent, life-consuming pursuit – as it still is today when we learn of him. He was turning out, as they saw it, to be a surprisingly wise man who spoke things they had not heard before. He spoke with confidence and seemed to have an intimate knowledge of God, to whom he continually referred as his Father. Those guys eventually came to be known as his disciples, or followers who spent much time with him as his fame would grow. They also came to love him immensely, for they learned that he loved them profoundly. The cousin mentioned earlier, although not actually one of his group of followers, turned out to be the one who baptized him.
He actually first gained notice at a wedding feast in a place called Cana. There was apparently a party atmosphere, and several people were there. Might have even been more folks there than the organizers anticipated, because during the reception they ran out of wine. From the gist of the conversation, the guests had already had a good bit of the spirits and weren’t ready to shut down the gala just yet, but what do you do? No more fruit of the vine, but no one was ready to go home. Jesus’ mother – yes Jesus was His name (and references to Him will be capitalized henceforth), maybe acting on a hunch, took Him aside to give Him the sad news about the wine shortage. This had to be an obvious hint, and He almost seemed a bit exasperated, as this thing He was about to do wasn’t exactly what His ministry was about – He even called her “woman”, but such was His compassion, His absolutely boundless love for His fellow people (and Mom knew this), that she simply told the servants to just do whatever He told them to do – I can imagine her trying to hold back a big beaming smile, knowing that because of His precious compassion, He would do what needed to be done to take care of the situation. Although this act wasn’t the essence of His purpose, it will nevertheless go down as one of the most remembered events in all of history – it was Jesus’ first miracle.
He told the boys to round up some jars and fill them with water – yep, fill them all the way up. They were big jars too. Six of them, big old clay jars like they had back in those days. Once they filled them up with plain water, He performed His miracle, He then told them to give the master of the feast a shot of the water-become-wine, and lo and behold, the master said this wine was better than what they’d had at first. But then, what did you expect? This was Jesus, the Son of God, making His debut in what was to become the greatest life of miracles and hope for mankind that there has ever been on this earth. He wasn’t going to give His friends any second-rate juice, no He made the good stuff. And to the joy of all, the party resumed. But you need to know, there was no crazy or bad stuff going on there. Just some people having a good time and enjoying a wedding feast. This man was the Son of God. And He is now and forever the Son of God.
Somewhere later on down the road, His disciples came to realize just who this man was (and still is). He ended up giving up His life for them. And for you and me. I love Him, and we have a bond that reaches across that vast chasm that separates us for now, but I know He loves me too. What a feeling to know that! And He made some really good wine, and plenty of it!
Get out your Bible and read about Him and find out what He means to you. He stands at the door of your heart, patiently waiting for you to ask Him in, and when you make the decision to trust Him, hang on for the ride of your life! It’s kind of like getting a buzz and realizing you can’t drive so you need to give Him the keys. He knows exactly where to take you if you let Him. Sometimes He takes us over bumpy roads and sometimes through terrible storms, but He does that for our benefit. It’s scary at times, but we get to the point where we finally realize He has everything under control, then we can relax and have peace – peace you never dreamed was possible in a world full of turmoil. Such is His love for us. We’ll never regret getting to know Him. I can promise you that with complete confidence. Most of us know our driving is terribly impaired when we’re inebriated – drunken by consuming too much of the worldly wine – the drink of sin that corrupts the world and it inevitably leads to a catastrophic crash. He told the brethren at the last supper that He wouldn’t partake of the fruit of the vine again until He drinks it with them (and us) in Heaven, so He’s always sober.
I used to drink way more than what was good for me, but with His help I swore off many years ago, not saying I could drive for you, because I can’t, but He’s always available – the penultimate designated driver.
I can’t wait to try some of His Heavenly home brew when we get There.
There’s a creek running across the property that comes from up in the woods. It starts up on the neighbor’s land high up the ridge and empties into the big creek in the bottom of the holler. The resident old-timer out here says there was an old sawmill up there, somewhere close to where the neighbor’s property and our land meet, but there’s no sign of it today. There’s an old, galvanized tub in the creek bottom where I suspect the mill might have been, but I don’t have any idea whether that rusty old tub had anything to do with a sawmill, but who knows? Anyways, whether it did or not, it’s the only sign of anything man-made out there.
I like to walk up there and enjoy the serenity – it’s one of those places where you can chill out and get your thoughts together – and enjoy the company of Jesus. He’s always there to hang out with me and listen to my problems and accept my thanks for the place, but mostly He’s just simply there. And that’s more than a mouthful to try and get across to a person who doesn’t know Him. It’s hard to explain, this faith I have, but it’s real. If you haven’t experienced His wonderful presence, don’t let any more of your life pass by without getting to know Him. You will never regret a moment of it.
One day – and I’m pretty sure it’s going to be soon – we’re going to see Him return in all of His glory. Most of us have a vision of Him as a lowly carpenter, a preacher with no wealth or standing in society, but trust me when He comes back, the world is in for the biggest shock of all time. Our Savior will be the most glorious, powerful figure you could ever imagine. Although everyone on earth will be completely awestruck, unimaginable fear will overwhelm the hearts of all who denied Him. At the moment we see him, we will realize just how puny all of our weapons – in fact, all of the pursuits and accomplishments of mankind through all of history – really are. The very skies will be opened in a flash of dazzling brilliance as multitudes of angels fill the whole realm of space, time, and thought. It will be huge! Incredible lightning, thunderous voices of fearsome angels will resound and echo across the universe, and a Savior come to claim His own and exact vengeance upon all who chose to be servants of the stranger who has wreaked havoc on His people for all the years. It will be a fearsome thing to fall into the hands of the living God!
As I stroll through the peaceful, silent woods, I think of the contrast on that day when human beings, those who survive the horrors of tribulation, flaming hailstones, pestilence, disease, war, and all of the other horrors that will have been unleashed upon humanity, will literally cry out – some in fear, but some few in sheer delight and relief. Amid scenes of destruction and horror that the mind cannot fathom, mighty men will scurry into their holes in the earth in piteous and futile attempts to hide from the face of this God who is filled with wrath and indignation. The righteous, those who have been faithful to Him, will be able to stand and face Him with unimaginable joy in their hearts. What kind of thoughts will His people experience, seeing those fellows who were the “elite” – those whose riches gave them mastery of armies and nations? I’m pretty sure we’ll pity them at that time. But do you know what? Anticipating the horror they will go through at the judgement of God, we should pity them now.
A human soul is worth more than the value of the whole world to the Lord. As I watch a gentle southern breeze caress the budding trees, I can feel the tenderness with which He nurtures us. He really doesn’t want any of us to perish and it goes against His design, even for souls of the rich to be lost. His tender mercy is revealed to us in so many ways, it’s a shame that Satan has deceived so many and that they disregard the opportunity for becoming saved so that they would have opportunity to spend all of eternity in the presence of absolute joy and love. Jesus said that (human) eyes have not seen, nor ears heard, nor has entered into the mind of man the joy that awaits those who love the Lord. Let that one sink in.
I know there are many folks who don’t know what it’s like to enjoy a day out in the woods, watching the thrushes flit about, hearing the beautifully insane call of the pileated woodpecker echo through the holler, maybe catching a glimpse of a shy doe strolling through the glen with her curious fawn in tow. For those folks, I feel pity, because some of the most wonderful experiences of life are being missed. God is out here in His creation, and although He’s a lot harder to find in some big city with sirens and horns blaring, He’s there too, nevertheless. I’ve written posts about such like Where the Poor Go to Weep – Folk Potpourri and Thoughts on Creation on a Beautiful Spring Morning – Folk Potpourri in which I try to share this country experience in spirituality with folks who don’t have opportunity to see it for themselves. Mostly though, I try to get people to thinking about what lies ahead, after we finish with this stage of existence and enter into the next.
I constantly read people’s opinions on social media chats and such and I pay particular attention to the endless comments of those who claim not to believe in God or the afterlife, they put forth arguments that sound reasonable enough if one insists on ignoring evidence of God’s presence. I guess it’s easy enough to disregard people like me who keep trying to help them open their eyes, but us guys who are sincerely trying to get them to take a serious look are doing it from our hearts. The Lord has given us faith – a precious commodity, and indeed, we believers realize just how precious it is, but we can’t go so far as to put our own thoughts – our own faith – into other people’s heads. Once in a while I have the heart-lifting experience of running across someone who is willing to actually give thought to the possibility of the existence of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and even though they don’t usually immediately become believers, you can tell that God is at work in their heart and if they continue with their honest curiosity, it will only be a matter of time. “Blessed are the pure at heart, for they shall see God.” I pray earnestly for these folks.
If only people could hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ and understand that He is exactly who He says He is, if all of us could just trust that the Gospel of His life, death, and resurrection is the absolute truth, and that He is the Son of God who came here to the earth to teach us of a better way and to be the ultimate Sacrifice Who would make it possible for us to connect with the Heavenly Father, what a joyous and peaceful life they could enjoy! There would be no need to succumb to the macabre fear that is darkening the world today. He promised us that as believers we have nothing to fear – we must focus, and stay focused, on what lies ahead after this life, this world which is no more than a test in which we must decide where we choose to spend eternity.
Ignore the foolish people and so-called evangelists – obscene, wealthy fellows who preach no more than distractions from Christ. Incredibly, they are some of the principal elements of Satan’s attack on goodness, wholesomeness, righteousness, and many are those who are ensnared by them. Jesus told us that the gate is wide that leads to destruction. I get a mental image of a huge herd of sheep all being led through a huge wide gate into what they presume will be a wonderful pasture, but they cannot see in beyond the gate. In reality, what awaits them is a great, dark abyss for which they are ignorantly, but not innocently, heading. Then there are a few sheep fighting their way out of the crowd, often enough through some serious obstacles, but they are on their way to a narrow, tiny gate beyond which they, through faith, know an unimaginable paradise lies. They will not be distracted, they hear and know their Shepherd’s voice, a voice to which the big crowd never listened; those ones don’t know His voice at all, by their own choice, even most of the folks who claim to know Him only listen only the deceiving voices of their false preachers.
In God’s grand scheme, and as we are admonished in the Bible, this life we currently live is a very short moment in time. In fact, if there was any such thing as a graph depicting eternity, a dot representing all of human existence wouldn’t even be detectable on it. The time that has passed since Jesus ascended to Heaven is but a brief moment, maybe like you’d think about going to the grocery store and coming home. The Bible constantly speaks of the fact that we are living in the last days, not as we imagine the last days, but as God sees it. When we think of “last days”, we think months or weeks, or maybe even a few years, but when the Word mentions the last days, even though there are many references to the end times as we understand them, He is most often talking about the entire period of time after Jesus appeared and left to go to Heaven. As we watch the dark times that are enveloping the whole world right now, I believe that we are approaching the last days as we humans think of them, in other words, I believe the time is drawing nigh for our encounter with eternity, and that some – maybe even most – of us alive today will see it in our lifetime, possibly very soon.
Imagine the apocalyptic happenings when Heaven and His host is revealed. Mighty Angels with thunderous voices making great proclamations, intense, never-before witnessed lightnings, earthquakes, the very heavens shaken with the mighty and angry Creator of all things looking down in extreme wrath. Now imagine that the anger of this awesome Being is directed at you – when you find yourself in the unenviable position of having chosen to be His adversary because you rejected His Son. His beloved Son who had to die an excruciating death in which the very heavens were agonized, on a cross long ago just so you could be saved, but even after He went through all that, you rejected Him.
Even though Jesus was dying, hanging by the cruel nails onto that cross in what had to be excruciating pain, such was His unimaginable love for mankind – even His tormentors – His last thoughts were to pray to the Father for their forgiveness – yes, He loved them (and us) that much! His unbelievable love is the most potent force in all of creation, God Himself is Love. When a person becomes a believer in Jesus and makes the decision to follow Him, that person begins the process of immersing himself/herself in that profound universe of God’s infinite love and will forever live in His blessed presence!
We have opportunity while we’re here on earth to experience small glimpses of His love. We can see it in a dogwood bloom, or hear it on a summer evening whippoorwill song echoing through the holler. When you see a newborn fawn wobbling up to his mother in a peaceful green meadow, you see God’s handiwork. This is the world God intended for us to inhabit and enjoy, and though most who read these posts don’t get to see things like this, I’m happy to share the experience as much as my words allow. I’m happier to share the experience of knowing Jesus though. Being able to get to know Him is the most important thing in this existence, and I hope and pray the readers will do so. Get yourself ready so you don’t have to find yourself in fear and dread on that awesome day when He returns. You’ll be forever glad you did.
Now I have to go out and check on the progress of this year’s dogwood bloom – it looks to be another nice one.
Take a good look at the picture above. It’s Mike Pence in January 2024, well into the Gaza genocide. He’s in the occupied territory showing fealty to what a growing number of social media refer to as the Satanic Death Cult. He’s putting his name on an artillery shell. The slaughter of the innocents had been going on for several months by the time of this horrid signing, so he did it knowing well that this ammunition will likely be used by “the most moral army in the world” to massacre innocent terrified peasants in Gaza. This hideous act is a very damning admission of his approval and support for the evil genocide being inflicted upon the innocent men, women, and children of Palestine.
This is the same Mike Pence who made his bones posing as a Christian to court the hypocrite vote when he ran for and became governor of Indiana. I lived in Indiana when he was governor and it was easy to tell he was a fraud even back then, at least to myself and other people who bother to open their Bibles. I could not for the life of me understand why anyone even remotely associated with Christianity could support him, but I guess I underestimated the power of hypocrisy. And don’t take that to mean I’m a Trump supporter, because I’m certainly not. He has shown his own disgusting fealty to the same evil entity.
As Pence writes his name on a genocide weapon, Jesus may well be concurrently blotting that same name out of the Lamb’s Book of Life (if by chance it’s still in there), but Pence obviously doesn’t consider that. The Lamb’s Book of Life is the one in which we true Christians want our name to be, for one’s name in that book is Jesus’ requirement for entry into Heaven. Though he might claim otherwise to hypocritical voters, Mike Pence cannot possibly believe in Jesus. Only the most self-deluded of hypocrites would believe he is a religious man. His autograph on the weapon that he has to know will be used to kill innocent people is proof. There may be some shekels involved in this public signing and selling of his soul, indeed, money and power are important to him as they are to all of his political ken who studiously avoid truth.
Mike Pence is revealing himself to be all about Mike Pence and nothing else matters. Even the lives of innocent little children don’t matter. He can’t fool true Christians however, only hypocrites. People of his ilk and Nikky Haley’s and so many others are religious all for show, but sadly there are way too many people who know so little about the Lord as to believe these could possibly be righteous people. Oh, and Nikki Haley, aka Nimarata Randhawa, likes to sign weapons that will be used to slaughter hungry children, too.
Assume that, as is quite likely, this artillery shell will be fired into a civilian apartment building, or a hospital and it kills a child. Maybe several children, or maybe several defenseless women and kids are wounded, losing arms and legs by this very shell with the eminent Nimarata’s or Mike Pence’s name on it. The above photos and a piece of shrapnel with either of their names on it, maybe dug out of some mangled two-year-old’s chest, will be exhibits A and B before the Judgement throne, and it will be the very last thing in all of eternity that either of them will want to see as they stand trembling before the Almighty. Pence will wish for that merry day of January Six a few years back at the capitol when he was scurrying for his life. It is an understatement to say God will be very angry and that will be a fearful and awesome sight to behold, the very Heavens will be shaking, and Mike Pence will be horrified with unimaginable fear to stand before the living God trying to come up with a reasonable sounding excuse for selling his soul and voting with his own signature to support the holocaust of innocents in Gaza. Although he’s as adept as any other politician at lying, he won’t be able to weasel his way out of what’s coming to him. Justice will be served and unless he repents, it won’t be pretty for Mike Pence (for all eternity), or any of the other vipers like those in the U.S. congress who almost all voted against a cease fire resolution. Had it passed, such a resolution might have saved some lives, or may have had no practical effect, but such was their eagerness to flatter and fawn over their Zionist masters with their whorish servitude, they dared not vote for a ceasefire. These people are out of touch with the populace and deluded such that they have no idea how they embarrass and disgust a rapidly growing number of American people. Truly repugnant behavior. The lucre holds their loyalty fast for now, but guaranteed retribution inevitably awaits them all. Both the shekelers and the shekelees. Please excuse my analogy to snakes, serpents have done nothing to deserve such a comparison.
Since we’re at this point, can you identify the difference between the subjects in the following pictures of a) garter snakes, and b) the US Congress in joint session?
Answer: The serpents in the top picture are not venomous.
By now all of humanity is aware that some of the most innocent peasant folk in the world are being terrified and slaughtered in Gaza. Little children there are literally being starved to death! Medicine isn’t allowed in for the wounded and medical people (who are also being selectively targeted) and operations are being performed even on little kids, screaming in intense pain without anesthesia. The IOF is busily murdering women and children in churches, schools and hospitals. Such is their thirst for blood, they even shoot their own unarmed soldiers who escape captivity. Some have marched near-naked “captives” round the dirt and rubble piles of Gaza and torturing them. The demons in control of the occupational government won’t allow food or medicine, or even water, to be brought in so that some of the Gazans might survive. Over ten thousand arrested Palestinians languish, incarcerated without charges, tortured in occupation prisons. If the reports are accurate, more journalists have been (intentionally) killed in that open-air prison during these past few months than were killed in all of WWII all over Europe and Asia. The IOF has adopted the habit of dropping leaflets or otherwise getting word to the Gazans to leave an area and to go a safe location at X, and when the refugees go to X they get bombed there. This has happened on more than one occasion.
The synagogue of Satan is in firm control (for now), and the world watches. The official U.S. government position is that in spite of the hours and hours of footage showing the massacre and carnage and blood, there is “no evidence” of genocide taking place in Gaza, per Blinken, Sullivan, Matthews, Kirby, et. al. WHAT!!?? I’m a determined Christian and love Jesus with all my heart, but these liars can tax anyone’s determination. It’s near impossible for decent people to stomach. I fervently pray for God’s Mighty Hand to intervene in the occupied territories! And in Washington D.C. ESPECIALLY IN WASHINGTON D.C.! At some point it will, but for now we have to wait for all the Mike Pences to sign their own eternity away in whatever way they choose to do it. And as hard as it is, Jesus told us to be patient. He also said His sheep hear His voice, so patient we must be. The evil ones have to finish revealing themselves, so when judgement time comes, they don’t have any excuse, because everyone in Heaven and on earth will know full well by their insidious actions which side each of them chose.
Erdogan of Turkey condemns the evil being perpetrated upon the Gazans. He and the Turkish people would do more to help if they could, but he is in a precarious position. He has been speaking out against the genocide by the IDF and you’d think he’s probably working behind the scenes to try and help Gaza but is limited as to what he can do without massively escalating the situation. Other Arab nations stand by looking, talking a lot of trash, but in reality, they are just waiting for the Gazans all to die. King Abdullah of Jordan is a pathetic western puppet and will not lift a finger, unless it’s to help the occupiers. He put out a video of himself pushing aid bundles off from a cargo plane over Gaza, but it was pure PR as a few pallets of foodstuffs weren’t going to make much, if any difference, but his air force helped to shoot down Iranian drones that were headed to Israel. Sisi in Egypt is about like Abdullah, just with less bluster. A lot of folks say he’s a western puppet and it sure looks like he is. MBS in Saudi Arabia is at least refusing to normalize relations with the synagogue while they are murdering Gazans, but not much else. The only people in the world who are helping the poor Gazans besides Hamas are the Hezbollah guys and Houthis (Ansar Allah) and some competent militant groups in Syria and Iraq. The leaders in Iran seem to be helping as much as they can without having to fight the entire west. The Islamic Republic of Iran and its IRGC has proven to be brave and stalwart in the face of some nasty enemies. I had become a fan of Iranian President Raisi (RIP) and Hezbollah Secretary Nasrallah and Speaker Obaida of Hamas and General Saree of Yemen. I can’t leave out Christians around the world who pray as I do for the Gazans – that’s important in many ways, too. We must keep praying for the Lord to show mercy on them! Our government certainly isn’t going to help them. It’s as if Henry Kissinger and Sheldon Adelson’s ghosts still direct our foreign policy. They don’t do mercy. They only do money. As the congresswoman Ilhan Omar said, “It’s all about the Benjamins.”
When all this is said and done, the world will recognize the Houthis, Hamas, and Hezbollah guys as the real heroes, regardless of propaganda to the contrary. Think of the allies who liberated the Nazi camps. Even though they are Islamic peoples, they show more Christ-like compassion than American, British, French, or German governments. Of the ones who will have proven to be villains, there are too many to name, Biden, Grima Blinken, Austin, Sholtz, Macron, Netanyahu, Gallant (what an ironically misnamed creature), the entire U.S. congress, and of course, Sunak of the UK are just a few. But on the Day that counts, most of the members of the mega church congregations also will find out too late that the Lord Jesus doesn’t approve of their fealty to His enemies, He has said He will tell them He doesn’t even know them. They will find themselves to be regarded among the worst of the villains.
It goes against Christian theology to kill, but whether the resistance groups are guilty of sin for taking up the sword to help save the poor Gazans, will be for God to decide. From the level of protests, a lot of the people of most western countries are on the moral side of history, but not their bought-and-paid-for governments. The governments are all controlled by the synagogue with the shekel, and/or Epstein’s little black book.
I’m a Christian, American Navy veteran and am appalled at the behavior of my government. Not only should we remember Mordor’s attack on the USS Liberty, any sane moral person should be equally appalled at the behavior of all the American evangelical groups who choose to be ignorant hypocrites and who probably still think there is a difference between Democrats and Republicans. Though they pack the pews of their respective temples of evil on Sundays, they refuse to listen to Jesus when He says the pit of vipers who call themselves Jews are NOT Jews, but are a synagogue of Satan. They’re blaspheming by even claiming to be Jews, but the “faithful” congregations of vipers in America’s mega churches still support them full tilt. ‘This war is prophetically significant’: why US evangelical Christians support Israel | Evangelical Christianity | The Guardian You will pay dearly for your chosen ignorance, folks. Chosen ignorance, because you don’t read your own Bible, but rely on millionaire whitewashed sepulchers like John Hagee or Kenneth Copeland or Joel Osteen and so many others of their ilk to instruct you on how to best show your fealty – to Satan. The American “church” industry is probably Satan’s greatest weapon. Imagine! All the demons of hell dwell in ornate temples of blasphemy in the great congregations who nod and echo their support for perverse doctrines and for the appalling murder of innocents. How can these “believers” possibly twist and mangle the scriptures to come up with some misguided precept that allows them to support the murder of innocent children? This goes against everything Jesus Christ taught, and, contrary to what they teach to justify their fealty, it has nothing whatsoever to do with God’s promises to Abraham!
Sadly, the unbelievers or even those of other religions see the behavior of “Christians” like the hypocrites in the mega churches and it just reinforces their belief that Christianity is an evil religion. They know about the crusades and the Inquisition, and other historic deviations of the church, so what the evangelicals are doing today fit right in with their skepticism of the Christian religion. One day real Christians will suffer because of this repugnant behavior. But I guess that’s part of the plan.
American universities are being told what they can and cannot teach or allow on their campuses by billionaires from the synagogue, and the federal and state governments adamantly enforce their edicts. These people would gladly sign their names right alongside Mike Pence’s. In fact, in their own way they are. If someone in the pit of vipers of congress were to muster up enough courage to speak up about billionaires gaining control of American education, they might find their own shekels getting cut off, or worse, get Epsteined, so they all remain blissfully silent. There will come a time, and hopefully it’s not that far off when the people of this nation will realize these demon-possessed elites would not be billionaires if they hadn’t stolen their wealth from Americans through financial chicanery and intrigue, (such as in 1913 – Google how deviously the Federal Reserve Act was passed) and maybe Americans will someday decide to take it back. Stage a popular asset seizure to give the people back their stolen wealth. If the money stolen by crooked bankers, pharma, and insurance corporations were given back to America, we probably wouldn’t have a national debt. Our cities might get cleaned up, drug addicts could become able to get help, and we could start resembling a properly run nation, like say, Russia, or Iran.
Before anyone gets the wrong idea as to how I feel about real Jews, as a follower of Christ, I am a proud adopted son of Father Abraham. I personally think King David was probably the greatest mortal monarch ever and would have been a fantastic leader of our nation. God knows we need one. He has my greatest admiration for his righteous servitude to God. Further, I genuinely believe God has a special place in His heart for the Jews who accept Jesus Christ. I’m perfectly ok with that and not a bit envious. The 144,000 Jews who come to believe in Jesus are the ones referred to as the Bride of Christ and I’m happy for them, but it will be a hard-earned title. The real Jews, even the ones who practice Judaism, mostly seem to renounce the behavior of the murderous Talmudic cult in the Holy Land. In fact, the true Jewish people around the world are as appalled at this genocide as us who believe we are adopted sons. The demons doing this evil, as Jesus said, ARE NOT JEWS! Stop letting Satanic mouthpieces like Judas Hagee convince you they are. That the Zionists of European descent have taken over the Jewish identity has to be the greatest identity theft in all of history! Now they are set about doing everything possible to make the whole world hate the real Jews, many of whom are mostly innocent in all this. Many Jews even in the occupied territory are protesting the genocide at great risk to themselves. Kudos to them. As for Benjamin Netanyahu – whether he is actually an evil incarnation of Shrek or just looks like him, the villagers will catch up with him one day – the torches and pitchforks already seem to be coming out in Tel Aviv.
It’s important to understand the words of the apostle Paul when he said the great Day of the Lord would not come until the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition [2 Thessalonians 2:3]. This means that the man of sin will someday be revealed, specifically the anti-Christ, but there are many other men of sin being revealed. There will be no more hiding an evil person’s culpability, in fact, they are now out in the open with their evil – being revealed, or better yet, revealing themselves (see above Mike Pence and Nikki Haley photos). The “being revealed” part of the prophecy is happening right now! The whole world is able to see what’s going down and all who support it. The Congress of the U.S. openly votes to support genocide. The president publicly vowed to support it and it’s unquestionably the most insidiously evil event of modern times. The government of the United States of America is sending weapons as fast as it can to provide for the slaughter! They are publicly taking sides with this astonishing evil. Being revealed indeed! The other important thing to consider about the apostle Paul’s prophecy is that once this revelation has taken place, the Day of the Lord at any moment could then be upon us. Make no mistake, we will see justice done when He gets back! Another thing to keep in mind is that time means nothing to God. He is eternal, so the time that Jesus has been away to Him must be like us running to the grocery store and coming home. The two thousand years He’s been gone is but a moment in time to Him. It seems like it’s taking a long time and to us it is, but to Him, it’s but a moment. In reality, right now He’s giving everyone time to choose a side.
There will come a Day when justice will be served. Count on it. On that Day, everyone in those big churches will finally understand what Jesus meant about the gate being wide that leads to destruction. The self-deceived “faithful” in the pews of blasphemous congregations will be just as damned as drug dealers and those who make their living murdering or selling human beings – actually more so, because they, of all people should have known better. Probably more so, because the latter ones at least don’t claim to be righteous like the hypocrites in the big mega churches. Imagine it! These people openly support the sworn enemies of Jesus Christ, yet at the same time try to claim Christianity! The astonishing hypocrisy of these people is one of the greatest sources of America’s ills. As for the “shepherds” of these flocks, when God gets through with them, I’m certain these false prophets will envy Mike Pence for whatever punishment he gets.
We should not hate Mike Pence or Nikki Haley for their evil acts. However, a Christian can be mad at a person and hate a detestable act such as signing a bomb destined to kill innocent people without hating the person doing it. That’s a fine line to walk, but an important one. It’s especially tough though, when these people do things like they do in the name of God. Hate the sin but love the sinner.
What can we do? We must do what Jesus said, repent of our own wrongdoing and set about serving Him by loving Him and loving our fellow human beings. Imagine what a different world we could have if everyone spent as much time trying to help one another as they spend trying to destroy each other! Decent people are up against a powerful enemy and cannot defeat him on our own, and we need to stop acting like we think we can, or worse, ignoring him. He has overtaken governments of the world – most of them. Certainly ours. We must diligently seek Jesus Christ’s help – it’s the only way, and He promised us He would take care of things if we only put our trust in Him. Get baptized. Get to know our Lord Jesus Christ. And always remember the love of money is the root of all evil. Evil like putting your name on a weapon that will kill innocents for thirty pieces of silver.
I hope this post will be of encouragement to Christians of the narrow gate who might feel left out for not believing the false teachings of the rampant and highly monetized evangelical groups. I also hope it sheds a little light on the beliefs of real Christians, what Christ actually teaches, especially to our Islamic brethren who would benefit mightily from learning the nature of true Christians.
Though many of us knew it was coming; we couldn’t realize the ferocity that would be unleashed. As we looked into the sky at the approaching darkness with trepidation, prepared as we felt necessary, we understand now that the vicious gale blows against our very souls, thus many of us realize just how ill-prepared we were. We did not expect to face the darkness it would bring.
A solitary lighthouse stands on a prominent rock in the midst of an endless sea, its mossy stones carefully laid one upon the other over the years of its building. It was erected by the Master Builder to withstand such storms as now assail it and on this night of the expansive dark storm, each successive frothing breaker is more violent than the last. A great wave of hatred lashes a tremendous explosion into the psyche of the structure, always followed by another – often one of near-uncontrollable anger which threatens to undermine the very foundation supporting the tower. Then out of the impenetrable darkness roars yet another – this time a gigantic mountain of inconsolable fear, perhaps the most threatening of the whole lot. Oh, how these merciless waves take hearts away and destroy men who do not seek the Light!
Once in an unexpected while and blessed, there comes a peaceful, serene occasion between the violent upheavals. A precious time in which the stalwart lighthouse finds itself standing tall and still lighting the way for travelers upon the malevolent waters. It is during these interludes that the keeper understands, yea, and renders gratitude to the One where the strength to endure the storm resides. It is the Foundation – the Rock upon which the whole structure stands marvelously undamaged. Through all of its years, because of the wondrous Light possessed, it has ever gained victory over storms of hate, jealousy, anger, vice, and all other malevolent depredations – because it has been built upon the Rock.
The wise keeper gathers his strength, understanding that the gale will inexorably return, ever in greater fury than in pastimes. He knows his lamp must be kept burning, even and especially amid each emerging tempest which threatens to extinguish its light of hope; he also has been given to understand that the sea is not the enemy. The sea is stirred by, and at the mercy of, the fearsome and malevolent storm. Those gigantic and terrible breakers of hatred, anger and such are the real threats, to be endured, withstood until that Day upon which an unimaginably peaceful and serene expanse of calm and joy shall arrive and prevail. Brilliant, snow-white beaches will reflect a new Light which shall forevermore put away darkness and fear. On that Day, though worn and bedraggled, the good keeper will be restored and rewarded for sharing his light – by the Maker of the sea and by whose mighty hand the lamp was lit at its beginning.
May the majestic light of Jesus shine before you on your voyage across the stormy sea.
It’s close to the time of year we celebrate the birth of Jesus, and thoughts of believers naturally excurse to Heavenly subjects. It’s amazing to try and imagine what goes on up there and how it affects us. There’s so much to learn, so much more to know. It’s interesting to compare what we do know from the scriptures to what is happening in the world, in science, and how they might correspond.
For instance, one of the interesting things, at least to me, is that our scientific community thought it would be prudent to build a complex detection system to try and detect what they call gravity waves from the universe. Some weird deflection system was built in a desert that would sense distortion of space supposedly caused from terrifically violent events out there somewhere. Sure enough, they picked up some kind of disturbance they attributed to a couple of supermassive black holes colliding many light years away. Wow! Now, these waves are thought to have derived from the physical cosmos, but what if they came from heaven?
I’m as far from being a scientist as you could imagine, but I have my own ideas. There are proposed notions of interactions between this physical dimension where all “laws” of physics neatly operate, and other dimensions, for lack of a better description. For instance, a lot of people believe the large hadron collider on the border of France and Switzerland was developed to institute a portal between ours and other dimensions. I don’t know about all of that but considering the absolutely mad and in-your-face evil running wild in the world lately, they actually may have succeeded in finding the key to that place – the bottomless pit – from which demonic monstrosities come into our world to take over the populations and especially the leaders of several nations. Considering the absolute depravity, evil, and madness of some of the world dignitaries right now, who knows? It’s not like the evil is hidden as they once tried to keep it.
Back to gravity waves. There are references in the bible about a time in heaven when the angels were at war. We’ve all seen Hollywood depictions of epic violent and catastrophic events, but as far as I’m concerned, they only reveal the limit of human imagination when it comes to real apocalyptic happenings. In fact, even with CGI (Computer Generated Imagery), Hollywood’s as pathetic at trying to imagine, as they are at depicting such things. Let your imagination go nevertheless and remember the Creator who makes things like galaxies and supernovae, who knew all things related to nuclear power eons ago, also created angels and gave them unimaginable power. He also created those supermassive black holes, quasars, pulsars, magnetars, gamma rays, and other phenomena, probably many of which are yet to be discovered. Now, what kind of absolute mayhem might have been afoot during that battle?
I believe whatever cataclysmic events took place in that heavenly war, when the archangel Michael and his angel army defeated Lucifer and his army, was far beyond the imaginations of mortals. It must have been quite the battle! What kind of space and time warping weapons did they have at their disposal? For lack of a better description, this undoubtedly would have been the greatest and most epic battle event in all of creation, and you know what? From the way it reads, the most powerful Being of all did not even participate. He obviously knew Michael and his angels could deal with the cosmic insurrection. We can’t even begin to imagine what actually did happen, much less what might have taken place if the Creator Himself had taken an active part. Maybe in some way He did, but as with all else heavenly, we wouldn’t be able to understand it.
I can’t even find words to begin to describe what that awesome monstrosity of a battle must have been like. And we think our puny nuclear weapons are fearsome. The angels took “shock and awe” to a whole new level! We’re talking about beings who could no doubt destroy entire galaxies! There probably are things way more phenomenal than galaxies, after all that realm is where the Creator of all things has His throne. Jesus told us we couldn’t even imagine the joy that we would experience when we get there and I’m quite sure there will be other things, entities, events, that we cannot imagine either, at least not from this side.
It’s important to remember though, that even with all of the unfathomable powers of spiritual beings, there are a few things we know of that cannot be destroyed. Among those things that were created to be indestructible is the human soul. Wow! Imagine that! God was so thoughtful when He made us (for His fellowship) that He gave us a soul that could never be destroyed – other than by His own hand! (Matthew 10:28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.) Not even those powerful angels can destroy the soul, even if they had a mind to. The notion of an indestructible soul can (and was intended to be) a very, very good thing, but it also has a potential downside. You see, while we are here on this earth, He gives us opportunity to choose whether we would like to get to know Him and be in His presence – to go with our soul to exist in that place of unimaginable joy for all of eternity, or allow ourselves to get caught up in all the distractions of this brief, fleeting physical world where we exist during this time set for choosing, and thereby consign our souls to a place of eternal damnation – a place where the very indestructibility of the soul dictates that if torment is where it ends up, it will be forever, but again, that was not the intent when the soul was created, that turns out to be instead a consequence of our bad choices.
That creature that was kicked out of heaven was, unfortunately for us, sent to the earth where we also must dwell for a short while. He obviously made it his purpose to try and thwart God’s plan to enjoy fellowship with His beloved human creation. As part of doing so, he got us kicked out of the paradise of Eden and to this day continuously presents temptations and distractions to keep our focus away from God’s love and mercy. Sadly, for so many of our kind, he has been highly successful. Especially when it comes to luring and corrupting people with riches and decadent lifestyles, his greatest weaponry. He evn tried tempting the Lord Jesus with that, but it didn’t work. People don’t realize they are trading an eternity of incomprehensible joy which exists in God’s presence – indeed as a consequence of His presence – for a few fleeting days of fame, wealth, and immorality which brings no real joy at all. Regardless of what it looks like to the peasantry, rich people are not happy. They trade the joy of having friends who love them, for throngs of adulating people who just want to be close to their money. Even their own families circle like vultures waiting to pick their bones when they pass on. The lifestyle they experience is empty and unfulfilling, therefore they mindlessly, slavishly, and continuously seek more of whatever they already have. In fact, their whole existence is caught up in greed such that they never experience meaningful satisfaction. There is no mortal love in their world.
The bible says that when the former heavenly “luminary”, Lucifer, and his angels were kicked out of heaven after that epic battle, the phrasing the scripture uses is that no place was found for them in heaven anymore. Wow! Let that sink in. Can you even begin to imagine the implications? What were they thinking?!! Eternity is such a long, long time that even the concept of time itself is meaningless. When the soul – which is indestructible, and as mentioned, will exist forever – and the human consciousness with which it was graced, finds itself in an outer darkness so complete and overwhelming that not even a distant star will ever be seen again – forever* – it will be a sad realization indeed. Especially when that soul is forever cursed with the awareness that there is a place somewhere, a kingdom of which God gave them a glimpse – they will never see again, a place where there is an unimaginably joyful heavenly gala and the souls of those who were pragmatic and sought Him enjoy eternal bliss in the company of The Father and the Lamb and glorious angels singing with unimaginably beautiful voices in a place of unfathomable joy, peace and love. In eternal torment, that unfortunate soul who chose to go the other way will finally and forever understand that no matter how much earthly wealth and popularity they attained for that ridiculously short time, they are now alone – forever alone and in darkness – and worse, forgotten by all, including the Creator Himself. They were invited and turned it down – this was their own choice – what a dismal realization to carry in torment for all eternity in a very dark and lonely place where among other unpleasantries, there will undoubtedly be pain and horror – probably like a nightmare from which one can never awaken, eternal thirst without water, and no rest!
Heaven is a spiritual place, a spiritual dimension. We are admonished that while we exist in this life, we are to attain to this spiritual premise, and as possible, reject the physical, worldly aspects of existence. We can only achieve this by putting our complete trust in Jesus Christ, there is simply no other way. Those who choose to stay engaged in the physical world and reject the spiritual will ultimately find their souls stuck in the physical dimension they so desired, with no longer any opportunity to ascend into the spiritual dimension. Though the soul is indeed spirit, the person’s desire for satisfaction in the physical world might just be granted to them – it is in this sense that their spirit forever may remain in the lonely physical realm of the damned – while those who chose to seek Jesus in the spiritual dimension will have found their way there. Will this be the final – and eternal state of our being?
God loves His human creation so much that He even sent His beloved Son to live among men and provide us the way to reconnect with Him, the Father, with Whom a formerly blessed couple shared a truly divine fellowship in Eden. Jesus Christ, the Son of God Whose birth we celebrate during this season, is our Invitation to that great eternal reunion in Heaven. The bible refers to the marriage supper of the Lamb, and every human with a God-given soul who has ever existed got a chance at an invitation. That opportunity is before all of us living now, in the Words of the humble Son of a carpenter born in the diminutive town of Bethlehem in Israel long ago, ever knocking on the door of our hearts. We must not take this Invitation lightly; our RSVP will absolutely determine the future of our souls! The great battle of good vs evil has been fought and decided in heaven, but it’s still going on down here and the time for us to gain our own victory is getting very short – on which side do you choose to be? We all have to remember – there is no third choice, nor is anyone merely an onlooker. Like it or not, we’re all part of this great war – in fact, our eternal souls are what the war is all about!
If this makes sense to you, then by all means go find a for real preacher and get yourself baptized and start learning about Jesus Christ Who loves us – even though we’ve been sinful – enough to have suffered and died a horrible death to save our souls from that horrible, eternal damnation and at this very moment offers us something unimaginably precious! If you already know of Jesus, don’t make the mistake of listening to the false prophet millionaire evangelists – none of those charlatans know Him. They will lead you astray. Break out your own Bible and READ IT! Knock and it shall be opened. There are like-minded folks around you who would love to accompany you on the journey. Get in touch with them. Repent and pray for God’s forgiveness for pursuing that worldly life and its attendant evils. We’ve all been there.
As for gravitational waves being from the angelic battle, I don’t know. But it’s something to think about. Maybe those who wind up out there in the black nothingness will experience them once in a while.
*Astrophysicists believe that space is expanding and that somewhere in the distant future, there will be so much space between everything that even molecules will be so far separated as to never encounter other molecules again with any notion of light being but a distant memory, but it’s conceivable the human soul could still be out there forever alone and forgotten in that bleakness. An understanding of how scientists arrive at the belief the scientific part in this possibility can be found at youtube journey to the end of the universe It’s a thirty-minute documentary that is very interesting but at the end it gives you pause to think about how science can arrive at a scriptural concept without actually admitting, maybe not even realizing it. This post tries to connect this spiritual possibility within the context of science, and the biblical concept of “outer darkness” fits perfectly.
Pray, beloved child, your prayer in sadness, silence and wonder for He patiently waits in silent and peaceful places where He watches for wholesomeness of heart, even – and especially – on somber mornings of clouded silence. His gaze is ever upon your humility and compassion, for the blessing he desires to visit upon you is predicated on these. Keep your own eyes to those fellow travelers endowed flush with righteous purpose and bestowed with wisdom; emulate such as you may be able and as your spirit allows. Surely the Creator will rest His mighty hand on your hope, for shipwrecked ever become ambitions elsewise, although it may seem not so for now. With purity of heart, keep your sanctuary of solitude in His reach. For it is but with purity of heart that we may behold Him.
Take shelter there and trust your tears go not unheeded, that your despondent mourn is indeed regarded by the Master, whose abundant presence ever awaits your return to that burning bush in your place of solitude. Weep then, loudly if at all – fervently cry for mercy and for justice – for assuredly He gives pause to those hopeless, woeful echoes such as fill the heavenly censer. As surely as the morning star arises from a pale dawn of twilight to beckon your spirit, encouragement such as may be rightfully and fruitfully gained from His compassion and wisdom shall blossom from the very despair you presently endure. From eternity itself, incomprehensible peace shall indeed reveal to you His presence and the depths of His love.
Go then, to your fortress of solitude, that simple haven chosen by you among strewn leaves beneath oaken boughs where your tears as rivulet testimonials entreat His presence into your spirit to lift, to promise of eternal hope, eternal life, eternal love. Consider always your burden as a blessing, through all awaiting sorrow and trepidation to which you must return from this sanctuary of tranquility ere you suffer the beastly conflict once more and with such steadfastness as you are gifted. You need not face it alone. Reap and gather courage here, then embrace it as you return to that life of need and poverty. With passion, regard such destitution as His grace to you, for the wealthy ever deny themselves purity of faith. Consider the patch on your garment as witness of travail you’ve endured in humble determination to remain faithful in the tempest. The wealthy cannot fathom a need of fortress against those merciless winds blowing covetousness and impurity upon the dark, endless paths they travel. Such need is never regarded as they dwell within ornate decadence of realms unknown to you, but trust that unfamiliarity is for your benefit. They have no place to pray. They have no place to weep.
Few souls among the multitudes of the uncompassionate whose hearts are laden with envy and desires of the flesh – sadly so few – shall ever come to know the blessing to be had spending time and tears of despondence in His presence. Burdened with such pursuits of vanity as they carry, they deny themselves the incredible grace that awaits their presence in those humble silent places where Jesus Christ seeks to meet them! To mend them. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Walk upright, holding the hem of His garment through each emerging shadow and understand that misfortune befalls every soul, therefore find that sacred place and avail yourself of an instance to pray. And as need demands, to spend tears.
If the Almighty awaits our fellowship beneath forest boughs in a misty wood or within a secluded glen among rocks on a mountainside – a meeting place where thoughts and tears are spilled before Him, there go I. If we must shun the allure of worldly lust and desire so that we may be comforted in such places where it is meet to tearfully implore the mercy and compassion of Jesus Christ, there go I. If I might find that place where God abides awaiting the piteous cries of the needy and destitute so that there I too may be blessed – blessed indeed to be one with fellow sojourners in poverty and tears in the sanctity of His Holy Spirit – there, in poverty and purity of heart and by any means, go I.
