Posted in feminism, God, women

Is God female? Is Jesus a hermaphrodite? Feminism’s modern attacks- part 2

Posted on by elizabethprata

An entire generation has now grown up with Gloria Steinem’s declaration, “A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle” (coined by Irina Dunn.). Christianity has not been immune from feminism’s effects, as startlingly seen in two news articles this week from a female theologian and a historian about Jesus and God. In one, the theologian proposed that Jesus was a hermaphrodite. In the other, the historian proposed that we can’t really know if God is or is not a girl. In part 1 I took a look at the news articles and then at the biblical stance of the position of women in this essay: Is God female and is Jesus a hermaphrodite?

Source

One thing that God said is that the woman is the weaker vessel. (1 Peter 3:7). She is to be the helpmeet. (Gen 2:18). However, no one or the other of the man or the woman is better than the other, the man is urged to love his wife completely and the woman to love her husband completely, just as Jesus perfectly loves both. (Ephesians 5:22-33). I explored these themes and the Feminists in an essay eight months ago titled The Eternal Discontent of Feminists.

Betty Miller explained this submission cycle in her essay, “The Bible teaches that, in the Spirit, women are equal with men, and each must submit unto Jesus as their spiritual head. In the flesh, in the marriage relationship, women are to be subject to their husband’s headship. The Lord ordained that the man be the one that would make final decisions in the home because in any relationship involving two people one must be the final authority.”

Have you ever heard of a ship with two captains? An expedition with two leaders? A squadron with two generals? No. And it is so in God-ordained relationships. Though we all submit to Jesus, the husband submits to Him as Jesus submitted to God. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,” (Ephesians 5:25). And remember, Jesus gave Himself unto death. Feminists conveniently forget that part of the submission cycle.

Source

So what are the effects of a generation of women being hammered on the fact that we don’t “need” a man? Men have fled. They did what women asked, and they left.

—According to this 2008 Census report, one in three American children live without their biological father in the home.
–From 1960 to 1995, the proportion of children living in single-parent homes have tripled, increasing from 9 percent to 27 percent, and the proportion of children living with married parents declined.
–Today, half of all children, and 80 percent of African American children, can expect to live at least part of their childhood living apart from their fathers. (Report of Final Natality).
–Children who live without their biological fathers are, on average, at least two to three times more likely to be poor, use drugs, experience educational, health, emotional and behavioral problems, be victims of child abuse, and engage in criminal behavior than their peers who live with their married, biological (or adoptive) parents.

But I thought women didn’t need men, and by deduction, girls didn’t need fathers. Why, two mommies equals one daddy, right? Apparently not.

This is not to say that all fathers do not want to be with their children. A multitude of men feel pain and anguish when they cannot be with them. But in the twisting of a societal usurpation of the traditional male and female roles, there is collateral damage. Society is reaping that damage now.

That collateral damage extends to the church. Men hate going to church. In David Murrow’s book on “Why Men Hate Going to Church, he says, “The ideology of masculinity has replaced Christianity as the true religion of men. We live in a society with a female religion and a male religion: Christianity, of various sorts, for women and non-masculine men; and masculinity . . . for men.”

The diminishing of their masculinity has led many men to assert it and thus to avoid places where it is perceived that it does not exist, like church. Meanwhile in church, females rise.

MYSTICS

Source

To be sure, in much of the church’s history after the first generation of Christians passed, and with the ascendancy of the Roman Catholic perversion of the faith and its power throughout the Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries), the proper role for women was suppressed and the proper role for men was abused. It was during this time the female search for a role in spirituality led satan to tempt women in particular to the role of mystics. Didn’t you ever wonder why it is mostly women who are considered the ‘great mystics’?

Professor Ian Johnston of Malaspina University-College said of mystics in his lecture on Hildegard the mystic, “we usually mean someone who has, or who claims to have, direct access to the mystery of cosmic and human order, some immediate and unmediated apprehension of a total knowledge of what truly is. Such knowledge characteristically comes from an experience of union with the divine or the transcendent, that is, with the higher world beyond the realm of our physical sensations. Mystical experience typically comes through visions and voices, or both (Hildegard attests to both).” Above, Liber Scivias showing Hildegard receiving a vision and dictating to her scribe and secretary.

Hildegard of Bingen was such a one. Born in circa 1098, she lived through most of the 1100s. She began receiving visions from the age of three but kept them hidden until much later in life, when in a vision, she felt the presence of God come to her and heard Him say “Write what you see and hear.” She was known as the prophetess of the Rhine. She said, “‘…my perception of things depends on the shifting of the clouds and other elements of creation. Still I do not hear these things with bodily ears, nor do I see them with the cogitations of my heart or the evidence of my five senses. I see them only in my spirit, with my eyes wide open…'” It was after one such vision that the entire understanding of the holy books were delivered to her head, at once and instantly. We should all be so lucky.

And to another monk she wrote, “man flies with the two wings of rationality, that is to say, with the knowledge of good and evil. The right wing is good knowledge and the left, evil. Evil knowledge serves the good, and good knowledge is kept in check by the evil, and is even made more discerning by it. Indeed the good is made wise in all things through the evil.”

The good is made wise in evil? I was not aware that there was any good in us at all…or that evil makes us wise. It was satan’s original temptation to Eve that said if she ate the fruit it would open her eyes to knowledge of good and evil. And it did, but the effects have been devastating right up until this moment, and will continue to be so until the end of the Millennium Kingdom when and death and Hades are thrown into the Lake of Fire along with satan too. (Rev 20:14).

In this article, Female Mystics and the New Millennium, the author proposes the reason so many women are mystics: “A large percentage of mystics are women. Neurological studies of male and female brains reveal that women have better communication via the corpus callosum between the left and right brain. Dreams and visions are the domain of the right brain, while verbal communication is ruled by the left. This implies that while men may have as many mystical experiences as women, women might have a slight edge when it comes to remembering, making sense of and communicating their mystical experiences.”

Of one vision Hildegard recorded, she wrote that it was audible to her: “O poor little figure of a woman; you, who are the daughter of many troubles, plagued by a grave multitude of bodily infirmities, yet steeped, nonetheless, in the vastness of God’s mysteries—commit to permanent record for the benefit of human kind, what you see with your inner eyes and perceive with the inner ears of your soul so that, through these things, people may come to know their Creator and not recoil from worshipping him with the reverence due to him.”

Hildegard had very low self-esteem, this is recorded in her many writings. For someone who thinks little of herself, it is an undeniable attraction to think that one will write something that will affect all of human kind … yet the canon was closed a thousand years before Hildegard lived and all knowledge of the Creator had been delivered already…

To want to have a certain moral authority, and to have a spiritual authority, was the old temptation which satan stirred up in Eve (Genesis 3:5) and that same temptation still exerts a powerful pull today. Hildegard and the numerous other mystics claiming special revelation also fell for satan’s craft. You have heard of wise-women, the phrase “the sage sex” and of new female mystics. As Mary Devlin says of the powerful female energies in the mystic, there is a resurgence of female energy in this time of transition. She wrote of modern mysticism-

“According to Carol Huffstickler, mystical practices are vital to our perception of the whole truth during the current transition. “Our real job right now is to understand that lack of (self-)awareness has caused, at the end of this century, deep confusion, gang violence, government shenanigans and cover-ups, and the out-of-control power of multinational corporations,” she says. “The most important ‘Truth’… is one that is absolutely and totally unprovable: we are all sons and daughters of the Living God. We will not find this truth in a particle accelerator. We can only prove it to ourselves by direct experience of the other side.”

Of course one will want to seek truth in something other than the bible when one has already chucked the bible’s authority out, and with it, the roles of man and woman.

And that is the crux of a problem with the church today. There has been a leak-over of feminism with its over-reliance on ‘female energies’ of the New Age movement, and with it, their claims of special revelation. This special revelation is no longer relegated to fringe movements such as those led by Shirley MacLaine and her popular books such as Out on a Limb and Dancing in the Light, or psychics like Carol Huffstickler. Huffstickler was a psychic who had a thriving business in Houston to tell where to drill for oil. She died in 2002, of lung cancer, and the sudden onset of her own illness was something she did not predict.

Feminist icon Oprah is one of the most influential women in the world. Unfortunately she is another New Age mystic whose unbiblical positions and ideas have leaked over to the Christian church and thus have gained a foothold of credibility. Formerly a Baptist, she has seamlessly blended the mystical and biblical, and combined with her influence, has created a false church of Oprah. One woman’s reaction to seeing her in person gushes about Oprah’s feminist theology:

“And she was everything I hoped she’d be: confident, funny, motivating, emotionally moving, and theological. Yes, theological. And not only that, her stories reflected a theology that empowered women, something we don’t always encounter in churches these days. … what I found interesting in Oprah’s talk were the ways that she reclaimed religious language in an almost feminist way. I expected her to sermonize about how important it is that we [as women] give up control of our lives to God. This is a fairly typical viewpoint in Christian theology. In fact, there are numerous worship songs that are popular in churches today with lines like “less of me; more of You,” “I decrease so He increases,” etc. The problem with this theology, particularly for women, is that it encourages us to literally become less of ourselves. For some women, this can manifest itself, quite literally, in anorexia. For others, it appears in a quiet meekness, a hesitancy about ourselves, an overall lack of self-confidence, or worse, a deep manifestation of self-loathing.”

Of course, that is an extremely flawed view of what Christianity is, but one finds that theme in Beth Moore’s talks, too.  Beth Moore is another such example of such mystical leak-over from the New Age fringe to the formerly fundamentalist church believer. Moore often claims special revelation by mystical means, most recently claiming to have been lifted up by God from her back porch to another dimension to see the global church through Jesus’s eyes as Jesus sees it. This kind of revelation is startlingly similar to Hildegard of Bingen’s visions.

The woman is the weaker vessel. (1 Peter 3:7). Barnes Notes, which you may know was published in the mid-1800s at the height of the supposed repressive Victorian era, says, “By this it is not necessarily meant that she is of feebler capacity, or inferior mental endowments, but that she is more tender and delicate; more subject to infirmities and weaknesses; less capable of enduring fatigue and toil; less adapted to the rough and stormy scenes of life. As such, she should be regarded and treated with special kindness and attention.”

It is a horror and a shame that such secular doctrines and mystical behaviors have infiltrated the Christian church. Feminism is a fake solution to the issues in our sinful society and mysticism certainly is a satanic copy of what church worship and devotion should be. It is a fact that there are societal inequalities for women. But militantly insisting that women receive everything absolutely equal to a man is ludicrous. We are a different gender and we have different needs, strengths, and roles. In the last part we will take a look at Logistics. We’ll examine what those biblical roles are and why each is important in the overall complementary scheme God has laid before us.

Part 1: Is God female? Is Jesus a hermaphrodite? Feminism’s modern attacks
Part 3- Is God female? Is Jesus a hermaphrodite? Feminism’s modern attacks

Posted in feminism, women

Is God female? Is Jesus a hermaphrodite? Feminism’s modern attacks, part 1

Posted on by elizabethprata

In the prophecy newsletter last Saturday (email me to be included on the free email subscription list) I included an excerpt from a recent article where a female feminist theologian was talking about how we can’t be sure Jesus is male. More likely, this feminist said, He is a hermaphrodite, a person that has reproductive organs normally associated with both male and female sexes. Here is the excerpt from The Christian Post (which includes rebuttals from real Christians):

Feminist Theologian Claims We Can’t Be Sure Jesus Was Male
“A [UK] feminist theologian is claiming that Jesus may have been a hermaphrodite. Dr. Susannah Cornwall, a professor at Manchester University’s Lincoln Theological Institute, wrote in a recent paper that the idea that Jesus was male is “simply a best guess.” She made the comments in response to an ongoing debate in the U.K. over having women bishop in the Church of England.In her paper, titled “Intersex & Ontology, A Response to The Church, Women Bishops and Provision,” she states that it is impossible to know “with any certainty” that Jesus did not have both male and female organs.”

Then this morning I read the following:

Who knows whether God is a girl
“Bettany Hughes, an expert in ancient history, claimed that Christianity “was originally a faith where the female of the species held sway”. To oppose the ordination of women bishops in the Church of England is to deny the central role women played in the foundations of the faith, said Hughes. “By suppressing the true story of the connection between women and religion, we etiolate both history and the possibilities of our own world,” she wrote in Radio Times. “Consider this: throughout the history of humanity, 97 per cent of all deities of wisdom have been female. “Who knows whether God is a girl, but mankind has turned to the female of the species for good ideas. Hughes is the presenter of a forthcoming BBC Two series, Divine Women, which explores the hidden history of women in world religions and challenges the belief that women should not be priests.She said:  “This Easter will be the last when I go to a church knowing it will be dominated by men. I love my (male) vicar, who has spent 45 years encouraging his flock to be clear-sighted about the world – past, present and sublime.“But the paradoxical thing for me as a historian is that I’m keenly aware Christianity was originally a faith where the female of the species held sway.”

Oh goodness, she must be right! She used etiolate AND a statistic in her response! [sarcasm]. Note that both Dr. Cornwall and Bettany Hughes are British. The UK, I am told, is rapidly falling away from biblical truth. With feminist theologians and historians like the two women presented above, I can see why. That their articles are responses to the current national discussion about ordaining female bishops is another telling and devastating indicator that an entire nation is far from where Jesus wants them to be. How did it get this way? Let’s find out.

I am writing a three-part series exploring what I see are increasing attacks on Christianity through women and about women. We’ll look at the Demagogic, the Mystics, and Logistics.

PART 1: The Demagogic:
Demagogic language is rhetoric that appeals to the prejudices of the people. I can say with fair amount of certainty that the prejudices of the some feminists have been since 1970 that women should completely abandon their traditionally feminine roles, believing that they were inherently unequal. Homemaking especially was and is today seen as a throwback to less enlightened times. Even women who enter positions of leadership but adhere to biblical world views are soundly excoriated (Saran Palin for example, but not Geraldine Ferraro or Hillary Clinton).

The ‘less enlightened times’ they refer to without saying so outright are the God-ordained roles outlined for women, men and children in the bible. In Genesis God showed us His ordination of women and men’s roles.

“And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”” (Genesis 2:18). God further cemented that relationship by saying that when a male and female come together as husband and wife in a covenant marriage, they shall be one flesh. (Genesis 2:24). It’s hard to see where the feminists’ claims of women’s implicit inferiority come in if women are comparable to men and they are one flesh….

Of course the historian Hughes’s statement that 97% of other “wisdom deities” have been women is a dead giveaway that she is far from God. The bible says “Yahweh, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other.” (Deuteronomy 4:39). “I am Yahweh, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God.” (Isaiah 45:5). There are no other wisdom deities. For the bible says–

“Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Timothy 1:17).

Now, any debate as to whether God is male or female is pointless, because God is Spirit. (John 4:24). He does not have physical characteristics as we do in a corporeal body. However, in His interactions with humanity He presented Himself as a male. In the Old Testament He is referred to as a male by the use of male pronouns. He is Father, never ‘mother’. Jesus referred to God as Father. If one believes that scurvy males who wrote the bible were out to suppress women and changed all the pronouns then one does not believe the bible is inerrant, but a man-made document of man made religion, no better or worse than the Koran (Islam), the Bhagavad Gita (Hindu) or the Kojiki (Shinto).

In the New Testament, Jesus came to us in a male body. Thus, God revealed Himself as male and as Father, Jesus revealed Himself as male incarnated and further stated “I and the Father are One” (John 10:30) and scripture reveals God as male by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit’s use of male pronouns. He’s a guy, all right? Get over it, feminists.

I had a conversation with a female friend who was formerly of a Baptist church but wandered away to a seeker friendly, pop psychology, doctrine-lite, social gospel church. She said that there were “books that didn’t make it into the bible” and that women’s contributions were thereby suppressed. I was aghast, but I am hearing these things more often now. With the rise in gnosticism comes with it a satanic gravitational pull toward mysticism which lifted women to a place of what was supposed higher wisdom but was in fact demonic suppression the kind that feminists can’t even begin to understand is their true position.

If we believe that there are some books that ‘didn’t make it into the bible’ then we believe that the bible is errant (That’s faithlessness: “I look on the faithless with loathing, for they do not obey your word.” Ps 119 158)

Do we believe God is playing mind games with us, telling us His statutes in the bible but holding back the real stuff? (That’s satan, telling Eve the same thing in Gen 3:1).

Do we believe the Holy Spirit is ineffectual to protect the canon and allows instead its pollution by men who edited it away from what God wanted? (That’s philosophies of men: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” Col 2:8).

If we then believe the bible is inerrant then we must believe the roles He has set before each gender. It is one, or the other.

Below is an excerpt on how the books of the bible were chosen for inclusion into the canon. There are no TRUE books that did not make it in. If it is not in, it is because it was already identified as not true, by the following standard:

“The councils followed something similar to the following principles to determine whether a New Testament book was truly inspired by the Holy Spirit: 1) Was the author an apostle or have a close connection with an apostle? 2) Is the book being accepted by the body of Christ at large? 3) Did the book contain consistency of doctrine and orthodox teaching? 4) Did the book bear evidence of high moral and spiritual values that would reflect a work of the Holy Spirit? Again, it is crucial to remember that the church did not determine the canon. No early church council decided on the canon. It was God, and God alone, who determined which books belonged in the Bible. It was simply a matter of God’s imparting to His followers what He had already decided. The human process of collecting the books of the Bible was flawed, but God, in His sovereignty, and despite our ignorance and stubbornness, brought the early church to the recognition of the books He had inspired.”

In 1970, Irina Dunn coined the famous catch phrase: “A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle” and it was subsequently promoted by feminist Gloria Steinem and later U2 in their song Tryin’ to Throw Your Arms Around the World. It became a tee shirt worn by militant feminists everywhere, including my mother. I was 10 in 1970 when that phrase was coined and my formative years as a girl, as a daughter, were one who was raised by a divorced feminist mother who often wore that tee shirt and while wearing it told me every day I didn’t need a man. Oh, and that I needed to be self-sufficient. Well, come to find out,  “Women aren’t Fish and Men aren’t Bicycles” writes Mary Kassian this week.

Kassian said, “In the seventies, Gloria Steinem famously quipped, “A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle.” Then she and the rest of her feminist buddies set about to convince us of this idea. Sadly, we swallowed the bait. And now a whole generation of girls is being raised to believe that men are inconsequential, and that women can make it just fine without them.”

That was the demagogic rhetoric of the feminists. It has been 42 years since feminism came to the fore, an entire generation. How has the latest generation of women and men fared under the demagoguery of the feminist movement? Not well. Let’s see in part 2 how feminists’ usurpation of the roles God ordained for men and women led to the New Age, and the new female Mystic.

Part 2: Is God female? Is Jesus a hermaphrodite? Feminism’s modern attacks
Part 3: Is God female? Is Jesus a hermaphrodite? Feminism’s modern attacks

Posted in earthquakes, rapture

Earthquakes in diverse places

Posted on by elizabethprata

Jesus said of the end times, there will be earthquakes in diverse places. (Matthew 24:7). So what is going on lately in the geo-seismic world with quakes and volcanoes?

From Geology Professor Erik Klemetti’s Eruptions blog:
“Nevado del Ruiz in Colombia May Erupt in “Days to Weeks”
“The developing volcanic crisis at Nevado del Ruiz in Colombia looks like it is continuing to escalate. INGEOMINAS, the Colombian geological survey, released a “special bulletin” this afternoon elevating the alert status at Nevado del Ruiz to Orange Level (II). This means that the signs of activity at the volcano suggest that an eruption is likely in the days to weeks timescale. Marta Calvache from INGEOMINAS mentioned that over the past few days the volcano has experienced tremor related to “fluid motion” (likely magma), rock fracture earthquakes at the summit have been increasing in pulses and sulfur dioxide emissions continue to be high.”

Prof. Klemetti’s Eruption Update for March 30, 2012: Alaska and Hawai’i–

Alaska
“Two volcanoes dominate the news from Alaska these days: Cleveland and Iliamna. Both have jumped back and forth from Yellow/Advisory to Orange/Watch status over the past few months. Right now, Cleveland has returned to Orange/Watch status after new observations showed a dome forming at the summit. This, of course, increased the likelihood of explosive activity as the dome may trap gases in the volcano, creating overpressure, or the dome could collapse, releasing pressure rapidly. Both of these mechanisms can prompt an explosive eruption. Iliamna is back onto Yellow/Advisory status from Orange/Watch after elevated seismicity continues, albeit at a lower level.”

Hawai’i
Kilauea’s activity marches on, although now it appears that the volcano is inflating, at least at the summit. Since October 2011, the summit has been inflating at a rate of ~1 cm/month at the same time that lava flows continued from other parts of the volcano.

New Activity/Unrest, source Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program:

IJEN Eastern Java
ILIAMNA Southwestern Alaska
NEVADO DEL RUIZ Colombia
PACAYA Guatemala
SOUFRIERE HILLS Montserrat

Major Quakes this week —

6.0 NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
6.0 NORTHERN EAST PACIFIC RISE

Lately, there has been some push-back against the widely interpreted notion that Jesus’s answer to the disciples as to the signs of the end of the age in advance of His coming (Matthew 24:7) means that earthquakes will increase. Naysayers claim that Jesus was not saying that earthquakes will increase, just that there will be some in various places. There has also been scientific push-back against the widely observed notion that earthquakes are actually increasing in number. USGS and others say that they are not. Here is my stance:

The end times are between His first coming, beginning when He ascended, and will conclude when He returns. (Matthew 23:27-29). This is the period in which He has partially hardened the hearts of the Jews (Romans 11:25) so that He will build His church out of the Gentiles. (Mt 16:18; Acts 15:14-17). First to the Jew, then to the Gentile (Romans 2:8-10). Note that He has not set His people the Jews aside permanently but that He is working with the Gentiles for a time.

Jesus likened the time before His second coming to one that is like a woman in travail (labor). (Matthew 24:8).  Also 1 Thess 5:3; Jer 30:6; and Romans 8:22 says “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.”

What is being birthed is the Kingdom. But the pregnant woman at first does not know she is pregnant. Then as time progresses she begins to show. Then as her time of birth nears she becomes heavy, weary, laden with the growing baby. She has pains, and then the water breaks. The real labor begins. It is painful and it is bloody (The Tribulation) but at the end of it emerges a new birth, a new life. I believe the gestation has been the Church Age, and the labor pains will begin at the rapture, it being akin to the water breaking, and the birth is the Kingdom after the bloody labor of the Tribulation.

In Matthew verse 8, Jesus says that the initial signs of His coming He describes in verses 4-7 are but the “beginning of birth pains”. Then in Luke 21:29-31 “He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.” Israel sprouted leaves when she was made a nation again in May 1948.

In my mind, because He likened it to a woman giving birth, and to the agricultural process of budding and growing, it seems to me that the entire time between His ascension and His return are the birth pangs, and as the time gets closer to the Tribulation and to His actual return, the pains will increase in intensity and frequency (as birth pangs). That is why I believe as I do. And within that it means, to me, is that earthquakes shall increase because labor pangs increase in painful intensity at it progresses. By the numbers, the quakes worldwide have been increasing, exceeding the average annual benchmark the USGS has set before us by a wide margin every year since 2009.

Now, if my interpretation is correct, then earthquakes, famines, wars, rumors of wars, false Christs, will actually be increasing. Ever since the Jews were returned to the Land in 1948, a huge end times sign, have these things been increasing in that century and in this? Yes. For example, one sign of His coming, He said, is increase in wars.

The number of wars has increased. In 2010 I posted on my blog that John MacArthur preached on the end times signs and mentioned that the numbers of wars according to the Encyclopedia of Wars is increasing exponentially. He said that in the 1000 years prior to Christ’s coming, there were 170 recorded wars. This number excludes skirmishes, conflicts, disturbances, etc. In the 1000 years after Jesus, there were 50 wars. In the 500 years after that, 100 wars. In the 300 years after that, 250 wars. In the last 200 years, there have been 500 wars. And in the last four years (not depicted on graph) there have been 20 wars.

The USGS and others say that earthquakes are not increasing, they are. I counted them and compared them against the USGS annual average benchmark. I posted the chart here

We have been hearing of many earthquakes in diverse places. Of the earthquakes that are not in diverse places, we have been hearing of superlatives: “longest lasting“, (Oaxaca Mexico) or “bigger than might expected for that area ” (Oaxaca Mexico) or “Hasn’t been one this big in 15 years …” (Outback Australia)

An earthquake occurred in Australia last week.
“The central region of Australia was struck by the country’s largest earthquake in nearly 15 years on Friday evening, seismologists said, but there were no reports of damage or casualties.The 6.1-magnitude earthquake at 7:55 p.m. local time on Friday was centered about 17 miles northwest of Ernabella Airport, a tiny airstrip near the border with South Australia and the Northern Territory. It struck about 1.8 mile deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to Geoscience Australia.”

In scientifically inexplicable or unusual events lately, in 2011 the volcano Nabro in Eritrea erupted suddenly. Prior to that it was believed to be extinct, never having had a historical eruption. Scientists initially disclaimed the eruption, saying it must be nearby active Dubbi. It took several days to really confirm scientifically what the spotty news and eyewitness reports had been saying all along, Nabro volcano burped lava from underground and it erupted for the first time ever.

Chile’s Volcano Chaiten erupted suddenly in 2009 after what scientists said was 9500 years of dormancy. In the 1940s, the Mexican volcano Paricutin erupted and formed under a corn field and a farmer’s feet. The African continent is unzipping (their word) in some cases a rift of 35 miles long and 20 miles wide opening up in a day. They do not know why. Until the rift began unzipping slow vs. catastrophic plate tectonics were competing theories with the slow catastrophic winning, but many current observations are incompatible with slow-and-gradual plate tectonics. New islands have formed overnight from unexpected eruptions, as this January 2012 news article shows, happened in the Red Sea.

Now I don’t want to cast doubt or aspersions against fine scientists. They are smart and they have a rigorous study, and they do well to inform us of things born from reasonable thought, testable theories and reproducible experiments. However, God is the author of science, not man. God doesn’t have to be bounded by a paradigm of scientific thought made by man. If He wants to turn off the sun (Mt 24:29; Joel 3:15), He will. If He wants to wake up a volcano that has never erupted, He will. And science is wrong about the age of the universe, the origins of the universe, global warming, and evolution, to name a few theories.

The best (only) thing to do is to be ready for Jesus whenever He comes. Being ready means that you have repented of your sins, having recognized that you DO sin and that those sins are crimes against Jesus. In a state of sinfulness you would meet Him an an enemy and your Judge. If you repent and ask Him to forgive those sins, He will, and you will meet Him as a friend and as a Father. The rapture is a signless event. It is an imminent event. It has always been imminent, since Paul first mentioned it to the Thessalonians and the Corinthians (1 Thess 4, 1 Cor 15). Nothing needs to happen to precede the rapture and nothing will announce that it is about to happen. Therefore be ready:

“Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:36).

The irony is, that those of us who are ready and love Jesus as Lord and Savior, would not want to stand, we will want to fling ourselves at His feet, kneel as is His due, and worship Hi,. O, happy day! And it seems that it is closer than ever…

We don’t know exactly when it will occur but we can see the signs of the other prophesies coming together and we know the season. the fig tree is budding, and we know therefore that it is near, even at the door.

Posted in the poconos

"That noise was not thunder" a boom in the Poconos has residents perplexed

Posted on by elizabethprata

Another boom, shook the residents of the Poconos The Pocono Record has the story–

Strong thunderstorms hit the Poconos Friday night, moving through shortly after 10 p.m. and continuing for at least a half hour, but the weather event that had folks talking was a loud sonic-like boom that shook houses at about 10:15 p.m.

Gilda Spiotta of Long Pond said, “The shaking last night lasted unusually long. Didn’t sound like thunder, didn’t feel like thunder, was wondering if something happened on 380/80; tanker accident.”

Another Long Pond resident, Lorene R. Allman-Mars: “My son was at the back door letting the dogs out and he reported that he saw a large flash of light fill the sky toward/above the FedEx distribution site on 940, then he heard a loud boom. It didn’t look like lightning, it looked like a bomb blew up in the air. I was on the second floor of the house; I didn’t see anything but I heard the boom and felt it shake the house. I actually felt it under my feet. The floors shook; I have never felt lightning shake the house like that before and we’ve been up here 20 years!”

Some readers suggested an earthquake or an explosion, but said that definitely was no routine thunder.

Meteorologist and Pocono weather expert Ben Gelber offered this explanation: “One possibility is that thunderstorms in our chilly environment near the surface tonight, associated with an inversion of warm air aloft, sound much louder.”

He added, “The sound waves are refracted back to the surface and reverberate in ways that we normally do not experience as they bounce between the surface and the inversion near the base of the clouds.”

Other residents commented from across the Poconos:
“My kids and I heard the sound in Saw Creek,” said Winnie Michaluk. “Our windows rattled and our dogs were barking like crazy.”

Russo Albuja of Tobyhanna said, “I was driving along 196 on my way home from work when I felt the BOOM. It was so extreme, my car shook and on my left hand side on an empty field – all I saw was this HUGE flash of light coming from where the airport location would be at. Afterwards, I heard nothing. Kinda scared me that I rushed home and locked my doors.”

Katee McCarthy said, “Felt it here in the Tannersville area. Quite scary.” As of 11 p.m., she reported lightning and sleet in the area.

Tim Aziz said, “Just heard something at 10:35 in East Stroudsburg, the whole house vibrated!”

“Yes I heard the boom, but thought it was just thunder!” said Pete Howey of Snydersville. That was the same reaction of Rosalie Ems, who said, “We heard it; just thought it was thunder rolling in with cold air against the warm air?”

Lots more at the link.

Posted in Lord, salvation

Lord, Lord!

Posted on by elizabethprata

So my daily burden is for the lost. Lost Christians, that is. The Lord has given me an attention to and burden for Christians who occupy pews, labor in ministries, partake of Easter and Christmas celebrations, yet do not know the Lord. They think they are saved, but they are not.

They think that because they belong to a particular denomination, they’re saved. They think that because they prayed a prayer, they’re saved. They think that because they are a deacon, they’re saved. They think that because they go to church regularly, they’re saved.

Many are not.

Many.

Jesus said, “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'” “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’ (Mt 7:22-23)

I can think of no more of a heartbreaking moment than that. At least Atheists know that they have rejected God. At least those who have heard the Gospel & rejected it know what they have done. False Christians don’t know. You see the surprise in their voices in the verse, repeating plaintively, “Lord, Lord…”

Further, Jesus said, ““Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14). [emphasis added]

Wait, wait, I found another heartbreaking verse!
“And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’” (Matthew 15:9)

Here, people worship. They think what they are doing is worship. Like the ones who are self-deceived in thinking they are saved by speaking the prophesies, casting out demons and performing miracles, these ones worship. They pray, they bend a knee, they approach an altar, they sing. They even tithe. But it is all IN VAIN. It is empty and hollow, because though their lips profess, their hearts do not possess Jesus.

“Therefore the Lord said:
“Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,’ (Isaiah 29:13)

Can you imagine a worship so hollowly self-deceiving, for years having done the right thing outwardly, thinking they are saved, and on His Day, He says He doesn’t even know them?

Here is Pastor Adrian Rogers’s essay (excerpted) on how to tell if you’re saved:

“The Lordship Test. Is Jesus Christ the Lord of your life? Jesus said, “Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? (Luke 6:46). Here’s a riddle I want to solve for you. On the one hand the Bible says that we know that we’re saved because we keep His commandments (See 1 John 2:3). On the other hand, the Bible teaches us that it is possible to sin (See 1 John 1:8-9). The key word is “keep”. It is the same word used years ago by sailors who navigated by the stars at night. A sailor’s goal was to keep the stars. As a child of God, His commandments are the stars by which you navigate your life. Is keeping His commandments the burning desire of your heart? It is if you’ve met the Christ of Calvary.”

“The Fellowship Test. Do you love your brothers and sisters in Christ? The Bible challenges us on several occasions that this is the way we will know we are in Christ (1 John 3:14, 4:20, 5:1). When you get saved, you receive the divine nature of God and the nature of God is love (1 John 4:7). You’re not saved because you love the brethren, you love the brethren because you’re saved. Love is the nature of the Christian because love is the nature of God. If we love the Lord Jesus, it follows as night follows day that we are going to love what Jesus loves.”

“The Relationship Test. The question is not, “Did you believe in Jesus Christ?” The question is, rather, “Are you believing Jesus right now?” If you can’t remember when you were saved, that’s okay. 1 John 5:11-12 says, “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” Can you say that at this very moment, that you have a personal relationship with Jesus right now?”

Here is John MacArthur’s two part sermon series, “Saved or Self-Deceived”, a salvation survey to help you check yourself to see if you are in the faith.

I want to see YOU there. I do not want to hear you crying out, “Lord, Lord” but rather I want to hear the Lord say to you “Well done good and faithful servant.”

Posted in sky quakes

Strange booms and loud rumbling sounds

Posted on by elizabethprata

For some months now, people have been reporting that they hear strange rumbles in the sky. Variously called sky quakes, sky rumbles, or sounds of the apocalypse, they have a uniformity of sound that most people describe. The noises sound like booms, or rumbles. I still can’t get the fact of these weird rumbles and sky booms out of my mind. I think they are fascinating. Scientifically, their cause has been linked to minor earthquakes, construction noise, or military exercises (sonic booms) among other plausible causes. No doubt some of the places where people hear the noises are due to those reasons. But in other places, the officials test for just those things and come up empty, and shake their heads. They have not yet attributed some of these sounds to something earthly and verifiable.

I had explored the idea that they could be leak-through sounds of spiritual warfare, as we know is happening due to the verses in 2 Kings 6:17. But as I was reading Ezekiel yesterday, I was hit with the following verse:

“Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound—May the glory of the Lord be praised in his dwelling place!— the sound of the wings of the living creatures brushing against each other and the sound of the wheels beside them, a loud rumbling sound.” (Ezekiel 3:12-13)

Just something that makes me go HMMMMM.

I love the Word and following its trails through each book and finding parallel verses, and thus weaving a beautiful tapestry together of understanding of Him. It’s a tapestry that will never be complete, because His words will never pass away (Matthew 24:35), but that means there will be an eternity to plumb its depths.

Posted in christianity, gog, israel

Putin promises to protect Christianity worldwide

Posted on by elizabethprata

From Russia Today: “Presidential candidate Vladimir Putin has promised to make the protection of repressed Christians in foreign countries one of his foreign policy priorities if he becomes president again. When Putin met with the representatives of Russia’s traditional confessions in Moscow’s main cathedral on Wednesday, the representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church told him that Christians are facing repressions all over the world. The head of External Church Relations, Metropolitan Illarion, said that every five minutes one Christian was dying for his or her faith in some part of the world, specifying that he was talking about such countries as Iraq, Egypt, Pakistan and India. The cleric asked Putin to make the protection of Christians one of the foreign policy directions in future. “This is how it will be, have no doubt,” Putin answered.”

I am reminded of another who is prophesied to come, boasting in flatteries and promises:

“And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.” (Daniel 11:21)

Not that Putin is the antichrist but perhaps a pale imitation of one. A forerunner. Seven months ago, Joel C. Rosenberg wrote “Putin Rising: but is he Gog?” regarding the March 4th election in Russia (which Putin won) and in that essay Rosenberg said,

“But should Putin come back, it will not bode well for Israel, the U.S., or Europe. Putin is a power-hungry, greedy, authoritarian, Czar wannabe. He is determined to expand Russian wealth, power and control over her neighbors. He has worked especially hard to build strategic alliances with Radical Islamic leaders and states in the Middle East. Over the years, people have asked me if Putin might be the Russian dictator referred to as “Gog” in the Biblical prophecies of “Gog and Magog” in Ezekiel 38-39. I suspect as Putin continues to re-emerge, those questions will begin to be asked again. Here’s my quick answer: It’s too soon to draw such a conclusion. There’s much more that would have to happen to indicate that Putin was the “Gog” of Bible prophecy. But there’s no question in my mind that Putin is Gog-esque.”

Putin is back and I think he is looking more ‘Gog-esque’ by the minute.

And a few days ago it was reported that Putin will visit Israel in June, shortly after he is installed as President of Russia. Why? Rosenberg asked the same thing, as many are. We’re all scratching our heads.

“Now comes a curious new development: Vladimir Putin will make a high-profile visit to Israel in June, not long after he is sworn in as Russia’s new president on May 7th. News reports indicate Mr. Putin’s first foreign trip upon reclaiming his power will be to the U.S. for the G8 summit on May 20. That makes sense. The U.S.-Russian relationship has widely been considered the most important bilateral geopolitical relationship on the planet since the end of World War II. But with all the other important countries and leaders in the world Mr. Putin could visit, why is he choosing to make meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu his first objective after his meeting with President Obama? What is the Russian leader’s motive? What does he want to accomplish, and why? Will Putin seek to pressure Israel not to launch a preemptive strike on Iran? Will he visit other countries in the epicenter on the same trip? Will he, for example, visit Iran, Syria, and Lebanon, as well? What about other countries mentioned in the prophecies of Ezekiel 38-39? It’s too early to say, but a development well worth watching closely.”

You betcha we’ll be watching.

This time we are living in now is a time of severe deception. We are told that we will all be clamoring for peace, peace, looking for one who will flatter and solve the world’s problems and accepting him when he arrives. But it is all a massive deception. Hitler was a deceptively gentle man who was well regarded by those with whom he met. And they believed him. Here are some of the reactions:

“William Manchester’s biography of Sir Winston Churchill confronts us with the unpleasant and haunting reminders of Hitler, a man who came extremely close to being the Antichrist, yet deceived the world with his promises of peace. Listen to what Manchester wrote, “Thomas Jones who had been in and out of Whitehall for a quarter century wrote in his diary, `All sorts of people who have met Hitler are convinced that he’s a factor for peace. He doesn’t seek war but friendship. Meeting the press after he had been closeted with Hitler for an hour, Lloyd George said he regarded him as the greatest living German. A year later he wrote, “I only wish we had a man of his supreme quality at the head of affairs in our country today.”” He’s talking about Hitler. Nazi goals were even applauded by Anglican clergymen, a group of whom expressed, quote: “Boundless admiration for the moral and ethical side of the Nazi program, its clear stand for religion and Christianity and its ethical principles,” end quote.

(source: The Coming of World Peace)

And Putin will make protection of Christians in the world a priority. Peace! Peace! It is right around the corner!

Posted in pope, vicar of Christ

Clintonville booms are back, and exploding tiles at Watertown. "It was like ‘Tremors’ "

Posted on by elizabethprata

Chris Rosebrough of Fighting for the Faith put on his blog, Letter of Marque, the following, and titled it “Satan the Deceitful Copycat“:

Gestatorialchair1
Pope Pius XII being carried to his throne in the Vatican.
Egypt-king-small
Pharaoh being carried to his throne.

Amazing, isn’t it? Rosebrough’s blog entry is accompanied by excerpts from a 500 year old document titled “A Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope, Treatise Compiled by the Theologians Assembled at Smalcald – 1537″ originally posted on the blog The Book of Concord. The treatise was compiled by Martin Luther as a rejection of the primacy of the Pope as vicar of Christ. Vicar means substitute, you know, defined as “anyone acting in the person of” as agent. The claims of the Pope were outlined at the beginning of the treatise and then the Lutheran confession was a biblical rejection of those claims and others dealt with in writing at Smalcald. See what the pope believes of himself:

“The Roman Pontiff claims for himself [in the first place] that
1] by divine right he is [supreme] above all bishops and pastors [in all Christendom].
2] Secondly, he adds also that by divine right he has both swords, i.e., the authority also of bestowing kingdoms [enthroning and deposing kings, regulating secular dominions etc.].
3] And thirdly, he says that to believe this is necessary for salvation. And for these reasons the Roman bishop calls himself [and boasts that he is] the vicar of Christ on earth.”

I hope you reject those notions, too. Satan IS such a deceitful copycat.

In other topics, on March 19 on the blog I’d posted an essay exploring the weird booms plaguing a Wisconsin town. Its title is a direct copy of the same title the news articles used, “Something’s rattling WI town”. Weird booms had been variously upsetting, intriguing, or aggravating the people living there. That article on March 19 was posted a week after I’d posted a previous essay exploring the weird booms that are being heard all over the world, and I’d discussed the biblical foundation for spiritual warfare. Ultimately, I’d related the noises to possible spiritual warfare and asked the question ‘Is spiritual warfare ramping up?’

After the mainstream media became entranced with the Wisconsin booms story the USGS intimated they were going to set seismometers around and see if it was an earthquake swarm that was causing the booms. They did research some and found one 1.5 quake. The mainstream media seemed satisfied with that explanation. I wasn’t. Is it logical to relate an ongoing series of noises heard constantly for over a week to one quake with such a low seismicity they had to work hard to exclude truck rumbles from the data because they both sound the same? No. One minor quake can’t explain ongoing noises. But they all packed up and left, the USGS and the news people and all the rubberneckers.

Then, two other things happened in or near Clintonville WI. First, the booms came back. Second, tiles from a kitchen restaurant started exploding in a town south of the boom town.

Mysterious Booms Return to Clintonville, Wisconsin?
“It was a bit more than a week and a half ago that residents of the town of 4,500 people west of Green Bay, Wis., said they were awakened from their sleep by loud booms that shook their houses. Night after night, there were more booms and more shaking. The United States Geological Survey finally said it recorded a 1.5-magnitude earthquake on the morning on March 20. It also recorded seismic activity the day before but could not pinpoint its location. The mystery brought reporters from across the country, including yours truly. … This week, residents have been complaining about the booms returning to their small town. USGS said it has not been able to record any new activity and added that it has been windy in the area, which can create ground vibrations making small quakes difficult to record. There is discussion, but no decision, on placing a seismograph in Clintonville.”

The short article goes on to say that thought the USGS has not been able to record a new quake they still say that the previous round of booms and the current round of booms are microquakes.

Clintonville residents shaken once again by booms
“Residents were shaken by booms again in a Wisconsin city where a small earthquake was recorded last week.Clintonville police say they received 65 calls Tuesday night between 10:35 and 11:40. City Administrator Lisa Kuss says residents reported some of the loudest booms yet. The reports had decreased since a flurry of calls early last week. The U.S. Geological Survey said a 1.5-magnitude earthquake struck March 20 in Clintonville. Geophysicist John Bellini says he looked at the nearby seismometers and was unable to detect anything Tuesday night. He says they are considering putting a seismometer in Clintonville to get a better reading of potential activity.”

So the USGS heaved a sigh and installed the seismometers after all.

Clintonville installs 4 seismometers to help find cause of future booms
“Four seismometers have been installed throughout Clintonville, to help pinpoint the causes of any future booms or house-shaking.Experts blamed a series of small earthquakes for the booms that happened on 4 straight nights last week, and on Tuesday night of this week.One of those booms produced a quake that measured 1.5.”

Then, in a town south of Clintonville, a local Catholic School had to close because the tiles on the floor started swelling, buckling, and then exploding. I am not making this up.

Watertown school, will reopen Monday
“A Watertown school will reopen Wednesday after some exploding tiles forced classes to be canceled Tuesday. Tiles in the cafeteria started to buckle and explode Monday at St. Henry’s Catholic School.”And I looked at the tiles on the floor. (They) were raising up and flying across the kitchen floor. So, we got out of the cafeteria and told the kids to go up to their classrooms. Eventually, they were evacuated,” St. Henry’s Cooking Manager Diane Dannenberg said. “It looked like the movie ‘Tremors’ where something was tunneling underneath the floor.”Some described exploding, but the floor definitely buckled.The city’s building inspector said the part of the building affected was built in 1952. Investigators are looking at all sorts of possibilities to explain why these tiles lifted off the ground. After 20 years as the city’s building inspector, Joe Heimsch said he was baffled after first looking at this basement.”

Here is a news spot on Youtube about the incident.

The inspector said that he “hopes” that its cause will be found to have been an improperly abandoned sanitary line. Or something.

You know, that weird booming and minor earthquake is only 90 miles from the Michigan town where a weird 600 foot, 4′ deep crack opened up in the earth and no one knows why. It was in 2010, I’d reported on it then. I don’t know if the two are linked, probably not. But the forums go crazy with this stuff. They say that the Clintonville incidents and the Watertown exploding tiles are linked. The newscaster even opened with mentioning both Clintonville and then turned tot he exploding tiles incident, mentioning them both in one sentence. They say on the forums of the exploding tiles on the kitchen floor in Watertown or Clintonville that it was: aliens, secret government tunneling, preppers making bunkers, aliens, the military shooting 50 caliber guns, and of course, aliens. LOL.

Posted in children, nephilim

Random thoughts: Nephilim, myths, comments, compassion, children, and Jesus the Christ

Posted on by elizabethprata

I am very intrigued by the Nephilim spoken of in Genesis 6. Many people are, and I always get a lot of views on any essay I publish about them. I might research some more about the days of Noah, soon. When I was in high school I was fascinated by Roman and Greek mythology. I studied it all. The Titans, the Olympians … Cronus was the leader and the youngest of the first generation of Titans, divine descendants of Gaia, the earth, and Uranus, the sky. He overthrew his father and ruled during the mythological Golden Age, until he was overthrown by his own son, Zeus and imprisoned in Tartarus. Tartarus in the bible as we know is the place where Peter described the fallen angels being chained up. (2 Peter 2:4)

I believe the ancient myths are a vestigial memory of the fallen angels, the “mighty men of old” (Genesis 6:4) coming to earth and having supernatural powers … and we know from the bible that they certainly did take the daughters of men, all that they chose. The myths reflect this lack of self-restraint too. That is practically all they did, always go after women who ended up bearing super-men half breeds like Hercules. Achilles, another demi-god, brings to mind the prophecy in Genesis 3, where God said to satan that satan will strike the heel, and in the myth the heel was the vulnerable spot (but just like all false religions, the truth is that the hero could not be overcome by striking His heel!!) It was just a temporary bruising, and Jesus crushed satan’s head through His death and resurrection on the cross.

So I think there is weighty cultural memory and man-made myths stemming from the influx of the original fallen angels and their first interaction with humans as described in Genesis 6. I think the pyramids and the South American ziggurats are results of their superior intellect in building them and using humans to make monuments of worship for them.

The bible doesn’t speak much of these events, just gives several tantalizing clues in a few verses. However we know that they and also man’s evil were the cause of the flood. So SOMETHING had to have been going on! It will be interesting if Jesus lets us know what really happened when we get to heaven…and we can resolve all these tantalizing glimpses into full knowledge.

On another topic, I want to explain what kind of comments I allow and what will prompt me to delete some. This is not a complete explanation but it is the basic benchmark.

Some people will write in and say “you’re crazy.” Or “you’re mental.” If that is all they write I delete it. If they conclude their own cogent argument with that I’ll usually allow it and respond.

Some people disagree with me by using a false and true misapplication of scripture to ‘prove’ their point. They’ll say, “Judge not!” or “Touch not God’s anointed!” or one of those oft-thrown around misunderstood and out of context verses. I will allow those and then explain the context of the verse and why they are using it incorrectly. I do both of the above so that others reading may learn an insight into the verse.

Some people write a long reply which shows me they are passionate about something, but say something in it that I just cannot allow to go forward. Yesterday someone wrote a long comment and there were many errors in their answer. That is OK, we’re all learning. We could have a discussion. But he concluded by saying “Jesus is not God.” I deleted it because arguing that would be a fulfillment of casting pearls before swine. (Matthew 7:6). If someone has an incomplete or incorrect understanding of a verse, that is OK and can be discussed. If someone has come to such a false conclusion about the basics of who Jesus is, there is no argument, he has already condemned himself. It is a case of the saved arguing with the unsaved, offering holiness to a person who has already rejected it. I will not participate in allowing such falsity to go out to the unsuspecting. Nope. And worse, usually people who say such things have a website attached to their comment, and so I won’t put that forward either.

Profanity never gets a pass. I delete those out of hand.

A new topic. This week was a really rough week. I work in a kindergarten section of an elementary school. We know that times are tight. Parents are stressed to the max to pay the bills to keep a home over their kids’ heads and to put food on the table. Kids sense this and more often not only sense it but know it because of the open discussions he parents have in front of them. Yet kids are powerless to change their circumstances. They feel tenuous because their family situation is tenuous. They worry. Sometimes that worry comes out physically and emotionally and it makes for an adventuresome day at school. Today was like that. Please have care and compassion for other people, and for kids. If you’re standing in line at a store or at a game or sitting in a restaurant, no one knows what the next person is going through, and everyone needs an extra dose of patience and for sure needs some love. Instead of mentally judging the parent or situation, pay their bill, or offer to help them with their groceries or simply smile.

In the middle of that tough week before our Spring Break, (which has started, yay!) here is a moment. Some of the kindergarten kids I work with had saved up their behavior rewards. If they save up for a short time they get ice cream or a pajama day. But if they save up for a long time they get the big prize, a pizza party. So they did, finally. They brought their beach towels and their sunglasses and we went outside on a 78 degree day with pizza and chips and soda. They spread their towels around and sat next to each other happily. They donned sunglasses and thought themselves so cool. They leaned back on elbows and looked at the clouds, saying “There’s a dog!” or “I see a turtle! The pizza was served and they ate all they wanted. Afterwards we were all just lounging on the grass, and suddenly they broke out in song. They sang under the sun, and when they finished they laughed delightedly. Children laughing under the sun in joy is a Godly gift for which I am always thankful.

Last, remember always that Jesus is sovereign, loving, and He is coming! He is my Light and My hope. He is someone I cling to, look toward, and reside in. He is my all in all. Without Him I am nothing but in Him I am made perfect because His power is in me and brushes aside my weakness and is His manifest glory. Everything I accomplish is made possible from Him. Thank you, Jesus.

Posted in faith, perseverance

Cultural decline and righteous perseverance

Posted on by elizabethprata

Prophecy says that as we near the very end days, the culture will worsen. (2 Timothy 3:1-5; Matthew 24:11-12,) and that the body of believers will grow less effective in the battle against satan, less of an example to a dark and dying world and less approved by God (1 Tim 4:1, Jude 1:8, Rev 2:4, Rev 3:16). We see this now.

Cash stolen from handicapped Cary boy collecting funds for wheelchair basketball
“Seated in his wheelchair, Nolan Turner, 12, staked out his neighborhood Thursday evening to sell water bottles and raise money to bring his wheelchair basketball team to his elementary school.“Everybody at school has been asking me what it’s like to (play basketball) in a wheelchair, and I want to show them,” the Briarcliff Elementary fifth-grader said.He had already collected more than $250 – kept in a bucket – of the $1,000 needed to bring the experience of playing wheelchair basketball to his schoolmates. But as he began to work the neighborhood near High Meadow Drive about 6:30 p.m., a man he didn’t recognize grabbed his money bucket and unhurriedly walked away, according to Cary Police Department Capt. Mike Williams. Nolan yelled and screamed at the man but was helpless to follow him.”

Saints alive, that is horrible.

Police: Students Caught In Sex Act On School Bus
Actions Of 13-Year-Old Boy, 8-Year-Old Girl In Question
“Fishers police said an 8-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy were caught in a sexual act on a school bus. The girl’s parents are now trying to determine if the February incident was a rape or molestation.In a statement, police said a bus aid caught the girl and the boy “trying to have intercourse,” and that the “bus aid immediately separated the juveniles and informed the bus driver.”

Saints alive, that is worse than horrible!

Now this scene of unfettered greed and thievery:

Motorists scoop up armored car money, in scene witness calls ‘snow globe of cash’
“As many as 40 motorists stopped their cars and helped themselves to cash that fell out of an armored truck Friday morning along Interstate 270 in Montgomery County, according to authorities.A total of $5,795 fell out of an unsecured door of the truck, said Maryland State Police Sgt. Mark Cummings. As of 12:45 p.m., only $100 had been turned in to authorities, Cummings said. State police are offering amnesty for anyone who returns the money to the Rockville Barracks at 7915 Montrose Road in Rockville. “No questions will be asked,” Cummings said. One reason so many people may have scooped up cash is that the armored truck had continued down the road, and they may have considered it lost or abandoned money, Cummings said. The bills fell out in two plastic bags, which broke apart when they hit the road, he said. The Associated Press reported that attorney Heather Kelly, driving on Interstate 270 to her office in Frederick, saw two bags of currency and people frantically trying to collect the money. “It was in the traffic lanes and on the shoulders and just generally kind of like a snow globe of cash,” she told AP.”

Before the first judgment, the flood, demons were rampant in the world. The fallen angels had mated with human women, all that they chose, (Gen 6:1-2) and the resulting situation was chaos. All the people on the earth were thinking of only evil continually. (Gen 6:5-6).

Imagine being on earth in those days when every person was doing and thinking evil. They hadn’t finished one evil act before they were thinking of another. But Noah found favor with the LORD. (Gen 6:8). Despite all the temptations around him despite the daily pressures of remaining faithful Noah did it. He was the only blameless person, and he walked with God. (Gen 6:9). He was rewarded with His life, and with permanent righteousness and regard of the Lord. (Hebrews 11:7).

The time of Jesus’s fleshly incarnation was a time of rampant evil and demon-infestation. He spent up to 25% of His time dealing with demons and sicknesses caused by demons. He sent the twelve apostles into the world with demon-casting abilities. (Luke 9:1-3). He called out that generation:

“O unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” (Mt 17:17). Clarke’s Commentary explains His comment: “These and the following words may be considered as spoken–“

“1. To the disciples, because of their unbelief, Matthew 17:20.
2. To the father of the possessed, who should have brought his son to Christ.
3. To the whole multitude, who were slow of heart to believe in him as the Messiah, notwithstanding the miracles which he wrought.”

Demon infestation was everywhere and it was everywhere for the same reason as in Noah’s generation: faithlessness. Demons aren’t successful where there is great faith and a strong Holy Spirit presence of the Lord. (2 Thessalonians 2:6-7).

But in the midst of that entire unbelieving generation was a righteous man. Simeon. “And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him”. (Luke 2:26). There also was a man named Zacharias. He was the father of John the Baptist. He was a priest, having for generations been in the line of Aaron. He was not a Pharisee nor was he self-righteous. He was purely righteous, looking always for the Messiah and being with the Spirit.

It can’t have been easy, being holy in a perverse generation, where the Lord had been silent and the Messiah all but forgotten. But the LORD had not forgotten Zacharias, nor did He forget Simeon. I can imagine that Simeon’s life was kind of like Noah’s. He was it the midst of people who practiced a legalistic and perverted religion, if they practiced one at all. Paganism was rampant. Demons were running wild. The People had not heard from the prophets in 400 years. Can you imagine being of a people who had heard from God constantly since the beginning, and yet had not heard from Him in 400 years? We get tired of waiting after 4 minutes. Yet Simeon and Zacharias persevered in righteousness and holiness. They persevered, and were rewarded.

We find the same thing true now. Evil is rising and that is because of demon-infestation. We are also a wicked and perverse generation, the last one (I believe) in advance of the Lord’s Second Coming. It is hard to stay righteous in the face of all the temptations. It is hard to remain patient and loving in front of all the evil and hate. But we must. It is no excuse to faint and fail just because it is hard to remain faithful.

James 1:12 says “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”

Perseverance is evidence of belonging to Christ. “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;” (John 8:31)

“But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.” (Hebrews 3:6).

If Noah could do it in his wicked and perverse generation, if Simeon and Zacharias could do it in their wicked and perverse generation, we can do it. We have to do it. The promise of Jesus is that He will reward us, He is noticing our perseverance under trial. He loves us and embraces us, and will deliver us.

Persevere!