The Tale Of Two Extremes

     The following news item comes to us from Rudaw, a Kurdish media network, whose aim it is to impart news and information about Kurdistan and the Middle East.  Nadia Murad, a 21-year-old Yezidi woman who escaped the clutches of Islamic State (ISIS) militants and went on to highlight the plight of women kidnapped and enslaved by the group, was officially nominated by Iraq on Tuesday for the Nobel Peace Prize.

     The Iraqi government said, in a statement announcing the nomination, "“She is the symbol of women’s struggle against the dark forces aiming to degrade women. Nadia talked about the plight of Yezidi women abducted by ISIS, and she asked the international community to rescue a record number of 3,400 Yezidi girls and women from the hands of ISIS."  Murad was kidnapped by ISIS along with thousands of other girls and women, when the predominantly Yezidi city of Shingal fell to ISIS in August 2014. She has traveled around the world to shed light on ISIS atrocities against the Yezidi religious minority, and told her personal story before the UN Security Council this last December.
     The U.K.'s Mirror, related her testimony before the UN:  "Rape was used to destroy women and girls and to guarantee that these women could never lead a normal life again," she told them.
     Nadia described her horrific ordeal, saying how she was taken by bus to a building in the ISIS stronghold of Mosul, where thousands of Yazidi women and children were exchanged by militants as gifts.  A few days after she was taken by a man, she said: "He forced me to get dressed and put my makeup on and then that terrible night, he did it. He forced me to serve as part of his military faction, he humiliated me every day."  When she tried to flee, she was stopped by a guard.  "That night he beat me. He asked me to take my clothes off. He put me in a room with the guards and then they proceeded to commit their crime until I fainted," she said.  She sobbed as she begged the Security Council: "I implore you, get rid of Daesh (Islamic State) completely.
     But Nadia is not the only victim of the deterioration of the Middle East.  We, here in the U.S., have struggled to understand the civil war in Syria.  Who are the good guys?  Who are the bad? Why have we chosen the rebel's side?  While I believe that we are intentionally kept in the dark, there is no escaping the human toll in that war-torn country.
     BBC News reports that civilians are under siege, and Opposition activists in Syria have told the BBC that people are dying of starvation in the government-besieged town of Madaya, near Damascus. Reports say residents have resorted to eating grass in two Shia villages further north, Foua and Kefraya, which have been blockaded by rebel forces for even longer.  The World Food Programme and the International Red Cross describe conditions in some areas as "extremely dire", after nearly five years of civil war.
     The U.N. has released figures of nearly 400,000 besieged citizens throughout the country of Syria, and the meager supplies that have reached them is clearly disturbing:  "In September, some 7,800 people were reached with water, sanitation and hygiene assistance in one besieged location. In October, 10,500 people in besieged locations were provided with food, health and basic relief assistance and some 16,700 people were provided with water, sanitation and hygiene assistance. In November, 1,077 children received textbooks and 50 children were provided with winter clothes," the  UN report states.  "No other assistance reached the besieged areas in November."

     That leaves the civilians trapped inside areas under siege depending on black market supplies at inflated prices.  The UN Human Rights Council found that "Trapped without basic necessities and under constant fear of deadly snipers or bombardment, [Syrians are suffering] severe psychological trauma, and desperation characterizes the besieged communities", resulting in people, particularly the vulnerable, dying of malnutrition and lack of access to medicines and electricity.  A resident of the town of Madaya, Abdel Wahab Ahmed, told the BBC, "People here have started eating earth because there's nothing left to eat," he said. "Grass and leaves have died because of the mounting snow." He described the lack of medical facilities for the sick and vulnerable as "terrifying".  He continued, "Citizens are dying. They're eating stuff off the ground. They're eating cats and dogs."
     A spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross, reported that people had begged him for baby milk when he travelled to Madaya in October (the last time aid reached the town). Mothers were so malnourished they were not producing milk, and there was no way to feed newborns and young babies, he was told.  A local official in Madaya told the Associated Press that the cost of goods had recently soared, with wheat costing about $250 for a kilogram and powdered milk more than $300.  (Is anyone else thinking of Revelation 6:5-8?).

     Perhaps the saddest aspect of this siege is that out of the 400,000 encircled citizens, only 460 people were evacuated under the auspices of the UN and Red Cross by means of a local agreement covering the four besieged towns of Zabadani, Madaya, Foua and Kefraya.  That leaves hundreds of thousands still in danger of dying from malnutrition, disease, and lack of basic human comforts.

     While half-way around the world, Millennials here in the U.S. revealed through one of the never-ending surveys that our culture is fond of, that they expect to retire early, with 15 % of them believing that winning the lottery is a viable retirement strategy, while 11% expect to be "gifted" money for retirement.  I'm assuming that they think that somehow the government is going to come up with a new entitlement program for them, just because they will need it.  Sadly, their concepts of what it takes to survive the current economic market, as well as their understanding of how current and world events will affect them is based on faulty assumptions.

     The problem is that they have educated themselves through their phone devices and the internet, and do not understand that, in reality, they have just been programmed by the Beast System.  They believe what is furnished them on their news feeds, and rarely do their own research.  In fact, the education system they have grown up in has discouraged critical thinking and urged them to embrace "group think" and the collective mindset.  

     That being said, I am not ready to disparage the entire Millennial Generation.  I personally know several that give me hope; young men and women with curious minds that seek to add to their knowledge, rather than accept what they are spoon-fed.  They are the hope for the future.  But are there enough of them to change the course of the world?  Will they turn to the Creator and away from the Beast?  And I fear this widening chasm among the world's population.  I'm afraid that what I have disclosed about the experiences of the youth in the Middle East will not be detained to that region.  In these two scenarios, we are seeing the extremes of constant war and relative safety; famine and waste; poverty and wealth... and I do not know if the Riders of the Apocalypse have begun their foray or not, but I'm not ready to discount them, either.

     It seems as if we are barreling towards the End Times and no one is putting the brakes on.  I know that our God is Sovereign and in control; and I know there is a purpose for each of us in His plan.  I just don't want the youth of this country to be ignorant that they have a part to play -- and it is not the part that this world system would assign them.  Please, Lord, help those of us who understand what time it is to guide them to You; to help them to throw off the beguiling veil through which they see the world; and to help them engage their minds and spirits for a greater purpose.  I'm feeling it stronger every day --- this is the generation that must stand; and we can help that happen, with Your Grace, Mercy, and Power.

Matthew 6:25     Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 

The Founding of America: What Is The Truth?

     In yesterday's post I broached the subject of the founding of this nation and our Christian roots.  Today I will attempt to put forth my personal opinion that, from the beginning, there was a battle between God and the Devil; between Christianity and false gods, for control of the destiny of this nation.

    Before I present my views, I have to admit that I have always unabashedly believed that America was a Christian nation from the beginning.  I can remember studying American history in school and learning how nearly all of the colonies were founded for religious reasons; by people seeking to worship the Christian God without interference from kings or governments.  

     Yet, as I have studied this phenomenon throughout the years, it has not escaped my notice that, at their formation, all of the 13 colonies had some form of state-supported religion, while only 8 of the 13 had an official religion.  If one takes the time to study this deeper, I think it is fair to say that we should understand this to mean that religion played a very important role in the founding of this nation.  Faith in God was seen as a positive and valuable commodity for the foundation of a successful society.  We, of a certain age, remember our history lessons of the Puritans and Pilgrims, who wanted to base the laws of their respective colonies on the laws of God.

     You can study the various charters of the original colonies and get a good idea of how important they felt Christianity was for the future of their citizens.  And the importance of worshipping the Christian God was always at the forefront.  In its Declaration of Rights, the colony of Virginia stated:  "That religion, or the duty which we owe to our Creator and the manner of discharging it, can be directed by reason and conviction, not by force or violence; and therefore, all men are equally entitled to the free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience; and that it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian forbearance, love, and charity towards each other."

     The 1683 New York Charter of Liberties and Privileges stated:  "THAT Noe person or persons which professe ffaith in God by Jesus Christ Shall at any time be any wayes molested punished disquieted or called in Question for any Difference in opinion or Matter of Religious Concernment".  

     The 1776 Delaware State Constitution required the following oath from anyone serving in the legislature:  "I _______, do profess faith in God the Father, and in Jesus Christ His only Son, and in the Holy Ghost, One God, blessed for evermore; and I do acknowledge the holy scriptures of the Old Testament and New Testament to be given by Divine Inspiration."  I could go and on, but you get the picture.  If you'd like a closer inspection of the original colonies and their charters, click here.  

    But before I leave this portion of my argument, I just want you to see that early colonial laws and constitutions such as the Mayflower Compact, the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, and the Massachusetts Body of Liberties are filled with such language—and in some cases, they incorporate biblical texts without apology.  Perhaps more surprisingly, tolerant, Quaker Pennsylvania was more similar to Puritan New England than many realize. The Charter of Liberties and Frame of Government of the Province of Pennsylvania (1681) begins by making it clear that God has ordained government, and it even quotes Romans 13 to this effect.  (In all fairness, it is important to note that while the founding documents of each colony point to state-supported religion, the requirement that states support particular religions, or mandate participation in religious practices, was discontinued after 1850.  This does not mean that they opposed religion, but rather left it to the conscience of the individual, instead of being required by law).

     And that old familiar argument that the Founding Fathers were Deists, rather than Christians doesn't really hold up under closer inspection.  History tells us that only a handful of the Founders --  Benjamin Franklin, Ethan Allen, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and (if we count him as an American) Thomas Paine -- might have actually embraced this viewpoint.  But one cannot deny that they were heavily influenced by Christian doctrine and ideas.  That is not to discount the influence of the Scottish Enlightenment, which asserted the fundamental importance of human reason combined with a rejection of any authority that could not be justified by reason; or John Locke's "Natural Rights Philosophy" which stressed the rights of the individual to life, liberty and property.  There is strong evidence that the Founding Father's were greatly influenced by these philosophies some 150 years after Jamestown and Plymouth.  But there is equally strong evidence that they still believed in Massachusetts Governor John Winthrop's vision of “a shining city upon a hill” (a reference to Matthew 5:14). Like the Puritans, the Founders separated church and state, but they clearly thought the two institutions should work in tandem to support, protect, and promote true Christianity.

     I understand that if you are not Christian, and do not want to see our country as a "Christian nation", then nothing I can say will convince you.  And most likely, any mention that there was a competing force for the spiritual allegiance of America will fall on deaf ears, too.  But I would like you to consider the following...

     Is it possible that there is a very real paradox in regards to the founding of this nation?  Is it possible that our Founding Fathers were patriotic Christians while simultaneously pledging Masonic oaths?  It is certainly something that I cannot deny.  In fact, in the late 1950’s and early ‘60’s, the Masonic Service Association published a series of documents highlighting Freemasonry’s connection with the early history of the United States, and these are among the numbers they reported:  

•  Signers of the Declaration of Independence: 8 confirmed Masons, 24 possible, 24 with no affiliation.

•  Signers of the Constitution: 13 confirmed Masons, 7 possible, 19 with no affiliation.

•  General Officers of the Continental Army: 33 confirmed Masons, 15 possible, 26 with no affiliation.

     In a 2012 article, written by Jamie Brendan for Endtime Magazine, titled, Founding Fathers: Christians or Masons ... or Both? the author writes, "Not unlike many Masons today, it’s very likely that a number of the founding fathers who were members of the Lodge failed to understand the spiritual significance of Freemasonry – principally that the Lodge is a universal melting pot of religions and mystical concepts. In fact, of all the accusations made against Freemasonry, this is one which the Lodge gladly promotes—religious universalism."  

     And I contend that it is in fact, this very universalism, that the Bible predicts will overtake mankind as part of the New World Order, and a One World Religion.  Just read what the Masonic Service Association has to say:  “Masonry is not Christian; nor is it Mohammedan nor Jewish nor to be classified by the name of any other sect. The power which has held it together, the chemical which has caused its growth, the central doctrine which makes it unique, is the opportunity it affords men of every faith, happily to kneel together at the same Altar, each in worship of the God he reveres, under the universal name of the Great Architect of the Universe.”

     So, for those who have insisted to me that their fathers and grandfathers were Masons, and it is not a religious organization, but rather just "a union, of sorts; founded on the history of bricklayers, etc.", I would like to ask the following question:  who are they kneeling to at the Altar?  It certainly is not YHWH, the One True God!  And I do not disagree that those who are at the lower levels of Masonry do not have any idea of the true purpose of the Lodge.  They will consistently proclaim that it is to do charitable work and to provide needed services to the poor.  But believe me, I have read the oaths taken at the highest levels (30th - 33rd degrees) and they are blasphemous to my God!  

      And it does not give me any solace that, as Jamie Brendan writes, "the one place where historical Freemasonry is most evident is in Washington DC.  It’s at this vital governmental hub that Masonry has left an indelible mark on the nation’s fabric. The Capitol Building, the White House, and many other federal buildings were either designed by Masons or dedicated by a Masonic ceremony of “corn, wine, and oil.”  In fact, the entire city of Washington DC - including large sections of its street layout – is liberally laced with the fingerprints of Freemasonry and astrological symbolism.  Moreover, Washington Monument, the tallest structure in the capital city, is an openly recognized Masonic edifice, with a meaning directly connected to ancient Egyptian belief systems [so too are many other obelisks scattered across the United States]."

     I'm sorry that I am unable to explore this paradox to the extent that it deserves... it would take several days of research and posting to do it justice.  But suffice it to say that the paradox is real, and both sides of the argument have merit.  America does have a Christian heritage.  The earliest Americans recognized the importance of Christian morals, church life, and a degree of common sense based on God’s Word [the Ten Commandments, for example].  Also, our history of thousands of immigrants who fled to America because of the persecution they experienced while standing for Christ in their homeland proves that America was a beacon of Christian hope.  And I do not think we can deny that there were real, faithful men of Christ among those who forged our new nation.  

     But it is not the whole story.  While the founding of America was based on Christian values, we also must admit that America has been guided by men who belonged to secret societies (not only the Masons, but the more modern Skull and Bones Society, comes to mind).  We need to realize that America, along with Europe is experiencing a clash of our historic roots; that is what we are seeing today.  We Christians need to stop focusing on the past and denying that our influences have changed, and that outside forces are attempting to transform us.  As much as it hurts me to say this, we need to face who we are becoming as a nation.  We Christians have no intention of changing, but there are those spiritual forces who are combining with those who embrace secret societies in order to force us to change.  Yes, I am still prepared to say that we were founded as a Christian nation... As I said yesterday, God intended for this nation to be dedicated to Him -- but the devil was not going to let that happen, if he could help it.  As noted above, freemasons had influence on our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution.  

      The truth is, there has been a battle over America since its founding.  Our Christian roots are real and they are solid.  We are the heirs of our forefather's commitment and obedience to Jehovah.  But we need to realize that there is a battle for the soul and spirit of America, and the Enemy's forces have been organizing and following their plan for nearly 240 years.  We need to get on board with God's battle plan if we are to save this nation.  Our Founding is in the past.  We need to let go of the romantic vision and come together to defeat the Enemy.  His forces are marching toward globalism, ecumenicalism, and his New World Order.  Maybe we need to concentrate less on preserving the sentimental image of the United States of America, and join forces with the angelic hosts to bring in the Kingdom of God.

Job 12:23-24    He makes nations great, and He destroys them; He enlarges nations [and then straightens and shrinks them again], and leads them [away captive].  He takes away understanding from the leaders of the people of the land and of the earth, and causes them to wander in a wilderness where there is no path.

Our Nation Is In Danger

     It seems that most of the people I know sense that 2016 is going to be a watershed year; a turning point towards massive change.  The question is... will it be a change that will better our lives, or changes that finally drive us over the cliff?

Graham on his "Decision America 2016" tour

     I must say that I have to agree with the sentiments that I am hearing from Franklin Graham, the 63-year-old son of Billy Graham, the most renowned Christian evangelical preacher of the last seven decades.  As Graham says, we all instinctively know that our country is "in big-time trouble".  He says, "We’re in trouble spiritually. We’re in trouble economically. We’re in trouble racially."  Who can deny that?  Even if you are an American who agrees with our cultural swing towards abortion, same-sex marriage, and transgenderism, you cannot deny that the racial divide in this country is snowballing and the job prospects for the next generation(s) are not looking good.  As a nation, we are becoming fractured and are in danger of splitting beyond repair.
     Unfortunately, the answer to our troubles will not be found in politics, and specifically in neither major political party.  We have a spiritual problem, whether anyone wants to admit it or not.  In fact, just as Graham expressed at a recent rally, "The moral and political walls of our country are crumbling... Our educators and our politicians and our churches seem, many times, to be more concerned about political correctness than God’s Truth and Righteousness."
     Graham points to Godlessness as the culprit.  He points out that our nation was built on Biblical principles, and we have strayed from them -- and he especially identifies the time period after WW II and the successful battle to defeat the threat of Communism.  But I believe the spirit of Godlessness began far earlier than that.  And if you ask my husband, he will tell you that he believes that from the beginning, the Founders didn't do enough to establish this as a God-fearing nation; allowing Freemasonry to co-exist alongside Christian values in shaping the foundation and direction of our country.
     This is a different topic for a different day -- actually tomorrow, I will attempt to examine this paradox further.  But let me just wrap up this point by saying my personal view is that God intended for this nation to be dedicated to Him; and those who first settled here believed that they were doing so as part of a covenantal relationship with God, and with clear intentions to glorify Him in the advancement of the Christian faith.  The fact that it quickly got off track does not negate the original plan.  But more on that tomorrow... back to the appropriateness of Franklin Graham's call to action.
     He asserts that it is time Christians get in the game; to run for office, to vote, to pray for our country, and to get involved in our education system, and every avenue of society.  “Our job as Christians is to make the impact of Christ felt in every phase of life—religious, social, economic, and political,” Graham continued.  I agree!  Where are the Christians who are willing to declare and live their faith as mayors, city council members, county commissioners, judges, school board presidents?
     In fact, in an attempt to overcome the growing secular mindset of this nation, Graham has gone so far as to prevail upon all Americans to take a pledge honoring God at home (by living biblical principles through marriage), in public (by standing for biblical principles and serving those in need), and with their vote (by supporting candidates who uphold biblical principles).  He also asks Christian Americans to pray fervently and faithfully for America, agreeing to register to vote and to prayerfully consider running for office.
     While I agree that if every Christian in America was faithful to fulfill all the aspects of this pledge, we would begin to see a difference in the cultural and political spheres of our nation, I believe that our commission from the Lord goes beyond these measures.
     At a recent discussion in the awesome Ladies Bible Study that I attend, the subject came up of discipling Christians; that, as the Church, we Christians don't do enough to guide and counsel new members of the faith in the way of Godly living --- which, I think we would all agree, would greatly strengthen the Church.  But I would to add to that my fervent belief that we need to not only educate, encourage, and strengthen the Church; but we need to introduce those outside the Church  -- those "of the world" -- about Godly living and their need for a Savior.  THAT is how we change and revive our nation!  I contend that it is precisely because we Christians have tended to concentrate our efforts inside the four walls of the Church that our nation and the world has gotten into such a big mess.
     My husband and I have been meeting and talking with several people in our home who are like-minded about the state of the world, and have expressed their innate sense that they need to get right with God in the midst of this chaos.  But they would never have been comfortable in approaching a church; nor would the church have had any viable way of coming into contact with them... the two groups were on isolated and parallel paths, and were never going to intersect.
     If we are going to truly avert the dangerous course this nation is set upon, we Christians must engage with the world.  We must leave our comfort zones and "church bubbles", as a good friend of mine describes it, and be bold in sharing our faith in every circumstance and to every person, in order to attract those who "sitting the fence" and who are capable of making a decision for God.  We all know that there are those who have committed their lives to evil or whose spirit is just dead within them; they have no desire for God.
     But I promise you there are millions who long for Him, but just don't know how to go about it, or who feel they might be embarrassed in a "formal" Church setting, so they never pursue it on their own.  It is up to us to pursue them!  We are all spirit beings, and as we grow closer in our spirits to the Lord, we will be able to discern those whose spirits are in need of Him, and we will be drawn to them.  Just think ... if every Christian made it his pledge to God to seek after one lost sheep to bring them into the fold ... can you envision how that would begin to change this nation?
     So, I applaud Franklin Graham for his efforts to wake up America to our shared plight.  Our fall cannot be fixed politically or by political correctness.  BUT, we can begin to turn towards God and blaze a new trail of American commitment to our Creator.  It's time we take that path ... we MUST take that path... before it is too late!  C'mon, Christians ... get in the fight, because we are in a battle for our nation and the eternal lives of millions!

Isaiah 6:8      And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

 

The Stand-Off In Oregon: Who's Right and Who's Wrong?

     Once again, there seems to be a powder keg about to be lit in America.  This time it is a standoff that involves the Hammond family of Oregon and the Federal government, and self-appointed patriots, spearheaded by Ammon Bundy of Nevada, who sincerely believe they are guarding the Constitutional rights of citizens.  But it is easy to get caught up in the rhetoric and the emotions, and difficult to discern the truth from the innuendo and personal agendas.

      After reading several accounts from various news sources, this is the case, as I understand it.... Everything takes place in the context of the Fish and Wildlife Service buying up all the land around the Hammond ranch for a wildlife refuge. Apparently owning half the land in the West was not good enough for the feds; more was better. Then, the feds allegedly took what seemed like retaliatory actions against the Hammonds after they refused to sell.
     The current crisis stems around what were designed to be controlled burns (or fires) conducted by the Hammonds in 2001 on their land; the first, to reduce juniper trees that have become invasive in that part of the country. That fire burned outside the Hammonds’ private property line and took in 138 acres of unfenced BLM land before the Hammonds got it put out. No BLM firefighters were needed to help extinguish the fire and no fences were damaged.  Interestingly enough, a range conservationist for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) stated that this fire improved the rangeland conditions owned by the BLM.  Let me also say that burns such as this are common among ranchers and farmers in order to control invasive trees and plant life that can prohibit farming and grazing on private lands.
     There was then a second fire, in 2006, which was a backfire started by Steven Hammond to protect their property from fires being set by lightning.  Steven's wife, Susan, later testified in court, "There was fire all around them that was going to burn our house and all of our trees and everything. The opportunity to set a back-fire was there and it was very successful. It saved a bunch of land from burning.”  However, the BLM asserts that one acre of federal land was burned by the Hammonds’ backfire, and Susan says determining which fire burned which land is “a joke” because fires [from the lightning strikes] burned from every direction.

      The result of this actions was convictions by the federal government against the Hammond's for two counts of arson.  The dispute was over whether they intended the fires to spread to public lands, and a jury convicted Steven Hammond and his father, Dwight.  The judge in the case said that the damage to some juniper trees and sagebrush did not warrant the five-year mandatory minimum sentence under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, and sentenced Dwight Hammond, the dad, to three months, and twelve months and a day for Steven Hammond, which they have served.
      But now, the Ninth Circuit has held that the minimum five-year sentence was not so disproportionate as to violate the Eighth Amendment’s “cruel and unusual punishment” clause. So,  now the Hammond's have been resentenced to five years in prison, under an antiterrorism law passed by Congress.  In fact, they made it clear that they intended to voluntarily turn themselves in and serve out the remainder of their sentence, under those federal minimum sentencing statutes, and after losing  in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.  And that brings us to the current standoff in Oregon.
     Since the Hammond's are willing to return to prison to serve the full five years of the mandatory minimum, they do not wish any interference from anti-government or patriot groups which see this case as an overreach by the government.  The Bundy group, however, is the same group of people who backed Cliven Bundy, a Nevada rancher, who accused federal government officials of trying to illegally push his cattle off of protected BLM federal land.  That standoff came perilously close to pitting armed civilians against federal government agencies, with echoes of Ruby Ridge and Waco.  Fortunately, the government backed down and disaster was averted.
     But, somehow the Bundy group feels strongly that it is imperative they take a stand for the Hammond family, even though the Hammond family has not asked for help, nor do they want it.  Furthermore, since Saturday, the Bundy protesters have taken over the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge visitor’s building, and refuse to leave until the five-year prison sentences handed by the Justice Department to the Hammond's are softened.  
     Naturally, this has caused a firestorm among politicians, lawmakers, constitutionalists, and patriot-minded Americans.  Everyone from Presidential candidates Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, to Oath Keepers founder, Stewart Rhodes, to TV personality Montel Williams, have weighed in.  Rubio and Cruz both call for an end to the standoff and the end to lawlessness.  Cruz said, “Every one of us has a constitutional right to protest, to speak our minds.  But we don’t have a constitutional right to use force and violence and to threaten force and violence on others. And so it is our hope that the protesters there will stand down peaceably, that there will not be a violent confrontation.”  Rubio added that while he agreed with critics of federal land use policy, “Let me just say, first of all, you’ve got to follow the law... There are states dominated by the federal government in terms of land holding and we should fix it, but no one should be doing it in a way that’s outside the law. We are a nation of laws, we should follow those laws and they should be respected.”
     While the Oath Keepers organization is a non-partisan association of current and formerly serving military, police, and first responders, who pledge to fulfill the oath all military and police take to “defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic”, they do not intend to insert themselves in a situation where they are not wanted.  Their founder, Stewart Rhodes, released the following statement:  We cannot force ourselves or our protection on people who do not want it.   Dwight and Steven Hammond have made it clear, through their attorney, that they just want to turn themselves in and serve out their sentence. And that clear statement of their intent should be the end of the discussion on this.  No patriot group or individual has the right or the authority to force an armed stand off on this family, or around them, against their wishes.  You cannot help someone who does not want your help, and who are not willing and ready to take a hard stand themselves.
     But then there are those like Montel Williams, who appears to encourage lawlessness by government officials, themselves, in the face of constitutional protests.  Williams said in several Twitter messages he’s quite OK with authorities using deadly force to take out the Oregon protesters who’ve taken over a federal building – that they’re “buffoons” with “terrorist” tendencies and unworthy of constitutional protections.  What?!?  Deadly force?  Unworthy of constitutional protections?  As nervous as it makes me for the protestors to push the envelope of civil disobedience, this kind of talk from a celebrity mouthpiece sickens me.  Since when does a private citizen feel compelled to call for deadly force against another citizen?  And who is he to judge that they are not due constitutional protection?
     While it sometimes seems to me that man's laws are becoming subject to tyrants and public opinion, I must remind myself that all government has been instituted by God.  I know, I know, that is so difficult to understand in the midst of perceived injustice.  But we must remember that there can be NO power, of ANY government, except what God allows.  So we must always keep in mind that He is working out a purpose that is probably far different than what any personal agenda for “improvement” that we deem necessary.  When our leaders are self-serving—or even outright devilish—it is God’s responsibility to remove them—NOT OURS!
     If ever there was injustice, it was the Roman tyranny over Judah when Jesus walked the earth.  Yet our LORD did not advocate the overthrow of the Roman government, even though He could have called down armies of angels to do His will.  It is a difficult concept for us humans to know how to act in love and righteousness when faced with corruption, unfairness, tyranny, and repression.  No matter how hard it is to understand, we are called to follow our nation's laws until they are in direct conflict with God's laws -- no matter how wrong or unfair they seem.  From my Biblical standpoint, the Hammond's have taken the high, and more difficult, road.  May God's peace abound in the wake of their tough decision.

Thank you to Patterico's Pontifications website for the clear and precise understanding of the Hammond family's court cases.  

I Timothy 2:1-2     "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty."

Where Will It All Lead?

     The news from the Middle East becomes more chaotic each day, and threatens to involve the whole world.  The latest headlines which disclose the execution of 47 dissidents by the government of Saudi Arabia has ignited the Arab world, and pitted the Sunni guardian of Islam (Saudi Arabia) against the Shia guardian of the Muslim faith (Iran).  It doesn't help their centuries-old battle for supremacy when a prominent Shiite cleric, Nimr Baqr al-Nimr, was among the executed.

     One must understand the basis of their acrimony in order to see how it might affect the fragile peace of the world.  The blog, Behold Israel, explains it succinctly and concisely.  The division between Shia and Sunni dates back to the death of the Prophet Muhammad, and the question of who was to take over the leadership of the Muslim nation.  Sunni Muslims agree with the position taken by many of the Prophet’s companions, that the new leader should be elected from among those capable of the job. This is what was done, and the Prophet Muhammad’s close friend and advisor, Abu Bakr, became the first Caliph of the Islamic nation. The word “Sunni” in Arabic comes from a word meaning “one who follows the traditions of the Prophet.”  (The adoption of the name Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, by the leader of ISIS, shows his allegiance to the Sunni branch of the Muslim faith).

     On the other hand, some Muslims share the belief that leadership should have stayed within the Prophet’s own family, among those specifically appointed by him, or among Imams appointed by God Himself.  The Shia Muslims believe that following the Prophet Muhammad’s death, leadership should have passed directly to his cousin/son-in-law, Ali bin Abu Talib. Throughout history, Shia Muslims have not recognized the authority of elected Muslim leaders, choosing instead to follow a line of Imams which they believe have been appointed by the Prophet Muhammad or God Himself. The word “Shia” in Arabic means a group or supportive party of people. The commonly-known term is shortened from the historical “Shia-t-Ali,” or “the Party of Ali.” They are also known as followers of “Ahl-al-Bayt” or “People of the Household” (of the Prophet). 

     Sayyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei is the current Ayatollah and Supreme Leader of Iran.  Khamenei claims to hold the title of Sayyid, which means that he claims direct patrilineal descent from Muhammad.  So you can start to put the puzzle pieces together and see why President Bashar al-Assad, of Syria, who describes himself as an Alawite, a sect of Shia Islam, is battling the Sunni fighters of ISIS, and receiving the support of Shia Iran.  This naturally puts Saudia Arabia (Sunni) in direct conflict with Iran, but also puts them in a precarious position with their own Sunni citizens.
     Because of their alliance with the West (and primarily with the United States) and their opposition to the rise of the barbaric Islamic State (ISIS, who is also Sunni), there is a growing tension among those in Saudia Arabia who would like to turn more toward the fiery doctrine of Wahhabism, which is at the heart of ISIS's ideology.  How does the new leader of Saudia Arabia, King Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, maintain allegiance from his people and still preserve his oil dealings with the West?  How does our country's treaty with Shia Iran to continue their nuclear program sit with King Salman's Sunni populace?  It is a balancing act that threatens to engulf the entire world into choosing sides.
     Add to this the fact that Saudia Arabia lies between the ISIS-occupied regions of Iraq (Sunni) and Iran (Shia), and contains the holy Islamic sites of Mecca and Medina, and you can see that it is truly at the center of a powder keg. 

     Will that result in the Judgment of the Nations that Isaiah 17 speaks about?  Will we hear "the roar of many peoples, like the roaring of the seas?"  Will the "nations rage like the raging of many waters?"  And will there be "sudden terror" in the evening, and before morning, "it is gone?"

     I know that we can find many prophecies in the Bible that seem like they are pointing to current world events, and I know that none of us can know the mind or exact plans of God.  But even if the Day of the Lord is years or centuries away, we cannot ignore that the confluence of ISIS with the Sunni House of Saud and the Shia clerics of Iran could cause desolation that will spill over to the rest of the world.  We already see the effects of Middle Eastern refugees -- both innocent ones and those who wish to infiltrate Europe and the West with their hostility and hate.  How much more will we have to endure if nuclear weapons are engaged?  

     If nothing else, these executions in Saudia Arabia, the continued march of ISIS, and the disruption in relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran may have implications for peace efforts in Syria and the rest of the Muslim world.  We are fooling ourselves if we think that it won't affect us.  For now, we can't predict where all this leads, but it is wise for us to stay alert, pray for God's intervention, and be ready to share the Gospel with those who will be fearful.  That's it in a nutshell, and it goes without saying ... we are living in interesting (and dangerous) times!

Amos 13:40-41      Beware, therefore, lest what is said in the Prophets should come about: "Look, you scoffers, be astounded and perish; for I am doing a work in your days, a work that you will not believe, even if one tells it to you."

Part 2 - Defying ISIS: Knowing The History of Our Faith in the Middle East

   There is a statement in Johnnie Moore's enlightening book, Defying ISIS: Preserving Christianity In  The Place of Its Birth and in Your Own Backyard, that struck me to my core.  He states, "It has always been a mystery to me why so many Christians in the West struggle to live for what so many Christians in persecuted countries are willing to die for."  Please don't skip over that statement... think about it deliberately.

Christian Children Murdered
for Refusing Islamic Conversion: 'We Love Jesus'

     Why do so many people who call themselves Christian in this country have such a difficult time living their lives for Christ; living in obedience to God's commands and willing to sacrifice everything (home, family, material wealth) for a relationship with His Son?  And how is it that Christians who most likely live without the comfort and ease that we have; who are struggling to survive in this world, have a much easier time dedicating their lives to Him and following Him, even unto death?  After all, we are not beaten, imprisoned, and murdered for our faith... yet.  And still, we cannot find it within ourselves to make Him first in our lives!
      As Moore writes, "Sacrifice and martyrdom are deeply rooted in Christian identity and Christian theology.  They have been in place since the first century, and they are every bit as relevant today as they were back then.  Remember, all but one of Jesus's disciples was martyred, and the story of the early church is as triumphant as it is blood-laden."  I'm afraid that we Christians in the West assume that this kind of sacrifice is all a part of Christian history and we will get to heaven after a comfortable or natural death; while our brothers and sisters dying in the Middle East today know that they are no different than those who, centuries ago, were willing to affirm their love for Jesus in the midst of a horrifying death.
     Christians are giving their lives, affirming their love for Jesus... TODAY!  Once again they are being forced to pay for their faith with their lives, and once again -- as in so many times in history -- they are willing to do what is required of them in order to demonstrate to the world that hate is no match for the love of Jesus.  If we were willing to throw off our discomfort about this fact, we would see that Middle Eastern Christians are showing us that the brutality of ISIS (and Satan, himself) is only measured against the defiance of the faithful; the defiance which is exhibited in the very love of Jesus, Himself.
     Remember, Zena, from my post on Saturday?  She was the bright, educated, chemical engineering student who was forced to flee Mosul, and who expressed the devastation of losing the security of her church and Christian community.  Johnnie Moore asked her a difficult question:  "How has that experience affected your faith in Jesus Christ"?  He was surprised at the response he received, and describes it like this:  "The depression and hurt that had monopolized our conversation to this point went away almost entirely... A tender defiance filled her voice as she revealed to me her unwavering commitment to Jesus Christ.  She didn't say that she doubted God, or wondered why God allowed her and her fellow Christians to suffer so much, so often.  Instead she said, "We thank Jesus one thousand times for life... Our Lord Jesus saved us from death; maybe this is the beginning of our story."
     Is that how you or I would answer that question, if we suddenly lost our homes and possessions and were forced to flee from the onslaught of evil?  If we witnessed death and barbarity all around us because we professed faith in Jesus?  These Christians are actually living out the description that the Apostle Paul gives us in Romans, Chapter 8 of the persecuted church in Rome:  For Your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.  No, in all things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.  For [we] are convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
     Here we are 2,000 years later, and evil men are still beheading Christians, and the love of Christ continues to  prevail over their hatred.  These Christians have a very real and full understanding of the historic significance of the persecution they are enduring.  Moore says he heard numerous times, "Now, Jesus is requiring us to carry our own crosses."  They know that they are just the latest in a long line of Christians who are willing to show their defiance and commitment to Jesus.  Like Ignatius of Antioch (which is in Syria), they are willing to become martyrs in order to attain Jesus.  And like Tertullian, the Christian author who lived in North Africa in the third century, they believe that "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church," and that "the Christian, even when he is condemned, gives thanks."
     I know that all of this seems so foreign to our Christian experience in the West.  It is hard for us to understand that such bastions of the Christian faith exist in the heart of what we perceive as Muslim strongholds.  But we do not understand the history of our own faith; that our faith has deep roots in ancient Assyria, which was one of the Great Mesopotamian powers along with the Babylonians and the nearby Persians. The areas they occupied are roughly close to the borders of modern day Syria (Assyria), Iraq (Babylon) and Iran (Persia).   It was in this region that Adam and Eve were created.  It was from here that Abraham was sent, and it was here where prophets like Jonah and Nahum preached.  The northern kingdom of Israel was taken captive by the Assyrians (modern day Syria), and then 166 years later, the southern kingdom of Judah was marched into exile to Babylon (modern day Iraq).  

Monastery of Mar Mattai/Saint Matthew
on Mount Alfaf, northern Iraq

     As you can see God has always had a place for Iraq in His plan.  And tradition teaches that the Disciple, Thomas, was responsible for the church in Syria.  In fact, Nina Shea, director of the Hudson Institute's Center for Religious Freedom, gives us some important information on the history of Christianity in this region and why the stories of our Christian brethren in the Middle East should affect us to our core:  "The Nineveh area (near modern-day Mosul, Iraq) is profoundly significant to Iraq's Christians.  From antiquity, it has been the homeland of the Assyrians, who accepted Christianity, according to tradition, from St. Thomas, the Apostle, himself.  It is studded with historic churches and monasteries, some dating from the 4th century (such as the monastery of Mar Mattai/Saint Matthew).  Christianity spread from this region by Syriac missionaries across Asia to Tibet, China, and Mongolia ... Western Christians owe an immense spiritual, theological, and cultural debt to this Church.  Iraq's Christians still pray in Aramaic, the language of Jesus."
     Moore's book also makes the following assertion, which I firmly believe, that one of the reasons we Western Christians fail to have the heart we should for our Eastern brethren is that we mistakenly think that Christianity was birthed in Jerusalem, grew westward to Greece, then Rome, and into the countries of Spain, France, England, and eventually, "the New World".  We have also been taught that by the Middle Ages, Christianity was mainly European, until it hopped the Atlantic and became American.  We have been taught that the heart of Christianity has always been westward.  What we fail to realize is that Christianity also moved east, as it moved west.
     If we were honest in our retelling of history, we would easily understand that Christianity originated in the Near East, and during the first few centuries, it had its greatest centers, monasteries, and churches in what was known as Syria, Palestine, and Mesopotamia.  In fact, Eastern Christians were at the heart of Christianity from the days of the apostles until at least the 1300s -- the first two-thirds of Christian history!  Furthermore, most of the modern Muslim world was once the Christian world, and so much of ancient history is built upon a Christian foundation.  And although Christianity has declined in prominence since the Arab conquests of the Middle East, in every one of these countries, until our modern era, there were Christian communities who could trace their lineage for a thousand years.
     And now ISIS is threatening to decimate every vestige of Christianity, and we in the West fail to both realize the threat, and to react to the historic significance.  Are we able to acknowledge that Christian genocide is a reality and that we are allowing the destruction of Christianity in the place of its birth?
     At the beginning of his book, Johnnie Moore makes the declarative statement, "The threat of ISIS is a threat to the livelihood of every sensible person on the planet, and in its crosshairs is the faith of the world's two billion Christians and nearly all of its Muslims, Jews, Hindus, and Buddhists.  If they have their way, you won't live another day.  There's nothing in the world truer than that.  That's why you should read this book."  Note that it is not only Christians who will suffer genocide, but all those who oppose Satan's will in using ISIS for his purposes.
     At the end of the book, Moore quotes the Archbishop of Washington, D.C., Cardinal Donald Wuerhl, who spoke out on the issue of Christian genocide:  "Where are the voices?  Why a silence?  I think each one of us has at least the power to raise our voice.  In solidarity with these people distant from us, unknown to us ... atrocities happen because there are those who commit them, and those who simply remain silent."   Moore then concludes:  "As for me ... I am done being silent.  I will not have it on my conscience that I stood by while 2,000 years of Christianity was eliminated from the Middle East.  What about you?"
     But, perhaps it is more important for us to hear from representatives of the Church inside the Middle East; those who have first-hand knowledge of the persecution and oppression.  The Reverend Canon Andrew White is the Anglican Vicar of Baghdad, and he’s become famous for being one of the few sources of news about Christians from inside ISIS-influenced areas.  His stories are difficult to hear, but leave us with no doubt that we must stand with our fellow Christians, storm the throne room of God with our prayers -- and do it now! 
     Finally, I conclude with these thoughts ... Will we stand by and watch the march of Evil across the globe?  Not only should we be raising our voices in support of Christianity in the Middle East, but we should be lending our financial support to those organizations that can make a real difference in their lives.  I am sorry to say that I no longer put my trust in elected officials to do anything meaningful, or to follow through on empty promises.
     Johnnie Moore suggests supporting refugees from this genocidal crisis through an organization called World Help, by visiting www.worldhelp.net/Iraq.  He is also the founder of The Cradle Fund, which provides immediate humanitarian assistance, and is focused on developing a stable future for the entire region.  You can visit his website at www.cradlefund.org.
     It think it is important for us to see that, as Christians, it is our duty to show the love of Christ to not only those who share our faith in the Middle East, but to all peoples, of all faiths.  That is what Christ commissioned us to do.  It is the way the pagan world was transformed in antiquity, and it is the surest way to see dramatic change in the chaos we are witnessing today.  Those dying, this minute, for Jesus in the Middle East are leading the way ... love must be the answer to hate; and it is time we intercede on their behalf, take our stand, declare our commitment to our Lord, and prepare to bear our cross.  How will history tell our story?

 Ephesians 6:18     Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints (God’s consecrated people).

Matthew 12:28-29

But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you [before you expected it].

Or how can a person go into a strong man’s house and carry off his goods (the entire equipment of his house) without first binding the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.

     This particular Scripture is Jesus's answer to the Pharisees, who accused him of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub, or Satan.  Here, Jesus is making it very clear that it is the Spirit of God who does the work of defeating the devil and his kingdom.  And he also makes it clear that the demon from Satan must first be bound before being cast out.  Which brings me to a matter of discussion among my fellow Christians.

     As you know, I am a firm believer that we are engaged in End Times spiritual warfare, and I assert that we have been given the authority of Christ to employ the power of the Holy Spirit to bind and cast out the demonic oppression that enslaves so many of us Christians in bondage -- the same power of the Holy Spirit that Christ used in this instance, and which He authorized His disciples and all His followers to use. 

     This topic has caused disagreement among the Body of Christ, and while I do not wish to add to this difference of opinion, I would like to state my position as clearly as possible for your consideration.  

     There are some well-respected evangelical Christian pastors, such as the late Ray Stedman, who unquestionably believed that we are engaged in spiritual warfare.  Yet he advocated that the New Testament offered no justification for direct attacks by Satan, or his demons, upon human beings, and saw no evidence that Christians should "bind" the powers of darkness.  In answer, I give you today's verses, Matthew 12:28-29, in the words of Jesus, Himself.

     Furthermore, Stedman and others allege that after our Lord physically left the world there seemed to be a reduction in the evidence of direct demonic activity against humans.  Let me be perfectly clear, Stedman believed wholeheartedly in indirect attacks by Satan through our "flesh" (the self-centeredness of our sinful nature that makes us want to be our own god), and "the world" (that human society which insists on satanic value judgments and is guided by satanic pride and philosophy).  He just did not see the Biblical instruction to "bind" such demons, nor the need to, due to what he saw as a lack of evidence of direct attacks.  I want to be clear that this difference of opinion in no way minimizes my respect and overall agreement with Ray Stedman on the subject of spiritual warfare.

     Perhaps, when he wrote his excellent book, Spiritual Warfare: How to Stand Firm in the Faith, in 1975, the evidence among society of demonic attacks was less noticeable, or people were less inclined to share their experiences.  But I can tell you that I know of at least a dozen close personal friends of mine -- all devout Christians, and among whom my husband is one -- that can attest to direct, physical attacks by demonic spirits.  And as a follower of Christ, I adhere to His admonition in Matthew 12 to "first, bind the strong man" before "plundering" his house.  

     This term "plundering" is probably a stumbling block for a lot of Christians in understanding this verse and the need to bind the demonic oppressors in our lives.  The word "plunder" is rendered "spoil" in the King James Version of the Bible, and Strong's Concordance refers us to the Greek word Harpazo, which means to "pluck" or "to snatch or catch away" as in the act of the Spirit of the Lord snatching Philip away from the sight of the eunuch in Acts 8:39; or the experience of Paul being caught up to paradise in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4.  Strong's Concordance emphasizes that this verb Harpazo conveys the idea of force suddenly exercised.

     So, in the course of our spiritual warfare, when we first bind the demonic spirits oppressing us, we are then enabling the force of the Spirit of God to "plunder" or "spoil" the parts of us that previously were influenced by the spirits.  Just as Jesus says in Matthew 12, "it is by the Spirit of God that I [we] drive out the demons...".  It is certainly not by our power, but by the power of the Holy Spirit.  And we have been given the authority of Christ to call upon that power to defeat the inculcations of the Enemy; those attitudes, ideas, or habits, that by the persistent whispers and temptations of the devil have taken up residence in our fleshly houses.  

     This subject of "binding" is further confused by how we interpret Jesus's words to the disciples in Matthew 16:19:  “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven”.  There are some who, I surmise, incorrectly use this verse to say that Jesus was not talking about demons but about discipline, or prayer, or the influence of the Church, or any number of doctrinal philosophies.  

     Furthermore, there are those who say that humans are not authorized anywhere in Scripture to “bind or loose” Satan. They go on to say that even the archangel Michael did not tackle Satan on his own, and despite his wisdom and power, he called on God to rebuke Satan.  They state that Christians should never suppose that they are smart enough to engage Satan on their own. Rather they, like Michael, should pray, “The Lord rebuke you” (Jude 9).  

     But that's just my point!  First of all, I do not believe it is humans who have the power to bind Satan; it is the power of the Holy Spirit to do the work by means of the authority of Christ!  And secondly, I think Jesus is referring to two distinctly different things in Matthew 16:19.  I believe He is saying if you have put your faith in Jesus Christ, you have His authority and the power of the Holy Spirit to bind evil and loose God's plans in any situation.  See the difference?  That's what he instructed His disciples to do, and what our Great Commission is!

     Sadly, I see how ineffective the Church is in the lives of faithful Christians when it does not embrace the truth of spiritual warfare and the powers of darkness in this world.  I do not think it benefits the Body of Christ when religion and doctrine get in the way of understanding God's Word and the context in which Christ was teaching.  Let's pray for unification among the faithful and a removal of the dirty veil that the Enemy places over our eyes, ears, and hearts.  Let us follow in Christ's footsteps and be victorious in the Power of the Holy Spirit!

Part 1 - Defying ISIS: The War On Christianity

    I recently read an important little book by Johnnie Moore, titled Defying ISIS.  Moore is a humanitarian who has written about his work with genocide victims in the Middle East, Bosnia and Rwanda and visited the world’s largest refugee camps.  Currently, he is sounding the alarm about Christian martyrs in Iraq and Syria who are faced with the barbarism of ISIS and the one option they have: convert or die.
     This little book impacted me like none other I've read in a long time.  In his own words, Moore says he "relates the stories of men, women, and children who have given everything for their faith, even their lives, and stories of those who, when facing inevitable death, lifted their eyes to their God in hope that good will eventually triumph over this evil."  He tells their stories "so that the world will have the opportunity to remember those who stared down the hell of ISIS with the love of Jesus."  Moore tells the stories of the deliberate eradication of Christians in the land where Christianity once dominated.
     There is the story of Mazen, a middle-aged man who lived in what was known as "Iraq's Christian capital", the city of Qaraqosh.  Moore relates that his once strong posture is now reduced to a humbled crouch as he recounts the horror of the morning ISIS arrived:  [It was] nine in the morning when a mortar landed on our house.  My son died.  My nephew was hit in the head.  My other son remains wounded, and our neighbor next door died... We fled, all of us ... My other son, Milad, died on the way.  I have another son who needs an operation; it costs $15,000.  Where would I get that?  We don't have a house or property or anything [anymore].
     Then there is the tragic story of Aida, a young mother of a beautiful three-year-old daughter, Christina.  They also lived in Quaraqosh, one of the oldest Christian communities in the world.  It was four in the morning when ISIS arrived in their town, shooting their guns in the air, and shouting, "God is great!"  Then they began shouting something else ... "CHRISTIANS! Leave before we behead you!"  Aida tells us what happened next:  The situation deteriorated  day-by-day, and after ten days they told us to convert to Islam, or leave.  We were under house arrest.  They took our gold and money and even our extra clothing.  
     ISIS piled them on a bus and dropped them outside of town, to flee or die.  But before they did, they yanked Christina out of her mother's arms, and threatened to kill the hysterical mother on the spot.  Aida said, We don't know why they took our daughter; she was the only child left in Quaraqosh.  We don't know what happened to her.  I'm always thinking about her.  I can't eat or sleep... I keep seeing her in my dreams.  Can you imagine?  Why isn't the world screaming about this inhuman barbarity?  Why aren't we Christians in the West more aware this is happening and interceding on behalf of our Christian brothers and sisters?
     There are the stories of the kidnapping, selling, and trading of children.  As if that is not enough, there are the excruciating stories of the execution of children!  Moore says that "the most conservative estimates put the number of executed children in Syria alone at more than 10,000... [ISIS] revels in the chance to inflict a particular type of horror into the hearts of those they hate.  They sincerely believe they are doing a justice by ridding the world of another generation of Christians, and so they massacre them with pure joy."  What if this was a European child?  An American child?  Why is the world silent?
     It is also the goal of those who promote the Islamic Caliphate to enslave Christian wives and abuse Christian daughters.  I think you know what that means.  We, in the West, are aware of human and sex trafficking (although we are loathe to admit it or confront it openly).  But a smuggled price list from a slave market was recently published by Iraqi News.  The document states that Christian and Yazidi girls are particularly targeted and priced according to age:  ages 1-9 cost $172; ages 10-20 cost $130; ages 20-30 cost $86; ages 30-40 cost $75; and ages 40-50 are sold for $43.  Below the prices on the document, bearing the official seal of the Islamic State of Iraq, it reads, "Customers are allowed to purchase only three items [slaves] with the exception of customers from Turkey, Syria, and Gulf countries.  Obey and follow the rules and laws of the Islamic State or be killed."
     The website, Breaking Israel News, reports that theologians of the Islamic State (ISIS) have issued what can only be described as exceptionally detailed rulings on when “owners” can have sex with female slaves captured by the jihadist group.  The report also added that rather than hiding their practice of slavery, ISIS takes great pride and has even established a department of “war spoils” to manage their slavery trade.
     It is hard enough to read of this horrific abuse against women when it is written in general terms and statistics.  It is another to hear the personal story of Mayat, a 17-year-old Yazidi girl who had been kidnapped and told of "rooms of horror" where "women are raped, often by different men and throughout the day... Often I wish they would beat me so hard I will die.  But they are cowards even in this.  None of them have the courage to end our suffering... even if I survive, I don't think I'll be able to remove this horror from my mind.  They have already killed my body.  They are now killing my soul."
     Then there is the story of Zena, a 20-year-old chemical engineering student in Mosul.  When ISIS came to town she had three strikes against her:  First, she was a Christian; Second, she was a woman; and Third, she was a woman with ambition.  When Johnnie Moore met her, she was wearing the same pajamas she was wearing the night ISIS arrived.  Zena told him that her sense of hope was destroyed when ISIS decimated their church and Christian community; it was an assault "on their security in a deep and personal way."
    But Zena was one of the lucky ones.  In the Syrian city of Al-Mayadin, a female dentist was captured and beheaded because she dared to treat both men and women.  Many others have been stoned to death and buried in shallow graves, or kidnapped and forcibly married to ISIS fighters.  Needless to say, all women are being forced to comply with a strict dress code, and are threatened with death if they refuse.
     One elderly man, when questioned by Moore about why he fled his hometown, replied, "I will tell you why I left my district.  I left it because they stormed our house barbarically at 2 a.m., harassing us, pointing their flashlights toward our women.  We didn't come from another country.  We are from an eastern society.  We are Iraqis and we are jealous of our honor.  So we left to avoid them because they already threatened to arrest our women.  They told my mother that they would arrest her if they couldn't find us."  So, he left to protect his mother, his wife, and his daughters.
     There are more stories than these... thousands of stories, and many of them much more savage and cruel.  And I wanted to let the voices of Johnnie Moore (who has seen these atrocities first-hand) and the victims speak for themselves.  I wanted to shake us western Christians out of our comfort zones to face the existence of this very real war on Christianity.  It is a war that will not be confined to the Middle East, and is designed to be waged worldwide.  We must wake up and determine that we will  not only intercede in prayer on behalf of our fellow Christians, but turn our attention, time, and resources to supporting them in their hour of need.
     I want to leave you at this part of the story, if you will, with the words of Sister Rose, a young nun from Mosul, Iraq, who has poured her life into the lives of Christian refugees as they have fled from city to city, and she among them.  Sister Rose told Johnnie Moore, "I lived in America.  Americans are wonderful people.  It's shocking to me that they are so silent in the face of our genocide.  Please help us.  Raise your voice for us.  Our children are dying.  In America you care for your pets so well, can you care for your Christians brothers and sisters who are suffering?"
     Can we?  On Monday's post, I will finish my report on the work of Johnnie Moore and why he thinks these stories should matter to you; how he thinks we defeat ISIS; and his unique perspective on Christianity in the heart of a Muslim Middle East.  It's time that the world awakes from its slumber, and it is especially time for us Christians.  The very existence of our faith in its birthplace in the Middle East, and our lives, here in the West, depend on it.

1 John 5:19   "We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one."

It's A New Year ... Expect New Changes

   

      I'm wondering if 2016 is going to fly by as fast as 2015 did; and if we are going to continue to see the rapid changes in our lives that we experienced last year.  If the docket of the Supreme Court is any indication, we could see further transformation and upheaval in our social fabric.  Here are the issues that will come before the Court:
     Abortion.  The state of Texas will find out if it can enforce two new regulations that could effect the availability of abortion among its population.  Texas would like to require that clinics use only doctors with admitting privileges at a nearby hospital, as well as require abortion facilities to match the standards of an outpatient surgical center.
     The Supreme Court must decide if these measures will protect the health of women — as state lawmakers assert — or hinder reproductive care “by drastically reducing access to safe and legal abortion” in large parts of Texas, as abortion-rights advocates contend.   It seems to me that these measures are simply trying to call into question the accountability (and the quality of services) of those doctors and clinics that wish to perform abortions.
     But, of course, we can expect to hear arguments that the measures violate the Constitutional "right" of a woman to end the life of her baby, and that "right" supersedes safety measures -- never mind the "rights" of the unborn child.
     Affirmative Action.  Once again, the State of Texas is in the spotlight regarding a controversial decision.  In December, the Court heard Fisher vs. University of Texas for a second time to decide whether the school’s admission policy is constitutional.  At the center of this court case is the question, Does the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment permit the consideration of race in undergraduate admissions decisions?  Abigail N. Fisher, a Caucasian female, applied for undergraduate admission to the University of Texas in 2008. Fisher was not in the top ten percent of her class (which guarantees admission by the University's application process), so she competed for admission with other non-top ten percent in-state applicants. The University of Texas denied Fisher's application.  Fisher then filed suit against the university, citing the aforementioned Equal Protection Clause.
     Fisher has appealed the District Court decision, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit; both of which found in favor of the university.  The Supreme Court found in favor of Ms. Fisher, holding that the lower courts did not conduct a sufficient strict scrutiny examination in this case.  So, now it appears as if the Supreme Court could finally decide if the Constitution and civil rights laws forbid schools and colleges from admitting students based on their race.
     Union Fees.  The High Court will hear a free-speech challenge to pro-union laws in more than 20 states that require all public employees pay a “fair share fee” to their union, even if they are opposed to the union and refuse to join.  This case will clearly show us if the Constitution still has any teeth in it.
     Voting Districts.  This case has clear and strong implications for the future reliability of our election process.  Currently, voters elect representatives to Congress, state legislatures and city councils in districts that are drawn to represent equal numbers of people.  Texas is challenging the fact that these "equal numbers" are not comprised of eligible voters.  At the present time, the system counts all people, including children, immigrants and prisoners.  Texas's appeal relies on the “one person, one vote” rule established in the 1960s. If the justices agree in the case of Evenwel vs. Abbott, the ruling could have a major effect in states such as California, Florida, New York and Illinois because they have large populations of immigrants.  I think it is evident how easily this system could be abused and corrupted.
     Contraceptives.  This year, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear its fourth case on The Affordable Care Act, and the second involving a religious-freedom challenge to a regulation that requires employers to include no-cost coverage for contraceptives in their health insurance policies.  At this time, churches are exempt from this requirement. Under a separate accommodation, religious nonprofits, such as Catholic charities or the University of Notre Dame, need not provide nor pay for the coverage, but they must notify the government of their religious objection.  But in a series of lawsuits, Catholic bishops and Protestant colleges contend that opening themselves up to government scrutiny of their religious objections could open the door to challenges that would force them to provide the contraceptives and make them complicit in what they consider sin.  In essence, they feel they should be afforded the same exemption as churches, or the accommodation needs to be strengthened in their favor.
     Immigration.  In The United States vs Texas, the Supreme Court has perhaps its most contentious case in this Presidential election year.  The outgoing Administration is pulling out all the stops in its effort to shield immigrants from deportation.  Under the President's latest immigration action,  as many as 5 million immigrants who have lived in the country illegally for at least five years, and have a child who is a citizen or legal resident, could come forward, qualify, and be offered work permits.  But a judge in Texas and the 5th Circuit Court in New Orleans, blocked that action as un-Constitutional because it was done without seeking approval from Congress.
     UPDATE:  Under the President's unilateral directive, the Department of Homeland Security published (on New Year's Eve) a 181-page rule which focused primarily on giving work-permits to foreign college-grads.  This not only puts foreigners in direct competition with American college graduates, who are already struggling to find jobs and pay off college tuition debt, but it calls into question new security concerns as it covers categories of immigration utilized by migrants from the Middle East and nearby regions.
     Undoubtedly, it will be extremely important that the Supreme Court agrees to hear the case of The United States vs Texas.  Until then, it looks as if the President is more than willing to test his power to change immigration policy without seeking approval from Congress.  If the justices turn down the appeal, Obama’s action(s) will likely remain on hold until he leaves office.  I'm sure that is exactly what he has planned.
     So as you can see, the very foundation of who and what this country will become is at stake in this coming year.  There is a lot on the line ... the freedoms for our unborn children, our rights to equal education and job opportunities, the entitlement to fair and honest elections, the right to be allowed to practice our faith as we see fit, and whether the checks and balances of our government will be upheld -- not to mention the very security of our homeland.
     And I do not know how we survive any of it without faith in the protection from our Lord.  Man, himself, is on a collision course with his own pride and self-centeredness.  It is up to those of us who know we have been called to a higher purpose to seek ways to impart the Kingdom of God into each of these circumstances, as well as the unexpected situations we will encounter.  The world is not greater than the power and authority we have in Jesus Christ.  The forecast for the future may look dismal... but we know we can change that, don't we?  Nothing is impossible with our God.  Let's live our lives as if we truly believe that!

Psalm 37:37    "Mark the blameless and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace."

     

2015: A Very Spiritual Year

   

     As I reviewed my posts over the last year and took a look back over the top news stories, it became quite clear that in 2015, spiritual matters were front and center.  Whether it was Winter Storm Juno that began the year with a tidal wave of snow and crippling blizzards, or the way we are ending 2015 with a raging storm named Goliath, one has to wonder if these mega-weather events are part of the geo-engineering phenomena or judgments from God. (I find the choice of names curious -- a goddess of war and fertility; and a nephilim giant, a descendant of the union between fallen angels and human women.  Nothing in this world is done by accident, so I am left wondering the significance of these selected names).
     The major news headlines definitely speak of the ongoing battle between the spiritual realm and the world in which we live.  Just let your soul feel what comes to light as I recall these events:  the rise of ISIS ... Charlie Hebdo ... the Charleston, NC church shooting ... Paris concert hall shooting ... San Bernardino ... the European refugee crisis ... the Iran nuclear deal ... the racial tension and division in Ferguson, Chicago, and Cleveland ... the Planned Parenthood scandal ... gay marriage and transgenderism ...
     Do you see it?  These are a random selection of the top news stories of 2015, yet I assert that each of them is the result of direct influence from what the Apostle Paul refers to as "[the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, [and] the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere."  It is becoming apparent to me, at least, that these forces are causing an increase in man's natural sin state and contributing to a reprobate mind that has led to all the bloodshed, violence, racial hatred, moral decay and unprincipled deception that we see all around us.
     It is apparent as we see a connection forming between Science and Sin in the development of transhumanism; in the expansion of forced vaccinations; and in the evolution of CERN, who appears to be trying to recreate a "Tower of Babel" scenario and unlock the gate to Heaven.
     And I certainly think we are seeing the implications of the Beast System talked about in the Bible. From the overwhelming amount of data collection, to chip implantation, to companies being run out of business because of their faith, to climate and gun control agendas, to Agenda 21 and 2030, to Global Government in the form of Strong Cities and Sanctuary Cities -- they all lead to oppression and the dehumanization of mankind. And it will all be orchestrated through the Deception, Division, Diversion, and Discouragement of Satan and his servants.
     And caught in the cross-hairs will be the followers of Christ.  This year has seen an unprecedented increase in persecutions against Christians; from Niger in Western Africa to the Christian communities in Iraq and Syria, they are being martyred for their faith -- and willingly sacrificing their lives to torture, rape, crucifixions, and beheadings, rather than deny their allegiance to Jesus.  To think that we Christians in the West will be spared (or deserve to be!) is not Biblical.  This is the year that has shown us that we better know where we stand with God.
     Which brings me to the topic of the Church.  We have seen the Body of Christ struggle this year with fulfilling its commission.  And I have to ask if it is remaining true to the commandments of God.  Each Christian must answer for himself if his Church represents the Biblical principals laid down by God and if they have answered His mandate, which is to let the Holy Spirit guide the Church into affecting everything around it -- from their city, to their country, to their continent, to the rest of the world.  Sadly, I have come to the conclusion that most churches in this nation, at least, rarely affect anyone or anything outside their church building, if that.  And that is why I have seen a growing remnant of God's people being called out of the confinement of those four walls to listen to and follow the "dunamis" power of the Holy Spirit, which comes by the authority of Christ and strengthens us and gives us the ability to continue His work in the world.
     Which brings me to my final conclusion regarding this year.  As I perused each of my 359 posts for the year, I noticed a decidedly common thread amongst them.  This past year I felt my faith more intensely than ever before.  The worry and anxiety over world events and comparisons with Biblical prophecies sent me into intense periods of testing.  But with this reflection and introspection, I came out on the other side, with my faith strengthened and with a more dynamic relationship with the Holy Spirit.  I have personally witnessed His power this year and how He works with Jesus to heal us and free us of our bondage to the Enemy.  That has resulted in a bolder and more daring faith; one that has released me from the "comfort zone" of my Western Christian experience.  And I am discerning that this is where I will need to be in order to persevere and grow in 2016.
     I'm pretty sure that many of you have taken this same journey as I during the last year.  And it is exciting to be expanding my boundaries and territory for the Kingdom of God.  Whatever the next year brings, I am grateful for the news, both good and bad, from this past 12 months.  We have learned much about ourselves and the power of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.  It will keep us steadfast in our faith as we go forward together; strengthening and encouraging each other for whatever this world throws at us.  So long, 2015 -- we are revived and ready for 2016!

 Romans 15:4    "For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."