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Monday, April 25, 2005

Monday, Monday...

Typical icky Monday. First thing this morning I was informed that our computer system was going to be down at work for about a half hour. Turned out to be an hour, but needless to say during that time we had to write down orders and total everything up so when the system came back up they could be entered in the computer. Pain in the butt. Fortunately the rest of the work day wasn't that bad, once we got over that hurdle.

I have been having problems with my car for a while. I need a new radiator, that unfortunately is around $300 not including labor, witch I probably won't come up with anytime soon. Yesturday I checked my fluid levels and decided to put a old thermostat in, big mistake. On the way home this afternoon it overheated big time. I ended up on the side of the road a couple of miles from the house. I of course knew what needed to be done so I got to work. Naturally I had to wait a while for it to cool down enough so I could more water/antifreeze in, replaced the thermostat and I was on my way back home. One of my neighbors happened by, stopped to see if he could help and I told him I had it covered. About ten minuets later a stranger stopped to see if he could help, as I was finishing up. We talked for a few minuets, talking about car stuff. I think he was surprised I knew what I was doing. Good to know that there are still some folks out there willing to stop to help a lady out. Probably 50 or so cars went by, and out of them 2 people stopped. One of those things that make you go hmmmm. Now days everyone has cell phones, so I guess most people think who ever may be on the side of the road is taken care of. I do have a cell phone, but didn't have very many options of anyone to call. My neighbors who normally help out in this kind of situation are out of town, so if I had not known what to do, I would have hiked the 2 miles home, probably.
I'm in a bit of a funky mood today for some reason, so here is my input for the day.

Psalm 27

Of David.

The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid?
When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh,
When my enemies and my foes attack me, They will stumble and fall.
Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear.
Though war break out against me, even then will I be confident.

One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek;
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
To gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.
Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me;
at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make music to the Lord.

Hear my voice when I call, O Lord;
Be merciful to me and answer me.
My heart says of you, "Seek his face!"
Your face Lord, I will seek. Do not hide your face from me,
do not turn your servant away in anger;
You have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me,
Oh God my Savior.
Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will recieve me.
Teach me your way, O Lord;
Lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors.
Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise
up against me, breathing out violence.

I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Wait for the Lord;
Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

Sunday, April 24, 2005

When HE Comes

Will you recognize Jesus when he comes? I would like to think I would, however I think we all have a misconception of what he looks like, and the devil can be very deceiving. I have been thinking about this question a lot lately. If I had to guess the question was planted within in me by God as something to consider and to pass along. I keep asking myself why He would ask this question. I came to the realization that each and every one of us has a different concept of what Jesus looks like, how he will act when he returns, and what our reaction will be.

I think we have all seen the paintings and pictures of Jesus. Many of us believe this to be the one sent by God, the one sent to sacrifice his life so that we undeserving souls would be saved. Do we really know that the man portrayed in these paintings is really Him? The fact is that we don’t know. I have read many stories that prophets see Jesus in a form that they can relate to, in other words, what they perceive to be how Jesus looks.

Again, I have to ask, how will you know the difference between Jesus and the deceiver? Anyone who knows their bible well enough knows that the deceiver will come and show great signs, perform great miracles to lead the masses in support of him. More than a few of us will be tricked into thinking that the deceiver is the Son of God, when he in fact is not.

The bible tells us that on occasion Jesus showed himself after his ascension to the disciples, and on each occasion the disciples did not recognize him at first because he appeared in a different form (physical appearance) than what they knew him to be before.

John 20:15 “Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (This means Teacher).

John 21:4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, “Friends haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered. He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water.

Luke 24:36 While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see, a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.”

Mark 16:12 Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either.

Luke 24:15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.

This goes to show that even though the disciples did not at first recognize Jesus, His actions and demeanor proved who He is. I pray that we will all have the ability to know Jesus with our hearts, not with our eyes.

There is no way to know for sure how Jesus will appear to us when He comes, but for starters we should look at the following passage:

Revelation 1:12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone “like a son of man”, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all it’s brilliance.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”

I think a lot of us are quick to be afraid of what we don’t understand, and worse yet, are willing to believe what we are told by our government and church leaders, as well meaning as they may (or not) be. I guess the point I’m trying to get across is that we have no idea what form Jesus will take when he comes, nor do we have any understanding of by what means he will arrive in. Keep your mind and heart open because not everything is as it may seem.

Enterprise

As you can see from such a hefty post, I’m feeling much better now. I spent the better part of yesterday working on that project I think I mentioned and finally got it finished at 12:30 AM. Yeah, I’m the type of person who doesn’t want to stop until it’s done, even when there are times when I should have stopped hours ago. I mentioned before, I try to keep myself up on Saturday’s because Enterprise is on at 12:30, go figure, I finished just in time. If anyone else out there watches the show also, I would greatly appreciate an explanation of what in the world was going on! I am not sure if it was because I was just so tired that I missed something, or if I just lost my mind entirely because the episode last night didn’t seem to have anything to do with anything and to say I was confused is a understatement. I’m guessing that they are some point in the future or in an alternate reality or something, really I don’t know. Any enlightenment on the subject would be greatly appreciated. And also, what’s up with the new opening song? The show is in it’s final run and they decide to change it now???? I have heard rumors to expect the unexpected from these final episodes, but last night’s was something else.

Counter

If anyone out there is looking for a really good counter that is free you should check out StatCounter. They give you awesome statistics, where visitors come from, country, everything you could possibly be looking for really. Interestingly enough I had a visitor yesterday who used a search engine looking for information on bare essentials, witch I mentioned in a past post. She must have gone through quite a few search pages before she stumbled onto mine, because I went to the search site and my page wasn’t anywhere on the first page. Anyhow, she ended up here, and actually stayed for a bit and read my posts, so that is a good thing. Check out StatCounter, and no, I’m not getting any money for mentioning them. J


Feedback

I don’t get very much feedback on this blog, but when I do it’s truly a blessing. Today I received an email from a fine fellow who was nice enough to drop me a line and let me know that he enjoyed my blog. It’s nice to know that someone out there is reading my blog and appreciates what I have to say, albeit sometimes rather mundane, and okay, I admit, a little ‘out there’ from time to time. He knows who he is, and here is a big shout out to say Thanks! Please take the time and go on over a visit his sites.

http://www.whatistruth.info/

http://www.heart-talks.com/

Ok, now I really have to get off this computer and take care of some mundane things I have been ignoring due to either back pain or just plain avoidance. (Mostly avoidance.)
It’s a little chilly today, 60 degrees, (Yes, I’m the cold type) but it’s a gorgeous day. I had planned on doing some barbequing yesterday but was overly distracted by the project, so it didn’t happen. I think I will take a stab at it today. I hope everyone out there in Internet Land has had a wonderful weekend, and I wish many blessings upon you all!

Monday, April 18, 2005

Good Neighbors

Over the weekend I had been doing some research about something I plan on writing about soon when I discovered how many people are starting to think the same way as I do. Funny part is two years ago when I was doing my bible research my so called theories were only agreed with by a few people and information was hard to come by. Now it seems that everyone is getting on the bandwagon and starting to express their feelings about certain biblical subjects as well. I’m so happy that people are finally coming to the point where they are questioning what they are taught at church and trying to find the answers themselves before taking anyone else’s word for it.
I have no doubt that the people we rely on to teach us biblical truths probably mean well. I say probably because sometimes I think they are full of hot air and there isn’t much substance to what they say. Sure, sometimes they throw out a truth here and there, but unfortunately a good portion of the time it’s church ethics, or what they want you to know or what they don’t want you to know.
We have become so accustomed to traditions and the ways we ‘think’ things are supposed to be that we get caught up in it and don’t realize that it’s quite possible that we are doing everything wrong. We are doing a lot wrong, I’m afraid to say. We recognize holidays that were based on Pagan religion, neither of witch does it state at anytime in the bible we should celebrate and ignore the holidays/festivals that we should be taking part of. We don’t take care of our poor or needy people, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. We let our government decide what is best for us while they tote their bible along with them, yet in the end all they are looking for is that next vote or the next payoff.
I suppose I am coming off as being highly cynical. Really, I’m not. I realize that there are a lot of good people in this world. It was not only shown on 9-11, but during the tragedy that occurred overseas with the tsunamis. However, don’t you think we should be so generous and loving and forgiving ALWAYS? Isn’t that what the bible tells us? Once the tragedy is over, we just go on with our day to day lives. Did you ever stop to consider that your next door neighbor may be going through a rough time and could use some assistance, or maybe just someone to talk to? How about the guy at the grocery store standing in front of you with his wallet about ready to fall out, that you noticed, but don’t say anything about?
Let me tell you about my neighbors. Once a week my neighbor calls me and asks me if there is anything she can do for me, how I am, how my family is etc. If I am sick, she has gone to the store for me, offered to bring some soup, or just called to check on me. She comes over to the house once a week and cuts my grass for me so I don’t have to push the lawnmower in 90 degree humidity. (They have a riding mower, so it doesn’t take her but 30 min, where as it would take me 2 hours, with the sitting and resting because it’s so hot.) They have invited me to dinner on holidays when I’m alone, taken care of my kitties when I go out of town, and I could probably go on for another paragraph about them. They have even gone so far as letting me borrow one of their vehicles when mine broke down and I couldn’t get it fixed. They always say I do just as much for them, but I don’t think there is any comparison. These are truly children of God and have been a blessing in my life. I have learned a lot from them. We should all be so kind and loving to one another.

Wonderful, Just Wonderful

This weekend I had the opportunity to try out the ACV and peroxide bath. Saturday I was feeling a bit sore from sitting in front of the computer all day, and then stayed up rather late to watch Enterprise. Unfortunately for those of us who can’t afford cable, we have to rely on local stations for any extras, and Enterprise happens to be on at 1:30am.
After watching Enterprise (good episode, btw) I wasn’t really tired enough to go to sleep, but my neck was stiff, and my knees were pretty sore from sitting Indian style all day. I decided to see how the ACV and peroxide bath would work for me. Wow. It was a wonderful experience! 1 cup of ACV, a few lavender bath salts, and I only used ½ cup of peroxide. (You can use up to 4 cups of ACV, and a whole bottle of store bought peroxide if you want.) I didn’t want to overdo it on the ACV because I had just taken my nightly cocktail, so I kept it to 1 cup.
I have to say, it was the most relaxing experience I have had in a long while. I suppose it could be due in large part to the fact that I’m not much of a bath person, bath is small, not very easy to get comfy in, so why bother. Anyhow, I hadn’t been in the tub for 5 minuets when I felt so much better, and so relaxed that I was shocked. You are supposed to stay in the tub for at least 25-40 min, depending on what you are doing it for, but I couldn’t stay in any longer than the 25. I was so relaxed I was afraid I would fall asleep and wake up at 4am in a tub of ice cold water and that didn’t seem very appealing to me. J Needless to say, when I got out, I pretty much went to bed, and can’t beat this, I slept great! I didn’t wake up but once and that was because one of the cats was on the dresser sticking his head in one of my baskets that I keep my hair scrunchies in trying to find a toy to bat around. (Don’t buy cat toys, they don’t want those, they much rather have those stupid hair scrunchies!)
Yesterday I suffered a bit…for whatever reason (I think I took TOO much ACV) and the heartburn was getting to me a bit, also had a bit of a tension headache for much of the day. It wasn’t bad, just annoying because otherwise I felt wonderful. I was rather surprised because earlier in the week the ACV took care of this for me. I took another bath last night and upped the peroxide to a full cup. I want to get into it gradually so I know how much my body can take and can’t. Same results too. Very relaxing. I made the mistake of doing this before my other Sci-fi program, Andromeda, and ended up falling asleep half way through it. Lol. It was a new episode too, dang it. Slept great again, also, so I may make this a regular thing.
Another plus, I noticed that a varicose vein I have on the back of one of my legs shrunk. I read that it would help varicose veins, however I didn’t expect it. I was shocked to say the least. It’s still really blue, but the vein itself has shrunk, and at least that is something because before it was a little gross the way it just stuck out as if it were saying hello to everyone. (There’s a scary picture!) Well, I think that’s it for today. It’s a beautiful spring day here in Bama; I hope everyone had a great Monday!

Saturday, April 16, 2005

Church

As I have mentioned before, I don’t attend church regularly, and really I have no desire to do so at this time. I have been scolded by others about this attitude and have asked them if they can show me anywhere in the bible where it says that church is one of the ‘have to’s’. So far, no one has, they only reply that it states in the bible that fellowship is important. Well, if it does say this, I haven’t found it yet. Fellowship is important, but you don’t have to attend a church to obtain this. You can find fellowship anywhere you may so choose, weather be in a home, in a park, doesn’t really matter. God is with us wherever we go. If we truly believe that than what is the point of attending a church for fellowship?
The first temple was built in honor of God, to house the covenant, for sacrifices, prayer, and teaching and to administer to the poor. Jesus used the synagogues to teach the word of God and to preach the good news of the Gospel, and let’s not forget to heal many.
When Jesus sent Paul to teach the word of the Gospel, do you think He (Jesus) intended for there to be so many forms of what should be one religion? I don’t think so. There is ONE God, there should be ONE church. Why Methodist? Why Protestant? Why Catholic? Are we not all worshipping the same God? Are we not all thankful to Jesus for his sacrifice? I know I am.
It shocks me that we have so many different types of churches, all believing different things, all teaching different aspects of the bible, all interpreting God’s word differently. No, I’m sure this is not what God intended. The mainstream churches are not divinely inspired, but the creation of mankind.

Matthew 15:7 “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.”

Mark 7:8 “You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.” And he said to them: “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’, and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ But you say that if a man says to his father or mother; ‘Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. Thus you nullify the world of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.”

Luke 6:46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord’, and do not do what I say? I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

There is no biblical command to meet in any building, on any day of the week period. The fact that the first day of the week (Sunday) is a day set aside by pagan religion to worship an assortment of sun gods only increases the violation of biblical doctrine. The practice of keeping the Sabbath (witch most of us ignore) is biblical; however the gathering for worship is not. Emperor Constantine however felt in order to convert Pagans to Christianity (and to control the people better) it would be proper to outlaw the observance of the Sabbath and require all to observe Sunday as a day of worship. Tradition of man, that for some reason we fail to recognize and for most will deny or try to explain away. Constantine’s supposed conversion to Christianity was lackadaisical at best and only done for political purpose, not on the authority of God.
The first church according to the Book of Acts is a lot different from what you see today. You see stately buildings with ornate figures and decoration, money that could have been spent well on feeding and clothing the poor, our housing the homeless. Church leaders who are more concerned with how many people came to Sunday service and how much they tithed. All the high Sabbaths and festivals are totally ignored and have been replaced by Pagan holidays like Christmas and Easter. (I will go into more detail on both later.) The church system is hypocritical, there is no scriptural basis for it, and they conveniently adapt biblical doctrines to meet their own agendas or ignore them entirely. Worst yet, they make up doctrines, or follow doctrines made up by others. Do you think it pleases God that the churches teach and practice doctrines that are completely contrary to scripture? I’ll let you answer that one yourself.
Just because you go to church every Sunday will not guarantee your passage to heaven. You may be sinning without even realizing you are doing so, just because the church you are attending is not following proper biblical doctrine. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t attend church. If you feel the need to do so, then have at it. I’m not even saying there shouldn’t be any form of a church. There should be a church that is based on true biblical doctrine. A church where you can go and commune with God in private, as it was meant to be. A church that provides help and aid for the needy and poor. A church that teaches the children the words of God and doesn’t distort the word to make it fit with his/her ideals. A church of forgiveness, understanding, and healing. What a wonderful thing that would be. That would be a church God would be happy with.

ACVinegar Update

Well, I have been taking the ACV for a little over a week now, and have only had to take my prevacid for my ARD once, and that was due more to laziness and getting up late than to do with the ARD. I was having a problem taking it (the taste really gets to me) but I found a little recipe that is wonderful! 2 (or 3 depends on what you are using it for) TBS ACV and 2 TBS Honey, full glass of water. You will barely even notice the vinegar at all, almost tastes good. It still burns the throat a bit, but no where near as bad as it was before. I have also noticed that my incontinence has gone away, and a couple of cysts that I have seem to be shrinking. I haven’t really noticed anything else yet, but it’s still a bit early. Recently I also read that taking a bath in ACV and 3% Peroxide for 20 minuets (about 3 capfuls of each) is great for your skin and for getting some of those nasty toxins out of you. I haven’t tried it yet, but intend to this weekend.

Wednesday, April 13, 2005

Revelations

This evening instead of watching one of my favorite programs, Alias, I watched the new show called Revelations on NBC. I would have taped one and watched the other, however my stupid vcr is acting up and kept spitting my tape back out at me. ( I hate it when that happens!)
What did I think? Well, the jury is still out about it, frankly. I’m not quite sure what to think. I’m one of those people who absolutely believes we are experiencing the ‘pains’ of the end times, and had hoped that this program would be more of a no nonsense straight forward, “this is your warning” type of program that would lead people to actually take into consideration how their actions are affecting the world around them. I suppose, just like any other program it takes time to get into the real issues and primary theme. Apparently this is only a six episode mini series and I wonder how a truly accurate vision of the ‘signs’ can be obtained in that short period of time.
This being the first episode of the six, I suppose it was fitting to give the viewers a brief vision of the characters and a clue of what they are all about. I like Bill Pullman as an actor, and the other actors/actresses were solid enough. The bad guy (Micheal Massee) gave me the creeps just as Al Pacino did in The Devil’s Advocate. (I don’t think I will ever be able to watch that movie again.)
I’m guessing that I’m once again I’m over analyzing and had expected to see what I would have done rather than someone else’s vision. Lol. This is television after all and the main priority of the networks is to make money and keep their ratings up, not to actually pass along information that may be useful to people who do not have faith. I’ll keep watching only out of curiosity to see how things progress.
Before Revelations aired this evening, NBC reran “Breaking the Codes”, based on the Da Vinci Code. I had watched the program twice before, and again, not what I expected. I found some of the information interesting, some of it a little out there and came to the conclusion that weather or not it’s true is not for me to say, unless God so tells me otherwise. He hasn’t yet, although I have had a couple of ‘gut’ reactions to a couple of things that I won’t get into right now.
I’m including the link to NBC’s Revelations website, however I was a little disappointed to find that most of the links didn’t work and was prompted with a box saying ‘coming

Tuesday, April 12, 2005

Eye For an Eye

I’m sure many of you have heard about this story in some way or another but it has been bugging at me every since I heard about it on the news. It still amazes me how people can so willfully misinterpret the bible to say what they want it to say.

For those of you who may have not heard about this story here is a brief run down. Robert Harlan was convicted of murder in 1995 for the rape/death of a cocktail waitress. Evidently while in deliberation, some of the jury members wrote down the following passages from the bible in order to sway other jury members that the death penalty was what Mr. Harlan deserved. The death penalty ruling has been overturned and Mr. Harlan will spend the rest of his life in prison.

Exodus 21:22 If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. 23 And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, 24 Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
Leviticus 24:17 And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death. 18 And he that killeth a beast shall make it good; beast for beast. 19 And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him; 20 Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again. 21 And he that killeth a beast, he shall restore it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death.

According to this CNN article it states that Gov. Bill Owens said Monday's ruling was "demeaning to people of faith and prevents justice from being served."
"Today's ruling further confirms that the judicial branch of our government is nearly bereft of any moral foundation," said Tom Minnery, the conservative Christian group's vice president for government and public policy.
What the jurors and the people above failed to acknowledge is that in Matthew it says:

Matthew 5:38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

This bothers me so much because so many people fall into this trap of relying on words of the Old Testament instead of relying on what JESUS has said. God, the Father, sent his SON in order that we may be saved, but yet we consistently go against everything that his SON has taught us! I’m not saying that the Old Testament isn’t important, it is very important; it shows us how things were BEFORE Jesus came. I see so many people walking around with WWJD (What would Jesus do?) on shirts and wrist bands. What do you think He would do?
I am not defending this man; he did a horrible thing and should be punished for it, no doubt. I don’t even have a problem with the jurors writing down passages and bringing them into the court room for reference. What I have a problem with is the misuse of the passages in order to pass along hate to others, witch I feel is taking place entirely too often these days.

Matthew 5:21 “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca, is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.
(23) Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

Matthew 7:1 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

This being said I hope that we can all remember the sacrifice that Jesus made to us, and learn to show a little humility, forgiveness and love toward one another. I am the first to admit that at times this is a very difficult thing to do. Things have been done to me that I thought I could never forgive, but through the love of Christ, I have. Every night/day when I pray I always ask Jesus to forgive the good and the bad people of this world, people I do not even know. Why? What would Jesus do?

Luke 23:34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

Sunday, April 10, 2005

Forerunners

This is something I recieved through a email list recently and felt I should share. I have felt this way for quite a while, and now possibly I have the answer as to why. God Bless. :)

"The TERRAIN HAS CHANGED"-Cheryl McGrath (-Mar 9, 2005).A Word from the Lord received 31st January, 2005.A WORD to the FORERUNNERS"If you have run with the footmen and they have wearied you, then how can you contend with horses?" (Jeremiah 12:5). The first section of this message is addressed to the Lord's "footmen", or forerunners. In Old Testament times the footmen were selected soldiers who ran ahead of the main army in order to scout out the land and prepare for its arrival. The church worldwide is currently experiencing a severe season of transition and change that will ultimately reveal the true Bride of Christ and expose an antichrist religious system built on the false foundations of man's pride and intellect. The word "antichrist" does not mean "anti-Jesus"; it means "anti-anointing". It is a mindset that despises and persecutes anything or anyone born of the Spirit of the Living God, who is the Anointing. The Name Jesus Christ means Jesus the Messiah, (or Yeshua Ha Meshiach), the ANOINTED ONE (Psalm 2:2; John 1:41; 4:25,26; Lk 4:18, etc). Let us not be deceived - the antichrist mindset acknowledges Jesus, but denies His Anointing, thereby exalting flesh over the Spirit. In the present season, the Lord is busy establishing His own church as He said He would, even while a false religious system blindly continues to expand and represent itself as "the church of Jesus Christ." Let us understand this time of transitioning is NOT simply about whether to hold meetings in church buildings or in houses. To argue in such terms is to diminish the immensity of the Spirit's present work in the church as the Bride is being called out and prepared for the final stages of this current age. It is about the Spirit and the flesh, who are at war (Gal. 5:17). Only those who live and are ruled by the Spirit of God will discern the nature and timing of the Spirit's work in the church (1 Cor. 2:14-16). Many of the Lord's servants, in the wisdom and timing of the Lord, were called as forerunners in this transitioning process and have been "running ahead of the army" for some time now, even years. These are those who the Lord called out of denomination-alism in order to form an arrowhead for the Spirit's thrust of major reformation of the "ecclesia", or those who are called to be Christ's (Rom 1:6). In a spiritual sense, these forerunners have been scouting the newly emerging landscape, adjusting their vision and their footsteps to the unfamiliar terrain and gathering necessary understanding of previously unexplored expressions of "being the church", as opposed to "going to church." For a great many of these forerunners the experience of being part of that "arrowhead" has been a costly one in terms of extreme loneliness, isolation and unjust accusations of rebellion from those they once walked with in the Body. However, the lessons they have learned and the brokenness gained from having endured and overcome in this place will prove to be of immeasurable benefit to the Bride in the days to come. These forerunners are the "nameless, faceless" ones spoken of by several prophetic voices during the 1990's. For the most part they have been hidden and crafted by the Lord until His perfect timing and they will not look like or sound like the former leadership models the church has come to rely on. Some of these footmen-forerunners have been scouting ahead for (what seems to them) a very long time, and their weariness is being compounded bydiscouragement and frustration as they wait for the movement of the main army. For those of you reading this who recognise yourselves as part of this company, the Lord has a specific word:He says "the terrain is now changing. This new terrain is no place for footmen and requires the power of horsemen. How will you transition to the next stage of what I am doing if your strength has already run out? Let each one answer for himself and herself. Let each one seek Me for the answer, for you cannot do such a thing."As I contemplated this question in prayer, I considered the weariness and discouragement I had been personally battling throughout the first weeks of the New Year, and I knew that I did not have an acceptable answer. I was then given to see that indeed the only way for the forerunners to keep pace was in the fullness of Christ and the total emptiness of themselves. This truth was etched further into me in recent days as I was led into a deeper understanding of what it means to "love our lives not unto death." This is not something that we can do by determining to do it. The strength of "self" as central to all things is so solidly entrenched in the human heart only the love of Christ Himself can bring each of us to a place where we love His Life more than we love our own. It is only then that we truly begin to understand the often repeated statement: "it's not about me, it's about Him." No matter how many times we say it, or assent to it's truth, we cannot walk in it until the power of His Life in us has broken the power of "self-consciousness", "self-exaltation" and "self-preservation". Then it is that we can truly witness with Paul "It's no longer I that live, but Christ......." As I allowed the Holy Spirit to search my own heart for the answer the Lord was seeking, I was reminded again of the account of Elijah in 1 Kings 18:44-46 - "Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said "There is a cloud as small as a man's hand, rising out of the sea!".... the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel. Then the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah; and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel." Even as the storm clouds dramatically and suddenly rolled in upon Elijah, so too is the spiritual atmosphere in and over the church experiencing dramatic and irreversible change. Even those who have been waiting and praying for such change will be challenged by the magnitude of the shaking and rearranging the Lord is determined to bring to His household. Yet, here we see that not only did Elijah contend with the horses of Ahab, he ran by foot ahead of them. How? By the Spirit of the Lord alone, for there was nothing in Elijah's own strength or stature that could enable him. Horses represent power. There is a way for the footmen to contend with the challenges of this new terrain and run with the horses and horsemen, and it is in the power of the Spirit and by no other means. The Lord is asking if His forerunners are ready to adapt to this new terrain, which will require a shift in focus. The Lord continued to speak: "Many of the footmen have run individually, aware only of their own footsteps, their own path, and their own goals. But now the terrain changes and they must see what I see - a company of horsemen riding. And they must see themselves no more, but see the company, and themselves as part of that company. They must take in and adjust to the wider view." If you are a forerunner or part of a forerunner ministry, the message is to look up, look around, stop what you are doing long enough to survey the new surroundings. For things are changing and the isolation many have known in this place is going to pass away. The Lord wants His forerunners to be ready and alert to the new season. There is grace and strength for the discouraged and weary, but the new terrain requires submission to the Spirit and dying to the fear of man as never before. Stay close! There is no other Rest but the Lord. He will enable you!A WORD to Those Who TRUST IN PEACE"And if in the land of peace, in which you trusted, they wearied you, then how will you do in the floodplain of the Jordan? For even your brothers, the house of your father, even they have dealt treacherously with you; yes, they have called a multitude after you. Do not believe them, even though they speak smooth words to you." (Jeremiah 12:6). The second section of this prophetic message is addressed specifically to another group who I have chosen to call "those who trust in peace". There are those among the Lord's people who, due to their love for His church, have up until now chosen to remain in fellowship situations where they are aware that known areas of sin are being tolerated in various forms. That sin might either be within the leadership, or being "winked at" (knowingly tolerated) by the leadership. These ones I am speaking of do not condone the sin, in fact are distressed by it, but have chosen to stay on in watch-men and intercessory roles for the love of the Lord's people. Some, for the same reasons, have chosen to remain in fellowship situations where they are continually grieved by a controlling "rulership" mentality in leadership.... This is a word to those many unknown and genuine intercessory watchmen, shepherds, prophets, apostles, and all other lovers of Christ and His Body who weep and travail over the church in the secret place with no desire for recognition or glory for yourselves. I believe you will know who you are. The Lord's word to this group of believers is this:
"You have cried "peace" and trusted in that "peace" even as the floodplain has risen around you. You have desired peace with those who did not see things the way you do and at times your desire for this peace has led you into unsanctified mercy. Even when your brothers, who have chosen the house of their (earthly) father have dealt treacherously with you, you have continued to trust in the peace process. I have allowed this for a season, but there is a time when the seeking of peace becomes appeasement, and the longing for peace leads to compromise. But now the terrain has changed and the flood plain of Jordan is upon you. The Jordan represents the Cross, where all compromise ceases. Indeed the Jordan represents even a cross-road where ways separate. Yes, even compromised relationships die at the Cross, where a man's enemies shall be those of his own household." This is a strong word, and I believe the Lord was speaking of the "household of faith" (Gal. 6:10) when He spoke of dying to compromised relationships. I am not implying in any way, nor do I believe that He was speaking of the covenant relationship of marriage. He is speaking of those "spiritual fathers", who seek to draw unto themselves the devotion of His own Blood-bought people that rightly belong only to Him. These false rulers use the people of God as building blocks to erect their own kingdom. The Lord said "do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in Heaven." He was not speaking about family or mentoring relationships, He was saying let no-one take the pre-eminent place of your Heavenly Father. Yet, in His household are many "brothers" whose first allegiance is clearly to other "fathers" such as their pastor or another ministry leader, their enomination, or their particular stream or movement. This is fear of man and idolatry, producing false submission and false grace. The Lord is coming with a sword to His house, and it is a sword of separation. No, His Bride-church will not be divided, but she will be separated from the compromised institutional system that clings to a form of religion devoid of the power of the Cross, from whom she is to turn away (2 Timothy 3:5). A word of caution here to those who might be tempted to quote that well-worn but unscriptural phrase "Well, there's no perfect church" - DON'T. The Lord is extremely serious about this message and indeed this subject, and will not be mocked. The privilege of fellowshipping with other believers is not first and foremost a social activity, like club membership. It is a corporate expression of a holy priesthood expressing Spirit and truth worship to a holy God. It's time we humbled ourselves and asked Him to show us how He sees His church, instead of expecting Him to see it the way we do. There is only one church, and it is the Lord's desire that His church should indeed be perfect (John 17:23; Eph. 4:13; Col. 1:28; Heb.12:23). The one church comes together in diverse assemblies that are made up of people in various stages of being perfected into a holy and effective Bridal company. However, not one of us should be defending or excusing an assembly where individual and corporate holiness is not highly valued and actively pursued along with grace. As the Lord continued to unfold the message, I was given to see an open doorway. In His wisdom and timing, He has allowed that doorway to remain open between the spiritually dead religious institution the world calls the Christian church, and the spiritual house of living stones the Lord Himself is building. The two have been freely mingling amongst each other in every gathering of believers, regardless of whether that gathering was in a denom-inational or independent setting. But I also saw that because of this opening a multitude of demonic religious spirits had gathered and now stood ready with the intention to pursue, overtake and destroy the living church, the Bridal company. I saw and under-stood by the Spirit that the Lord's Hand of constraint had held back this demonic horde.... I believe it is now the wisdom and timing of the Lord to close that open door so that the true and false church will be separated from one another. When the Lord closes a door, no man can open it (Rev. 3:7). The Lord will have a living church that is not mixed or tainted by the world. Furthermore, in His grace, He will remove all bridges between the two to remove the possibility of compromise for His elect. He did not allow me to know any specific time frame for this process. Therefore there is a call going forth to those who have trusted in peace. These are those who have been patiently waiting for things to get better, and have remained in places of fellowship in the hope of change, or out of loyalty to friends, family and leaders. The call is to follow the Lamb wherever He goes, even into unknown and unfamiliar territory outside the walls of establishment. I was strongly impressed by the Spirit that a day of choosing was upon His people, and that to avoid that choice is indeed to make it. I urge anyone who is currently fellowshipping in the kind of situation I have already described above, or where you know in your heart that men are building their own kingdoms at the expense of the Lord's, to search your heart motives for remaining. I encourage you to seek the Lord for confirmation of this prophetic message, or otherwise, and if He directs you out of that system do not hesitate, trusting Him for further direction as you humbly wait on Him. The Lord continued to reveal that as He brings about this impending separation between the true and false churches, the distance between them would become increasingly wider. We need to understand that those who refuse to compromise and choose to follow the Lamb at any cost will be persecuted and hated by the false religious system. However, those who hear His direction to go forth to Him "outside the camp" and refuse to make that choice will find themselves at the mercy of the religious spirit which is the spirit of antichrist. Under such a system they will have no defence against unrighteous deception and lying signs and wonders, and be in danger of falling away (2 Thess 2:3-11).
Conclusion
I wish once again to stress that as the Body of Christ moves further into the transitional process, we must grow beyond merely defining this transformation in terms of whether to meet in traditional church buildings or houses. There are believers meeting in houses who are still captive to the "temple" mentality with its hierarchy and law keeping. And there are believers meeting in denominational church buildings who are free enough to meet with the Body in any physical setting because they understand that the true church finds unity and fellowship only in the Spirit. This transition is about much more than the mechanics of where the church should come together or how the church should function corporately. It is about whether to continue compromising with a flesh-dominated religious system, or abandoning compromise for the spiritual house of living stones, at any cost. Eventually, every believer will have to choose one of those two places. May the Lord give us grace and humility to understand this is all about Him, and not about us."He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad." (Matt. 12:30)

(c) Copyright 2005 Cheryl McGrath, Great South Land Ministries,Australia.Website- www.greatsouthland.org

THEY don't want you to know

This has a lot to do with what I mentioned above with the ACV. While doing all this research yesterday I discovered things that make me sick to my stomach that it’s kept from the everyday person because the powers that be just don’t want us to rely on anything other than the prescription medicines the drug companies are producing. Makes perfect sense to me, why on earth would the drug companies want you to use a remedy that you can buy easily at the grocery store and is fairly inexpensive? They wouldn’t. They would loose money, their business would go under, and we would have no use for them any longer. What a horrible thought to actually have a country with no illnesses or sickness, no need for doctors for any other purpose but broken bones and minor surgery. Can you just imagine what it would do to our health care society? My opinion is obviously that it would greatly improve it, but I’m sure there are those who would disagree with me. Don’t get me wrong, I have been seeing the same doctor for more than ten years, I find him highly knowledgeable and go figure, and he actually listens to my concerns before prescribing anything for me; however would he be likely to suggest a homeopathic remedy before writing that prescription? I asked him about this once, and he said that it never hurts to try, but that I shouldn’t stop taking my regular medicines unless he directed me to do so. I suppose that depending upon the circumstances that would be the smart thing to do.
During that infomercial that I was watching it was mentioned that even Cancer can be cured by homeopathic remedies and that the FDA has actually placed a gag order on him forbidding him of mentioning what that might be. Of course he could list this in his book, not much the FDA can do about that other than make sure that the population knows that his findings are unfounded. People will believe whatever they want to believe after all, and why would the government lie to its population? Lol. Why wouldn’t they should be the question. I can go into all kinds of government conspiracies, and maybe I will at a later time. This man’s theory is that alkalinity has everything to do with weather or not a person gets cancer, and if the body’s alkaline levels are higher the chance of getting Cancer is nil. I’m not sure people are even aware that you can buy an average alkaline tester at anyplace that sells pool supplies and test your bodies own alkalinity whenever you feel the need to, and make adjustments to your own body chemistry. I didn’t know until yesterday and I find it quite fascinating. The question is how do you change your body alkalinity? ACV is a start, although I’m sure there are other ways to do this also, I didn’t look into it too much because I’m one of those people who is easily distracted and got sidetracked on the use of ionic and colloidal silver.
According to the web pages that I viewed yesterday, colloidal silver can not only cure many viruses and bacterial infections, but it was used in times long past as the only antibiotic necessary for any ailment. Could it really be that easy? I don’t know personally, but I intend on trying it to see what happens. If it can get me off the medications I am currently taking and make my incurable disease curable, I’m all for it. If you could find something that could keep you healthy from everything from diabetes to things that have been labeled incurable diseases wouldn’t you take it? Damn Skippy! J
Below is a list of diseases colloidal silver will successfully treat. This is a partial list, as there are over 650 in all. Acne- Aids - allergies - appendicitis - arthritis - athletes foot - bladder infection - blood parasites - blood poisoning- boils - burns - cancer - candida - chronic fatigue - colitis - conjunctivitis - cystitis - dandruff- dermatitis - diabetes - diphtheria - eczema - gastro-enteritis - gonorrhoea - hayfever- hepatitis - herpes - impetigo - indigestion - keratitus - leprosy - leukaemia - malaria - meningitis - neurasthenia - parasitic infection - pneumonia - prostate infection - pruritis ani - psoriasis - rheumatics - rhinitis - ring worm - scarlet fever - septic conditions - seborreah septicaemia - shingles - staph and streptococcal - ulcers - viruses - warts - yeast infections etc..
Beware of imitations though. Even through my limited research that I did yesterday, I found several different opinions as to weather the use of ionic or colloidal silver was the route to take, and there are also different potency levels to take into consideration. I also found a few websites that I would list in the iffy category as far as buying from. The only advice I can give you is to do your own research on the subject and use your best judgment as to the course you should take. Here are a couple of links that may help you in your search:

Natural Health and Longevity Resource Center

Silver Colloids (Scientific Information)

Friday, April 08, 2005

Liberal Pope

I got up early this morning to watch some of the funeral of Pope John Paul II. I sat and cried, but at the same time I felt rather uplifted. Now is the time to choose a new Pope to replace a truly beloved one. It won’t be an easy task for sure. I have been praying about this issue and keep coming up with a rather queasy feeling in my stomach about it. I had read that the powers that be would like to choose a more liberal Pope. More liberal? I have always felt that the Catholic Church was a ‘little’ political, however I’m getting the feeling that it’s more political than I would like to believe. I have read many an article that says that the Papacy was created for political benefit; if you have support of the Catholic Church you can do no wrong. Well, I surely do not believe that.
The email news group I am signed up with has been discussing this topic heavily over the last couple of weeks and most are agreed that a liberal Pope would lead to the down fall of the Catholic Church. I don’t know if that is really true or not, I suppose we will find out if it happens. The general feeling however is that things are changing and not all changes are good. I truly believe that we are currently experiencing some of the signs of the End Times, what a new Pope has to do with this I don’t know for sure, but I definitely don’t have a good feeling about it. God’s will be done. I will continue to pray about this, and I hope that all will feel the need to do so also.

Tuesday, April 05, 2005

Satan Flies a UFO!

I can’t tell you how ludicrous this sounds to me, but there are those out there, Christians in fact, who believe that Satan is flying around our skies and those aliens are demons. I have no doubt that there are in fact aliens out there. No doubt in my mind that UFO’s are flying around our earthly atmosphere. Are they good or bad? Well, I have never met one, so I can’t really say. I have read many an article that has told horrible stories about people being abducted and done very painful tests on. I have also read articles that claim that after being taken that certain individuals have experienced heightened senses, been cured of disease and the like. Is it possible that just like our human society where we have good people, and seemingly good people who do bad things that there are in fact good and bad aliens? God created all things; why is it so difficult to believe that there may be another society out there, much different from our own, much more advanced than ours, and with the same faults that we are blessed with.

One of the things that we are taught in the bible is that we should not judge anyone and that God is the only one with the right to do so. Why is it that we as a society are so quick to judge what we do not understand? Let’s face it, if an alien UFO crashed in your back yard tomorrow, you can be well assured that those aliens would be autopsied, experimented on, and only Lord knows what else. (This has probably already occurred, although our government denies it.) While I’m sure Satan has a lot of talent wrecking havoc in our lives, I really don’t think he’s flying in a UFO that can go in and out of our orbit at anytime he likes, I suppose it’s possible, but really?

The Book of Enoch is part of the bible that has been omitted from the King James Version. There are many theories as to why; the main one being that Constantine decided to create the Council of Nicea in 325AD to edit the bible to meet his needs, more or less. I’ll go into Constantine a little more at a later time; at least it’s on my to-do list. J Basically what he wanted to do in a nut shell was to make Christianity more appealing to the many Pagans of his time, and unfortunately many parts of the bible were left out because they didn’t fall into line with what he wanted to pass along or what he wanted people to believe. What many of us are reading is Constantine’s version of the Bible, and not God’s. Pretty sad that it happened, and now so many religions rely on this same bible to teach us the word of God, however there are parts missing. Many have said the books that were left out are unimportant; however I believe they were written for a reason and should be read. God doesn’t give us his word unless he wants it to be known.

Ok, I got a little sidetracked there, but what I was trying to get at is that The Book of Enoch tells the story of a god fearing man, who was much loved by God, so much so, that Enoch was chosen to go with God and be an intermediary. (I can’t believe I spelled that word right the first time without the spell checker going off! J ) Enoch goes into detail about the level of Heaven’s he visited on his trip with God, as well as descriptions of the “Watchers” who were sent by God to watch over his people, but taught us evil things that God did not want us to know of, and how they were punished. I’m sure some of you are wondering about the Heaven’s. From what I have learned much of the words that we have come to use and know, are not necessarily what they were meant to be in the bible. In Hebrew shamayim means “SKY”, but was translated to heaven to be more accommodating and is used roughly 500 times in the bible with different meanings. Enoch also explained how he was taken and what the vessel he was taken in was like. I wonder if anyone else finds it peculiar that Enoch is mentioned in the King James Version, but the book about him is left out. (Things that make you go hmmmmm.)

Another good reference on this subject is the book of Ezekiel. I find it quite fascinating that the description of what Ezekiel is seeing sounds much like that of what some today may equate to a UFO. You have to think, most people of that time period were probably not very well educated and their descriptions of what were seen very profound. Today we can describe things to an extent that you can envision what is being described to a tee with the right imagination. Today if I had seen what Ezekiel described, I think I would not only be scared out of my shorts, but run for the hills too. Yet, some see UFO’s frequently and even if seen rarely it’s not considered that big of a deal; almost as if it’s a normal occurrence.

I want to make it very clear that I am in no way implying that God is an alien. God is the creator of all things, what would make us think that he wouldn’t have the ability to create a vehicle that can fly the skies/heavens without a thought? I think it’s made very clear that he did so, and probably does so today. I refuse to believe that we are so naïve to think that God, the creator of heaven and earth can’t fly around in what we would call a UFO if he so chose too. He is God; after all, he can do whatever he wants.

Satan, on the other hand doesn’t have the same reign as God does, and never will. He was created by God, a little ‘above’ us as humans, but not omnipotent or omniscient. It is also my understanding that Satan is upon earth where he and his demons/devils try and wreck havoc on our lives and do their best to make us utterly miserable. This to me would make it improbable that Satan is the one flying around in those UFO’s that so many have seen. As I have said before, it remains to be seen weather the occupants of these UFO’s are good or evil. I imagine it will be something we will learn within time.

In closing I would like to leave you with something I saw on a show called Unexplained Mysteries. A woman living outside of Jerusalem described seeing a bright light outside of her home one evening, she went outside to see what was happening and saw a form of a body standing not too far from her but couldn’t make out any features because of the blaring bright light behind it. She said she heard in her head a voice saying, “Things are as they should be. Go inside and go back to bed.” She did as she was instructed, but said that bright light shone through her windows for two hours after the incident, before it disappeared into the night. Things are as they should be.

Below are links to a few websites that you might find interesting, and if you are interested in reading The Book of Enoch it can be found anywhere on the internet for download free of charge. I have a copy that I will try to include in the downloads section sometime this weekend.

Peace!

UFO/Bible Connection

Satan-His Infernal Majesty

Article on God's Angels

Monday, April 04, 2005

Faith

I’m sure a lot of people have felt this way at one time or another in their lifetime, but I would like to spend a little time on the subject of my faith. I have to explain that for many years I pretty much just wandered from one church to another, trying to find my way. It never seemed I fit in. I either felt I didn’t belong, not that the parishioners weren’t kind enough to me, just because I had that feeling, or didn’t agree with what I saw or heard within the church. Over the years I have attended at one point or another, Pentecostal, Baptist, Catholic, Jehovah Witness, Methodist, I’m sure I could go on, but I don’t want to bore you. Let me just say I have been to my fair share of different churches over the past 15 years. For a long while, I didn’t attend church at all, then was invited by some neighbors to attend their church, witch was Baptist. I went for a few months pretty religiously, I felt rather comfortable there, but then at a church social function I over heard some racial slurs that I did not appreciate at all, and stopped going. In hindsight I suppose I should have gone to the Pastor of the church and mentioned it to him, and discussed my concerns, however I was so disgusted that I didn’t bother, and being that the church was predominately white, didn’t think it would matter. I know my bible just as well as the next person; I have read it from front to back more times than I can count now, and I knew that wasn’t right. I didn’t want to be a part of it.
After that incident I even stopped reading my bible for awhile. I don’t know what happened, but all the sudden I got to thinking about various things that just didn’t make any sense to me about the bible/church and started to do some research. I always felt like things were missing. Much to my surprise I found I was pretty correct in that feeling. Took almost two years of reading and research, but I don’t regret a minute of it. I believe what I have learned has made me stronger in my faith than I was ever before. I can’t say I agree with everything I have learned, but it’s nice to know, all the same. I feel like now, more than ever, if you have any questions about your church or what you have read in your bible, you should research whatever it is that is bothering you, and not just brush it under the table. Whenever Jesus was asked a question or he taught he used parables. He wanted the disciples to find the answers themselves, only when they couldn’t would he explain. In the same manner, He wants you to find the answer yourself. I’ll go into a bit more detail about the questions that I had at a later time. I go to church occasionally now, but I don’t feel guilty when I don’t. Prayer is meant to be private, between you and God, not a congregation. Church is for learning, not for preaching. You can fellowship at anytime; it doesn’t necessarily have to be on Sunday morning. I’m rambling. As I said, I will go into more detail on these subjects in the coming weeks. My faith in Jesus is strong, I know he is coming, and I’m waiting patiently for his arrival.

Saturday, April 02, 2005

Pope John Paul II

I think most of us knew this was going to happen with the Pope’s health deteriorating over the last few months. It didn’t really hit me until Easter Sunday when for some reason I got the distinct feeling that he was going to die, and there was no question in my mind about it. I have prayed about it all week, and kept seemingly getting the same answer in my head that it is God’s will. While most of my family are Catholics, I don’t claim to be one myself, I am one of God’s Children, a Christian, no other title needed, at least not as far as I’m concerned. Over the years I have had mixed feelings about the Papacy and Catholic Church, however at this time I would like to share my feelings about the Pope and what he meant to me. I have read in the past on several web sites about the Pope being the anti-Christ, and never once even put in my head that it was even possible. I look at his face and all I can seem to see is joy and love. It’s almost as if it just emanates from him. I truly feel as if this man, weather he had been named Pope or not would have been a true blessing to anyone he had come in contact with. His love of humanity was never ending. I’m sure just to be in his presence was a thing to be never forgotten. I have only ever seen him on TV and on the news, but have at most times felt a rather odd connection to him, as I’m sure a lot did. His friends have said that he was a kind and generous man, always loving to anyone he came in contact with, forgiving of those who needed to be forgiven, and not judging to those with different beliefs. He treated everyone as a member of his family, a brother or sister. What a concept, it’s something we should all strive to do on a daily basis. Jesus said that the most important of the commandments is love, and if that was followed, all the other commandments would fall into place. I do believe the Pope followed this to a tee. Undying love of God and of humanity is what he meant to me. Peace be with you Pope John Paul II, you may have left us physically, but your mark has been well made upon us all, we shall not forget you.

More on Flood
Just another update. Accroding to news reports Dale County, Alabama is no longer under a flood warning. I have no idea as to what the levels of the river are today, or when it will crest and the change will be made back to Flood Warning, it was suspected that it would crest on Sunday, Monday at the latest. When I drove home from work yesturday (after worrying I wouldn't make it because of the possible flooding and the whopping 8 inches of rain we received) there was minor flooding, but the river had risen substantially since the drive in to work. I meant to take a quick trip down to the river today to check it out myself being that I missed the news last night due to my sister calling, however I didn't make it. I have been feeling a bit under the weather the last couple of days. I will be sure to watch the news this evening and possibly go down tomorrow and get some pictures if it's necessary and update everyone

More On Terri

It’s hard to believe what a subject like this does to people’s belief system. I belong to a faith related email group and received 45 messages today on the argument of weather or not Terri should have been able to continue living, or to let her go. The heated discussion began when someone relayed that he believed that Terri had left us long ago and was with the Father in heaven. Then began the comments about how her soul couldn’t have left her body if her heart was still beating, that she recognized people around her and reacted to them in different ways, that her husband didn’t want her to recover because then Terri would let the word out that he was the one that caused her medical problems, she was breathing on her own, functioning, just needed help eating, on and on it goes. Don’t get me wrong, all of these arguments are quite persuasive, but what has to be understood is that not one of us can really say as to weather or not any of these things are factual. We are only given what the media wants us to know, and even the web sites out there that were/are fighting for Terri’s cause are giving out information that is hearsay at best. Unless each of us as individuals are in this position ourselves, know the facts and both sides of the story (that is IF the truth is told), there really is no way of knowing anything. The only one who can really have all the facts and know the reasons for any of this is GOD period.
I absolutely believe that all this has happened for a reason, and that the outcome will probably not be what most of us want. Terri’s body is now dead, and her soul or whatever you would like to call it is with God. I do stick to what I said; I think that she has been with God all this time. As to weather the soul can leave the body when it’s still alive, I suppose it depends on how you define the subject. To say that you can’t commune with God in heaven while your soul is still on earth (or within a body) to me is insane. How many times have you read about people in comma’s (some not being Christian’s) having encounters with God that they can’t fully explain because to them it was like a dream? These people are quite alive, and still have their souls intact, but perhaps their spirit is what brought them to meet with God. Just as an example, you can have a soul, however you can be taken by an evil spirit at any time without even realizing it and do horrible things. I suppose you can boil it down to the old “the devil made me do it” scenario. I guess I should have taken the time to think the subject matter out before writing my last entry and stating that Terri’s soul was with God, I do however believe that her spirit was and is.
It’s been pointed out to me that there is a difference between being brain dead and having brain damage. Brain death I have learned after doing some research on the matter is something you do not recover from, you are dead while your organs may still be functioning. Basically you are kept alive by machines, but there is no activity in your brain and no hope of coming out of the state. At least, according to the AMA there have been NO instances of anyone ever recovering from brain death. Brain damage comes in different forms, caused by different things. Basically if the brain goes for several minuets without oxygen (witch is what occurred with Terri due to heart attack) than a person will incur some brain damage, meaning certain neurons could be damaged, speech impediments, inability to communicate, blindness, really the list goes on and on. In some instances with minor brain damage, it can be repaired, or the person can relearn whatever was lost. Terri sustained SEVERE brain damage; however the part of her brain that controlled body functions such as breathing were left intact. Take a look at this photo, the scan on the left is a CAT scan of Terri’s brain, the one on the right is a normal brain. (Taken from the LA Times website.) Cranial space that would otherwise have been filled by gray matter is now filled with cerebrospinal fluid. And yes, that’s what the blue space is: cerebrospinal fluid that is filling up space left behind by necrotic brain tissue that has been scavenged and removed by the body. Needless to say (And yes, I had to re-read that information about ten times before it sunk into my brain, lol, I’m no doctor!) basically what this CAT scan is showing us is that Terri had no major brain function what so ever. Any reactions, movements, and what have you that she may have shown were all done unconsciously, she had no idea she was doing it, nor at the same time could have stopped it from happening. Some doctors say that with therapy, Terri may have recovered; other’s said it was impossible for her to recover. After doing research on this subject, I find it highly unlikely that she would have recovered with or without therapy. That CAT scan was taken in 2002, and with the three years that have passed, there would have been more degeneration to her brain, meaning that she would have gotten worse and worse with time.
Now, on to the husband’s role in all of this. First off, I would suspect that if Terri’s husband had actually caused her to have a heart attack, there would have been some sort of investigation into the matter, and to my knowledge there never was. I have read that there were some instances of domestic situations, however being that Terri was bulimic it’s highly likely that this is what caused her to have the heart attack and not her husband. Weather or not Terri actually told her husband that she would not want to be kept alive if she were in a comma, I have no idea, wasn’t there, and no one can really make that determination except her husband. Comma and brain damage isn’t the same thing, there would be the possibility if there were no other under lying problems to come out of a comma. I have read so many speculations that Terri’s husband wanted her dead so he could collect the insurance money, for book deals, was afraid she would come out of it and tell the world what he did to her, on and on. I don’t know the guy, and quite frankly it’s not my place to judge him, only ONE can do that. You know the saying, unless you have walked in his shoes….

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