So, I haven't blogged in a while. Mostly because, I believe we
live in a world where we freedom of speech is no longer valued.
Legally I can say things, but in the court of public opinion I can
be ruined for something I say, or have said in the past,
regardless of context or meaning.
With that in mind, it really serves very little purpose to anyone to speak publicly about one's convictions. Rather than helping others, a blog serves as a list of wrongdoings that someone can use against you any time in the future.
So why write today?
Because I want to give my fellow believers in Christ out there, a few pieces of food for thought. I'll try not to lead you to the same conclusions I've made, because frankly, I'm not really sure where any of this is going, but follow along with the things I'm seeing for a moment.
-Covid-19 We all voluntarily let the government of the U.S. violate our constitutional rights and we did not say one word of organized disagreement (pre-George Floyd). I mean it's really hard to argue with. Now of course, people are starting to argue, but for the most part the damage is done. We proved that we would bow down and let government invoke all kinds of (arguably crazy) policies in the interest of public health.
What did I conclude from all of this? - I saw first hand how the entire world, entire cultures, economies, businesses, futures, could be changed, in an extremely SHORT time span. The amount of (hopefully temporary) devastation caused by this Shelter in Place is so far widespread I can't even fathom all of it. The lasting impression this has made to me is how incredibly FAST everything changed. In order to attain some of the Revelation level events, I have always said that the world would need to change drastically before some of those events could happen, and for that reason, we still have a long way to go. But this country is forever changed, and impacted drastically in a matter of 90 days or less. Business gone under, food supply chain put at risk, popular opinions changed, graduations and weddings missed, or cancelled.
This is more than an interruption of life. This is an indicator that things can change VERY VERY rapidly with VERY LITTLE push back from society. This is a major ingredient in the events of Revelation needing to occur, and it has truly made some folks reconsider their pre-trib mid trib, post trib theories on the rapture.
Ask anyone older than 65, have they ever seen the country this crazy before?
Item of Interest: things can change faster than you think.
Next item up:
-Covid restrictions target religious groups: May 22, 2020 - The CDC attempts to release 'guidelines' that rather than saying 'large group gatherings' specifically say 'guidelines for worship', but there was a battle over it with the current presidential administration.
Problem: Why is this organization targeting and naming religious gatherings specifically? And why then, after the Minneapolis Floyd protests did protestors get the okay to gather?
Item of Interest: Yet another indicator that religious freedom is being targeted.
Next up:
-Supreme Court ruling 6/15/2020 - Justice Neil Gorsuch, effectively argues that even though the word “sex” back in 1964 could not possibly have included LGBTQ identity behaviors or relationships or anything related thereby, nonetheless Gorsuch in his opinion for the court said that the law does mean that now even though it did not mean that then. (from one of my favorite news editorials on this topic: https://albertmohler.com/2020/06/17/briefing-6-17-20)
Why is this significant? This decision while sounding 'okay' to many, creates a major problem for religious organizations. This was such a political hot potato, that even though this wasn't the job of the Supreme Court, the people whose job it was to legislate... Congress, are simply happy that the Judicial branch handled that issue. So.. Legislative being done by the Judicial and no one bats an eye. Okay...
Problem: all the news coverage (as expected) is using terms like 'obstacle' and 'discrimination'. These are words often applied in the news coverage to indicate that this ruling is a good thing, in keeping with public opinion, and now, thankfully there only remain a few 'obstacle's in their path. Guess who... religious organizations that until this ruling could say that they refused to hire people who did not keep in line with their religious convictions. Because it sexual identity was not a legally considered entity, and it now is.
It just became that much harder, for a church to avoid hiring a lesbian pastor if they don't want to, simply because she's a lesbian. I'll leave that for you to decide if it's a good or bad thing. I firmly believe we should be showing love to everyone of all identities and preferences. I am only making the point that it is becoming harder and harder for religious organizations to still be able to practice their religious freedoms.
Item of Interest: religious freedoms are at risk and the Supreme Court made it even more problematic.
Next up:
Microchip rumors around a Corona Vaccine - You've probably heard these rumors that Bill Gates wants to vaccinate the world and implant microchips. This rumor is a little out of control, and it derives from something Gates said before Corona. "Rumours took hold in March when Mr Gates said in an interview that eventually "we will have some digital certificates" which would be used to show who'd recovered, been tested and ultimately who received a vaccine. He made no mention of microchips."
Problem: Before Corona, Gates was partnering to help get the world vaccinated and find a way to track the medical histories of people in developing countries, so they don't accidentally get the same vaccine twice. Corona brought attention to this. The issue really to me, is that the tech exists to do this, AND the reason to do this seems very acceptable (except that there is a large contingent of anti-vaxxers in the U.S.)
Item of Interest: The technology, the motivation, and the financial ability now exists and is combined to install some sort of 'digital tracking' onto individuals. This should bring to mind the ideas of 'mark of the beast'. I do not say that to scare you because Scripture clearly tells us, that it has to be an open choice. Christians are forever talking about what form the mark could take (or has taken). Do not worry too much about this, just be aware. The point I'm making here is that, all the ducks are in a row now, to make this happen. EVEN.. the economic side of things. Airpay, Paypal, Venmo, Googlepay, all of it is lined up and ready to go.
Next up:
Covid Trackers - Check your phone, you likely already have one. Google and Apple rolled out Covid tracking apps on your phones. And right now, I can't find a way to uninstall mine. It works much like the 'tile' keychain works. If you've tested positive for Covid 19, then when someone's phone nears your phone, they get a notification that they are near a Covid infected person. Your phone is tracking the bluetooth id's of the phones around them and checking an online database. (details here:
https://9to5mac.com/2020/05/19/how-to-turn-on-off-covid-19-contact-tracing-iphone-ios/
https://support.google.com/android/answer/9888358?hl=en
They did this without most people knowing.
Again, I'm not here to tell you how to interpret these things, although I'm sure my natural bias will present itself.
Item of Interest: we are currently being tracked at some level and also reporting on one another through this app. Do I fully know how much data the gov't is getting from this? No. Do I care if the gov't is tracking us right now? I've just always assumed they have been, that's not why this is important.
Let's add it up:
-Currently you very likely have a tracking app on your phone
-the Law is making religious freedoms a little tougher to come by
-Popular opinion is being shaped by the press against religion in many cases
-Churches are closed, voluntarily, because the legality of opening is difficult.
-We know the culture can now completely change quickly.
-Technology exists that was spoken about in Revelation.
-The world is in general chaos right now with China, India and Pakistan in conflict (and they have nukes).
Draw your own conclusions. I'll tell you mine.
Don't get complacent in your faith.
Even if the tribulation is eons away, this world is hurting. Racism is rearing its violent head in a very public way, and people are stressed, and without hope. Christ is hope. Let Him shine through you. (Extra bright because we need to maintain 6 feet).
Its harder to show compassion and empathy and love with all these new restrictions, so we have to try even harder. We need to be intentional folks for us, for our families and for our neighborhood.
Well that's my take on things, make up your own mind.
I'm sure I didn't get all the facts precisely correct, I'm sure I was wrong in a few places. I'm sure folks could nitpick my points or use them against me in the future. I'm not really interested in arguing, and I'm fully prepared to accept I made mistakes or was wrong in a few of these things.
My only goal was to help people open their eyes a little, if they aren't already wide open.
Thank you
With that in mind, it really serves very little purpose to anyone to speak publicly about one's convictions. Rather than helping others, a blog serves as a list of wrongdoings that someone can use against you any time in the future.
So why write today?
Because I want to give my fellow believers in Christ out there, a few pieces of food for thought. I'll try not to lead you to the same conclusions I've made, because frankly, I'm not really sure where any of this is going, but follow along with the things I'm seeing for a moment.
-Covid-19 We all voluntarily let the government of the U.S. violate our constitutional rights and we did not say one word of organized disagreement (pre-George Floyd). I mean it's really hard to argue with. Now of course, people are starting to argue, but for the most part the damage is done. We proved that we would bow down and let government invoke all kinds of (arguably crazy) policies in the interest of public health.
What did I conclude from all of this? - I saw first hand how the entire world, entire cultures, economies, businesses, futures, could be changed, in an extremely SHORT time span. The amount of (hopefully temporary) devastation caused by this Shelter in Place is so far widespread I can't even fathom all of it. The lasting impression this has made to me is how incredibly FAST everything changed. In order to attain some of the Revelation level events, I have always said that the world would need to change drastically before some of those events could happen, and for that reason, we still have a long way to go. But this country is forever changed, and impacted drastically in a matter of 90 days or less. Business gone under, food supply chain put at risk, popular opinions changed, graduations and weddings missed, or cancelled.
This is more than an interruption of life. This is an indicator that things can change VERY VERY rapidly with VERY LITTLE push back from society. This is a major ingredient in the events of Revelation needing to occur, and it has truly made some folks reconsider their pre-trib mid trib, post trib theories on the rapture.
Ask anyone older than 65, have they ever seen the country this crazy before?
Item of Interest: things can change faster than you think.
Next item up:
-Covid restrictions target religious groups: May 22, 2020 - The CDC attempts to release 'guidelines' that rather than saying 'large group gatherings' specifically say 'guidelines for worship', but there was a battle over it with the current presidential administration.
Problem: Why is this organization targeting and naming religious gatherings specifically? And why then, after the Minneapolis Floyd protests did protestors get the okay to gather?
Item of Interest: Yet another indicator that religious freedom is being targeted.
Next up:
-Supreme Court ruling 6/15/2020 - Justice Neil Gorsuch, effectively argues that even though the word “sex” back in 1964 could not possibly have included LGBTQ identity behaviors or relationships or anything related thereby, nonetheless Gorsuch in his opinion for the court said that the law does mean that now even though it did not mean that then. (from one of my favorite news editorials on this topic: https://albertmohler.com/2020/06/17/briefing-6-17-20)
Why is this significant? This decision while sounding 'okay' to many, creates a major problem for religious organizations. This was such a political hot potato, that even though this wasn't the job of the Supreme Court, the people whose job it was to legislate... Congress, are simply happy that the Judicial branch handled that issue. So.. Legislative being done by the Judicial and no one bats an eye. Okay...
Problem: all the news coverage (as expected) is using terms like 'obstacle' and 'discrimination'. These are words often applied in the news coverage to indicate that this ruling is a good thing, in keeping with public opinion, and now, thankfully there only remain a few 'obstacle's in their path. Guess who... religious organizations that until this ruling could say that they refused to hire people who did not keep in line with their religious convictions. Because it sexual identity was not a legally considered entity, and it now is.
It just became that much harder, for a church to avoid hiring a lesbian pastor if they don't want to, simply because she's a lesbian. I'll leave that for you to decide if it's a good or bad thing. I firmly believe we should be showing love to everyone of all identities and preferences. I am only making the point that it is becoming harder and harder for religious organizations to still be able to practice their religious freedoms.
Item of Interest: religious freedoms are at risk and the Supreme Court made it even more problematic.
Next up:
Microchip rumors around a Corona Vaccine - You've probably heard these rumors that Bill Gates wants to vaccinate the world and implant microchips. This rumor is a little out of control, and it derives from something Gates said before Corona. "Rumours took hold in March when Mr Gates said in an interview that eventually "we will have some digital certificates" which would be used to show who'd recovered, been tested and ultimately who received a vaccine. He made no mention of microchips."
Problem: Before Corona, Gates was partnering to help get the world vaccinated and find a way to track the medical histories of people in developing countries, so they don't accidentally get the same vaccine twice. Corona brought attention to this. The issue really to me, is that the tech exists to do this, AND the reason to do this seems very acceptable (except that there is a large contingent of anti-vaxxers in the U.S.)
Item of Interest: The technology, the motivation, and the financial ability now exists and is combined to install some sort of 'digital tracking' onto individuals. This should bring to mind the ideas of 'mark of the beast'. I do not say that to scare you because Scripture clearly tells us, that it has to be an open choice. Christians are forever talking about what form the mark could take (or has taken). Do not worry too much about this, just be aware. The point I'm making here is that, all the ducks are in a row now, to make this happen. EVEN.. the economic side of things. Airpay, Paypal, Venmo, Googlepay, all of it is lined up and ready to go.
Next up:
Covid Trackers - Check your phone, you likely already have one. Google and Apple rolled out Covid tracking apps on your phones. And right now, I can't find a way to uninstall mine. It works much like the 'tile' keychain works. If you've tested positive for Covid 19, then when someone's phone nears your phone, they get a notification that they are near a Covid infected person. Your phone is tracking the bluetooth id's of the phones around them and checking an online database. (details here:
https://9to5mac.com/2020/05/19/how-to-turn-on-off-covid-19-contact-tracing-iphone-ios/
https://support.google.com/android/answer/9888358?hl=en
They did this without most people knowing.
Again, I'm not here to tell you how to interpret these things, although I'm sure my natural bias will present itself.
Item of Interest: we are currently being tracked at some level and also reporting on one another through this app. Do I fully know how much data the gov't is getting from this? No. Do I care if the gov't is tracking us right now? I've just always assumed they have been, that's not why this is important.
Let's add it up:
-Currently you very likely have a tracking app on your phone
-the Law is making religious freedoms a little tougher to come by
-Popular opinion is being shaped by the press against religion in many cases
-Churches are closed, voluntarily, because the legality of opening is difficult.
-We know the culture can now completely change quickly.
-Technology exists that was spoken about in Revelation.
-The world is in general chaos right now with China, India and Pakistan in conflict (and they have nukes).
Draw your own conclusions. I'll tell you mine.
- I am making sure that every day I am drawing closer to my Lord God.
- I am committing Scripture to memory like a gunslinger loads bullets on his belt, preparing for the worst.
- I am not preaching doom and gloom to the world, because our Lord Jesus Christ fills me with hope.
- I am staying alert and aware, because we're supposed to be watching for His return.
- I'm keeping a close eye on Israel and the Temple, and boning up on my prophecy.
- Friends, my mom and I have always discussed prophecy and she has always hoped the Lord would return in her lifetime. I was never convinced of that. I saw far too many things that had to all happen in convergence in order for some of the Revelation events to even seem plausible.
- The last 100 days, I've seen things happen so quickly and so dramatically that my eyes are open wide as I wonder... just how far are things going to go?
- If... everything returns to normal, I will be indelibly aware of how fast things can change, and never again will I assume that the events Scripture has described are eons away. I'm convinced now, that they could be less than a year away at any time now.
- So.... if you were convinced, that the Lord could be returning any day now... how would that impact your relationship with Him?
- I'm not carrying a sign decrying the end of the world is nigh. Because it could still be some time away. But I am telling my friends and my kids, to take their relationship with Christ very seriously, don't let it get rusty. Spend time with the Lord, grow close to Him.
- If you're in a place where you've been a believer for a while, and you're sort of coasting now, you know there is sin in your life and you've told yourself 'when this fun is over I'll repent and be cool again with God.' get cool now.
- If you've always planned to finally get a daily devotion time going.... get it going now.
- If you've just been putting off your relationship with God, about getting serious about God for one reason or another... get serious now.
- While I am excited that we may be getting closer to seeing our Lord, I am adopting His stance to always be trying to redeem the lost, bringing people into His kingdom showing love and humility.
Don't get complacent in your faith.
Even if the tribulation is eons away, this world is hurting. Racism is rearing its violent head in a very public way, and people are stressed, and without hope. Christ is hope. Let Him shine through you. (Extra bright because we need to maintain 6 feet).
Its harder to show compassion and empathy and love with all these new restrictions, so we have to try even harder. We need to be intentional folks for us, for our families and for our neighborhood.
Well that's my take on things, make up your own mind.
I'm sure I didn't get all the facts precisely correct, I'm sure I was wrong in a few places. I'm sure folks could nitpick my points or use them against me in the future. I'm not really interested in arguing, and I'm fully prepared to accept I made mistakes or was wrong in a few of these things.
My only goal was to help people open their eyes a little, if they aren't already wide open.
Thank you
