Podcasts about Assyria

Like Jonah before him, the prophet Nahum preaches devastation and ruin for Ninevah, the capital of Assyria, a place of unparalleled power and wealth. Though they thought themselves to be secure from danger, their downfall came after nearby rivers flooded the city and destroyed part of the city wall, allowing Babylon to enter easily and set it ablaze. Later in Habakkuk, the prophet of the same name is recorded speaking to the Lord on behalf of his people. He openly and honestly struggles with understanding why God would allow injustice to prevail. By his conversation with the Lord, we are reminded of the sovereign power and authority of God, who calls the righteous to live by faith.Nahum 1 - 1:15 . Nahum 2 - 4:27 . Nahum 3 - 7:20 . Habakkuk 1 - 12:54 . Habakkuk 2 - 16:20 . Habakkuk 3 - 20:55 . Psalm 149 - 25:02 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by Bobby Brown, Katelyn Pridgen, Eric Williamson & the Christian Standard Biblefacebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

Daily Dose of Hope December 3, 2024 Day 3 of Week 36 Scripture:  Isaiah 36-37; Psalm 123; 1 Corinthians 10 Welcome to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that complements the New Hope daily Bible reading plan.  Today, we are heading back to Isaiah.  This is the same story we read yesterday in 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles.  The king of Assyria is threatening Judah and Hezekiah stands strong.  Isaiah the prophet encourages the commander and king to not be afraid of Assyria.  God will take care of them.  And remarkably, Hezekiah listens.  He prays and asks God for protection and God grants it.  As we read yesterday, an angel of the Lord takes care of the Assyrian camp.  Judah is spared of bloodshed because Hezekiah stayed faithful.  Of course, the question is the same today – would you have stayed faithful? Psalm 123 is another psalm of ascent.  Remember, the psalms of ascent were sung by pilgrims heading into Jerusalem for the various festivals.  It is a short song about asking for God's mercy in the midst of hardship and affliction.  Keeping our eyes on God – that's the theme – no matter what life throws at us.  How are you doing in that area right now.  Are you keeping your eyes on God? Our New Testament passage is I Corinthians 10.  Paul continues to write about freedoms. Yes, we have the right to do everything but that doesn't mean we should do everything. While we may have the right to do something, the biggest question to ask is, "Is this building up the body of Christ?" Paul emphasizes that while legalism isn't good, neither is it good to be overly permissive. There are times when we should curb our freedoms if it might harm a new Christian or hurt the witness of the Gospel. The bottom line is we need to think about our words and actions in every situation. I've been in small Christian gatherings in which certain members feel the need to loudly communicate their dislikes about a specific Christian ministry, another Christian church, or even a fellow believer. Now, thinking about Paul's reasoning, they have the freedom to do this but is it beneficial? Is it building up the body of Christ? What if there was someone in the group who was a new believer or on the fence about faith? How would such a discussion affect their faith journey? Just because we can do something doesn't mean we should. Blessings, Pastor Vicki

The prophet Isaiah's ministry in Judah and Jerusalem spanned several decades during a tumultuous time in world history. The rise of Assyria as a dominant empire brought great trouble to the people of God in the southern kingdom. As Isaiah preached during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, he urged the kings and the people alike to put their trust in the LORD rather than foreign alliances. The negative example of Ahaz contrasted with the positive example of Hezekiah shows the wisdom of Isaiah's preaching: idolatry is foolish, for the Holy One of Israel alone reigns as King. Time and time again, Isaiah points us to the reality that the LORD is faithful to keep His promises, and He has done that through our Immanuel, the shoot from the stump of Jesse, Jesus Christ.  Rev. Dr. Ryan Tietz, Associate Professor of Exegetical Theology and Dean of Students at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to introduce Isaiah 1-39.  "The Fifth Evangelist” is a series on Sharper Iron that goes through Isaiah 1-39. The prophet proclaims to the people of his day and throughout history that the Holy One of Israel alone is exalted. Those who put their trust in the strength of man will be brought low, but those who trust in the LORD will see that He is their Immanuel. Jesus is God with us who reigns over the kingdom of God forever and ever! Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God's Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen. Submit comments or questions to: listener@kfuo.org

He was a Galilean of the tribe of Simeon. The Old Testament book that bears his name foretells the destruction of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, by the Medes, and the restoration of the Kingdom of Judah; all of this came to pass. Nahum is counted as the seventh of the Minor Prophets. He reposed in peace. His name means 'consolation' or 'repose.'   Five of the Prophets (Nahum, Habbakuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, and Daniel) are commemorated in December. At one time a Feast of the Twelve Prophets was celebrated on December 4 at the Church of the Resurrection, but this feast is no longer on the calendar. The days leading up to Christ's Nativity contain many commemorations of the faithful remnant of Israel, all of whose hopes were fulfilled in the birth of the Messiah.

Audio Recording Audio Block Double-click here to upload or link to a .mp3. Learn more Sermon OutlineSpeaker: Rev. Tim ChangSermon Series: Come, Let Us Walk in the Light of the LordIsaiah 7:1-17 (ESV)1 In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. 2 When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.3 And the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer's Field. 4 And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah. 5 Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” 7 thus says the Lord God:“‘It shall not stand, and it shall not come to pass.8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin.And within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered from being a people.9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.'”10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” 13 And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. 17 The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”Sermon OutlineFaith can be challenged (v. 1-2)An invitation to have faith (v. 3-9)Faith that can endure (v. 10-17)Prayer of ConfessionGracious God, you invite us to have faith in you, but it is not easy. Instead of trusting in you, we take matters into our own hands. We often care more about what you can do for us rather than who you are. Help us to see your invitations to have faith in you. You are a God who not only makes promises, but you fulfill them. May we trust that you are Immanuel; God with us. Amen.Questions for ReflectionWhat connected with you from the sermon or the passage?Can you recall a time when your faith in God was tested? How did you respond in that time? How do your struggles shape the way you see God? Have there been times of learning, growth, or wavering? Have there been challenging moments that drew you closer to God? What did you learn about God through those experiences?One of the names of God is Immanuel: God with us. Do you resonate with this? In what ways does this comfort you? What do you sense God calling you to do from this passage?Read AheadIsaiah Sermon Series

Audio Recording Sermon OutlineSpeaker: Rev. Tim ChangSermon Series: Come, Let Us Walk in the Light of the LordIsaiah 7:1-17 (ESV)1 In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. 2 When the house of David was told, “Syria is in league with Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.3 And the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and Shear-jashub your son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer's Field. 4 And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and the son of Remaliah. 5 Because Syria, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” 7 thus says the Lord God:“‘It shall not stand, and it shall not come to pass.8 For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin.And within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered from being a people.9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.'”10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” 13 And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. 17 The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”Sermon OutlineFaith can be challenged (v. 1-2)An invitation to have faith (v. 3-9)Faith that can endure (v. 10-17)Prayer of ConfessionGracious God, you invite us to have faith in you, but it is not easy. Instead of trusting in you, we take matters into our own hands. We often care more about what you can do for us rather than who you are. Help us to see your invitations to have faith in you. You are a God who not only makes promises, but you fulfill them. May we trust that you are Immanuel; God with us. Amen.Questions for ReflectionWhat connected with you from the sermon or the passage?Can you recall a time when your faith in God was tested? How did you respond in that time? How do your struggles shape the way you see God? Have there been times of learning, growth, or wavering? Have there been challenging moments that drew you closer to God? What did you learn about God through those experiences?One of the names of God is Immanuel: God with us. Do you resonate with this? In what ways does this comfort you? What do you sense God calling you to do from this passage?Read AheadIsaiah Sermon Series

From Darkness To Dawn: Finding Hope in God's Promises "And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it." - Isaiah 2:2 In the darkest hours of World War II, as German bombs rained down on London, a photographer captured an unforgettable image: St. Paul's Cathedral standing resolute amidst the surrounding rubble. This powerful scene mirrors the prophetic vision Isaiah shared with God's people some 2,700 years ago - a picture of God's temple standing firm despite the chaos and destruction around it. Just as the people of Isaiah's time faced threats from Assyria and internal corruption, we too face our own battles and struggles. The prophet painted a picture of hope: a temple exalted above every mountain, with nations streaming to seek God's wisdom and guidance. This wasn't just about a physical building, but about the enduring presence and faithfulness of God in times of trouble. Isaiah's prophecy reminds us that even in our darkest moments, God's light continues to shine. As he writes in chapter 9, "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined." This prophecy ultimately points to the coming of Christ, our ultimate source of hope and light in a dark world. Consider John the Baptist's example when he faced his own crisis of faith from prison. Rather than wallowing in doubt, he sent his disciples directly to Jesus. When we face uncertainty, we too should run to God first - not to those who cannot offer true help or hope. The prophet uses powerful imagery of joy coming after hardship - like farmers celebrating after harvest or soldiers rejoicing after victory. He speaks of weapons being transformed into tools of peace and bloody garments being burned, painting a picture of God's ultimate victory and the peace that follows. Just as some sports fans check the final score before watching a recorded game, we can face life's challenges with confidence because we know the end of the story. Through Christ, God has already declared His victory. Though we may face difficult seasons, we can rest assured that our God reigns supreme. Isaiah lived in challenging times, yet maintained unshakeable hope. His prophecies remind us that God's promises stand firm like that cathedral in London - a beacon of hope rising above the rubble of life's circumstances. When darkness threatens to overwhelm us, we can look to the mountain of the Lord that stands eternal. This hope isn't mere wishful thinking but is grounded in God's faithful character and His ultimate plan for redemption. The same God who inspired Isaiah's prophecies continues to work in our lives today, calling us to trust Him even when we cannot see the way forward. Our challenges may feel like an endless night of battle, but Isaiah assures us that morning will come. Just as Winston Churchill's funeral included both Taps and Reveille, reminding mourners that death gives way to resurrection, our current struggles will ultimately give way to God's victory and peace. Let us therefore fix our eyes not on the temporary troubles around us, but on the unshakeable mountain of God's presence and promises. For in Him, we find our true source of hope, strength, and ultimate victory. Be sure to Like, Share, Follow and subscribe it helps get the word out. https://linktr.ee/rttbros

Over the next few weeks (in ‘Advent', the period in the church calendar of ‘waiting', as we prepare to remember the Incarnation), we will be looking at four Christmas carols. We are doing this for two reasons: first, to get in the bait of running all we do through the word of God; and, second, reminding ourselves of what we are remembering as we wait. Our first carol – ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem' – deals with our ‘hopes and dreams'. It has its roots deep in the words of the prophet Micah, who had many hopes and dreams holed up in Jerusalem, with the wolf of Assyria surrounding the city. It has its answer in the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, as God promised. And it has a warning, as the wise men turn up and the locals reveal that they know the truth of God's answer to their ‘hopes and dreams', but they just cannot be bothered.

Support Common Prayer Daily @ PatreonVisit our Website for more www.commonprayerdaily.com_______________Opening Words:“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”Psalm 19:14 (ESV) Confession:Let us humbly confess our sins unto Almighty God. Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen. Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen. The InvitatoryLord, open our lips.And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. Venite (Psalm 95:1-7)Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: Come let us adore him. Come, let us sing to the Lord; * let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving * and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.For the Lord is a great God, * and a great King above all gods.In his hand are the caverns of the earth, * and the heights of the hills are his also.The sea is his, for he made it, * and his hands have molded the dry land.Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, * and kneel before the Lord our Maker.For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. *Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice! Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: Come let us adore him. The PsalterPsalm 137Super flumina1By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept, *when we remembered you, O Zion.2As for our harps, we hung them up *on the trees in the midst of that land.3For those who led us away captive asked us for a song,and our oppressors called for mirth: *“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”4How shall we sing the Lord's song *upon an alien soil?5If I forget you, O Jerusalem, *let my right hand forget its skill.6Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouthif I do not remember you, *if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy.Psalm 144Benedictus Dominus1Blessed be the Lord my rock! *who trains my hands to fight and my fingers to battle;2My help and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, *my shield in whom I trust,who subdues the peoples under me.3O Lord, what are we that you should care for us? *mere mortals that you should think of us?4We are like a puff of wind; *our days are like a passing shadow.5Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down; *touch the mountains, and they shall smoke.6Hurl the lightning and scatter them; *shoot out your arrows and rout them.7Stretch out your hand from on high; *rescue me and deliver me from the great waters,from the hand of foreign peoples,8Whose mouths speak deceitfully *and whose right hand is raised in falsehood.9O God, I will sing to you a new song; *I will play to you on a ten-stringed lyre.10You give victory to kings *and have rescued David your servant.11Rescue me from the hurtful sword *and deliver me from the hand of foreign peoples,12Whose mouths speak deceitfully *and whose right hand is raised in falsehood.13May our sons be like plants well nurtured from their youth, *and our daughters like sculptured corners of a palace.14May our barns be filled to overflowing with all manner of crops; *may the flocks in our pastures increase by thousands and tens of thousands;may our cattle be fat and sleek.15May there be no breaching of the walls, no going into exile, *no wailing in the public squares.16Happy are the people of whom this is so! *happy are the people whose God is the Lord! Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. LessonsMicah 7:11-20English Standard VersionA day for the building of your walls!    In that day the boundary shall be far extended.In that day they will come to you,    from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,and from Egypt to the River,    from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.But the earth will be desolate    because of its inhabitants,    for the fruit of their deeds.Shepherd your people with your staff,    the flock of your inheritance,who dwell alone in a forest    in the midst of a garden land;let them graze in Bashan and Gilead    as in the days of old.As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt,    I will show them marvelous things.The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might;they shall lay their hands on their mouths;    their ears shall be deaf;they shall lick the dust like a serpent,    like the crawling things of the earth;they shall come trembling out of their strongholds;    they shall turn in dread to the Lord our God,    and they shall be in fear of you.Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity    and passing over transgression    for the remnant of his inheritance?He does not retain his anger forever,    because he delights in steadfast love.He will again have compassion on us;    he will tread our iniquities underfoot.You will cast all our sins    into the depths of the sea.You will show faithfulness to Jacob    and steadfast love to Abraham,as you have sworn to our fathers    from the days of old.1 Peter 4:7-19English Standard VersionThe end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And“If the righteous is scarcely saved,    what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”Therefore let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. The Word of the Lord.Thanks Be To God. Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; * he has come to his people and set them free.He has raised up for us a mighty savior, * born of the house of his servant David.Through his holy prophets he promised of old, that he would save us from our enemies, * from the hands of all who hate us. He promised to show mercy to our fathers * and to remember his holy covenant. This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, * to set us free from the hands of our enemies, Free to worship him without fear, * holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, * for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, To give his people knowledge of salvation * by the forgiveness of their sins.In the tender compassion of our God * the dawn from on high shall break upon us, To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, * and to guide our feet into the way of peace.Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. The Apostles CreedI believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. The PrayersLord, have mercy.Christ, have mercyLord, have mercyOur Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen. The SuffragesO Lord, show your mercy upon us;And grant us your salvation.O Lord, guide those who govern usAnd lead us in the way of justice and truth.Clothe your ministers with righteousnessAnd let your people sing with joy.O Lord, save your peopleAnd bless your inheritance.Give peace in our time, O LordAnd defend us by your mighty power.Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgottenNor the hope of the poor be taken away.Create in us clean hearts, O GodAnd take not your Holy Spirit from us. Take a moment of silence at this time to reflect and pray for others. The CollectsProper 29Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Daily Collects:A Collect for PeaceO God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries, through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.A Collect for GraceO Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us safely to the beginning of this day: Defend us by your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin nor run into any danger; and that, guided by your Spirit, we may do what is righteous in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.Collect of Saint BasilO Christ God, Who art worshipped and glorified at every place and time; Who art long-suffering, most merciful and compassionate; Who lovest the righteous and art merciful to sinners; Who callest all to salvation with the promise of good things to come: receive, Lord, the prayers we now offer, and direct our lives in the way of Thy commandments. Sanctify our souls, cleanse our bodies, correct our thoughts, purify our minds and deliver us from all affliction, evil and illness. Surround us with Thy holy angels, that guarded and instructed by their forces, we may reach unity of faith and the understanding of Thine unapproachable glory: for blessed art Thou unto ages of ages. Amen. General ThanksgivingAlmighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. And, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; Through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen. A Prayer of St. John ChrysostomAlmighty God, you have given us grace at this time, with one accord to make our common supplications to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will grant their requests: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen. DismissalLet us bless the LordThanks be to God!Alleluia, Alleluia! BenedictionThe grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen

Zephaniah 2Judah and Jerusalem Judged Along With the NationsJudah Summoned to Repent (v 1-3)Philistia (v 4-7)Moab and Ammon (v 8-11)Cush (v 12)Assyria (v 13-15)**********Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ®, NIV ® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used with permission. All rights reserved worldwide.The “NIV”, “New International Version”, “Biblica”, “International Bible Society” and the Biblica Logo are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.  Used with permission.BIBLICA, THE INTERNATIONAL BIBLE SOCIETY, provides God's Word to people through Bible translation & Bible publishing, and Bible engagement in Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and North America. Through its worldwide reach, Biblica engages people with God's Word so that their lives are transformed through a relationship with Jesus Christ.Support the show

SKEPTICS OFTEN claim that the Hebrew Bible must have been copied from older Mesopotamian texts. Frankly, this is lazy thinking by people looking for excuses not to deal with God. Our Iron and Myth crew joins us to discuss the relationship between the Bible and Mesopotamian religion: Doug Van Dorn (www.douglasvandorn.com), author of Giants: Sons of the Gods and Brian Godawa (www.Godawa.com), best-selling author of Chronicles of the Nephilim, Chronicles of the Watchers, the theological thriller Cruel Logic, and a forthcoming novel based on the period of the Maccabees in Judea. Sadly, Dr. Judd Burton (www.BurtonBeyond.net) was unable to join us this month. We discuss the parallels between creation stories from different cultures, including Mesopotamian and Mesoamerican myths, and the implications of these similarities for understanding the Bible. We dig into the nature of myth and history, the importance of context in biblical interpretation, and the need for a nuanced approach to understanding ancient texts. There is an intricate relationship between myth and history, particularly in the context of biblical narratives. It's important to understand ancient texts through the lens of genre and cultural context, and at the end of the day the Bible's authority does not negate the value of other literature.

Ezekiel - Grief over Egypt. Victory for Babylon. Pharaoh warned of Assyria's fate. Grief over Pharaoh and Egypt. 1 Peter - Keep fervent in your love. Share the sufferings of Christ.

In this episode we look at where Satan showed himself in the news cycle for the first half of 2024.We have special guest star cameo appearances from Trump lawyer Alina Habba, Christian wannabe astrologer and numerologist Amanda Grace, multi-millionaire E. Jean. Carroll, Arizona lawmakers Republican Senators Jake Hoffman, J.D. Mesnard and Ken Bennet, Mississippi wannabe congressional candidate Michael Cassidy, Baphomet, Iowa State Capitol Building, Church of Latter Day Saints, Scientology, Tea Party, Barrack Obama, Kenya, Overton Window, John Cena, illuminati, Andrew Tate, Oscars, Academy Awards, Qanon fan girl Liz Crokin, Hollywood, Donald Trump, North American continent, solar eclipse, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Nineveh, Jonah, Carbondale, Illinois, Little Egypt, Egypt,  Armageddon, Mount Megiddo, Northern Israel, Assyria, Canaanites, Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmose III, Old Testament, Halloween, Dungeons and Dragons, Eurovision Song Contest, Bambie Thug, Maria Brink, Marilyn Manson, Doomsday Blue, Avada kedavra, Harry Potter, Lordi, Irish Christian Nationalist Hermann Kelly, New Zealand, Ireland, Hermann Göring, Galway priest Father Declan McInerney, 12P/Pons-Brooks, The Devil Comet and Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen, the First of Her Name, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Protector of the Seven Kingdoms, the Mother of Dragons, the Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, the Unburnt, the Breaker of Chains. #666 #SketchComedy #Sketch #Comedy #Sketch Comedy #Atheist #Science #History #Atheism #Antitheist #ConspiracyTheory #Conspiracy #Conspiracies #Sceptical #Scepticism #Mythology #Religion #Devil #Satan #Satanism #Satanist #Skeptic #Debunk #Illuminati #SatanIsMySuperhero #Podcast #funny #sketch #skit #comedy #comedyshow #comedyskits #HeavyMetal #weird  666, SketchComedy, Sketch, Comedy, Sketch Comedy, Atheist, Science, History, Atheism, Antitheist, Conspiracy Theory, Conspiracy, Conspiracies, Sceptical, Scepticism, Mythology, Religion, Devil, Satan, Satanism, Satanist, Skeptic, Debunk, Illuminati, Heavy Metal, weird, SatanIsMySuperhero

Promises To Keep. In 25 parts, edited from the works of FinalStand. Listen and subscribe to the ► Podcast at Connected.. Note to readers: There is a bit of mangling of the Iliad going on. My apologies to Homer and the countless singers before him who carried the Iliad down through the dark centuries until the Greeks figured out how writing works. “Never judge a friend by what they give, but of how much of themselves they give.” (From the floor of Katrina's office) First thoughts,  I was on the floor where I had fallen, surrounded and being manhandled in the tenderest way. That was a romantic means of relating to my mummification. Those little Band-Aids that had been applied when I woke up from my coma had failed the 'Cáel is a Smeckle-head' test. All the crud they had pumped into my system and amperage they had channeled through my muscles was not the same as eating and exercise. Having a sexual romp with two ladies? My Goddess made plans for my body that my caloric bank account couldn't afford, thus me passing out. Unlike my time with Miyako and Estere, I had a feeling my two sofa-buddies were ovulating. Fatherhood was on the way. How my infant would survive the continuous poisonous assault on the augur's lymphatic system was beyond me. Her guardian, let's just say I dealt with sneaky bitches/Dot on a regular basis and leave it at that. "He is awake," Tadêfi alerted the room. "You must leave so I can deliver my message to him in the privacy he requested." "I am almost done," a different Amazon voice stated. She was the medico dealing with my wounds. By the aroma, she had slathered on two coats of the healing goo that was becoming as comfortable to my nostrils as my soap-on-a-rope. A few more rounds of adhesive tape and the exodus from the room began. I hadn't opened my eyes because I was unprepared for the looks of anger, disappointment and concern surely leveled my way. The door shut and my eyes opened. "The Conqueror, the Champion, the Friendless and the Foe have all escaped the Land of the Endless Black Sands and returned to the Sunlit Realm," Tadêfi whispered upon my lips. Huh? That was it? Seriously, four freaking titles without, And here came the rest, faces. Faces with eyes and eyes with a purpose. Names, not names I wanted to hear at the moment. Bad fucking news all around. It couldn't be something helpful like the identity of the next High Priestess, No, that would be good fucking news. Okay, time to turn this frown upside down. I could make this work for me. How, I wasn't sure. "Thank you," I responded to Tadêfi's plea of understanding. Outside of having impregnating sex with me, the Sex-Master, Timothy was going to Nerf-shoot me for that, she'd endured spiritual, mental and physical grief and torment to be with me here today. She waited, kneeling beside my head. "Kiss me," I requested. It was a moist act, full of compassion and understanding. I racked my mind for the names and their importance. "Who was Shammuramat?" "I don't know, but this helps, right?" Tadêfi expressed her need to make the reward for the sacrifices to make sense. Five dead sister-augurs. They had to find that son-of-a-bitch! "Tadêfi, we are back in the fight," I grinned. "You and your sisters have given the Host a mighty weapon in the upcoming struggle." I knew that to be true because I knew who and where the Conqueror was, I knew he wasn't ready to be revealed, his enemies were closing in and he was ignorant of that fact. I was going to have to rain on his parade to save his life. The five augurs hadn't died futilely. The Weave of Fate had shielded the man and it took the augers' fanatical devotion to cut the threads and expose the truth the Host needed most. The Champion, hell, I knew who he was. I chuckled. Tadêfi was confused. The Champion was coming to kill me, me and a bunch of other Amazons, because blood feuds tend to run both ways. The Foe. He was easy enough. Granddad. The Bastard just wouldn't stay dead. I had a clue to what was going on now. I wasn't sure how useful that knowledge would be. Still, knowledge is knowledge. That thing crawling around inside my brain? No help there. That left Shammuramat. That name was familiar. Even when I finally placed it, I didn't understand her role in things. Why her? "Krasimira," I called out. I struggled to sit up and with Tadêfi's help, I did so. The Keeper and two guardians entered as well. One, Sikia, hovered over her companion/augur. "What is the link between Shammuramat and the Host?" I inquired. I saw no recognition in the Keeper's eyes. "She was the first ever "independent" queen of a nation-state, Assyria." Krasimira sat on the sofa and retrieved her tablet from inside her robes. She began working with the electronic history of the Amazon race. "9th Century BCE," I added. Slowly others migrated back into the room. Buffy, Katrina (not good and not happy), Elsa (really not good) and Desiree. Pamela leaned against the door sill, neither in nor out. Katrina sat behind her desk. The phone came out and whispered conversations began in earnest. I had shoved us straight into a war which looked like a free for all at the moment. No one trusted anyone. No one could afford to. I had to change that. The only saving grace was that it appeared no Secret Society had planned for the Protocols to abruptly end a week and a half ago. "Ah, I found it," Krasimira spoke up. Because I'm me, it was at that moment I finally realized that someone had put me in my biking shorts in an effort to provide me a modicum of modesty, with the benefit of blood being smeared on the inside. "She abandoned the Host, she was put under a death sentence for killing her twin sister who was chosen to lead House Anat over her." "Anat?" I queried. "The other dead First House," Krasimira sighed. "They were renowned for their berserkers. Some would drape themselves in the entrails of their enemies in the midst of battle to increase their ferocious appearance." "Oh, how sweet, what was Ishara known for?" I was surprised I'd never asked. "Ishara were the emissaries of the Host," Krasimira informed me. With the Amazon practice of killing embassies sent their way, the extinction of my house made much more sense. "What does this mean?" Desiree took charge of matters since Katrina was still busy on the phone. In a few short weeks, Desiree's prestige had definitely increased. Katrina was her sister in more than name now. "Where to begin,  Fine, why don't we refer to the Mycenaeans by their proper Amazon name?" Everyone but Buffy was glancing about nervously. "You used the name, didn't you?" Elsa rubbed the bridge of her nose, dreading the response. "Yes, " I answered. "Because no one warns him of shit," Pamela huffed. "You assume an Amazon education with no basis in reality. You act like he grew up with our fairy tales and phantasmal histories. Everyone in this room, but Buffy," she acknowledge my First, "knew he spoke our language and the accompanying risk. Still, no one warned him." "You didn't warn him," Desiree skewered Pamela with a glance. "Not my job, Buttons," Pamela chuckled. "I relish the rest of you being made to look like idiots too much to be useful to Cáel unless it really matters. So he invoked an ancient malediction. What is the worst that could happen?" "I'm going to make a huge deductive leap, am I the reason the Achaean hero Ajax and his boys are back from the dead and coming after us for some Ako-level vengeance?" I groaned. (That's the 47 Ronin for us Westerners) Silence. "That's not your fault, Sport," Pamela snorted. "Mano-man, was I a dumbass for doing nothing. I'll take the blame for that one ladies. Damn Cáel, you would have to pick the Unconquered One, wouldn't you?" "Who is this guy and why does he hate us?" Buffy interjected. Pause. "Our ancestors poisoned his wine so that, in his angry haze, he mistook his own men for his enemies and slaughtered them all, back during the Trojan War. Afterwards, he committed suicide in anguish over his crime, Death opened his eyes at the last, he saw our treachery and managed to curse us as he died," Krasimira informed the lot of us. "And my using that word brought him back? That sounds, weak," I grunted. "The word would not have been enough," Tadêfi comforted me. "There must have been some sort of rift in the curtain of Reality that allowed the others to slip through. I don't understand how, oh no," she gasped as the pieces came together. "I'm willing to believe that was the price of doing business," I petted Tadêfi's cheek. "Please enlighten us," Elsa grumbled. "I need to find the Earth  and  Sky ambassador and set up a new meeting. Using what Tadêfi has gifted me with and the sacrifice of her fellow augurs, I can secure an alliance for us if only I can make up for the whole stunt Troika played," I grinned. "Any ideas?" "We could call them," Pamela produced my phone. "Seems some lady named Hana Sulkanen has been trying for days to get in touch with you. She hunted down the owner of the necklace, they talked about your current physical state, courtesy of Odette, and the owner of the necklace has expressed a continued interest in meeting you, and only you. It would appear that they really don't trust the rest of our merry little band since your first disappearance." Hana, and here I had killed her step-brother, the one she despised. An unexpected benefit of civil discourse, my People's chance of survival had doubled. Pamela lobbed my phone and I caught it. "What of the other two?" Tadêfi pushed down on my euphoria. "Was the Foe dead as well?" A quick look at Pamela told me she knew the answer to that. "The Foe is complicated," I lied. "His return was an inevitability, so we count that as a draw. The Champion, bad news. Let's put Shammy in the 'maybe' column and the Conqueror is a win for our side." A Berserker Queen, fresh from the Underworld, who we were honor-bound to kill,  or the 'other lost heir to a dead House' that was going to make us cobble together some nonsense to bring her back into the fold. If I wasn't the male leader of a spiritually significant All-Girls social club/paramilitary outfit, I might have been daunted by my prospects of achieving the latter. "The thing going on inside your head?" Elsa asked. That explained her presence. My mental capacity was still suspect. Was I still me? Could I flip out with no warning? "It is still there. I still have no idea what happened to me, or what the results might be. This means I'm going into battle wounded and that's that," I stated. "Are you acting in the best interest of the Host," Elsa studied me. "I am not sure," I confessed after half a minute's introspection. "So many of you are fuck-nuts; I'm not sure what acting responsible is for this set," I added jokingly. "As it stand, you lack the authority to pass judgment on me, Elsa. I promise you that if I feel I'm losing control, I will turn myself in." "Saint Marie would feel better if you stayed here," Elsa insisted. "Is the SD declaring war on House Ishara?" Buffy rose to the challenge. "We (by that she meant my fellow Isharans) have discussed the matter and talked to our best neuroscientist. She cannot definitively tell us Cáel isn't Cáel, so there is no reason to constrain him." Whoa. In our best prospect's educated opinion I was not-not me. Legions of English teachers weren't going to like that. "I have the answer for that," Katrina spoke up. "I owe Cáel and I would pay that debt now. He expressed a desire to see my niece, Aya. Do you still wish that Cáel Ishara?" "More than ever, but the Council is meeting," I sighed. "Buffy is your (dead word spoken), your apprentice," Katrina suggested. "Appoint someone to stand with her." That was more than good advice. Buffy was a woman and, to those who knew of her, as fierce an Amazon as ever lived. That was what Katrina was telling me without telling me. "I choose Daphne Pile, if she will accept, to stand by Buffy's side," I announced. Buffy would need someone who was passionate for my cause and who spoke Old Kingdom Hittite. Buffy still didn't, and the chance of the Council speaking English on her behalf was non-existent. "That is Daphne of House Cotyttia," Pamela corrected me. Who Cotyttia was? I had no idea. I was stupid to think Daphne's actual Amazon surname was Pile. Daphne wasn't even around. Executive Services was functioning fine without me and that meant Daphne had a work queue. "The Thracian Goddess of Sex, Orgies, War and Slaughter," Krasimira gracefully filled in my ignorance. Another whoa, why wasn't she my matron goddess? Tadêfi hauled off and slapped me. The action seemed to take everyone, Tadêfi included, by surprise. "I don't know why I did that," Tadêfi wailed out in despair. I did. It didn't take telepathy to figure out what I had been thinking. To prove my point, Pamela laughed. I cupped Tadêfi's jaw. "Worry not," I cooed. "I had that coming, Dot Ishara," I dodged another one, "isn't happy with me right now." Recall, Tadêfi was hooked up to an old-fashioned party line with the Beyond. "Animaniacs," Pamela snorted. "I so love you. It is my deep and abiding pleasure to have you as my Grandson." "I'm not your grandson," I countered. "Well, I say you are. Now be quiet and accept the shame," Pamela's eyes danced with amusement. "That makes me, Daphne and Brielle incest," I pointed out. "Amazons don't have an incest taboo," Pamela retorted. Duh. They are all women, no chance of seven fingered, Cyclops babies. "Ah, women, misunderstanding and pain, Buffy, would you check out Quebec and see if I'm still wanted in that province for bestiality. It could be important later," I commanded. "Bestiality?" only one woman failed to mutter, sputter or exclaimed. "The complainant in question is not that pissed at you anymore," Katrina's rolodex mind kicked in. "I believe she expressed a desire to question you about some missing accoutrements though." My splitting headache meant I had to think about that, ah yes, her dress uniform. It was/had been Canada Day, thus her having an official function and thus me cheating with the girl from across the hall in the Mountie's bed. I'm an idiot alright and my ability to keep an eye on the clock needs improvement. My last image of her, frothing at the mouth (she was a tad more possessive than I had anticipated) as she screamed out insults in Quebecois French concerning my lineage, personality failings and the treasured parts of my anatomy. She punctuated various parts of that deranged episode by hurling articles of her clothing over the border at me as I turned (once I had good Ole US soil/pavement under my feet) and tried to get us back together. Yes, I had them, just not in my Box of Failed Romances. Acting on hopes of reconciliation, I had the uniform dry cleaned, placed in a dress bag, and the boots polished; both currently occupying space in my closet. At least the Alburgh-Noyan Crossing guards (it is a dual Canadian-American post) appreciated me evading/begging forgiveness long enough for them to see her in only her bra and panties. I imagine they didn't normally get much excitement there. "Katrina, " I began. "Yes, Maya forgives you too, though she scored an 'At Risk' for reliability. Anais sounded genuine," Katrina related. Anais was the Mountie. Maya was the Guyane Française university student from across the hall, the one I was caught cheating with. I had told her I was Anais's brother. Maya was also a super-exceptional cook. "Cáel Ishara, who are these women we are talking about?" Sikia demanded. 'We', that didn't take long. We were now a 'we', which in Amazon meant 'male, you're my property'. "I have a sideline job as an Amway distributor," I replied. "I give crappy customer service." "You give awesome customer service," Katrina riposted. "That's the problem." "Sikia, you are not the first Amazon Cáel has stuck his dick into. You are probably not the tenth," Elsa dripped with frustration. Quick count: Rhada, Buffy, Oneida and Gael, I was only going to count the penile-vaginal penetrations. "They are only numbers five and six, thank you very much," I defended myself. "So much for your 'intern, no sex' policy," Desiree muttered. "Cut me some slack, I work with stone-cold, Olympic level athlete foxes 24/7," I griped. "I am a sexual being too, I have needs." "What about the 'End of Internship' hunting shindig?" Desiree pulled a flawless 'Katrina'. "Oh, it is still on. With my 'do or die' learning curve, it is going to be so much more fun," I grinned. "And, okay, no more Amazon sex until then, sorry Rachel." "Except for house members," Buffy insisted. "No exceptions," Elsa demanded. "I'll keep an eye on him," Pamela resolved the issue. "No more Amazon boinking for him." She was such a liar. She was also a highly accomplished liar because everyone bought it. On with my life. Stage one: exit Katrina's office. Done deal, no problems. Stage two: set up meeting with the Earth  and  Sky. They wanted to meet on their ground. Since I was the uncertain factor in these negotiations, I agreed. I was bringing one, Pamela raised four fingers, four people with me. Who? Outside of Pamela, I had no idea. Stage three: going to medical and putting on my business suit, it was a new one and very, very nice. I was moving up into serious majestic magnate territory. I also picked up buddy number two, FBI Special Agent Virginia Maddox. Why had I chosen a federal agent to accompany me to a meeting between two secret societies? I hadn't a clue. Sometimes you have to roll with these things. In the lobby, I picked up number three, Delilah, Mom's MI-6 operative/baby-sitter. Compassionate, caring people were surrounding me all the time. It gave me this sensation of a 'down home' environment no matter where I went, if down home was Gaza, or Donetsk. I think my entourage/lifestyle observation teams had grown to encompass six cars. I was in no condition for riding my bike, so that recourse was denied me. Taxi? One, most were hard-working stiffs like my family who didn't deserve to be caught in a noontime, drive-by assassination attempt. Besides, with my luck I'd meet the guy from Qatar again, the one with the sister with cute eyes. That reminded me, I gave Nicole a call. "How are you doing?" she quickly inquired. "Good," I lied to a past master of shattering perjury. Pause. "I'm surrounded by girls with guns, tailed by your clients, some part of a Federal Task force and some people who I don't know yet. Hold on." I put my hand over my phone. "Delilah, are you packing heat?" I asked softly. She opened her jacket revealing paired revolvers in shoulder holsters. I didn't recognize them so the Brit gave me the 4-1-1. "Ruger Alaskans," she grinned. Bing! Now I recalled them. The girl who taught me to shoot once read some reviews of that beast on her laptop while I gave her a slow, passionate screw from behind. She became all hot and bothered, wiggling, squirming and generally having a grandiose time with my cock deep within. I repeat, this girl really loved guns, a huge cerebral G-spot for her. Oh yeah, the Ruger Alaskan is what you get if you are worried about Grizzly bears popping their heads through the tent flaps late at night. Delilah was probably packing 4 80's. Her guns would turn 250 kilograms of pissed off ursine into an excellent throw-rug in about two shots. In an urban environment,  well, maybe she thought the New York Giants were actually giants, or something like that. Two were overkill, unless you expected someone needing to borrow one. "Just checked. I remain the only one unarmed in my personal carnival of carnage, " my words trailed up to an unintelligible mumble. I was mumbling because suddenly four handguns were casually offered up for my use (Tiger Lily was holding one over her shoulder as she drove), in the same way you'd offer up some Nicorette to a man jonesing for a smoke. Rachel was kind enough to hand me my familiar Glock-22 and Ruger 38 caliber with their accompanying holsters. Two spare clips followed, then I stashed the lot. I scratched my calf. It took me a second to realize I was reaching for my pistol. No, not the one at my hip, or my ankle, but the one, in my boot? "Now that you've been handed firearms of dubious origin, can I get back to questioning you," the FBI agent intruded upon my ruminations. "We were discussing that list of people that are visiting a morgue instead of a court room. What can you tell me?" "Bye Nicole. Miss you. Being interrogated by a blonde FBI lady with a whips scar on her eyebrow and eyes that could scare a badger back into its hole. Later," I cut of my lawyer's fierce demand that I keep my mouth shut. "Nothing useful that wouldn't implicate myself and others in a criminal conspiracy," I answered her. "There is no way I'd name anyone else I suspect of involvement. I feel no guilt over what has happened, so no remorseful confession, and that is based on my belief that cosmic justice has been achieved." "You can't create lists of people for execution," Maddox persisted. "That negates the whole justice system and the principle of innocent until proven guilty." Wow! Except for the two of us, every other person in the car snorted their derision of Maddox's presumptive naiveté. "Do you even believe the tripe spilling from your pie-hole?" Delilah mocked Maddox. "I'm in law enforcement. That means I enforce the laws, not interpret them, or choose which ones I want to obey and which ones to ignore," Virginia fought back. "Love, that's crap and you know it. You are an agent of the US government. You bomb, drone-strike, overthrow lawfully elected governments and assassinate in your nation's best interests," Delilah countered. "You selectively enforce your Constitution when it suits you." "I'm law enforcement, not the military or foreign affairs. Know the difference," Maddox glared. "The pay master is the same,  you willingly collect your thirty pieces of silver; get off your high horse because you are in the shat now, Agent Maddox. I haven't known this crowd an hour and I know for a fact that you are the only US citizen onboard," Delilah chortled. "I don't know their bleeding nationality, but I doubt it is on the UN Charter." Maddox turned to me. "That was succinct and rather accurate," I murmured. "Special Agent Maddox, I have the sneaking suspicion that you are with us because FP (federal prosecutor) Castello feels you can handle this, Umm, unusual set of circumstance. I promise you this, it is going to get worse." "Why don't we test this quaint theory?" FBI Lass challenged us. "Jail, bail, and I'm waking up in Rio de Janeiro in two days," I sighed. "I have a few thousand in the bank, live in a hole and own my father's home, when it clears probate. Only you know I'm flight risk. A dozen people will vouch/lie about my character and that's that. All you've succeeding in doing is making enemies when you need friends." "There is still a matter of multiple people dead under suspicious circumstance," she said. "Imagine for a second that Cáel admits to creating a hit list," Pamela began. "He would never give up the names of the other people involved. He didn't kill anyone, or say 'kill them'. Now what? You still have an abysmal case to put before a judge. Add to that, the mitigating factor of a raped girl. You get to break her down until she's a cooperating witness because she's the only one who can provide you with Cáel's motive," my mentor continued. "Good for you and your team. She gets to betray the man who tried to save her. Cáel promised horrific retribution if any of those in the now-dead crowd hurt her. That is rather unlike him, he normally forgives when given the least excuse. I don't give a damn about women's rights, or the rights of rape victims. I really could give a shit about human rights for that matter. Wronging me is the surest way to early retirement. It is not a matter of strong versus weak, or right versus wrong. What matters to me is who I can trust. I don't know you, thus I don't trust you. I trust your government to be so much chicken shit. I base this on the lack of public torture and execution. I want the families of dying criminals paraded in front of those cock-suckers before the condemned finally perish in agony. I want to see thieves get their forearms hacked off, trial by combat, and respect for your elders. I want to see public officials being sacrificed upon the altar of Jehovah when they leave office. I want to see a system of justice with a soul, not law books thicker than an aircraft carrier's hull. A government 'of the People, by the People, for the People' should be the sole guiding force for your culture and we both know that's never going to happen. I admire your soldiers; not because they are brave and combat effective, they are. I admire them because they are fighting and dying for elected officials and a population that can't locate Afghanistan, or Iraq on a map, can't tell the difference between a Sikh and a Muslim, and thinks 'Pashtun' is an exotic piece of furniture. I admire them because they are better human beings despite you, not because of you," Pamela was coming to her crescendo. "Basically you people, by that I mean most of the human race, are dangerous in your idiocy, arrogance and pride in your ignorance. Not one of you should be allowed to use weapons, or play with fire. For you, unrestricted voting is a crime right up there with inventing, disease prevention, bilingualism and anything that perpetuates your educational system." "Lady, why are you so angry with the world?" Maddox studied Pamela intensely. I wished her luck with divining and then unwrapping that lady's mind. "I hold dear to my heart anyone's hunger to learn, honesty when it hurts and love no matter what the cost, so I find myself alone most of the time," Pamela grinned. "Above even those, I adore humor in the face of ridicule, condemnation and adversity. You can dodge bullets and parry knives. Humor always strikes home," she finished. "It is the perfect weapon." "Liar," I smiled. "You like high performance automobiles too." Did she? I didn't know. "Only with a 2X4 pressing the accelerator as it races toward the lip of a canyon," Pamela bantered back, "with Ursula K. Le Guin strapped in the back seat." "Who?" I inquired. "She's an author. I take exception to some of her work and unwillingness to appreciate the fusion of exceptional feminine characteristics with power positions," Pamela answered. "And your critique of her life's work is an exploding car at the bottom of a cliff?" I smiled. "Starting uncontrolled wildfires and littering, two of my favorite activities," she laughed. "I'll stick with blondes and brunettes, and red- and raven-haired, bald has its own appeal, green and purple have their own kink going on, " I joked. "Wait! We were talking about people being murdered and you two are cracking jokes?" Maddox rumbled. "I had a dream about tying them together with nylon cord and tossing them off the back ramp of a transport aircraft, and watching them fall, and fall," Rachel sighed dreamily. "Atta girl," I play-punched Rachel's shoulder. "What is your part in all of this?" Maddox turned to Rachel. "I'm the head of his bodyguard detail," Rachel gave her confession of the damned. "And you want to kill him, " Virginia struggled to keep up. "Given time, you will too," Rachel promised. "According to his pre-employment records, only one woman he's had a sexual relationship with hasn't wanted to at least hurt him," glaring at me, "badly." "The nun doesn't want me dead!" I vocally protested. "It is so wrong that you are proud that of over 200 women you've slept with, TWO have not, at some point in knowing you, wanted to maul you and one of those is in the 'forgiving' business," Rachel chastised me. Virginia had an answer for my madness. Her phone came out and she hit speed-dial, work. "Ms. Castello, this is Special Agent Maddox, do you have a moment?" Virginia calmly asked when she finally wrangled my current-favorite fed's attention. "You do now? Thank you. I'd like to know what the fuck have you done to me? This assignment is nuts. Either I'm part of some elaborate prank, or I'm in an S U V with escapees from the looney bin." Ten seconds later Maddox gave me the phone. "Stop it. I've upheld my end of the bargain, so behave," Javiera ordered. Man, she'd shot me straight to the core and we hadn't even slept together yet. Clever, clever girl. "Yes Ma'am," I swore. "I'll do my best to buffer Special Agent Maddox from the truth." "I'll have to accept that," Javiera conceded. "Give Maddox the phone back." A brief conversation later and Maddox was no better off than when she started. Thankfully we parked in front of the Kazakhstan Consulate in New York, giving us all an excuse to face facts. Maddox was feeling compelled to ask questions she didn't want the answers to, and that we didn't want to answer. Saved by work. "Kazakhstan Consulate? Why are we here?" both Virginia and Rachel asked. "Oh! This is going to be good," Pamela leaned forward excitedly. "Change the course of human history," I answered with a great deal of confidence I didn't feel. See, I had knowledge critical to the Earth  and  Sky. That knowledge was also something they wanted kept compartmentalized, so they might take exception to it being possessed by an outsider. Oh,  so that's why Pamela earlier insisted on four ladies being with me, so we could shoot our way out if things turned ugly. I hugged my mentor. "Thank you, Pamela." "You are coming along nicely, Mr. Potter," Pamela patted my cheek. "Your praise leaves me suspicious, Professor Snape. Besides, if I'm going to die, it helps me to know you'll go first ." "That was uncalled for," Pamela chided me. It was the 'Snape' role she rejected. "Snape gave up his life for Harry, Dumbledore died for Draco," I countered. "Well, let's hope it doesn't come to that," Pamela shone with joy and pride. "You act like I have a choice," I sighed. "Touché," Pamela nodded. "I see what you mean about these two," Maddox addressed Rachel. "Oh my God," Delilah laughed. "You wove Harry Potter into a life and death conversation and it made sense. I am probably going to die, but I'll die knowing I have lived." "Not you too?" Maddox glared at Delilah. Rachel just shook her head. We exited the car, settled ourselves out. Rachel took point, Delilah took one flank while Pamela took the other. By happenstance, I ended up in the middle, yeah right, with Virginia covering my back. "You stay here," Pamela put a hand on Rachel's shoulder. "You'll need to lead the team in if someone 'pumps up the volume'." Interesting euphemism for 'when people start killing people'. "What are we doing today?" Miyako 'appeared'. She'd been walking down the sidewalk toward us, the Kazak Consulate was a townhouse, but her presence hadn't registered. "I require your pledge of silence on what is to transpire. No death is intended," I stated calmly to Miyako. "I didn't know you were versed in ninja contracts, much less spoke Japanese?" Miyako responded. Blink. "I didn't know I spoke it either, " I mumbled. "No sweat," Pamela tried to hustle us along. "He's a quick study." Yeah. I didn't feel it apropos to point out I hadn't heard myself speaking Japanese, or understood that my words had some secret meaning. "How important is this to my people?" Miyako asked. Now that I was paying attention to it, I could make out that she was speaking in her native tongue. "If they don't think we can be trusted to not speak of what is to transpire for a week, they are going to kill us," I related my suspicions. "My mind and heart are joined in this decision." "I give you my pledge," Miyako nodded. She looped her arm in mine. "Does anyone care to enlighten me?" Maddox prodded. Whoa. It seemed that, beside me and Miyako, only Pamela spoke Japanese. "Special Agent Maddox, no matter what, don't give up your gun, when we say run, run, and shoot to kill because they will be trying to kill us," I informed her. "Does the term 'extraterritoriality' mean anything to anyone here?" Maddox snapped. Her nervousness was totally understandable. I stopped at the top of the steps, looking over my shoulder. I nodded. Pamela, Delilah and Miyako nodded as well. "Hold on, I can't believe I'm saying this. Does anyone have a back-up I can use?" Maddox groaned. Rachel quick-stepped forward and handed over a 22 automatic pistol then a spare clip with a smooth, practiced motion that suggested that SD swapped weapons all the time. Maddox didn't miss the casualness of the gesture. The firearm and magazine disappeared. "Fine, we will never discuss the laws we just butchered, ever, and if I die and any of you make it out alive, I will seek revenge at whatever cost FROM WHEREVER I AM," FBI girl growled. "One of us," Pamela smirked at me as I touched the doorbell. It opened promptly. We weren't on a crowded street, we were on their stoop and a security camera was pointed right at us. We were invited in and two rather Caucasian-looking gentlemen (Kazaks are a mixed bag of Turks and Cumans) were waiting with the doorman. They looked tough in that they took personality lessons from saddle leather. "You will place your weapons there," the more charismatic of the two spoke up. He was pointing to a side table that looked large enough for the task. "No," was the most courteous response I could muster. He didn't look surprised. He didn't look much like he was breathing, or blinking either. "Go," he pointed to the door. I looked to Pamela. "Well, that didn't take long," I grinned. I felt out the necklace under my shirt and pulled it over my head. "Please return this to its owner in the spirit it was given." He took it. The doorman opened the door and out we went. Rachel was back in our GL550, using the door as possible cover. She said we could take our seats and away we rolled. Maddox looked apoplectic. She had prepared herself for the Wild, Wild West, not a doe-see-doe at the door. In her mind, I had wound her up for nothing. My phone rang. "Cáel Ishara, there seems to have been a diplomatic miscommunication," a male native Turkish-speaker said in heavily accented English. "The person you are meeting must be approached in the spirit of peace." "No, I understood you perfectly," I assured him. "We aren't the Brownies, or the Girl Scouts, Buddy. I don't know, or trust you and you don't know, or trust me, yet. I will compromise though. I will respect your traditions. I will enter your home unarmed. In turn, everyone in the building will line up outside on the street except for the person I'm supposed to meet. Is that acceptable?" Pause. "Do you hate these people, or like them?" Maddox grumbled. "With you, I can't quite tell." "That would not be acceptable," the man finally responded. "Perhaps an alternative. You come in, alone yet armed." "Nope. Due to the efforts of people far smarter than me, I know pretty much who I am meeting, so I am either very rude, insane, or bear a message that is worth my life," I countered. "Your personal safety is guaranteed," was the counter-offer. "That is a false promise, not because you lack honor, or respect for me, but because you are from a wise and noble lineage with a historical propensity of cutting to the heart of any problem." By that, I meant they'd cut my heart out. "What I expect is for every one of you to hold the future of the Earth  and  Sky above any such concepts as personal promises, hospitality, and honor. I am even putting my faith in your willingness to put the survival of the Earth  and  Sky over your own well-being," I riposted. "If the message is so crucial, you should be willing to come alone," back at me. "It isn't important to me," I stated. "Listen, a war is about to break out. Unless we both want to be found all alone in the outhouse masturbating when the headsman comes, one of us has to blink. Today, it is you. Tomorrow you may be able to return the favor and mess with my head." Pause. "Your koumiss is getting warm." "We'll be right there. We apologize for the delay. Traffic is murder these days, or a close facsimile thereof," I gave a little back in the humility department. "Tiger Lily, " "On it, Ishara, Wakko Ishara. I've been circling the block," Tiger Lily had anticipated my antics. Sure, I acted like I had no game plan, but I never wasted people's time. Maybe if I developed an actual game plan I could do even better. "Wakko Ishara?" it was Delilah's and Maddox's turn to share a 'what the?' moment. "May I explain the sacred names?" Rachel requested of me. "I have a feeling these two might become a fixture." "By all means, Rachel. Our trust runs deep," I trusted Rachel with more than my life; I trusted her with my future. "Wakko, as in you're the nutty one?" Delilah made a stab at our arcane nomenclature. If you use small words does that make it gnomenclature? Pamela winked at me, psychic twin grandmother powers activate! "We need complementary rings," Pamela remarked. Sweet! "Cáel Ishara is differentiated as Wakko Ishara, Ishara, first of House Ishara, is Yakko Ishara, and, " Rachel began. "The Animaniacs? Your code names are the Warner Brothers and their sister Dot?" Maddox gasped. "You are beyond nuts." "And the Goddess Ishara is named, by House Ishara and House Ishara alone," Rachel made some warding appeal against divine punishment, "as Dot Ishara." Maddox's face shown with disbelief. "Following Cáel Ishara into battle has been one of my greatest pleasures," Rachel stared at Maddox. "I never knew insanity could be so liberating, or that laughing at death could be such an aphrodisiac." "When did you two go into battle?" Delilah wondered. "In a morgue, fighting to retrieve the body of his fallen father so that our enemies could not desecrate it," Rachel explained. Ah, the walls of Troy, fighting over the spoils of the dead. "You mean when I face-planted?" I grinned at Rachel. "Even without a weapon, your instincts were good, forcing our enemy to commit to multiple angles of coverage even though your efforts were foiled by a footing failure. Your rushing their leader was even more heroic in that you were unarmed and using your body as a decoy, knowing your enemy's superior skill would stop him from shooting you," Rachel smiled my way, sex. "Let me get this straight," Miyako finally spoke up. "You charged an enemy unarmed then stumbled and failed. They were armed?" "Yes, with a 3 57 Magnum revolver and a 10 gauge sawed-off automatic shotgun, in tight confines and close range, oh, and no cover." Maddox replied, then to me, "I read the report." "Then you repeated the action a few minutes," Miyako. "Less than a minute later," Maddox clarified. "A minute later, wow! You are as fearless as we've heard. Please don't die before we have a baby," Miyako gave me a quick hug. If you cover a zeppelin with uranium paint, can it still fly, or does it sink to the center of the Earth? Ninja babies, We had returned to the stairs at the Consulate. This time the door swung open upon our approach. "Is there some drug you are all taking to bask in this shared fantasy life?" Maddox mumbled. "One of us," Pamela retorted. "One of us." "One of us," I joined in. It helped cut the tension. The bodyguards were present right where we'd them last time. They ushered us up the stairs to a second floor sitting room that ate up half the floor. There were two men there; radiating that subtle assurance that a half-dozen killers were close by. The man standing was Iskender, the E and S emissary from Dad's funeral. I broke all decorum, strode to the man, locked arms, hugged him tight and patted him on the back. "Thank the spirits you are here," I whispered, "all this lack of dick is making me a bit stir-crazy." "Ah, yes, it is good to see you again too," Iskender imparted as we broke our embrace. His boss, the guy on the sofa, shot me and my Kyrgyz buddy a sharp look. The Main Man was clearly Mongolian and must have thought blank, white walls exhibited too much empathy. "Koumiss," the boss offered. I sipped it from a simple, yet regal drinking mug that probably hit the kiln 200 years ago. "Mare, or yak?" I inquired as I handed the cup around. Iskender came first, but it was clearly my intention that we all partake. It was more a matter of the host's pledge of sanctuary than me wanting to share the koumiss. It tasted like thin, lightly chilled, bitter beer with a vanilla-almond milk shake-chaser. "Mare, of course. Please sit," he offered. He defined the suggestion by slipping off the sofa onto the layered carpet rug. He was semi-reclined, so we followed suit. "We should pray for the protection of the spirits," was the suggestion that wasn't a suggestion. It was his itinerary. He clapped his hands and from beyond a curtained partition came this really sensual Mongolian chick carrying a large brass bowl. She flicked her eyes at me and an instant connection was formed. She liked to bark like a dog under the full moon, okay, I'm not sure where that came from. "Nice woman," I told the leader. "She looks like she has seen many winters." Whoa! Where the fuck did that come from? I got a shocked reaction from Iskender. The Leader looked pissed, if a flake of paint on the white wall indicated anger. The girl blushed like what I said was an incredible turn on. "She is my daughter," the Leader pointed out. Way past swallowing my foot. My ankle was tasty. "My name is Oyuun Tömörbaatar. My faithful Iskender, you know. This is my daughter T. Sarangerel. She is studying at N Y U and is not entertaining marriage proposals at this time," he slapped down his boundaries. Somehow 'I only want to sleep with her' didn't sound like the right response. Wait! Saying his 'daughter had many winters' was a marriage bargaining opening move. What the fuck! "What I meant was that surely many men have died trying to come before you," I back-pedaled. More happy looks from the daughter. More paint peeling from the dad. Pamela made sure more koumiss was going around. Getting drunk could hardly hurt at this juncture. Sarangeral placed the bowl between us. It was filled with clear, cold water undoubtedly collected from a mountain-fed glacier. "Let us cleanse our hands in the water so that we may speak with clarity," O. Tömörbaatar said. We dipped our fingers and, for a second, I saw him. Not 'O', but HIM. "It is good to finally meet you Ferko Ishara Cáel Nyilas," the man said. My Spidey senses told me he was feeling less 'good' about this meeting every second. "How can your people and mine better get along?" 'Let me impregnate your daughter', would probably get my skull split open. "No time for that," I replied. "I know where HE is. The Seven Pillars have found a way to search the Weave and are closing in. You must act with haste." Whether it was disbelief, or old schooled Ku Chun in the art of gambling, the older man gave no outward reaction. "Where is he?" O. Tömörbaatar asked in a gentle tone. "I can do you one better," I steeled myself for the unknown forces I was invoking. I put my hands on the bowl's lip and looked in. Several seconds later, he did as well. For a moment, nothing. It was like a ripple in reverse. The first earth tremor I barely noticed. The ripples grew and grew until I felt the whole row of townhouses would come crashing down. Wind snapped the locks on the windows, flinging them wide open and tearing at the curtains like streamers in a hurricane. Then we saw HIM clearly. HE stopped driving this old, beat-up Peugeot and was pulling to the side of a desolate stretch of highway. HE could sense something yet couldn't pinpoint the source of his unease. We definitely got the impression this wasn't his first taste of this experience, the Seven Pillars. He was young, maybe my age. He looked like an educated man turned vagabond/boundless traveler. HIS eyes, his eyes had a depth that were a microcosm of what I'd glimpsed in Ishara, Dot Ishara's unshielded glance when we first met. All lingering doubts vanished in my mind. "I know that place," O T muttered, his eyes fixated on the only feature in the vacant expanse, a road sign, in Chinese. Yikes. "I know that place." The image faded. Our meeting venue was intact. Whatever I felt transpire, I had shared with O. Tömörbaatar alone. "You have work to do," I stated as I cleared my throat. "I will leave you to it." I stood. "What do you wish for this gift?" O T reached out and touched my sleeve. "When the time comes, maybe you can help us," I replied. "A man who asks for nothing can expect anything," O T smiled for the first time. "Go." I did not take a fear-free breath until the cars started up and we pulled away. He'd let us live. Even with that priceless piece of magical insight, he'd let us live. "I'm still stunned we got out alive," I sighed. "I wasn't really sure he'd take the news as well as he did." No one said anything for a minute. "Why would he have killed us?" Delilah inquired. "You, I understand. I don't know what you communicated to that young lady, but the old guy wasn't happy about it. He was going to kill us over that?" Pause. "What did the rest of you see and hear?" I looked around the cabin. Pamela appeared worried. "I didn't know you spoke Chagatai," Miyako smiled at me. "You are full of surprise. I only caught a word, or two, and none of it made sense." "MRI," I groaned. "Magnetoencephalography," Pamela said in the same breath. "Mine is better, Boyo." "What is going on?" Rachel upped her alertness level. "We need to take Cáel to a hospital that has a Magnetoencephalography device," Pamela insisted. "He's spontaneously speaking languages he didn't know moments earlier, " Maddox put things together first. The rest nodded at her assessment. "We'll need to have his records from Havenstone sent over as a baseline." Poor Virginia, the absurdity of my life was sucking her in. "I'll call Katrina," Rachel informed us. I was a mental case once more. At least my input was still being solicited. "How many guns do you have on you?" Pamela zinged me. The answer was obvious, two. My Glock and my back-up. That didn't seem right. "Ah, two?" I responded. "Yeah, something is happening to your muscle memory as well," Pamela shook her head. "What exactly does that mean, and what's wrong with Cáel's brain?" Delilah studied the group. "It means he could spontaneously pull out his gun and start shooting us?" Pamela confessed her uncertainty. "I don't know. We'd better figure out which impulses are his guiding light right now before that happens." "I don't even know how to begin reporting this," Maddox muttered. "Cheer up. Our Cáel is still currently in charge. Did you appreciate how he lured in that young Mongolian girl? That's classic Cáel," Pamela comforted the crowd. I was saved from a straightjacket because I was a 'Playa'. (Meadowlands Medical Center in far off New Jersey) I'm not political. For me, that means I am completely and utterly dedicated to whatever doctrine that the cutest political campaigner in front of me endorses. Fifteen minutes on the internet and you can fake it like a pro. Be careful to be with the winning team when the results come in. Nothing makes a political chick go wild like sneaking into the candidate's office and screwing her on the newly elected/re-elected figure's desk. Let her scream out her idol's name. Odds are neither of you will be welcomed back afterwards anyway. Why politics now? Javiera called some people. I had a sneaking suspicion that someone I knew and trusted got in touch with my 'Aunts' as well. All I knew for sure was the Hospital's Administrator's phone began ringing off the hook and I'd become the hospital's number one priority. The hospital staff was visibly irritated with the clout raining down on their heads for about an hour. Once they digested my Havenstone records, all of that changed. Holy 'Published in The New England Journal of Medicine', someone had drilled a micro-surgical hole in my skull in the middle of a wrestling match with no resulting cerebral scarring. THEN this unknown device shot into my skull with pinpoint accuracy and pumped a ghastly amount of energy into my cerebrum. They were fascinated. They were so fascinated I heard two medical technicians mutter about where the Zombie Survival Guide could be found. They triple checked my vital signs, again. I was still as much alive as when I checked myself in. There was a rumor that a fire ax disappeared from a stairwell close by, but not one confessed to the deed. I was speaking in languages I had no reason to know? They were surprised I could contain my mouth drool. It was somewhat disheartening to hear three seasoned physicians discuss what probable scenarios could explain me still being in a non-vegetative state,  or alive for that matter. Some poor nurse had to ask. "Do you feel an unnatural, interest in human brains?" she whispered when she though no one was close by. "I'm not sure what you mean," I whispered back. "I always respect a woman's intelligence. Sex is a cerebral passion. What's the point if you can't communicate with your partner?" Pamela slapped me upside my head. That disturbed just about everybody else in the vicinity and my mentor was promptly exiled from the room. I was curious about what havoc she was perpetrating on this establishment. My condition had gotten her past all the heavy security and I knew without seeing that someone high ranking had misplaced their ID badge. Maybe Pamela was the love-child of Batman and Cat woman. Before you think that's comic fanboy talk, recall what my life was like at that moment. Tests ensued. The staff decided that Havenstone employed a bunch of quacks and snake charmers. Two hours later, they found out they were wrong. Larger battery of tests, same results. I was the second coming of Christ, back from the dead, or a zombie living in a convincing state of denial. Some folks wouldn't let that go. Pamela had proved to be prophetic. Her pet gizmo finally provided a new picture of what my neural pathways were up to. If there is any doubt, 'I've never seen that before' is not what you want to hear one of North America's experts in the field of neuroscience say. The first educated opinion was that I suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, that meant I was hit in the head a lot. Normally that diagnosis comes in the midst of an autopsy. I was having paralytic seizures. They had me juggle a squeeze-ball, then two and finally three. My perfect performance frustrated them. Women find relatively simple carnival tricks to be seductive. Pluck a card from a girl's bra gets you both to some dark corner, hungrily looking for the rest of the deck, I speak from experience. Next up at bat: 'I was possessed', I shit you not. Holistic medicine was right on board with the team. Was I influenced by a supernatural power? Yes I was. So claimed the majority of people on Earth. Did I receive specific instructions? Yes, and so did practitioners of Voodoo/Vodun on three continents. I added that I attempted to evade said instructions when I could. Did I have 'evil' impulses to hurt myself, or others? Huh? For starters, my matron goddess was more of a 'fucker' than a 'fighter' and her instructions were always suitably vague, the same way a Philosophy professor would give you a ten word pointless sentence on Friday and expect you to have a 250 page doctrine on Monday morning. That hit home. Too many normally smart people take a philosophy class in college hoping for an easy-A. Some teachers love dissolving those delusion, sitting back and watching your hopes and dreams of task-free weekends go down the drain. The more obscure the discipline, the more perverse the desire. That is why you always pick a teacher of the opposite gender (if in doubt, use a gay/lesbian test) and keep 'sex for grades' on the menu. Was I suffering from optical illusions, or phantom noises? Straight to the point, yes, I saw and talked with ghosts. So did the Long Island Medium, the casts of Ghost Hunters, Paranormal Witness plus George Anderson and Chip Coffey. To my credit, I didn't do it for profit, or in order to influence people. Was I seeing ghosts now? I was in hospital, so odds weren't bad. I had every non-ghost raise their left hand. No ghosts. Was my paranormal dementia pre- or post-brain trauma? Did seeing a college student being called before his class and successfully accused of plagiarism on his senior thesis, turning him into one of the Restless Dead count? No? My 'disputed' abilities were all post-college employment, thank you very much. Did the ghosts possess me/tell me to do things? I was not possessed and, discounting sexual bondage and my current work venue, had never been possessed. From my limited exposure, ghosts wanted to not be alone in the afterlife, to be guided to a final resting place with others of their kind/family/friends. None had taught me languages, asked me to steal something, or kill anyone. Had any done so, I would have denied them. Such actions were immoral and I could still freely differentiate between right and wrong. I preferred to commit wrong on my own initiative and making me do good was a chore most sane people abandoned after a few days. I took a Rorschach test. The results were predictable because I had taken old 'R' several times before. Just like every other time, I'd mixed up sexual innuendo with a psychological test to seduce the test-giver,  everything reminded me of intercourse. I changed it up with this girl. I gave her numbers. Sometime after I was long gone, they were going to figure out the ink blots were numbered after whichever erotic positions from the Kama Sutra I was reminded of at the time. I knew that wasn't being helpful and I was certain I wasn't a brain specialist. I also knew Rorschach wasn't the key to solving my woes. Final remaining hypothesis, I was utilizing 30 % of my brain capacity with three independent patterns emerging, not the usual 5 %. For that to work, my brain had to be oozing out my ears because brains generate a terrific amount of heat. My temperature was a steady 37.3 C (99 F) and my ear channels were free of obstruction. Hey man, cleaning your ears is quick and easy. Don't risk turning off a date with misfortunately located ear-hair and wax. How was my brain shedding the heat? Their solution, let's do a Spinal Tap. No way. I'd seen that band and they were all extremely fucked up, even for old guys. I wasn't going down that road. They insisted. I suggested that I consent to the procedure with the condition that I received no pain killers/sedatives of any kind and I got to grab and hold onto the testicles of my two, current, least favorite doctors. When they realized I was deadly serious and immovable on the issue, they came up with a new plan, no Spinal Tap. Gutless sissies. Into this vacuum of information, a brainstorm emerged (besides my inexplicable one). They would talk to me, no more interrogations, an actual verbal exchange. They couldn't come over and start flapping their gums like some punk rock band with no talent. They were suddenly worried about 'concerning' me and 'agitating my unstable state'. I pray to Goddess Ishara that one day soon they play back the tapes of their early hours working on me and pay close attention to my facial expressions of shock, horror, fear and depression as they clearly and openly talked about me as if I was the Fiji Mermaid. But hey, a few of them were kinda cute, so in the final analysis all that emotional trauma worked its way out. Hospital highlights: (Understand, I was lying on a table while various specialists prodded and talked about me as if I wasn't there. To strike back at reality, I throbbed my penis every time this cute Parasitologist looked at it. Finally ) Female Chief of Neurosurgery: "Did anyone think to study changes in is body's nervous system?" (Guilty looks all around) Neuro Surgeon: "What are all these needle marks?" Havenstone Medico, "Those are muscle stimuli insertion sites. They kept his musculature from atrophying while he was in a coma." Neuro Surgeon: "Let me get this straight. This man had a lightning bolt go off in his head and part of your healthcare regimen was to run a constant current of electricity throughout the rest of his body." (Scathing looks at the Medico from everyone else, jackals) HM: "He has retained excellent muscle tone." Neuro Surgeon: "Have you even taken the Hippocratic Oath?" HM: (offended) "Of course not, he's Greek." Neuro Surgeon: "What does my patient being Greek have to do with anything?" HM: "Not him (pointing at me). Hippocrates, he was a Greek. Cáel is Magyar/Irish Gaelic." Neuro Surgeon: "Helpful, that's not. He seems to have a great deal of bruises and scarring, some of it certainly received over an extensive period of time. Is this your work?" HM: (in a positive note) "No. It has not been my pleasure to spar with Cáel yet." Neuro Surgeon: "Isn't he a bit, big for you?" &

Pastor Marshall Ochs | November 24, 2024In this message, Pastor Marshall teaches from 2 Kings 19-20. These chapters focus on the power of prayer and the importance of maintaining humility before God. King Hezekiah, facing the threat of Assyria and a terminal illness, prays earnestly, appealing to God's power and sovereignty, and God responds by miraculously saving Judah and extending Hezekiah's life. These stories teach us to cultivate a robust prayer life, grounded in Scripture, as prayer connects us to the God who can change circumstances. However, they also serve as a warning not to become prideful in the blessings or answers to prayer, reminding us to acknowledge God's role in our success and to remain humble.

1. Assyria's ignorant pride (19:11-133)2. Assyria's sinful pride (19:1ff)3. Assyria's blasphemous pride (19:22,25,27-28,35-37)

Daily Dose of Hope November 20, 2024 Day 4 of Week 34 Scripture:  Isaiah 17-19; Psalm 62; 1 Corinthians 1 Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope.  This is the devotional and podcast that goes along with our Bible reading plan at New Hope Church in Brandon, Florida.  Tonight is Recharge at 6:30pm in the Garage.  This is a time of worship, fellowship, prayer, and small community.  I hope to see you there!   Our first passage today is Isaiah, chapters 17-19.  Chapter 17 includes an oracle against the city of Damascus because of its disobedience and idolatry.  It details the city's destruction.  Interestingly, Damascus was demolished by the Assyrians at the same time Assyria conquered Israel in 732B.C. What's interesting is if you look up the history of each of these nations described in the oracles, they all prove to be true!     In chapter 18, the oracle is not against a nation.  Rather, it is a reassurance that God is paying attention to his world and he will eventually end the threat that the Assyrians pose.  Isaiah begins by talking about Cush, most likely the ancient land of Ethiopia in the southern part of Egypt.  Apparently, the kings of Ethiopia were wanting to unite all of Egypt to fight against the threat of the Assyrians.  Isaiah points forward to the time of the Messiah's kingdom on earth.   Chapter 19 includes the main oracle against Egypt but also some judgements against other nations.  The point here is that Isaiah is warning Judah not to put their trust in these nations.  These nations are going to fall.  They must focus solely and completely on the Lord.  It's only the Lord that can protect them.  Of course, we know they failed to heed this advice.  How often do we fail to heed it as well?   We are starting I Corinthians today!  This will be a wonderful blessing and challenge.  In this first chapter of I Corinthians, we immediately notice this is a letter. Paul starts by identifying himself as the author and makes it clear that the recipients are those in the church at Corinth. After a brief expression of thanksgiving, Paul wastes no time at getting to a most pressing point. There is disunity in the church. Factions have emerged over who to follow. Some say they follow Paul, others say Apollos or Cephas, and some say Christ.   We don't know the details of the disagreements, or how the factions came about. Really, I don't think the fine points are that relevant. What's more interesting to me is how Paul handles the situation. He reminds them who and whose they are. He reinforces the mission. We get so distracted by our own egos and allegiances, the mission is what suffers. The mission is sharing the Gospel, spreading the Good News of Jesus.   Let's fast forward 2000 years. How often have we as individual Christ-followers and as a church gotten off track because of disagreements with other Christians? Think about people you have personally known who have left a church because they got mad about something. Conflicts over individual personalities, music styles, bruised egos, miscommunication, or even the color of the new carpet, can totally derail a church from the true mission! What if we just had laser focus on Jesus? What if the mission trumped everything else? How might that change things?   Blessings, Pastor Vicki

Pastor Marshall Ochs | November 17, 2024In this message, Pastor Marshall teaches from 2 Kings 17-19. Israel's persistent sin led to their exile, illustrating the consequences of unfaithfulness to God's covenant. This serves as a warning in Hebrews 12:25, encouraging Christians to remain faithful and avoid the world's temptations, as Israel's rebellion is a repeatable pattern. King Hezekiah, however, provides a contrast, showing a heart devoted to God and a powerful example of prayer. When faced with imminent danger from Assyria, his prayerful dependence on God highlights the greater invitation for believers to make prayer a daily priority, cultivating a deep, ongoing relationship with God.

Historical/ geopolitical[1] context Isaiah prophesized in the Kingdom of Judah in the 700's BC at the time when Assyria was destroying the Northern Kingdom Isaiah Continue reading The post Isaiah III appeared first on Fides et Ratio.

The final years of Shalmaneser III's reign over the Neo-Assyrian Empire, was a pivotal period marked by civil war, political intrigue, and shifting power dynamics. As Shalmaneser aged and relied more on his top general, Dayan-Assur, did his appointment of his younger son, Shamshi-Adad, as successor trigger a bitter seven-year conflict (827–820 BCE) with his elder son, Assur-Danin-Apli? This poorly documented Assyrian civil war pitted the royal family against a rising class of powerful governors, or magnates, signaling a transition into what historians call the Assyrian Feudal Era or the Age of the Magnates. Key figures like Dayan-Assur and the Babylonian king Marduk-Zakir-Shumi played critical roles in this dramatic succession crisis, which reshaped Assyrian politics. As the war culminated with Shamshi-Adad V's victory and Babylon's intervention, the episode examines the shift from centralized royal rule to a more feudal structure that would define Assyria's future. Join us as we explore ancient Assyrian politics, Shalmaneser's Black Obelisk, and the transition from monarchy to magnate governance in this pivotal moment in Mesopotamian history. If you like the show, consider sharing with your friends, leaving a like, subscribing, or even supporting financially: Buy the Oldest Stories books: https://a.co/d/7Wn4jhS Donate here: https://oldeststories.net/ or on patreon: https://patreon.com/JamesBleckley or on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCG2tPxnHNNvMd0VrInekaA/join

We are in the section of Ezekiel's prophecies where the proclamations against particular nations have collected together. In our last episode we concluded the prophecy against Tyre and began the prophecies against Egypt. We begin with a symbolic proclamation against the cedar of Assyria. Cedars were seen as symbols of royalty and majesty in the Near East; and just as noble Assyria was brought low, so too, Egypt will be cut down. Pharaoh, in all of his splendor, will be humiliated and destroyed by the sword of Babylon's king, and neither he nor his kingdom will rise again to its former glory.Ezekiel 31 - 1:03 . Ezekiel 32 - 6:35 . Proverbs 24 - 14:24 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

Support Common Prayer Daily @ PatreonVisit our Website for more www.commonprayerdaily.com_______________Opening Words:“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”Psalm 19:14 (ESV) Confession:Let us humbly confess our sins unto Almighty God. Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen. Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen. The InvitatoryLord, open our lips.And our mouth shall proclaim your praise.Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. Venite (Psalm 95:1-7)Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: Come let us adore him. Come, let us sing to the Lord; * let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving * and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.For the Lord is a great God, * and a great King above all gods.In his hand are the caverns of the earth, * and the heights of the hills are his also.The sea is his, for he made it, * and his hands have molded the dry land.Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, * and kneel before the Lord our Maker.For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. *Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice! Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: Come let us adore him. The PsalterPsalm 78Part IAttendite, popule1Hear my teaching, O my people; *incline your ears to the words of my mouth.2I will open my mouth in a parable; *I will declare the mysteries of ancient times.3That which we have heard and known,and what our forefathers have told us, *we will not hide from their children.4We will recount to generations to comethe praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord, *and the wonderful works he has done.5He gave his decrees to Jacoband established a law for Israel, *which he commanded them to teach their children;6That the generations to come might know,and the children yet unborn; *that they in their turn might tell it to their children;7So that they might put their trust in God, *and not forget the deeds of God,but keep his commandments;8And not be like their forefathers,a stubborn and rebellious generation, *a generation whose heart was not steadfast,and whose spirit was not faithful to God.9The people of Ephraim, armed with the bow, *turned back in the day of battle;10They did not keep the covenant of God, *and refused to walk in his law;11They forgot what he had done, *and the wonders he had shown them.12He worked marvels in the sight of their forefathers, *in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.13He split open the sea and let them pass through; *he made the waters stand up like walls.14He led them with a cloud by day, *and all the night through with a glow of fire.15He split the hard rocks in the wilderness *and gave them drink as from the great deep.16He brought streams out of the cliff, *and the waters gushed out like rivers.17But they went on sinning against him, *rebelling in the desert against the Most High.18They tested God in their hearts, *demanding food for their craving.19They railed against God and said, *“Can God set a table in the wilderness?20True, he struck the rock, the waters gushed out, and the gullies overflowed; *but is he able to give breador to provide meat for his people?”21When the Lord heard this, he was full of wrath; *a fire was kindled against Jacob,and his anger mounted against Israel;22For they had no faith in God, *nor did they put their trust in his saving power.23So he commanded the clouds above *and opened the doors of heaven.24He rained down manna upon them to eat *and gave them grain from heaven.25So mortals ate the bread of angels; *he provided for them food enough.26He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens *and led out the south wind by his might.27He rained down flesh upon them like dust *and wingèd birds like the sand of the sea.28He let it fall in the midst of their camp *and round about their dwellings.29So they ate and were well filled, *for he gave them what they craved.30But they did not stop their craving, *though the food was still in their mouths.31So God's anger mounted against them; *he slew their strongest menand laid low the youth of Israel.32In spite of all this, they went on sinning *and had no faith in his wonderful works.33So he brought their days to an end like a breath *and their years in sudden terror.34Whenever he slew them, they would seek him, *and repent, and diligently search for God.35They would remember that God was their rock, *and the Most High God their redeemer.36But they flattered him with their mouths *and lied to him with their tongues.37Their heart was not steadfast toward him, *and they were not faithful to his covenant.38But he was so merciful that he forgave their sinsand did not destroy them; *many times he held back his angerand did not permit his wrath to be roused.39For he remembered that they were but flesh, *a breath that goes forth and does not return. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. LessonsNehemiah 9:26-38English Standard Version26 “Nevertheless, they were disobedient and rebelled against you and cast your law behind their back and killed your prophets, who had warned them in order to turn them back to you, and they committed great blasphemies. 27 Therefore you gave them into the hand of their enemies, who made them suffer. And in the time of their suffering they cried out to you and you heard them from heaven, and according to your great mercies you gave them saviors who saved them from the hand of their enemies. 28 But after they had rest they did evil again before you, and you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies, so that they had dominion over them. Yet when they turned and cried to you, you heard from heaven, and many times you delivered them according to your mercies. 29 And you warned them in order to turn them back to your law. Yet they acted presumptuously and did not obey your commandments, but sinned against your rules, which if a person does them, he shall live by them, and they turned a stubborn shoulder and stiffened their neck and would not obey. 30 Many years you bore with them and warned them by your Spirit through your prophets. Yet they would not give ear. Therefore you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. 31 Nevertheless, in your great mercies you did not make an end of them or forsake them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.32 “Now, therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love, let not all the hardship seem little to you that has come upon us, upon our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria until this day. 33 Yet you have been righteous in all that has come upon us, for you have dealt faithfully and we have acted wickedly. 34 Our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers have not kept your law or paid attention to your commandments and your warnings that you gave them. 35 Even in their own kingdom, and amid your great goodness that you gave them, and in the large and rich land that you set before them, they did not serve you or turn from their wicked works. 36 Behold, we are slaves this day; in the land that you gave to our fathers to enjoy its fruit and its good gifts, behold, we are slaves. 37 And its rich yield goes to the kings whom you have set over us because of our sins. They rule over our bodies and over our livestock as they please, and we are in great distress.38  “Because of all this we make a firm covenant in writing; on the sealed document are the names of our princes, our Levites, and our priests.Revelation 18:9-20English Standard Version9 And the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning. 10 They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,“Alas! Alas! You great city,    you mighty city, Babylon!For in a single hour your judgment has come.”11 And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, 12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.14 “The fruit for which your soul longed    has gone from you,and all your delicacies and your splendors    are lost to you,    never to be found again!”15 The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,16 “Alas, alas, for the great city    that was clothed in fine linen,        in purple and scarlet,    adorned with gold,        with jewels, and with pearls!17 For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste.”And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18 and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning,“What city was like the great city?”19 And they threw dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out,“Alas, alas, for the great city    where all who had ships at sea    grew rich by her wealth!For in a single hour she has been laid waste.20 Rejoice over her, O heaven,    and you saints and apostles and prophets,for God has given judgment for you against her!” The Word of the Lord.Thanks Be To God. Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; * he has come to his people and set them free.He has raised up for us a mighty savior, * born of the house of his servant David.Through his holy prophets he promised of old, that he would save us from our enemies, * from the hands of all who hate us. He promised to show mercy to our fathers * and to remember his holy covenant. This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, * to set us free from the hands of our enemies, Free to worship him without fear, * holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, * for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, To give his people knowledge of salvation * by the forgiveness of their sins.In the tender compassion of our God * the dawn from on high shall break upon us, To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, * and to guide our feet into the way of peace.Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. The Apostles CreedI believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. The PrayersLord, have mercy.Christ, have mercyLord, have mercyOur Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen. The SuffragesO Lord, show your mercy upon us;And grant us your salvation.O Lord, guide those who govern usAnd lead us in the way of justice and truth.Clothe your ministers with righteousnessAnd let your people sing with joy.O Lord, save your peopleAnd bless your inheritance.Give peace in our time, O LordAnd defend us by your mighty power.Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgottenNor the hope of the poor be taken away.Create in us clean hearts, O GodAnd take not your Holy Spirit from us. Take a moment of silence at this time to reflect and pray for others. The CollectsProper 27O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Daily Collects:A Collect for PeaceO God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries, through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.A Collect for GraceO Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us safely to the beginning of this day: Defend us by your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin nor run into any danger; and that, guided by your Spirit, we may do what is righteous in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.Collect of Saint BasilO Christ God, Who art worshipped and glorified at every place and time; Who art long-suffering, most merciful and compassionate; Who lovest the righteous and art merciful to sinners; Who callest all to salvation with the promise of good things to come: receive, Lord, the prayers we now offer, and direct our lives in the way of Thy commandments. Sanctify our souls, cleanse our bodies, correct our thoughts, purify our minds and deliver us from all affliction, evil and illness. Surround us with Thy holy angels, that guarded and instructed by their forces, we may reach unity of faith and the understanding of Thine unapproachable glory: for blessed art Thou unto ages of ages. Amen. General ThanksgivingAlmighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. And, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; Through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen. A Prayer of St. John ChrysostomAlmighty God, you have given us grace at this time, with one accord to make our common supplications to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will grant their requests: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen. DismissalLet us bless the LordThanks be to God!Alleluia, Alleluia! BenedictionThe grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen

Join us for Week 8 of our series, The Chronicles of Judah, as we dive into the life of King Hezekiah. Through pivotal moments in Hezekiah's story, we see how one decision can flip the momentum of an entire nation and how a single act of faith can overcome fear. Even in the face of brutal threats from Sennacherib, the King of Assyria, Hezekiah inspires his people to trust God, preparing them both physically and spiritually for battle. But when pride takes center stage, Hezekiah's triumph fades, reminding us that while faith builds momentum, pride can destroy it.

A Fake Christianity (3) Judgments Bring Repentance (audio) David Eells – 11/3/24 Saints, I'm going to share some more revelations of the fake Christianity and some warnings of judgments that the Lord has shown us are coming on the apostate church to bring repentance. I believe the Lord has shown the Trump political revival has bought us some time for the Man-child revival to prepare the Church for the Mid-trib beast to make war on the saints in Revelation 13. President Trump will be our last president who will be with us until the corporate beast takes authority. Redeem the time to draw near to the Lord to prepare.     Breaking Story Mary Clark - 09/10/2006 The Lord showed me a newspaper and I was scanning it for a story. Then I heard Him say, "Breaking story". Here is His breaking story: I am the Lord God Almighty. I know the news before it happens. I know exactly the slant that is going to be given to the news before the newscaster speaks. I know all. I see all. And I want you, beloved, to rest in the knowledge that nothing EVER escapes the view of your God. Nothing EVER catches Me by surprise. Rest in this knowledge. Rest in the knowledge that I know the "breaking story" before it is ever broken to you. I know it inside and out. I know it before the t's are crossed and the i's are dotted. In this hour, I see many doubting My existence. I see just as many of My own losing heart. I see you backing down on your allegiance to Me and My cause. This is no surprise to Me either, for I know your heart. I know your doubting heart. I know your dissatisfied heart. What am I going to do about this, you wonder? I will tell you quite succinctly: I am going to rip something open that has never been ripped open. That is what I am going to do. I am going to expose something that has never been exposed. I am going to show the world and My own something that you have never viewed, and when I do, I will not only have My beloved's attention, I will have the attention of ALL of the world, and when I say all of the world, I mean just that - ALL of the world. So watch for this BIG exposure as it comes forth by My hand, and know when it makes its appearance that the living God has called you to attention - signaled you that the end is near - signaled you that He is coming to take you home where you belong - home where His heart will envelop you in His forever love for all eternity. That is My breaking news, beloved. That is what I want to tell you. Consider yourself told. Consider yourself notified of this most unusual news, and know deep within that your God is doing you another favor - another kind favor is coming your way. Get poised for action, beloved. Again I say, get poised for action on My part - on My behalf, for you are now entering the twelfth hour - the twelfth hour when the Lord God Almighty shines forth His glory, exposes something that has been hidden, and enables the whole world to peer into this interesting Breaking News - this news that will light the way into action on My part - action that will benefit My cause and stir hearts in a most pronounced fashion. A fashion that the world has never seen - never realized – and is coming by way of My church. Get ready, beloved, for I am taking you into a new dimension of hope - a brand new dimension of My favor and hope everlasting!!!     Enough Is Enough Prophecy through a prophet friend in east Florida - 12/02/2003 Today the people say, 'speak only smooth things, I don't want to hear anything bad'. Well the false prophets are saying 'prosperity, prosperity, prosperity, all is well. We will fly away; we will see no judgment. Put away the prophets of gloom and doom'. Well I say, 'Thus saith the Lord, judgment is coming; it is coming swift and soon'. I say to the prosperity prophets, 'You will be shamed. The people will walk away from you. The walls of your false prosperity will fall. The people will not listen to you anymore'. My true prophets have been rejected and put away, but it will not last. When all judgments come under the earth, they will call them out of their dungeons and say 'What else did the Lord have to say?' Gross darkness is coming and is coming very soon, people will fear and tremble and not know which way to go but the Lord will bring light, and light will be in that darkness. You will see who is of Me and who is false. Truth will come forth and the people will be brought to the light and in truth and the fear of the Lord will they come. Out of love and mercy I will restore and I will heal. I will take away your idols and you will put nothing before Me. I'm about to shake this earth. The earth is My foot stool and the heaven is My throne. Turn away from the darkness and this world so you can have Life. A great shaking is coming. I will put peace on My people that know Me and I will protect those that love and know Me. Enough is enough, judgment is coming. Thus saith the Lord!     God Gave Time to Repent Vision given to Aritina Patlagica in Romania For some years now, each time our prayer group comes together, we set aside a time to pray specifically for America. One day after all the brothers had gathered together, we began to pray, and while we were praying I had a vision. I saw a large map, on which I read the words "United States of America". What could this be? I asked myself. Suddenly a hand appeared and it began marking certain places on the map. Then a man, dressed in white appeared beside the map, and he began to speak.  "See, God has given them time to turn to Him, time to repent and make their path straight, but they did not obey. Therefore, instead of mercy He will show vengeance. Do you see the places that have been marked? Those are the places upon which His wrath will descend in different ways. God will not be mocked! Remember what I tell you, rather than mercy He will pour out vengeance." I was shaken to the very core of my being, not from what I saw or what I heard, but from the fact that I know God fulfills that which He speaks. I am 78 years old, and in my lifetime I have seen the word of God come to pass too often to ever doubt.     "17" David Eells 12/03/2003 We appear to be hearing that a strong chastening is on the way. I received this verse from the Lord. Jer.51:8 Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: wail for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed. 9 We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country; for her judgment reacheth unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies. 10 Jehovah hath brought forth our righteousness: come, and let us declare in Zion the work of Jehovah our God. Our own country is of course abiding in Christ our heavenly New Testament Zion (Heb.12:18-24). In the text Jeremiah is speaking of the judgment of Babylon because they have made the nations "mad" with the cup of wrath they have dealt to them (Jer.25:15,16; Hab.2:7,8). I also received: Pro.2:22 But the wicked shall be cut off from the land, And the treacherous shall be rooted out of it. Then I  received: 2 Chron. 35:17 And the children of Israel that were present kept the Passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days. The pass-over of judgment is for those who have eaten all of the Lamb, Jesus, the Word of the unleavened bread (Exo.12:10). "Our Passover also hath been sacrificed, even Christ" (1 Cor.5:7). (Gal.3:13) Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: 14 that upon the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus... Believe what the unleavened bread teaches and claim the blood over your doorposts. The above verse (17) is also the number of preservation through judgment. On the "seventeenth day" the flood came when Noah was in the ark (Gen.7:11). Genesis 7:17) is when the ark lifted off. Joseph was 17 when he was sold into slavery and accused wrongfully in Egypt but God preserved and promoted him to save many alive. Pray for the elect.     Spiritually Starving Christians K H. - 09/21/2008 (David's notes in red) I had finally reunited with a friend whom I haven't seen in several years; we went to the grocery store for some things to make for dinner. As we began to get the groceries at this huge grocery store which reminded me of Wal-Mart or Costco, I noticed to my left there was a very large group of people sitting at long tables, eating food. I then turned to my friend and asked her if she had any idea what was going on; she did not. As we continued to get the things we went to the store for, I was still very concerned about the group that was eating in this grocery store. My friend and I then decided that we were going to leave our basket and go over to talk to some of the people who were eating to find out what was going on. My friend then walked up to a man who was eating with his family and asked, "Why are you eating here?" He then proceeded to tell her that it was because he and his family were starving and this was the only way to provide food for his family. This puzzled me as I looked back at the huge store full of groceries; it just didn't make sense to me that there were so many starving families, yet there was an abundance of food for them to have. (The Church is starving to death while there is an abundance of food for the soul to be had in God's grocery store of His Word.) After my friend and I talked to that man, I glanced up and saw that there was this long line along the wall and there were people going into this room that was off to the side and were coming out with food. My friend and I decided that we would get in line to get a closer look at what was going on. As we inched closer and closer to the door, I saw that there were three military men in the room; this concerned me because I knew that this wasn't right. I thought, "Why is the military providing this food?" (In Jesus' day, as in the coming days, the military of the beast enforces the dictates of the apostate religious leaders in exchange for their favor in keeping the religious pacified. In this way, the harlot rides the beast and is guilty of the blood of the saints [Rev.17].) When we were the next in line, I saw a military officer sitting at a table that was lined with cups of some kind of meat and two soldiers standing on either side of him with their rifles in hand. I then saw rows of opened bags of Texas-style bread just lying on the floor, which I thought was odd because I would've thought that would be on a table, along with the meat that was being provided. (Bread represents the Word of God and is not highly thought of or valued and therefore takes the lowest position, the floor. Meat, on the other hand, represents doing the works of God. Joh.4:34 Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to accomplish his work. Society as a whole puts more value on doing what they call the works of God, which is really dead religious works like the Pharisees did.) As my friend and I got up to the officer, he asked my friend if we wanted some and she said, "Sure", so he handed her two cups of meat and a handful of bread. We then went to sit down at one of the tables. After we sat down I asked the Lord to bless the food. I took a piece of the meat which I then saw was crab meat and placed it in my mouth. When I put the piece of crab meat in my mouth, I could tell that it had a very weird rubbery texture and it tasted rancid. The weird thing was that it didn't smell rancid at all but it was definitely rancid. I then spit it out of my mouth and turned to my friend who was eating her cup of rancid meat and bread like there was nothing wrong with it.  I was shocked and asked her, "Don't you taste that this crab is rancid?" She then stopped eating it and told me that now that she thought about it, it did taste a little off and she stopped eating it. (Crabs were considered unclean in the Old Testament. They are scavengers and will eat anything, just like a lot of religious people, and we are not to partake of their lifestyle. Crabs are hard-shelled and you cannot get through to them, like many religious people. On top of that, this meat was rotten, indicating their works were rotten before God.) I then turned to a little girl who was sitting next to me and asked her if she realized that the crab meat was rancid. She told me that she did but she was so hungry she was eating the meat anyway. She also added that they were told that the meat was about two weeks past its expiration date. (Many have made of no effect the scriptures by their traditions and therefore do not know that the Word was given to show us how to do the works of God. To them, their traditions are all there is and they don't know that they are partaking of garbage. Since we reap what we sow, we are partaking of our own works.) After speaking to the little girl, I decided that it was time for us to go and we left that area of the store and just left without getting the groceries that we had come for. I was so grieved as my friend and I left the store because of all those starving people who were eating food that they knew was not okay to eat just because that's all that they knew to do. (They are starving for the bread and meat of Christ, the Word. We have heard it said that we are what we eat. The Word should be spiritually consumed so that it creates in us the life of Christ. Joh.6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth hath eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread which cometh down out of heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. 51 I am the living bread which came down out of heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: yea and the bread which I will give is my flesh, for the life of the world.   52 The Jews therefore strove one with another, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? 53 Jesus therefore said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ye have not life in yourselves. (Father is speaking of the meat and life of acting on the Word, which is not from man.) 54 He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life: and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56 He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood abideth in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father; so he that eateth me, he also shall live because of me. 58 This is the bread which came down out of heaven: not as the fathers ate, and died; he that eateth this bread shall live forever.) When I woke up, the first thing that I thought was this dream must have taken place during martial law because that is the only way I would think the military would be providing food like that to the masses. Also, I was reminded of Pro 19:25 which says: Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; And the idle soul shall suffer hunger. After I shared it with a few people and prayed about it more, God revealed to me more of what the dreamt meant. He later showed me that the military men were there representing the authority in the apostate Church, like the pastors who are feeding the sheep rancid meat (A defiled Word of God) and are being led astray by not seeking out the truth in the Word, working out their own salvation with fear and trembling and seeking Him. Also, He revealed to me that these people or the apostate church are seeking out the physical bread for nourishment (following another Jesus), rather than the bread of life, Jesus. John 6:35 Jesus said unto them. I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall not hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. The apostate Christians are still looking to their pastors to feed them; meanwhile, the true Bread of life and Word of God is right there for them to have. Maybe the grocery store full of food represents that? (Yes it does)     Resistance to the Spirit of Truth The Water Glass Vision Russ Lewis - 09/01/2007 I wanted to share this vision with my brothers and sisters in the Lord. A friend of mine referred me to UBM about a week before I had this vision. I appreciate the teachings and the faith UBM shares in our Lord Jesus Christ. I was sitting in church, listening to a sermon on January 14, 2007, when I saw a vision that left a vivid and lasting impression on me. In this vision, I saw a crystal pitcher full of water being poured into an overflowing crystal glass. The water kept pouring endlessly out into the glass, even though the glass was overflowing. The pitcher and the glass were suspended in midair. There was a constant stream of water flowing from the pitcher to the glass. The whole vision was shown with a black background and there was some kind of light from above that really made the crystal look bright and clear on that black background. The first thing I thought was, "I know this picture, Lord. It is from Psalms 23:5: My cup overflows". I had heard many teachings about this one verse, how God's Spirit, His grace and His mercy are poured out in us until our cups overflow. In other words, it is abundantly more than enough and more than we need. He pours it out in us freely. You don't deserve it and you can't earn it. I was intrigued, so I started to take a closer look at the glass in the vision. I noticed there was something covering the glass that resembled clear plastic wrap. As I looked closer, I noticed the plastic wrap had sealed the top of the glass and the water was just pooling up on top and pouring over the glass. I was a little confused. The cup looked from the outside like it was all full and overflowing, but the water didn't appear to be getting into the glass. I then thought, "If it is not getting into the glass, what is inside the glass?" When I looked at the side of the glass, I could see that the glass was only half full and that the level of water in the glass was slowly dropping. I asked the Lord, "What does this mean?" The Lord showed me that this was the way I was living my life. I had busied my life up so much with the things of this world (hobbies, sports, computer stuff, etc.) that I had put my hands up to God and said, "Not now Lord, I am kind of busy", or "I will do that real soon, Lord", or just plain ignored Him. Eventually I had built a covering over my glass (vessel) that was keeping Him out, so I could do the things that I wanted to do (worldly things, sin, etc.). The level of water in the glass slowly dropping was representative of the grace and mercy being used up in my life and not being replenished. The Holy Spirit is very much like the water. (Which is the water of His Word) If we are full of the Holy Spirit (water), then there is no room for sin in our lives (so be vessels of honor). However, there is a more devious side to the plastic covering. When I first saw the vision, the cup "appeared" to be overflowing (the appearance of "All's well"). I ask the Lord, "Am I just a fake, coming to fill a pew and having the illusion of being a 'Good Christian' (my cup overflowing for all to see), when inside I am just spiritually drying up and dying and no one knows it?! " The words "Whitewashed Tomb" in Matthew 23:27 came to mind! The Lord also showed me that it was not just me that was living this way, but most of the Christian world was living this way (meaning, in Apostasy). I refused to continue living in this dead way! I decided to pray and asked Jesus to lift off this covering from my "glass" and to let His Spirit flow back in my life and to fill me up until I overflowed! (With the Spirit of the Word) He did it, just like I asked! He has completely changed my life! Again! I have been filled ("refilled") with His Holy Spirit, His love and His compassion. My cup, once again, is overflowing with His grace and mercy! I feel like I have had my eyes opened. I can see so much better, what is going on around me and in the world! I have an unending desire to read and consume His word! When I read the scriptures, the Spirit makes His word explode with meaning to me. What used to be unclear is now very clear. It amazes me how much the things of this world do not matter to me any longer when I am filled with His Spirit. There is a great thing happening and how could the mindless dead things of this world even compare to the awesome powerful epic events that are unfolding before our very eyes! Over the next couple of days, the Lord was keeping me up late at night and saying over and over, "Share this with My people". Then He said, "Share this vision with My church and then pray for My church". So the next Sunday I shared it with my local church. Although some responded, I know that there is a battle going on out there for our very lives! Since that Sunday, I have been sharing this vision with most every brother and sister in the Lord Jesus that I come across. And now I am sharing it with you. I pray that our Lord Jesus Christ will remove any covering you may have over your "glass" and I pray the He will fill you until you overflow with His Spirit (and Word), His grace and His mercy. Amen. Peace to you in our Lord Jesus Christ. Note from B.R.: I believe that our Father is calling His people out of the harlot church and into the true church. The true church is a body of believers that are producing the fruit of Jesus Christ. Maybe that thin plastic wrap preventing the living waters to fill us is the teaching of the harlot church. I believe that is much more insidious and hidden than those other things which keep us in the world for the harlot church is full of dead men's bones and denies the power of our Father through His Son Jesus Christ. "Come out of her my people".     Fleecing the Sheep Dr. Mary Dooley - 03/12/2011 (David's notes in red) I had a dream just before waking this morning at 6:00 am. (Six is the number of man and flesh.) I was in a car driving in a wealthy neighborhood that had detailed landscaping for homes that were close together but each one on top of its own steep hill. (The rich denominations or sects of Christianity with their own little kingdoms and sectarian ways are actually very close in their apostate ways. Those who worshipped the golden calves and falsely called them Elohim represent those who worship a false prosperity Jesus and made their houses in the high places.  They were not of Levi, meaning they were not ordained of God to be priests and leaders. 1Ki.12:28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold; and he said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. ... 31 And he made houses of high places, and made priests from among all the people, that were not of the sons of Levi.) The grass, etc., was well-watered and lush. (Peter said, "All flesh is as grass," so they are feeding those who walk in flesh their version of the water of the Word.) As I was driving, I was surprised to see one or two small animals at the bottom of the hill of the property, near the bottom of the driveway, which went up on the left side of the property. (Those sheep are not highly esteemed by the apostate goats from the left.) I slowed down to see what they were doing. They were digging their heads into the moist dirt to try to get water. They were very weak and were not finding water. (They were dying for lack of the water of life, which is the Word of God. This water cannot come from the earth but from heaven.) I got out of my car to get a closer look and realized they were small sheep. They were lying on the dirt, barely able to move their heads. There was an older woman at the top of the hill who had just watered the yard and I thought I would go up there to get water, but surprisingly the yard was loose dirt and very steep, and I was unable to climb it. (There is no solid foundation to receive any word from the sects of apostasy.) I noticed the landscaping that lined the driveway; it was white and fluffy. Then I stepped on it as I was going back down the hill and realized it was sheared sheep's wool. (The sheep get deceived and plundered by the rich leadership, as the world accurately calls it, "fleecing the sheep" for their tithe.) I picked up one sheep at the bottom of the hill, thinking I could take it to water. I turned it over in my arm, like holding a baby, and realized they were also weak from starvation. (The sheep spend years supporting the wicked leadership of these sects and they never grow up for lack of the real Word of God. These rich in the ways of the world rob the sheep to feed themselves, their egos and their pocketbooks. The Lord says He will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.) I headed for my car to take it with me to find water and food. I also knew I had water in my car. (Many, as vessels of the Lord's Word, will rescue these famished sheep in the days to come and they will be taught of the Lord.) Eze.34:1 And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying, 2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, even to the shepherds, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Woe unto the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the sheep? 3 Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill the fatlings; but ye feed not the sheep. 4 The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought back that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with rigor have ye ruled over them.   5 And they were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and they became food to all the beasts of the field, and were scattered. 6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my sheep were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and there was none that did search or seek [after them]. 7 Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of Jehovah: 8 As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, surely forasmuch as my sheep became a prey, and my sheep became food to all the beasts of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my sheep, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my sheep;   9 therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of Jehovah: 10 Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the sheep; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves anymore; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them. 11 For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I myself, even I, will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. 12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered abroad, so will I seek out my sheep; and I will deliver them out of all places whither they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.   13 And I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them upon the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited places of the country. 14 I will feed them with good pasture; and upon the mountains of the height of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie down in a good fold; and on fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord Jehovah.   16 I will seek that which was lost, and will bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but the fat and the strong I will destroy; I will feed them in justice. 17 And as for you, O my flock, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, the rams and the he-goats. 18 Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have fed upon the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture? and to have drunk of the clear waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet? 19 And as for my sheep, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet, and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet. 20 Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah unto them: Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21 Because ye thrust with side and with shoulder, and push all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; 22 therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. 23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. 24 And I, Jehovah, will be their God, and my servant David prince among them; I, Jehovah, have spoken it. 25 And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil beasts to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell securely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. In the parable of the sower the good shepherd was the Lord who sowed the good seed in their hearts and yet 3 of 4 fell away. How much greater is the loss when the shepherd is an apostate? Come out from among them.     Jesus Is Calling His Sheep Out Again Doug Hanson - 11/22/2009 (David's notes in red) Before I share this dream, let me give you the background of the two people I saw in it. The two people were 1) The son of the pastor of the institutional church I used to attend. His name is Jordan, which I believe refers to death to self. (A type of those who have every reason to stay and inherit the traditions and authority of the traditional church but accept their baptism of death to enter the Land of Promise.) And 2) A teenage girl from that church who was very innocent and godly. Her name is Jessica, which, according to Google, means "God is watching" or "The Lord Beholds". (A type of many who have served the Lord to the best of their knowledge and conscience in traditional religion and are the "apple of God's eye".) The thing about these two is that both of them were raised in the institutional church system virtually from birth and were very loyal to the church building, pastor and what was taught in the church building. So in the dream these two people, the pastor's son and the young girl, were actually at an Unleavened Bread Bible Study and I saw them sitting at a table with a microphone and I saw it like they were on a TV screen. (This will be very public and heard by many.) They had come out of the institutional church system and were announcing on the microphone that they were renouncing most of what they had been taught in the church building, including the pre-tribulation rapture teaching, and they were embracing a lot of truths taught at the Unleavened Bread Bible Study. As they were talking, they did have kind of a serious look and tone about them as they knew that they would be ostracized and rejected by the people and system that they were renouncing and coming out of. (Historically, in a great revival, there is great persecution from those who are stuck in the traditions of men.) Despite this rejection, they were determined and single-minded to come out of the old way that they had been raised in. History is about to repeat. "The things that have been are the things that shall be". At the end of the Jews' covenant, Jesus, the Man-child, came to lead those with eyes and ears out of apostate Judaism. Now, at the end of the Christians' covenant, the Man-child of Revelation 12, in whom Jesus lives by Word and Spirit, will call forth these same people out of apostate Christianity in another great revival, which will be spoken against. As it was in the former rain, so it will be in the latter rain. Joh.10:1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  Those who lead by the authority of men, rather than God. 2 But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. (This story is told in Ezekiel 34.) 3 To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. 4 When he hath put forth all his own, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. 5 And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.     Rescuing the Sheep Lorrie Deeter - 07/22/2007 (David's notes in red) In a dream, a little cat with what appeared to be a cat mask on was seated in a high-backed throne with a crown upon its head; it appeared to be adorable. He was seated high, as on a platform above people. He had a ruler in his hand and was pointing to different people, as if giving orders or instructions. From out of nowhere a great big lion (Lion of Judah) appeared and leaped upon the throne of the little (rebellious) cat and placed it before him and then under his feet, as a footstool. (The ruler represents measurement. Mat.7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you. 3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is in thine own eye? 5 Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.) Then what appeared before me were sheep, cattle and goats, all sitting in rows in what appeared to be a building. Some fat, some skinny and some bloated. Some had blindfolds on, some had earmuffs on and some had earplugs placed within their ears. Some appeared to be blind and others deaf. A man then appeared before them, dressed in a suit and tie. I could not see his face but as the sheep would come forth he would bend down and take from them what appeared to be money and lay hands upon them as he looked up. (A pay as we pray preacher.) I then saw a face as a wolf turn into view. Then out of nowhere the sheep were plucked out of his hand one by one, as the eagles swooped down and snatched them from him and all the sheep disappeared!  (The Lord will deliver His sheep.) As I went back to lay down, I thought on the cattle and goats... and then this was spoken: "The cattle are raised up for destruction. (Cows only eat grass, which Peter said represented flesh, and they only feed milk. They represent perpetually immature Christians.) The goats are those who pretend to be of the sheepfold. (They represent the rebellious. (Eze.34:10) Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the sheep; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves anymore; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them.) Then this is what was spoken forth: "The fur shall drop and the masks shall be pulled away!" (The true sheep will see the false shepherds for what they are.) Word Given: Luk.6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? MY daughter, I have many woes and this MY first of many woes is to the shepherds and also to the leaders and to those who speak (falsely) in MY name, sayeth the Lord. Woe to those who have raised themselves up, led many, many of MY people astray. (Self- or Babylon-ordained preachers, as in Jesus' day) These are they who have erred from MY TRUTH, MY WORD. I shall bring down the crown of their pride. I will bring down the haughty and those high minded, who have not sought counsel from ME nor sought MY FACE, says the Lord, but of themselves and that of man. To those who have sought counsel from man shall I bring down, for they have not spoken the TRUTH of MY WORD. I, the Lord thy God am sending MY sons and daughters forth and they shall surely take from the leaders and bring back that which is ALL MINE and bring them forth unto ME, says the Lord. (The "eagles swooped down and snatched them".)  For these are the ones who have deceived MY children and are deceived of themselves, continually deceiving MY people, MY chosen! These are they who have not walked in MY ways, for they did NOT bring to ME MY sheep. For they have kept them for themselves and led them away from seeking MY FACE, MY WORD. For I shall surely bring the wicked down and tear down from them all their high places. You are MINE, says the Lord. For BEHOLD, I AM coming quickly and MY reward is with ME! Isa.28:3 The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, shall be trodden under feet: ... 9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. ... 17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. ...   Isa.29:10 For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered. ... 15 Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us? ... 18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness. ... 30:1 Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin:     Sonship or Persecutor? Golda Meyer - 05/14/2006 Children, carry forth this message, for truly the time is no more. Hours in the day are crunched. Mercy time is crunched because of My chosen ones. For long you have walked in the wilderness, hoping for more, groaning for more and crying for more. I have seen your tears and I know of the cries in your hearts. Children, the time is here. Like Mary accepted the seed of the Holy Spirit in her womb, so did you. But travail came in a terrible way in her young life, but she rejoiced in the Birth of the Sign - Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Sign, but even the Sign had to be fulfilled in the Promise. And this is happening. Children, it is happening still, for the Promise is fulfilled with many sons of God coming into Sonship. Children, this is that time now. It is Sonship time. Now you will see the true Sonship. Men and Women of God on this earth truly walking like Jesus did. By this you can see who sons are and who are not. Discernment will be so easy, and the works wrought by their hands in perfection, is driven by Love. And this Love is from God, for no man, does not matter how long and hard they try, and muster this Love up from their own will. These sons are sent by God, and cannot by their own will achieve anything. They have died and given over fully their wills to God. Deep in the river do they abide, knowing only the Love and Strength and Life of their God. You will see them appear - all of them. From the quiet and the secret places are they coming forth, and in great strength, for all in them is from Me. And they shall rule, in the way I want them to rule. No tolerance for evil or flesh will they be able to show, for the mere idea stinks with rot. For I AM in them, fully employed and in Power. They will not tolerate any mediocrity either and harsh will be their words sometimes, but it is for healing only, motivated by Love. You shall see their strength and their beauty in the LORD. Only those who have abided in the LORD, can follow this road. Abiding in the Vine, the Vine of all Life-giving. Only those can move to Sonship, for in fellowship and intimacy of God, only herein could they grow into maturity. That time of Maturity is here. And they will mature simultaneously, in great numbers, to impact this world. This world will know of the Glory of the Lord, for it will be shown in great and splendid public display. (The Man-child reformers.) How this shall be? Oh you shall see, for ALL will be healed in the Presence of God, in Mine Glory and ALL shall be delivered in the Presence of God, of those that will accept the LORD Jesus Christ as their Savior. The Healing and Deliverance is for ALL, who will receive Me. For ALL. They will walk talk and do like Jesus, and even more so. For much splendor will I bestow on this earth and great is the Glory of God, for Mine Presence will fill this earth, and even the sinners will know that I AM God. So children, eyes wide open, for those that will see, shall see, and those that will hear, shall hear. The others shall be veiled, unless My intercessors intercede and stand in the gap for those that are lost. Children, hear your Father's Heart. I will not that anyone goes astray, so stand in for those that you know are not with Me. For I long to feel them in My Heart, for I have created them in Love. Don't let them die, children, but pray for them to Live, and have Life abundantly. You are greatly blessed with the Light; now shine that Light unto others, so they may live. Dearest children, this, your Father, asks of you today, to be merciful unto others as I AM merciful to you. Pray earnestly for those and I shall save them, for the prayers of the righteous avail much. Love Me first and love others as you love yourself, and truly your rewards are great in Christ Jesus. Now then, My beloved, pray for unity, for I want My Church together in great strength, for in unity there can be no division and if no division, then comes forth great Strength in Christ. Accept then each other, and do not cuddle dominion loyalty, but be loyal to your God and to each other. As I AM, so you shall be. Now see My sons, for you shall truly say: show us the Father? How long have I been in your midst? See then Me, in My sons, for this is who I AM. ALL in ALL. Dearest ones, be faithful to My commands and be blessed in Christ Jesus, for truly, great is the time upon you. Great is the Grace upon you and great is the Glory of God upon this earth. So it shall it be. AMEN. Rom.8:16 [Amplified] The Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with our own spirit, [assuring us] that we are children of God. 17 And if we are [His] children, then we are [His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His inheritance with Him]; only we must share His suffering if we are to share His glory. 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time (this present life) are not worth being compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us and in us and for us and conferred on us! 19 For [even the whole] creation (all nature) waits expectantly and longs earnestly for God's sons to be made known [waits for the revealing, the disclosing of their sonship]. 29 For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren. 30 And those whom He thus foreordained, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified (acquitted, made righteous, putting them into right standing with Himself). And those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity and condition or state of being].     Exhortations from the Father Glenn Jackson - 05/14/2006 This is the aforementioned time of "a series of final judgments"! A series of final judgments that will expose the "true" condition of one's heart - as I send My "vessels" of My consuming fire throughout the congregations of My people. Up until now, the vast majority of My children have come to "accept" a "mediocre Christian life". At a time when the deepest desire of My heart is to reveal Myself in My "absoluteness" - in every aspect of My children's lives - many are "content" with a continued mixture of My Word and the "world". But truly I say to you, this shall end "abruptly"! and all those who continue to "dishonor" My Word shall be "cut off", and they shall move further and further out into darkness (the world). They pridefully proclaim that they are still in the "way", but truly I say to you, their "way" is not of Me! And thus they shall "allow" themselves to be used as vessels of persecution against their very own brothers and sisters (The factious)- who are walking in the faith and obedience that pleases Me so. And though they are "family" there shall result a "clear separation" between those of My children who love (obey) Me and those who do not, and it is certain that "all" those who seek Me shall know which group of My children is truly of Me and which group is not. And so shall each man be presented with a clear option. On the one hand, My spotless and unblemished Church - an ever-expanding "vessel" of My Glory and Light and Truth - and on the other hand, the dead and lifeless form of "religion" that acknowledges Me with their lips, but whose hearts are far from the place that they should be - considering their "relationship" to be with Me. But even in their folly I shall not forget them, and I shall send forth My holy apostles and prophets and they shall "devastate" the "strongholds" of the doctrines and traditions which have been a product of the "mental ascension" of those ones who have not drawn near to Me - a mental ascent made continually stronger by their "fellowship" with the world and its ways - a fellowship which gives Satan a continual "inroad" into their lives. Fear not! All those of you who are concerned for those "caught" in this position, for truly I say to you, whatever happens in the midst of My people from here on in shall be for the "greatest eternal benefit" of "all" - both individually and corporately!     Starving Under the Modern Pharisees? Jerry Mooneyham - 12/07/2005 (David's notes in red) As I meditated upon the things of the Lord this morning, the Lord gave me an open vision. I was suddenly standing and looking at what appeared to be an altar. Upon the altar was a lamb, slain. Blood covered this beautiful ornate, golden altar. I was struck with the look of the lamb, and how innocent it looked, almost as if it were sleeping, yet the wounds were apparent, and blood was everywhere. Much to my surprise, a metamorphosis began to take place. The dead lamb began to change. At first it seemed as though there was a blurring of my eyesight. Then the lamb began to take on the shape of a baby lion cub. As I stood there in amazement, it began a rapid change from cub to adolescence; from adolescence to young adult; from young adult to a fully mature male lion, beautiful beyond my limited ability to describe Him. (The opportunity for grace to God's enemies is coming to a close. God is turning from mercy to judgment.) As I watched, He sat upon the beautiful altar. My eyes once again gave the sensation of blurring, and a very large, beautiful, ornate Crown appeared upon His head. It was as if it were made for Him. Then a very large purple robe with gold trim and markings appeared upon His shoulders. It flowed to the floor, over the altar, and down His back. Then, as if on cue, He roared...a deafening roar. All of heaven and earth must have shook for my very insides shook with the intensity of it, and I fell to my face in fear and awe. (The fear of the Lord will soon be restored. Notice His roar represents the shaking of heaven and earth. Isa.5:26 And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss for them from the end of the earth; and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly. 27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:   28 whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent; their horses' hoofs shall be accounted as flint, and their wheels as a whirlwind: 29 their roaring shall be like a lioness, they shall roar like young lions; yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and carry it away safe, and there shall be none to deliver. 30 And they shall roar against them in that day like the roaring of the sea: and if one look unto the land, behold, darkness [and] distress; and the light is darkened in the clouds thereof. Notice the Lord uses the wicked to fulfill His roar. The devil is the serpent and the "hiss" of the Lord's judgment to draw the nations against his rebellious people. 1 Pet.5:8 Be sober, be watchful: your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour, 9 whom withstand steadfast in your faith...) Then I felt someone behind me but I feared to look up for the awe of that mighty roar, yet somehow I knew I must look. As I turned my head ever so slightly and looked behind me, there were untold millions of people from every walk of life, every color and description, young and old. Then once again there was a mighty roar, and people began to come to the front of those who already stood there. To my amazement they were dressed as the priests of old and as the Pharisees. They were handsome, well-dressed, men of apparent stature. But, as they approached this Mighty Animal, He looked down at them and began a low growling. It was deep, and threatening, and seemed to come from deep within this awesome specter. Yet, the people continued to approach Him as if it were their right and privilege. Suddenly, The Mighty Lion Roared again! Everyone fell to the ground and His Mighty right paw swiped the air right in front of those who approached Him, and they fell to the ground, crawled back to some invisible line, and once again stood up, looking at the Mighty Animal as if shocked and disturbed. They spoke to each other, seeming to get angrier by the moment. Some even shook their fists at this Mighty Lion, which seemed so foolish to me, for if He had leapt down none of all those present could have withstood His attack! (The Pharisees of our day believe they have the favor of Christ but He will soon prove differently. They are so self-righteous that they will take no correction from the Lord Himself, His Word, nor His servants. Anyone who does not feed their ego, their idolatry with their sectarian religious spirits, they fight with.  Mic.3:5 Thus saith Jehovah concerning the prophets that make my people to err; that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and whoso putteth not into their mouths, they even prepare war against him: 6 Therefore it shall be night unto you, that ye shall have no vision; and it shall be dark unto you...11 The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet they lean upon Jehovah, and say, Is not Jehovah in the midst of us? no evil shall come upon us.) As I continued to lay there pondering this mystery and wondering what I had seen, fear still gripped my heart, and I could not understand what I was seeing up to this point. I did not understand what I was to do. Then, the Mighty Lion began to roar again. This time there were three roars, each one exceeding the other in volume...and then complete quiet. A sudden peace flooded over me. The stress of what I had felt melted away, and I somehow knew I could stand up. (The Lord will shake heaven and earth and His true people will come.) As I stood there, suddenly I began to move by some unseen force through the hundreds of people who had crowded before me and through the ranks of the Priests and Pharisees. As I looked to my left and right, others too were moved to the forefront, men and women and children! It says in Hos.11:10 They shall walk after Jehovah, who will roar like a lion; for he will roar, and the children shall come trembling from the west. 11 They shall come trembling as a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove out of the land of Assyria; and I will make them to dwell in their houses, saith Jehovah.  Remember the roaring is the shaking of heaven and earth. Hag.2:6 For thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; 7 and I will shake all nations; and the precious things of all nations shall come; and I will fill this house with glory, saith Jehovah of hosts. 8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith Jehovah of hosts.  Literally this is "the desire of all nations shall come" meaning that those that God desires will come out of the nations through the shaking and being filled with His glory and come into His house.  This makes Jesus in His body the "desire of all nations". These people represent the gold and silver vessels that were taken captive to Babylonish religion being restored to the new spiritual temple. Ezr.6:5 And also let the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took forth out of the temple which is at Jerusalem, and brought unto Babylon, be restored, and brought again unto the temple which is at Jerusalem, everyone to its place; and thou shalt put them in the house of God. This seemed to make the Priests and Pharisees much angrier and they began shouting at us, telling us to stand still and not to move or go any further. Some took hold of the arms of those who now stood before them in an attempt to hold them back. (Mat.23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye shut the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye enter not in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering in to enter. The modern-day Pharisees will begin to lose the elect among them and will raise up a persecution against them.) Then, the Mighty Lion looked down at each person who had moved to the front and, as He did, they moved forward to stand before Him on an individual basis. (Phl.2:12 So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure. And Gal.6:3 For if a man thinketh himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. 4 But let each man prove his own work, and then shall he have his glorying in regard of himself alone, and not of his neighbor. 5 For each man shall bear his own burden.) Again my eyes blurred for but the briefest moment, then a crown began to appear upon the heads of each man, woman and child. Some had larger crowns than others and some of the children's crowns were the largest, yet seem to be born with no problem. Upon receiving their crowns they walked yet closer to the Lion. He lifted His Robe and they went into it, disappearing from sight. (Notice that the crowns are for those who come out from among them; the true meaning for Church.) I too stood before Him, and went through the process, feeling a peace I have no words for. I was motioned to turn around and look at the sea of faces and those of the multitude of angry Priests and Pharisees. Then once again, as before, there were three more roars, each growing in strength and intensity. At the moment the third ended, I watched as a multitude of people came forward. They looked as though they had never eaten. They were emaciated, as though they had come from the prison camps of the Nazis. The Priests and Pharisees became even more angry if that were possible, and began fighting with the emaciated ones, holding on to them and trying to restrain them. Yet, as weak as they seemed, the emaciated found the strength, broke free, and walked to the Mighty Lion, disappearing under His beautiful robe. Then, He looked down at me, somehow summoning me without words, and as I entered His Robes, there was a blinding flash of light, and I found myself once again within the natural realm. As in the Gospels and Acts, the elect will come out of the Pharisees' prison camps where they are spiritually starving to death when they see the true food being offered. The shakings of the Lion will cause many to run for the shelter of the true temple, Jesus Christ.     Judgment Has Come Ruth Lang - 01/13/2006 I was meditating on Matthew 10:15 for a few days. I asked the Lord, "Lord, what judgment is there, that is to come upon the nations, that shall be worse than that of Sodom and Gomorrah?" Then the Lord revealed to me suddenly that the true judgment was that they were utterly consumed & given over to their perverted flesh or reprobated. The Lord is saying earnestly to me that, likewise, judgment has come upon the nations and it is, THE DRUNKEN REVELLERY OF THE FLESH THAT IS CONSUMING THE NATIONS. The Saints of God shall know this hour and be sobered by it. (Many will receive much money and have no limits to their ability to sin and be reprobated.)     Our God shall NOT BE MOCKED. Mat.10:15 "Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city". (“Prosperous ease” was the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah – Eze 16:49.) Judgment is upon the nations. TAKE HEED! FOR IT IS SO, DECLARES THE LORD. Judgment has come, HAS COME, HAS COME, ... IT HAS COME. This is truly the Hour of Judgment, I SAY IT IS SO declares the Lord!!! This is worse than that which destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, for in my mercy, says the Lord God, I destroyed Sodom, but in this hour, I SAY, that the judgment that IS and IS TO COME, shall be far worse! It shall be to the utter depths of darkness! The judgment of Drunken Consuming Flesh is upon the nations! Beware and take heed unto THIS HOUR... BE SOBER, BE SOBER, ... As the world revels in a drunken stupor all around their flesh, I say unto you, ... BE SOBER! ... I SAY UNTO YOU, BE SOBER AGAINST THE DRUNKEN HOUR OF JUDGMENT. Be sober, for YET the depths of darkness WILL BE KNOWN, and this world will be consumed & overtaken I say consumed and drunken in their pursuit and possession of flesh. I say, I say, Judgment HAS INDEED COME. Beware, take heed unto this hour and Be SOBER against the DRUNKEN HOUR. The disciples of Jesus Christ shall know that truly this is the hour! They shall know this is the hour of judgment, I tell you shake the dust off of your feet!" (Beware materialism is an idol and is judged. God can gift the Bride and will but He must be number one every day and hour.)