9/29/2008

Thy Kingdom Come....


More song lyrics to encourage me in my isolated, solitary walk with the LORD. One day, I will enjoy like-minded fellowship. These lonely wilderness wanderings will end.

One day, life on Earth will be as it should be—satisfying, not frustrating; joyous, not sorrowful. In that day, mankind will long enjoy the work of his hands. Nothing will hurt or destroy. There will be peace. Wild animals will be tame. People will live hundreds of years. Crime will be sparse and swiftly dealt with. Righteousness will reign. YESHUA as EMMANUEL (God with us) will be King over all the Earth. The redeemed will rule with Him. God’s laws (Torah) will be the law of the land. All nations will worship the One True God and keep the festival of Sukkot. There will be a literal Kingdom of God on Earth. This is what the Bible clearly teaches...and I believe it.

And the LORD shall be King over all the Earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and His name one. (Zechariah 14:9)

This song is....

A statement of my belief in the soon coming Millennial Kingdom.

A statement of my belief in the transcendence of God and His intervention in the natural and political world, though few perceive or acknowledge this.

A statement of my belief in a close, personal relationship with the LORD God of Israel.

The music for this song is at my sidebar (Yanni – One Man’s Dream/Live at the Acropolis)

These were the first lyrics I penned, in the Summer of 1997, as I drove four hours from Ono, PA through the rural part of the state of New York listening to Yanni in the cab of a new truck I was assigned to deliver. It had a great stereo. What a glorious sanctuary it became! I could almost imagine the Heavens rolling back like a scroll in the final stanza as the stringed instruments played prophetically.

It won’t be long now. I can hardly wait for the Millennial Kingdom. I believe we are the last generation. Two thousand years from YESHUA’s departure is soon to expire. After two prophetic days He will return, a day being a thousand years (Hosea 6:2; 2 Peter 3:8).

Let us prepare to meet our God, for our redemption draweth nigh. We may experience difficulties and disappointments now, but the future is awesome!

The LORD Reigns

The LORD He reigns upon the Heavens
The LORD He reigns upon the Earth
He reigns a thousand years here on Earth
And He reigns in my heart

He reigns upon the Heavens
The LORD He reigns upon the Earth
He reigns a thousand years here on Earth
And He reigns in my heart

I know
I know
I know He reigns upon this Earth

He reigns upon the Oceans
The LORD He reigns upon the Seas
He reigns when no one sees Him
He hides in the clouds of their minds

He reigns upon the Mountains
The LORD He reigns upon the Hills
He reigns when all is calm and still
And He reigns in my heart

The LORD He reigns upon the Heavens
The LORD He reigns upon the Earth
He reigns a thousand years here on Earth
And He reigns in my heart.

9/25/2008

Storm Clouds on the Horizon


Seven days after my grandson's birthday, the 11th storm of the hurricane season has formed, bearing his name oddly enough. A secondary storm system is already producing 20 foot waves in the Atlantic, heavy squalls of rain along the mid-Atlantic coast, and whirlwinds. Flooding is expected. Tropical storm Kyle seems to be headed towards New England, perhaps decadent Provincetown at the tip of Cape Cod. We shall see if Kyle develops into another major, damaging storm, even as we try to recover from Hurricane Ike and the devastation of Galveston Island and other hard-hit areas that are still without power 11 days later.

Meanwhile, America is reeling from the crisis of its financial tsunami. We could be on the brink of what has been described as a financial catastrophe resulting in a Great Depression. If we go forward with the proposed Bailout plan, we will essentially become a Socialist government, similar to France 20 years ago from what I hear. I do not know much about Economics, but it sounds like we are in dire straits. The politicians in Washington trying to solve the problem are described as "in disarray" and "contentious." John McCain has suspended his campaign to attend to this crisis. Obama wants the scheduled debate to take place tomorrow night no matter what. Maybe Sarah Palin could fill in for McCain...the Queen Esther of our generation in the opinion of many (for such a time as this).

I could not sleep at all last night. This Bible passage kept coming to mind:

....distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth....

Luke 21:25-26


Pray for America....this could be the beginning of the end for this once great nation. We are a people who need the LORD but are tragically backslidden and apostate in large numbers. We refuse to call upon Him due to unbelief. What will befall us in the coming days?

If My people, which are called by My Name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:14


Update: 9/26

From today's Bible Pathway....

The LORD hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm...

The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him.


Nahum 1:3, 7

9/21/2008

The Ten Commandments Song

Music by Yanni (With an Orchid/If I Could Tell You)
Lyrics by Renah (2005)

This was the last song written on the highways of America before I retired from the stresses of the road. I thought white line fever might beckon me back....but I have been fairly content at home in the office the past three years.

Genesis of the song:

It bothered me that Ten Commandments plaques and monuments were being ordered removed from public buildings and public property throughout America. In protest, citizens posted Ten Commandments lawn signs in their own front yards. Yet it seemed so hypocritical that Americans, especially Christians, did not live by the Ten Commandments....and most could not recite them from memory. Most Christians consider them obsolete and irrelevant to today’s world. How many Christian families post these Commandments in their own homes and teach them to their own children? Sadly, very few it seems.

I imagined an assembly of young children singing this song in a school presentation.....and their parents coming under conviction to keep the commandments of God, including the Sabbath....but I never had the nerve to approach the music director at the grandkids’ Baptist school.

The video at the sidebar link (With an Orchid) will provide the music to go with these lyrics. The photos from Oriental gardens just enhance the thought that God’s commandments are for people everywhere, not just Jewish people. God’s Covenant People are grafted in to the Olive Tree.....yet we come from every nation and tongue under Heaven. We are One People, having been brought out of the bondage of false religion, the bondage of alcohol, the bondage of slavery to sin, the bondage of our own lower nature.

I like the way the video ends with a view of the Mountain.

The Ten Commandments Song

Musical prelude.....then...

Remember I am the LORD GOD
Brought you out of bondage
To serve Me

O Remember I am the LORD GOD
Brought you out of bondage
To serve Me

Thou shalt not have other gods before Me
Thou shalt not commit idolatry against Me

Thou shalt not take
My Name in vain

Remember the Sabbath day
To keep it holy.....holy

Remember I am the LORD GOD
Brought you out of bondage
To serve Me

O Remember I am the LORD GOD
Brought you out of bondage
To serve Me

Honor thy father and thy mother
That it may be well with thee

Thou shalt not kill
Nor commit adultery

Thou shalt not steal
How would you feel?

Do unto others
As you would have them do to you

Remember...repeat refrain twice

Thou shalt not bear false witness
Thou shalt not lie

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s goods
Or his wife

O that there were
Such a heart in them
That they would fear Me
And keep
My precepts always
And always

O that there were such an heart in them.

9/18/2008

Back to Songwriting

I thought I would post some of my earlier song lyrics and maybe write some new ones. This is something I can do as a loner in troubled times. In some ways I enjoy the stretches of lonely times for the opportunity to spend quality time with the LORD and write what I believe He gives me. I find comfort in these song lyrics and the soothing sounds of Yanni’s compositions. I would like to learn how to put the music and words together as slide shows with pictures eventually.

Aliyah

(Yearning for the Millennial Kingdom)

Lyrics by Renah (copyright 2002)
Music by Yanni (Nostalgia/Live from the Acropolis, 1994)

Origins: On the Wyoming Ascent, 1997
Refinement: On the Lonely Highway to Nevada, 2002

Sing along with Yanni's live performance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bNal4-amdE
(See sidebar at Featured Links if this link does not work)

Soft musical prelude, then..... the Ascent....

Come let us go up
To Jerusalem
To receive our King

Repeat refrain

Come behold
The King of Kings
In all His Splendor

[Alternate]
Come behold
What used to be
The Desolation

Come let us go up
To Jerusalem
To receive our King
To worship HaShem.

Long ago, far away
Came a day
When Avraham “sacrificed” his only son
In a “type” of the Holy One
Who was to come
And die
For all my sin
Create a new spirit within
I’m born again
And I’m glad to be
Grafted in the Olive Tree

Come let us go up
To Jerusalem
To receive our...

Come let us go up
To Jerusalem
To receive our King
Sing praises to Him

Come let us go up
To Jerusalem
To receive our King
To worship HaShem

Come let us go up
To Jerusalem.


Music can be downloaded at iTunes (Nostalgia...from Live at the Acropolis....Yanni).


Another song.......

In Tribute

Today is the anniversary of the passing of my mother twelve years ago. It took several years for me to completely get over losing her [to complications of kidney disease]. Her presence seemed to still be with me, influencing my life. She was sick for seven years....and it took about seven years for me to adjust and recover from the post-traumatic stress of caring for her in her fragile years.

Mothers are very special people in our lives. These song lyrics came as I tried to cope with the memories...from my happy childhood to my teenage rebellion and giving her grief....to growing up and appreciating her more and more as I got into my 30’s.....to the grief I felt watching her suffer (although she had many good days).

The song lyrics reflect a word collage, morphing between thoughts of Mom, thoughts of me in relation to Mom, thoughts of my own children in relation to me, thoughts of mothers and children in general. This is for all moms who grieve for their sons and daughters, whose greatest desire is that they would walk in truth. May the efforts of godly mothers to instill faith in their children not ultimately be in vain.

This is another Yanni tune which he calls Felitsa....composed as a tribute to his own mother. Watch and hear:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dTt_DnywZ4
(See sidebar at Featured links if this link does not work)


Mother

lyrics by Renah, copyright 2001 (germinated 1999)
music by Yanni - Felitsa/In My Time

Dedicated to and inspired by my mother, Waltrude (Twyman) Madden – 1916-1996

Musical prelude, then....

A daughter can leave
And a mother can grieve
A son he can run
And a prodigal be

But they’ll never go far from
The Word Mother taught them
God’s Word it will haunt them
The rest of their days

You never know
Until you grow
What “Mother” really means
Your mother, your mother
What does she really mean?

Your mother, your mother
There is no other
That has such an impact
On your life today

You’ll love her
You’ll “hate” her
But don’t underrate her
Honor your mother today
It’s God’s way

A daughter can leave
And a mother can grieve
A son he can run
And a prodigal be

But I’ll never go far from
The words mother taught me
Her words they will haunt me
The rest of my days

I never knew
Until I grew
What “Mother” really means
My mother, my mother
What did she really mean?

My mother, my mother
There is no other
That has such an impact on my life today
I love her
I miss her
And now reminisce her
I’ll honor my mother today
Every day
It’s the only way

Oh, Yah’s fifth commandment
Says honor your parents
That it may be well
The rest of your days

A daughter can leave
And a mother can grieve
A son he can run
And a prodigal be

But they’ll never go far from
The Word Mother taught them
God’s Word it will haunt them
The rest of their days

You never know until you grow
What “Mother” really means
God bless your mother

Your mother, your mother
There is no other
That has such an impact
On your life today

You’ll love her
You’ll “hate” her
But don’t underrate her
Honor your mother today
It’s God’s way
It’s the only way

Yah’s fifth commandment
Says to honor your parents
That it may be well with you
All of your days
And that you may live
Long upon this Earth

I will honor her
I will become...
A writer

The Menace of Darwinism

By William Jennings Bryan
About 1922

Excerpt:

"Quietly and unnoticed, the enemies of the Bible have been substituting irreligion for religion. Having excluded the teaching of religion, they are daily teaching that which cannot be true if the Bible is true. They do not always openly attack the Bible, but that which they teach is built upon the theory that the Bible is untrue. Many of these teachers are atheists, and do not believe in either a personal God or a personal immortality, as Professor Leuba, of Bryn Mawr, shows in his book, 'Belief in God and Immortality.' Professor Leuba has himself rejected belief in a personal God and belief in a personal immortality, and presents evidence to show, that a majority of the prominent scientists agree with him.

"Some deny that they are atheists, preferring rather to call themselves agnostics, it being easier to plead ignorance than to defend atheism. Darwin declared himself to be an agnostic, having substituted his hypothesis and its implications for the Bible. Darwin began life a Christian, but finding that his hypothesis was inconsistent with the fundamental teachings of Christianity, he rejected the Bible as an inspired Book, and with it the Christ of whom the Bible tells. Darwin declared himself an agnostic, and said that the beginning of all things, was a mystery insoluble by man.

"The tendency of Darwinism, although unsupported by any substantial fact in nature, since no species has been shown to come from any other species, is to destroy faith in a personal God, faith in the Bible as an inspired Book, and faith in Christ as Son and Saviour.

"The so-called theistic evolutionists refuse to admit that they are atheists, contending that they believe in a God back of creation; they argue that evolution is God's method, but they put God so far away as to practically destroy a sense of God's presence in the daily life and a sense of responsibility to Him. At least, that is the tendency, and since the so-called theistic evolutionists borrow all their facts from atheistic evolutionists and differ from them only in the origin of life, theistic evolution may be described as an aesthetic administered to young Christians to deaden the pain while their religion is being removed by the materialists.

"When the Christians of the nation understand the demoralizing influence of this godless doctrine, they will refuse to allow it to be taught at public expense. Christianity is not afraid of truth, because truth comes from God, no matter by whom it is discovered or proclaimed, but there is no reason why Christians should tax themselves to pay teachers to exploit guesses and hypotheses as if they were true.

"The only thing that Christians need to do now is to bring the enemies of the Bible into the open and compel them to meet the issue as it is. As soon as the methods of the atheists, agnostics, and Darwinists are exposed, they raise a cry that freedom of conscience is being attacked. That is false, there is no interference with freedom of conscience in this country, and should be none. Christians will be just as prompt as atheists to oppose any attempt to interfere with absolute freedom of conscience. The atheist has just as much civil right to deny God as the Christian has to believe God; the agnostic has just as much right to profess ignorance in regard to God's existence as the Christian has to profess his faith in the existence of God. The right of conscience is not menaced in this country, it is inviolable.

"Neither do Christians object to the teaching of atheism and agnosticism by those who believe in these doctrines. Atheists have just as much civil right to teach atheism as Christians have to teach Christianity; agnostics have just as much right to teach agnosticism as Christians have to teach their religion. Let it be understood that there is no attack either upon the freedom of conscience or upon anyone's right to teach religion or irreligion. The real issue is whether atheists, agnostics, Darwinists and evolutionists shall enjoy special privileges in this country, and have rights higher than the rights of Christians. They dare not claim higher rights, though they now enjoy higher rights and are contending for higher rights.

"When Christians want to teach Christianity, they build their own schools and colleges, and employ their own teachers-- Catholics build Catholic schools, Protestants build Protestant schools. Every Protestant branch of the Christian church builds its own schools for the propagation of its own doctrine. This is the rule, and there is no protest against it.

"Why should not atheists build their own colleges and employ their own teachers if they want to teach atheism? Why should not agnostics build their own colleges and employ their own teachers if they want to teach agnosticism? Only a small percentage of the American people believe that man is descendant of the ape, monkey, or of any other form of animal life below man; why should not those who worship brute ancestors build their own colleges, and employ their own teachers for the training of their own children for their brute doctrine? There are no atheistic schools, and there are no agnostic schools-why should there be, if atheists and agnostics can save the expense of building their own schools and the expense of employing their own teachers by using the public schools for the propagation of their doctrine? They even make their living by teaching to the children of Christians a doctrine that the parents reject and which they do not want their children to accept. As long as the atheists and agnostics have the same rights as the Christians, what complaint can they make of injustice? Why do they ask special favors?

"If those who teach Darwinism and evolution, as applied to man, insist that they are neither agnostics nor atheists, but are merely interpreting the Bible differently from orthodox Christians, what right have they to ask that their interpretation be taught at public expense? It is safe to say that not one professing Christian in ten has any sympathy with Darwinism or with any evolutionary hypothesis that takes from man the breath of the Almighty and substitutes the blood of a brute. Why should a small fraction of the Christian church-if they call themselves Christians–insist upon propagating their views of Christianity and their interpretation of the Bible at public expense? If any portion of; the people could claim the right to teach their views at public expense, that right would certainly belong to a large majority rather than to a small minority. But the majority are not asking that their views be taught at the expense of the tax-payers; the majority is simply protesting against the use of the public schools of a MINORITY to spread their view, whether they be called atheists, or agnostics, or are merely teaching their interpretation of the Bible.

"Christians do not ask that the teachers in the public schools, colleges and universities become exponents of orthodox Christianity; they are not asking them to teach the Bible conception of God, to affirm the Bible's claim to infallibility, or to proclaim the deity of Christ; but Christians have a right to protest against teaching that which weakens faith in God, undermines belief in the Bible, and reduces Christ to the stature of a man. The teacher who tells the student that miracles are impossible because contrary to evolution, is attacking the Bible; what right has he to do so?

"Our schools are intended to train the minds of students, but back of the mind is the heart, out of which are the issues of life'. Religion deals with the Science of How to Live, which is more important than any science taught in the schools. The school teacher cannot cram enough education into the mind to offset the harm done to the student if his life is robbed of faith and his ideals are brought down to the basis of materialism. It is high time for the people who believe in religion to make their protest against the teaching of irreligion in the public schools under the guise of science and philosophy....

“The issue is plain: The Evolutionists intend, through our tax-supported schools, to change our Bible and our religion. A prominent Evolutionist has put it plainly: "We intend, first, to reconstruct Bible history in harmony with the theory of Evolution. Second, to eliminate by this process all that is supernatural in the record." Eliminate all that is supernatural, and you have no real Redeemer left....

--------------------

Commentary:

Most alive today have been indoctrinated in Darwinism as children in public school. Is it any wonder that Apostasy has gone mainstream in our generation and true faith hard to find?

9/17/2008

Broken Toes and Many Woes


America is reeling from recent and ongoing catastrophe. A tsunami of weather and financial storms is impacting all of us. Eerily, this latest round of “birth pangs” began on September 11 (Yom Kippur) when humongous Hurricane Ike (Isaac/Last Laugh) swirled in the center of warm Gulf waters, with the barrier islands beckoning to be struck hard. In recent years, Galveston has become a mecca for “alternative lifestyles” with 80% of the Island holding a laissez-faire attitude about it. Party on, America. GOD will ultimately have the last laugh. Greed, pride, idolatry, and debauchery will be judged....yet the LORD remembers mercy as well. Tales of lives spared are surfacing daily.

Subsequent to this tragedy of unprecedented proportions.....and I sympathize and grieve with the suffering masses who are finding that FEMA is not the friend they were counting on.......we read other horrific headlines:

Lehman Brothers, the fourth-largest U.S. investment bank files for bankruptcy, the biggest filing in history


U.S. Stocks Drop, S&P 500 Sinks Most Since 2001 Terror Attacks, Dow off 504 points

Fed adds $70 billion to the reserves...the most since 9/11 attacks as banks hoard cash

Bank of America buys Merrill Lynch after 48-hours of frenetic negotiating, Federal Reserve forced sale

UN chief fears world impact of US financial crisis –

Bailout of AIG to avert ‘worldwide calamity’

Worse slump in U.S housing since Great Depression

Yemen: 16 dead in US Embassy bombing

As I hobble around with broken toes (don’t ask, I’m a klutz) I thank the LORD we were spared worse woes here in Indiana. Thirty miles from home, neighborhoods are under water from severe flooding.

Headlines:

Deluge leads to Desperation in NW Indiana

Ike Remnants Blamed for Midwest Deaths, Blackouts

Hurricane Ike wreaked havoc nationwide....with those states spared the brunt of the storm eventually unable to escape paying at the pump as the ripple effects continue. Gas rationing may be next. I fear for cities like Chicago if Obama is not elected President. I fear for America if he IS elected President. It will mean we have taken another giant step towards oblivion as a great nation.

Maybe I am a metaphor. I hobble. This nation is broken and limping along. Will it ever walk uprightly again? There is only one way to heal.....petition the LORD with prayer. There is only one way to stay safe....petition the LORD with prayer....and walk in His ways, forsaking the futility of frowardness. The picture from Bolivar peninsula, Texas reminds me of Psalm 91....

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty....
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night;
Nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness;
Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
A thousand shall fall at thy side,
And ten thousand at thy right hand;
But it shall not come nigh thee.
Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold
And see the reward of the wicked....

Why is this one house still standing? The photo also reminds me of Bible prophecy and the DESOLATION to come. I take comfort in considering that after the Desolation, there is a Kingdom to come, and Righteousness will rule. Tomorrow I plan to post my song lyrics about the Millennial Kingdom. This song, called Aliyah, is a comfort to me...and I hope a comfort to others coping with catastrophe.

9/12/2008

Hurricane Ike Threatens Texas with Wall of Water


Fri Sep 12, 2008 12:47pm EDT
By Tim Gaynor

GALVESTON, Texas (Reuters) - Hurricane Ike closed in on the Texas coast on Friday, pushing a wall of water that weather officials warned could bring certain death to those who did not heed mandatory evacuation orders.

Waters rose rapidly along the Texas coast as Ike moved within hours of striking low-lying areas near Houston with a possible 20-foot (6-meter) storm surge in what may be the worst storm to hit Texas in nearly 50 years.

The National Weather Service warned that people in coastal areas could face "certain death" from the storm's massive storm surge.

Ike was a Category 2 storm with 105 mph (165 kph) winds as it moved on a course that pass directly over Houston -- the nation's fourth-largest city.

Ike was expected to come ashore late on Friday or early on Saturday as a dangerous Category 3 storm on the five-step intensity scale with winds of more than 111 mph (178 kph), the National Hurricane Center said.

As high waves pounded mostly evacuated coastal communities, the Coast Guard said a 584-foot freighter with 22 people aboard was stranded without power 90 miles southeast of Galveston. Sea conditions were too treacherous to attempt rescue.

Hundreds of thousands fled the island city of Galveston and low-lying counties under mandatory evacuation orders and authorities urged holdouts to move before Ike's winds started to make car travel dangerous.

"Leave now," said Ed Emmett, chief administrator for Harris County, which encompasses most Houston and its environs. "The storm surge is stronger and it's important that people understand that this really is a life or a death matter."

U.S. crude oil futures jumped $2 to near $103 a barrel as traders eyed the potential for Ike's massive storm surge to swamp low-lying refineries along the Gulf Coast that process about 20 percent of the nation's fuel.

Weather forecasters at Planalytics saw "major and long-term damage likely at the major refining cities."

In Galveston -- site of a 1900 hurricane that was the deadliest weather disaster in U.S. history -- residents nervously eyed the seashore as Ike's waters bashed over the sea wall and crept into clusters of houses perched on stilts.

"I've never seen it like that before. I'm scared, I'm leaving," said motel manager Roy Patel. He had boarded up the office of the Economy Motel on the sea front and was headed to the mainland by car.

In central Houston, the administrative hub of the nation's oil industry around 50 miles inland from Galveston, businesses closed and boarded up windows Thursday night in preparation for possible hurricane-force winds and flooding. But officials said most residents should "shelter in place" since the city is some 50 feet above sea level.

U.S. President George W. Bush said he was "deeply concerned" about the storm and the fate of his fellow Texans.

"It is a major storm headed toward a large population center," Bush told reporters at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City.

'THIS IS SCARY'

Ike comes just 10 days after Hurricane Gustav barreled into the Louisiana coast and sent 2 million people fleeing but largely spared a New Orleans still struggling with the destruction of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

But in this active hurricane season that has had the Atlantic and Gulf coasts on high alert, Ike posed its own challenges because of its large scope, which was bigger than Katrina's. Hurricane-force winds could extend out up to 120 miles.

At 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT) on Friday, the hurricane center said in its latest advisory Ike was about 195 miles southeast of Galveston. It was moving west-northwest at 12 mph (19 kph).

Much to authorities' frustration, holdouts harked back to the bad experience of the last large-scale evacuation in Texas in 2005, when 2 million people fled Hurricane Rita, getting stranded on highways for hours and running out of gasoline. Rita largely skirted the Houston area.

"We have pets, we can't travel," said Monette Baugh, clutching her poodle as she walked the Galveston sea wall. "We stayed for Rita and we are staying this time. You listen to the TV and you are petrified. They have a tendency to exaggerate. But yes, this is scary."

Local television said Ike looked to pose the biggest threat to the Texas coast since Hurricane Carla in 1961, which struck as a Category 4 storm and caused more than $2 billion in damage and 43 deaths.

(Additional reporting by Anna Driver and Bruce Nichols; writing by Chris Baltimore and Mary Milliken; Editing by Bill Trott)

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9/08/2008

Walking Alone....Alone

....A Response to Walking Alone Together, by (name deleted)

I tried twice to post an encouraging, positive response to this blog article, to no avail. I am “unapproved” apparently.

If you haven't posted a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear.


This policy does not seem to encourage honest feedback, constructive criticism, or opposing views.

I suspect this latest snub is due to the grave sin I committed called re-posting from one forum to another [in order to continue a discussion of an important matter that was of concern to me]. I sought out another opinion, but this turned out to be a crime of the severest magnitude. As soon as I was informed that I had committed a faux pas, a transgression, I sincerely apologized and rectified the situation. Yet the punishment for inadvertently breaking a rule I did not know existed was swift, harsh, and merciless.....just another example of the kind of treatment by more than one Messianic ministry that has led others to abandon Messianic Judaism altogether, and contributed to full-blown apostasy in some cases.

The Apostle Paul set an example for dealing with sin in the camp in Corinthians, and YESHUA tells us how to deal with issues in Matthew 18. Yet these steps are not followed. It is much easier to banish, to hit the delete button, to lift the left foot of fellowship to those deemed unworthy of a helping right hand. So much for seeking clarification and believing the best about someone’s intentions before judging.

How hypocritical this sounds to my ears now:

How do we deal with the loneliness that the lifestyle of Torah can be? We do it together!...With this blessing of electronic communication, we have the ability to communicate (although virtually) with people from all over the world. We have the ability to find encouragement, support, answers to questions, and sometimes new questions all within the same day if we want. Somehow, the road does not seem so lonely when we are walking it together.....All community...even a virtual one...thrives on the principles of Torah. With the ability to be online with each other, we can walk this road of Torah together and somehow it does not seem quite so lonely. A listening ear is only a key stroke away.

My keystroke led to banishment, not blessing.

Do you know what it feels like to try to log on to a fellowship forum and see these words and get no explanation for 72 hours?

You have been permanently banned from this board.
Please contact the Board Administrator for more information.
A ban has been issued on your username.


This, after donating many dollars over the years as a loyal supporter and making other types of contributions. The sting was palpable.

Do you know what it feels like to invite numerous people to correspond by email or participate in discussions on a forum or blog and get no response? The discouragement is distressing.

I am beginning to withdraw from people once again, due to all this rejection I have been experiencing. People are things that hurt, and I am weary of wincing from the pain of the slights and slayings, not only in my personal situation, but in the banishments and baneful treatment shown to others I care about.

Along with YESHUA, we outcasts stand at the fellowship forum door and knock. Yet we are not even allowed to peer in the window (read posts or discuss the conversation elsewhere). Some messianic forums have become exclusive, private clubs for the elite, for those who will not rock the boat with contention. I am convinced YESHUA Himself would be banned from these forums. Yet Scripture admonishes us to earnestly contend for the faith (Jude).

Blogs are becoming private as well, so as not to invite dissenting discourse. It is one thing to block vulgarities, harassment, or abusiveness. It is another to block opposing views or discussion of controversial topics. I suppose it is just like Junior High, where there were cliques and you could not just walk up to a group of popular kids and join in the conversation. Yet the Scriptures rebuke this kind of prejudice (James 2).

I will try to manage to walk alone, alone....but it is not easy. I thank the LORD for the precious few who are kind enough to correspond with me on occasion. They are lifesavers.

My forgiveness is extended to all who have offended me. In these days of awe, I can do no less. September 11 is Yom Kippur. I hope my adversaries will extend forgiveness towards me and towards others they may have offended as well, for their own spiritual well being. Holding grudges is forbidden in Scripture. It hinders prayer. YESHUA instructs us to forgive seventy times seven, not “one strike and you’re out.” Restoration to fellowship is a component of full forgiveness. There are other ways of dealing with ‘troublemakers” besides the boot and excommunication. But this is how YESHUA and the first band of disciples were treated as well, so why should I be surprised.

I end with these words from a fellow lone traveler. I have re-posted them from a public blog, minus the names. I hope this is not another faux pas in not giving credit to the author. Where is the Internet Etiquette Guide so that I make no further blunders:

The only thing I really miss about Christmas was the feeling that the whole world was doing the same thing at the same time. On the other hand I remember [name deleted] saying one time that the "psychology of belonging" can make you do things you wouldn't ordinarily do. So in our aloneness, we must be strong and not go along just to belong. So I'll take a lone path to Succot instead. If you see me along The Way, please wave.


Attention Hidden Messianics: I am waving, but I don’t know where you are. Please come out of the woodwork and speak up. Let our voices be heard!