TELEMACHUS – – – TWO TRUE STORIES

First Story:

404 A.D.  A monk named Telemachus felt let by the Spirit of God to travel to Rome.  He found himself following the crowds heading to the Colosseum.  When he saw the horror of gladiators set to kill each other for the entertainment of the crowd, he was so moved with indignation that he jumped over the wall, confronted the gladiators, stood between them, and shouted, “In the name of Christ, forbear [stop].”  He was obviously attacked and fatally wounded.  But he kept repeating, “In the name of Christ, forbear,” until he died.

And the rest of the story—That was the last time gladiators fought in the Roman Colosseum.

 

Second Story:

In the late 1970’s I had a student named Katy Telemachus in my fourth grade class in Hollywood, Florida.  She was sweet, but frail because she needed a liver transplant.  The time came for a donor match, and the operation was successful (paid for entirely by her father, who owned an upscale restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale).  Katy’s life was transformed, and she became a happy, lively girl.  Her father showed his appreciation by treating us and the principal to a very special evening at the restaurant—a treasured memory.

And the rest of the story—A few years after we moved to Texas in 1990, we got a letter from friends in Florida, with a newspaper article.  It told of three teenagers robbing a man’s home, resulting in his murder.  Katy was one of the teenagers, and the man who was killed was her father.   I have no information since.

YOU DON’T SAY?

YOU DON’T SAY:  Hussein (protect his identity—and intention)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Terrorist (say nice things, or say nothing)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Dictator (not in America . . .)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Military Strength (promote international equality)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Less Government (government takes care of you—more . . . better)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Balanced Budget (no deal—debt is new deal)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Abortion (say women’s health)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Murder (say pro choice)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Pro Death (say pro choice)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Mother + Father + Children = Family (say anything else but . . .)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Intolerant (just agree)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Religious Freedom (say freedom from religion)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Jesus (anything else is okay)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Bible-Based (eliminate such extremists)

YOU DON’T SAY:  Christian (you want to die?)

TRAGEDIES – – – WHAT DOES GOD THINK?

Sometimes people much smarter and more educated than I, can give answers to the big “Why?” questions.  I have some of their books and dvd’s, and I listened to many who were giving words of comfort and hope yesterday.  It seems the most helpful answers included simple compassion and saying we don’t have all the answers now–just grief.

There is a truth that seems impossible at first.  In the worst tragedy and grief, we can have hope.

Our hope does not rest in what God thinks, and certainly not in what we think.  Our hope rests in what God says.  He doesn’t have to think, except when He thinks precious thoughts about us.

So,

TRAGEDIES – – – WHAT DOES GOD SAY?

(Please read it yourself, in your Bible.  It tells us what God says.  Here’s how it works:  I opened my own Bible right now to confirm the following verses.  It makes a difference for me.  Don’t take my word for it—get it straight from the Source, from the Strength, for yourself.)

“God is our Refuge and Strength—a very present Help in time of trouble.”     —–Psalm 46

“The thief (the devil) comes to steal, kill, and destroy; I come that you may have life, more abundantly.”      —–John 10

“These things I have spoken to you, that in me you might have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation:  but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”     —–John 16

Hope does not mean things are changed now—hope means they will be changed.

We need hope and comfort.

We need God’s Word, and we need people.

I am no stranger to tragedies.  I’ve been there.  I am there.  It’s hard.  But I have hope.

You can share with me if you need to.  If you ask me to not post your comment, I will honor that.

 

“FLAME ON”  is a short dvd by friends of mine who lost their only son at 5 years.  You can watch it on the internet or get it from AFA Store.

ALONE WITH A DICTATOR

Have you ever imagined what it would be like to be in a room alone with a dictator?

First, would you recognize and believe that he is a dictator?

Then would you wonder why you are having the meeting?

What can you say, or do?

What should you say, or do?

Are you safe (not that you can do anything about that)?

What is your responsibility to others under his dictatorship?

Do they know you’re having the meeting?

What personal sacrifice should you make for them?

What are your options?

Should you confront him (about his evil ways), when nobody else will?

Should you negotiate with him (compromise), knowing it does no good?

Should you shake his hand?

Should you shake him up?

What should you share about your meeting?

Will you have freedom to share after your meeting?

Who do you answer to about the meeting?

Where is your conscience?

What are your convictions?

 

Review these questions in light of the following meetings with dictators:

+++John the Baptist and Herod

+++Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s friends and Hitler

+++John Boehner and BHOB*

 

*Barack Hussein OBama—Say BHHHOB aloud and it sounds like the warning for Christians in the 2008 election: “Beware of sheep’s clothing.”

“FEAR GOD”

What do you fear?

“God.”     —–Robert Griffin III

TEXAN DIALECT AND THE MAYAN CALENDAR

There is a story about a Texan archeologist professor looking for Mayan ruins with a group of students.

They came across two drawings and asked the professor to identify if they were authentic.

One drawing showed a person lying on the ground.

The professor studied it and said, “Definitely Mayan.”

The second seemed to show another person hovering in the air over the first.

The professor studied it and said, “That would be Super-Mayan.”

 

And now about the calendar.

All credit here goes to a winning phone call to American Family Radio a couple days ago.

“Of that day and hour knows no Mayan.”

Beautiful.

That bears repeating on December 21, Lord willing.

FISCAL CLIFF CARTOON

I need someone to draw political cartoons for some of my points.

In the meantime, I have to describe them with words, and hope you can picture them.

Side note—I once saw a peanuts cartoon in the elementary school of Nova University in South Florida.  “TV puts pictures in your eyes; books put pictures in your mind.”

I’m sure there are hundreds of cartoons on the fiscal cliff.  Here’s mine:

The cliff is real.

The cliff has no bottom.

The cliff has a few ledges on the way down.

The economy is a caravan with assorted sizes and shapes of vehicles, traveling on the large plain above the cliff.

There is plenty of room on the plain for everyone to build their vehicles, drive them around, test them for function, durability, and efficiency.  Some crash, others learn and change as needed.

Every good driver knows his vehicle best.  The rest don’t exist for long.

People who need what these vehicles have to offer, appreciate the choices for how they can spend their money.

Smart drivers in the caravan stay away from the cliff.

What could entice a driver of a vehicle in the caravan of the economy to drive toward the cliff?

Now we get to the point quickly . . .

The government is building a bridge across the cliff—a cantilevered bridge (as in leveraged?) . . .

The government’s goal is to build the cantilevered bridge long enough to extend beyond all the intermediate ledges on the way down the cliff.

The government promises shortcuts to success (superficial, fabricated) and handouts (stimulus to stupidity) for getting on the government’s bridge.

If the government’s promises are not inviting enough, welcome to the reality of second-term “flexibility.”

What motivates the government?

Several things—one is the government charging (taking, stealing) whatever it wants from the vehicles after they get on the one-way bridge (after they swallow the cool-aid promises with the stimulus handouts).

Another motivation (crazy, insane, evil) is someone in the government who can’t stand the awesome, successful vehicles in the caravan, and targets the best to force them onto the bridge first.

Now the truth comes out—only a few see it in time, ahead of time . . .

The cantilevered bridge is off of a cliff, not across a chasm.

The cantilevered bridge is indeed a bridge to nowhere.

The cantilevered bridge is a one-way bridge into a fog.

The cantilevered bridge has no roadblock or sign at the end.

The cantilevered bridge’s length is limited by its support on the cliff.

The cantilevered bridge is supported by taxes and debt.

Now you can see how we can appear to go over the cliff for awhile before the real crashes start.

Ominous end of all this . . .

Greedy governments and greedy people in power in the government are never satisfied with just “a little more” from the rich, followed by “a little more” from the poor, followed by . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

“It’s the economy, stupid.”

NO

IT’S OUR FREEDOM, STUPID.

I hate calling American voters “stupid.”

But I appeal to the other half of American voters who are not stupid . . .

Arm your vehicles against cooperating with the government cliff talk and bridge schemes.

Arm yourself.

Protect your family.

PRAY.

Read the Constitution.

Even if the Constitution is trashed, God will honor those who follow its principles based on Divine Wisdom.

Today we have access to the same Source of Wisdom that the founding fathers called on to write the Constitution.

We may have to start over, but we have history’s greatest example to follow—The United States of America.

WHAT CAN THE GOVERNMENT DO?

What can the federal government do?

What is the government allowed to do?

What is the government able to do?

What can only the government do?

What can the government get away with doing?

What can the government do that’s not in the Constitution?

What will we allow the government to do, now that the democratic process is not working?

 

I’ll start with the last question first.  “If you give the devil [or a dictator] a little finger, he’ll take the whole hand.”  I first heard my dad quote that before I was ten years old, as I watched him fight tooth and nail for something he believed in.

By free choice, we have now allowed the government to give promises that it will take care of us – – – not realizing we surrender more freedom with every promise.

So what will we allow the government to do now?  Probably everything dictators have done in the past—EMP—Ever More Power (and EMP’s may be used to do it).  The government (the dictator) will take our freedom, our money, and our blood if we resist.

The current breakdown of the democratic process is the predicted outcome that this form of government works only for a moral people, and it is totally unfit for any other.

 

What can the government do that’s not in the Constitution?  NOTHING

 

What can the government get away with doing?  ANYTHING, once the people realize that they can vote handouts for themselves from the government treasury.

 

What can only the government do?  NATIONAL DEFENSE and DEFENDING OUR GOD-GIVEN FREEDOMS.

 

What is the government able to do?  Only what the CONSTITUTION says it can do, and no more, as long as the people stop it.

 

What is the government allowed to do?  ANYTHING THE PEOPLE VOTE FOR.  Now that scares the daylights out of any true American.

 

What can the federal government do?  ANYTHING THE STATES LET IT DO.  States, it is time to stop the federal government.  It won’t work within the system.  Stand up to the encroaching dictatorship now, or else—now, or never.

Every state leader and every state citizen must immediately set aside all dreams of this crisis working itself out through the democratic process of national elections.  Many states have voted their values.  Now it’s time to act on what we know we have to do.

Please go back and read everything I’ve written on compromise and compatibility and waiting and playing it safe.  We don’t have much time.  This second term of this administration in Washington will result in a third term with third degree devastation.  I’m not willing to wait and see.

EXTREME . . .

What if the extreme right is extremely right?

What if the extreme left is extremely wrong?

What if it takes the extreme to right what’s wrong?

Few leaders come from the middle of the road.

Few leaders choose the easy road.

Choose carefully the leaders you follow to the extreme.

When the right seems extreme, don’t choose the popular.

“Everyone did what was right in his own eyes, because there was no judge in the land.”

When the wrong seems right, get new glasses.

What if the extreme right is exactly the center – – – of God’s will?

“Suffer for right – – – be blessed.”

“Suffer for Jesus – – – BE BLESSED.”

 

KING SIZE . . .

No more “king size” drinks in New York City.  (I didn’t hear if that applied to alcoholic drinks)

The master bedroom in the White House needs to be enlarged—must be “king size” instead of “president size.”

Vacations are “king size” with “king size” price tags.  ($4 million for this Christmas alone—“king” goes to Hawaii)

Budget must be “king size.”  (oh, the king doesn’t need budgets—he just budgets everything the people have, and don’t have, into his treasury)

Loyalty, dedication, praise, and worship must be “king size.”  (reluctantly? received, then heartily accepted, then brutally demanded—where have we seen that before?)

“Thanks be to god, and our lord and savior Barack Obama – – – B A R A C K   O B A M A .”

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

My Christmas card this year is inspired by a little fact (king size) shared by J.J. Jasper on American Family Radio.

Outside, the card says, THE WORLD’S FIRST KING SIZE BED

Inside, FIT FOR A KING    (with a manger picture)

ALL HAIL, KING JESUS

ALL HAIL, IMMANUEL

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

If only those acting “king size,” could meet the KING.

If only you reading this, could meet the KING.

You Can.

Now.

“O worship the King, all glorious above,

And gratefully sing, His power and His Love.”