Thoughts on 21st Century life in America from a college professor looking to get into farming or a family-run business to be with my family all the time and prepare myself and others for Jesus' soon return.
I cannot describe how great Family Camp was. It was our first time camping as a family. We learned a lot about sleeping bags and heaters...
The messages were so helpful and practical about family life and preparing for the final crisis on the earth just prior to Jesus' return. (Do you believe he could come this year?)
There was beautiful music, fellowship, and a lot of involvement by the children. We met families from New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, and West Virginia. They all homeschool, too!
This is a photo of my favorite camper there. Although it isn't a Class A Motorhome, I gave it the award for best camper for the weekend. It is called a Heimer Putz!
This is what our tent looked like after taking off the fly. It withstood several strong rain storms. In fact, of all the tent campers that we spoke to, none survived Saturday night's massive storm dry but us!
I am glad we got a good tent! Thanks, Ron. You gotta come next year
The kids are excited, and the weather and life is good! I am sure we have no idea what we are in for... And it might even rain! But as our friend told us, you should always get a tent that is good enough to keep you dry for 3 straight days of rain. I think this one will do it, but I am praying for sun!
While 2008 basically stunk..., 2007 was a great year!
2007 was the year that I believed in America and all that she promised. It was the year I really awoke out of my apathy (I have always cared, but...) and got involved in trying to change this country and the world. My cause was the Ron Paul Revolution.
The wisdom, persona, and demeanor of this old schooler won me over quickly. It just made sense. The truth of things was so refreshing as compared with the sort of pablem I was getting everywhere else, often including church!
Dr. Paul's ways smack authentic in a culture of industrialized homogeneity. All the pols sound alike in the same way that if someone blindfolded you and dropped you off in a typical American town, you wouldn't know where you were because it would be lined with the identical Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Applebee's, Staples, Best Buy, and on and on...
The people I met in the movement restored my belief in the difference between Americans and many people of the world. They had this optimistic "can do" spirit, were incredibly, generous, and trusting. I learned a lot from them. I remain in touch with some as well.
As a family man, I didn't get out in the streets much like I wanted (there WAS NH Primary Night January of 2008, the night I met Dr. Ron Paul in person. See previous blog entry). The internet, youtube, and the dailypaul.com kept me in the game.
My children were fed a steady diet of RP songs and videos. Some were so cute, particularly a Christian homeschooler group of kids. My oldest even turned an older friend on to the good doctor at a birthday party.
For some reason, I usually got the scoop before everyone else. How many late night hours I spent believing and blogging in bleary-eyed youtubedom catching every last debate that RP spoke truth to power.
I got signs, posters, fliers, and downloaded dozens of great Ron Paul songs. I painted my house with Google Ron Paul and decorated all my vehicles with bumper stickers of the same ilk. I shared the Freedom Message with practically everyone I knew (ask my family and friends!), and I can say that it was all love just like the RON PAUL R3VOLUTION.
Today, after all the excitement and hope has waned, I look back. I see my own idealism and romanticism wrapped up in that political once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon. Funny how he is all over TV now that he is not a threat. Or is he? His movement is alive and well in the hearts of those who value liberty above all else. It was so effective that the movement has been targeted.
And as much as I love Dr. Paul, I have to say that the real movement I want to be a part of is the Adventist movement, announcing the soon return of God's Son, Jesus Christ. This is the only message for today. Politics doesn't work anymore in this country. As Noam Chomsky said, in America we have a culture "Manufactured Consent".
Banking, industrialization, public education, and the loss of the family farm are the causes for our moral, mental, and physical decay in my opinion.
The Gospel seeks to restore man mentally, spiritually, and physically to the image of God in order to rescue him back from the ultimate conspiracy of sin and death.
This is what men seek today in their innermost souls, but they don't recognize its roots in God. So, they seek it out in sex, drugs, rock n roll, wealth, ease, comfort, influence, and display. I know I have myself...
So, I load my car up now with truth-filled literature to change lives regardless of our political reality. I write my name and number in a book and intentionally "forget" it as I go from place to place. I am uploading sermons at my local church to the internet to share with others.
Below, is my first effort. (The message begins about the 27:00 mark) More to come in the future.
But don't hold it against me if I bring up Dr. Ron Paul from time to time. He is like a sort of grandfather to me! Given the opportunity, I would vote for him again... in a heartbeat!
Max Keiser, as unorthodox as he is, knows what he is talking about. We need to understand and prepare. America is very, very sick. So sick that she cannot even act.
One of the reasons I like Monsieur Keiser is that he lives in Paris!
It has been a while. I have been incredibly overloaded recently, but thank God this is finals week! Things slow down a lot from here out. I hope to blog more this month!
Here is a sermon that I gave at my church over a year ago. I have been studying about the difference between the Hebrew and Greek models of education as written about in E.A. Sutherland's book, Living Waters or Broken Cisterns.
This subject fascinates me, and in this sermon I just got into it before I had to stop. Perhaps next time I will be able to review and compare both approaches side by side.
(Sermon begins at about the 27:00 mark. It lasts about 40 minutes.)
