day no. 16,199: we are watching the wrath of God, not the winning of the wicked

We are not watching wickedness win, we are witnessing the wrath of God.

Romans 1:18-24

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves.

Out of control evil is not in the process of dominating, but of being dominated. Wickedness without brakes cannot avoid a collision. Unrestricted rebellion is an unraveling, not an arriving. There is no such thing as freedom from God. Those whom He lets go are not free, but forever enslaved. 

The fattened calf may fancy himself the guest of honor at the upcoming feast, but he is misreading his situation. Don't you go and do the same by giving a second thought to any of his boasts. Keep your eyes in your head. He isn't going to be on the guest list, he is going to be on the menu.

So fear not, we are not witnessing the rise of rebellion, but the reckoning of God. They are not accumulating trophies, but rather wrath for themselves. Wickedness is not winning ribbons, it is racking up fines. God is giving them over to themselves and all of their end zone dancing is merely wracking up excessive celebration penalties to be applied at kickoff when God in the end takes the ball back.

day no. 16,198: get the thorn out

"‘Well,’ said John, ‘I suppose you have found me out. Perhaps I did not fully mean to keep them—not all—or not all the time. And yet, in a way, I think I did. It is like a thorn in your finger, sir. You know when you set about taking it out yourself—you mean to get it out—you know it will hurt—and it does hurt—but somehow it is not very serious business—well, I suppose, because you feel that you always could stop if it was very bad. Not that you intend to stop. but it is a very different thing to hold your hand out to a surgeon to be hurt as much as he thinks fit. And at his speed.’ The Man laughed, ‘I see you understand me very well,’ He said, ‘but the great thing is to get the thorn out.’” -- C.S. Lewis, The Pilgrim's Regress

Get the thorn out.

God, whatever it takes, get the thorn out. Whatever the pain it causes, whatever the cost it requires, however long it takes... get the thorn out. Do whatever You must do to get it out. Make it hurt as much as you see fit, but no more. May it take as long as You determine, but not a moment longer. May it be as thorough and comprehensive as You require, but not any more so. Whatever You determine, however, and whatever You do, however You do it, whenever You do it, whatever You do... get the thorn out!

Amen.

day no. 16,197: we are not sick until proven healthy

Exodus 23:1-3

You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit.

We are not sick until proven healthy. 

No more pokes or prods. We are not guilty until proven innocent. Mind you, this isn’t because some aren’t sick or that some aren’t guilty, but because everyone is SO sick and SO guilty that no one person can be trusted to enforce the standard. We are sick and wrong and our native tongue is accusation. We speak fluent envy and resentment with perfect accent. Therefore, in matters of indictment, the burden of proof is placed upon the accuser, not the accused.

If I am tested and it comes back negative, you are confirmed in having born false witness. There was no reason to condemn me as sick before and the test results validate my health. That makes you guilty of false accusation. But even if the results indicate that I am or was previously sick, the data was obtained by an illegal search and seizure and therefore inadmissible in court. You cannot extract evidence against me by falsifying a charge on the front end in order to manufacture some shred of evidence that you can then use against me after the fact. That is manipulation, not justice. That is superstition, not science.

You cannot pull my ride over on spec. My healthy vehicle should be free to motor about without having to be pulled over and put up on a lift in order to try to find something unroadworthy.

day no. 16,196 continued... the Lord's Prayer (original, metrical rendering)

Father, God who art in Heaven

Hallow-ed here be Thy Name

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,

On earth, in Heaven, e’er the same

Our daily bread be pleased to give

And all our trespasses forgive

As we forgive those who trespass 

Our debtors all from first to last

And lead us not into temptation;

But from evil, us deliver 

Yours the kingdom and the power

And the glory till forever.

— The Lord’s Prayer

Postmillitant original rendering

... revised 2/27/23 while out on a walk ...

Father, God who art in Heaven

Hallow-ed here be Thy Name

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,

On earth, in Heaven, e’er the same

Our daily bread to us please give

And all our trespasses forgive

As we forgive those who trespass 

Of all their debts, from first to last

And lead us not into temptation;

But from evil, us deliver 

Yours the kingdom and the power

And the glory till forever.

— The Lord’s Prayer

day no. 16,196: we have had more than enough

Psalm 123:3-4

Have mercy upon us, O LORD,

have mercy upon us,

for we have had more than enough of contempt. 

Our soul has had more than enough

of the scorn of those who are at ease,

of the contempt of the proud.

We have had more than enough. We have had the contempt of the proud and the scorn of those who are at ease ad nauseam. But lest we request what we deserve and go down with them, we cry out for mercy. Mercy is not getting the bad that you deserve. Mercy is having earned discipline and not receiving it. Lord, we acknowledge our part in what has gone wrong and recognize that if everyone got what they deserved, we'd all get more than we bargained for. So God, we cry out for mercy. Please do not treat us any longer as our sins deserve. As repentant sinners, we pray you end open rebellion against You: either through the conversion of the corrupt or through the obliteration of their establishments. Have mercy, Lord. May Your mercy arrive sooner than we deserve and may it be more comprehensive and redemptive than any have even dared to desire. Have mercy, O Lord. Have it upon us. Have it soon. We have had more than enough, but may we have as much more as You command. But may that amount soon arrive at its end. Amen

day no. 16,195: honor your ancestors, bless your descendants

Ephesians 6:1-3

Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.

We teach our children to honor their father and mother by showing them how. When we honor ours, we show them how to honor theirs. This applies to biological parents as well as historical ancestors. The idea of honoring your father and mother in the Lord contains more than merely liking your mom and dad. It includes gratitude for the shoulders upon which they stood and you now stand and a duty to those who will someday stand upon yours.

Honor your ancestors,

bless your descendants.

"A people which takes no pride in the noble achievements of remote ancestors will never achieve anything worthy to be remembered with pride by remote descendants." — Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay

You cannot raise a generation of noble characters by pulling down the statues of their grandfathers.

day no. 16,194: gov't schools are secular boot camps

Government schools are secular boot camps.

Ephesians 6:4

And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

If you want to provoke your kids, give them two, competing standards to adhere to. Enforce them both and watch them smolder. Nothing provokes frustration like trying to obey conflicting orders.

Government schools are antithetical to Christian education. They are dogmatically opposed to a Christian understanding of who we are, where we're from, where we're going, and how to get there. When you willfully subject your kids to forty hours of weekly instruction that contradicts what you teach them at home, you are provoking them to wrath.

Your children are being trained by someone to something. If you preach pacifism at home, but send them off to military boot camp forty hours each week, you cannot be shocked when your child returns a warmonger. Government schools are secular boot camps. Your children are spending eight hours a day, five days a week learning to fight their battles. They are being trained with their weapons and focused on their objectives. 

Government schools are the church of the state. It shouldn't shock you if they come home converted. Classes are secular church services. They practice catechism, say their prayers, confess their sins, and listen to sermons all day, every day. One hour of worship at your local church with your family each week cannot keep up with forty hours of worship at another church with all their friends each week. You can tell your kids that the one is more important than the other, but you cannot keep them from seeing that one is less than forty.