Mailbox Monday is a meme started by Marcia of To Be Continued. Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It now has a permanent home at the Mailbox Monday blog.
Well, the end of August is creeping up on us. I spent time with my mother-in-law this weekend. I will be heading home today. We miss her when she isn't with us, but need to keep her safe from COVID and two of us still work outside the house.
On Saturday, I watched Beauty and the Beast with Emma Watson and Dan Stevens. Wow! I would watch it again if I had time. The only good thing about my tinnitus affecting my sleep is that I watch some good TV and movies on the Kindle Fire HD 10. I'm still going through the Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated series, but I don't like it as much as the original show. I don't like how they put Frank and Daphne and Shaggy and Velma into relationships with each other. I don't like how Velma is jealous of Shaggy and Scooby's friendship, either.
My physical mailbox did not hold any treasures, but I picked up a new Kindle Unlimited selection and a Kindle freebie.
I recently heard Richard Rothstein speak, which prompted me to add his book to my Kindle Unlimited collection.
I've read a few books by Pamela Samuels Young, so I picked up this Kindle freebie last week.
That's it for me this week. It will be a busy one as I have two closings, a meeting, and am taking the girls back to school shopping for some new clothes. My wallet is already crying.
Desperately seeking normal. That's my new name. I took the Lil' Diva and the Lil' Princess to the mall this week for summer clothes. How annoying!
Anchor stores had limited or no access into the mall, so you had to go back outside and walk or drive around to get into the mall.
Many stores are still closed.
They must not be running the A/C in every store because I came close to passing out while standing in line waiting for one of two cashiers in the entire two-level JcPenny's to check out. I can only imagine how the cashiers must be feeling since they are wearing masks their entire shift.
You stand in line to get into many of the popular stores since they must limit the number of people in the store at a time.
You can't try anything on, so I get to go back next week to return things that didn't fit.
People are cranky.
The pandemic has frazzled everyone's nerves. Many are tired of the way things are. Add to this the social unrest across the country, and we are bound to be short with each other.
I pray we remember to give each other a bit of grace. I continue to pray we focus on what brings us together instead of what divides us. I pray for the future of our country and the future leaders of this country. We must stand together!
Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone. ~ Titus 3:1-2
Life burbles along right now somewhere between normal and absolutely ridiculous. Breakneck speeds at work now that the delayed spring market has arrived. Still don't feel like going to the grocery store and wearing a mask everywhere doesn't make normal seem possible. Hearing plans for schools in the fall makes me glad my girls aren't little anymore. I'm not sure how they would cope with the changes.
We can, however, continue to learn from the wrongs of the past and to seek justice in a peaceful way. We can respect each other no matter our differences. We can advocate for change without violence.
What would we do if politicians stopped hurling insults?
What would we do if everyone accepted each other for who they are instead of trying to change them into what others thought they should be?
How different would our world be if we could seek what brings us together instead of focusing on what pulls us apart?
Though I am no longer Catholic, the Prayer of St. Francis always inspires me. I pray it inspires me to be a better person each day.
Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood, as to understand;
To be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning, that we are pardoned;
It is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” —John 16:33
Bookish (and not so Bookish) Thoughts is hosted by Bookishly Boisterous. This is a chance for book bloggers to dabble in areas besides books (but those are welcome too). Share your plans for the weekend, a rant on people not using their turn signals in parking lots, or your love of Sunday morning mimosas.
Since this meme has always been on Wednesday, but I never seem to get it done until Thursday, I'm going to move it to Wednesday and see if it sticks. Unless you've been avoiding the news for days now, you've heard that students around the nation staged walkouts today to protest gun violence. In our school district, the high school students were not allowed to go outside. Instead, they were allowed to go to the cafeteria for 17 minutes in honor of the 17 victims killed in the Parkland, Florida shooting. From what I understand, the student organizers at our high school read the names of the victims and also shared moments in silence to honor them. Other types of protests took place across our districts, but nothing near what we've seen in other areas of the country where students and politicians gave speeches.
While we must applaud citizens of various ages exercising their freedoms under the Constitution, it is more than disheartening that this issue--and many others--have become so politicized; that lawmakers and activists use tragedies to push their political agendas forward. The worst part is that conversations are no longer even close to civil. Long gone are the days where people could share their views without name calling and hurling insults Politics, like so many other things, has become primitive in nature. Pretty soon I expect to see politicians pounding their fists against their chests like gorillas.
Doesn't it seem like the 2016 election cycle lasted forever? Like many national elections, it was one crazy ride. In the end, we accept the hand we are dealt...just like always. (Well, some people protest and burn things: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/trump-win-sparks-riots-across-9225317) In the age of social media that means we are "treated" in the days following the election with tweets, snapchats, Facebook and Instagram posts expressing glee or outrage over our president-elect. That's one of the downsides to having technology that allows us to post our innermost thoughts without the benefit of anyone being present to hear your tone of voice or see your facial expressions...or without fear of repercussions.
Our country seems more divided than ever. With every passing year the chasm widens and it's sad to witness. During his victory speech, Donald Trump stated it is time for us to "come together as one united people." One of the topics I've discussed with the kids throughout these past several months is how important it is for us to support "human" rights and for us to strive to make things better for everyone. Too often nowadays there is a focus on identifying yourself. For so long our country has frowned upon stereotypes, and yet, now we are encouraging our young people to categorize themselves.
Why?
Aren't we all unique individuals? From the moment of conception, isn't it true that no one will physically or emotionally be the same as anyone else? Should whether we are gay or straight, black or white, male or female ever define us?
I want a better country and world not just for my children and grandchildren, but for every person. I want a world where we are servants to each other; where we help each other and celebrate our differences rather than get into heated online debates that accomplish nothing. I want a country where the government serves all its people.
In the weeks and months ahead, I pray for a more positive online message. I'm tired of people bashing one another over ideals. I'm tired of the vulgarity of the discussions. We are a country of free speech, but can't we be more honorable and kind in how we exercise that freedom?
I'm sitting here at our friend's beach house on the Outer Banks this Fourth of July. The television news is both frightening and ridiculous--talk of terror threats on this sacred holiday blending in with the heated debate over the appropriateness of the Confederate flag.
The direction our country is heading causes dismay. Once a country that applauded achievement, it now decries success and calls it greed. Once a country that celebrated freedom of speech and freedom of religion, we now live in fear of offending anyone--especially if we are Christians sharing our faith. Instead of praising our cultural differences, we are suspicious and more divided than ever.
America remains the greatest country in the world. Democracy has stood the test of time. Yet, abuse of executive privilege has us moving closer and closer to socialism; as does a Supreme Court that ignores the Tenth Amendment: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. We are at a dangerous turning point in our country. Either we are going to move closer to socialism or we are going to keep democracy alive and well. We are either going to allow the federal government to centralize control or we are going to elect people who work to keep control in the hands of the states (the people).
I am scared for our future. I am scared for our children's future. Every day I fear some new terror threat will impact our country and the people I love. As we sat and enjoyed the fireworks on the beach tonight, my husband and I were considering how easy it would be for a terrorist with a machine gun to wipe out hundreds of us as we were celebrating our country's independence.
September 11 changed our lives forever. But have we gotten smarter? Have we learned from it? Have we elected leaders who can deal with threats and keep us safe? Do those kinds of leaders exist anymore?
I pray for this country. I pray for its leaders. And I pray for my children and future grandchildren who will live through much more difficult times than my husband and I have known.
Stupidparty Math v. Myth: Unmasking the Destructive Forces Eroding American Democracy relies on publicly available facts, resources and tools to deconstruct and relentlessly drill down on the numerous misconceptions held by too many Republicans.
Why Working Moms Need to Read Stupidparty Math V. Myth
by Patrick Andendall
I’m excited to write for the The Busy Mom’s Daily about why it is important for working moms to read my book. Recently, the new Republican Congress passed a sweeping anti-abortion ban on the anniversary of Roe V. Wade. And the end of January marked the 6th anniversary of the signing of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. Nevertheless, for every one dollar I make, women still make 78 cents.
In President Obama’s State of the Union address, he emphasized a need for a bill to complete the progress of getting equal pay for men and women. Congress has attempted to improve the law but to no avail because of Republican obstruction. Even though legislation has addressed the wage gap, there remains an overall systemic problem: when women negotiate their salary, they use previous salary history.
It is worth mentioning to readers that my book does not tell you who to vote for. In the book’s introduction I point out that I owe much of my early success to conservative economic principles. In fact, there are some components of conservatism that seem naturally feminist: keeping the government out of the choices women should be left to make on their own, business friendly policies that empower women entrepreneurs, etc. In other words, the purpose of my book is not to tell women that Republicans have to be anti-women and they should always vote Democratic. By definition, a Conservative tends to be behind the curve on social issues and new ideas. Rather, working women should read my book to understand the ways that the “Stupidparty” has hijacked today’s Republican Party, and in the process painting the entire Republican Party anti-women on many of these issues.
Conservative does not mean freedom from government overreach in the Stupidparty. In fact the reverse in the case. Conservatism in the Stupidparty reflects reactionary principles from a bygone era that work distinctly against working women. My book equips voters to combat this kind of political rhetoric by pointing them to publicly available facts using more than 1,500 hyperlinks (the eBook is free for anyone that buys a print book).
The Supreme Court is about to clarify the law on pregnancy discrimination. Women are making significant strides for equality in the workplace, and in the military. But this should not be incremental progress, or a gift. It should be a right granted to all women.
Read Stupidparty Math v. Myth and discover the facts for yourself, and then decide.
Patrick Andendall has always had an interest in politics and, being multicultural, he views issues from a more international perspective. In 2004, five days before the election, he flew to Cleveland and pitched in to help with the political process. What he discovered was the dissolution of the American Dream, which he writes about in his book, Stupidparty. Educated at English boarding schools from the age of seven, Andendall went on to graduate from Lancing College. He started by sometimes working three jobs at once, trainee Underwriter/claim broker at Lloyd’s of London, his own one man cleaning Company (cleaning the very offices of a Reinsurance Company he would transact business at) plus doing seasonal work on various farms. Having made some windfall profits by borrowing money in order to be a “Stag” to take advantage of opportunities created by Margaret Thatcher’s de nationalization policies of the mid 1980′s, Andendall evolved into an entrepreneur with a core specialty in Reinsurance in London and New York where he looks for patterns in numbers. Self-employed in a field not normally conducive to self-employment, he is able remain in control, juggle different jobs, travel and pursue his various interests. Ending up in New York via romance in the African bush, Andendall now lives on Long Island with his wife, two children and two dogs.
Mailbox Monday is a meme started by Marcia of To Be Continued. Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It now has a permanent home at the Mailbox Monday blog.
Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles, and humongous wish lists.
Lots going on here. Year end events last week, and this week includes soccer tryouts, the Lil' Princess' final orchestra concert, and dance recital. My training went well last week and continues for at least the next two weeks, so blogging might be spotty.
Only one book arrived by mail this past week--thank goodness. I'm trying not to overwhelm my summer. This is for a review I'll be doing in July at The Book Connection.
What does it mean to be One Nation Under God? Our Founding Fathers believed it was more than a political slogan. Have we strayed from their vision? A Nation Under Judgment focuses on issues currently facing our nation including hunger, poverty, the environment and marriage. These and other issues are reviewed from both a Scriptural point of view and a social policy point of view. Readers are empowered to consider whether our nation is moving away from being One Nation Under God.
Book of Dreams sees Baby Raccoon’s parents use clouds to share their dreams of a better future. In the story, Mama and Papa use clouds to share their dreams about a healthy planet and vibrant future for Baby Ringtail. In the book, Baby Ringtail asks Mama and Papa, “Why is every cloud a different shape?” “Clouds are pictures in the sky that help us dream,” Mama Ringtail replies.
The Wall Street Journal, and many others, published articles on the now confirmed default of the United States Post Office to make a required annual $5.5 billion payment to a health-benefits fund managed by the Treasury.
According to a NetBase Solutions, Inc. poll that was printed in the Saturday/Sunday, July 28 - 29, 2012 issue of The Wall Street Journal, 54% of those surveyed are Anti-Post Office. A person is quoted as saying he can't wait for the USPS to close. Others complain about the personalities of the workers. The 44% of those who defend the USPS state the Post Office isn't too bad. The workers are personable considering what they have to deal with. One person is quoted as saying the USPS delivers for FedEx and UPS in more rural areas. The remaining 2% are making jokes about the whole thing.
My own experience with the USPS has been mostly pleasant. I ship all my prize giveaways through them, and I have never had anyone come back to me and complain about a lost or damaged item. In addition, the workers in our mail facility are great: always helpful and always pleasant.
Why is the USPS in such financial trouble? The increased usage of electronic mail and online bill payments are definitely part of the problem, but what business could remain solvent when forced to pre-fund a health-benefits fund for so many workers? It certainly seems, too, that Congress isn't making life easy in other ways. Check out this article from Economy Watch on NBC News.
I happen to like the Post Office. Even if the cost of a first-class stamp went up 50 cents I would use it. Could they be more efficient? Perhaps. I don't know enough about it to say one way or the other. I just feel it's important for it to be available for those who still use it.
This week's edition of WSJ Wednesday is inspired by an article found in the February 4 - 5, 2012 Weekend Investor section. Jessica Silver-Greenberg's article, "Refinancing: Time to Act?" discusses historically low interest rates and how some experts believe its a mistake for homeowners to wait too long to take advantage of them and refinance. Included with the article, is a table of "Average rates on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage" from 2010 - 2012.
Rates were 3.87% for the week ending February 2, 2012. The current national average according to ERate for a 30-year fixed conforming mortgage is 4.018%. This seems to hold up what some economists say that with a slightly improving economy rates will tick upward.
Refinancing isn't right in every situation. Homeowners have to weigh factors like closing costs and the outstanding balance on their current mortgage. My husband spent months going back and forth with potential lenders looking for the right rate and terms before we refinanced last month. In the end, though we are now back to a 30-year loan, we are saving hundreds of dollars a month and lost no equity.
Have you considered refinancing? Have you opted to rent a single family home instead of buying one? What is it like in your area? Is the economy improving?
In Death with Dignity, Orfali makes a compelling case for legalized physician-assisted dying. Using the latest data from Oregon and the Netherlands, he puts a fresh new slant on perennial debate topics such as “slippery slopes,” “the integrity of medicine,” and “sanctity of life.” His engaging writing style brings clarity to these issues. The content is thought-provoking; the arguments are well-researched, air-tight, and original.
This extraordinary book provides an in-depth look at how we die in America today. It examines the shortcomings of our end-of-life system. You’ll learn about terminal torture in hospital ICUs and about the alternatives: hospice and palliative care. With laser-sharp focus, Orfali scrutinizes the good, the bad, and the ugly. He provides an insightful critique of the practice of palliative sedation. The book makes a strong case that assisted dying complements hospice. By providing both, Oregon now has the best palliative-care system in America. Reading this book, above all, may help you or someone you care about navigate this strange landscape we call “end of life.” It can be your gentle and informed guide to “a good death” in the age of hospice and high-tech medical intervention
Robert Orfali, the guru of client/server systems in the early days of Silicon Valley, co-authored three best-selling books that demystified the complexity of these mission-critical systems and made them understandable to a whole new generation of programmers. The books sold over a million copies. In this book, Robert uses his analytical skills to deconstruct the most complex system he has yet encountered: our modern end-of-life system. He wrote this book after helping his soulmate and coauthor, Jeri, navigate her death from ovarian cancer in 2009. The deep emotions Robert felt allowed him to look at how we die from a different perspective, another angle. Robert also wrote Grieving a Soulmate.
Visit the author’s website and read more book excerpts at Death with Dignity
Health care today sits at the center of a ‘perfect’ storm whose effects are inescapable for every living person of every age from infancy to death: the tenure of politicians up to the highest levels of key governments, the trillion-dollar revenues and profits in every world currency and the life or death of us all, not just in the U.S. but worldwide.
The tangled world of healthcare seems like an undecipherable riddle. What’s wrong? Who’s responsible? The suspects are everywhere.
Following the death of my only child, who died under mysterious circumstances at a U.S. – accredited hospital in Bangkok, I began a three-and-a-half year intensive investigation to discover WHY?
The unimaginable paths I followed started in Bangkok but quickly led to discoveries of how vast and secreted corruption in the American medical industry have contributed to destroy, with self interested greed and unbridled power, the greatest healthcare system the world has ever known.
The American Medical Money Machine is available at Amazon!
James R. Goldberg, has served as a senior level executive and CEO with deep experience in running early and mid-stage technologically complex businesses with a major focus in health care. He has been a Principal of one of the world’s leading technology/business consultancies, the PA Consulting Group, based in London, England.
The author has been primarily involved, as a biomedical engineer and technologist, in developing medical technologies for surgery, drug delivery and diagnostics.
He served as contracted Executive Director of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories health care initiative, a U.S. Defense Research Laboratory program aimed at converting military technology into medical technology, Jim has invented over 12 technologies that have received U.S. and International Patents.
Goldberg earned his advanced degrees. along with other post graduate degrees at Michigan State University, New York University, Stanford University and European study programs including the Sorbonne, France, The University of Mainz,The University of Jena, Germany and the University of Madrid, Spain.
Real Men is a book about the plight of males over the last century, how they have become displaced by the changes in our society and lost of a distinct role.
Over the past few decades something is seriously shifting in the way men are operating within our society. Men are no longer the undisputed heads of the household or the family. Women have equal rights under the law and can compete against men for some of the better and higher paying jobs. Without a decided edge men are loosing their “king of the hill” status. Something must be done to at least redefine the role men should play. Whatever that role eventually becomes men will most certainly need to make adjustments from the way things were done in the past.
BOOK EXCERPT
MARS AND VENUS CONCEPT
Much has been written and spoken about the differences between how males and females operate. It is not by accident that we have a different basic operating system. For example, we build motor vehicles as a means of transportation. We build calculators to assist us in computing numerical equations. One would not expect a calculator to serve as a means of transportation because it was not built for that purpose. In a broader sense, men and women were designed (built) for different purposes. From a design prospective, women were given operating systems to enhance the purposes of which they were created (built): Men were likewise.
For example, women were given the ability to conceive and have babies. They were also given the trait of nurturing and caring for their young. Part of their traits and operating systems were built around their design and purpose. This is not to say that women were only built for the purpose of having babies, it means that it is a unique function to them that men do not have. Since this function is unique to females, it is only natural that men are not equal to women in such capacities. Men were built to serve other functions within the human species of which the protectors and providers were arguably two of the traits that were uniquely designed within them. This does not mean that women cannot be good providers or protectors of the family, but that certain traits within their operating systems were not specifically geared for that purpose. Regardless as to how we choose to operate within humanity, we cannot ignore the fact that certain traits seem to be more prevalent in a particular gender than in the other.
Even in stating this supposition, it does not mean that people can't do as they choose. This is where free will comes into play. There are times when necessity makes the choice against what one may wish or hope to choose otherwise. With single-parent families on the rise many females are left with the total burden of raising and providing for their children. Regardless to what is natural, or the intended design specifications, once children are born into the world someone has to provide, care, protect, nurture, and otherwise raise them. In the absence of having both male and female guardians someone will have to do what is necessary. One gender, usually the female, will have to assume both roles and do as best as they can under the circumstances. Even though it may not have been a conscious choice to be in that situation, necessity dictates a different set of rules that must be obeyed.
In reference to the natural design regarding gender differences, we must understand that even though the design was different and the roles and purposes were different, at the end of the day, necessity and free will dominates the table. Understanding the differences between the natural, unique designs of the genders should assist us in relating to each other and affectively doing the jobs we find before us. Understanding your function and carrying out that purpose is part of your birthright. How you carry out your particular assignment is personal. It has a lot to do with the authentic person that resides in your shell called a human being. Even though we may not realize it, or consciously know it to be true, there is a power and a force in the universe that is far greater than we are. Individually we will die at a given point, but life carries on. A question we should inquire of ourselves is, when that final breath is taken, did you do your best with the plate that was placed before you.
Although this topic is specifically geared toward defining a real man, on a wider view we should be looking at becoming the most genuine person we are capable of being. With that as our primary goal, our natural given abilities will excel in the manner in which they were intended. Gender should not be an issue that we allow to create separation or dissention. Males and females were built for one another, as a hand and glove, to be the caretakers of this planet. If we abide by the natural order it will serve us well. If we do not, then the consequences will be on our shoulders.
Writing came to this author totally by surprise. God planted an urge in Greg to search for Him during the fall of 1999. That search led to a constant reading appetite of various spiritual, religious, inspirational, and even metaphysical subjects. After reading so much material he began taking notes of his many late night sessions in order to remember what he was learning. He later began expressing his personal views of what he was digesting and recorded it in his journal. This collection of notes became the pages of his first book, In Search of the Soul. It was published in 2002 by Dorrance Publishing Company.
From his first book Greg continued to read and record his thoughts and opinions as they were developing. Since that first book he has been writing feverishly ever since. His second book Pearls of Wisdom, was published in 2003 by GEM Publications. Cold Tree Press published his third book, Food for the Soul in early 2005. His goal is to get as many of his completed works as possible into the hands of the readers whom they were intended to inspire.
In addition to being a writer, Greg is also a professional musician, Realtor, and a Professional Seminar Speaker. He and his wife Cynthia make their “Empty Nest” home in Altadena, California, and are ready to start on Phase Two, enjoying the grandchildren. Be on the lookout for more works from this prolific writer in the years to come.
In Distant Thunder: Book One of the Lightning Chronicles, the unthinkable has happened. Iranian terrorists are poised to strike the United States and Israel with tactical nuclear weapons. How will the world respond? More importantly, how will a sleepy suburban Church in America respond?
Ty Dempsey is a young American pastor who finds himself in a trial of grief after the loss of his younger brother to the war in Iraq. During his darkest hours, God brings to life a series of passages in the Bible that Ty had always considered allegorical in nature. They aren’t. With a strong sense of urgency that the message must be preached to his congregation, Ty dares to go beyond anything he has ever done before. Most of his people are intrigued, but others begin to stir trouble. The result is a church conflict that threatens to destroy his ministry. His only reprieve is found in a budding romance with talented and beautiful singer, Blake Sieler.
Meanwhile, Moshe Eldan is an Israeli F-16 “Lightning” pilot who is faithfully doing his duty to protect his increasingly beleaguered nation. But things have gotten more complicated than normal. Beyond the fact that Hizbollah fighters are administering their cyclical rocket attacks across the border of Lebanon, neighbor nations are beginning to act provocatively, even after a Palestinian State has been formed. Worse, his wife confronts him with a startling prophecy from the Bible that seems to be coming true ten thousand feet beneath his wings. Never one to be anything other than a secular Jew, Moshe is forced into a journey toward faith. Then, his Lightning jet is shot down by a Russian Mig 29, and things get suddenly complicated.
Strangely, these two men, from totally different backgrounds and cultures are connected in ways that can only be orchestrated by God. This fast plausible, paced thriller never stops moving, and the end will be shocking.
EXCERPT:
Tel-Abib, Babylon 568 B.C.
The old man kicked at a clump of dried grass, while he wiped away the sweat that was burning his eyes. Just standing in this heat weakened his spindly legs, and a scorching wind seared his lungs. It was the season when relentless summer winds sucked the life out of just about everything in this “Heart of Babylon,” greatest of all kingdoms, center of the universe.
“Bah,” spat Ezekiel, the crusty old prophet. “There is only one King who will lay claim, and it is not Nebuchadnezzar!”
He wasn’t concerned about his words falling on the ears of a stray Chaldean; he was already known by most as a lunatic. In reality, only a handful of his own people actually listened to him. Mostly, he was mocked as a babbling fool, and that only sharpened his frustration.
He was meandering along the eastern bank of the Chebar Canal, alone with his tortured thoughts and nagging regrets. So many hopes and dreams had been piled up like refuse in a trash heap, sometimes he wondered if there was any point in continuing what seemed to be a fruitless ministry. Worse, Ezekiel knew he was nearing his last breath. The reality that he would not see his beloved Jerusalem again weighed heavily upon him.
Stolen away from his homeland by the King of Babylon some thirty years earlier, the prophet had nearly forgotten the beauty and blessings of Judah. Only images remained. Some were pleasant ponderings; others were memories of shattered possibilities. But most glaring were the remembrances of a greater invasion of wickedness that had consumed his people.
He’d cried out fervently while still in Israel, trying to awaken the people to the abomination of it all. Few listened. Wretchedness had been unleashed upon the people, and it came from the iniquities of the people themselves. No matter how passionately he’d challenged the depravity, there seemed to be no power behind his words. None of his pronouncements carried the necessary weight to bring about change. His desire to call upon the conscience of his nation was simply not enough. So, with the heaviness that accompanied a sense of failure, Ezekiel had left prophetic utterance to the prophets, to the few who claimed to have the power.
It wasn’t until he’d settled in the hovel called Tel-abib, situated beside this dirty river, that he first began to feel an odd stirring in his belly. Strangely, it signaled the arrival of a power that would energize his words. It was also when his dreams began to turn dark. He was shown things he, to this day, could not comprehend.
His visions were so horrifyingly real that he’d developed a tremor in his hands, and a slight twitch had become noticeable under his eye. Whenever he shared the dreams and visions, the quaking and twitching became so prominent that people would either discount him as sick or denounce him as a fool. But the inner stirring only intensified until it became a raging storm.
He lifted his head and looked toward a setting sun smeared by distant dust-filled winds. Slowly, his thoughts turned to his once lovely Jerusalem, and it made him mourn. Worse, his wild visions concerned that once great city. Over the last few weeks his waking dreams had disturbed him so much that he’d hardly been able to stomach his food.
Whenever the trance fell, a huge valley would be stretched before him, a valley filled with nothing but dust, dry bones and armor. It was a place of defeat and death, where all flesh had been picked clean by vultures and jackals. Some great battle had been waged and an army had met complete annihilation.
With each repetition of the vision, the prophet would end up puzzled and confused. But the last few times, something different had happened. What seemed to have been a messenger from the Almighty had appeared beside him. The figure was beyond comprehension, yet exuding a sorrowful compassion for the lost people lying before him.
“What do you see, son of man? Describe it to me,” the bronze-hued, light shrouded being commanded.
Ezekiel’s knees were banging together like drums being played at a wedding feast. “I see bones, nothing but bones. Bones separated from one another and piled high. Swords, helms, bucklers, and shields,” Ezekiel answered weakly.
“Can these bones live again?” the being asked. “Can there be life in place of death?”
Ezekiel strained his eyes out over the valley looking for any sign of a survivor, any life at all. Not even a bird remained to pick at the bones. Everything was desolate. With a shrug and a sigh, he let the question stand for a moment. How does one give answer to such a majestic being, when words fall short of holiness and are shrouded in trepidation?
“You know, my Lord, you know,” was the prophet’s feeble reply.
“I tell you, son of man, these bones will live again.”
Suddenly, a swirling wind blew outward from the messenger and passed down the entire length of the valley. It was accompanied by bursts of lightning as it rolled forward in raw, creative power.
A clicking sound could be heard, something far beyond Ezekiel’s knocking knees. It was the sickly pop of bone reconnecting with bone. He looked toward the nearest pile of death and gasped as a soldier was swiftly reassembled, then another. He witnessed a torrent of bones flying as if they were looking for the correct skeleton to connect to. Then, sinew and tendon began to form in joints and spread rapidly over each body. Flesh appeared. Clothing followed it.
Armor flew into place on one lone soldier nearby. The new man took his place among the hundreds of companies who were being formed across the entire valley. Then, silence. The army was standing, living, breathing, and ready to march to war. Sweat poured down Ezekiel’s face as he turned to the messenger.
“I tell you, that which was dead will come to life. My wayward people were crushed under my discipline, but they shall be restored. Jacob shall live again, and my servant David shall be king. I will make a covenant of peace with them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. Then the whole world will see my sanctuary standing in their company forever.” Then the man was gone.
It was the same nearly every night for the last moon cycle. Ezekiel grunted as he thought of how he was getting to the point where he could repeat the words with each night’s visitation.
However, this last part of the vision needed a bit more consideration before he shared it. The people were already raising their eyebrows, no need to confirm his lunacy just yet.
Suddenly, the prophet felt himself driven to his knees by the weight of a massive hand. He was pushed mercilessly downward until his sunburned forehead touched the parched earth he’d been kicking moments before. Then a voice said,
“Son of man, set your face to the north, to Gog of the land of Magog, to the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him…”
You can listen to the Prologue and the first two chapters from Distant Thunder by visiting the author's website.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Jimmy Root Jr., has served as an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God since 1982, including service in Nebraska, Missouri, and a seven year term as a missionary in Colombia, South America. Jimmy is the lead Pastor of Family Worship Center of Smithville, a growing suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. Married to his wife Jean for twenty-nine years, the Roots have three grown children.
Root is a 1981 alumnus of Central Bible College of Springfield, Missouri where he majored in Biblical Studies and Pastoral Theology. He is also an alumnus of Southeastern University, Lakeland Florida, where he majored in Intercultural Studies.
A lifetime student of Biblical prophecy, Jimmy is also the Professor of Eschatology, The Study of End Times, for Berean University through the Northern Missouri District School of Ministry. He is a featured speaker at Churches and other venues, and is the host of “The Bible Uncensored” radio broadcast heard on radio stations around the country.
His writings, both in book form as well as his blog, are purposed to be a wake-up call to a sleepy American church that seems to be losing a truly Christian World View. Distant Thunder and its sequels, A Gathering Storm and Then Comes Lightning, will reveal to the adventure/thriller aficionado the reality of the coming fulfillment of Biblically prophesied events. You can visit his website at www.lightningchronicles.com or his blog at www.prophecyalert.blogspot.com. Connect with him on twitter at www.twitter.com/JimmyRootJr and Facebook at www.facebook.com/jimmyrootjr.
Look for our interview with Jimmy Root Jr., coming later this month!
T.E. Scott exposes the stock market and commodity markets for what they really are --- brilliantly marketed rip-offs. The Losing Game simplifies a very complex system that Wall Street has designed to separate the masses from their money without accountability or prosecution. As a result of this design, they have tricked us into believing that the stock market and commodity markets are something they are not.
Wall Street is fleecing millions of Americans every day with brokerage houses, Congress and the media as willing accomplices. With their help, the American public is fooled into thinking that investing is safe and convinced that, if they’re smart and listen to the right people, they can accumulate wealth quickly. And when we fail, our tax money bails them out.
AUTHORS' BIOS:
T.E. Scott founded and spent twenty-five years as CEO of Scott Pet Products,(scottpet.com) building the enterprise into a multimillion-dollar company in Rockville, Indiana. Before starting that business, Scott spent thirty-two years working as a baggage handler for Eastern Airlines. When he lost most of his pension when the company went bankrupt in the 1980s, Scott started on the road to exposing the true nature of Wall Street. Scott is retired and resides in Veedersburg, Indiana.
Stephen Edds is a native of Owensboro, Kentucky and is a graduate of Hanover (Indiana) College. Edds spent fifteen years in corporate marketing communications before striking out on his own as a freelance writer and joining Scott as consumer watchdogs with a focus on exposing Wall Street. Edds moved to Indianapolis in 1996, where he still resides with his wife, Erin, and son Levi.
United in Hate crystallizes the danger that a Barack Obama administration, if tilted too far left, presents to American security and global freedom.
As history shows, leftist beliefs have spawned mass carnage and misery. Put into practice, they have caused the deaths of millions. Until now, it has been extremely difficult for rational people who value personal freedom to understand the motivations of those who live in comfort and yet embrace monstrous dictators, ideologies, and policies that leave only death and destruction in their wake.
In United in Hate, Dr. Jamie Glazov presents startling new insights into the toxic beliefs and torturously contorted thought processes of the leftists who lust to destroy the very freedoms that allow them to exist. Glazov explains the Left’s love for and deification of totalitarian ideologies, from Marxism to radical Islam, with clarity and candor.
In this groundbreaking examination, Dr. Glazov at last reveals the vile and morbid forces that impel so-called “progressives” to embrace not just murderous ideologies such as Marxism and radical Islam, but the systematic elimination of all those standing in the way of their new utopia.
Advance Praise for United in Hate by Jamie Glazov:
An ambitious, original and well-documented study that addresses some of the most interesting and important political-historical questions of our times.
Paul Hollander, author of “Political Pilgrims" and "The End of Commitment.”
A must-read for those who care about truth, the rule of law, and any hope of ultimate stability for humankind. The redefining work for twenty first century readers of an eternal message.
Robert C. McFarlane, National Security Advisor to President Reagan. Chairman and CEO of McFarlane Associates Inc.
In years to come, this book will become a classic, not just for conservatives but for all Americans interested in the truth and how to combat a perfidious alliance.
Steven Emerson, author of "American Jihad: The Terrorists Living Amongst Us" and producer of the documentary "Jihad in America."
Read and excerpt:
“The believer’s totalitarian journey begins with an acute sense of alienation from his own society—an alienation to which he is, himself, completely blind. In denial about the character flaws that prevent him from bonding with his own people, the believer has convinced himself that there is something profoundly wrong with his society—and that it can be fixed without any negative trade-offs. He fantasizes about building a perfect society where he will, finally, fit in…
A key ingredient of this paradigm is that the believer has failed to rise to the challenges of secular modernity; he has not established real and lasting interpersonal relationships or internalized any values that help him find meaning in life. Suffering from a spiritual emptiness, of which he himself is not cognizant, the believer forces non-spiritual solutions onto his spiritual problems. He exacerbates this dysfunction by trying to satisfy his every material need, which the great benefits of modernity and capitalism allow—but the more luxuries he manages to acquire, the more desperate he becomes. We saw this with the counterculture leftists of the sixties and seventies, and we see it with the radical leftists of today. Convinced that it is incumbent upon society, and not him, to imbue his life with purpose, the believer becomes indignant; he scapegoats his society—and ends up despising and rejecting it.
Just like religious folk, the believer espouses a faith, but his is a secular one. He too searches for personal redemption—but of an earthly variety. The progressive faith, therefore, is a secular religion. And this is why socialism’s dynamics constitute a mutated carbon copy of Judeo-Christian imagery. Socialism’s secular utopian vision includes a fall from an ideal collective brotherhood, followed by a journey through a valley of oppression and injustice, and then ultimately a road toward redemption.
In rejecting his own society, the believer spurns the values of democracy and individual freedom, which are anathema to him, since he has miserably failed to cope with both the challenges they pose and the possibilities they offer. Tortured by his personal alienation, which is accompanied by feelings of self-loathing, the believer craves a fairy-tale world where no individuality exists, and where human estrangement is thus impossible. The believer fantasizes about how his own individuality and self will be submerged within the collective whole…. As history has tragically recorded, this “holy cause” follows a road that leads not to an earthly paradise, but rather to an earthly hell in all of its manifestations. The political faith rejects the basic reality of the human condition—that human beings are flawed and driven by self-interest—and rests on the erroneous assumption that humanity is malleable and can be reshaped into a more perfect form. This premise spawned the nightmarish repressions and genocidal campaigns of Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and other communist dictators in the twentieth century. Under their rule, more than one hundred million human beings were sacrificed on the altar where a new man would ostensibly be created.”
About the author: Jamie Glazov holds a Ph.D. in history with specialties in U.S., Russian, and Canadian foreign policy. He is the managing editor of Frontpagemag.com.
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, the unthinkable has happened. Iranian terrorists are poised to strike the United States and Israel with tactical nuclear weapons. How will the world respond? More importantly, how will a sleepy suburban Church in America respond?
