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Give me the boy until he is seven and I will give you the man. (paraphrased)

This quote has been attributed in one instance to St. Ignatius of Loyola - founder of the Jesuits
and in another St. Francis Xavier and regardless of the rather dubious "doings" of the Jesuits,  the ethos of this written word remains the same.   A child is a blank page upon which we write with all our beliefs and prejudices.

A moral sense of right, wrong and judgement may remain or re.surface in later years and quite
rightly in free churches dedication as opposed to infant baptism is considered the choice of parents for their offspring alongside their commitment to raise the child unto the Lord.
    
The aforementioned an explanation for a very Catholic journey into phrose by a thirteen year old pupil of an English Convent School.    

Through the cool blown summer grasses,

through the swaying flowering masses,

an angel came on a snow white steed,

to rest by the ever whispering reed.

Listening to the laughing stream,

the angel sank down in the sun's warm beam,

for soon she must on her mission go,

as soon as the heavenly bodies did glow.

Some said they saw this angel

as she rode through the purpled sky

and her cherubic voice like the chimes of crystal

begged for speed lest the little one die.

And her mare she obeyed the order

as her hoofs thrashed the still night air,

as a beautiful Lady in cloak of blue,

from the Isles of the Blessed smiled down on the two.

A mellow light glowed from a room to the street

and the angel climbed down from her lofty seat.

She silently crept to the big heavy door

her feet padded over the cold stone floor.

A guardian angel was kneeling there,

feathered wings folded she knelt in prayer.

"Oh mother" please help me the dying child cried.

"Oh God save my child" the distraught mother sighed.

And music, unearthly, it filled the air

and the sleeping physician awoke in his chair.

A blaze of glory shone o'er the child's face

all pain swiftly fled from this holier place.

The deathly face coloured, the eyes flickered wide

"why look she is better" the stunned mother cried.

And the angel she turned and opened the door,

I have finished my work, I'm needed no more.

But as she and her mare back to heaven sped

the little girl looked to her mother and said,

"There was a shining angel who stood by my bed"

And a Queen smiled down from a golden seat,

for an angel and steed at the Gates she must meet.

Raised in the Catholic faith you are instructed to pray to Mary and the Saints requesting they intercede for you - this mysterious God is behind the priests - behind the veil.  They venerate a block of wood, piece of stone and a bag of bones.   Absurdly it can be an odd shaped potato or crying statue and when one realises the history of this particular denomination - small wonder the virgin weeps.   Every respect to the simple Jewish girl chosen by Adonai for her purity and spotless womb, who carried the Son of God, raised Him only to watch Him suffer and die for the sins of mankind.   Surely Blessed amongst women.

4TH COMMANDMENT

You shall not make for yourself a carved image-any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

You shall not bow down to them nor serve them.  FOR I THE LORD YOUR GOD, AM A JEALOUS

GOD, VISITING THE INIQUITY OF THE FATHERS UPON THE CHILDREN TO THE THIRD AND FOURTH GENERATION OF THOSE WHO HATE ME,  but showing mercy to thousands,

to those who love Me and keep MY COMMANDMENTS.  

KADOSH - ADONAI - ELOHIM TZEVA-OT

Talitha Hills

1953

   

LOOK PAST THE MAN

How many times do we look at someone unable to see what God sees in them.   Was the unkempt guy I  passed on a quiet country lane angel, demon or neither.  Just someone who decided to "drop out" of the system or perhaps a secret billionaire looking for a project to salve his conscience at having acquired so much and managed to keep it.   Was the shadow I glimpsed flashing past from another dimension or have I an undiagnosed problem with my vision.   Who knows.

At one stage in my life I was a member of a very progressive church.   According to the minister's wife
angels sat on the roof throughout the services!!   The congregation comprised of conservative right and
a left wing progressive youth.  The trainers and tee shirt brigade, feet parked on a spare seat, cuddling couples and a music group that inspired even the dourest spirit.    Our brightly dressed vicar who strongly objected to the "frock" appeased pressure by the right wing traditional element and offered to  wear the garment once a month.

Sad to say the split came, the courageous man stood his ground and said he didn't care if he got
down to twelve members, (much like the Lord then) as long as they were spirit filled children of God.   After all we needed to be singing, praising and rowing in the right direction.

Of course the zealots were not to be thwarted, he had to go and the dirty tricks brigade were plotting.
Ah yes, the devil goes to church.   Pharisees were still doing a good job here.      Any sign of weakness, any chink in the armour and out he must go.   Thankfully they can't crucify their victims today, but they could crush, break, destroy and discard the man who was filling the pews.  After four hours worship and teaching he left his flock encouraged and inspired commenting "they don't want to go home"  

At one point during his leadership he had picked up a Pastoral Search Report on the Internet and this was circulated amongst the faithful but the message fell on stoney ground.   They were either totally devoid of a sense of humour or just didn't realise God laughs at our antics.

Perhaps one day they will have to explain by whose authority they sat in judgement.  
The church returned to its traditional services.   Nothing moved (in the spirit) other than the church cleaner or the communion queue.    Thirteen years later this denomination continues its downward spiral of apostasy towards a subdivision of its former adversary, the Catholic church.  Whoops!!!

I remain eternally grateful to the author whose sense of humour is surely a blessing and encouragement to the rejected shepherds.

Pastoral Search Report

(author unknown - but posted on internet)

We do not have a happy report to give.   We've not been able to find a suitable candidate for this church, though we have one promising prospect still.    We do appreciate all the suggestions from the church

members, and we've followed up each one with interviews or calling at least three references.

The following is our confidential report on the present candidates.

Adam          Good man but problems with his wife.  Also one reference told of how his wife and he

                    enjoyed walking nude in the woods.

Noah           Former pastorate of 120 years with no converts.  Prone to unrealistic building projects.

Abraham     Though the references reported wife-swopping, the facts seem to show he never slept

                    with another man's wife, but did offer to share his own wife with another man.

Joseph         A big thinker, but a braggart, believes in dream-interpreting and has a prison record.

Moses          A modest meek man, but poor communicator, even stuttering at times.   Sometimes

                    blows his stack and acts rashly.   Some say he left an earlier church over a murder charge.

David          A promising leader of all until we discovered the affair he had with his neighbour's wife.

Solomon     Great preacher but our parsonage would never hold all those wives.

Elijah          Prone to depression - collapses under pressure.

Elisha         Reported to have lived with a single widow while at his former church.

Hosea        A tender and loving pastor but our people could never handle his wife's occupation.

Deborah    Female

Jeremiah    Emotionally unstable, alarmist, negative, always lamenting things, reported to have taken

                  a long trip to bury his underwear on the bank of a foreign river.

                  * I THINK SOMEONE CALLED ME A JEREMIAH RECENTLY - always crying

                  repent - the day of the Lord draws near!!!   I'm NOT a head in the sand type then?

Isaiah         On the fringe?  Claims to have seen angels in church (*REALLY - A SOUL MATE!!)

                  Has trouble with his language.

Jonah         Refused God's call into ministry until he was forced to obey by getting swallowed by a 

                  great fish.   He told us the fish later spit him out on the shore near here.   We hung up.

Amos        Too backward and unpolished.   With some seminary training he might have promise,

                  but has a hang-up against wealthy people.   Might fit in better in a poor congregation.

                  * Couldn't be selected as reserve for a prosperity preacher then!!

John          Says he is a Baptist, but definitely doesn't dress like one.   Has slept in the outdoors for

                 months on end, has a weird diet and provokes denominational leaders.

Peter         Too blue collar.   Has a bad temper - even has been known to curse.   Had a big run-in

                 with Paul in Antioch.   Aggressive, but a loose cannon.    *Sounds familiar

Paul          Powerful CEO type leader and fascinating preacher.  However, short on tact,

                 unforgiving with younger ministers, harsh and has been known to preach all night.

Timothy   Too young.

Jesus        Has had popular times, but once when his church grew to 5,000 he managed to offend

                 them all and this church dwindled down to twelve people.   Seldom stays in one place

                 very long.   And of course, he's single.

Judas        His references are solid.   A steady plodder.  Conservative.  Good connections.  Knows

                 how to handle money.   We are inviting him to preach this Sunday.  Possibilities here.

                 * Much needed spirit of discernment here then!!!!!!

IT IS USEFUL TO REMEMBER THIS, WHEN WE JUDGE WHOM GOD MAY JUST BE

USING TO HIS GLORY.

*   My comments only - and I say  AMEN TO THAT - and many thanks to the author - whoever you may be.

T. Hills  2011

                 

                  

              

  

     


  

GOOD FRIDAY

Adonai, forgive those who suffer from religious pride,

Yours the weak, doubters, sick, abandoned, lost, lonely and beaten sheep.

Reveal your Truth, Your Hesed, Your Shalom.

Adonai, forgive those who judge,

Yours the Authority,

Yours the Judgement.

Adonai, forgive those who 'slay' 

bring swift justice for your martyrs and saints.

Adonai, forgive our every human weakness and sin,

Heal our land,

Shield the innocents,

COME, this time in Glory.

We your children long for your return,

strengthen and renew us,

while we wait for that Blessed Day.

T. Hills  2011

Twice this week I have heard the comment the world will not change until man changes.

How true.

Many will not believe until God turns up - meanwhile they wonder and complain - what's going on!!!

Many sink in the cesspool of their choice, following their own lusts and desires.    The church

fiddles and burns with its false prophets and dubious leaders.   

Small wonder children take as normal, theft, fraud following by example.

From the established church they preach the word, change the robe,  blend with the world and take food from the mouths of babes to line their personal vaults and adorn their palaces. 

Mankind now worships a materialistic life style but one day soon - the fuel will run out.   The shelves will be bare and the enemy rising like ants will swarm from a hole in the ground to cover the globe.

GOD TURNS HIS FACE AWAY - biblical history.

And the young are drip fed evil dross from the box they worship,  parents weep, victims of the 

monsters created by the system.

On the positive side - its not too late.    Chuck the tele out the window, ban newspapers, mobile phones, Facebook, Twitter,  trashy

magazines and censor their literature.   Watch over them.    Love them.    Teach them to care for the planet,

and just maybe they will live to see a better world where God's commandments are finally obeyed

and He just might want to live amongst His people.