March 31^st, we will be happier with April 1^st, hopefully the wind won’t be blowing so we can burn.  Right now, its’ blowing, the sky is grey with a chance of rain and the extended forecast is for rain the next few days.

Never fails, huh?

Luke 6:22-26 Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.

²³ Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.

²⁴ But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation.

²⁵ Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep.

²⁶ Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets.

Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.

We have all been around Christians who seem to want to have people hate them; in fact they are proud of that fact because they believe that this verse supports them.  They will testify in Church about how they are being attacked and use it as a badge of accomplishment.

While I cannot question motives, I have to wonder if they are truly trying to present God’s Word to people so they will understand the importance of Salvation through Christ, or just promoting their own self-importance?

Are they sincere in their desire to present the Gospel, following the leading of the Holy Spirit, or more interested in making themselves a target so they can self-righteously claim they are being ostracized and being called ‘evil’?

How do we preach salvation without pointing out we are all sinners and the only way we can come to God is through confession of those sins and acceptance of Christ’s sacrifice, without drawing animosity?

The answer is simple, we can’t.

However, we must search our hearts and determine we are following the leading of the Holy Spirit and not our own brand of ‘religion.’

If a Christian lives a life as righteously as he possibly can, he is going to have detractors.  He is going to have those that say we think we are better than them.

We often exclude ourselves from associates’ activities because we are not comfortable with their lifestyle – and we are looked at as weird or not sociable.  We may like them, we may work well with them, we may share common ground with them, but we know that we cannot allow ourselves to participate in certain activities, or if we do, we must be careful to not let down on our witness for Christ.

As with most organizations the Sheriffs had many conferences and workshops.  Those meetings would take place over a few days several times a year.  The conferences were designed to give these men information about new laws, procedures or other things affecting their Offices.

Representatives from other agencies we worked with – Chiefs of Police, the State Police and other state organizations, Federal agencies that worked with us would come in and we would share thoughts and concerns.  We met with Governors and other high ranking officials to share information and learn how we could best serve the citizens of our state.

After the meetings different companies would sponsor a hosted bar in their hospitality rooms.

They provide drinks and appetizers and Sheriffs and other officials would go there to socialize and exchange information.  The alcoholic drinks were free, were strong and there were those that imbibed a bit too much during the evening.

It is important to get to know each other on a personal as well as a professional level so that when you need advice or assistance your peers know who you are and are more willing to accommodate you.  You also can discuss issues in more depth and often in a more relevant manner at these events.

Time during the meetings was always limited so we could get as much business done as possible; therefore most of the information was general.  The hospitality rooms, going out to dinner or other social time gave time to be more detailed.

I went to the hospitality rooms.  However, if I could not consume a soft drink from a can, I didn’t consume anything. 

It was important to make the connection and still maintain my witness as a Christian.  I was never challenged about that, everyone had pretty much heard my testimony and they accepted and respected it.  It didn’t seem to hurt my relationships with these men and I wouldn’t have cared if it had.

I know that some Christians, when they heard about my interaction and where it took place, were unhappy with me, they felt that I had jeopardized my witness.  They felt that by going to the rooms I was condoning the behavior, especially since I didn’t speak out against the drinking.

I believed my actions spoke of my Christianity.  We don’t live in a vacuum, I had a lot of opportunities to share my faith with these men and I took them.  I felt that, for me, to go into these rooms and have fellowship with these men was part of my witness for Christ as well as doing my job as Sheriff.  I based that feeling on Christ’s fellowship with sinners.

Luke 5:29-32 And Levi made him a great feast in his own house: and there was a great company of publicans and of others that sat down with them.

³⁰ But their scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?

³¹ And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick.

³² I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

I do want to be careful about this, there were many social events I did not and do not attend because of the use of alcohol or for other reasons.  With those events I did attend I did/do not make an issue of not drinking, I just don’t drink anything that can be misinterpreted. 

We know that makes some people nervous and uncomfortable and many excluded me from certain meetings/celebrations because of my not drinking – and many because of my stand for Christ.  Did that hurt me politically?  Maybe, but I didn’t care.

I bring this up, not trying to pat myself on the back, but as an introduction as to what happened in those meetings with other Sheriffs.

A few years after I was elected and had been going to these meetings one of the support staff came up to me and shared his conversation with another Sheriff.

The Sheriff was a Christian, but he was also an alcoholic.  He would attend the hospitality rooms and feeling he had to be one of the boys, he drank alcoholic beverages.  Because of his addiction he would drink to excess and then berate himself for doing it.

We have to remember that abuse of alcohol is a sin, but like all sins satan likes to use it against us – when a Christian is vulnerable satan must wring his hands in glee as he helps him fall.

This Sheriff felt guilty for drinking and guilty for what it did to his Christian testimony.  The person talking to me said that he pointed me out to the Sheriff and said something like, Art too is a Christian, he doesn’t drink and he is well accepted.

It helped that Sheriff and he never felt he had to drink at these functions again.

When I left office fully half the Sheriffs did not drink alcohol at these hospitality rooms.  Soft drinks became the dominant drink in the rooms.  I don’t claim to have caused that to happen, but I do know that at least one Sheriff understood my stand and joined me.

We want to share the Gospel of Christ.  There will be those that turn against us; that will condemn us for our lifestyle in Christ.  They will berate and try to undermine us anyway they can.  I have had that happened to me.

Gossip and out and out lies will be told about us because of our stand in Christ.  If we are not suffering for our stand for Christ in some manner we need to evaluate what we are doing and saying – HOWEVER, we should not be going out to deliberately confront people so we can claim virtue by way of their anger.

Christ did not hesitate to confront those that challenged him, but He also presented the Word with calm authority that astounded those that heard Him.  His LOVE of people showed through in all that He did.  His desire to have people follow His teachings and come to believe on Him as THE Christ was done with that love, not hatred towards those that committed sins.

In the end, God uses our skills and personalities to present the
Gospel to others.  Some of us are boisterous while others are very quiet; He enables us to serve Him no matter what kind of personality we have.

What we want to do is follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance – there are times for confrontations and there are times for quietly extolling Christ.  We need to make sure whatever methods we use, it is not being done to massage our own egos, but done under His directions to Glorify God.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again

I had limited contact with the Rajneesh followers who called themselves sannyasins and I did not make a study of their religion.

As with most of my constituents, they lived their lives and I had interaction only when it involved my Office.  Which was more often than most citizens, but mainly in the realm of civil papers and answering attacks on our Office by some of the leaders.

I have no supporting statistics to ‘prove’ what I am writing, only my observations.  I have used the resources of ‘The Oregonian’ the largest paper in Oregon which is located in Portland, to refresh my memory on some issues.  However, the thoughts expressed here are mine.

While the age range ran from the late teens to the elderly the leaders of the sect seemed to be in their 30’s and 40’s.  Most were highly successful in their chosen profession.

My thoughts were that while many of their fellow collegians were whooping it up in the 1960’s with drugs and ‘free love’ these men and women were studying hard and striving to be the best in their field.

They went out into the world and became just what they were striving for, successful.  They were highly motivated, and along with their success they got used to people doing what they told them to do.

They were used to a fast pace and did not like to be told no, and in their professions few told them no.

They considered themselves highly sophisticated and intelligent and thought the citizens of Wasco County were bumbling idiots that they could run over.  They conspired to upset as many citizens as they could and to coerce them into giving them what they wanted.

In short they were like a two year old who doesn’t get what he wants, he throws a tantrum and treats his parents as fools.  All too frequently his tantrums work and he gets what he wants – they through many tantrums in the years that they lived here.

As they had reach a plateau in their lives where the gathering of material wealth and being at the top of their game was no longer as rewarding, their spiritual condition haunted them.

They went in search of something that would lift them up and make them feel good about themselves.  A higher being that would relate to them and give them spiritual relief.

In their search they found Rajneesh and his beliefs.  They bought into his teachings and many gave all their worldly possessions to the sect in honor of him.

As individuals they may not have thought about committing the crimes they committed.  However, as a group they were conniving, relentless, liars; vicious in their quest for a large community to set up a college and supporting business to honor Rajneesh.

Rajneesh had taken a vow of silence when the sect started looking for a permanent home in America.  He spoke through Ma Anad Sheela who became, for quite some time, the undisputed leader and spokesperson of the sect, conferring and conspiring with Rajneesh daily.

It was Sheela who search for the property where they could set up their plans.  In the process she came to the Muddy Ranch.  A large cattle ranch, approximately 64,000 acres and the use of many more thousands of acres of Bureau of Land Management land, in the southeast corner of Wasco County.

This is dry land.  Sagebrush, juniper trees, rock formations, sand and bunch grass make up the bulk of the acreage.  While there is some good soil in the bottom lands, most of the acreage is suitable for cattle and not much else.  It takes several acres of this kind of land to support one cow.

The winters are harsh and the summers are hot and dry. 

The ranch was isolated from the rest of the county by virtue of its dirt roads and deep canyons.  While a county road went through the center of the property, it was basically used only by those that were at the ranch or had dealings with the ranch.

The Dalles, Wasco County’s county seat, was located over 80 miles away and due to the types of roads, it took anywhere upwards of 3 hours (depending on weather) to get there.

The nearest community was Antelope, 20 miles away.  Antelope is an incorporated city of about 26 people.  It has a school house, a community gathering point that used to be a church, a small general store with gas pumps and a post office.  The county road department also had a shed and equipment placed on the edge of town as a base of operations to work on county roads in that area.

At the turn of the twentieth century it was a thriving community with over a hundred people and one of the leading sheep processing points in Oregon. 

But it became a community made up of retired people and a few that worked in Madras, the largest town of about 2000 people, 26 miles away. 

Sheela decided that the Muddy Ranch was ideal for their endeavors and proceeded to purchase the property and in 1981 the sect began its work on the ranch.

In the beginning the leaders tried to assure the local citizens that all they wanted to do was farm, they would be practicing new agriculture techniques on the land.  They were deceitful as they voiced their desires to have a farming commune with less than 200 people involved.

They moved in and started building.  And it wasn’t just buildings to house agricultural activity.  They built buildings that housed businesses.

For the non-agricultural buildings they needed permits from the County and had to show why they should be allowed in this area where the zoning was strictly agriculture.  They didn’t like being told they couldn’t build and they didn’t like being told that the process of making those decisions take time, as well as any appeals they might have.

This became a bone of contention and the start of the animosity by the members of the sect towards the county government and the citizens.

They wanted what they wanted.  So despite the permits not being granted they built businesses and other buildings to support an increasing population of sannyasins.

They decided that they needed to have an incorporated city so they could make their own decisions regarding building and other issues cities commonly deal with.

They set aside a portion of the ranch as the city and the inhabitants started the process of making it a city. 

This city was opposed by the citizens of adjoining acreage as well as most of the other citizens of the county.

While the County Commissioners of Wasco County eventually approved the request it was appealed to the State.  It should be noted that part of the ranch was located in Jefferson County (to the south of Wasco County) and they had voted to refuse the request.

The long time citizens of Antelope became increasingly concerned for their safety and way of life.  Sannyasins were moving in and demanding services that the city could not provide.

These citizens were concerned that the followers would take over the city government and drive them out.  The non-Rajneesh citizens outnumbered the Rajneesh and the City Council felt it was necessary to dis-incorporate to protect their property and way of life.

The fight was on.  As the election date approach several Sannyasins moved into Antelope and proclaimed they were citizens of the city.  At that time Oregon Voter laws allowed citizens to register to vote the day of elections and these people were taking advantage of that law.

They won the election and they ended up taking over the city government.  They renamed the streets for various Buddha and other gods.  They, by their own admissions, were having fun operating the city.

There were a lot of changes in the city, which was renamed the City of Rajneesh, not the least of which was a ‘Peace’ force.  Many of their changes were a deliberate act of ridicule of the local citizenry.

They were willing to exchange Antelope for the ability to have a city on the ranch.  They eventually were able to have the city, calling it Rajneeshpuram, but since the coercion didn’t work they held onto Antelope more out of spite than anything else.

Citizens of Antelope were to endure the harassment and menacing behavior of these people until September of 1985.

To be continued:

Isaiah 53:3-6      He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

⁴ Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

⁵ But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

⁶ All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

In this well know prophecy from Isaiah the wording shows it was a fact accomplished – it is written as it had already happened.

It was a foretelling of Christ, but it is also a demonstration that God has had a plan, all along, to free mankind from the sin of Adam.

God knows what is going to happen before it does.  Some says that the knowledge means that we have no say in our fate, that whatever happens was meant to happen.

Foreknowledge does not mean that something was intended to happen.  We have all experienced situation where we know the result is going to be bad if certain decisions are made.  If people listen we can avoid disaster, if they don’t then consequences are going to ensue.

We knew that was going to happen, we warned of the problems and the consequences if something wasn’t corrected – but we didn’t cause them to happen.

God knows, if we turn to Him, if we listen to Him, if we obey Him then He is more inclined to intervene in our behalf.  He demonstrated those facts many times in His dealings with Israel.

He warned them if they did not keep Him as their God, worshiping Him and trusting in Him he would chastise and punish them.  He knew they were going to turn away from Him, yet, He did not cause it, and if and when they came back to Him He welcomed them.

There were times that they suffered for their misdeeds, even after they repented of their sins and He allowed it, often as further punishment (when a criminal becomes a Christian, he still must pay for the crimes he committed before his conversion.)

As Christians we know the love of God.  We know the salvation we have through Jesus.  We accept the leading of the Holy Spirit and strive to serve Him.

But that was not always the case.  Just like every man except Jesus, we have sinned.  Some of us greater than others, but none of us were free from sin.

While some sins are more heinous than others, stealing a cookie can never be compared to murder, sin is sin and it is an abomination to God.

God knows what we will do; He knows we will sometimes commit sins(s) even after we have accepted Christ.  But, we have the choice to sin or not, what we do may be known to God before we do it, but it is our choice not our ‘destiny.’

Knowing all this, knowing that Israel would once again turn against Him despite His intervention and assistance to them; despite their obstinacy, He still loved them and want to bless them.

He is a patient and forgiving God.  He is a God that demands obedience, not only because He can but that He deserves it.

He gave the Jews hope through Isaiah.  He told them that when He decided the time was right He would send a Savior to them.  All of those verses were well known by His people.  Knowing that His Son would be rejected by many, He still sent Him to be the lamb that was given up in sacrifice for all of us.

Verse 10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

This world is in dire need of God.  Without His intervention we will create the situation that will bring about both the Anti-Christ and the Tribulation.

Is it too late?  It is not for us to say; only God knows when He will send His Son to gather His Bride.  Only God knows if we are already doomed to the destruction as prophesied in the Bible and it is too late for us. 

But since we do not know, we have the obligation of continuing to proclaim Christ, continuing to pray for others, continuing to make our stand so that others will come to Him.

Hebrews 12:1-3 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

² Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

³ For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.

It can be so discouraging when we read the paper, watch the news and commentaries, listen to music – watch movies and TV programs – that show sin as something to pursue.  The new norm is saying sin is good, righteousness is hateful.

And, it is discouraging when we see that America, which once was a shining light, is at the heart of the cesspool of corrupting God’s Word and celebrating its demise.

But, it is not an excuse for not living our life for Him.

Later, Art :-)

When Deed and Josh stopped by they had some ribs that he had smoked the day before.  Carla and I had a great feast last night of ribs and salad. 

Judges 6:11-16  And there came an angel of the Lord, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.

¹² And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.

¹³ And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? but now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.

¹⁴ And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?

¹⁵ And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.

¹⁶ And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

Gideon was not a man that others would look at and say, “here is a great leader, look at all he has done, let us follow him.”  He was the youngest of a very poor family – yet, God used Him.

Not someone who would ordinarily be looked upon for any leadership abilities.  Probably just the opposite would be true; others would look at him in disdain because of his lowly stature.

God wanted to use Gideon – and his low status in the community - to show God’s power, to show God’s abilities.  Gideon was able to raise up an army of 32,000 men – a very sizeable force in any day.  So, he was able to garner support for the battle.  But God didn’t want a large number in Gideon’s army:

Judges 7:2 And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.

Eventually the 32,000 was winnowed down to 300 men.  And he was going to lead them into battle against many thousand.

Judges 7:12 And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.

Even with 32,000 warriors military strategists would declare they were looking at a formidable enemy and probably would have decided not to attack them.  But Gideon was to go against them with 300 men with weapons that only God could use – of course that was God’s point.

Verse 16 And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet in every man's hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers.

Verse 22 And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the Lord set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host: and the host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.

They did what they were told to do and God used it to destroy the enemy who actually turned on each other, and fled from the 300.

The dead of night – quiet and calm and then suddenly the noise of the trumpets, the shouting, the breaking of the pitchers thus exposing the lamps with such suddenness caused confusion and fear in the enemy.

This was God’s battle, not Gideon’s.  Gideon was but a tool along with his 300 men.  God wanted to remind and make it clear to the Israelites that He can use even the least among them to accomplish great things.

There are many lessons in the story of Gideon, of course, but what I think of today is that God took a man, reluctant at first, who had neither abilities nor credentials to lead men and used him for God’s Glory.  Gideon needed convincing that God wanted him to lead, but once he was convinced, he went forward and didn’t look back.

God wants to have relevance in the lives of His people.  He wants to be involved in our lives.  He wants to help His people overcome our fears and the enemy.  He is willing to use extraordinary means to do it.  He but needs Christians that are willing to listen to Him and then to do what He tells them to do.

Many times we look at our fears – whatever that may be – and see something that appears insurmountable.  We see through eyes of fear and discouragement, and believe that we cannot succeed in overcoming them.  Satan uses those fears; he uses our disbelief in what God can do, against us.  We become hollow inside and fail to act on the knowledge we have that God can indeed overcome all obstacles. 

God wants to give us miracles.  He not only proved that many times over in the Old Testament, but He showed that same desire in the New Testament.  Jesus performed miracles that convince men to turn to Him; to follow Him; to listen and learn from Him and eventually to serve Him after His resurrection.

Luke 5:4-9 Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.

⁵ And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.

⁶ And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.

⁷ And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.

⁸ When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.

⁹ For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken:

What if Gideon had not decided to obey God?  He probably would have gone on about his life, doing mundane tasks, squeaking out a living and have missed the life God had in store for him.

Instead he did obey and became one of the most powerful men in Jewish history.  He was a man, used by God, to demonstrate God’s desire to help His people.

What if Peter had told Jesus it is no use, we can’t get fish, we have tried all night – THIS is MY profession and I know what I am doing.  I am going home and going to bed, I am tired.

He would have missed the opportunity to grow and to serve Christ.  He would have missed the blessings that he received from that service.  And we would have not had him as a respected leader of the early church and an example to all Christians throughout the ages.

God’s hands were on these two men.  They had such faith in God that it was apparent to all that knew them.  Both men had their detractors, but both men were proved by God and because of them others were saved and given freedom.

In this world we have charlatans that are striving to prove that they are the answer to the world’s problems.  Some, by the very nature of their actions show that they have no intent to listen, let alone serve, God.

But there are others out there, others that satan is using to stir the pot of discontent and proclaim that they are the ‘true’ believers, yet they don’t serve God, they are being used by satan.  False prophets, false teachers who have charisma or looks or other talents that satan uses to draw people to them – but they don’t truly serve God.

But, God does have leaders who He is entrusting to preach His gospel, to lead His children in righteousness; men and women who stand up for Christ, no matter the oppression used against them, and bring people to Him.

We are in a spiritual battle as bad, or maybe even worse, as any generation of people has faced.  Men, women, children are losing their lives in the persecution that is being used against His Church. 

But just as He raised a Gideon, just as He captured the heart of Peter, there are men and women He is asking to come forward and follow Him – even if it would appear impossible – and believe that in God, nothing is impossible.

We are all Gideon’s or Peter’s to some degree.  God is asking us to believe in Him and to obey Him.  He wants to use us for His Glory.

The only limitation we have is our faith in Him to support us.  We either do and receive His blessings or don’t and never experience what God can do in our lives.

Will He bring up believers and give them the stature of Gideon and Peter?  He can, He just needs willing servants that have their faith in Him and completely trust Him.  Believers that are not concerned about how well they do, but how well they follow Him and do so for HIS Glory, not their own.

And He needs Christians to discern the difference and to support those leaders and their mission for Him.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again

Deed, Josh, Smokey and Lokey and five chicks arrived to say hi this morning.  Blaze went into his kennel as usual; when the box of chicks was put down in front of him he sniffed long and hard, watching them – showing interest, but confused as to what they were.

So, this has been a good week for lots of relatives visiting; Teresa and Ian, Wendy and Rose, Steven, Celinda and CeeCee, Velma and today, Deed, Josh and their dogs.  It is always nice to see them.

Had a bit of rain last night, not enough to wet anything down, sunny right now with some wind.  Hopefully the wind doesn’t dry things out too much before we can burn – so we can burn.

2 Peter 3:2-5  That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:

³ Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

⁴ And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

⁵ For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:

Too many American Christians are becoming too complacent – and in some ways to lazy.

They get their information on the Bible through Hollywood, not reading the Bible for themselves.

Rather than read and contemplate what the Word of God says, they need to have visual teaching that is filtered through the world’s view of God.

They have so much on their plate, between family, work and play, that they don’t have time to study God’s Word and digest it for themselves, so they let others do it for them.

King James Version of the Bible’s language too archaic?  Let’s make it more modern – and if the publisher wants to change the interpretation a bit, that’s okay because chances are few Christians will notice the difference and will follow the new guidelines – thus watering down or changing the message.

The Old Testament is a valuable part of God’s Word, it laid the foundation for Christ’s coming.  Jesus used it often in both His teaching and His response to those that challenged Him.  The Apostles did the same thing.

Yet, too many Christians are willing to cast the Old Testament aside and concentrate on the New Testament only.  While the New Testament indeed addresses the importance of living a life for Christ, giving both examples and guidelines, focusing on that portion of the Bible, only, can give a near sighted view of who God is and what He wants of His followers.

Many feel the New Testament focuses on the Love God has for us, instead of the authority of God to demand holiness from His people – and if they don’t obey He will chastise them.  Because these preachers and teachers focus on the Love of God and do not acknowledge the nature of God, the world says that God is caring and He would never punish anyone as He did in the Old Testament.

The world view of God is one of never offending and always forgiving – not taking into account that a person must ask for forgiveness through His Son Jesus.  They gloss over that requirement.

God is love.  But God is also a strict disciplinarian.  The God of the Old Testament is the SAME God in the New Testament.

And God says:  Malachi 3:6 For I am the Lord, I change not;  

If you haven’t noticed I tend to be a talker – and in so doing I may not be as selective on words I use as I should be – that can lead to misunderstandings.  I can become careless with my wording and thus not as productive as I should be – I can remember getting into a classroom ‘discussion’ with a teacher in high school. 

We had both made our points and the teacher was trying to move on, but I responded to each remark he made – he looked at me and said something like, you always have to have the last word, don’t you?  I said yes.  So, I haven’t changed, much.

When I must choose my words with care, I can do it, but in most situations I don’t worry about it, but as I have said before, that can lead to misunderstandings.  I know that is a weakness of mine and I really am trying to be more aware of it.

Most Hollywood and television interpretations of the Word of God have ‘artistic’ license claims by the Director, writers and producers.  They say that while the Bible says this, they believe it really meant to say something else.

Or for the sake of drama they add things and change things up.  In order to fill up the time frame they add characters and lines that often throw a twist on the theme that is not according to the actual meaning God wanted.

Then we have preachers and teachers that appear to be preaching the Word of God, but, knowing most Christians will not study and research what they have been told, will deliberately manipulate the message for their, not God’s, benefit.

We do not have to rely on our own interpretation of God’s Word; we can contact dedicated Christians, or use commentaries that are written by solid Christians whose only purpose is to help others understand God, not to bolster their own agenda.

The key is that what is said, must match up with God’s Word, not by a line or two, but the context of those lines and the Word of God as a whole.  That is why, when we hear/read/see something that doesn’t seem right we do our own research.  When we hear/read/see something that seems correct, we do our own research.

Even while Christ was alive and teaching there were those that chose to use His Words incorrectly to try and discredit Him or for their own benefit.

After Christ died the Apostles made it clear that there were people within the church that were leading others astray and the Christians must judge what they are saying with God’s Word.

Jesus taught and preached; the other writers of the Scriptures wrote and preached the importance of studying all of God’s Word which included the Old Testament.

In this day and age there are many outlets that vie for our attention.  There are many clever people that know how lazy we have become and know that they can use their skills to both manipulate people and lead them astray.

We must be suspicious of everything being written or said, we must challenge those that say and write them for proof because we cannot find support from the Scriptures.

We must use the whole Word of God, understanding that what God said in the Old Testament is extremely important for our understanding of who He is, and what He requires – and the danger of disobedience; That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again

What a week.  Started with a visit from Wendy and Rose on their drive to Pullman and again when they came back through.

The Steven, Celinda and CeeCee stopped by and we had a nice visit with them.  CeeCee is getting so big.  She is still one of the most active kids I have been around.  She is a pretty sharp little gal.

Then Velma came by and visited us for a couple three hours today.

Deed, you coming by tomorrow??

Poor Blaze he didn’t know what to do with all these visitors, but his kennel was a nice retreat.  He got his haircut today so he looks like a schnauzer again – even if he doesn’t understand what a dog is supposed to do, he at least looks like a well-groomed one now.

1 John 4:9-10  In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.

¹⁰ Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

1 John 4:19 We love him, because he first loved us.

We read over and over again in the Old Testament of how God made His covenant with the Israelites, they agreed to His terms and then turned away from Him.

God didn’t break His covenant with the Israelites; it was the Israelites that turn away from God:

Judges 2:1 And an angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.

Yet, we also read, over and over again, that when they came back to Him in sincere repentance, He opened His arms and accepted them.  He would raise up men to be leaders and defeat their enemies.

The Jews were His people.  Their heritage came from Abraham and while Abraham had two sons, Isaac and Ishmael, only Isaac was born to Sarah who was to be the mother of God’s chosen people.  In them He gave greatness, love and protection – as long as they obeyed Him. 

Yet, He had not forgotten the rest of the world.  When the time came – His time, which is not measured as we may understand – He sent His Son to teach and save the Jews, first, but it was also to allow the rest of us a means to salvation and eternal life with Him.

It is only because He loved us so much; it is only because He gave His Son to die for us that we have come to know God.

We could not know Him without His great love for us – and because, through Christ we do know Him we have learned to love Him.

It is an amazing thing.  God knows us.  God knows our strengths and weaknesses.  He knows who will follow Him until He calls them home and who will either reject Him or fall away from Him.

We have no conception of how this is possible, right now we have 6 -7 billion people on earth – with several billion who have gone on before us. 

How He can possibly know each individual is far beyond our comprehension.  Yet, not only does He know each and every one of us, He loves us and wants us to come to Him through His Son, Jesus.

As humans it is impossible, with God all things are possible.

It is interesting how man has developed ways to try and do what God does.  It is a far cry from what God does, but it gives us an understanding and glimmer of what is possible – much of which has occurred in the past couple of decades.

Personal computers, in one form or another, abound in this world.  In milliseconds we can have contact with anyone else in the world.

There are massive computers compiling and dissecting millions of pieces of information on people, from all over the world, in a matter of minutes. 

We shop, computers are told what we purchased, when we purchased, how we purchased it.  The computers then compare it with other things we have done and distribute to other computers that information, so businesses can better direct their advertisement to us – and who knows what else.

Businesses have access to our information, individuals have access to our information AND governments, not only ours but any other that has access to these servers.  Some people are so connected on the web that everything they do is monitored by someone.

Yet, just like the body itself, no one has been able to come close to duplicating what God gave His creations. 

Mankind is making computers and things operated by them smaller all the time.  Yet, they cannot come close to the complexity of God’s creation in even the smallest cell.

But, in all of that, He treats each of us as individuals, and He loves each of us as individuals.  How can we not but love Him?

Later, Art

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again

    For a couple of years prior to the elections of 1984, I had been asked by a number of people to run for the Office of Sheriff.  I was a Commander with the City of The Dalles and I was well-known from my activities in the community.  I worked hard, studied, trained and did my job well; I had good management skills.  I had my detractors, but many thought I would be a good Sheriff.

The citizens that urged me to run were very dissatisfied with the current Sheriff.  Many did not like how he was relating to the Rajneesh Cult in Southern Wasco County, they believed he was too lenient on them.  Some of those that approached me were genuinely afraid of the Rajneesh – they had been harassed and they felt threatened by them and their display of weapons on the ranch.  It wasn’t the religion they feared; it was the attitude of those in authority in the sect.

He, like a lot of elected officials, had been hood winked by the sect and because of his lack of experience he didn’t know how to address some of the problems.  They saw that and took advantage of it.

    Early in his term he had taken some bad advice from some of the supervisors and made some decisions in other areas that hurt his and the Office’s credibility.

    There was some very good law enforcement deputies in the Office, but several were less concerned with doing the work and more concerned with getting a paycheck.  Unfortunately, some of these were in key positions and they became the anchor that pulled him down.

Personally, I liked the man, I felt he was honorable and doing his best to run the Office, however, I also felt he was in over his head.  I felt that discipline was lacking within the Office and that I could help bring a more professional demeanor to the Office.

    His background was as an engineer – and from all I hear he was good at it.  He had been a Reserve Deputy but had no real law enforcement or administrative experience.  Many of his deputies took advantage of that and it resulted in some things happening that were not good.

    It was a direct result of his election four years before and some of the decisions made by him – at the advice of his key people – that an Oregon law was passed that required a Sheriff must qualify for the office with at least 2 years of full-time experience and a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree, or 4 years of full-time experience if he didn’t have it.

    While it didn’t guarantee the Office would be more professionally run, the Sheriff would at least have an understanding of what law enforcement was all about.

    At one point there had been a move on to recall the man and I was asked if I would accept the office if he was recalled.  I said no.  From what I could see what he was doing was not worthy of a recall process.  I am not sure how many others were approached, but I do know that after discussion they decided not to follow through on the recall.  A recall takes time and the general election was coming up in a few months; it just wasn’t worthwhile.

    The Wasco County election process in 1984 was a year of challenge and intrigue for everyone, especially the County Clerk’s office.  But even before 1984 there was a vote on the Antelope Ballot that created stir around the county and the state and portend the intrigued and battle that was to come.

Next we will discuss Antelope:

Philippians 1:28-30 And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.

²⁹ For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

³⁰ Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me.

"For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;"

And suffer is exactly what is happening to millions of Christians throughout the world. 

For fifty years, ever since I accepted Christ, I have heard and read about the ‘end times.’  I have heard that Jesus Christ is coming back, soon!

I have heard that the Christians will be lifted up before the time of tribulations, and I have heard that we will suffer through it.

Nothing written in God’s Word is unimportant.  God chose to have people write what He wanted said to His people, both the Jews and the rest of us.  I realize and don’t minimize that fact.

However, I have not studied that much about the last days and the Second Coming of Christ.  While it IS important to the Church, there are a lot of things in the Bible that are also important.  My focus has always been that we could be called home at any time, we are not promised tomorrow.

I have seen lives snuffed out in a moment from horrendous accidents.  These people were living one moment without considering death or even injury, and they were killed the next.  To these people it was their last day.

So, to me, it is important to send that message out – I let the scholars and theologians try and approximate when Christ’s physical Second Coming will occur.

Right now, if you were to ask many of those that are going through terrible persecutions around the world if they believe they are in the time of tribulation, I imagine many would say if they aren’t then it is close – and it will get worse if Christ doesn’t take them out of the situation.

And I believe that there were many times in years past that Christians were saying the same thing.  But our concern is now and the near future.

Yet, despite all of the turmoil around the world, God’s Church is still growing.  Despite all the torment and persecution; despite having to worship in secret, people are still being touched and risking their lives for God.  Just as they have for thousands of years.

Around the world governments are either outright condemning Christians, the Bride of Christ – and God’s Chosen People, the Jews – for their beliefs, or allowing and encouraging their citizens to persecute them.

Suffering comes in many forms, and to some degree we have all suffered, at times, for our stand for Christ.  Even in America we have had Christians suffer loss of livelihood, loss of jobs and homes and even injury and death for their stand for Christ.

Most of us here in America, though, are hit with ridicule and derision and we are afraid of that – and unfortunately, many will not speak of their faith because of it.  We don’t want to be embarrassed!  Is it as bad as what is happening elsewhere in the world, absolutely not, but it is a form of suffering.

We don’t have to stand on a street corner, we don’t have to challenge everyone we meet, we don’t have to point at sinners and tell them they are going to hell, but, we do have to proclaim our faith in Jesus Christ even if it means people will turn their backs on us – or worse.

I have a good friend, Jon, who used to work in a construction job where dirty jokes and obscene comments are often the demonstration of one’s manhood.  If you didn’t participate you were a target of their pranks and derision.

This friend was and is a solid Christian.  He didn’t exclude himself from the rest of the men; he didn’t chastise them for their language and stories.  Yet, the culture of the workplace around him was changed because of his stand for Christ.

He was a good employee.  He did his job well and his work was never in question.  His co-workers knew they could count on his experience and that he would go out of his way to help them.

He was respected for his work ethic and willingness to help others.  It gave him status.

He never cussed.  It wasn’t long before the men realized that and didn’t cuss around him.

He didn’t drink alcohol and eventually the men understood and respected that fact – of course another sign of manhood for many of these men was how much you could drink and still stand up – they didn’t require that ‘test’ of him.

He never laughed at the stories.  A short time after one was told, he told his own – clean stories – since he had a good sense of humor his stories were usually better and well received.  He didn’t try to embarrass the story tellers or ‘forcefully’ challenge the vulgarity, but challenged he did – quietly, and it wasn’t long before they didn’t tell stories around him.

They saw that something was different about him and when they talked to him he never shied away from talking about Jesus.

Yes, there were those, through the years, that would challenge him and deliberately do all they could to make him suffer – but he continued his stand for Jesus.  Sometimes co-workers would also stand up for him and tell the bully to back off.

If he was asked how many of his co-workers he influenced he would say he didn’t know, a couple came to Christ – but he doesn’t know how many others, at a later date, accepted Him.

Jon didn’t preach, he just WAS; and the Holy Spirit used him.

When we serve God, no matter where, there will be an attack on us.  We are in a spiritual war and satan doesn’t like losing a battle; but, neither does God.  WE may feel we lost a battle and it may indeed look like it, but it made a difference to someone, if only ourselves to learn that we could fight.

Christ suffered, the Apostles suffered, Christians throughout the ages have suffered and died that you and I can hear about Christ and accept Him as our Savior.

Right now, Christians are suffering from many forms of abuse, and they still stand for Christ.

We need to pray for those that are in desperate straits around the world.  We need to not let them down by allowing our suffering to keep us from standing for God.

Many of you reading this are Americans and it is to you I address this comment:  Don’t water down the Gospel, don’t let a fear of what will happen when you tell others about Jesus, stop you from taking a stand for Christ.  You will be threatened, you might even be physically assaulted, but Christ and the rest of the world need you to stand for Christ and not let Him – and them - down.

America, at one time, was a shining example of what people, dedicated to God, could accomplish.  Out of complacency, out of a desire for a life that is not challenging, out of fear of ridicule, out of refusal to BE a follower of Christ, we have let our predecessor’s down. 

We need to see what is happening in our world, and turn in love, trust and hope to God for His Compassion and Grace to once again help this country, this world.

Let us pray, believe and act as if we can rebound and have a true spiritual reawakening – we need a revival, we NEED God.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again

Through the years I have been asked by many to write about my experiences with the Rajneesh Sect that arrived in Wasco County in 1981.

Prior to my running for election to the Office of Sheriff in 1984 I had little contact with them.  I was a Police Officer in The Dalles, the county seat of Wasco.  It was the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office that was responsible for the enforcement of laws outside The Dalles – and the Rajneesh’s home was over 80 miles and three - four hours away.  We rarely saw them inside the city.

What I am writing – at this time – are my memories of that time.  Unfortunately I had many things on my plate that first year after election and the Rajneesh were only one of those things.  I did not think to keep a journal; now, I wish I had – but what I will write is accurate and as truthful as I can remember.

While the Sect is responsible for many crimes that occurred and the harassment of local Wasco County citizens, the majority of the followers had nothing to do with those actions.  All they wanted to do was be near the Baghwan Shree Rajneesh.

He was their God and they wanted to be with Him, listen and worship Him. 

However, those that were involved in the crimes and terrorism committed a great deal of difficulty for the citizens and the county. 

The exact financial and even emotional cost to the county cannot be calculated.  However, tens of thousands of hours were spent investigating violations and defending the laws of Wasco County and the State of Oregon.  Time, of course is money; money that was badly needed in other areas of the county.   

Over the next few weeks, months and possibly years, I will, from time to time, post some of those memories.

The one thing we learned was that Criminal elements can take over any religious sect and use it to their advantage. 

We need to stand against those that would abuse our laws and use their ‘Religion’ as a basis to cry discrimination. 

Hiding behind the cloak of religion these people got away with a lot of criminal activity – activity that, at first, the State refused to investigate one, because of the fear of being labeled anti-Rajneesh the 'religion' and therefore discriminating against them.  

The second reason for not addressing those concerns was their making a decision that those that were complaining were ‘red-necks’ and over reacting.  They thought themselves more sophisticated and more enlightened – it almost cost people their lives.

David Frohnmayer, Oregon Attorney General, was the only state official for most of that time that recognized what was happening and started taking action against their unlawful behavior.

In the end the truth won out, the State of Oregon got their eyes opened up, and some of the followers were prosecuted – I don’t think we got them all, in fact I know of several that escaped into countries with no extradition agreements with the United States.

How much the leader, Rajneesh himself, actually knew about the criminal activity we are not sure.  We do know that a few people used their positions in a religious sect to terrorize and attack citizens in not only Wasco County but other parts of the State of Oregon.

I was an Elected Sheriff.  I was (and am) a Christian.  Even though I disagreed with their religion, I never acted on that disagreement, I upheld the law.  My peers within Wasco County did the same.

The Rajneesh leaders, however, used the weapon of yelling “bigotry” against any and all who opposed their actions – actions that were proven to be well-thought out criminal and terrorist plans against the citizens – Wasco County, Oregon, United States - citizens.

Luke 1:51-52 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.

⁵² And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Jesus, the Son of God, the Person that had lived with God always.  Jesus, who was there when God created the heavens and the earth.

He was there when Adam sinned, when Moses led the Israelites through the Red Sea.  He was there when Abraham, Joseph, David, Solomon, Elias, Job, Esther, Ruth, all the Kings and all the prophets tread this earth.

He lived in splendor where angels obeyed His very command; where He had all things, period.  Nothing on this earth can match the grander in  which He lived in Heaven.

Yet, He came to earth as a baby and He allowed himself to be subject to the discipline of Joseph and Mary.

But He did the will of His Father and in all this He was well thought of by those that knew Him.  Yet,

Mathew 14:54-58 And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?

⁵⁵ Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?

⁵⁶ And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?

⁵⁷ And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.

⁵⁸ And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

So why, when He went into these same areas in which He grew up, to preach to them did they reject Him?

I have heard that some of the writings told how Jesus performed miracles as a lad, according to one of them He picked up a dead bird and breathed life into it.

THAT is one of the reasons we must look at all things through God’s Word for proof.  Some say those writings should have been included in the Bible, but it contradicts the very verses that give credence to Jesus as a man and as a person who placed Himself under man’s discipline.

If He had performed the miracles attributed to Him as a child – why would these people be asking about His miracles and teachings now?

They lived with Him, they went to synagogues with Him, they played with Him.  They probably had gone to Joseph’s shop to have work done on something or to have him come to their home to do carpentry and Jesus would have been there helping.

Jesus was a man, raised as a man and conducted Himself as a man.  Those that knew Him growing up knew Him as a man – now, He was coming back with all these teachings, performing miracles and forgiving people’s sins.  He was one of them, how could He be the Son of God?  

They rejected Jesus based on their knowledge of who He was when He lived among them – a man, a good man, but just a man all the same.

I can remember the rantings and ravings of a local car dealer who used to get dozens of tickets a month for parking his cars illegally on the street.

He was upset with the meter maid, he was upset with me for supporting her.  Among the many things he was upset with was we were not raised in the community – we were outsiders.  In his mind only people raised in the community should be enforcing the laws.

His message was clear, he was ‘important’ and anyone growing up in the community would know that; they would not be issuing those citations to him.

Living in small communities has some definite advantages.  People know each other, they shop, work, worship together.  Their children play and go to school together.  People look out for each other.

However, it also is a problem.  A new person coming in is often not readily accepted, especially if they come in with authority or have a much different background than the rest of the citizens.

We won’t get into the graft and corruption that can also be a big part of communities that have ‘important families’ and their friends running things for generations.  (That, of course, isn’t just a small town problem – it goes right up the ladder to national.)

In most cases where we hired a local person to join our force they had difficulty on the street.  Old friendships, old enemies, or alliances crept up on them and made it difficult to get the job done.

Mistakes they had made in their younger lives came back to haunt them – and people took advantage of that.

In one instance a home grown officer – a very large person – had been picked on as a child; and it was known.  It wasn’t long before he got little to no compliance.  He couldn’t overcome his reputation.  Frankly, he never should have been hired, he wasn’t police officer material – but he didn’t have a chance.

In another, a man who ‘everybody loved’ also had difficulty being a police officer.  In his case he had been a drinker and member of a couple fraternal organizations.  The nice thing about going into a bar brawl with him was that everyone like him which helped to immediately calm things down.

But he resigned, he could not take action against his friends, he couldn’t write tickets let alone make arrests.

All of us have a background and history that we bring with us in everything we do – including our service to God.  It can be good, bad or in between.  

People close to us know us better than we do ourselves at times, and they know those areas they can use to question our message.  I knew him back when has probably been the downfall of many people.  They can’t overcome the past.

Satan also knows that.  AND he uses it often.  He uses it when we witness to others that know of our weaknesses – calling it up against us so our witness is unsuccessful; especially if the sin is after we accepted Christ.

What is even worse is his ability to dredge these things up from the recesses of our minds.  We know what we have done in the past, we know how fragile we are, we know we are not perfect and that testifying to others about Christ could look like hypocrisy.

So, we allow our knowledge of ourselves, or allow the knowledge of those who know us, make us weak and ineffective in our service to Him.  There is no doubt that some of that is true, but it doesn’t excuse us from trying just the same.

I believe Jesus knew what His reception would be in the community of His youth, but it didn’t stop Him from teaching there.  We don’t know how many people He reached even though He had His naysayers – and more importantly for us, He led by example.

While He knew what the response would be, He went anyway. 

Therefore WE have no excuse for not witnessing in our neighborhoods and communities.  Yes, we will be rejected by some, but it is still our responsibility to serve where we are and not shirk it for fear of interference from past sins.

Most importantly, however, in serving God He will be glorified, we never know who we may influence for God.  Our mission is not to save people; it is to witness to them so God can save them.

Later, Dad :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again