Beans and peas are planted.  Tomatoes and peppers are doing well in their green houses and Carla is enjoying herself.

Now, if we can deter the pests from taking more than their share of the bounty we should do fine.  The deer are starting to explore the area again and a couple of crows have set up a home nearby and are finding the garden to be a treasure trove.

We have had crows pass over in the past, but they set up a home nearby this year and are making their presence known.

What will follow, for the next few days, is my first trip to the ranch, interaction with the Chief and Mayor and my first tour of the areas next to the road.

I had never been to the Rajneesh ranch.  I had thought about doing it while campaigning, but I just didn’t have time drive that distance to ‘court’ a group that had made it clear they didn’t want any changes in the Sheriff’s Office.

The population of that ranch was fluid.  Some say it was around 2000 permanent residents.  In the winter months my deputies estimated that there couldn’t be much over one hundred or so. 

They based that opinion on activity when they served papers and the tracks in the snow – not many.  It was just a guess, but they felt there just wasn’t very many people down there at that time.

That later became a factor when one of the leaders admitted they didn’t often didn’t hold council meetings and just made up the minutes – I imagine they didn’t have enough of the council to have a quorum.

The Rajneesh fudged numbers, a lot.  They were always stating they had more followers there and world-wide than they could prove.  They needed to project an image of strength in numbers.

After I was elected I felt I needed to make contact, particularly with the Police Chief.  I knew all my counterparts in the immediate area, but I had never met her.

I had been trying for several weeks to set up this meeting with the city of Rajneesh’s Chief of Police, Ma Anna Barka.   I had written her a letter when I could not contact her by phone. 

I wanted to meet her to establish a professional relationship, as I had with other Chiefs and Sheriff’s close to or adjoining our County.  She continually replied the Mayor was out of town and unavailable. 

I told her while I would like to meet the Mayor; I wanted to meet with her as the Chief.  I had never encountered any Chief that had to have a Mayor with them to meet with another law enforcement official.

But I also knew that this “city” was different and ran differently than any other city in the United States.  It was under the operations directive of the religion.  She would not relent and insisted the Mayor was to be there.

Finally we were able to set up a meeting in the middle of March, and “just so you know” the Mayor would also be there.

I had arisen early that morning; as it happened it was the same day as our weekly Christian Emergency Service Providers Breakfast, I had asked prayer for wisdom.  I left the breakfast feeling at peace, stopped by my office for a moment, exchanged my car for a Chevy Blazer and started the long trek to the ranch.

I would be on the road for about 2-3 hours before I arrived at the Police Department.  Most of the trip was on paved State roads. 

It is a relatively easy drive, until I left Shaniko, a ghost town, and started down the hill, with lots of switch backs, into Antelope, then called Rajneeshpuram.

I went through Antelope and then southeast towards the county road that would lead me to the county road that went through the ranch.

They knew I was coming, of course, but we also knew that the Rajneesh followers watched us when we drove through that City and called to the ranch to let them know they could be expecting visitors.  So I knew they had called ahead to let the ranch know that I was on my way.

 

I took the turn off onto the County road.  While gravel, the road was bladed and in good condition – it was actually wider than the state roads in that area.  This road had a lot of use from the local ranchers.

I turned onto the narrower county road that went through the ranch; this road goes from Wasco to Jefferson County and then Wheeler county coming out near Fossil, Or.  However it was rarely used by anyone other than those living at the ranch.

It was getting heavier use now, though, from the Rajneesh, the venders, the curious and of course, the County Agencies.

At the border to the ranch was an open gate and a few feet inside was a guard post.  They called them ‘information’ posts.  They were about 6’X6’ (as I recall) and fully enclosed.  The top portion was glass, the bottom, metal.  There were a total of four spaced a mile or two apart, on the road down to the city.

They had a pull out area next to the road so people could pull over and talk to the guards.  The stated purpose by the Rajneesh was this was an information booth so they could let visitors know about road conditions.

But we had been informed by a number of citizens that they would try and discourage anyone from driving any further down the road. 

The road was a county road and opened to the public, no permission was needed to drive on it, yet many people thought they had to stop at the guard shack and get permission to go further.  The Security people did all they could to support that misconception and to discourage people from going further down the road.    The commune neither approved of nor welcomed uninvited guests.

There were two followers standing at the guard shack.  They were security personnel clad in a maroon uniform, with brown leather police utility belts consisting of the normal security/police items, I had been told they had semi-automatic weapons also in the shack, but, if they did the weapons must have been behind the metal panels since they were not visible.  

I smiled and waved to them as I drove by.  They both raised their hands, shoulder high waving hesitantly, a look of surprise that I would acknowledge them that way.

Roman 1:16-21  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

¹⁷ For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

¹⁸ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

¹⁹ Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.

²⁰ For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

²¹ Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

²² Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

These verses and those that follow are confirming that God does not change His opinion of sin and how He responds to those that disobey Him.

But before Paul writes of the anger God has towards unrighteousness he proclaims the love of God through His Son.  We can be righteous only after we accept Christ as our Savior.

We then, relying on the Power of the Holy Spirit, can grow closer to God as we listen to Him through our prayers and His Word and in our service to Him.

As we look about us we see the things of God.  Trees, mountains, flowers, birds, insects any and all natural things created by God.

Scientists have invented devices, such as microscopes, that allow them to see those things that were hidden before.  As man becomes more efficient in developing these instruments, they are discovering even more wonders in the world.

Unfortunately, too many view these marvels and, instead of attributing them to a Creator, they think they just happened in the course of time.

It never ceases to amaze me that we use things that are designed by man, to see the things designed by God, and say man’s is created, but God’s just happened.

The irony is incredibly baffling to me.

They look at manmade objects and admit that someone had to think of them; someone had to draw up a design; it then had to be built and sometimes modified to make it usable.  These items didn’t just happen; they were conceived and created by man.

Many of these creations are extremely intricate.  Small things making bigger things, small mechanisms making larger mechanisms work.  We know that a car isn’t just what we look at, it is all the things that make it into the machine that it is, all the things that we can see and we can’t see.

Yet, when they look at a tree, and they know that there is more to the tree than what they see, they cannot understand that it had to be created; someone had to make that happen.

That someone is God.

Man in his arrogance sees all the things that he has done and thinks that he alone is capable of creating.  He doesn’t want to yield to a God that will hold him accountable for unrighteousness so he tries to discredit God.

In the intricate details of formation, man has the evidence of the complexity of God’s creation and rejects it.  God has given man the ability to see many things that make up His very complicated creations.

“Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.”

He is allowing man to devise even more intricate devices to see the smaller parts of His creations and they still cannot see Him as the Creator.  The evidence, in front of them, is enough to convince them of Him, but they reject it and in so doing give up any excuse they have of not knowing Him.

“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:”

But what is even worse is they teach and tell others of their great discoveries and instead of giving The Living God the credit, they talk about their religion and god, evolution.

They convince others because they are able to articulate their beliefs in a conclusive manner.  They are ‘right’ and those that believe in a God who created them are wrong.

When we deliberately lead people astray, lead them away from the Living God, we are in severe danger of His wrath.  His hatred of sin has not changed and ultimately those that reject Him and His Son will pay a grave price – but those that not only reject Him, but lead others away will pay the greater price.

These verses aptly describe the scientists, teachers and other that preach the religion of evolution.  They have the ability to understand what God has done, yet, they choose to deny Him.

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

²² Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

Instead of accepting the creations as an extension and proof of a loving God that has provided us with insights into Him, they have turned their discoveries into making themselves look greater in the minds of man.

They have turned the creation into something to be admired and it has become the god of their evolutionary religion. 

They do not give the credit and the glory to God who created all these things.

And He has stopped dealing with them, allowing them to continue in their degenerate minds.  They believe they are doing well, but in the denial of God they have fallen.

What is unfortunate is they are taking many with them.  AND we are finding that more and more here in America.  They are leading the masses farther and farther away from God.

Romans 1:23-25 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

²⁴ Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:

²⁵ Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

Those of us that profess God and His Son; giving Him His due credit as the Creator are being portrayed as the fools, while they profess themselves as being wise because of their findings.

Still, and yet, God wants us to deliver His message of His love through Christ.  He is alive, His Holy Spirit is at work and many people are finding the truth in Him.

We may at times shake our heads, but we who know Christ, know He will prevail. 

He is the Creator.  He is God.  God does not change.  Those that preach against Him will endure His wrath.

Later, Art :-)

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