Election, Wasco County 1984, finished:

Meanwhile the Democrat candidate, Larry Ann Willis, running for the US Congress in our district, filed suit.  She basically stated that the Rajneesh were a corporation illegally using funds for campaign purposes when they drove people to the Court House to register as voters.

No more busses came up from the ranch with people to register. 

Ms Paulus arranged to have hearings for contested registrations be held at the local Armory.  She had a number of volunteers, most attorneys, come into The Dalles appointed as hearings officers to preside over individual meetings with citizens.  The hearings would be conducted in plenty of time for the voters to clarify their status. 

There were a few voters who had to change their registration for whatever reason, they had moved and needed to update their address was the most frequent reason. 

However, there were also registration cards that were sent in by someone other than the citizen it was supposed to be from.  It was a harassing technique, again, thought to be perpetrated by the Rajneesh, but it did not interfere with the election process and those few citizens affected came into the Armory to get the situation corrected.  To be sure they were not happy, especially those that had someone tinker with their registration, but they did it.

None of the Street people staying at Rajneeshpuram showed up.

It became obvious to the Rajneesh that their ploy wasn’t going to work and they had no use for these people.  They were a drag on the ranch and few if any were productive.

So one Wednesday night, before the election, busses loaded with street people were brought into The Dalles, Madras and Portland.  They were dropped off to fend for themselves. 

In The Dalles volunteers were called on, the Red Cross and Salvation Army set up at the Salvation Army to give them clothes, blankets, food and bus tickets to Portland.  Portland was more equipped to handle these people and many of them came from there.

The Police Department patrolled the area and made sure there were no problems.  These people were cared for and sent on their way with a minimum of disruption to the citizens of The Dalles.

Were all the street people sent away, or did some remain at the ranch?  Don’t know.

The election itself became uneventful.  There was almost a 100% turn out to vote.  Those that had been supported by the Political Action committee had won by a wide margin.

The people at the ranch boycotted the election.

Psalm 1:1-3 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

² But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

³ And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Philippians 4:11-12  Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

¹² I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.

We read these verses and they appear to be juxtaposed, how can we prosper on the one hand and be satisfied as Paul was with his life – he died a pauper and lived many years incarcerated by the Romans until that death?  The world would never proclaim that as being prosperous.  But that isn’t what should drive us.

What is God interested in?  What would He consider a prosperous Christian?

Psalm 51:6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

And verse 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

God wants a pure heart that is dedicated towards Him.  He wants a heart that He can use to further His work here on earth.

But what about that word, prosper?  It is stated many times in Scriptures, even John wanted Christians to be prosperous:

3 John 1:2- Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.

³ For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth.

⁴ I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

God does want His people to live comfortably.  He does want to give us physical gifts that allow us to be housed and fed.

Mathew 6:32  (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

However, all too many people focus on wanting to prove they are following Christ by being prosperous.  After all doesn’t that show dedication, that God is rewarding their efforts?

Dictionary dot com gives this definition of prosper:

verb (used without object)

1.

to be successful or fortunate, especially in financial respects; thrive; flourish.

verb (used with object)

2.

Archaic. to make successful or fortunate.

The emphasis is on financial or other physical aspects – but it starts out with ‘to be successful.’

All too many of us, especially here in America, equate prosperity with the world’s definition – successfully obtaining material wealth, power, authority and the accumulation of nice things.

That prosperity becomes our goal of service to God, proof of our piteousness.  That is the world’s view, but not God’s.

God wants prosperous Christians in the sense that they are dedicated to Him, with a clean heart and willingness to serve Him.  It has nothing to do with material wealth.

The Dictionary of Bible Themes says:   “An individual, if renewed and led by the Holy Spirit, will be aware of new spiritual experiences and desires, and also of the Holy Spirit’s work of restoring character. These things provide evidence of the grace of God at work in the life of a believer.”

The determination of how spiritual a person is by equating it to how wealthy they are is nothing new.  Jesus dealt with that as He taught:

Mathew 19:23-25 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.

²⁴ And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

²⁵ When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?

The Psalmist said that God will give us the desires of our heart:

Psalm 37:4 Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

Jesus also said He would give us the desires of our heart:

Mark 11:24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

Now when we read these verses, we must also understand that He is talking to those that love God and want to obey Him.  If we are doing that, then what condition is our heart?

Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me

If our heart is clean and our spirit is right within us we are not concerned with material wealth, we are concerned with God’s plan for us, in following Him as He leads us into the world so that HE, not us, can be glorified.

Can a Christian be prosperous as the world defines it and still live for God?  Of course, but:

Mathew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

As Christians our first responsibility, our desire must be to serve God.  To cleanse our heart from all sins and turn it over to Him; a desire for prosperity in the form of wealth then becomes none existent for us.

God doesn’t value a person by how wealthy, how connected, how powerful he is; He values a pure heart, one that is ready for Him to use. 

The prosperity we should seek is success in our spiritual life regardless of where that leads us, as Paul said:   “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”

Later, Art :-)

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