THANKSGIVING at STRAWBERRY RIDGE

                            THANKSGIVING at STRAWBERRY RIDGE           

    We've had many interesting Thanksgivings, but one stands out as the best and most joyful of all. It was not planned in advance, a fact that supports good things sometimes defy planning. When my wife and I were married we immediately moved in to my family farm. It was located at Strawberry Ridge in Pennsylvania. Wild strawberries did grow there, but the area is not known for that delicacy. One thing that identified the farm was the large paintings on the side of the big, red barn. Two white horses were rearing, facing each other, with a large eagle overhead in the middle.

    Strawberry Ridge was the name of a rural village about a mile  down the road. Until the end of World War II, it was a busy place with only a handful of houses, but a group of businesses that served the agriculturally dominated area. It had a milk receiving station, a feed mill, a general store that handled everything, a railroad freight station, a church, a hotel and a former one room school converted to a polling place for the township. There was regular railroad freight service, and the village was located on a slight ridge with a four corners crossroad. While there were larger villages in the area, Strawberry Ridge was a center of local farming supplies and needs. There was no other milk receiving station nearby, and farmers hauled their milk daily to the receiving station.

    During the war years, schools dismissed students at  1pm., right after lunch. This was to make the children available to assist on the farms. The war effort required an increased production of all kinds of agricultural products. Both boys and girls helped with the farm activities, but the boys were introduced to field work and other tasks at an earlier age than usual. They learned the trade and were the first generation to make the transition from horses to tractors. Because the war effort required tanks, airplanes and mechanical equipment, new tractors were not available. Neither were new cars available until the war's end. People got used to shortages of all  kinds. Some things like tires and nylon stockings were scarce.  Almost everything was rationed, and after the military, farmers were  next in line for scarce commodities.

    By the time of this Thanksgiving, the war was long over, and the 
transition to modern farming was well underway. Now that labor saving equipment was available, most farmers, like us, stepped up the volume of activities. Some took outside jobs or pursued a professional career along with maintaining a farm. My work in the ministry was put on hold, as I accepted a position with the Department of Agriculture. It was an opportune time, because the national management of crops was beginning. I later moved to the newspaper business as a writer, editor and photographer.

    My wife managed the business and work of the farm, and still managed to continue her education in the ministry field as well as becoming qualified to serve as a magistrate. The combination of  our long work hours and outside jobs did not leave much recreation or holiday time. We spent some pretty sparse Thanksgivings. During my military service years I didn't take holiday leave. There were younger men who needed the down time at home worse than I.

    The Thanksgiving I'm writing about here seemed to follow the usual pattern, with extra work on the farm as animal chores were in the winter mode. That meant more time for feeding, watering and cleaning bedding areas. We didn't have off farm work this day, but needed the extra time to catch up on projects. We had purchased items for a bountiful meal, but it looked like we wouldn't have prep time for the main dishes. That all changed with a phone call early in the morning.

    We were just getting underway with chores when the call came from friends who lived about 50 miles away. This family--husband and wife, and son about 10--became friends with us because of their  interest in dairy goats. Among our 200 head of livestock were dairy cows and dairy goats. The goats were special because we began our herd with national champion does from the Sandberg Estate. They set production records, and gave us international sales and recognition. Our friends--the Mosher family-- had visited our farm  several times and were interested in our operation. They were also Christians, and we enjoyed our scriptural discussions. 

    The Moshers were observing Thanksgiving alone, and thought it would be a good idea to invite us. It was a wonderful idea, but we knew there weren't enough hours in the day for us to do all the chores and make the round trip of over two hours. We thanked them for the invitation, and they had visited often enough to understand the rigors of wintertime chores. Then, they came up with a super idea. They could pack up all the goodies, including the turkey, and bring the feast to us. They didn't have the time constraints as we did.

    It was a sort of reverse invitation, but having most of the dishes 
prepared ahead of time meant we could even have the meal close to the normal desired time. Wow! Did we ever accept their offer, and we moved briskly into the chores. We weren't quite done with the work when the Moshers arrived, and Skeeter assisted Mary Lou in making the final preparations. We added some of our planned menu, and we had a scrumptious meal. In addition to the Moshers, we had a young lad
staying with us for the holiday vacation. We were six very thankful
people.

    Joy abounded, as we enumerated the many things each of us had
been blessed with, including the great fellowship of Christian friends.
Instead of watching football after the meal, we could exchange stories
and events in our lives for which we were thankful. The fellowship was
actually better than the bountiful meal. What had begun as a possible
drudgery day with the prospect of eating on the fly, ended with happy
conversation and a visit that included time with the animals.

    What I have come to know as I've gotten older is that we take God's
blessings for granted and only "see" the big events in our lives. When
I deviated from a bells and whistles message at a gathering some years
ago, a self righteous impersonator (he thought he was a Christian) urged
me to speed up my message. The Holy Spirit disagreed with him, and I
followed the Holy Spirit's leading. We should all be thankful for the many
everyday "small" things we don't miss until these functions are lost. It
is then we become aware of how much God gives us and how often we
just accept these blessings without appreciation. Happy blessed
Thanksgiving everybody.

Rev. Walbear

BUSINESS OR SERVICE

                                                                              BUSINESS OR SERVICE

    In America, we think of accomplishing things through business or services. The explanation of business is easy to understand, but service gives us a more complicated situation. Usually we receive
services for a fee. That is the equivalent of a businessman's bill. A fee is just another word for a bill. You pay a doctor, a dentist or a financial adviser a fee. Some fees are absolute, according to  cost of material needed for work performed for you. It's really not  much different than wages paid a carpenter, or the cost of a bus or  taxi.  We can summarize this by concluding that a business purchase and a service fee are much alike, right?

    Actually, no. There are some services you may receive that do not have a charge or fee. While some firemen have a salaried job, there are many volunteer firemen that receive no pay. There are
care givers who are volunteers with no pay. These people work because of compassion and because they do want to make the  world a better place. Since everyone needs the necessities of life, most people work at a job (business) or as a professional skilled to perform certain tasks. A military person does receive pay for his service, but that service carries a penalty none other does. He pledges his/her life. We can't put a material value such  as money or goods on a person's life. Jobs in business and
professions need to provide pay because they are based on the carnal world, not the spiritual world. 

    Now we need to look at a specific type of service few people understand. We go to church services, wedding services, funeral services and baptisms. These should be carried out as services
for the Lord. Are they, or are they part of a job? Is there a salary involved? Is there a stated fee for a wedding or funeral? It is almost impossible to find a situation where a salary or fee is not required. After all, everyone must have a means to live, especially if a family is part of the mixture.

    There are some Christian denominations whose clergy sustain themselves and their family without any salary or fees. They may accept a collection, but can't rely on regular income from their service. You might say they work for free. You may also say that isn't possible for a pastor of a church. Of course there are many ministries on radio and television that collect very handsome income and have paid staff as well as speakers. In America, there really isn't much choice if you desire to serve the Lord or are called to His service. Everyone has to make a living.

    We can dissect these two situations and see how the flow of  money has a huge impact on Christianity in America. But, before we do, let's look at scripture. In 1 Thes. 2:9, the Apostle Paul is
reminding the church he did not receive financial or material support for his work there. "For you remember, brethren, our labor and toil; for laboring night and day, that we might not be a burden
to any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God." Paul was carefully pointing out they actually did work day and night. Paul and Silas preached at night, but in the day they labored to earn their living. Paul was a tent maker. Paul accepted absolutely no pay, fee or tithe. He demonstrated that he was beholden to no man or organization. He depended on God and the earthly skills he was given. He had a marvelous education and was a skilled speaker, but he was only God's man.

    We talk about a person receiving a "call" from God to become a minister or pastor. Some say they answered a call, others enter ministry work because of influence from relatives; I have been told
the ministry beats working, and there are many other reasons given by those working in the field. In times past, men devoted their lives to serve God and became monks. They spent their time in study
and worked to sustain themselves. Some denominations require priests to practice celibacy. We see how this sometimes doesn't work out. Some denominations have established regulations for
pastors, priests or bishops. The defining test for ministry service exists at the priest or preacher level. The church needs many types of workers to support the preachers-teachers, and they should be
able to make a decent living doing their work. Now, to the level of the preacher, things become more interesting.

    If you profess to be a Christian, you have a model given you for the selection of priests in the four gospels. Christ did not administer any tests and established no rules except to follow His teaching. The apostles were not an easy group to teach, and He lamented many times about their inability to understand. Things haven't changed, and many pastors today don't seem to have a clue. Rather than work together to teach Christ's message, many pastors push the rules and regulations of their denomination. These tend to separate Christians and enable Satan to diminish God's work. When I was hospitalized, I talked with people of many denominations. I found members of some "Christian" denominations would not even discuss scripture because their denomination had the only truth. If you are Holy Spirit led, you should be able to read or study anything. If you won't do this, it is a sure sign you belong to a strict denomination. Any group that fits this mold is a forerunner to a cult. A cult is a group of believers who are "entranced" by a charismatic leader who they follow as their "pied piper." This is how we get church organizations such as the Westboro Baptists, or the groups in Waco, or the Jim Jones people who perished in South America.

     This troubling trend continues today on two fronts. One brings forth the mega churches where offerings are gathered in bushel baskets. Some of these churches combine Christian basics with
Islam teaching. They are opposites, so you understand Christianity has been sold out. Yet, the money pours in, and when you check the teaching of the lead pastor, you find he doesn't even know scripture, let alone understand it. But, he usually has an "emotional" push that registers with his followers. I watched a service where the pastor led his congregation in song, and the entire service was dominated by singing and dancing. I saw the faces of the younger people, and they had no idea why they were doing it. Praise is important, and this type of praise goes all the way back to David in the Old Testament. But praise does not replace study of scripture, which is work. If you don't know scripture, you won't be able to follow Christ's teaching. His teaching is found in just four books, the gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The organized church is not concentrating on this teaching. Our national leaders seem totally unfamiliar with these four books.

    While money seems to dominate the larger churches, business, as in the carnal world, frequently dominates the local and smaller  churches. These groups usually operate with budgets established
by the church board. Teaching frequently gets short changed because of a variety of programs including music, drama, missions, dinners and various other undertakings. None of these are wrong, except where time spent as opposed to scripture study results in little actual learning of the word. Both the congregations and pastors are at fault, but there is constant pressure because of funding needs. The church board usually controls the money, and frequently considers itself to be the
 representative of God. One board told the pastor he could live on a smaller salary because he received considerable fees for performing weddings and funerals. He refused, and left the congregation. Some church boards consider a pastor's salary is a charitable gift. Charity means love, and their action is anything but love. This is the opposite of the mega churches where money is lavished on the pastor.

    Many Christians don't seem to understand pastors are only the "front" man for tithes and offerings. The actual recipient is God, from whom all things come. Pastors at local and small churches face a very difficult decision when it comes to salary and benefits. If they are truly called, they must decide on the direction of the ministry and place teaching the word as first priority. Most congregations don't
want a lengthy teaching service. Some people fall asleep. This is a double problem for the pastor. It could be the sermon is too dull, or it could be there aren't many real Christians in the congregation.

    If the pastor can't stir up the congregation or faces a money  problem, the validity of his call may come into question. Disciples and early church leaders did not serve for monetary gain or standing.
Times have changed, but principles of Christ haven't. If a pastor is called, he must understand his life will not be easy. Satan works very hard to discourage and defeat called pastors. I know of not one, but many instances where a faithful pastor had to decide to leave a congregation or was forced out. Church boards contain some elite community leaders and professionals who consider themselves
superior to their pastor. After all, they are very successful in their occupation, and their position materially should give them the decision making role. Right? This couldn't be any further away from
the truth. Business is commerce. Religion is God. I knew of an elderly pastor in Wisconsin whose church had mostly elderly people. They eventually died, and the church was virtually empty. No one wanted a bible teaching old man as pastor, so he continued at that church. Every week he prepared his teaching sermon in the event he would have a congregation. He believed he was called, and remained  faithful to that call. He existed on social security, and served as an example much like the monks of old. He could spend his time in study and good works.

    For some pastors, it becomes a decision to stand up for Christ's teaching, or to conform to the wishes of a congregation or church board. If the decision is to stand for the teaching, the minister will
probably have to seek a different occupation, at least part time. If he has a family, this is serious business. Challenging denominational rules is daunting. Starting anew is difficult because most people want some emotional stimulus. When a minister takes the highway to teach the gospels without attempting to gather a congregation, you can be assured money is not an issue. Today Christian ministries and churches are pushing the envelop to collect money. Radio stations seek donations in return for crediting the giver. It's also a give and you'll be blessed with a big cash gift. 

    We have been misdirected in the use of the word charity. This type of giving is mostly recognized as helping the poor. Because of this meaning, much of the giving is resented, and considered a gift to those with serious social deficits--especially laziness. This attitude destroys the real original meaning of charity which was and still is love. If your gift is not given with love and without resentment, you may as well keep the money or material. God knows your heart, and He will mark the Book of Life or discard the entry. It's your choice. God always gives you the initial choice.

Rev. Walbear

MILITARY RESPECT

                                                             MILITARY RESPECT

    The names and dates of holidays may change, but the singular meaning of the original holiday lives on in the lives of people who  experienced the reasons behind the original event. Religious holidays remain constant, but other human milestones frequently are moved, and sometimes forgotten. We observe Veterans Day (in Canada it's Remembrance Day), and may forget the day was set aside to celebrate peace. It marked the end of a conflict that was the forerunner to global conflict. As we observe the holiday we should consider not only the fallen soldiers, but also the current servicemen and women and their families. Our military people must pledge their life, if necessary, to serve all citizens. This message is to correct some Christian's thinking about military service, and to point out not uncommon mistakes in understanding scripture.

    Some years ago, a couple of strangers appeared at my door and wanted to tell me about Christianity. They didn't know I was a minister, and since they didn't ask, I didn't tell. I invited them in, and we began a discussion of Christianity and scripture. We covered several of the
more common subjects, and then came to military service. Here there was a definite and strong difference in our belief. I stress difference rather than opinion. It has always been my desire to base messages on scripture, and that includes both the Old and New Testaments.

    I'm a veteran, so I feel very strongly about the subject, and base my beliefs strictly on the Word of God. I don't accept any changes in the bible, or any additions or subtractions. When we began our  discussion on military service, my guests told me they didn't believe in military service. I was taken aback by their declaration, and when I recovered, I asked them why they opposed military service.

    Their answer was simply that, as Christians, they didn't believe in shooting or killing brothers. They were assuming all people, Christians or of other beliefs, were brothers. Now, if we go way, way back to the Old Testament, we can read that killing some people has always been necessary. In fact, God directed sometimes that His people must kill certain other people who were not brothers. My guests could point to the Ten Commandments and say God directed us not to kill. My rebuttal began with understanding that Commandment. Since God Himself on occasion directed His people to kill, it requires you to consider the difference between kill and murder. Do you think He is telling you not to murder rather than not to kill? God is specific. The word kill is being mistaken for murder.

    Thinking military members who kill enemies makes them disobedient to the Ten Commandments is ridiculous. Killing someone in self defense then would also be considered murder. God never said we should simply  die if we are attacked. Thus, military killing would make us out to be  bloodthirsty sinners, guilty of breaking one of the Commandments. I am  
attempting to reason with my guests.

    We next turned to the New Testament, and my guests said we are taught to turn the other cheek rather than respond in kind. That is true, but we need to realize that directive concerns brothers and sisters in Christ. God did not instruct Israel to kill or murder among themselves. We should recognize He gave us an explanation of the difference between killing and murder. In Joshua 20:2-3, the Lord  spoke to Joshua, "Speak to the children of Israel, saying 'Appoint
for yourselves cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, that the slayer who kills a person accidentally or unintentionally may flee there, and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood."' This makes it clear that a soldier in action to defend his country is not committing murder and separates murder from killing. In military action, a soldier is defending his country, not committing murder. There is no violation of the Commandment.

    My guests didn't want to accept any of this explanation, so I took the discussion a step further. Go to Joshua 5:13-14. "And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with his sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, 'Are You for us or for our adversaries ?'" So He said, "No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come." The Commander gave Joshua the strategy to defeat Jericho.

    Now, we go a step farther. The Israelites were told to destroy all people in that city--man, woman and child--except Rahab and her family. This harlot and her family then dwelled in Israel all their days. This is another lesson for us. All kinds of people can serve God, and their service is counted by our Father. The Israelites killed a large number of ungodly people, leaving not one remnant except a sinner who obviously was forgiven her sin. We have all the explanations I covered up to the last scripture quote. There can be no doubt that God does, indeed, have an army. Of course you have to believe the Word of God. All the Word, not just the parts you want to use to promote your agenda.

    Either you believe the entire bible, or you are not qualified to call yourself a Christian. There are many pretenders out there who use their interpretation to serve a personal agenda. This partial and improper use of scripture turns some people off to Christianity. The same is true when professing Christians repeat rumors and outright lies. Worse yet is that many professing Christian leaders make no attempt to correct these statements and claims.

    Most Americans say they support our troops, but many have an usual way of demonstrating this support. Some of our banks took advantage of deployed soldiers and foreclosed their homes. I know cases personally, and what these soldiers lost is gone. They have families and children. Many veterans have a difficult time trying to get benefits they are entitled to by law. I know of one case where the veteran had to wait over a year. The benefit was too late to help
him recover financially. I hear both Congress and the Pentagon talk about saving money by cutting military expenses. There is always money for the military-industrial complex--in other words, the big corporations that build war machines and equipment.

    Veterans and their families pay the price of service in many ways, including death and disablement. Military medical care, financial assistance and other support is woefully short of compassion and understanding. Congress places budget and money far above veteran support. Why not? Most of them were never "grunts", foot soldiers in battle, and neither most of their families. When America discontinued the draft (universal service), the general population lost touch with the rigors of a soldier. Being apart from your family for months at a time in far away places, income short of meeting family expenses, absence of children's parent and other hardships are part of the price a soldier pays. 

    They may be here today and gone tomorrow. Some people tell me they just aren't interested in military service. Others are too busy proceeding with career or other interests. All Americans are free to pursue life's interests, but most don't include military service as a duty. In fact, there is a growing number of people who have become very financially successful who are renouncing citizenship to evade paying taxes. Add to this list corporate leaders who not only outsource jobs, but move headquarters to a foreign country to evade taxes. These are citizens who are enjoying the good life, but refuse to provide decent support to the military personnel who protect everyone.

    It's quite the patriotic thing to wave a flag and say you support our troops. These words may be as insignificant as the words a Christian speaks in accepting Christ as Savior. If your heart is really behind your words, the words are valid. You will demonstrate validity by your actions and REAL support. You will tell your congressman to take care of soldiers and veterans. Who else pledges their life and future for YOU? There are three other people who you should know
and hold accountable for fulfilling this same pledge. If you are one of the flag wavers, I pray it is the Star Spangled Banner that stands for the declared meaning of the United States. 

     Armistice Day may now be called Veterans Day, but the original title and reason for the day was peace brought about by our soldiers. Christ stands for peace and how we should treat our fellow citizens. As God has shown, there is a time for everything, and that includes peace and war. There is also a time of accounting, and Christ tells us that men and nations will be judged. The Old Testament books prophesy judgment of peoples and nations. Revelation gives us an
idea of how Christians and nations will be judged. James in 2:17 tells us "Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead."

    Many people, especially politicians and church leaders, proclaim they have faith. Their lives and actions should support this claim, and the evidence should be readily available. Our soldiers and veterans proclaim their faith in America when they take the oath of allegiance. They back it up with their life. They stand for the real meaning of Veterans Day--PEACE.

Rev. Walbear

AMERICAN APOCALYPSE, PART 4

                                       AMERICAN APOCALYPSE, PART 4      

                                                                      Prologue

    We have covered the first three good horsemen of scripture, and now conclude with Charity. The first three--Salvation, Faith and  Hope--are clear. Charity, however, is mostly misunderstood, both by pastors and church members. The misunderstanding comes about because of the choice of the word charity by early translators. The word charity has many similar meanings, and translators didn't realize scripture readers might choose the wrong meaning.  Although this horseman is the fourth, it is assuredly the one who is directly connected with the first, Salvation. This is explained in Part Four.

                                                                        Part 4

    Following World War II, the popular expression was "love makes the world go round." Winning the war and the peace that followed was cherished through warm feelings described as "love." As one who was there, I can assure you the feeling of gladness and  friendship was widespread. It was a warm, fuzzy feeling. Everyone was overjoyed to be free and at peace. Early translators certainly knew the many meanings of charity, and apparently associated that feeling with warmth with charity. All men are subject to failings, and the translators made a poor choice. The original Greek word was  "agape." Many Christians are probably familiar with the use of agape associated with charities established to help people, including non Christians. The primary meaning of the Greek word was "love". When translated in the Latin Vulgate and later in the Wycliffe English translation, charity was used instead of love. People were expected to contribute out of love rather than any preconceived responsibility of assistance. 

    This difference in meaning is so important that scripture tells us it is primary to faith and hope. Ist Corinthians 13:13, the Apostle Paul declares, "And now abideth  faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." There are more than 150 references to love in scripture, and we are repeatedly told to love our spouses, our children, our neighbors, and even those who are our enemies. Of course, loving an enemy is tempered by our right to defend ourselves with necessary measures such as war. We must hate the sin of the enemy, but love the sinner. This is not an easy task. 2nd Corinthians outlines our attitude towards giving. We think of charity and giving as ALMS. Charity is not alms as we know it in Christianity. Alms is defined in Webster's Dictionary as a "work of mercy or anything given gratuitously to relieve the poor; a charitable gift." You see how these two words--charity and alms--can be combined in confusion. Charity must be given in love. 2nd Corinthians states, "As it is written: He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor, His righteousness endures forever."

    Too many people, including some Christians do not give with the feeling of love. They consider it a duty, or a hand-out. For many people, you can insert the word HATE instead of love. We have become a very hateful society. Christians do support charities through alms or by freely giving. Some, however, resent giving their "hard-earned" cash to people, especially if these receivers appear lazy. There is a lesson I learned years ago. I was talking with a man who spent much of his time at a nearby cabin in the woods. He was late middle age, but had no job. Yet, he appeared to be enjoying a carefree life from outward appearance. He offered to help me on the farm if I had a problem, and I thanked him for the offer. I did not give the offer much 
credibility because I prejudged him (I'm still learning). A few months later I was told he had died. He had a serious heart ailment that didn't show up in his appearance, and that was why he seemed to be living a care free life. Needless to say, I had a serious need to repent. That experience taught me something--appearances can be deceiving. The man had worked all his life until his physical body placed him
in need of necessities. I'm certain he would gladly rather have his health than the money he was receiving for sustenance.

    We are quick to judge, and my wife and I personally suffered vilification at the hands of jealous and envious people when we went to a store to get supplies for an elderly housebound member of our congregation. She was retired without a pension and received food stamps. We took her stamps and selected the items on her list. When we took out the food stamps in the checkout line, some of the people became very nasty. We were dressed well, and didn't look poor. Some of these people followed us to our vehicle, and their language was nothing you'd want to hear. Again, appearances were deceiving. We didn't try to explain, because we had long since discovered that these kinds of people don't change their minds. Facts are irrelevant, they only see with their eyes. Spiritual truths escape them.

    I talked with an elderly lady in a social services office, noting the dejected and ashamed appearance she presented. She was applying for welfare--that hated word used by hateful people. There is some welfare fraud, but individual cases are small in amount. Compare this with big business and corporate welfare fraud. This lady had
recently become a widow. She and her husband had raised grapes on their farm. She suffered a double blow. Her husband had died unexpectedly, and their grape contract was canceled. She had no income and couldn't get a job, so she was reduced to what she called "begging." Death benefits were used up in expenses for the funeral and costs associated with her property. She was hoping to find a way to earn some money, but couldn't wait any longer. She needed help now. Notice the word "hope"in her story? She hadn't given up; she still had hope. Most people who need welfare don't like to be among the group labeled lazy and on the take from working people
and tax payers. Many of these welfare recipients were tax payers at one time, and the above woman was still a tax payer. A property owner pays taxes, you know.

    Misunderstanding, envy and greed has seeped into America's culture, and Christian leaders are doing virtually nothing to correct the situation. A pastor of a well-heeled church told me the fable about teaching a welfare person to fish for food instead of expecting a handout. He never considered the possibility the man might be
physically or mentally handicapped, unable to go to a site to fish, or any other possibility. This was a main line church, but I have found this attitude across the entire realm of churchdom. For the general public, it is even worse. At least the language by the church people was civilized. The overly loud comments by others included many, many words not proper in civil conversations.

    Americans have, in many cases, transformed loving assistance into grudging assistance. Many have followed a popular and growing trend to include the
 freebie handouts to  social security, medicare and unemployment insurance. Let's look at unemployment insurance first. Don't people know that you can't receive this money unless you have a recent work record? Are they so mentally challenged they don't understand the word employed or the prefix "un"? No work record, no compensation. If you work, taxes for social security, medicare and unemployment are taken out of your paycheck before you get what's left. Social security is a poor retirement fund collected by the federal government and invested, the same as other
retirement money. The deducted amount plus interest belongs totally to the retired person. Yet some congressmen want to cut back these payments and use some of the money for other purposes. This is not charity or alms. This money belongs to the people who paid the premium. In effect, these congressmen are literally stealing the money from citizens. People with medicare pay premiums, too. Medicare support is also not "free" money. Most people who receive this money really need it to live. The claims by the greedy and envious people have virtually no basis. The claims are the badges of ignorance. 

    Love is also caring. If you are ever put in to the position of having the need of a care giver, you will quickly learn that if care and love don't go together, you won't like the result. I speak from extended experience. I have given, and I have received; not for a few days, but for months. A loving care giver is priceless. I have been fortunate to have mostly wonderful care givers. They always walked the extra mile and never complained. I am thankful beyond words for the care I have received. This care results in faster healing and recovery. I have also been a care giver. When you have other work and scheduled responsibilities, it is quite harrowing. If you have compassion and love, the task will usually be appreciated and the person will really
make a strong effort to cooperate and/or recover. Your obvious caring and hopeful attitude will "pick up" the person. This will lift the spirit of the patient, and if you're working in love, it'll lift yours, too. Oh, yes. Did you notice that word "hope" a couple of sentences ago?

    I pray my separation of the meaning from charity to love through this message will help you understand the difference between alms and charity. Alms is giving with love, while charity is giving of love. Love is a powerful character. Think about John 3:16. "For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." Christ cared so much for each and every person, no matter the color or nationality, He freely gave His life. As a committed Christian, you have eternal life.

    Christ summarized the seven churches in Revelation, and America is undergoing similar scrutiny. Neither I nor any other man or woman knows what our report card looks like. While our nation has done some wonderful things, we have some serious negative marks. Our Constitution is a great document, but our leaders dragged their feet before fulfilling promises such as slavery and women's vote. We placed love of money above gospel principles in business and the workplace. This satanic love of material things is now dominating our governmental leaders and many church leaders. It appears both major political parties are trying to buy office. We are judging (that is not a Christian's right) all people by skin color, we are no checking 
statements in the news for accuracy, we are accepting unbelievable comments from intellectually challenged candidates, we are excusing law violations by "important" individuals while prosecuting poor people for minor or non existent charges. We are killing innocent people because the law is not the same for everyone. We are so
possessed with real and imagined fear, we accept controls that violate our freedom.

    I was taught in elementary school that it was a citizen's duty to vote. Regulations such as the Texas poll tax were dropped to enable Texas to return to the Union. Now, other restrictive measures are being put in place to hinder certain blocks of citizens. When I hear the racist rants, I wonder what these people think about the body bags of minority soldiers that were shipped home from Iraq and  Afghanistan. I wonder about the lack of respect for a gay soldier serving in the wars and the women who have been killed or injured for this nation. Do you think God isn't watching? We turned away a shipload of Jews just before World War II. Then, we had to fight Germany anyway, and lost so many servicemen and women. That gave us the opportunity to repent. But, we started false wars we can't seem to win, tortured prisoners, and seem embroiled in a domestic battle once believed settled in the 1860s. If we can't
seem to learn from Old Testament history, World history and our Domestic history, what conclusion is likely? How long will He hold His patience? We haven't turned away the children who traveled across two or more countries to get to America, but acceptance has not been universal. 

    Scripture tells us about the four evil horsemen and the terrible promise in store for the world. I've just told you about the four good horsemen Christ brought us to fight the evil four. We accept (mount) through salvation, learn to ride through faith, become good horsemen through hope, and can overcome through love. Without these four horsemen, I believe we are on borrowed time. Christians need to recognize and realize the church and its members are falling short on passing the test of the gospels as Christ outlined them. It seems that faith is suspect, hope is frequently for evil purposes and charity (love) is being replaced by hate. Take the blinders off these horses, and let them free to lead you to complete the mission Christ gave us. 

Rev. Walbear