Reunions and Resolve

By the time most of you read this I will be confronting a very unsettling and confusing part of my more recent past. I'm referring to the almost assured probability of seeing the man who dumped me last April because I'm heading back to see my sister on Saturday and we will be making our semi-annual pilgrimage to Branson, Missouri the following day. We love seeing the shows our friends are in and applauding their ability to still make some very complicated dance moves for entertainers who are aging right along with us. Some of these long-time friends have died the past few years or have become too ill to perform. That makes our hearts heavy and our reunions bittersweet, but after twenty years, it's still like visiting family.

Despite many advances by male entertainers over the years who like women a little too much and are not afraid to admit it, I have managed to keep from falling into a compromising situation that would test just how strong my convictions really are. You see, I was raised to believe that sex--the only truly special gift I had to give--was reserved for marriage and the man I had committed to spend my life with. That's why I was a virgin bride who was completely devastated when my new husband took one look at me standing so innocently in the lamplight and said, "You married me under false pretenses. Your breasts aren't as big as I thought they were." 

My spirit was far stronger than I thought because it took twenty-two years of verbal and emotional abuse before my body finally gave out and I had to make a very difficult decision. But neither unwarranted abuse nor a nasty divorce where my soon-to-be ex  turned nearly every vocal person in the community against me could force a change in my beliefs about the sanctity of marriage or the beautiful gift that had been used so unkindly and unjustly against me. I still believe that somewhere in this vast universe, and when the time is finally right because I have done the necessary healing, I will meet the man God intended for me all along. I just got sidetracked along the way and had to pay a head price for my stupidity. 

But back to the upcoming encounter where the man involved is in total control since he was the one who no longer wanted my friendship when I wouldn't sleep with him. I'm basically trusting and definitely inexperienced when it comes to men, mostly because I don't want to be hurt again. I suppose that's why I didn't see his very enticing invitation coming, even though I knew our relationship was heading in that direction. How could it not when we had known each other for over five years and the sparks began igniting the moment our eyes met? Over the previous year we had spent hours texting, talking on the phone, and flirting in all those little ways that mean so much to a woman. But I knew he wasn't monogamous by nature and had women throwing themselves at him on more or less a daily basis. 

It was a risk to tell him no, but I honestly believed we were good enough friends that he would understand where I was coming and still want me around. He had often told me how much he valued what we shared and how he knew he could talk to me about anything. But that obviously wasn't the case. While I've tried to initiate a conversation where we could clear the air, I've only heard from him twice in nearly six months. Once in May when he said in a text that he understood and we were still friends and then in August when I sent him a happy birthday message. I've tried to rid him from my heart and thoughts, but not not knowing if he will even look at me when we see each other is making this upcoming trip seem more like a nightmare than a pleasant vacation. I'm sure I'm not alone when it comes to experiences like this because women get dumped all the time, even when they give in. Will just have to wait and see if I feel inclined to talk about what happened when I get back.

But before I stop typing, I want to tell you about the speakers at church yesterday. They had both been asked to speak about the Constitution of the United States of America--something not often covered in meetings like that--but certainly applicable in the political and social climate we find ourselves in today. The first one admitted that she had asked for a different topic because she didn't know enough about the constitution to fill a fifteen minute assignment, so she spoke about something else. The second speaker began by saying that he hadn't given the constitution much thought since he was in college over thirty years earlier, but he had found three talks that had given him a few ideas. 

I felt the heat rush to my cheeks as I sat in the pew by a friend and watched the people around me lose interest and start fiddling around with their cell phones. Why shouldn't we as Christians be interested in the God-inspired document that was meant to protect our inalienable rights? Have we become so desensitized to anything of real value that we are more interested in what our friends are saying or the disinformation the news media is propagating than in learning about how close we are to forever losing what the founding fathers worked so hard to give us?  

It was humbling to recall that until very recently the most I had contemplated the founding of our great country was when listening to the group, The Fifth Dimension, sing the words to the Declaration of Independence. I can still repeat them by heart. "We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. That they are endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights. That among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. And whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government. Laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers to such form, as citizens have seen most likely to affect their safety and happiness." They go on to explain how they feel about what they have just sung in the next verse. It's a powerful reminder for free people everywhere who want to keep the rights they've always had, but have allowed those in power to meticulously strip them away.

I can think of no better way to spend a few hours than in reading the Constitution of our great country and really learning what it stands for and how it works. It provided for a republican form of government with elected representatives rather than a pure democracy governed by emotional mass participation. There were three equal branches of authority - the executive, the legislative and the judicial. The separation of power was a safeguard against one political party gaining complete control. This system of checks and balances has all but been obliterated today by the power-hungry and dishonest who want everything for themselves. It is interesting to note that the founding fathers were opposed to political parties in general and feared they would only try to divide rather than unite. They wanted true representatives of the people at the top where it really mattered. 

Since all inherent rights couldn't be covered in the constitution itself, a Bill of Rights was added. This too has been cast aside in favor of woke ideologies and communist propaganda from within our own political ranks and elsewhere. We as patriots must stand strong, immovable and united against the tyrants who wish to strip these inalienable rights from us. Here is a quick review of the freedoms guaranteed to every sovereign citizen:

1. Freedom of religion (First Amendment)

2. Freedom of speech (First Amendment)

3. Freedom of Press (First Amendment)

4. Freedom of assembly (First Amendment)

5. Freedom to petition the government for grievances (First Amendment)

6. Freedom to bear arms (Second Amendment)

7. Freedom from illegal search of persons, houses, papers or effects (Fourth Amendment)

8. Freedom from prosecution without due process of law (Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments)

9. Freedom from multiple prosecutions for the same offense (Fifth Amendment)

10. Freedom from the necessity of testifying against one's self (Fifth Amendment)

11. Freedom from imprisonment without a speedy and public trial (Sixth Amendment)

12. Freedom from excessive bail, excessive fines or cruel and unusual punishments (Eighth Amendment)

13. Freedom from slavery or involuntary servitude (Thirteenth Amendment added in 1865)

14. Freedom to vote regardless of race or sex (Fifteenth Amendment added in 1870 and the Nineteenth Amendment added in 1920)

We don't have to look very far today to see where all of these rights are being violated because the far left are slapping us in the face with them. Case in point, the two women in their seventies that were arrested and jailed this week in Washington D.C. for peacefully protesting outside an abortion clinic. They would have been released with accolades if they had burned down a pro-life establishment or risen in protest against citizens who refuse to give up their guns and ammunition.

George Washington stated, "Truth will ultimately prevail, where there are pains taken to bring it to light." What a humbling thought for all of us who are fearful about speaking up because we know we will most likely be punished if we do. Right now the far left is focused on stopping the patriot news forums by trying to ruin the reputation of any conservative that had taken a stance. They're even trying to ruin Tim Ballard's reputation because the movie Sound Of Freedom was such a huge success in opening people's eyes to the widespread horrors of child and human trafficking. 

In the news magazine, U.S. News and World Report, April 20, 1964, David Lawrence said, "The America of our forefathers . . . will some day see through the guilt of phony liberalism and cynical disdain for patriotism and love of fatherland.

"This America that General MacArthur aroused is not the America of petty politics and tricky manipulation of public power. It is not an America of 'double-talk' which denounces yet embraces appeasement. It is not an America of cowardice. It is an America of resoluteness and courage and sacrifice. It is an America that applauds the man of honest conviction."

Perhaps the awakening spoken about nearly sixty years ago has finally begun. I certainly hope that's true because we need a return to past values if we are going to survive what is being planned for our complete overthrow. May God grant us the strength of conviction to speak up for Him and the country He saved for us. It's a legacy too valuable to be lost through complacency, fear and lack of resolve.

 

An Historic Sight

Over Labor Day weekend this year, I had the opportunity to see Mt. Rushmore for the first time with my son and his family. It was on his bucket list and I willingly joined them while paying all the major expenses like hotel, gas and food. Our country's economic collapse is making it nearly impossible for younger Americans to provide for their families. Interest rates are soaring, inflation is hitting an all-time high and costly insurance is practically useless because the deductibles alone mean basically paying for every doctor and hospital visit twice--unless the individuals in question crossed the border illegally or are making their living by abusing one of our country's massive welfare programs. Which by the way, cost each working man and woman over a third of their take-home pay, and that doesn't include the hundreds of other taxes we are forced too pay. 

But this post isn't about all the biased, unjust and illegal rulings and laws that have been introduced into our society without the approval of the individual citizen and that run counter to everything our God-given Constitution and Bill of Rights were meant to protect. Freedom from tyrannical rule was the gift our founding fathers wanted to secure for all the generations that would live and flourish in America and it is hanging by such a flimsy thread that every true patriot should now be awake to the absolute danger we are living in and be willing to take a stand before everything we hold dear is lost. 

We have been deceived for decades by the very men and women who are supposed to be serving the constituents who elected them by preserving the constitution and the freedoms it stands for, not becoming multi-millionaires at our expense. Visiting Mt. Rushmore is truly an experience every freedom-loving American should have. And it's not just the chance to view such amazing images of great American Patriots carved into rocks or to learn about the intricate, expensive and time-consuming undertaking it was to create such a majestic work of art. It's experiencing a kind of pride that brings tears to the eyes, a lump to the throat and a heaviness of heart that makes it almost impossible to breath. There is a majesty and a spirit about that place that makes even the most reluctant visitor feel a burst of humility and awe.

My son was in incredible pain during that trip because of a herniated disk in his lower back that was bulging on both sides and pinching off the nerve going down his left leg. He is an amazing man, always willing to help anyone in need and had become injured himself while getting someone who had been in a motorcycle accident to the hospital. Watching him try to minimize the pain so his family could enjoy the experience made me realize just how important fighting for truth, liberty and the American way of life really is. My time on earth will be over in a few years, but my posterity deserves better than what they are getting right now--33 trillion dollars in wasteful and unnecessary national debt, and rising. That legacy of horror will strip them of all the rights I enjoyed--in my limited, nearly impoverished way--and make it next to impossible for them to find success, fulfillment and personal joy.

In 1966, the national debt was $324 billion. Adding accrued liabilities payable in the future made it exceed $1 trillion or an average indebtedness of over $5,200 for every man, woman and child in the United States. Said a different way, the federal debt at that time was equal to a first mortgage of $10,000 on all owned homes and was reported to exceed the combined debt of all the other countries in the world. What that number is today blows the lid off my simple mind. Math is not my strong suit but if one divides 350 million people, many of whom are living on welfare and haven't paid a cent of income tax in their entire lives, by $33 trillion we are already indentured servants to a bankrupt corporation and will be living like the poorest serfs in any third-world country if something isn't done to stop the insane spending and get the federal budget under control. 

That spending wouldn't be quite so hard to digest if anything more than a tiny pittance of that incredible fortune had actually gone to the American people in rebuilding our infrastructure, making home buying and insurance coverage more affordable, and assuring that every American had a job and could afford to put food on the table. Our homelessness, drug and human trafficking crisis and civil lawlessness has far surpassed anything imaginable even three years ago. Thousands of people are just walking across our borders without being vetted so we know who they are, where they came from and why they are here. And those we allow in are being given $2200 a month in tax dollars and are living better than the average American in some of the most luxurious hotels in our country and having all their needs met while completely destroying their surroundings and threatening the safety of the citizens in the community where they end up. Many of us who are here rightfully and legally, on the other hand, are struggling to make ends meet and are fearful of government overreach that has just armed over 80 thousand IRS agents, weaponized the justice department and made speaking out against liberal policies an offense worthy of serving time in jail.

James Madison said,"Since the general civilization of mankind, I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power, than by violent and sudden usurpations." (Elliot's Debates 3:87; P.P.N.S., p. 104)

We are sitting at the most vulnerable time in the history of our nation when the simple brush stroke of a pen from the president's desk can take away any and all that we hold dear in favor of liberal ideologies that favor the few over the vast majority. Sadly, there is no one to stop the encroachments to our liberty since so few men and women in positions of power and authority have resisted selling out to the Deep State. That is why it is so important to decide how much more we are willing to accept in the name of social justice, environmental change and forward movement. Truth is still truth, and it will prevail, but there will be some dark days until the world finally accepts that Jesus is the Christ and there is a God in Heaven who oversees all that is happening in the worlds He has created.

I love the words of Dean Alfange because I never want to be just an ordinary woman who watches life happen without ever getting involved. His statement goes like this. "I do not choose to be a common man. It is my right to be uncommon. I seek opportunity to develop whatever talents God gave me - not security. I do not wish to be a kept citizen, humbled and pulled by having the state look after me. I want to take the calculated risk; to dream and to build; to fail and to succeed. I refuse to barter incentive for a dole. I prefer the challenges of life to the guaranteed existence; the thrill of fulfillment to the stale calm of utopia. I will not trade freedom for beneficence nor my dignity for a handout. I will never cower before any earthly master nor bend to any threat. It is my heritage to stand erect, proud and unafraid; to think and act myself, enjoy the benefit of my creations and to face the world boldly and say--'This, with God's help, I have done.' All this is what it means to be an American."

Thomas Paine, whose writing helped stir people to action during the days of the American Revolution said this, and its sentiments are just as true today because we are on a clear path to losing what was so valiantly provided by our founding fathers. "These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it NOW, deserves the love and thanks of men and women. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obatain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; 'tis dearness only that gives everything its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed, if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated." (The Political Works of Thomas Paine, p.55)

I value freedom over peace and know that the fight ahead will not be easily won. In fact, it may not be won at all without divine intervention in our hour of greatest need. But as American Citizens and Christians who understand the value of what we have been given and who, unwittingly and mostly unknowingly, have played a part in the disintegration of our country by maintaining silence must stand strong now and outwardly support the side we wish to be on. Fear is our greatest enemy and we can rest assured that our adversaries know this and will use it against us. But with God and His angels surrounding the cause of truth we can speak out with courage and hope for we are not alone. Loyal PATRIOTS have never stopped this fight for continued freedom. But they need us to stand with them.

Unfortunately, the hour is late and the time is short. But as we invite God's blessings on our efforts to protect the freedoms He so graciously and lovingly gave, we cannot fail when arousing our neighbors to join in the battle. It is still the conflict between good and evil that has raged unmercifully since Satan rebelled and was cast out of God's presence with a third of the host of heaven. Not surprisingly, the greatest evil of our day is the Godless, socialist-communist conspiracy that has infiltrated every aspect of our lives and will continue to do so unless stopped. Their goal is to take over the world by corrupting each country from within, and they don't really care how long it takes.

We can help combat that insidious movement by returning to a respect for national morality, law and order, strong families, a desire to do something meaningful with our lives and a return to church activity where common goals can be fortified. Not everyone is equipped to be a martyr, a statesman or a speech giver. But everyone can find something that isn't too far outside his or her comfort zone to promote liberty, justice and freedom for all. Just start where you are today and don't be afraid. The more you share with others, the more you will find like minded people who just want to do what is right but need a little push. God be with each of you as you make your way through this difficult but exciting time to be alive.  

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Beyond the Glass Doors

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Reagan Sinclair - FBI: series of 5 books

Final Allegiance

Resilience

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Absent, but with good reason

 The 4th of July was a real turning point for me this year when it came to reevaluating my stance of apathy and true lack of interest when it comes to what is happening in the America that I love so very much. Like many of you, I have been in a state of confusion and disbelief the past three years at how rapidly and completely our great country has fallen into a state of mass confusion, civil disobedience and moral bankruptcy.  Criminal behavior is overlooked and even applauded while honest, good people are being jailed for Christian beliefs and standing up for their God-given rights --inalienable rights that were meant to be protected by our Constitution and Bill of Rights. This is not the country I grew up in, nor is it the country of even a few years ago where we still enjoyed relative prosperity and could afford to care for our families because we were still free to pursue the American Dream of obtaining what we worked to achieve.

I am a Baby Boomer, and quite proud of it even if it means I'm getting old.  For those of you who do not know what that term means, I was a post-World War II baby born to father who had served in the Army during the conflict and a mother who had worked as a secretary in several branches of the government. They were thoroughly patriotic, despite the fact that some of the men who had not served their country had achieved great financial success while they were busy helping their fellowmen. My father was content with what little he got through the GI bill that allowed him to purchase eighty acres of farm ground where he hoped to provide for his family and teach them correct principles.

Like I've stated in several past posts, we had very little growing up. I spent the first months of my life in a basement without running water. And when my father was finally able to build a cinderblock addition above it there was only room for a kitchen, living room, bathroom and small playroom where we kept our toys and clothes. Mostly we kids used the two-seater outhouse that was partially shielded from view by several huge trees, especially when it was warm enough to be outside during the often unpredictable South Eastern Idaho weather. There were winter months when six feet of snow stood in front of the door making it impossible to get inside.

We would get a thorough scrubbing each Saturday night so we would be ready for church the next morning, each taking quick turns in the same bath water before it got cold. Mother would use rags to help curl we girl's hair and we each had one good outfit that had to be removed the moment we got home so it wouldn't be ruined. When one child outgrew it, it would passed to the next brother to sister in line. We always had plenty to eat because we raised most all of our own food from beef, pork and chickens to apples and plums and everything imaginable that could be grown in a mammoth-size garden. Canning and preserving was a way of life and taught me skills that I still use today. I just finished making several batches of peach freezer jam.

I suppose I digress from the point I'm trying to make, but I've spent the past two months trying to study and learn how I could have missed the destruction of our beloved republic from the inside out over the course of my life. When I was little, Independence Day was one of complete joy with local parades filled with floats, bands and people walking along the route handing out candy. The skies at night were filled with the glorious colors from fireworks and everyone dressed in red, white and blue to acknowledge their patriotism and love for our great country. Sparklers and family dinners were a must, and family of all generations told stories of heroism and loyalty. I was filled with pride because so many of my ancestors fought so valiantly for the freedom I really didn't know anything about at the time.

At school, we said a prayer each morning asking for help with our studies, our behavior and any problem we might be facing. And we would put our hands joyfully over our hearts as we recited the Pledge of Allegiance and listened to patriotic music. We learned about our founding fathers and the sacrifices they made so we could live in a country free of tyranny and unrighteous dominion. We studied the government and how it was supposed to operate and what we would lose if it usurped power from the people and started passing laws that took away our rights. 

I was so proud to be an American and wanted everyone throughout the world to have the same freedom I did, but like so many of my generation I was too young to understand what the 1960s would bring and how everything that was promoted was intended to break down home, family and moral values and supplant them with disingenuous ideologies and cynicism when it came to God. By the time I made it to college, I liked wearing short shirts and going to unchaperoned dances and gave little thought to our country because I was so busy pursuing my own academic studies.

Then came marriage and all the struggles of trying to adjust to a very difficult relationship, finding the means to finance a home, paying unending bills and raising a much-wanted family. I voted in every election and supported the movement to keep gambling out of Idaho, but since I rarely left our small country community I had no idea how rapidly society was disintegrating when it came to the kind of life I envisioned for future generations of my posterity. I was so busy trying to survive that I seldom listened to the news and the only major catastrophe I lived through was the collapse of the Teton Dam. 

When my marriage finally fell apart and I became a full-time teacher, I was immediately drawn to one of my high school passions --Journalism. I taught my students what a grave responsibility it was to accurately report the truth so the public would not be deceived. I made them do in-depth reporting and would not allowed anything to be printed that had not been checked for accuracy. Even opinion articles needed to be based on a provable truth. Integrity means everything because once trust is lost it is nearly impossible to regain.

I have said numerous times over the past couple of years that I would be fired the first day if I returned to the classroom because I will never be amenable to all the falsehoods being promoted by special interest groups who want a complete collapse of our republic. It horrifies me how fully the far left has embraced the doctrines of communism and have made sure their people are appointed to positions of trust within our society and government where they can spread totalitarian doctrine without any resistance because they no longer feel the need to hide who they are and what their intentions include. 

Cases in point. Emily Drabinski was elected president of the American Library Association earlier this summer. She stated in an interview with Fox News that she was thrilled as a lesbian and a communist to be given such an honor. Those two descriptors have now been deleted from any information about her on the Internet. And just two days ago the Revolutionary Communist Party demanded an end to "Christian Fascism" at a school board meeting in Orange County, California, and told the attendees to "get ready for a revolution to overthrow this whole system that gave birth to this White supremacy and this male supremacy."

Pretty scary stuff when added to everything else that has been allowed to happen in our country recently. My disillusionments and concerns about where our nation is at has led me on a journey of trying to understand how we became so completely lost as a republic that once believed in freedom and equality for all those who were willing to uphold the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Those unique and praiseworthy individuals were actually wiling to pursue the American Dream under their own steam and by the sweat of their brows instead of demanding a livelihood at the expense of the working class while doing nothing but contribute to the national debt and an increase in many reprehensible forms of crime. Perhaps that is an oversimplification, but nothing in life is ever free, and I fear the people who are paying for everyone else's existence when their own needs are not being meet due to increased taxes, unreasonable deductibles on insurance and ever increasing interest rates are beginning to despair and lose hope in a future that once brought such great joy. 

I began my research with a lot of prayer and self-reflection. It's not easy to find truth when the media is being controlled by one party and the justice system has been weaponized against anyone who speaks out against any liberal ideology. But I soon found that there are many brave men and women who are risking their lives, livelihoods and any semblance of peace to expose the people who are trying to destroy everything that America once stood for. They are strong and knowledgeable patriots, found in some of the most unusual places, who have promised to fight for liberty until their dying breath. So much of what they say resonates with truths I have always known inside and I include them in every prayer. We may have differences of opinion when it comes to some religious beliefs, but they love God as much as I do and are not afraid to let others know where they stand. 

The Constitution of this magnificent country was divinely inspired and instituted by men and women raised up to give mankind a chance to experience God-given liberty. With our Constitution hanging by a thin thread it will take every patriot in the country standing firmly together against the tyranny that surrounds us. It won't be easy, and I fear many of us will prefer to remain silent, but our silence only means that we have no real objection to our continued slide into full-blown communism where all freedom and hope is lost. Perhaps that's why it's taken me two months to form another post. I knew what side I was on but had to decide if I had enough courage to let my feelings and beliefs be known. We are in a war--not a war like the two previous world wars--but a war of ideas and beliefs that is fueled by the world wide information system. There have been many casualties already and there will be many more. 

This is a good place for me to stop, but I'm going to give you the titles to a few of the books I've been reading and some of the other sources I've consulted. Should you choose to examine them, you will gain much knowledge but will have to decide what rings true for you. The Naked Communist by W. Cleon Skousen. It was used by the FBI for decades as a training tool in discovering how our government has been infiltrated and what the communist overall object still is. The Red Carpet and An Enemy Hath Done This by Ezra Taft Benson. Both of these men spent years working for the government and knew as early as the 1950s where our country was heading if we didn't start paying attention.

Fox News used to be far more unbiased before Murdoch took over earlier this year, but it's become much like the rest of the fake news outlets recently. That's why I prefer Newsmax and The Blaze. They both talk about important things that main stream media ignores. And for those of you who enjoy podcasts and a military approach as to what is happening worldwide, you should check out Restored Republic via GCR. You'll know you're in the right place when you see a picture of President Trump rescuing two babies. 

Stay safe and keep the faith. Things are unfolding the way God intends.