Nothing new under the sun
but amazing things that have gone on under this sky
and what a spectacular frigid March sky
memories of Jutes, Angles and Saxons
Vikings and mysterious peoples
shrouded in darkness of pages long forgotten
lives spent in the gray, frozen water-world of the North European Atlantic

Mind full of reflections
on the exploits of my God and His people
People in exile under poplar trees
unsure of how to sing songs of Zion in a foreign land of captivity
Two men in a Roman prison maybe remembered these who went before
yet chose not uncertainty instead broke out in song and prayer
in the hearing of those around they broke out by the hand of God

Think not thoughts of fear or worry
Jesus did not ask if He would find miracles or miracle-workers
He wants to know if He will find faith the substance of things eternal and unseen
Instead turn your heart in faith immediately to praise and prayer
deflecting that serpent’s Auca-spears with that strong fire-hardened Scyld

[originally posted 03.09.2005]

Read Luke 10:1-24

Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest. Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves. Luke 10:2-3

The Dayuma Story

I was born on Fish River.
Afterwards we lived well on Palm River.
We saw the high hills far off clearly.
We saw far downriver.

My big brother was Wawae.
My father was Tyaento, my mother, Akawo.
Nampa my brother was a small child.
Oba my sister was still younger.
My big sister was Onaenga, my other sister, Gimari
My mother’s relatives were many.
My uncles were Wamoñi and Gikita.

Moipa and Itaeka did not do well.
Fleeing and hiding we came, far, far downriver.
We went by canoe. Then we went back.

When did they spear? They speared at night.
My father escaped into the water.
They dug a grave for him and he was caused to die.
But he didn’t die right away.
I didn’t see it. They spoke and I heard.
My relative said, “I buried him.”

Moipa and Itaeka speared.
Where did they go, did they say?
On a small stream upriver we returned.
We didn’t see them.

We drank the water of maeñika fruit.
It rained, we got wet.
The jaguar growled, the monkeys called.
We climbed the trees when the jaguar came.

Then we fled.
We came at night in the moonlight.
We speared gyaegyae fish.

We were planting peanuts on Palm River.
The outsiders came with guns and shot.
Their dogs barked.
We went into the water, then fled on the other side…

Even after eight years of peaceful living on Don Carlos’s hacienda, out of reach of the spears that had killed her father, fear and hate were still hot in the Auca girl’s heart. The smoldering embers of revenge needed only to be stirred into sudden, flaming life, and in a few moments the docile day labor of the banana fields was transformed into a wild girl of the jungle. Murder gleamed from her angry eyes as she was transported to the land of spearing and fleeing, of violence and vengeance.

Dayuma: Life Under Waorani Spears, pages 16-17

2021
North Sentinel Island still awaits the arrival of the Good News of Jesus the Messiah.

Nothing amazed Jesus more than the pervasiveness, frequency, persistence and potency of the unbelief he found all around him.

In this stifling environment, he also became equally amazed and astonished at the 2 instances of great faith that he actually did encounter.

I recently reflected that what I experience in my environment as extreme pervasive, persistent and invasive negativity is actually this same unbelief marinated in fear, doubt and worry.

Jesus gave strict orders
Do not tell anyone

And what HE loves more than anything is BOLD FAITH IN ACTION

Faith expressing itself through love

Don’t tell anyone

Now SHOCK ME with some brazen boldness that will knock my sandals off and demonstrate to the entire world that

This thing can not be from man

This faith, this witness, this bold testimony can only be from God!

Now GO shock the world by your boldness which can only come from GOD!

Islam touts its shahada as the declaration by which a person becomes a Muslim. That is to say one submitted to the one it claims to be its god.

Yeshua said that the one who pleases Yahweh is the one who does what He says, the one who walks and lives in Him. This is one who loves the LORD and lives uprighly with love toward Yahweh and toward others.

Jesus did commend Peter for his good confession, the original testimony, that first true declaration. And on this truth, and on this witness, this testimony, on this good confession, this credo, Jesus has indeed founded and expanded His New Kingdom, the one and only eternal Kingdom.

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Matthew 16:16

A New Synagogue, A New Ekklesia

You Are Not To Be Like That

Jesus said to them, “The kings of the nations Lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Luke 22:25‭-‬27‭, ‬29‭-‬30

My Knista, My Kingdom

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my ekklesia, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. Matthew 16:16‭-‬20

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” Luke 6:46

Adonai YHWH

Adonai is the Hebrew word for lord. Elohim is the Hebrew word for God. El is sometimes referred to as El, Eloh etc. Elohim is the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob, the Creator, the God of the universe. The word god is the English word for a deity, originally germanic conceptions of the divine. In one sense all words are simply letters put together. So we don’t get carried away with overexaggerating any sort of innate importance in letters and words. Nevertheless, words mean things, and names do have significance. Most importantly the meanings, truths, realities, the things, people and persons referred to by words and names are where the significance is. Jesus aka Yeshua said you call me lord LORD. This is a clear reference to the prophetic phrase adonai YHWH which intentionally removes all doubt that Jesus used the name of Yahweh as being referred to himself. This is clear because the use of lord LORD in the Hebrew scriptures only occurs as the use of the Hebrew word lord followed by the name Elohim gave as His own which is Yahweh.

Jesus clearly emphasized here that there is no value in saying the words adonai and Yahweh, rather the value is in doing what God says, in doing what Jesus commands.

Love one another.

Love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul, mind & strength. And love your neighbor as yourself.

שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָֽד

בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם כְּבוֹד מַלְכוּתוֹ לְעוֹלָם וָעֶד

וְאָ֣הַבְתָּ֔ אֵ֖ת יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ בְּכָל־לְבָבְךָ֥ וּבְכָל־נַפְשְׁךָ֖ וּבְכָל־מְאֹדֶֽך

V’ahavta l’reacha kamocha.

Saved from Great Destruction
Forgiven of Immense Sin

I will exalt you, Lord, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. Lord my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me. You, Lord, brought me up from the realm of the dead; you spared me from going down to the pit. Psalms 30:1‭-‬3

We have heard it said
Forgiven much, loves much
That is true
Jesus directly pointed out the inverse of that. He did not even, in this case, seem to state that as a searing judgment as it sometimes is in fact; rather as a simple truth. And that it is as well.

Whoever has been forgiven little, loves little.

Our words and actions, yes our very lives show how much we love or do not love, how much or how little we have been forgiven.

How much have you been forgiven? Our very life already shows that.

Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.” Luke 7:47

The Father desires to show His grace. The father desires to demonstrate graciousness. He is not argumentative. He does not love contention and strife, arguing and complaining. So He does not long strive with mortals. He is long-suffering yet He will not strive and contend and argue long. The struggle, the wrestling match will end quickly, and He will mitigate injury but those who wrestle with Him will either gain a limp or simply go to their own destruction against His loving kindness.

Yahweh is the strength of his people, the refuge of Messiah Yeshua. Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever. Psalm 28:8‭-‬9

Yahweh is my light and my Yeshua; whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the refuge of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 27:1