Books, Reviews, Short Stories, Authors, Publicity, a little poetry, music to complement...and other stuff including politics, about life... "Books, Cats: Life is Sweet..."
The Surrey Tale The first of three Surrey women murdered in Weybridge that exceptionally cold winter of 2009, was a dignified civil servant, Celia Greenwood. Laura Matthews had worked with Miss Greenwood in the same department of Jobcentre, for going on five years. She became concerned when her colleague hadn’t returned to work after her annual holiday. ‘Mr Van, I’m worried about Miss Greenwood,’ she told her manager, ‘she’s normally so reliable and should’ve been back at work on Monday 29 November, after her hols. Remember, she went off on Friday 5th and it’s now Wednesday 2nd December and I know it’s only a few days over, but she's seriously dependable and always on time. Has she phoned in sick?’ ‘Nee, no, I don’t think so,’ replied Kobus Van der Merwe distractedly. ‘Would you mind if I popped over to her house at lunchtime? I think she lives in York Road, off Queens Road. I’ve seen her go into a house there and she told me she lives in York Road.’ ‘Ja, that’s right, she lives in York Road. We share a gardener and I have dropped off his pay there a couple of times.’
Fergus
A few minutes after noon, still eating her sandwich, Laura was at Celia’s front door. The thick snow lay fluffy and undisturbed. She knocked several times but there was no reply. A long-haired black and white cat appeared next to her. Laura waited several minutes and then knocked again. There was no response. ‘Well cat, where could she have got to?’ The cat looked up at her and mewed loudly as she continued talking quietly to herself. ‘I know she was planning to go away on some kind of coach trip and I think she mentioned the coast. Humm, our Celia was polite and superficially friendly but didn’t talk much about her private life. In fact, the way we all call her Miss Greenwood is quite weird in this day and age.’ Laura realized that she knew very little about her colleague.
The black and white cat was joined by a tortoiseshell cat; they watched her as she made her way back down the road. At around 14:45 she tapped on the manager’s glass office door. Kobus Van der Merwe waved her in. He was eating a large pasta salad from a pink Tupperware bowl. She reported to the burly rugby forward who hailed from South Africa. ‘Now, Mr Van, I’m even more worried about Miss Greenwood. She’s not at home. We must find out if anyone knows where she is and why she hasn’t come back to work. Would you mind checking her file to find out if she has any family or friends listed? I think she has a nephew.’ ‘Ag, doll, she’s probably met a toy-boy and run off. Let’s wait until next week before we start phoning and bugging her family.’ He had a broad Afrikaans accent. Laura wasn’t smiling when she quickly responded. ‘Indulge me, Mr Van, indulge me. Please get hold of someone?’ When Kobus looked at Miss Greenwood’s file, there was only one contact - a nephew, Luke Greenwood. He lived in Brighton. ‘Ag hell, I suppose I’d better give him a ring,’ he muttered. About thirty minutes later Kobus stood in front of Laura's desk. She looked up. ‘Ek is nou bekommerd,’ (I am now worried) he said, in his native tongue. ‘Luke Greenwood, Miss Greenwood's nephew, said that he last spoke to her the day before she was going away. She told him that she was taking a bus trip to St. Ives in Cornwall. It was one of those organized things that these old aunties take. After I spoke to Greenwood he called the tour company and they said she didn’t arrive at the bus station on Saturday 6th November and they assumed that she had made other plans because of the snow. The nephew also tried several times to get hold of Miss Greenwood on her mobile but there was no response, nothing! This Luke okie said he’d leave work early and come up to Weybridge today. He’s got a key to his auntie’s house. Ag, sorry to do this to you, doll, but I have given him your mobile number; I’ll be away from tomorrow for a few days. I told him to let you know what was happening. That OK, doll?’ Laura pushed a strand of her straight blond hair behind her ear, pulled at her pony tail. She looked at him with relief. ‘I really don’t mind at all. I’m pleased that someone is going to check up to see where she has got to. She may be ill. And by the way, if you call me doll once more, I will empty my coffee on your head.’ He thought this was hilariously funny. ‘Hey, where I come from, it’s a compliment.’ ‘Well, it’s not remotely funny or complimentary where I come from!’ she replied, stood up, straightened her short black skirt and walked to kettle in the staff room more to mask the smile on her face than to get another cup of coffee. That evening Luke Greenwood phoned Laura. He apologized for bothering her at home but he was worried. He said that he had found his aunt’s house in order but her handbag and another carrier bag were on the bed upstairs and a large suitcase was packed and ready. Her mobile phone was on the windowsill in the hallway downstairs. ‘...and so Miss Matthews, I don’t think she went away at all. Where can she have gone? Did she tell you of any change in her plans?’ ‘No, sorry, she’s a very sweet lady. I’ve worked with her for years but she’s a reserved, private person.’ ‘Yes, I know. When I arrived earlier, Fergus, my aunt’s cat greeted me meowing and making a fuss. After looking around I went next door to the neighbours’ to see if they knew anything. They told me that they had offered to feed Fergus in the heated greenhouse as arranged; but now they too were worried because my aunt had said that she would be back after two weeks, as she wanted to have a week at home to potter around and it was now well into the third week and she hadn't returned. They tried ringing her mobile but it went to voicemail and when they went up to her door, they could see it on the window-sill. Naturally they thought she had left it at home by mistake. This is not like her at all. Where on earth is she?’ ‘I really don’t have a clue,’ Laura answered quietly.
I hope by now you all know that I'm somewhat of a cat fanatic... I love cats--as pets, as characters in books, and especially as part of the team that solves mysteries. Beverley Coghlan has created a fascinating story that not only includes cats as characters, but her main character is an individual who speaks cat! In fact, there will be several others through the book that is discovered to speak cat! Now I must sadly say that I don't speak the cat language, but I've had a number of cats throughout my life who have been very good at listening to what I say and responding to my words. Of course, their names are fairly easy to pick up if you start calling them by their names right from the beginning. I take it a step further and mimic some of their sounds and have found they immediately come to see what's going on... LOL
Coghlan has given the skill to speak cat to the main detective, Detective Sergeant Veronica Witherspoon. She happens to be a member of an aristocratic family--maybe that is what differentiates the royalty from we common people? Readers will not learn whether that is the case, because Veronica doesn't let too many people know that she is really Lady Veronica... She even uses Ronny as her name for most everybody--to me, that means she's not an uppity individual who wants to be known for her title as opposed to herself... What we do learn is that she is an excellent police officer! And she is now lead in a series of murders that have started to occur.
Civil Servant Celia Greenwood had planned on a short bus tour. When she was gone beyond the day she was to return to work, one of her coworkers brought her absence to their boss. The coworker talked her boss into allowing her to take a longer lunch and drive to her home to check on her. She was not there and when her boss called the company with whom she would be traveling, he was told that she never arrived. By that time, they checked and discovered that she only had one relative--a nephew, Luke, who quickly made a trip to her home. Having a key, he discovered that her luggage was still in her bedroom and contacted the authorities. Fergus, her cat, was quickly on the scene when the two came into the Greenwood home. And he was quite surprised when Ronny bent over when Luke was in another room and told Fergus that she'd be talking to him later! As an aside, a romantic connection began at that point as Ronny decided she found Luke Greenwood attractive... Ronny knew that Luke should be considered at least a "person of interest..." But...
After a marvellous dinner, the dancing started. Prince Jojo Zwelithini, a young man of about thirty swung me onto the dance floor. My word, what a brilliant dancer! At the end of the second dance I was far from my table and I saw Luke making a bee-line for me. Despite every effort to avoid him, he made it very clear that he was having the next dance with me. We went around the floor a few times before he spoke. ‘Shall we say that our previous meetings are off-limit tonight?’ ‘Hummm...good idea, thanks Luke.’ I relaxed, the music swirled around us. I lost track of time as I was enraptured and transported to a beautiful, dreamy place. Then the musicians started playing Lady in Red, (I don’t know if it was requested by Luke - that is something I have yet to ask him). I was embarrassed but I felt intense, paralyzing desire for the man who was holding me in his arms as if he too never wanted the music to stop. When the song ended we walked out onto the balcony. He put his coat around me and took my face in his hands, beautiful hands. ‘Ronny, please don’t mess me around,’ he said, his voice hoarse with emotion, ‘this amazing overwhelming pleasure, love - it’s mutual, isn’t it?’
As we rounded a bend in the path, Luke came into view. At first he didn’t see us. He was singing. ‘Well, well...here’s your man, Baby.’ ‘Shall we pretend we haven’t seen him?’ I whispered. ‘Yes, pull in behind the holly bush.’ We watched and listened as Luke sang. He had a marvellous rich smooth tenor voice and he was singing a hymn, How Great Thou Art. Then he stopped and looked over the valley. It was a still, ethereal moment and I knew that more than anything, I wanted to be part of his life. I can still go into that magic memory place; the crisp cold air, snuggled next to father, dogs panting, and the delicious mossy smell of the undergrowth. Then the dogs broke cover and ran up to Luke. He turned to see us hiding. ‘What a sunset!’ he said, his face glowing. ‘How can you not believe in God when there is such beauty all around us? My heart just swells with joy and I want to praise Him.’ ‘OOOOOOK,’ said father who was agnostic. ‘Luke, my boy, you’ve got a good voice there. Good voice.’ After a short polite exchange, father remembered something that required his urgent attention and strode ahead purposefully. Luke and I ambled back to the house.
~~~
The investigation began tracking Celia Greenwood, but was getting nowhere. And soon a body was found floating in the Thames, but not Greenwood! The housekeeper had already contacted the authorities and reported her employer, Emily Zulch, had not returned as expected. Soon, Lilka Kowalski’s body had been found in a bunker on the St. George’s Hill Golf Course. While Greenwood had not yet been discovered, the closeness of the three disappearances was soon leading to officials thinking they had a serial killer in the area...
So, of course, each of the three women had cats who were instrumental in helping Ronny with these investigations... I read an ebook of this novel. There were pictures of the cats included. With the upgraded methodology for inserting pictures in an ebook and then being able to increase the size, these pictures added depth to the story. Here is an example of the original picture and how it looks resized.
I was fairly certain I knew who the serial killer was, but when there are lots of cats, a song or two...hey, I enjoy a book no matter who was the bad guy! I think you'll enjoy this one as much as I!
Avi's Mother and Grandmother and Grandfather below
Can you believe that Avi is three already?! Wow, time does indeed go by fast. And, of course, there were celebrations all around the families and we even went out to have lunch... And of course I had books but waited to share when we came back...
Love is baking a special cake.
Love is lending a helping hand.
Love is watching from the front row.
Love is playing on the weekend.
This eye-catching picture book is on thick cardboard which is endurable, but also eas for little hands to carry with them from room to bed... The theme is one to which we can all relate--family members who surround the little child loved by all!
Pointing out that families can be made up of different people of all shapes and sizes, it enhances the natural curiosity of a child to get to know who and how they are loved--each page presents a picnic or baking cookies or just making the child laugh to be enjoying a happy time!
Little boys especially love to growl like a monster, maybe a dragon... But what if a dragon is just a little girl and doesn't like to be "growled" at?
Dragon - Sibling Rivalry helps children learn about having a new or ongoing sibling, or friend, with whom they need to get along. The little boy is named Drew and has a pet dragon named Diggeory Doo!
But Diggory's cousin came to stay for a short visit. A little dragon named Lolly Lou... And, for Diggery Doo? You see, Doo thought it would be fun... But things didn't go as he thought!
Hi, I'm Drew, and I have a dragon pet. His name is Diggory Doo. But for a while last summer, we had not one, but TWO!
Dragons are not common pets and raising them is tough. One dragon living in your house is really quite enough!
Diggory's cousin came to stay. Uncle Bill was out of town. It was like we had a sister; Diggery's world turned upside down!
But Diggery learned some lessons from his cousin Lolly Lou. If I tell you all about it, then you can learn them too! Because Diggery cried out it was going to be fun!
At first Diggory was excited, for Digg0ry Doo had never had a baby sister--This was the first time ever. He welcomed her with open arms. But it seemed the fun was over before it had begun
When Lolly Lou saw Diggory's toys, she dove right in to play. And that made Diggory mad at her on the very first day. He snatched his toys from Lolly Lou which made her cry and then Mother scolded, "Diggory Doo, Don't Do That Again! (in a loud voice!)
Then Diggory filled his water gun and soaked poor Lolly Lou; Daddy took his gun away to punish Diggory Doo. Then Diggory found a frog and chased Lorry 'round the yard. We warned him to be good, but I guess it was too hard!
"Diggory," I suggested, "you should find a book to read to your cousin...
~~~
This book is about the size of a comic book and has a shiny cover and back. All pages have colored pictures with small paragraphs on each page to explain what is happening...This picture book's characters are all able to talk, so can be considered for a young child who already has a sibling, or when somebody visits.
This book is part of a large series, so if your child enjoys dragons like most children do, it may be just what you are needing.
I started early with getting books for Avi who is not yet reading, of course. It's my belief that putting books in a child's hands as early as possible provides a way to teach children for the rest of their lives!
God Bless
Gabby
Note: there are quite a selection of Dragon Books by Steve Herman for your consideration on YouTube...
Yesterday I went out for the first time after the election...I had depended on something I had no right to do... God had told me that "He had this" and I began to believe I knew what was meant by his message, his response to my cries for action... So, for weeks, I've enjoyed all of the thousands and millions who have attended rallies--seeing hope, joy, and an end to all of the chaos that had been going on for almost a decade. I, along with millions, felt that the first woman president of the United States was going to be named... But, still, as I write this, there was always a bit of doubt that it really was over...
I wore a sparkly cat on my sweater which caught attention... As I was waiting for my friend and her son, a black woman with her son walked by and the child knew he would be put in the shopping cart, so he started walking and his mother said, wait until I get the cart, she said, laughingly. I smiled and said, Here, take mine... She looked at me, old, bent over a little and she said, "are you sure?" I said, yes, and she picked up her son to ride in the cart and moved on into the store.
I got another cart and decided to step inside the store out of people's way. As I started through the door, another black woman noticed my sparkly cat and commented. We talked a few sentences which I can't remember, because I was already asking my question in my mind... "I have to ask, what did you think of the election?" She looked into my eyes and said "You voted for Kamala..." I nodded and she explained that she hadn't voted but knew she should have--her and her husband's work schedules presented a problem... I cautioned her to "be careful." but I already knew that she would know that. All black people have known throughout their lives that they must be careful--of what they say, of what they do... But it's never been like this--I felt I needed to proactively speak to the black women I saw--I had to do something, some gesture to minimally replace the possible joy and security we had lost once again. Additional words were spoken with the second women, but all I remember was that each of us reached out to hug tightly to each other and she noted she had to get to work... She called out "God Bless You." I returned it... There were several other women with whom I talked after that. It was a time to recognize other people going about their daily lives, shopping, hurrying to work... I became just another, doing the same... But I noticed that there was, still, seemingly, a need to speak out to our neighbors, if only for a minute--to try to connect and hope that things will get better... even in the midst of continued chaos...
On election day, my friend helped me to get to the polling place and then we went on to have lunch together. She talked about having to get home to vote as well. I went home and turned on the television to settle back into my routine at home. But I was tired so decided to take a nap and read, knowing that no results would be known that day. Frankly, I was stunned the next day...How was it possible that a man, like our previous president, could be re-elected? I could not deal with it. Even books could not keep my mind from straying... So I wound up watching Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel for most of the week... I could shed my tears of sorrow over fictional stories that I could not find in my sorrow over the fact that a convicted felon, and more, could ever be elected OUR president! How was it even possible... Then, as I was continuing to read The Light of the World, mostly every morning, it hit me for, I believe, the first time... the crowds, the mob, the leaders at that time, also chose. To free Barabbas, a known criminal, instead of Jesus who was without sin, so that He could ransom us from any pain that grieved us... Did you know that Barabbas was guilty of insurrection, and more! Quite a coincident that Barabbas and Donald Trump were freed, though guilty...
As I thought about this more, the parallel of Christ's final years on earth are very similar to what had/is happening here in America...
InMatthew27:16 Barabbas is called a “notorious prisoner.” InMark15:7, echoed inLuke23:19, he was “in prison with the rebels who had committedmurderduring the insurrection” against the occupying Roman forces.John18:40 describes him as a bandit.
It was the religious leaders and government officials who first chose to select Jesus as a criminal and kill him. Why? Because He was dangerous to those who placed power and money first in their lives. They had no interest in getting rid of guns--give us money and we won't ever attempt to control guns... Give us power and prestige and we'll make sure your taxes are reduced or even totally eliminated... Don't worry about the old, let them die, especially if you don't do an audit to find out why social security funds are no longer earning enough to ensure coverage of what the people put in for their retirement... And, don't worry about kids being hungry...who cares about the cries of the very young or old! Education? They can learn from television or just get dumber and dumber, as we planned!
It was Jesus who went into the crowds to help all those who needed support of any kind...His power was used for good, for feeding the crowds who followed Him to hear of what He offered...And when He went into the temple, He chased out the money-makers who defiled the temple of God by their greed...
"The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. (24) "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. (25) "He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.*43 (26) "If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there my servant will be also; if anyone serves me, the Father will honor him. (27) "Now my soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, 'Father, save me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour. (28) "Father, glorify Your name." Then a voice came out of heaven: "I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again." (29) So the crowd of people who stood by and heard it were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, "An angel has spoken to him." (30) Joshua answered and said, "This voice has not come for my sake, but for your sakes. (31) "Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world (Satan) will be cast out.*44 (32) "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." *45 (33) But he was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which He was to die. (34) The crowd then answered him, "We have heard out of the Law that the Messiah is to remain forever; and how can you say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'? Who is this Son of Man?" (35) So Joshua said to them, "For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. (36) "While you have the Light (while Joshua is on the earth), trust in the Light (given by the Maker, our Father), so that you may become sons of Light." These things Joshua spoke, and he went away and hid himself from them. *43 Verse 25 provides a key teaching of Joshua of what one must do to be his disciple/follower. This key teaching is repeated in all the gospels (Matt. 10:39, 16:25; Mark 8:35; Luke 9:24, 17:33) and yet is virtually unknown to the masses who take some Christian label. Disciples must ask ourselves, ‘are we willing to do this’? *44 In this commentator’s opinion, this was fulfilled with the ransom paid at the cross (Joshua’s death – see Matt. 20:28), and thus Satan lost his strong ruler-ship over mankind – Joshua opened the door to mankind’s prison cell by paying the ransom (Matt. 20:28) and ever since, mankind (each person) is free to choose whom or what they will serve – each person must decide if they are going to walk out of the dark prison cell and go to the Light or not – a cell they have grown accustomed to and feel comfortable in. *45 He was lifted up from the earth and thus he does draw all men to himself. See Luke 24:51. Everyone who hears of Joshua has been given an invitation to come. All who have had the opportunity to hear his words have no excuse for rejecting him. Substituting bible or christian religion for him is a clever way to reject him. (37) But though he had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in him. (38) This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: "Lord, Who Has Believed Our Report? And To Whom Has The Arm Of The Lord Been Revealed?" (39) For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again, (40) "He Has Blinded Their Eyes And He Hardened Their Heart, So That They Would Not See With Their Eyes And Perceive With Their Heart, And Be Converted And I Heal Them." (41) These things Isaiah said because he saw his glory, and he spoke of him.*46 (42) Nevertheless many even of the political rulers believed in him, but because of the religious leaders they were not confessing him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; (43) for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God. *46 This is a good example of a saying in the scripture being wrong. The writer John quotes the Jewish prophet Isaiah who in this case says that God “Has Blinded Their Eyes And He Hardened Their Heart, So That They Would Not See With Their Eyes And Perceive With Their Heart”. The heavenly Father does not blind men nor harden their hearts, rather men do that all by themselves. Listen to Joshua, whose words are from the Father’s heart - “For I have come not to destroy men’s lives, but to save them”. See the next paragraph – “I have come to save the people of the earth” and those words are given by “the Father Himself”. All Old Testament sayings should be thought of as potentially painting the wrong picture of God unless the saying is validated by Joshua’s Way and teachings. (44) And Joshua cried out and said, "He who believes in me, does not believe in me but in Him who sent me. (45) "He who sees me sees the One who sent me. (46) "I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who trusts in me will not remain in darkness. (47) "If anyone hears my sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the people of the earth. (48) "He who rejects me and does not receive my sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day. (49) "For I did not speak on my own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent me has given me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. (50) "I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told me." *47 *47 What more could he say? He is the Creator’s Messenger. He is the Light of the world and the Life that everyone needs. There are consequences for rejecting him and his Light. Why would you reject him? What does he say that is wrong? Which of his primary teachings do you disagree with and why?
I have pondered during the last few days as I have once again began to watch "The Last Word." But key for me is that those who have chosen one way or another at the election in America have chosen what they desire--or, for giving them the benefit of the doubt, what they have been persuaded to by false prophets at various levels...
At this time of my life, I look forward never backward. I believed that, even though Harris and Walz lost the election, their promises of joy, support and more for all peoples, is what God has always provided for us, if we choose Him... You see, I now realize that it was not the election that would make the difference for each of us. Rather, it is what we do in the future to support God's plan for each of us on behalf of America... (I learned recently that over 80% of those who voted for him stated they were christian.) The words are the same but have been modified so that I may say that I will not be doing much differently here at Book Readers Heaven. God has used this site in ways that may have caused division, even within my family. But, then, that is part of how we who know Jesus/Joshua act. It is our choice...
I find that I am calm about the future... During my reading these past years... I have found the method/man who has given false information about our children, simply by giving parents what they wanted... He is now dead but the lack of concern for our children still holds sway for those who do not walk the ways of Joshua...
I have watched as the respect owed to all has been lost through the allowance of bullying by our children, which they then continue into their adult lives, doing the same to their children... I have watched and read how many have found only prejudice and discrimination by those with money, power, or simply hatred and a desire for violence...
I could go on but we all know the issues that have divided America many times in the past...which have been allowed to continue now and int0 the future. I will undoubtedly read more about them and share here at Book Readers Heaven. I have chosen to Speak Jesus/Joshua...
I found this video after I had written above...To me, this was God's Confirmation of my (your?) plan for the future...
“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life…”, and “All who are of the truth listen to MY voice.” ?
If this is so, then is it not true that those eternally valuable truths… “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one gets to the Father except through me.” "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
…have been drowned out … buried … LOST.
"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.' "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. (Matthew 5:43-45)
(32) "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth,
will draw all men to myself."
"But who do you say that I am?" (16) Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." (17) And Joshua said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. (18) "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock(possibly pointing to the earth) I will build my church (my Family of people called out of the world); and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. (19) "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven."*40 (20) Then he warned the disciples that they should tell no one that he was the Messiah. *40 Many religious people and their leaders use this passage to say that Joshua made Peter his sole leader or representative on earth. This view is wrong for the following reasons. First, Joshua says that binding and loosing is available to all his disciples in Matt. 18:18-19.@ Second, Joshua says that only he is to be the leader of his followers (Matt. 23:8-12).@ Third, Peter failed to do what he ought to have done several times – denying Joshua for example. Peter is not the sinless Son of Man, and thus is an inadequate leader for men’s souls as is any man or woman. Only the Good Shepherd is worthy to be the leader of our souls and only He is He represents the owner of the sheep. (21) From that time Joshua began to show his disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the leaders of Israel (religious and political), and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. (22) Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to you." (23) But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." (24) Then Joshua said to his disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. (25) "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (26) "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits (loses or gives away) his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? *41 (27) "For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and Will Then Repay Every Man According To His Deeds (what he has done). (28) "Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man (Joshua’s favorite title for himself) coming in his kingdom (see the following verses)." *41 Sadly, people don’t value their souls because they have been deceived into thinking they don’t have one. All of the wealth and material things on the earth will be of no comfort to a person after a person leaves their body and they see what they threw away (Life Everlasting) in exchange for what they love in the world…a few years of pleasure, material comfort or money etc. (17:1) Six days later (after the saying of Joshua regarding seeing the Son of Man coming in His kingdom) Joshua took with Him Peter and James and John His brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. (2) And He was transfigured (He changed appearance) before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light (perhaps the preview of His coming in his kingdom). (3) And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. (4) Peter said to Joshua, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three tabernacles (small shelters) here, one for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah." (5) While he (Peter) was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, "This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to HIM! *42 (6) When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground and were terrified. (7) And Joshua came to them and touched them and said, "Get up, and do not be afraid." (8) And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one except Joshua Himself alone. (9) As they were coming down from the mountain, Joshua commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man has risen from the dead." (10) And his disciples asked him, "Why then do the bible experts say that Elijah must come first?" (11) And He answered and said, "Elijah is coming and will restore all things; (12) but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands." (13) Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist. *42 The great error of mankind. The Creator Himself spoke and said, “Listen to my Son”. And yet humanity goes on its own way, rejecting that plea of our Designer, and substituting just about anything or anyone – a book, the bible; Moses; Paul, pastor so-and-so, etc. – for the one true Leader appointed by the Creator, the Light of the world. “And this is the condemnation, that humans love the darkness rather than the Light” – see John 3:19.@ (14) When they came to the crowd, a man came up to Joshua, falling on his knees before Him and saying, (15) "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he acts crazy and is very ill; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. (16) "I brought him to your disciples, and they could not cure him." (17) And Joshua answered and said, "You unbelieving and corrupted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me." (18) And Joshua rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured at once. (19) Then the disciples came to Joshua privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?" (20) And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a (small) mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you”. (22) And while they were gathering together in Galilee, Joshua said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men; (23) and they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day." And they were deeply grieved. (24) When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the fifty dollar tax came to Peter and said, "Does your teacher not pay the tax?" (25) He said, "Yes." And when he came into the house, Joshua spoke to Him first, saying, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do the rulers of the world collect tolls or taxes - from their sons or from strangers?" (26) When Peter said, "From strangers," Joshua said to him, "Then the sons are exempt. (27) "However, so that we do not give them cause to arrest us, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a gold coin. Take that and give it to them for you and me." (18:1)
@Matthew:18: 8-9 Truly I say to you, whatever you [r]bind on earth [s]shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you [t]loose on earth [u]shall have been loosed in heaven. Matthew 19: “Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them [v]by My Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 23: 8 But as for you, do not be called [a]Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters. 9 And do not call anyone on earth your father; for only One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called [b]leaders; for only One is your Leader, that is, Christ. 11 But the greatest of you shall be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
John 3:19 And this is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the Light; for their deeds were evil.
The Light of the World is a book that I have been waiting for, it seems, all of my life! I don't know how many times, as I've been writing book reviews, I have thought about those that spoke about religion--of any kind. There are those who have moved into alternative experiences of a spiritual nature, which included astral projection and more of the supernatural experiences. I have read quite a few about agnosticism. I have read brilliant books by Stanislaw Kapuscinski delving deeper into the various Books of the Bible and/or moving beyond what was found there into new revelatory territories. I have also read dozens if not hundreds of fictional stories that honed in on a religious life... I have purchased a book by Thomas who recorded all of the words said by Jesus... But, as stated, it was nothing but the actual words recorded, so held little value for considering commentary in relation to those words.
The closest I ever got to finding what I wanted was How to Be a Christian without being Religious. That is, until I found a manuscript many years ago that I knew was what I'd been searching for... Quite recently, I was able to remember the name of the author and sought him out and have already read his other book, Christianity: A Successful Failure.
A God Incident where I recently woke up to hear the Holy Spirit say "Tim Speiss" was my direction to start seriously reading and sharing about The Light of the World. Given the frustration and worry that I have been going through since I learned that Evangelical Christians had endorsed Donald Trump, as you may have noticed, I've been reading a lot of nonfiction books trying to understand what happened... First, I listened to a video by Frank Schaeffer, author and son of the Evangelist Francis Schaeffer, who is now creating videos speaking out against the past president. In one of his videos I had learned that a "deal" had been struck between Trump and Evangelical leaders. It was at that point that Frank Schaeffer, who was at that meeting, chose to pull away from what had happened. Since then I've been reading many others who have written against that "Deal" and what has happened!
I began to feel better but still felt that something major had changed within the Christian and Republican Party. And I watched as my family was affected. I even told one of them that I loved her, but that I loved God more and we have not spoken since. Soooo, this seemed to be the perfect time for me to speak out about all that I have read and learned about Christianity through many different books... Some have talked about sexuality issues within the church as those individuals were being exposed and condemned. I had also watched how money was being spent within politics that literally blew my mind, especially from a Christian standpoint as Jesus spoke out against those who sought power through riches/money...
In other words, I was ready--anxious to read this book... But there was always another new book that came out that was also important to what is happening in America right now... It took a reminder from My Lord to what He wanted from me at this time...
In Part I, I talked about Tim Spiess' decision to call his movement, The Peaceful Revolution. I can understand why, and I will be joining that site after tomorrow's election when I can, hopefully, breathe a little better. You see, Jesus also conducted a peaceful revolution... Yes, since His mission was to reach all those who were lost, hurt, or estranged for one reason or another, He often told those He helped, to not talk about being healed... Of course that didn't always work, but He would continue moving on to others, never trying to gain credit for His work. Never seeking praise, thanks, or some type of payback...
I have worked with thousands of writers, authors, editors, and others who have been involved in publishing a book(s). During my early years, I fed on Christian-related books. But then, I started working at West Virginia University, where I met people from all races, religions, and sexual orientation. And, I've never saw any difference in any of them. What I mean is that, I never felt any form of discrimination or bias against anybody that I met. Even when I found a problem with somebody, I was able to move away, just as I learned Jesus did, so that disagreements would not often arise...
And, when I had symptoms of Job Burnout with high levels of stress-related symptoms, I pulled within to heal, rather than strike out in anger--at least as much as I could, which was not every time...
My point is that I and so many of us have seen more hatred and violence spewed since 2015, that we are working hard just to maintain some level of stability in our own lives... I listen to others worry and realize that I don't. It matters to me what has happened, but I must say that within my life, I have always found support from my best friend, Jesus...
Tim has bravely acted as I believe he was told to do by God Himself. What he has done was to take that final step that nobody ever has done before to say that, in toto, Christianity has indeed been a successful failure.There are millions of Christians all over the world. Many have been introduced to God through the many different sects or denominations...
In fact, having so many different sects or denominations should be your first warning, don't you think? Actually, I had not really gotten to the point where Tim had gotten before he started writing this book. So, if you hadn't thought a lot about exactly what has NOT occurred for over 2000 years, I think we all can be forgiven... But, you will find that Spiess has spotlight many of these issues that should have been questioned by this point in time...
For instance, once Jesus was born and died for all of us, shouldn't all of the old writings have gone into historical archives? Instead, all of the Old Testament was retained and a New Testament had been started. Now we do know that there were many who had already had religions so that some retention of their "religions" would have been retained. BUT, since at the point where those who had started following Jesus via his disciplines and teachings, a new testament could have been started and completed... More specifically. The Old Testament, The Life and Teachings of Jesus, and, all other peripheral writers who wrote books at that time... But only Tim Spiess, as far as I know, has taken the important and monumental step to say ONLY THE WORDS OF JESUS ARE ALL THAT WE NEED!
Tim Spiess has done the research--considerably MORE research than many of those who have written on the subject in more than 2000 years. Tim Spiess was free of bias, free of a religion that met his needs, and the drive to start asking questions and acting upon them! Again, very specifically, he pondered the issue and came up with a conclusion that should have been declared about 2000 years ago... The birth and death of Jesus and His life and Teachings should be in ONE Book... And so, he presents The Light of the World: The Life and Teachings of Jesus of Nazareth... as the One and Only book that we need to follow our Savior, Jesus Christ (better translation being Joshua. This book uses Joshua and I found in reading the actual teachings of our Lord, using Joshua actually helps in exploring our new and only book which will be used to guide our lives...
On the Other Hand... think about... Messenger
I have looked at my life and come to somewhat of a different conclusion. If indeed we have come to accept the teachings of Jesus, and since we have moved forward with so many WORLD changes during those two thousands years, would it not be appropriate that many of the parables used in those early days may need to be updated? But that's an idea for another page... The question is: Will a Quiet Revolution move us forward based ONLY upon the words of the Son of Man? I actually think so.
During the interim between 2015, and the present, when I first became involved and interested in politics, I have seen so many issues that were defined and explained in the Bible, but were ignored, questioned, or changed in meaning to meet the needs of a few; hence, for instance, the unlimited numbers of Protestant denominations...
After reading this book, I'd like to try. In fact, I have been using many of the words of Jesus in rebuttal of what has been happening in America. And, anybody paying attention, we can all clearly see that the individual running for Office who most closely attempts to respond to the words in The Light of the World, would never incite violence, hate, and division among our citizens... nor insurrection against the government of our country...
It will be my honor to continue to share with you about this book. In the meantime, I highly recommend you get your own copy and start reading. Spiess provides ongoing commentary and references to ensure you, too, begin to see all that He Spoke which was never followed... May we all find our way now, and begin our own quiet revolution...
(This author uses “Joshua” instead of the popular “Jesus” in order to refer to the person who is the subject of the first four books of what is referred to as the “new testament.” I do this because Joshua is a better translation of His name, and because of all the religious junk associated with the name “Jesus” or “Jesus Christ” or “Christ”.)
Have you ever heard somebody in the crowd around you say, "Jesus Christ!" loudly, as a curse word? I have... And I've cringed inside each time. It bothers me that so much has been lost in the centuries since God Sent His Son to All of Us...
Even His Birthday has been captured by Santa Claus and an entirely different type of holiday that, yes, includes gifts such as what The Three Kings brought at the time of His birth,
But for many, they have no idea that there is a different
Reason for the Season!
Let's face it--acknowledge it...
We've lost the Holiness of His Coming!
By merging a secular holiday
with the birthday of Our Lord
to me, is just wrong...
but that's me...if you can bring Christ into the Season and not spend much money buying, buying, buying gifts for anybody and everybody, but have not loved as Jesus asked of us...by giving to those in need...
then you have placed money above our Lord...
just my opinion...of course...
Above a month ago, I awoke and heard just two words: Tim Spiess
I knew exactly what I was to do...
I was to start reading diligently and reviewing this book...
Now is the time to rethink your thoughts about...God...
Right now in America, there are those that are using religion as a political tool, even calling themselves Christian Nationalists and claiming that religion (or their religion)
is above government and our constitution...
Comparing religion versus the Constitution is like saying
1 person equals one flea, or worse,
one man's sperm is more important than one female's life
In other words, it is not comparable!
And should not be compared!
Tim Spiess has, throughout all of this, been speaking about
and conducting a quiet revolution that has nothing to do with America
I have found the title The Peaceful Revolution quite extraordinary. How many times we learn that Jesus, in performing miracles, would tell those he healed not to tell anybody else. But they would be so excited and, since they were healed, would receive questions about what happened... It was a quiet revolution, then, as well... By word of mouth, each individual who was touched by Jesus/Joshua would spread the word about His Love. They would speak His Truth and share about the man who had been there to touch each of those who were, in some way, in need of help... All they did was ask... And, sometimes, based upon faith of the requesting person, they would be automatically healed by their faith... If trouble was heard about, He and His disciples would leave that area and move on to another. There was no attempt to convince anybody of Who He Was... It was, instead, a Quiet Revolution that has spread further and further across the world over thousands of years... In fact, Christ knew He was to die and when. He was on a Mission which ended at The Cross
I believe that, like me--and you(?), many, who are individuals who had been exposed to religion and found they had many questions, Tim Spiess was selected by God to take on a monumental task... much more of an ongoing movement that would lead people back to
The Son of God...
What you will be reading is not new...
What you will be reading forces you to recognize...
What you will be reading allows you to immediately recognize...
What you will be reading is exactly why The Son of God was Born...
What you will be reading, at the same time, is very simple to understand...
What you will be reading is that This Book does nothing but Place the Light of the World's Words Exactly Where
They were always meant to be...
Above All Other Words that were Ever Said
The Words of the Son of God...
Which Said, for instance, that all rules be set aside...
That we were to Follow The Son of Man...
Who Died for Us...
Soon you will realize that the book(s) that have been read for thousands of years, were important, but they were not The Words of Joshua...
Which provided The Truth as to how we should Live...
And we are being told that These Words Were Ours
Because God Loves Each of Us Through His
Amazing Grace...
The purpose of this presentation of the first four books of the New Testament is to try to assist in recovering something extremely valuable that has been lost. What extremely valuable thing has been lost? Before we investigate what extremely valuable thing has been lost, let us first take a small but important digression. Most people are familiar with the expression, “you should not throw the baby out with the bathwater.” It is an effective saying to teach the principle of not dismissing a true or valuable or important thing (the baby) that might be surrounded by, or associated with, false or valueless or unimportant things (the dirty bath water). I would ask the reader to please apply this principle to the person of Jesus (or Joshua) of Nazareth. In other words, before you throw the baby (Jesus of Nazareth) away with the bathwater (bible-christian-messianic beliefs and religion in his name), you ought to take a careful look at the Baby. After all, what do you have to lose by reading Joshua’s words, teaching and life story? It won’t take you long to read, and you will be one of an increasingly few number of people on the earth who actually read his words and teachings.
This author would suggest that it is unfair to throw away ‘the whole jesus religious thing’ as irrelevant to your life or as ‘a bunch of silly or hypocritical rubbish’ without first giving his words and teachings a honest and fair read. It is also irrational to deny that the person known as “jesus christ” has had a very significant impact on both human history as well as countless millions of individuals. You should be curious as to why, and as a person that might be seeking truth, it would be unreasonable to avoid his own words in order to understand the very important ‘why’ question. Even if you are a skeptic or critic, if you don’t read Jesus’ own teachings, then at best you are a lazy and poor quality skeptic or critic who doesn’t bother to go to the source of the object of your skepticism or criticism.
Please, be a diligent skeptic or critic and search Jesus’ teachings YOURSELF for the faults and errors in his person or teachings that you assume account for the mess that covers much of the planet and is known as ‘christianity’ or bible-based religious groups call ‘the church.’ OK, let’s end the first digression.
So, what extremely valuable thing has been lost? Please allow me digress again before answering that question in order to briefly address those reading who have not seriously looked into the life and teachings of Jesus (or Joshua) of Nazareth. (This author will use “Joshua” instead of the popular “Jesus” in order to refer to the person who is the subject of the first four books of what is referred to as the “new testament.” I do this because Joshua is a better translation of his name, and because of all the religious junk associated with the name “Jesus” or “Jesus Christ” or “Christ”.)
Every Person’s Basic Need Every living person has hope in something because it has been proven time and time again that a person without any hope (some self-perceived purpose for their life-existence) will seek to destroy themselves through suicide or other destructive behavior in order to try and end the inner emptiness of life-level hopelessness. The reader should ask why that is. Why is it that human’s alone (not animals) need a future reason for living (known as hope or purpose) or else they seek to dull or to end their existence?
What is your hope in dear reader? Some ‘better’ material tomorrow…a better house, car, or vacation…a more ‘successful’ career? Is your hope in a better education and thus more opportunity to accumulate wealth or influence over other people? Is your hope in some better form of pleasing yourself or entertainment? Is it in the next movie or the newest electronic device that you believe is somehow going to make your life more meaningful? Is it in sporting events, challenges, vacations, hobbies or activities yet to come? Do you find your purpose in life through the primary work that you do? Is your hope in a person, like yourself, or a spouse, friend or partner? Is your hope in your family or children? Is your hope in religious beliefs or practices? Has having your hope in any of these things ever satisfied your soul in a deeply meaningful and permanent way? Or does the pleasure of the pursuit or aurora of the lesser-hope fade as it passes, and you find yourself dissatisfied or somewhat empty until the next time? When you largely accomplish your goals associated with your hope or purpose, what happens then? Do you just pick up a new temporary one without thought to the fact that it too will end? Do you ever take the time to just sit back and ask the import questions of life like why am I here? What is the purpose of my life? What does my existence mean? If you don’t, why do you think that is so? Are those not really important matters that deserve attention? Looking at this important topic from another perspective, have you come to the sad place of believing you are nothing more than a random accumulation of molecules with no soul and little or no meaningful purpose? Or do you realize something fundamental is missing from your life? Have you come to the place of acknowledging that your own efforts to run your life are not working well? Have you come to the place of understanding that what is most important in life is relationships with other people? That whatever pain or stress or anxiety or conflict or frustration or failure you are experiencing normally has to do with how you are relating to other people or even how you are relating to yourself? Is there a right way and a wrong way to relate to people, and if so, where can I find that way or standard? Can I be rightly related to all the people that I know and thus be a nearly perfect person and have a justifiably clear conscience? Wouldn’t that be wonderful?
Everyone has beliefs about what the purpose of their life is, including atheists (those who believe there is no God) and agnostics (those who believe one cannot know if God exists). Many atheists and agnostics are physicalists, meaning they believe a person’s self-expression (or personality) can be accounted for by physics-chemical reactions alone – this author believes that is an unreasonable belief. By definition, however, a physicalists purpose for their life must end when their life ends, and thus their hope can only be in temporary things listed previously which will undeniably end. They (and we) will die. Their body will decay and return to dust. In their belief, all the events, emotions, friendships, relationships, expressions of love and good in their life, all the special experiences they had and all the good things they accomplished – all will be gone forever, and perish with their death and the death of those who knew them…there will be nothing but the black, dark, void of existential destruction…for to lose something valuable is just like having it destroyed. This is hopelessness – a meaningless-ness to life that is typically denied and buried under daily busyness, noise, entertainment and a denial of most things important – never peering over the edge of the approaching and undeniable event called death.
Most physicalists are relativists, meaning they believe there is no absolute truth. They say each person makes up their own reality. Is that true? No, because the relativist’s clearest statement, like, “No absolute truth exists” is a self-defeating statement. That means that the laws of logic demonstrate that statement to be false. Can you see it? For if the relativist makes the statement, “no absolute truth exists,” one only need ask them, ‘is that statement absolutely true’? If they answer, ‘yes’, then at least one absolute truth exists and thus their statement is false. And if they answer, ‘no’, then they acknowledge the statement to be false. It is undeniable that absolute truths exist, and it is reasonable to deduce that someone (a master Programmer?) created reason and logic to be based on absolute truth. The fact that it is undeniable that absolute truth exists - that everything is not relative according to a person’s (or even a collective culture’s) perspective or experiences - has a very significant implication. That implication is that it is possible (even reasonable) that a Creator of that absolute truth has an absolute standard of truth which human’s will be held accountable to…or from another perspective, will set their after-death destiny by. For if we do have a metaphysical part (beyond being able to sense with our five senses) to our person (often referred to as a soul, spirit or personality), and that part does survive physical death, then what becomes of us?
Dear reader, if you lost both your arms and legs and had your face badly disfigured, would that change who you really are? With medical sciences advancing, it is reasonably conceivable that if all that was left of you was your head, you could be kept alive. Would that change who you are? The reasonable answer is no, it would not. This is yet another proof that humans are more than just our physical bodies.
Is religion the place where I will find answers to these things, or can I find those answers somewhere else? What is the truth regarding these matters? To ignore those critical life questions and not seek answers is to live less than a full life…it is to refuse to take life’s most important journey. And this brings us to a person, not a religion, who said, “I am the Truth.”
No matter what you think about that claim, it is a very important claim that warrants investigation. While anyone (and many have) can make that claim, the same one who said that also defeated death, at least according to the four accounts of his life, and that makes his claim worthy of sincere investigation. No one else in human history defeated death in as genuine, authentic and validated way.
Religion in a general sense is humans attempt to understand the purpose of their existence – the whys of life. More specifically, religion is often people’s attempt to be accepted by their God or god(s) so that when they die, their existence will continue typically in a more favorable manner than their existence has been on the earth. From the student of Joshua’s viewpoint, religion is the things that people believe and do in order to answer the why questions of life or to be accepted by their god(s), by means other than what Joshua has taught. Please re-read that carefully. There are many religions and many people who hold to their religion’s beliefs and practices. But there is only one person who--in a genuine, authentic way--defeated death to prove all He said and did is true, and He is not a religion! While this person has been wrongfully used to create religion, He not only does not support that religion, but he rebukes it and its practices time and time again in His teachings. No, he doesn’t rebuke bible-based christian religion’s failures, hypocrisies, faults and abuses, but rather He rebukes the very essence, beliefs and practices which the religious leaders of the bible-based religious system build their kingdoms (or denominations or churches) on. If this is true, this should impact the reader. You have no doubt heard of the person of Jesus of Nazareth (Joshua is a more accurate translation of his name than “Jesus”), the person that the christian religions claim as their figurehead. But of all the hundreds of millions of people claiming to be some type of ‘christian’ or somehow claiming that ‘Jesus Christ’ is important to them, probably less than two percent have taken seriously the reading of his life and teachings, let alone trying to understand him or do what he says. If this is true, this should also peak your curiosity, for it certainly doesn’t make sense. And perhaps this is one of the reasons for the obvious failures and powerlessness of bible or christian or church religion to change people towards the Standard of Perfection that God has given mankind--the person of Joshua of Nazareth?
So, in your hands you have the Words of Joshua of Nazareth, the one who said, “I am the Way (Home to your Father), I am the (absolute) Truth (that eternally matters), and I am Life (Everlasting).” He not only said that (for anyone can say that), but He performed many miracles, including defeating death, to prove that all He said and did was true, including what was just quoted. No one else in history has done that. Joshua addresses the most important questions of life, directly, head on, and gives clear answers. Can I have a Hope that will last? What is the purpose to my life? If I have a soul and it survives death, what becomes of me? What is true love, and can I experience that and live that out? Can I have proper relationships with all the people in my life? Can I have inner peace and joy in my life on the earth? Where can I get the power to change myself to be the way I know I ought to be? Is there a superior form of love, and if so, how can I experience it? Joshua answers all these questions and point’s people to the source of power to change.
This author can testify to this truth. I was once chasing the American dream and all it entails, and to a large measure, I had attained it. However, that pursuit and it’s ‘success’ only left me more empty, selfish and hopeless. People viewing my life from the outside would say how successful I was, but I knew the truth. One beautiful day, however, as my life was spiraling downward (even while people said I was climbing the ladder of success), I met the Person Joshua of Nazareth. I testify that He has changed my life in a way I could never have done myself, for I had not the wisdom nor the power to fix my broken and hopeless life. Empty and circular psychological beliefs or legally prescribed emotion controlling drugs are not the answer to your problems. Alcohol, drugs, busyness, materialism, entertainment-ism or other means to try and dull or hide the hopelessness are not the answer either. So, dear reader, please don’t be afraid to read and seek to understand Joshua of Nazareth…He is NOT a religion, but rather a person like no other. And the chances are very good that the real Joshua of Nazareth is nothing like you have experienced through most christian or bible religious people…He is not the “Jesus Christ” of the christians/biblians or church people. He is not someone handing out free passes to ‘heaven’ to those who believe certain facts about him. Nor is he the God of wrath eager to punish the imperfect. Rather, he has the solution to your deepest need and is eager to provide it to you…he can clean your soul and bring your spirit alive!
Does YOUR life need fixing? What have you got to lose, and perhaps, you’ve got everything to gain? Do you want true freedom? You can have it, but it does cost something. To gain the Life which you really need, you must be willing to forsake the temporary and that which this world (and yourself) considers valuable. "He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.” "If you continue in my word, then you are truly disciples of mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." May the Words of the Rescuer, the Freedom and Life Giver in the pages to come do their beautiful work in your life!
I believe this is exactly the time to reconsider our relationship to our god... Is it God Almighty? Do you get excited about Our Awesome God? Or do you get more excited by earthly things such as a job, a football game, a song, a Million Dollars? Consider this question... If you had the chance to go to one of two concerts: Jesus Christ's Sermon on the Mount or Taylor Swift's latest? Which would you consider the highest priority... And if you had $100, would you buy a lottery ticket for a prize of $10M or give the $100 to a homeless man or women? Ponder this overnight...
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