Sound Mind – Author Danyelle Read

Maximum Swoop and Breakthrough

In the spirit-realm as in the natural, there are laws by which energies operate. Gravity, velocity, thrust and lift, for a few examples, will operate with reliable intensity given the same conditions. They are natural laws. In the spiritual realm there is faith, hope, unbelief, vision, love, joy, peace, speech. These are some of the principles which will work effectively and reliably as well, when put to use.

One principle for using these might be termed the Law of Maximum Swoop. Picture a pinwheel – why does the slightest breeze make it move? Its blades are shaped first to catch the greatest amount of wind per square centimeter, and second to channel it directionally for maximum power. Third, the blades are made of the lightest material possible. The end result is an efficient toy to respond to a child’s breathe with ease.

There is a spiritual equivalent to this, if we liken ourselves to a pinwheel. The wind is like the Holy Spirit. Jesus likened the Holy Spirit to the wind, a powerful force which cannot be seen with earthly eyes, only felt and heard. Wings of birds and airplanes catch it and soar. We have to keep our own wings open to receive it. sing the pinwheel illustration, our blades must be open.

It starts with faith, the leaning of our entire human personality on Christ Jesus in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness. (See Colossians 1:4 AmpC)

After this, comes opening the mind to the Bible. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.” Prov 3:4. But you lean instead on God’s truth and God’s perspective on things, the Bible, as the definitive, trustworthy, accurate Word of the living God through Christ.

Finally, we become a human/divine hybrid by the infilling of the Holy Spirit. What the Bible calls a “new creature”.

From this strong foundation, we can use many tools, such as prayer, including our powerful heavenly prayer language, meditation on the Word of God, and fellowship as ways to expand our ability to receive. We can eliminate distractions. Our hearts stay tuned to the *KOG channel through our ears and eyes, reinforced by our mouth, and by the choices we make of what to read, what to listen to, where to work and recreate.

In this process, we are not only receiving, we will also be giving, often inadvertently, by setting an example, or deliberately by our words and actions.

To increase our responsiveness, we need to stay featherlight in terms of the weight of our lives in the natural (like the featherlight blades of a pinwheel). Not that we cannot enjoy things, possessions, relationships, this is not about asceticism. We are meant to be abundant in all good and healthy material blessings. Rather, the weight of our possessions is determined by our focus. As we first seek the Kingdom of God, all things are always being added. The burden is light. We need not fear lack or want. On the other hand, if we start to seek things for the sake of things, or relationships for the sake of relationships, it becomes a heavy yoke.

The world doesn’t value maximum swoop. It thinks it’s strange that you don’t chase after goods and physical pleasures, pursuing them as a primary objective. Relationship is defined by sharing this pursuit. As you age, the world reasons, the pursuit is directed toward creating a legacy for one’s children.

When we become a new creature, our definitions change. We find far more pleasure in that which has eternal value. This doesn’t eliminate having fun, being responsible with money, enjoying earthly pleasures or leaving a legacy. In fact, it incorporates these in a healthy way, one that brings no sorrows. Priorities are aligned by a divine perspective.

The world thinks it’s crazy to ignore or make of lesser importance earthly pleasures and treasures in favor of seeking to save the lost, spiritual encounter, growth in God’s Word, and relationships based on Christ. But really, it’s crazy not to. There is one who invests in eternity, and one who squanders their time on temporal things. Who is really crazy here?

Maximum Swoop is my whimsical term for full surrender and diligent application of the Word of God. The desired outcome is the realization of the unseen into the seen, a wonderful experience often described as breakthrough.

*KOG=Kingdom of God

College: Should you go?

During the Renaissance, after the invention of the Gutenberg Press made the bible available to all, the world’s vortices of intellectual pursuit converged with the aim of developing the human mind. Institutions like Oxford and Harvard sprung up. Their mission statements clearly set forth an understanding of soul and spirit under the guidance of an Almighty Creator through the New Covenant in Christ’s blood. A quick read of their original mission statements reveals this. It wasn’t long though before they began to deviate in the name of honest inquiry (yea hath God said?). Soon – as God counts time – the door opened to the possibility that there was no God and too soon that became accepted fact. Atheism, agnosticism, and spiritual principles of the kosmos mixed with truth and weeds of doubt and unbelief were planted and have sprouted into the society we have today. And it’s only escalating.

So is this stew of bonafide information, secular indoctrination, and myths based on debunked theories worth the soaring cost for a B.A. today? Many of you have been asking this question. I’d like to propose a different, much less expensive route, yet one which puts you indisputably in the same intellectual “league” as any college grad. Here in a nutshell is one potential godly “curriculum” to launch anyone into the next level of fulfilling the will of God for their life and to being able to hold their own among the world’s intelligentsia, without the high price tag. I would add that this is a basic structure, one which may be refined and added to according to personal desire and – above all – God’s leading.

Part One: Spiritual Development.

The best development of the human mind is to be able to read and understand the bible within its context and with spiritual insight. A steady diet of putting the bible into practice develops the mind in the context of an infinite, eternal purpose; it establishes the soul in this truth: that the mind is a servant, a useful tool of the spirit. This leads to a balanced mind, a “sound mind”, which encompasses both mental and emotional stability, good judgement, and accurate critical thinking. There will be humility instead of hubris, assertiveness, not grandiosity, honor rather than self-promotion, responsive and flexible leadership over insecure croneyism, Isaac instead of Ishmael. Could we possibly see our youth receive an education which launches them into the world with joy and peace, certitude and victory, with mental acuity, yet without depression, suicidality, doubt, substance abuse, loneliness and fear. How refreshing would that be?

But I have confidence in better things for you, beloved!

Where to get grounded in God’s Word is up to you. A good bible school can be one way. Some churches are like bible schools and will provide a great grounding as well.

Part Two: Academics.

This can be taken in a secular or Christian institution. Use discernment here, and be sure that the person can handle the secular environment, if that is what is chosen.

First, embark upon the study of an ancient languages: Latin or Greek. I recommend traditional academic study, apart from or in conjunction with biblical studies at first. Two to three years of ancient Latin or Greek will develop the ability to think logically, expose the learner to ancient cultures and other ways of thinking. It will ultimately bring a deeper perspective on the modern world. As a side note, Hebrew is another option here, but I don’t recommend it for a first choice because it is almost impossible to study ancient Hebrew without studying Torah and in this case, gaining a secular perspective, yet at an objective distance, is part of the process.

You might ask, Is language study really worth my time, given that there are wonderful translation apps now? For at least one language, it is worth your time. After that, you will possess enough knowledge to exegete with an app. Take tenses, for example. A tense is the time-frame of the verb’s action. In English, the verb “save” has three possible time frames, past, present and future. Within these, four modulations are possible, simple, continuous, perfect and perfect continuous. In Greek, there are either 6 or 7 tenses, depending on who is teaching it, with at least 6 modulations, plus a number of “moods” which color their meaning as well. So you might say Greek has two to three times the options for verb meanings than English. This is one of the reasons it is said that reading the bible in English versus Greek is like going from black and white to technicolor. Knowing Greek will let you understand beyond what the English translation states. Even an understanding of Latin, which is less complex than Greek, will help you understand better what the Greek and the Hebrew of the bible are saying, using an app.

Today it is possible to take college level language courses without enrolling in a degree program. I am sure there are other ways to learn an ancient language, as well. To be clear, you are not aiming to become a Latin scholar or fluent in ancient Greek. A basic foundation will be enough: two years is enough, and you won’t be doing it full time.

Along with this, a useful and profitable academic course will be history, particularly ancient history. Through the study of history you will delve into the philosophical world views and sociopolitical environments of various historical eras, with insight into how these panned out. The saying, ‘those who don’t know history are doomed to repeat it,’ has some truth to it.

So we’ve got secular academic and biblical studies. (If math or science is your thing, don’t worry, I haven’t left it out, I’ll address it below.)

Part Three: Learn a trade.

Vocational expertise builds a good life and a stable society. To learn a practical skill or applied science is to have the ability to make a nice living, perhaps to live off the grid, start your own business, provide a service. These basic skills and stability are something many Ph.D.’s are lacking. There is also great benefit to your community and to your nation, for a nation which produces its own goods and has trades and skilled labor is a prosperous one. Often you will wind up hiring others. In other cases, you will work closely and successfully with other people. Under the blessing of God, your income will go up and up, as will your giving. You will become a pillar in your community and your community will grow stronger. There was a reason the Babylonians took the skilled laborers back home with them when they conquered a city.

It bears mentioning that many trades involve academic study in math and the sciences. Again, go the most direct route to getting these . A course or certification for a license can be enough. As you grow, and aim for excellence, you may add more.

One other element of a college education which I’d like to address is that of instilling respect for learning itself. College will teach you how to use a library for research, so you can actually learn to teach yourself many other subjects throughout life. Originally, there were no degrees higher than a bachelors. A basic foundation was expected to impart the ability to teach oneself any other given subject. This wisdom is available at many libraries where the reference librarian and others can introduce you to various databases and rooms housing special collections. Perhaps your high school offered this, as well.

There are times when a B.A., masters or doctorate are essential to doing a job you know you are called to do. However, it would be worth investigating the field you are interested in to see if you can do pretty much the same thing with less costly and less time-consuming credentials. Exorbitant costs for less value are causing many to think rationally yet outside the box when it comes to setting up a life. New certificates and majors are springing up which serve this purpose.

PS, one other component does not have anything to do with launching into a career but everything to do with living fully, that of having a hobby. From music to painting, to sewing to gardening to tinkering in the garage, a hobby will enrich your life. Do not however, get lost down the rabbit trail that confuses your hobby with your profession. Hobbies are fun, something we are passionate about. However, passion alone is not enough to support you. Opportunity is a door opened by God through which you can bring your passion and apply it. The main thing is to be led by God as you choose what to do with your life, and where.

“I know the plans I have for you, Declares the Lord.” Jer 29:11

Seasons

The creation of seasons in nature reveals God’s pattern for all of life. “To EVERYTHING there is a season… .” (Ecclesiastes 3:1) Each of the great covenants handed to us by the Creator has been a season. And each of us goes through many seasons from birth to passing into eternity.

The world will define personal seasons according to its carnal way of looking at things. A person over 55 is termed a senior, those in their 80s, “elderly”. A person in their 20s may be deemed immature or “not ready”. If you’re not careful, you’ll buy into all this. In truth, an old eagle can fly stronger and higher than a young one. Caleb was ready and able to take his mountain in his 80s. David defeated Goliath as a teenager who couldn’t fit into a warrior’s armor. A widowed Ruth left country and family to follow the God of her mother-in-law and wound up with a new husband, giving birth to a child who would become Jesus’ great grandparent. What do these have in common? They had heard from God and had the faith to carry out His directives. By doing so, they each entered their next God-ordained season.

Before I go on, I must add that if you are in a season of overcoming ill health, there are spiritual laws that promote health which are clearly outlined in the Bible, corroborated by many such as Kenneth Copeland and Dodie Osteen, Andrew Wommack (who is a youngster compared to those two), and many many many others of lower profile (to us, though not to God). Investigate these ministries and you’ll find the testimonies of living people who are enjoying the good, abundant and healthy life Jesus paid dearly to purchase for us, against many attempts to rob them of it.

But I digress.

What I’m really led to write about today are these seasons which extend from birth to our passing into glory. Now, even if you die young and broke, God is going to welcome you who trust in Jesus with open arms and dry every tear. But there is victory in living supernaturally that the world has no idea is possible and hopefully this will inspire a few people to stop settling for less. More to the point is that we respect that we are all going through different seasons, and that we do our best to honor each other where we are at. The important thing is to be asking God, and always checking in, with regard to His will for your life’s seasons.

From a divine perspective, there are seasons in a human’s life never understood or thought about by those who are not spiritual. The seasons of slaying dragons, moving mountains, going through a wilderness, seasons of learning how to wield the sword of the Spirit and how to walk by faith, of sowing and reaping, receiving and resting. In fact, there are too many to mention. No one person will live every possible season available to the human spirit, however, we are all meant to live a few, for we are going from glory to glory in this life.

For everyone, there will be change. Billy Graham, one of the greatest preachers who ever lived, had a season of retirement before he died. There are numerous people now in the ministry who had seasons of preparation and regrouping before they answered the call to ministry. And there are those who begin in one ministry and segue to another. Young worship leaders often move into preaching or teaching, for instance. Moses had to leave a pharaoh’s palace to get a fix on who he wasn’t so that God could help him understand who he was. That had to be an interesting transition, to say the least. In the same way that autumn begins to be felt at the end of summer, or spring overtakes winter, we might notice these shifts for ourselves. If you keep your ear to the ground, as they say, you will hear from the Father how to navigate the new terrain.

Our Lord Himself would do nothing without hearing from God about it (Jn 8:38, Jn 12:49, etc) and then He instructed us to abide in Him (Jn 15) so we could do the same. If it was important that Jesus listen to God, how much more so that we do? A study of the book of Acts will show how Paul consulted the Lord personally over his itineraries, even going against a prophetic warning (Acts 21) after he’d gotten the clarity he sought. (I’ve heard it preached that this was Paul being pigheaded, an example of an error in judgement. They base this on Paul’s escape from Jerusalem many years earlier and on the fact that Paul was repeatedly thrown out of synagogues in many cities. Actually, persecution is not proof of disobedience but obedience, as confirmed by our Lord and many scriptures. In fact, would we not see Paul’s message to synagogues as his way of following the pattern Jesus Himself set forth, proclaiming the gospel “to the Jew first.” There is also the fact that every time he preached at a synagogue, “some believed” despite his being kicked out, and of these, a few became fellow messianic Jews who accompanied Paul on his journeys. Paul refers to how much their support meant to him, mentioning them separately from the Gentiles on his ministry team. Unfortunately, I don’t have space here to reference the multitudinous other scriptures which directly and in principle confirm that Paul was almost surely being guided by the Holy Spirit in this visit to Jerusalem late in his ministry. As one more piece of the puzzle, before I move on, consider the prophetic warnings themselves, which never said, “Thus saith the Lord, Don’t Go!”, they simply said there would be bonds awaiting him. There’s a huge difference! But, let’s be honest, while the important points of our faith are well defined in the Bible, exegesis of this particular point will always amount to speculation by sanctified imagination. Nothing fully states Paul’s motives or God’s will concerning this visit by Paul. All we can say is “probably” to an interpretation of the event. Given the evidence of scripture as partly outlined above, it’s more likely that Paul’s determination to continue on his way to Jerusalem was probably not hubris disguised as nobility, but rather grounded in the leading of the Lord Himself.) To wit in regard to the current discussion, the scriptures show us with many other examples and teachings beyond any doubt that following God’s leading is vital, that we are each responsible to gain direction from Him, and that sometimes it will fly in the face of what others, even other spiritual people, might think or advise. If so, it’s not necessary or even advisable to argue. Stay in love, but stay the course God has called you to.

Your spiritual connection with God is inviolate. No one can tell you what God is telling you to do. There is much to learn and practice when hearing from God for guidance and direction. This becomes clearer when one starts living one’s life by it, rather than a one-off. Anyone can catch a worm if they dig enough ground up! Like any other gift, practice strengthens and refines it. Prophetic words of wisdom and knowledge given to you should resonate with what you have received from God. Similarly, your spirit, now indwelt by God’s Spirit, will not contradict the Word which is found in the Bible. We are all of a piece with Jesus!

Seasons are real, and as long as they are God-given, they will bring great blessing, understanding, peace and provision.

“Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding. For wisdom is more profitable than silver, and her wages are better than gold. Wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.

“She offers you long life [and length of days] in her right hand, and riches and honor in her left. She will guide you down delightful paths; all her ways are satisfying [peace].

“Wisdom is a tree of life to those who embrace her; happy are those who hold her tightly.”

Prov 3:13-18 NLT

Angel News Headlines: Rome crumbles, Hitler loses, Woke Culture fizzles, Christ’s Followers Set the World on Fire with Love as Economies Rebound. Liberty and Justice Comes to All Nations.

The news of John the Baptist’s death hit Jesus hard, yet He ministered to the crowd of those seeking healing, rather than insist on being alone to pray. Jesus kept ministering under the jurisdiction of an insane government. Paul and others following him did the same. This, dear friends, is how I’ve come to understand my response to be in the face of the insane corruption of the owners of various social media websites.

As I prayed for help and guidance, the Father has brought various scriptures to my remembrance. Jesus paying taxes and Paul’s insistence that we honor and pray for governmental leaders. Paul’s preaching in the Parthenon, which is exactly like posting on Facebook or Instagram or YouTube, his teachings on eating meat sacrificed to pagan gods. The gist is we don’t shrink back in the face of evil, instead we move forward in love and take back the territory. We overcome evil with good. Light shines in the darkness and darkness vanishes. Sometimes it’s not without a fight, but we always win. God’s response to Judas was to commission a Paul. We have the promise that the gates of hell won’t stand before us. Cancel culture, voter fraud, stealing rights and undermining the Constitution and the rule of law, these are all satanic gates, attempts at setting up corruption to an inappropriate place of power. History is very clear, Rome crumbled as Constantinople rose to power, installing Christianity as its official religion. In more recent times, Israel won the 6-day war supernaturally, in the very same way Israel won many other wars in the OT supernaturally. As Hitler marched through Europe, he seemed invincible. Yet, the allies did not give up, despite tragic and terrible losses, and he was defeated.

God Is the Greater One.

With all of this, there is a cautionary note to count the cost. Sometimes it’s high, sometimes it’s life itself. One day, there will be an ultimate clash between the kingdoms of light and darkness when Christ will return; things will get very dark before then. Could this be the prequel? It’s certainly a foreshadowing. We could call it ‘birth pangs’ as mentioned by Jesus.

As long as we are on the earth, we are salt and light here. How that plays out depends on your calling and your gifts. Still, we are never to stop hoping, believing, holding fast to what is good and true. America, and the world, needs a turnaround. And yet, such about-face’s have occurred in human history. Ya never know. God has brought the world back from the brink a number of times.

For the sake of all my friends and readers, especially the young ones with young families, I very much hope that’s what will happen in our times, in America and throughout the world. However, that really isn’t our priority. Ours is to abide in the Vine. Seriously, your one priority right now as a believer is to remain in Peace. You cannot do the work of Christ from any other basis. You will do the work of Christ when you are really, really, really resting in Him.

Here’s how I’m handling Facebook and all the other minions right now. I’m using FB on a minimal basis under a new, minimalist account, in order to be able to communicate with current events of groups I am involved with, particularly those which support my in-person relationships and don’t turn them into virtual ones. I’ll make plans for the next event or meeting on social media, but I’d much rather see the grandkids or hear about your fantastic, latest night on the town in person.

I’m staying off Twitter because I value my time. (Update: since Elon has revamped it, I visit Twitter once a month, to keep up with select people and groups posting there.) I don’t watch mainstream news, I sometimes watch Newsmax, but the Epoch Times and their sister organization NTD as well as OAN are by far the most factual and least editorializing of the conservative news outlets. RightSideBroadcasting has created its own infrastructure, and is another good outlet which we’ll need if YouTube totally flakes. Instagram and Pinterest are not worth my time either but again, take them over with the good news if they are yours. (I’m posting on the venues which I list below, including some personal things.) YouTube remains very helpful though I try to go directly to the site when it too hosts the video. In that vein, God.TV has some very worthwhile programming. I’ve closed Amazon Prime permanently but continue to host my books on Amazon.

In other words, it’s impossible not to be tainted by the surrounding culture. So as it is possible for you go ahead and move in on it, make it the vehicle for proclaiming the gospel. Use it for the purposes God has called you to. Do get out and speak to real people in real time and space.

Here is the promised list of alt venues, where I have an account and where you are welcome to join me. They are sometimes good sources of actual, factual news and information, as well as direct posts by some great patriots.

Update Dec 2023: My usage of these sites has diminished. To keep up, I receive the title of their posts in my email inbox. This lets me quickly grasp the latest news and current events in about 30 seconds, without it disturbing my peace as founded on Jesus Christ. It lets me know how to pray, and directs me in community outreach at times. It helps me recognize the signs of the times, and ultimately, it lets me be watchful for His coming. For we are in amazing times for seeing biblical prophecy unfolding. Witness the changes in the world just in the last few years.

The Christian stance is not one of prediliction. We are not soothsayers and psychics. We have the Holy Spirit telling us of things to come but there is much to understand how this plays out, above all it doesn’t come down to our knowing exactly who the anti-Christ is until he is fully revealed, or many other things. Jesus tells us exactly how to maneuver through political upheaval, to stay watchful, ever expectant and excited about His return, and yet we will not know the exact time! Predictions do nothing but make fools of leaders and give the world an excuse to denigrate Christianity.

In 2021, at the request of some people who wanted to keep in touch with me via social media, I wrote this list. It’s still got some good options for getting reporting from those who have been banned from FB and YT.

Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/danyellewolferead If we’re friends, hit Add Friend or simply hit Follow. This is also a good place through which to contact me. The contact page may be accessed through the link above.

Telegram – name: Holistic One username HolisticOne

Gab and Rumble – AuthorDanyelle

Parler – @DayWolfe

Update in 2023: Several Christian platforms have their own news services which I will turn to: TBN, CBN are the most helpful. They also post on YouTube. I much prefer them to Newsmax anymore. Things have evolved. They are changing really fast. It’s okay to pivot.

If you have any trouble finding me on the above, reach out to me here on my website, I’ll help. Also, you are welcome to mention your own finds in the comments below.

In the end, the only question that matters is, Do I love the men and women who are destroying truth, justice, the rule of law and our freedoms right now? What does it matter what I feel when God does? God loves them, and by His Spirit, I can too. Does God condone what you’ve done? No, but Jesus has paid the price for it, just as for my sins, and none of us is any blacker or dirtier than another before we come to Christ. Sanctimonious? Not really, when you consider the Bible says all our attempts at righteousness are filthy rags.

Civil justice would be served if many of them spent the rest of their lives in prison. Without condoning them, God loves them. And therefore, so do I.

Listen Pray Stand

If you are experiencing anxiety right now (and any person with common sense would), it is not weakness. If anything, it attests to mental strength. But there is a better way to handle that ability. I’ve helped a lot of people overcome depression, but anxiety is a different sort of evil. It starts with a meme or an idea that takes over the soul. While it starts in the mind, it can and will pollute every other aspect of your being, emotions, body, even spirit.

The only real and lasting antidote for anxiety is to change your thoughts. I should know, I have had to fight this fight all my life. I’m here to tell you that I have won that war, though there are sometimes skirmishes. I never took meds for it, but if you have, it may be necessary, no worries. The main thing however is this: whatever the thing is that you are focusing on that is causing the anxiety, find the thing that is true regarding that same issue, and focus on it instead.

But Danyelle, you say, I keep hearing more and more facts about election fraud, the Biden/Harris actions, not to mention concealed historical crimes against the US and other countries, insane and horrific slaughter of innocent people in China, Iran, Syria, religious persecution on my job. Meanwhile, many respected preachers are saying this is the end! I can’t be anything but a mess!!!

Listen, sibling, I applaud you for doing your research in the areas of public policy and politics. I’ll try to write another blog soon listing the many alt media sites that I have found, as it is important to be informed!

The real issue is not that our country is in chaos, that you, dear friend, may be being targeted, or even that this could mark the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The real underlying issue is how to handle all the new information because how you handle it means the difference between staying the course with God or panicking, and it may even be as important to you as life and death. This has always been the case, even in peace times, but the acuity of our situation here in the US puts more pressure on every aware person and therefore increases the possibility of heading into a tailspin. No need for that!

First: Don’t hide from it. Denying the truth is worse than being upended by it. Think of how the early believers’ lives were totally changed. And yet many, most people who had been healed by Jesus turned their back on Him. No, I think I’ll go back to my safe little life, they said. Actually, it turned out not to be so safe. Go ahead and download, subscribe, sign up with apps with reputable voices on them. These may be where the censored, yet upright, people have opened new accounts.

Second: Take a break from it. Many of these new apps automatically queue notifications to your phone. You can simply mute your phone but you will still see the notifications. More effective is to turn off the notifications for these individual apps through your settings function. I log in to these apps when I am ready to take in more information. I pray about and schedule when I will do this. This is information that brings pain, grief and outrage, or it should. You must be bolstered and ready when you are reading it (see my next suggestion).

Third: Ready yourself! Start with worship, the Word, and the knowledge that God is greater than all the machinations of evil minds. You didn’t sign up for Jesus thinking this life was all there is. Keep eternity in mind. Listening to encouraging sermons from before the virus took over is also a very good idea. Find scriptures that become a living word to your spirit, and listen to the Holy Spirit. Use worship music to remember His goodness and protection over you. Psalm 91 is also great for this, as is John 14, Phil 3-4, there are many others. All of this will arm you, shield you, guard your heart and mind. As you pray, speak forth that truth and justice be done. What we say has a powerful impact, even if said in the privacy of your study. Listen and get God’s guidance. Then follow the leading of the Spirit for your own life. If you don’t do that well yet, you have many principles to follow from God’s Word. The Holy Spirit never contradicts the Word. Respect also that others may have a different call.

Fourth: There is something all of us can do regardless of your calling. You can take a stand for truth and justice by boycotting all lying media. I recently discovered that my tires were made in China! I needed two new tires so instead of buying that brand, I switched. Stop buying Chinese-made goods. Get off of Facebook, Twitter, Google and Apple to the degree that you can. Amazon Prime, cancel it! You don’t have to storm Washington, or even have arguments with your co-workers, but you can do this. Before you tell me what I’m advocating is extreme, realize this: Every time you log on, tune in or give attention to those TV and Cable channels or websites, you give revenues to people, people with lots and lots of money, enough to stop the legal system from doing its job of reviewing TONS of hard evidence that they are criminals and traitors participating in human trafficking and child sex rings. Enough to alter the results of a US Presidential election! If using a social media site is critical to your ministry or business, you have many other options. I hope to blog soon about my own migration from those disgraceful media outlets to ones that are doing a much better job and with integrity. Some I will clue you into. Others I will remain anonymous on, not because I am afraid, but because I am being led to. If you read my books or know me for any length of time, you will learn how to follow this leading for yourself. Also, if you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ, and want to, please feel free to contact me through my Goodreads account where I may be easily found. It would be my honor to assist you. God’s love and faithfulness never quit. I cannot imagine going through these evil times without Him. The good news is, you don’t have to!

Listen, Pray, and Stand. Inform yourself, turn your outrage into determination, your fear into courage, your anxiety to proactive calm. As you move away from anxious reactivity to responding, you will find yourself able to listen more, observe more, and possibly say something that will help someone else to become informed. Above all, you will stay in the center of God’s will with assurance, knowledge and guidance for He has you firmly in the palm of His hand.

PS Here’s a link to a book I’m enjoying right now. I am not getting any revenues from posting this! It’s a good example of what to put into your soul at this time.

https://www.davidjeremiah.org/resources/revealing-the-mysteries-of-heaven

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35273355-revealing-the-mysteries-of-heaven

The AHAV Bible

I’m excited about this Bible coming out, a rendering of the New Testament based on Aramaic, which is what Jesus and His contemporary Israelis spoke, which also Paul must have spoken, though He and many of them would have also been raised to speak and read the scriptures in Hebrew, as Jews are today. And doubtless, many spoke and understood other current languages of the day, for the empire was a vast conglomerate of disparate people groups.

As someone who speaks a few languages and have been trained in ancient Latin and even a little Hebrew, (I even dabbled in Hawaiian when I was living there – very very interesting language), I am so very aware that different nuances of meaning attend different languages. Studying languages has long been part of my love affair with words.

It will be really interesting to see what layers of meaning an Aramaic translation unfolds. An interlinear edition would probably be the next step, with a key, such as the Strong’s lexicon, which brings depth to one’s study and to which many online translations and interlinear versions are tied.*

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*Though it has been useful, this is not a blank check endorsement of Strong’s lexicon.

A New (and very old) Form of Dialogue

By Danyelle Wolfe Read

Writing is part of my love language. So sometimes, my devotional includes writing a unique form of dialogue, a dialogue with God. He usually kicks it off with something profound, after which I respond, like an ant responding to an elephant. But He loves me, so He answers. God always answers.

Marriage (for singles)

by Danyelle Wolfe Read

There tends to be a romance in my stories. Sometimes it’s central, sometimes it’s part of other aspects which are driving the story. I portray love in such a way as to bring back the joy of it. As one who has practiced therapy for couples and families, I create realistic love relationships. The romances in my books are anything but fluffy. They are possible. The characters are not idealized, they are flawed. I emphasize their chemistry over their physicality (there is a difference).

To find the person who really cares for us is a blessing, going back to the first man and woman in Eden.

From Platforms to Circles

As a former seminary and Bible school student, one who is also single, I derive a great many things from a church. One of these is community. I cannot help but ponder ways a sense of community can be delivered more effectively. It’s been part of my life purpose to promote community, but not just any community. Rather, community based on and supporting hearing from the Father by His Spirit and His Word.