New to Us, But Not New At All

In my previous post I wrote about the controversy over Obama’s choice of Rick Warren to give the inaugural prayer. The surprising thing about the choice is the overwhelming negative energy that is coming against it.

As a supplement to that article I want you to read another article. I trust that it will bring insight into the “new Christianity” that is exploding on the scene with all of its “righteous indignation” over the Warren choice. The article is written by J. Matt Barber. He recounts a recent sermon given by Pastor John Mabray of the Rivermont Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Lynchburg, Va. You can read it here.

The process that I use to decide what goes into the Truth Seeker blog is one of just going by what the Holy Spirit points out to me. I wonder about the direction He leads me in sometimes. Usually later I find that he is showing others different facets of the same thing. I know then that it is important that we pay attention. While we may scoff at this “new Christianity”, there are others who will be lost to it. The Holy Spirit knows that it will be easier for us to stand on the truth when we know what is at stake. Since yesterday, apparently Warren’s Saddleback Church website has scrubbed some of its verbiage on homosexuals for it to be more palatable to the people who are enraged by his stance. I pray that Rick Warren and the rest of us continue to speak more like prophets than politicians.

Purpose Driven Choices

I think it is great that Barack Obama has chosen Rick Warren to pray at the inauguration. At this point Obama is demonstrating a desire to be inclusive. Some are unsure of his motives, but it is clear to me that he believes the mileage he gets out of this with Christians is worth it. Call this a "purpose driven choice." But the backlash of this choice also points out the beginings of a major movement among liberals.

Rick Warren is unapologetic about his views on homosexuality. His support for Proposition 8 in California has made this choice hugely unpopular to the gay rights community. He also did not back off in a public moment when he was asked by a prominent Jewish person if she was headed to heaven. His clear statements on the fact that Mormonism is a cult has scored no points with them.

It can be said that Rick Warren has no unpublished thought. With book sales topping 40 million there will be plenty of opportunity for critics to find one-liners and phrases to use against him. But there is more at stake by critics of Obama’s choice.

In an article critical of Rick Warren in Slate by Christopher Hitchens, you get a feel for how basic Christianity is being marginalized. Hitchens calls Warren a vulgar huckster. About Warren he states:

. . . if someone publicly charges that "Mormonism is a cult," it is impossible to say that the claim by itself is mistaken or untrue. However, if the speaker says that heaven is a real place but that you will not get there if you are Jewish, or that Mormonism is a cult and a false religion but that other churches and faiths are the genuine article, then you know that the bigot has spoken.

Do you get it? Warren may be accurately reflecting Christian doctrine. But if that doctrine is bigotry then it is beneath the new enlightened standards of the true Americans now in power. And if Warren needs to be held accountable for bigotry and discrimination then certainly the rest of us do too. There is no question that the liberal church, the one that doesn’t exclude people of different beliefs, is growing as it lines up with the standards of the political left. To them, it doesn’t make sense that God would make a narrow way. It should be a wide way. It should have no restrictive standards regarding peoples morals, beliefs, or sexual orientation. We know that Muslims need to ignore some hateful verses in their Koran. Fundamental Christians need to do the same with our Bible.

We are being marginalized. It is happening faster than we realize.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Well, we have learned something. In the Arab world the worst show of disrespect is taking off your Florsheims and throwing them at your enemy. That is a shocker. Here all along, I thought the worst show of disrespect in their culture was turning yourself or your vehicle into a bomb and detonating it in the midst of your enemies. And that was followed by sadistically killing men, women, and children who show the slightest resistance to your monstrous methods of ruthless domination. Does this mean that if we would have just left the Middle East alone they would have eventually progressed from those things to shoe throwing?

I hope President Bush is a little savvier to the system now. If he had do-overs I think he should have taken off his shoes and returned the fire. What do you think the world would have thought if then everyone in the room started heaving shoes? We would have a new standard of conflict resolution. But, you know the way it goes; pretty soon people would start wearing bigger shoes. Then they would wear boots.

However, quite seriously, there is something transpiring regarding our leader that in my opinion is ominous. What attacked us on 9-11 was pure evil. What we have been fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan is pure evil. What Israel is resisting is pure evil. Yet with every passing moment the intellectuals of the world work on finding ways that we can live with, tolerate, and even adopt pure evil, rather than eradicate it, much less slow it down.

Out of 9-11 there came a President who accepted the challenge of eradicating this evil. The instant global respect that President Bush received from everyone who knew he was right was tangible in the air. It instantly transformed our nation and strengthened the backbones of our allies. But, from that moment on, the intellectuals of our country took every opportunity they could to chip away at President Bush's respect. They literally allied themselves with this evil’s propaganda producers to form a net that captured and maintained every corrosive thought and action that lowered the stature of Bush and the cause of fighting this evil.

Of course, the initial salvo that ushered in this campaign was the Abu Ghraib controversy. The initial incident was discovered, harshly dealt with, and ended by the military. It was over. No Iraqi prisoners were hurt, injured or killed. They were humiliated. The half dozen juvenile Americans who produced their armature photos were put into custody and harshly dealt with. It was at that point that the New York Times came into possession of a DVD that opened it up to the world. They knew that exposing it to the world would provide the perfect vehicle for the enemy to turn the tables and portray America as evil. They knew the enemy would use it to maximum effect and they had to know that more American soldiers would die because of it. They made their decision and they put it on their front page - for 41 consecutive days. Even the smallest amount of very basic, elementary, simple cordial respect for our President, our country, or even the cause should have prevented the New York Times from doing what they did. They didn't have any. The rest of the war revolved around the issue of which power, America, or Al Qaida deserved the Iraqi citizens' respect. We are finally winning that battle.

The amazing thing through all of this is the obvious depth of character of the man. As a result of these efforts, George Bush has lost the respect of many Americans and world citizens. But through it all, he never became disrespectful. He honored leaders, allies, opponents, those who served him, and all Americans. He found himself in unfair humiliating situations and never pursued revenge. He pursued justice where he could and did not seek retribution when pursuing justice was not possible.

Of all the tough things that Obama has before him, there is one that is to me of the gravest concern. It is not just Obama's problem; it is his supporters' problem. Their culture is that of being shoe throwers. They have so profoundly drank from the well of disrespect that they know no other way. You see it in families. Children who disrespect their parents grow up and become perplexed when their children disrespect them. Fatherless men and women, people who have no respect for their fathers, get none themselves. In that situation they know of only one way to get it. They demand it. To President Bush, respect is an internal thing, an important part of his compass. But to Obama, I fear it is external. It is image. Therefore it is armor that can and will be pierced.

People have posed the question, what would have happened if that man would have thrown his shoes at Saddam Hussein? I have a more interesting one. How would Obama have reacted if it would have been him? I don't think there are many men or women that could stand the tests that the past eight years have thrown at President Bush. I don't think that our fellow countrymen understand the seeds they have planted with regards to that issue. My fear is that Obama will most certainly have to live with the fruit of this ugly vine. And therefore we will also have to live with it.

Two-State Solution

Since the election I have had a real uneasiness in my spirit regarding our new President and the Middle East situation. Obama has attempted to allay fears by making statements supportive to Israel. However, in his collaborative style he insists on surrounding himself with people who seem to have more sympathy for the Palestinians than for the Israelis.

I have commented in the past about how opinions here and even in Israel are changing and cooling off regarding Israel’s destiny. The rapidly rising consensus in the world is that the Middle East needs the Gandhi approach. We remember Gandhi as a little Indian man who stood for nonviolence. But to hundreds of millions of Indians and Pakistanis Gandhi is the one who took Muslim belligerence and solved it with a two-state solution. Gandhi is the one who drew a line to separate most of the Muslims from the Hindus by creating the country of Pakistan. Since then over 1 million people have died due to border disputes, and most recently in Bombay the slaughter seemed to tell the world that Gandhi’s plan didn’t work.

However with the Middle East in mind, this two-state solution like the one in India seems to be the right thing to do. It is being touted as the rationale of non-violence. The missing question is: nonviolence by whom? The solution doesn’t end the racial hatred by the Muslims. It only provides another Petri dish to grow and multiply the virus of hate.

The uneasiness I have been feeling is that Obama, a peace loving, collaborative pragmatist is the perfect sucker for this solution. Here is a great You Tube video from Little Green Footballs . It shows a very articulate member of “The 18”, a group formed to debunk the two-state solution. You will find him very compelling.

Changing Times

In March of this year I commented on the blatant and unrestrained political effort in this country to bend the course of our relationship with Israel . (Wherever I stand). Where the United States once was the strongest ally of Israel, it is now unfortunately becoming the friend that shows it how to hold the knife in preparation for it cutting its own throat.

While some are relieved that Hillary Clinton (an Israel supporter) will likely be Secretary of State, others are concerned that she is just who the rest of the Obama advisers need to do their dirty work. Who better to carry the knife than a trusted ally. But as I pointed out in my March post, we know it will happen in God’s time because His Word makes it clear that all nations will eventually turn on Israel.

How does that play out, though, here in America? After all, there is no other country on the planet with as many Jews as America. And there is no other country that gives them absolute freedom of religion and freedom from persecution like America.

Here are a some of observations:

In the election, the Jews in America were courted heavily by McCain because of the big differences in his stance and Obama’s with regards to Israel. However, the election results revealed that the Jewish vote went almost totally for Obama. Indeed, it is now known that those funds that were spent on Jews in hopes of getting out the vote to bolster support for Israel would have been better spent on deeply committed Christians. Apparently American Jews were far more interested in American economic issues. Many have ceased to care anymore for God’s promises to Israel, its religious heritage, or its future. To them Israel is a bothersome political state that stubbornly refuses to change with the world. They have their own lives to live in America.

Here is the reality for the future. There are two groups of people who care about Israel’s biblical destiny. That would be devout Jews and committed Christians. Around the world and most recently in America, both groups are being marginalized. If you believe in Israel’s destiny according to the Bible then sadly, even amongst Christianity you will be known as a religious fanatic. It is time to get used to that.

New International Pass Time

Here is a round-up of some news:

International -

Iraq – Two Christian Sisters Killed

Two Christian Sisters Killed by Islamic Extremists. full story

Christian Persecution Intensifies Across China

China Aid Association reports that since the end of the Olympics persecution has intensified. full story

U.S. Department of State Gravely Concerned by China’s Harassment of Pastor "Bike" Zhang

U.S. Department of State deeply concerned by continued harassment of Pastor "Bike" Zhang and his family. full story

Belarus – Protestant Bishop Deported

Ukrainian founder of largest charismatic church deported because of religious activity. full story

Afghanistan – Taliban Kills Christian Aid Worker

Taliban shot and killed Christian aid worker as she walked to work. full story

Now lets turn to National News

The Insane Rage of the Same-Sex Marriage Mob

Religious bashing protestors filled with hate decried the “hate” at Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church in Orange County, Calif. Vandals defaced the Calvary Chapel in Chino Hills, Calif., because church members had collected Prop. 8 petitions. full story

Free the GOP

The Party Won't Win Back the Middle as Long As It's Hostage to Social Fundamentalists (Christians) This is an article that advises the Republicans that the party needs to disinvite its Christian members. full story

This is just the recent news.

Truth

Be careful lest you too be fooled. As I comprehended what I will share below, I started to think, "There they go again. The main stream media is so disingenuous; so ready to believe lies!" And not to let them off the hook, but I got this feeling that if we abandon our discernment we too can be fooled.

By now, many people believe the story that Sarah Palin was confused that Africa is a country and that South Africa is merely the southern region of that country. Of course many of us were skeptical of that and Palin herself said it was not true. But it pretty much became common knowledge principally because there are so many Americans who want to believe she is stupid.

Here is how it happened. Martin Eisenstadt, Senior Fellow of the Harding Institute of Freedom and Democracy is the source of that "leak". MSNBC, the New Republic, and the Los Angeles Times picked up the story. The truth is that there is no Martin Eisenstadt. This article explains that there is no Harding Institute of Freedom and Democracy. It is a website that created fictitious people and entities just for the fun of fooling people. There is no conspiracy. It is just a couple of mischievous guys with time on their hands and the ability to recognize how vulnerable our society is to things like this.

I think it was Mark Twain who said something like, “A lie can go halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to even get its boots on.” Jesus said, “Know the truth and the truth shall set you free.” The world is rejecting Jesus’s offer. It is actually satisfied with the lie about Sarah Palin. It is satisfied with many things that simply are not true. All of us will be continually bombarded with lies. We are all susceptible to believing lies that fit our preferred world view. I pray that we continue to seek the Truth.

Free Ride on a Tilt-A-Whirl

Yes it is true-- at about 1:30 on Tuesday night I suffered a slight stroke. Thanks to all of you who were praying for me. The MRI results confirmed that it happened in the base of my brain (the part that regulates balance). But it is something that can be recovered from, and I just have to be faithful to a daily regimen of aspirin. It happened while I was in bed. I bolted up out of a restless sleep because the world started to spin violently. I made my way to the bathroom and started throwing up. That is when I realized I was in trouble because the spinning would not stop. Any movement or tilt of my head that took me off of center-bubble was accompanied by a deluxe tilt-a-whirl ride. I made my way to the sink where I froze in position, feet planted firmly, both hands grasping the edge of the sink and head locked forward, staring straight ahead. Anything that violated my rigid view sent my brain into violent swirls.

I stayed that way until the paramedics peeled my fingers from the sink and strapped me on to a gurney. The ride to the hospital was horrendous for me, exacerbated by the fact that the ambulance couldn’t find its way out of our new subdivision and had to make a high-speed U-turn at the end of our block. Then it wove its way across an empty town to the hospital. When I got to the emergency room, I learned later that I was third in line and importance. Five minutes before, two 14 year old Hispanic girls were rushed in: gunshot wounds. That beats dizzy guy.

Hats off to the doctor there who pushed past all the conventional reasons for being dizzy (no inner-ear infection, no drinking, didn’t climb into a clothes dryer) and realized there could be a more serious problems. Fifteen tests later they figured it out. I am blessed that so many people called and left messages.

I haven’t settled on all that God is showing me through this. It will take some time. Oh, I know there are some obvious things about what is really important in life. But I also know that each thing that he allows has a whole rich texture of concepts and truths. I guess I get a little time off (I haven’t taken a vacation yet this year) to ponder them.

Obama versus the Plumbers, Part 2

John McCain and Sarah Palin are blatantly calling Barack Obama a socialist. Is that fair? I have wondered if I should avoid that distinction on my blog. I don’t want to be accused of stooping to this low tactic.

Oh, what the heck! I’ll just show you these cartoons.

Obama versus the Plumbers

Apparently some journalists have now gone out and vetted Joe the Plumber the way they have vetted Sarah Palin. (Definition of vetting: find anything to tear down the character or credibility of a person who dares to oppose to the Democratic Presidential candidate).

One of the things that they found was that Joe makes less than $250,000 per year, therefore rendering his argument meaningless because he would get the benefit of an Obama tax cut. Unfortunately, Mr. Obama must have either flunked economics at Harvard or perhaps he forgot to take that class. Joe knows the subject better than Obama does.

I can’t speak for Joe, but I can speak for Jeff the Plumber. Jeff has been in business in the Central Washington for about 4 years. His business, Paragon Plumbing grosses well over $250,000 a year but after expenses it nets well under that. So, I guess he would get a tax cut. He has 3 employees. They would also get tax cuts. None of them are thrilled.

What Obama doesn’t get is that businesses like Jeff’s do well when the businesses that he deals with do well. Jeff buys a very large amount of plumbing supplies from a national plumbing supply dealer. It definitely nets over $250,000 a year. It is one of those companies on Obama’s hit list. Closing loopholes, Obama claims he will tax them more and give that money to more deserving people. But here is the rub. Faced with increased costs of doing business, the supply company will do the only thing it can do to recover its necessary profit margin: increase its prices. They will simply pass the tax increase on to their customers. Jeff will pay more for his plumbing supplies.

But we are not done. Jeff’s best customer is a contractor who builds many homes a year. He also nets well over $250,000 a year. Obama’s plan will include increasing his taxes, too. The builder needs to maintain his profit margin. It is his duty as a business owner to keep it at a certain level. His ability to obtain construction financing is predicated on the businesses health. What does he do to offset the higher cost of doing business? He cannot raise prices like the plumbing supplier because he sells his homes at prices determined by the market. He must lower his costs. He does that by negotiating down the cost of his subcontractors – like the plumber.

So Jeff and his employees get their little one-time annual tax break. And although his company’s taxes are not increased, his costs of plumbing supplies are. At the same time his income per job is shaved because he has to trim his prices to keep the same work. His income is squeezed, all because Obama wants to give him a tax break.

But we are not done. The most efficient job training, job creation entity in the United States is the small business man. Jeff, with his small plumbing company has personally trained all three of his employees. Prior to his hiring them they were unskilled and unemployed. They now are experienced apprentices and one is even a very skilled journeyman plumber. While Jeff was training them, he was paying them. He paid their medical. The federal and state governments did not pay for job training; they got paid for these 3 young plumbers. They were trained, worked hard and Jeff dutifully sent their federal tax money in so Senator Obama could get his paycheck.

With increased expenses and decreased income, Jeff will undoubtedly have to cut his own expenses. He might have to lay off one of his apprentices. Will it be the one who bought his first house last year? A man will likely have to be transferred from the employment rolls to the unemployment rolls. All the costs associated with that will be directly caused by a misguided President, a one-trick pony who lacks understanding of how the economy really works.

I truly believe the real tragedy is that after inauguration, Obama will huddle with his economic advisors and will announce yet a new plan based on “new developments” in the economy. Some blaringly plain numbers will reveal that the tax cut for 95% of the population will have to be postponed. Because Bush has been such a good scapegoat, in the first year of his Presidency, Obama will be free to change his mind on anything and lay the blame at Bush’s feet. Will we remember Joe the Plumber then? He insisted his taxes were going to be raised. Joe knows.

A Must See

Have you seen the Saturday Night Live skit known as the SNL Bailout Skit? Is it controversial? Well, there is a war going on right now to eliminate the original version from the internet. Sites will get it only to find out it has been removed. They will reload it only to have it removed again.

The original version had a caption referring to the Daryl Hammond character that they had to remove. That character is Herbert Sandler, a real person who made billions in this debacle. The real life parody is so good it almost makes you think that SNL hired Iowahawk as a writer.

I know much about what led up to the Freddie / Fannie collapse. I could not do a better job of explaining it to you in five minutes than this skit does. It is completely surprising that it was written and performed by a program that is typically left-leaning. I believe it will go down as one of the best comedy routines ever produced by SNL. Here is the remanufactured version. It doesn’t have the caption that says Sandler should be shot. However they left in the caption that identifies George Soros as the owner of the Democratic Party.

About Global Warming: No More Input Please, I Have Made a Decision

I just about missed a small article in the Fox News website. Apparently in Great Britain a study has been completed that solidifies scientists recommendations to the rest of us. It tells how we should alter our diets in an effort to reduce greenhouse gases.

Since it is now confirmed that the real big culprit in greenhouse gases are belching and farting cows and sheep, we, the people on the planet need to immediately cut our consumption of them by 50%.

Also, by the way, we need to also cut our production and consumption of foods with marginal nutritional value. That means we need to slash our consumption of all sweets, chocolates, and liquors.

OK?

Well, let’s see here . . . . . . uuuhh . . . . . no . . . . . . I don’t think so.

I have to confess when that Hillshire Farms commercial comes on and all the guys in the neighborhood stand at attention beside their grills and chant . . . I chant along with them. I actually have a different solution to the problem. If cows are that much of a threat to the environment, then I want to rededicate myself to eating as many of them as I can. That makes me feel proud that I am doing something for the environment.

And banishing sweets, chocolate and liquors? This helps the global warming cause? You know, I am beginning to think that this global warming thing has outlived its usefulness. This great guiding theme has grown a little too invasive, don’t you think?

I’m thinking of Valentine’s Day of course. “No, Sweetheart, we aren’t going to the Black Angus this time. I picked up some mouth watering tofu. And I have this classic carton of soy milk. It was boxed in 2006, a great year. Then I got you this beautiful red-heart filled with delectable pumpkin seeds.”

I have occasionally written about how I believe the corner has been turned on the global warming issue. There is too much good science out there that tells us the cause of global warming is not based on science but is nothing more than a political agenda.

Well, it’s been disconcerting that people have not woken up to that fact. But, I think that telling us we can’t grill a steak, have a glass of wine with it, and then enjoy a chocolate dessert after because it is bad for the environment – well that’s all I need to know. The global warming cause is doomed!

Ten Years After

It was ten years ago. I was handed an important role in our bank, that of Community Reinvestment Act officer. The Community Reinvestment Act was a federal program that was birthed under the Carter Administration. In essence, the Federal Government’s feeling was that if they are providing banks with FDIC insurance, insuring all of our deposits then we owe them the proof that we are lending on homes in all neighborhoods in our cities, not just the best ones.

When Clinton became President, he took the CRA to a whole new level, measuring our performance in 4 distinct levels and announcing that if we failed their standards our applications to build new branches would not be approved.

The concept and concern were well founded. I hired a team of bright Hispanic people and we scoured our branch system to be sure we were finding every way possible to prudently make loans to low or moderate income families. We had some success but in Eastern Washington, our opportunities were not as great as they were for lenders in say, Chicago or Los Angeles.

Eight months after I inherited the job, the next FDIC audit came and we were examined for our results. At the exit interview, the examiners took me, my crew, the bank, and our whole Board of Directors to task for not doing enough. I was the one with the big target on my back. The young FDIC auditors were not impressed with our explanations that we really had a problem with making home loans to people who were not credit worthy. If we wanted to grow our bank with new branches we would figure out a way, just like some of our competitors were doing.

After the very contentious meeting, the lead examiner and I met privately and he gave me his best advice on how to improve our CRA performance level. We talked for about an hour and then he reached into his briefcase and opened up a confidential file for me to see. He said there was a model institution that they had just examined that got an excellent CRA rating. If I could get our bank to emulate them and adopt similar programs to lower our benchmarks for loan approval, we would also get an excellent rating. He opened up the file and showed me the facts and information on their model institution, Washington Mutual.

With the closing of Washington Mutual’s doors on Friday, they established another new record; that of being the largest bank to ever fail. The failure was directly related to record defaults in their huge mortgage portfolio.

I would like to find that FDIC examiner for another conversation.

Are we Fighting a Holy War?

Newt Gingrich brings us a video that puts the recent ABC interview of Sarah Palin in perspective. Charlie Gibson tried an ambush. Would he have taken off his glasses and looked down his nose at JFK or FDR and asked this ambush question?

Rhetoric Versus Reality

This article was written by Bookworm, a lawyer, mother, compulsive reader and fast typer. If you are a lawyer, mother, reader, and fast typer you should read this. Do not only read the article, read the comments.

Go to it here.

Politics, the World, and Oil

We are experiencing a phenomenon right now that is incredible as it unfolds. In US politics, the Democratic candidates are desperate. Every day that they find themselves sliding in the polls they become more shrill. Press operatives are turning the world upside down to try to find something that looks like dirt on Sarah Palin. Who knows, they may find some.

The press that used to be owned by the left seems to have gotten out of their control. News stories on the main 3 networks show McCain and Palin speaking to huge crowds. They show Obama now speaking to smaller crowds, and they don’t ever show Biden at all.

As the race gets more intense, we need to continue to pray for all the candidates. There are extremists on both sides. They all need divine protection.

But the real reason that I am writing this is to back us up a bit and look at the world. Russia’s attack on Georgia is a clear sign that they are not afraid of us or our European allies. Iran is lulling us to sleep while they set the stage for something big. Pakistan just named a new President after that last several choices have been killed. It is clearly a keg of dynamite with a lit fuse. Olmert is stepping down and Israel will be soon electing a new Prime Minister. North Korea's Kim has disappeared from public giving fears that his formidable military will soon be turned over to Generals who have been trained for only one thing.

While we are concentrating on Obama’s daily gaffes and who insulted who today, the stage is being set for volatility around the world. With everything that is facing us, the Bride of Christ needs to be sure that its lamps are filled with oil. This is no time to for us to sleep. In the Bible, some of the wedding party found themselves without oil when they needed it the most. Oil (the Holy Spirit) is ours for the asking today. Let's ask and ask and ask.

It is Time to Take the Field of Battle

For the next few months until the election we will be witness to an amazing time in history. Both sides have the finish line in sight. Obama has lost his lead to a man with a fraction of his oratory skills. In spite of a media overwhelmingly dominated by Obama troops, McCain and Palin have forged their way onto the front pages and into lead stories.

Now watch what happens. As I stated in earlier posts, the attacks against McCain and Palin will become more shrill with each day. You see, the Bush derangement syndrome that we have witnessed for several years now, will not cease when Bush leaves office. This fire hose of seething hate is now being redirected at Sarah Palin. How dare a Spirit filled Christian woman pick up the sword and shield that after 8 years seems to be so heavy for our battle wearied President.

Perhaps people will take a good look at the character of the Code Pink personalities and decide that they do not stand with them. Oh, I know it is easy to say that there are extremists on both sides. That has conveniently been the standard disclaimer. It was even used as we witnessed the red faced shrieking woman being escorted from the Republican Convention floor.

I want to be counted as an extremist on this side. But as an extremist I want to be known by completely different characteristics. This election needs for all of us extremists to now take the field. Rather than confront peaceful, law abiding people with shrieking tantrums, we need to now confront the heavenlies with fervent prayer. Rather than cackling at innocent family members caught up in the political firestorm, we need to pray for divine protection over the candidates and a spirit of grace and goodwill to cover them. Rather than publish hit pieces and slander stories, we need to not be silent, but be loud and articulate in our love of all people and our love for what is right. Most of all, when the opposition is campaigning hatred of our candidates, we need to increase our campaign of prayer. The world must see the contrast. If we lose then we need to demonstrate this grace to the other side. But if we win, and I believe we will, we need to be even more gracious winners.

This battle is not about Democrats or Republicans. It isn’t about those who would call themselves Christian, Moslem, or Athiest. It isn’t about those who consider themselves global or national, man or woman, Hispanic, Black, or White. It is about the Holy Spirit. It is about those of us who believe in God’s plan for each one of us, for His Church, for Israel, and for the World. Standing up and declaring that will get you the same wrath that Sarah Palin, George Bush, and Israel are getting. People will get in line to hate you too.

But why do you think that we have a candidate who has withstood years of torture only to come back and forgive his captors years later? Why do we have a candidate who is known by his efforts to reach across the aisle and treat his opponents not as enemies but as fellow countrymen? Why do we have a candidate who doesn’t bow to evil? And why did a bold, spirit filled young running mate suddenly appear upon the scene from literally no-where? To be defeated? I don’t think so.

Speaking Truth to Power or Just Spouting Hate

In the late sixty's and early seventy's when I was an undergraduate in the Political Science Department at the University of Oregon, I believed that the media was controlled by the entrenched interests. It was at that time that the descriptive phrase "the military industrial establishment" was born. Universities became islands of freedom that dared to defy the entrenched thought. Underground newspapers and radio stations sprang up to voice an "anti-establishment" point of view. The mindset of our generation was that truth was the first casualty when the media was controlled by the entrenched power brokers of the time.

Those of us in the beginning of this anti-establishment movement were aware, though that truth was not simply a casualty of the established power broker, but is unfortunately a casualty of the new power brokers as well. We were not so naive to think that power only corrupted the last group, but that it corrupts constantly. It saddens me to understand that so many people who today are still fighting that old establishment don't understand that they have become more corrupt and more blind to it than the original ever was. Indeed, if it was possible for the modern leftists on campus to stand before the original 1970's protestors, they would be shocked at the corrupt thinking and hypocrisy of today's "radicals." They are not radicals at all! They are the new mainstream and they blindly march lock-step to shallow and narrow thought without questioning the mind control spider web that is obvious to anyone who cares to see it.

Today, I remain the same - holding up the desire for truth rather than the war against the old establishment as my cause and belief. I want truth wherever it may be found. But so many of my contemporaries and those that came after them have failed in their understanding of this call. Rather than remain seekers of truth, they remained embracers of leftist ideologies. For sure, it is the easier course. And the left has now become the power broker. It has now saturated universities with its philosophy so pervasively that an alternative opinion cannot even be expressed on campus.

Over the last 40 years it has entwined itself into the journalism field so heavily that ideology expressed from any direction other than the radical left is fully shunned and smothered. Our schools have been flooded with young left leaning teachers that have indoctrinated subsequent generations with a "moral equivalency" prime directive that has neutralized their thinking to where they cannot tell the difference between "good" and "bad" or "right" and "wrong".

No previous entrenched power ever held such pervasive control over its society. It has become so obvious that no one is surprised when polls show overwhelmingly that the public is aware of an incessantly left bias in our media. It is actually a demonstration of arrogance that acknowledges it, shrugs, and then continues to turn up its volume.

Yuvall Levin of the NRO website today offered this observation:

I have always tended to think that conservative complaints about the media are a little exaggerated. There are occasionally obvious instances of bias and clear examples of a double standard, but most reporters don’t want to fall into those and some conservatives are surely too sensitive to them. But this week has changed my view. I have never seen, and I admit that I could never have imagined, such shameful, out-of-control, frenzied, angry, condescending, and pathetic journalistic malpractice. The ignorant assault on Palin’s accomplishments and experience, the breathless careless airing of deranged rumors about her private life, the staggeringly indecent mistreatment of her teenage daughter in a difficult time, the ill-informed piling on about the vetting process, the self-intensifying circle of tisking nodding heads utterly detached from a straightforward political event, have been amazing and eye-opening.

His closing remark was:

They have shown themselves to be too insulated and too solipsistic to help the public better understand our politics, and too self-important to report on events as they happen. This is far more than media bias. Let us hope it is a passing episode.

I have news for Mr. Levin. It isn’t a passing episode. We can expect worse from these people.

McCain Interupts the Coronation with His Choice of VP

In an earlier post I mentioned that this Presidential race was Barack Obama’s to lose. One of the reasons why is because the mainstream media has already voted. In addition to the campaign effort that the Democrats have to pay for, virtually the entire media throws in their front pages and their nightly lead stories for free. Obama has gotten an unprecedented free ride and sympathetic slant in every news story.

But the tactic is not just what they say, it is also about what they don't say. Just as effective as their support for Obama has been the black-out of positive stories for McCain and his campaign. It is frightening to talk to someone who only absorbs their information from the main-stream media. They can only understand what they have been fed and they remain ignorant to much of reality from which they have been shielded.

It is sobering when you understand the reality of what is being done to us by the mainstream media. The enemies of truth are using it against us every day in an attempt to control our lives. So, you have to hand it to John McCain and his selection of his running mate. It has stunned the Democrats and their media. It shows a great strategy. When the enemy owns the radar, then you just have to fly under it.

How effective has McCain’s choice been? It appears to have virtually neutralized their much anticipated post-convention bounce. It has caused considerable confusion among Democratic strategists on how to handle her. Joe Trippi, a CBS News Political Consultant (euphemism for Democratic Strategist) said this on the CBS News webpage:

The McCain/Palin duo will challenge Barack Obama’s claim of “a new kind of politics” and chastise Obama and Democratic vice presidential Nominee, Joe Biden, for their “silence” in taking on corruption in their own party in Illinois, Delaware and Washington, DC.

The McCain campaign intends to claim that “more of the same” in Washington means Barack Obama and Joe Biden and will make the argument that if you want to “shake things up” then McCain and his reform minded running mate from Alaska will get the job done.

My initial reaction was that in picking Palin, McCain had taken away the argument that Barack Obama wasn’t ready to be president. I now think my initial assessment on that score was wrong. Over time, the McCain team will insinuate that if you think a first-term Governor isn’t ready for the number 2 slot, are you really sure that a first-term Senator is ready for the number 1 spot?

Mr. Trippi was a Howard Dean strategist at one time. His alarm and acknowledgement of how the choice of Sarah Palin changes the race is incredible in its juxtaposition of earlier thoughts on her.

The other shocker is that suddenly the media coverage has shifted. Suddenly the Democrats cannot control their press as reporters clamor to find out more about this exciting new VP candidate. The nation's attention is on McCain and Palin. What was once a coronation is now a full fledged race.

Success at Saddleback

I was impressed with the question and answer forum produced by Pastor Rick Warren at Saddleback Mountain Church. It was monumental. No secular organization could have pulled it off without agenda driven newsmen commandeering the process. Even the League of Women Voters get manipulated by the “impartial” news anchormen they choose to moderate their debates. Warren proved himself to be totally trustworthy by both sides without pandering to either.

The event was a huge landmark in that its unique format was exquisite. It reworked the definition of debate. Or rather it asked the question of why we even have debates. After all, we don’t really care how a potential President can do in a debate format. Is that the skill-set that is most important for our leader? Or is the process of an election the one where we really get to hear what the opponents think about an issue? Isn’t it even better when we can hear each man reflect on the same question without worrying about countering the other’s position?

I don’t care how McCain feels about Obama’s point of view. I can make up my own mind about how I feel about each man’s position. Isn’t that what is really wrong with the process today? The goal is for us to listen to both sides and for us to decide which one makes the most sense. Yet hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each election cycle on candidates telling us how we should feel about their opponent’s views.

I hope this format will be used again. Having said that, I know it probably will not be agreed upon by Obama’s side. It’s a loser for him. He is good at slipping issues and winding his way through meaningless rhetoric. That has worked for him to this point. But 30 minutes later, when his opponent is asked the identical question and gives a straightforward knowledgeable answer, the difference is there for the world to see. On questions of sacrifice, Obama waxed eloquent. But McCain held up his own life as the standard. On the question of crossing the aisle to work with the other side for the good of the country, the outcome was the same. Obama tried to appear noble. McCain reflected on his life.

When Warren asked about all orphans in the world, Obama gushed his way through a “we should adopt more children” answer. McCain – “Cindy and I did just that, adopting a daughter from Bangladesh.”

So here is the bottom line. Will we elect a man who has never ever walked the walk but has a gift for talking it, posturing, and waving his hand to his adoring fans? Or will we elect a man who has personally withstood tests of war, tests of ethics, tests of allegiance, tests of faith, and tests of courage? And when he waves to the public, it looks awkward. After years of torture, after refusing to be released because his fellow prisoners had been imprisoned longer, his arms and shoulders just don’t move that direction anymore.

We need to understand what Moral Equivalency Is

I have talked to some people who are conflicted about the political scene and how they were going to vote in November. The main reason they are leaning towards Obama is simply because they want to see a change in direction. They have no understanding of the change that Obama will bring. They haven’t looked in to that.

These are reasonable people. They love life, they love their children, and they have hope for the future. If I could introduce to them a concept to let them know something that they are just not aware of, what would that be? It wouldn’t be a big political argument. They don’t’ really work. It would be this You Tube video. It is a 45 minute talk by a relatively unknown person. The concept he talks about is discrimination. The broader topic is the concept of moral equivalency. Unless people get a grasp of the truth, it is very hard to understand what is at stake in our society. I have run this piece before. It is a message that everyone needs to understand

Here is the link to the speech by Evan Sayet that I found on the LGF site.

Good Reading

Here is a link for an incredible article. It is somewhat confusing because this guy talks in ways that are hard for us to understand. For instance, commenting on why our economy hasn’t recovered yet he writes:

But the London Interbank Offered Rate spreads on overnight index swaps and credit default swaps of financial institutions have not returned to the modest pre-crisis levels. Fears of insolvency have not, as yet, been fully set aside.

Uhh - say what? Yes, this is Alan Greenspan! He is the only human I know who talks with so much authority and knowledge that the rest of us just nod our heads and think to ourselves, “Right – whatever he said.”

But in this article he says some things that are really important. He describes the path back. He says the problem is a general lowering of faith in our financial institutions. The quickest way back is a recovery in the housing markets. The wrong way back is for governments to try to shape the battlefield by posing restrictions on certain segments of the market. And he says some things about other paths – that are not the paths back. And then he sums it up with a remark that only he can make.

Remember in my last article I mentioned that Obama wants to take money from oil companies and give it to people? Greenspan makes a comment that Obama needs to understand.

It has become hard for democratic societies accustomed to prosperity to see it as anything other than the result of their deft political management. In reality, the past decade has seen mounting global forces (the international version of Adam Smith’s invisible hand) quietly displacing government control of economic affairs.

That is Greenspan talk for - Politicians need to understand that historically they have never had the clout over the economy as they think they had. And going forward they will have less. That doesn’t mean that they cannot impose stupid rules that would exacerbate the existing problems. They certainly can, but the reality is that our economy simply needs a hands off approach for the quickest recovery.

Since Ben Bernanke took over as head of the Federal Reserve, things have been tough for him. He is a very good mechanic. He has done well, choosing what to do and when to do it. But I have really missed the Alan Greenspan authority in that position. I hope that the media picks up on what he said. And I hope they take it to heart.

Obama Hearts Socialism

In my last post, Strider commented that regardless of how other people see Obama, he believes he is a socialist. So what are some signs that might prove Strider’s theory? Is this just empty rhetoric or is there evidence that Strider might be right?

First of all, what constitutes a socialist. The easy answer is that socialists believe in wealth redistribution by the government. From the few to the masses. Does that shoe fit? Well, he just announced that he is in favor of charging oil companies like Exxon for windfall profits and then paying consumers $1000 for their trouble. When he was explaining his economic plan a couple of months ago, he explained that the Republicans “trickle down” theory was all wrong and that he preferred a “trickle up” theory, where instead of allowing businesses to prosper and therefore hire more people, he just prefers to tax the good businesses and then give the money to people.

I will list here the countries with successful socialist economic structures:

----- none ----

Now, I will list some countries that have abandoned socialist economic structures and are now enjoying unprecedented growth:

China, Russia, all the Russian satellite countries, Vietnam,

Now, I will list some countries that decided, in the face of overwhelming evidence to perpetuate their socialist economies even though their people are starving:

North Korea, Cuba

Why on earth would any citizen think that socialism will help this country? Why on earth is Barack Obama leading in the poles to be President of the United States? Strider is right. He is a socialist. But my big problem is not with him. It is with the people who support him. What is wrong with them? Don’t people get how basic economics work?

President or American Idol?

Regarding upcoming elections, the one thing that I have to admit is that Democrats continue to have passion on their side. Republicans are much more pragmatic this time around. The interesting thing is that when it comes to the new voters, the people who are for the first time active participants in the process, passion counts. Pragmatism doesn’t seem to be important. Why is that?

I constantly wonder about the American Idol influence on this election. The American Idol process would ring up 40 million to even 80 million votes a week for months. Do you think that has inadvertently trained non-voters to vote? I do. And I also think it is training people as to why they vote. We could have as our next President the candidate with the best stage presence. If the songs, I mean speeches are already written for him anyway, then whose performance in delivering it is best? Who cares what the lyrics are? It’s all blah, blah, blah anyway, right? Who cares if the lyrics of the speech today in Ohio contradict the lyrics in the speech he gave last week in San Francisco? Was his performance inspiring? Did he motivate the audience? Did he command the stage?

Perhaps it isn’t fair to say that content of the speeches is not important. After all, Obama’s “change you can believe in” theme is destined to be on his Greatest Hits album. Of course, the words to that portion of his performance keep being rewritten as time goes on. In fact, the topic of that perfomance has changed so radically, that now some in the black community are coming back to him wanting to hear the older renditions of it again. This week some were very forceful in an event in criticizing the new renditions. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see Randy saying, “No Dog, I just didn’t get it this time.”

Another problem with the “Change” discussion is when you really listen to the lyrics, you want to go look up the definition of the word. A case in point is when Obama was in Berlin, he told the concert crowd there that regarding our dealing with terrorism, we should work closely and in concert with our European friends to defeat it. The crowd immediately erupted in applause. But wait a minute . . . hey . . . we’re doing that exact thing right now! That is not change at all! But I admit that the President that Democrats really hate is the guy who wrote the lyrics to that tune. Obama must just sing it better.

The American Idol process was grueling. The winner was a young man who could do better at performing on stage each time with that week’s song. He didn’t have to believe in what he was singing and he didn’t have to write the song. When he won, the contest was over. Unfortunately, winning this American Idol contest marks the beginning of the effort, not the end. And this time, the new songs can have no variation with the old songs.

Interpret John's Dream

OK dream interpreters – here is one for you. This comes from John Gabriel. He called me yesterday and told me he had a dream with me in it. It is a great dream. Here is how he tells it:

Hi Dave,

I had a dream of you last night.

Dream:

We were in a Catholic church Julie and I; we were sitting in a pew and the priest was introducing someone from Austria or Germany, a woman priest, she was talking and getting up and walking through the isles, engaging the people in what she was saying. Then I saw Dave Bixby he was loaded (his face all red) and was smoking a cigar. He walked from the back of the church to the front and I thought “oh boy he is going to make a fool of himself”; the atmosphere was loaded and then all different wines were brought out and everyone accepted it and it became a very lively party, it felt like revival. Something had broken and Dave must have known the timing of it all. Church was over but a small group continued the party in a back room.

blessings,

John

Strider, what is the Lord telling John?

Best of 2006

Quest

The scene was 10 years ago. I was a 45 year old student for a month on the University of Texas campus. Campus activity looked the same as my own school (University of Oregon) 25 years earlier. I had changed though. As a 45 year old, I was aware of the spiritual atmosphere and confident of my place in it. At Oregon, when I was a young student, I was self focused and unsure of my world. Any confidence I projected, any resolve I espoused were merely generated out of the need of the moment to project and espouse confidence and resolve. Twenty-five years later I could see the same fragile masks on some of the young students as we walked through campus between classes.
On the Texas campus, there is a big lawn crisscrossed by sidewalks. Between classes it teems with a sea of students as they cross through it for the next class. At the far end is the tallest building on campus. It is at the same time famous and infamous. It is the “Clocktower Building”. If you are old enough, you might remember the first real sniper killing in our country that was covered live on television across the nation. A man had made his way up the Clocktower Building’s 23 stories with a rifle and started killing students as they crossed the lawn on their way to class. Many more would have died if it wasn’t for a couple of brave patrolmen who, armed with only a pistol and a shotgun, climbed up the 23 flights of stairs and put an end to the carnage. I was about 15 when it happened. I had not remembered or thought of it since, but when I walked on campus 30 years later and looked up to see that building, I instantly remembered. This was that building.
However as I approached it, remembering the black and white TV images, I saw something that I was not prepared for. Engraved in the marble across the face of the huge base of the building was the quote, “Know the truth and the truth will set you free.” Young students walked past, oblivious of the building’s infamy and unmoved by the huge message carved in stone before them. The scene was surreal. Oblivious students walking past a structure that had all the impact of Golgotha. A place made infamous by the mass murdering of innocent students. The same place had the message of ultimate freedom emblazoned on it.
I watched the scene before me and realized that the students represented all of us. We are all on a quest for truth. We all walk the path that represents the quest for truth, oblivious of the fact that death itself can scour the same path, seeking who it may devour. We all are somewhere between the realization of death and the revelation of the truth.
The irony of the scene was that the author of the building’s inscription was not a sponsor of academic pursuit at all. And his statement was not about the pursuit of knowledge. Nor was it a simple platitude. After all, what he was talking about is so powerful that it is the only certain and successful defense from the clocktower killer. I wanted to walk through the square, point to the inscription and ask the students, “Who do you think first said that? What do you think that means?” What was he talking about?” I didn’t stop anyone. They all had just minutes to get to their next class. They were all too focused to pay attention to some middle aged stranger.
But you’ve got time? What do you think it means?

Best articles from before

Under the Bridge

I was all alone as I waded down the Ninilchik River in Alaska. The sun was shining and the weather was warm. My waders kept my feet and legs insulated from the icy water that rushed passed me to the Cook Inlet about a mile downstream. In the week that I had been on the Kenai Peninsula, I had fished several rivers and caught Halibut on a rolling deck in the ocean. I had experienced “combat fishing” on the Russian River and fished late into the evening on the Kasiloff River. My two fishing buddies, Norm and Ray took an opportunity to go out for one more halibut fishing trip, so I dropped them at the charter launch point and headed for the Ninilchik. Now I was standing in the middle of it all alone. I was awe-struck by the beautiful setting. The river, about as wide as a big one-lane road meandered through meadows and around big rocks. Upriver it passed under the highway bridge. Downriver, it meandered back and forth through a meadow that led through a village and the mouth.

The beauty, warmth, and solitude allowed me to think about a recurring dream that I had as a boy. I hadn’t thought about it in years, but it was fresh again, prompted by the desire to catch a fish. The dream was a scene where I as a young boy was pulling a fish from a stream that ran through our pasture. As I was pulling the fish from the stream, without looking, I knew my Dad was walking up behind me. I grabbed the fish, turned around and held it up for him. I was laughing and he was beaming. I loved that dream. The problem was that it was just that. My Dad was a wonderful father, but he never took me fishing. My whole childhood, he worked 6 days a week. The one day he got off we worked to keep the farm going. He promised but we never went fishing. Other boys my age went fishing with their dads.

So as I stood all alone on the Ninilchick, I called out to God. “Father, this place is so beautiful, would you spend some time with me, here? Would you walk with me? Would you show me what to do; where to go? Do you have time to spend with me? I know you must be busy but can we go fishing together?”

When I said that last bit, I could feel a bit of anger that I had held for all those years towards my Dad. As I sat and retied my salmon rowe bait, I repented of that immature resentment that I had somehow harbored all these years. The emotion of the moment caught me by surprise. Sitting there in the sun, with that beautiful river flowing by, I felt God’s tender presence and the strong desire to be with the Lord. I told him that His presence, enjoying this stream with me was what I longed for. Actually catching a fish was not nearly as important. As I stood up, I asked Him which way we should go. I had been heading downstream, but I sensed the desire to go upstream, wade under the bridge, and follow the river as it turned left and headed east.

I made my way slowly upstream, sometimes on the bank, sometimes in the water. I fished the holes and still water as I went. Earlier, downstream I had caught two steelhead. Normally I would be elated, but I had to release them as I was after 30 lb. king salmon. Upstream I was not even getting steelhead bites. I entered the shade of the bridge and stepped into deeper water. As I did, I was still directly under the bridge when I glanced up ahead of me and saw an odd looking little man on far bank about 40 yards ahead of me. Beside him sat a very large black dog with white eyebrows and a grayish white muzzle. It was staring at me, not with any kind of alert, but with eyes that indicated I was of no threat to him.

The little man had seen me first. He was pacing back and forth on the bank, alternating glances at me and glances into the river below him. I kept slowly approaching him, but I had to walk from the middle of the stream to the opposite bank. The bank he was standing on was about 6 feet higher than the water level. My bank was more like a beach, directly under the bridge.

As I walked up it, he spoke in such a manner that almost sounded like we were in the middle of a conversation. “There are 5 right below me. I can see them. There are another 4 where you are, under the bridge.” He was now kneeling and pulling pieces of a small fly rod out of his backpack. “We’re all alone,” he continued. “There are a bunch of people at the mouth of the river digging clams. Wasting their time. Here is where the real action is.” Now he was plunking his hook in the water, allowing it to go to the bottom and then jerking it up. “I’ll show you they are down there. Then you will believe me,” he said with excitement in his voice.

At that point, several things were running through my mind. This little man was very odd looking. Everyone on the river wore the same uniform. Fishing vest, sunglasses, ball cap, and hip waders were all the standard wardrobe. This little man was wearing a blue wool plaid jacket, blue coveralls, and an odd looking black hat. His hair was long and curly as was his full beard. Even though there was no gray in his hair, the skin on his face was very wrinkled and looked like he had spent many an Alaskan winter out in the elements. His eyes were large and dark. Fishermen wore sunglasses so we could see the fish in the water. He wasn’t wearing any, but he was claiming he could see all these fish below us. I wondered if he wasn’t looking at logs below the water’s surface, or perhaps he had spotted some more steelhead.

He continued to plunk his line into the water and jerk up. “We’re the only ones here,” he said again. “I’ll show you that these fish are here.” Suddenly, the still water below him exploded. A good sized king salmon leapt into the air, hit the water and raced to the opposite shore. He let out a whoop as his little fly rod became a lightning rod and he hung on as it jerked up and down, left and right. The fish’s energy was only increasing as it crisscrossed the little river in an effort to get unhooked. Suddenly the water stopped churning and went silent. The fish had succeeded in losing the hook. “Whoo hoo,” he yelled. “I hooked that one in the ass! Now do you believe me?”

I admit I am not a very good fisherman. But I have learned a couple of things. One thing I learned was when you see something like what I just saw, you rig your hook with the same setup and you get it in the water, fast.

“Bait won’t work,” the little man said. “Do you know how to do the Kenai flip?” The Kenai flip is a legal snagging cast used by the locals for fish that are not responding to lures or bait.

“Yes, I know how” I replied as I sat down to rig my pole with the right hook, leader length, and weight to do the Kenai flip.

“That fish stirred up the others,” my new friend told me. “Some of them are headed towards you beneath the bridge.” As I waded back beneath the bridge, he caught another. “I got this one in the mouth!” he yelled as he played it along the bank. I was now below the bridge flipping my line into the water and jerking it up when the weight hit the bottom. I could see ripples in the water; proof that he was right. His action was moving the fish down river.

But as I walked away from him, down river giving chase, something then occurred to me. The scene seemed surreal, that was plain enough. But my recent prayer suddenly came back to me. “Would you spend time with me? Would you have some fun with me? Would you show me what to do, like a dad would do?” Even though this man is pretty strange, I thought, “Lord if this is you, I am absolutely crazy to be walking away from you.” So I abruptly turned around and started fishing towards the little man who was still wrestling with his big salmon.

Now walking under the bridge towards him, I encountered the deepest water yet. I suddenly noticed that one of my waders was taking on ice cold water. I was in the shade, under the bridge working to about 20 yards from the little man standing in the sunshine when the water exploded around me. My rod bent over and nearly jerked from my hand as beside me, not 10 feet away a huge king salmon lunged to the surface. I had my drag set pretty tight but he easily stripped out line as he took off down river in an effort to get unhooked. I let out a yell and I could hear the little man yell back, encouraging me on.

Suddenly then the line went slack as I could see the big fish change directions and head directly towards me. I reeled as fast as I could to take up the slack, all the while backing up towards the beach under the bridge. But when the fish saw the bank coming up, he abruptly turned and headed across the river again towards a partially submerged log. “Oh no you don’t!” I yelled as I tightened my drag down some more and pulled with all my might. I knew if he got under the log he would be able to catch my line. I pulled again and just got his head turned in time. But there were more logs and he headed for the next one. Again I got his head turned in time and again he race towards me, causing my line to go slack. I reeled in as fast as I could. Things were looking good. I had him headed towards the beach and I knew he had to be tiring.

But I was also aware of the eventual fate of this fish. You see, it had a dorsal fin. It was a native and when I got him to shore, (if I got him to shore), I was going to have to release him. The rules were strict that we could keep only hatchery kings like the one that I had caught on the Kasilof River a few days earlier. This was a much bigger fish. He was mad at me for disturbing his peace. But at this point he was cooperating. I had him heading my direction a second time and I new I just needed to back up and bring him onto the beach.

But there is a funny thing about king salmon. I think that is why they are called kings. He took one look at the beach, turned his head down river and with more energy than even before, he took off. My drag on my reel was cinched down as hard as I could get it but it did no good. This king shot off down river, leaving a wake as he went. My reel was singing loud in protest as he shot past the two logs and over a little rock ledge to a pool below. Suddenly I saw my weight flip up in the air towards me with the leader and hook following behind. Somehow he had pulled off his hook. I watched his wake as he disappeared around the next bend.

I was far from disappointed about how this battle had ended. I knew he was destined to be set free. The fact that he did it himself only added to the thrill. The fish was huge. The battle was thrilling. I yelled out with pure elation only to hear the little man behind me adding to my cheers. “That was sure a lot more exciting than clam digging, wasn’t it!” he boomed out. I couldn’t agree more. I turned around to see him and his big dog on the bank behind me. He had real joy in his eyes as he spoke again. “Have a great Holiday!” Then he turned and stepped into the forest. His dog lingered just a bit longer, looking at me, then also turned, following on the little man’s heals as they both disappeared up a small trail.

It was suddenly quiet. I was standing in the middle of the river. Sun was bathing me in warmth and I was all alone. The water was quiet around me. I strained to catch a glimpse of the old man but he had vanished. I looked around to hopefully see another witness. I wanted to ask someone, “Did you see what just happened? But, there was no one.

If someone would have walked up then, he wouldn’t have understood. Here was a 56 year old fisherman standing in the middle of a river with tears streaming down his cheeks. A dam had burst inside of me and waves of emotion were causing me to let loose with some tears. I was remembering what I had prayed earlier. I was also remembering everything the little man had done and said. His disdain for the people digging clams at the mouth of the river when the real prize was here under the bridge was humorous. But I felt convicted, because I spend way too much time on and put way to much importance in my own version of clam digging. His ability to see the fish, his joy at showing them to me, and then his elation when I caught one were the things that I kept remembering.

Now I wrestle with this next part. Probably a good fisherman would have turned back into the water to see how many more he could hook. But I made my way to the bank, sat in the sun, embraced the solitude and simply enjoyed what had just happened as I inconspicuously wiped tears from my eyes. I also allowed my logic to take over, thinking that if the little man was not a divine being, he certainly was someone who God used. But why does everything that he said have a depth of meaning for me? Why do I remember bits of our conversation days later only to realize that each thing he said speaks deeply to me?