Undeserving

Desire

All glory to God.

UPDATE, February 22, 2026...

The video originally posted was removed. This one is similar.

UPDATE, March 30, 2026...

desire, v.t., 1. to wish or long for; crave; covet. 2. to ask for; request. 3. to want sexually. n. 1. a wish or craving. 2. sexual appetite. 3. a request. 4. a thing or person desired.
SYN.--desire, generally interchangeable with the other words here in the sense of to long for, stresses intensity or ardor (to desire success); wish is not a strong a term as desire and has special application when an unrealizable longing is meant (he wished summer were here); want, specifically suggesting a longing for something lacking or needed, generally is a more informal equivalent of wish (she wants, or wishes, to go with us); crave suggests desire to gratify a physical appetite or an urgent need (to crave affection).

covet, v.t. & v.i., to desire ardently (especially, something that another person has); crave; long for --SYN. see envy.

ardent, adj. 1. glowing; beaming. 2. passionate; vehement; eager; intensely enthusiastic. 3. [Obs.], burning; aflame. --SYN. see passionate.

envy, n. 1. a feeling of discontent and ill will because of another's advantages, possessions, etc.; resentful dislike of another who has something desirable. 2. desire for some advantage or possession belonging to another. 3. an object of envious feeling: as, he was the envy of other boys because he had a bicycle. 4. [Obs.] a)ill will; spite. b) odium. v.t. to feel envy toward, at, or because of; regard with envy. v.i. [Obs.], to feel or show envy.
SYN.--to envy another is to feel ill will, jealousy, or discontent at his possession of something that one keenly desires to have or achieve oneself; begrudge implies an unwillingness that someone should possess or enjoy something that he needs or deserves; to covet is to long ardently and wrongfully for something that belongs to another.

The commandment is...

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:17 NIV)

Desiring something wrongfully, that belongs to someone else, is the sin, not simply having desire. As the video says, desire comes from within and is not something we do.

Coveting is a heart issue, and only God can read the heart. Coveting leads to the "slippery slope" where we act on our improper desires by stealing, ...or worse.

Desiring a married man is something that comes from within and can exist without taking any action. Coveting is acting upon that desire, through thought life and eventual overt actions.

Desiring an unmarried man or widower is perfectly legitimate and honorable. The appropriateness of acting upon that desire depends upon circumstances and the standing of one's own situation, however. This is Common Sense.

Sosthenes

Is the pantry full?

The U.S. Federal Government is shut down. Two thirds of it has been liquidated and the other third is in big trouble. Money is disappearing. The supply chains are collapsing. Big changes are happening.

Most people are clueless; they are fast asleep. They are relying on things to continue as they have always done. They will be "blind sided."

When the masses realize what is happening it is not going to be pretty.

The word "Sosthenes" popped into my head a few days ago and it keeps echoing. I looked it up in the Bible because it sounded familiar. It shows up in two places.

Then the crowd there turned on Sosthenes the synagogue leader and beat him in front of the proconsul; and Gallio showed no concern whatever. (Acts 18:17 NIV)

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, ... (1 Corinthians 1:1 NIV)

I believe I have been given a "heads up" (warning) about what is coming. It has happened before. I feel compelled to exhort those around me to be sure they are stocked up and have enough to eat during the coming weeks or even months.

We will get through this, but many will not. Take care of yourselves and those you love; then help who you can.

All glory to God.

Why Deborah?

https://annavonreitz.com

Because evil was running amok and men wouldn't do their jobs?

Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, now that Ehud was dead. So the Lord sold them into the hands of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. Sisera, the commander of his army, was based in Harosheth Haggoyim. Because he had nine hundred chariots fitted with iron and had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years, they cried to the Lord for help.

Now Deborah, a prophet, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time. She held court under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went up to her to have their disputes decided. She sent for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you: ‘Go, take with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun and lead them up to Mount Tabor. I will lead Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his troops to the Kishon River and give him into your hands.’”

Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.”

Apparently, Barak trusted the woman to lead him but not The Creator of the Universe who spoke through the woman. (Continuing the quote...)

“Certainly I will go with you,” said Deborah. “But because of the course you are taking, the honor will not be yours, for the Lord will deliver Sisera into the hands of a woman.” So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh. There Barak summoned Zebulun and Naphtali, and ten thousand men went up under his command. Deborah also went up with him. (Judges 4:1-10 NIV)

What part of men should be leading do people not understand???

... my people,
women rule over them.
My people, your guides lead you astray;
they turn you from the path. (Isaiah 3:12 NIV)

...Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. (1 Timothy 2:13-14 NIV)

Men are designed to lead and women are designed to nurture.

If we want to win this battle, men must step forward and fight it. Men.

All glory to God

Disappeared

I disappeared when I left my job at the peak of my career in 2001.

I disappeared when I retired in 2015.

I disappeared when my wife died in 2021.

I am awake and I can't go back to sleep.

I write my blogs to express myself and perhaps leave breadcrumbs for others.

I try to be patient and compassionate with those still asleep, always looking for opportunities to plant seeds of awareness.

I have learned to love.

I can fall in love with whoever I want.

I have learned about myself and am overjoyed.

The privilege of a lifetime is to become who we truly are.

I have disappeared.

I am waiting for you.

All glory to God.

UPDATE, October 23, 2025...

The referenced video has disappeared. Isn't that ironic?

Actually, it is still available for viewing on YouTube. Just click the link...

UPDATE, February 23, 2026

Well, I guess it isn't available anymore. Too bad.

Have a search: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=quietly+disappear

Feminine Energy

It's always the feminine that defines whether union will happen, or not.

The feminine creates the magnetic field of attraction, and the masculine aligns to that field.

The feminine principal is receptive but not passive; it's choosing but not pursuing; it's magnetic but not aggressive. It's like the earth that chooses which seeds it will allow to germinate in its soil. The earth doesn't chase after seeds begging to be fertilized. It simply offers or denies its conditions for life to sprout, and when it offers its ideal conditions the seeds naturally turn toward it, surrender to it, find in it the perfect home to flourish. The masculine principal on the other hand is directed, focused, penetrating. It's like the sun that offers its light constantly without pursuing; without begging to be accepted. It simply shines with its authentic truth and allows the earth to choose whether it wants to receive that light, or not. And when the earth opens to receive, when it offers fertile soil, the sun naturally pours over it with all its intensity.

When these principals operate in harmony, when each is in its natural energetic role, attraction happens organically, effortlessly, without resistance, but when roles are reversed, when the feminine tries to be the pursuing sun and the masculine tries to be the resisting earth, the dynamic becomes forced, unbalanced, usually doomed to failure or co-dependency.

...modern society ... has ... taught that women should chase men, that they should be active, aggressive, that they should conquer; and it taught men to be more passive, more receptive, less directed. This polarity inversion has created entire generations of people who no longer know how to relate in an energetically-balanced way. And when it comes to twin flames, this polarity confusion becomes even more destructive because twin flames are connections that operate at much higher and more subtle frequencies than common relationships. Any energetic imbalance in this dynamic creates resistances that can last years, decades, sometimes entire lifetimes.

Jung observed in his therapy sessions that ... the soul that carries more feminine energy in the dynamic is always the one that defines whether union will happen, or not. (From the video, below.)

The feminine has to decide to change, but how does she do that?

UPDATE, October 17, 2025...

The church is feminine.

She must decide to change.

...to prepare for the wedding.

What is the work that God requires?

UPDATE, October 18, 2025...

I am certain the Creator of the universe brought my twin flame into the coffee shop and that she recognized me, but not consciously. She chose and I aligned. We were allowed to sample each other and experience the promise, but it was only that, a promise.

I have been taken through so much over the past year. I have grown and matured, and the common denominator has been her. Every day; every night; every awakening. It's always her, and what God ultimately plans to do with us.

He has given me so much guidance and revelation about this and I have realized I am sinning when I doubt. I have no excuse because I know His Voice, and He does not lie or mislead. He does not tease. I have asked Him to take it away if my interpretations are not His intentions; my thoughts about her have simply intensified.

I had a deep and loving relationship with my wife that grew over time.¹ Through my grief over losing her I have learned how to rely on myself and to walk with my Creator. He is my Master and He guides me through my life.

I fully comprehend and expect God is working on my twin flame, too. She is much younger than me and I realize the strategic importance of that fact. I trust my Yehoshua and know He is showing me His heart so He can include me in the courting of the Love of His life, the Spiritual Children of Israel.

I am impatient, of course. It has been 1733 days since I last made love with a woman; 1731 since I embraced her. I crave relationship, ...intensely. My twin flame is the only option my Creator has brought before me. There is no other. There will be no other. I am certain of it.

But I will wait patiently. She is at a crucial point in her life, the same age I was when my spiritual growth and revelations took off. She must be independent and sovereign, confident she can navigate through the rest of her life on her own with only the help of her Maker. When she is at the right point, the LORD will bring us together. Not a moment before. Then we will be massively more than the sum of our parts.

Our situation is unique, just like every twin-flame relationship, but the principles of these videos apply and we can both learn from them. Here is the one that was put in front of me today...

Yes, I will test her, as the video says.

UPDATE, November 16, 2025...

¹ Adjusted this paragraph.

Social Masks

All glory to God.

UPDATE, September 8, 2025...

UPDATE, September 9, 2025...

There's only one heart in this body. Have mercy on me. ("Connor" in The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby)

UPDATE, September 10, 2025...

One year ago (😊)...

Then (☹️)...

I knew what you were up to and we had fun.

I knew what your purpose was for being in Midland and knew you would be leaving soon.

I knew you wanted to keep things private and did my best to honor that desire.

There was no betrayal. You imagined that.

If you wanted to end things, you should have said so.

But you didn't.

Cutting off all communications (for a year) was very hurtful. It was cruel. Friends don't do that. They talk things out. Needing space and giving space is normal and fine.

"Ghosting" is unhealthy for all concerned. It is a horrible and destructive behavior that has become far, far too common in our culture. It is unacceptable.

I would like to be friends. Friends talk. Friends get to know each other. Friends care about each other and do things to build up their relationship.

You know how to get in touch with me and where to find me.

I dearly hope to hear from you soon.

😊

UPDATE, September 12, 2025...

I believe this was your goal and why you ran away:

The Root Cause of Unhappiness According to the Bhagavad Gita: How Desire Traps the Mind

Desiring me was diametrically opposed to your mission and you realized you had "sinned" by entertaining those desires. You had to get back on "the higher path."

I am not going to judge you. If you find happiness by meditating and seeking The Divine, that is your choice. I do not believe it will ultimately work, but you need to explore those things for yourself.

My mind is not trapped by my desire for you. Our mutual friend in the coffee shop says you have been very good for me. I am not angry, far from it. Through you I have become more enlightened and have learned a lot.

I would like to continue our friendship and talk about these things, like we did. I know more about it now and can more intelligently consider your perspectives. I think we are more aligned in our thinking than you may realize.

Please text me. I still have your ringtones on my phone and hearing your text notification sound would absolutely thrill and delight me. 😊

... And I still mean and stand by what I said.

UPDATE, September 13, 2025...

I recently acquired a new hat from a budding entrepreneur in the mall where the coffee shop is located. Uncharacteristically, I took a "selfie" photo wearing the hat and posted the photo as my profile picture on Facebook. That resulted in 20 "likes" and one "heart" (21 total), so friends and relatives seemed to enjoy it.

This morning I realized that hat is a "social mask," which explains why I have not been comfortable wearing it.

It isn't me.

It is a prevarication.

What a lesson! As Carl Jung said...

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.

The hat will probably end up in the closet and only be used on rare occasions.

Supporting the business of my entrepreneur friend was a delight, however.

Thomas

(Source)

“Unless you people see signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.” (John 4:48 NIV)

(Link: Gum)

God gives us remembrances. Some are physical and some are just memories. He wants us to believe what He has done.

God wrestled with Jacob, and did something to his hip to make him limp. That limp would remind Jacob, whom God renamed "Israel," that the event really happened.

When the Israelites crossed the Jordan River on dry ground, God had them take up twelve stones from the middle of the dry river and put them where they camped that night, to serve as a sign and reminder of what God did to stop the water flowing in the river.

When Jesus fed 5000 men by multiplying five loaves and two fish, he had all twelve of his guys pick up leftover pieces, and they each filled a basket. He gave them all that memory.

When Jesus repeated the miracle, he fed 4000 men with seven loaves and a few small fish, and He had them pick up the leftovers. They filled seven baskets. Do you suppose seven of them did not believe the first miracle so they got a second opportunity with the seven baskets?


Martyrdom of Saint Thomas (Rubens) Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

Why The Michigan Assembly may be "the most targeted Assembly in America" (Article #4777)...

Friends, I think you have a massive gold hoard scuttled away by Navy Officers, hidden somewhere in Michigan. I would be willing to bet money on it. And they are still guarding it, for their British Territorial U.S. Government and King Charlie.

...

They don't want us to be in Session in Michigan when the music stops, because our State Assembly there would claim it back for America, not Britain. They couldn't claim it was abandoned property.

...

If I am right, there's around 8 Billion with a "B" Metric tons of gold in Michigan and they can't get it out of there without some kind of narrative and they can't claim it without some excuse. I think they planned to quietly place a claim on abandonment on it, using their song and dance that we are "missing" and our government is "in interregnum" but they can't do that with a State Assembly in Session.

So the next best thing they could do was exactly what they have tried to do three times in a row --- establish a tight knit and highly controlling group of former military and agency operatives in control of The Michigan Assembly, so they could just play dumb, make sure that you never raise your hands, and declare a recess or an emergency to shut the Assembly down --- then just cart everything back down the St. Lawrence, probably to Canada, the British Virgin Islands or Puerto Rico, then "home" to London.

...

So, for the record, if I am right, tomography and Lidar has already revealed the existence of a huge gold stash in Michigan, probably close to the Canadian Border... [emphasis added]

So, how much is "8 Billion with a 'B' metric tons of gold?"

That's 8,000,000,000 tonnes.

8,000,000,000,000 kilograms.

17,636,800,000,000 pounds.

The specific gravity of gold is 19.32. Water is 1.00.

That calculates to 414,078,675 cubic meters or 541,594,459 cubic yards. (Somebody please check my arithmetic.)

That is a cube with sides of 2445 feet.

Compared to Michigan Stadium ("The Big House") in Ann Arbor

Where did this gold probably come from?

India

Location, location, location

Defeating a CIA operation...

while playing this song over and over and over again, during the only significant blizzard of that particular winter...

All glory to God.

UPDATE, September 9, 2025...

Source

UPDATE, September 30, 2025...

UPDATE, October 5, 2025...

Source

Private link (for now):

https://ediswswithanaich.blogspot.com/2025/10/sati.html

UPDATE, November 9, 2025...

While re-watching the Aaj Ki Raat video this evening, I realized another amazing connection.

The main dancer (and "lip-syncher") in the silver dress who rides the disco ball is Priyanka Chopra.

Source

Chopra's spouse is Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers.

The Jonas Brothers lend their name to merchandise, including clothing and specifically pants.

Source

When she came into the coffee shop wearing her red pants and I complemented her about them, ... she replied they were "jonas brothers."

Astounding.

UPDATE, November 10, 2025...

Here's another "coincidence" I eventually noticed...

September, 2024, a year ago. Click to enlarge.

Before my mother died, the staff at the place where she lived put on a bridal fashion show for the folks who lived there. Staff members modeled their wedding dresses. My mother and I were late arriving and the only seats left were at the far end by the window, ...which were actually "the best seats in the house," from a photography perspective. I took pictures of the various ladies as they "walked down the aisle."

During the past year since "Eight Days in September," I have realized the red pants coming into the coffee shop towards me as I waited at the end of the counter was similar to a bride coming down the aisle to her groom. On July 18 the possible connection hit me. "When was that fashion show?" I wondered.

August 30, 2024.

... Five (5) days before the red pants came into the coffee shop.

Those are the facts; people can make up their own minds about what it means, if anything.

This is so much fun!

Prevarications

Working Out Karma

But the [Holy] Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer. (1 Timothy 4:1-5 NASB, emphasis added)

I typically do not pay any attention to Bible "commentaries" written by people. I prefer to let the Holy Spirit teach me and counsel me as I read and think about what The Bible says.

The fourth book I obtained was The Second Coming of Christ, The Resurrection of the Christ Within You by Paramahansa Yogananda, a two-volume set. It focuses on "the teachings of Jesus," which are contained in the first four books of the Greek writings (New Testament): Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Although there are a few references in the footnotes to the Hebrew/Aramaic writings (Old Testament), the commentary focuses only on what Jesus said when he walked the earth with his guys.

Here is a graphical representation of the number of pages in each book of the Bible (printed version of the New American Standard Bible, 1997). Not all of the books are listed on the left, but the number of pages of all 66 are represented by horizontal bars...

Click to enlarge.

The green bars in the middle are the pages considered by the author of the commentary.

He did not study the rest (blue). Of the 876 pages, he only considered 10%.

This is taking things out of context.

The entire Bible is about Jesus. The early parts explain why he needed to come and contain predictions about his coming; the later parts explain his impact. Focusing on just a small part in the middle does not tell the full story.

Karma is a euphemism for sin. According to some religious beliefs, people "work out" their bad karma by doing works. The Bible says that is not possible. People need a savior, not a guru (teacher).

Despite the author's best efforts, the idea that the Bible and the Hindu scriptures are equivalent and say the same things is a gross prevarication.

All glory to God.

Reading Assignments

A friend recently recommended I consider these books, and the Spirit prompted me to obtain and read each one of them.

The first was David Hawkins', Power vs Force, The Hidden Determinants of Human Behavior. Very enlightening. Yes, that is humor. The book is about achieving enlightenment.

I recently heard about and experienced "energy" and have wanted to learn more. My friend said this was a great place to start, and it was.

The Map of Consciousness was very intriguing. The concept that "Power" (from energy) will always prevail over "Force" made sense and reminded me of my posts about Power and Authority.

The Hawkins book made a case that power "is" while force must be applied. It also said "love" is a high, positive form of energy, and "shame" manifests as very low, negative energy -- close to death. Perhaps that is why those in states of "guilt" and shame are at risk of ending their own lives, whereas the Apostle Paul proclaimed "Love never fails" (1 Corinthians 13:8).

The book also discussed a form of "truth test" that apparently works without regard to people's beliefs or even who does it, provided they do it correctly. It reminded me of the Urim and Thummim Yahweh prescribed through Moses for the Israelite Priest (Aaron, Moses' brother) to use for making decisions. That became known as "casting lots" and was used by many Israelites, not just the Priest, up until the time the Holy Spirit was given. There was a brief period in my life where I personally found casting lots to be quite effective, until a pastor pointed out we do not need the method anymore because the Holy Spirit testifies about all Truth directly to our own spirits, provided we have Him and are listening to Him.

Hawkins described his personal experiences of encountering states of enlightenment and his views seemed to line up with some of what I have observed in my own life.

I recently learned I crave transformation, and in order to do that I must learn from others about their experiences in the world so I can compare them to mine and discern Truth.

The second book was Clint Rogers' Ancient Secrets of a Master Healer, A Western Skeptic, An Eastern Master, And Life's Greatest Secrets. It was written as a true, autobiographical story of a PhD university researcher's encounter with a man who knew how to heal people from the inside out using wisdom and techniques thousands of years old. Reading the book was a walk next to a fellow skeptic as he encountered what seemed to be impossibilities to those of us who were brought up in western culture. As he tried to make sense of how touching parts of someone's body six (6) times could result in healing, I found myself comparing it to my experiences of laying hands on people and seeing them instantly healed. My constant question throughout the book was, "How does this line up with the Bible?"

It does. Jesus told people if they have faith they will be able to do anything. I have been learning that is true. The people described in Rogers' book had faith in the methods presented by the ancient healers and their faith made them well. This is a true fact of the created universe but these things are secrets because people do not believe.

The ancient secrets also include a lot of wisdom about treating our bodies properly and avoiding destructive behaviors. I have been applying similar wisdom, such as my morning walks without wearing glasses and traveling around by walking, like Jesus did.

I think I need to stop eating popcorn before bed, which is what I believe led to my dad's cancer. He used to eat a lot of it and his illness appeared within a few years of the new practice of industrially harvesting corn by killing it with glyphosate ("Roundup") to make it easy to desiccate and harvest. He suffered from Lymphoma.

Getting back to the book, it is very sad and suspicious that a very healthy man who was famous for using ancient secrets to heal people collapsed from an apparent heart attack while he was by himself in a Mumbai airport on February 19, 2020, ... right before the so-called "pandemic" was forced upon the world. I believe he was eliminated; the timing was too coincidental.

I have yet to open the other two books, but they are next. I plan to start with the autobiography. I feel a craving to learn about eastern culture because I sense a calling to eventually go there. God knows what gets my attention. Boy, does He ever!

I plan to update this post after further reading.

All glory to God.

UPDATE, August 27, 2025...

I just finished reading Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda, book #3.

I never would have even thought about acquiring this book if it had not been for her.

I consumed it urgently because I desired to know the kinds of things she has been taught.

These were some of my blog posts that came to mind as I studied the book...

Who Is It?, August, 2016.
Owner's Manual, August, 2016.
Eyes, November, 2016.
It's Your Move, October, 2016.

Readers can find those posts in the "BLOG ARCHIVE" on the right side of the web version of this blog.

UPDATE, Labor Day, September 1, 2025...

(Source)

People enjoy experiencing the physical pleasures of Creation.

Some have learned there is more to Creation than just what can be physically perceived, as the books in this reading assignment explore.

The Bible acknowledges all of this. For example, Jesus came and went inexplicably in the presence of his apprentices, Philip disappeared and showed up someplace else, and Paul boasted about visions and revelations. These things are common, as many people around the world have discovered in their own ways. "Enlightenment" is simply becoming aware of what is around us.

But enlightenment does nothing to deal with our sin problem.

When we sin against someone the only way to deal with it is to repent.

Without repentance there is no forgiveness.

The Bible tells us how to be freed from our sins...

Good God, April, 2021.
Apprentice of Jesus, May, 2018.

I truly and lovingly forgive you. Please come home.

Whom Do You Serve?

Private link:

https://ediswswithanaich.blogspot.com/2025/07/taboo.html

All glory to God.

UPDATE, July 22, 2025...

My people are destroyed because they lack knowledge.

UPDATE, July 29, 2025...

...but, it's not "the universe." It's the One who made the universe.

UPDATE, September 16, 2025...

Private link:

https://ediswswithanaich.blogspot.com/2025/06/bike.html

UPDATE, October 31, 2025...

Private link:

https://ediswswithanaich.blogspot.com/2025/10/synchronicities.html

Old Heavens, Young Earth

Source: NASA

The Book is full of examples where The Creator used people to demonstrate his character, purposes and glory. He loves metaphors, as do eastern people.

Most western people are linear thinkers, which comes from Greek tradition and teachings.

The God of the Bible is not a linear thinker. He does what he wants, how he wants, when he wants. He is not constrained by time and age because he made those things.

People have been taught to believe the earth must be billions of years old because what they can see in the night sky is very old. As mankind has learned ways to see farther than is possible with their naked eyes, they have realized many things are many "light years" away. A light year is the distance light travels in one year, which is nearly six (6) trillion miles.

Space telescopes have photographed objects billions of light years away. Our solar system is in the Milky Way galaxy, which is just one of essentially countless galaxies. The telescopes have recorded images of billions of galaxies, clusters of galaxies and weird things called "quasars."

If a cluster of galaxies is 7 billion light years away, its light requires 7 billion years to travel that distance to us.

People conclude the earth and those distant objects were created in the same instant, and The Book generally agrees with that presumption.

People also conclude the earth and those distant objects have aged at the same rate, at least that is what linear thinkers think.

But what if those distant objects aged faster than objects here on earth? How is that possible?

Well, with God all things are possible, but we do not need to rely on his ability to instantly create something out of nothing.

Weird things happen at "event horizons." Time slows down for one thing.

What is an event horizon? It is a boundary beyond which events cannot affect an outside observer, according to Wikipedia. Light cannot escape, and this is due to the presence of large amounts of mass. When a large star "dies" and stops shining, the matter of the star collapses in on itself, and if there is enough matter present a "black hole" results. This is all theory, of course, and nobody has ever witnessed it actually happening.

Black holes have been inferred by something called "gravitational lensing." The top photo of distant galaxies demonstrates this phenomenon. The same galaxy shows up three times in a ring near the center of that photograph, according to the text at the link above and in the photograph caption.

The earth with its solar system home must be young; it cannot be billions of years old. Tidal friction is making the earth's rotation slow down. The moon is measurably moving away from the earth and the sun is shrinking.

This is consistent with The Book. Its overall context and chronology support a young earth only a few thousand years old.

Modern pseudo-science's fanciful stories of "carbon dating," "geologic columns" and "geologic period" designations of rock formations are un-testable and lack objective means of calibration. They are simply made up. The question for people espousing those notions is, "How do you know? Were you there?"

I believe in the Bible and in a young earth. I also believe scientists when they show me evidence of gravitational lensing and photographs of galaxy clusters billions of light years away. I believe in an aged heavens.

Before God said, "Let there be light," there was water. Did he create all of the matter of the universe as water and have it all in one place? I believe he did. From there, he stretched out the heavens.

That much water would have been enough mass to create an event horizon, and if God expanded everything instead of allowing it to collapse in on itself, it could have been a "white hole" instead of a black hole. The white-hole event horizon would have remained at the center, where the earth was, and time would have slowed down in that region of the universe. Simple: young earth; massively aged quasars. This allows enough time for the light from those quasars and galaxy clusters to travel to the earth for us to see.

I have a book of an account by a physicist with biblical beliefs, and he convinced me this is plausible (Starlight and Time, Solving the Puzzle of Distant Starlight in a Young Universe, by D. Russell Humphreys, Ph.D., 1994). That resource, along with others, helped me move from being a cynical "evolutionist" to a man of childlike faith. These things are not a contradiction to me; they are opportunities to believe and be at peace.

Many people refer to the earth as our "mother." She is our home, and I believe she is feminine. She nurtures us, protects us, and lets us grow.

Yehoshua (Jesus) told his apprentices about The Father, his father. The Book describes Yahweh in majestic and masculine terms.

I think I like the metaphor He may be planning...

We shall see what happens.

This is so much fun!

All glory to God.

UPDATE, July 20, 2025...

Bingo!

Thanks, LJ!

Majesty

(ESA/Hubble)

We live in the midst of at least forty (40) powers of ten (orders of magnitude).

(Cosmic Voyage, IMAX, 1996)

The Book explains in simple terms how all of that came to be.

It took six (6) days from our perspective here on Earth.

In an older post, I explained how a very young Earth and a very old universe are not a contradiction.

The Book says mankind is God's ultimate creation.

It also says he used part of the man to create a woman. He created her for him.

That means making a woman was God's final act of forming the universe.

So, near the middle of those 42 majestic powers of ten, The Creator carefully placed his ultimate creation...

you

He did this all for His Glory, and I am overjoyed.

Red Pants

All glory to God.

Shadow

His apprentices did not have faith...

When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”

“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment.

Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:14-20 NIV)

The woman with an infirmity had faith...

Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.”

Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment. (Matthew 9:20-22 NIV)

Peter eventually had faith, and so did the people who saw what he did...

The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed. (Acts 5:12-16 NIV)

When our shadow is changing lives, we can be confident we have faith. Until then, we must ask for more.

The Pharisees knew the Scriptures, but they did not have faith.

Jesus came to show us how to do our jobs. His Father will put us through tests to build our faith.

All glory to God.