Bless your hearts! Those who prayed and those who responded. I only really needed (I thought) about 85 bucks, but apparently the Lord thought we could use a little extra help. But your generosity in our behalf is greatly appreciated. Thank you! Thank you!!

There was a (brief) program today. We got up early, visited Mom briefly, then headed north to Virginia for a wedding and a weekend catching up. As you know, my “other life” runs 4 PM to midnight; Vicky’s from 7 AM to 3:50 PM. So our overlap is ten minutes of actual face time, and two phone calls during my breaks at work. Ongoing prayer on our behalf greatly appreciated.

Mom had a Doppler test yesterday and the blood clot problem in her legs seems to have resolved. However, her grip on reality has slipped somewhat; I’ll spare the details.

Back in town Sunday evening, Lord willing. Monday is the 18th, and if you’ve done your homework you know what we might expect. I did not get a confirmation so I’m still looking more toward Shmini Atzeret, which will be October 29th. But I’ve been wrong before. The point is, we’re VERY close to the end so let’s go out triumphantly.

P.S. Some have suggested that Ariel Sharon is the modern counterpart to Methuselah. His transport from Sheba Medical Center to his ranch has been disavowed (article dated September 24th), but there is no compelling reason to believe that a change in his medical condition will be a sign of anything. I expect to do a program on Monday, October 18th … but no guarantees and no promises after that. Hope to see you all very, very soon.

Retired Air Force officer Stanley A. Fulham tentatively predicts October 13, 2010 as the date for a massive UFO display over the world’s principal cities. In his book Challenges of Change, Mr. Fulham says the aliens will neither land nor communicate on that date.

If we leave between now and the 12th, an October 13th UFO disclosure would make perfect sense.

Matthew 24:29 speaks of an event that occurs immediately after this horrendous period of tribulation we are now anticipating. The sun becomes dark and the moon does not give its light. Mark Biltz speaks to this as two separate events: a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse.

But I submit that this may be one event, not two. If the sun becomes darkened in an eclipse event (such as the one expected on August 21, 2017), all the reflected light of the moon would be invisible to the earth because the lighted side of the moon is the far side. This would not be a sign, but rather a redundancy. What I believe is in view here is that the sun – otherwise plainly visible – is suddenly and significantly made dark. At the same time, the moon – expected to be visible – is also inexplicably dark. If the sun is turned off during daytime, a full moon visible on the “night” side of the planet would also suddenly not give its light. EVERYONE on the planet would see this sign.

There was an incident recorded when the sun became dark at a time other than an eclipse. This is recorded in Matthew 27:45, Mark 15:33 and Luke 23:44. This, as you probably know, was during the full phase of the moon, two weeks after a solar eclipse would have been possible (and may have occurred). Under these conditions, a darkening of the sun would also cause the moon to not give its light.

The event prophesied in Matthew 24:29 may be a repeat of the same thing that happened when Jesus was crucified. If so, this signal event could very probably occur at the time of a full moon. I first considered the possibility that the Aug 21 eclipse was the sign. Backing up 2520 days lands on this coming Monday, Sept. 27th.

But the Aug 21 eclipse may NOT be the final sign. If this supernatural darkening actually occurs on the following full moon (September 6, 2017), it nudges the beginning date forward to October 12th, 2010.

Daniel 12:11 states there will be a 1,290 day period beginning when the daily sacrifice is taken away and the abomination of desolation is set up. This extra 30 days would run from September 6, 2017 to October 6, 2017. October 6 is the Feast of Tabernacles.

Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days. Forty-five days after Tabernacles is November 20th, 2017. I see no particular significance in that date, but perhaps this final period between October 6th and November 20th will be the Sheep and Goats judgment and the “blessed” ones are those who survive (see Matthew 25:31 ff).

In summary, this date scheme looks like this:

October 12, 2010 – The Restrainer is taken out of the way, the covenant is confirmed and Daniel’s 70th week begins.

March 25, 2014 – end of 1260 days – Daniel 12:11 initiating event

April 15, 2014 – Passover

September 6, 2017 – end of 2520 days – Matthew 24:29 (this is Elul 15 and a full moon)

September 21, 2017 – end of 2535 days – Feast of Trumpets

October 6, 2017 – end of 2550 days (1290 days from Daniel 12:11) and Feast of Tabernacles

Tune in on Monday, if we’re still here.

At a recent meeting of the Hispanic caucus of the U.S. Congress, “President” Obama mis-quoted a portion of the Declaration of Independence. Obama said, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, endowed with certain inalienable rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

Mr. Obama’s version contains several errors. Compare his statement with the actual quotation:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

First, while acknowledging that we are created, he removed the reference to the “Creator.” He leaves his hearers free to wonder from whence this endowment of rights may have come. In view of the recently articulated absurdity by Steven J. Hawking, some may have concluded that we created ourselves. This, I would suggest, is hardly “self-evident” to even the most atheistic; indeed, it takes many years of higher education to come to this “truth” and many more years to explain it with a straight face.

That our rights come from God is the theological underpinning of all that follows. That rights are an endowment from government is a competing premise, and there’s little doubt where Mr. Obama comes down on that question.

Second, he said “inalienable” which is quite different from “unalienable.” The first means that they cannot be alienated from the one to whom they are endowed; the second means they cannot be converted into privileges and then licensed back to the one who has them. “un a LIEN able” – which is exactly what the federal corporation does. Our God-given right to travel is converted into a privilege and then licensed back to us. Our God-given right to work is converted into a privilege and then the fruits are subject to an excise (that is, privilege) tax. We can “own” a home but can only rent the land on which it rests. And if we want to make changes, we need a license for that, too. If you’re married, take another look at your “marriage license.” Why should any free man or woman need a LICENSE to get married?

He is okay with inalienable rights – we “enjoy” those rights in an academic sense, but when we choose to exercise them, then the actual activity associated with exercise of rights becomes what the regime insists is really the exercise of a government-granted privilege, and thence subject to regulation and privilege taxes. This is why the government has so many lawyers on its payroll.

Finally, it appears by his rendering that Mr. Obama believes that the extent of these rights is “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” By leaving out “among these” he suggests that the list is exhaustive. The Framers, of course, knew better. What was self-evident to them is a bit arcane to today’s body politic.

Obama, the “Constitutional scholar” certainly knows this stuff, and probably knows it better than we do.

October 20th: Obama’s Encore

I believe it was Franklin Delano Roosevelt who said, “in politics, nothing ever happens by accident.” Whether it’s an election, an appointment, or a policy change – all is orchestrated and deliberate. What happens is what they WANT to happen.

And as cynical as this may sound, I believe this is exactly what’s happening with the Tea Party in general, and with the O’Donnell primary “victory” in particular.

We still have black-box voting in this country. Why Ms. O’Donnell was allowed to prevail remains a bit hidden, but three possible reasons come to mind. First, to preserve the illusion that voting matters. One or two or even a half-dozen “good guys” are far below critical mass. They may, if ultimately selected, prove to be voices of conscience. But they will not be allowed to affect policy. A second possibility is that she is really a “stealth” candidate for the other side, and when she reveals her true colors, the true conservatives will conclude that they cannot trust anybody, and the Tea Party movement will implode.

But I suspect the real reason is more occult, and a lot more dangerous. At the recent “Taking Back America” conference in Florida, Floyd Brown, president of the Western Center for Journalism, quoted Patrick Henry, who said, “It is when a people forget God, that tyrants forge their chains.”

This, as you may know, was echoed by Alexandr Solzhenitsyn. The issue is theological: we have forgotten God. But then our reasoning seems to be derailed, as if the answer to this grievous failure is to elect conservatives.

This is where the bad guys will win. As long as we are looking for political Messiahs – political deliverers – political saviors …. we can NEVER prevail. The occultists and demon-worshipers who seek to destroy this last bastion of liberty are taking their cues from the long-departed Balaam, “who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality” (Revelation 2:14). Idolatry and sexual immorality may be our defining characteristics.

Christine O’Donnell cannot save us. We didn’t get here because we failed to vote for candidates of her caliber. My concern is that enthusiasm for the governmental reforms we desire will eclipse the current moral realities. These political victories present a false hope, and until these leaders call for sackcloth, ashes, and sincere soul-searching repentance, we will continue down this broad road to destruction.

Was there something “prophetic” or “harbingerous” about the beginning of today’s program?

Probably not … just another technical glitch. I’ve launched this program often enough to get it right, but I logged in, didn’t hear any music and didn’t have a light on. The result: a minute and a half of dead air.

In any event, if you realized the problem was in the program and not in your computer or iPod, then good for you. A corrected program was linked on the Homework page.

I got it all said, anyway. Any day now … November 8th still seems like a “drop-dead date” for all of our scenarios. The time remains short; we still don’t know HOW short.

So persevere. And keep looking up!

I’ve been here before, so I don’t know why this is getting so difficult. I just can’t put words on paper, so to speak. (“Paper” – how quaint!)

But you know what I mean, I would hope. My ears are yearning to hear that trumpet blast; the voice of the archangel. “Behold! The Bridegroom cometh!” (that is, if archangels speak antiquated English).

The bills are more-or-less paid. The house is more-or-less clean and it’s a hot but lazy Sunday afternoon. As I write, it has been “officially” the 15th of Av for about an hour in Jerusalem, though I thought the official beginning was at sunset. Oh, well … that doesn’t seem to speed things up anyway.

So I’m puttering a bit with my web page, praying somewhat casually, and playing with Clyde, my cockatiel. For the rest of my family, it’s just another Sunday afternoon and the threshold of another week that will probably be indistinguishable (they now think) from almost every other week we’ve endured during this hot summer.

The moon will be “officially” full in just over 3 1/2 hours. I keep checking. Shouldn’t we expect Him at midnight? If that’s Jerusalem time, it’s gonna be another 23 hours.

I can’t stand it.

Got a note from Robert who noted that this is supposed to be like in the days of Noah when they were eating, drinking and giving in marriage. Isn’t Tu B’Av a really popular day for folks to get married? He thinks so, and points out that wedding receptions commonly involve lots of eating and drinking.

The moon will be full in 3 hours and 25 minutes.

I emailed out a link to the song “Abba, Father” which I think has particularly appropriate lyrics. I’ve littered songs like Easter eggs through the Homework page; not too hard to find.

I find it hard to imagine a day with more pointers that this one. EVERYTHING about the 15th of Av seems to line up. If we’re still here in 22 hours and 45 minutes, I will probably have a hard time getting excited about any other day. Even Trumpets seems a less-likely candidate.

But we will persevere. For some reason — perhaps just premature resignation — I’m expecting to do a program tomorrow. I have a couple people who want me to design web sites for them and, of course, the ongoing commitments to my loving mother-in-law and the somewhat odious demands of my “other life.”

But I’m certainly not complaining. The only problem with the other life is that I can’t leverage my efforts toward the kingdom. My employer wants MONEY … not any discussion of politics or religion, if you please. And since our Babylonian system sees Jesus as an intrusion to their pursuit of their REAL “god” …. well, we’ve all lived in Babylon long enough to know the last lines of that verse.

Ultraguy’s on this Four Horsemen thing (I think). The dead in Christ will rise first, and some think this will be accompanied by a great earthquake, or perhaps several. So batten down the hatches — just in case — and keep watching. In any event, we’re one day closer.

P.S. I’ve kinda got that Feelin’ In My Bones (lyrics here) and just got a copy of the “Crawford Perspectives” newsletter (thanks, Tom) that extrapolates current signs to an “ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE” series of events beginning at 1:04 PM Eastern time TODAY. So a 1:05 rapture event should work out nicely. Hope to see you then.

It’s been a chaotic day. I attempted to reschedule today’s program, due to some pressing and un-postponable events, but apparently BlogTalkRadio would have none of it. I got the illusion that, as has happened before, the broadcast time was being pushed back. Alas! it was not. So “show time” came and went and today’s program did not happen.

God’s purpose, no doubt. So I found what I think is an excellent substitute: Dr. Michael Brown and a recent “Line of Fire” broadcast. Dr. Brown is not onboard with the pre-trib rapture people, but is nonetheless an articulate and passionate Christian for whom I have a great deal of respect.

Speaking of the “not onboard” camp, I got an email from a listener who pointed out that Larry Wilson has also reached a post-trib rapture conclusion. I re-iterate what I have said before: I do not necessarily agree with or endorse everything presented by every author or guest who contributes his/her thoughts to the discussion. Do your own homework and reach your own conclusions. NONE of us is 100% correct; we grow and we do the best we can. I found his insights to be challenging and encouraging, so I passed them along. Being wrong about the rapture is not heresy; plenty of folks for whom Jesus died have reached different conclusions. To those who die before the rapture, it doesn’t matter. What matters is being ready.

The title of this post is more properly, “Those Whom God Wishes To Destroy …” and the conclusion is “He first makes angry.” It’s a quote from Euripides, who lived in the 5th century BC. I point it out in the context of today’s musical “extra” – a parody of “We Are The World” adapted by some creative Jews at Latma TV in Israel.

The contrast, to me, is stark. The Jews seem concerned but not angry or panicky. Ahmadinejad, the Turks … the UN … all in an angry dither.

I really think Psalm 83 is next on the agenda. If, as was discussed earlier, spring is when kings go to war, we may have less than a fortnight before the fireworks begin in earnest.

In all things, may Christ be glorified.