And The People Passed On By

I'm going to start this post off with some powerful Scriptures that will fit in with what I'm about to talk to you about. God used me in a way that I am still unclear as to the "why" of it all, but with FULL knowledge that it was God who placed me there at the right time and for His purpose. I will never forget this most recent incident and it truly opened my eyes to the waxing cold of the love we have, or have not, for one another! Sometimes, we can just "know" things are coming to pass, but to witness something like I witnessed, in the capacity that I witnessed it, is another thing!

Matthew 24:12, "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."  

Psalm 11:5, "The Lord tests the righteous, But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates."

2 Timothy 3:1-5, "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: v2) For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, v3) unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, v4) traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, v5) having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!"

Behavioral Changes

Recently, we held our voting polls. My employer gives its employees 4 hours off, paid, to vote. I didn't need that long, but the night before, I thought I'd sleep in a little, take my time, get some things done then vote and head to work. God had other plans. Plans that were much bigger than myself. Plans that interrupted my own desires. As I arose from my slumber, I began to sense this "urgency" to leave much sooner than I'd anticipated. I was kind of fussing to the Lord because I had my morning mapped out. Then suddenly, out of nowhere, my spirit was all over the place, making me sit up and listen. The Lord wanted me to leave early and that was that. So I began to talk to Him as I'm getting ready in a much more urgent manner, saying a prayer that, looking back, was a prayer to be used. Towards the very end of my urgent morning before leaving the house, it was like God was putting stumbling blocks in front of me, preventing me from leaving in MY time, and holding me up for leaving in HIS time! First I couldn't find the sweater I had taken out to wear the night before!!! "Really Lord! You're hiding my sweater!?" I asked with a smile!!! Then I couldn't find my keys....when all was ready and the Lord said "Go" I got in my car and off I went. I turned up the same road I always go, but I felt the prompting of the Holy Spirit and began to pray a very specific prayer of protection, of praise and then an odd sentence came flowing out from my spirit...."Lord, you are the Lord of Lords and I ask that you put me right where you want me for your purpose. I ask that you guide me in voting for those that are godly and in line with you, and use me as your Light." After saying, "In Jesus' precious name, AMEN!" I stopped at my usual stop. And this is where it all begins.....

To my immediate left, there was a "vehicle" that just stopped in the street at the very same time that I came to the stop. I just reached up to turn my worship music on since my prayers were spoken and I heard a thump. Muffled, but still I heard it. It caught my attention. I glance around, and was waiting for all the cars to go because they had the right of way and I glanced over at the "vehicle" again only to begin witnessing the most horrific thing that my eyes could never un-see! A large man who was the driver had his back to the driver's side window, reared back his closed fist over his shoulder and began "pummeling" and hitting someone. As my mind was registering what I was actually seeing unfolding before my very eyes, I was also trying to feel around for my phone, careful not to take my eyes off of this tragedy!!! I couldn't see who the victim was until a short time later when I saw this evil man, full of rage and uncontrolled anger, take her head and hit it up against the windshield! It all came flooding over me like something I've never felt before! I found my phone, dialed 911. I'm watching SEVERAL cars drive by them, nobody stopping, nobody helping this poor lady! They were too busy with themselves and then I saw two different vehicles drive by with ample bodied people who could have done something to stop this or divert  it from getting any worse. But instead of helping, they beeped their horns as they drove by!!! I felt sick to my stomach! In the process of all of this taking place, this evil man kicks her out of the "vehicle" onto the ground! He gets out casually and saunters around the back of the "vehicle" and proceeds to kick her, first in the stomach then in the head. I drove to the other side the street, to see if I could get any more details. I saw him pick her up like a rag doll and throw her in the back. Her foot and leg was sticking out and I could see her leg visibly shaking but trying desperately to keep the door open. I'd called 911 several times. I kept within a decent distance to keep my eyes on the whereabouts of the "vehicle" but far enough away so I wouldn't be seen. This man, he was pure evil. Doing something like this in the middle of a morning, broad daylight, and not caring who saw them, gave me a glimpse into the demons that were lurking in this man!

But what shocked me, what sickened me, was the dispatcher telling me I was the only caller to report this. It was on the fourth call to them that I found out they found her!!! The dispatcher thanked me for being so detailed with my calls and said I might have saved her life.....A sobering thought! I won't go into much more detail because it won't serve a purpose, but they did get him and found her. He had dumped her somewhere and they found her. Thank the Good Lord! When I was registering what was taking place in front of my eyes, I kept calling out to the Lord, "Please Lord, help her!! Please Lord help me remain calm and focused to get as much detail as possible. Please Father God, help both of us!!!" I went to vote, visibly shaken, but still thanking the Lord for being able to be used. As I was heading to work, I did kind of look up to the heavens and say, and God knows me well, "Really Lord!! When I asked to be put in the right place at the right time, I was meaning my job! But now I ask that you take these images from me!" I wasn't worth much at work, and in fact, I was ill! My stomach was upset, my spirit was full of sadness and I kept seeing those images flash before me! The one thing the Lord protected me from was the very thing I believe would have affected me in a much deeper, long lasing way was seeing her face. I never once saw her face. I saw his. I saw everything else. I never saw her face. I know she tried to protect her face because I could see her arms covering it from time to time. All of this was traumatic enough, but had I seen the face and injuries that she surely had amassed during this tragedy, I probably wouldn't have been able to keep my head on straight enough to do what I did! For as long as it took to do so! It is here that I will say that I've seen the aftermath of abuse or I've heard about it in the past and that's one thing. But to WITNESS it in ACTION is something totally different!! To witness evil unleashed in front of your eyes takes on a new and different meaning!

I was able to share this story with a few people that God placed in my path but I didn't share it with everyone. Sometimes, I've learned over the years in my walk, not every situation/incident needs to be shared with everyone. Timing is key. I've known people in my walk that would tell everything to everyone and that sometimes hurts more than it helps because some things we are called to share one on one as opposed to just to whoever will listen. I found this to be a valuable lesson in my life!! Just because you want to share something, doesn't mean the person you are sharing it WITH is READY to hear it or receive it and the message attached! Yea, so that's why I'm not sharing a lot of the details, but sharing enough to set up how I was used and how I was also protected for being His willing servant! There is a television show that, although I'm not too fond of it because it always appears to be staged and with a specific liberal bend, called "What Would You Do?" and many people have watched it. This very incident became that reality! It grieved my spirit in ways I wasn't ready to deal with and at the same time, I was full of righteous anger! Strange how I could feel both of those emotions at the same time!

Earlier I said this man had demons lurking in him. I saw his eyes. I saw his violent rage. I saw how he didn't care that it was right out in public. It made me also wonder what it was like for her behind closed doors. Another sobering thought. His eyes were vacant and empty. Dark souled. As that night rolled around, I was sitting and thinking about how cold everyone else was that drove on by. They just passed on by like this was normal. Coldness came over me in a way that I hadn't expected. This was a glimpse into the world in which we live! It was unbelievable that I was the only caller, even though I called several times. It was unbelievable that a people could become so callous and disassociated with one another that they could drive on by and not even have compassion enough to help this lady out. Have we really stooped that low!?! Well, apparently so! I told one person that I felt led to share this with that humanity has distanced themselves from each other to the point that they don't want to get involved because it's not affecting THEM! This lady was someone's daughter, maybe someone's mother, someone's sister, someone's friend. This lady could be each one of those "passer-by's" mother, sister, friend, mother or grandmother! Evil doesn't care. The demons destroy what God creates. I can't stress enough how demonic this incident was and how clearly evil the man who was being used by the devil was acting! I shudder to think of what she had to deal with while being with this man. I can only imagine the fear she had inside of her, the helplessness, and worse, the bondage she was in!

Matthew 24:12, "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." 

Don't Let YOUR Heart Get Cold!

Many people tend to fixate on the apocalyptic themes that our culture seems to pick up on such as the earthquakes and famines and wars and rumor of wars. I believe they tend to forget this very simple yet profound statement that people’s love for one another, and the human race in general, will grow cold. The word for "love" is agape, and it speaks of good will, compassion, empathy and benevolence toward our fellow man. This particular part of the Scripture doesn't even necessarily mean the Christlike love to the fullest extent of selflessness and/or of being sacrificial. There has been an ingrained sense which the world has, at times, clearly understood to some degree what it takes to get along. Take for instance, in the 1950’s, the parents that experienced the Great Depression had compassionately created a culture of morality that penetrated all aspects of society. It was normal and safe to leave doors unlocked at the time. It was normal and safe for the children to play outside all day long into the nighttime when the streetlights came on because everyone was raising the children in the neighborhood! All the parents looked after the children. Safe. Secure. Normal. But now? We worry about the demonic perverts in wait to snatch our kids while our backs are turned for just a second. We're worried we'll be wrongfully sued if we look at somebody the wrong way. We're worried we'll get retribution if we get involved. We know that our politicians are lying to us and consistently breaking promises while catering to those with means and to those who have an agenda. People are constantly trying to gain an angle on us to get our money, to take advantage of the weak, and due to this lawlessness and crime are so widespread that our jails are filled to capacity. We are a fallen, twisted, and broken culture because our love has grown cold. There's widespread abuse of children, women, the elderly. Abuse is not limited to physical as it comes in many forms. There are physical, mental, emotional, and sexual abuse. ALL have the same power as the next one and can be just as damaging. There's violent outburst against one another in numbers that scream evil! There's widespread crimes of passion. There's animal abuse/sacrifice. There's a growing number of "groups" inciting violence across the world. The world of people are being numbed to the chaos around them and they're focusing on themselves. They don't and in many cases, can't, feel any real emotions.

As sin increases, love diminishes. As morality increases, love multiplies. Look at the free love and rebellion of the 60's. That wasn't an increase in love, but rather, it was an increase in lawlessness! Thus, the net result is a callous, selfish culture of passed down lawlessness and nihilism. Few people look to God for direction, and even fewer attempt to heed His commands. How can we expect the world to love? Actually, we shouldn’t really expect the world to know HOW to love given that only believers can truly love. 1 John 4:7-8, "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. v8) He who does not love does not know God, for God is love." Isn't that also a sobering Scripture?! I think so! And love that waxes cold towards others oftentimes, is a result of an unrighteous anger in the heart! Violence, in it's many ugly forms and masks, is born out of anger. Anger unrestrained is a fire out of control. It starts as an ember but soon it's fanned and becomes an all-consuming fire that takes out many along its destructive path! Of all the things that are in the human heart, anger can be one of the most intense, destructive, and unhealthy emotions that we can experience. It's deceitful as a result. From our hearts, flow who we ARE. If the anger is not handled properly and in a righteous way, it can definitely have drastic life-changing consequences. I witnessed this that terrible day! Anger may be caused by a number of things, but the root cause of a spirit of anger is tension from past hurts and guilt. This mixture of pain and guilt is cumulative and inevitably, it erupts into uncontrolled anger when new offenses remind us of past experiences. Left unresolved, anger creates an intense desire to destroy something, or SOMEONE!!!

Ephesians 4:31–32, "Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. v32) And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."

Violence is the result of a pathology of the soul. Violence doesn't begin with a standing of armies, generational ethnic hatred or longstanding social inequities. Violence is as close to us as our very own deceptive hearts. A lesson learned from Genesis in regards to Cain and Abel. Something as simple as jealousy that is/was left unchecked, left to grow, deepen and intensify, leads to acting out in unrestrained violence. God warned Cain in Genesis 4:6-7, "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." This is truly an amazing statement because it shows how jealously leads to anger. It shows, also, that sin is predatory. It's crouching at the door, looking to possess Cain. Just like it can with any one of you if anger is not in check! In other words, violence is often the tipping point after resentment turns to rage. What can be done about violence? God told Cain he'd better "master" the pathology of his soul. Since Cain didn't master the pathology of his soul, blood was spilled. God’s response to Cain was "your brother’s blood cries to me from the ground." And so does the blood of many today. Jesus speaks about the source of violence. Murder begins in the heart. One of the most revolutionary of Jesus’ teachings is that human violence begins in a much deeper place, a much more secret place. The sin of violence has already begun even before the blood is spilled or the words wound.

Matthew 5:21-22, "You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ v22) But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire." Ah, the heart! So much comes from the heart....so much flows from it into the world. It's wise to be certain it flows with righteousness!! We can't talk about murder without talking about rage. We can't talk about violence against another human being without first talking about anger. We can't talk about shootings in schools, movie theaters, the streets, churches and workplaces without talking about the vile infections of hatred, evil, malice, and anger in our culture. Our culture is filling up with serious infections of hatred and evil and anger and it's not going to be cured with a shot of penicillin!

Another lesson from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount can be found in Mark 7:14-23, "When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear Me, everyone, and understand: v15) There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man. v16) If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!" v17) When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable. v18) So He said to them, "Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, v19) because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?" v20) And He said, "What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. v21) For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, v22) thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. v23) All these evil things come from within and defile a man.""  The bad news of the human condition is violence, and like all sin, comes out of the human heart. Adultery isn't caused by anything externally like someone else’s appearance, greed isn't caused by anything externally like by money, envy isn't caused externally by something like the Mercedes/BMW dealerships, and violence is definitely not caused externally by video games, music or movies. I will interject here for a moment and say that external stimuli in any capacity certainly DOES and WILL affect people, and deep psychological wounding certainly conditions people, and a culture of violence gives permission to be violent, and/or to be desensitized, (which is the culture in which we are living right now!) but the INSTINCT and CHOICE to act out in a violent manner comes directly from the heart. Those things can be likened to the fuel that's added to the flames....

Now, I’m not saying this statement of Jesus offers a complete psychology of violence. It is a powerful reminder though and it shows us a certain overview of the psychology of violence. It does show a truth that may, and should, serve us well as we look deeper at the mysteries of violence in our own society. The violence is rampant, moreso than I've seen in years. This violence is being led by an army of demons searching out the pain and hurt and disappointments of the weakened hearts so they can be destroyed and destroy others. As I witnessed in my own encounter with evil and the violence that was unleashed on someone I'm sure he "claimed" to "love," there was something much more sinister taking place in and around that event. The violent outburst could not be contained and that, my dear readers, was frightening to see! The Pharisees wanted to believe that sin was a matter of what people put in, like the food they ate. That’s a convenient way to look at life but far more troubling, but true nonetheless, is that ALL people have the potential for violence within them.

So where can we turn in the Scriptures for ways to deal with violence and to stop it or rather, minimize it? What does Jesus actually want or require us to do about violence? I believe the first thing we ought to do is let the beatitudes leap into the forefront of our minds, which includes this real-life challenge: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." I ask again, "What CAN we do about violence?" It HAS to begin with a serious commitment to the principle that "blessed are the peacemakers." But that can't and won’t happen unless we go far beyond our wishful thinking. It is Jesus’ clear call for His followers in all times and throughout Scriptures. Our entertainment industry fills our minds with violent images and lyrics. We are flooded with those images to desensitize us and moreso our children. More and more movies and shows and lyrics in songs, or what the industry calls songs, are violent in nature in some form or fashion. The formidable technology of war today takes on a life all its own. Many people are already living a hair-trigger life, on the edge of the tipping point. And every time a school shooting occurs, and we have 24/7 media coverage that constantly replays it over and over and over, a thousand potential copy-cats, people living in the shadows of society, people who are disconnected or outcast, have their pulse quicken at the mere thought of having their names in the headlines. Their 15 minutes of fame. The devil truly enjoys his game and his assault on God's creation!

James 3:18, "Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." and leads into James 4:1-3, "Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? v2) You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. v3) You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures."

What can be done about violence? There are many professionals whose work is peacemaking, and we need to pray diligently for them and share our support for them. Law enforcement, criminal justice, educators, mental health professionals, and many others that have been called to keep peace, to stave off violence and to protect and serve. Safety and security in a community comes from a whole network of collaborators that work together towards the same goals. We will never be able to totally eliminate violence, but we can surely lessen it and minimize it. We don’t need vigilantes running around loose in our society, we need VIGILANCE. Followers of Jesus are called to do more than passively waiting for the next person to draw their guns or for someone else to jump in to help the helpless. Followers of Christ are called to be more than someone on the sidelines, hiding in the shadows, waiting for someone else to shine their light in the darkest of places. Our Lord and Savior commands us to close the gap with people rejected by others. To connect with the wounded before they lash out and wound others. To bring down the level of tension and stress around us by living in peace. Jesus said in Matthew 12:20, "A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench, Till He sends forth justice to victory;" The next person in our community who may act out in violence is right now, today, somewhere, a bruised reed. They are a smoldering wick. They are broken. Some have been shattered. Will we notice that person who is a bruised reed? Will we help that person back away from the edge of the cliff? Will we be willing to be the one that stops the anger from touching the lives of others? Police officers can't and shouldn't supervise everybody’s lives. There is a point where we, as human beings, must be accountable. Our laws define civil behavior, but they most certainly can't tame human personalities. Shooting back is always worse than stopping the shooting before it ever begins. Sometimes, all it takes is someone to HEAR their pains and hurts and troubled spirits.....but do you have time for that?

Genesis 4:9, "Then the Lord said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?" This has always been a powerful Scripture for me for as long as I can remember. It elicits a very basic instinct to look out for others, to keep watch and care for the well being of others. So? Are we our brother's keeper? Will we watch out for potential victims? Will we have the courage to watch out for the potential aggressors? And will we pass on by if we see a violent act taking place or will we do what we can to help? These are some very real, hardcore questions to ask yourself. We all need to be our brother's keeper because if we don't, we'll all be victims of "something" because nobody will be there to help us. We can't turn our faces away from what is happening right in front of our eyes or think, wrongly, that it can't happen to you. We must be vigilant in watching out for others and that means to not be so distracted as we venture out! I may not have been able to jump out of my car and physically restrain him, but I was with a band of angels that the Lord set forth around us and kept a watchful eye while calling for help. This taught me a valuable lesson about where our world is right now! I don't want to BE part of this world because I was called to be NOT of this world. I have to live IN it but I'm don't belong TO it! I don't want to walk around unaware of opportunities that present themselves all around us.

So as we watch society decay and rot with evil, as we watch love grow cold, and persecution increase, let us stand firm, speak boldly, and love truly and be vigilant in being our brother's keeper. Our lives will be a stark contrast to the world around us that will likely lead some to curse God but others to bless Him. For the sake of our Savior and for the sake of the few who will be saved and who we'll be able to shine His light upon, let us show the entire world what it really means to love as we walk in purity before our Lord!!


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