Each man must, in his strength, honor his ancestors.  Without them we would not be.”
              –Donald L. Robertson  (Logan’s Word)

    “Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, ‘Life is not pleasant anymore.'”
              –Ecclesiastes 12:1 (NLT)
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I don’t know when or where entertainers thought that they were so important.  There has been the tendency for people in certain positions to have an arrogant attitude.  It jerks my jaws to see some of them malign the country in which they were raised and given an opportunity.  Sure there are things wrong, but it is still the best country on the face of the earth.  When all of those folks said they would leave if Trump became President, well, I notice none of them left.  Hmmmm, that sure tells you something about them.
    Spitting in someone’s face–what do you think about that?  Spitting at or on someone is considered one of the greatest insults, but there was a man who saved his life by spitting in the face of a doctor.  Let me briefly tell you the story of that man–Roy P. Benavidez.  He was severely injured when he stepped on a land mine on his first tour in Vietnam in 1965.  He was told that he would never walk again.  Benavidez, a man of faith, perseverance and dedication walked out of the hospital in 1966 and back to active duty.
     It was in 1968, again back in Vietnam, while he was attending a prayer service that he heard the plea coming from the radio.  “Get us out of here!”  Benavidez jumped into a copter with a knife and medical bag.  Ten feet off the ground, Benavidez leaped from the copter.  He was shot in his right leg, sprang to his feet and was knocked off his feet by a hand grenade that ripped his back and neck.
    Praying aloud he rose and ran under fire to the wounded 12-man squad.  He found 4 dead and 8 severely wounded.  He passed ammo to those able to fight and injected morphine into the wounded, calling in for air strikes and was wounded again.  He dragged dead and injured men to the hovering chopper providing cover fire with a rifle he found on the ground.  He took another round to the stomach and additional shrapnel fragments to his back.  Coughing up blood he attempted to return to the chopper to see the pilot receive a mortal wound and the chopper crash.  He then began to pull the wounded from the chopper to put them on another.
    He was wounded several more times.  He continued to pray and slung a wounded soldier over his shoulder.  While heading for the new chopper an enemy soldier jumped up and clubbed him with the butt of his rifle.  He fell to the earth and was bayoneted in both arms.  He managed to grab the bayonet, pull a knife and kill the enemy soldier.  Finally, he was able to assist the last remaining injured man into the chopper and was pulled in himself.
    Benavidez held his intestine in his hands during the 20 minute trip back to his base.  He was pronounced dead and as the doctor was attempting to zip up the body bag in which he was placed Benavidez could only do one thing–he spit in the doctor’s face.  During his fight, he received thirty-seven separate wounds.  He couldn’t speak as his jaw had been broken, and he was weak from loss of blood; all he could do was spit.
    He was told later, after surviving that his exploit was awesome to which he replied, “No, that’s duty.”  Let me recount his injuries from which he spent a year in hospitals to recover.  He had seven major gunshot wounds, twenty-eight shrapnel holes and both arms had been slashed by a bayonet.  He had shrapnel in his head, scalp, shoulder, buttocks, feet, and legs.  His right lung was destroyed.  He had injuries to his mouth and back of the head from being clubbed.  One bullet went just below his heart.  He was in the chopper, bathed in his own blood, holding his intestines in his hands.
    Following his service he would often speak in schools.  He always spoke of his faith, and said the heroes were those that never came home.  He always told young people, “An education is the key to success.  Bad habits and bad company will ruin you.”
    Bow when the anthem is played, not me.  And when a hero is in the room, as another great man, Dave Roever said, “You stand.”  If you have time, no, make the time to go to youtube and listen to Roy Benavidez tell his story.

It was] a place I could have stayed forever.  How many times I have found such campsites!  Places so beautiful it gave a man the wistfuls to see or to think back on.  So many times we said, ‘We’ve got to come back some time!’ an’ knowin’ all the while we never would.”
              –Louis L’Amour  (Lonely on the Mountain)

    “Before the mountains were born, before you gave birth to the earth and the world, from beginning to end, you are God. For you, a thousand years are as a passing day, as brief as a few night hours.”
              –Psalm 90:2,4 (NLT)
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It was a week ago when I discussed the “perilous times” in which we live.  Listen people, we are not journeying toward the last days, we do not need to be wondering when they will be here; we have entered the last days.  Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit wrote, “But understand this, that in the last days will come (set in) perilous times of great stress and trouble [hard to deal with and hard to bear].” (2 Timothy 3:1, AMPC)  Following this verse he begins to describe what the characteristics of the last days will be.

         “For people will be lovers of self and [utterly] self-centered, lovers of money and aroused by an inordinate [greedy] desire for wealth, proud and arrogant and contemptuous boasters. They will be abusive (blasphemous, scoffing), disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy and profane.”
              –2 Timothy 3:2 (AMPC)

Read through that slowly; look carefully at each characteristic.  One thing noticeable is the sign of self-love, self-consumption, and selfishness.  People will be self-focused, self-centered, and self-consumed.  Oh, but you say, people give to charities, and yes, but many times the reason is to show off that they are giving, and possibly to ease their conscience.
    People will be so committed to their own self-promotion and agenda that they will be willing to exaggerate, embellish a story, or even lie if it will get them the position desired.  I like what Rick Renner, the Greek scholar and preacher has said, men will have “floating ethics.”  Their ethics and morals float from how it helps them.  My mercy, just look at the politics!  They will believe that they have the right to set the agenda for everybody else.  They have the right to control your life, control my life.  
    If you do not following along with their agenda then comes the slander.  The term “abusive” or in some versions “blasphemers” means more than being disrespectful of the things of God.  It is “to rail against by bring abusive, debasing, degrading accusations against those with whom one does not agree.” (hmmm, remember the comedian holding up a head of a decapitated Trump?)  They will be disobedient to parents; which means unpersuadable, uncontrollable, unleadable.  Did you happen to see the guy cursing with vile obscenities and hitting the man who told him to quit keying people’s cars?  
    Man will come to the point rather than thanking God for their blessings, they are selfish and claim they deserve more than they are getting.  My mercy, look at the snowflakes!  They are void of any sense of gratitude.  They protest that they don’t have enough.  “When people stop expressing a heart of gratitude toward God, unholy attitudes begin to materialize, then followed by unholy behavior.” (Renner)
    There term “unholy” means actions that are impure, ill-mannered, improper, unclean, indecent, coarse, vulgar, crude, or lewd.  These are actions that are unsanctioned by God.  It is not ironic that what God has called unholy is what society thinks is funny.  “Lost society is oblivious to the deception that is dragging it lower and lower into depravity and judgment.” (Renner)
    Take time to read those characteristics and think of how they are coming to pass.  Next week, we’ll take a look at verse 3, but verse 2 is enough to set one’s teeth on edge.  The last days- we are in them.  One of the main signs is that people will be “blinded” by Satan.  Keep your eyes open to guard yourself in these last days.
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    Three years ago, on this date, I was in the throes of a heart attack.  The Lord has been good to give me a few more years.  Listen, He is in charge, and I’ve lived each day since then with that realization.  I always knew that, but it wasn’t necessarily brought to “heart.”  
    So, my friends, thank you for your prayers during that time, and your continued prayers and concern since that time.  The ol’ heart is still a tickin’.

For he was a man to stay by his friends for good or bad to the very end of time.”
              –Ernest Haycox  (Saddle and Ride)

    “And Jonathan made David reaffirm his vow of friendship again, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself.”
              –1 Samuel 20:17 (NLT)
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              Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!
       “You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you…
        Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. He will fight savagely…
        I have full confidence in your courage and devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!
        Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.”
                        –General Dwight D. Eisenhower

Most of us were not around on that eventful day of June 6, 1944–D-Day.  It was a day of triumph and tragedy.  It was a day of heroic endeavor and a day of horror.
    Imagine those boys, riding in the landing craft, ready to hit the beaches of Normandy.  They knew that as soon as the doors of the landing craft went down they would face a hailstorm of bullets.  These were men, mostly young men, who has aspirations, dreams, the hope of a career.  They were men who had wives at home, a family; some had only their sweethearts.  What were their thoughts as they approached the beach?  Today, when we think of a beach we think of fun in the sand, hilarity and laughter.  This beach was a beach of death, of terror and fear.
    Take time to ponder the words of their commander as they went out to face the enemy.  Look at them carefully.  D-Day spelled the end of the might Third Reich.  Oh, it would take another year for them to finally crumble, many more battles would have to be fought, many more lives would be lost.  But it was this battle that brought about the end.  The war would continue, but victory was inevitable.
    I mentioned last week about losing a cousin at Normandy.  Of course, I never knew him, but his name was Ralph Fanson.  Shauna, our family historian, sought out his picture and found his gravesite at Normandy.  There would be 2500 who would die on that day with another 10,000 casualties.  And back at home today, 2018, we still have protestors that say life doesn’t treat them right.  How dare they say that when there was such a tremendous sacrifice.
    Our lives are similar.  The war was won at Calvary with the victory of Jesus over the grave and sin.  Yet, we still have our day-to-day battles.  There is suffering and terror that takes place, but rest assured the victory is secured.  You must continue to do your duty with full devotion until that time when the Lord says, “Well done, good and faithful; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.” (Matthew 25:21, NKJV)

When evil takes up to violence, the good have no choice but to defend themselves.”
              –Louis L’Amour  (Hanging Woman Creek)

    “But you see the trouble and grief they cause. You take note of it and punish them. The helpless put their trust in you. You defend the orphans.”
              –Psalm 10:14 (NLT)
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Have you surrendered everything in obedience to the Lord?  If He truly is in charge of your life that is not an option, but I will admit that it is not easy.  Because of our natural inclination to want to be in charge of our lives, submission to His authority, or any authority becomes a problem.  To submit to the Lord is abhorrent to the fallen nature.
    There are three facts regarding submission:
         1)  some will hide behind the mask of submission,
         2)  some quietly refuse to submit,
         3)  some refuse the right to choose the authority to whom they will submit, changing authorities when their wishes are challenged.
    Perhaps you have wondered why things don’t always go smoothly in your life.  It seems as if everything you try blows up in your face.  It is as if walking through life is like walking through a minefield.  You wonder, where do I step?  “Obedience to God gives us a Guide to take us across the mine field.  Only the very foolish will refuse to obey the Guide.” (Stephen Brown)
    There are several facts about obedience that we must consider.  Remember, obedience is being responsible to God.  ( “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams.” 1 Samuel 15:22, NKJV)
         1)  Obedience is not an option.
                   Christians are not given an option to obey.  Jesus said, “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me…”. (John 14:21, NKJV)  Christians often have their own ideas and plans, despite the fact that the God to whom we owe obedience wants us to go in a different direction.  God is not looking for creative people; He is looking for obedient people.  “But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’” (Jeremiah 7:23, NKJV)
         2)  In our obedience God gives guidance
                    God shows us His will.  “Concerning the will of God, the first prerequisite of obedience is knowledge, and the first prerequisitie of knowledge is desire.” (Brown)  If our heart is not willing to do His will, it is a good bet we will never know what His will is.  As we go through life there are some things we should never do, and some things we should always do.
                    One thing to learn in life is knowing the difference between facts and problems.  A problem is something you attempt to correct.  A fact is just a fact.  You cannot do anything about a fact except control your attitude toward it.
         3)  Obedience is not to make us miserable.
                    In fact, it is quite the opposite.  When man submits to God “there is a sense of rightness, a sense of rest, a sense of reality that doesn’t come from any other source.” (Brown)
                    “If you want to be reasonably happy and healthy, then you must do what people have done throughout history:  Obey God’s law…  To obey God’s law is to live the way we were intended to live in a difficult world…” (Manford George Gutzke)
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Ponder This:  California has just banned travelers from California to Oklahoma.  Hmmmm, how does that work?