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| Letter to the Editor from a Registered Nurse: 2 Concerns – Reiki and the Healing Codes |
To Lighthouse Trails: I enjoy your email news immensely; it is certainly a bright spot in an otherwise darkening world. You had two articles of interest to me – well, all of interest – though these two are things I have been addressing for nearly 18 years: Reiki and the healing codes. I shudder to think what else may be coming down the pike. I have been a RN for over 30 years and am now studying for my doctorate in nursing, planning (God willing and if He tarries) to become a family nurse practitioner to be able to minister to Christians. I became interested in herbs – NOT energies, life forces, chi or what-have-you – but plain and simple plants about 18 years ago. I started researching the chemical constituents of plants and how they may prove helpful. Not a cure, mind you, but a possible health benefit, in some cases, instead of pharmaceuticals. I also started studying better nutrition and other health supplements such as vitamins. I quickly found much error on the Internet, in books, in magazines, and in the church. What I was looking for was something more geared towards science – our God is a God of order, not quackery. But time has proven some herbs not only to be safer alternatives, but more cost-effective. I’ve used mullein olive oil for earaches and chamomile for sour tummies in my little ones … but I would not want a cup of chamomile tea if I were have a heart attack or in a car accident. Over these many years, I have spoken to various church groups, homeschool conventions, mother’s groups, taught private classes, and written magazine articles. I have always tried to show how marvelous the Lord made us – but with one caveat – we are the product of Adam’s sin and will suffer for it. Many people who I speak to seem to denounce this and will try anything for “perfect health.” . . . About 2 years ago, I spoke at a statewide homeschool convention – one that I’ve spoken at several times before. . . . However, this most recent speaking engagement made me the saddest: most in my talk were pastors’ wives and/or friends of a pastor’s wife. The delusion is incredible!! They are all into some form of ‘energy healing’ in one way or another. One talked about her pastor’s wife and the pastor’s wife third eye! (I told her it was occultic and demonic) They were not happy to hear that I have attended autopsies and never once saw any evidence of an “energy field” or “meridians.” You have herbal [Bible verse] tea bags that you put with your orders … I am sure you understand what I mean when I say I teach about herbs. I limit myself to that alone – no other ‘alternative’ method. What I am seeing and what I am hearing and witnessing gives me pause to shudder. It’s not just Reiki and healing codes that we are talking about .. it is much more, and it permeates everything. Dangerous times are coming at breakneck speed. I urge you to keep being that watchman on the wall. If for nothing else, to be an encouragement to those of us who are in the trenches, fighting constantly. Warmly,
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| The New Age Implications of The Message “Bible’s” “As Above, So Below” |
By Warren B. Smith One of the many examples of the New Age implications of The Message ["Bible"] is seen in Eugene Peterson’s paraphrasing of the Lord’s Prayer. Where most translations read “on [or in] earth, as it is in heaven,” Peterson inserts the occult/New Age phrase “as above, so below.” The significance of this mystical occult saying is seen clearly in As Above, So Below, a book published in 1992 by the editors of New Age Journal. Chief editor Ronald S. Miller describes how the occult/magical saying “as above, so below” conveys the “fundamental truth about the universe”—the teaching that “we are all one” because God is “immanent” or “within” everyone and everything. Miller writes:
Miller continues describing the meaning of “as above, so below” by quoting Sufi scholar Reshad Field:
In 2004 when I searched “as above, so below” on the Internet, the first entry listed further defined this “key” New Age term:
Most of the references, either on websites or in books and magazines containing the phrase “as above, so below” describe the term as having the same occult/mystical/New Age/esoteric/magical sources. One website states:
In Deceived on Purpose, I discuss my concerns over Rick Warren placing such great emphasis on Eugene Peterson’s The Message. When I looked up Ephesians 4:6 in The Message,Peterson’s paraphrase (like the New Century Version) also definitely lends itself to the New Age interpretation that God is present “in” everyone. In The Message, Peterson introduces his readers—with no parenthetical warnings or explanations—to the concept of ‘Oneness’:
The “as above, so below” God “in” everything “Oneness” message of Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase The Message sounds strikingly similar to the same “as above, so below” God “in” everything “Oneness” message of the New Age/New Spirituality. Such a teaching is contrary to what the Bible teaches. We are only “one” in Christ Jesus when we repent of our sins and accept Him as our Lord and Savior. Galatians 3:26-28 states:
Notes: 1. Ronald S. Miller and the Editors of New Age Journal, As Above, So Below: Paths to Spiritual Renewal in Daily Life (Los Angeles, CA: Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc., 1992), p. xi, quoted in Warren B. Smith, Deceived on Purpose, op. cit., p. 32. 2. Ibid. 3. “As Above, So Below” (http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/a/below_above.html). 4. See: http://www.mothermaryspeaks.com/as_above_so_below.htm. 5. Eugene H. Peterson, The Message (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress), Ephesians 4:6. |
LTRP Note: Ray Yungen and the editors at Lighthouse Trails have put together our Top 50 “Christian” Contemplative Books – A “Not Recommended Reading List.” If your pastor, your professor, your children, or your friends are reading any of these books, then they are being led down a path that will take them toward a mystical, panentheistic spirituality where only deception lies in wait. And keep in mind, if they are reading other books that are pointing to the books and authors below, this may ultimately have the same results. Take this test to see how integrated the pro-contemplative authors below have become in the church: Pick a favorite author or teacher you follow, and ask yourself: “Does this person promote, embrace, or emulate any of the authors below?” (For example: Dallas Willard (a favorite in Christian colleges) promotes and emulates a number of the names below; Beth Moore (the top women’s Bible study teacher) strongly embraces Brennan Manning; Mark Driscoll finds much favor with Richard Foster; Dan Kimball resonates with Henri Nouwen, to name one. In fact, we have put together a list of the top 25 Christian leaders who embrace, emulate, and/or promote the authors named below. We call these 25 leaders “bridgers” because they are bridging the gap between contemplative mysticism (i.e., eastern mysticism) and the church. You can see that list of 25 below our top 50 books. Don’t get us wrong when we name just 25; there are many more than that (including lots of new upstarts), but these 25 are who we would consider the most influential and prolific today. The Top 50 “Christian” Contemplative Books – A “NOT RECOMMENDED Reading List” 1. A World Waiting to Be Born by M. Scott Peck Top 25 Christian Leaders Who Embrace, Emulate, and/or Promote Contemplative Mystics 1. Ann Voskamp |
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| Planned Parenthood Mandates Abortions – Affiliates Flee | |
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By Bob Unruh WorldNetDaily A third affiliate of the nation’s leading abortion provider, Planned Parenthood, is leaving the organization because of a demand that all local groups provide abortions starting no later than 2013. “Planned Parenthood of South Central New York is the latest affiliate to become independent because it won’t comply with the rule,” Marjorie Dannenfesler, president of the Susan B. Anthony List, said in a statement today. She cited an announcement from the affiliate itself. “This mandate will no doubt result in an increase in revenue for Planned Parenthood as well as an increase in the more than 329,000 lives the abortion chain ends in one year. Does that sound like women’s health?” Earlier, several affiliates of Planned Parenthood in Texas abandoned the national abortion leader. Click here to continue reading. Related Articles: Judge Rules in Favor of Pro-Life Group Who Parodied Abortion Video to Tell Truth About Abortion |
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| Signs of the Times – “Tri-faith vision becomes reality in Omaha” | |
LTRP Note: The following news story is posted for informational purposes and not as an endorsement. OMAHA, Neb. —A unique vision for religious unity in Omaha is quickly becoming reality. The concept is to build a Jewish temple, Islamic center, and Episcopalian church all on one property and connected by walkways that meet at a tri-faith center meant to encourage education and understanding. A recent drawing shows the buildings organizers hope to construct near 132nd and Pacific streets. As workers put the finishing touches on the new Temple Israel, they’re also laying ground for its neighbor: a two-story, 20,000-square-foot Islamic center. “When they’re looking out, they’ll be facing the other two faith buildings and the tri-faith building,” said Patrick Morgan, of Slaggie Architects, the company designing the Islamic center. “It’s going to be so much more than just a place of prayer, which is a mosque.” Click here to read more.
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| Roger Oakland Visits Bryce Homes in Kenya! | |
As we write this, Roger Oakland is on his way back to the United States, after spending a week in Kenya. Roger, director of Understand the Times and founder of the Bryce Homes for Children in Rongo and Suna, Kenya, visited all 16 Bryce Homes and spent time with Pastors Achilla and Nelson and Walter who run the program in Kenya. While Roger was in Kenya, he sent daily reports to us. Below are Day 1, Day 3, and Day 5. You can read all his daily reports at the Understand the Times website, where Ron Pierotti has been posting them. Day One in Kenya, December 2012 The first thing Steve told me was that his wife had given birth to a baby girl since I was last here in March of 2012, but the child suddenly died when only one month old. My heart ached for Steve as Myrna and I experienced the death of a child at birth some thirty-five years ago. I was able to share with Steve some thoughts that were hopefully encouraging to him. As soon as we arrived in Rongo, we went to my hotel where I was greeted by several members of Pastor Achilla’s team. After checking in, I slept for several hours, exhaustion having caught up with me. I woke refreshed, and later in the day Pastor Achilla picked me up and took me to his home where we saw some of the supplies purchased for the December distribution. We then discussed our plans for the next four days to visit the 14 Bryce Homes [16 counting the Achilla and Nelson homes] in the Rongo-Suna area. We will be meeting with the families, delivering the December support, as well as assessing which homes are in immediate need of replacement. As a result of letting our readers know about the Bryce Homes Kenya program about one year ago, God has provided through faithful supporters. Many of you will be reading these reports. It is my desire that I will be able to testify to you how God is using the funds you have faithfully given and how this program is blessing the poor, while at the same time the gospel of Jesus Christ is being proclaimed.
Day Three in Kenya, December 2012 To travel from Rongo to North Kadem via Migori is not really that far – about 120 kilometers by road. However getting from Migori to North Kadem, an 80 kilometer continuous rock pile, is another story. If you are not physically in good shape, you risk the chance of being shook up badly. Think of this. It would be the equivalent of riding the large wooden roller coaster at Knott’s Berry Farm without getting off for three hours. There are no words that properly describe this experience. However, when the day is done, I can look back and my mind and heart is filled with joy by what I saw and heard of what God is doing here in Kenya through our team. They have been raised up along with the support from Understand The Times and Lighthouse Trails readers to reach their people, and they have a plan. How encouraging this is to see what can actually happen when the Church of Jesus Christ functions as the Church of Jesus Christ should function. I give praise and thanks to the Lord who has placed this vision in our hearts and has provided a partnership through faithful brothers and sisters in Kenya who are willing to be God’s hand extended. In spite of the rugged trip, we finally did reach our destination where two of the Bryce Homes are located – Widow Lewnida and her 10 orphans and Widow Alice and her 4 orphaned children who are neighbors. On our last trip, Lewnida was looking after Alice and her children as Alice’s shack was no longer livable. Since then a new home has been built for Alice so she now lives on her own. However, Lewnida has taken in three new orphans into her home. Both Alice and Lewnida gave testimony of how their lives had changed and gave glory and honor to Jesus Christ in video-taped interviews. We unloaded the December supplies at both locations and presented Alice and Lewnida their Bryce Home plaques. While we were on location, Lewnida’s new four room house was literally being constructed by a crew of workers who had come from Migori. I was able to video tape some of the various stages of construction. I plan to put together a slide show on how these houses are constructed at a later date so that those who have donated can see exactly how their funds are been being spent. While we were on location, another truck arrived with the wood for the rafters. The house should be totally completed in a couple of weeks.
After a couple of hours it was apparent that the late afternoon rain was on its way, and it was time to leave. Lewnida and Alice had prepared a meal for the workers and for us, and the table was set with food. We had a wonderful time together, encouraging one another and thanking Him for all He has done. We arrived back in Rongo long after dark and very tired. Today, we will be going to Suna and delivering the December food support there. It will be a long day. Day Five in Kenya, December 2012
SOME OF THE NEW HOUSES BUILT USING DONATIONS FROM
To see the reports for the other days, click here. |
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| Marines expanding use of meditation training | |
LTRP Note: While the article below by the Washington Times is favorable toward Marines practicing meditation, we have posted it for informational and research purposes. Please also try to read some of the articles we have posted below, which further illustrate how the U.S. military is making eastern style meditation a standard for those enlisted. This is going to have profoundly negative effects in more than one realm. By Patrick Hruby While preparing for overseas deployment with the U.S. Marines late last year, Staff Sgt. Nathan Hampton participated in a series of training exercises held at Camp Pendleton, Calif., designed to make him a more effective serviceman. There were weapons qualifications. Grueling physical workouts. High-stress squad counterinsurgency drills, held in an elaborate ersatz village designed to mirror the sights, sounds and smells of a remote mountain settlement in Afghanistan. There also were weekly meditation classes — including one in which Sgt. Hampton and his squad mates were asked to sit motionless in a chair and focus on the point of contact between their feet and the floor. “A lot of people thought it would be a waste of time,” he said. “Why are we sitting around a classroom doing their weird meditative stuff? Click here to continue reading. Related Articles: Efforts Underway to Train U.S. Military Chaplains and Personnel in Eastern Mysticism WorldNetDaily: U.S. soldiers to be subjected to ‘mind control’ Interfaith school for military chaplains dedicated Men Who Stare at Goats and Toward a Mystical Military
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| Dr. Eben Alexander’s “My Proof of Heaven”: A Review and Theological Commentary | |
The “Conversion” of a Skeptic?
Recently, Newsweek magazine flaunted a cover title HEAVEN IS REAL, with the subtitle, A Doctor’s Experience of the Afterlife. [1] The experiencer of Heaven is Dr. Eben Alexander, a neurosurgeon who has taught at, among other academic institutions, Harvard Medical School. In other words, he’s familiar with the intricacies and workings of the human brain. As a scientist, Alexander confesses he did not believe in near-death (NDE) or out-of-the-body (OBE) experiences for he “believed there were good scientific explanations for the heavenly out-of-the-body journeys described by those who narrowly escaped death,” but when he experienced one, his worldview shifted. [2] Consciousness beyond Cortex
To continue reading this article, click here. Related Articles: Letter to the Editor: Newsweek Cover Story on a New Age Perception of Heaven and God |
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The highlight of the day for me was when the children gathered around me to see the individual photos that I had taken of them with my camera. They had never seen their own faces before nor had they ever got so close to a muzungu (white man) who could have been their grandfather. Pastor Achilla snapped a classic photo that I will always cherish.
extra money for these widows and also gives them a sense of joy in knowing they can do something to help support themselves. 
Dorcas would then be distributing the money to all the widows. Another order had been placed from Lighthouse Trails, and the ladies will be very busy for the next few weeks making more baskets.
Seven and has been receiving monthly food support for over one year. This time I was able to tell her that she had been chosen as the recipient of a new house to be built early in 2013 because of funds donated by Understand The Times donors. She was so happy she began to dance and sing with joy until she fell on the ground. 
Later in the afternoon, after another heavy downpour, we visited Pastor Nelson’s home (Bryce Home Two) and his 9 children. Then off to Pastor Achilla’s home (Bryce Home 15) and his 6 children. His wife had prepared a meal for us and invited several other pastors. I had been asked to speak to them on the topic of Creation and Evolution using a Powerpoint presentation. 
by Larry DeBruyn| NEW LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS RESEARCH JOURNAL STARTING IN 2013 |
Update: Some frequently asked questions answered about our new print journal. From Special Press Announcement on November 17th - We have some news that we are excited about, which we wanted to share with our readers. In 2010, we mailed out two different print issues of our From the Lighthouse Newsletter, one in the spring and one in the fall. Our plans had been to mail out a print newsletter 6 times a year from thereon out to all Lighthouse Trails customers and to anyone else who requested it, but it was just too cost prohibitive, and thus we did not continue with the print newsletter, hoping that we could continue it at some point in the near future. Since then, we have waited for a door to open where we could begin the print newsletters again as we knew there were many of our readers who, for various reasons, preferred the print newsletter over the e-newsletter or in addition to it. For some, it was because they did not use the computer often; for others, they simply wanted something they can carry in hand; and for others, it was something they could share with others or save for future reference. Be that as it may, the cost of printing and sending out thousands of newsletters every couple months was beyond the scope of what we could do. At times, it was suggested to us that we charge a small subscription fee and mail out the print newsletter to just subscribers rather than our entire reader list. For two years, we have rejected that idea because we wanted to keep the print newsletter free. But the reality is, Lighthouse Trails isn’t just a for-profit publishing business but is also a ministry where we give hundreds of books away each year and where we spend hours each week, through e-mail and on the phone, talking with people and helping them find information; thus, we are probably never going to be able to truly afford to do a free print newsletter to thousands of people, at least not in the foreseeable future. And yet, we have felt compelled to make a print newsletter available to those who want it. With all that said, and after much deliberation and prayer, we have decided to go ahead and make the print newsletter a subscription-based newsletter, but for a price we think most will be OK with: 6 issues a year of a 28 page 8 x 11 publication for a total of $12 for a one-year subscription delivered to your home or office, and each issue will come in a full-sized 9 X 12 envelope. We have also renamed our print newsletter the Lighthouse Trails Research Journal because the term journal is more fitting than the term newsletter. Each journal issue will have the following components:
To see what the format of the journal will be similar to, view our two 2010 newsletters in low resolution PDFs: here and here. We hope you understand why we are making the new journal subscription based and that you will come to see that the journal will be well worth $12 a year. But if you truly cannot afford this, we do not want to turn anyone away. If that is the case for you, please drop us a note in the mail, and we will send you the journal at no cost. We don’t want to turn anyone away. (Canada/International see note below.) In closing, some of you gave donations in 2010 that were to go toward our print newsletter that year. Because we only sent out two, for anyone who did give a donation that was designated to the newsletter, we would like to offer you a free one-year subscription for the new journal. Please just e-mail us at editors@lighthousetrails.com, and we will confirm with you that information. There are three easy ways you can sign up for the journal:
Thank you, and God bless and keep you. The Editors at Lighthouse Trails Note to Canada and Other International Readers: Because of the high cost of mailing to Canada and other International regions (partly due to the fact we cannot use bulk rate mailing rates), we are unable at this time to make this offer to those who cannot afford the journal subscription. |
| How to Protect Your Child From Sexual Predators – Part 1 – The Internet |
By Investigative Sergeant Patrick Crough I was investigating crimes against children long before the Internet became part of our daily lives. When I began my career, the Internet was still very much in the infant stages of its development, and its use was limited to the corporate world. But as it has evolved to its present state, the frequency of crimes against children has increased astronomically, and its use is beyond our ability to regulate. No longer is your child safe in the confines of your home under your close supervision. The Internet is the predator’s Trojan horse into what is supposed to be your fortress and sanctuary from the outside world. He is both invisible and insidious as your child willingly invites him into his or her life via cyberspace. I have met child victims who communicated with their offender over the Internet right under their parents’ noses. Because chat room language is cryptic and hard to decipher, it allows the child victim to become involved, and eventually seduced, online by a predator. Many times the child will be lured out of the safety of their home to be sexually offended, or even kidnapped and murdered. There is no possible way to accurately determine just how many encounters occur between children and predators over the Internet daily throughout this nation. While law enforcement is making a gallant effort to police the dangerous and illegal aspects of cyberspace, it will be ill equipped to even scratch the surface for many years to come. Therefore, parents must shoulder the burden of monitoring their children’s Internet activity. This task has become even more difficult within the past two to three years as cell phones have been manufactured with the technology to access the Internet and to send and receive e-mail and text messages. Nearly every cell phone manufactured today also includes a camera or video and audio recording capabilities. While I understand that parents give their children cell phones in the hopes of keeping them safer, I view a cell phone in the hands of an unsupervised child or young teenager as a grave liability. A predator will use the cell phone to seduce and lure a child away from safety. When parents ask me my opinion on children and cell phones, I tell them to seriously consider not allowing their children to possess one until they are old enough to drive. It is my feeling that children should not be unsupervised until then. At that point, owning a cell phone would be a matter of safety in case they break down or get lost while driving alone. But until then, a cell phone would only increase their child’s risk of crossing the path of a sexual predator. If you feel that your child needs one, I highly encourage you to buy one without Internet capability and that you can limit to give and receive calls only from specific phone numbers. You should monitor your child’s phone activity to make sure he or she did not override your security controls. If we depend on cell phones to keep our children safe, then we have a false sense of security. Whether we choose to believe it or not, our children will use it as a tool to deceive us and conceal their own mischievous behavior. Children will also resort to using their friends’ computers and cell phones in order to carry out plans they know their parents would never approve of, such as secretly meeting a stranger they met on the Internet. This is why parents must be diligent and tenacious in order to monitor their adolescent’s whereabouts and whom they are with at all times. Let’s face it, they are going to be naughty sheep, and they should never be left unsupervised. It isn’t about trust. It is about immaturity, ignorance, peer pressure, youthful adventure, temptation, and lust. Your young teen is in no capacity to deal with all of these elements of potential disaster on their own, nor should you be willing to allow them to fly solo too early. I have labeled the children of today as the “Internet Generation” due to their highly advanced computer skills and propensity to seek out and use websites such as YouTube and MySpace. Websites such as these motivate and enable children to promote themselves to the rest of the world and provide personal biographical information for anyone to read. They also allow children to display seductive photographs of themselves and share their sexual fantasies. These websites are feeding grounds for predators, arming them with all of the information they need to choose and pursue multiple potential victims. Jesus told us that in the last days men would acquire great knowledge and become lovers of themselves. He obviously foresaw the future. Satan is brilliantly orchestrating man’s own lustful desires and the technological advances of today into an apocalyptic outcome. Pre-teens and early teenagers are the most common victims of those who roam cyberspace. These age groups are beginning to experience the development of their own sexuality, so they are curious and open for erotic conversation. The predator is all too ready to satisfy and enhance that child’s curiosity. This leads the child to be secretive and lie to her parents about her newfound friend. I have found that most children will share this kind of activity with at least one close friend. Because it is exciting to them, they feel the need to tell someone about it. This is why I always try to interview the child victim’s friends if they make themselves available. Many times the victim will share things with a close friend about her experiences with the predator that she would not share with any adult, let alone the police. Like many law enforcement agencies around the nation, the Monroe County Sheriff’s office has dedicated an undercover deputy to play the role of a young teenager on the Internet. Similar to what has been demonstrated on network news television shows, the undercover deputy portrays himself as a twelve- or thirteen-year-old boy or girl seeking attention in order to proactively lure the predators away from other potential victims and into our snare. At times, the deputy may be playing the role on as many as four different computers simultaneously while sitting in his office. He educates himself on matters and language that are pertinent to either a teenage girl or teenage boy in order to appear authentic. Cyberspace predators are already becoming quite familiar with police tactics in this area. I had the honor of being a member of the selection committee that interviewed candidates and selected the undercover deputies for this program, and I have made it a point to have follow-up discussions with them throughout their assignments. What these deputies have been exposed to and endured as a result of their conversations with these creeps is incredible. It is not uncommon for the undercover deputy to be viewing three or four separate computer monitors at the same time depicting different adult males exposing and stimulating themselves. The predator intentionally have their webcams zoomed in on their groin areas, providing the undercover deputy with a full screen of erect male genitalia. Can you even imagine having to look at three or four computer screens depicting such filth at the same time, and then having to carry on a conversation with each predator as though you were a young teenager enjoying this activity? I think it is safe to assume that most of us would probably vomit, especially with the realization that millions of children are being exposed to this perverted evil every day in the sanctity of our own homes. Undercover deputies have been extremely successful in luring these deviants to a neutral location where they are anticipating meeting a young teenage boy or girl for sex. You can imagine what an unpleasant surprise it is for them when they are met by a welcome committee of plainclothes police officers instead. Upon their arrest, some of these predators are found to be in possession of items such as rope, duct tape, and sexual devices. I credit these deputies for the program’s success and for possessing incredible intestinal fortitude in such a challenging assignment. For me, the Internet has added a new dimension of speculation regarding what leads a man to possess images of children being molested or to fantasize about molesting young children. A recent case in the Rochester area serves as a perfect example of this issue. A doctor who was serving as the Director of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at a prestigious hospital was arrested and subsequently pled guilty for the possession of hundreds of child porn images on his computer. This man was considered to be both a leader and mentor in a highly esteemed, honorable profession. I was not involved in the case, nor did I have an opportunity to speak with the doctor. Had I had the opportunity, these are some of the questions for which I would have liked answers: What led a highly educated, experienced, and recognized doctor to amass child pornography? Did he have a sexual attraction to children from the time he was a young man? If so, did that attraction in some perverted way influence him to become a pediatrician? Or, did his appetite for erotica and pornography place him on that slippery slope of iniquity and filth that eventually lured him into child porn sites? In other words, did he evolve into a pedophile as a result of his addiction to Internet porn, or had he always carried the dark secret of being sexually attracted to young children deep inside him, and the Internet porn sites simply cultivated this ugly sin? Based on my professional experience, the Internet has become one of Satan’s most significant weapons against man’s spiritual health. The Internet can be the Interstate of Iniquity, the Freeway of Filth, and the Highway to Hell if a man allows himself to travel into the sexually perverted areas of cyberspace. Once a man gets hooked on pornography, it is like being hooked on crack: he will constantly try to enhance his stimulation by increasing the shock value of the pornographic material he is viewing. This is a dangerous existence on a very slippery and treacherous slope. It starts out with the standard pornography of naked women and men and women having sex. In time, the viewer needs something more graphic in nature for the same thrill effect, so he will move on to sexual sadism and material that is more violent. When that loses its luster, he may even move on to homosexual material. I truly believe that when a man is at this phase, he unwittingly invites a demon to take over his life through the gateway of his lust. Eventually, his appetite becomes insatiable. He then moves on to “barely legal” teenager pornography, and at length he lands in the full-blown child pornography sites. I have interviewed child predators who claimed they were spawned as a result of their addiction to Internet pornography. Some of the predators I have interrogated over the years have told me that when they began viewing child pornography, they knew deep down in their heart that what they were doing was very wrong and against everything in which they believed; but they had lost control of their lust at that point and were unable to stop. It should be noted that when a man is viewing any type of adult porn websites, he is constantly being attacked by countless pop-ups that come across his screen, attempting to lure him to a different porn site. Some of these pop-ups are for child porn sites. Once Satan knows you’re in the ball park, he invites you to the dugout and then eventually pulls you into his clubhouse. (from chapter 14, Seducers Among Our Children, Lighthouse Trails, 2012, Patrick Crough)
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| Rick Warren Retains Unbiblical Position in New 2012 Edition of The Purpose Driven Life |
Ten years after the first edition of Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life was released, Zondervan has now released a new 2012 “Expanded Edition” of the New York Times best seller geared for a “new generation.” As the cover of the new edition reads, over 32 million copies of The Purpose Driven Life have been sold. This special Lighthouse Trails report will examine how the new edition has retained Rick Warren’s unbiblical position. FIRST SOME BACKGROUND It was Fall of 2002, and the fledgling Lighthouse Trails Publishing was just about to release its first book, A Time of Departing, written by a fairly unknown author, Ray Yungen. At the same time, unbeknownst to us, another book was hitting the bookstores but this one by a fairly well-known author, Rick Warren with his book, The Purpose Driven Life. Some knew Warren from his first book in the 90s called The Purpose Driven Church. But his name was about to become a virtual household name in the Western world with The Purpose Driven Life. As time wore on and the book climbed the charts, many, including Rick Warren himself, said it must be from God or there wouldn’t be this much success. Rick Warren came to believe that the Purpose Driven movement was the most important contribution being made to the 21st century church:
Lighthouse Trails sent a copy of A Time of Departing to Rick Warren in early 2003, hoping to warn this influential pastor of the contemplative prayer and spiritual formation movement. Warren sent a personal note thanking Lighthouse Trails for the book and admitted it was a “hot topic.” The following year, Lighthouse Trails editors heard about a book that was suggesting The Purpose Driven movement had leanings toward the New Age. LT editors purchased a copy of the book, which had been written by Warren B. Smith. The book, titled Deceived on Purpose: the New Age implications of the Purpose Driven movement, was the first book on the market that challenged Rick Warren and the Purpose Driven movement. Since then, Warren Smith has written a follow-up book titled A “Wonderful” Deception, Ray Yungen has added an entire chapter on Rick Warren in a 2nd edition of A Time of Departing (showing Rick Warren’s propensities toward and promotion of contemplative spirituality), and Lighthouse Trails author Roger Oakland included Rick Warren in his expose book on the emerging church, Faith Undone. Needless to say, Lighthouse Trails was very interested to know if Rick Warren has corrected the things that Warren Smith, Ray Yungen, and Roger Oakland challenged him on (from a biblical point of view) in their books. This report will examine these very things. Click here to continue reading this article. |
To Lighthouse Trails: I just sent an e-mail to the Bible Society in Istanbul, Turkey. Everywhere I go, I find the book of Richard Foster Celebration of Discipline and many others. I looked at the homepage of the Bible Society and found Lectio Divina also: http://www.kitabimukaddes.com/reference-books/lectio-divina-en.html. How could this crazy deception be everywhere even in the arabic world and Turkey? In the Bible Society of Dubai, you could find almost all contemplatives! A pastor in Turkey told me that he loves mysticism. Only the judgment of God can bring order again. Everywhere I go, I warn and give them your address. C. ________ |
By Canadian Cree First Nations Author Nanci Des Gerlaise The darkness clutched me like a shroud, alive with evil, poking, prodding, whispering and hissing its unmistakable message: Fear. Slavery. Terror. Death. Buried under my blanket, I held my breath, with my eyes squeezed shut, while my chest became taut with fear like the skin on the drum the medicine men pounded. Around me, the house lay all too quiet, while the muted sounds of the forest, with its hoots, chirrups, and rustling magnified my fear. How can my family rest so peacefully? I wondered for the thousandth time. Don’t they feel this evil presence? Am I the only one? As long as I’d lived, it had always been there. I popped another sleeping pill and waited for its calming effects to set in. But I had been taking too many, and they were losing their effect. In desperation, I popped a third one, gulping it down with water, and waited for the blessed unconsciousness to hit. Such was my life from the time I was a young adult until I was almost forty years old. * * * * * * I was born in the late 1950s into a family of sixteen children on a Métis Settlement in Alberta, Canada. My family descended from a long line of medicine men, which included both my Grandpa John and my dad. Often, the two spent time in the sweat lodge praying for healing, guidance, or whatever they needed. Our home always seemed filled with a dark evil presence that created havoc during the day and crippled me with fear at night. The objects Grandpa and Papa kept had demonic spirits “attached” to them, like the medicine bundle, the sacred pipes, the “protection” (from evil spirits), and other similar items. Grandpa John used to make “protection” for all of his descendants, which he gave us when we turned eighteen. This “protection” was merely a fetish sewn inside a leather pouch with either a leather throng to wear around the neck or waist, or a safety pin to pin on clothing. Grandpa also used to make voodoo dolls, asking me to cut pictures of people out of magazines. I have a sneaking suspicion he used their pictures for the faces of the voodoo dolls, because he used to laugh about it when I asked him why he wanted the pictures. The daily effects this kind of influence had on our family were tremendous. It was a strange and difficult childhood, full of hard work, abuse, neglect, and alcoholism. In addition, the practice of Native Spirituality in my home made my life a living hell as a child. Eerie things happened constantly—mystical experiences that were far more than just feelings but were strange and frightening realities. Far too many of these occurred to discount them as imagination or coincidence. For instance, when my parents left us at home alone at night, some presence would almost always harass us, as though watching us through the windows. We’d all race to the other side of the house, screaming and crying in terror. Only after the visitation ended would we slowly come out of hiding. We used to camp out on our lawn in canvas tents for fun. But when darkness began to blanket the daylight, we would see a mystical light appear across the river as though someone was carrying a torch—only no one visible. Not so long ago, this same mystical light appeared in another area of the same community. And in times past, we also would hear a baby crying when there was no baby present. Even if our neighbors had had a baby, they lived too far away for us to hear it cry. I also saw silhouettes of people, and a big black dog appeared inside our home at night a few times and then disappeared. But we didn’t own a big black dog. Once when this happened, the next morning I told Dad, “There was a big black dog running around inside the house last night. He ran from your room to our bedroom looking at everyone. I was sleeping on the couch so I had a better view of where he came from and where he went. Then suddenly, he went through the door and was gone.” “Someone shapeshifting,” Dad told me. “Checking us out to see what was going on in our home.” Native Spirituality believes that shapeshifting allows one to take on an animal form while visiting on the astral plane. The enemy loves to cripple and control people through fear. Nightmares were also a part of this evil package. Sometimes, I’d wake up to find a creature like a lizard crawling on my legs over the top of the blankets. Something told me to pinch it as hard as I could on its feet. When I did, it disappeared. A few times I awoke to find about the first three inches of the top edge of the blanket so heavy that I had to fight and struggle to get it off. Yet, there was nothing on it, and because I was not under the covering of the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, I would stay awake for hours, terrified about returning to sleep, fearing that whatever it was would return. Now that I am a born-again Christian I rarely have nightmares, but when I do, I rebuke the enemy in Jesus’ name. It flees, and I fall right back to sleep. That’s the power in Jesus’ name. Despite the strain and stresses of home life, there were times that life on our farm in a ranch-style house on the prairies was fun. My siblings and I loved to race to the creek downhill from our house, away from where our horses, cows, pigs, geese, and chickens would be. One day while my parents were in town shopping, my brother decided we should have a rodeo at the barn. We all ran to get the horses ready. We selected a two-year-old stud that wasn’t broken in yet to compete against each other. He was a wild one, and most of us got bucked off immediately. Only one brother could stay on for a couple of minutes. We soon got tired of the horses, so we would move on to riding the pigs. No one was able to stay on the pigs longer than the horse—except our second eldest brother who stayed on for a minute. I suppose this is what happens when there’s no television to watch, but we were never bored and always found something to do. But in spite of these “normal” childhood experiences, an underlying current of a mystical spirituality permeated our young lives. In fact, it affected nearly every aspect of our lives. (from chapter 1 of Muddy Waters: an insider’s view of North American Native Spirituality by Nanci Des Gerlaise) Related Articles by Nanci Des Gerlaise Two Sources of Power But Only One Source of Truth Dream Catchers – Those Popular Spidery “Sacred Hoops” |
| Sweden forces girls n’ guns, boys n’ dolls ads |
By Michael Haverluck
Sweden might be known for its safe family-friendly Volvo cars, but its Christmas toy ads are anything but family-friendly ─ by conservative standards. One of the most socially liberal nations on the planet now mandates gender confusion in ads geared toward youth. If you’re a parent looking to audition your son for a toy ad in Sweden, he’ll be more likely to be holding a Barbie or hairdryer than a G.I. Joe or toy gun. And girls will be better off posing with toy assault rifles than Easy-bake Ovens to get a spot. This politically correct casting is done in the name of gender-neutral advertising. And who is producing this new role playing? None other than Sweden’s advertising regulatory body. Click here to continue reading. |
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1. FREE CATALOG: Fill out our short form to receive a free catalog. Click here to access form. Our new 2012 catalog will be coming out in March. 2. FREE SAMPLE CHAPTERS OF LT BOOKS: http://www.lighthousetrails.com/chaptersamples.htm. 3. FREE E-NEWSLETTER & ALERTS: Sign up for our free e-newsletter and press alerts: Click here. 4. FREE BIBLE VERSE TEA SAMPLES: Check it out here. This is our own "tent-making" company to help support Lighthouse Trails. Our customers tell us the tea is delicious, and they love the KJV Bible verses, one on each tea tag. Remember, each week we draw one name from those who request samples, and that person wins a free box of tea. Click here to see what some of our readers are saying about our Shepherd's Bible Verse Tea. You may be pleasantly surprised. This is no ordinary tea. 5. NEW! FREE PDF ARTICLES: These are articles we have written that are formatted in an easy to read, easy to print PDF. We will be adding more to this page as time goes on so be sure to bookmark this page. |
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FREE BIBLE VERSE TEA SAMPLES WITH EVERY ORDER! In March of 2002, we began Lighthouse Trails as a publishing company. Later, in 2004, we added Lighthouse Trails Research Project and this newsletter as a way to get free information out to those who were reading our books. As a way to say thank you to our readers and customers of our catalog and online store, we are offering, indefinitely, to our U.S.A. customers a $5 flat rate shipping on all orders (you can choose a lesser rate for smaller orders). When you get to the third step at check out, just choose the FLAT RATE shipping option. Click here to enter store. FREE BIBLE VERSE TEA SAMPLES WITH EVERY ORDER! |
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