Dad
May 14, 2003
—MO February 21, 1972 NO.155—LTA
Copyrighted February, 1972 by The Children of God
P.O. Box 31, London WC2E 7LX, England or GPO Box 3141, San Juan‚ Puerto Rico 00936
1. Precious Children: Greetings in Jesus' Dear Name! Thank you again for your many thoughtful remembrances! We're already receiving many lovely photos of you with some of the information for which we asked and we truly appreciate them‚ as well as all your other good reports, letters, notes, cards, logs, etc. We were particularly surprised that some of you remembered my birthday, as an Aquarian of this month! From what the Lord said, I must be the Aquarian of the year! Thank you for your thoughtfulness, and thanks to all my little lovers for your loving Valentines as well! God bless you all! I love you, too!
VICTORY OVER OUR ENEMIES THROUGH OBEDIENCE TO THE WORD!
2. WE HOPE YOU ALL WERE ENCOURAGED BY THE THRILLING PROSPECTS OF OUR LAST LETTER‚ "A Wonderful Worldwide Wave of Witnessing!" Already as of this writing, since that last letter, we have increased to about 100 Colonies, and your mighty wave is mounting! We trust you're preparing feverishly for the tidal wave it's soon to become! According to the latest news, we've increased at the rate of ten Colonies a week for the past two weeks, doubling our rate of growth of the past two months. I don't have all the other statistics as yet, but I presume they will be just as astounding! Praise the Lord!
3. GOD BLESS YOU FOR YOUR GOOD WORK! You and the Lord are doing a great job in reaching multitudes of lost youth with the Good News of His Love! Keep it up! They can't stop His Rain, even though they're trying hard! They even celebrated my birthday with a National Convention on how to destroy me! They claim they love you, and are only after the leadership that is leading you astray. If they could destroy God's leadership, where do you think they would lead you? Do you think the enemies would want you to continue in the direction God is now moving you? Not likely! So what they're really trying to destroy is not only us, but the Work of God!
4. OUR ENEMIES MIGHT AS WELL HAVE SAVED THEMSELVES THE TROUBLE, because God Himself has promised us that if this work be of man, it will come to naught, but if it be of God, no man can stand against it!—So they're wasting their time! If it's not of God‚ they won't have to destroy it, but if it is, they can't! So they might as well save their time and money in trying to fight us, because whatever is of man will come to naught anyway, and whatever is of God, no power on earth can stop!
Hallelujah! (Acts 5:34-39)
5. "YE ARE OF GOD, LITTLE CHILDREN, AND HAVE OVERCOME THEM: because greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth and the spirit of error!" Amen! (1Jn.4.) Isn't it wonderful to have God's Word for it for our encouragement! I hope you are brainwashing yourselves with it constantly and absorbing it into the very fibre of your being, for it is His Word by His Spirit in His Love that makes you strong! Please do not neglect it for it is food for your soul and give you strength for the battle! Read, Study‚ memorise, and enjoy it, and ye shall have strength for your souls! God bless you!
6. THIS IS WHY THE CHILDREN OF GOD ARE SO MUCH STRONGER THAN THE CHILDREN OF THIS WORLD: you know the Word‚ and none can stand against It! You stand strong in the power of His Spirit wielding accurately the Sword of His Spirit, which is the Word of God‚ mighty to the tearing down of strongholds—not the pitiful little carnal weapons that our enemies use, who try to wrestle against flesh and blood with their puny carnal weapons, only to find that they have come face to face with Almighty God and His Children! Let them therefore beware‚ lest they be found to be fighting against God Himself—and His Children!
7. WE MUST REALLY BE ACCOMPLISHING A LOT FOR THE LORD, or the Enemy wouldn't be fighting us so hard! We must really be doing God's Will, or he wouldn't be so mad! Hallelujah! Let's keep him trembling! Keep on praying and obeying and you'll shake him clear out of his boots one of these days! Praise God! All you have to do is serve Him—Jesus! And that's exactly what you're doing! Hallelujah! We have more fulltime labourers winning more souls to Christ and making more news doing it than any other Christian group in the world today that I know of! Indeed, ye are the Children of God! Praise God!
8. BUT AS IN EVERY WAR, THERE ARE MANY HAZARDS and pitfalls and traps of the Enemy! We may not win all the battles, but we're going to win the War! And it's of these individual losses that I want to warn you, which could hurt the whole Cause and slow us down in some areas as well as bring you shame! But I also want to commend you for your victories, to inspire you to even greater achievements by His Grace. Amen! Don't let anything stop you!
LARGE COLONIES ARE EXCEPTIONS—SMALL COLONIES MOST FRUITFUL
9. ALONG THIS LINE I'D LIKE TO COMMENT ON SOME OF THE RECENT NEWS LETTERS I have at hand and note some of the things that I have learned from them, both good and bad: I notice we still have a few Colonies that are still too large to operate effectively. I know that perhaps a very few slightly oversize Colonies may be necessary for the handling of such specialized operations such as the schooling of our children and the carrying on of a centre of communications. But unless you have those excuses, I suggest you keep busy trying to trim down your Colony. The more people you send out, the more new Colonies will be established, the more young people will be reached, and the more effectively you'll be able to operate. This is already proving true in the good reports we're getting from our present decentralisation.
10. MOST OF THE SMALLER COLONIES SEEM TO BE DOING GREAT, ESPECIALLY THE NEW PIONEER ONES! They always seem to get the most fruit and the most results and have the most faith for needs! Congratulations, Pioneers! You're doing a great job! But don't forget to thank some of the large older Colonies for helping you get started! God bless them, too, for supplying the personnel, transportation, instruction‚ and provision to get you going! Praise the Lord!
11. YOU NEW COLONIES THAT ARE GETTING SO MANY DECISIONS AND DISCIPLES, WATCH FOR QUALITY‚ because I notice some of you are also having quite a few backsliders! Be sure to treat them with love and ground them in the Faith, and make sure they really want to live for the Lord! Remember, we're not flop–houses or overnight crash pads or mere youth hostels!—We are genuine officers' training schools preparing a cadre for world leadership! So let's gun for the best, that won't go back no matter what happens!
WOMEN—THE NEED TO RECRUIT MORE AND SHARE THEM.
12. WE'RE ALSO CONCERNED ABOUT THE LOW PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN, in some of your Colonies, far below the world average that we have of one woman to every two men, or one out of three. A number of you have as few as one out of five; and with some of you it's as much as only one out of ten; and with two or three, actually none, and begging for help! Nevertheless, we note that several Colonies have more than their share of women and need to distribute a few to the more needy! But the only thing that's really going to solve this problem is for you to get on the ball and get the burden to really pray that the Lord will help you win them! It makes me wonder if some of you boys really love those girls as much as you should?—Or do you still have a hangover of contempt for them that you've brought with you from the System? If so, ask the Lord to deliver you and to help you love and baby the babes—the gal babes, in this case! Amen? We ought to be putting on an all-out drive to recruit more women for the Lord's Army so we'll have enough leadership to man all these new Colonies!
13. I SUGGEST RIGHT NOW THAT YOU COLONIES WHO HAVE MORE THAN ONE WOMAN TO EVERY TWO MEN IMMEDIATELY ASK FOR VOLUNTEERS who are willing to share themselves with those Colonies who have less! All you have to do to find out which Colonies are in the direst need of women is to look down the line of statistics in the Newsletter and compare the number of their women to their total to see which of you have more than your share‚ and who needs help! Please take action on this at once! Every Colony needs at least a few girls to add that feminine touch of their charm, grace, and adornment, as well as to do all the things that a woman can do which a man can't! So please get with it, Girls! There's a woman shortage—a famine in the land for les femmes! We have need of the female sex in more ways than one! Please cooperate and give of yourselves to the Master!
14. I KNOW THAT IN THE SCHOOL AND OFFICE COLONIES YOU ARE MOSTLY MARRIED COUPLES WITH CHILDREN and so are naturally going to have a slightly higher proportion of women than some of the other Colonies, and this is understandable! We're not trying to break up families! But is you do have any to spare, pity the poor fellows who have none! And some of you guys who don't appreciate you wives‚ think of the poor fellows who haven't any, and maybe you'll treat'em better!
COLD CLIMATES—HEALTH AND SAFETY
15. WE'RE ALSO GREATLY CONCERNED ABOUT THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE LOCATED IN EXTREMELY COLD CLIMATES‚ and we pray earnestly for you daily! We also hope and pray that you have some of you there in these very cold climates who know how to deal with the emergencies which arise in these climates: plumbing which must be kept from freezing; engines which must be kept warm; wheels that need snow tires or chains, vehicles that need heaters; housing which must be extra well heated; people who must be kept bundled and warm, with plenty of warm clothing! Please see to it you have all of these things, for I'm sure God will be more than glad to supply them if you'll realise the need, have the faith‚ and do your part to provision them! Shepherds, care for you flocks!
SELLING LIT FOR NEEDS
16. SPEAKING OF NEEDS DON'T BE AFRAID TO SELL THE TRUTH NEWS PAPER! It's worth it‚ you need the money, and the people need the paper and will appreciate it more and treasure it more if they have to pay for it! "For where you treasure is, there will your heart be also!" (Mt.6:21) If you run across some poor kid who really can't afford it‚ why give it to him, of course! He‚ too, will treasure it more if he knows it's worth twenty-five cents, even if you gave it to him! But make the rest of them pay what it's worth‚ and don't be afraid to accept donations for more! You need it, and the Systemites can afford to give it, and God'll bless 'em for it! Just please don't forget to send a few cents for each paper back to the poor guys at COGIC who have to put out all that time and money to print it! Please help us pay for it if you can! We're trying to help you with the paper, but we also need you help to keep it going! Amen? Thanks! Don't you think it's beautiful?—A real masterpiece! The Truth Staff deserves your support! Show'em you appreciate the paper! God bless you, Staff! Great work! It would encourage you all to know that you papers are getting a good response!
REPORTS—DEADLINES AND STATISTICS
17. SOME OF YOU COLONIES, IN SENDING IN YOUR REPORTS OF NUMBERS, are forgetting to list you couples separately now. In your statistics, you should first give the total, as you're all doing‚ but then in parentheses, the number of couples plus the number of single men and the number of single women and the number of children, which most of you haven't been doing lately. Please don't forget this! It's very important to our understanding of the makeup of you Colony. Thank you. Also, as you've probably heard from Deb by now, why not let you report week end on Thursday, so you won't have to be writing them on a busy weekend‚ and can get them in the mail earlier, not later than Friday. This'll help us both! Thanks for you faithfulness! Aren't those figures exciting!
GET FULL INFO ON CONTACTS, FRIENDS AND OPEN DOORS
18. PLEASE SEND US THE NAMES AND ADDRESSED AND RELATIONSHIP AND A LITTLE INFORMATION about your good contacts, friends, relatives, or possible openings for new Colonies in other cities or countries where we do not yet have one. We need to know a little more about them, as well as whose friend or relative they are, or the name of the disciple who has the contact‚ so we can try to develop these further. Have that disciple write us a note about the situation, giving his own legal name as well, and attach it to your Shepherd's Report. We're going to try to keep a file of these possible openings at the Central Office in order to try to find labourers to fill them, which may include the person who gave us the contact, if he so desires.
19. A GIRL ONCE GAVE THE L.A. COLONY THE NAME AND ADDRESS OF HER GIRLFRIEND who had a castle available in Ireland‚ but failed to give us her own name. We could just imagine ourselves knocking on the castle door and saying, "a friend of ours in America sent us, but we don't know her name!" I doubt if they'd let the drawbridge down for us unless we can name you, the friend, and say you sent us! Please give us your legal name when you send in these contacts and describe the relationship and the situation and possibilities. Thanks!
20. BY THE WAY‚ THERE'S AT LEAST ONE GUY IN THE REVOLUTION WHO NEVER HAD IT SO GOOD: He's that lone male in a cozy little Colony of three widows! Now he's married to one of them, I understand, and acts as their protector and provider, as well as leader, and I think it's a great idea, and it really seems to solve the pressing problem of widows with children! Let's have more of `em!
21. IT'S AMAZING THE NUMBER OF NEW OPENINGS GOD IS GIVING US, including housing, coffee houses, and fertile new fields! Praise His Name! You see, I knew the Lord would do it if we'd just obey and get out and go—and now He's doing it, because we're doing it, and We're absolutely exploding all over the world! Praise God! Hallelujah! Keep up that Gospel atom bomb chain reaction!
POLICY ON DRIVING CARS AND HORSES WITH WAGONS
22. BUT PLEASE WATCH YOUR DRIVING, and take care of your vehicles! We need both you and the cars if we're going to get the job done, and if we're going to be able to keep both of you, you're going to have to drive more prayerfully. We're still in the process of preparing more lessons on "Have Faith—Will Travel!"—And the next one's on driving! But please don't get yourself killed or in jail or your vehicle totaled before I get it to you! Please drive prayerfully and legally and safely! Don't take chances! And don't drive unless you know how, are experience, have a good safety record, and a legal license, and really watch and pray! We're having too many breakdowns, tickets and accidents! Why do you want to contribute so much to the System?—and let them slow you down? Slow yourself down before it happens! From what I've heard of some of these accidents and traffic violations‚ we need to "Comfort the feebleminded" by leaving him at home and not behind the wheel of a car! A place of responsibility is no place for anyone with a weak mind!—And let me tell you, the driver's seat is one of the most responsible and dangerous positions in the world! Take it seriously, and ask God for help! Use love!
23. WHICH REMINDS ME, THE LORD TOLD US A LONG TIME AGO WE'D BETTER START GETTING READY WITH HORSES AND WAGONS for the day soon coming when there won't be anymore gasoline, oil, tires, car parts, or may be even highways! So every Colony with a farm ought to have at least one horse and wagon in case of emergencies. It could have already saved some of you snow or mud-bound victims a lot of trouble! And when the bread gets low, it could be mighty handy to have a hay burner who can find his fuel in any grassy patch along the road! One Colony already has nine horses!—Be sure you know how to handle them!
POLICIES ON GOOD STEWARDSHIP OF MATERIAL GOODS, FUNDS AND TELEPHONES.
24. WHICH ALSO REMINDS ME THAT SOME OF YOU SEEM TO HAVE A CONTEMPT FOR MATERIAL THINGS which God has given you and of which you are supposed to be a good steward, such as vehicles, houses, equipment, and even money! Remember, it's not the money that's the root of all evil, but the love of it! You're supposed to take care of it and those things God has given you to use for His Glory, and be good stewards of them, as they belong to the Lord! I was always more careful of the other guy's stuff than I was of my own, because I knew if anything happened to the thing I'd borrowed‚ I'd have to repair it or replace it!—Whereas if it were mine, I could just forget it! So remember, like your body, these things are not your own, but are bought with a price, and you're supposed to take good care of them, so they can be used as long as possible for the Lord's Glory! Don't knock it—But use it!—And certainly don't abuse it!
25. YOUR FUNDS SHOULD BE USED, FIRST OF ALL, FOR ABSOLUTE NECESSITIES, such as food, housing, heat, and utilities; and transportation and other bills last! Never pay cash for anything you can buy on time! You'll get better service out of the company you bought it from if you still owe them money, but be sure you keep up your payments faithfully‚ and on time Good credit is a good recommendation and of good report and a good testimony!—It's better than money! It's your reputation for being honest and trustworthy as a Child of God—Someone who can be depended on to keep his word—not a liar, a cheat, or a thief!
26. IF YOU HAVE A SURPLUS, IT MAY BE FOR SOMETHING YOU DON'T KNOW you need, or it may be for some other Colony that is in need‚ so call for you Regional shepherd, or better yet, write him, and ask for his advice on what to do with it. TRY NOT TO USE THE TELEPHONE IF YOU CAN HELP IT! Long distance telephone calls are getting to be one of the biggest extravagances in the Revolution! We cannot afford these misuses! Never use the phone when a letter will do! Never call long distance unless it's a life and death emergency that can't wait—Or unless you want to lose your phone because you can't pay the bill—and you'll still have to pay it, and find it very hard to get your phone back without a big deposit! Cut those calls, or they'll cut your line and service!
POLICY ON FINANCES AND ACCURATE RECORD KEEPING
27. ON FINANCES: WE HAVE ADVISED YOU TO KEEP VERY ACCURATE FINANCIAL ACCOUNTS, BOOKS AND RECORDS OF ALL FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS‚ including income and expenditures with receipts for everything, all checks plainly I.D.'d for that purpose, and all your check records showing what they were spent for. All these records should be kept accurately and diligently, being diligent in business, and everything being done in decency and in order, or you may be sorry in the event of some future financial investigation. You may have to prove where the money went, that you didn't spend it on yourself, or put it in your own bank account for your personal use, or you may have to explain to the IRS why you shouldn't pay taxes on it as personal income—if you don't keep those records! Keep books! Keep records! God does‚ and He expects you to!
28. WE HAVE NOT ASKED YOU TO SEND US THESE RECORDS, as each Colony is completely independent financially and responsible for its own things. But it might be well if you would include in your weekly Shepherd's Report just the approximate totals of your week's cash income and outgo‚ so we can see how you are getting along‚ and if you need help or could help others. This will also help us to know if you are faithfully keeping records and books, cause you could not give us these totals without same. This is for your own sake and the sake of the "R", so please do it immediately on your next Shepherd's Report, and every week hereafter! This is for your own good, as we care for your souls!
NECESSITY OF KEEPING APPOINTMENTS AND YOUR WORD WITH KINGS, MEDIA, ETC.
29. ON BEING DILIGENT STEWARDS: THIS INCLUDES KEEPING YOUR WORD ABOUT APPOINTMENTS! Don't disappoint people! Keep calendar reminders! Be there! BE PARTICULARLY SCRUPULOUS ABOUT KEEPING DATES WITH THE NEWS MEDIA, for these are very busy men and their time is valuable, and when they're interested enough to grant you some of their precious time, it's an insult for you to ignore it or carelessly forget it, or even be late! Worst of all, it is a terrible lack of consideration‚ which is a manifest evidence of a lack of love which is supposed to be our greatest attribute, and which is one of the main reason they come to see us, because of our love. But if we do not show enough love toward them to even be concerned about keeping a date with them on time‚ it will certainly greatly disappoint and disillusion them in the good things they hope to hear about us and prove about us, if they're favorable; and will only confirm the doubts of those who are unfavorable, and is more than likely to make the average newsman furious at you for having wasted his time, and mad enough to write a critical story about you! At the very least, as has happened in some cases‚ they will report the other side's version and then say at the close of their article that you could not be contacted or failed to show for an arranged interview! This looks and sounds like you are afraid to show, that you're ashamed to show, and that you are therefore obviously guilty of the enemy's charges, which the reporter has recounted in his article. This means you've given the enemy a chance to speak against you, but you have failed God yourself in not showing up to witness for the truth, and failing to stand up for the truth is nearly as bad as denying Him! That's just how bad it is! DON'T YOU DARE TO MISS AN APPOINTMENT WITH THE NEWS MEDIA, OFFICIALS, KINGS, OR SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS, OR YOU HAVE FAILED GOD and missed an appointment with Him! In the nearly fifteen years that I dealt with business executives such as station managers and program directors in the radio and television field, I was never late nor missed an appointment for a interview more than two or three times in all those years, and even in those cases it was only because of some dire and unavoidable impossibility, in which cases, as soon as I knew I was not going to be able to make it on time, I immediately phoned the man to apologies‚ explain so he could save his time and I could keep his good will and obtain a later appointment, if possible. Otherwise, you have defeated God's whole purpose in making you a witness and undoubtedly prejudiced someone against you, and turned them from a definite or potential friend into a very likely enemy. It just isn't worth it! BE THERE, AND ON TIME!—OR PHONE them immediately as soon as you know you can't make it, and apologies with a very good reason, and try to postpone the appointment to some other time! And remember, a vehicle breakdown is not a good reason: you can walk, hitchhike or catch a cab if you have to, and as I have had to do many times in order to make it! Neither is forgetting a good excuse!—That is the worst of all reasons! It shows you didn't think it was important enough to remember or jot it down somewhere so you couldn't possibly forget. Neither is some other business which you think is more important a good excuse to a man who has laid aside all of his other important business to talk to you! It's as good as slapping him in the face, and saying my business is more important than your business! I'm sure of course, that you think so, but I'm not at all sure he will agree with you and forgive you for wasting his precious time‚ and he will certainly no longer have faith in your word nor your witness. When you have promised to meet someone at a certain time‚ you have in effect vowed a vow, which God's Word says you must keep, or suffer the consequences. As a Child of God, there could scarcely be anything more important than keeping your word to others, else you're a liar‚ a cheat‚ a thief, and a false witness! You have stolen the most precious thing any man can have outside of his soul: his time! And worst of all, you have destroyed his confidence in us and our Message! Some of you seem to think it's System to be bound by time, schedules, appointments, etc. Let me tell you, Brother, the day that time shall be no more is not yet with us!—And yes, you are still under its bondage when it comes to dealing with the System and outsiders who live by it! Don't waste theirs or yours!
READ THE MO LETTERS DAILY AS GOD MADE MO THE SHEPHERD
30. AND THIS REMINDS ME, THAT YOU, MY DEAR CHILDREN HAVE AN APPOINTMENT WITH ME EVERY DAY, and you'd better not miss it, or you're going to be sorry! To ignore the Word of the Lord through His Prophet is to ignore the Voice of God Himself‚ and if you're not going to be willing to spend time listening to God's directions‚ you're not going to get far!
31. GOD MADE ME YOUR SHEPHERD!—AND YOU HAD BETTER FOLLOW, or you're going to miss God and His Will! It was not my idea!—It was God's! If you think you can be a part of God's mighty Movement without following its leadership—His chosen leadership—you are mistaken! If you think you can be a Revolutionary for Jesus and not follow the one God chose to start that Revolution—you're going to be sadly disappointed!
32. I DID NOT CHOOSE TO BE YOUR LEADER: GOD CHOSE ME!— I MERELY OBEYED! And, as God told me‚ by one man's obedience, many would be made righteous! I am merely following God, and, as the Apostle Paul said, Be ye therefore followed of me, even as I am also of the Lord Jesus Christ! (1Co.11:1) As throughout all time, God has always required His People to follow and obey His chosen Mouthpiece‚ His Prophet, His man of God, His chosen Leader, Shepherd, or King! Those who rejected God's leadership through His anointed ones fell by the wayside, or were destroyed! But those who believed, followed and obeyed, were blessed of the Lord‚ prospered‚ were protected and provided for, and reached their goal—God's Goal! Those who doubted, followed not, and disobeyed, ended only in confusion, frustration, and despair!
THE HISTORY OF THE JESUS REVOLUTION AND ITS GOD-APPOINTED LEADER
33. THIS IS NOT MY PLAN, BUT GOD'S PLAN! THE JESUS REVOLUTION was not my idea, but God's! We did not even name ourselves!—God named us His Children!—It was the Will of God! Not since the days of Israel has any group been known literally by such a proper name!—God reserved it for us—His Endtime Children—The Remnant of all time!
34. I DID NOT START THE JESUS REVOLUTION: BUT JESUS DID—THROUGH ME! I have to chuckle when I read the various news accounts of how it was supposed to have started somewhere in California, no one knows exactly where, and sometime in the late Sixties, no one knows exactly when! But those of you who were with me then remember exactly where, exactly when and exactly how, and exactly with whom!
35. BEFORE US, THERE WAS NO JESUS REVOLUTION, THERE WERE NO JESUS PEOPLE and no mighty so-called Revival amongst the youth of California, much less America or the world! No one was reaching the Hippie Generation with the Love of Christ‚ because no one loved them, certainly not the Church! The Church had rejected them, literally turned away the long hairs, and hung out sings, "No bare feet!"—And one of the greatest youth evangelists of the day, David Wilkerson, literally locked the doors of his rallies against them‚ ridiculed them, and cracked dirty jokes against them, and said he had never really known one to get saved! We know, because we heard him, and we experienced his lockouts and suffered his persecution!—SO DAVID WILKERSON WAS NOT THE MESSIAH OF THE HIPPIE GENERATION!—He was the Saviour of the juvenile gangs of New York and the Beatniks of yesterday, but he failed the youth of today and turned them away from his doors; and instead‚ turned to the nice little church kids to get church support! He publicly denounced hippies and us, and even wrote a whole chapter against them and us in his book, "Purple Violet Squish", describing us by name and quoting us and warning the ministry and the churches that this was not the way to win the Hippie Generation by stooping to their level!—In fact, he doubted that they could be won at all! He condemned them for their hair‚ their clothes, their drugs‚ and their way of life, and even compared them to Samson in the Bible, God's man for the hour, as a dandy bad example! But in his latest book, somewhat significantly titled‚ "Get Your Hands Off My Throat", he belatedly laments that he was wrong about the hippies as a hopeless generation, wrong in his attacks on them, and literally apologises for his former attitude, too late, because both they and God have passed him by! Now he is trying to climb on the bandwagon of the Jesus Revolution, which has already left him far behind, and he'll never make it, because you can even tell by his latest book that although he's somewhat repentant, that his system attitudes towards the dress, the hair, etc., are much the same, and his ideal is to change all this and change them into nice little System church robots like the rest of the Church! He clearly shows this is his preference, and he still condemns us and our ways both publicly and privately, and even falsely accuses us of the use of drugs‚ etc., agreeing with the lies of our enemies about us, and still warning the churches against us and ours!—So that David missed the boat!
36. BILLY GRAHAM DIDN'T CATCH IT EITHER; although he came a little closer by being more charitable toward the long hairs he was still a mass evangelist of the old school and a Systematised conventional representative of the Churchianity System, and he had nothing better to offer them after Christ but the dead stinking‚ body of a decaying Church System! And I know of no other great youth evangelist or man of God who was really reaching the Hippie Generation, because they all represented the Church System with which the hip generation wanted absolutely no part in. They had church up to here and were sick of its emptiness, deadness‚ hypocrisy, and lack of love, especially for them; so naturally they turned, in their search for truth, love‚ and peace, to other religions and philosophies and the anti-System political ideals of radicalism, Socialism, and Communism, and to a way of life totally contrary to the System's whole economic, religious and political philosophies.
37. ANOTHER REASON THE CHURCH AND CHURCH MEN WERE UNABLE TO REACH THE HIP GENERATION WAS BECAUSE THEY WERE UNWILLING TO BECOME HIPPIES to do it. They were unwilling to become one of them as Jesus did. I know of none who adopted their dress, their language, their customs, their way of thinking‚ and did not condemn them for it. I know of none who took them into their home, fed them, slept with them, and sat with them on the floor to show them the ways of the Lord. As Wilkerson said, this was stooping too low!
38. BUT JESUS DID—IN US! And though He was rich, yet He became poor, that ye‚ through His poverty, might become rich, in Spirit, and the Love of God! "Who ... made Himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man. He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross! Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him!" (2Co.8: 9; Phil.2:7-9)
39. AND THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT HE LED US TO DO!—To come down from our lofty, churchy, position‚ and indeed, to become an outcast of the so-called Church, and to be even condemned by them as being no longer a Christian because we had chosen to become your Servant and your Friend and one of you, in dress, in speech, in hair and beard, in habitat, custom‚ and philosophy—an outcast of society, criticised by our own friends and loved ones, and condemned by the Old Church and the System as being their enemy, because we had become your friend!—And in this, they confessed that they hated you, as well as me!
40. "JESUS ALSO, that he might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth, therefore, unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach!"... "Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the Cross despising the shame!" (He.13:12; 12:2) And this we did, gladly and willingly, for you! We put on your clothing, stepped into your shoes, wore your peace emblem, let our hair and beard grow, walked your streets with you, talked with you‚ frequented your hangouts and tried to become one of you for your sake‚ because we loved you. We even gave out flowers and smoked incense, and listened to your music to find out what you liked, 'cause we liked you! We not only loved you, but we really liked you, we understood you, and we sympathised with you‚ and became one of you, and your cause was our cause, your defeats our defeats, your suffering our sufferings!
41. I'LL NEVER FORGET THE FIRST TIME I WALKED INTO THE CLUB and lay down on the floor with you in my broken sandals, worn-out pants, ragged old jacket‚ torn beret, dark glasses, lengthening hair, and greying beard, and one of you lying next to me spoke up with the cheery greeting of welcome‚ "Hi‚ Dad!—What's your trip?"—In other words: "Welcome to the club, I see you're one of us, even though I don't exactly understand why, but I'm glad to have you here, and willing to learn!"
42. YOU SOON FOUND OUT WHAT MY TRIP WAS! Having found you were afraid of the future of this awful world which you despised for its violence‚ emptiness, and hypocrisy, as I walked the streets with you and talked with you, God had broken may heart for you, and I had wept for you, for the Lord had spoken to me:
"THEY WANDER ABOUT AS SHEEP HAVING NO SHEPHERD, AND THEY NEED YOU TO BE THAT SHEPHERD! They are rebels without a cause, Revolutionists without a leader‚ despised, rejected, and abused, and with no comforter or advocate nor any to bring them together. I can make you that one if you follow Me!" (Tongues and weeping "Behold, how I did break the heart of David and cause his tears to flow for thee, My little lambs!") I said, "Lord, I'll follow—show me the way!"—And He did, and it led straight into your hearts, and you took me in! You opened your hearts and took me in! That was the most wonderful thing about it!—Though old enough to be your father, and of the already hated generation of your parents‚ you opened your hearts and received me as your Friend, and more, as your own beloved Father in the Lord; your Shepherd, whose voice you suddenly knew as yours, and followed, for it was the Lord's‚ through me! Hallelujah!
43. THEN IT BEGAN—THE REVOLUTION FOR JESUS!—Which the whole world has now recognised as the Jesus Revolution! I'll never forget that first night I walked into the Club and screamed at the top of my voice: "THE REVOLUTION!—FOR JESUS!" I nearly scared some of you to death! It certainly frightened the church people, and they immediately condemned us for even using the word, and said it wasn't "Christian". Of Course‚ some of them had already condemned you, and told you not to come back to the Club until you looked, dressed‚ and acted like a Christian! I don't know why they expected this of you, since you weren't Christians; but now it didn't matter any more and we soon drove them out, because they weren't really Christian and condemned everything we did!
44. WE WERE THE FIRST TO CRY "REVOLUTION!—For Jesus!" the first to use a finger salute, the first to form hand holding prayer circles and wait for the manifestations of the Spirit, the first to conduct beach baptisms‚ sign carrying marches for Jesus, and church sit–ins, the first to picket the schools, stores and churches in protest against their hypocritical systems of education, commercialism and religion, the first to be turned away from Wilkerson rallies and thrown out of churches, the first to conduct a Club entirely for the hippies and not church kids and to use real rock music without hymns, the first to declare open warfare on the diabolical churchianity System, the first to have total freedom and dancing in our worship—at least the first of our day.—And the first to hit the headlines for it!—And they condemned us for it all!
45. BUT AS SOON AS WE WERE GONE, THEY BEGAN TO IMITATE US, and some of the very ones we had led to the Lord and others who had observed us, but didn't want to join us or pay the price of breaking with the Church, began to use the same methods, and similar cries‚ signs, slogans, and demonstrations; including that church in Redondo Beach whose leader Ho led to the Lord; and Chuck Smith's Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa who quenched the Spirit when we were in his church, but later let the Lord have His way; and Duane Pedersen of Hollywood Presbyterian, who was taught some of our ways by one of our own girls who lived with us and left us—and so on and so on—And so it began! NOW THEY'RE ALL IMITATING US AND FOLLOWING IN OUR FOOTSTEPS WHERE WE FIRST PIONEERED, and have been accepted the word "Revolution"‚ the hair the beards, the clothes, and many of our methods, signs, slogans, etc.
46. THEY EVEN MANAGED TO MAKE THE JESUS REVOLUTION POPULAR BY TAKING THE JESUS PEOPLE INTO THEIR CHURCHES AND LETTING THE CHURCH KIDS DO IT without having to leave the church! The churches decided to compromise with the long hairs rather than lose them altogether, and by so doing, persuaded the Jesus People to compromise with them and re-enter their folds under false shepherds promoting a phoney Revolution which they did not really believe in, but were merely trying to capture and bind with their own traditions‚ and stifle with their own stink, and entomb in their own mausoleums!—As did the Jews of Jesus' day‚ the synagogues of Satan, who persuaded multitudes of Early Christians to compromise and become the weak and ineffective watered-down, law-bound, Concision or Circumcision, a deception and delusion to which many fell prey!—And by which the religious System attempted to keep control and channel the Revolution their way to their own advantage!
47. THE CHURCHES TOLD THEM THAT THE KIDS COULD HAVE THEIR NEW REVOLUTIONARY KICK AND STILL FEED OF THE OLD DRIED UP BREAD OF CHURCHIANITY, dry as cracker dust ten miles from a glass of water; and if they would do this, they would help them, house them, support them, protect them, and favor them, instead of fight them. So since forsaking all and living together and spending all of your time studying and memorising the Bible and witnessing and working for Jesus fulltime doesn't appeal to most church Christians, the vast majority of the new Jesus People were sucked in by this compromising line of the churches‚ of don't forsake, don't sacrifice, and don't lay down your life for Jesus but come‚ eat, drink and be merry with us and you won't have to die for the Lord!—You can still live for yourself and do your own thing and be a phoney for Jesus, like us and receive the praise of man for being hypocrites like Ananias and Sapphira, and get the credit for what you really haven't done or given! They made the gate wide and the way broad for multitudes to return to Perdition, and many were deceived by it and entered therein; and as far as I'm concerned‚ I'd rather have seen them drop dead than lead so many astray! They got the crowds to crucify us!
REQUIRED DAILY CLASS WITH MO!
48. BUT THE REAL REVOLUTION ROLLS ON UNDER GOD'S CHOSEN AND ORIGINAL LEADERSHIP‚ AND YOU HAD BETTER FOLLOW IT OR YOU'RE GOING TO MISS THE BOAT like the rest of them! So what's all that got to do with MO Letters? It means you'd better read and study them and share them with your flock or you too are going to miss the original pattern that God has given from the very beginning, and fall by the way like the rest of them! You'll make mistakes, pull boners, blunders, and really blow it, if you don't stick to the plan God has given‚ and follow the leadership. He has anointed and appointed! You'll miss the mark!
49.SO MO LETTERS ARE MY DAILY CLASS WITH YOU, AND SHOULD OCCUPY A SPECIFIC HOUR AND A HALF TO TWO HOURS OF YOUR DAILY SCHEDULE EVERY DAY WITHOUT FAIL for leaders, LT's and all, "treasures both new and old", the voice of your Shepherd!—Or you're going to be sorry and go astray, get caught in the brambles, lost, or devoured by the Wolves. There are even many good portions of Letters addressed to "Leaders Only" which can be shared with the LT's and even the babes, and many directed to "LT's Only"‚ portions of which would be very good for the babes as well, if you'll use discernment and wisdom. Any parts that you think would be good for others than those for whom they are designated, and which would not be too strong meat for them or cause weaker brethren to stumble, you are welcome to share with those under you. But I certainly don't think It's wise to read many of them to Systemites or outsiders, or when they are present! Some have very foolishly read strong meat like "Gypsies" etc. when strangers and even enemies were present, and blew some of them away, which was pure folly! Please use wisdom!—And please read them at a time when visitors are least likely to be present; but please try not to read them so late that everyone is too weary to even hear them, much less absorb them! And please, for God's Sake and His sheep's sake, TRY TO GET SOMEONE TO READ THEM WHO LOVES THEM‚ studies them knows the spirit of them, and can really read them with all his heart‚ expression, and understanding‚ so the kids will catch the spirit and meaning of every Letter! Thanks for listening! GBY!
LEADERSHIP DUTIES—NOT TO NEGLECT THE PHYSICAL OR SPIRITUAL SIDE OF THE COLONY
50. CONCERNING DUTIES OF LEADERSHIP: THOUGH YOU MAY NOT YOURSELF HAVE TIME TO TEND TABLES, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO SEE TO IT THAT THEY ARE TENDED and to check on everyone to see to it they're doing their job, and everything to see to it that things are in proper condition, including the cleanliness‚ orderliness, and attractiveness of your house or camp! Many nights when you were either in meetings or asleep, we used to patrol the camp and see that everything and everyone was O.K. making sure that everyone was in class or meeting and that the grounds or premises were clean and in order, and were often able to call to the attention of your leaders things that needed to be done or people who needed help. YES, LEADERS, IT IS YOUR DUTY TO FREQUENTLY RUN AROUND THE CAMP AND SEE THAT EVERYTHING IS KEPT GOING! It's also your duty to see that none of the babes are neglected or mistreated and are in good health both physically and spiritually, if you're a good shepherd—and not do as some have done in thinking that other things were more important than caring for their sheep!—Or you won't be a leader for long!
PROPER DISPOSAL OF TRASH, AND CLEANLINESS IN THE HOUSE AND YARD!
51. IT'S EVEN VERY IMPORTANT TO SEE THAT THE TRASH IS DISPOSED OF PROPERLY, or it can be a terrible testimony to the neighbours and an offense to officials, or a hazard to health and safety. See that garbage is in tight covered containers or buried so that it doesn't breed files, stink up the neighbourhood, or get scattered all over by the dogs. If you have to burn your own trash, be sure that it's burned safely in small amounts, either in your fireplace in the Winter‚ or your incinerator in the Summer, or an old oil drum covered with a screen to prevent the spreading of sparks to dry grass or other nearby combustible materials or buildings. Therefore see that it's burned in a safe container of some kind at a considerable distance from any buildings, brush, or rubbish which could catch fire from a stray spark or ash, and always have someone watching it with water nearly just in case until it has died completely down or been put out. Also be very sure that no confidential materials or papers or identifying envelopes, etc. bearing names, addresses, or other selah information are ever placed in trash containers which are emptied by the System! Burn or destroy these separately in your own wood stove or fireplace, or bury or burn somewhere, or tear in such tiny pieces they could not possibly be put together and deciphered, or you may be surprised someday what the System can learn about you from your trash! I remember a gang leader once who was caught just by sifting his trash!—And too many wine bottles don't make a very good testimony either!—Neither does throwing away good clothing, or materials which others might think you should have salvaged when so poor!
52. SPEAKING OF CLEANLINESS: ITS NOT NEXT TO GODLINESS, BUT PART OF IT! Trash, garbage‚ and dirt not only breed flies and disease, but look bad, are depressing, and a very poor testimony and hereby have many been contaminated, sickened, and even made offensive and dangerous to others! Douse that dirt with soap and water; sweep and clean, but don't spit and polish: It's unsanitary! Painting also not only cheers and brightens, but sterilises and preserves, believe it or not—and makes your neighbours love you! A neatly trimmed lawn with pretty, well–kept flowerbeds and not littered with junk and old jalopies; as well as a tidy porch not strewn with clothes and more odds and ends; and a backyard kept neat and clean and free from hazardous piles of trash, garbage, dog dung and other junk, will help your neighbours to love you in spite of your noise and religion!
LAWS ON HEALTH—PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL
53. AS FOR HEALTH: SOMEONE NEEDS TO PRINT UP THAT LECTURE GAVE in our old Army tent at New Kentucky Park on Keeping clean and healthy! The two are inseparable as I described in detail to you that night, and I think this is one reason why so many of you have stayed healthy! But failure to heed those admonitions is probably one reason, along with sin in the camp or the heart, why some of you have caught the selah blues, colds, and other diseases! I think as long as these things are going around we should forgo the pleasure of kissing anyone on the mouth but your own mate or someone else you're willing to share diseases with! And the same goes for intercourse.—The nation is in the throes of a VD epidemic, and you could be the Devil's target! Don't let the System's diseases get you down! God has promised as far back as Exodus that "if thou silt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord they God and wilt do that which is right in His sight, and wilt give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes. I will put none of these disease upon thee which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that health thee!" (Exodus 15:26) ... "And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and He shall bless thy bread and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee. There shall nothing cast their young‚ nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfill." (Exodus 23:25,26)—"Who forgive all thine iniquities; Who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction." (Psalm 103)—And there are many more promises on the subject!—Which you can claim if you're obedient!
54. YOU NEED TO STUDY GOD'S HEALTH LAWS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT, which are still in effect as far as I'm concerned, except for an occasional unavoidable variation permitted and forgiven by His Grace through Jesus. They are just common sense rules for good health by taking care of His creation and giving it the proper maintenance its Creator knows that it needs with specific instructions covering every necessary detail, including cleanliness, righteousness, food‚ sex, etc. And you'd better get busy and study and follow them if you want to live and be healthy to serve the Lord. I SUGGEST WE INSTITUTE A HEALTH CLASS, at once in every Colony on this subject, and you can begin by simply reading the Bible from the laws of Moses‚ particularly in Leviticus where you'll find specific food laws in such passages as Chapter 11, and sex rules in Chapters 12 and such chapters as 15, 18, 20, etc. We are no longer completely bound by these laws because of the Grace of God, and are no longer necessarily subject to their severe penalties because of His forgiveness through Jesus! But most of them are still good for you, because of the simple scientific rules of sanitation! Read study‚ and observe them as best you can‚ and they will help you be healthier and happier! Try It! God's Word always works and has it all!
55. DESPERATE PRAYER IS NEEDED FOR STUBBORN CASES OF ILLNESS, and sometimes "this kind goeth not out save by fasting and prayer." Correct the spiritual problems first as well as the food, sex, cleanliness, and other living conditions, then trust God utterly in prayer and obedience, and you're bound to get results!
56. REMEMBER: AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION OF WORTH A POUND OF CURE, and a stitch in time saves nine! It's better to stay healthy than to have to be healed, so do your best to prevent illness by some of the measures described above. PROPER DIET, PROPER EXERCISE‚ PROPER REST, AND PROPER LIVING will kept almost anyone healthy, dear old Dr. Koger used to say, Miami's City Physician, and a close family friend who was a great witness and a real soul winner. He's the one I used to tell you about that often gave Scriptures on his prescriptions. So try to follow these rules and keep from getting sick.
57. PERHAPS WE SHOULD HAVE SOME KIND OF PHYSICAL EXAMINATION FOR NEW DISCIPLE . We examine them spiritually before we take them in, why not physically? This would not be with the idea of refusing them‚ but to HAVE IMMEDIATE AND DEFINITE PRAYER ABOUT ANY PHYSICAL PROBLEMS THEY HAVE, and ask the Lord to deliver them before they spread anything contagious to the rest of the camp, particularly those which can be spread by mouth, sex, vermin, dirty dishes, dirty linens‚ etc. You should certainly have someone who knows how to examine them for the various forms of vermin whose bites can sometimes spread disease, such as lice, cooties, crabs, bedbugs, etc. All these are a result of lack of cleanliness in the first place, such as not taking a bath often enough, so the first thing you should have a new disciple do is take good, soapy bath‚ and if he's found to have any of the vermin mentioned, follow Deb's Advisory on how to get rid of them before they spread to others in the Colony. Special strong chemicals are necessary for this in some cases, which are named in her Advisory, with directions how to use them. So a physical examination and immediate action on a contaminated disciple could prevent further infection of the Colony and a lot of a later grief. Stop it before it gets started!
58. IN SOME CASES, PEOPLE ARE SICK BECAUSE THEY HAVE SERIOUS SPIRITUAL PROBLEMS, even demonic and they need to be delivered immediately by urgent prayer, before the Devil gets them down any further. Study our lesson on "Casting Out Demons!", and practice it. Demons are very common today, as in all Ages, and many people are plagued by them, if not actually possessed, and whether possessed, obsessed, or merely oppressed by them, your disciples need complete deliverance‚ and they can have it‚ because demons are totally subject unto us, and must do what we say in the name of Jesus. This is vividly illustrated by a recent incident in one of our Colonies where the boy was causing so much trouble and they didn't seem to realise it was demonic, so he wasn't delivered and they told him to leave. At this, point, the demon, through the boy's own mouth asked if he could stay, and let the boy go on down the road! But those in charge still didn't recognise the problem‚ so sent them both packing, whereas they should have sent the demon on his way, and kept the poor boy. The boy was later picked up by authorities with drugs in his possession and completely stoned out of his mind, and it could have caused serious trouble! Thank God he was later delivered at another Colony, and is still with us today as far as I know. Don't let this happen to you! Take specific and immediate action and definitely command the demon to leave‚ not only the person but your property as well, in the name of Jesus, because they can also haunt houses and cause trouble; but you don't have to worry as long as you have Jesus. In either case, where it's a person or property that's being troubled by evil spirit, just command them to depart in the name of Jesus, and they have to go. You have absolute authority over them. But just remember that unyielded sin in the heart or life, or a soul that's not filled with the Spirit is an open door and invitation for evil spirits to return‚ like the man in Matthew 12:43-45! Pray!
PRINCIPLES HEALING, EXORCISM AND DEMONS
59. THE SAME PRINCIPLE IS TRUE OF THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN HEALED OF PHYSICAL ILLNESSES: If they do not obey and stay in God's will and continually give Him the Glory for their healing and continue to trust Him or it, He may let it come back‚ because of their ingratitude and disobedience. Of course, if they repent, He can forgive and heal them again, but if instead of repenting and asking for healing‚ they turn again to the beggarly elements of this world—the doctors, hospitals, and medicines from which they were once delivered—I have known the Lord to actually prevent these natural means from giving them any further help, so that they even died for their rebelliousness, as mentioned before in 2Chron.16:12 "And Asa ... sought not to the Lord, but to the physicians ... and died." I understand that one of our girls who was recently delivered to diabetes and insulin apparently had a recurrence, probably because of improper diet, returned to the insulin, and nearly died of an overdose. You can't fool around with God. Once He's given you faith for healing, He expects you to use it, and with those who know His healing‚ He usually holds them responsible for it, expects them to trust Him, and will not tolerate any other means. I told you before of my mother-in-law, who was miraculously healed of cancer through our prayers, but then when we suggested she needed to change her fellowship to those of faith for healing, she said, "Oh‚ I could never do that!—I was born a Baptist, and I'll die a Baptist!"—And that's exactly what she did a few weeks later, of the same dread disease‚ which came back on her for her stubbornness and disobedience! "Be not deceived! God is not mocked!" (Ga.6:7) ONCE YOU'VE LEARNED TO TRUST HIM, HE EXPECTS YOU TO CONTINUE TO DO SO, and nothing else will usually help you! Once He has healed you, He seems to consider that going back to the remedies of this world is like backsliding and turning your back on Him! It's like an insult, like having once been married to Him, you're turned back to some other old lover instead, and He doesn't like it! In fact‚ He's insulted! So, since you've spurned His help, He lets you go your way without it, which usually leads to disaster and defeat. He says, "I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, and I will have no other gods before Me!" (Ex.20:3‚5) He doesn't want your faith in anything but Him, and He is like a jealous lover whose wrath can be dangerous if you turn away from Him. HIS HEALING IS A SPECIAL BLESSING, A PRICELESS PRIVILEGE, WHICH, UNLIKE SALVATION, HE CAN TAKE AWAY IF YOU DON'T KEEP TRUSTING HIM FOR IT AND GIVING HIM ALL THE GLORY It's sort of like that Scripture in Hebrews 6, where He says that once they're enlightened and have tasted of the Heavenly Gift and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away‚ or go back, it seems impossible to renew them to repentance. In other words, any one who can go back to natural means, medicines, etc. after having once experienced the Lord's healing, is really offending the Lord, and usually suffers the consequences. In other words, if having once been healed by the Lord, you later have a little test of faith‚ and run for the doctor or the medicine instead of turning to the Lord, He doesn't like it, considers you ungrateful, unfaithful, and a poor testimony, and in most cases I have known along this line, He has delivered their bodies to death! Once healed‚ stick to your story, and be like Job: "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him!" (Job 13:5) But if you haven't got that kind of faith, you'd better run for the nearest doctor or hospital, although it probably won't do you any good!
60. AS FOR HAUNTED HOUSES: IT'S USUALLY A GOOD IDEA, IF YOU'RE MOVING INTO A PLACE YOU SUSPECT OF BEING HAUNTED or previously occupied by evil people with evil spirits, to go from room to room and cleanse each room with special prayer, pleading the Blood of Jesus and casting out any possible demons. Finally‚ have a Jericho March completely around the property and command all evil spirits in Jesus Name to leave it entirely immediately!—And they will, because they have to! That's the authority God has given you in the Name of Jesus! They have to obey you. Then try to be sure that no new disciple or visitor brings any demons back in with him! Pray over each person who enters even if you have to do it silently so as not to offend visitors, or publicly in general terms, so as not to embarrass any individuals, and command the demons to leave in the Name of Jesus, for they are subject unto you! Hallelujah!
61. IF YOU NEED FURTHER HELP ALONG THE LINE OF HEALING, FAITH, OR EXORCISM we suggest you read not only our other lesson on "Casting Out Demons", but also "Faith", "Feet of Faith"‚ "Faith and Healing"‚ etc. as well as Grandmother's books, The Hem of His Garment and Streams that Never Run Dry, etc. And it's always a good idea to always have plenty of prayer—united prayer—first thing in the morning, and all day long, for without Him you can do nothing. "The Shepherd's Crook" is another good one for your faith! Also, beware lest any boast himself of false gifts‚ such as the Seven Sons of Sceva in Acts 19, who tried to do it in Jesus' Name without actually having the faith for it‚ whereupon the demoniac, or the demon within him, cried out, "Jesus I know and Paul I know, but who are ye", and promptly beat them up! Be sure you're convinced you have the faith and the authority by the Word of God, and that "greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world" is something you're sure of! Praise God! Just be sure you're right, then go ahead! And you have every right in Jesus!
62. SPEAKING OF DEMONS Even the devils had a right to cry out to Jesus "Torment us not before the time!" Apparently, this is not yet the hour of their torment or punishment, although some seem to already be suffering some mild form of punishment, such as incarceration in a certain house, habitation, rock strata, or bound to seek some form of life to inhabit, such as animals, trees, people, etc. So they even requested of Jesus that they be allowed to enter into a nearby herd of swine, as the legion of them left the demoniac out of whom Jesus was casting them; and as you recall, He thereupon permitted them to do so. You may find that through the mouth of the one so inhabited‚ the mouth of the one so inhabited‚ the demon itself may ask for permission to do this or that or go here or there. Just be sure you watch out where you send him, because that's where he'll have to go if you tell him to‚ and it could cause you a lot of troubles, as it did Jesus, in this case, because the 2000 swine went berserk and jumped in the lake and drowned, so that the people ran Jesus out of town!
SKITS SHOULD ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE, NOT THE SCARY NEGATIVE
63. SO IF EVEN THE DEMONS CAN ASK NOT TO BE TORMENTED BEFORE THEIR TIME, WHY DO SOME OF YOU LEADERS TRY TO SCARE YOUR PEOPLE TO DEATH WITH SUCH HORRIBLE STORIES AND SKITS of what you think their tortures are going to be like in the Tribulation; or even conduct surprise scare drills in which some of you pretend to be officers invading their premises in the middle of the night to yank them out of a sound sleep pretending to arrest them? I realise you may think this is good practice to prepare them for the future, but I think it's too hard on them and apt to scare somebody to death or literally make them ill from fright! You could give somebody a heart attack! JESUS HAS PROMISED TO GIVE US POWER FOR THE HOUR AND GRACE FOR THE GREAT EVENT WHEN IT COMES, BUT NOT BEFORE IT COMES! When it really happens, God's Spirit will give them the strength, but He hasn't necessarily promised it for a phoney scare drill, and you might really hurt somebody or even get hurt, so let's please stop these extreme tactics! We're going to suffer enough in the future without dwelling on it now! The Lord says "Whatsoever things are good ... think on these things." (Phil.4:8) Quit dwelling on the morbid monstrous horrors of future tribulation! Why should you torment the kids before their time? As you recall, when Dr. Moody was asked if he had dying grace‚ he said, "No, I'm not dying yet!" So don't expect more of them than it's time for God to give them! Let's stop these scare tactics! LET'S ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE, NOT THE NEGATIVE! DWELL ON THE GOOD THINGS! KEEP YOUR EYES ON JESUS! Rejoice always! In everything give thanks! I think some of you must have a masochistic tendency toward sadism! Stop torturing the kids before their time! Let's be happy, not scared to death! We're supposed to the serving the Lord out of Love, not fright!" "Though shalt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee!" (Is.26:3) Amen. This includes some of these exaggerated scare statements that people walk in with and announce like a thunderbolt out of a clear blue sky, when it's really not all that bad! It's the Devil's business to go around frightening people, not yours! "Perfect love casts out all fear" and "God hath not given us a spirit of fear." (1Jn.4:18; 2Tim.1:7.)
WITNESSING—HOW TO: EN MASS OR UNDERGROUND
64. ON MASSIVE WITNESSING INVASIONS IN HUGE NUMBERS: THIS IS THE SAME PSYCHOLOGY AS THE COLOSSAL COLONY‚ that there's some big advantage in having large numbers altogether in the same place—the big Colony spirit—the same thing the preachers have when they build those gigantic abominations in order to house enormous crowds‚ which they hope to have. There are times, of course, when you may need more labourers than usual to handle saturation witnessing of a large crowd or big event, like the Mardi Gras. But what 150 of you were doing there‚ I don't know, unless some of you just wanted to see the parade or have fun or go someplace new, because I hardly think that many was necessary‚ and it was certainly a strain on that poor, tiny pioneer Colony to have half the country land on them all at once. I wasn't consulted about this, or I certainly would have advised against having so many there, as I did when the Northwest wanted to do something like that—and you see what happened in the Northwest! IT'S EVEN POSSIBLE WITH GOD TO USE ONE PERSON TO WITNESS TO THE WHOLE CROWD, if necessary, or for a handful to pass out enough literature with your message and address so that the real hungry sheep will even seek you out without having to form another huge Colony, which is what it was, though temporary, in order to take the place by storm and force of numbers. Not only that, you were poorly prepared, poorly organised, poorly provisioned‚ and vehicles in poor shape, and the whole operation must have cost a fortune all told. When are we ever going to get over the big Colony spirit‚ even in witnessing invasion. Nevertheless, praise the Lord, it was miraculous how you survived, and you did a good job! GBY!
65. SPEAKING OF WITNESSING: YOU WHO ARE ALREADY HAVING TROUBLES IN YOUR WITNESSING INCURSIONS into airports and school grounds probably were not with us in the early days when we had a log of the same troubles and found out we had to be extremely cautious and underground and as unobserved as possible, or we were usually hassled by the authorities. This includes stores, shopping centres, churches, etc. any private or public property where the general public are not usually allowed, or where an obvious witnessing invasion is bound to be naturally resented or even prohibited. They can call it trespassing, disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct, or what have you. In any event, it stands a good chance of landing you in jail subject to a sizeable fine or time in the cooler for making a public nuisance of yourself, according to the System's way of thinking! SO I ADVISE YOU TO USE EXTREME CAUTION AND WISDOM IN SUCH PLACES. On such occasion in such places, it's not usually wise to have any type of mass demonstration, march, song, or dance‚ or loud preaching, praying, or praising, etc. If the Lord leads you to such places, He will probably do it quietly, unobtrusively, with individuals witnessing to individuals scattered in different areas, and calling as little attention to yourself as possible, so that if they do decide to clamp down on you, they won't stop all of you or be able to catch all of you and throw you in jail as they have some of us in the past! Remember, most of these places are considered private property to do with as the owners see fit‚ and it's no place to claim your rights of freedom of speech and religion or the Press, when they consider it their private property and don't want you there. So if they tell you to stop or leave, that's their privilege! You'd better do it quietly and agreeably with thine adversary whilst thou art in the way with him, lest he deliver thee to the officer, and the officer to the judge, and the judge to jail and a fine, as Jesus warned! (Mt.5:25‚26) so use wisdom! JUST NEVER VIOLATE OUR RULE OF GOING AT LEAST TWO-BY-TWO WHEREVER YOU GO, not only for strength and companionship, but also for the sake of safety and a legal witness and emergency messenger in case anything happens that needs help! The two-by–two rule applies also to all guard duty, provisioners, errands, and even top leaders on trips, etc. Please don't violate it! We love you!
NEW DISCIPLES—GOOD FRUIT TAKES TIME AND TRAINING!
66. THIS ALSO BRINGS US TO THE SUBJECT OF NEW DISCIPLES: Some of you have been a little discouraged and even condemned by others for not seeming to have much fruit in your area. But as I've said before, if everything else is going OK, and the Lord is blessing you in nearly every other way with provisions, protection, prosperity, good health, sweet fellowship‚ and true training‚ I wouldn't worry too much about it for the time being. The Lord may be trying to grow you up, give you more time to study, give your babes more preparation, and get you all more grounded in the Word and the Apostles' Doctrine, fellowship and prayer, and breaking of bread until such time as you're ready to be used more fruitfully and effectively! As I've said before, one of our main purposes is not in just bearing babies alone, but in giving good training to the children we already have to make them more effective witnesses for the Lord. Once I wanted to be a missionary right now‚ but the Lord delayed me for years from going to the field, until I almost got discouraged. But as a result of His preparation, training, and following His Plan, there are now thousands of missionaries in many foreign fields who are winning millions of souls, because I obeyed Him. Some want a get-rich–quick policy, all for show instead of a quiet, safe, solid, long-term investment which will reap much greater and more lasting dividends in the future. SO DON'T CONDEMN THE POOR LITTLE GUY WHO DOESN'T SEEM TO BE GETTING MUCH RESULTS RIGHT NOW. Maybe he doesn't seem to be as good an evangelist as you are, but maybe he's a lot better pastor, and will eventually bear fruit that will remain, instead of like the six new disciples you had this week who backslid next week! it takes time to do a good job!
BACKSLIDERS—SEEK OUT AND LOVE THEM!
67. WHICH REMINDS ME, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE ABOUT THOSE SO–CALLED BACKSLIDERS WHO HAVEN'T YET RETURNED FROM THE HOLIDAYS? Have you done like Jesus did who left the ninety and nine in the fold and went out to find just one lost one that had gone astray? Have you tried to call or write them to find out what happened to them, or apologise if you offended them or didn't show them enough love and tried to encourage them to return and let them know you still love them and would be glad to have them back? Or are you sitting around in your smug, self-satisfied, self-righteous, holier-than-thou complacency condemning them for straying away and getting lost‚ cursing them for getting caught in the brambles or by the wolves, and indifferently writing them off as a lost cause because you always knew they were only sour grapes anyhow? ARE YOU LIKE THE GOOD SHEPHERD WHO LOVINGLY SEEKS TO SAVE THE LOST SHEEP, OR THE HIRELING THAT'S GLAD TO GET RID OF HIM?—as good riddance to bad rubbish and one less to have to take care of? Which are you—Shepherd or Hireling? And if they do come back, do you treat them royally, like the father did the Prodigal Son, or do you resent them like the Older Brother? Which are you? Of course, remember, that although the Prodigal regained his place at the table and in the fellowship of the family, he had already lost his inheritance, responsibility, and reward, so keep an eye on him, and remember he's on probation! Just don't rub it in! Love and try to restore him! Amen? What you trust him with hereafter will be up to you and his progress!
BABES TRAINING—BEST AT SMALL COLONY
68. SPEAKING OF TRAINING BABES: I STILL THINK THE SMALL COLONY'S THE BEST PLACE TO DO IT! Babe Ranches are for the birds, whom you just don't have any other place to put to roost temporarily, and should be more of an emergency situation than permanent, a temporary patch to the problem‚ until you can get them to a small Colony. Of course, some Babes' Ranches are small Colonies‚ primarily for the purpose of training babes, which is good but the danger is that they have a tendency to grow into bigger and bigger Colonies until we have a new retarded monster on our hands. Don't let it happen to yours! Keep shipping `em out as you can find somewhere to send them, to a smaller Colony! Amen?
COLONIES AND TEAMS—BALANCE THE SIZE
69. WE SEEM TO GO FROM ONE EXTREME TO THE OTHER instead of striking a happy medium or better balance between the two. We go from one Colony of over three hundred‚ and others of one or two hundred, to the opposite extreme of sending out one poor young couple to one of the toughest and remotest of all fields with very little help, instruction, communication, or experience in Colony leadership. I trust this is the exception, and they seem to be surviving and prospering, thanks to the Lord and their faith‚ but I still think a good Colony needs more helpers than that. So let's try not to let it happen too often, except under the most unusual circumstances. God bless Amasa and Rose! They're doing an amazing job under very difficult conditions!
SUGGESTIONS ON COMMUNICATIONS
70. SPEAKING OF COMMUNICATIONS: How do you like all the beautiful stuff that COGIC has been sending you lately! Aren't the paper, magazine, Newsletter, etc. really thrilling? What God hath wrought! Hallelujah! Keep up the good work, Staff; and continue to send in those good news items, Colonies! I like Ho's idea of writing your weekly log summary in column form, as he had suggested to you, with headlines describing each item, and preferably less than one column in length, so he can easily lay them out for the New Nation News Magazine. And if we're going to print the Newsletter, Girls, why don't we reduce it in size still further by photographic reduction to about half its present size‚ each page on one half of an 8 x 11 sheet or four pages to the sheet! This would make it a handy little bulletin size‚ which is what it is—our news bulletin!
71. IF ANY OF YOU WISH TO SEND INFORMATION TO OTHER COLONIES OR TO ALL THE COLONIES, except for personal letters‚ I suggest you send your communication first to COGIC to let them check, print, and distribute it for you. COGIC has the equipment for rapid duplication and mass distribution and the know how. This includes tapes, lessons, questionnaires‚ tracts, etc.
LIST OF NEW APPOINTMENTS AND AREAS
72. NEW APPOINTMENTS: A NUMBER OF NEW REGIONS HAVE HAD TO BE DESIGNATED TO ACCOMMODATE OUR APPALLING EXPANSION, including the Pacific Ocean Region, presently under Justin in Hawaii, and including Japan, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, and the other islands of the Pacific. The new Regions of Africa and Asia are presently under Ho in London until their Colonies have been established and Supervisors chosen. Both Ben in New York and Jeth in Dallas are supervising the new development of the West Indian Central and South American Regions until their Colonies have been established and Supervisors chosen. Because of its recent growth in California and Arizona, this area had been made a separate Region under Corny Black, and is booming. Also the rapid explosion of the Eastern Canadian Region has necessitated a new Sub-Supervisor, Eve‚ working under Ben's supervision from New York. She's a real Pioneer with her Fearsome Foursome! God bless' em! And the still growing Southwestern Region of Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Colorado, etc. are now under Supervisor Cephas. I think this includes Mexico also. The others are the same, Caleb in the Northwest; Megiddo in the Midwest; and Belte in the Southeast. Josh has gone to help Faith and Ho in Europe and the Eastern Hemisphere, while Deb and Jeth have now undertaken the awesome responsibilities of Supervisors of the Western Hemisphere and Pacific Region. THE LORD IS DIVIDING THE WORLD BETWEEN YOU, FOR YOU ARE NOT ONLY EVANGELISTS AND MISSIONARIES, BUT SHALL BE THE RULERS OF THIS EARTH, kings and priests unto God, ruling and reigning with Him unto the uttermost parts of the earth. Hallelujah! God bless you! Rachel, the "Big Queen" as she's called, has now been ordained as the official roving royal representative of the King's Court‚ and executrix and majestic messenger of his domains' which simply means Her Royal Majesty, along with Martha, are very hard-working handmaidens of the Lord, trouble-shooters, and Ambassadors at large, who will be showing up wherever needed, to help you when you need special help from the top—My voice, and your servants if needed.
FOLLOW THE CHAIN OF COOPERATION
73. PLEASE REMEMBER TO CONSULT YOUR LOCAL COLONY SHEPHERD FIRST, if you need help. If he can't handle it, he'll refer it to his Regional Shepherd, who in turn, if it's too heavy for him‚ will forward the matter to his Hemisphere Shepherds. Please do not go over the head of any of these officers to some higher authority unless you have appealed to your local and Regional leaders first without avail‚ else you may be embarrassingly referred back to those you should have gone to in the first place. Thank you.
WOMEN—THEIR AUTHORITY AND PLACE IN THE REVOLUTION!
74. AS FOR THE AUTHORITY OF WOMEN IN THE REVOLUTION: THERE IS NO MALE NOR FEMALE IN CHRIST JESUS. (Gal.3:28) There is no difference in their responsibilities, except when it comes to their being under the authority of their own husbands in the affairs of domestic life in their own home—or room—or bed. Otherwise, in the ministry of the Body of the Church, they are spiritual and administrative equals, liberated from the bondage of masculine domination by the Grace of God. And don't start giving me that old stuff that Paul said about his not suffering women to teach or usurp authority over men and that they oughtta keep silence in the Church! In the first place, those were his own personal opinions and practices and did not necessarily agree with the Lord's or ours. So if the Lord said, "I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy... and on My Handmaidens I will pour out in those days of My Spirit and they shall prophesy!" (Joel 2:28,29) If God Himself promised them the greatest of all of the gifts of the Spirit—prophecy—then where else are they supposed to use it‚ practice it, and preach it, but in the Church or the congregation of the believers, out loud, and with the authority of God Himself! And IF THE LORD AND WE PLACE A WOMAN IN SUCH A POSITION OF AUTHORITY OVER MEN, SHE IS NOT USURPING IT‚ BUT COMING BY IT RIGHTLY, by Divine appointment and his ordination! So don't knock it‚ or we may have to knock your heads together. There were women all through the Bible in positions of responsibility and authority, as well as all through history: Queens, Prophetesses, etc. So if you can't accept the God-given authority of a woman, Brother, you are not only defying the Lord Himself, but also the authority of your leaders whom she represents and acts as their voice. There were many mothers in Israel, Queens, and Prophetesses, to whom the men of god submitted themselves and followed their leadership, especially if they represented the King, or the Lord Himself! So who are you to defy it?
COMMUNICATIONS—TAPES AND SHORTWAVE RADIO
75. SPEAKING OF COMMUNICATIONS: Some of you misunderstood Deb's Advisory on news articles and have been sending us four copies of each to us alone when I think she meant for you to send her two and us two, or four altogether. Anyhow, please don't send me more than two copies of each item hereafter! Thanks, and please, WHEN YOU'RE RECORDING OR TAPING, PUT THE MIKE NEXT TO THE MOUTH OF THE PRINCIPAL SPEAKER, not somewhere in the middle of the room! And if someone else in the room does have a comment to make, either hand them the mike, or repeat their comment on the mike! We'd like to hear what you have to say! Also, why don't some of you Shepherds encourage the radio boys by giving them a set up and a chance to communicate! We should have operative radio rigs at all Regional Shepherd's bases, at least, and eventually teletypes. This will improve our communications, cut down our phone bills, and could be a lifesaver in cases of national emergency or catastrophe, when other means of communication might be completely disrupted. Even the little voice or code sets have proven operational between smaller Colonies! We've got the operators and the equipment: Let's put them to work! The only holdup is that you leaders don't encourage them and give them the time. God bless Javan‚ Tertius, and boys! They've done a great job put in months of hard work; Move it!
WITNESSING—AND GIVING TO BEGGARS
76. ON BEGGARS: JESUS SAID, "GIVE TO HIM THAT ASKETH OF THEE" (Mt.5:42), even if you can only afford to give him a penny, give him something, at least your love, and witness‚ or a tract, or all of these! I've always made it a point to give them a little something along with a word about the Lord! It's Scriptural! UNLIKE MOST PREACHERS WHO PREACH FOR PAY, WE PAY TO PREACH! We give the people what they need‚ physically, in order to show them God's love spiritually. Whenever a bum of panhandler hits me for a handout, I usually stand there a few seconds listening to his tale of woe—and they've got some doozies!—while praying about what! should say to him, which is usually David's famous comment and wonderful testimony on the subject: "Once I was young, but now I'm old, yet have I never seen the righteous forsaken‚ nor his seed begging bread!" (Ps.37:25)—Especially when they try to tell me how good and righteous they are and how they love God, this verse shows them immediately that they're not a Child of God, and it's usually true, because I've found very few beggars who were saved. In fact, quite a few will curse you for not giving them enough. Nevertheless‚ I IMMEDIATELY REACH FOR MY CHANGE PURSE AS I START TO TALK TO THEM, and I fumble around prolonging his anticipation while I am ostensibly searching for a coin. And as long as you look like you're going to give them something, they'll listen—so I don't find the coin too soon, and even after finding it, I palm it so he can't see its size, and keep preaching to him while he's dying of curiosity. Then I fumble around also in another pocket for a tract and sort of fold it up and palm it, too, and he thinks now maybe he's even going to get a bill. Then I slip it into the other hand with the coin while he's still wondering what's going on and listening to the sermon, and finally, of course‚ I tell him if he really loved the Lord he wouldn't have to be here begging for a living. Then I tell him this is what he really needs‚ and take his hand in mine, putting the tract and coin in his palm and closing his hand over them, while I HANG TO HIS HAND WITH BOTH OF MINE FOR A WORD OF PRAYER, or to try to get him to make a decision! Sometimes it works! It always gets an audience‚ and I have delivered my soul. Often they really break and accept the Lord. Then, as I bid him good-bye, I really throw the fear of God into him, and tell him, "You'd better not spend that for a drink, `cause that's the Lord's money!" So even if he does, which he probably will, because that's what they're usually after, nevertheless he'll sit there trembling, thinking about the Lord and wondering If God's going to strike him dead, which just might help him to repent! Anyhow, I NEVER PASS UP A BEGGAR, even if I'm in a hurry I usually try to toss a coin and a tract into his cup, and say‚ "Jesus loves you!" and it always gets a smile and a thank you and helps brighten his day, because I'm sure there aren't many who tell him that! Besides, it's a testimony to others passing by of the love they should be showing to those in need, and sometimes others will take note and follow your example, for which the beggar is doubly thankful. BUT IF YOU'RE TOO BUSY TO HEED THE CRY OF THOSE IN NEED, YOU'RE BUSIER THAN GOD HIMSELF! Jesus went out of His way to minister to beggars and heal the lame‚ the blind‚ the palsied and the lepers. If you can, say a little prayer for them! who knows, maybe you'll get a miracle, and God will heal them on the spot, or later! we've actually had this happen, Praise the Lord! But never pass them by! But maybe you only love young people, and not the old, the handicapped, or the beggar! If so‚ you don't love like the Lord does‚ because He loves them all! They may not be able to join us, or fit our Colonies, or be suitable for His Service, but at least you can show them that God loves them, and show others that they, too, should show His Love. YOU CAN ALWAYS DROP A LITTLE LOVE INTO THE HEARTS OF THOSE YOU PASS BY, EVEN IF ONLY WITH A WORD, A SMILE, OR A LOOK OF SYMPATHY‚ AND THEY WILL KNOW THAT GOD HAS LOVED THEM THAT DAY! His Spirit will tell them so! Recently one of our Colonies lost a very sweet and compassionate disciple because the member he was with wasn't concerned about witnessing to a beggar. This boy had thought he had found love in us, but when he saw we didn't have enough love to love beggars, he apparently decided it wasn't true love after all and went his way, still seeking! That's a very sad story, and a lesson for all of us to learn! Please don't let it happen to you! AS THE CHILDREN OF GOD, YOU SHOULD HAVE LOVE AND COMPASSION FOR EVERYONE‚ NOT JUST YOUR OWN!—Young or old, rich or poor, strong or weak, hippie or Systemite, even if you don't like' em!
WITNESSING TO MINORS—FRUITFUL BUT RISKY
77. WITNESSING TO CHILDREN: THIS CAN BE VERY FRUITFUL AND REWARDING, BUT ALSO VERY DANGEROUS, especially if you touch of handle them in any way, the parents could accuse you of molesting them, and in Israel, it's even illegal to witness to those under 14! We even had a boy put in jail just for talking to two young girls on the street in California. An officer walked up and said, "Is this boy annoying you?" and the girls said, "Of course not! He's just talking to us about God!" But the antagonistic minion of the law said, "Well, I think he's annoying you", and booked him. So witnessing to minors can sometimes be hazardous! Just pray and do as the Lord leads, and use wisdom!
CHILDREN—MEETINGS AND NIGHTMARES
78. SPEAKING OF CHILDREN: I THINK THAT OUR SMALLER CHILDREN—ALL THE CHILDREN, IN FACT—SHOULD ATTEND OUR INSPIRATIONAL SESSIONS and enjoy the music, singing, dancing, testimonies, etc. But I do not think that the class sessions designed for older young people are always good for children, especially some of the gruesome, gory, ones that some of you seem to delight in having about the horrors and monsters of the Tribulation and the tortures and atrocities of the future. I don't even think it's good for you to dwell on these things‚ much less little children! It could frighten them, cause them to have nightmares, and live in fear, so I don't think they should attend such classes. THEY SHOULD BE HAVING CLASSES OF THEIR OWN! Of course, some children who are perpetually having nightmares and like to describe them, may be trying to get attention, or have a big imagination‚ or perhaps, are even being attacked by the Enemy in their sleep. This takes prayer, rebuking the Devil, teaching the child to resist the Enemy in Jesus' Name and to call on the Lord and plead the Blood! God protects children, but if there's something in your life or the heart of even your child which is not right with the Lord, it could open the way to the Enemy! So teach the child to love the Lord and obey Him and do what's right, so he'll have faith to claim the Lord's protection.
REMARRIAGE—WAITING PERIOD
79. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL YOU NEWLY-WEDS, AND MOTHERS AND FATHERS OF NEW BABIES! We're certainly having a bumper crop!—Bump 'er some more! Some of you whose mates have left you and gone back, by the way, need to show a little patience in giving them a chance to repent and return, as a number have‚ instead of up and marrying the next one that comes along‚ as soon as your mate's out of sight! It makes it look like you're out of sight! It makes it look like you're almost glad they left, and maybe that shows what your problem was all along! You just didn't show them the love you should have! We've had a very good percentage of backsliders return.
PUBLIC RELATIONS WITH NEWS MEDIA
80. SOME OF YOU ARE DOING VERY WELL ON YOUR RADIO AND TV SHOWS AND PRESS INTERVIEWS, and we've enjoyed your good tapes and articles! But Some of you need to study up a little more on our instructions in recent letters about Public Relations, and improve your approach. Remember, love never fails!
KEEP GOOD TEAMS TOGETHER—MUSICIANS, ETC.
81. SOME COLONIES ARE HAVING TOO MANY CHANGES, too big a turnover in personnel! Again, we go from one extreme to the other! If you're going to accomplish anything‚ you're going to have to organise a team that works well together, and‚ to do this, you'll have to keep them together for a while, at least! "The family that prays together, stays together!" A good team takes lots of training! I also hate to see those good bands break up who were going so well together. We really enjoyed your tapes! Don't give up! Keep trying! Most spacey musicians don't make good Colony leaders anyway—except Sam, et al.
MISCELLANEOUS
82. MISCELLANEOUS: IF YOUR CRATE'S DOWN, AND NO BUGGY, WHY NOT HITCHHIKE, like some; and don't pick up any underage runaways: they're too risky! Don't ruin your P.R.! We need more midwives, too! How'd you like Ho's little Mo Gospels? Maybe there'll be a lot of "Little Books!"—Still workin' on it! Now I know why Moses had to write the Pentateuch!—You gotta spell it out for most! Just don't drag it out beyond my assigned class period—leave some for next time! GBY!
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family