Saturday 24 October 2020

SEE HOW THE DEVIL LAUGHS - ALL AT OUR EXPENSE!


 

A GOOD FRIEND AND SISTER IN CHRIST recently wrote to share a quote she had received purporting to be from The Screwtape Letters by C.. Lewis, published in 1942!
'Satan - I will cause anxiety, fear and panic;
I will shut down business, schools, places of worship and sports events.
I will cause economic turmoil'
Jesus -  I will bring together neighbours,
I will restore the family unit, and bring dinner
back to the kitchen tables.
I will help people slow down their lives
and appreciate what really matters.
I will teach my children to rely on Me, and not on the world.
I will teach my children to trust me, 
and not on their money and material resources'

WHEN I read it I did not remember it from my own knowledge of the Book cited.   In Screwtape Letters the content is based entirely on an imaginary dialogue between junior and senior demons.  I did not recall Satan talking with Jesus.    Also it seemed too tailor made for NOW, rather than 1942,when it was supposed to have been written.  
WELL, on looking up the matter, I have discovered that the Extract IS a fraud;   it was not taken from Screwtape letters, or any other book Lewis wrote.    This is affirmed by REUTERS and a number of other sources.    Reuters states that this 'extract' can be traced back to Facebook post made on 12th March 2020 by a U.S. woman names Heidi May.   Reuters also states that on being interviewed, Heidi May told them that she had been feeling overwhelmed (with life). adding 'Jesus spoke these words to my heart.    Well Hiedi May I am sorry you needed to get C.S. Lewis to falsely add words to those you believed had been given you by  the Holy Spirit.     I can and do forgive you, since if these words have come from God's Holy Spirit they are worth much more than if they had come from any OTHER source.    I for one can believe Satan is behind everything that is happening right now in our world.
AND I can believe that JESUS will use it all for the good of ALL, and especially for all those who BELIEVE in HIS WORD.

Randy Green ( not a relative of mine ) writing for Peace Officers International, attributes these same words as mentioned above, to have originated from a Catholic Priest named Jerome Zeiler.   Randy uses them to preface his own comment  -  "God is working to revive His people and restore their first love.  He is leading us to repentance.   He is teaching us to pray without ceasing, and to trust Him for every need we have.   He is refining our faith and teaching us to love our neighbour as ourselves.  He is reaching out to those who are in darkness and inviting them to come into His Light, and into His Kingdom. God said in Isaiah 50  '...let the one who walks in the dark who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord, and rely on their God'
Whatever you are facing you can say with Isaiah 'Because the sovereign Lord helps me I will not be disgraced.   Therefore, I have set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame.........'   Isaiah50v7.     God will never forsake you or abandon you,  He is with us, and watching over us.  

Thank you Randy - you, as a Police Office, you need all our prayers, as do all those who stand with you in these times of very real human turmoil.    God Bless you all, wherever you are serving.    You may not all be Believers, but there is no doubt God loves you, and wants you to know and rejoice in that Love, and to believe He wants you to LIVE and not die.

COVID 19 IN KENYA TODAY
The latest figures to hand for 23rd October 2020

TOTAL TESTED SO FAR -  646,367      found POSITIVE  47,843
                                                                   Those Recovered  33,422
                                                                   Those deceased         884
                 
Current Cases being treated ................................................       13,537  
Current approximate population..........................................50,000,000    

As on 23rd October 631 positive Cases confirmed out of 6,142 tested 
and included in the previous figures as above.

There has been alarm because daily confirmed cases are seeming to rise.
However the daily Cases TESTED also had risen, and it is not noticed that the INCREASE in actual confirmed Cases has increased against the percentage tested.

The CHINESE are reported to be treating confirmed cases almost the same as common ;FLU!!?
AND it seems very successful and allows life to go on almost normally.     AND China's economy is booming.      So who is panicking - and WHY.      What is in REAL danger World Population, or World Economy ?    Are we afraid of a VIRUS when we should be seeking the real Enemy.

AND HERE WE ARE AGAIN - STILL RELATIVELY THE SAME IN NUMBER, some 130 spread in four family homes each  with a mum and dad.    Grandad on the far left, and Grandma extreme right.
In 2014 the Government declared that all Children's Homes would be closed by 2020.    There followed much discussion, and eventually we were told that WE would be among a few to remain OPEN.
THIS WEEK, Daryl was called to a Government Meeting in town  and advised that we had better soon decide what to do with our Homes since they would soon be closed and our children dispersed by fostering or adoption.     Will there be no end to threats and innuendo by a thankless Government who lacks any real concern for the true welfare of its children.        WELL, in the middle of so much social upheaval and anxiety, we felt unable to take this latest encouragement very seriously, and we are going on as we always have - trusting in the Love and Care of God.     He is the one who really CARES, and who has ever held us together in His Arms.      And WHO IS ABLE to take us all out of His Hands.

BUT SCHOOL IS STILL OPEN......with a lot of uncertainties.   The two Primary Grades, and ONE High School grades have now been open for two weeks, and students have settled very well, and with a lot of joy and gladness.    No one has shown even a symptom of C. 19.

BUT - what about the rest of the Classes?  They were said to be opening on the 26th October, but this has now been cancelled.    Some are now saying the first week of November......All is up in the air, and everyone in a state of uncertainty.

We are supposing that the Classes already going on WILL continue - two of the (Primary 8 and Form  4) being National Examination Classes.  We are acting as if the rest will rejoin us ANY time.     And we hope C.19 will not panic the Government into backing away from ensuring Schools OPEN, and our children are not denied the chance to go on with their Education.     LOTSs to pray about.!      We also are praying for all of YOU!    Our Enemy is not likely to spare us from personal directs attacks upon our lives just because we are suffering the effects of a Pandemic.   To pile more and more upon us is his delight and enjoyment, but the LORD is our Strength, and our Strong Tower, and none of his arrows will mortally wound or even reach us as we lift up the NAME of JESUS our Shield and Defender.

God be with you all.     Do not be persuaded the Winter will be DARKER  and more ARDUOUS than ever before.   Do not be pressured into FEAR, panic and anxiety.  SATAN would blind your eyes and deafen your ears to the Truth - JESUS SAVES, do not FORGET it.    He is our LIGHT and our Salvation, and HE can and will turn all the darkness into DAY.     BELIEVE and TRUST in this.  For all that the WORLD is telling us, and all the statistics, and evidences they are confronting us with about C.19, there is something (to me at least)  curiously unreal and theatrical in what is taking place.   AND NO I do not mean to put aside the very real sorrow and pain seen and experienced by those who have died from C.19.   We cannot deny or make light of their deaths.    BUT, on the other hand have we been greived by all those others who have died of countless other diseases, ,maladies and accidents,even that daily pass away.       Publicity and the Media, and maybe even other forces could have put everything out of perspective, frightened us all out of our usual sanity and common sense.    We should take care.    The Man of Sin may well be WITH us in the world NOW.     When He comes the Bible says he will DECIEVE, MANIPULATE and make us all believe a LIE.     

Our love to you in the FIGHT.     We shall all come through.  NOTHING will stop us in HIS Name.

John, Esther and Daryl Green, and all here in Testimony Faith Homes & School

                                                   

Saturday 10 October 2020

THE END OF AN ERA



THIS HAS BEEN A BUSY WEEK WITH THE GOVERNMENT SUDDENLY ANNOUNCING THAT ALL SCHOOLS WILL OPEN AS FROM THE 5TH OCTOBER.    On the face of it a very welcome and sensible decision, until you receive the 50 page Book telling you HOW to Open, and with what V.19 Preventative Precautions.    The Private School sector under which our School operates, has had no income for 7 months, and with no funds in hand it has been impossible for many to even begin to bring their school in line with the new C.19 Standard.      We are still struggling, and of course UNTIL we come in line with Government requirements we cannot ourselves open - and we have not YET opened....but WE ARE HOPING TO OPEN next week!    Hurrah!

BUT, the Government is ONLY permitting Schools to open Primary Classes 4 and 8, and High School Form 4., initially.       So we shall not have our usual population - only approximately 155 out of 800.  Also not our usual number of Teachers - approx. 18 out of about 48.      We have had to ADD a Classroom for each Class/Form,  in order to accommodate 'Spacing'.      We have also had to Accommodate the need to provide hand washing points for all students and staff - ONE to ever fifty, AND provide a Temporary Isolation Room for any who may show symptoms of C.19 whilst they wait for transport to the nearest Medical Centre for Testing.   AND, of course, we must equip ourselves with Thermometers to keep a check on temperature     There is no doubt SCHOOL will be different as from now........

BUT it is a start.    For us, one fraught with very real problems and challenges, which can  affect the success of the School AND even the future of our Children's Homes.     But we do not stand alone, or without Strength, for we continue to BELIEVE God IS with us in JESUS Christ, Alive and present in our midst.    We ourselves are still weak humanity, but HE is strong and gives us Confidence and Assurance that we shall overcome.

DARYL has been shouldering most of the mental and physical load in planning, and actively achieving the changes and readiness needed for bringing us to Opening Day.     He a handful of our staff, and a huge input from our teenagers, to help do the heavy work of Cleaning and refreshing the School, as well as seeing to the provision of new fixtures and fittings.    Still going on right NOW.
 Of course we have done our best to rally behind him, as the old guard, to encourage and pray with him.    ONE of his activities has been in going through our twenty four classrooms to ensure desks and chairs are found in good repair and general condition.     He and his Team are STILL involved in achieving this - together with so much more.

I have just now been walking around the initial area to be opened on Monday.   Still  a lot of work to be done in cleaning and removing litter.   Amazing how plain dirt has a habit of collecting from no where - and even more amazing how it can remain hidden from the sight of those able to remove it!

Daryl still active identifying Hand Washing points. I Found him organising one for the Reception Office, and found others being actually MADE for children to use in the Dining Area.     Can we actually complete it all by Monday?     Our Teachers, who have still been laid off without pay, are also here this morning, going through the new proceedures laid down, and now walking around the Classrooms that will be in use, with Anthony Ndungu the School Principal.     Very  encouraging to see them all here, anxious to resume work;  they are all amazing, and I must express to them all our very Thankful and Grateful appreciation of their loyalty to, and pride in, their School.


Life continues in other areas, quietly.    The Covid 19 continues to dictate a lot of change and a lot of frustration, but not nearly to the degree of many other unfortunate Nations on Earth!    Yesterday's figures for Kenya are - As at 9/10/20

Confirmed Cases        Recovered Cases      Inclusive of yesterdays Confirmed Cases of 442 out of

40,620                         30,876                      5,327, Tested.   Most of these new cases recorded  from                                                                             Nakuru,   Nairobi,  and Uasin Gishu in that order.

This is showing an increasing number,   but relatively not dangerously so.    


INSIDE Testimony Faith Homes we have recorded no Case so far, for which we are grateful, but we are aware that the incidence of recorded Cases is growing even in our area, and that with the Opening of School the risk of infection will rise, at least initially, for all of us and, to all intents and purposes, will  be forced to open up our previous state of Quarantine to the local world around us.

THERE HAS BEEN  HEAVY THUNDER STORM whilst I was typing this.  Everything is VERY WET, and outside is looking very grey and wintery.    But our winter should be giving way to Spring!    No!   IN FACT  here in Eldoret we have had a rather dull, cloudy and wet year.  Surely it HAS found the odd day full of sunshine and blue skies, but for the most part  there has been no HOT SEASON this year, and  it look as it it may con-tinue.    But we are GLAD to see plenty of rain this year, although it may well not be good news, at this time, for a good Maize and Wheat Harvest.  Now we wait for what could be a VERY dry  time.


AND NOW I AM SIGNING OFF  - maybe permanently.     BLOGGER.com has changed a lot of its Settings and arrangements recently, and together with hundreds of others I am finding these changes too much to cope with.     I have found it impossible to properly Edit, and even Post my Blog for some time now, and although I have also tried to share my problems with the ' Managers' I have felt very unhelped  by them.     I have blogged since 2007 very happily, but not any more with them I think.   I may try to find another way.     

Esther and I are still well, and well occupied.     We will be delighted to reply to any who want to keep in touch and want to hear more about what is happening here.     We are much in prayer for all of you, wherever you are in our condemned world.     Revelation remains THE book in the Bible to READ and pray over.     There is so much there that reflects our world at this time, and also the mentality of mankind at this time.       BE READY for CHANGE.     It is coming soon.

Without love always in God and in His Son, JESUS


John, Esther, and Daryl Green, and ALL in Testimony Faith Homes Family