The Most Terrifying Words

A fascinating phenomenon is happening. We are living in a time when, if you question the government’s narrative, you are accused of either denying the seriousness of the virus (stupidity) or you are accused of not caring about other people (selfishness). It’s a script the herd has swallowed; hook, line, and sinker.

It all leads to the same end: faith in the government and suspicion of all those who question the narrative. It is brilliant! The government doesn’t even need to suppress dissent, our fellow citizens do it for them.

How ironic that Ronald Reagan, the most powerful government official of his time, said, “The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help.”

Sword, Famine, and Pestilence

The way I see it, we have three main fears circulating in the United States and throughout the entire world right now; the fear of tyranny, the fear of a collapsed economy, and the fear of COVID-19. For many people, these fears overlap one another.

Generally speaking, I think the heart of most disagreements lies in emphasis. Those who fear tyranny are more likely to downplay the seriousness of the virus. Those who fear the illness support more government control and are willing to put off economic worries, at least for now. And those who’s businesses are going under or are feeling real hunger pains are ready to take more health risks to stay alive. Who is right? I think each of these concerns has validity.

What bothers me is how Christians are responding to this present crisis. I’m writing this as a Christian to Christians. If you do not share my faith, you might as well stop reading. It will have little value to you unless you are curious about the present-day failure of modern Christians and the Church. If you are a Christian, I implore you to set your pride aside and heed what follows.

Whether it’s tyranny, the destruction of the economy, or COVID-19, it all adds up to one thing - God is trying to get our attention. When you read the Bible, you discover time after time, God acting in and through disasters. In fact, God even says He is the Author of calamity. He says in Isaiah 45:7:

𝐼 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠; 𝐼 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑙𝑙-𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑦; 𝐼 𝑎𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐿𝑜𝑟𝑑, 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠.

You can’t read the Bible long before you see, there is more behind disasters and difficulties than just random natural acts. God uses things to call sinful people back to Him.

Jeremiah 14:12 speaks specifically about God using tyranny, a collapsed economy, and COVID-19. He said to His people:

𝑇ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑠𝑡, 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑛𝑜𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑐𝑟𝑦, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑢𝑟𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑝𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚. 𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑, 𝑏𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑝𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒.”

The sword is tyranny. Famine is the sign of economic collapse, and pestilence is a fatal epidemic disease such as COVID-19. The context is about Christians in the Old Testament who paid lip service to God, but their hearts were far from Him. They participated in the sins of the culture with no fear of God or His retribution.

If this verse isn’t a wake-up call, I don’t know what is. I implore my brothers and sisters in Christ to take these words seriously. Let’s stop arguing and use our time and energy for something far more profitable - prayer and preaching the gospel. The world is in crisis, and we are fighting about who is right and who is wrong? About whether Donald Trump is the Messiah or the Devil? Whether we should wear a mask or not?

A while ago, I put out a plea for Christians to pray. I even made a simple outline on how to pray during this time. I don’t know why, but I got more responses about memes on tyranny than on my call to prayer. I admit, I get distracted too, but isn’t it time we put our pride away and get serious? It doesn’t matter if a call to prayer comes from someone you don’t like or someone you disagree with. Let’s put away our differences and unite in Christ. Let’s call our nation and our world to Jesus Christ. Let’s use our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to proclaim the only Way that will save this lost and dying world. That Way is faith in Jesus Christ and obedience to His Law.

The Ultimate Precaution

There’s something affecting humanity that is far deadlier than COVID-19 and yet so few pay it any mind. I think people fear the coronavirus because they ultimately fear death. It’s interesting to me to see how few people fear sin. The Bible says, “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) What if we feared sin as much as the coronavirus? Sin has caused more death and destruction and devastation than any virus the world has ever seen, yet so many of us are as comfortable with sin as we are with an old familiar pair of bluejeans.

Look at all the precautions people are taking to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Governments have closed much of the world. People wear masks and keep at least 6 feet apart. We are even willing to tank the economy and all the devastation that will cause in order to flatten the curve.

Imagine if we took sin as seriously as we are taking COVID-19? Imagine if we feared God more than we feared sickness and death? Jesus said, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28)

Please don’t misread me. Take precautions against real threats. Yet, I’m amazed and saddened by a world that puts so much energy into battling a virus while giving so little attention to sin and God.

There’s no cure for COVID-19, but there is a cure for sin. The cure is faith in Jesus Christ and His atoning blood that was poured out when He died on the cross. Take precautions against coronavirus, but shouldn't we take the greater precaution of where we will spend eternity? In Christ, we do not need to fear death or disease or destruction. Take the ultimate precaution by trusting in Jesus Christ today.

A Call to Prayer

April 10, 2020

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14

If God’s own People aren’t willing to do this, then what hope is there for our State, our Nation, or our World.

Wake Up Believers and Pray!

A Call to Prayer

God is calling His people to pray. Whether you are worried about COVID-19, the economy, the expansion of government, how you’re going to pay the rent, or for the safety of your friends and family, the best thing we can do is pray. Prayer is not just something we can do to pass the time. It is the work that Christians are called to do especially during times of crisis.

I invite you to join me in prayer for all that is happening in our world right now. You can pray at any time, but I am inviting you to pray particularly when you wake up in the middle of the night or during a time when you are quiet and free from distraction.

For those of you who like some help in how to pray, I came up with a way to have Christ-centered prayer. Each letter in the name of C.H.R.I.S.T. stands for an important aspect of prayer. Whether you use this Christ-centered guideline or something else, the most important thing is that you pray.

Here is a brief explanation of each letter with one supporting Bible verse. I plan on expanding and explaining each aspect of prayer on my blog on the www.the100thsheepministries.com website. Check there in the next coming days if you want a deeper explanation of each letter.

C - Confession
Start with confessing your own personal sins. (1 John 1:9)
Continue with confessing our corporate sins as a nation. There are plenty of sins we can confess such as the sin of pornography, sex trafficking, child abuse, racism, greed, etc. The list is long. (Nehemiah 1:4-11)

H - Hallejuja (Praise)
Take time to worship God and realize who He is and how great He is. (Psalm 103:1)

R - Requests
It’s important to ask God for what you want and what you need. (Philippians 4:6)

I - Intersession
Take time to intercede for our world, for our nation, for our government, doctors, for the sick, for friends and family, for God to have mercy on us, for God to move on those who don’t know Jesus Christ. This is the heart of the work of prayer.(1 Timothy 2:1-2)

S - Scripture
Take some time and meditate on a verse or passage of Scripture. (Joshua 1:8)

T - Thanksgiving
Finally, take time to give God thanks for the many blessings He has given you. It is vitally important that you have a grateful heart. 1 Thessalonians 5:18)

Please share this with fellow believers and ask them to share it as well. Together we can and will make a difference. Our prayers will turn things around.

Out of Touch

How out of touch we Americans are during this "crisis".

We worry about getting too fat
from eating too much,

while much of the world worries about getting too skinny
from eating too little.

Magical Masks and Someone to Blame

There's a letter circulating social media (see below) addressed simply to "Dear restaurant goer." An unidentified restaurant owner wrote it. I do not know if the owner is a man, but for the sake of convenience, I will be referring to the owner as "he." Besides, it has the tone more of a man than a woman, but I could be wrong.

In this letter, the owner states that he requires patrons to wear a mask for a mere 5 seconds as you go to your table or the bathroom. He believes these 5 seconds protect the livelihood of his business, prevent governmental goons from shutting him down if a case of COVID-19 is "traced" to his restaurant, and prevent the death of his employees and his family. You jeopardize and disrespect him if you don't wear your mask for 5 seconds.

Think about how absurd this is. According to a Cornell University study, the average diner takes 81.6 minutes to eat in a restaurant. That adds up to 1 hour and 21 minutes. That is a total of 4,860 seconds a person remains unmasked in his restaurant. For this owner, 5 seconds symbolize respect, protection, security, and safety.

Let's look at the math. This owner requires people to wear a mask .1% of the time while being okay with them being unmasked for 99.99%. And what are people doing during this 99.99% of the time? They are breathing, chewing, laughing, sneezing, coughing, and talking, perhaps with their mouth full, which people tend to do. Who knows how much particulate is expelled into the atmosphere during these 4,860 seconds.

This must be disturbing for hypochondriacs, but being a human being is a messy business. No matter how much you try, you and your fellow human beings are contaminating the environment with their germs, bacteria, sicknesses, and perhaps even their deadly viruses. They certainly are doing a lot more damage in 4,860 seconds than what a person could do in 5. But this owner needs someone to blame, so let's go with the disrespectful sign-ignoring unmasked jerk.

Talk about putting someone at risk. This owner requires his restaurant employees to "pick up your dishes. Your glassware. Your napkins." He makes the "clean that bathrooms after you use them." But everyone is safe because he requires a person to wear a mask for 5 seconds while at the same time allowing people to remain unmasked for 99.99% of the time doing an activity that causes far more damage than a 5-second walk.

Put on your magical mask for 5 seconds, and all will be well. If that's not superstition, I don't know what is. But at least we have someone to blame.

May I talk about these magical masks for a moment? The owner wrote, "A mask increases that safety. It doesn't guarantee it, but it makes your visit more safe for us" How much protection is being provided by masks that are worn for only .1% of the time? Most people are not wearing masks properly anyway, are they? Most people are wearing the same disgusting mask over and over again. Some wear them only over their mouth and not their nose, which kind of defeats the purpose.

Furthermore, the masks that most people wear allow droplets out the side or are cheap masks that do little to no good. Add to that; the people are now wearing bandanas or some sort of ineffective cloth covering. He is right in your belief that wearing a mask is not a "guarantee."

Magical masks indeed!

He is careful not to blame the real bullies in this equation. He fears COVID-19 will be "traced" back to his restaurant. Who's doing contact tracing? How can you possibly prove the virus originated at your restaurant all because a person failed to wear a mask for 5 seconds? He is scared, but he's fear is misplaced. The real bullies are the power-hungry political fear-mongers who have the power to destroy this man's business, not the unmasked patron.

Not only has the government struck fear into this man's heart, but it has also taken away many people's incentive to return to work. The owner almost gets it when he refers to the "sky-high unemployment benefits" with which he competes. Good old socialism, that age-old destroyer of incentive to work. But we mustn't blame socialism. We must condemn the disrespectful unmasked villain.

I honestly feel sorry for this restaurant owner. I do not doubt that he is telling the truth about how difficult it is to maneuver meeting the almost impossible requirements of an incompetent and oppressive governmental system. I believe him when he says that he puts his "entire being" into this restaurant. I understand that he is doing the best he can in a challenging situation.

Sadly it's worse than he knows. He doesn't seem to be aware that the Executive Order he is so desperately trying to obey contains a caveat that could get him into a lot of trouble. Our esteemed Governor placed within his Executive Order No. 7BB a lovely caveat that states:

"Nothing in this order shall require the use of a mask or cloth face covering by anyone for whom doing so would be contrary to his or her health or safety because of a medical condition, a child in a child care setting, anyone under the age of 2 years, or an older child if the parent, guardian or person responsible for the child is unable to place the mask safely on the child's face. If a person declines to wear a mask or face covering because of a medical condition as described above, such person shall not be required to produce medical documentation verifying the stated condition. This order shall supersede and preempt any current or future municipal order."

In other words, all a person has to do is calmly inform the host that they are declining to wear a mask because of a medical condition. Furthermore, they do not have to prove it. He just has to take their word for it. If this poor restaurant owner denies access, he will violate the Governor's Executive Order. Not only that, if he denies access, he may also be violating the Americans with Disability Act, which could open him to litigation. It'd be difficult to win, especially when "such person shall not be required to produce medical documentation verifying the stated condition."

Our society is scared, and perhaps angry, about all that is happening because of COVID-19. Dysfunctional societies need a scapegoat, be it white men, Jews, blacks, the police, democrats, FOX news, those who don't wear masks, Donald Trump, you name it. I blame power-hungry corrupt government officials who are in bed with crony capitalist corporations. They scare me more than anyone else because only they have the legal right to use political power against those who have done no harm. I also blame people who won't use logic, reason, or science. Oh, that people would genuinely use real science and not the politicized form we hear machine-gunned from the media day and night.

I believe we are at a crossroads in the United States. What will tip the scale, in my opinion, is where the mob goes. If they go on the side of blaming those who do not conform to the official narrative, we are doomed. If people such as this restaurant owner wake up, start using real science, and start standing up to the real bullies, there is hope. In the meantime, I implore you to carefully examine what people are saying and believing and try to use logic, reason, and sound science to open their eyes.

***
Dear restaurant goer:

You don’t want to wear a mask. Ok. I don’t blame you. I don’t either. That’s why we set it up so you only have to wear it for the five seconds between the host stand and your table, and during your trip(s) to the bathroom. Still have a problem?

Consider this.

It was indescribably difficult for our restaurant to survive the shutdown. It devastated our savings and permanently eroded consumer confidence in dining out. Now we finally have a chance to open, and all the relevant governing bodies instruct us to require a mask for admittance.

Still have a problem?

Please also be aware that it’s also our staff preference.

Why?

First, if there is a case of COVID traced back to our restaurant, we have to test all staff and close (again) for an indeterminate amount of days. This puts an at-risk operation at even graver risk. Every day and every dollar counts more than I can describe.

Second, the employees you see in the restaurant right now opted to come back of their own volition. With sky high unemployment benefits to compete with, we have worked hard to build a workplace they want to come back to—one that offers fair compensation, above-average safety protocols and most of all, management and ownership that has their best interest in mind.

When you see a restaurant employee at work, it is usually because of some degree of loyalty or respect for the ownership, as well as faith in the safety measures they have put in place. These things took a great deal of time, effort and personal care to build. I now know that demonstrating love for my team is the most important part of my job. More than ever, I recognize how hard I have to fight for them.

If you are infected (either symptomatically or asymptomatically), you put THEM at risk, first and foremost. After all, they’re the ones that pick up your dishes. Your glassware. Your napkins. They're the ones that clean the bathrooms after you use them. DO NOT disrespect them.

On top of the terrifying work environment they have returned to, the new challenge of arguing with guests about masks is hurtful and unnecessarily punitive. Walking past a half dozen signs saying masks are required and then acting surprised about it—even when we offer to give you one at our cost—is inexcusable. And berating a host does not make you a patriot or a constitutional scholar. It makes you a bully, and it affirms the growing realization that the customer isn’t always right.

You may question the lawfulness of Executive Orders. It’s your prerogative. But one thing you can’t question is that as a guest, our safety is in your hands. A mask increases that safety. It doesn’t guarantee it, but it makes your visit more safe for us. It’s that simple.

I have put my entire being into my restaurants. It is my life’s work. Do not—DO NOT—DARE to put it and our loyal team members at risk unnecessarily. When you do so, you disrespect my wife, my daughter and son, and the life we’ve built. Not to mention the livelihood (and possibly lives) of the nearly 15 people we employ.

Bottom line: we’re trying to survive. Your concern about wearing a mask for mere seconds pales in comparison to what's at stake.