Tag: jesus christ

Protecting A Way of Life

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Protecting A Way of Life

I recently got into a discussion with someone about the indoctrination of a generation. While this may read like conspiracy theory, I assure you, is provable fact. Let us start at the beginning, it’s WWII, and the wave of communism has begun. Top scientists, Hollywood stars, powerful people all begin to go to meetings about the rise of communism. The United States fights back, while others begin to fall. Within 30 years after WWII the landscape of the world began to change. Let us go back a little ways first. 

The Idea: In 1848 Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels publish the very first Communist Manifesto. The argument was that history was driven by class struggles, and called for workers to overthrow capitalism and establish a classless society. 

1917 Lenin led the Bolsheviks to overthrow Russia. Russia becomes the first communist state, later to be known as USSR. 

During WWII the idea of communism spreads and people began to become either sympathizers or advocates. The idea of communism spreads after WWII into Poland Eastern Germany, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia and Albania. 1945-1950. Later China would fall to another revolution led by Mao Zedong. 

1948 North Korea falls, 1954 Vietnam, Cuba 1959, Laos 1975, Cambodia 1975. Berlin Wall goes up August 13, 1961separating East and West Germany. 

When the wall fell 600,000 to 700,000 fled into West Germany. To date it is believed tens of thousands have fled communist countries. Comparatively, the number of those who have fled capitalist societies for communist are by order of magnitudes smaller. So, why is that? 

The idea of communism on paper sounds good, collective good, government helping everyone equally, but the problem is it doesn’t factor in two major phycological factors, greed, and laziness. Everyone gets paid the same, no matter how much or little someone works. The government lives like fat cats, while everyone below it is turned into subjects. Someone’s drive to better their lives is squashed by the government. Communism is appealing because it eliminates the need to work hard to get the same as someone who gives it their all. Why work hard for education, or healthcare when the government will just give it to you? 

Today, we are experiencing the closest thing to an existential crisis as a nation than we have in over a hundred years. Not since the civil war, have we seen such a change in ideology. Today, the idea of the Democratic Socialist of America is spreading, and winning elections across the country. Instead of revolution those who follow communism here are simply voting it in. What was the quote all those years ago? While no one can be specifically credited to the phrase ‘useful idiots’, it was used during the cold war by journalists and politicians to describe people within democratic countries who sympathized with Communism. What we have seen throughout history are those of the left leaning ideals have been targeted by ideologues throughout time. When a few loud voices begin yelling, a certain type of people listen. During the revolution in Iran, we see exactly what happens when a few ‘useful idiots’ are used to enact change. In 1979, in order for the Islamic takeover of Iran to happen, the left leaning college students helped to overthrow the existing government. Unfortunately for those people, they would later be murdered or imprisoned. Why are young college students the target of radical ideals? Young people often seek to improve society, fight injustice, find meaning in life, and be a part of something larger than themselves. The world tends to see young adults seeking community, purpose, friendship, and identity in college. To put it simply, college students are impressionable. They believe they will be the ones who will change the world. Sounds a little like the sin of pride, doesn’t it? In fact, it is this pride, it is this arrogance that is preyed upon. Why would two organization that would appear to have little to do with one another align themselves? The Communists, and Islamists? I believe it falls within the old saying, ‘the enemy of my enemy, is my friend.’ Only one will reign supreme at the top, and one will fall, after the west falls. Make no mistake, the west will fall. How do I know this? It’s prophesied to fall. When we look to the one world order of Revelation, it seems very socialist “Islamist” to me. Now, since no one knows the date in which this happens, one cannot say how long we fight back before the fall. How do I know only one will come out on top? Look at Iran in 1979. When the leftist helped the Ayatollah to take control, later these leftists were all rounded up and slaughtered or imprisoned. We saw the same thing in China in 1957. The Anti-Rightest campaign. The trap, during a brief hundred flowers campaign, Mao encouraged intellectuals to voice criticism of the government. Of course, liberals stepped forward with open arms to do this. But, when sufficient time had passed, Mao reversed course and over 550,000 to 1 million ‘intellectuals’, academics, and liberal democratic leaders were labeled as enemies of the state. They were accused, fired, humiliated, sent to labor camps, and led to suicide. What was it Solomon said? “Nothing new under the sun!” It would seem the movement ‘queers for Palestine’ shouldn’t work. If you were a queer person in Palestine you’d be thrown from a roof. So, why does it work? Here in America, we have freedoms, so you can say what you want, no matter how stupid it may be. You can be as stupid as you want, and nothing will happen to you, except maybe hand your way of life over to the slaughter of your own life. Why would Muslims partner with such people? The interview with “Muhammad Tewhidi and Dinesh D’Souza” explained that when Tewhidi was an extremist he and any other radical extremist would vote left. Why? They (the left) did not stand on principle.  “They (the right) come with principles, that’s not someone that can be brainwashed.” The extremists use the left, for all the same reasons it’s been using the left for over a hundred years now. Nothing new, and nothing has changed, but this time, America is the last line of defense. We have gone to the worlds rescue for over two hundred years, and now, now that Europe has fallen to the Islamic takeover from immigration, now, they are focused here. Much like Sauron and Saruman teaming up to fight Gondor. If Gondor falls, the rest of Middle Earth Falls. 

What does any of this have to do with the second amendment? Everything. The second amendment as I stated in a recent Blog Post “So, why do we have the second amendment? It’s there to safeguard against government overreach. It’s not there for hunting, it’s there to keep the government in check. It’s the fourth check n balance. Our government a 3-tiered government each checking one another, and we the militia are the check against the government to ensure our rights are not taken away by those who would do so, likely under the false flag of ‘protection’.” (Thearrowpreacher, 2A, 2026)https://thearrowpreacher.com/2026/05/03/the-2nd-amendment-and-why-its-important/ As I spoke in detail in that post about what the second is important, here we will revisit some aspects and expand others. The second amendment sets us apart in the world, as we see from other countries falling to Islamification. People are now getting arrested in other ‘free’ nations for speaking in the public square. Young boys being stabbed to death and police watch as he bleeds out right in front of them. Rapes have gone up 150% over the last ten years. We in the united states have actually witnessed a decline in violent crime, with the same style migration to what’s happening in Europe, why could this be? We see what happens when liberal judges preside over a violent offender’s case. Small sentences, or even releases occur, putting the offender back out into the street. The difference here is not our justice system, for it would appear liberal judges want to continue letting criminals onto the streets on purpose. The difference is the American’s ability to defend ourselves. 

After doing extensive research into the firearm culture, I found that there are nearly 393 million guns in America, more guns than we have people. We have roughly 266 million adults in this country. This doesn’t even measure children. We know that not every American owns firearms, which puts the number at roughly 76-80 million gun owners. So that’s roughly five guns per gun owner. That sounds like a lot right? You’d be correct, it is a lot of firearms. Now, let’s do some fun numbers crunching. How many homicides are there per year? In 2024, which showed a sharp decline in homicides, there were 15,795 homicides. For the sake of argument, let’s look at 2023, 22,830 total homicides. Firearm homicides 17,927. There was an estimated gang-related firearm homicides of 2300-2700. Domestic/intimate partner 1500-2000, Acquaintance arguments (deaths) 5000-6500, and other unknown circumstances 4000-6000 deaths. Comparatively, the CDC just reinstated its statistics on defensive gun use in America. 65,000 to 2.5 million defensive gun uses in America. If we look at every firearm homicide, regardless of the reason for the homicide, we end up with around 3.6 defensive gun uses for every firearm homicide. Now, let’s break this down a little further. While the 13/50 saying is an over simplification of numbers, many people have heard that 13% of the population commit 50% of the crime. IF we take a more liberal look into these defensive gun uses, lets instead of looking at the 65,000 number, lets look instead at the more liberal middle ground 500,000 defensive gun uses. This changes the numbers dramatically. Now, it’s 22 defensive gun uses for every homicide. 500,000/22,800. But if we look at simply gun for gun, it’s 500,000/ 17900 (firearm deaths) at 28 defensive gun uses for every firearm homicide. But, let’s break it down further. Let’s remove gang actively (Note: not all gun crime in cities is labeled as gang related even though it is). If we remove the roughly 2500 gang homicides this puts us at 500,000/15,400 = 32 defensive gun uses for every non gang firearm homicide. With so many firearms to people ratio, doesn’t it seem like if guns were the problem we’d have more, I don’t know… gun crimes or deaths? Not only does the 2A keep you from being a victim, it keeps the government at bay from becoming tyrannical. Since such a small population has all the guns in the country, if that section of the population were the majority of the problem, crime rates would be much higher. Those with guns aren’t trying to take control of the country either, not by force anyway. If those with guns were trying to take over, they would. Those with firearms largely just want to be left alone by others, by the government, to live a peaceful, free life. Why would the government want to ban firearms, when in reality, firearms are not the threat they claim them to be. The number prove that compared to automobile accidents, drugs, and other causes. Drug overdoses in 2024 was 79,384. Way more than all homicides, and yet the Democrats left the southern border open, and let drugs pour into this country. If they truly cared about lives, they would focus on the highest causes of death, before the smaller number of deaths. From what we’ve seen they focus on firearms because a disarmed population is an easily controlled population. We see states with loose gun control laws have a lower homicide rate, compared to the higher controlled states. Gun control is simply control, and if you get rid of that you can limit speech, you can limit religion, the simple facts are if the 2nd falls, the 1st falls with it.

Why the left has become so dangerous?  Over the years the left has tried to control slavery, segregation, healthcare, education, gun control, abortion, now adding in the pride community, the indoctrination of your children. The left has had control over much of the major cities for decades. Those cities are the most dangerous, and most expensive cities in the U.S. to live in. Growing up, I grew up not far from Detroit. During that time period I was at a liberal school system. I didn’t know it till later in my life that I myself was being indoctrinated. “I grew up in a school that taught me lies as truth, led me down the halls of liberalism, stuff like climate change that acid rain was going to kill us all by destroying crops, and burning us all. Rising waters would sink Florida by 2010. The Bible was wrong and the Big Bang was proven, evolution was fact, proven and accepted by all, except it wasn’t. I believed them when teachers told me that the right wanted children to starve, the right wanted to destroy the environment, and prevent families from getting welfare they desperately needed. The truth was not as simple as I was led to believe. The fact was, during those years the same kind of teaching was definitely a one-sided teaching method, intended to indoctrinate young impressionable kids, who trusted their teachers to tell them the truth. With no one at home willing or able to talk to me about political matters, science, or anything else, I fell for the lies.” (Thearrowpreacher, Different, 2026) https://thearrowpreacher.com/2026/06/16/why-im-different/ One truth that I have found is hunters pay more into conservation efforts than most liberals do. Conservation efforts keeps land pristine for the environment, and hunting. 

I watched for years, as Detroit fell to darkness under the control of the Democrats. Why were their policies not working in a single city? IF they didn’t work in a city, how could they possibly work on the national scale? I began asking that at a young age, and was fed lie after lie to pacify me. I have come to see the truth; I was lied to as a child by a school system designed to indoctrinate me. Today we see this indoctrination now encompassing the entire pride agenda, mutilating children, confusing kids, and pushing more lies. Why do this? Distraction and change. When we fundamentally change the mindset of a generation it makes that generation ripe for the taking. “We are using rhetoric that dehumanizes an entire group of people in this country, and attacks against conservatives are on the rise as people view them as Nazi’s, fascist, and evil. One main function of the communist party is to, by their own admission make all religions superfluous, and communism supersedes them. Ideological Subversion: It takes 15-20 years to demoralize a people. In an interview with Yuri Bezmenov a former KGB operative, he discusses the process already happening in America. In the communist goals of 1963 we see two goals 26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy as promiscuity as ‘normal, natural, healthy.” “27 Infitrate the churches and replace revealed religion with “social” religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a “religious crutch.” “28 Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of “separation of church and state.” (Thearrowpreacher, 2A, 2026). The whole of the west has been under attack since the early 1900’s, and in a very real way we’ve been in a cold war ever since. We didn’t realize just how dangerous the Communists, and Islamists would be. We are coming up on the 25th anniversary of 9/11 and when I heard the term “Never Forget” I assumed we wouldn’t. Now just a mere 25 years later, and we have. Not only have we forgotten, we handed our largest city, the city of ground zero, over to a radical sympathizer, Zoron Mamdani. We did forget. The liberals don’t care about safety, they care about control. If they cared for safety, they would put armed guards at schools. They would lower speed limits to limit child death in cars. They would be more focused on healthy foods to eliminate childhood obesity. They would address the growing mental health crisis in young people by not affirming and making mental illness worse, but actually address the root of the problem. If they actually cared about people they wouldn’t say black lives matter, unless you’re a conservative black man. Black lives matter unless it’s black on black crime. Black lives matter, till is a black baby in the womb. No uterus, no voice, unless you claim to be a woman, then you can be whatever you want because we can’t define a woman. Women empowerment, except for men in women’s sports taking spots for young girls. My body my choice, unless you force someone get an experimental drug which has now been deemed dangerous, if not you’re fired. AR-15 is too dangerous for you to have, unless you are a politician and you have private security. Truly the contradictions are endless. You’re a fascist if you want secure borders, while they create safe spaces to keep out anyone they don’t agree with. They preach about climate change except flying around in their private jets. They warn you about election interference of foreign countries, but shut down voter ID laws that would prevent it. They support body positivity unless you’re on the other side, then they’ll body shame you. They say that you’re intolerant, but ban any speaker that doesn’t agree with them. They call you racist except claim minorities are too dumb to get ID’s to vote. They took religion out of schools claiming indoctrination, but drag queen story hour is alright. They call you a science denier except, men can be women. They go to “No Kings” protest forgetting their party didn’t throw a primary for their presidential nominee, and they claim free speech except conservative voices shut down by the Biden administration and big tech social media platforms. They call Trump a dictator, but made people walk around with vaccine cards. They claim Trump is a dictator while having the right to protest in the streets and police don’t shoot them. They claim freedoms are being taken away but can’t specify which ones. They claim to want ICE gone, but don’t want the homeless encampments in their block, and won’t open their home to an asylum seeker. They claim to be the party of tolerance, except when they celebrate the death and murder of someone they disagree with. They cry about free speech, when they are faced with the consequences of their words, while simultaneously calling for anyone to be canceled whom they disagree with. They want socialism and healthcare for all but don’t want to raise their taxes to pay for it. They’ve elected mayors in Seattle, NYC, Irving California, Burlington Vermont. And more have been elected to higher congressional offices. And 42 state and local offices are now held by Muslims. We see what’s going on in Michigan, in Dearborn and surrounding areas. We see what’s happening in Minnesota. And yet this madness isn’t being contained, it’s spreading.

We’ve seen what liberalism does to countries throughout history, and we know how it can and will be exploited by those who push nefarious ideologies. They call Christian’s extremists while voting for people who support the death of thousands and supports the genocide of Christians. If America falls, no one is coming to our rescue. We must hold the line as long as we can. We must be ready to stand our ground. While I don’t suspect I could hold out long, not in my current health condition, I will never give in on my principles. What did Tewhidi say? He feared the conservative because they were principled. I will hold on to my faith. I will hold fast to truth, and not this new subjective truth, but objective truth. Men can appropriate a women’s life, but will never be a woman. I argued with someone about science recently, and I do believe in science, but only so far as what is actual science. I won’t take my science lesson from a party that believes men can get pregnant, that changes the name of mother and father, to birthing person, or chest feeding parent. The same party that denies life starts at conception, but to make their murder more palatable change the wording and definitions of things. They have dehumanized babies while at the same time saying if a man doesn’t pay child support he should be held accountable, but he doesn’t have a say if that baby should live. Now, we have Lindsey Clancy killing her children, and women are standing up in support of this murderer. The life of the unborn doesn’t matter, so where is the line? We have seen the real line, there isn’t one, life doesn’t matter. The party of the tolerant left is fairly supportive of murder, if you simply don’t like someone, or they are an inconvenience to you. A mother can kill her own children if it’s the mother doing it. This is sick, this is wrong, and this must be stopped. This evil must not be allowed to spread. We must stand firm on our faith. Stand firm in the midst of attacks, and the battles being waged right in front of us. We must protect our way of life. We must not give up our rights. We must not give up our elections. We must be louder, and more willing to push back on this evil rising without our walls. Let your voices be heard. 

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood” Truly we fight against ideals, a true hatred, a true evil. If we let go of the 2nd Amendment, the 1st and the rest will fall, it’s only a matter of time. 

Citation: 

Thearrowpreacher. (2026, July 12). The 2nd Amendment and why it’s important . The Arrow Preacher. https://thearrowpreacher.com/2026/05/03/the-2nd-amendment-and-why-its-important/ 

Thearrowpreacher. (2026a, June 16). Why I’m Different. The Arrow Preacher. https://thearrowpreacher.com/2026/06/16/why-im-different/

I Was A Sheep Dog Once

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I Was A Sheep Dog Once

I was 18 when I got the letter from the Department of Defense, denied. I had an emergency, second umbilical hernia surgery. I was completely devastated. By the grace of God one year later I was walking through a grocery store when I ran across a recruiter. I told him my story, and he told me to try again in so many months. Let the surgery heal, and once it did for a year, then, try again. I didn’t have a backup plan. My backup plan to go to college fell apart for various reasons. It wasn’t that I wasn’t smart enough for college, it was the situation I was in. Later in my life I would go, and I would graduate with a 6.65 GPA. Not too shabby. I would first go to the Air Force recruiter, but I didn’t love the idea of desk job, and didn’t really love the idea of being security forces (Military Police). When I got back from MEPS, I got back with no recruiter waiting for me to discuss further options. I was angry. I immediately went into the Army Recruiters office, and he gave me a pamphlet. By the time I was home a mere 15 minute drive, I circled several options. When I got home. I began using the internet to narrow down my selection till I had one clear choice, Calvary Scout. When I went back to MEPS this time under the Army Flag, there was only one spot for scout training, if I wanted to leave in 4 months, I would have to write an essay, and thankfully I was chosen. I did pretty well in Basic, but I wasn’t top of my class, but I finished with honor anyway. I finished the 25Kilo Ruck March crossing the finish line, after a week in the field, with little food (I was a vegetarian), and no sleep, we embarked on the finial ruck of training. When I crossed the finish line, I knew I would get my cross sabers. 

Not everyone finished the ruck, but the smallest guy in the platoon did. I would train and deploy. I would go to Korea first where I learned how to be a warfighter. What is a warfighter you may ask, “A warfighter is a military service member—soldier, sailor, airman, or marine—directly engaged in or trained for combat and operations, emphasizing a cohesive, agile approach to winning battles” My platoon was directly responsible for several missions at the same time. We would do vehicle patrols, observation posts (OP’s for short), We’d do EOD (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) escorts. We would do raids, we would do what we called snatch and grabs, where we would sneak in, or bust in and arrest high value targets. We’d often have to do a breach to enter into the dwelling quickly. We’d move into sniper/ambush missions. Sometimes our days were filled with several missions, one right after another. We were often away from the base for hours, and often days at a time. We’d not only be away from our beds, but we’d be away from help, and we’d do our missions with only 4-5 soldiers. We had a heavy work load, and we often found ourselves going from one mission to another. I was trained as a weapon. The idea of a soldier being a weapon is not new. Everything I learned in Iraq, and in the Army taught me how to survive. Since then, the time I worked in security, the time I worked in a detention facility, all taught me valuable lessons about what it means to be a protector. 

During my time in college, I studied the human mind, the mindset of a criminal, and in many cases the mindset of a terrorist. I studied homeland security, emergency management, terrorism, and a whole lot of psychology. Today I still use what I have learned on a much smaller scale. I protect my home, and anyone that may be in my orbit while I’m out of the house. For a long time, I made do with what I had. Now my situation has changed a bit, but I am still protecting my home and those around me. No matter the situation it’s important to focus mostly on the intent. Some people have more of a protector mentality then others. When I was a kid, I did my best to stand up to bullies, even though I was tremendously bullied. Later in life I swore I’d stand up for the little guy. I swore I’d stand up to fight bullies any chance I’d get. 

One day at church I was approached by a member of the safety team at my church, to see if I’d be interested in serving on that ministry. I was given my assignment, and when we’d next meet, and so it began, I was a new member of the safety team at church. Some who still live under a rock think a security team is not necessary. I could not disagree more. Some who disagree say it’s not the Christian way. In scripture it talks about the Temple Guards. Keepers of the peace and protection, inside the temple. Scripture tells us to the best of our ability live in peace with all man. It never says to roll over and let people hurt you. IF the government deems your death to be necessary, because you serve a mighty God, to trust in the Lord, even if it means dying for your faith. Old Testament Law says Exodus 22:2-3 2 “If the thief is caught while breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there will be no bloodguiltiness on his account. 3 But if the sun has risen on him, there will be bloodguiltiness on his account. He shall surely make restitution; if he owns nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.” While the rules at the time change for daylight, we have a different set of laws which are still acceptable. We call it the ‘Castle Doctrine’. The home is your castle, and you are given legal right to assume someone breaking in beyond the threshold of the door or window is there to do you harm. Scripture tells us to follow the law of the land. We have a responsibility to defend our homes from attackers. In the middle east, homes still to this day, specifically Iraq, every household has the right to defend itself, so they all have a rifle with two magazines. 

We all have responsibilities and while our first priority is to Christ, and living in peace, we must understand that sometimes that peace is taken from us by others. We don’t always have a say when we need to act in the interest in protecting ourselves or our loved ones. I find myself longing for the days when I felt like I was making a difference in this life. I have always felt the need, the desire to protect others around me. I was shocked when I watched the movie American Sniper to hear such an amazing quote that summed up how I had felt my whole life. By the time American Sniper came out I had already been discharged from the Army. I did not know it, but Kyle had served in Ramadi the same time, I was there. 

It is said his father said this quote: 

“There are three types of people in this world: sheep, wolves, and sheepdogs. Some people prefer to believe that evil doesn’t exist in the world, and if it ever darkened their doorstep, they wouldn’t know how to protect themselves. Those are the sheep.

Wayne Kyle: Then you’ve got predators who use violence to prey on the weak. They’re the wolves.

Wayne Kyle: And then there are those blessed with the gift of aggression, an overpowering need to protect the flock. These men are the rare breed who live to confront the wolf. They are the sheepdog.” 

I was meek growing up. I often took the beatings that came my way from bullies. I guess, in some ways I displayed similar characteristics as Tommy from Kenny Rogers song Coward of The County. When push came to shove, Tommy did what he needed too, and in one day proved the county wrong. While in Iraq, I too did what needed to be done. Today, I find myself facing the truth of who I am. I cannot stay or remain silent of the evil I see in today’s world. I see the murder of children. I see the mutilation of children. I see the eroding of God given rights to people. I see the rise of corruption and the mass migration away from the Word of God. Evil rises all around us, and all we can do now, is prepare for the worst, and pray it never happens. Scripture shows us how important it is to plan for the future. In Joshua’s story, famine came to all the land, and he knew he needed to prepare for it, or everyone would parish. In my own life, on a much smaller scale, I see the need to prepare. Maybe it’s the emergency management mindset I have, or the experience in the Army planning for every contingency possible, but I always did my best to prepare. In recent months I have found how important it is that if I am going to be the sheep dog of old, I need to prepare my body for the fight. I cannot overstate how hard that is for me. My mind is willing but my body It seems didn’t get the memo. I struggle these days with things I shouldn’t. My body has failed in so many ways. It’s hard for me to keep pushing forward, when my body fails every week, it seems. When I wake up, I have to force myself to get out of bed even though I hurt. I have to push myself to go to Cardiac Rehab even though I didn’t sleep the night before. I have to convince myself to do my workouts, push my body, even though I hurt and ache every day. I know that this life is a fleeting one, one full of pain, and suffering, but much like Paul, sometimes the thorn in our sides is not removed by God. I have grown to put my faith in God, but I will admit sometimes it’s hard. My mind is willing, but my flesh is weak. My pain is fluid, it changes regularly, but it reminds me of my hardships, and just how sweet Heaven will be. What is this pain we suffer for a little compared to an eternity in the presence of God in Heaven. 

Even with my problems, I do my best to remain as positive as possible. My focus is always on the protection of those around me. With the current uptick in terrorist related attacks, and the threats against conservative Christian men, I find myself on constant high alert. The danger is real, and so is my response. I know what I need to do to stay safe, and because of that I have to wrestle with two truths. Truth one, is I am a Christian Soldier for Christ, fighting in an invisible war for people’s souls. Truth two, I am fighting as the spiritual leader of my household, which also makes me the soul protector in the non-invisible world as well. I must be both at the same time. I must be willing to do what is necessary to protect myself, my family, and those who are weak from harm. We see SheepDogs in a few different places. One, and mostly the military. Special Operators are often referred to as sheepdogs. Police, Firefighters, and some citizens would fall into the category of a sheepdog also. 

John 10:11-12 11 “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.”

Jesus calls himself the good shepherd who lays down his life to protect us. It takes great amounts of courage to stand up to wolves. When I was child and I was bullied, I didn’t have anyone stand up for me. But if we are to be Christ like in our lives, that means we too must be willing to lay down our lives doing what’s right. 

Matthew 10:16  “16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.”

It’s important to be vigilant while out in public. People have always been dangerous, but this goes as an ebb and flow in time. Look at how dangerous it was back in the days of Jesus. Today, we see ourselves having to deal with more criminals as judges are soft on crime. Those of us who can protect, need to protect. Jesus is telling his disciples they are going into harms way. He tells them how to respond in the current situation they would find themselves. 

As important as it is to be a physical sheepdog, we must also be spiritual sheepdogs. 

Acts 20:28-29 28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. 29 I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 

We have a responsibility to the truth, protecting the truth, and also protecting the sheep within the flock. One individual from scripture I have often gravitated towards is the story of Gideon. A man who was humble, perhaps even too humble, said he was the weakest of all his brothers. Even though he called himself the meekest of all his kin, he was chosen by God to lead an army. Gideon before war had 32000 men. Prior to the battle, he gave his men one last chance to leave. Any man who knelt down to drink would be sent home. He was left with 10000 men, then before the battle had only 300 men. There were few sheepdogs willing to stand up and fight. Even though he had a few 300 men they won the battle. I grew up a weak sheep, and when I graduated basic training, I vowed never to let someone bully me or harm the people I care about. A true sheepdog doesn’t seek out danger. We aren’t vigilantes. True sheepdogs want peace, we want peace so bad because we have seen the terrors of war. Because we have seen war, we value peace more than those who have only lived in peace. Sheepdogs want to keep and preserve the peace. 

In recent years church security has become more main stream. At my old church I was a part of the safety team. The mission is protecting the flock. If there was ever an incident, handle it without the rest of the congregation being aware of it, letting service continue uninterrupted. We saw recently when a Jewish Synagogue was attacked by an armed gunman, and was met by Synagogue armed security. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” (Edmund Burke). This quote suggests that apathy, silence, and inaction, permit evil to flourish. This is exactly what happened during WWII. The world stood by as the Nazi’s took over Germany, and when the countries surrounded by Germany began to fall one by one, the U.S. did very little, till the attack came to our doorstep. We allowed Germany to gain ground, and we in our apathy, allowed evil to flourish. Guns, knives, bow’s, etc. are all tools. We as a society (a worldly one) have begun having ridiculously crazy conversations about objects. In England, a famous English actor said we don’t need knives with points because kitchen knives are used in more attacks than any other bladed objects. Yet another ban on items rather than dealing with the true nature of the problem, people. In Australia, the land of dangerous things, they’ve banned machetes. Personally, with swords now being banned around the world, tools of the farm, or just survival, the change of what a man is, is imminent. I once saw a quote, “Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times” (Apparently quoted G. Michael Hopf) It takes a lot effort to create a society that prospers. Our very nation is the pinnacle of that idea. It took a lot of struggles, and hard work to build this country from nothing. From that nothing, a country began being built. In 1776 strong men got together to free a nation from the control of a king. To be free, and have the freedom that God has given to all men. Over the last 250 years this nation has endured good times and hard times. The situation now however, across the world is one of a steady decline. Since WWII while there’s been conflict somewhere around the world at all times, we’ve not had a great war. After Vietnam came Iraq and after 20 years of fighting this country has never seen war here at home. People here have forgotten history. Politicians here have begun to try and disarm the American people, a failsafe to ensure we have our freedoms protected. No armed forces have stepped foot in America, and one main reason is our freedom to bear arms. While this does not make someone strong, nor does it make someone a sheepdog, it is understood that our protections have followed the quote to its most logical conclusion. Our good times have indeed created hard times. The push, the desire to feminize men; the attack on masculinity has neutered, and softened their hands of men. Men once bore the sword for righteousness. Today we often do not think about government, police, or military carrying out the will of God against evil, but surely I say to you, there is Biblical precedent to this. (Speaking to those who do iniquities) 

Romans 13:4b But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword of nothing; for it is a minister of God, and avenger who brings wrath upon the one who practices evil.” 

This is referring to governments need to protect the innocent, to destroy evil where it stands. We as a society must remember 

“What must not be lost sight of is that, unpleasant as is the task of the jailor and the use of the whip, the cell, the noose, the guillotine, these things stand behind the stability of a civilized society, and they stand there necessarily, for God has declared it so, in harmony with reality, rather than with apostate sociological opinion.” (Robert Culver) 

Men willing to stand up and fight must remember there is no greater honor than to lay down one’s life for a friend. We as men must stand in courage to do what it necessary, to continue to fight the good fight, and never lose sight of doing good in the sight of God. We must continue our journey to fight the good fight as good Christian soldiers. We must continue to stand up to evil, and those who would do evil. Perhaps an unpopular take, but we must remember to do what’s right even if that takes us to far distant lands. In the words of Uncle Ben “With great power, comes great responsibility.” I am not saying we should go to war at the drop of a dime, nor should we. I’m also not saying that we should get involved in every conflict anywhere. But sometimes one must pick up the sword to destroy an evil bent on bringing that evil to the rest of the world. Iran is one such evil. Some may not like how our current president got to where we are, some may have disagreements with some of the details, and that’s fine. but the removal of dictators who’ve murdered their own people, murdered others around the world, sponsor terrorism, and those who support terrorism here at home, should be dealt with by means that are reasonable. Are we willing to stand up to do what is right, or as Dumbledore once said, “Dark and difficult times lie ahead. Soon we must all face the choice between what is right, and what is easy.” (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) 

For a long time, I felt like I lost something. After I got out of the military I struggled with purpose. I wasn’t following Christ as I should since I wasn’t actively serving my Lord. Sure, I believed, but that couldn’t have been seen in my actions. I went on sinning, thinking I was covered, and my fire insurance was set. I made poor decisions, even though I was doing the best to be a good friend, good husband, and in my own eyes, a good Christian. The problem was, I wasn’t doing anything to lead my home spiritually. I wasn’t setting the Christ like example before my family. I lost my way. Once upon a time I believed that the sheepdog in me was dead. I believed that I couldn’t protect my family because of past mistakes. I believed that because of my physical limitations from heart surgery and other issues I was worthless. I felt worthless, and my body screamed it. In recent months I have moved into a new phase within my life, and because of the grace, mercy, and faithfulness of God, much of what I lost in 2016 has been restored. If you remain faithful to the Lord even in the most difficult times you will receive restoration. Does this mean you’ll get everything back, the house, shiny new car, etc.? No, but one way or another you will receive restoration, either in life, or eternal life. In the last few months, I have been restored in some very specific ways, and that thing has allowed me to feel safe, comfortable, prepared, and strong. I finally feel as if a big part of who I was has been restored, and I am so thankful to God to allow me to experience His grace through restoration. Yes, I was a sheepdog once, but today, I can say, even despite my physical limitations, I am a sheepdog again. I am a Christian soldier, ready to deploy, ready to continue the fight, ready to share the Good News which is what the Gospel means. Christ is King, our commander in chief. We have the Holy Spirit with us, guiding us, showing us the path, and we have the host (a military term meaning troops, or army) of angels on our side. IF God is for us, who can be against us? Satan has lost the war, and despite that he tries to win battles, but we have the truth on our side. We have the safety and security knowing that the sheepdog that looks after us is the Good Shepherd. He not only defends us Himself, but He uses His mighty host of angels to do His will. We are soldiers, we are sheepdogs, and sheepdogs never die, they just get called home. Fight the good fight Brothers and Sisters, fight on. 

I realize some of this may be controversial to some. I will say this. Do what the Lord convicts you. If you don’t like weapons, and feel if someone breaks in to do you or your family harm and that’s the will of God, that is well within your right. Follow your own convictions. As long as they match scripture.

God Bless, 

Live Long And Prosper

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The Journey With PTSD

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The Journey With PTSD:

To whom it may concern: 

There’s no Purple Heart for combat related PTSD. Even if the wounds aren’t physical, PTSD is just as real, and sometimes the emotional and psychological trauma is more detrimental than a physical injury. Physical injuries can and do leave a lasting impact but the psychological ones can often be much harder to face, and live with. It changes the way we look at the world. It changes the way we live in the world. PTSD is often a cage we cannot escape from. We’ve all heard the phrase “not all wounds are visible.” As someone who’s faced the demons inside, and still do, the path, the journey is an up the mountain trek. We carry on our packs the rucksack of memories and feelings. The ruck carries every emotion, feeling, viewpoints, experiences and memories. It carries all the good and the bad. Every little thing we experience is a rock we pick up and put in our bag. It creates stress on the body that can be debilitating. In my time of recovery I learned slowly, how to put down the rocks I didn’t need. I learned how to lighten my load. Every therapy gave me new tools, and new techniques to cope with life of the present and the past. I learned how to take each rock and extract only what I needed to make me better, and I left the rest of the rocks on the mountain side. Much like the sword of Griffendor only taking in which makes it stronger. There are times I became over-encumbered and overwhelmed, I had to take time, make camp  and go through the rocks again. Recently I was faced with an external obstacle that led me to an internal battle, one in which I found myself facing self doubt, anger, disappointment, hurt, and determination. It’s important to evaluate yourself with grace, but objectively and fairly. In order for us to grow we must accept any grains of truth that come from others, even the ones that may hurt our feelings. If there’s any truth we should not shy away from the truth, merely address the things within ourselves that may be shortcomings. We always have an opportunity to make ourselves better. At the same time, we must accept that, not everything said by someone is in fact the truth. Walking up the side of the mountain gives us plenty of opportunity to see the beauty and wonder of Gods creation. Creation cries out as evidence of an intelligent creator. We must enjoy this beautiful planet our Lord has made for us. We must see the wonder of it and see the good that’s all around us. We do face battles along the way, other travelers, weather, creatures, all manner of obstacles and challenges get out in front of us. PTSD is a lasting injury that stays with us forever. While you can heal and manage symptoms, the damage to the brain isn’t always repairable. We must learn how to live life again. Even though people around us don’t always understand, there are those who do. Sadly there’s no Purple Heart for the damage done to the brain, but regardless, we don’t suffer alone. We are the warrior. We are the Soldier, Marine, Airmen, Seamen, (spacemen?), coastguard. We may be different branches but we are all one family. If you feel alone, you aren’t. There are plenty of organizations, and resources to help those service members in need. My pack is lighter now than it’s ever been. I still carry the memories and the pain, but it no longer controls my day to day life. Once in a while, sometimes triggered, sometimes random, I have moments when my PTSD rears up and knocks me down. I have learned how to manage these intrusions, the intrusive thoughts, the debilitating feelings. It isn’t always an easy fight, but I know tomorrow is a new opportunity to get back onto the trail, and continue mission. I’ve regained my sense of self, and I’ve grown in confidence that I can face today, and face tomorrow, whatever battle may be lurking over the next horizon, I’m ready! I’m a soldier and I always will be. Never out of the fight. Hooah. 

For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah, set to Alamoth. A Song.
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
— Psalm 46:1

“The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace,
Because he trusts in You.
“Trust in the LORD forever,
For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.
— Isaiah 26:3-4

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
— Philippians 4:6-7

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
— Philippians 4:6-7

Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.
— Philippians 4:11-13

Sincerely 

Specialist: Arrow Preacher 

Cavalry Scout

Iraq 2004/2005 

Ashes To Ashes: We All Fall Down

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Ashes To Ashes: We All Fall Down

For the vast majority of my life, I have been hunting, searching for, and pining for friendships. I grew up without a sibling, and spent a lot of time alone. I wanted nothing more than to have friends. After I moved to the trailer park when I was 5 years old, I found a friend after living there for a little while. It took years before I met other friends. I met the two others within a couple years of one another. I ended up having two groups of friends, Daniel my first, and Joe, and Josh my others. When I moved though, those friendships faded. Over the years the second group not only faded, but became ideologically opposed to me based on faith and politics. I was a Christian, they were not. I tried to keep in touch, but they stopped returning my calls. Though I was treated horribly in middle school, bullied, and eventually faced torture: the peeing on my shoes in stalls, the stealing of my clothes in gym, the theft of my personal property such as a gold necklace, the constant teasing, even so much as being told after my mothers attempted suicide, “even she hated you, she had to try and kill herself to get away from you.” I was in seventh grade when I felt the first major sting of betrayal. My mother told one of my newer friends mother personal things about my early childhood. His mother told him, and in the middle of the lunch line, he told everyone. I was standing two feet from him when he did it. I was mortified at the level of such a casual betrayal and how easy it was to betray his friend. He didn’t want to get picked on himself, so he gave his bullies something juicier, he gave them me. After I left lower Michigan after my emancipation, i moved in with my grandpa. I made some new friends, but over the years they too would largely disappear. My dating life would become difficult also. I would be heartbroken multiple times. One after another would break my heart and leave. It was often because of the way I looked and their lack of attraction to me, or they just felt I was too different. Could I have been feeling too deeply about them? Could I have been holding on too tight that I couldn’t see the warning signs? During my time in the military, while I was good at my job, I was different. I didn’t quite fit in. My personality was odd compared to everyone else. It wasn’t a lack of bravery, or skill, but something else, deeper into my personality. After I left the military, I felt more alone than I had ever felt in my life. Though some of my military friends stayed in touch once I left, I felt incredibly alone, and lost without a direction. Military friends are generally bad at keeping in touch. While there for serious matters, it took my 2016 incident for us to create a group chat to keep in touch. Before I discharged from the military I got married to a beautiful woman. I got married very fast. She had never been with a good guy, and I was her first. We had physical chemistry, but as we spent more and more time together, that wasn’t enough to hold the marriage together. Even though I was married, I was unable to make any lasting friendships. In reality, I made few friendships while living in Europe. Two years in Europe, and within a few months of leaving, the few connections I made vanished like a vapor. Nothing stuck, and while two of them can still be found on my social media, we don’t talk. After a while I moved back to the States. While there, I found myself at odds with who I was. Who am I that I cannot make or sustain any friendships? I would begin to struggle even more to find and make friends. Again, I got married, but that would offer me no help in making friendships, her friends thought I was odd and weird also.

For many years I was in a marriage where my true self was hidden, and suppressed. I was subjugated into suppressing who I was. For 15 years I lived in the same area, and you’d think I would have had plenty of opportunities to make friendships, but sadly opportunity and successfulness don’t always go hand in hand. I wonder what it is about me that’s led me to struggle with friendships? JI have often found myself time and again watching people leave out of my life and never look back. All the while these people have often claimed how important I am to them, how important our friendship is, and how much they care about me. In the end, they walked away, and several without a single word or explanation why they felt the need to leave. While I am considered to be friendly and personable by most, there’s something about me that has led countless people to leave unexpectedly, with no obvious cause. I often care very deeply for the people in my life, and to watch them leave, hurts a great deal. I was recently told that I “chase friendships”. The statement isn’t wrong. I have gone days without hearing from anyone in my contacts. I have gone months sometimes longer without hearing from individuals. When I left my home last year, next to no one reached out to check on me, and many still haven’t. And to head off any nay-sayers, yes communication goes both ways. For a long time I would send 40-70 text messages a day to contacts. Often I would just say hello, how are you, trying to make conversation. More often then not, I wouldn’t get a single response within hours, days, and sometimes never. Eventually when I didn’t hear from anyone, I stopped sending those initial texts. The people that smiled at me, talked to me, even claimed we were friends, nearly over night, stopped talking to me when I wasn’t in the same building any longer. This is simply a problem that sets up the greater question, what is the cause? Is there something about me that people don’t like, or grow to not liking? During those fifteen years I did not make any lasting friendships, even at the job I spent six years. I made limited friendships over the years, and the vast majority have since left, many without a single word as to why. I once viewed this as such: I am the common denominator. It’s me that must be the problem. I felt this way with my failed marriages as well. Perhaps in some ways that’s true, and for a long time I was incredibly harsh with myself. However, I have now come to realize, if someone leaves without a word, that’s more on them, than myself. Just because someone leaves doesn’t mean I did anything wrong. I am reminded of a quote from my childhood hero, Captain Jean-Luke Picard, Captain of the USS Enterprise, NCC. 1701-D. He said this, “It is possible to commit no mistakes, and still lose… That is not a weakness, that is life.” (Star Trek: The Next Generation, ‘Peak Performance’) If I examine the loss of friends, it is possible they left, each with their own reason, that doesn’t mean I did anything wrong. 

The Arrow Preacher: a pseudonym I created that highlights both sides of myself. On the one side a nerd, a nerd of nerds, a lover of all thing’s superhero, science fiction, to fantasy. I love Star Trek, Star Wars, Marvel, DC, Crime Thrillers like Bones, and Castle. Military Dramas like Seal Team. The Matrix. The other side of me is my faith. I was told recently that I hide behind my faith. While it was said to me in anger, and meant as an insult, the truth is, I have done my best to let my faith be the shield in front of me. For someone to say in anger I hide behind my faith, only strengthens my growth in my walk with God. Years ago, I just started a podcast, a VLOG, and I was attempting to create something new. I wanted to stand apart from the world, I wanted to be different, because I am different. I began doing Christian content in my Green Arrow suit. I was told I shouldn’t do that. Someone I know and trusted encouraged me to stop filming in the suit. Even though I was hurt, and I disagreed with the reasoning, I obliged and stopped filming in the suit. It’s now been almost six years and I haven’t filmed a single video in the suit. A part of me died that day. I was being made to conform to the ordinary. Stifel my unusual individuality. I’m a nerd, a Christian, and I wear things like cloaks, a tunic, and a kilt. I wear Boston Scallys. I collect swords, and Lego, Batman figures, Star Wars items, and Star Trek ships. I take photos in the snow wearing a cloak and brandishing a sword. I have battle ready light sabers around the house, just in case the power ever goes out, or I need a blunt object for intruders, or just for fun. I have come to realize I am not everyone’s cup of tea. I’ve witnessed a lot of people leave my life without a single word as to why. Did they ever actually care about me, because from my point of view, and I’ve asked this many times over, “how could they leave, didn’t they care about me at all?” When I was a child, I was confronted with the same problem from my mother. See… Mom had some personal stuff, and she couldn’t be the mother she should have been. I have come to understand that I have abandonment issues. Even though I have deep rooted childhood trauma, and I fear abandonment, I don’t display the standard “insecure attachment style”. As a kid I experienced abandonment. I experienced being left alone physically, and also years of being alone emotionally. I often said, if mom loved me, she would change. If she loved me, how could she do that? I didn’t understand psychology the way I do today.  I hold on tight because I don’t want people to leave, but I am incredibly kind and understanding. I’m often willing to talk about all manner of things, but recently have discovered I rarely stood up for myself. I would allow people to talk down to me. I would allow people to step on me, and get everything they wanted from me. Married twice, I would often find myself hurt by something, and when I would bring it up, I would be the one apologizing for bringing it up. I was not allowed to feel hurt and moreover, I was not allowed to talk about it. People are flawed individuals. I am a flawed individual. What I am is a red blooded, emotion filled, Holy Spirit led Christian conservative. There are a great many people who don’t like that at all. 

It’s been a long road for me, and as I continue to deal with those who have recently left my life, I have to come to grips with the fact that I matter. My feelings matter. I have control over my own actions in life. While I am not willing to say I am perfect because scripture clearly tells us we are not, and I know my shortcomings, what I am willing to say is I have often done very little to deserve how I have been treated. I have had a history of allowing people into my life who only used me for my kindness, what I could offer them, or people who were nice, just to be nice. Only a few have held me as more than just a casual friend, and even then, many of those who did see me as a close friend, have also left my life. I have watched as people I love have used me, then discarded me once I no longer offered anything useful to them. This may sound melodramatic, but in reality, emotions aside, these are the facts. After my emancipation, and moving to a new city, having to make new friends, after leaving everything behind, I tried to latch onto people. I tried to make very deep friendships. Over the years I have found very few people that have had the same feelings towards me, then I do them. How do I manage this hurt in my life going forward? Seek Jesus, and know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. 

John 14:1-4 14 “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And you know the way where I am going.”

My heart has been greatly troubled. Broken, shattered, and the only way to heel is to seek and find biblical counsel. Find answers in scripture. Seek what God’s word says on the matter. 

John 14:18 18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” 

Jesus comforted his future Apostles. The terminology of being called and described as orphans enters into my very soul. While I am not an orphan, I know what it’s like to be left alone. In one sense I have a small taste of what it’s like to be an orphan. My Lord Jesus giving His disciples comfort, comforts me 2000 plus years later. I have been told I chase friendships, and in reality, what I need to be chasing is Christ. If people will continue to fail me, what I need is to appreciate those in my life, even if they are few, who stay. I need to focus on my family, and most importantly I need to focus on my relationship with the Lord. This doesn’t remove the hurt in my heart that exists, but it does send me back to scripture. I must also remember that when Jesus was headed to the cross, after being betrayed by Judas, leaving 11 of the Apostles, 10 of the 11 would run, hide, flee from those who put Jesus in binds. John was the only one at the foot of the cross watching his Lord be crucified for our sins. That being said however, when Jesus returns, he shows love, kindness, and most importantly forgiveness towards his Apostles, most notably Peter, who didn’t just run, but denied knowing Jesus. Jesus shows us the model of what we should be, and who we should be. 

Psalm 34:18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted

And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

I am crushed in spirit. I am brokenhearted. Losing someone recently, who was very close to me, and very influential in my life, has left me with a deep cut, a wound that has rattled me. While my foundation is solid in the Lord, I am 100 percent certain, because I have grown so close to the Lord I am better at withstanding the hurt and pain I feel. I am not sure how this will affect my life going forward, but in life we are creatures of the now. We cannot live in the past. We cannot know the future. All we can do is make one decision after another. We can only decide how to handle and manage each second of our lives. In those actions, we understand cause and effect. Our choices have consequences, and we must face those consequences both good and bad. We must do all these things to the Glory of God. We must make our choices based on what brings our Heavenly Father a smile upon his face. We are not saved by our works, but our works when done in the name of the Lord acquire treasure in heaven. That treasure is not for us, but for us to present to Jesus, our Lord and Savior. We all get hurt by people. What I need to ask myself, is if I’m going to allow someone so much influence over my life, that I give up who I am to please them, and try to get them to like me by hiding or changing who I am to get them to like me? Or, will I be myself? If someone likes me for who I am they will choose to want me in their life. I have to believe it is better to be myself, then to constantly try to please others by sacrificing myself to do it. I allowed the Arrow Preacher to die. I allowed my spirit to be crushed, and I allowed the happiness and joy I once had to bring both fun and education of Jesus to the world, to be suppressed to please others. Will I continue to hold back who I am, or will I rise above, rising like the phoenix from the ashes that was once my old self burned and buried? 

We should never allow anyone so much power over us to tell us who we are, or who we should be, sometimes people telling us who we aren’t. Does this mean we can live in sin? No, not at all. If we are living in sin, we should accept the words of those who only want to help save our souls that scripture supports. But if our ways, our methods are just different than the normal, we should follow the Spirit. People have expectations and sometimes think, we must conform to what is regular or normal. That even if someone’s personality is not regular or normal, they must somehow contort their being to fit what is commonly accepted as ordinary. I have been passed over for positions, I have had friends leave me, I have had loved one’s stifle who I was underneath, all because I was different, and through it all, I allowed it. I retreated into the darkness whimpering, too afraid to fight. I can have all the feelings in the world, but truthfully, if I allow someone to tell me who I have to be, I am denying the person God made me to be. I must remember and face one of the deepest truths of my current time, God made me who I am. He formed me in my mother’s womb. God saved me from death multiple times over the last 10 years, and in that, I have grown into a position where I am the most free I’ve ever been. Today I must continue to learn and grow to be who I feel the most comfortable being. Now, I have a choice in my life, what do I do with it? Batman once said, “It’s not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me.” Am I willing to stand out on that ledge and let my actions define me? Or am I going to hide the true me deep inside, and one day be forced to answer to God why I buried my talents deep into the ground. The Arrow Preacher, the man I became cannot hide any longer. “The Arrow Preacher, after 9 years battling in this life, I have returned with only one goal, to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To do this, I have been made into someone else, I became something else. I am the Arrow Preacher.” “The Arrow’s long-lasting symbolism in human society is so powerful, so beautiful, I cannot overlook something so important, so beautiful in my own life. “The arrow on a compass pointed north, symbolizing the direction of God, we must always keep our arrow in line, and we must always remember which way to go. Draw back your bow, take aim, and as you fly towards your next chapter in life, remember to let God be the one to set your glide path.” 

(The Arrow Preacher: Alsahm السهم -(The Arrow), https://thearrowpreacher.com/2017/08/13/alsahm-السهم-the-arrow/)

Continue to grow in the Lord. Continue to find peace with who you are. We cannot ever be comfortable living in sin, but being different, being a little strange or weird is not something to be ashamed of. Yes, I wear cloaks in public. Yes, I dress funny, or sometimes use movie quotes in normal conversation, or have an odd office space, full of collectables, and art of my favorite characters in fiction. All of my time being forced to ‘grow up’, having my childhood taken from me, and having very little has left me embracing the desire to do now, what I never could before, collect. In my youth I was forced to skip over important years of my life enjoying being a kid, through it all however, I never became bitter, angry, or hostile towards anyone. I kept my childhood ‘self’ alive, and I never allowed the world to kill him completely, even if that kid was buried deep down. Yes, for a time that little boy was suppressed and hidden, but after I met the right woman, and after I moved onto the path of serving the Lord daily, that person, started coming back. The Lord uses tragedy in our lives to push us. The Lord uses hurtful things to continue to forge us into something else. “We must learn to be more like the Sword of Griffandor. Be strong, be forged in the sanctification of our Lord Jesus Christ. Allow Him to shape our hearts, and our lives to look like Him. We cannot be forged like this though if we hold onto everything of the past.” (The Arrow Preacher, The Forging Of My Soul. https://thearrowpreacher.com/2025/04/10/the-forging-of-my-soul/)  Like the Sword of Griffandor we must only take in that which makes us better. We must face this world daily and not give in to the Devils desire to break you, or to separate you from God. The Devil desires you to abandon your quest, the path the Lord has set you on, and in many cases, getting a believer to turn their backs on God altogether. “We must learn to Love all, to remember not to allow ourselves to be burned by the fire, instead allow it to burn away anything and everything that isn’t used to live a Godly life. While fire can burn away a life, it can create wonderful pieces of art. A sword for instance is a beautiful creation, a hand-crafted piece of steal that is forged in fire. A sword can break under great pressure, or can withstand the persistent blows it may endure to be used in protecting ones self.” (The Arrow Preacher, Forging Steel. https://thearrowpreacher.com/2017/08/11/forging-steel/)

While I was serving as a chaperone to the youth in my church, there were three young ladies who were quite obviously different. You could see their nature in the clothing they wore. Every week they wore clothes that were not of the normal. Sometimes it was old fashioned colonial style clothes, or even a hint of gothic mid-evil style. Sometimes it was a hint of steampunk, but no matter what it was, it was not clothes from Walmart. They wore these clothes every week, and didn’t care what anyone thought of them. They wore them because it was who they were. They weren’t trying to wear them for attention, perhaps quite the opposite. They wore them because they liked them. I admired those young ladies, and it often led me to wear what I liked as well, even though what I wore was very different. All this to be said, my journey is far from over. My path is one of continued service to my Lord Jesus. I will no longer answer to anyone else about how I choose to serve my Lord. I don’t care about the views or attention, but I will do everything I can to reach the unreached. I will continue my journey to reach the nerds, to reach the cosplayers, to reach veterans. I will allow the old me to return, so I can put on my true face. I no longer want to hide who I am. I don’t want to live that lie anymore. Who I am is not a sin, I’m just different. So, ashes to ashes, we all fall down, but I will rise again, a phoenix from the fire, different than what I was before, stronger, and more confident. Back to the path, back to the mission I was set on so many years ago. Today, I am still meeting new people, and some of them while new, haven’t run for the hills as I’m more open about who I am. Today, I know who I am. I am a child of God, I am created and loved by God, I am a soldier for Christ. We must be pulled back, before we can be let lose to fly, be an arrow for Christ, fly, fly towards the target the Lord has given you. Never quit, never surrender. Go in peace, go in love, go in courage, go with the strength of God behind you. 

“Live Long and Prosper”

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The Arrow Preacher Podcast: What Bakes My Noodle ∞ Selfless Service

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Selfless service, what does this look like in today’s environment. Husbands, how do you serve your wife? Wives, how do you serve your husbands? Join me as we talk about these things, in a world full of pride and self talk.

What Bakes My Noodle : ♾️ Worldview (YouTube Podcast)

A Christian’s worldview in an ever changing societal environment. How to get beyond the milk and learning how to wield a Christian’s greatest asset, the Word of God (the sword).

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Come join me as I discuss a Christian worldview verses a secular worldview. How we should focus on facts and knowing scripture well enough for us to determine our beliefs about world events. But no matter what to be loving, caring, and willing to pray for those who may try to hurt us.

What Bakes My Noodle ∞

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Hello, please help support my YouTube channel. For more Christian based content, from world events, to biblical teaching, all from a Christian, Historical Christian WorldView.

Thank you ALL and best wishes. God Bless.

Reverend Arrow Preacher

The Truth Behind Minneapolis and The Far-Left Ideology: A Christian Perspective 

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The Truth Behind Minneapolis and The Far-Left Ideology: A Christian Perspective 

Let me start off by saying this, I saw a video recently speaking on those who are going to social media giving their non-professional opinion, because simply put, they’ve never been in that kind of situation. They’ve never had to call 911 because they were threatened in some way, or worse attacked. Let me give you, my reader, my credentials. I am an Army Veteran. I fought in the Iraq war, and when I say fought, I have been shot at, I have been blown up, I have been in a firefight, and I have fired my weapon at other human beings. I know first-hand how quickly you have to make a decision whether to fire or not. After my time in the war I served as a security professional in many different kind of places. I’ve served in places like John Deere where I was alone in the entire facility. I have served in places like the busiest mall in my area, as third in command of the security team, and often in charge of my team during the days I worked. I have been security for my church team, and while that doesn’t sound like it would be busy or stressful, believe it or not, were always on high alert for one reason or another. I have worked with law enforcement and my combined experiences 23 years of experience. And if you want to be specific, I have had to shoot at incoming vehicles that failed to heed commands. The main difference was I was 65-100 meters away, while the officer in Minneapolis was inches (till he was hit by her car). 

Apparently California has lost 1Trillion dollars in revenue from its billionaire base in a matter of weeks as they have fled the state. All the California democrats voted not to lower the gas tax in the state. Even Robert De’Nero (who supported Mamdani) in New York isn’t happy with the proposed wealthy tax. So much has happened in recent years it breaks my heart to see what our country has become. I once believed even in differences we could have dialogue. Then, Charlie Kirk was killed and as his family grieved the left went to social media celebrating, mocking, and even slinging insults at his wife. He was killed simply for having a traditional ideal of what this country used to be and what he wished it would be again. 

We all make choices, and what happened to Charlie and what happened to Ms. Good are not the same. You have a right to protest but that protest protection stops at interference. Once someone interferes it turns into obstruction. Every statue ICE uses today are the same as under Clinton, and Obama (the deport-er and chief), the exact same statutes they used to deport millions. We used to believe in the same things in some categories. Today no matter what Trump does, to the ideologues it’s wrong. Just a couple years ago the left was saying how bad Maduro was and how illegitimate he was, till Trump removed him. Interesting how once he does something we used to agree on, it becomes wrong. Removing illegals just 10 years ago under Obama, or ruthless dictators was the right thing to do. Today, it’s wrong. Trump brings jobs back to the U.S. and a trillion in tariffs bringing money back to the U.S., lowering inflation, and yet he’s wrong. 

At the end of the day, no amount of evidence will prove to, or change an ideologue’s opinion. It’s funny how some people no matter what video evidence there is, ignore it, and no evidence in the world changes an ideologues mindset. Video evidence despite what some think is not propaganda when it’s clear as day. Propaganda takes video’s to prove a the truth doesn’t exist. The Nazi’s took fake video footage of camps to show a different reality then the one that was actually happening. Good, disobeyed lawful orders after interfering with ICE, and put herself and her spouse at risk while slamming on the accelerator of her car, before her spouse could get into the car. Good’s actions put herself and her spouse at risk by moving a vehicle while there were so many people surrounded the vehicle, along with ICE agents next to and in front of the vehicle. She left her son alone and drove hours from home to interfere, not to protest ICE. Peaceful protesting and voting affect changes of policy. You cannot interfere with law enforcement arresting a criminal or interfering with an investigation, nor can you interfere with ICE arresting illegal aliens, or investigating fraud at the hands of illegal aliens. No matter her intent, scared, or fleeing from law enforcement (ICE) she hit an ICE agent with her car. The law is crystal clear no matter if it was a civilian, a police officer, an FBI agent, it matters not. A car becomes a weapon once in motion, after law enforcement orders you out of the vehicle and especially surrounded by officers. It becomes a weapon when you chose to drive with one officer’s hands inside the vehicle, and one standing in front of it. She hit the accelerator so hard the tires spun before lunging forward hitting the ICE agent. These are facts. The agent is trained to act fast, and protect the lives of civilians and officers. The officer followed his training, and I am 100% certain, he is tore up inside having to end a life. The difference between us here is no one is celebrating her death. While choices have consequences, Charlie was sitting at a table debating, she hit an officer while he was fulfilling his legal duty. We have sympathy for her son. But even if you look at the bare minimum, she could have been arrested for obstruction of a federal operation and if convicted, a year in jail. Not ideal parenting. This entire situation is sad but preventable. Like it or not, Donald Trump won in a landslide and the popular vote. Many who have suffered at the hands of what illegal immigration have wrought upon this nation, the approval of the removal of these people many who truly are more than just illegals have shown their criminality. 

There once was an interview with Imam Mohammad Tawhidi, that said this, “I would only vote left.” (Interviewer ‘Why is that’) I saw them as very stupid. I would fear the conservatives. Because they come with principle. That’s not someone they can brainwash. But the left, I know they have no values, no principles to begin with.” IF you cannot see the truth about all these fundamental Islamists who vote left, but their deep religion condemns abortion, condemns gays and homosexuals, yet say they stand for these things, when where they come from gays and homosexuals are killed, thrown off of roofs, you may be being deceived. Radical Islam allows someone to lie (Taqiyya) to conceal ones beliefs to spread Islam and advance the cause of eventual jihad. 

Myself, like the ICE agent, married a Filipina. We both had to endure the process. Not only did I have to wait 3 years to have the fiancé visa approved, I had to pay thousands in fee’s. TO be exact, I paid 5K. I had to prove I could get insurance for my bride. I had to have five affidavits to prove my relationship to have the visa approved. Plus enough paperwork to make the military blush. Once married I had to have yet again another five affidavits signed. Now, just two years later I need to do more paperwork. I need to prove yet again we are still married and living the married life. I need to pay yet again. I was never offered any assistance, no college fund, no welfare options, no housing assistance. In fact, when I needed help, I was denied assistance. We had to wait in line, we had to pay, and now, we need to work on her path to citizenship. At no point did the government offer anything to us, yet illegals get welfare, cash, college in some cases, Medicare in some cases, and the right to vote in some cases, yet my bride doesn’t get any of those things. We are not against immigration, I myself am the descendent of immigration in the late 1800’s. My family came here long after slavery ended, built a life and a home with nothing but what was in their pockets. Yet, if the left had their way, simply because I am white, I should have to pay reparations to people who were never slaves, by a family line that never owned slaves. In fact as part of my heritage is Scottish, they and the Irish weren’t treated very well. They were considered by some to be second class citizens. Yet, just because they are white we are told by the left we should be ashamed of our supposed white privilege. I’ve gotten no help, and not advantages, and I’ve had to work hard for everything I have. I had to work hard to give myself a life after growing up poor with very little. I had to work hard when I was left at home by myself after my mothers suicide attempt when I was just 11 years old. I was given nothing to help me cope with what I witnessed. I was given no counseling, or guidance, just endless bullying at school. The left leaning ideology I firmly believed in growing up told me and taught me I was a victim. I held on to that ideal for many years. In truth, I was a survivor. I digress… When done the right way, immigration is safer for everyone when laws are obeyed and adhered too, and we are to respect a nations law. We have laws for a reason in this nation, as every nation has laws on immigration. My wife’s homeland has immigration laws that I must obey when I go there. I can only stay for three months without a special visa; I must get every time if I wanted to stay longer. I must respect the laws of the country that has welcomed me. We are a society of laws and thus we must obey and respect the customs and laws. 

Scripture tells us of a time when people will call wrong right and right wrong. It tells of a time when good righteous people will be hunted and silenced, while the darkness rises to control over the world. The few will enter into the gates of heaven. The few will walk the righteous path of our Lord Jesus. The few will respect the law, and follow the rules of the highest morality, God almighty. While we are to love our enemies, we are to pray for them. We are to, in love, tell them about our Lord Jesus. We are all sinners, but only those who put their trust and faith and surrender in our Lord Christ will see forgiveness. We must continue to share the love of Jesus by sharing the truth with our fellow man. While we know some will be saved, and some will sadly remain in Hell for all eternity, the best we can do is live a life of service to our Lord. The cross is offensive to the unbeliever. When the Pharisees saw the miracles Jesus had performed, they called him demon possessed. They couldn’t refute the miracles, just where and how he could do them. Despite all the evidence at hand, they denied the truth. The way I see it, anyone who denies that life begins at conception, the people who are constantly taking the side of criminals over brave men and women performing their duty. The people who constantly change their position as the wind blows, who are on video one minute saying something, and within a year or two changing just to pretend they have the moral high ground, are no different than the Pharisees of old. Those who support socialism and all it stands for, ignoring the millions who’ve died at the hands of dictators, of both socialism and communism alike are as Benjamin Netanyahu once said, “useful idiots”. Rebranding socialism as some kind of democratic socialism is amazingly stupid. The evidence of what’s happening is already evident, that individual freedoms are being eroded in New York City, and soon places all over the country. When the government suddenly has the right to tell you, you cannot sell your property, is government overreach. When places like Venezuela and Iran see the people of those countries calling out the name of Trump in the streets, one might think the left and its ideology is on the wrong side of history. I wish no one to perish. I wish for the American dream to return. I wish for individual freedoms to return. I wish for our nation to return to the once great Christian nation we once were. I find the hatred to be overwhelming. I find the evil rising to be a putrid smell I cannot escape from. I cannot express my full sorrow at the world I see today. While peace rings out in other nations, brokered by our President, the hatred for him runs so deep, no matter what is done, it’s never enough and everything is bad. People celebrating the death of a good man Charlie Kirk, simply because they disagreed. People attacking law enforcement, hitting them with their cars, just because they disagree. Letting criminals stay on the street time and time again, till they finally kill a young woman like Iryna Zaretska. A woman Zoe Welsh who died at the hands of yet another career criminal with six arrests in just four years, but because he was deemed ‘mentally unfit’ he roamed free, till he killed a woman in her own home. We celebrate criminals, we celebrate tragedies, we ignore truths, and we fall right into what Satan wants, chaos.  We will all judged someday, and we must live with the consequences of our actions and choices. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. One day I look forward to being before the King of the Universe and facing the consequences of my actions, both good and bad, but being covered by the blood of Jesus, and wishing to service our King, hear “well done, my good and faithful servant.”. What will you hear? Well done, or depart from me, I never knew you?