Gary Field
DC# M05298
Century C.I.
Century, FL 32533
E1-103

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Hello Friends-

It's been said that the flutter of a butterfly's wings on a dusty savanna in Africa, can set in motion of a chain of events that sends a hurricane barreling toward the east coast of the U.S. -Hmmm!? Sounds farfetched, eh?

Some might call it "cause and effect", others "deterministic chaos". I prefer the simplicity of the "Butterfly effect" -Here's how it could play out.

A butterfly emerges from its cocoon. ("Hello World!") It spreads its wings and startles a bird. That bird takes flight and rouses a flock...that "flock of birds", taking off, could start a stampede of a nearby herd of zebra...the dust that rises into the air from thousands of pounding hooves could get caught up in a trade wind. Carried high up in the atmosphere, and then out over the Atlantic-those dust particles could merge with water molecules and form a depression-to tropical depression. Storm warning-to hurricane bearing down on the east coast.

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So the next time you find yourself stocking up on hurricane supplies, you can blame it on "those darn African Butterflies". :) lol

The fact is-ever since man's original "fall from Grace" in the garden- we have been looking for something, or someone to blame when things go wrong...Eve blamed it on the serpent, and Adam blamed it on...the woman whom thou gavest to be with me. She gave me of the tree, and I did eat." (Gen 3:12) In one smooth move, Adam managed to blame it on both the woman and God. :) Ha! (I think Jimmy Buffett covered that well in "Margaritaville" :)).

The problem with trying to assign blame is this-How far back in the chain of events do you go to pinpoint a cause Unfortunately, life does not come with a rewind button-We cannot go back and do things differently while hoping for a better result. Nor can we hit "fast forward" and speed past what might be the negative consequences of poor decisions or past mistakes.

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But-we can pause...we can pause and drink deeply from fountains of living water!

Rain clouds will come...storms will form upon the horizon-the storms of life may be physical, emotional, economical or meteorological. They can be "Franken Storms", or tempests in a teapot-whatever their cause or duration, for those of us who "Believe". They provide an opportunity to dwell in the secret place of the most High, and to abide beneath his Almighty Shadow (P 5:91)

Trials will come
And rainclouds will form
And lightning will strike
Round the edge of the storm.

Bus as surely as dawn
Will follow the night-
We will persevere
If we keep Him in sight!

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For those of us who "Believe", we can pause and drink deeply from those fountains of living water which spring forth from the word of God. We may not know what the future holds-but we know who holds the future in His hand-We don't have to worry about butterflies upon dusty savanna. Or the deterministic chaos that some people refer to as a political campaign- in the next few days people will be working themselves into a frenzy about which "candidate" can "steer this country in the right direction" or "restore faith in the economy".

Those of us who Believe, know that the answers can be found in 2nd Chronicles 7:14. "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."

Those of us who Believe, know that "faith" cometh by hearing, and "hearing" by the word of God.

Some of us who "Believe" are now finding it "convenient" to blame the problems that we face, as a nation, or a political party-

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People Please! Wake up!

...the hour cometh and now is when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for he Father in spirit and in truth. For the Father seeketh such to worship him.

God is a spirit: and they that worship Him in spirit and in truth." John 4:23-24

The "Spirit" of this age is instant gratification..."i want what I want and I want it now!" I'll take it on 'credit' thank you. Unfortunately, the word credit comes from the Latin "credo"=I believe.

Those African butterflies have nothing to do with the fact that we are the greatest debtor nation in the history of civilization! Look to Deuteronomy 28:15-68 if you want to and the cause and effect- pre political process is incidental to the fact that 50 years of prosperity brought us to the brink, and greed will knock us over the edge. A $2 billion election? What a farce!What a travesty. The best politician that money can buy will wake up in the White House and I pray that he says "So help me God!"

Not long ago, a senator said (I paraphrase) the most important thing that we can do (meaning the Republican Party) is to make sure that Obama is a "one term president" - my God! "A politician thinks of the next election and a statesman of the next generation" - (James Clark). I would be ashamed to face my children and grandchildren after making a statement like that!

Jefferson said - "Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever!"

We CANNOT hit a rewind button - we cannot go back, do things differently, and make the national debt disappear. Nor can we hit fast forward and speed past the negative consequences that we face at this point. But we can PAUSE... No matter who is elected to hold the highest office in the land, we MUST consider answering to a higher authority. We can pause and consider the word of God. Scrutamini, Scriptura! Let us look at Scripture!

As we consider Scripture, let us realize there are 2 kinds of politics (Edmund Muskie), "the politics of fear and the politics of trust. One says: you are surrounded by monstrous dangers... the other one says: the world is a baffling and hazardous place, but it can be shaped to the will of men".

Let us pray that the next President considers the "will of God" before he "confirms" to the will of men.

(Prediction? Obama 270 to 248 electoral votes. :D)

I've been all over the place with this post. :D I tried to steer clear of politics :D - as Sam Bennet said "An elected official is one who gets 51% of the vote cast by 40% of the 60% of voters who registered".

As I write this post - it's one of those times when the razor wire feels like a leash, and the fences seem a mile high. Most of my family lives in Jersey... because of the "digital divide", I was already feeling like a branch cut off from the family tree.

Today (Nov. 1st, 2012) I have to wonder how that family tree withstood the storm.

Jersey City - Livingston - West Orange - Somerset - Somerville... Those are the places in Jersey that I'm concerned about. Also, Eastern PA... Toby [illegible], Stroudsburg... If anyone knows what's happening with the family, PLEASE WRITE! (I have NOT been receiving comments posted to Between the Bars). The last three mailings from M.I.T. have been returned by the mailroom. "Snail mail" is the best bet.

I also don't know if the 80 pages of Christian poetry ever made it to BtB. (Remember I do NOT have internet access). I tried to make sure that the poetry went out in the post so that it would be easier to forward to churches or Christian chat rooms (without having to wade through the socio-political commentary :D). Backtracking to: "Snapshots to Grace".

Experiencing God behind the wire - should be able to ascertain whether those poems made it online. (I would REALLY appreciate it if SOMEONE could WRITE and let me know).

I'm going to pull this train of thought into the station. :D I do want to say "hello" to Nicki, Callista 311, and Seavee - the only 3 people for whom I've ever received comments. Thanks for being there. :D

As if I needed an excuse for my "chicken scratch" (crypto Hebraic hieroglyphics :D). I'm now writing in the dark. (It's "lights out" here in the Big House. :D)

Until next time

Namaste!

Be Blessed!

Gary