AMERICA'S FAITH FRONTIER
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. PATH OF FAITH
2. THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE
3. THERE IS ALWAYS A WAY
4. COME TO AN UNDERSTANDING AND
STAND TOGETHER AS CHILDREN OF GOD
5. KNOW THE LOCALITY OF REALITY
6. WHAT DO WE TAKE WITH US ON OUR
JOURNEY TO THE PROMISED LAND
7. TRUST THE CREATOR
8. WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR
PATH OF FAITH
Howdy! My name is James, and I traveled by foot, horse, and canoe for 5,000 miles though America, from farm to farm, town to town, and city to city. If this impresses you, well that is good but please know this as well. In my life, I failed in marriage, never had any children, never made any of those sacrifices. And yet, after all that personal failure, the Lord said he would share his children with me if I chose to serve Him. So I put my trust in Him and made the journey without doors to lock or walls to sleep behind. It was as real as it gets, and I hope to share the perspective God has given me because it might help others find what is good their soul and right for their world, not by following me, but by following God, for He truly holds our best interest at heart.
If like many Christians you have worked hard, played by the rules, made your way in the world, and still you get a feeling that the world is going down a bad path...rejoice, that is the voice of God calling you to a better place.
But what does it mean to answer God's call to a better place?
Below are my favorite examples of Christians that answered God's call to a better place. You may have your own examples. And if it be the case that you can celebrate my examples, and I can celebrate your examples, then odds are good that we can work together to make our Nation a better place. Why? Because we both like examples of Americans that chose the hard path of faith and won against insurmountable odds. People that made America great. People that chose a path as difficult as it was full of promise, and by way of their courage, determination, and all that goes into a leap of faith, became the wind in the sails of generations to come.
Example #1: The Pilgrims happened to be white Europeans, but an infinitely more accurate description would be this; they were children of God. Faithful and courageous, they boarded the Mayflower, and within a year, half were dead and the other half had suffered terribly. But they were not fools, they understood their dream to be an “impossible” one, and still they went forward. And such is the power of faith that, nearly four-hundred years later; their dream still lives. Their dream was to live free as a loving God would have them live, and not live according to the mandates of tyrants.
Example #2: There was something very special in the hearts of the Pioneers who arrived at the shore of the Columbia River, having already come thousands of miles through mountain-ranges, deserts, and plains on the Oregon Trail. The Columbia River made up the final leg of their journey. Trail weary men, women, and children, they loaded their wagons and dreams on wooden rafts, then set out to run two-hundred miles of the most dangerous water anywhere on earth. It was an incredibly perilous thing to do, but then again, they had that special brand of courage, that kind of courage that comes with faith. And with that kind of courage all across this land, Americans gave rise to a Nation that became a beacon of hope around the world.
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So where did we go wrong? What happened?
What are we to do?
There is no such thing a perfect man or woman. To the contrary, we are all quite flawed. Therefore, any individual or group of people can point to another and blame them for the ills of the world...a fool's game as old as the hills.
Columbus was a human being, meaning he was both wonderful and pathetic like you and I and the Pilgrims and Pioneers and so many others that came here to build better lives and, in the process, built America. This includes the slaves, who were freed through great bloodshed and sacrifice. This includes Native and Hispanic Americans who fought and died for America in World War I and every war since. This includes Asian Americans whose many contributions to America go unheralded. To build better lives, our forefathers and mothers, flawed though they be, mustered the faith and courage to go forward through hardship and danger. They put themselves in God's hands, walked into the unknown, and built something greater than their ability to imagine. Now if you cannot appreciate the courage and sacrifices of those that came before, then you and I do not belong in the same boat. But if you appreciate the sacrifices of those that came before, then like me, you may be old enough to remember the greatness they gave rise to. There are many examples. I remember the small farms and towns of Kansas, with thriving local economies, happy healthy people out and about, and streets so safe that children could run and play without a fear in the world. From sea to shining sea, we were building a great Nation. We all had a part to play, and we were making slow but steady progress. Good things take time, and it seemed that with hard work and dedication, we could accomplish anything, even go to the moon! But no more had we reached the heights then men in high places decided God was no longer needed. We became, as they say, full of ourselves. Without God, we tried in vain to fill our empty hearts with all that money can buy. Without God, we poisoned ourselves with unhealthy choices and then looked to science for salvation even as the miracle of modern medicine went hand-in-hand with a national health crisis of biblical proportion. Without God, we set out to rectify our moral failings through the power of the State, and we fell prey to evil forces that attacked our God-given right to feel good about where we come from, what we’re made of, and who we are (children of God). God was declared dead, and the void left in our hearts and culture was filled with garbage from Hollywood, Fifth Avenue, and others in a race for power, money, and control.
Today we are paying the price for going along with those that put power and money above God and Country. So how do we get back to the One that holds our best interest at heart. Who among us will take that great leap of faith, who among us will become the wind in the sails of those that are yet to come? It could be as "easy" as reading Bible stories to your grandchildren (even though it puts you at odds with their parents, even though it is taking ten years off your life). If you truly follow the Lord, he will lead you away from your worldly comfort and security. You might lose all your money, your insurance, and your retirement. Maybe, maybe not. But one way or another, He will lead you out on a limb. And when you find yourself there, you will find Him there beside you, and you will rejoice. And the reward you receive, you will never trade for what you had before.
As our Nation sinks like Rome in a race for power, money, and control; the following quote reminds us that all is not lost but to the contrary, all is waiting to be gained. The quote is from the American scholar, Will Durant:
"There is no greater drama in human record than the sight of a few Christians, scorned or oppressed by a succession of emperors, bearing all trials with fierce tenacity, multiplying quietly, building order while their enemies generated chaos, fighting the sword with the word, brutality with hope, and at last defeating [Rome] the strongest state that history has known. Caesar and Christ had met in the arena, and Christ had won.”
Why did so many ancient Romans convert to Christianity. And why did they then refuse to give up what they had found? What, when faced with death, made them so courageous? They had found God's truth. And thus, they knew beyond doubt, they had gained something bigger and better than this world has space to hold.
THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE
Can you imagine a Nation that is so self- deceived, its people surrender their ability to make shoes, and then dance in foreign-made shoes to celebrate their independence? Can a people who can't even make their own shoes honestly call themselves independent? There are politicians and business leaders that would answer, "yes." The question is; do you want to follow the blind and become a prisoner to their folly, or would you rather walk the path of truth and honesty that leads to Freedom? In order to get big and stay big, big government and big business work to make you dependent on them in a big way, and this can be bad for your independence in a big way. For if they push truth aside for power and money, and they become all important to your survival like air and water, what happens to your soul when you must choose between the truth and the worldly securities they offer? How many Christians have accepted paths made by those that push truth aside for power and money? It is hard to reject worldly comfort and power when it is placed at our feet. It is easy to forget that, doing so might cost us the only thing we can keep forever. The good news is, you only need to put yourself in God’s hands, truly put yourself in His hands, and you will find a new path of such tremendous value, you would not trade it for your life. You will find yourself in a realm of truth, a new frontier where freedom is as real as you are, where the path is as difficult as it is full of promise, trod by hard-working individuals, bound together as a people with a common belief, each pulling their weight, looking out for one another, trusting not in themselves but in God.
Nothing can stop God’s truth from setting us free. The only thing that can stop His truth from shining through is a closed heart, wherein the soul, imprisoned by walls of bitterness, pride, or any sin painted over with self-deceit, believes it has it right when in truth it has it wrong - and in its blindness, it wastes away in a dark dungeon, never to know what freedom looks like because it never allows it to shine in. But when we open our hearts and let God’s light shine in, there will be, in a very real manner of speaking, dawn in God's everlasting masterpiece, a new life in a new realm with virgin mountains, plains, and rivers. But it is like a jigsaw puzzle, and only God knows where the pieces go. And as God would have it, it is our steps, taken in faith, on the narrow path, that make the pieces fall into place, and the picture that comes together in our soul is a gift larger than this world has space to hold.
If you decide to trust God, then probably not very far up the trail of life, you will realize your freedom, and when it happens, don’t be surprised if you lift your arms to Heaven and cry out, “OH LORD, THANK YOU!” It is true. If you show faith, don’t be surprised if, long before you reach your “Promised Land,” God sets you free. And you will know it! It will become the most valuable thing you possess, for it will be nothing less than the freeing of your soul. And with it comes peace where peace must always begin, in your heart. You will have peace of mind. You will enter into the realm of true freedom, without which no earthly freedom is possible. You will no longer look to the world for freedom, but will have found that, because of Him, freedom begins in you (and what else would you expect from the One that gave you the miraculous gift of life). And with the chains that bound you broken, you'll be free to pursue a better life. A better life, not in the eyes of a sinful world, but in the eyes of a loving God that holds your best interest at heart.
THERE IS ALWAYS A WAY
The way to a better life begins when you let God into your heart, and by His light, see the way out of your inner entanglements. Then with God, you will have the inner peace and fire to go forward even if you cannot see what lies ahead.
How many people thought Columbus crazy for setting off into the unknown? How many people thought the Pilgrims crazy for the same reason? And after the unknown had been opened so that it could be entered with a degree of safety, how many hopeful hearts flooded into the New World!
And in that new world called America, a great multitude rolled up their sleeves, the American story was born, and the potential of building on God’s truth was released. In God's hands, they built something greater than their ability to imagine. They did not build a Utopia of course, but they did build a Nation founded on the belief that all people have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They fought wars and made great sacrifices to ensure this right. And as a result, their Nation became a beacon of hope around the world.
Today, same as always, it is as big as crossing an ocean, leaving a dying world behind, and venturing into the everlasting hands of God. But with God, all things are possible. If you want more than a lying world can offer, then step onto God's narrow path of truth, keep putting one foot before the other, and He will lead you to a broad spiritual plane where, looking back, you will know, He saved the one thing you keep forever - your soul - and of course, that made your life great!
COME TO AN UNDERSTANDING
AND STAND TOGETHER AS
CHILDREN OF GOD
There is nothing racist about a white man who, having witnessed from boyhood the decline of little farms and towns across America, makes a sincere and concerted effort to help his people.
There is nothing racist about a black man who, having witnessed from boyhood the decline of inner cities across America, makes a sincere and concerted effort to help his people.
There is something racist and downright evil about pointing a finger at another group of people and blaming them for the failings of a sinful world.
God makes room for us to maintain our individual cultures, and at the same time, to all be part of one family as His children building on His everlasting truth. Standing together does not mean we are against other groups of people. All people fail. We are all sinners. And in understanding this, we can stand together against the forces of evil.
To keep from falling apart, the people of a nation must stand together. And when its people cannot stand together due to decisions made in the dark; it is good that Christians come together and unite in a faith-based decision to build in the light.
Come together in the understanding that, until we let God in our hearts, we cannot work our way through problems that keep us from happiness because true happiness comes before solving problems. True happiness (godly fulfillment) fosters positive action even in the face of difficulty.
Come together and let God set foundation stones in our hearts that support peace and happiness in our communities; foundation stones of love, like a sense of gratitude for what we have, and of belonging to it, and wanting the best for it, and a willingness to work and sacrifice for it.
Come together in the understanding that God's first commandment to man as a knowledgeable being is to toil, to realize the value of hard work, which fosters strength and stability in our backbones and our souls, and makes us productive members of our communities.
Come together in the understanding that, it is the responsibility of all able-bodied Christian men to feed, cloth, and house themselves, their families, and to help maintain their communities. Otherwise, such things become the responsibility of others who live detached from the realities of the individual and his community.
Come together in the understanding that: A man cannot have two masters. He cannot be about power and money in one hand, and God and country in the other. If he tries, he will fall into the hands of the great deceiver and become the tool of his own destruction. Better that he put himself in God's hands and build on God's truth, for which he will be rewarded beyond his ability to imagine.
Come together and build on God’s truth by teaching children biblical lessons about right and wrong, about when to be kind and when to be tough, timeless values that guide actions, season souls, and help us stay together on the same page as children of God.
Come together with inspirational stories of our forefathers and mothers, the extra-ordinary accomplishments of ordinary Americans who put their faith in God (celebrate them as heroes and heroines, and even pretend to be them in childhood play).
Together these things act as cultural glue, to form a bond of love and loyalty, to form a foundation of harmony and happiness in our communities, and Nation.
Jesus did not save the world by being a worldly man, but rather, by being a man of his people. Jesus did not think like, “Oh my gosh, if I chose men only from Judea to be disciples, that might appear exclusionary and maybe even hateful...I'd better find an Egyptian, a Greek, a Syrian, and an Italian." Jesus didn't do it that way. And lo-and-behold, by His example of love and loyalty, not the false morality of Pharisees in their temples, but the true boots-on-the-ground love and loyalty between neighbors that makes communities strong and nations great - by this, His example, great numbers of people from those other nations would become part of one family as brothers and sisters in Christ.
Christ began with his own people. He put them first. And why wouldn't he when love without loyalty is a lie. Only after he had given his all for his people, did he then send Paul into the world.
As a Nation of every race, can we Christians stand together for the sake of our Nation? Yes, we can come together by way of a simple test, a test that has nothing to do with skin color. The test would be a simple question: Would we put up or take down the Ten Commandments in public places, like courthouses for example? Those that would put the Commandments up without hesitation are brothers and sisters in the family of Christ (including non-Christians that are friendly to our beliefs, and therefore are friends of the family). Those that would take the Commandments down have not yet let God in their hearts and therefore are more susceptible to that pair of hands that is ever working in the dark. Those that claim it depends on circumstances are blind to our circumstances. In large part, we have, as a Nation, allowed the godless to choose our path for decades, and fools are prone to follow the easy path to their own destruction. The good news is, God gives us free will, we do not have to follow fools. We can come together for the sake of all as brothers and sisters in Christ.
KNOW THE LOCALITY OF REALITY
This somewhat odd term, "the locality of reality," that I have only made up, nevertheless means that, if you sincerely believe in God, then He is in your heart, and, at the same exact time, in my heart, and in all hearts that sincerely accept Him. And this is key because; He alone holds our best interest at heart, He alone wants to make us wealthy beyond our dreams in the only way that counts forever, and He alone has the divine power to be in all our hearts at the same time, working His miracles there like the Conductor of a symphony.
The possibilities of what we can achieve when we follow His lead as a people of God are limitless. For while He gives us different assignments, our tasks fit together to create something greater than our ability to imagine.
Because I know my people, I will use our example. We the people of rural and small town America are a humble people as proven by the way in which we have quietly dwindled and disappeared. Our little towns and farms are dying in a world that is too far removed to see how a life-sustaining bushel of grain is grown in the land of the free. For a golden bushel of grain sprouts not only from good soil and hard work, but from social stability, itself sprouted from the unity of a people bound by love and loyalty. It is a beautiful thing, and it feeds the world. But it is crumbling in the grip of a big world with big world values, crumbling away, eroding into an agro-industrialized support system for a godless world. And like anything that serves a corrupt world, it will be dragged down with it.
So how do we turn this around?
We get together in groups and we start working on it. Unless we are pastors with flocks to attend, we don't give sermons or pontificate or theorize. To get back into God's hands, we must take ACTION. But what kind of action? What can we do? Please read on.
The following comparison uses an example close to our pioneer forefathers and mothers, and is applicable to any Christian culture such as my own that, having found itself dependent on and therefore servant to a plethora of worldly masters, yearns to return to the freedom that can only be found in God's hands.
I spent time with the Amish, and saw many things reminiscent of my own pioneer heritage. One thing that took me by surprise was the sight of an Amish woman driving a wagon, not just any wagon, but a large freight wagon. It had an expansive wooden bed with no sideboards and no seat. She was standing on the bed, holding the reins to a team of four Percheron draft horses that were trucking down a gravel road. On the bed behind her was a very large construct of wood and metal (some kind of Amish-made equipment). The young woman was neither large nor burly, but simply an average looking woman in a pioneer dress with three small children gathered close around her legs. Yeah, it blew my mind! A huge wagon, with a huge freight load, pulled by four huge draft horses is a fairly impressive if not downright frightening sight to see when it trucks by up close. But, add to that a young mother standing atop it all, driving four horses while tending three children! Wow! She was neither nervous nor relaxed, but quite simply, appropriately focused, and her children were perfectly behaved. Now, let’s look at another example that can help us understand why the Amish woman and her children, sinners though they be, were able to do what we would only expect from stunt doubles in a movie about pioneer heroism: Once, while working a horse in a round pen on an Amish farm, I noticed a procession of six or seven Amish girls, dressed like pioneers, walking the country lane. The oldest looked to be twelve, leading the way with direction, but not at all severe. The youngest was about five, and brought up the rear. To my surprise, they turned up the driveway of the farm where I worked. I didn’t know what to think but figured it an Amish thing. I watched as they continued without adult supervision, but each knowing their task, fetched a stocky miniature horse, then a miniature covered wagon. They harnessed the horse, hitched it to wagon, boarded one by one, and as they drove away, they smiled and waved at me. Astonished, I went in the barn to ask my Amish friend what I had seen. He said the girls had stopped that morning and left the horse to be shod before continuing on foot to the one room schoolhouse up the lane. They were not all siblings but children of the community. I’d seen a miniature school transportation system operated by children, working together without adult supervision; efficient, safe, clean, healthy, happy, and yes of course, independent! And of course, independence is FREEDOM.
Now let us imagine a parent strapping their child into a car safety seat for a ride to school while colorful cartoon heroes play on the monitor. And yes it may seem that I've presented opposite ends of a scale with extreme bias, but the Amish are nowhere near the far end of any survival scale, more like in the middle between stone tools and microprocessors. So what am I saying? I am NOT saying that technology is bad. I am saying that we have, without even realizing it, become servants to powerful worldly masters. And in the year 2023, we find ourselves so tightly strapped into their system, we cannot get free even as we know it only requires a leap of faith. God will catch us. The problem is, we no longer trust Him. We say we trust Him, but our inaction proves otherwise.
If we want to be a people of God, we have to admit and accept that we will never get back to Him by walking the path laid out for us by powerful worldly masters.
In a very real manner of speaking, we have to leave Egypt.
WHAT DO WE TAKE WITH US ON OUR JOURNEY TO THE PROMISED LAND
To leave Egypt so to speak, and find our way to our Promised Land; we must identify and give up those things that are detrimental to the survival of our souls, our homes, our communities, and our Nation. And we must know what we need to take with us. Some have already been covered in this text. Below are a few more:
We need faith in ourselves, not as in trusting our own judgement, but as in letting God into our hearts so that He can show us the way and give us the courage and strength to enter that unknown territory that lies between us and our promised land.
We need a unifying story.For a nation to be a nation, its people need a unifying story they can all relate to and celebrate, that they may not be paralyzed by division, but rather, united as a Nation. And we have that one story, it is the story of, Jesus Christ.
We need humility.
As Christians we understand, we are not a super-race, but the recipients of God's grace.
We need law and order, beginning with the Ten Commandments.
We need our culture.
Culture begins with love and loyalty for one’s people and their way of life. Culture, as God intended it, is human poetry in motion, rich with mannerisms and ways of expression not defined by statements of income, or even by great works of art, but rather by what connects us in our hearts. God connects us, and He uses culture to do so, as a gift, given so that we may have a sense of belonging in our hearts, making for happiness and harmony in our communities.
We need our heritage.
The "Greatest Generation" grew up saying the Lord’s Prayer in church, and the Pledge of Allegiance in school. They were not bussed to big conglomerate schools, but self-gathered in small, often one room school houses where they learned inspirational stories about their forefathers and mothers, stories that gave them a positive sense of what they were capable of. They were not psychoanalyzed and drugged when they misbehaved, but rather, swiftly and effectively corrected with a strap. They cleaned the blackboard, brought in firewood and well water, swept the floor, cleaned ashes from the stove, and other chores before they could go home. It was their first experience functioning outside the home, and not all that different. They were learning to be responsible in a work-based culture of faith. In their communities and across the nation, they were as Jesus said, seeds in fertile soil. And when the time came and they were called to stand against those that sought to put the world in darkness, they were up to the task. They defeated the godless followers of Hitler, the godless followers of the Emperor of Japan, and the godless Soviet Union. They did not liberate the world for supreme leaders, ideological ideals, money, power, or control. Their power and greatness was not from the world, but from the One that blessed them with unity, and made them a beacon of hope for all the world to see.
TRUST THE CREATOR
When it comes to understanding the secret of how God makes a soul, I may as well be a dog sitting before an atomic equation on a chalkboard. It is infinitely beyond my comprehension. And yet, to know the best of it, which is to sense and feel the Craftsman's love and care...I need only let Him into my heart. And now I have every reason to trust Him.
Remnants of the good a grateful people can do, can still be found all across this land. Out here on the gravel roads, it can be found in countless farmsteads from not that long ago, built by those that found independence in God's hands. Today, although their way of life has been swept away by a flood of big world values, the trees our great grandparents planted live on in homesteads largely forgotten (or plowed under). The native mulberry trees still produce their fruit in the summer time, then the plum trees, apple trees, pear trees, walnuts, and pecans. The folks that planted them had delicious recipes for them all. In autumn the persimmons ripen and remain hanging on the tree into winter where, with a blanket of snow on the ground, they can be plucked and eaten like sugar bombs in God’s natural candy store. And with that fresh country air in your lungs, looking up at that magnificent star dome, it's easy to imagine God saying: If your so called “big picture” is manmade, then you have not yet come to see that your thinking is itsy-bitsy. And if you’re depending on a manmade system, you’re depending on an infinitely inferior system. I am the Creator of Heaven and Earth. Put your trust in me.
We sinners will never build a Utopia, and we don't need to. We only need to put the Creator first, and He will lead us through His creation on a path of discovery to His realm of eternal life.
So dear reader, what actions do we take exactly in a frontier of faith to build a life greater than our ability to imagine - what are our parts to play in that divine symphony I spoke of? I don't know what your part is, but God does, and He wants to show you. All you need to do is let
Him into your heart, and follow the path that
He gives you.
❤
POST SCRIPT
(a little about me)
It is said, God never closes one door without opening another, and I can testify that it's true. My father died of a heart attack when I was one. It was a big door that God shut, not the kind of door that closes softly, but with resounding finality. Mom never remarried but, besides loving me and taking care of me and making sure I went to church every Sunday, the greatest thing she ever did for me was to get down on her knees before me when I was six years old and tell me that no honest woman would try to show a boy how to be a man. She then turned me around so that I was facing a group of men whereupon she told me to go and watch, listen, and learn. I took my mother’s charge to heart, and with a fatherless void in my chest, I had all the incentive I needed. I went searching high and low, right and left, north and south from boarder to boarder, and east and west from coast to coast. In friendship, I ate at the same table and slept under the same roof with Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, and American Indians (and I am approx 10% Mongolian). As a result, I have studied a great many men, not with conscious intent, not as part of an academic study, not with anything but a void to fill in my chest, a void which felt as big as space itself. Into that void, I shoveled everything from John Wayne to Woody Allen. I shoveled until I was plumb full. And when I had filled myself up, I was as confused and empty as ever. That’s right, I didn’t know who I was, and all the knowledge in the world couldn’t help me. Then I heard my long-forgotten friend Jesus calling, and somehow, almost like groping in the dark, I found my way back to Him. He took what I had put inside and brought it to life. And when He did, it was like nothing I can describe except to say my void filled with light, my eyes could see at last, my stars and planets were put in order and I was filled with joy!
Then, on the heels of my salvation, there came a great opportunity to travel the land, not as a lost man, but as a found man, knowing not of God's intention but simply believing that, as long as I continued putting one foot before the other in faith, God would bring good from my effort.
I did not travel the modern way as I had in the past, but rather, I traveled in the footsteps of my Pioneer forefathers and mothers. I wrote a book about my travels, well written but not mature enough to relate the message God intended me to tell. Without going into the details of how God eventually showed me what he wanted me to know and tell, I would like to tell about something that happened on the way there, a true story, not dramatized, but simply the kind of thing that happens when a man puts himself in God's hands: I got caught in a September blizzard while crossing the Continental Divide. It came on like a roaring freight train, my dog nearly died from exposure. I had to put him inside my coat and carry him while dropping elevation to escape the storm. For 5 days I walked 100 miles across the divide. I ate next to nothing in part because old-man-winter was kicking my tail and telling me to get back to the safety of civilization. It was during this time, 700 miles into a 4,000 mile journey, having already seen so much, and then getting some serious alone time with the Lord; I began praying for words to help my people (praying, very nearly badgering, albeit humbly). The Lord did not answer my prayer at that time but, coming to see a small town surrounded by storm clouds in a valley below; my eyes were drawn to a portion of the town illuminated in sunshine, and prominent in the sunlight stood a white church steeple. The Lord then spoke to my heart, saying, "Just make the journey, James. Just make the journey." I didn't understand, but I obeyed. I was not a mature Christian, I didn't understand that of course the Lord had already laid out what He wanted me to find. And even though I am unworthy of delivering any message from Him to you dear reader, if you have read these words, then you can know He answered my prayer, which of course was His plan all along, and it is no accident that these words found their way to you.
Thank you for taking time to read this booklet.
And may God bless you!
James Sheldon, confessed sinner,
servant of God
If like many Christians you have worked hard, played by the rules, made your way in the world, and still you get a feeling that the world is going down a bad path...rejoice, that is the voice of God calling you to a better place.
Example #1: The Pilgrims happened to be white Europeans, but an infinitely more accurate description would be this; they were children of God. Faithful and courageous, they boarded the Mayflower, and within a year, half were dead and the other half had suffered terribly. But they were not fools, they understood their dream to be an “impossible” one, and still they went forward. And such is the power of faith that, nearly four-hundred years later; their dream still lives. Their dream was to live free as a loving God would have them live, and not live according to the mandates of tyrants.
Example #2: There was something very special in the hearts of the Pioneers who arrived at the shore of the Columbia River, having already come thousands of miles through mountain-ranges, deserts, and plains on the Oregon Trail. The Columbia River made up the final leg of their journey. Trail weary men, women, and children, they loaded their wagons and dreams on wooden rafts, then set out to run two-hundred miles of the most dangerous water anywhere on earth. It was an incredibly perilous thing to do, but then again, they had that special brand of courage, that kind of courage that comes with faith. And with that kind of courage all across this land, Americans gave rise to a Nation that became a beacon of hope around the world.
_______
So where did we go wrong? What happened?
What are we to do?
Columbus was a human being, meaning he was both wonderful and pathetic like you and I and the Pilgrims and Pioneers and so many others that came here to build better lives and, in the process, built America. This includes the slaves, who were freed through great bloodshed and sacrifice. This includes Native and Hispanic Americans who fought and died for America in World War I and every war since. This includes Asian Americans whose many contributions to America go unheralded. To build better lives, our forefathers and mothers, flawed though they be, mustered the faith and courage to go forward through hardship and danger. They put themselves in God's hands, walked into the unknown, and built something greater than their ability to imagine. Now if you cannot appreciate the courage and sacrifices of those that came before, then you and I do not belong in the same boat. But if you appreciate the sacrifices of those that came before, then like me, you may be old enough to remember the greatness they gave rise to. There are many examples. I remember the small farms and towns of Kansas, with thriving local economies, happy healthy people out and about, and streets so safe that children could run and play without a fear in the world. From sea to shining sea, we were building a great Nation. We all had a part to play, and we were making slow but steady progress. Good things take time, and it seemed that with hard work and dedication, we could accomplish anything, even go to the moon! But no more had we reached the heights then men in high places decided God was no longer needed. We became, as they say, full of ourselves. Without God, we tried in vain to fill our empty hearts with all that money can buy. Without God, we poisoned ourselves with unhealthy choices and then looked to science for salvation even as the miracle of modern medicine went hand-in-hand with a national health crisis of biblical proportion. Without God, we set out to rectify our moral failings through the power of the State, and we fell prey to evil forces that attacked our God-given right to feel good about where we come from, what we’re made of, and who we are (children of God). God was declared dead, and the void left in our hearts and culture was filled with garbage from Hollywood, Fifth Avenue, and others in a race for power, money, and control.
Today we are paying the price for going along with those that put power and money above God and Country. So how do we get back to the One that holds our best interest at heart. Who among us will take that great leap of faith, who among us will become the wind in the sails of those that are yet to come? It could be as "easy" as reading Bible stories to your grandchildren (even though it puts you at odds with their parents, even though it is taking ten years off your life). If you truly follow the Lord, he will lead you away from your worldly comfort and security. You might lose all your money, your insurance, and your retirement. Maybe, maybe not. But one way or another, He will lead you out on a limb. And when you find yourself there, you will find Him there beside you, and you will rejoice. And the reward you receive, you will never trade for what you had before.
THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE
Nothing can stop God’s truth from setting us free. The only thing that can stop His truth from shining through is a closed heart, wherein the soul, imprisoned by walls of bitterness, pride, or any sin painted over with self-deceit, believes it has it right when in truth it has it wrong - and in its blindness, it wastes away in a dark dungeon, never to know what freedom looks like because it never allows it to shine in. But when we open our hearts and let God’s light shine in, there will be, in a very real manner of speaking, dawn in God's everlasting masterpiece, a new life in a new realm with virgin mountains, plains, and rivers. But it is like a jigsaw puzzle, and only God knows where the pieces go. And as God would have it, it is our steps, taken in faith, on the narrow path, that make the pieces fall into place, and the picture that comes together in our soul is a gift larger than this world has space to hold.
If you decide to trust God, then probably not very far up the trail of life, you will realize your freedom, and when it happens, don’t be surprised if you lift your arms to Heaven and cry out, “OH LORD, THANK YOU!” It is true. If you show faith, don’t be surprised if, long before you reach your “Promised Land,” God sets you free. And you will know it! It will become the most valuable thing you possess, for it will be nothing less than the freeing of your soul. And with it comes peace where peace must always begin, in your heart. You will have peace of mind. You will enter into the realm of true freedom, without which no earthly freedom is possible. You will no longer look to the world for freedom, but will have found that, because of Him, freedom begins in you (and what else would you expect from the One that gave you the miraculous gift of life). And with the chains that bound you broken, you'll be free to pursue a better life. A better life, not in the eyes of a sinful world, but in the eyes of a loving God that holds your best interest at heart.
THERE IS ALWAYS A WAY
The way to a better life begins when you let God into your heart, and by His light, see the way out of your inner entanglements. Then with God, you will have the inner peace and fire to go forward even if you cannot see what lies ahead.
How many people thought Columbus crazy for setting off into the unknown? How many people thought the Pilgrims crazy for the same reason? And after the unknown had been opened so that it could be entered with a degree of safety, how many hopeful hearts flooded into the New World!
And in that new world called America, a great multitude rolled up their sleeves, the American story was born, and the potential of building on God’s truth was released. In God's hands, they built something greater than their ability to imagine. They did not build a Utopia of course, but they did build a Nation founded on the belief that all people have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They fought wars and made great sacrifices to ensure this right. And as a result, their Nation became a beacon of hope around the world.
Today, same as always, it is as big as crossing an ocean, leaving a dying world behind, and venturing into the everlasting hands of God. But with God, all things are possible. If you want more than a lying world can offer, then step onto God's narrow path of truth, keep putting one foot before the other, and He will lead you to a broad spiritual plane where, looking back, you will know, He saved the one thing you keep forever - your soul - and of course, that made your life great!
COME TO AN UNDERSTANDING
AND STAND TOGETHER AS
CHILDREN OF GOD
There is nothing racist about a white man who, having witnessed from boyhood the decline of little farms and towns across America, makes a sincere and concerted effort to help his people.
Come together in the understanding that, until we let God in our hearts, we cannot work our way through problems that keep us from happiness because true happiness comes before solving problems. True happiness (godly fulfillment) fosters positive action even in the face of difficulty.
Come together and let God set foundation stones in our hearts that support peace and happiness in our communities; foundation stones of love, like a sense of gratitude for what we have, and of belonging to it, and wanting the best for it, and a willingness to work and sacrifice for it.
Come together in the understanding that God's first commandment to man as a knowledgeable being is to toil, to realize the value of hard work, which fosters strength and stability in our backbones and our souls, and makes us productive members of our communities.
Come together and build on God’s truth by teaching children biblical lessons about right and wrong, about when to be kind and when to be tough, timeless values that guide actions, season souls, and help us stay together on the same page as children of God.
Come together with inspirational stories of our forefathers and mothers, the extra-ordinary accomplishments of ordinary Americans who put their faith in God (celebrate them as heroes and heroines, and even pretend to be them in childhood play).
Together these things act as cultural glue, to form a bond of love and loyalty, to form a foundation of harmony and happiness in our communities, and Nation.
Jesus did not save the world by being a worldly man, but rather, by being a man of his people. Jesus did not think like, “Oh my gosh, if I chose men only from Judea to be disciples, that might appear exclusionary and maybe even hateful...I'd better find an Egyptian, a Greek, a Syrian, and an Italian." Jesus didn't do it that way. And lo-and-behold, by His example of love and loyalty, not the false morality of Pharisees in their temples, but the true boots-on-the-ground love and loyalty between neighbors that makes communities strong and nations great - by this, His example, great numbers of people from those other nations would become part of one family as brothers and sisters in Christ.
As a Nation of every race, can we Christians stand together for the sake of our Nation? Yes, we can come together by way of a simple test, a test that has nothing to do with skin color. The test would be a simple question: Would we put up or take down the Ten Commandments in public places, like courthouses for example? Those that would put the Commandments up without hesitation are brothers and sisters in the family of Christ (including non-Christians that are friendly to our beliefs, and therefore are friends of the family). Those that would take the Commandments down have not yet let God in their hearts and therefore are more susceptible to that pair of hands that is ever working in the dark. Those that claim it depends on circumstances are blind to our circumstances. In large part, we have, as a Nation, allowed the godless to choose our path for decades, and fools are prone to follow the easy path to their own destruction. The good news is, God gives us free will, we do not have to follow fools. We can come together for the sake of all as brothers and sisters in Christ.
This somewhat odd term, "the locality of reality," that I have only made up, nevertheless means that, if you sincerely believe in God, then He is in your heart, and, at the same exact time, in my heart, and in all hearts that sincerely accept Him. And this is key because; He alone holds our best interest at heart, He alone wants to make us wealthy beyond our dreams in the only way that counts forever, and He alone has the divine power to be in all our hearts at the same time, working His miracles there like the Conductor of a symphony.
Because I know my people, I will use our example. We the people of rural and small town America are a humble people as proven by the way in which we have quietly dwindled and disappeared. Our little towns and farms are dying in a world that is too far removed to see how a life-sustaining bushel of grain is grown in the land of the free. For a golden bushel of grain sprouts not only from good soil and hard work, but from social stability, itself sprouted from the unity of a people bound by love and loyalty. It is a beautiful thing, and it feeds the world. But it is crumbling in the grip of a big world with big world values, crumbling away, eroding into an agro-industrialized support system for a godless world. And like anything that serves a corrupt world, it will be dragged down with it.
We get together in groups and we start working on it. Unless we are pastors with flocks to attend, we don't give sermons or pontificate or theorize. To get back into God's hands, we must take ACTION. But what kind of action? What can we do? Please read on.
I spent time with the Amish, and saw many things reminiscent of my own pioneer heritage. One thing that took me by surprise was the sight of an Amish woman driving a wagon, not just any wagon, but a large freight wagon. It had an expansive wooden bed with no sideboards and no seat. She was standing on the bed, holding the reins to a team of four Percheron draft horses that were trucking down a gravel road. On the bed behind her was a very large construct of wood and metal (some kind of Amish-made equipment). The young woman was neither large nor burly, but simply an average looking woman in a pioneer dress with three small children gathered close around her legs. Yeah, it blew my mind! A huge wagon, with a huge freight load, pulled by four huge draft horses is a fairly impressive if not downright frightening sight to see when it trucks by up close. But, add to that a young mother standing atop it all, driving four horses while tending three children! Wow! She was neither nervous nor relaxed, but quite simply, appropriately focused, and her children were perfectly behaved. Now, let’s look at another example that can help us understand why the Amish woman and her children, sinners though they be, were able to do what we would only expect from stunt doubles in a movie about pioneer heroism: Once, while working a horse in a round pen on an Amish farm, I noticed a procession of six or seven Amish girls, dressed like pioneers, walking the country lane. The oldest looked to be twelve, leading the way with direction, but not at all severe. The youngest was about five, and brought up the rear. To my surprise, they turned up the driveway of the farm where I worked. I didn’t know what to think but figured it an Amish thing. I watched as they continued without adult supervision, but each knowing their task, fetched a stocky miniature horse, then a miniature covered wagon. They harnessed the horse, hitched it to wagon, boarded one by one, and as they drove away, they smiled and waved at me. Astonished, I went in the barn to ask my Amish friend what I had seen. He said the girls had stopped that morning and left the horse to be shod before continuing on foot to the one room schoolhouse up the lane. They were not all siblings but children of the community. I’d seen a miniature school transportation system operated by children, working together without adult supervision; efficient, safe, clean, healthy, happy, and yes of course, independent! And of course, independence is FREEDOM.
Now let us imagine a parent strapping their child into a car safety seat for a ride to school while colorful cartoon heroes play on the monitor. And yes it may seem that I've presented opposite ends of a scale with extreme bias, but the Amish are nowhere near the far end of any survival scale, more like in the middle between stone tools and microprocessors. So what am I saying? I am NOT saying that technology is bad. I am saying that we have, without even realizing it, become servants to powerful worldly masters. And in the year 2023, we find ourselves so tightly strapped into their system, we cannot get free even as we know it only requires a leap of faith. God will catch us. The problem is, we no longer trust Him. We say we trust Him, but our inaction proves otherwise.
If we want to be a people of God, we have to admit and accept that we will never get back to Him by walking the path laid out for us by powerful worldly masters.
To leave Egypt so to speak, and find our way to our Promised Land; we must identify and give up those things that are detrimental to the survival of our souls, our homes, our communities, and our Nation. And we must know what we need to take with us. Some have already been covered in this text. Below are a few more:
We need humility.
As Christians we understand, we are not a super-race, but the recipients of God's grace.
Culture begins with love and loyalty for one’s people and their way of life. Culture, as God intended it, is human poetry in motion, rich with mannerisms and ways of expression not defined by statements of income, or even by great works of art, but rather by what connects us in our hearts. God connects us, and He uses culture to do so, as a gift, given so that we may have a sense of belonging in our hearts, making for happiness and harmony in our communities.
We need our heritage.
The "Greatest Generation" grew up saying the Lord’s Prayer in church, and the Pledge of Allegiance in school. They were not bussed to big conglomerate schools, but self-gathered in small, often one room school houses where they learned inspirational stories about their forefathers and mothers, stories that gave them a positive sense of what they were capable of. They were not psychoanalyzed and drugged when they misbehaved, but rather, swiftly and effectively corrected with a strap. They cleaned the blackboard, brought in firewood and well water, swept the floor, cleaned ashes from the stove, and other chores before they could go home. It was their first experience functioning outside the home, and not all that different. They were learning to be responsible in a work-based culture of faith. In their communities and across the nation, they were as Jesus said, seeds in fertile soil. And when the time came and they were called to stand against those that sought to put the world in darkness, they were up to the task. They defeated the godless followers of Hitler, the godless followers of the Emperor of Japan, and the godless Soviet Union. They did not liberate the world for supreme leaders, ideological ideals, money, power, or control. Their power and greatness was not from the world, but from the One that blessed them with unity, and made them a beacon of hope for all the world to see.
When it comes to understanding the secret of how God makes a soul, I may as well be a dog sitting before an atomic equation on a chalkboard. It is infinitely beyond my comprehension. And yet, to know the best of it, which is to sense and feel the Craftsman's love and care...I need only let Him into my heart. And now I have every reason to trust Him.
Remnants of the good a grateful people can do, can still be found all across this land. Out here on the gravel roads, it can be found in countless farmsteads from not that long ago, built by those that found independence in God's hands. Today, although their way of life has been swept away by a flood of big world values, the trees our great grandparents planted live on in homesteads largely forgotten (or plowed under). The native mulberry trees still produce their fruit in the summer time, then the plum trees, apple trees, pear trees, walnuts, and pecans. The folks that planted them had delicious recipes for them all. In autumn the persimmons ripen and remain hanging on the tree into winter where, with a blanket of snow on the ground, they can be plucked and eaten like sugar bombs in God’s natural candy store. And with that fresh country air in your lungs, looking up at that magnificent star dome, it's easy to imagine God saying: If your so called “big picture” is manmade, then you have not yet come to see that your thinking is itsy-bitsy. And if you’re depending on a manmade system, you’re depending on an infinitely inferior system. I am the Creator of Heaven and Earth. Put your trust in me.
We sinners will never build a Utopia, and we don't need to. We only need to put the Creator first, and He will lead us through His creation on a path of discovery to His realm of eternal life.
So dear reader, what actions do we take exactly in a frontier of faith to build a life greater than our ability to imagine - what are our parts to play in that divine symphony I spoke of? I don't know what your part is, but God does, and He wants to show you. All you need to do is let
Him into your heart, and follow the path that
He gives you.
❤
POST SCRIPT
(a little about me)
Then, on the heels of my salvation, there came a great opportunity to travel the land, not as a lost man, but as a found man, knowing not of God's intention but simply believing that, as long as I continued putting one foot before the other in faith, God would bring good from my effort.
I did not travel the modern way as I had in the past, but rather, I traveled in the footsteps of my Pioneer forefathers and mothers. I wrote a book about my travels, well written but not mature enough to relate the message God intended me to tell. Without going into the details of how God eventually showed me what he wanted me to know and tell, I would like to tell about something that happened on the way there, a true story, not dramatized, but simply the kind of thing that happens when a man puts himself in God's hands: I got caught in a September blizzard while crossing the Continental Divide. It came on like a roaring freight train, my dog nearly died from exposure. I had to put him inside my coat and carry him while dropping elevation to escape the storm. For 5 days I walked 100 miles across the divide. I ate next to nothing in part because old-man-winter was kicking my tail and telling me to get back to the safety of civilization. It was during this time, 700 miles into a 4,000 mile journey, having already seen so much, and then getting some serious alone time with the Lord; I began praying for words to help my people (praying, very nearly badgering, albeit humbly). The Lord did not answer my prayer at that time but, coming to see a small town surrounded by storm clouds in a valley below; my eyes were drawn to a portion of the town illuminated in sunshine, and prominent in the sunlight stood a white church steeple. The Lord then spoke to my heart, saying, "Just make the journey, James. Just make the journey." I didn't understand, but I obeyed. I was not a mature Christian, I didn't understand that of course the Lord had already laid out what He wanted me to find. And even though I am unworthy of delivering any message from Him to you dear reader, if you have read these words, then you can know He answered my prayer, which of course was His plan all along, and it is no accident that these words found their way to you.
And may God bless you!
James Sheldon, confessed sinner,
servant of God
My dog UB and I on the Lewis and Clark Trail.
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Below are links to my horse and wagon missions in small town and rural America including journals with lots of photos and videos. Also a link to my canoe and walking journey on the Lewis and Clark Trail, with my book AMERICAN ERRAND, pictures, reviews, and more.
My first horse and wagon mission
Giving rides to kids, speaking with parents and grandparents .
A paperback copy of this booklet,
AMERICA'S FAITH FRONTIER is available at Amazon
I receive no royalties. I priced it as low as is allowed.
(Paperback $3.83 E-book .99¢)
Click on image for clear view.
Click on image to read.
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Also, I wrote this booklet with help from a retired Navy SEAL that
I met during my FAITH MARCH OF 2012. I handed this booklet out
to folks during my FAITH MARCH OF 2013.
You can read ACTION PLAN FOR SMALL TOWN AMERICA 100% free by
clicking this link: https://faithmarch2013.blogspot.com/p/action-plan.html
Click on page for clearer view
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My first horse and wagon mission
FAITH MARCH 2012
My horse Reba and dog Jill, driving for the top of the last hill, July 4.
Click on photo to watch exciting video of us driving to top of hill.
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My second horse and wagon mission
FAITH MARCH 2013
My horse Reba and I traveling in rural America.
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My journey canoeing and walking the LEWIS AND CLARK TRAIL as recorded in my book AMERICAN ERRAND is here (with pictures, reviews, and more)
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INSIDE THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER (click on photo to enlarge) |
A paperback copy of my book AMERICAN ERRAND is available at Amazon (I receive no royalties. I priced it as low as is allowed. My only mission is to inspire. (Paperback $8.77 E-book .99¢)
Click on image to read cover.
Click on image to read back cover.
AMERICAN ERRAND has five stars on Amazon
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐AMERICAN ERRAND is available at most bookstores. Simply enter this ISBN number in their search window: 9780982761311
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TIMELINE AND DESCRIPTION
2004-2005: I canoed and walked the Lewis and Clark Trail. It took me two years, 4,000 miles. No cell phone, no motorized assistance., no pre-arrangements, no support crew other than the people I happened to meet along the way. They just kept coming like angles out of the blue. And I came away from the experience deeply moved. I spent the next 5 years (2006 -2011) writing and publishing a book about my journey (AMERICAN ERRAND, see link below). My book got excellent reviews from readers, but I canceled my plans to market it because I heard a voice in my heart calling me to take my message directly to the people. Writing had made me poor but I sold what remained of my belongings, bought a draft horse and wagon, and along with my dog, we set out traveling back roads through rural America. See paragraph directly below.
Faith March 2012: I put myself in God’s hands and made my first horse and wagon mission. This blog covers it in photos, journal entries, and videos. It wasn’t planed to last 40 days and nights but it just came out that way. From farm-to-town and town-to-town, I spoke with a great many people. I was greatly inspired, and so were they. Please read my, SEVEN FLYERS! They are important. Enjoy the journal, photos, and videos. Be inspired. Tell your friends. Thank you, and God bless!
Faith March 2013: I made my second horse and wagon mission. I hadn’t planned it to last 73 days and nights but it just came out that way. This time I handed out my, ACTION PLAN FOR SMALL TOWN AMERICA. I wrote it with help from a retired Navy SEAL who I met on my first Faith March. It was very well received. You can read it here: ACTION PLAN Also, enjoy the journal, photos, and videos. Be inspired. Tell your friends. The journal link is above (FAITH MARCH 2013). Thank you and God bless!
2014-2016: I wrote my booklet AMERICA’S FAITH FRONTIER based on the perspective God had given me over the course of my travels. I then spent the following three years (2017-2020) going out on weekends, towing my horse by trailer to different towns where we walked the streets, gave rides to countless children (always with parents present), spoke with many people, and handed out my booklet. It hasn’t been easy financially but I’ve paid for all my mission work out-of-pocket except for once when I ran out of money on the trail and my old hometown friends quickly raised $700 dollars to get me through. May God bless them! Outside that, I refused to take money. Out on the trail, strangers were feeding me, giving me places to camp, and just heaping kindness on me. May God bless them! Please read, AMERICA’S FAITH FRONTIER. It’s 100% free in my website. A quick and easy read that’s packed full of inspiration. People are reading it online around the world.
2020 to Present: I am pouring myself into a new book. A faith based fiction. A family in the wild, fighting the good fight. A trilogy, each book about 350 pages. I’m halfway through the third book and hope to have it completed in a year. I will then publish the trilogy and market it along with my book about my journey on the Lewis and Clark trail. Not looking to make any money. I'm far from rich but, I am very grateful because I have enough to not worry about making money and paying bills. And this allows me to purse my objective, to inspire folks! Edit note: I have completed my book. It is available below. It's a trilogy and all three books are 100% free to read!
My new book is here, and it's free to read!
To know more about my trilogy, Journey to the Midnight Sun, click here to read the "About this Book" page.
Thank you, and may God bless you!
