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Foreword
Greetings, everyone! I was born in the Caribbean and was born again in 2004 (I praise the God of my Salvation). I will be reflecting on Western holidays, Christmas in particular, since we are in the season. Who doesn't think the jingling bells, the music, the dazzling lights and the yummy eggnog are just wonderful? That and seeing friends and relatives you normally don't get to see? Most of all the mysterious spirit of Santa Clause who seems to posses God-like omniscience and speed as he judges the morality of our children, races around the world with God-like speed, delivering material gifts to the deserving and accepts food and drink offerings of milk and cookies... the dazzling tree that we lovingly decorate, sing to and present offerings under... WAIT... (Reads Jeremiah 10).
My Journey
Over the last couple of years, I started growing indifferent to Easter and Christmas. I never cared for Halloween from the start as I couldn't relate culturally or spiritually (it did nothing for my spirit at best and disturbed me at worst). After a while, these holidays just lost their shine and fed up with the confusion and meaninglessness, I dropped out altogether. Now I know how the author of Ecclesiastes feels! Fast forward to Christmas 2016. I seriously started to ponder why Christmas, this beloved holiday I grew up with completely lost its luster to me. No matter how much family I was surrounded by, it left me cold and empty. Why am I celebrating this again? We are gathering in the name of what, now? Jesus? How? Where? After a while, it felt like the nativity and the tree were in some kind of competition for attention. Just last year, I put up a tree and it made me feel kind of heavy and wrong. Does anyone know that feeling? So this season I took on the task of finding out why I felt this way towards this holiday. This site is just an example of recurring information I have been digging up. Just know that I don't believe EVERYTHING on the internet. I supplement and cross-reference my search with library books. I only seriously dig into an issue when I've seen enough and my conviction has timely bubbled to the brim.
What is a Holiday?
From what I gather, the word "holiday" is just "holy day" smooshed together, right? In the Bible, to be "holy" is to be special and set apart, not mixed with things common or unclean. Holy days serve to set apart and memorialize a thing, person, place, or event. In the Bible God established holy days for his people Israel to bless them, memorialize his miracles, and keep them in the know about his ways. Even to preserve and convey true teaching and prophecy that ultimately saves lives and souls. God's Holy Days are gifts that just keep on giving in the way of blessing and revelation and they add no confusion or sorrows with it. Does Christmas serve in this regard? Why do we have to dig SO HARD to remind people the reason for the season? Why isn't the meaning just obvious like God's Holy Days Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashana, Passover, etc? If Christmas assists in Messianic revelation and the building of our faith, why aren't countries like Japan, which has widely adopted the holiday, seeing an increase in conversion? Why bother with the tree, wreaths and mistletoe? What do those have to do with God or Jesus? Shouldn't a nativity and some light be enough? I used to believe it was a mere, creative cultural expression to praise God, a way the nations reflect his glory, but according to Jeremiah 10, God has ways he wants to be praised and celebrated and there were customs and cultural elements he wanted his people to depart from completely. Just because something is cultural, doesn't automatically make it good or beneficial. Ex. Some cultures find it acceptable to beat your wife and/or have more than one of them. God appointed Israel as a vessel to carry the hope of the Messiah for the rest of the world, this is why God was so strict with Israel and put so many laws and prophetic feasts on her. The fate of the world literally hung in the balance since the Light of the World was to come out of Abraham's seed. Israel and its Message had to survive no matter what and avoid being diluted by the destructive and demonic practices of her neighboring nations (most of which do not even exist anymore, go figure). I believe this also applies to the Church who is responsible for stewarding the Gospel. We cannot afford to lose our spiritual ear and prophetic voice. Culture can serve to either support this or erode it.
Dates
Does the real date of Jesus' birth matter? Yes and no. Yes in that the real date, among other divine events in the Bible, helps the Church track critical prophetic fulfillment and believers need to be aware so we can be prepared like the parable of 10 Virgins. No in that you will not go to hell for not knowing or celebrating the real date.
Thankfully, many in my fellowships already know December 25th is not even Jesus' real birth date. No, I don't think this sends people to hell or cancels our salvation, not one bit (I'm not telling anyone what to celebrate, I am just giving my reasons) but I do believe it creates confusion, distracts and even blocks deeper revelation; what I call "Hidden Manna". You are no less Christian for NOT celebrating it because we are not even commanded in the Bible to observe Christmas. To me, labeling December 25th without caring if it's the real day is like changing the date of my birthday, thus changing my personal history. Even if I end up celebrating my birthday days before or after because it falls on a Monday, people never fail to acknowledge the correct date on my birth certificate. People still acknowledge my true date because it is the accurate way to track my age. In the same way, God's Holy Days serve to track God's history, nature and time tables leading into the End Times. This brings me back to Jeremiah 10. I looked at this passage then looked at my tree and frankly, I couldn't tell the difference. I now know the origins therefore I am now responsible for what I know. I am committing idolatry and to continue despite this would be rebellion. Christmas has SO MUCH distracting BAGGAGE as does it's founders.
Separating from Darkness
As I prayerfully kept finding more information about Christmas' origins, this passage rang clear in my mind:
Revelation 18:4 .....'And I heard another voice from heaven saying, come out of her (Babylon) My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins and that ye receive not of her plagues.'
In the Bible, you see great dualities opposed to each other. You have Babylon vs. Jerusalem and the Bride vs. the Prostitute. Jerusalem is God's Holy City he set apart for himself. It is where Jesus will return to for his 2nd Coming. Babylon was a conquering force unlike anything the world had ever seen before. It's to the point that this empire's place is CEMENTED in Bible history and turns up again in Revelation with one final showdown.
Babylon is named after the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11) and Babel means "confusion." Babylon was an empire built on many gods, it didn't care which god or how many; they took they ones they liked and worshiped them all, keeping all their kidnapped, conquered subjects happy and subservient. They literally collected the cream of the crop from every people group they conquered, assimilated them and made them lose their identities. (They tried to do it to the prophet Daniel in Book of Daniel). The same went for all the religions the captives came with (confusing indeed!). Mixing evevrything in one pot was just easier than bottle-necking everyone to convert to one God (with SO MANY LAWS, how dare he require things of us!) but ironically their spiritual TOLERANCE backfired on the Jews, or any other monotheistic people group, because "How dare they be faithful to their one, measly god and ignore all the rest?!" Behind all these gods is a certain fallen angel that hates us yet selfishly wants our worship. Satan is not like God who cares about us knowing him personally. Satan doesn't care if we know him, he prefers that we don't know his plans because it serves his deception. His goal is not to know us but to kill as many souls as possible and be his own god. Under Satan's influence were the leaders of Babylon who used all these deities to keep people in line and serve their purposes. As long as people serve ANYONE but God, he's fine with it.
Babylon's polytheistic spirituality is likened to the practices of a prostitute in Revelation because of a lack of care/discernment about who she sleeps with. As long as she gets her pay and riches in return, keep the clients coming! This can be found in modern systems of paganism, occult, and new age--all of which wear a spiritual guise but are ultimately grounded on carnality/materialism/pride. "Screw the truth, as long as I feel nice." On the flip side, the worship of the One God, YHWH, is likened to a monogamous marriage of a bride and groom. A married person cares about who they are sleeping with as that is also their friend. The two become one and they forsake all other lovers, sacrifice for, and strive to be faithful to each other, 'til death do they part. Like marriage, God remains faithful to his people and his people remain faithful to God, refusing any other lovers ie. idolatry. In other words, idolatry is spiritual adultery. An idol is anything that steals our time, energy and affections away from our creator and seeks to replace him.
There is an urgency for Jesus' Bride to separate from darkness, forsake her idols, and the Babylonian Prostitute System that sits upon many waters. By many waters, Revelation means Babylon's influences reach all over the globe and her seeds are planted everywhere, right down to our calendars, holidays, customs and even some personal items in our homes. My research only served to confirm what my spirit was picking up--that these little Babylonian items, holidays and customs act like antennae for Babylon's spiritual frequency. Those frequencies will be music to the ears of those who love it and a horrible noise to those who listen for the Holy Spirit. My hearing gradually changed as I grew in my walk with Christ (we are to have grace and patience for each other who are in different places). The Bride is to have discernment and not behave like the indiscreet Prostitute. Pay attention to the frequencies as God leads. Christmas and other Roman holidays started becoming noise in my ears because of the baggage, confusion, distraction and sin. God's clear, simple Holy Days now ring like a clear note in my ears because they are about him and always HAVE BEEN about him.
Rise of Babylon and Her Fruit
Christmas, formerly Saturnalia and several other holidays we celebrate in the West come from Roman idolatry which morphed into the RCC (Roman Catholic Church). This massive, opulent system sits on seven hills and has some interesting fruit: from the very start, she has (in order to attract converts, never mind true repentance) adopted pagan images and doctrines, calling unclean things holy while turning around and persecuting/killing true believers throughout history (Ex. Inquisition). Revelation says the Great Prostitute Babylon was drunk on the blood of the saints. Instead of reconciling people to God, they made access to him even MORE difficult by way of layers of red tape, religious bureaucracy, guilt, repetitive rituals and the breaking of God's commands (Ex. 2nd Commandment). To this day, most nice Catholics I meet do not study the Bible. Mentioning Moses or Elijah to them is like talking an alien language. I am talking about the institution, deceptions, abuses, and corrupt leadership, not the common laypeople who are caught up in it. Because of the Biblical illiteracy, Satan operates best in ignorance. It is to them God issues the warning to come out of Babylon because she is a sinking Titanic. This is not just the RCC but any church congregations that still adopt Rome and ultimately Babylon's adulterous practices. Every time a church observes Christmas, Easter, etc. they may as well face east, raise their arm and hail Rome and ultimately the demonic gods/goddesses lurking under the guise of patron saints and angels. This is in direct violation to Jeremiah 10. Some things can be redeemed for God's glory, some things are a stink in God's nostrils.
The RCC's Babylonian system deceives people into sinning by not only opposing but replacing true revelation from God's Word & Holy Spirit. Babylon practically steals from Jesus Messiah, his revelations, history, holidays and PAVES over them in probably the biggest act of plagiarism in History. The Vatican in Rome even boasts that they are the real and original Church, when the center of geographic spiritual power belongs to Jerusalem. This is theft from the Enemy who seeks to "steal, kill and destroy" (John 10:10). The Pope now becomes God's Infallible Word on Earth instead of the Holy Spirit living in each believer (we are each priests of Christ). This is only a few of MANY heresies. This a trait of an Anti-Christ spirit which always seeks to oppose and replace Christ, getting us to depend on men. There are many little anti-Christs but according to its long history and practices, the RCC wins the prize for being a huge, proud MONOLITH of the title, as foretold by Daniel 7 and Revelation.
Christmas is man-made, Roman and ultimately Babylonian. Why do you think we have to keep digging and straining to remember the "true meaning of Christmas" every year? Why do we have to constantly remind the kids "This is about Jesus, not Santa!" I grew up celebrating Christmas and not once do I remember the festivities of Christmas bringing me closer to God. The glitter, lights and presents crowded my vision, there was no room for revelation about the Savior. Jesus was off to the side somewhere. This is why countries with little Christian culture readily adapt Christmas. At the core, it is a materialistic and pagan holiday that appeals to the flesh. It does not plainly and simply present its message the way God's Holy Days do.
Changing Dates and Laws
The RCC gave rise to a socio-political church system that sought to change God's dates and laws. It has to do with the predictions of Daniel 7 and the Mystery Babylon in Revelation. We in the West run on the Roman calendar (even our weekdays are named after pagan deities!) We have no choice but to use it at the moment as it is how we currently track our time and do business. Even so, I have found it so important to keep track of the Hebrew calendar because that is God's own calendar that tracks prophecy and signs of the times. It is a hot knife that will cut through the cloud of deception cloaking the planet. So we are 2016 according to Roman calendar, but we are the year 5777 on the Hebrew calendar. Hanukkah and Christmas directly converge on the same day this year and that really rings some bells in my heart. I believe God is bringing his people together and preparing them, Jew and gentile as we are grafted into Messiah's tree. The Dark will get darker but the Light will get brighter.
Conclusion
This is not an attempt to shame or put down those that observe Christmas or any other Roman Holiday. If someone wishes me Merry Christmas out off a place of love, I thank them and bless them. If they want to give me an innocuous gift or offer me some eggnog, I receive it with enthusiasm. Paul called missionaries to different countries to exercise this courtesy with care. This gentile's transition away from Christmas has really taught me to have grace for others who do not share this same conviction. At the same time I do believe as followers of the Messiah, we should be purposeful and informed about the things we choose to glorify and partner with as we teach the next generation. If others don't want to hear it, I certainly won't force the issue but if people want to take a hard look, let's chat! Being wise as serpents and gentle as doves, we must fervently guard our witness and be sober and alert (not paranoid, mind you!). We ought to be aware of the roots of the things we glorify because the roots determine if a tree is fruitful or rotten. It's imperative, especially in these times, to be students of prophecy and watch for the signs and seasons Jesus talked about. I am human and I can be wrong about things, but I do believe believers are called to wrestle, pray and watch. Over the years, when the Holy Spirit waves blazing red flags, I learned to listen. Please take what I say with a little or a lot of salt, wherever you are in your walk with Christ the Lord. May he be glorified, even despite all the distractions and may he bless us, his Bride, and knit us all tight together.
Grace to you and those who have ears, let them hear. Myself included.
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Episode of the Sid Roth Show concerning God and creativity.
The coloring book I was commissioned to make is also presented, w00t!
I just put up a 3d mirror picture and I bet the way I commented on that sounded utterly conceited. Therefore, I'm making this blog post as somewhat of an apologetic toward that. Last year, by the LORD's great grace and some teachers just wanting me to graduate, I walked the aisle with triple digit class credits. It's amazing how long you can stay in college without obtaining a degree when you don't follow the planning sheet precisely.
Graduation was mercy and grace. I am probably over educated by most standards, but the appearance on a resume is probably under educated. I am telling you, God is so very merciful. I have the time in higher education of an MA or Dr, especially when military schools are factored in, but I have only an AS. Wow... just Wow. And if not for God, I wouldn't have the AS.
Anyhow, the 3d stuff isn't anything... because I've seen so much better. No matter how good my stuff could be, it's not going to compare to some guru who lives and breathes it on LinkedIn or DeviantArt or even my University. I studied from scriptwriting through special effects and into deployment of user interactive experiences, and because of that I can see so very many places I am not...
I'm learning brush... because I need to and want to. Yet, if any 3D stuff is uploaded that looks impressive, it's not... not really.
You know, the more my heart draws to Jesus, the less it loves the old things. I was wondering why Christmas along with its famous evergreen tree started losing its luster to me and now there is scripture to back up what I'm feeling. (See attached article, it summarizes my convictions and findings).
Besides, I'd much rather celebrate Passover, Rosh Hashana and all the other holidays God actually made HIMSELF. There is so much treasure and power in these holidays and the brightness of God's glory far outshines any tree. I'm by no means condemning anyone who still chooses to celebrate these things. I'm not any better than anyone else for it either. That is between a person and God. This is just something my heart was convicted of. I just can't wholeheartedly participate in a holiday that is celebrating the rebirth of an Egyptian Sun God. In the Bible this is wrong and Egypt was the nation of bondage God had to rescue his people from. It just has nothing to do with me. God said to have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness. "Come away, my people." Don't try to salvage or recycle them. Throw them totally away so he can give you BRAND NEW things. Don't compromise, you can only be for light or darkness, hot or cold.
PART 2 Following up on my Christmas research...
HOLY...!
Guys... guysguysguys...
I think... Hanukka IS Christmas. The REAL Christmas! (Mind blown). And this year which is 5777 on the Hebrew calendar (which God set in motion himself) Hanukka (Kislev 25th) just happens to fall directly on December 25th this year on our (man-made) Roman calendar. Prophetically, Hanukka IS Christmas, only this is not the birth of Jesus but his VIRGIN CONCEPTION in Mary's womb! (Also reaffirming that the flame of human life begins to burn at conception).
Hanukka, like the real historical event, is the re-dedication and consecration of our temples (hearts/bodies) to God and the burning of New Life in our souls through Jesus the Light of the World (John 1). The olive oil that burns in the menorah lamp is the new life of the Holy Spirit! Oil fuels holy FIRE! Holy Fire burns up all impurities and refines us. Number 8 in the Bible means new beginnings/resurrection and the menorah deliberately looks like an 8-branched tree (I think of Tree of Life in Revelation)! In Genesis, one Tree of Knowledge of Good/Evil killed us but this new tree that Jesus died on brings us back to life and will feed us forever.
In the Hanukka event, while the temple of God was under attack, they only had enough oil to burn for 1 day but God miraculously caused it to burn for 8.
This is of course not to shame people who celebrate Roman Christmas but rather open up a door to MASSIVE blessings and revelations. Do you see how LOADED and filled with meaning YHWH God's holidays are? The Bible says many things are permissible and good but some things are just far more beneficial and EXCELLENT to feed your spirit. We should always seek to know God more and understand more of his ways as the years go by. I have been Christian 12 years and I only got this JUST now! (Of course, if I have any details off, I am open to correction. But yeah, look it up).
But now I can say "Merry Christmas" with even more joy, confidence and excitement than ever before. It truly is the day the Christ was materialized into this world (Christ-Mass). The Menorah is not just for Jews, God is showing this is for ALL his people, Jew and Gentile. His new life is for all of us.
God bless you friends and family <3
SOURCES
http://www.messianic.ws/hanukkah.htm
http://hoshanarabbah.org/…/12/06/hidden-truth-behind-hanuk…/
Recently I have been learning about some interesting new dimensions of art. I have the skill, I spent years in school and independent training, but my efforts would always peter out because I didn't quite know what it meant to be an artist. I would start projects but they just never gained momentum and I was so depressed and frustrated. I just... didn't know who I was as a person and an artist to God. Finding your true identity, the person God created you to be, after the world has lied to you or so long is SO important in our walk.
(Secular) College doesn't really teach you how to find your voice in Christ and pursue his glory with our art. It was always about fleshly interests and politics. I have had to step back from it all and just cultivate my relationship with Christ and let him transform me over the years, allowing certain things to die and letting go of all kinds of pride, limited expectations and wrong inspirations. The "letting things die" part was particularly hard. When you experience a shift in paradigms it can be as painful as surgery, (it can even manifest as physical pain!) but it's a good pain and the payoff is GLORIOUS. The pain of healing is better than the pain of affliction.
What blows my mind is that God is a supernatural God and he enables our natural gifts to be used in conjunction with our spiritual gifts (1st Corinthians 12-14). I am particularly led to prophetic art, which is art that essentially reveals the heart of the Father to us; it carries and dispenses the presence of God. We are jars of clay designed to carry the Holy Spirit and pour him out to others like a watering can, thus giving life and making everything green. Artists have the unique ability to bypass intellect and communicate spirit-to-spirit.
I'm currently at a huge turning point and I am eating up the new creative mentor-ship God has provided me in my area. I definitely encourage all artists to ask God to send you the right mentor-ship to perfect your gifts. To give you HIS visions and dreams. The following links below are some examples of what this is all about.
Awesome post about the raw power of Prophetic Art: http://www.theworshipstudio.org/what-is-prophetic-art/
Another awesome prophetic artist with unique aesthetic http://www.jbrushwork.com/index.html
Hello, hello [tap/tap/tap]--is this thing on?
I've put together a blog for people who love God and enjoy action and adventure media like movies, novels, and comic books.
We'll study scripture and explore lessons from a wide variety of real-life and fictional heroes in order to pursue our mission of becoming Holy Spirit-powered heroes who make a difference in this world.
I'd be honored if you checked it out and shared your brutally hones feedback:
Christians have great power... and great responsibility
God bless!
Hi Glenn here from Philippines. I am a Christian. Working as a web-graphic designer. I have a website called Faith Upgrade. This is the site where I post christian comic and christian quotes.
During my past time I read my bible and read christian devotional articles. Sometimes I do play chess.
If you are a Christian comic designer too. Please post your websites, blogs urls so I can visit and drop a comment from it too.
Thank you and God bless :)
playing with some color concepts i been wanting to get around to;
those hi-lite shapes are placeholders, obviously. there's no way i'd ever finish the story if i were to color these with the pen tool,
but i'm not looking to be the colorist either. maybe after i come across some new tools, but i don't think i'll ever switch completely to digi. might play with cutting sketch paper and newsprint down to printer size and try some diff media for color on it, but again, i'll never finish the story if i do it all like that.
also still finding my lines with these Microns and wavering back to the Zebra; and i'm also just flat out having trouble in general struggling with the anatomy in these perspectives cuz... well, cuz i'm not all that great at it haha no turning back tho!
gonna give him his own page shortly
ugh, and this bleedy paper...
and i left that Phlyp up in the corner heehee hawhaw i'm going to bed ;P :) ;P :) ;P
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