Confession
I have been torn over this Ukraine situation. As you may know, I am a WWII history nut. I am fully aware of groups called the Einsatzgruppen in Ukraine. These groups were set up with German officers and many, many Ukrainian volunteers whose mission was to kill Jews. They succeeded. They killed 10's of thousand in ways far more violent than "showers" as used in the concentration camps. If you have any curiosity about this subject, look up "Babi Yar". Not only did Ukranians participate willingly in the mass murder of Jews, Ukraine is a country in which anti-semiticism was and is rampant. I saw everyone on social media posting about prayers for Ukraine, but I couldn't get there. I viewed these people as mass murderers of God's chosen people. Further, their anti-Jewish prejudices influenced many people to turn in Jews and others to refuse to try to help those who had managed somehow to escape the clutches of the Nazi's and their cohorts. I finally had to take some time and look at what was going on inside me. I realized I was having a hard time forgiving the Ukrainians for sins committed 80 years ago. It's a bit like asking me to pay reparations for slavery when my ancestors did not arrive in this country til after the civil war. Not good............ It struck me that my unforgiveness was wrong. The Ukrainians who are walking the face of the earth are extremely unlikely to have had anything to do with the mass murders. They'd have to be 100+ years old. And if I can't be punished for the sins of my father, neither can they. To complicate matters further, the Russians have not been known for their kindness to the Jews. You may be familiar with the term "pogrom". If you're not, you can google it.
After confessing all this to the Lord, I have finally been able to pray for wisdom for the leaders "so that we may live in peace". And I am able to pray for the protection of God's children among both the Russians and the Ukrainians. I am also praying for the exposure of evil at work in this scenario. Progress is being made.
Preparation
Being concerned to be a steward of what God has given me, I have become something of a prepper. Don't laugh--it's Biblical (Joseph was a prepper at God's command.) I do have plenty of food on hand, not that I'll be able to indulge every craving. But there will be SOMETHING in this house to eat for some time to come. In case of freaky weather like Texas had last year, I do have a tent and a sleeping bag to use IN the house to keep me warm. To the extent I can, I have some spare medication, both prescription and OTC, on hand. I am even the proud owner of 2 manual can openers, LOL. But among the many things I do not have was a way to cook food if the power was out. Well, I did some careful shopping last night, and to the extent I can afford anything, I found a rocket stove I can afford. I have a dead fruit tree and numerous dead shrubs in my backyard. I will have plenty of sticks to use as fuel for quite a while, should the need arise. Now, if only I could come up with enough for a solar generator..........or even an EMP shield.......I haven't pushed the button on that rocket stove, but it's in my shopping cart.
Comments