I thought about this over the next few days and determined he was right. If a person goes to a golf course–even one of the less expensive public courses owned by a city–they are guaranteed the grass has been carefully maintained, and the surrounding sites are very pleasing. On top of that, when a person is out on the golf course, they are getting at least some exercise, though I’ll grant you many people rent the carts and drive from hole to hole when they really shouldn’t–they need to walk instead. Further, one seldom golfs alone: one is usually playing with at least another person, if not another two or three persons.

So this was very attractive to me because I had begun thinking more about golf as I got older (primarily because so many of my coworkers play) and I was looking for a way that my wife and I could do something together that we both enjoyed.

Like you, I had heard the stories of frustrated golfers breaking their clubs, and becoming so angry with the game they sopped playing. I was worried that this would be the case for me or my wife once we started playing. So I decided to pursue some lessons from a golf pro, in hopes of developing the right golf swing and habits in the early stages, figuring this would help minimize any frustrating moments I might encounter later. My wife is very particular about things like this: She is not the kind to just go out to the golf course without knowing what to do and simply try to brute force her way through nine holes. Just won’t happen.

So I asked my golf buddy for a pro recommendation, which he was happy to provide. I called, made an appointment for five of us (myself, my wife, my son and his wife, and my daughter) and in a couple of weeks we showed up to the Fox Hollow golf course driving range in Lakewood, Colorado for our first lesson with a PGA pro by the name of Mike Kramer. The driving range is a place where people go to shoot a bucket of balls simply to practice their stance and swing, and work with different clubs. There are yardage markers on the driving range, so one can see how far they shot. It’s not at all like being out on the actual golf course.

I want to tell you what a blast that was. Yes, we were all intimidated by the clubs, and by the people standing next to us who were driving their balls 250-300 yards. Mike had two huge wire buckets full of balls–he distributed them out across the ground in five neat piles. He also had clubs for each of us–a nine iron. I’m a leftie, so he had to have someone run back to the driving range building to fetch a left-handed club for me.

Mike started out by explaining the variation in the clubs. Pretty easy once you learn the trick. Three L’s: Low number, Low loft, Long distance. So drivers, woods, and the 2, 3, 4 and 5 irons all fall into that category. As the clubs increase in number, they begin to shoot shorter with higher loft. So the 6, 7, 8, 9 and sand and pitching wedges are all short distance, high loft clubs. Loft means that the ball goes into the air in a high arc, rather than following a lower trajectory across the ground.

He then showed us the traditional way that golf clubs are held, and he spent a long time with us on a good golf stance and swing. Turns out golfers spend a lifetime perfecting their swing–it’s a zen thing–so I didn’t think very lowly of myself when my swing wasn’t as good as Tiger Woods.

It’s very embarrassing when one swings with all one’s might and the ball stays right where they placed it, calmly waiting for them to hit it. I swung, missed, and immediately looked around to see who might be laughing at me. But do you know what? No one was laughing, and as a matter of fact, not just my family, but several people down the driving range were missing the balls as well, even though they were not currently involved in our lesson. It seemed like a pretty common thing.

Others were hitting the ball, but they were veering off to the right or left, or even straight up into the air. I’m amazed more people aren’t seriously injured at the driving range the some people hit the ball!

One important thing I learned–information both my wife and I value a great deal–is that golf is a finesse, not a power sport. The Happy Gilmour types who take a good hard whack at the ball in order to send it 350 yards out are missing the point. When one is halfway down the fairway and only 60 yards from the green, a 350 yard drive isn’t going to help them. One has to know what club to use to gain exactly the appropriate yardage, and further, one has to hit the ball correctly in order to make it go in a straight line to the desired spot. It’s not at all about being muscular and well able to spank that ball. It’s like chess: using the right combination of moves and pieces to gain the territory one wishes to acquire.

This I think is why some are extremely frustrated with the game. They have never taken the time to obtain some solid training relative to their stance and swing. On the driving range, it is obvious who has had lessons and who has not. The ones who have had lessons take the time to run through a practice swing or two and then step up to the ball. More often than not, the ball at least gets some air and goes in the direction the person intended. But others who simply step up to the ball and take a big, clumsy, ignorant whack at it seldom repeat the process over and over again. If they get lucky, the ball flies, if not–well, it’s anyone’s guess where that ball will go.

We’ve now had four (out of six) lessons, the last one of which was a putting and pitching practice. Pitching is when your ball lands in high grass some distance away from the green (the place where the hole is at). One has to use a pitching wedge to loft the ball up and out of the tall grass and to get some distance out of the ball. Chipping is when the ball is in the tall grass, but just a few feet from the green. The idea is the same: One wants to loft the ball out of the grass, but not with so much speed that it misses the hole. Putting, of course, is when one is on the green and trying to make it into the hole. This is often called “the short game” by people who play a lot. I’ve heard people on the Golf Channel (yep - we’re that addicted now) that the short game is 90% of the game. It’s great if someone can hit the ball to the green in one or two strokes, but if they take five more to putt it in, then what good did all that long hitting do?

Our pro kept saying “You’re ready to go out and play some golf. Try the twilight golf–it’s inexpensive, just a few holes, and there’s hardly anyone out on the course.” We were terrified of going out during a conventional tee-time, and being told that we had to play faster because another foursome was waiting on us. We would be mortified. So, the twilight golf thing sounded like a great idea.

My wife, son and daughter-in-law joined me at the Homestead golf course last Saturday evening for twilight golf. With the exception of a foursome of ladies ahead of us, there really was no one out on the golf course. How scary it is to be on the tee-box, looking at the pennant waving from 250 yards away! (There are actually three tee boxes: black for the experts, red for intermediate, and blue for us beginners. If’ someone’s hitting from the black tee box, they have to hit 100 extra yards or so.) So we took our practice swings, sidled up to the ball, and were really underwhelmed how badly we hit. Balls went into the weeds, they skidded off the tee and scooted across the ground for 20-30 yards, and one even veered off to another hole!

But we stuck with it, and by hole four, both my son and I actually got pretty close to the green in two shots. We were playing “best ball,” meaning that everyone would play the next shot at the location from where the farthest ball landed. (In one case, my wife, who is being very meticulous about getting her swing right and not so worried about distance, actually shot the longest ball because my son and I both hit miserably off of one tee box.) Best ball is a great way to start out because people aren’t intimidated about their shooting, and they are rooting for one another. It’s an encouragement, and takes the pressure off of performance within a group of people. Sure, one wants to hit the ball nicely, and have it go the intended distance. But if that doesn’t happen, well, there’s always next time.

What a blast! We only played four holes (out of the five allowed on twilight golf), but we had a lot of fun, and plan on going out again very soon.

Meanwhile, we continue to go to the driving range to practice our hitting. I’m getting better and more consistent, but I know I will never be able to stop practicing. I noticed that many people get a small bucket of driving range balls and hit a few practice swings before they go out on the regular course. Smart.

This has some seriously interesting implications, and folks from entertainment venues like The History Channel have started running shows about 2012 more frequently than before. A night or two ago I recorded a History Channel HD show linking the famous 16th century seer Nostradamus prophecies with this fatalistic date. The show indicates that Nostradamus–an astrologer who avidly watched the nighttime sky–was able to see this forthcoming time. Like anything else Nostradamus writes, we’re not talking here about pleasant things. Nostradamus was definitely a fire and brimstone curmudgeon whose writings do not speak of daisies and sweetness and light, but of war, bloodshed, violence and world catastrophes. But lots of what he did see has amazingly come true.

Before Christians dismiss Nostradamus as a false prophet because he was an astrologer, I want to tell you a quick story to see if I can temper that instinct a little bit. When my wife and I toured Israel the first time in 1996, we visited what was refuted to be the oldest synagogue on the earth in a little town near the Sea of Galilee called Tiberias. The thing that was most notable about this synagogue wasn’t that the tiny 1″ square floor tiles making up the center of the synagogue were still mostly intact, it was that they represented a giant zodiac. Turns out the ancient Hebrews and other people groups watched the nighttime skies and were quite aware of the rhythm of the circling sea of stars above them. For example, we know that the three wise men found Jesus by virtue of the stars. Of course we cannot pretend to say they were all faithful followers of YHWH, but we can say that the majority of them earnestly believed in the Ancient one and were not interested in some other form of worship. That is, they were not worshiping the stars, but looking for the One who had been prophesied.

Ever since seeing that zodiac in the synagogue, I have rethought my position about astrology. I still do not think people should be living their lives based upon their daily horoscope, and I still think that reading Tarot cards is a wicked thing to be doing–it is witchcraft. You should be looking to God only for your information about your future. That said, it is clear to me that the ancient Hebrews did not harbor the same sort of thinking we more conservative Christians today do about astrology. They believed that God put signs and stories in the sky by which people could chart their lives.

At one time I used to tell people I thought Nostradamus was in the same league as Edgar Cayce and Kalil Gibran–he had a familiar spirit, not of God, and someone we should not be listening to him. Today I am not so sure. Maybe Nostradamus was so hooked into the movements of constellations and planets that he was more of an astronomer than an astrologer. Where his prophetic capabilities come from, I am still not sure–maybe they’re evil, maybe they’re from God. But if you take a spin in the Bible through I and II Kings, you’ll read about prophets of God who were closer to God’s ear than others. For example Elijah and Elisha were clearly right in line with the Father, whereas there were other lesser prophets who were not mentioned in the scriptures but who were nonetheless prophets. The one thing I can say is that Nostradamus did not urge people to worship someone or something other than the one true God. Near as i know he didn’t urge people to worship anything at all. He simply wrote his quatrains. If anyone out there has conflicting information to what I’ve just written, please feel free to post your thoughts. I am not out to make Nostradamus look like a great man of God, because I don’t think he was, but I do think his prophecies are interesting and serve as compelling reading when we consider 12-21-12.

The History Channel show draws some pretty interesting intersections between Nostradamus and the sun. Evidently Nostradamus predicted a time near our infamous 12-21-12 date when the sun would go nuts. He predicts there will be some heavy solar activity, the extent of which we have seen before. Some solar scientists say we are in the 13th solar cycle (each of which is roughly 12 years or so) and this 13th cycle is thought to be the most irritable of all.

At the same time, astronomers are saying that the planets will go into an exact alignment that only happens once every 26,000 years. It is called the “galactic alignment.”

Here’s the interesting problem: If the sun gives off too huge of a solar flare, there is a possibility that the earth’s magnetic poles could shift, which would cause things that rely on magnetism–motors and gyroscopes to name a couple–to behave very erratically or not work at all. This could conceivably cause all motorized equipment relying on magnets to pull copper windings around a center point to stop, which is bad for things like powerplants, submarines, and the like. No power, no lights, computers, refrigeration, and so forth. Everything would come to a virtual standstill everywhere on the planet. Anywhere that electricity is being generated by powerplants relying on turbines, there would be no power. Batteries would eventually give up, and finally the world would fall into pre-electricity darkness.

Think about this for a moment: If the poles changed and didn’t exactly flip over in a 180 degree turn, but landed somewhere opposite one another in a completely different part of the world, it may take us quite a while to even figure out where the poles are at. Once we knew where the magnetic poles were we could begin rebuilding, but not before.

If motors, computers, cars, boats, trains and other motorized machinery fails, then finally the battery-backed-up computer equipment goes the same way, we are officially back to the horse and buggy days. People will be heating their homes with wood, and lighting them with candles and kerosene or oil lamps. Most grocery stores will quickly run out of food because they’re being looted. Files stored on computer hard drives may or may not survive–who knows what records will be available once the situation is rectified? Moreover, how long will it take before it’s rectified? Months? Years? Certainly not just a few days.

The president will declare a state of martial law, but who can enforce it? None of the jets work, or the helicopters, tanks, jeeps, or ships so even though the military has the orders, it does not have the might. There will be roving gangs of thugs. People will have to defend their property with guns or whatever else they might have. They will likely band together to help each other guard against evil people. Community gardens will spring up wherever there is some soil, though people will have to haul water because the city’s water pumps aren’t working. Sewer systems will ultimately back up because the wastewater treatment plant’s machinery isn’t working. A quiet will settle over the land–even quieter than when all air traffic was halted on 9/11 because there will be no cars or building machinery working.

If the problem lasts too long, various little village systems and governances will rise up, complete with stores, saloons, town hall, sheriff and jail.

In other words, time basically resets itself. Maybe this is why the Mayan calendar saw nothing past this date. It’s not that time stops, it just resets.

I do not believe this date reflects the rapture of Christians from the earth, but I suppose it is possible. My personal eschatology says that the rapture occurs then there is at least a 3 1/2 year period in which the Antichrist reigns in power, demands each person to serve him, comes completely against Israel and ultimately winds up defeated, but only thanks to the hand of the Almighty God. Whether Christians are raptured before the seven year Tribulation period, right at the onset of the Tribulation, or somewhere after the Tribulation has started does not violate my eschatology. Knowing exact dates would.

A World Net Daily article regarding the possibility of the second return of Jesus being etched in the nighttime sky validates the idea of astronomy/astrology as an early Hebrew pasttime.

As if that isn’t scary enough, another issue to think about is the subduction of the tectonic plates underlying the San Andreas fault. The (terrible) movie 2012 included this possibility and it is certainly not out of reason. Think of two huge earthen plates a dozen or more kilometers thick. (One kilometer is roughly 2/3 of a mile.) The two plates are butting one another right underneath San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, all the way up to Seattle. One plate slowly gives way to another and begins to slide under its stronger neighbor. One day–clang!–the lower plate completes its slide underneath its neighbor and with it comes a monstrous earthquake of a size never before recorded. Entire cities, towns and geographies are reshaped, with millions of people killed in the process. The movie 2012 envisions a huge tsunami along with the devastation, and I do not think this is out of reason either.

Could a huge solar flare cause such an event? I don’t know. My guess is know one knows. Could the subduction occur near the same time as the solar flare? Why not? There is certainly nothing to stop it. Like the housing bubble bursting, most people are keenly aware that it’s just a matter of time before the San Andreas Fault shoe drops.

Or, consider a giant upside-down volcano, one of the biggest on the planet. An upside-down volcano is called a caldera, and there’s one right in the middle of Yellowstone National Park. What if the caldera decided to erupt? What would happen? At best, a highly radiated area covering 1/4 or more of the US, with a dark cloud covering the majority of the country–a miniature “nuclear winter” as it were. We have seen some recent evidence of what this would be like with the Eyjafjallajokull eruption in Iceland. Air travel over Europe virtually halted overnight, stranding thousands of travelers for a week, and putting a chink in the Airlines’ schedules for weeks to come. And this volcano is very far northwest of Europe, not anywhere as close to Europeans as the Yellowstone caldera is to US and Canadian citizens. Once that radiated ash gets up in the jet stream it’s anyone’s guess as to what kind of devastation will follow.

What if a solar flare caused the caldera to erupt in addition to the plate subduction? Or what if the subduction caused the eruption? What if all this activity happens on 12-21-2012? Are there enough first responders?

Many remember the year 2000 bug–so-called “Y2K.” This was a man-made problem that, while mischievous, was not capable of nearly the power the above-listed God-made things carry with them. If, God forbid, such events took place, let me ask you a question: Would Barack Obama or any of the other politicians matter at that point in time? What would you be thinking about? Nationalized health insurance? The Colorado Rockies or Denver Broncos?

Hardly, my friend. You’d be thinking first about survival and next about your life in the next world–whether it exists or not, and if so, what your fate may be in it. And you’d be thinking the same thing about your family.

Even if nothing happens 12-21-12–if it is a non-event like Y2K was–nonetheless, it should make us think about the possibilities and what we were really put on the earth for. These next two years are a time for introspection, for gaining back ones’ spirituality, finding God for the first time or afresh and rededicating oneself anew, treating other people as you would have them treat you, and preparing for One of whom John the Baptist said he was “…unworthy to untie His sandals.”

There is a God, there is an afterlife–a life beyond this earth–and He has a place for you in it. Now is the time to rethink and reconsider yourself. Now is the time to find the spiritual you.

Most of the Left in America find her distasteful, even disgusting. I have read or heard from leftists every kind of nasty proclamation about her. I cannot understand the vitriol  leftist liberals use when addressing her.  I find the woman fascinating for a variety of reasons. Personally, I see her as a real-world person, as opposed to a silver-spoon elitist who has never had to work for a living. She believes in God - so do I. She is people-oriented, understands what the working man and woman in this country are all about. She represents the America outside Boston, New York, Chicago or L.A. - that section of America where the “unwashed masses” live, and as Jimmy Stewart said, where “most of the living and dying goes on.”

I am currently reading a very good book titled Transformational and Charismatic Leadership: The Road Ahead, by Bruce J. Avolio, and Francis J. Yammarino (2008, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Bingley, UK).  The book discusses what makes up charismatic leaders, and talks about developments to expect in the next 35 years (2001 - 2034). One of the points the authors make is “…by 2034, a considerably larger percentage of CEOs in the USA compared to today will be women…” and minorities (p. 381). They also note that “Patterns of leadership behavior are likely to change by 2034 as women tend to be more transformational than their male counterparts…do more networking, are more focused on relationships and are more concerned about…social justice, equity, and fairness” (p. 381).

The interesting word in the previous quotation is transformational. This is exactly the kind of leadership Sarah Palin is exhibiting, as opposed to the old transactional style. To be fair, great leaders switch between both styles, depending on the circumstances, but the point is that leaders who primarily operate within a transformational framework are far more successful than their transactional counterparts. Within that construct, it is important to understand the difference between the two:

Transactional Leadership

Contingent reward -You will be suitably rewarded, provided you accomplish this task or goal.

Active management by exception - Leaders are always looking for errors, and stand at the ready to provide guidance.

Passive management by exception - Leaders take a less proactive approach, getting involved only when problems occur.

Laissez-faire leadership - Literally, “let the people do as they choose…”

 Transformational Leadership

Influence (charisma) - Regardless of how the left despises her, makes fun of her, calls her every kind of vile name they can imagine, she manages to rise to the top with a smile on her face, exuding self-confidence.

Inspirational motivation - She believes a higher power has control over man’s destiny. She obtains her inspiration from a higher source than socialist-leaning law school professors.

Intellectual stimulation - Some describe Sarah as stupid. But the times I have watched her, she comes across as one whose thoughts are organized, well-formulated and balanced.  I find statements such as the one she made at the Tea Party convention highly stimulating - “What we need is a Commander-In-Chief, not a law-school professor at the lectern.”

Individualized consideration -Many in the left are not concerned about the individual - they see a broader social picture. Sarah Palin has proven she can focus on individuals, as well as speak to huge groups.

Networking - Appearing out of nowhere to stand alongside John McCain for the 2008 Republican Presidential campaign, Ms. Palin has gone on to become influential in a variety of ways, including writing, and now speaking to a public audience over nationally syndicated television. Thus she has dramatically increased her sphere of influence and now has the ear of many who are well equipped to bring about real, actual, meaningful transformation in society.

Focused on relationships - Ms. Palin exhibits this no more clearly than with her family. I cannot imagine how difficult it would be to manage all of the myriad responsibilities she has and continue to maintain a strong family life, but she does. She has said before that her family is the motivating factor for her to continue doing what she is doing. But, unlike elitists, it is not about the money or the power, it is about the vision, the purpose, and the people.

Concerned about social justice, equity, fairness - Without naming names in the current administration, it is clear that there is one-sided social justice at work, a social justice that most Americans do not share. Conversely, Ms. Palin sees the need for the kind of social justice that brings criminals to justice, rewards hard work, and dignifies the “Joe Six-Pack” of America.

Innovative - I am continually surprised with the ideas and notions Ms. Palin displays, especially in the face of tremendous adversity.

Responsive - She is not afraid to countermand opposition attacks with the confidence of her convictions, and a swift repartee) and she is ready to meet the needs of Americans.

Flexible - Nowhere is this more closely exhibited than in her efforts during the McCain campaign. I kept wishing that she was running for president and had a suitable vice-presidential nominee, rather than the other way around.

Perhaps a Sarah Palin & Scott Brown ticket is in order for the 2012 campaign. Both of these individuals are young, with a transformational leadership style, a can-do attitude, and a respect for all of the things that have made America great, and which leftists with a socialist agenda wish to destroy.

God bless America.

1. Cleave to the Constitution
2. Dust off the Declaration
3. Work harder
4. Save more
5. Borrow less
6. Repent, pray, get religion
7. Resist the divorce epidemic
8.  Tithe to church and charities
9. Read the classics
10. Doubt judges and lawyers
11. Distrust the dinosaur media
12. Assert our country’s goodness: America without apologies
13. Gird against radical Islam
14. Reject surrender in Afghanistan
15. Quarantine Iran
16. Defend Israel to the death
17. Revive NATO
18. Suspect Russia
19. Suspect China
20. Beware Chavez and Castro
21. See the United Nations for the dangerous fraud that it is
22. Secure the borders
23. Re-arm urgently
24. Work for a colorblind community
25. Reject the race card and white guilt
26. Support charter schools, tax credits, and vouchers
27. Demand intellectual diversity on the campuses (emphasis mine)
28. Resist the mediocrity drug called multiculturalism
29. Encourage a stay-at-home mom
30. Give to a crisis pregnancy center
31. Support the shaming of abortionists and pornographers
32. Boycott Hollywood
33. Get arrested dumping tea in the Tidal Basin
34. Dare Congress to put themselves on Social Security and Medicare
35. Demonstrate for a time line when GM gets privatized
36. Rally for right-to-work
37. Picket for paycheck protection
38. Organize for offshore drilling
39. Sit in for nuclear power
40. Coalesce for coal
41. Demand a tax-favored, direct-pay option for your medical costs
42. Ridicule the climate alarmists
43. Tell Biden jokes
44. Circulate ACORN soup recipes
45. Start a Palin club
46. Launch a Messiah milkcarton movement (”Savior of 2008, mysteriously missing in 2009″)
47. Retire Pelosi and Reid in 2010
48. Draft Petraeus in 2012
49. Get active as a Democrat and elect more blue dogs, or…
50. Get active as a Republican - not because they’re so much better, but because opposition is liberty’s life-blood

Perhaps it was that they had started early in the morning, or it was still just late April and there were snowbanks littered here and there along the path, but there was no one else on the trail with them. This did not matter: Johnny and Susan had each other’s company and that was enough for them and their current viewpoint of life: young, in love, with the entire world at their feet. Who needed anyone else?

As they walked, they pointed out to one another this small cluster of Aspen trees, that group of lichen-stained rocks, an occasional deer track emblazoned in the trail’s mud. Once in a while a tiny side trail would shoot off here or there - clearly not maintained by the forest service, just some point of interest for hikers who knew something about the area.

Johnny had a deeply back of mind sense there was someone or something else on the trail. It was only vaguely troubling to him, so he didn’t say anything to Susan as he didn’t want to needlessly trouble her with something that probably didn’t even exist. Just his imagination.

Finally, the temptation to scamper up one of the mysterious side trails got the best of them. This particular trail was only as wide as the sole of a shoe, but contained the portent of something particularly beautiful beyond. The forest was thin enough at this point that they could see a pool of blue sky beckoning to them near the crest of the trail, some fifty or seventy-five feet above them. They might be able to command a view of the Cottonwood valley they knew was immediately below them, but not visible from their current vantage point.

The cold wet grass wiped their calfs as they made their way up the trail. The trail was steep enough that they needed to grasp an occasional thin Aspen trunk for balance.

As they neared the top of the hill, the trail opened up to the fulfilled promise of a gorgeous panorama - it was clear at this point that they were higher than anything else within view.

Johnny was no more than three or four feet from the top when something long sprang at him. A mountain lion! The cat was huge, seventy-five or a hundred pounds, and clearly hungry. The cat’s mouth was wide open, revealing long brilliant white teeth. The nails on his paws were equally long and sharp.

As Johnny turned around to find out what all the commotion was about the cat hit him squarely in the chest, causing him to awkwardly stumble backward up the remainder of the hill where he nearly instantaneously disappeared from view.

Susan screamed, running up the trail after Johnny, and screamed even louder when she saw that Johnny had fallen off of a two hundred foot cliff and was now laying lifeless at its base, near the promised end of trail lake, blood staining the rocks he had landed on when he hit bottom.

Her screams did not last long. She felt the rip of the lion’s talons into her ribcage and neck and she was dead. The lion, hungry for the protein of meat–human or otherwise–began to feast on a complete meal: one he had not enjoyed in a very, very long time.

In the book of the prophet Jeremiah, there is a very interesting scripture that God gives to the Jews:

This is what the Lord says:

Stand by the roadways and look. Ask about the ancient paths. Which is the way to what is good? Then take it, and find rest for yourselves. But they protested: We won’t! (Jeremiah 6:16 - Holman Illustrated Study Bible)

For those who need a second or third version of the Bible for comparison, here is how it is worded in the Thompson Chain Reference of the New International Version (NIV):

This is what the Lord says:

Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, “We will not walk in it.”

I believe that in this age of supposedly “post-Christian” America (where we’re also supposedly “post-partisan” and “post-racist”) we are at exactly the crossroads Jeremiah is speaking of: a point in which the Lord is asking us to simply stand and look around at all we see. But there is an enemy on the road, silently, steathily watching us, waiting for the exact moment at which to strike.

And we’re tempted by this side-path or that, even though we don’t know what that path holds for us.

When we’re tempted by this little side-path or that one, we’re supposed to stop and look and ask “What are the ancient paths?” In other words, what are the good paths - where do I walk that I will stay safe?

But we will not do that. Instead, we are looking to man (side-path) for our answers: this scientist, that politician, this theologian, that psychologist, this actor, that TV star, this musician, that artist, this atheist, that “I am Jesus” evangelist.

Anyone but the Lord. We have almost lost contact with Him. Even if we believe in God, which many say they no longer do, He has been relegated to a back corner, a place where we go to connect with Him when we really need something. We no longer trust Him for the answers to our big problems.

Why? Because we’re afraid that if we do, and we let it be known that we do, people will think we’re some kind of nut, that we’re out of our mind. Never mind that people are wrapped up in every other kind of superstition there is, from astrology to 2012.

I believe that even though the Old Testament was essentially given as the treatise by which to live for the Jews, it is also relevant to modern-day Christians. God’s wisdom is transcendent. OK, we no longer live by the Law inscripted on the tablets by God and given to the Hebrews by Moses. There is a new dispensation–that of Grace (yeah!).

That said, we cannot say that God meant those words for only one group of people. My wife has this example: The Jews were forbidden from eating shellfish. Why? Just some rule that God laid down so that He could make sure people were obedient to Him? Not at all! It’s a very practical thing: Shellfish are bottom feeders, and as such are dirty, nasty creatures. They might be good eats, but they’re not good for you.

So when Jeremiah gives us this sage advice, we should be paying attention.

There are five things he says in this extremely important scripture:

1. You’re standing at a crossroads. Seldom before in America have we been at such a period of turmoil and disagreement as we are now. This must be what it was like during the civil war period.

2. You must simply stop and look. The thing you’re being asked to do is simply nothing. Just stop and look.

3. Once you’ve stopped, you’re to ask “Where are the ancient paths?” This is interesting because it is stated as paths, plural, not path, singular. I don’t think Jeremiah means there is more than one path to God - I think here he’s talking about ways in which God would have us to go given the circumstances we’re clearly in. The word ancient also implies that we should be paying far less attention to the current thinking and get back to something old, tried and true.

4. We don’t know where the ancient paths are at. We have to ask God to show them to us because we cannot see them.

5. But they did not. The Jews refused to listen, stubbornly saying “No! We will not!” In other words, the temptations of what was currently going on in their day looked so much better than the ancient paths, they simply refused to cooperate.

The outcome for them was not so good. God doesn’t send an “ask for the ancient paths” call just because He thinks you could somehow benefit from its wisdom. He sends that call because He has had enough and if people don’t obey, He is ready to show them exactly Who is in charge (and it isn’t any American politician!)

So, here’s my thinking: It’s time to get back to God. Get on our knees and ask “Where are the ancient paths? Show those paths to us again!” It’s time to put away the nonsense and filth in which we’ve been reviling ourselves; time to stop equivocating things we know are wrong (e.g. I know porn is wrong, but hey, everyone looks at it); and time to get back to prayer, reading the Bible, and worshiping God.

This lines up with another old Testament scripture:

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heavena nd will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (Second Chronicles 7:14 - NIV)

So the question is this: Will we just walk right past the crossroads - going to the right or to the left, or will we stop and look and ask God “Where are the ancient paths?” It’s clear to me that neither of the crossroads paths are the correct ones. What do you think?

I was naive in assuming they’d be happy to read technical materials, as I had when earning my Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) certification years earlier. I assumed they were hungry for every jot and tittle of technical meat on which they could lay their hands.

I was wrong.

When the first shipment of Microsoft Certified System Developer (MCSD) books I’d ordered for my programming-centric students came in, one boy, who had pretended earlier to be anxious to have one, grabbed the book and threw it to the table saying “Yikes! That’s heavy!” Others followed suit.

Nowadays I go through a drill where I tell the students they chose to come to a technical school, and they’re receiving technical materials to read because that’s what we teach here. This isn’t your home high school where you have to take a history class, and you get this ponderous text book laden with way too many confusing graphics and sidebars and text, and even though you know you’re supposed to read it, you actually figure out ways around not reading as much of it–as long as you can pass the class that is. I tell them a technical school requires that you read, read, read technical materials all the live-long day. That the technology changes faster than some of them change their tee-shirts. That if you don’t stay ahead of this curve, you’ll likely fall way back behind it before you even know what hit you.

I cite examples: Windows Vista (ugh) is passe, now we look forward to Windows 7. In three years time, Windows 7 will have had millions of articles written about it, lots of which complain about how bad it is (though it’s really not) and how we yearn for a better Windows. Alas, if only Windows Mountain Lion (or whatever Windows 2013 will be called) would come out soon.

But none of it seems to sink in. To be sure, I have some students who hear what I say and really, actually read their books. But sadly, most books sit on the computer at school, waiting for their students to come read them. And when the students are there, even then the books go wanting.

The “new reading” is  a lot like a business topic I learned years ago when getting my Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Business Administration (BSBA) - it’s “just in time” (JIT) reading.

The phrase JIT is used in the business world to denote inventorying practices in which stock items are monitored closely. When an item is close to running out, it is ordered, preferably by some sort of computer interaction. The idea is to keep as much inventory out of the warehouse so that one doesn’t have to pay for excess stock. It takes a precise understanding of how much stuff people are buying, what’s available from suppliers, and how quickly, and so on. The Japanese have successfully used JIT for years, but then they have a penchant for fine-tuning and precise control.

But with JIT reading, it’s not so much about the fine-tuning and control as it is staying away from as much reading as possible, keeping the reading either interactive (i.e. Flash movie) or person to person.

With JIT reading, you don’t consult a book unless (God forbid) you don’t have internet connectivity. And even then you might forget about it until later on when you do have network access. Instead of plowing into “all those words,” (a term I hear all too often anymore–by adults no less–when talking about the printed word) you jump onto Google or Wikipedia or a handful of other sites that have proven to provide quick results and you do your reading there.

But not too much reading mind you…just enough to get your problem solved and get you moving forward again.

Sometimes in the throes of JIT reading, you get tempted by an attractive new game site, or a funny, cool movie site, and you lose your momentum. This is akin to the days when Sally or Bobby came over to visit you just as you were beginning to read your History and well, darn it, History would just have to wait wouldn’t it?

JIT math works similarly. Got a heavy math problem to solve? Just whip out your HP or TI calculator, and get that booger done! No need for pencil, paper, formula books, and the like. If we’ve got computers to manage our math for us, why use our heads?

And I’m afraid to say, JIT writing works the same way. If you have to write, which most students consider anathema, you make your prose as short and sweet as possible. Not all students write this way, of course. I’ve had some students who were incredibly good writers, and not afraid to put pen to paper (or to be more technologically accurate  - fingers to keyboard). But for the most part, writing has declined to the point where sentences are poorly formed, good spelling is nearly nonexistent, and even if you could follow the student’s train of thought, you couldn’t read it very well because you’re constantly stumbling over his/her poor writing and sentence constructs.

JIT inventorying–the business school concept that we order new inventory stock just before the last little bit is sold, thus saving storage and inventory costs–has worked very well for industry, hasn’t it? I mean, I can’t tell you the last time I was in Home Depot when they did not have something in stock that I desperately needed. You reach right in that sprinkler system bin, and–voila!–there’s the part you need. Right?

Yeah. Right. JIT inventorying is a good idea on paper, but maybe not so much when put into practice.

So, while I think JIT is here to stay, I’m working on ways to get kids to stop their JIT reading, writing and math, because it’s nonproductive, and  it’s not doing them any good. It’s a sloooooowwwwww uphill battle, I’ll tell you. You have to model things for the students, then drag them along with you. And even then, you’re not sure they’re there with you–lots of times it feels like it’s just me in the room.

But I persevere. Because I have this tiny little doubt in my mind that reading, writing and math will go away anytime soon. That we’ll all just use technology for everything, and that way we can be couch potatoes who rely on computers to do our thinking for us.

I know a lot of the students would like to have it that way. But that’s not how it works.

Not now, not ever.

Sounds ordinary, right? Well, the “stuff” they talk about is truly extraordinary. You’ll just have to run out to the TED web site and watch one or two to get the drift of what I’m talking about.

So, last night I’m working out on the elliptical machine at Bally Fitness and I’m watching a TED video by Mike Rowe, host of the Discovery Channel show “Dirty Jobs.”  This guy, dressed in ordinary workaday clothing, has no PowerPoint presentation, no props, no videos or music or gimmicks. He just stands up there and tells a story.

The story he tells is at once riveting and repulsive. He talks about castrating lambs on a ranch in Craig, Colorado–how it’s expected to be done, and how it’s actually done, and the difference between the two.

But the talk isn’t important because you learn something about castration. That part is fascinating and entertaining–Rowe is a very good story-teller.

What’s salient about Rowe’s 20 minutes is that he makes a very important American point: We’re losing the job battle.

While we have heartfelt and strong dialogs (diatribes?) about important things like health care reform and American soldiers overseas,  we have almost lost the notion of what it means to be an American worker. Rowe talks about the need for technical schools and colleges; not enough plumbers, carpenters, electricians and the like. Not enough mechanical engineers–heck, not enough engineers period.

Not enough people willing to a) dig into the math, physics, chemistry and other hard topics required to understand the deepness of engineering, and/or b) not enough people willing to bend over and get their hands dirty and backs aching in the process of carrying out good old fashioned American work.

Rowe’s point is that it’s job first, other things second. In one part of the video, he talks about “safety third,” meaning that despite the platitude of “safety first” and OSHA laws, and of course each person’s regard for their own well-being, nevertheless workers undertake things like mining, deep-sea fishing, logging and other dangerous occupations because they’re good jobs, they pay well and they feed families.

He doesn’t say it, but I think the point stands out: In many cases, we’ve let ideology get in the way of practicality. Case in point: so-called “green” jobs. Pundits and politicians bring platitudes that talk about the need to switch over from 20th century energy sources to renewable energy methodologies.

Fine. I have no argument with that–though I don’t think the economics bear out a short-term forklift switching over to renewables from conventional energy resources. The problem is that we’ve let strongly ideological environmental groups get in the way of progress toward renewable energy goals. Can’t build offshore wind turbines in the north Atlantic because the folks on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard will see them in the distance and their white blades spinning away will disturb the pristine view. It’s a beautiful site on Maui I can tell you. Don’t know why it’s anathema off the New England coast.

Can’t build transmission lines leading from a humongous concentrating solar array in the Desert Southwest to the nation’s cities because that would involve drilling holes in the ground for tower caissons and stringing unsightly wire across miles of American soil.

Can’t drill for natural gas–of which T. Boone Pickens claims there is enough for “100 years’ worth of clean-burning energy for Americans.” Why? Because drilling disrupts natural environments, and makes things unsightly and causes animals to have to rethink their living patterns or worse, kills them, and, well, there’s just something ideologically wrong about drilling for gas when there are other renewable energy sources we could be using instead. Never mind that the payback periods and inefficiencies of said renewables really aren’t sufficient enough for us to adopt them in a wholesale fashion…yet. Given enough time (decades) sure, we’re there. We’re all over that. But right now what we need is gas and coal and oil and power lines and power plants and refineries.

Which takes me back to jobs. It is ideologically unpleasant to watch Rowe’s Dirty Jobs TED talk because he talks about the politically correct (and wrong) method for castrating a lamb. And then he talks about an American worker who is, in the immortal words of Larry the Cable Guy, able to “get ‘er done.” And the getting it done is actually better for the lamb, as it turns out. Oh, and it keeps ranchers employed.

So here’s the thing: Rowe is talking about something very basic and important. What he’s really saying is that we need to put America back to work. Which means that a lot of the students in our schools today really shouldn’t be planning on going to college to study things like history, and psychology, and social topics. The jobs just aren’t there in numbers large enough to support a lot of students in those majors.

Instead, students should be planning on going into technical schools to learn about jobs that are important to Americans. For example, Process Tech, a major students can take at many community colleges across the country, teaches young people how to properly operate industrial facilities such as power plants, factories, and such.

We need welders, carpenters, electricians, brick-layers, mechanics, linemen (OK, linepersons), cosmetologists, machine workers, miners, loggers, and other skilled tradepersons. We need to get back to building and farming. We need dental hygienists and nurses. We need engineers.

We’ve got plenty of psychologists, anthropologists, sociologists (and other ‘ists), cultural studies majors, historians, and English majors. Boat’s full. Don’t major there. No jobs there. Nothing to do or see there.

What we don’t need is one more guy or gal with a history degree working as a barista.

(As an aside, one thing I noticed on a recent trip to Europe this summer was that all of England, France and Italy was planted. Not with Kentucky blue grass, but with stuff people can eat and use. Corn, hops, wheat, sunflowers, lavender, and yes, tobacco. The land wasn’t allowed to lie fallow. It was used. While I recognize if you drive through eastern Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas you’re going to see lots of crops, I still wonder what the proportion of crops grown in America by acre of soil is to Europe. I bet there’s a drastic difference. It made me think: where are all the American farmers?)

Rowe’s point is that, of necessity, American jobs have to be dirty jobs. If we’re to maintain the status quo in this country, feed and educate our kids, house ourselves, maintain our health and make this country better–what I’m talking about is good old-fashioned improving our lot–we’ve got to get our hands dirty again. And our backs aching. And our bodies and minds working in harmony in the process of creating things that people need in order to live.

Turns out our ancestors had the right idea. It’s the dirty jobs that are the best jobs after all.

That said, I do believe in the power of teaching kids how to program games because I believe there is real power in connecting with students at their level, helping them understand the incredible effort game companies go to just to bring entertainment to people.

This is my third year teaching a game programming class. I’ll be the first to admit I’ve stumbled around with this topic quite a bit. I intuitively knew some things: that the C++ programming language, for example, is required as the language for most commercial games. (Oh sure, there are indies, and indie languages and game engines, but the real truth is that C++ is still the prevalent language within game programming companies.)  I also know that you have to have graphics for games, but at first didn’t have much of an idea about how to get those graphics into the computer. I also knew that story was important (though lots of students will argue with you about that). And artwork, and music. Game programming is an incredibly rotund subject.

So here’s the thing: If you’re teaching game programming to kiddos, you have to teach a variety of subjects. I’ve come to realize these subjects have a very definite order: 1) Story, 2) Art, 3) Code, and 4) Music. So if you’re teaching game programming, you’re not only teaching students how to write C++, C#, Java or ActionScript 3 code, you’re also teaching them about developing stories, drawing, creating lifelike characters (2D or 3D), and other artwork (such as backgrounds, buildings, textures, sprites and spritesheets, etc.) and you’re working with music. Not to mention the soft skills like teambuilding, conflict-negotiation, and strategizing.

On top of that, you have to teach a fair amount of mathematics (algebra and trigonometry) and physics in the process, else budding game programmers won’t create realistic games.

If you’re teaching game programming, you’re practically teaching an entire school’s curriculum all in one classroom. Throw in some history, civics and current events, and maybe a little psychology and you’re covering the entire gamut. I would argue that many kids learn more about history through “Age of Empires” than their school history classes.

Here’s an even more amazing thing: I truly believe that if we teach more and more kids how to write games, and we show them how to bundle work products in those games, we can use games to solve some of the world’s weightiest problems.

What do I mean by that? Well, think about the SETI screensaver. The nutlogs at SETI, ever vigilant in scanning the universe for signals that indicate the presence of human life, use an ordinary screensaver to process data they’ve received from their telescopes. Anyone who downloads the SETI @ Home screensaver allows SETI to use their computer’s spare PC cycles to process data, assisting in the search for ETs.

Now that same kind of idea, put on steroids, could be used to find cures for cancer, AIDS, run computer models for weather and other high-end simulations, and yes, even work on data for space projects, among myriad other things. All while people think they’re playing a game. Clever game developers might even find a way for players’ avatars to participate in the process somewhat. An avatar might not look through a microscope and recognize a virulent disease, but the avatar might run a message, or push a button or perform some other task for researchers.

Think it can’t be done? Check out Free Rice. This game allows you to garner food for impoverished people in 3rd world nations, while simultaneously helping you with your vocabulary. It’s a crisp, robust, ingenious game that partners gamers, non-profits and hungry people.

So, it turns out that game programming is a really great thing to be teaching kiddos. They learn a ton of great stuff all wrapped up in a package they love. And once they get good at it, they might come together to create uber Free Rice games and involve Joe and Jenny Six-Pack in helping us work on problems–even though Joe and Jenny think they’re relaxing and enjoying playing a game.

Here’s the thing though: Teachers have to go through a serious paradigm shift if they’re going to teach all of the elements involved in a complex subject like game programming. It’s not just code, not just art, not just story: It’s bigger than a breadbox, and requires teachers to grow their own capabilities. I know I had to, and I’m still going through the growing pains. I’m just now using a set of books I think are really solid, and I know I’ve got a long, long way to go. But I also know I’ve got a GREAT bunch of kids who come to class every day, usually work through their break on their tasks, and happily read technical material and learn technical math in doing so. Education doesn’t get much better than that!

Ditto for the dentist.

As an aside: I find it interesting that in this whole Democratic health care debate, none of the Senators, Congresspersons, or even POTUS can find time to talk about free dental care for all. Guess that’s not as important, though I can tell you in the majority of cases, my daughters’ health emergencies have been dental in nature, and I’ve covered the bill.

Thank God they haven’t had something dire that required more attention than an Amoxicillin prescription or an extraction.

My daughters are a part of those 48 million who don’t have medical insurance who choose not to purchase it. So naturally, I like the idea of my daughters being able to obtain medical insurance.

I also support the idea of health care for all including immigrants (legal and illegal). Before you get hot under the collar about the illegals consider: They currently go to an ER where they must be treated. I think it would be a whole lot better from a cost perspective if they could go to a regular doctor to get treatment for their sinus infections and pregnancies, don’t you?

What I don’t support is the idea of the Federal government managing a national health care system.

Why? Well, because frankly, the Federal government can’t manage its way out of a paper bag. Can you name a Federal project that was not cost-overrun, did not miss its deadlines, and/or was not laden with pork that added things (at great cost) that should never have been added?

That’s what I thought. You can’t. I can’t. In the 35 years I’ve been watching the leaders in the Federal government, I can’t really point to any one significant project or endeavor that I thought was pulled off with great project management skills, managed well from top to bottom, ended up with the desired result, was pleasing to most people, and actually cut costs.

Yeah, yeah, there are probably some out there. No doubt. But I’m talking about the billion-dollar efforts that politicians paint with grandiose pie-in-the-sky colors and brushes.

Military? Forget it.

Nasa? No hope.

Education? Uh-uh.

Stimulus plan? Really? You’ve got to be kidding.

“Cash for Clunkers” program? A farce. A joke.

No, no. The Federal government should not be trusted with something as precious as our health.

Call me crazy, but I just don’t think the government has innovated anything - well, OK, maybe with the exception of attaching pork projects to bills.

I think health care–including medical research–should stay within the domain of the private sector.

I once worked for a company that developed 3D cardiac ultrasound software which was then bundled in with HP untra-sound scanners. For a lot of reasons, the company went out of business - but I think the company’s executives would admit that the government was a big part of the problem, not the solution.

I’m blessed. My employer provides medical insurance for my wife and I. In fact we have an ala carte plan, with a couple of different providers. I chose Kaiser Permanente (KP).

Let me tell you what I think of this company: As far as I can tell, KP is doing a great job managing their money, and their patients. Oh sure, there are people that will grouse about KP’s care. But let me be honest: I have had a couple of different (relatively minor) surgical procedures, the normal array of sinus infections and flu, and yearly physicals. KP’s doctors have been good about talking with me (not to me), and working with me to solve any health issues that have arisen. They’re responsive and they get the job done. Their equipment is state of the art, their facilities are all over Denver, and, near as I can tell, they’re always fully staffed.

POTUS, in his “town hall” meeting in Belgrade, MT on the 13th said that we should consider an insurance company that’s a great player–one who is working well with the Feds in laying out what the new health care legislation should look like: Aetna.

OK. But Aetna doesn’t run clinics or hospitals like KP, do they? They’re just an insurance company.

Several politicians have advised that we take a look at Cleveland care, because it’s a great example of how well public sector entities can run healthcare. Great, but that’s a couple orders of magnitude example when we’re talking about the Feds running healthcare for millions versus a city for 10s of thousands, isn’t it?

Several people have cited Mitt Romney’s Massacheusetts universal coverage plan, including Mitt himself. However, this  healthcare plan is a disaster. It’s in the red, and stakeholders are panicked about how to fund it going forward.

Lots of people have talked about the danger of a nationalized health care plan for seniors. There has been talk of euthanasia options over clinical treatments, “counseling” the elderly (”You’ve had a good run grandma. Now it’s time to go.) and even letting the elderly suffer without treatment to avoid unnecessary treatment costs. The Rahm brothers like the idea of “life points”–the younger you are, the more points you get. The older you get, well, you do the math.

The Central Barack Station (CBS) cited a CBS/New York Times poll that says this is absolutely not the case. Why, the elderly will be perfectly safe under the new health care plan. In fact, life for them will be better rather than worse!

Right. The New York Times is the most liberal newspaper in the country, employing the likes of the far-left-leaning pundit Paul Krugman. Why would I believe a pollster as far left as that? It cannot be said to be accurate. It simply cannot.

The governor of Montana bragged after the Belgrade town hall that “if they’d send us the paperwork, we’d have this thing knocked out in 10 days.” Yeah, right.

If we’re going to do this thing, we have to have an honest debate, not one riddled with disenguous politicking and Pelosi name-calling. People are scared and they want answers from the Feds.

So, here’s my point: I would be more than happy to chip in an extra $100 - $500 per year in order to help fund healthcare for someone else. I realize that doesn’t sound like much, but given that we have to cover about 1/6 of the people without coverage, I think this is reasonable, and if the health care providers were willing to sit with us, we could craft a decent plan.

And, I think that companies like KP, who have experience in both the clinical and the operational elements of healthcare insurance should manage a national healthcare system. I could envision KP and similar companies working together to provide this kind of healthcare.

And what would be the Federal government’s role?

Sit back, watch, and stay out of the way!

Let Americans do what Americans do best - help other people.

This scripture is intriguing to me because I think it may indicate the origin of hell. This verse came from a “song” that God gave to Moses, ordering him to teach it to the Hebrews before they entered the promised land–the land flowing with milk and honey, the land, you will recall, in which Caleb and Joshua returned a good report and for which they were subsequently blessed–and before Moses died and “was gathered with his people.”

God knew that the Hebrews would almost immediately turn their back on His law and begin serving other gods, and so He wrote the song so that the Hebrews knew He knew, and understood what He was going to do to them should they commit such atrocities.

History shows that they did, and He did.

According to JewishEncyclopedia.com** Sheol is “very deep” and “marks the point at the greatest possible distance from heaven.” Sheol is a place of silence where warriors carry their weapons with them but have no power, they are mere shadows of themselves–hence they are the name “rephaim.”

Sheol is divided up into compartments. It has gates. It is a place where both the righteous and unrighteous go–the righteous to one day ascend unto God, the unrighteous elsewhere.

In the Deuteronomy verse quoted above, we see that God says that His fire burns to the depths of Sheol. If the righteous are also there, then my question is obvious: What becomes of them if they don’t deserve the fire of God’s anger? Moses, for example. Did he go to Sheol, and if so, was he rescued before God’s anger kindled and burned to its depths?

Another interesting phrase is that God’s fire “scorches the foundations of the mountains.” I assume the foundations of the mountains are the tectonic plates, which at their seams certainly contain untold quantities of molten rock.

But the most mysterious phrase is the one that says God’s fire “devours the land and its produce…” Clearly this has not yet happened. There have certainly been large fires over the millennia, but I (perhaps naively) assume this clause is saying the entire earth’s land and produce are devoured. This reminds me of Luke 12:49 where Jesus says “I came to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already set ablaze.” Also 2 Peter 3:10, which says “But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief; on that day the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, the elements will burn and be dissolved, and the earth and the works on it will be disclosed.” And finally, Revelation 21:1 says this: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer.”

So, I’m wondering if this is a prophetic verse: God is saying that as He watches the Hebrews turn from His law to the foolishness of idolatry, His anger will so greatly kindle that His fire will ultimately burn up even Sheol.

Those that are found unrighteous are said to be cast into the lake of fire. This is the hell that I understand from my earliest days of Sunday school.

All of this activity seems to happen on the Judgment day, when the Book of Life is brought forward and those whose names are found in it are taken into the Lord’s presence, but those whose names are blotted out are cast into the lake of fire. I believe all names are written in the Book, but those who finally, ultimately and irrevocably reject God and His son are blotted out. I don’t think God happily does this blotting. I think this is a very sad time for the hosts of heaven.

Anyway, Deuteronomy 33:22 is an extremely interesting verse, one that is prophetic in nature and denotes God’s emotions toward a stubborn and rebellious people.

** http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?letter=S&artid=614