Greetings!

 

Burdep Feliwafdir sat staring out the window of his room in the great fortress of Osgedrom. It was a Sunday and many people were dressed in their finest and making their way to the temple. Amongst the crowd he spotted a man who stood with his arms folded laughing at the people going in. Every now and then he would shout that they were wasting their time and that no God existed. He called them children who refuse to give up on their childish fantasies.

Burdep shook his head in disgust when he heard the sound of his door swing open. His intruder had not even done him the courtesy of knocking. But Burdep did not bother looking back to see who it was, for he knew that such an entrance meant that his visitor had to be none other than Gallar the guardian.

“Good morning Burdep!” Gallar sounded

“I suppose you could call it that.” Burdep answered.

“Why are not in the temple worshiping?”

“I don’t think the people would take too kindly to a Mirus joining their services.”

“Unfortunately you are correct. For safety purposes I am glad to find you here. Though I would much rather have had to hold you back as your love of Vashaar draws you to the temple.”

“I would have a hard time going with that idiot out there mocking!”

“What do you mean?”

Burdep pointed out the window at the mocker and Gallar took a glance at him. He shook his head and sighed. “Poor fool.” He said, “Honestly I don’t know how to take him.”

“Have you seen him before?”

“I have, every Sunday in fact, though he usually brings his friends.”

“If what he says about there being no God is true then there would be no point in objecting to people worshiping.”

“Unless of course he’s just mean spirited.”

“Even amongst my foolish kinsman I only found but a few who would dare to say something as nonsensical as that.”

“I take pity on such people. A strange sort of pity with a mixture of a desire to chastise as a parent would. He and others remind me of a fool who once lived in one of Cansillia’s southern kingdoms.”

“I know that sound. I am guessing you want me to listen to one of your stories.”

“I am.”

“And I am a little past the age of hearing stories. You will lull me to sleep.”

Not when I am the one telling the story. And besides I have lived over six thousand years and still feel the need for a good story from time to time so listen closely.”

Greetings!

I am vlogging today to remind everyone that I am not dead! I thought this was important as I have not posted in forever. But I’ve been moving, schooling, working, and teaching so things have been somewhat hectic.

So I am posting this short and sweet thing to remind people that there is this little holiday that has been devoured by Halloween and Christmas that is very important. We call it Thanksgiving and we should remember that we are to ever be thankful to God for all that he has done for us!

Ps 95:2

 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

 

Greetings! Here is a short story that I hope gives everyone a better understanding of the day we call Halloween.

 

You are outside your home. It is October the 31^st and the evening is setting in. As you gaze upon your surroundings a chill runs up your spine. But the chill is not from the biting nightfall, nor is it from the icy breeze sweeping across the landscape. Rather it comes as the realization dawns on you that “They” will soon be here. You gasp at the realization and rush inside your home where the rest of your family is gathered.

 Everyone huddles together and waits in silence. The air in the room is so thick that you feel as if you would have more luck trying to swim through it than walk. You wish to converse in order to lighten the mood but you know that everyone is listening intently, hoping, and longing for the silence to continue.

Then you hear it; a most terrifying and dreadful sound. One so horrific that once again a chill plays the xylophone along the disks of your backbone. You strain to listen hoping that you had made a mistake in your hearing but the sound continues. It is the subtle clip clop of visitors coming down the way. “No!” your brother cries, “Not them!” but he is quickly silenced by the patriarch of your family.

You wait in silence as the sound of feet come ever closer to your door. You peek out the window but see nothing. Just as you prepare to duck back in you catch an orange glimmer. You stare hard at the glow as it takes the shape of a sinister grin. Your fears are confirmed as this is a tell-tale sign of who is coming. Soon figures emerge from the darkness wearing costumes and masks of all sorts of dreadful things, ghosts, goblins, trolls and demons. In their hands they carry jack-o-lanterns and their path is leading towards your door.

You move away from the window and rejoin your family hoping that they will pass by your home. Yet the sound of feet draws nearer and nearer until at last you hear them stop upon the threshold and then all goes silent. A seeming eternity passes as you wait in denial hoping not to hear the most dreaded phrase of this night. And then it comes. It is not a knock on the door nor is it a good evening to you. All you hear is a three word phrase that causes the hearts of all in your family to drop, “Trick or Treat!”

The patriarch of your family rises and heads towards the door. His wife attempts to stop him but he gives her a sad, knowing look and she lets him go. “No father!” another pleads, “Let’s just take the trick!”

“You know what could happen if we did.” The patriarch says and proceeds to the door.

You realize that he will soon open the door and another dreadful thought strikes you. Who is going to be the treat? You dare not ask such a thing, but you soon get the idea of who it is as you feel the burning gazes of your family upon you. You look up to see all of them staring, “No!” you cry, “You can’t do this!” You beg and plead but your family ushers you to the door and sends you outside slamming the gate quickly behind you. Momentarily you stare in terror at the costumed trick or treaters before they lay hands on you and lock you in a cage with many others who forced to endure your plight.

You are pulled along in a doleful procession as the trick or treaters head to many other houses collecting treats of the same kind as was harvested from your home. Once they have their fill they turn towards the north and set out for the bonfire glade. Your fellow treats cry out to the trick or treaters for mercy. They beg and they plead to be set free. You do not know what else to do so you join in the pleading, but the demonic masks of the trick or treaters show no sign of remorse and they pull you into the dreaded clearing.

As you gain a clear visual on the dell your eyes are immediately draw to a giant inanimate figure constructed out of wicker. As your gaze is fixated on the wicker man you hear a sudden piercing scream. You nearly leap out of your cage if the bars had not given you a painful reminder that there was no escape. You look to where the pained scream came from and you see two lines of your comrades. One stands before the wicker man and the other before a large black object.

You know well what the lines mean. If you get in line with the wicker man you are agreeing to help the trick or treaters with their ritual. And if you get in line with the black pot, the line where the terrible scream came from, there was a chance that the trick or treaters might set you free!

Screams continue to come from the black object line. You know what terrible fate awaits those in that line but you are also aware that the black line is the only hope you have of avoiding the ritual. So you conjure what hope you have and when the trick or treaters set you loose you get in line with the black object.

You wait with your head down and your fingers in your ears hoping not to have to see or hear the work of the black object. Even with your ears plugged you still hear the pained and hopeless cries of your companions.

The wait seems to last for an eternity until you realize at last that it is your turn. You find yourself standing before a large black pot of water with apples floating in it. You never dreamed in your worst nightmare that you would be willingly bobbing for apples. You feel an immense heat coming from the pot. You know that the water in that cauldron has been heated hundreds of degrees and you dare not even get close to it for fear of the hot water boiling out on you.

As you stare in fear of the task ahead you question whether or not you should continue. You could just agree to go ahead with the ritual but you know what that means. You know that the waters in the cauldron will melt the flesh off of your face but it is your only hope.

You continue to fight yourself and attempt to get prepared when you notice one of the trick or treaters take a step towards you intending to lead you to the wicker man. You know it is now or never, so you take the plunge. Your hands grasp hold of the side of the cauldron and immediately they break out in blisters. Your eyes catch hold of the smallest apple and you dive for it. Beneath the surface of the water your face, neck, and shoulders boil in the terrible brew. Everything within you tells you to come up as the apple continues to elude your teeth. But you know as soon as you surface it is the wicker line for you and so you refuse to rise as your teeth attempt again and again to ensnare the mocking apple.

Then all hope is lost as the apple bobs back to the surface and with it your last hope. You jerk your head out of the water screaming in agony. You are directed to the line before the wicker man and continue to cry out as do the others who have already bobbed for apples. You can hardly see. You feel as if your face is ready to fall off of your skull. But that is when hopelessness finally sets in and you resign to the fact that you must take part in the ritual. Even if you had of caught hold on the apple the damage done to your face would have killed you soon thereafter or your life from then on would have been torture.

You stand with your eyes gazing downward following the line as it went. Before long one of the trick or treaters lays hold on you. You make one more plea for him to do the humane thing and set you free, but you find that the demon he wears as a mask is only a reflection of the legion of them that reside within this vessel.

The trick or treater leads you up some stairs where you find there to be no lid to the wicker man. The demon lays hold on you and casts you into the wicker prison where you land atop many of your comrades.

Soon another falls upon you followed by another. They continue to pile helpless prisoners in the wicker man and the incredible weight of your fellow captors makes you feel as if you shall soon suffocate to death. You hear your comrades. Many cry out over the pain they feel. Others plead with the trick or treaters and yet others say nothing wearing blank faces as if they were already dead.

Instinctively you find yourself pleading for mercy. You are twisted in such a way as only to be able to see one of the trick or treaters in the corner of your vision. You continue to cry out to him when you see him take hold of an unlit torch. He walks out of your sight towards the base of the wicker man. This causes you to beg all the more when suddenly you are struck by the scent of smoke. The cries of your companions multiply so greatly that you feel as if you should soon go deaf.

Then you hear a crackling sound. An orange glow appears behind you and you feel heat rising. Sweat is rolling down your broiled face, and even though you know it might come from the amount of exertion you have given in trying to break free you know full well what the heat is coming from.

Your comrades from below cry out in horror as the smell of burning flesh finds its way to your nose. Once more you battle the wicker man hoping to break free. You rip, tear, twist, and writhe but nothing you do avails you. The orange glow grows greater and the heat increases along with the screams of your tortured companions. You find yourself screaming with all you have to no avail.

You close your eyes hoping that it is all just a dream that you will soon awake from when you notice that even with your eyes close all you can see is an orange glow. The pain multiplies to a level that you never dreamed you could experience. You open your eyes to find yourself amidst the flame. They whip you, burn you, melt you, and blister every part of you. Once more you give it your all twisting until you dislocate your joints scream until your voice fails and pound on the wicker man until there is nothing left of your hand but bone. You fight harder and harder until you have given all you have left and then…

November 1^st. All that remains of the wicker man and his prisoners is a pile of ash and a tragic memory. Your family gathers to mourn your passing. In this life they know there will be no justice for you. They will forever remember what befell you that night, and sadly they know there is nothing they can do to prevent it from happening to others. The only relief they find on this dark day is that they know it will be a whole year before the trick or treaters come again, the most unholy day has passed.

 

I wish that I could say that I was continuing my habit of writing fantasy with this story, sadly though this story is all too real. While these characters never existed the ritual described here is what happened every year in various nations all over the world on Halloween. All of the things we celebrate on the 31^st go back to this horrible Satanic practice. That is why I would love nothing more on this day than to see the church refuse to observe Halloween.

We would all take offense to people building twin towers and tossing planes through them on nine eleven in the name of fun so why is it all right to make light of impersonating the druids who murdered countless thousands for years?

In closing I would like to say that I am not necessarily advocating hiding our heads in the sand on Halloween. We should remember that, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Even though Satan wishes to hijack this day it is still a gift from God and we should use it to bring glory to him, not by impersonating druids, but by reaching out and sharing the gospel with the lost. God bless and may your actions bring glory to him!

How Does a Vlog sound?

Greetings!

 

This is more of a business blog as opposed to talking about things related to The Age of Ornan. I have been thinking on a way to generate more views. I am glad to see that I am at least getting some people to look at it but as of now I have no comments and I’m not certain if that means I am getting views or those views are all me checking out my own blog. So I’ll just cast this thought out there and see if I catch anything. I am thinking of doing both a blog and vlog. This way provides an easier means of checking it out for those who are short on time (which is probably all of us). So that’s it! If anyone would prefer to listen to a vlog as opposed to reading a blog comment and share your opinion! God bless!

Editing Finished for Book Three!

I am pleased to announce that at last I have finished editing book three! I hope to send it off to the publisher as soon as possible but I still have one more difficult hurdle to get over before then. Keep praying as the publishing process on this one has been disastrous! But by God’s grace the obstacles have fallen away one by one so keep praying and keep reading! God bless!

Hello once again!

 

While I have yet to be asked this question I am sure that it is to come across at some point. Not only that but I think it is something that needs to be explained before I go into any explanation of the world and stories that revolve around Domus-Lux

Yes, Christianity is all throughout the Age of Ornan books. I do not try to hide it at all. Vashaar is simply the name that people in Domus-Lux use for God. I hoped to make it clear through my writing that Vashaar is not simply a god but the God of the Bible. I want it to be so clear that a Muslim could not come along and apply Allah to these books. In fact I wanted to make the point so clear that this was biblical that I did not even change the name of Jesus. His name is used throughout all three books and his Hebrew name; (the one he would have heard during his time on earth) Yeshua is used once.

Why do I insist on writing Christian fantasy as opposed to classic fantasy that is not bogged with all the religious worldview? After all will I not reach a broader audience with a neutral book as opposed to a religious one?

The first reason I wrote a Christian fantasy was because as Paul said, I am not ashamed of the gospel! When all is said and done my stories will be forgotten but if these books could be used to reach one person for Christ then they will have an eternally lasting effect. I also think that if I removed the gospel just to sell more books then it would be a sin nearly as bad as denying the faith, because I would be holding back the truth only to get money.

The first reason was the most important one to me but the second is one that will probably get more people to think. I do not believe it is even possible to write Christian fantasy. That is the tag that people want to put on my book but I do not believe in it. Why? Because what a person believes will inevitably come across in his art whatever that may be. Jesus said, “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” Matt 12:34. What comes out of a person’s mouth or across his art is what is down in his heart, unless I suppose he is intentionally trying to be deceptive.

With that in mind I must also say that if I do not believe it is possible to write Christian fantasy I also do not believe it is possible to write neutral fantasy. Why? Because what people call neutrality today is in actuality nothing more than another worldview.

Now what’s a worldview you might ask? To make it simple a worldview is the way we view the world. For me as a Christian I have a Christian worldview. I see things from the perspective of the Bible. I wish I could say I do this one hundred percent of the time but since Christianity is such a contrast from what the natural man wants it takes intentional effort to view the world as a Christian. But everyone who is not a Christian has a worldview as well. It could be any religion under the sun or based on their life experiences, their culture, and is most likely a combination of all of those.

With worldview in mind let’s look at the idea of neutrality. In the world of film we would call the vast majority of movies made today as secular or neutral films and then label movies like courageous, and fireproof as religious films. What I am submitting is that these secular/neutral movies are also religious films supporting a more commonly accepted religion.

A good example of this would be the Disney movie Aladdin. In this “secular/neutral” film we have characters running around saying “praise Allah. Allah be praised,” all throughout it. Yet when we look at the way the character Jasmine is presented it is very clear by her dress, and her disrespect towards her father that these Allah praising characters are not Muslim, else she would be stoned really quickly. What does this mean? I do not know this for fact but I would be willing to bet that the film’s writers and directors would be the sort of people who would say that religion is a good thing, hence the praising of Allah, but do not think it should impose demands on how we live, hence Jasmine. This is a very strong worldview/religious statement. It comes from the worldview of Humanism which says ultimately man decides truth not God. So in the mind of the Humanist if Islam works for you it is a good thing so long as you do not force it on me, and the same goes for all other worldviews.

So now this secular/neutral position does not look so neutral anymore. Why? Because it is the exact opposite of what Christianity teaches. Why is murder, rape, and racism wrong? It is not because our culture says it wrong, which is what the humanist would say. If that was the case then those things can be considered good in another culture and the Holocaust was good because it was socially accepted in Germany. But in reality those things are wrong because the God of the Bible exists and he is good and those things are not of God so they are not good, meaning they are sin and wrong for every culture from every period in time.

The sad reality is that many, if not most people in the church today are more humanist than Christian and would believe more in line the above description of humanism than Christianity. Why is this the case? Because when in recent days our government started pushing separation of church and state, which is not in the constitution, what they were really doing is saying we do not want to be a Christian nation we want to be a secular Humanistic nation and that is the default worldview in America today. Our public schools are Humanist schools. Our colleges and universities are mostly Humanist. It is amazing that with Humanism being forced on us the way it is through education and the media that the whole of America is not Humanist.

I believe there are two things we must consider here. First of all we are a lot more Humanist than we think. Humanism teaches moral relativism, which as stated before is the idea that man decides truth. Because of this Humanists can blend into any religious group they choose. As I said before I suspect there are more people in the church today who live like Humanists than live like Christians.

The second is that the only reason America is not completely Humanist is because Humanism and especially its extreme cousin atheism is the most illogical worldview known to man and people know it naturally. God condemned all worldviews other than Christianity in the Bible saying have no other gods before me and in many verses condemned the popular religions of the Bible times for their wickedness. But there is only one religion that is condemned as just being foolish. “The fool hath said in his heart, there is no God. (Ps 14:1).”  Any honest seeker should conclude that Humanism and atheism is illogical at its base.

A great example of the illogicality of Humanism is the famous film series Star Wars. In these films we see Humanism being merged with a more Hindu or Buddhist style of religion and its irrationality shows itself very strong in episode three,(if I am correct). In this movie we have Anakin Skywalker who has just turned evil and is confronted by his “good” master Obi Wan Kenobi. After Anakin says “if you are not for me you are my enemy” Obi Wan says, “Only the Sith deals in absolutes.”

Aside from being completely anti-Christian this statement is void of all logic. Why? First of all Obi Wan just admitted to being a Sith because he made the absolute statement that only a Sith deals in absolutes. Also if there is not absolute truth as Obi Wan is arguing then why bother stopping Anakin? After all Anakin is not absolutely wrong. Why not just talk things over instead of chopping him to bits? Or did Obi Wan take this rout because he is selfish and wanted to have his way as opposed to compromise? If he is right though it is okay because selfishness is not absolutely wrong either according to such a view. One thing is for certain though. He absolutely chopped Anakin’s arm and legs off and left him to burn to death. I suppose to Obi Wan that was not absolutely wrong nor would it have been for him to have stayed and laughed for a while.

Humanism has at its foundation the sand of moral relativism which is void of logic and is nothing more than a license to sin. So in closing why do I write fantasy from a Christian perspective? Because I am a Christian and as a Christian Christianity comes through my writing. I am not going to convert to Humanism just to sell a book, and besides what good does it do to make money off of a book only to keep back the most precious thing I have ever received, the Lord Jesus Christ!

Greetings!

 

This is going to be a quick post! Just wanted to let everyone know that as of yesterday I began the final round of editing on the third and final book of the Age of Ornan trilogy!

I hope to have the editing done in a few weeks and by God’s grace I hope to send it to the publisher right after that. There are still a few things that might hinder me but seeing that I wanted to get the book to the publisher in June I am not willing to let anything else get in the way of this book coming out! There is one thing I can say for certain about the publishing process and that it is a test of patience.