Читать книгу The Curtain - David T. Maddox - Страница 13

CHAPTER 5

THE INVISIBLE CONFLICT INTENSIFIES

Thursday, January 31 – MD Minus 115 days

MOLECH CAME QUICKLY with the leaders of other cities in response to Argon’s plea. He had been following developments in Williams closely and he was not pleased. How was it possible to lose influence over this searcher and his girlfriend? How could Argon allow that worm of a chaplain to fall away from their influence after all these years of living in fear, doubt and worry? Worst of all, how could he allow the Bookseller to become involved? He was angry and puzzled, but not discouraged. The Dark Master still had many advantages in this conflict.

Argon bowed before his superior, not in respect, but out of fear. A word from Molech to the Dark Master and he would instantly be nothing more than a mere messenger. Failure was not an option. He must somehow overcome the forces of light and regain influence so that the Dark Master’s efforts against these human creatures might advance in Williams, and he be allowed to retain his position of authority.

As he began to explain the situation, Molech cut him off sharply, “Shut up, little one, and listen. You have failed, but fortunately your incompetence can be overcome by the Dark Master’s deception. Remember, the searcher does not have the light within. He may be protected and encouraged; he is even surrounded by some of those slaves of light, but he is still nothing but a human creature. Even the Enemy’s Book acknowledges that “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned.”³⁹ There is our advantage. Even when the Bookseller speaks truth, the searcher will not understand and will be easily confused, diverted to our version of truth. Fortunately, our ‘truth’ is not limited in any way; it can be whatever is required at the moment to accomplish the Dark Master’s purpose. The Son understood this and was right when He said of the Dark Master, ‘When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.’⁴⁰ Quite a compliment when you think about it. Whatever it takes to convince the target of whatever is necessary to accomplish our purposes. Without the light inside, the searcher will be completely open to our deception, which is how we will overcome and return him to the fold. It should not be difficult.

“Keep in mind though, the searcher is not your only issue. The Enemy has been working on the shooter and on some of the Jihadists. We know He is at work in the Bookseller and now in the chaplain. I also have a concern about some of the leaders of the investigators and this new group called the Citizens Militia. I must get to Washington to deal with developments there. You, go back to work. There is much to do here before tomorrow.”

The Forces of Light Gather

In another unseen gathering, the forces of light met to consider how to proceed in Williams. At the request of Barnabas, Lucius, the commander of the forces of light in North America, came to offer counsel and encouragement. “Be at peace, Barnabas,” he began. “Remember who sits on the throne and what you see Him doing.⁴¹ The movement in the searcher, in Samantha, the Chaplain, even the shooter and Jihadists is the activity of the Father and of the Holy Spirit. Changes are at work in hearts as God does what only He can do. What the people will receive or allow is still at issue. The Father has not yet set boundaries, so we don’t know what is possible for the evil one. The Father has not revealed the future so we must walk carefully in the present. Our problem is the absence of human warriors to stand with us. There is little prayer which evidences little faith. We are severely limited in the absence of faith.⁴² Instruct the Guardians to stir God’s people to pray. I will be back but must leave now for Washington. For the Light.”

Barnabas echoed, “For the Light.” And with that exchange, Lucius was gone.

A Relationship Healed

Chaplain Forrest made a second phone call to the Bookseller soon after Paul left and they agreed to meet later that afternoon. The Bookseller came to Chaplain Forrest’s office where a relationship was healed and a partnership established. Both men sensed the importance of continuing what God had begun in Paul’s life. Chaplain Forrest had shared their earlier conversation, all Paul had said about his dream and the absence of any religion in his life. He shared what he had told Paul about the invisible world and the battle constantly being fought there over what will happen in the physical world.

Because they knew and had studied the Bible, they were both acutely aware of what the Dark Master would seek to do with tomorrow’s conversation. Jesus had used a parable to warn how Satan is able to keep people away from the truth. He pictured a farmer sowing good seed along a path where the birds came and ate it. Jesus later explained to His closest followers that the illustration meant, “When anyone hears the message about the Kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.”⁴³ That was what Chaplain Forrest and the Bookseller knew must be protected against. They must be sure that even though he does not have the light inside, Paul would understand.

(Then there was the unspoken reality of the shooter and all the hurting people – the injured victims and the families of those who had been killed.) The city seemed to be under a dark cloud of fear. It must end, but they both knew that the heart of God also had room for the shooter, desiring that he might come to see the evil of what he was doing and turn to seek forgiveness.⁴⁴ That would not excuse what he had done or eliminate the need for justice, but like the thief on the cross, ⁴⁵ they knew God remained with arms outstretched wanting to see even the shooter with the light inside.

They knew that there was really only one answer, and that was to pray. They had no other power or ability to affect what would happen but knew that God was sovereign and possessed that power⁴⁶. They felt a compulsion within to pray, and so they did. The Bookseller’s prayer was spoken as to a friend.

“Well Father,” he began, “You have healed a relationship long broken and reestablished a friendship for which I am thankful. You have again done what only You can do. Tomorrow when Paul comes, please give me the words to say that Your will might be accomplished in his life. I don’t know what You are doing in opening his eyes to see something of the invisible world, but I know it is for Your purposes, and I don’t want to in any way divert him from those purposes. Please give me wisdom and discernment to know what You would have me say. Open Paul’s eyes and ears to see, hear and receive Your truth. Protect him from the evil one and do not allow the seed You have planted to be taken from him.

“Lord, You know there is a shooter out there who has wounded or killed many people in this town. Your Word tells us that You want none to perish, but want everyone to come to repentance.⁴⁷ I pray within Your will for this killer, that like the thief on the cross his eyes may be open to his sin and he may be drawn to seek forgiveness.⁴⁸ End the violence Lord, in a way that You are honored and glorified and the eyes of those who do not know You might be opened to You. We pray too for all those who are survivors of the attacks; relatives and friends of those killed, that You be present to comfort and provide for them. Particularly Lord, for the children. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

In the invisible world, a blood-chilling scream was heard as a strong blow had been struck for the forces of light. Through pain and curses, the voice of the Dark Master could be heard screaming, “The Enemy is a fool, and none who dare defy me will heed what he says. Kill the Bookseller. Now! Find a way.” Argon panicked in fear, not knowing how to obey.

The Survival Commission

At the White House, President Joshua Strong gathered a group of trusted friends and advisors to meet with him and his National Security advisor Troy Steed. This was his version of a “kitchen cabinet,” men and women who were present not solely because of their positions in government, but because of their relationship with him over many years. He had often thought to himself that he would trust anyone in that room with his life. Now he would trust them with the country. Most, but not all, carried the light within, as did the president, which explained the invisible presence of both Molech and Lucius and the involvement of others above them.

“You have heard Troy’s report on the meeting at Secretary Hollister’s office earlier today,” he began. “I want you to form a working group to coordinate our response and preparation to this unknown, but obviously imminent, threat. Model yourselves after the group President Kennedy put together to deal with the Cuban Missile Crisis. I want real options totally independent of any political considerations. I believe that the very survival of the country is at risk and nothing else matters. All agencies will funnel intelligence to you. You will act with my full authority but in complete secrecy. I want nothing released publicly until we have determined the extent of the threat and our response. We are not going to scare the American public with what we do not know.

“I have asked Tom Knight, the White House press secretary to serve as chairman of this working group which I am calling the Survival Commission. I understand that it is both unprecedented and seemingly inconsistent to appoint an official who must daily work with the press to this position, but I believe deep within that he is to be the leader. He has agreed to accept the assignment for which I am grateful.

“The commission’s first assignment is to work with the appropriate agencies to coordinate law enforcement and military preparation. For now, stay completely away from mayors, governors and other political people who might have different agendas unless threats appear to be specific to a particular state or city. This is mandated now because, as you know, we are approaching an election cycle. We will bring them in later, but not now. I don’t want strategy to be played out in public. The longer the Jihadists believe we are in ignorance, the better chance we have to discover their specific plan and stop it.”

Without taking questions or inviting comments, the president dismissed the members of the Survival Commission to begin their work.

Together Tomorrow

Down the street in the majority leader’s capital office, a group of senators and representatives met to address issues forced on them for the upcoming campaign. Syria, ISIS, Russia, and the economy were expected issues, along with the usual group of social issues, but now they were faced with immigration issues, foreign business acquisition questions and North American economic union questions. They had little interest in addressing any of these, beyond the immigration issue as a way to garner millions of new voters likely to support their party’s candidates. But since politics was money-driven, they could not ignore the agenda of this new group, which went by the name Together Tomorrow. The Together Tomorrow. group was the moving force behind issues tied to immigration, foreign businesses and an economic union of Mexico, the US and Canada. Their legislative agenda seemed harmless enough on the surface, and they had a seemingly unending source of funds for candidates who supported their agenda.

The public face of this new group was former President Leonard Cox. Cox was on retainer for $2 million annually. Because of the generous pay, and since this group gave a massive quantity of funds to his party’s candidates, he embraced the opportunity to advance their agenda with enthusiasm. What neither Cox nor the group who were gathered in the majority leader’s office realized was that the agenda they were seeking to advance had been the same one approved in that room far, far beneath the earth in the cave on the Pakistani/Afghan border.

“I love politics,” Molech told Chemosh, the leader of the forces of darkness in Washington DC. “It offers us so many opportunities for our Tempters – particularly Greed, Pride, Envy, Jealously and Riches, to work in these so-called American leaders, driving the agenda of the Dark Master. Remember when Benjamin Franklin walked out of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia those many years ago and was approached by the woman asking, “What kind of government have you given us?’ Do you remember his response? He said, “A republic, ma’am, if you can keep it.” It has taken some time, but America is no longer a republic. By acting carefully and gradually, we have been able to turn the American government into what they call a democracy, which in reality means mob rule. The opinion of the masses at any particular moment mandates policy. It is no longer what is right or principled or even historic, but what do the polls say the people want this minute. Using the appearance of reality to create what the people want is what we are all about. It is a wonderful system to work with – a government led by the fear of loss of position. Watch these fools as they engineer their own destruction.”

Paul and Samantha Prepare

Back in Williams, Paul embraced Samantha and the events of the day poured out of him. He told her of his conversations with Professor Thompson and Chaplain Forrest, and of the meeting tomorrow with the Bookseller. He left nothing out. He wanted her to know all that he had learned, his feelings, and the still unresolved questions.

“I don’t know what to expect from this Bookseller. When Chaplain Forrest spoke of him, there was an obvious respect and even sadness for the way he had treated him over the years. It seemed for a moment that I was sitting in a confessional, listening to him. I don’t get it. I have never had an experience like that. I am not looking for religion, but it almost seems the answers are not available apart from it.”

Paul was both surprised and pleased as she told him how she had spent her day researching demons. The support encouraged him, making him feel not so small – he wasn’t in this alone. She seemed changed. She was engaged. She had joined him as a searcher who had to have answers. “While you were gone,” she shared, “I also called a local Catholic church and spoke briefly to a priest describing your dream. I asked about possession and exorcism and he affirmed what you were apparently told. The dream didn’t picture possession. Beyond that, it got formal when he started talking about church doctrine and an invitation to some introductory classes about the Catholic faith. I felt uncomfortable, excused myself and hung up. Why do these religious people always end up trying to get you to join their church or give them money?”

“I don’t know,” Paul responded. “It almost seems as if most churches don’t have much to do with God beyond using His name to advance their particular church in competition with other churches – if there even is a God. I am not convinced on that one yet. There is plenty of evidence in the world that argues against the existence of God.”

“Paul, if this Bookseller is so smart and knows a lot about God, this is our chance to ask questions that are never addressed. Let’s put a list together for you to ask him. If he truly knows God, and there is a God, he will be able to answer. If not, then you won’t have to waste your time with him and we can dismiss the dream as a nightmare and the demon stories as myths. We have to be sure about the dream, but like you, I feel a real need to know something about this God. Looking at those who claim to be His followers would lead me to believe it’s all a lie, but I want to know the truth if I can.”

So they made their list on a single sheet of white paper. There were six questions which read as follows:

1 Is everyone who is a member of a church and claims to be a Christian really a Christian? If not, how can you know for sure?

2 Why all the killing now and throughout history in the name of religion?

3 Is the God of the Old Testament, who instructed the nation of Israel to completely wipe out whole peoples, the same God as the one in the New Testament as seen in the life and teachings of Jesus? If they are the same, how do you explain the differences? One seems to be a God of anger and wrath that is always mad, the other a man of wisdom and kindness and love.

Neither had read much from the Bible, but they had heard the stories enough to raise the obvious questions about the seeming differences: Moses calling for people to be stoned to death for what is now accepted behavior, and Jesus, who stopped a woman from being stoned for what Moses said she should be stoned.⁴⁹ It was confusing at best, but important because it seemed to define who God is.