Tag Archive: Inspirational
Protect and Serve
By Anthony F. Raimondo
Amazon Books, $14.99, 226 pages, Format: Trade
Star Rating: 5 / 5
Tyis is astonished to find the homeless man who advised her to come to the US in the US, especially since the concept of a poor man affording a plane ticket seems strange. Back in Brazil, the same man had assured her that the US was her destiny for prosperity, plenty, and happiness. However, now that she is a prostitute striving to repay her debt, the homeless man’s promise to her appears unlikely to come true.
Fortunately, she is given the opportunity to begin a more respectable career when a celebrated detective offers her assistance rather than reporting her for illegal immigration as he could have done. However, she is hesitant to trust him because she suspects he is plotting to exploit her, as she has grown to anticipate from men in general. Is Tyis willing to embrace God’s plan for her, or will she let her fears stand in the way? Protect and Serve by Anthony F. Raimondo is a page-turning detective novel that features some of the most marginalized, ignored categories of individuals in society and encourages readers to treat everyone with compassion.
Internal voices, Bible passages, supernatural happenings, fascinating religious discussions, and other Christian-friendly themes are featured in the story, and Anthony’s ability to blend these components results in a completely seamless and enjoyable reading experience. The book’s profound, spiritual lessons will appeal to those who believe in aiding the less fortunate and want to be reminded of the necessity of thinking angels walk among us rather than looking down on individuals who appear unpleasant.
Despite working in a demeaning profession, Tyis is a very powerful persona. She maintains her hopes for a better life even while being mistreated by men and struggling to pay back debt. The lesson I took here is that going through difficult challenges is not an excuse to stop trusting God to turn things around.
This captivating narrative of crime, miracles, and generosity is set in a realistic society filled with violent criminals, pedophiles, and corrupt politicians. As the reader is drawn into the narrative by the intriguing spiritual themes, the mentally engaging, meticulous investigations add to the mystery and tension.
Protect and Serve is suggested for mature audiences since it addresses serious societal topics such as pedophilia, child murder, prostitution, and others. Despite being the second book in a series, the work can be read as a stand-alone; I didn’t read the prior book, but after reading this masterfully crafted novel, complete with several captivating turns, I am eager to. A must-read for fans of detective fiction and books with deep Christian undertones!
Reviewed by Foluso Falaye
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OUR STAR RATING SYSTEM
1 star: Reviewer wouldn’t recommend this book at all.
2 stars: Reviewer wouldn’t read it again. Needs work.
3 stars: Reviewer enjoyed the book.
4 stars: Reviewer liked and would recommend the book to friends/family.
5 stars: Reviewer considers the book to be something that everyone should read. Reviewer would definitely read it again.
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Many priest, pastors, and theologians also claim that Jesus Christ felt forsaken while hanging on the cross. However, how can God in the flesh feel forsaken? The fact is that Jesus was trying to share Psalm 22 and the people when that he was beginning the words to a Psalm which is song. Today if someone said, “Let it Be, Let it be” He would think of the lyrics of a song. When Jesus said this words the Pharisees and the people watching Jesus die would have know He was stating David’s prophecy about Him. Here is Psalm 22 and you see it describes the every event of Jesus Christ on the cross.
“My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning? 2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear;
And in the night season, and am not silent. 3 But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel. 4 Our fathers trusted in You; They trusted, and You delivered them. 5 They cried to You, and were delivered;
They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.
6 But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. 7 All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 8 “He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”
9 But You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts. 10 I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother’s womb You have been My God. 11 Be not far from Me,
For trouble is near; For there is none to help.
12 Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. 13 They gape at Me with their mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax;It has melted ]within Me. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death.
16 For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; 17 I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me.18 They divide My garments among them,And for My clothing they cast lots.
19 But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me; O My Strength, hasten to help Me! 20 Deliver Me from the sword, My precious life from the power of the dog. 21 Save Me from the lion’s mouth
And from the horns of the wild oxen! You have answered Me.
22 I will declare Your name to My brethren;In the midst of the assembly I will praise You. 23 You who fear the Lord, praise Him!All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel! 24 For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;Nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard.
25 My praise shall be of You in the great assembly; I will pay My vows before those who fear Him. 26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever!
27 All the ends of the world Shall remember and turn to the Lord, And all the families of the nations
Shall worship before You.28 For the kingdom is the Lord’s, And He rules over the nations.
29 All the prosperous of the earth Shall eat and worship; All those who go down to [k]the dust
Shall bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep himself alive. 30 A posterity shall serve Him.
It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation, 31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, That He has done this.” (Psalm 22 NKJV)
My article is not a request for money for Wounded Warriors but about a different type of Warrior with wounds. Christians often are wounded spiritually. They may not have physical injuries though some do; in most cases, there is a wounded spirit. Unfortunately, the churches have failed to strengthen the characteristics of the Soldier for Christ. They have done this by constantly imagining Jesus Christ as the Lamb, a docile animal. Jesus, however, was the Lion of Judah with courage and strength to do His Father’s will. He prayed that the cup of pain should be given to another, not as He willed but as God willed. The act of prayer was more for us that we will face times of trial and tribulation, and we are to grin and bear it, for it must always be God’s will and not ours.
The enemy of God, however, will tempt us with three things, for he knows that one of them, if not all three, will have us choose our will and not God’s. These temptations are Riches and whatever makes life comfortable; Pleasure of every kind that makes it enjoyable; Honor to be famous, administration, all that makes consequential. Any one of these is a trap to lure us from God. Like, bait on a hook to capture a fish. When you don’t take the bait, the enemy comes to destroy you with pain and suffering so that you blame God and even reject the idea of God. What the enemy could not do with his three imagines of a beautiful life, he now does with its absences. You are now wounded, discouraged, Satan’s greatest weapon. He gets you to quit serving the Lord Christ and God. However, it is at this point if you stand fast and thank God for the trial and accept your destiny as Jesus Christ did in the Garden that the Holy Spirit will descend on you and give you the strength you need to overcome the enemy.
A true Christian is to follow his King Jesus Christ into the same battlefield as his Lord commends. Jesus commands us this; “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and the holy angels.” (Luke 9:23-26 NIV) We are only true Christian when we are prepared to die for Christ.
There is an old saying, “Be careful of what you wish for.” Well, what it means is what you affirm is what you will get. People today are stating and protesting things without thinking about what they are saying and thinking. They are setting in motion for their lives the very thing. Let’s examine the recent protest by women over the reversal of Roe vs. Wade. What are they affirming with their protest? What is that they want? They want the freedom to have an abortion. What does that represent if you want the freedom to have an abortion?
Women who resent being told that abortion is wrong are protesting the right to be promiscuous, to enjoy sex whenever and with whomever without using any form of contraceptive. And even to experience what it is like to get pregnant and then abort it without any remorse. We have a total breakdown of moral behavior, a result of a lack of disbelief in a God and the consequence. The result is they are affirming the want for an abortion and the trauma that comes with it. Without realizing that their protest is saying I want an abortion. Is that what they really want? Affirmations should be more positive.
I recently saw and read something on FaceBook with the same vague reasons for Abel’s sacrifice being acceptable and Cain’s rejection by God. Also, no real reason why Cain becomes jealous and kills his brother. Finally no explanation as to who and where Cain gets a wife when he runs off and starts a tribe of his own. Since we have indeterminate, unclear, hazy reasons based on what the author of Genesis presents we need to examine the details more closely.
Most theologians would present that Abel was a keeper of folk of sheep, while Cain was a farmer. They both sacrifice the first fruits of what they had. At this point, we have no information that Adam sacrificed anything we can suggest that Adam was also a farmer since God’s curse involved the land. “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil, you will eat food from it all the days of your life.” This brings us to the question of what made Abel a shepherd and why he choose to sacrifice the fat portion of his firstborn? Another question comes to mind how many sheep did Abel have. As you can see these are only a few questions that theologians seldom answer.
Let’s examine Genesis 4: “In the course of time, Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor.” Notice the fat portion of some of the firstborn of the flock is what Abel sacrificed. In order to get the fat portion you first must kill the animal then separate the fat from the meat of the muscle.
The question here is did Abel eat or cast away the fat. While Cain brought the fruits of the soil. Cain sacrifices that which was edible to God. Theologians often make their readers believe that Abel sacrificed a lamb to God, but here we read the fat portion. The suggestion here is that the meat was not sacrificed therefore the better portion was not sacrificed to God. Yet God accepts Abel’s offering.
God provides a clue why it was not acceptable: Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” (Genesis 6-7 NIV) What sin is crouching at Cain’s door? God asks Cain why are you angry? God rejected Cain’s offering not because there were few fruits or bad fruits since Abel’s sacrifice was not the meat but the fat. It was rejected because he was angry. Why was Cain angry? This is the question that theologians fail to answer and is at the heart of why God warns Cain by first rejecting his offering. It isn’t the offering that is rejected, but Cain’s attitude while presenting the offering. In Matthew 5:24 Jesus provides the clue; “Leave your gift there in front of the altar. First, go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.” There is a conflict between Cain and Abel but also possibly with his parents.
What could be the possible reason why the firstborn son is angry? We have read that the fat portion was sacrificed. So what was done with the meat? Abel provided the meat of the lamb to be eaten, roasted over a fire as the fat was sacrificed. Like a shepherd he sat and watched his sheep graze, while Cain work hard to till the soil, watering the crops. Perhaps Adam and Eve praised Abel for the meat of the lamb, giving him more attention; as Jacob later does with Joseph. The climax of Cain’s jealousy comes with a decision of marriage for Abel, and himself.
In a non-Canon document, both Cain and Abel had twin sisters. Cain’s twin was beautiful, and he was handsome and strong due to his hard work. Abel and his sister were more homely. Adam and Eve were inspirited to crossbreed the two couples Cain’s twin to Abel and Abel’s twin to Cain; this arrangement only increased Cain’s anger causing his sacrifice to be rejected. Having his brother praised for meat and now rewarded with his sister was the last straw. Cain’s sister also desired him over Abel. A meeting was agreed upon between brothers. Cain rejects the idea of marriage with Abel’s twin. The conflict increases and Cain is in anger as God had warned fails to rule over his anger. As the result, Cain kills Abel and runs off with his twin turning his back on God and his parents.
Now you ask why isn’t a part of the Genesis story. The reason being was the notion of incest is present and therefore rejected, as Canon. However, Adam and Eve were in reality twins. Eve was created from a portion of Adam’s body, therefore sharing the same DNA. Since there were no other humans on the earth procreation would have been necessary with brothers and sisters breeding. God-given inspiration provided Adam and Eve to decide to crossbreed, a sign of moving away from inbreeding. When we add the rejected accounts to the history the reactions become more clear, that the death of Abel is over a woman. The desire and jealousy for knowledge of a woman brought sin into the world and the desire and jealousy over a woman brings about the first murder. The desire for a woman and murder occurs often in history. David takes a friend’s wife and later has him killed. The Bible has many reoccurring themes.
This message is intended for those Christian Men who possess a “Warrior Spirit” deep inside and are searching for their rightful place in God’s Army. Men who really want to stand strong for our Lord and feel that today’s churches do not fulfill that need. Men who have a strong desire to stand strong for the Lord Jesus Christ in the face of a world that is becoming increasingly darker year after year. Men who will not shy away from being counted among those in Christ’s Army who will accept these words of Jesus.
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.” (John 15:18-20 ESV)
The opportunity to become the Champion that God is looking for is available to all, but history and experience shows that very few have the desire to step up to the plate. But for those who want to make a deep impact for the Kingdom of God in their lifetime, we are on the verge of time that will require a great need for “champion” style leaders in the Body of Christ.
I am hopeful that this program of study will help inspire, train and give you the knowledge and the power to love the Lord God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength. I emphasize strength because of the huge sacrifice that a “champion” must endure to stand fast to the end so we may finish the race which God calls us to perform.
I seek 12 “Champions” that will create a movement to inspire other men to become “Champions” for the Lord Jesus Christ. If you live near the Bloomfield, NJ and would like to be a part of this send me a message with contact information thank you and God Bless.
Let’s look at the facts concerning abortion from a different view. Women claim they have a right, it is their body and they should have the right to choose what they do to it. Let’s call them the Farm Owner they invite a Seed Farmer who has lots of seeds to play on the farm. But the Farmer Owner does not tell the Speed Farmer not to leave his seeds anywhere on the farm. The Farm Owner doesn’t protect the area from being seeded either, no covering over the soil, or use anti-seed repellent. So she welcomes the Seed Farmer to play and plant his seeds anyway. The seeds begin to grow and Farm Owner decides after not doing anything from keeping the Seed Farmer from planting seeds to destroy the crop. Since the seeds don’t belong to Farm Owner how does she, the Farm Owner, have the right to demand what she wants to do with seed growing on her farm, (her body) when in fact she is not destroying, the farm, (her body) but the Seed Farmer’s crop? Therefore the Seed Farmer who planted the seeds with the farm owners’ indirect permission should have a say to his crop. Now I don’t see the Farm Owner destroying the farm and she if tried someone would say she is crazy. She isn’t burning down the farm. It is not about the farm but the crop. The crop also belongs to the Seed Farmer. So ladies the choices are clear, do not have sex unprotected if you don’t want (the Crop) babies. But if you want to feel liquid seed bullets spraying on the farm try using the pill, or an IUD. Since that would the right choice from keeping the Seed Farmer from leaving his seeds in the first place. Not later when it is life that also belongs to the sperm donor.
“How the oppressor has ceased, The golden city ceased! The Lord has broken the staff of the wicked, The scepter of the rulers;” (Isaiah 14:4-5 NKJV). Throughout the course of time, the worlds’ centers of wickedness, “golden cities,” have stood as an affront to God’s will. They have been destroyed and brought to desolation. When we read the Bible, we see the number of cities destroyed by God, including Jerusalem and the Temple Twice. Today in America, we have LA with its sexual immorality, Chicago with violence, and DC with corruption. The list of cities in America is long with wickedness. When the city of Jerusalem can fall more than once where God’s spirit was present, undoubtedly cities in America can crumble. Just look at several cities in California with thousands of people living in human waste on the streets. Why is this happening to gain illegal votes to continue staying in power and accumulating wealth by corrupt means?
People shout out God bless America, but God does no bless wickedness; He punishes evil cities and nations. How can God bless a nation that kills babies? American kills over 600,000 babies per year. The baby-killing has moved from in the womb at birth thanks to politicians like Governor Cuomo, who seem to think this pro-choice stance is good for getting the women’s vote. It is interesting that a woman can kill a baby inside her because it is her choice, but if a woman tries to kill herself, she is considered mentally ill. When she chooses to destroy a different life not her own she is mentally sane and not a murderer, even after birth with the help of a doctor who is assisting in the killing.
“What of the corrupt practice of laziness? Should God bless a nation where 50 percent of the population would rather live off of other people’s labor. The word of God clearly states the work of your hands. “You lazy people, you should watch what the ants do and learn from them. Ants have no ruler, no boss, and no leader. But in the summer, ants gather all of their food and save it. So when winter comes, there is plenty to eat. You lazy people, how long are you going to lie there? When will you get up?” (Proverbs 6:6-9) The reality, they are not only lazy but a burden like a thief. The Left in America supports this behavior once again for votes to remain in power with no concern for those who struggle with working for what they have earned.
Those in power and those who continue to put them in control will bring a curse upon America and God’s punishment. Unlike many false teaching theologians, America will not be playing a significant role the day and the hour before Jesus Christ’s return. Unless America repeats its wicked crimes, she is boomed to bring the punishment of God upon her.
To learn more about the end times order a copy of Journey Through Revelation by Anthony F. Raimondo at Amazon, and learn what is going to happen.
Reincarnation is nothing more than ‘do it over.'” The principle behind reincarnation is an evolution of the soul to perfection in other to enter Heaven. Evolution of the spirit, the idea is that you keep coming back until you get it right and have finally earned Heaven through merit. When you examine it objectively, it is nothing more than a child’s idea when something goes wrong in a game by asking for a Do-Over.
The problem with reincarnation is that you may get one thing right that you got wrong in the previous life, and now you get something wrong you got right. It only takes one mistake, and you’ll be asking for another Do-Over. There is more to this scenario and why it does not work. You hurt someone in a previous life, and that debt needs to be paid. Because you treated that person poorly in your next life, you are in a worse position than the previous life. Also, the person you hurt in now in a situation where his or her life has improved the result you never meet that person again, and therefore you cannot repay the debt. Since you fail to recognize, you now have to return, and your condition only worsens because you cannot do over what you need to do.
There is another area of concern you had a mission to complete, but you failed. Now, you have another task to accomplish in your next life, but you also have to complete the other. Does the situation now become which do you do? You try to do both, but neither gets met well, and the problem only snowballs and because harder to accomplish. Things kept getting more and more difficult. You are not completing a mission. In doing so, you are hurting more and more people. It is like being in quicksand; the harder you try to correct things, the worse things get.
Now the problem increases since each time you fail at correcting your previous life, each time you die and come back to the life you became so wicked you could never get to Heaven. However, lets’ assume that the concept is correct. Jesus Christ still pays for your mistake and breaks the cycle. Therefore, if you find yourself alive now, it could be because you rejected him before. God the Father then indirectly gave you another chance to do so. So it is much easier to accept Jesus Christ and break the cycle by thinking there is only one life, so get it right now. Quit the Do-Overs and accept Jesus and have it done.
Dr. Anthony Raimondo 