Faith in Public Life

“Things have come to a pretty pass,” thundered Lord Melbourne, “when one should permit one’s religion to invade public life.”

That statement expresses the contempt Lord Melbourne felt for the enthusiasts of his day (those pesky religious peasants that followed Whitfield and Wesley and insisted on taking their religion seriously. They were shaking up the social order of the wealthy status quo of Great Britain(Metaxis/Amazing Grace/Harper/San Francisco/2007/xix).

In that statement, Lord Melbourne also expresses the GREATEST FEAR OF MANY CURRENT CITIZENS who want either to eliminate religious faith in the marketplace, or chain it to the church pew and confine it to the limited boundaries of ritualized worship.

By invading public life with his faith, Newton the slaver became a public icon as “Amazing Grace” and the Rector of Saint Matthews Anglican Church in England. It was Newton that a certain young politician sought out privately, much as Nicodemus the Pharisee sought out Jesus under cover of night.

It was the converted slaver, a true evangelical, who helped the highly successful politician understand that he could serve God without giving up his successful career as politician-legislator, and intimate friend of William Pitt the Prime Minister.

That 25-year-old dedicated the rest of his life to serving God in the public arena of the British Parliament. True to form, there were those like Lord Melbourne who shot off their verbal artillery, attempting to suppress the presence of divinity in the public arena. On the other hand, because William Wilberforce stayed true to God for the remainder of his life, while filling his role in a half-century of public service, he saw legislation passed that ended slavery in Great Britain, and virtually ended the world of slave trading.

From Warner’s World,
slave-traders like Isaac Newton are now a relic of the past. However, hundreds of former slaves owe their freedom to that one life-long member of the British Parliament who dared to take his religion into his public life. Today, no man, woman, boy, or girl worries about being forced into legalized slavery, although there are numerous new forms of human slavery today.

The “slave trade” is no more, all because one man took his personal faith in Jesus Christ into the public arena and consistently worked at making human rights a public issue. The next time someone tells you religion has no place in the marketplace, you remind them that had not William Wilberforce spent his Christian life in public service, we might still be buying, selling, and trading slaves on Wall Street. I am walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com

"You've Been Hacked"!

Mike called last night; he and Sue are area church friends. He asked about the recent scam message they received, purportedly from me, abroad, robbed, desperately needing funds in the far country to return home. This remains an oft-repeated story. Recent weeks brought calls from MI., TX., Canada, and numerous other places, all for the same purpose.

I was hacked online. I was trespassed, violated, robbed of numerous contacts, and used for selfish purposes--scam my friends and family. That describes Satan in the Old Testament story of Job. Anyway you read Job, he was invaded--trespassed. The writer claims Satan’s primary role is that of trespasser on posted property that belongs to God by creation.

The Bible abundantly describes this trespassing of God’s posted property. My numerous callers represent today’s church [church member] in current society, which brings me back to my recent week at Warner Memorial Camp.

“Tracks” (the daily camp newsletter), reported “many generational families on grounds!!” The observer reported “4 families of 4 generations” and sought to learn of more. That is nice, perhaps, but I suggest this is normal procedure for the average church family. When we remain alert to those forces trespassing God’s posted property (our families) and alert them to the “hackers in their lives” that is going on, we are only acting as parents that love our kids. This seems only normal, rational, and the “Christian” thing to do!

Having shared this opinion, let me go one step further. From the same issue of “Tracks”, the reporter shared from Pastor Gary’s message the night before. Gary introduced his theme (sermon if you will) by recognizing a problem in our churches. He suggested we need to return to the example of the early church and learn from them. He claimed the Bible is our manual for learning how to live (we claim it as “inspired“ but we too often ignore it).

Going to church will neither save us, nor change us where we need to be changed. Cleaning up a pig and tying a bow on it will not prevent that pig from doing what it does naturally--wallow in the mud. Improving our economics, and changing our circumstances, will not stop our “hackers” from trespassing our lives and using that information to scam still others. It happens all the time, from government to the gutter.

I enjoy the historical aspects of Warner Camp. I love the religious heritage I learned via the Church of God (Anderson Convention). I do not enjoy the fact that we have so many spiritually obese people waddling around full of historical tradition and theological certainty while overlooking the obvious fact that our world is full of people needing someone to call, email, or otherwise contact them and let them know they have been hacked.

A trespasser lurks in their lives, seeking whomever he can devour. Many are oblivious of their hacker; they fail to recognize the scamming taking place. They see only this or that misfortune, or lack of opportunity, or some other social-or-moral diagnosis. And, some plainly do not care; they are too full of themselves and are intent only on getting WHAT THEY WANT, which is what they have been led to believe is what they need. THIS IS THE BIGGEST SCAM ever been perpetuated on our society, by profit-seeking social designers.

We are in an economic CRUNCH, for several reasons. However, we are in an even LARGER MORAL CRUNCH. We remain a rudderless society sailing around in a social mud puddle, looking in all the wrong places for the right solution. Going back to what Gary talked about--we need to change our lives. We need to give evidence of Holy Living. We need as Christians to live like Christians (little Christ’s) or we need to change our name from Christians to something else. We need to share that sense of family (we call it unity), which means we need to be more interested in taking the message of Jesus around the globe than we are concerned about all Christians coming to our Sheep Pen at Anderson, IN.

We have a bigger mission than that. Christ’s mission did not begin with D. S. Warner in 1881; it began with the “1st century disciples” when Jesus instructed them to go into ALL the world and share His Story. Jesus is the gate on which history swings, and as nearly as I can tell, it is His story … this is Warner’s World … walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com

Pictured is “Doc” Stevens, who for the past 16 years has been the living icon representing all the best qualities of all that Warner Camp represented. An MSU grad and avid Spartan fan, Doc left a 30-year career of working with Kellogg Community College. He was a living legend in Battle Creek area sporting events as KCC athletic trainer, one time Athletic Director, et al.

Behind Doc you see Warner Lodge, probably the first major renovation involving the Selents' in the 70s (more about that in another blog). Doc became a key figure in the lives of Grace and Leslie Ratzlaff. Grace probably came closer to filling that empty place left by the death of Doc’s mother than any other; she was his close friend, confidant, role model and longtime mentor.

Les, was what he was, one of the hardest working men you could find anywhere between “Heart” (the survival training camp in Florida) and Warner Camp in Michigan--a SD farm boy--a Churchman steeped in book lore.

In the following paragraphs, we conclude Grace's recollections of how she and Les made their plans and God directed their steps, several years of which Doc was an intimate part.

“It took two weeks to get the tests done, and the biopsy, but we still had not received the doctor’s report as to exactly what was wrong. He didn’t realize how sick he was and neither did we, but he still did not want to go home.

“Ray and I finally convinced him that we needed to get him to his doctor. We arrived home on Sunday afternoon. I had talked with Leslie’s sons and told them they needed to come see their Dad. We still had not received the report from the doctor; all we knew there were some cancer cells.

“We knew he had that cancer mass in his one kidney, but were told that was not growing. Paul [son] came on Tuesday and we had an appointment with Leslie’s cancer doctor on Wednesday. Paul went with us and that was when we got the results of the biopsy. Doctor said no more tests or appointments and he would schedule hospice to come in. We were shocked! He said they did not know where the cancer was coming from (not the kidney--different kind of cancer), but it did not matter as it was all across his chest and abdomen and his neck--no wonder he was so nauseated and no appetite.

“On our way home from the doctor we stopped at Denny’s and met Dale and Marcie [other son] for lunch. Leslie ate a couple spoonfuls of soup. We did not know what the prognosis was, doctor just said it was really hard to tell. So we just assumed he still had at least several months. Paul went home on Thursday. On Friday, hospice came in and the coordinator/nurse got all the preliminary work done--equipment, nurses, etc. round the clock.

“Saturday, Leslie was in terrible pain. I called hospice and in a short time the hospice nurse came and prepared him for bed (hospital bed), gave him morphine, and made him comfortable. In the meantime, the head nurse had called my son, Ray and told him not to go anywhere, that I would need him. She told him Leslie had only 36-48 hours, but did not tell me when I asked her.

“Leslie was not communicating on Sunday. However, my grandson and his family came over from Winter Haven about 18 miles from here and Lauren (6) and Kolson (4) stood by Leslie’s bed and sang “Jesus loves Me” for him. He smiled and mouthed “thank you.” Dale and Marcie and their girls came, but stayed just a little while. Leslie did not say anything more after that.

“On Monday, Sept. 6, I went in to see him and spoke to him. He did not say anything, but I think he heard me as his eyelids moved a little, so I think he heard me tell him I loved him. About an hour later, at 7:15, he went to be in the arms of Jesus. It was such a shock that he went so fast. What a Divine Appointment that we came home instead of going to VA, and that Ray came to help me drive.

“We had traveled 9600 this summer. God is so good. I am so glad I listened to that still small voice that cautioned me about going to VA, even against Leslie’s wishes. He was “still determined that we not go home. Praise the Lord” we did, but little did any of us know how seriously ill he was. Leslie didn’t even know--he was sure he would get better.

“God is so good. Leslie is not suffering anymore, but I miss him (Grace, 2010).”

From Warner’s World,
we do not grieve as those without hope, nor are we knee-deep in mere sentiment. We rejoice and stand deeply in awe of what God does in people’s lives, ever mindful of His gracious and beneficent love.

I look back across the span of two totally different church families and saw how they served the church so differently in their individual ministries in varied places--later linked by a second marriage for each of them.

I bow my heart before God and thank him for His Angel Messengers that he allowed to touch me and my spouse, as well as a whole host of others … I am walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com

Following Grace & Les - #2

A few campmeetings back, this blogger and Dr. Les joined a tour group led by church historian/archaeologist Dale Stults in examining the fired remains of the Gospel Trumpet Offices which burned back in 1898, the same night those earlier Saints had moved on to Moundsville. We later blogged about Dr. Les obtaining his Higher Degree.

As recently as late July, we worked with Grace in the Camp Dining Hall as she was still working through her grieving, accompanied by several of her adoring family, including son Dave and various grandchildren. That was a special joy to us, and I remembered the year that granddaughter Andrea worked on our Dining Hall crew. She was an area highschool basketball star then, now she is a gracious and mature wife and mother.

First it was the sons/wives who helped dad and mother in camp; later it was the grandkids, and always they each had that delightful "Selent" stamp upon them. They come back and bless us at Warner Camp, but they now live their own lives across the country, serving God diligently, just as they learned at Warner Camp. I'm leaving names out, I know, but when I received Grace's recollections this week, I felt compelled to share them, thus this second part of how Les and Grace made their plans, and God directed their steps (*again, slightly edited).

"Normally we would go to South Dakota at the end of July, but Leslie’s grand-niece (Jessica) was getting married on July 10 and asked Leslie to perform the ceremony. So, July 4th weekend we took off. Leslie performed the ceremony and did a good job, but was absolutely beat. He also baptized his niece, grand-niece and grand-nephew, with the help of his brother Leroy who is father of the niece. This took place in the public swimming pool in Highmore (S.D.) after it was closed to the public. It was warm and worked out very well. Someone had inadvertently left the heater on so the water was warm--another blessing.

"We visited with relatives there for several days. Leslie was asked to preach on Sunday, but declined because he was too weak. We headed back to Grand Junction and I helped with the youth camps and Leslie rested. He would not give up and go home. Doc Stevens, Camp Director and friend, allowed us to use his golf cart the whole time we were there … another blessing as Leslie was too weak to walk to the activities.

"We attended the camp meeting (at camp) and I helped in the cafeteria--end of July. I suggested we go home, but Leslie wanted to stay and attend the wedding of my granddaughter, Michelle on August 13 and another wedding of my granddaughter, Andrea on August 27th. He was feeling really terrible by this time, but would not give up; I felt we should go home and I could fly to MI for the weddings, but he would not hear of it at all. He wanted to be there, too.

"He had lost about 15 lbs. and was not able to eat hardly anything. I would get him milkshakes--he liked those and would drink a little at a time. We had planned to go to VA to visit my grandson, Eric and family after the weddings. My son, Ray, had come to MI from FL to help me drive to VA.

"I need to back up … on August 15 a lump appeared on Leslie’s neck on the right side just below the ear and the next day it was much bigger, so back to the doctor. He scheduled an ultra-sound, but it was inconclusive: they did not know if the lump was inside the carotid artery or attached to the outside. He scheduled a c-scan and then a biopsy which showed lots of infection and some cancer cells. It was a Divine Appointment that Ray came to help me drive, since I would not have been able to drive and take care of Leslie also. Against his wishes, we headed home on the 28th after the second wedding."

From Warner's World, we'll conclude Grace's journey tomorrow, but we continue our friendship with her, as a lady who represents the highest and the best of the tradition of the Gospel Trumpet Saints that have inhabited Warner Memorial Camp over the past 119 years ...
I am walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com

We Made our Plans--but--God Directed our Steps

The pictured scene is mostly symbolic of an earlier generation when the Church of God moved to Grand Junction, MI. because D.S. Warner envisioned "taking the gospel" around the globe from the place he called in one of his poems, "the place where the light'ning tracks cross." They gave everything they had to encircle the glob from that insignificant place that now ships blueberries globally.

It was recently the site of our 119th Church of God Camp Meeting, as well as the ongoing place where much Church of God leadership and youth training goes on year-round. The following comes from my mailbag today and came from Grace Selent-Ratzlaff. "Amazing Grace" is one of the finest women I have ever known. I met her when she and (first husband) Ray had just become the "first fulltime Resident Directors" and Warner Memorial Camp became a serious year-round facility.

This may be repetitious to some, but for me it is a warm and wonderful recounting of the goodness of God that I have watched unfold in the lives of people with whom my own interfacing has been, as Grace suggests, a "divine appointment." I have lightly edited Grace's account, and divided it into three sections, lest I overload you all at once. Following is section one, from Grace's own hand:

"Our plan [Grace writing] was to go to Seattle to take the inland passage cruise to Juneau, AK, round trip. We left Lake Wales May 1,2010 in our motor home. We visited family in OK., ID, and OR en route. Leslie had not seen several of them in over three years, including his brother Sidney.

"We stopped at Warner Pacific University, where Leslie served as Dean for about seven years, visited several persons there and toured their complex. We contacted a couple we knew, Dave and Monica Monroe--had a nice time with them--went to dinner --to their home, and back to the University where we parked for the night. During the night, a water leak happened--all over the bathroom floor. Leslie contacted Dave, who knew exactly what to do and where to get the needed parts. He put it all back together while Monica washed and dried the rugs; what a blessing they were. Our contact with them the day before definitely was a Divine Appointment.

"We went on to Elgin, OR., to visit Leslie’s brother Sidney and two sons--Dave and Steve. It so happened that Sidney’s granddaughter was graduating with a Doctor’s degree in Veterinary Medicine from a college about a hundred miles away in Washington on Sunday. They had room for us--a real blessing--since Leslie had not seen Sidney’s son Dan (father of the graduating girl) for many years and did not know his family. Another son, Mark and his wife Margie, were also there for the graduation. Leslie had not seen Mark for a number of years either; so, it was quite a reunion for him--another Divine Appointment.

"We left Elgin and went on to Seattle to take the cruise. Weather was chilly, but we didn’t mind. Leslie rested a lot, but we had a great time on the cruise--saw a number of glaciers. Juneau was warmer than anywhere else we had been. Vancouver was gorgeous.

"We left there and went on to Minneapolis through rain, then snow--lots of it--sometimes a complete white-out, but PTL we had a good trip--lots of beautiful scenery--mountains were beautiful covered with snow. In Minneapolis we visited two of Leslie’s relatives, Walter and Pearl Ratzlaff and Walter and Lois Ortman whom he had not seen in a number of years--nice visit with them--great blessing for Leslie even though he was not feeling the greatest--nauseated much of the time and very tired. I did most all of the driving by this time.

"We left Minneapolis and headed for Michigan, taking the northern route, crossing the famous bridge and on down to Grand Junction, MI. Arrived at Warner Camp (where I have a campsite) May 20th. We helped with Youth Camp - I in the Cafeteria and Leslie on the grounds when he felt like it - which wasn’t very much because some of the time he was in pain and no appetite - when he did eat a little he couldn’t keep it down and he was getting weaker all the time.

"I contacted a doctor I knew and he was able to see Leslie quickly. He diagnosed a pulled muscle in his back, after checking him thoroughly where Leslie described the pain. Doctor gave him pain prescription and something to help rid the nausea and be able to eat. That didn’t help much, but he was determined to go on to Anderson, IN Convention [NAC] in June.

"Leslie could not walk to any of the conferences he wanted to attend; I had to take him to all the meetings. Visited with several friends and relatives before CM started. The day CM ended [NAC] Leslie was in so much pain he wanted to go to ER, but I suggested we return to camp and to his doctor rather than start all over, which we did--just a four-hour drive. The doctor was really puzzled since the pain would come and go and the way Leslie described the pain, he was sure it had to do with a pulled muscle. Sometimes he could not even bend over to put on his shoes.

"At this time, I went to Wal-mart to get his medication and took a bad fall in their parking lot--stepped in large pot-hole and fell, badly injuring my right shoulder and ribs on right side. Ex-rays showed nothing broken, but seriously injured: could hardly use my right arm, which made it difficult since I had to do all the driving ..." (to be continued).

From Warner's World,
purely selfishly, I marvel when I remember the quality and quantity of people
God allowed into the obscure life of a little boy that found the presence of God and chased the dream of that place where the lightning tracks crossed at Grand Junction decades ago ... walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com

William Ebel by Kurt Pudel

Some of my happiest times at Warner Camp have been learning more of the real history of the people and places in and around Grand Junction, MI., which I took for granted as a child. Joe Cirone, L. S. Shaw, and William Hartman were significant camp leaders in my early years. Names like E. E. Byrum and F. G. Smith were common to our language.

Smith’s sister, Lottie Storey, lived with her husband and family on the camp farm during those years and I went to school with their children, Merle, Bob, et al. There were area lay people who attended faithfully, whose children I later encountered in places like Anderson College: Hartman, Hoffman, Macholtz, Buller, Koroch et al.

Among my newer friends is Kurt Pudel, older brother of Sig Pudel, pastor of a church plant near Toronto. Kurt went the other way--west, toward Edmonton where he is in business. Kurt is also the author of When the German Trumpet Sounded and Lillian Meier - Missionary of the Church of God.

Kurt brought a new book to CM this year, 126 pages, chronicling the life and ministry of William Ebel. This year-by-year narrative explores the contributions of a missionary, evangelist, poet, editor, pastor, and prayer warrior. My reading suggested that Wilhelm Ebel capably filled each of the niche’s noted by the author. Altogether, they made him a significant Church of God presence in North America and Eastern Europe between 1905-1919.

Born in Germany in 1863, Wilhelm (William) Ebel converted to Christ in California, 1892 at the age of 29. He met D.S. Warner that same year and was baptized by Warner. That led to an invitation to Grand Junction to join the Trumpet Family to help launch a German publication, “Evangeliums Posaune.”

The Saints were not in Grand Junction long before expanding the “Gospel Trumpet” to the “Evangeliums Posaune” and several other ethnic publications. “EP” launched in 1895 with a printing of 8,000, edited by Fred Hahn. William Ebel assumed the editorship in 1899. The picture above shows the Trumpet Offices as he would have seen them at his arrival in Grand Junction.

In 1902 Ebel launched his own iterant preaching ministry, both German and English, throughout the U.S. and Canada. He married Anna Thiessen of Marion, SD in 1908; they announced their calling to Russia in December 1909, and arrived in Riga (now Latvia) that same year.

Together, they ministered throughout Eastern Europe, where William become a model mentor and missionary to many fellow believers. He was a man of strong faith, a man of practiced prayer, and a strong preacher in both English and German. They endured their share of suffering, losing one child, but always remaining positive and faithful. Keeping a forward look enabled William to help launch both a Latvian Basune and a Russian Truba (Trumpet).

The following quotation from 1914 (p. 79) spoke to me of their venturing spirit: “But despite the great poverty and hard times, they had been able to save almost all the money required for a new printing press, and were lacking only one dollar.”

Missionary work kept them mobile and required a certain flexibility and willingness to live with patience. WWI added suffering, poverty, and strain, and the author shares some of that with the reader. The war finally made it necessary to leave Riga. Caught in Bucharest, Romania, they had to stay throughout 1917-18 and necessity forced William to find secular employment.

They ultimately escaped in early 1919 and returned to Gospel Ministry. I was impressed that Brother Ebel informed the Missionary Board in Anderson to send them only those funds personally designated to them, and use Board support for other missionaries.

The Abel’s were en route to an eventual return to Anderson when they stopped in Basel Switzerland to minister for a time. It was there that William Ebel died on September 18, 1919. His epitaph in the Horburg Cemetery states, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

Anna returned stateside and eventually retired to St. Joseph, MI with her sister. Her Memorial Marker records her as “A Missionary of the Church of God.” Her travel chest can be observed in the B. E. Warren Cabin in Anderson, IN on East 5th Street (Church of God Historical Society).

They were a model of devotion to each other for 11 years, 8 months, and 18 days, as Anna noted (p. 102). The years of hardship took their toll and neither lived to be quite 60 years old, but they “served significantly.” A verse from one of William’s poems catches their spirit:

Why shouldst thou so fearful be, at the tempters roaring?
Simply trust in God alone, Satan’s wrath ignoring.
See God’s tenderness and prove, with the sainted hosts above,
His unfailing, wondrous love, ever for thee caring.

For a brief, insightful, easy to read bit of inspiration and history, contact Kurt at kpudel@interbaun.com, or write him at Kurt Pudel, 6319-35 Ave. NW, Edmonton, AF T6L 1G5, Canada. The book is William Ebel, ISBN 978-1-4507-8135-0, self-published 2011, $10 + shipping.

Kurt documented the life of William Ebel because he believes our spiritual heritage is important. From Warner’s World, I am walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com

Scammer At Work

Wayne,
Did you send this email?
Bill

From: "Loy Mauch"
To: billck@comcast.net
Sent: Wednesday, July 27, 2011 2:29:50 PM
Subject: Re: home

Bill

These is true, my last email is true, i was robbed in a missionary trip to wales till now I'm yet to get any help that was why i mailed you, please i really understand that the devils is fighting a battle which he will definitely lose, please we need to see and talk in person but firstly before you prepare for your trip to Argentina, try to arrange some funds for me so that i can organize my return back home, please i want you to get back to me.

STUDY THE ABOVE EXAMPLE OF A SCAMMER AT WORK, as I have shared it with you in bold type.

Last week, I was hacked at Yahoo. Early Tuesday morning I had a call from Gary Ausbin, over in Michiana. Gary received an email that confused him. He knew he would see me later in the week at Warner Camp, but a messenger informed him that I was stranded in Wales, UK and needed $2350 to get home.

The informant said I was robbed while on a missionary trip with my family.
Gary's alert launched many more calls, from Canada to Texas, over the next four days. I soon learned I was locked out of my own account--one frustrated German. As a result, I lost more than 400 contacts, which I am now re-building. I was left with a host of confused friends.

I spent the rest of the week correcting my account, changing my password, and spending two different sessions with technical support. By last Friday I was off to Warner Camp with a sense of relative security and we spent a full week at Camp. I'll say more about that later.

We have never been campers, per se, but we love the fellowship of Camp Meeting. We are among those that perpetuate the CM tradition in the Church of God. Granted, times have changed. Methods change. Programming changes, BUT there are valid reasons for continuing our CM tradition, although I also support the changing face of Camp Meetings.

Be that as it may, I find that my hacker works as diligently as Satan himself. Just today--7-27--my friend Bill RECEIVED THE ABOVE MESSAGE from the Scammer, still trying to collect money from a letter that is obviously fraud from beginning to end.

Study the letter. It follows a familiar pattern. Recognize it for what it is. NEVER SEND MONEY IN RESPONSE WITHOUT FIRST CONFIRMING IT OFFLINE! The money you save, may well be your own, or it may be some of God's money.

Like Satan Himself, hackers are insidiously diabolical; they are interlopers - trespassers. They “trespass” on posted property in order to hack you and scam your friends, creating problems for you, as well as for themselves. They are like the man that received a cucumber in a bottle as a boyhood gift.

He wondered how a cucumber that large got into the neck of a bottle-neck that small, but time revealed the secret as he watched someone slip a bottle over a small cucumber. That gift became a living lesson when the man realized that the cucumber could never escape from the bottle.

It taught him to consider his choices, lest he find himself a cucumber captured in a bottle. One sin may seem a small cucumber. Confined to a bottle of circumstances, that one sin can only grow until escape is impossible. Another writer described the issue in another way: “The reason I am here today,” confessed the prisoner, “is because I stole an apple from a Fruit Market as a boy

From Warner’s World,
we do well to remember that although Peter called Satan a “roaring lion” Satan also goes about with “cleverly devised myths”. Thus Peter adds, for we do not “follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses to his majesty (2 Peter 1:16 RSV) … walkingwithwarner.blogspot.com