Angels and Demons

Yes, most people think I am weird, and little John Nash-like. Well, I consider that a complement. This key character in this non-movie is a professor of a different sort—a math professor, or at least I once was. But, I do see both angels and demons. The angels are usually people-like yet translucent. The demons are dark and shadowy. The angels bring me messages, which is their job. The demons try to thwart me, which is theirs. Their attacks used to be subtle, but they bring open battle now, except for the scouts. Fearless, I fight. Not because I have no capacity for fear, rather no reason to fear:

[38]  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, [39] nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39) 

I do Life Safety at our church for nearly all events involving youth and children. I am licensed to carry, which does not help in the spiritual realm. So I also carry another weapon, the Bible on my i-Phone. I am skilled in Koine Greek and a novice in Hebrew, and "my hands are trained for war and my fingers for battle". Our Life Safety verse is Nehemiah 4:9 (emphasis mine):

And we prayed to our God AND set a guard as protection against them day and night. ESB

This will sound strange, but I have faced death on three occasions. After those experiences I begin to see in my heart what Christ did when he conquered death, and what Paul meant in Romans 8. Now the punch-line. I fear nothing on this earth physical or spiritual. "There is no fear in love (ἀγάπῃ), but perfect love (ἀγάπῃ) cast out all fear (1 John 4:18).

φόβος οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν τῇ ἀγάπῃ, ἀλλ᾿ ἡ τελεία ἀγάπη ἔξω βάλλει τὸν φόβον. (Α΄ ΙΩΑΝΝΟΥ 4:18a NTPT)

Oh, I am cautious and I do not pick up prairie rattlers, I shoot them, because ἀγάπῃ is not stupid either. When the dark ones come I fight them without hesitation. I had one last month that was so powerful, I fought with it all night long. I read the book ok Hebrews to it over and over. "Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery." (Hebrews 2:14-15 ESV)
Demons cannot possess me because Christ does, and His Spirit is within me. And he who is in me is greater than he who is in the world. When I walk my beat I look for them, and if I sense them, I call them out to do battle. They do not like it; they want the initiative. So I put on the whole armor of God and fight. That is what soldiers do.

For years I struggled with being somewhere else when war broke out. I trained the unit that defeated the Republican Guard at 73 Easting. But I was not there. I used to ask God, "Why did you make me a soldier and not use me?" now I know why. He has given me the gift of Discernment and allowed me to see partially into the spiritual realm.

Before I do my duty, I prepare my weapons, a Beretta PX Storm 9 mm and my Bible, and put on my body armor and the whole armor of God. And “though I walk through the valley of death, I fear no evil” for my 9mm and my Bible they comfort me. I train for that fight. If you lived in Colorado and worked at Schriever AFB, you might see as I walk along Curtis Road with 50lbs on my back regularly. And I live fire just about every two weeks. Ephesians 6:11-13New International Version (NIV)

[11] Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. [12] For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. [13] Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Now, theologically, God created angels before humans and they are a different order of created beings. They do not procreate, and they are a lower class of being than humankind. When Lucifer revolted he took a third with him. And the creative part of God, the Λόγος, also defeated death and Satan.

Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ ὁ Λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν Θεόν, καὶ Θεὸς ἦν ὁ Λόγος. (ΚΑΤΑ ΙΩΑΝΝΗΝ 1:1 NTPT)

The Λόγος created all things and all things hold together through Him. He made us in His image, not angels. They are a separate creation, created on the first day of Creation. When we die, we do not become angels, for we are a higher order, made a little while lower, when sin entered to world. If you are a Christian you command angels and can bid them to help you. I do that in a fight.
The first book I wrote, Quantum Phaith" has a lot of this stuff in it. Most people have an understanding of angels that is 97% wrong. I base my understanding holistically on Scripture and not along lines of church dogma. Sometime when people ask me what denomination I am, I tell them I am Batholic and that I worship all Gods that include Christ in the Godhead. In reality I am a Christ follower, only.

Quantum Phaith, where phaith is a science pun for faith, took 10 year to write. My exegesis in New Testament Greek was on John 1, which is why I know a lot about λόγος, the spoken word. Anytime in the Old Testament when God speaks, it is the λόγος, the reincarnate Christ. Moses met Him at the burning bush, for example. When He became incarnate, Christ dwelt among men. When He ascended into heaven, he sent the Spirit to dwell in us. Christians, because we are “possessed by the Spirit” cannot be possessed or harmed by demons. Demons, Satan including do not understand this because they are not omniscient. And without the Spirit, which they do not have, they cannot understand Scripture, although they could recite it from cover to cover.

When the angels were created on the first day of creation, they were perfect creatures, like all of God’s creation. But Lucifer, the archangel, allowed pride to consume him and revolted taking a third of the angels with him. And it was Lucifer who tempted Eve in the garden. Eve however, did not commit the “original sin”, for if you read the Hebrew carefully, you will see that Adam was right by her side. And it was Adam that had received God’s command not to eat from the tree in the center of the garden, and he said nothing to Eve when she was tempted. So yes, it was the man Adam who sinned and allowed Eve to sin, even though she did not know of the command. Prior to that time, humankind, made in the image of God, were superior to the angels.

So, when I speak of angels and demons, I speak of the spiritual realm. Psychopaths and sociopaths are probably demon possessed, but they are not demons, just people without the Spirit in them. When Christians die (bodily) they become saints. Sainthood is not something that the church awards to fallen believers who have performed great works or miracles, although they think they do. Sainthood is appointed by the λόγος. Some when you get to heaven, wherever that may be, you will find Saint Peter and Saint Julie standing together and worshipping the Lamb in the same manner. We are foolish to play God and elevate one above another.

Tips on LinkedIn Etiquette

If you are active on LinkedIn, you may have noticed a certain degree of disregard for your random acts of kindness, like viewing a profile, saying happy birthday, endorsing a skill, and so on. I have developed a set of “rules” I try to follow, though it is hard with nearly 4000 connections. If Coach Jimmy Dugan—from “A League of their Own” [1]—were here he might say, “It is supposed to be hard. If it weren’t hard, everyone would do it. It’s the ‘hard’ that makes it great.”
Here is what I try to do:

1. When someone endorses a skill, I thank them.
2. When someone views my profile, I thank them.
3. When someone likes a post I created, I thank them.
4. When someone accepts an invitation to connect, I thank them.
5. When someone invites me to connect, I thank them.
6. When you thank someone, in the body of the message use their name, write in complete sentences, with no abbreviations, and use your name.

Have I missed some? Certainly and I have not always followed these rules. I have acquired them over the course of time. I would not be as bold as to suggest them as rule for you, though they are for me; rather, I will call them tips.
Why is it important to do this? Well, first it just common courtesy—something we seem to have lost with instant texting. If it really matters, saying “Congratulations” is just as easy as saying “Congrats”. What does congrats mean anyway? It is a shortened for of the noun congratulations: n. 1884, colloquial shortening of congratulations. Further colloquialized in British English to congratters (1906) and among online gamers to grats (by 2000).[2] Congrats is okay for some, but I like the complete word. Other colloquialisms that get under my skin are LOL and K, etc. I had to ask my teenage daughter what “LOL” was and “K” is short for “okay”. Really, one cannot spend three extra letters and write “okay”. That might be fine on Facebook, but is it "K" on a professional network? I may just start using “TYVMFAMITC”, which is short for “Thank you very much for accepting my invitation to connect.” Moreover, in what context would one use “laugh out loud”? it is somewhat derogatory.
Second, things like profile views, post views, and so on, increase your visibility on LinkedIn. That means that recruiters and employers are more likely to find you, and your network can be larger. Just set your notification so that you receive them for profile views, etc. I am certain that I am not the only one who responds to these triggers, but I this morning someone told me, “You are one of very few people that respond to these events and it does distinguish you in a very positive way.”
Third, why should either you or I care? Well, other than it is common courtesy, potential employers, recruiters, etc. can gauge you professional interaction skills based on what you do or do not do on LinkedIn. I get job opportunities on LinkedIn often. My present full-time job came from someone finding me on LinkedIn. I also have some part-time stuff I am working on—LinkedIn again. I was once unemployed, submitted 300 applications through usual channels, and after four months I was still unemployed—recruiters on LinkedIn found me.
References
1. A League of Their own is the story of the WWII era Women’s Baseball League.
2. Source: Dictionary.com