The Write Angle - Impressions on Paper

February 2024

Hello John,

Here we are in February – already! Just two days ago, while sitting still before Him during my quiet time, the Lord dropped the following Scripture verse on me:

The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying:

“I have loved you with an everlasting love;

      I have drawn you with unfailing kindness (Jeremiah 31:3).

This has been resonating to my very core since then, and I cannot get over the significance of that kind of love. Think about everlasting love. I simply cannot comprehend that; can you? How is it that He loves me, in spite of me? I’ve no idea, but He does, and that fact so comforts me.

1. I neglected to include in the January newsletter that we visited Wamego, KS in early October last year to experience their annual Oztoberfest celebration. Here are three photos I particularly like:

Can you spot me amongst the cast? Clue -- I'm not the one on the left.

Cowardly Lion costume winner - - after much deliberation, the judges allowed a dog to enter.

The Dorothy costume winner is holding a live Toto.

2. Late last year, two men from my church purchased copies of Defined by Fire and mailed them to key churches in Maui, Hawaii and Superior, Colorado to be distributed to victims of the two respective fires. Thank you, Mark and Ed, for your faithfulness.

3. As announced last month, I read from Defined by Fire for Word Weavers’ monthly Open Mic night.

It was an honor to be included, and I hope more of you will consider participating in future episodes -- you don’t have to be a Word Weaver member to do so. I’ve also been featured in several podcasts, with another scheduled in early March. I plan to publish the air dates for these when they are available to me.

4. Cold weather has kept me from writing in the mountain RV this year until Wednesday, February 7th, when Obee and I spent two nights there. With no cell phone coverage, land line, or internet service, it’s a wonderful place of silence, solitude, and Sabbath.

I’ve heard a rumor that Obee ghost-writes for me – don’t believe it!

You’ll recall from January’s newsletter that I’m working on a difficult series of articles entitled Spiritual Musings from the Headlines of a Newspaper. These comprise what I subtitle A Spiritual Toolbox for Christians Navigating a Culture of Lies. Each article is intended to be used to gently confront the lies of the enemy in the hot-button issues of the day, e.g., gender identity, sanctity of life, skin color, and more, topics of the day that divide us as a culture and draw us away from God’s clear teachings. I start each one with a ludicrous story that no one would believe -- that is, until they realize they are believing the very same thing about themselves – kind of like when Nathan the prophet confronted David in 2 Samuel 12:1-10 with a “Thou art the man!” wake-up call. The intent is for these pieces to serve as a logical challenge to various ungodly worldviews. 

Here’s an example of one of these pieces, as promised last month:

Gender Identity – Is it a Boy or a Girl, or Something Else?

Once there was a man who loved his old car, a 1963 Mercury Comet, so much that he had it restored and painted at an auto body shop. All the dents were removed, the body was perfectly sanded/smoothed, and it was painted a bright racy red. It cost him a lot of money, and the finished product was positively beautiful. The owner was quite pleased with the resulting look (and himself). Then he placed a Maserati hood ornament on the front of the car and offered it for sale as a genuine 2018 Maserati for $35,000.

Seventeen people responded to the ad and came to look at the car. The first 16 said the car looked amazing but was not, in fact, a Maserati. The owner became angry, accusing each one of hatred by disrespecting his determination that the car was an authentic Maserati. The 17th bought the lie, and the car, haggling the price down to a mere $31,500. He patted himself on the back as he drove away for his amazing negotiation skills!

When I was growing up in the 50s and 60s, there were boys and there were girls. Admittedly, there were some rare outliers who were confused about how they fit into society but, by and large, most accepted exactly who God made them to be. We learned in biology class the difference between men and women – a man had a penis and an XY set of chromosomes, while a woman had a vagina and an XX set of chromosomes.

Our current culture is confusing to me. Today, no one seems to know the difference between a man and a woman, vis a vis a liberal Supreme Court nominee during her recent confirmation hearing who, on being asked what a woman is, responded, “I don’t know.” With increasing numbers, men are deciding that they’re really women, and boys are deciding that they’re really girls. And it’s the same thing for women/girls who view themselves as men/boys. Sadly, our culture endorses such decisions as normal, and people are encouraged to undergo gender disfiguring/life altering surgeries to match their appearance with their gender-view of themselves. Those hurt the most, in my opinion, are the boys and girls going through the conflicting thoughts that are considered quite normal in experiencing puberty.

It used to be there was one God and two genders. Now the world believes in many gods and many genders – I’ve heard as many as 58! However, God makes no mistakes and knows us better than we know ourselves. He made us in His image and desires that we conform to that image. Truly our lives are so much more manageable (and wonderful) when we agree with Him. 

When I was growing up, I was taught that in America one could be anything he wanted to be. That sentiment helped foster the idea that we live in the greatest country in the world. While that’s still a great thought, I’ve come to understand that we simply cannot be that which we cannot be. Everyone knows that a Mercury Comet can never become a Maserati – why is it that we believe a man can become a woman? Does it concern anyone that a male swimmer who competes poorly against other men does so much better against women after “transitioning” into one? Finally, here’s something worth considering -- data indicate that 82% of transgender individuals have considered killing themselves and 40% have attempted suicide, with suicidality highest among transgender youth – why should we find that at all surprising?

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27

Haven’t you read, he replied, that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female . . . Matthew 19:4

My Prayer: Lord, help me to remember that You created me in Your image! You called me by name for Your purposes. Help me to not only accept who You called me to be, but to relish the opportunity to live for You, according to Your will. May I be grateful to live in a country that affords its citizens great opportunities, but may I never be duped into believing I can be something that I simply cannot be!

1. Please send your comments, questions, and opinions to me via the contact page tab. I’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions about what I’m writing or about this website.

2. If you know of someone who’d appreciate keeping up with me, please refer them to my website, johnrabins.com, where they too can sign up for this newsletter. We recently added a Newsletter Archives tab for ease in reading any you may have missed.

3. I know this is redundant, but if you’ve read any of my books, I’d be most appreciative if you’d leave an honest review on Amazon. One thing we learned at the Blue Lake Christian Writers Conference last March is the importance of asking for reviews, since Amazon alters their promotional algorithms as the review numbers grow. So, in advance – thank you for helping me out.



4. Pray for me, that I might hear clearly from God about what I am (and should be) writing.

I absolutely love the English language, but I cannot tell you why; it’s got so many quirks and exceptions, I have no idea how anyone learns it. But I love it, nevertheless.

Take the nonsensical letter string, GHOUTI, for example. It spells FISH, if you pronounce the GH as in ENOUGH, the O as in WOMEN, and the TI as in NATION. 

What about the letters OUGH? Think about the following words that should rhyme, but don’t:



THROUGH

DOUGH

BOUGH

BOUGHT

ENOUGH

COUGH

This stuff drives me nuts, but I still love the English language -- go figure!

As I close this second newsletter, know that I’m praying, and thanking God, for you. I close once again with my favorite Scripture verse:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7).

And remember: