Marathoner

After the Vietnam War, SR-71s were primarily used to run reconnaissance missions over the USSR. At that time, the photographs taken by the sophisticated array on board of that aircraft couldn't be matched by 1960s and 1970s satellite technology. It wasn't until the 1980s that satellite imaging outperformed what the SR-71 was put into service to do. The SR-71, unlike the U-2 it replaced, had the ability to outrun Soviet defenses. Moving at speeds in excess of Mach 3 made the SR-71 untouchable during its day. The SR-71 continues to hold the world speed record to this day. It turns out that the Mach 3 admitted by the DoD after the SR-71 was declassified downplays how fast it could actually go. Faster than Mach 4? Yes indeed. One story circulated to the public describes how two pilots flying an SR-71 over Libya in 1986 outran Soviet missiles fired at the aircraft. Mach 3.5 at 80,000 feet above the earth made the SR-71 untouchable. My father worked in strategic communications. After his time in Vietnam, he transitioned into fixed station spook work; in Okinawa, he was part of the system of communications support for SR-71 missions flying out of Kadena. These days, a sci-fi aircraft like the SR-71 isn't needed. Satellite technology is more than astonishing. It's mind-blowing.

Or the product of a psychotic episode, perhaps. Narcotics and comorbid psychiatric condititions can and do combine to create the sort of occurrences which the OP shared. I've observed them as they happened. I have experience dealing with long-term abusers of narcotics; underlying neurogical pathology is amplified to horrendous effect. It helps to remember that narcotics are typically a bid to self-medicate. Most people usually never start using those tools of death and terror with the knowledge that it will only make their misery and suffering worse. If the police officer in question was doing something like that and it was displayed and recorded on closed circuit video, then hospital staff are required to intervene ASAP. A code would have been activated and staff would have intervened right away. Observation rooms where individuals are restrained for the safety of themselves and others are required by law to be monitored by staff remotely. It must be monitored constantly while a patient is in that room. The footage must be recorded and saved for a specified period of time mandated by state and federal code. State code must meet or exceed accompanying federal code.

It's the nature of the beast in a manner of speaking, brother. End times mania is the beast in question, of course.

It's an impossible question to be sure but all things considered, the 30th chapter of Proverbs has been the most influential for me. The words of that passage resonate just as strongly today as they did many years ago.

Definitely. It was easy to stop consuming spicy food, tomato sauces, and anything high in saturated fat. It was also easy to eat four to six smaller meals because that's what I was already doing during the day, at least. The problem I had which contributed the most to Barrett's Esophagus? Working until the evening hours, I developed the habit of eating a large meal right before I went to sleep. I've never been the sort to eat much at work, something that became ingrained in me during those days when I worked in construction. Ah, how I can forget how things went whenever we left a job site to pick up materials in town? Calzones at Sam's Club on our way back to the job. Contractor lunches at the lumber supplier with burgers, hot dogs, potato salad, and so on. That time we decided to pick up a half gallon of ice cream (we each had our own) and demolish them on the drive back. Once we pulled up at the work site, what happened to us? ... right in the cab of the truck. Both of us passed out. We would wake up an hour later and laugh about it. Lesson learned: eat lightly on the job. Sleep less. Accomplish more! Eating a big meal before bed time was a huge mistake. Overnight is when acid reflux inflicts the most harm, and I had been doing for several years.

I've always been slim considering my height. 73 inches (185 cm) tall and 200 pounds (90 kilos) is pretty good for a man over 50. However, I topped 230 pounds (104 kilos) after I stopped smoking. Why? I was always hungry during the nicotine withdrawal phase. It was nuts! Nothing like being so sick that you almost kick the bucket to lose a radical amount of weight, right? A year after I stopped smoking, I weighed 230 pounds. That's when the sickness started. Two years later, I weighed 140 pounds (63 kilos). My clothes were too big to wear. These days, I'm at a decent 200 pounds. That's great for my height and age. It doesn't change much.

I was given an excellent reason to radically change my diet, brother: Barrett's Esophagus. When there is a palpable, motivating factor such as the guarantee of esophageal cancer if I don't alter not only what I eat, but also when I eat it and how much I eat at a given time, it's much easier to effect permanent change. Of course, the above does not constitute an ambiguous reason to change diet and lifestyle. Yes, changing how we live and/or eat because it's better for us is doomed for failure as a general rule. Fad diets fall into this vague, "I ought to do this" mode of wishful thinking. It's so much easier doing that under duress! Truly. In a nutshell, my eating habits combined with lifestyle and an unknown medical condition (a hiatial hernia) all contributed to that imperative for change. A long time ago, I told the Lord that it's the greatest honor to be a good steward of what He has entrusted in my care. That's a far cry from the way it used to be, and it's all because of our Lord and His work in me. So, it's sensible to follow the directions of those doctors. It has born much good fruit! 👍

Ah well. I had a few doctors say that to me, brother: no more Carolina reaper puree... no more ghost peppers... not even jalapeños. I have grown accustomed to life without spicy chile peppers.

I'm in agreement with @Sower. There were things that happened, matters decided by others, that have had an impact upon my life that I had nothing to do with. A decision made by another affects us; what can we do to change that? Nothing. We might not even be made aware of the consequences of the above until much later in life, long past the window of opportunity to act in a meaningful way to change the outcome. If I had known that I suffer from chronic granulomatous disease many years ago, I would have made it a point to seek medical care even when I was homeless and destitute. The cumulative effect of infections in this body have made life more difficult than it otherwise would have been had I been prescribed antibiotics and antifungal drugs... If I had known that I suffered from fungal pneumonia then I would have went straight to a public hospital for emergency care. And so on. The point? Whatever befalls us through no fault of our own (like the man born blind from John 9) is according to the will and purpose of the Lord. Neither my father or mother knew that they both carried more than one genetic defect, one of which was identical. How were they supposed to know that? That those genetic defects would be passed on to their children? No one involved did anything "wrong" to create the resulting consequences. As for making decisions without praying, our brother Sower addressed that adequately. No, I'm not going to pray about what I ought to eat for lunch. Heh.

As @Neighbor wrote, we have our share of such things here in the U.S.; Canada has as well. I have had two instances of institutional evil affect relatives and my adopted mother. I have written elsewhere how my father was kidnapped from his mother's house when he was three months old. My grandmother was colored (dark skin) according to the definition of Jim Crow laws and because of this, she wasn't treated like an American citizen in the southern state where she lived. She was much less than that, having effectively no rights under the law. The police didn't care and neither did the courts. My adopted mother was impregnated against her will (rape) when she was 16 and because of two factors --- a Christian family who blamed her for the pregnancy (it was her fault in their view) and her being turned over to the custody of the state due to "delinquency" on her part --- she was incarcerated in a Christian school for delinquent girls. It was funded by the state and operated by an evangelical (Baptist) mission organization. It was a house of horrors. Girls were beaten by staff, subjected to psychological torture, and some took their own lives. As for my adopted mother, she said that after a few months of humiliation and facing a tribunal of staff once per week, she decided to play along so she could eventually escape that place with her life. She said everything they wanted to hear and in return, the mission promised they would help raise her child and find a good Christian husband for her. When it came time to deliver her baby --- her first child and her only son --- she was brought to a local hospital under police supervision. Labor was traumatic and she started bleeding during delivery; she lost so much blood that her heart stopped beating and she was prounced dead. She said that she heard the doctor announce the time of her death in the delivery room. But then her heart started beating again, so staff started blood transfusions to aid her recovery. She was fully conscious when her newborn son was placed in her arms; one of the mission staff took him away. He would be adopted to a proper Christian family, she was told. First, the blood that was given to her in the delivery room was infected with Hepatitis C, something that wouldn't be discovered until her early 50's. Second, this was when my adopted mother started hating Christians and renounced her own faith. The Lord healed her of those terrible wounds, but it wasn't until I came to her that this happened.

I know this was asked of our brother, but I will be glad to answer your question in the hope that it might encourage others to join the topic. I hear the Lord speak, and this is how I relate to Him. The vision within a vision I shared above is not always how the Lord chooses to speak, though I do indeed hear His voice. I know that He chooses to make Himself known to others in a variety of ways, however, and this is something that's the discretion of the Lord alone. He certainly doesn't answer to anyone! I can share why I think He relates to me in such a way, and it's not for reasons others might suspect. The Lord saw fit to leave my affliction of depression intact so I will always remember my place on this earth; I am to serve my neighbor as it pleases Him. In the past I was physically strong and durable, so the illness which preceded that vision in the mountains by two years took that strength away from me. Now, I find myself afflicted with a type of muscular dystrophy that doesn't manifest until late middle age. I took pride in my looks --- I was a vain man --- so that illness took those looks from me as well. I lost all of my teeth and in spite of recovering to full health, I do not appear as I once did. Whenever I look in the mirror these days, a haggard shell gazes back at me. It was a horrendous ordeal to be sure. I was arrogant, confident in my intellectual superiority and a skilled public speaker; I had the so-called "gift of gab." Thank God that the illness ravaged my brain and mind, robbing me of the ability to think clearly and speak! The Spirit of the Lord was the One who taught me how to think and speak again. I was very much like a toddler learning how to do this all over again. It was the most daunting task I have faced in this life. This sheds light upon why the Lord referred to me standing upon my feet and walking like a man ought to, because I could barely walk ten steps when I was sick. I would collapse.

One afternoon in the mountains the Lord called to me, telling me to stand in a certain place facing a distant mountain range toward the north. The portion I'll share is the vision the Lord gave to me after I arrived at the specific location where He told me to go. For reference, it was the same plot of caliche soil where I had fallen to die. I looked toward those mountains and was shocked to watch while an enormous storm cloud formed in the sky above those peaks. The storm cloud was dark and foreboding; dread gripped my heart, and I was terrified. The cloud bristled with lightning, and it approached my location very quickly. It was a calm day until that storm cloud rushed forth to remain motionless overhead. The wind began to stir and howl through the surrounding trees, and I fell to the ground in fright. I cried out, "I will be destroyed!" When the Lord spoke, His voice was like thunder --- it came from everywhere! --- and He commanded me to stand upon my feet. Do not be afraid, the Lord said, for you will not be destroyed. Would I lift you up only to destroy you now? That's exactly what happened. The Spirit lifted me up in the spirit and I found myself inside of that storm cloud. I couldn't see beyond my hands, but the voice of the Lord was like the thunder issued by lightning that raced from the east to the west, and from the north to the south. Within the cloud I saw a vision: Beneath my feet, I looked upon the expanse of the Earth arrayed like a green and blue jewel within the darkness. High above, I looked on while the sons of God gathered around the Lord atop a tremendous mountain; they were like stars shining ever so brightly. Suddenly, I found myself standing before the Lord upon His throne. He was surrounded by cloud shedding prismatic rainbows of color, skirted with lighting with thunder pealing from every direction. His voice was indeed the thunder and so the Lord said to me, You have done all that I required of you and now that you stand before Me as the work of My hand, fit to walk like a man upon his own feet, the time has come to fulfill the promise made concerning this day. You are no longer a child fumbling about in the darkness, and so I shall pour My Spirit upon you without measure. The Lord breathed upon me, and then I heard a sound much like a tornado would make --- I looked above and witnessed a fire rushing to wash over me and also through me. I cannot describe what that was like, my friends, only that this wind of fire changed me. I found myself standing upon that caliche in the mountains again. The storm cloud was gone, and the day was calm and serene as it had been previously.

There's an underlying point of reference which I hope is evident to our readers, and that's this: Shaming, reproach, and condemnation have no place in the Body of Christ. Just as we've encountered some who seek to heap such things upon those who hear the voice of the Lord, the same holds true regarding those who do not hear His voice. It's not our place to treat others poorly for any reason. I would like to write briefly about the purpose of the Lord regarding scripture and His voice. I believe it's best to consider scripture in the following way: For one and all. Scripture is fit for our collective instruction and edification, equipping us to walk in the Spirit as the sons and daughters of God. I consider His voice in the following way: The Lord's promise to teach and guide us along the way, and the manifestation of His promise to dwell with us as the temple of the Holy Spirit. We are individually and collectively the living temple of God upon this earth. The New Covenant in Jesus Christ surpasses the Old Covenant in every regard. In days of old the Lord spoke to His people through the prophet, for the prophet was the one He chose to receive the Spirit of the Lord. The New Covenant is the fulfillment of the prophecy that God would pour His Spirit upon all flesh. Therefore, those whose lives are hidden in Jesus Christ always dwell with the Spirit of the Lord, and He always dwells with us. In days of old, Moses veiled his face on account of the glory of the Lord; the people could not bear to look at his unveiled face. The New Covenant in Jesus Christ tore that veil in two --- symbolized by the tearing of the veil in the second temple. There is no veil separating His people from the Lord any longer. God does not hide His face from those who seek Him. In days of old, the people had written and graven letters passed on to them by Moses from the Lord; these are those same letters which the apostle declares have passed away. How so? Pay heed to the above, knowing that the Lord no longer hides His face, nor denies His Spirit, to His beloved. He is the voice who speaks to us, telling us how we ought to walk in this world. The Lord speaks to us in a manner which applies to our specific calling in Jesus Christ. I hope all of that is simple to understand!

No, not in this topic. However, it's something I've encountered and felt it would be good to bring it up. It relates to my earlier post describing why so many choose silence over sharing; reproach is a frequent response from those who do not the believe that the Lord speaks for Himself. I understand why: if the Lord speaks here and now that deposes the tyranny of man's religious hegemony. Of course He does indeed speak to us so denial, shaming, and condemning those who have ears to hear is the answer to maintain their dominance. Not to worry, brother. You don't come across that way.

The Lord never furnishes us with reasons to puff ourselves up nor become filled with pride. Where there is revelation from God, there is humility on our part. No one can say, "I hear the Lord. You ought to listen to me!" The Lord inclines His ear, and He hears us. He is pleased to respond, but what we hear isn't what we expected. That's not the case with false prophets who always seem to hear what serves the interests of the bank account. However, we do not focus upon false prophets. Doing so fills the ears with reproachful suspicion and that, my friends, makes us hard of hearing. They are easy enough to notice, and that's sufficient for the need.

Agreed, my friend. How many feel pressure to conform to the tyrannical beliefs of others? That what they experience must agree with --- or be agreeable to --- those who position themselves to judge every single thing they do or say? So long as the proper obeisance is paid to the empty beliefs of those judges, other "slights" can be overlooked. I've witnessed the above play out over and over again which is why so many choose to remain silent. They are terrified of openly confessing that the Lord God is a Person; that the Lord is pleased to reveal Himself to the simple of heart and humble in spirit; and that He does indeed speak to one with ears to hear. Yes, and He inclines His ear toward those who know that He speaks and works even now. I marvel at some who refuse to believe that the Lord is here with us today. He is indeed.

It will recorded on camera if it actually happened.

I understand what you're going through, @faithfull-prophet4040. That's why I know you aren't entirely accountable for your actions. It doesn't diminish the effect those actions have upon others, but therein lies the key to understanding. During a psychotic episode, we aren't perceiving reality in a manner consistent with those around us. In other words, we aren't existing in the same world. Our insular world is a warped and twisted facsimile of the world that other people are living in. What do I mean by insular? Insular = limited only to ourselves and one other: the Lord. Only the Lord knows what our warped and twisted world is like. He is the only One who knows what we endure on account of psychosis. Other people don't know and have no clue, but some possess insight into what it's like... Like myself. We don't suffer from the same issues but we do share something in common: psychosis. The psychosis we experience isn't the same, but the same warping and twisting is at work. I do not officially suffer from a psychotic disorder; I suffer from a mood disorder. However, the most severe type of major depressive disorder has what's called "psychotic features," and that's what I suffer from. It's easier to call this "psychotic depression." Unlike psychotic disorders, psychotic depression is not affected by medication. Therapy also has no effect. It resists all forms of treatment with the exception of the following: A frontal lobotomy. This barbaric procedure was abandoned many years ago. Nevertheless, it's the only known "cure." Electroconvulsive Therapy, known as ECT. ECT has been shown to provide short-term relief from psychotic depression. There are many undesirable consequences and side effects associated with ECT, however. A recent phenomenon known as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation using MRI technology. The side effects are different from ECT but worse in some ways. It can provide short-term relief comparable to ECT. I became aware of the psychosis involved with depression because the Spirit of the Lord intervened, making me aware of the difference between what I perceived and what God declared. In this way, I was enpowered to become completely accountable for my own actions during a cycle of severe depression. Do I still experience psychotic features? Yes. Am I powerless against it? No, because I'm aware of the psychosis while it is happening. It no longer rules over my existence on this earth. That's the gift of the Lord, and it's my prayer for you.

I'm familiar with both the setting and circumstances, @faithfull-prophet4040. It appears that you were placed in an observation room with restraints; this isn't done unless an individual in a secure psychiatric ward is violent and/or combative with other patients or staff. Observation rooms are monitored by closed circuit camera systems, so whatever transpires inside of that room is viewed by staff both in real time and also via recorded footage. That's why such a room is called an observation room, my friend. Considering the circumstances, it seems to me that your treatment was/is mandated by court order? I ask because your narrative suggests that you were committed for extended observation in a locked-down psychiatric facility. That makes sense because safety and security is paramount while your anti-psychotic medication regimen is adjusted to different dosages. I don't think you are entirely responsible for your own actions, my friend. I understand.

@Jayne, I hope the above helps? All I did was break the OP's post into chunks approximating paragraphs.

I experienced something similar, but it happened during a longer period of time (20 years for me). Something like this can be difficult to share, but I'll do my best to put it out there using plain language so nothing is left in the dark: Who knows the hidden things of God if He doesn't see fit to reveal His counsel to man? What the Lord doesn't reveal remains hidden, and what He did with regard to me was overwhelming once He revealed it not just to myself, but to others as well. I suffered greatly on account of those men who judged me for many years. I believed what they had told me, and it's worth pointing out that the Lord did not correct their error right away because it suited His will and purpose. After the Spirit revealed what those men were doing and what I should do in response to that, I did not hear the voice of the Lord for years at a stretch. I didn't know what was hidden from me. It was hidden for good reason. It was the mercy of the Lord that I was so forgetful and didn't pay enough attention back then. I'm so thankful that I was ignorant of what I had to endure during those 20 years. All of it was necessary.

Speaking of things I found, I recall life on the island of Okinawa during the early 1970s. There were plenty of "off limits" areas not that far away from our government quarters; one in particular was located inside of an area known as "Habu Hill." For those who are interested, you can search for "habu hill" online and you'll find various entries pop up; one in particular was written by an individual who was there around the time my father was stationed at Kadena AFB. If I wanted to find something unexpected and out of the ordinary, all I had to do was use an old spoon to root around the outskirts of Habu Hill. I never dared to scale the perimeter fence of the off limits area --- I knew that would bring the military police with a swiftness --- but that wasn't necessary. I unearthed several .45 caliber bullets that never hit the mark. They were easy to find. Habu Hill was rumored to host a cave where Japanese soldiers held out against American troops during the invasion of Okinawa in April of 1945. Unexploded ordnance was said to be a widespread hazard which was why portions of Habu Hill were off limits. Unexploded ordnance from the WW2 era is also a big issue in Europe. Edit: on second thought, here's something else unexpected and out of the ordinary I "found" the day after we arrived in Okinawa. I was standing in the back yard of our government quarters when I saw this roar into the sky. I had never seen anything like it before.

Ha! I'm glad that the drill sergeants in Basic Training never used me as an example. I was good at cruising under their radar... they had to look at the name tag on my uniform to know my name. They were fond of doing that to hapless trainees.

Thanks for sharing that, @other one.

Distance matters. Why doesn't the Sun fill the entire sky? The diameter of the Sun is a little over 865,000 miles in diameter after all. Answer? The Sun is over 93,000,000 miles from the Earth. An object of that size, distance, and relative luminosity would appear exactly the way that it does in the sky. Okay, so then why doesn't Mercury or Venus cast a shadow upon the earth whenever they eclipse the Sun? Answer: they do, in fact, cast a shadow whenever their respective orbits place them between Earth and the Sun. However, the distance and relative size of both render the umbra so ifintesmially small that it can only be witnessed via astronomical viewing devices. We don't see it here on Earth.