What is love?

ok now I really believe I need to explain something here. something many people are constantly asking themselves. Am I "In Love" and what does that mean? Is it right or wrong to have a strong emotional bond with someone and is that all there is to love? Is love just a feeling? Is love not a feeling for that matter, does true love really need time to develop or can someone truly believe in "Love at first sight"?? We have lots of instruction about this both from the bible and from many of our leaders and teachers. The bible develops very well what love means. First off biblical love is commonly referred to as agape. There are other types of love as well. Eros and Philia are these other two kinds of love. Many people in our culture have mistaken Eros for true love and have a really cruddy relationships because of it. Eros is best defined in the word it sounds like "Erotic" (as Eros is the root for Erotic) it is simply the emotions that run through your head and body when you are "falling in love" with somebody. As it was said before "Eros" love fades with time through biological means and therefore the bond that there was before quickly dies. Sadly I believe this is one of the key factors in divorces today. A couple gets together thinking they are "In love" and then after a few years the feeling wears off. They aren't getting the feeling they once had when they first met and now they are longing for the romantic feel again. Second there is Philia which is brotherly love. We see brotherly love all around us in the friends we make and how we treat those friends. Now one problem I commonly see is a person having a great relationship with someone of the opposite sex and then realizing that they have a strong feeling of love for them. Now this is a form of true love but it is not the love to be found within a marriage. The bible commands us to love our neighbors as ourselves and this will lead to a true love with that person. What I was saying is that sometimes I see a person loving someone else and then the relationship becomes highly confused. Someone mistakes the others Philia love for "True love" and then they take the relationship from there and go off and get married. They truly love each other so that shouldn't be a problem right? Wrong! they have the wrong type of love for a marriage relationship. Philia in my mind is one step higher than Eros but it still isnt quite there to Agape yet. Now to ease up some confusion somebody might have at this point I am not saying Eros or Philia are wrong, in fact they are quite great! They are both forms of love that we express to each other. A marriage will have a very tough time getting going if there is no Eros within it and will definitely fail if there is no Philia! But here I get to the crux of it all, Agape love. The purest form of love we know of. Agape love is best defined by the bible in 1 Corinthians 13 when it describes the different features of love. I will now go into a bit of detail about each of these aspects of love.
Love is patient: Love is long suffering, it will endure all hardships without any felling we may have because of it. We love without being filled with anger, resentment, indignation, or revenge. So yes, a very good way to see whether your relationship will last is through going through tough times but I would argue that this need not be tested to know that you have this aspect of Agape love. All you need to do is to ask yourself a very simple question. What would I do if she (or he) did “_____” And you fill in the blank with some really horrible things. If you can honestly answer that you would feel no resentment or want revenge then you have this form of love. You need not wait around and question if you have this form of love until something comes around to test it.
Love is kind: your love should be gentle, courteous, and obliging. You will seek out to do favors for your beloved, not because you will gain something from it but because you just feel inclined to do so. In fact you may find yourself purposefully straying away from any behavior in which you could stand to gain from your good deeds. This is an aspect of humility as well.
Love does not envy: you do not become jealous when somebody else gets something you don’t in fact you are very glad for that person. You do not wish to tear the other down to your level or are displeased in their happiness. You share that joy with your loved one and rejoice with them instead!
Love does not brag: You do not seek to gain your beloved’s approval and admiration. You do not need their applause. You are to be humble and to do things, as I said before, selflessly. True love will raise your opinion of you loved one and in so doing lower your opinion of yourself. You then will find it hard to become conceited or arrogant. You do not seek to raise tumults and disturbances but seek to calm these angry passions.
Love is not arrogant: We must accept that we cannot be mind readers or somehow know everything there is to know about the other. We must be modest and expect the loved one to change over time and love the person they develop into. We will be, again, humble in our thoughts about each other.
Love does not act unbecomingly: Your love should stay securely within the bounds of decency. You will do nothing ill-mannered or rude. You refuse to do things that could be seen as base or vile, and you will do things as there is a time and place. We will act with reverence and respect for our beloved and keep the distinctions our society has set for us to keep. You will not do anything that could be seen as irresponsible or inappropriate.
Love does not seek its own: Love is unselfish. It is not self serving. We will, in our love continually express service to our beloved. We are naturally “takers” and must learn in our love to become “givers”. Love is “What can I do to serve you” instead of “what is in it for me”
Love is not provoked: If you love this person you will never be irritated with them. You will not be annoyed with things they do whether simple or deep. In so doing you cannot then bring up such annoyances in arguments as insult. If you love this person you will not find the annoying thing annoying anymore. If you find yourself doing this however now is the time to correct this behavior. It is highly destructive and serves only for pain of both parties. You are first annoyed with something they do then in the future you bring it up in an argument only to hurt them. Do not let yourself be quick to anger either. Let love soothe your mind and do not hold on to such passions.
Love does not take into account a wrong suffered: Love thinks no evil. You must not think to get even with someone and pay them back somehow. You must also not suspect evil of someone. You must give them, as it is said, the benefit of the doubt. Do not indulge your suspicions and do not give into an ill opinion of your beloved. You must be slow and reluctant to believe wrongly anything about them. Instead of seeking out to uncover a lie it seeks to cover. It covers all sins with love and patience and longsuffering.
Love does not rejoice in unrighteousness: love, simply, wishes no ill to anyone. It does not take into matter the sins of the other with delight or rejoicing. It does not rejoice in its own sins. You must respond to the failings of others with compassion and extend a helping hand in restoration. You must not have sport in seeing another’s sins uncovered.
Love rejoices with the truth: love will have great joy every time the expression of truth takes place. It is overjoyed at the righteous application of the knowledge of God’s word, a life being changed, and the growth of faith of the beloved. It seeks justice and blessing.
Love bears all things: love will cover, keep silent, and keep confidential all wrongdoings of the beloved. It will endure and put up with any shortcomings. We must become aware of the nature of the object of our love, and how it is yet only human. We must allow the loved one to expose their faults before us. To “lay here broken and naked” for us to “clothe you in crimson roses” we must seek to protect our loved one from the public rather than to publish their faults for the world to see.
Love believes all things: this is much more directly aimed at giving your beloved the benefit of the doubt. You will believe them until all evidence becomes too overwhelming and then you will confront them but in love and understanding believing them and their reasons the whole way. You will see only the best in your beloved whenever possible.
Love hopes all things: love hopes for the best in the object of the love. You constantly look for the best and encourage and exhort them for all their accomplishments. You must acknowledge the presence of sin however but still look to see the good and the hope in all things.
Love endures all things: Love stands its ground and never gives up. The word here is a military term meaning to hold on regardless of whatever assaults and attacks may come our way. Love should hold on with all its got and never let go. That is where the wedding vows come in. We are commited to what we are doing here in this relationship. I’m gonna be here till I die!
So now that you know what agape love really means I would like to say that a marriage without agape love is not a true marriage at all. It is the purest form of love. Now the next big argument I would like to make is that we in our various natures will feel that love most in certain ways. I would like to suggest reading about the five love languages yourself, but here I will also describe what they are and what they mean in a newly developing relationship. They are Words of affirmation, Quality time, Acts of service, Physical touch, and Gifts. Don’t ever let anybody tell you that one or more of these expressions of love are insignificant or possibly not needed. These aspects of the expression of love must be very prevalent in any relationship whether pre or post marriage. Every individual develops differently psychologically, so his or her individual love language can vary widely. Frequently that person will best express his love for another in his own language just as we English speakers speak English best. However, in a relationship with a person of the opposite sex you may find that the person opposite may have a totally different love language. This is frequently where the confusion arises between partners. They must learn to speak each other’s language and to speak it fluently. Now first I would like to address the problem some of you might have with somebody having the love language of physical touch. You might argue that it isn’t one or that it is somehow wrong or whatever. But I am here to tell you that my own dominant love language is most likely physical touch. This entails anything really. Holding hands while walking, hugging, backrubs, and most obviously kissing. Now this is most definitely a Godly aspect of love. I would challenge any person who thinks otherwise to give Song of Songs (or Song of Solomon) a good read through. God has created the intimacy of physical touch with great purpose.
At this point I would also like to argue against the point of love being just a biological thing. If we reduce “being in love” to just a biological impulse than what have we become?! Of course we have a biological impulse that drives us in this fashion but do not reduce a relationship to that! If you feel like you are in love with somebody than you probably are, but instead of blaming that on hormones and pheromones I would like to point you to what true love is. Have an agape love with your girlfriend/boyfriend and you will not believe where it will take you! Yes you, being newly in love, can have true Agape love. Nothing and nobody can stop you from doing that! So yes, I believe in love at first sight, at least in the regard that it is highly possible to have agape love for someone immediately after seeing them. The reason behind this is that Love is a choice. You all know this very well from reading Ted Dekker’s stuff. What are the things El Elyon loves us by? He Chooses, He Pursues, He Rescues, He Woos, He Protects, He Lavishes! What is the first step? Choosing. It is possible for you to choose to love someone with agape love as soon as you see them. So there! Do not judge a relationship purely on how long it has been going, or on anything else. Judge it on whether you see true agape love or not. Time is a really crappy recommendation for this situation. What is needed is to analyze whether this “love” is currently only biological or whether it is Agape. If it is agape then I would advise moving ahead in the relationship in whatever form that may be. If it isn’t then it doesn’t mean you have to stop the relationship it just means that you need to focus on developing the agape love. Now, this does not mean that whoever you are in love with will respond with reciprocity and so don’t take this as “advice on how to get a girl/guy” but instead take this as advice on how to make sure your love is real and genuine. I am very happy to say that my love for my girlfriend of 3 months is very real and genuine and yes I do intend to eventually marry her. That is another thing to think about there. If you do not dwell on the possibility of marrying the person you love, then what are you doing? You are wasting your own time and theirs. So at this point I think I have answered all the questions I initially asked but I may end up writing a lot more eventually. Thanks for reading all of this and I hope my insight can help here!

The rain falls tall

I would like to post a poem I wrote for my beloved:

The rain falls tall:

the lightning colors her face
shadows fade as the sun sets
flowers bloom in the pale snow
--------she breathes
all sound has been vanquished
my heart remains not
though I know the place
------she trod
softening my soul as
it melts for her,---she breathes
what.---(the touch?)
---passion ripples in
---the shaded night
------------touching
---------touching
------touching
delighting in the culmination of
---h
---e---c
---r---o
-------u
-------n
-------t
-------e-------singing silently
-------n
-------a
-------n------(in beautiful pain)
-------c
-------e
she breathes
completion is
-----------------her eyes wide shut
--------------------flickering
omens~
-------------there is the ocean
------i fall up
---------------neverending sky
caressing my face------[my scars]
---------------------------the Bells??
---running;
------------------the taste
------------sounds like(
-----------------------wet lilies
---on dry snow)---------she breathes
It
---------------------------Ends
what fury! what insanity!
must i continue to accept what is
not mine? farewell i say! good
tidings i give to all that await
me. I go to the one who can
save me from myself
---------------------she---Breathes
i hAve losT mYself ; ?
my plans were not of this burning
what! am I becoming ...........?
she
----touches
-------------my
----------------face
-----I---------------Die
i am in the womb
------------now, contemplating
----------------my death
--my birth
-----------what birth becomes?
I know there is naught else
i have chosen, my will is set
my love festers it
------------breeds and with it my
heart BLEEDS
-------------------------------becomes me
-----------------my love---consumes me
------------------------------decimates me
---our mouths
inexorably embrace

this is her deliverance:
I Breathe

The Puppetmaster is back!

And now to start the show, a sing along.....

Not really, even though that would be dope. I really just want to start my blog up again as a more frequent thing. I really enjoyed doing it before and now I feel would be an excellent time to start up again. I don't know how many people may read it but I don't care. It is just nice to get my thoughts out there.

The first thing I would like to talk about is our future president Barack Obama. I know this is a touchy subject for many people but I would like to say that we all need to support him now regardless of our beliefs. If we do not stand together as one nation then divided we fall. Economic troubles are an example of that. If we do not stand together and work at this problem nothing can be done about it and America as we know it is over. But if we only work together as a nation of free peoples we will come through it and stronger than before. If we do not support Obama than we may fail. Now to those who are dissenting at this point I have this point. Supporting Obama does not have to look like agreeing with everything the liberals say and just following along like a lost puppy. NO! Supporting Obama simply looks like giving respect to the position of authority given to him and to showing that respect to those that voted for him and his ideals. Remember that God is the one who raised up Obama to be president at this time not some evil power. God has a plan for our nation. I do not know if it is a plan I might agree with, but it is best for us. Another thing is how everybody is talking about how he "Is gonna get shot" It annoys me how everybody takes this as a statement of fact. It is a sad world when we talk about how our president is gonna get shot just because of the color of his skin. Sadly I believe there is way too much truth to these statements and I fear for Obama's life and those of his family. I believe the best thing we can do for any president especially this one to show the respect we have for him as president is to pray for him. Thus I urge you all to pray frequently for our future president.

On a sadly related note, about this "THE END OF THE WORLD IS NOW" crap:

Do you guys ever read your bible? We will never know when he comes, it says he will come like a thief in the night. It will be when we least expect it. Another great point comes from a college class I am taking right now called "Perspectives on the world christian movement" It is soooo dope! Anybody that hasn't taken the class needs to! It is a class primarily about the great commission and how Jesus called us to witness to all nations tribes and tongues, somthin we arn't doin too well as christians. Sure christianity is growing in many parts of the world now, but did you know that only 0.5% of our money that we give in offering goes to spreading the gospel? The rest is spent on ourselves. If we are not spending this money correctly that accounts for many of the people who have never heard of christ. We simply are just sitting back and waiting for them to die and go to hell. I know that sounds harsh but isn't it what us "Christians" are doing? I don't think this accuratly displays the love of christ to the world. No wonder the majority of the world that has heard of us thinks we are all stuck up rich people who don't really care. They end up suprised when a true christian shows them true love. The crazy thing is the much of the world has never heard of us at all! Never once seen the love of Christ. Now back on topic....... Oh yeah "the end of the world" Ok, first the end of the world comes when we least expect it as we already established. Second, it comes when we have spread the word of God to every tribe and tongue. (you would be amazed how many languages don't have a bible translated) Third, why are you worrying about yourself? We won't even be here for the bad parts! Who you need to worry about are those that you could be telling about Christ but you have never done so! Sacrifice your popularity, your money, your time, your shirt off your back for those that need to hear! Read your bible if you want to know more about the end. Don't listen to the quacks. Listen to the WORD

This ends my newest edition of RANT LIKE CRAZY!

In Closing

The rest of the game was largely uneventful, and concluded in the same way, on a thurday. All of the last info is listed below.

05-08-2008

5/8/2008: Urgent, from the Overseer
TO: THE CIRCLE

FROM: THE OVERSEER

SUBJECT: 5.8.2008

5/8/2008: Urgent, from the Overseer

I have several updates for you this morning in the search for the lost Book of History.

Last week, members of the Circle de-ciphered a cryptic photograph that was found on Jack Stroud's hard drive. Embedded in the photo was a puzzle that, when solved, yielded the numbers "787683". The numbers turned out to be the remaining digits of an IP address our intelligence technicians gleaned from Stroud's hard drive.

We accessed the website this morning using the word "Paradise", which the Circle recently discovered had been hidden in a book titled "Chaos". We found what appears to be an incomplete set of 27 GPS coordinates stretching from a desert location in Nevada to a castle in the south of France. I have sent operatives to 14 of the sites, but the Book has yet to be found. We are working right now to piece the rest together, but we are missing some parts to the puzzle.

But, things seem to be turning a corner...

*UPDATE ON THE SEARCH FOR KARA*

This morning at approximately 2:30 a.m., an Alabama state trooper was patrolling a stretch of I-65. Barely visible through the rain, he saw a figure standing in the middle of the road. He swerved and barely missed the person, whom he thought was a desperate hitchhiker caught in the storm. When he got out of his cruiser he noticed it was a woman, swaying on the brink of unconsciousness. When he stepped closer and saw her bruises and the skin on her wrists rubbed raw and bleeding, he knew that she had survived something more sinister than a bad night in the rain.

She reached out to steady herself and collapsed. The officer caught her, radioed for medical help, and held her until the ambulance arrived. Before she passed out, the officer asked about her name. "Kara," she said. When he asked why she was clutching a small wooden elephant, she just smiled and said, "They never forget what they're told."

Kara was transported to a Birmingham hospital, where she is being treated for hypothermia and some mild injuries. I spoke with her briefly a little over two hours ago. She is battered, but in good spirits. She remembers very little about her ordeal, except her initial attack and abduction, then later when she awoke in a dark room tied to a chair.

She hopes to give us a full account of her story later today, as well as some information she says Black stole from Stroud. Information that she now has and hopes will lead us to the Book. I am scheduled to talk with her again this afternoon and will pass everything I learn on to you as I have it.

The Overseer

05-08-2008

From Kara (5.8.08)

Members of the Circle,

As the Overseer mentioned earlier, it's been a harrowing couple of weeks for me.� Some of it I remember clearly.� Some of it not at all. Most of it is fuzzy like an old picture that was shot just out of focus.

It all started when I flew to Nevada at the Overseer's request to witness Stroud's arrest.� After EMT's took Stroud to the hospital, I returned to my hotel to gather my things and fly back to meet the Overseer.� When I stepped into my room I was hit from behind.� I held onto consciousness only long enough to get a worms eye view of the carpet and my attacker's silver-tipped cowboy boots.

The next few hours come and go from my memory.� I remember being in a trunk with a red pillowcase over my head.� At first I thought it had been a different color at one time and was stained with my own blood, but it wasn't.� I remember the hum of tires like we were on an expressway, then pavement surrendering to gravel.� Once or twice we stopped and the trunk popped open.� Someone tugged at the zip-ties binding my hands and feet then would slam the lid.

Then darkness and the stink of exhaust.

The next time I gained consciousness I was sitting in a chair, hands tied behind me and a blanket covering me.� Then I heard his voice as if he was recording a message.� Black.� When he was done he kicked my chair over and my head slammed into the concrete floor.� When I awoke, the zip-ties and pillowcase were gone and my hands were handcuffed around a greenish copper pipe that disappeared into the ceiling above me.� A slow trickle of water ran down the pole and into the hole in the floor.

I didn't know how long I had been there until today.� Each one blended and faded with the next.� I heard nothing but the drip of water and the occasional gust of wind.� No voices.� No footsteps.� Nothing.

The first couple of days were spent trying to find a way to escape.� I shimmied up the pipe, hoping I could slip my chains over the top somehow.� Each time I slid down. I pulled at the pole.� I screamed.� A lot. I tugged at the handcuffs until my hands bled.� Nothing.� Pulled some more until my hands throbbed and felt like they had been shoved into a bonfire.I did this every day.� For hours I did it.� I would work and struggle, then slurp some of the water from the pipe.� It tasted like old pennies, but there was nothing else I could do.�� Work.� Sip water.� Sleep.� Work. Sip water.� Sleep.� It seemed this basement, or whatever it was, would turn into a tomb within a matter of days.

They say that people who survive extraordinary situations come to a place where they become detached from themselves, look at the situation from above it, and decide to do whatever it takes to survive.� I had one of those moments and knew that no one was coming.� No one knew where I was.� I realized what I had to do.

I had once seen a special on an escape artist.� The story went that he would slip out of his cuffs by dislocating his thumb, which caused the hand to collapse in on itself so he could tug it through the cuff.� I thought it was worth a try, so I slid my hands down the pipe toward the hole in the floor.� The hole was small enough and the cuff just loose enough that I could jam my hand between the pipe and side of the hole and lever my thumb with my full body weight.� I still get queasy thinking about it, but suffice it to say that the soft "pop" of my bone brought with it a whole galaxy of stars that lit up my head.

When I awoke, I was drenched in sweat and staring at the ceiling.� But, my hand was free of the handcuff.

I left the house, which was nothing more than a shack in the middle of the woods.� But, on my way out I came across a pile of clothes and papers in what was the front room.� I assume they were Stroud's belongings, which Black had taken.� I went through them, but found nothing worth a second glance other than a small wooden elephant.� For whatever reason I picked it up and slipped it into my pocket.

Two days later I stumbled onto a freeway, where a state trooper found me.

I am on the mend, but there is one thing you should know:� that elephant wasn't just a trinket.� I was looking at it this morning and noticed a fine seam that ran along its back, from head to tail.� I slid a fingernail into it and the carving split into two halves.� Inside it was some sort of memory drive.� I remember thinking, how secretive can one man be?� I sent the drive to the Overseer for analysis. I think the elephant is symbolic and my hope is that it is the final piece to the puzzle.

As far as Black, I don't know where he is or what he found in Stroud's bag.� But, I think he had the key in his hand and tossed it aside as a worthless toy.� We're about to find out.

Talk with you all soon. Dive deep.

Kara

05-15-2008

The Books of History

Members of the Circle,

At 6:23 this morning, thanks to the hard work and insight you have all provided, our intelligence team was able to fully access Stroud's list and learn the three locations we've all been searching for.� We believe that Stroud hid three books, and one of them is the Lost Book of History.� According to information we received before he died, we know that, of the three, one is authentic and two are replicas.� Attached are actual reference photos we found in Stroud's file.� He apparently took them before hiding the books.� Thanks to you, the Circle will have all three in its possession within the next few days.

After we have confirmed the coordinates and which cities the books appear to be hidden, we will select three members of the Circle to go to the specified locations and retrieve the Books.� So that we can keep this information as confidential as possible (we know that Marsuvees Black frequents this site), we will hand select the operatives and contact them directly.� Once they have been notified and are en route to the secure the Books we will update the rest of the Circle.

This has been a long and trying time for us all, and even now we are not yet finished. But, the end is finally upon us.� On behalf of the Overseer I want to thank all of you for what you have done.� Only Elyon knows what would have happened if you had decided to stand on the sidelines and let history be written by our enemies.� Instead, you rose to the challenge and decided it was not enough to simply stand by. � You made a difference.� You made history.� Only when we return the book to Kara will we know how the story ends...if such stories end at all.

The Overseer had hoped to send this message, but he is out of the country on urgent business and will return just in time to celebrate at the Gathering.�� He said to simply tell you to dive deep, never break the circle, and always be mindful of what lies beneath the skin of this life.� For three of you, the adventure with this one book has one more step to it.� But, for all of us, the story has just really begun.� I will be in touch with you shortly once those whom Elyon has decided will retrieve the books have been chosen.

Until then, dive deeply friends,

Paradise Sage

BTW, for those who have been wondering, Professor Abraham is well and sends his greetings.� For reasons I still cannot tell you, he has stayed among the shadows until another time.� But, do not worry friends, he is well.

05-22-2008

The Chosen Members of the Circle,Over the past week I have sent operatives to eleven locations that we gleaned from Stroud's files in the hope that the Book of History is hidden at one of them.

The good news: we found books at each of the locations, all of which were stolen and all of which we were able to return to their rightful owners. The bad news: none of them were the one Book we are looking for. But...

Three locations remain, and three members of the Circle have been chosen to go to those locations. One of them will find the Book. I cannot yet tell you who the three are or the specifics of where they are going just yet. They have been instructed to go "dark" until they have recovered the Books.

All I can tell you is the 3 books are at locations in GA, SC, and NC. This we have CONFIRMED. Know that I am communicating with the Chosen Ones directly and they will be en route shortly. They have been instructed to recover the books and document their findings, which we will share with the rest of you.

Many of you would have given your lives to recover the Book of History. For that I am endlessly thankful. But while many were called, only three could be chosen. We will know soon which of them holds the true Book. I want to express my heartfelt thanks to those who have searched tirelessly, and given their time and commitment to the search. To the finding the truth. I owe you a debt of gratitude, which I cannot repay in this lifetime. Someday I will thank you each face to face.

Dive deep, friends. I will contact you all again one last time after we have the Book in hand. Our search is hurtling to a close and will undoubtedly end in the next 48 hours when the Book is back in the Circle's possession. And then...then, the story really begins.

Desperate for Elyon,

The Overseer

05-31-2008

The End. For now...

**The Lost Book of History Has Been Recovered**

This morning, the Chosen three members of the Circle retrieved the hidden Books of History that Stroud hid.� We have confirmed that, as expected, two of them were replicas and one of them was authentic.� So, friends, the Book has been recovered!

Julie P. of Castle Hayne, NC, located the authentic Book and retrieved it before Marsuvees Black reached it. � As a thank you to Julie, she will be receiving a 2008 Chevy Cobalt.

Robert S. of Cayce, SC, retrieved the second Book and will be receiving a home entertainment system.

Diane P. of Douglasville, GA, retrieved the third Book.� She will be receiving an Apple MacBook and an iPod.

Thank you to everyone who gave their all in the search for the Lost Book.� But, now that we have the Book, the adventure has just begun.� The stakes have never been higher, and the fate of the world depends on what we do today...tomorrow...the next day.� Let us rise to the challenge, lovers of Elyon.� May we dive deeper than ever before, and find our place in this, the greatest Story ever told.� The Story of Elyon.� Paradise's story.� Our Story.

Until we meet face to face...Dive Deep.

There was also a bit more coversation with david abraham and marsuvees black and so it is here:

Hello friends.

Let's talk. What kinds of questions do you have for me? I'll answer what I can.

Robert Stenton's ranch.(answering the question of where he was hiding)

There are a number of sensitive issues--both politic and spiritual--that I have had to attend to. If you would like, I will tell you what happened the night I disappeared.

Bear with me. Everyone on here posts so fast. I can only type with two fingers. I suppose I'm a techno dinosaur that way.

I have an office that only a few people know about. I go there to write, to pray, to work when I need to be close but "away".

I had been working non-stop for three days. I was going on about four hours of sleep. Both Kara and I had tracked down some leads on the Book of History. We were close, but as you know, someone had ...

It was the middle of the night. I was already jittery from what had happened earlier. The Overseer was worried about me and said that if Black found my house, he could find my office. He said it wasn't safe. But, after all, what is "safe" anymore? Life itself is amazing dangerous...and adventurous.

So, I decided to stay. It proved to be the wrong choice and the right one all at the same time. I knew that Black was coming. I had seen him earlier that night. The only way I could keep him from the Book was to stay one step ahead of him no matter the consequence. I went to my office, compiled the data and leads that I could and sent them to Kara. I was certain of my own death that night.

My suspicions were true. Midway through my transmission I heard a car pull into the garage below my office. For once I was thankful for the thin walls and floors of the building. Being 3 a.m. give or take, I knew it meant one thing: Black had found me. At best, I knew I had 2, maybe 3, minutes.

By the time I hit "SEND" on my message to Kara, I heard the front door to my office open. Within seconds he was inside my office...but it wasn't Black. The man standing in my office was hooded and had a softer face. Who it was, I don't know. But, it wasn't Black. He said nothing. Then he smashed my security camera and came after me. Then,

The hooded man said nothing. He just came over and hit me once with a tire iron. As I was going down I heard a loud explosion that I later learned was the back door of my office. When I came to, I was in an ambulance with two armed men sitting next to me.

One of the men, his name was Kevin, said that the Overseer had sent him and a couple others to keep an eye on me. They entered the building through the back, blew the door off and rushed in just as the hooded man was dragging me out. The hooded man dropped me and bolted from the office. Kevin took care of me, while the other man gave chase.

To answer the question about my office...my office is just a rented suite in a much larger space with multiple entrances.

The hooded man escaped, but the man who pursued him (Jonas, I believe his name was) said that he was no ordinary man. Jonas chased the hooded man across the highway and through a car dealership on the other side of the street. He said the man turned, lifted his hands in the air. When he did so, two cars lifted off the ground and spun in the air. Then the man "threw" them toward Jonas. Luckily, he got out of the way, but it bought the hooded man just enough time to escape.

Kevin and Jonas took me to the Stenton ranch that night, something the Overseer had arranged because he knew that my attacker would not miss the second time around. So, that is where I stayed. I communicated only with the Overseer. I needed Black to believe that, if i wasn't dead, I was at least "out of the game" so to speak.

I was secretly working behind the scenes. It was safer for Kara that way, I hope you understand. Now, here we stand within reach of the Books. My hope is that we reach them before Black does. But, I'm confident we'll get there first.

Well, my friends, I must be going. Unfortunately, I won't be able to attend the soon coming Gathering. Though I suspect there are others in the "inner circle" who will walk among you there. The Overseer always has a Guard watching his back. And sometimes they are the most unlikely of people. Dive deep, dear friends. I hope that we will meet face to face some day. And to Kevin and Jonas, if you're reading this, thank you. David Abraham 5/15/08

and then there was black, but he said nothing of significance.

sudoku and tengwar

The other day we recieved our newest update:

May 1, 2008: One Step Closer

Members of the Circle, our situation is desperate. The one person who knows where the Book is, Jack Stroud, is dead. Marsuvees Black has fallen off the grid, a fact that could mean far worse than I want to imagine. And Kara is still missing.

Our efforts to examine Stroud's hard drive have yielded little that seems helpful: A list of books that appears to be an inventory of the titles he's brokering and , uncovered just this morning, a locked file, a partial IP address and a photo. We have been working on the locked file all morning, but with no success. Since Stroud appeared to be enamored with cryptography, I believe the photo may hold the key to either the locked file or the website that awaits at the IP address. Hopefully, the book's location will be revealed in one of those two places.

Examine the photo and email Paradise.Sage@yahoo.com with your findings. Remember, we are probably looking for a series of numbers or what may appear to be a password.

Let us not give up hope. We are close. We have to be.

Godspeed,

The Overseer

Click HERE for Photo

the photo gave us a sudoku and a word in another font which we could not translate at first. We eventually soved this also. When soved the sudoku shows the numbers corresponding to the word "stroud" as on a cell phone. This is similar to the 335537 which is also dekker on a phone. The font in the image was found to be tengwar, an elvish font. Here are the letters:

http://www.fontriver.com/i/maps/tengwar_gandalf_map.png

the word translates to:

"where is the key?" The previous clue led us to the message saying "paradise is the key" so where is paradise? that is the question we must answer soon.