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20 Jul 2011

Beyond the Farthest Star: Chapter 6

Posted by joncooper. Comments Off on Beyond the Farthest Star: Chapter 6

After saying goodbye to Jones, Amanda Stryker walked out of the Golden Spire and headed down the street. She had no particular destination in mind; she just wanted to walk through the city and spend some time thinking. It was a beautiful day and there was something incredibly appealing about being outside. It’s too nice a day to spend indoors, she thought. Besides, there’s so much to see! It’s so strange, walking down the street and hearing angels tell you hello. I wonder how long it takes to get used to living here.

As she walked down the sidewalk she heard a voice calling out behind her. She turned around and saw Reverend Knight sitting on a bench.

“Oh – hey there!” Amanda exclaimed. “I didn’t see you sitting there.”

“As I noticed,” the preacher replied, smiling. He laid down the book he had been reading and gestured to the seat beside him. “Do you have time to sit down for a while, or are you on your way to some pressing engagement?”

“No, I’m not busy,” the girl said. She sat down beside him and glanced at the book he had been reading. “Is that a calculus textbook?” she asked in surprise.

“It is indeed! It’s been such a long time since I’ve studied mathematics that I wanted to go back to the basics. I actually have a degree in math, you know. In fact, I was on my way toward becoming a mathematician before the Lord called me to preach.”

“You were? I mean, seriously? I didn’t know you cared about math!”

“Oh, I was quite fascinated by it! I simply didn’t have the time to pursue that interest before. But now things are different. I’m really quite excited about it.”

“Really?” Amanda asked dubiously. “But – I mean, it’s math. I can see how it was important in our old life, but why does it matter now? Aren’t there, I don’t know, more spiritual things to do?”

“But this is a spiritual matter,” Reverend Knight replied. “After all, the laws of mathematics are just as much the laws of God as the Ten Commandments. They both have the same author and they both reflect upon the character of the Holy One. Their purposes are quite different, but they both play an important part in our world. Looking deeper into mathematics gives insights into the One who created it in the first place – it is a testament to His greatness, not to mention His sense of order and reason.”

“I guess,” Amanda said. “It still doesn’t seem very spiritual, though.”

“That’s the way people thought in the shadowlands, Amanda. They divided the world up into categories. On the one side were spiritual things – prayer, Bible study, preaching, attending church. On the other side were secular things – the sciences, the arts, sports, the physical world, and so forth. But that’s not the way God sees it. The sciences are not a secular pursuit because they are a study of the world that God created, and that world declares the glory of God. The arts do not exist simply for their own sake, but to glorify the One that gave mankind artistic talent. God authored the Bible and our genetic code, and they both reflect measures of who He is. His fingerprints are everywhere – and to search out the mysteries He has scattered all over the universe is very much a spiritual thing. Or it can be, if you are looking at it from that perspective.

“You see, Amanda, the Lord wants to be glorified in everything that we do. Even in the shadowlands, being a disciple of Jesus was not something that was restricted to Sunday mornings. It permeated every aspect of our lives – the decisions we made, the way we spent our time, and even the things that we said. Even mundane tasks such as paying the bills or repairing the house touched on it, because caring for one’s family and treating our neighbors as we want to be treated was very much something God cared about. Our whole life is a spiritual matter because all of it belongs to Him.”

“I see what you mean,” the girl replied. “It’s just not what I expected. I kind of thought we’d be sitting around on a cloud, strumming a harp or something. I didn’t expect to find a city, with buildings and streets and things going on. It’s just weird.”

The preacher smiled. “I know. Many people are equally surprised. But think about it for a moment. Did it really make sense that an engineer’s only opportunity to use his technical abilities for the glory of God was during his short life, and then for all the rest of eternity he would simply do nothing? Or that a scientist would only be able to study God’s creation while living in a fallen would, and would be unable to do so after reaching a perfect world? After all, the first person in the Bible that was said to be full of the Spirit wasn’t a preacher, but was a craftsman named Bezaleel. The Lord created us to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever, and the way we do that is by using the abilities He gave us – both in our past life and in this one as well.”

“But what about doctors?” Amanda asked. “I don’t see any hospitals around here. Or funeral homes, for that matter.”

“That’s quite true! There are some professions that, thankfully, are no longer needed. I suspect you will find no undertakers here who want to go back to the time when their skills were necessary. But there are many activities that are not tied to a fallen world. Had Adam and Eve not sinned, they would have gone on to populate the world and their descendents would have developed the sciences, the arts, economics, and so forth. There is nothing evil about any of these things and in the right place they can bring glory to God. Here we see these things in their proper place, being used for their intended purpose.”

“I understand,” Amanda replied. “I was just expecting something very different.”

“I don’t think any of us really knew what it would mean to live in the very presence of God. There were hints, of course, in the Scriptures – Isaiah and John both wrote about it – but words alone simply could not convey what it’s like to be in the presence of such holiness and greatness. That is what makes this place so incredible. Not its buildings, or its wonders, but its Lord. In life it was so difficult to keep God at the center, but here it is natural – in fact, it’s impossible to imagine doing anything else.”

Amanda nodded. “I agree. This is a good place to be, and now that I’m here I have no desire to be anywhere else. But – well, I’m confused. I didn’t expect to feel sad here.”

“That’s what was on your mind when you walked by, wasn’t it?” Reverend Knight asked. “You care deeply about your sister and you feel compassion for her, and that feeling surprised you.”

“Right! I mean, after all, didn’t the Bible say something about there being no more sorrow or pain? I didn’t just imagine that, did I?”

“No, you did not imagine it. The Lord did make that promise. He said that after Judgment Day, when death and evil were finally eliminated, He would create a new heavens and a new earth. In this new place there would no longer be sorrow, or crying, or pain, for the former things are passed away. But that has not happened yet. The shadowlands have not yet been supplanted by a new and more perfect world.

“Tell me this, Amanda. Do you believe that God cares about the people who still live in the shadowlands? Do you think He feels their pain and has compassion toward them, or is He indifferent?”

“Of course He cares!” Amanda exclaimed.

“Well, if He cares, doesn’t it make sense that you would care as well? After all, you now live in His country. If He is grieved, then isn’t it natural for you to grieve with Him? To put it another way – did you think that after you got here and became a sinless immortal you would care less about your sister than you did before? Or that you would be less tenderhearted and compassionate than you were when you still battled sin and darkness?”

“Oh,” Amanda said. “I see what you mean. But – what am I supposed to do? I mean, she’s there and I’m here.”

“You can trust Jesus to take care of her,” Reverend Knight replied. “She’s not alone, you know. In fact, she is now among friends. Miles and Noel will take care of her. She will be all right, Amanda.”

“I know, and you’re right. But it won’t be easy on her.”

“No, it won’t. The Lord’s will is rarely easy. Your sister has a particularly difficult task – she is being asked to do a rare and difficult thing. But these hard times will not last forever. It will not be long before Amy’s work is done and the Lord will call her home.”

“That will be a good day,” Amanda replied.

Reverend Knight smiled. “Yes, it will.”

20 Jul 2011

I Timothy 4:8

Posted by joncooper. Comments Off on I Timothy 4:8

I Timothy 4:8: “For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.”

Today’s culture is obsessed with exercise. People spend long, grueling hours every week trying to get into shape. I’m not going to say that this is a waste of time, but notice what this verse says. Whatever benefits you might get out of exercising, the benefits of godliness are far greater.

Stop and think about it. No matter how much you exercise, you will eventually die. You may be the most physically fit person in the world but you’re still going to die, just like everyone else. Exercise cannot deliver you from Hell or make you right with God. Holiness is far more important and far less prized. Many people who spend endless hours exercising have no interest in spending even one hour pursuing godliness. They care a great deal about their health but they seem to have little interest in their soul.

The point of these verses is not “stop exercising”. What Paul is saying is that we need to keep our priorities straight. Godliness is far more important than exercise and we desperately need to pursue it. If we’ve reached a point where our health is more important than our soul then we’ve made a very bad mistake. As Christians we must not adopt our culture’s values. The lost may choose to rigorously exercise while leading immoral lives, but we must not follow them. Take the better road – seek holiness instead. The return on investment is much greater.

19 Jul 2011

Books That Might Have Been: Starman #14, The Children of Neptune

Posted by joncooper. Comments Off on Books That Might Have Been: Starman #14, The Children of Neptune

This is a mocked-up cover for the unwritten book Starman #14, The Children of Neptune. It was one of the books that we originally planned to write and even created a brief plot summary for, but ultimately ended up skipping.

If you would like to read the proposed plot for the book, simply click on the image below to see a higher-resolution scan.

(I do not know who created the cover artwork, but it was not me.)

17 Jul 2011

Rules of Interpretation

Posted by joncooper. Comments Off on Rules of Interpretation

These days people interpret the Bible in a great many different ways. In fact, people apparently have no problem in coming up with their own ways to interpret the Scriptures. However, the idea that there is no right or wrong way to interpret the Bible is a fallacy. Think about it: if that really were the case then that would mean you could apply any meaning whatsoever to any passage, and if any verse can mean whatever you want it to mean then it doesn’t actually mean anything at all. (Imagine interpreting a contract this way: what would happen if each person was allowed to interpret their agreements in any way they wanted? What do you think would happen?)

The truth is that there is a right way and a wrong way to interpret the Bible. Each verse actually means something; it does not mean whatever you want it to mean. Our job as Christians is to understand what the Bible actually means, not to reinterpret it to say what we want it to say.

A complete discussion on how to interpret the Bible is more than I want to tackle at this time. However, I do want to offer four rules that, if followed, will make it much easier to discover what the Bible actually teaches.

The rules are:
 

1. If plain sense makes sense, seek no other sense.

What this means is that if the Scripture can be taken literally then it should be taken literally. A symbolic or “spiritual” interpretation should only be used when a literal interpretation makes no sense or when the passage is clearly symbolic.

For example, Joshua 8:28 says this:

Joshua 8:28: “And Joshua burnt Ai, and made it an heap forever, even a desolation unto this day.
29 And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide: and as soon as the sun was down, Joshua commanded that they should take his carcass down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise thereon a great heap of stones, that remaineth unto this day.”

If this passage is interpreted literally then it makes a great deal of sense: it records the destruction of the city of Ai and the death of its king. Since the passage makes sense when interpreted literally then it should be interpreted literally.

If this rule is ignored and verses are interpreted “spiritually” (or allegorically) then the passage can be interpreted to mean anything, in which case it means nothing at all. One person could say that this passage teaches that Christians are to resist evil, or that Israel will be victorious against its foes, or that the judgment of the Lord is sure. But since these verses can be made to mean anything they no longer have a meaning at all, and are just pieces of clay that can be bent into any shape that is desired. It ceases to teach and becomes a blank slate. This violates one of the prime directives of Scripture:

2 Peter 1:20: “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation.”

What this verse means is that Scripture does not mean arbitrarily different things to different people, but it has the same meaning for everyone. If you are interpreting a verse in such a way that the verse can mean anything then you are interpreting it wrong.
 

2. Interpret Scripture with Scripture

When the Bible does speak symbolically the symbols it uses must be interpreted by other passages within the Bible. It is never acceptable to just assign one’s own meaning to the symbol. Moreover, the Scripture usually interprets a given symbol consistently, so if a symbol has a certain meaning in one passage then it almost always has that same meaning in all other passages as well – and if it doesn’t the Bible will note the difference and offer an explanation.

For example, take Revelation 1:12-13:

Revelation 1:12: “And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;
13 And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.”

This passage mentions seven golden candlesticks. Some might assign their own definition to that symbol and say that, to them, candlesticks represent light shining in the darkness, or a beacon of hope in a sea of despair, or any number of things. However, the Bible defines its own terms: if you want to find out what it means by candlesticks then you must search the Word of God for the definition. Arbitrarily assigning your own meaning to the symbols used in the Bible is wrong, for it ignores the Bible’s own definitions and that will always lead to incorrect interpretations.

In this case the definition of the candlestick symbol is found just a few verses further down in the chapter:

Revelation 1:20: “The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.”

So then, we can see that the seven candlesticks represent seven churches. If we had interpreted that symbol to suit ourselves then we would have been in error. A great many people interpret Revelation incorrectly because they do not use other Bible passages to interpret its symbolism. Revelation does have a lot of symbolic language, but the language that it uses is explained in other passages. Instead of doing their homework, however, people are content to assign their own meanings to the symbols they find, and the result is chaos and error.
 

3. Context is everything

When reading the Bible it is very important to keep in mind the context. Verses in the Bible do not float in deep space all by themselves; they are found in passages and in books and were given to specific people at specific times. In order to understand what the verse is teaching you must know both the textual context and the historical context.

The textual context is extremely important to understanding what is going on. For example, take this passage in 2 Kings. In this passage an Assyrian by the name of Rab-shakeh was talking to the Israelites and was urging them to surrender. During his speech he said this:

2 Kings 18:22: “But if ye say unto me, We trust in the Lord our God: is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?”

Rab-shakeh is wrong: the high places and altars Hezekiah had destroyed were an abomination to God and had been used to serve the false gods of the Canaanites. However, to understand that you have to have read other parts of the Bible and understand what it means when it talks about high places. In this verse the Bible is accurately reporting what Rab-shakeh said, but what he said was wrong. The only way to discover this is to be familiar with the whole story.

Another example can be found in the book of John. In the seventh chapter the chief priests and Pharisees are arguing with Nicodemus about Jesus and one of the Pharisees says this:

John 7:52: “They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.”

In this passage the Pharisees make two mistakes. First, Jesus did not come from Galilee; He was born in Bethlehem. Second, there was indeed a prophet that came out of Galilee: Jonah, who is actually quite famous. However, in order to know this you have to be familiar with other portions of the Scripture. If you only look at this one verse you will come away with a mistaken interpretation that Jesus was from Galilee or that no prophets had ever come from Galilee. The verse must be taken in context in order to understand what is going on.

The cultural context is also very important. The Bible was written to specific people that lived at a specific time and it assumes that those reading it have the knowledge of its original intended audience. The book of Ephesians, for example, was written to a specific group of people that lived in Ephesus. Some pieces of knowledge were taken for granted; after all, if you lived there then you would know what was going on so there was no need to get into big explanations. If we do not understand the culture of the people to whom the Bible was written then we will form erroneous conclusions.

For example, take this passage in Revelation:

Revelation 2:17: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.”

To us the gift of a white stone has no particular meaning. However, in ancient times if you were tried for a crime and found not guilty you were given a white stone. The stone signified that the charges against you had been dropped. When Christ offers to give “him that overcometh” a white stone He is saying that He will not find them guilty of their sins but will declare them innocent. The entire meaning of the white stone becomes lost if we do not understand the cultural background.
 

4. Mind the gaps

Sometimes in Scripture, especially in prophecies, there are gaps. A single verse may cover two entirely different periods of time but the verse itself will not indicate that there is a gap between the first and second part of the prophecy.

For example, take this passage in Luke:

Luke 4:16: “And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to peach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this Scripture fulfilled in your years.”

Jesus quoted from the prophet Isaiah. However, if we look at the passage He was quoting we will find something interesting:

Isaiah 61:1: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;”

In Isaiah we can see that Christ stopped at a comma in verse two. Only the first part of the prophecy – up to the comma – was fulfilled. The rest of the prophecy is still in the future. In Isaiah 61 there is no hint that a vast amount of time separates the “acceptable year of the Lord” and the “day of vengeance of our God”, but yet that is the case.

In order to find these gaps we must be very careful with the Scripture. The gaps can be found by taking passages that deal with the same subject and comparing them with each other. As the pieces of the puzzle are fit together it becomes obvious that there are gaps, or that one passage includes details that are omitted in the other. In order to get a complete picture one must use all of the pieces.

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16 Jul 2011

Earle Neil Kinder: Modern Technology

Posted by joncooper. Comments Off on Earle Neil Kinder: Modern Technology

At one time this brave new machine represented the latest in modern technology! That was a long time ago…

Modern technology

15 Jul 2011

Beyond the Farthest Star: Chapter 5

Posted by joncooper. Comments Off on Beyond the Farthest Star: Chapter 5

After Amy left her nameless world the Sentinel remained their for a while, partly to see if she would return and partly because he did not know what else to do. He quietly stood on the beach and looked out over the ocean. Occasionally he would scan the Tau Ceti system to see if Amy was trying to get through the wall, but he detected no activity.

As he studied Xanthe to see if she had returned he realized with a start that the people there needed his help. When the Artilect had sent out the electromagnetic pulse it had destroyed all of the equipment on the planet – including the pods that housed the planet’s hundreds of thousands of residents. All of those pods were now burnt out, and the people that used to reside in them were trapped inside the vault. On top of that, the vault’s lighting system had been destroyed, along with the only elevator that could take them to the surface. They were all prisoners of darkness, with no way to escape. If someone did not do something they would eventually run out of air and suffocate.

The Sentinel was about to leap into action when he stopped himself. This is not my place. I am the servant, not the master. It is not up to me to decide the fate of these people. Amy should be the one to make that decision. I am not authorized to intervene.

But you have already intervened, the Sentinel suddenly realized. Amy had decided on a course of action and you stepped in and stopped her. She is now gone and may never return. For better or worse, the fate of those people is now in your hands. You cannot drive Amy away and at the same time expect her to help them. You will have to take care of them – at least until Amy returns.

This thought deeply disturbed the Sentinel. I had to intervene to save them; I could not let Amy kill them all. That would have been wrong. But yet, in doing so I have gone beyond my authority. Now I have to go beyond my authority again and take care of them. They need someone to save them and I am all that they have. But after I rescue them from the vault I must find Amy and resolve our conflict. These people need a human to watch over them, not a machine. This is not what I was meant to do.

The Sentinel left Amy’s world and transported himself through space to the planet Xanthe, using his control of the Wall to access the protected system. After he reached Vault 37 he quickly surveyed the situation. He knew it was going to be dark, so that did not surprise him. But what he did not expect was the level of sheer panic that he encountered. The screams of desperate people echoed through the cavernous rooms. Some people were crying while others desperately flailed about. A few were on their hands and knees, crawling on the floor toward what they hoped was an exit. Most people were still in their pods, crying out for help but not getting any answers. All of them were old and frail and in a state of compete terror.

Not knowing what else to do, the Sentinel used his abilities to transport all of them to the surface of Xanthe. One moment they were in the vault, crying for help, and the next moment they were on a hill that overlooked Star City, blinking in the sunlight. The Sentinel thought that this would calm them down, but it did not. Within moments the crowd of hundreds of thousands of people was screaming in panic once again.

“Where’s my synthetic world?”

“What is this horrible place?”

“I won’t be treated like this, do you hear me?”

“How dare you interrupt me! Who do you think you are?”

“Who’s responsible for this outrage?”

“I want this fixed immediately! I don’t belong out here!”

As the Sentinel watched, the crowd began turning on each other. “It was you, wasn’t it?” someone screamed. “No, it must have been him!” Wild accusations began flying and people started screaming at each other.

I have to do something before they start hurting each other, the Sentinel thought. Perhaps if I explain what is going on they will calm down. With this in mind the Sentinel appeared in front of the group, taking on the form of a tall gentleman wearing a gray suit and hat.

“Excuse me, everyone,” he called out. “If I might have your attention I’d like to explain what is going on.”

When he called out to them the crowd grew silent. They stopped screaming at each other and turned around. When they saw that he wasn’t one of them they began yelling at him, demanding to be returned to their pods. The angry mob began to move in his direction.

The Sentinel quickly jumped off the ground and hovered about thirty feet in the air. From that height the mob could not reach him and he had a better view of the group as a whole. He once again tried to address the group. “People, please! If I can have your attention for a few moments I would appreciate it. I’d like to explain what is going on.”

The noise died down somewhat, but some people still kept shouting. The Sentinel decided to simply talk louder. “Ladies and gentlemen, I have come here to tell you that your pods have been permanently deactivated. Vault 37 is no longer functioning. I have transported you out of the vault and to the surface of your world so that you can continue your lives. The city that you see in the distance is Star City, your capitol. It will be your new home.”

As soon as he said that their pods had been destroyed the crowd erupted in screaming. Everyone was intensely angry. The clamor was so loud that the Sentinel found it difficult to hear what they were shouting, but the message was clear. The people wanted to go back into their pods.

“I am afraid that will not be possible,” the Sentinel called out. “Your pods have been destroyed and they will not be repaired. You will have to continue your lives here, in the real world.”

This only angered the crowd further. The Sentinel realized that the crowd was not going to calm down, so he turned his attention away from the angry mob and focused on Star City itself. When Amanda rebuilt the city she restored all of its systems, but the Artilect’s EMP had ruined them. While the buildings were still intact, none of their systems worked. The city was dead. These people cannot live in a dead city. They need a place with food and water, and Star City no longer has any of these things. If I do not fix this they will die, just as surely as if I had left them in the darkness of the vault.

The Sentinel considered restoring the city to operation, but he was hesitant to do so. There may still be bot technology there, or perhaps records that could be used to rebuild the swarms. Restoring the city is simply too dangerous, as I do not know what it contains. However, these people must have a place to live. This means I need to construct a temporary home for them that can shelter them until Amy returns.

As the crowd screamed at him, the Sentinel searched through his memory and found the plans for an immense, mile-high skyscraper. The building had everything that was needed to support life – food, water, housing, apartments, schools, libraries, and a great deal more. It was an entire city in a single building.

Satisfied that this would give the crowd a good place to live for the time being, the Sentinel searched the nearby area and found an empty field that was not far from where the mob was located. He then used the nanites Amanda had left in the planet’s atmosphere to turn the field into programmable matter. Ten minutes later the skyscraper rose out of the ground. The slender blue building soared high into the air, the sun shining off of its glass walls. I christen you the Tower of the Sparrow, he thought. At least this building will serve as a memorial to the crew of that ill-fated ship. They may have no graves, but at least they have this.

By now the crowd had started to disperse. Groups of people were still shouting at him, but others had grown bored and walked away. “Attention, everyone,” the Sentinel cried out. “At the moment Star City is not functional. Until it has been repaired you can live in the giant building that you see just south of this hill. The Tower of the Sparrow contains food and water. You will also find housing there. It should meet your needs for the time being.”

A few people started climbing down the hill toward the tower, but the rest of the mob simply scattered. At first the Sentinel was confused, until he realized that they had formed search parties and were looking for their pods. He considered telling them that they were wasting their time but decided against it. They will not listen to me. Perhaps experience will show them that their pods are truly gone.

The Sentinel was about to leave when he noticed that a single individual off in the distance was calling to him. What got his attention was that this person was using his name. The Sentinel focused on him and realized that it was Adrian Garza. Perhaps he is their leader, now that Elder Lane is dead, the Sentinel thought. If so then he may be able to explain the situation to these people. Perhaps they will listen to him.

The Sentinel flew through the air toward the ancient man, and a few seconds later he landed in front of him. “Is there something you need?” he asked.

“Yes, there is,” Adrian replied. “I need you to put us back in our pods. Immediately.”

“That is not possible. As I just explained to everyone, the pods have been destroyed. That is not going to change.”

“But you can repair them! I’ve seen what you aliens can do, with all of your fancy gizmos and technology. I don’t believe for a minute that they’ve been destroyed beyond repair. If you can make an entire skyscraper grow out of the ground – and I just watched you do it – then you can fix our pods.”

The Sentinel nodded. “That is true. I am sure that I could repair them, if I tried. But I am not going to do that, Adrian. I will not put these people back into the prisons that destroyed them and wiped out their civilization. Those pods are deadly.”

“Those pods are our homes, you monster! Who do you think you are, taking away our lives like that?”

“You have lost nothing but an imaginary world,” the Sentinel replied calmly. “It wasn’t real. None of it was real. You have been living a dream for the past five thousand years. It’s time for you to wake up before it’s too late.”

“You realist,” Adrian snarled. “Who gave you the right to tell us how to live our lives? You’re nothing but a tyrant, forcing your way of life upon us! I won’t have it, do you hear me?”

“How quickly one forgets,” the Sentinel replied coldly. “When I first came here I told you that you had a choice: you could stay in your pods or you could leave them and join us. All you had to do was tell us that you weren’t interested in our offer and we would have left you alone. Instead you betrayed us and now the Stryker family, along with their friends and the Artilect, are all dead. Adrian, you lost the right to live as you see fit the day you launched a war against us. If you wanted to be left alone you shouldn’t have gone on a murderous rampage. You have brought this on yourself.”

“We had to do it, you moron,” Adrian replied. “Killing you was the only way to guarantee we’d be left alone. Your ‘assurances’ are totally worthless. My only regret is that I failed to kill all of you.”

The Sentinel stared at Adrian. He could see the utter hatred and malice in his eyes, and knew that he was telling the truth. What have I done? Amy would have killed this man, but I saved his life. Yet even though I saved him he would still kill Amy and myself if he had the chance. Was it right to save the life of a murderer who only wishes to kill more people? What do I do now?

“I am not going to repair the pods,” the Sentinel said firmly. “Your people used them to destroy your lives. You have spent millennia doing nothing but acting out your basest fantasies, and I will not return you to them. You’re in the real world now, Adrian. You are old and near death. I am giving you one last chance to change the way your life ends, before you die and stand before God. Do not waste this opportunity.”

“I hate you,” Adrian replied. “And I hate Amy too. Tell her that if she ever comes back to this world I will kill her.”

The old man then turned his back on the Sentinel and walked off. The Sentinel shook his head and disappeared.

15 Jul 2011

I Thessalonians 2:12

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I Thessalonians 2:12: “That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.”

This is worth remembering. I think it’s very easy to get caught up in all of life’s problems and lose sight of the fact that all of this is real. There really is life after death, Heaven, the resurrection, everlasting life, and a kingdom to come. These are not fantasies or fairy tales; they’re quite real – every bit as real as the city we’re living in right now. We may live by faith (in fact, we must live by faith) but the things that the Bible tells us to have faith in are absolutely true.

When we lose sight of this we start to lose the ability to make good decisions, for we start thinking in the short term when we should be thinking in the long term. We think about what would make us happy right this instant, instead of things that have eternal value. Sin may look very attractive in the short run, but in the long run it leads to death. Faithlessness may look like it leads to an easy life, but there will be nothing easy about it when we stand before God and give an account of our lives.

The Lord tries our faith; He tests us to see if we are real or not. There is nothing like problems to show what people are truly made of. Faith may be easy when life is good, but when life is hard we begin to find out if our faith was actually real or not. This is not just theoretical – it is quite real.

Patience is so important. As Jesus said, in this world we will have trials – but be of good cheer, for He has overcome the world. Let’s not lose sight of that – or of the very real world that is to come.

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13 Jul 2011

Beyond the Farthest Star: Chapter 4

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It was just before sunset when Miles and Noel left the colony. Miles sat in the Raptor‘s cockpit and Noel sat beside him. The two said very little as the old man steered the tank back up the winding road and out onto the desert floor.

“When was the last time you were on the surface?” Miles asked.

“Not very long ago. In fact, I helped install that new air tower over there.”

“Oh, right! Of course. I should have know that. How did that go?”

“It went pretty well, considering! The hard part was getting approval to have it constructed. The mayor didn’t want to do it, but I finally convinced him that it had to be done.”

“How did you do that?” Miles asked. “It’s not like him to be proactive! Usually he waits until something catastrophic happens.”

“I just talked to a couple people at the Tikal News Network and showed them the numbers. They ran a special on how we were all about to suffocate. People started panicking, and that put a lot of pressure on the mayor to do something. He can actually be pretty responsive when angry mobs are pounding down the door to his office.”

Miles smiled. “I see you’ve learned a thing or two! I’m surprised TNN ran the story, though. They don’t usually broadcast anything that puts the administration in a bad light.”

“It’s all in how you phrase it,” Noel said. “If I had told them that the mayor was refusing to act then, sure, they probably wouldn’t have touched it. But a story on how the planet’s atmosphere is getting thinner and will eventually suffocate us – well, that’s an environmental story, and that’s different. There aren’t any politics in that.”

“Nice work,” Miles said approvingly.

Noel looked out the plastic cockpit window, squinting at something in the distance. High overhead he saw a point of light twinkling in the sky. “What’s that?” he asked.

Miles glanced at it. “Oh, it’s probably Jupiter. Looks too small to be Earth.”

“Huh,” Noel said. “Interesting. I’m usually not out at night, so I don’t get a chance to see the planets. They’re actually kind of pretty.”

“It’s really not much of a show – just a few points of light in an utterly black sky. A long time ago the sky used to be filled with stars. There were thousands of them! But they’re gone now.”

“Do you really believe that there used to be stars?” Noel asked. “Isn’t all that stuff about the Wall and the Emperor just a legend?”

“It’s all true,” Miles replied. “Every bit of it. There’s a whole galaxy out there, Noel – in fact, there are billions of galaxies. But the Wall separates us from what’s out there.”

“What a pity,” Noel replied. “If what you say is true then it sounds like we’re missing out.”

Miles shook his head. “I used to think that way too. That was before I realized the Wall works both ways. It keeps us from reaching the stars – and it keeps the stars from reaching us. It may be a prison but it’s also a defense.”

“A defense against what?” Noel asked.

“Against things so horrifying that they don’t even have a name. There are monsters lurking out there that make Lizzie seem utterly harmless by comparison. Imagine a giant cloud of micromachines that can consume planets, destroy colonies, eradicate–”

“If you say so,” Noel interrupted. “I don’t buy into all that, myself. But every man has a right to his own opinion. If he wants to believe in scary nonsense then I suppose he can do that.”

“Thanks,” Miles said dryly.

Noel heard a small beep. He glanced down at the scope and saw a small dot in its upper-right-hand corner. “What’s that?”

Miles checked the scope. He frowned, then pressed a button to get more information. “That’s odd! It looks like it’s a person.”

“All alone?” Noel asked incredulously.

“Looks that way. I don’t even see any vehicles around.”

“Do you think there’s an underground base around here somewhere?”

“I guess it’s possible,” Miles said slowly. “I’ve never run across one in that area, though, and I don’t know anyone who lives up that way. Most people don’t like being that close to Tikal. My guess it’s a prospector, looking for Don Elliott’s lost treasure.”

“That’s certainly possible,” Noel replied. “It wouldn’t be the first time some fool fell for that old legend.”

The scope beeped a second time and another dot appeared on the scope, this time to the south. This dot was far larger and was moving rapidly. An alarm began sounding.

Miles gasped. “It’s Lizzie!”

Noel paled. “Has she seen us?”

“I don’t think so. But she has seen that prospector – and she’s headed right for him!”

“We’ve got to get out of here!” Noel exclaimed. “Do you think we can make a run for it?”

“Absolutely not,” Miles replied firmly. He slammed the Raptor into high gear and abruptly changed its course. “We are not going to run away – we’re going to go help that person.”

“Help them!” Noel screamed. “Are you out of your mind? Do you know what Lizzie will do if she catches us? This tank isn’t going to protect us, you know!”

“And what about that prospector there? What if he’s lost or hurt? Do you think he has any chance at all? If we don’t do something he’s as good as dead – and I’m not going to just sit here and do nothing!”

Noel gulped and tightly gripped his seat as the tank sped across the desert sands. Miles had plotted a course that would take them straight to the prospector, but a glance at the scope told Noel that they weren’t moving fast enough. “We’re not going to make it!”

Miles nodded. “I know. We’re moving faster but Lizzie is much closer to the prospector than we are. This is going to be tricky.”

“Tricky? What do you mean, tricky? We don’t even have a chance!”

“Lizzie is unpredictable, Noel. She might not attack as soon as she gets there. If we can reach the scene before she attacks we might be able to distract her long enough for the prospector to get on board. Then we can make a run for it.”

“But she’ll chase us!”

“We can outrun her,” Miles said. “At least, I think we can. We’ve got to try – that prospector’s life is depending on it!”

By now they had covered much of the distance that separated them from the person that Lizzie was hunting. Even though the sky was growing dark they could just barely see a figure in the distance. Beyond the person was an enormous creature. In the dark it was hard to see, but Noel could make out countless legs, a cylindrical body, and many appendages. It had kicked up a huge dust cloud and was barreling toward the lone figure.

“Oh my goodness,” Noel gasped. “I – I’d never seen it before. It’s so huge! Do you think–”

In the distance the tiny figure stood up. A bright bolt of searing white light jumped from the person to the monster. The bolt struck Lizzie, knocking her over. As she struggled to her feet a second bolt struck her. This time the energy blew the monster apart, sending pieces flying across the desert.

Noel’s jaw dropped. “Did you just see that? Did that really just happen?”

“Apparently so,” Miles said. He continued to drive the Raptor as fast as she could go. “Our friend seems to have some rather powerful weaponry! I’d love to get a look at that technology. Let’s see who it is and offer them a ride home.”

As the tank drew close to the individual Miles slowed it down. He finally stopped the craft less than twenty feet away from the person. The headlights illuminated a teenage girl, who appeared to be in her early teens. She was tall and thin, with bronzed skin and straight black hair. The girl was wearing a long blue dress and was staring away from them, looking at the remains of the grotesque creature that she had just killed.

“She doesn’t have a spacesuit!” Noel exclaimed. “She’s going to die if we don’t get her in here immediately! There’s no air out there!”

Miles stood up and stared at the girl, a mixture of amazement and wonder on his face. “Could it be? Is it possible? Can it really be her?”

“What are you doing?” Noel shouted. “Get out there and get her!”

Miles walked to the back of the cabin and put on a helmet and air supply. He then exited the tank through its airlock and stepped out onto the Martian desert. By now the sun had set and it was dark outside, but the headlights of the Raptor lit up the surrounding area.

The old man walked over to the girl and stood in front of her. The teenager’s brown eyes shifted from the carcass in the desert to him. Miles saw that tears were running down her face. She was deeply upset.

I know who you are, Miles thought with a sense of elation. I recognize you, Amy Stryker, and I know why you are so upset. We share the same grief, little one. I, too, mourn the loss of your family.

Miles took her hand and gestured toward his vehicle. The girl hesitated, then nodded. Miles led her into the tank and through its airlock. As soon as they were inside Noel ran over to her. “Is she all right?”

“She will be, in time,” Miles said. He led her over to a chair and she sat down. The girl briefly glanced around the cabin but apparently saw nothing of interest. She turned her attention out the cockpit window and stared off at the horizon.

Noel walked over to her. “Are you all right? Is there anything I can get you?”

The girl looked at him and said something in a foreign language. Noel shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I don’t understand you. Do you speak Martian?”

The teenager said something else and then turned her attention back outside. Noel turned to look at Miles. “Did you understand that?”

“Not really. I’m afraid that my command of ancient Martian is very poor. I can understand the written language fairly well but the spoken language is a different matter entirely. There just aren’t enough examples of it left to learn how to correctly pronounce the words.”

“Ancient Martian?” Noel asked incredulously. “Are you serious? No one has spoken that for thousands of years! Why would she be using it?”

“Because it’s Amy’s native tongue,” Miles explained. “That’s what was spoken here the last time she set foot on this planet. It might be the only language she knows.”

“What are you talking about? She’s a teenager! Why, she could be my daughter – if I was married, that is, and had kids, which I don’t. She’s not thousands of years old. Just look at her!”

“Appearances can be deceiving, Noel. Amy is a relic of a civilization that died out a long time ago. Haven’t you noticed how tall she is?”

“She is pretty tall for a child,” Noel admitted.

“There’s more to it than that. In our society full-grown adults are about four feet tall. Some are a bit taller and some a bit shorter, but it’s a good average. Amy, though, is already four feet six and she’s still young. By the time she’s fully grown she’ll be more than a foot taller than you, if not more.”

“But she’s shorter than you are,” Noel pointed out.

Miles smiled. “I’m a special case.”

Noel shook his head. “Well, you can believe all that if you want, but I prefer to stay grounded in reality. What I see is a poor girl who got lost in the desert and nearly killed by Lizzie. I think we need to take her some place safe, so she can get some rest.”

“I agree. I’ll drive us back to New Tikal. I’m sure there’s an abandoned apartment somewhere that she can use.”

Miles stood up, walked over to the pilot’s seat, and got the Raptor moving again. As he turned the vehicle around Noel called out to him. “You know, I can think of a couple apartments on the engineering level that are pretty nice. They’ve been abandoned since the layoff’s last year but they’re still in good repair.”

“I guess that would work,” Miles agreed.

As he drove the tank across the desert Noel noticed that the girl was staring out the window, looking at something in the distance. Noel followed her gaze and noticed that the sky was filled with twinkling dots of light.

“Hey, Miles,” Noel called out. “Just how many planets are there?”

“Oh, eight or nine, depending on how you count them,” Miles replied. “At one time there was a big debate over what a planet was, exactly, but I’m guessing that you don’t really care about that. You’re an engineer, not an astronomer. Why do you ask?”

“Because I see a lot more than eight or nine dots in the sky.”

Miles glanced up at the sky and gasped. He immediately stopped the tank. “Oh my goodness! I can’t believe it. She did it!”

“Who did what?” Noel asked, as he sat down in the chair beside Miles.

“Amy brought down the Wall. It’s gone, Noel. It’s gone at last! We’re free!”

“Do you mean those are stars?

“That’s exactly what I mean,” Miles said excitedly. “That’s why she’s here! It all makes sense now.”

“Those certainly do look like stars,” Noel agreed. “And you were right, too – they’re quite beautiful! I had no idea what we’d been missing for all those millennia. Maybe the old legend about the Wall really did have a grain of truth to it after all. As an engineer, I’d guess that whatever had been sustaining the Wall finally broke down. It just got old – like our ZPE.”

“Nope,” Miles replied. “Amy did it. She was there when it was first created, and now she’s returned to take it down. This is her doing. Do you think it’s just a coincidence that she appeared at the exact same time the stars did?”

“That’s silly!” Noel laughed. “We find a poor girl lost in the desert, about to die, without even a suitcase to her name, and you think that she’s somehow done something to a generator that’s billions of miles away! I think it’s lucky for her that we came this way; another minute or two and she would have suffocated. I’m sure if she could talk she would thank us for saving her.”

Miles shook his head. “I think, before it’s all over, we will thank her for saving us.”

“Believe what you will,” Noel replied. “But even so, stars or not, we do need to get her back to the colony. No matter where she’s from, she’s clearly tired and upset and needs a good night’s sleep.”

“Now that is something we can agree on,” Miles replied.

The old man drove the aging vehicle through the Martian deserts and back to the colony. But the entire time his focus was on the brilliant, beautiful stars that filled the night sky. They were so fantastic that they took his breath away. I never thought I would live to see this day, he thought. Maybe God has not forgotten about us after all.

13 Jul 2011

I Thessalonians 2:3-5

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I Thessalonians 2:3: “For our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile:
4 But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.
5 For neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloak of covetousness; God is witness:”

I fear that we are getting away from this. I have heard reports of pastors paying people to attend church, or offering prizes to come to the altar. These things do not honor God. The Lord wants us to preach the gospel and proclaim Jesus alone; there is nothing Biblical about using covetousness or greed to reach people.

Paul’s whole point is that he came to this group with just Jesus – nothing more, nothing less, and nothing else. Yet today some churches are filled with gimmicks that use psychological tricks to draw people in. They aren’t interested in a gospel-only approach; they think it’s too old-fashioned. The Biblical approach, though, is pretty straightforward. God wants us to preach the gospel and leave it at that – not find clever tricks to trick people into attending church.

Now, I am not saying that churches should not have music, or that community outreach is bad. But I do think that when you start paying people to attend Sunday School then you have lost your way. God is not in that. The Lord wants to attract people to Himself using the gospel – not twenty-dollar bills. After all, Jesus is what people need. Nothing else can save them.

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12 Jul 2011

“Collected Sunday School Lessons” – Second Edition

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Last year I took the Sunday School lessons that I taught at Bethel and assembled them into a book, which was released on this blog. Since then I’ve gone back and revised a few of the lessons. I’ve now released a second edition of the book that includes those changes. The book can be downloaded free-of-charge right here:

Collected Sunday School Lessons (2008 – 2009) – PDF file; 249 pages.

12 Jul 2011

Books That Might Have Been: Starman #12, Trouble on Titan

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This is a mocked-up cover for the unwritten book Starman #12, Trouble on Titan. It was one of the books that we originally planned to write and even created a brief plot summary for, but ultimately ended up skipping.

If you would like to read the proposed plot for the book, simply click on the image below to see a higher-resolution scan.

(I do not know who created the cover artwork, but it was not me.)

10 Jul 2011

“Even So, Come, Lord Jesus” – Third Edition

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Some time ago I took the various essays I had written on eschatology (the study of end-times and the Second Coming) and assembled them together into a book. The third edition of this book, which is entitled Even So, Come, Lord Jesus, is now available! The book has been revised since its first edition and has also been expanded with new content.

You can download the book free-of-charge right here:

Even So, Come, Lord Jesus – PDF file; 205 pages.

Printed copies can be found on the Printed Books page.

10 Jul 2011

A Secret Rapture?

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As I’ve spent time studying prophecy I’ve noticed that some people apparently believe in the idea of a “secret Rapture”. What they mean by this is not that no one knows when the Rapture will occur (which is quite correct), but rather that when the Rapture happens no one will notice. They seem to think that the Lord will return for the Church and take them away to Heaven, all without anyone knowing that anything unusual is going on. The world will simply go on about its business as if nothing had happened.

As far as I can tell, this idea is apparently based on this verse:

I Thessalonians 5:2: “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.”

There are a number of very serious problems with this theory. First of all, this verse is talking about the “day of the Lord”. This is a reference to the Tribulation, not the Rapture. We know this because the Old Testament has quite a lot to say about the “day of the Lord”. For example:

Isaiah 13:6: “Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.”

Joel 2:1: “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.”

Notice that the prophets are talking about a day of “destruction” and a time of “darkness” – not a time when the Lord takes His Bride home! According to Joel this is a period of such great trouble that it will be unlike anything that has ever happened before in all of history. This perfectly echoes what Jesus said in Matthew:

Matthew 24:21: “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.”

As I have explained elsewhere, what Jesus describes in Matthew 24 (part of which is quoted above) are the events of the Tribulation, which occur just before Jesus returns. When Paul says in I Thessalonians 5:2 that the day of the Lord comes as a “thief in the night”, he is saying that the Tribulation will catch the world off-guard. When Jesus says in Matthew 24:42 that “ye know not what hour your Lord doth come”, He is talking about His return after the Tribulation – not the Rapture! Remember, the Rapture happens before the Tribulation but the return that Jesus speaks of in Matthew 24:30 happens after the Tribulation.

So, we can immediately see that I Thessalonians 5:2 isn’t even talking about the Rapture. It has an entirely different subject in mind.

We can go further than this, however. The Bible says that the Tribulation will come “as a thief in the night”. When a thief breaks into a home he catches the homeowners off-guard, because they weren’t expecting to be visited by a burglar. However, after the thief has come and gone the owners are very aware that someone has been there because all of their possessions are gone. Of course, once the thief strikes and carries off your valuables it is too late to do anything about it.

This is what Paul is trying to say. The Tribulation will take the unbelieving world by surprise. They will not see it coming, but they will know when it has arrived because terrible things will start happening. By then, however, it will be much too late to escape it.

The same thing can be said of the Rapture. No one knows when it will happen; it may be soon or it may be many generations away. It will come much like a thief in the night – when it happens it will catch the world by surprise. After it happens the world will know that something must have just occurred to make many people vanished, but it will be too late to do anything about it. The opportunity will have passed.

It is not reasonable to think that the Rapture will go unnoticed. After all, a tremendous number of people are going to suddenly vanish! How could that go unnoticed? It will probably be the biggest news story of all time – the mass abduction of millions of people from all walks of life. The world will know that something big just happened. It will come as a surprise, but after it happens there will be nothing secret about it.

9 Jul 2011

Earle Neil Kinder: Mack & Daves

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A brightly-lit nighttime street, home to Mack & Daves.

Mack and Daves

8 Jul 2011

Beyond the Farthest Star: Chapter 3

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Miles and Noel had just left the ZPE plant and were walking back toward the elevator. Miles found himself unnaturally tired but Noel was full of energy.

“That was fabulous!” Noel said enthusiastically. “You were right – we got that part replaced in less than half an hour. The generator is running better than ever! I think its output has actually increased by nearly one percent.”

“Wonderful,” Miles said. “You can get together my fee and lay it aside for me so I can pick it up next time I’m here. I’m going to head home.”

“Home? But it’s getting dark!”

“It gets dark every night, and it’s been happening for a mighty long time now. That’s the way God designed the world – He called the light day, and the darkness He called night. I’d think you would be used to it by now.”

“But it’s dangerous out there after dark! You never know what might be lurking in the shadows. Mars isn’t a safe place.”

Miles shook his head. “You’ve been living underground for too long, Noel. You’re developing all sorts of ridiculous phobias. The only living creature in this area is Lizzie, and she’s just as dangerous during the day as she is at night. This idea of monsters that come out only at night is just a lot of nonsense.”

“But you can’t see at night,” Noel protested.

“I don’t need to see her – my scope does that for me. Besides, the Raptor can go a lot faster than she can. Look, what’s really going on here? Is there something else you need?”

“I just don’t understand your rush to get back,” Noel replied. “You don’t even want to stick around long enough to get paid! If you can just spend the night here I can collect your payment and you can be off in the morning. How hard would that be?”

Miles sighed. “I’m just tired. It’s been a long day and I want to get home and rest. I don’t see any reason to stay here any longer than I have to.”

“Not even to get paid?”

Especially not even to get paid! I told you a long time ago that I don’t want to get paid. I’ve already got everything I need. I really wish you would just keep it. There are surely other things you can be using those resources for than giving them to an old man like me. This colony needs it a lot more than I do.”

“But that’s not the point,” Noel protested. “You’re the one that’s been keeping this colony alive since – I don’t know, since before I was born. You’re the one that should be living the high life – not the mayor’s cronies. It’s just not fair.”

“No one said life was going to be fair. Besides, you know that’s not how it works. Mars has never celebrated the people that have kept them supplied with air – they’re too caught up in the latest politician or celebrity. It’s just the way life is. But you don’t have to worry about me – I have everything I need. I’ll be fine.”

“All right,” Noel said. “I’ll let you go, then. But would you mind if I came with you?”

With me?” Miles exclaimed, surprised. “Why would I do that? You know I don’t allow visitors! It’s a strict policy I have that goes way back. The very last thing that I want is for my address to get out. Prospectors would just love to get their hands on my stuff. My home would become a war zone.”

“I know, and I understand. Every man needs his sanctuary, and believe me, I would never tell anyone where you lived. You could even blindfold me if you wanted, if that would make you feel any better. But – well, I hate to say this, but you’re not getting any younger. If you hadn’t come by today we would have lost field containment by now, and the colony would be running on reserve power. Within a week the air would have been poisoned and we’d be all dead. I was hoping that I could spend some time at your place and learn what you know so I can keep things running after you’re gone.”

“You want to learn everything I know?”

Noel hesitated. “Well, there’s a lot that I already know. I have been paying attention, you know. I can usually fix the ZPE when it fails but there are some aspects to it that I just don’t understand. I know you’ve got one in your refuge, and I was hoping–”

“What do you mean, you know I’ve got one? I never said that!”

“Oh, c’mon, Miles! You know how to fix them and you can always manufacture parts for them when they break. You’ve got to have one around somewhere that you use as reference. I find it really hard to believe that you can keep ours running without having one of your own.”

“All right,” Miles replied. “So let’s say, for the sake of this discussion, that I do have one. What about it?”

“Well, I was hoping you could answer my questions. Maybe we could spend some time building parts for it. You could teach me what I need to know – at some place far away from here, where there are a million distractions.”

“That could take weeks, maybe a couple months,” Miles pointed out. “Can you really afford to be gone for that long?”

“I don’t see why not. Henry can handle things while I’m gone, now that the ZPE is in good shape again. Besides, this has to be done for the future of the colony, and you know it. Do you have another suggestion?”

Miles sighed. “I suppose not. All right, then. Do you have your bags packed?”

“Of course!” Noel replied. “You didn’t think I wouldn’t be prepared, did you? In fact, I’ve already let Henry know that I was taking a leave of absence. All I have to do is pick up my suitcase and we can head out.”

“Then I suppose there’s no way I can get out of this,” Miles replied. “But I suppose it’s for the best. If you’ll go get your bag I’ll head up to the tank and get her started. Just meet me there and we can leave.”

Noel nodded and hurried off down the corridor. Miles shuffled over to the elevator, walked inside, and pressed the button to return to the surface.

I really shouldn’t be so hard on him, Miles thought, as the aging elevator slowly climbed up toward the colony’s parking garage. He is right. The only way the colony will survive after I’m gone is if people like him keep things running, and they can only do that if they understand the technology. This is something I should have done a long time ago. Noel definitely has what it takes to understand the ancient sciences. He is my natural replacement.

But the problem is that this is all futile. His ability to keep the air towers functioning isn’t going to make any difference when Mars loses the last trace of its atmosphere. Even if I taught him everything he won’t be able to keep the colony alive after Mars has finally died. No matter how hard he tries, they’re not going to survive another century. This is all a futile effort. What we really need is a miracle – but miracles are in short supply right now.

Miles got out of the elevator and shuffled over to his tank. Enough of that. Noel wants to learn, so I’ll teach him. That’s really all I can do. The rest is up to the Lord. If He wants to save the colony then it will be saved; if not then it will be lost. All I can do is play the part I’ve been given.