The Bible and Life

[1] Seymour, William Joseph. The Azusa Street Newsletter. Published by the Apostolic Faith Mission in Los Angeles, California from 1906-1908.

Friday, May 26, 2023

Rules For Young Men

Hello everyone. Praise the Lord!

Here is a quote from William Temple, a great Christian who lived from 1628-1699, on the rules for the development of young men. I hope that it will be a blessing to you.

"The best rules to form a young man are:

to talk little,

to hear much,

to reflect alone upon what has passed in company,

to distrust one's own opinions,

and to value others that deserve it."

William James Roop

Thursday, May 25, 2023

My Father is back!

Hello everyone. Praise the Lord!

My Father is back!

I had a new trainee today. He is a short little Hispanic man. His name is Juan Alegria. Alegria is the Spanish word for "happy." Then he was true to his name. He was happy all the time! But after asking if I believed in ghosts, and saying that he did indeed, he told me his ghost story.

His father had passed away about a month before, Juan flew back to his father’s house in Mexico City for the funeral. That’s when his father appeared to him!

Juan said he was standing over the commode urinating when he noticed something at the corner of his eyes! He looked to the left and saw his father standing there! His father was just standing there looking at him! He was shocked and afraid because his father’s been dead and buried for a month!

He finished his business and then walked away for a few minutes to collect his thoughts. A short time later, he walked back into the bathroom and his father was still there! His father didn’t say anything, he just stood there and looked at him!

Juan was scared and didn’t know what to think about the situation. So he decided to leave the house. It was a very beautiful and large house in Mexico City. His father was middle-class and was very proud of the home that he had built.

We discussed afterwards that perhaps his father’s spirit was stuck in the house, because his emotions were so attached to it. His father also owned two shoe stores and a bakery, and was very proud of his success. Whether or not that it could be a true phenomenon is unknown. But it does kind of make a little sense.[1]

William James Roop

[1] A story that was shared with me.

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

A Vision of Heaven

Hello everyone. Praise the Lord!

A Vision of Heaven

Our little girl Myrtle was recently taken with a severe cold and sore throat and had every symptom of scarlet fever. During a season of prayer on Tuesday evening, December 18^th, 1906, all the family, papa, mama, Herman, and four-year-old Ruth laid our hands on her head and each one prayed for her healing.

A wonderful spirit of song came upon us. The Spirit sang the songs of Zion through our lips. During this season of song, my little girl sat on a chair with her eyes closed; and when the song stopped, she said, “O papa, I have seen Jesus.” And then she told the following vision:

I came to a city with many streets. There seemed to be a division in the city, there was a narrow street that separated. On the side streets were clean and paved and the buildings were of marble and strong, and there was a car there with the words on the front, TO ZION. On the side of the car was TO THE BEAUTIFUL CITY OF GOD. On the dirty street was a dirty car, and on the front was TO HELL. On the side was GOING DOWN.

After I got on the clean car, I went to the conductor and asked him if I could go over to the unclean car, and the car was stopped and I went across with others, and we took five apiece off from Satan’s car. And when they came across the line from the unclean street to the clean, their garments and faces became clean. And when we came to the white car, the car expanded itself to make room for all that came.

I saw the car the devil was on, go down into a dark abyss. Then our car stopped, and we all went over to where this car had disappeared. Jesus spoke and a great grate of iron came and then a great stone, and stopped up the mouth of the abyss so that Satan could come out no more.

As the car went on, I saw that everything was beautiful. The mist rolled away. Beautiful flowers appeared.

When we arrived at the beautiful city of God, there were lovely homes given to us. And after we were there long enough to get adjusted, we went to visit the Palace of the King. I saw Jesus on a throne made of diamonds and pearls. He was dressed in shining raiment, sparkling in every color.

A beautiful Christmas feast was spread on tables. The cloth on the tables and the food was beautiful. The walls of the room and the carpet on the floor shone with beautiful colors. I looked in the mirror and saw I was clad like an angels. I saw my father and mother and brother and sister coming in, and their clothes were transformed like the rest.

The molding around the room was decorated with holly, most beautiful to behold. Jesus called attention to me and said, “Do you see that little girl down there?” Their eyes seemed to look clear through me. Then He said, “This girl was very sick and had faith and I healed her.” And all the hosts sang a most beautiful song of praise. Then Jesus took us and showed us all around. When we came out, He had a beautiful chariot ready to take us all back to earth.”[1]

William James Roop, M.A.B.S.

[1] Seymour, William Joseph. The Azusa Street Newsletter. Published by the Apostolic Faith Mission in Los Angeles, California from 1906-1908.

Sunday, May 21, 2023

The "Rat" in the attic

Hello everyone. Praise the Lord!

The “Rat” in the attic

I have been a hospice volunteer for a few years now. Off and on I have heard a reference from the nurses about a rat in the attic. That was always the reason why they would never go up there. If they needed anything to be put up there or taken down, they would call the maintenance manager. The maintenance manager was a little Vietnamese man of the age of about seventy.

That particular evening, one of the nurses mentioned about putting something in the attic. I was not very busy, so I informed them that I could take it up there. They quickly told me that the maintenance manager would do it tomorrow. Again I overheard them referring to the rat in the attic.

I got a little curious, plus a little stupid, and I have never been up there before, so I decided to walk up there just to have a look around. After a little while, when the nurses got busy and were not looking for me, I sneaked up the stairway.

I got up the stairs, opened the door, and slipped inside. Just as soon as the door closed behind me I felt troubled. I had the flashlight on my cell phone on and it illuminated the attic fairly well. But it was a large attic and the back of it was still dark.

I looked around with the flashlight. The attic was mostly empty, with just some things along the walls close to the door. As I was slowly feeling more nervous, I think that the maintenance man was smarter than I thought.

I slowly started to leave the door area and started to walk towards the middle. Then the more I walked the worse I felt. I have a feeling of cold dread! The further that I left the door, the more intense the feeling of dread that I felt!

I quickly concluded that there was not a rat up here but an evil presence of some kind! That’s when I got really frightened! But I decided to sally forth into the evil void! My stupidity is sometimes shocking.

After a little pause to build up my nerve, I started walking again towards the middle of the attic again. I walked slow and steady repeating out loud, “In the Name of Jesus!” That helped out a little, but not much.

When I got to the middle, I was surrounded by the light of my little flashlight. The feeling of evil dread was now overwhelming! I could now sense that the evil presence was located at the far end of the attic in the left corner. I don’t know how I could sense this, but I could. Maybe it’s a spiritual gift.

The feeling of dread was now so intense that I couldn’t walk any further. I was standing in the middle of the attic frozen like a statue. I couldn’t move! The evil presence was there, and it seemed like it was staring at me! I could sense that it didn’t want me up there. It didn’t want anyone up there!

I then heard a voice in my head saying, “What are you doing up here?” and “You shouldn’t be up here!” This was the voice of God speaking to me. Certainly words of wisdom!

I slowly started to back up. I didn’t want to turn my back on that evil presence, that demon. I slowly walked backwards. I eventually got to the door to the stairway. When I got to about five feet away I made a run for it. Opened the door and ran down to the second floor. I now felt safe!

I spent a few minutes leaning against the wall, sweating, and trying to learn this important life lesson. The nurses knew all about this evil demon in the attic. They referred to it as a “rat’ so that the hospice patients and family members would not overhear and become frightened.

I had learned some of the wisdom of our hospice nurses and how they communicated things. I was learning some of those lessons the hard way.[1]

William James Roop, M.A.B.S.

[1] My own personal experience.

Friday, May 19, 2023

Visions of Jesus

Hello everyone. Praise the Lord!

This was first published in 1906 in the paper, Household of God, by Thomas Junk. It was reprinted on the same year by the Apostolic Faith Mission Newsletter.

While Brother G.W. Evans was with us in Oakland, California, exhorting the people to come to Christ, we observe he was speaking i verse with great earnestness, in which the great blessing of salvation and happiness and eternal life were held out to all who would come to Christ and obey Him.

After speaking in this manner for probably five minutes he fell backward to the floor, and remained in an unconscious state for probably ten minutes; and then arose. After meeting a woman in the congregation went to him and requested a copy of the poetry he had spoken, and found he was oblivious to the fact that he had repeated a number of verses.

Later I talked to him about this experience, and he stated that he had never committed any such verses to memory and knew nothing of having repeated them in the meeting.

He then told me that while he was speaking the whole rear end of the Hall became filled with faces of angelic beings from floor to ceiling and from wall to wall. A literal bank of beautiful faces, with Jesus in the center, and all faces turned towards Him. He says he recognized Peter and James and John, also John Wesley.

During his gaze at this Heavenly host he spoke unconsciously the invitations and exhortations to all to come and receive the rich blessings offered. He knew nothing of his fall, but returned to consciousness to find himself on the floor. The same thing occurred again, about ten days later in the meeting, with this difference he did not recognize any of the faces, except Jesus, standing in the center.

At both times, he says, there were waves of spiritual power and glory coming from Jesus all over him. I believe everyone in the house felt the Divine power present, and the altar was instantly crowded with penitents.

William James Roop, M.A.B.S.

Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Down The Hallway

Hello everyone. Praise the Lord!

Down the hallway

By this time in my young life, the late teenage years, after several years of supernatural experiences, I developed a sense of the presence of spirits. What does this mean you might ask? This means that I could “feel” a spirit that was in the building, but not in the same room that I was currently in!

I will give you an example. I was awakened late at night, from myself, or by “something” I cannot tell you. But I was startled awake, and laid in bed for a few minutes. I then “felt” something moving just outside my bedroom in the hallway. This “feeling” that I felt was something in the spiritual dimension. It was not emotional or physical, but a spiritual “feeling.”

While lying in bed I could feel something in the hallway, on the other side of a wall and a closed door. This was a spirit, but not just a spirit, it was an evil spirit. I knew that it was an evil spirit because I could feel a cold evil “feeling” coming from it. I understand that is an inadequate way to explain it, but that’s the best I can do.

I sensed that it was walking from one end of the hallway down to the other end. I could, in a spiritual way, know its exact location and its movements. Whether this understanding came from me or “something” else, I did not know. This evil entity then turned around and walked back, paused at my closed door, then walked through the closed door, and into my room!

It just stood there, in front of my bedroom door and stared at me. This demon then threw a net of fear on top of me! Yes, I saw it as a spiritual net. It seemed like an eternity! I lay there paralyzed with fear! I was unable to move or even speak!

After a few minutes (it seemed like hours), this spirit turned away and walked back through the closed door and continued to walk through the outer wall of the house. It was gone! Then the net of fear left me. I lay there in bed covered in sweat! I wasn’t hot, but I was sweating with fear!

I laid there trying to figure what had just happened to me. At first I thought that it was a ghost. Then, when it had thrown a “net” of fear, I decided that could have only been a demon. So my best guess was that it was a demonic entity.[1]

William James Roop