Industry cartels …

Humans are wired to crave safety in groups. We scan the room for signals that confirm our existing beliefs and make us feel protected … positive messaging, shared language, tribal rituals.

The flip side? Without lots of raw honest practice, we’re terrible at processing contrast. Veiled threats, misaligned incentives, and quiet power plays get filtered out because they threaten the warm glow of belonging.

Spend enough time in events, conferences, and “communities” and you aquire a well developed bullshit meter …

… as well as who in the room is authentic … like authenticity of Secretary Kennedy … he is authentic.

It’s one of the most valuable skills you can build: the ability to sniff out the rats.

They rarely look evil. They smile, they signal virtue, they wrap corporate interests in the exact ideology the room wants to hear.

Industry associations? Often just sophisticated cartels with better branding. Their stated goals are for profits.

Their cries of we stand for (fill in the blank) rarely match the structures they actually build or the outcomes they deliver. Watch what they defend, who funds them, and which competitors they quietly crush.

Don’t listen to the headlines.
Don’t get hypnotized by the identities they’re trying to create.
Watch the structures. Follow the incentives AND (confidentially) THE SUBSIDIES. The nicest slogans often hide the oldest game in the book: power
and money wearing a friendly mask.

Train your contrast vision. The room will feel lonelier at first, but you’ll stop getting played.

@Brandenburg4Mi

Truth and wonderful encouragement for America that President Trump and Secretary Kennedy are accomplishing measurable gains in the health of America!

@Brandenburg4Mi

Part 3
Truth and wonderful encouragement for America that President Trump and Secretary Kennedy are accomplishing measurable gains in the health of America!

@Brandenburg4Mi

Ok let’s talk about why people are losing their minds. What this obsession is at the core of the need to be right.
Let’s frame this into a spiritual connection with God because we are in a spiritual war.

The Ancient Biblical Secret About Ego - Jesus sets you free

Ego isn’t arrogance.
It’s the protective suit you built .. from trauma, insecurity, conditioning, and fear … to survive in a hostile environment.

That suit became a prison.
It survives on one thing: separation.

It needs hierarchy, conflict, and recognition. It feeds on “better than,” “worse than,” being right, winning, and being special. That’s why it never shuts up … constantly whispering:
“They’re judging you. You’re not enough. You need more. You need control.”

But here’s what the ancients knew and what the Bible teaches …

The ego or self is a hallucination … a a false safety net that turns into a trap.
It’s built on fear… and fear isn’t even real.

You are a blessed, unique creation of Almighty God! That’s really good enough and the ultimate endorsement of being an amazing … created … child of God!!!

The ego is a scared child playing king.
Ancient teachings didn’t tell you to drop ego for morality, humility, or spiritual aesthetics.
They told you to drop it because you can’t experience truth while clinging to a lie … you can’t truly know God while seeking the “created world’s” approval … basing your life on the material world! You can’t serve two masters.

You can’t experience the unconditional love of God while focusing on and basing your worthiness on the opinions of flawed humanity. Only God is worthy … only God is perfect. Only God is a righteous judge and He says you are worthy!!!

You can’t wake up while defending the ego dream.
Drop it … even for a second … pray and be in relationship with the one who created you and you’ll feel it:
You were always adored and created to be His child.

Liberation > performance.

https://youtube.com/shorts/g2S0nwcNycg

@Brandenburg4Mi

Well, well, well this is interesting

I lost over 500 followers overnight.

@Brandenburg4Mi

How much of our lives do we actually spend in the present moment?

If we are honest, probably far less than we imagine. Part of us is often trapped somewhere in the past, replaying old conversations, old mistakes, old disappointments, old betrayals. Revisiting moments we wish had gone differently, carrying wounds that should have healed long ago.

The other part is already living in a future that does not yet exist. Worrying about what might happen, fearing losses that may never come, imagining scenarios that exist only in our minds.

And so we end up suffering twice; once from memory, once from imagination.

I think many of us on this journey are particularly susceptible to this trap.

We look back and wonder how humanity allowed itself to be deceived for so long. We think about the lies, the manipulation, the opportunities lost, the people we failed to wake up in time.

Then we look ahead and see the dangers that still remain. The systems being built, the freedoms under attack, the future others would like to impose upon us.

Without realizing it, we can become trapped between yesterday’s wounds and tomorrow’s fears. Yet neither place is where life exists.

The past can teach us, but we cannot live there. The future can inspire us, but we cannot live there either. Life is here, in this moment, in this breath, in this day that we have been given.

Perhaps one of the greatest acts of sovereignty is learning to reclaim the present moment from both memory and fear. To learn from the past without becoming its prisoner. To prepare for the future without becoming anxious about it.

To remain aware of what is happening in the world without allowing it to steal the peace, gratitude and wonder that are available to us right now. After all, the only place where we can create the future is the present.

And the only place where we can truly meet God is here and now.

Own your present day. Thank God for yesterday, today and a blessing of tomorrow coming.

H/T Q-Trekkie Next-Gen

@Brandenburg4Mi

Good morning!!

Let’s talk about waiting on the Lord. Most of us grew up learning that waiting on the Lord meant sitting back and saying “Jesus take the wheel.” But there is another meaning totally lost … waiting on the Lord being living in service to God. Waiting or serving Him FULL TIME. What an honor to serve the King of Kings!!!

So what does that look like and what does the Bible say?

Some mornings we wake up carrying heavy news. Dreams feel shattered, relationships are strained, families are hurting, communities seem divided, and the “walls” that once protected what we love are lying in ruins. The weight of it all can leave us overwhelmed, grieving, and unsure what to do next.
In the Bible, Nehemiah faced exactly this kind of moment. When he heard that Jerusalem’s walls were broken down, its gates burned, and its people living in shame and vulnerability, he didn’t pretend everything was fine. He wept. He mourned for days. He fasted and poured his heart out to God in honest, persistent prayer. He confessed the sins of his people and his own, and he asked the Lord for favor, strength, and guidance.
But here’s the powerful turning point: Nehemiah didn’t stay in fear, tears and sorrow.

After laying everything before God, he rose up with courage and took action. He stepped out in faith, faced opposition, gathered support, and led the rebuilding of those walls … even when enemies mocked and threatened him. What was broken was restored. What looked impossible became a testimony of God’s faithfulness.

Today, God is speaking to many of us in similar seasons. Your “broken walls” might be a struggling marriage, a wayward child, failing health, financial pressure, a wounded church, a dream that feels dead … or a broken country.

It’s okay to weep. It’s okay to feel the pain deeply. But don’t stop there.
Bring your brokenness to God in prayer … raw, honest, and persistent. Confess where needed. Ask for wisdom, favor, and supernatural strength. Then listen for His direction and be willing to rise and do the work He’s calling you to.
You don’t have to rebuild everything overnight. You just need to take the next faithful step. God will send the right people, open the right doors, and fight for you when opposition comes. The same God who empowered Nehemiah is the same God walking with you today.

Let this be our declaration this morning: “We will not stay stuck in despair. We will pray, We will rise, and with God’s help, we will help rebuild.”

Praying for fresh strength, divine favor, and restoration today.

We’ve got this because God’s got us.

I love you guys!

https://youtu.be/MIMBEEUdsXk

@Brandenburg4Mi

Happy Father’s Day!!

I remember being a child and going to church on Sunday. My Dad was an Elder (mom played the pipe organ) and they would ask all the Dad’s to go to the front of the church and acknowledge them for who they were. Amazing Dads!! Then they would all get a “honey bear.”

My Dad was always taking care of someone. He always seemed to know the right thing to say at the right time. He taught us how to shoot … and work … plant a garden … and love God.

In the busyness of life … Dad’s don’t realize the impact they leave on their families and the world. Much love for all the selfless brave papas out there!

@Brandenburg4Mi

What a great man! He was my best cheerleader.

Miss ya Dad

@Brandenburg4Mi

We all yearn for justice after the crimes that have wounded our communities and eroded trust.

But are we ready for what that looks like. Be honest … be spiritually prepared.

Drastic, necessary change must come … systems scrapped, accountability enforced, and a freer, fairer future forged. Yet even as we push forward, something ancient and deeply human tugs at us: the irresistible pull back toward the familiar.

The Bible gives us a stark warning in the story of Lot’s wife. As God prepared to destroy the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, angels urged Lot and his family to flee for their lives: “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away” (Genesis 19:17).

Lot and his daughters obeyed and pressed on. But his wife, trailing behind, “looked back, and she became a pillar of salt” (Genesis 19:26).

It wasn’t merely a curious glance. The original language suggests she regarded or considered what she was leaving … longing for the life, comforts, and familiarity of a city steeped in corruption. Her heart remained tethered to the past even as judgment fell.

Jesus Himself later warned His followers in the context of sudden upheaval and the need for total commitment: “Remember Lot’s wife!” (Luke 17:32). Clinging to what must be left behind can cost everything.

This theme repeats throughout Scripture. The Israelites, freshly delivered from brutal slavery in Egypt, repeatedly longed for the “good old days” of bondage. They complained in the wilderness: “We remember the fish we used to eat in Egypt for nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at” (Numbers 11:5–6). They conveniently forgot the oppression, the beatings, and the loss of freedom … romanticizing a past that had enslaved them. Their nostalgia nearly derailed the journey to the Promised Land.

Psychologically, this backward pull is not weakness; it’s how our minds are wired for survival.

Status quo bias makes the familiar feel safe, predictable, and even morally “right.” Our brains equate “known” with “secure,” so change … even positive, necessary change … registers as threat. This is often called the “moral force” of habit: the old way feels not just comfortable, but correct.

Fear of the unknown amplifies resistance. When we contemplate leaving behind old systems, relationships, or ways of thinking, anxiety spikes. What if the new path is harder? What if we fail? What if we lose more than we gain?

Nostalgia plays a powerful role too. In times of uncertainty or pain, we idealize the past, softening its harsh edges and magnifying its comforts. Research shows nostalgia can provide short-term emotional relief and a sense of continuity, but when it becomes a default response to change, it anchors us to what was rather than propelling us toward what could be. We rewrite history in our minds, forgetting the very injustices or dysfunctions that made transformation essential.

Loss aversion (a core insight from behavioral economics) means losses loom larger than equivalent gains. We overvalue what we’re leaving behind … the familiar routines, the known (even if flawed) power structures, the relationships or comforts tied to the old order … and undervalue the potential of a better future. This keeps individuals, organizations, and societies stuck in cycles of dysfunction.

The result? We “die on the vine.” We long for freedom and justice yet sabotage our own progress by glancing backward. Old patterns of complicity, denial, or complacency reassert themselves. Pain fades with time, memory softens, and the familiar regains its seductive glow. Before long, we find ourselves defending or returning to elements of the very systems that caused harm … because they feel normal.

True forward momentum requires conscious resistance to these forces. It means fixing our eyes ahead, even when the path is uncertain or costly.

https://t.me/Brandenburg4MI/12769

Part 2

It means building new structures, habits, and relationships that embody the justice and freedom we claim to want. It means refusing to be pulled back into what once felt safe but ultimately kept us bound.

We cannot serve two masters … the past and the future. We cannot fully embrace transformation while keeping one hand on the door of what must be left behind.
The better future is not behind us. It waits for those willing to keep walking, keep building, and keep refusing the backward glance.

Eyes forward. Hearts committed. Justice pursued with unwavering momentum.

@Brandenburg4Mi

Morning Bread!!

Wouldn’t it be better to go back to living in the real world?

Eating real food? Waking up to fresh bread made by people who actually love you … just because you are precious to them?

@Brandenburg4Mi

With great conviction …

“Young Washington” is the best movie I have ever seen.

William Franklin-Miller in the picture plays the young George Washington. Produced by John Erwin. (His mother Sheila and father Hank are wonderful)

We went to the world premiere and met the actors, producers and crew. This unapologetically committed Christian organization is working to show the true bravery and honor that it took to build America and the same bravery and honor that still exists in the hearts of patriots.

The movie is available July 2.

Bring everyone you know!!!! You will leave so proud to be an America ready to celebrate the 250 anniversary of America … and ready to fight unapologetically for what we love.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/angel-stream-tv-movies/id1473663873?eventid=6766349065

@Brandenburg4Mi

Good morning

This morning, I saw something I’ve never seen before … a fight between a bald eagle and an osprey. The size of the eagle absolutely dwarfed the osprey.

I’m pondering the similarities between True patriots in service to God and man versus the insignificance of people who just serve themselves.

True patriots are impressive. Their selfless impact on the world is big. It is enduring and can be seen dwarfing the achievements of those who just create noise or motion … or are crippled by ego.

Interesting how God sometimes uses illustrations from the material world to start spiritual conversations with us.

Ask God for wisdom and discernment … He will be guide you in all things. He is with you always.

@Brandenburg4Mi

Overcome darkness with light!! Start the day out with praise and worship of God’s goodness dwarfs the darkness which we are constantly subjected to!!!

God’s presence and goodness is surrounding us. He is protecting us from evil … we have to focus on doing good works without expectation of rewards. That is evidence of love for God. If we do good works to receive rewards … we reduce the relationship with God to a cold selfish contract which screams … using God.

Love without conditions.
Serve without limitations.
Sacrifice with joy

Only then will you find what your heart desires. Anything less will leave you empty.

https://youtu.be/rXs8-ZIgTOw

@Brandenburg4Mi