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Should Christians be Vaccinated?

I Corinthians 3:16-17 are verses which have been misused and abused. Nevertheless, they have an important meaning for true believers. Understanding the full meaning, and applying it, is something that few will venture to do.

These vital verses say, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy;  for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."

In accordance with the natural human tendency to twist and pervert, professed believers have used this verse in principle to condemn anything from narcotic drugs, coffee and tea, alcoholic beverages,  smoking,  etc.,  depending upon their doctrinal inclination.  These items are not specifically forbidden by the Bible, but are deemed by many to be harmful to the body.  (Except for alcohol, coffee and tea in moderation, the above items can be harmful to the body.)  All the while, many of these same people will turn around and take into their bodies substances specifically forbidden by the Almighty, such as unclean meats (pork and shellfish) or drugs from aspirin to valium, which are in reality also harmful.

Where do vaccines fit into the picture?  Few will bother to ask: what are vaccines made of?  Is it right to have such substances injected into our bodies?  There are thousands of people, specifically Sabbath-keepers, who will scrupulously avoid unclean meats, yet glibly allow themselves and their children to be "shot" with a host of questionable substances.  They read the label on a can of beans, yet fail to read the label on vaccine serum.  It is a carnal human tendency to pick and choose what one wants to believe and practice from the Bible.  Like  the Pharisees, we often strain a gnat (a tiny bug) out of our soup (avoiding a little unclean meat) yet swallow a whole camel (a large unclean animal), Matthew 23:24.

Why not follow the Eternal all the way, without hypocrisy?

How Are Vaccines Made?

Some people feel that if you don't read the label, then it is all right with God because you take it on faith.  They reason that we have to be careful about certain "special" doctrines of the Bible, but we need not worry so much about others.

Jesus Christ, however, has a controversy with this belief.  He said, "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God," Luke 4:4.  The Pharisees were careful about small points, and often neglected larger, more important concepts, Matthew 23:23.  Except our righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the Pharisees we shall not inherit the Kingdom of God.

An excellent book which we recommend is Vaccination Condemned by Eleanor McBean (Elben).  This book describes in lurid detail how vaccines are made (pages 284-325) as well as a host of information about the health hazards of vaccinations.

Vaccine making is an ever changing, highly experimental process.  Detailed formulas change so often due to the disasters they have caused, or the spoiling process.  Even few doctors know what is in the needle they inject.  Actually all vaccines are spoiled to begin with, before they leave the labs, as they are made of decomposed (rotten spoiled flesh) protein from sick animals, people, or egg sources.  This mixture of decayed pus is added to some poison such as carbonic acid, cyanide, formaldehyde, etc.  The resulting "pure" substances are then forced upon people by various governmental agencies who say the vaccines are "safe." Vaccinations have been the proven cause of death of thousands of people.  As all people are in different states of health, the shots have different effects on each one.

Here is how smallpox vaccine is made: a calf is tied down and about 100 incisions are made on his stomach, into which are added a drop of glcerinated lymph (a culture of smallpox passed through glycerine).  Fever sets in, and the animal becomes exceedingly sick.  Vesicles (blisters) appear, which at the end of six days fill with pus, covered by scabs.  The calf is again bound and the vesicles are scraped off so that the dead skin, lymph, poisonous pus and blood are collected. To this putrid matter is added glycerine, and the combination is mixed and strained to become the base for smallpox vaccine.  This practice of animal torture is called vivisection.  The World Health Organization has banned smallpox vaccination all over the world because it has been proven to cause the disease it claims to cure. The U.S. Military, however, continues to make the vaccine, keeping alive the deadly disease.

Other vaccines besides smallpox, are made from other sources of protein such as horses, monkeys, eggs, etc.  The basic formula common to all vaccines is: to the poison pus from a sick or dying animal is added some poison glycerine which increases the decomposition, to which is added chloroform and other poison drugs. Chloroform is so deadly, one whiff will kill a small animal or several whiffs will knock a person unconscious.  Toxic effects of glycerine (a super alcohol made from putrefied decomposed natural fats) can damage kidneys, liver, lungs, body tissue as well as the gastrointestinal tract.

DPT (diphtheria pertussis tetanus) vaccine is made from horse's blood that has been injected with diphtheria, to which is added a poisonous mercury derivative thimersol.

Putrefied eggs are used in the manufacture of measles and mumps as well as flu vaccines.  Other additives to flu vaccine are formaldehyde and thimersol, as well as other poisonous drugs.

Salk polio vaccine, which was in vogue when I was a child, was made from kidneys of rhesus monkeys.  Rabies vaccine is made from the rabid brains of dogs or rabbits.

These disgusting and revolting statistics are often not enough to turn a person away from receiving vaccines.  There are two roadblocks: (1) It is a common fallacy that vaccines protect against disease.  The book Vaccination Condemned disproves this falsehood. (2) Some states in the United States have compulsory vaccination laws.  (But in almost every case, there is a way to avoid these mandatory shots.) The Bible says we ought to obey God rather than men, Acts 5:29.

Probably few, even those reading this article, will believe that vaccines don't protect.  Few churches will support their members who wish to avoid putting filth into their bodies.

A Sound-Minded Approach

You have probably heard news reports of court actions ordering the state to take away custody of children from parents who refused to let their children undergo certain medical practices.  In some cases, the parents may face prison sentences. What about you?  Would you go to jail rather than allow your children to be vaccinated?  How could you spiritually instruct your children if they were taken away from you?

Let us have balance and pray that the Creator will give us wisdom to know how to act so as not to bring persecution upon ourselves.  The laws of some American states absolutely require (with no exemptions) vaccinations for children to attend public schools.  Should we give in and let them be vaccinated?  NO!  Take them out of public school.  Teach them at home (many school authorities will work with you) or send them to private school. These are some alternatives.  How much do you really care about the health and well-being of your children?  There may come a time you must flee to avoid harmful medical treatments.  Pray that the Almighty will give you wisdom to be able to act as wise as serpents, and as harmless as doves, Matthew 10:16.

If vaccination is forced upon you after all your reasonable efforts have failed, remember that putting a half a lemon over the vaccinated area may draw some of the poison out and lessen the shot's ill effects.  Rash actions that result in the loss of one's children or one's freedom may not be the best avenue to take.  However, it is not wrong to peaceably resist a state's laws which are in defiance of God's higher laws, Acts 5:29.

What Does the Bible Say?

Let us allow the word of the Eternal to lead us in all things.  That Word shall judge us in the last day.  There won't be any excuses then for reasoning around plain scripture.

Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 tell us not to partake of unclean animals (such as horses, monkeys, pigs, etc.), because we are to be a holy people, special unto the Eternal, Deuteronomy 14:1-2, Leviticus 11:44-45.  Leviticus 7:22-27 says we are to eat no manner of fat (even from a clean animal) and no manner of blood. The civil penalty for doing this in the nation of Israel was death. This prohibition is a perpetual statute, Leviticus 3:17.  An animal that dies of itself, or is torn up by predators is not to be eaten,  Leviticus 22:8.  Rotting and decayed animal substances are not good for human consumption!

Some will say that these laws of God are only part of the "Old" Covenant and for Israel only.  Just to be sure we don't try to get out of these statutes, the Holy Spirit inspired the Jerusalem Conference to determine that even the Gentiles should abstain from pollutions of idols, fornication, things strangled, and from blood, Acts 15:19-20, 29.

Jehovah's Witnesses use Genesis 9:3-4, and Leviticus 17:10 to teach against blood transfusions. Others say that getting a blood transfusion is not actually "eating."   The Truth is, that the Bible tells us to abstain from blood, Acts 15:20, 29.  If a doctor told you to abstain from alcohol, would it be all right to transfuse it directly into your veins?  Of course not!  Abstaining from blood means not to take it into your body at all. (See, You Can Live Forever in Paradise on Earth, published by Jehovah's Witnesses, page 216.)

However, in their attempt to be zealous, Jehovah's Witnesses have strained out a gnat and swallowed a camel.  They do not take inoculations which are made of blood such as diphtheria vaccine, but they throw away many other laws of God such as the Sabbath, clean and unclean meats, etc.

The New Testament is full of principles which lead one to abstain from all vaccinations.  II Corinthians 7:1, ". . . let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."  I John 3:3, "And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure."  He is cleaning himself up, both in his fleshly body and in his mind and thoughts.  We are to be washed and sanctified, because our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, and as such is to glorify God, I Corinthians 6:11, 19-20.  ". . . Ye are the temple of the living God . . . . Wherefore come out from among them [followers of Belial, the unbelievers], and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you," II Corinthians 6:16-17.

The works of the flesh which will keep us from inheriting the Kingdom of God include "uncleanness," Galatians 5:19-21.  Peter never ate any flesh that was common (defiled) or unclean, Acts 10:14, 11:8.  Note that this vision did not say that eating these foul things was now all right, but that no man is common or unclean, Acts 10:28.

Mark 7:18-23 may be used by someone to justify taking harmful substances into the body.  Things from without enter the belly but not the heart and mind. They don't defile the thoughts and mind of man. Jesus is here showing that outward physical cleansing, verses 1-17, is not as important as cleaning up the inside.  If you use this passage to justify taking filthy vaccines into your body, then, by the same reasoning these scriptures must also justify narcotic drugs, tobacco, etc.! What foolish reasoning!

Lost Truth

There once was a church organization that taught the truth about vaccines and other medical practices.  The Worldwide Church of God published strong material against vaccines and medical drugs, including Does God Heal Today? (1953), by Herbert W. Armstrong; "The Origin of Medical Science" by Donald G. Wofford (October, 1959 Good News); and  The Origin of Medical Practice by Sherwin McMichael, Ambassador College thesis 1969, (109 pages).  These are some of the materials which told the truth, but which, by the late 1960's had been dropped.  Truth is never popular.  The "medical health" field is the largest and strongest business in the United States.  Resisting it makes one the subject of attack and ridicule.  It is embarrassing to be laughed at and persecuted by learned doctors and scientists. The easy way was followed by quietly giving in to the prevailing trend.

The results of this falling away from the truth struck close to home in 1973. My wife had been raised in the church from childhood.  Her father had successfully struggled with the school authorities to keep his six children from receiving harmful vaccines.  His youngest daughter, my wife's sister, entered the church's college and was selected to go to Jerusalem for a summer archeological excavation project.  By this time, the church had given in to the pro vaccine heresy, and for the first time in her life, this young lady was given a "mandatory" shot of smallpox vaccine.  The result was tragic.  As my wife and I visited her sickbed and saw her suffer, I could not help but sorrow for the leadership of a church gone astray.  We knew of another robust girl that year who also fell victim to the smallpox vaccine.  At that time, we were unaware of the many thousands around the world who have died of vaccines, being given a fatal dose of the disease that they supposedly were made "immune" to.

From strong teaching against vaccines, to church-enforced vaccination, truth had been lost on a vital subject for our health and well being.  Today, as far as I know, there is not a single Sabbath-keeping church organization that publicly teaches against the abominable practice of vaccination.  The only group I have found to publicly oppose vaccines is the "America-is-Israel Identity Church," i.e., Lord's Covenant Church, founded by Sheldon Emry of Phoenix, Arizona (see their tract, "Bible Principles on Vaccines").  Yet they erroneously observe Sunday and have anti-Semitic views.

The "god of Filth"

People today are awed by the "miracles" of medical science.  They feel  that  modern science has discovered "miracle" drugs, medicines and serums which will cure and prevent diseases.  It is supposed that in previous ages, men were ignorant of all the "latest medical techniques."  While it is true that in some areas, knowledge has been increased, Daniel 12:4, the reverse has been true in many areas of medicine.

Ancient physicians in China, as early as 1105 B.C. knew about preventative  inoculations  with  infected pus for smallpox (Medicine and Man, page 53).  The circulation of the blood through the heart was well known in ancient Egypt, where complex operations were routinely performed, and drugs similar to modern day varieties were used.  Natural antibiotics were known and used thousands of years B.C.  Another fallacy is that we have "modern" diseases.  This is untrue, since heart disease, polio, cancer, and all known ailments were described long before Christ.  Disease has always been a prevalent curse as a result of man's defiant rebellion against the Almighty.  The basic difference between "ancient" and "modern" medicine is that ancient medicine was more effective, its drugs and medicines more potent and sure, than modern types!  This fact is the shocking conclusion of Sherwin McMichael's thesis cited earlier.

Like ancient physicians, modern medicine uses filthy polluted substances in their "cures."  Often these are the same substances which have been re-discovered after the long ignorance of the Dark Ages when the Catholic Church suppressed knowledge.

Beelzebub, the ancient god of healing, was the false god sought by King Ahaziah to be healed, II Kings 1:2-4, 16-17.  Beelzebub was the "lord of flies" or god of filth and dung.  Jesus Christ was wrongly accused of casting out demons by Beelzebub the prince of demons, Matthew 12:22-28.  Other people called this god of healing Apollos, or Aesculapius, or Mercury.  In every case, a snake was an associated symbol of the god of healing.  Yes, Satan is the true "god" of medicine -- ancient and modern.  Medical practitioners mix good and evil (antidote and poison) and try to effect a cure.  Truly, the knowledge of good and evil has wrought a sorry legacy in the history of mankind. Health cannot come from poison. "Let us do evil that good may result," is wrong.  Yet this is the foundational principle of medical science, and especially, vaccines.

Modern Sorcerers

Many feel that sorcery is something related to idol-worshipping pagans long ago. Surely we don't have much of this nowadays!  Or do we?  Webster defines sorcery as "the supposed use of an evil supernatural power over people and their affairs; witchcraft; black magic."

Many drugs and medicines can certainly do more than merely affect the body: they also affect the mind and spirit.  The artificial drug with no ill effects has yet to be made.  Witness the serious effects from penicillin, a supposed "miracle drug."

Drugs and medicines have a more disastrous effect upon true Christians than on any other group. We have witnessed the spiritual shipwreck of several at the time they turned to powerful drugs instead of trusting in the Eternal. Breaking a physical law can destroy you spiritually.

The word translated sorceries in Revelation 9:21, 18:23, 21:8, and 22:15 is the Greek word pharmakia or pharmakos.  This is how we got our word pharmacist, or druggist. Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon defines pharmakia as "the use or the administering of drugs;  poisoning;  sorcery,  magical arts."  Galatians 5:20 translates it "witchcraft."  All these passages show that those who do these things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Yes, we do have modern sorcerers: pharmacists, and druggists, have many followers who believe in their "miracle" drugs.  Will you believe the truth and come out of the sorceries of Babylon?

Yahweh is My Healer

There are a few true believers who believe that Yahweh heals all their diseases, just as He forgives all their sins, Psalms 103:3.  Healing is the Eternal's forgiveness of physical sins, Luke 5:18-26, John 5:2-14.  Our Savior was beaten and died so that we could be healed of our physical and spiritual sins, Isaiah 53:4-5 and I Peter 2:24.

Therefore, if we trust in chemicals to cure our diseases and pains we are guilty of spitting on and rejecting the sacrifice our Savior made for us!

Yet the Savior said that the sick need a physician, Mark 2:17.  Which one?  Drugs and medicines cannot heal; vaccines do not protect against disease.  The Eternal is the only TRUE physician.  Trusting in anyone, or anything else to remove our diseases is idolatry!  Read Exodus 20:3, 15:26.

There is a crying need today for health counselors to help people know the Eternal's health laws and tell people how not to become sick.  Also to tell people what physical laws they have broken when they are sick.  Taking natural steps to get one's body back in line (herbs, diet, etc.) are not wrong.  We should take action when we are sick.  Yet to trust even in these "natural" cures alone, without the Messiah's sacrifice, is still idolatry.

A Test of Faith

The Eternal is soon going to test all mankind to see who is really on His side. Don't be too surprised if true believers undergo some of these same tests, and are tempted to resort to the "god of filth" and take into their bodies the poison drugs inspired by Satan the Devil.

What if I were to be bitten by a poisonous snake, a rabid dog, or were inflicted with appendicitis?  Would I continue to trust the Eternal?  If such a thing ever happens, may the Almighty help me not to take unclean putrid substances into my body, but to trust and rely on Him. (By the way, in each one of these cases, there are natural things I would do along with the primary act of trusting in the Eternal.)

In the wrath of the Lord's plagues, the wicked will not be cured, no matter what medicines they seek after: ". . . in vain shalt thou use many medicines; for thou shalt not be cured,"  Jeremiah 46:11.  The Almighty says of them, "thou hast no healing medicines,"  Jeremiah 30:13.  It is the Creator's prerogative alone to heal, Deuteronomy 32:29.

Either we learn to trust Him now, or it will be too late then. Vaccines and many drugs are poisons.  Those who knowingly partake of them now will be headed to the lake of fire.  Change before it's too late.

Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him, Job 13:15.

Whole Grain Breads, and

Proven Whole Grain Recipes

How I Began Whole Grain Cooking

I was about nine years old when my parents were converted and began keeping the Seventh Day Sabbath.  Up until that time my parents ran a farm and raised cattle and pigs.  Our diet consisted of the same types of foods as most other people.  Lots of vegetables and fruits, but lots of pork products also.  We ate all white bread products as well.

Once we started attending church services, we began to understand some of the basic laws of health.  One of these, of course, was to get rid of the hogs we were raising and eating.

The one thing that stuck in my mind and has been an influence on my life ever since has been the fact that my mother started buying hundred pound sacks of whole wheat and making her own bread.  I remember riding many miles with her every two or three months to a place that had a large wheat grinder so we could have flour to make the bread with.  We also made many trips to the Seventh Day Adventist health food store to buy other healthful products.

Whole Wheat Bread -- From Disaster to Success

After I married Richard, I tried to carry on this practice.  I still have a picture of my first feeble attempt!  I bought flour from a health food store at first and would knead it and make a loaf or two at a time.  Needless to say, this was very difficult for a beginner.  Sometimes, my loaves would turn out beautifully, and others would be just awful.  All sunk in the middle, split on the top and sagging around the pan.  Those are the times I felt like quitting!

After a year or so, we bought a hand stone grinder and Richard spent hours trying to grind enough flour to make a couple of loaves of bread.  It was usually too coarse to make decent bread and I'm afraid I became disheartened and basically gave up until we were blessed by finding Magic MillTM products.

Magic MillTM Makes Excellent Breads

We then bought an electric stone mill grinder with a one horsepower motor through an ad in the paper.  I still had to hand knead my bread but the efforts were more often a success.  We still had to buy bread to supplement because it was too hard to bake enough to last for a week or so.  We then bought a Bosch Magic Mixer (in 1976, and it still works fine in 1992).  With the Bosch Magic Mixer,  I can knead enough dough to make up to nine medium size loaves of bread at one time.

Later we were able to obtain the Magic Mill IITM.  It uses a different method of grinding flour than the historic method of stone grinding.  It actually explodes the grain and there is no difficulty with moisture the way there is with stones.  My stone grinder would often overheat, get clogged and stop, and then I would have a difficult time getting it started again.  I also found it could breed worms in between the stones where a residue of flour was always left.  It was very difficult to take the two stones apart, and to get them set back together just perfectly was almost impossible.  There are none of these problems with the Magic Mill IITM.  The only problem with it is that it will not grind corn or soybeans (I do grind a few soybeans from time to time but I'm taking the chance of hurting the motor.) We use a lot of corn products and the cornmeal on the market has been degerminated and bleached, except that obtained from a health food store.  Magic Mill now sells the Magic Mill III PlusTM that grinds anything.

With the Magic MillTM grinder and Bosch Magic Mixer, I find breadmaking to be a breeze and we are very seldom out of bread.  I usually spend one day a month and bake several runs.  Our freezer is well stocked at all times with enough for  making sandwiches to take to school and work.

Today, it's not like it was when I went to school.  Everyone took white bread and it was rather embarrassing to be different and have all the kids asking you what you were eating.  When I was in high school, I remember eating in the bathroom so no one would laugh at my food.  Now there is more awareness about the kinds of food you should eat.  Our children take whole wheat bread to school for their lunches.  They say that the kids at school are amazed that I actually made the bread.  I've also had a lot of fun with my kid's friends who come over and watch me bake bread or grind flour.  Barbara likes to make cookies or cupcakes with her friends and of course she uses whole wheat flour.

Whole Wheat Bread:  Our Staff of Life

My basic whole wheat bread recipe is:

WHOLE WHEAT BREAD USING BREAD KNEADER

5 Cups very warm water

1/3 Cup vegetable oil

1 Cup applesauce, or pumpkin

1/3 Cup molasses (I use blackstrap, a good source of iron)

1/3 Cup honey

3 Tbsp. granulated  yeast (I find I'm having to buy a block of cake yeast from the grocery store bakery now as I'm having trouble finding yeast in bulk.)

3 Tbsp. salt

Mix 5 Cups of warm water and honey, molasses and yeast.  Let set for a few minutes until it becomes bubbly with yeast.  Then add oil, applesauce and 9 Cups of flour.  Start mixer and add 3 Tbsp. of salt and gradually add about 5 Cups more flour.  Knead 10 minutes and add a little more flour as needed until flour starts to clear the bowl about 2/3 of the way up.

While the bread is kneading use vegetable shortening to generously coat the pans.  When the bread is ready put oil on your hands and pick up enough bread to make a loaf.  Form it into a loaf around your hand and then seal the bottom and put it in the pan.  It doesn't have to be perfect and I usually push the edges down around the pan.  Set oven to 1500 and put pans in the oven to rise.  Rise 20 to 30 minutes and then, leaving the pans in the oven, turn oven to 3500 and bake 22 minutes for small loaves and 30 minutes for larger loaves.

If you are using the conventional method of kneading bread, mix the ingredients as listed and add enough flour gradually to be able to knead by hand.  Many use an electric mixer as long as they can until it becomes too stiff.  If you knead it by hand you will have to take more effort in forming the loaves or you will have a lot of bubbles in the loaves which will leave holes in your bread after it is baked.

A variation to the above recipe is:

FLORENCE'S ULTIMATE MIXED GRAIN BREAD

Ingredients same as above, finish as above.

Grind 6 Cups wheat, 1 Cup barley, 1 or 2 Cups millet (a source of Vitamin B 17), 3/4 Cup soy beans (for protein balance), 1/2 Cup mung or kidney beans (B 17 & protein).

Quick Breads

My Mother-in-law gave me an exceptionally tasty and easy recipe that I have converted to whole wheat rolls.

COTTAGE CHEESE ROLLS

2 sticks butter or margarine, 2 Cups whole wheat flour, 1 1/2 Cup cottage cheese, 1/4 tsp. salt

Beat together cheese and butter until creamy.  Add salt and gradually add flour and mix well.  Will be very stiff.   Refrigerate overnight.  Divide into 3 balls and roll into a circle.  Cut into  small pie wedges and roll up wide end first.  Experiment with temperature and I've found I have to vary the time and temperature with different ovens, but bake approximately 20-30 minutes on 325o to 350o.

Here is one of my favorite Bran Muffin Recipes:

BANANA BRAN MUFFINS

1 Cup sifted whole wheat flour, 1 well-beaten egg, 3 Tbsp. sugar or molasses w/egg, 1 Cup mashed banana, 3 tsp. baking powder, 1/4 Cup milk, 1/2 tsp. salt,   2 Tbsp. oil, 1 Cup bran

Sift flour  and dry ingredients.  Add bran.  Mix remaining ingredients and add all at once to flour mixture.  Stir just to mix.  Bake 400o for 20-25 minutes

Note:  You may add raisins, nuts or coconut.  If you do, you may want to add another 1/2 cup of milk so they won't be too dry.  A favorite of mine is using applesauce instead of bananas.  You may find other fruits to substitute.  If you use berries coat them in flour before adding and you may need to add additional moisture.

In Search of A Decent Whole Wheat Pie Crust

I use wheat flour for most of my recipes.  So far I have not been able to make a decent pie crust and I usually make it with white flour, but there are a lot of compromises on pie crusts that you can use.  For example:

BLACKBERRY TORTE

1 No. 2 can blackberries*, 1 Cup water, 3/4 Cup raw sugar**, 3 Tbsp. cornstarch, 1 Tbsp. butter

Pour berries into a saucepan along with sugar and butter.  Heat.  Combine cornstarch and water and add to the berry mixture, stirring only until it thickens.

* You can use any type of berry or fruit pie filling, I use a cherry pie filling recipe and find it to be our favorite (1 quart of pie cherries, 3/4 Cup sugar, 1/4 Cup cornstarch, 1/2 cup cherry juice, 1 tsp. almond extract, cook until thickened).  For apple torte, I add cinnamon and allspice to the recipe.

** I usually  don't use near this much sugar and since raw is hard to find I sometimes use white.

PIE CRUST #1

Use 1 3/4 Cup Wheat in Magic Mill on fine.  Combine all ingredients in Magic Mixer bowl.  (You can buy already ground wheat flour and use any method of mixing it.)  Blend thoroughly.  Press 1/2 of it into a 9" x 13" baking dish.  Pour berry mixture over the top, distributing evenly.  Place remaining mixture over the filling.  Press gently.  Bake at 3500 for 35 minutes.

Another simple crust for a cream pie is:

PIE CRUST #2

Blend 1 Cup butter or margarine, 1 Cup whole wheat flour, 1 Tbsp. sugar.   Add 1/2 Cup ground nuts.  Press in 9" x 13" pan and bake 3500 for 15-20 minutes.

You can revise most of your recipes, but I just automatically use wheat in my cookie recipes, even sugar cookies.  Raw sugar and brown sugar are interchangeable.  If you are short of brown sugar, use some white sugar,  molasses or both.

3/4 Cup Whole wheat flour plus 1/4 Cup cornstarch = 1 Cup whole wheat cake flour.  If a given recipe calls for cornstarch, add the cornstarch and blend for just a moment.  Stop the mixer and check to see if the batter looks curdled.  If it is, add a small amount of whole wheat flour until the batter is smooth.  Then bake according to the directions.  Barley flour may be substituted for cornstarch in cakes.

Pancakes and Waffles

When making pancakes or waffles, I use wheat flour.  I sometimes find I am short of ground flour and can't get any right away, so I keep a store of wheat bran and wheat germ in the freezer.  I sometimes use white flour and a cup of both germ and bran combined.  It looks and tastes almost like the whole wheat. I also grind several kinds of grains and make pancakes.  For example, wheat, barley, soy, millet, buckwheat.

One of my family's very favorite pancake recipes is what we call German Pancakes, but are actually crepes:

WHOLE WHEAT GERMAN PANCAKES OR CREPES

1 Cup unsifted whole wheat flour, 1 3/4 Cup milk, 1/4 Cup cornstarch, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1 Tbsp. oil or melted butter, 3 eggs

Put all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.  Heat a large fry pan; put enough oil in pan to coat, and have pan very hot.  Tip and roll the pan in order to spread the batter thin and evenly.  Brown quickly on one side and flip over.  It takes a minute or two for the whole process.

Put a small amount of your favorite filling for pancakes and roll jelly roll fashion; then top with whipped cream sweetened with honey.  (Example: Blueberry sauce listed below.)  Our favorite is hot applesauce.  Or my kids just eat it with butter or syrup. Pure maple syrup is best if you can afford it.

Note: As crepes, fill with your favorite filling and roll up.  Makes a change for your children's or husband's lunch box.

Preparation time:  10-12 minutes.   Yield: 4-6 large or 9 (7-inch) pancakes.

BLUEBERRY SAUCE FOR PANCAKES

1 Cup blueberries (fresh or frozen, unthawed), 1 tsp. lemon juice,  2 Tbsp. fructose (or honey, or sugar), 1 tsp. cornstarch,  2 Tbsp. water

Blend all ingredients except blueberries briefly in blender.  Stir in blueberries and cook over medium heat until thickened, 4-6 minutes.   Yield 1 cup of sauce.  Use on crepes.

ORANGE WHOLE WHEAT HOT CAKES

2 Cups sifted whole wheat flour, 2 eggs separated,  1/2 tsp. soda, 1/4 Cup oil,  1/2 tsp. salt

Enough fresh orange juice to make hot cake batter.  Mix egg yolks and oil and beat.  Add dry ingredients with orange juice.  Add stiffly beaten egg whites.  Bake on lightly oiled, medium hot griddle.  One cup of corn flour may be used instead of stone ground whole wheat flour.  These are very delicious.

Richard loves my whole wheat waffles.  I like to spoil him with his all-time favorite:

WHOLE WHEAT WAFFLES

1 Cup sifted whole wheat flour, 2 eggs, separated, 3 tsp. baking powder, 1 1/4 Cups milk, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 Cup oil*

* You may cut the oil in half if you prefer.

Sift together, three times, the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add egg yolks, oil and milk gradually.  Batter will be very thin. Beat hard for 2 minutes.  Fold in beaten egg whites.  Bake in preheated waffle iron.

Note:  You may add 1/2 tsp. soda and substitute buttermilk for milk to make a richer waffle.  Serve with applesauce and table cream or your favorite topping.

One of my favorite waffle recipes other than wheat follows:

BROWN RICE FLOUR WAFFLES

2 Cups brown rice flour, 3/4 Cup milk,  2 1/2 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 Cup sour cream, 1 Tbsp. brown sugar, 2 eggs, separated, 1/2 tsp. salt, 6 Tbsp. melted butter, pinch of soda or oil

Combine beaten egg yolks, sour cream, melted butter, then the milk.  Add slowly the mixed dry ingredients.  Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites.  Bake on hot waffle iron.  Makes about 6 medium size waffles.

Note:  These are a little heavier than normal waffles, but very tasty. Especially with a good syrup or honey.

Whole Grain Based Dinners

I make Pizza quite often for the family and use a combination of wheat and barley flour.  My family says my pizza is better than the store bought type.  The recipe follows:

PIZZA

2 1/2 to 3 Cups unsifted flour (use a combination of white, wheat, and barley), 2 tsp. salt (I have found this is too much for us.), 1 1/2 tsp. sugar, 1 Cup very hot water, 1 pkg. active dry yeast, 2 Tbsp. salad oil

1.  In a  large bowl thoroughly combine 1 cup of the flour, sugar, salt and active dry yeast.  Gradually add very hot tap water and salad oil to dry ingredients and beat 1 minute at low speed with electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally.

2.   Stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough.

3.   Turn  out  onto a lightly floured board; knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes.  (Here is where my Bosch comes in handy, I just let it knead for 10 minutes, but with this small amount of dough it tends to walk off the counter, so I have to watch it closely.)

4.   Place  dough in a greased bowl, turning to grease top.  Cover and let rise in a warm place, free from draft, until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes.  While this is happening prepare your pizza ingredients.

5.   Punch  dough down and divide in half.  Press each piece of dough into a greased 12-inch pizza pan, forming a standing rim of dough.  These may also be shaped on a greased baking sheet, forming a standing rim of dough.

6.    Fill with desired filling and bake as directed.

7.    Makes enough dough for 2 pizzas.

Note:  I usually make 4 pizza and freeze 2 uncooked, then when I'm short on time, we have pizza for dinner!  Just cook as directed for unfrozen, but I usually put the pizza in the oven while it is preheating and then cook 15-20 minutes.

My favorite pizza filling recipe is as follows:

PIZZA FILLING

Brown 1/4 pound ground chuck or more in a skillet over medium high heat.

1 8 oz. can tomato sauce, 1/4 tsp. pepper, 1 Tbsp. minced onion, 1 tsp. oregano, 1/2 Cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1/2 tsp. salt, 2 unbaked pizza crusts,  Lots of grated Yellow and White Cheese (Cheddar, Mozzarella or Monterey Jack)

1.         Heat oven to 4250.

2.         Combine tomato sauce, minced onion, oregano, salt and pepper.  Spread half of the mixture over the top of each pizza crust.

3.         Sprinkle with the ground chuck.

4.         Sprinkle  with Parmesan cheese.  Put the cheeses all over the top of the pizzas.

5.         I chop up black olives and spread it over the cheeses, or you can use mushrooms or any other item that you especially like, peppers, onions etc.     

6.         Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until browned and bubbly.

Another fun thing that I make is corn tortillas.  My husband prefers my enchiladas and tortillas to store bought ones.

CORN TORTILLAS

1 cup unbleached flour (can use whole wheat but texture is not as good), 2 1/2 Cups milk, 5 Tbsp. cornstarch, 1 cup yellow corn meal, 1 tsp. salt, 2 eggs, 2 Tbsp. oil

Place all ingredients except oil in blender or food processor and blend well.  Put oil in a very large pan.  Put a small amount of batter in center of pan.  Then tip and tilt the pan until the batter is very thin and covers the whole pan.  When it is browned, flip to the other side.  Then make your favorite Mexican recipes.  My family even likes to eat them as tacos, except you roll tortilla around the ingredients.

Stack tortillas on top of each other, wrap in oiled paper then cloth or foil to keep moist.  Refrigerate if not used at once.

There are many wonderful recipes you can make without the normal processed foods.  It takes time, obviously, but I feel that one of the most important things that we do in our lives is eat and how we feel depends on what we put into our bodies.

One recipe I found was made by a delightful older diabetic lady that we met:

PINTO BEANS AND CORNBREAD

Simmer over Medium heat 10 minutes

3 Cups cooked pinto beans, 1/3 Cup chopped onion, 1/3 Cup tomato sauce, 1/3 Cup chopped green onion

Preheat oven to 4000.

Mix: 4 Tbsp. melted butter, 1 Cup ground cornmeal, 1 tsp. chili powder (optional), 1 Cup milk

Put beans in 8 X 8" dish. Pour cornmeal mixture on top and bake at 4000 for 15-30 minutes uncovered.  Can bake with the bread on bottom.

One of my old standby recipes that I made up myself and use quite often is:

HAMBURGER BARLEY CASSEROLE

Heat 3 cups water to boiling.  Add 1 1/2 cups of barley and cook approximately 30 minutes on simmer or medium.

Brown 2 pounds of hamburger and pour off all grease.  Add small chopped onion.  Add three or four 6 oz. cans of tomato sauce. Add salt, garlic powder, spices to taste.  I may use oregano, basil  or various other spices. (You can make it taste Mexican or Italian.) Simmer uncovered for 35-40 minutes, stirring often.

Layer cooked Barley, grated cheese, and Hamburger Sauce.  Make 2 or 3 layers, depending on size of casserole dish.  If you like, I sometimes chop olives and add to the top with a last layer of cheese.  Bake in oven 3500 for about 30 minutes, longer if it has been refrigerated.  This is an excellent dish to warm up for the Sabbath.

One of my all time favorite recipes is found in Feasting Naturally.  The ingredients don't seem to go together but the results are marvelous.

BROCCOLI AND RICE BAKE

1 (10 1/2 oz.) pkg. frozen (or fresh) chopped broccoli, 1/4 Cup melted butter or margarine, 1/2 Cup shredded cheddar cheese,  1/2 tsp. pepper, 3 Cups cooked brown rice*, 1/2 Cup chopped onions, 3/4 Cup mayonnaise, 1/2 Cup broken walnuts, 1/2 Cup water, 1 tsp. parsley, 2 eggs, 1/2 tsp. salt

Steam broccoli 2 minutes only.  Place rice in a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish; stir together mayonnaise, water, eggs, and onion; blend into rice.  Add walnuts, parsley, salt and pepper and mix thoroughly.  Lay steamed broccoli around the top of the casserole dish and pour melted butter over it.  Cover with grated cheese and bake 35 minutes at 3500.

Preparation time:  50 minutes.   Yield: 6-8 servings.

Hint:  Add 2 cups leftover, cubed chicken or turkey to the rice for a satisfying one-dish meal.  What a unique idea for that left over Thanksgiving turkey!  This is our favorite choice.

* I use Lundberg's organic short or long grain brown rice (found in health food stores), cooked as follows: 2 cups boiling water to 1 cup rice for 30 minutes on simmer or medium.  I never buy super processed white rice on the market, which has absolutely no food value.  It's easy to fix, which can't be said of brown rice, but what is its value?  Brown rice may come out sticky so experiment with learning to cook it.  Cook it up ahead of time, let it cool then saute it in oil until it is crispy crunchy and lovely for dishes that call for rice.

The Whole Grain Breakfast

One thing that we do to get away from the super processed breakfast cereals and not eat them all the time is to cook whole grains for breakfast.  "Captain Crunch" is expensive, loaded with sugar and refined cereals and additives.  Instead, start your day the natural way!

Using a crockpot, put in a ratio of 2 parts water to 1 part grain. Whole wheat, millet, whole oats can all be cooked this way.  Add salt if you find you like it and cook overnight.  Millet and oats will not take as much time as wheat so you may want to cook them during the day.  Then the next morning, add milk or cream and honey to taste.  It will take a little longer to eat because it is very chewy, but is very nutritious and sticks to your ribs.

Whole Wheat Desserts

Here's a couple of whole wheat based desserts.  You may try substituting honey in place of sugar in these recipes.

WHOLE WHEAT OATMEAL CAKE

Pour water over oats, cover and let stand 20 minutes: 1 1/4 Cup boiling water, 1 Cup oatmeal - uncooked

Beat until creamy, add and cream: 1 Cup brown sugar, 2 eggs,  1 Cup white sugar,  1 tsp. vanilla

Sift together: 1 1/3 Cup whole wheat flour,  1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 1 tsp. soda, 1/2 tsp. salt, 3/4 tsp. cinnamon

Stir oats into creamed sugar mixture.  Then add flour and dry ingredients.  Stir to mix.  Bake in 9 x 13 x 2 1/2 inch greased pan at 3500 for 50-55 minutes. For a topping,  Combine: 1/2 Cup chopped nuts, 1/2 Cup brown sugar, 3/4 Cup coconut, 3 Tbsp. light cream, 1/4 Cup butter

At end of baking time, remove hot cake, sprinkle at once with topping and return to 4000 oven for about 7 minutes to bubble topping.  Watch not to over brown coconut in topping.

WHOLE WHEAT COOKIES

Preheat oven to 3500. 1/2 cup shortening,  or 1/2 tsp. soda, vegetable oil, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1 cup raw or brown sugar, 1 cup raisins, 1 egg beaten, 1 cup chopped nuts, 2 cups whole wheat flour, 1 cup unsweetened,  1/2 tsp. salt, applesauce, 1/2 cup powdered whey, 1/2 tsp. vanilla, 1 tsp. cinnamon

Cream sugar, eggs, shortening or oil, and vanilla. Mix all dry ingredients together and add to creamed sugar alternately with applesauce.  Add nuts and raisins.  Drop by spoonfuls on greased cookie sheet.  Bake 15 minutes.  Makes 3 dozen large cookies.

How to Convert Yourself to Whole Grain Cooking

As you can see, our family learned the hard way.  It took lots of work.  It still does.  You can benefit from what we and others have learned.

Feasting Naturally has three exceptionally good recipe books that you can obtain through Giving & Sharing.  If you are interested in the Magic MillTM and Bosch products, please contact me.  See our List of Sources at the end of this article.

Someone who has eaten white flour products all their lives may find it a little hard to convert to wheat products.  I still do not like the taste of whole wheat noodles and spaghetti, although Richard really likes them.  I find them coarse and funny tasting.  I would advise starting out slowly, if you find this to be the case, use maybe 1/2 wheat and 1/2 white flour.  Then gradually add more wheat over a period of time.

A friend of mine who eats nothing but processed foods, and buys forty nine cent loaves of bread for her family is crazy about my bread.  She says it has body and substance to it and when you eat a sandwich, you feel like you've eaten something.

Even "store bought" bread advertised as "100% Stone Ground Whole Wheat" may not be as nutritious as you might think.  Here are some of the listed ingredients of one such brand:  Calcium sulfate, ammonium sulfate and monocalcium phosphate, monoglycerides, ethoxylated mono and diglycerides, sodium stearoyl lactylate, succinylated monoglycerides, potassium bromate.

Who knows what some of these chemical additives do to our bodies?  As one person said, "If you can't pronounce it, don't eat it!"  The answer is to make bread at home with whole wheat.

I would love to receive some of your favorite recipes even though they may not call for whole grain products.  Some of my best and most used recipes have come from acquaintances and friends.   If you start out on converting to whole grain cooking and run into problems, I would be glad to help you.

NOTE:  Developing your sources for grains and natural foods requires hard work and is usually good only for a limited geographical area.  The following list is not intended to be comprehensive.

LIST OF SOURCES

Recipes

Feasting Naturally, by Mary Pickard. Over 300 excellent natural recipes.  Feasting Naturally From Your Own Recipes, by Mary Pickard.  More natural recipes.

Feasting Naturally With Our Friends, by Mary Pickard.  Additional natural recipes.

Wheat for Man Cookbook, by Rosenvall.

The Wonderful World of Honey, by Parkhill.

Kitchen Equipment

Magic Mill III PlusTM.  The world's finest home flour mill.  Its stainless steel micro milling heads rotate at 28,000 rpm and explode the grains by impact at low temperature to preserve nutrients.   It never clogs like stone mills do.  Mills any grain from bread coarse flour to pastry flour.  It is important to use flour immediately after grinding to preserve nutrients.  Never buy another sack of flour again.  Make your own flour at home with the Magic Mill III PlusTM!

Bosch Universal Kitchen Machine.  German craftsmen have designed one machine to perform dozens of kitchen chores and last a lifetime.  It can knead 10 lbs. of whole wheat bread dough, changing gears automatically when the gluten is worked up and the dough becomes thick.  Attachments such as a blender, meat grinder, pasta maker, juicer, ice cream maker, vegetable slicer, etc. make this machine your most important kitchen appliance.  We love our Bosch!  You will too.

Check your area to see if Magic Mill products are available.  If not, write to Magic Mill International Headquarters, 1911 South 3850 West, Salt Lake City, Utah 84104 USA.

Whole Grains, Organically Grown

Wheat, etc.     Arrowhead Mills, Box 866, Hereford, TX  79045. (806) 364-0730.   (Order from your local health food store.)

Rice:  Lundberg Farms, P.O. Box 369, Richvale, CA  95974. (Order direct from Lundberg Farms, or your local health food store.)

An excellent source of non-organic whole grains, dehydrated foods and other food storage items is:  Walton Feed, Inc., P.O. Box 307, Montpelier, ID 83254. (800) 847-0465.  Call them for the address of a distributor nearest you.  Many Mormons buy storage grains and dehydrated foods from Walton Feed.

We particularly like Walton Wheat because it is stored in durable plastic bags and is guaranteed weevil free, with no poisonous chemicals added.  Most other non-organic wheat is treated with powerful poison chemicals to kill weevils.  We use Walton's hard high protein red winter wheat.

How To Store Grains

Until you learn how to store grains, it would not be advisable to purchase very large quantities, because you may lose portions due to spoilage or insect damage.  Walton sealed plastic storage bags take all the worry out of storage loss.  If you buy grain in paper bags, you will need to do something to store it properly, or bugs such as weevils and moths can get into your grain and make it unusable.  Obtain large white plastic containers (3-5 gallon) from restaurants (shortening cans, etc.).  Clean the containers thoroughly and dry.  Pour your storage grains into these containers. Mingle bay leaves and/or dry ice with the grain and seal tightly.  Bugs hate bay leaves, and dry ice kills any larvae.  Obviously, if you have problems with mice and rats, you better eliminate the vermin or you will lose your storage grain.

Another idea:  if you have a large freezer, store sacks of grain in your freezer. Corn, wheat and soybeans are the easiest to store without loss.  Rice, millet, barley and oats are more susceptible to damage.

Our family of five goes through 50 pounds of wheat in 4-6 weeks, so we like to keep half a dozen 50 pound sacks on hand at all times.

-- written by Shirley L. Nickels

A TIME TO BE BORN -- NATURALLY

It was Thursday evening, April 12, 1984, exactly one week before Shirley was due to deliver our third child.  It had been a very happy nine months.  We thought we had done a good job of preparing for the birth of another child.  Shirley had gotten lots of exercise, eaten wholesome foods, and maintained a cheerful and contented mental disposition.  Even during the cold winter when the temperature was far below zero, we would try to take walks together in the evening, holding hands and discussing the day's events, and the soon-coming new baby.

Our first child Barbara had come easily in a doctor's office.  The doctor had to leave for another call, and I took Shirley home by myself a couple hours after delivery.  However, our second child Rachel, born at home with assistance of three midwives, came only after an excruciatingly difficult labor.  Shirley and I had not properly prepared for that baby, and we were determined to do a better job this time.  We were attending Lamaze childbirth preparation classes to refresh our memory of how to have a baby naturally.  What a great event to have another baby!  The last days seemed to drag on slowly.  Perhaps -- just maybe! -- I might have a son this time!  Not that I don't love dearly Barbara and Rachel.  But, you see, I am the only son of an only son.  I'd like to have a son to carry on the family name.  My father had seven sisters and no brothers.  I have three sisters and no brothers.

On that Thursday evening, Shirley and I didn't think of all this.  The house had undergone spring cleaning in preparation for the soon approaching Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread.  Shirley felt full and decided to skip supper.  Her stomach looked like she had swallowed a watermelon!  During the months I had teased her saying she was looking more and more pregnant every day!

When we went to sleep that night, we did not know that in a few short hours we would be catapulted from peace and tranquility into one of life's most memorable and trying experiences.

Around 1:30 A.M. Shirley shook me out of bed.  "My bag of water has broken," she said.  From my groggy sleepy state, I slowly rose.  She called the doctor and he wanted her to go to the hospital at once.  As we called the baby sitter, Shirley began labor contractions.  We had gone through this twice before.  We were mature and could handle anything -- or so we thought.

One of the basic tenets of our religious faith is that the Almighty Creator is the Healer and Deliverer.  Having a baby is not a disease or illness, but a natural process He created.  It should be conducted as naturally as possible, without unnecessary use of medications, drugs, and artificial methods.  This is in obedience to God's Law, and results in better health to both mother and baby.

In our previous location in the Pacific Northwest, there were professional midwives and doctors who support natural delivery and home birth.  In Wyoming, where we were now, it was a far different situation.  Unless we drove 150-200 miles, there was no possibility of having a baby outside of a hospital.  We were determined to make the best of our situation, and have the baby as naturally as possible.  The local hospital had a birthing room, and fathers were allowed with the mother all through delivery.  We found a medical doctor who seemed to be sympathetic with our desires to have our baby naturally.

But there were nagging fears at the back of our minds.  If there were complications, would the hospital try to force treatments on us against our will?  We have been "hassled" in the past.  Years ago we were involved in a serious car accident and were taken by ambulance to a hospital emergency room.  We had a vociferous confrontation with the doctors because we refused to receive tetanus shots.  I was the least injured, and I recall nearly coming to blows with a massive hospital security guard because I was prevented from entering the room where a doctor was sewing up Shirley's cuts.  Would this horrible sort of thing happen again?

We entered the hospital about 1:45 A.M., and were placed in a small maternity room.  I began timing Shirley's contractions.  They were irregular, sometimes four to eight minutes apart, then twenty minutes apart, sometimes intense and sometimes mild.  The night seemed to be endless.  When the doctor examined her at 9:00 A.M., he said that he wanted the baby to be born within 24 hours, because the bag was broken, and infection could result unless delivery came soon.  I teased Shirley, saying that she should jump on a trampoline to speed things up!  Shirley's irregular contractions were a concern to the doctor, because they should have been steadily progressing in intensity and closeness.  The doctor wanted to induce labor, but we said no, we would wait for her body to get into the proper labor routine.

Labor pains are certainly involuntary.  No amount of straining can make them come or leave.  A natural doctor would have aided Shirley's labor through the use of herbs.  But this was Wyoming.  What could we do but pray and wait?  At noon, Shirley's labor was not at all improved.  Women in labor shouldn't receive solid food.  Shirley was given a little broth and water, but had had no solid food in 24 hours.  She is a physically strong woman, but I could see she was becoming tired.  The ten to eleven hours of labor had taken its toll on her strength.  The doctor urged that she at once receive an artificial hormone called pitocin, which simulates the hormone normally produced in a mother's body which causes the uterus to contract.  He promised that there would be no side effects, that the only danger would be an overdose and to prevent that, he would begin with a small dosage.

No side effects.  Could we believe that?  These same doctors in our childbirth preparation class had stated that circumcision of male babies had no health effect whatsoever.  They are willingly ignorant of the scientific studies (confirming Biblical truth) showing that not being circumcised leads to later incidence of cancer in men and also the wives of uncircumcised men.

An unpalatable decision can be made if it comes at a hopeless moment and seems to promise quick results.  The doctor promised, "I'm sure with this injection her labor will speed up and the baby will soon come."  Reluctantly, we agreed.  I didn't know where it was located, but the Scripture kept going through my mind, "the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth" (later I found it twice, Isaiah 37:3, II Kings 19:3).  We had to do something quick, or her strength would be gone.  I felt that her bag had broken prematurely, and that her body's natural hormone production to create labor contractions was late in catching up.

An electronic fetal monitor was attached in two places on Shirley's abdomen, to measure the baby's heartbeat and the strength of her contractions.  A continuous computer graphic printout showed her progress.   As the artificial hormone was entered into her veins, contractions fell into a regular pattern, and eventually were two and three minutes apart.  Breathing properly as we were trained in childbirth class is essential to help the mother relax and effectively utilize the contractions to move the baby down and out.  As "coach," my job was to make sure Shirley was breathing properly and relaxed, even during the most difficult contractions.  I gave her ice to cool her between contractions.

When Shirley's cervix had dilated to ten centimeters, she was allowed to push.  This stage began about 2:00 P.M. Friday.  The artificial hormone did stimulate contractions, but it had a side effect, that of adding to the pain of labor.  For a healthy woman, coming to the pushing stage is like the last stretch of a marathon race.  One is tired after running twenty-five miles.  But miraculously, strength comes to run that last mile to the finish line.

The doctor was a true professional.  But I couldn't help notice that he was concerned.  Even though she was ready to push, the baby was high in her abdomen.  It had not dropped into her pelvic region.  He commented that he had never seen a situation like this:  a woman who has had two children before, and after all this labor, the baby had not progressed into the birth canal.

For an hour and a half, Shirley pushed, panted, and pushed again and again. Shirley was strong and pushing correctly.  The doctor said the baby's head was in the proper downward position.  We all encouraged her and she tried different positions.  I prayed silently, but Shirley wasn't so shy in front of a crowd of unbelievers.  She cried out, "Father, help me!"

The result?  NOTHING!  After an hour and a half of immense physical strain and effort, Shirley lay with her legs quivering, covered with perspiration.  Her strength was gone.  On some contractions, she couldn't even push at all.  I sat bent over in a chair next to the birthing bed, my stomach tied up in knots.  I had literally pushed with her.  I felt as if my viscera were hanging out.  I was as it is described in Jeremiah 30:6, "Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child?  wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?"

The doctor grimly stated that the baby had not dropped past the pelvic bones.  It was impossible to aide the baby out with instruments, and he said we must prepare for a Caesarian operation to take the baby.  I replied, "Doctor, you don't know how much we don't want to do that!" I knew that the monitor showed that the baby's heartbeat had dropped forty beats per minute.  How much longer could we risk the life of mother and baby to extend this agonizing situation?

I wish I could say that my faith was unshakable, like as Paul said, "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;  Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed, Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body," II Corinthians 4:8-10.  But I was poured out like water, my heart felt like melted wax and my bowels churned in agony (Psalm 22:14).  If only I could have borne the pain that Shirley endured!  If only there was light at the end of the tunnel.

I left the room with tears in my eyes.  I phoned home and told eight-year-old Barbara:  "Mother's had a rough time and unless she delivers in a few minutes the doctors are going to have to operate on her to remove the baby.  Please pray for Mother and the baby."  Out of the depths I cried with all my soul to the Almighty.

There are times when we must all face the indisputable fact that we mortal human beings are powerless.  We do not have the "strength to bring forth." Just as Hezekiah realized that he alone could not withstand the might of the Assyrian army, we must see ourselves for what we are:  weak human beings desperately in need of the Great Deliverer's merciful help.  We do not deserve His forgiveness and mercy.  We deserve death for our sins.  He can only help us when we come down from our arrogancy and in our helpless condition cry out to HIM.  Would the Eternal come to our aid in this travail?

As I was talking on the phone, one of the nurses burst in and cried out, "come quick!"  I streaked down the hall to the birthing room and was astounded to see the baby's head crowning.  Shirley relates what happened in those few minutes during my absence.  Courage and strength suddenly came to her.  She looked at the nurses and said, "I'm not going to have a Caesarian!"  In over fourteen hours of labor, including one and one-half hours of hard pushing, nothing had happened.  Nothing.  The doctor had never seen anything like it.  Strength was gone.  But suddenly, in six quick pushes, Amanda Ruth Nickels, a healthy girl weighing eight pounds three ounces, was born!

Our agony, our sorrow, our pain was instantly replaced by indescribable, unspeakable joy.  I literally danced around the room shedding tears of joy, praises to the Eternal and the wonderful woman who had brought our family another child, another potential child of God.

The doctor let me cut the umbilical cord.  He vigorously massaged Shirley's abdomen to help her organs return into place.  After a brief clean-up, he and the nurses discreetly left the room for we three to be alone together.  I placed the baby on Shirley's breast and tried to capture on film her glowing face as Amanda nursed for the first time.  Shirley's face glowed with a wonderful radiant beauty.

From out of the depths of despair and anguish, the Almighty heard our cry.  I cannot relate this experience without having tears of joy.  How wonderful and mighty is our Great Deliverer, our Rock, our Fortress!

I have not related our experience to overdramatize it.  (I'm sure many  others  have experienced as much or more traumatic deliveries.)   But I wish to demonstrate that out of the depths of despair, when we give up because we know we have no strength left, HE hears our cry, HE lifts us up out of the dust and causes us to ride upon high places.  Many a night at bedtime, prayers with the children were said for a safe delivery.  We studied, exercised, practiced breathing and relaxing.  We were ready, as it were, for the Olympics.  This was all good to have done, and we would do as good or better again.  Yet we were defeated at every turn, exhausted, beaten.  At one desperate point, Shirley exclaimed, "I want to go home.  I quit!"  Then, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, came an instantaneous miraculous strong hand from the Almighty to lift us from abject defeat to glorious victory.  Can we take any credit?   Does this all show our strong faith, our righteousness?  Not at all.  We had given up.  The victory all belongs to God.

This is the story of the birth of Amanda Ruth Nickels.  It is the real story of life. Anything that we do does not earn salvation.  All our righteousness is as filthy rags.  We suffer through the travail of this life and in the end we have to give up, knowing that we don't have the strength to deliver.  Unless our Rock, our Deliverer, lifts us up on the wings of eagles, we will perish.  But, praise Him!  The good news is that He will lift us up.  He will deliver us from all our sorrows, if we trust in Him.

Certain scriptures now have a much more personal meaning to me as a result of Amanda's birth.  Yes, a man can suffer pangs as of a woman in travail.  I did.

SCRIPTURES REGARDING CHILDBIRTH

The Day of YAHWEH

The coming day of the LORD (YHWH) shall be far more agonizing than what we went through.  In that day, all hands shall be faint, every man's heart shall melt.  " . . . And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth," Isaiah 13:6-9.  It will come as a thief in the night, "For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape," I Thessalonians 5:3.  When Isaiah was given a grievous vision of this coming time, he said, "Therefore are my loins filled with pain:  pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it," Isaiah 21:3.

Those that are punished for their sins will have the sorrows of a travailing woman, with no end for their misery.  Of sinful Ephraim, Hosea 13:13 says, "The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking forth of children."  The punishment of the rebellious daughter of Zion by a cruel army from the north is described as "our hands wax feeble: anguish hath taken hold of us, and pain, as of a woman in travail," Jeremiah 6:24.  In spite of painting herself like a harlot and going after lovers, the daughter of Zion will cry out "woe is me now!" as " . . . a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child," Jeremiah 4:30-31.  Verse 19 adds, "My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart . . . because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war."

"LORD, in trouble have they visited thee, they poured out a prayer when thy chastening was upon them.  Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in her pangs; so have we been in thy sight, O LORD.  We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind;  we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen," Isaiah 26:16-18.

Judah shall be carried away captive, " . . . shall not sorrows take thee, as a woman in travail?" Jeremiah 13:21.  "How gracious shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail!" Jeremiah 22:23.  "Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on her:  anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail," Jeremiah 49:24.  "The king of Babylon hath heard the report of them, and his hands waxed feeble: anguish took hold of him, and pangs as of a woman in travail," Jeremiah 50:43.

Despondent Job stated, "The wicked man travaileth with pain all his days," Job 15:20.  This is not always true; sometimes, they prosper, Jeremiah 12:1.  However, in the final judgment, this will be true.  "As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird, from the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception," Hosea 9:11. Verse 16 adds, "Ephraim is smitten . . . they shall bear no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet I will slay even the beloved fruit of their womb."

Zion Shall Bring Forth

The Creator shall cause Zion (the Church) to miraculously bring forth in His kingdom.  In a future prophecy, of Zion (the Church), Isaiah predicts, "Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.  Who hath heard such a thing?  who hath seen such things?  Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day?  or shall a nation be born at once?  for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.  Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the Lord: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God," Isaiah 66:7-9.  See also verses 10-13.

Zion shall be redeemed, the Kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem:  "Now why doest thou cry out aloud? is there no king in thee? is thy counsellor perished? for pangs have taken thee as a woman in travail.  Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city . . . there shalt thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies," Micah 4:9-10.

The church is described in Revelation 12:1-5 as a woman "being with child" who "cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered."  This child is the Messiah, who was to rule all nations.  Satan tried to devour the child as soon as it was born, same verses.  In the kingdom, when the Church is married to the Messiah, she will prosper, "Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD," Isaiah 54:1 (cited in Galatians 4:27).

Those who see the Kingdom shall fear and tremble as a woman in travail.  Mount Zion, the city of the great King Messiah when He reigns on the earth, shall cause the kings who see it to be troubled and haste away, "Fear took hold upon them there, and pain, as of a woman in travail," Psalm 48:6.  Moses' song echoes the fear and trembling that overtakes those who hear how the Eternal led forth His people and guided them in His strength into His holy habitation, Exodus 15:11-18.

Travailing in Birth For the Brethren

Zealously serving the brethren as the Apostle Paul did is like travailing in birth.  Paul "travailed in birth" for the Galatians, willingly going through pain to help them have Christ formed in them, Galatians 4:19.  A mother willingly suffers the pangs of childbirth for the sweet little baby to be born.  Do we serve the brethren in the same way?

Biblical Examples of Women in Travail

Tamar travailed with Pharez and Zarah.  The midwife helped her, Genesis 38:27-30.  On the way to Ephrath (Bethlehem), " . . . Rachel travailed, and she had hard labor . . . the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also."  Rachel died after giving birth to Benjamin, Genesis 35:16-20. The taking of the ark by the Philistines led to Eli's death and the onset of his daughter-in-law's labor pains, I Samuel 4:18-22.  Israelite women were more lively than Egyptian women, and delivered before the midwives came to help them, Exodus 1:7-22.

Other Points About Biblical Delivery and Birth

In this present life, we often face tribulation and persecution.  But in the world to come, we will have joy comparable to having a child born.  "A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world," John 16:21.  The anguish is forgotten for the joy that follows.

It is not uncommon for a travailing woman to cry out:  "Now will I cry like a travailing woman," Isaiah 42:14.  A woman should never feel inhibited in this situation.  If you feel like crying out, do so!

Israel in type had a traumatic birth.  Her navel cord was not cut, she was not washed in water, nor salted nor swaddled.  She was polluted in her own blood, Ezekiel 16:1-6. God took her, washed and anointed her, verses 7-14.  But she trusted in her own beauty, verses 15-63.  We wish that our children would realize how much we have gone through to take care of them and raise them.  We want them to turn out right.  Doesn't the Almighty do more?

Under Old Testament statutes, a woman was to go through an eighty day period of cleansing if she had a girl, and forty days if it were a boy, Leviticus 12:1-8.

Lessons From the Birth Experience

"For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now," Romans 8:22, waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God.  Our whole being should cry out for this world to be delivered from sin and death, just as Shirley cried out to deliver Amanda!  Those that face a life of grief often curse the day they were born (which should be a blessed day), Jeremiah 20:14-18, 15:10, Job 3:1-12.

Bringing forth foolish or wicked children is a cause of great grief to the parents.  Proverbs 17:21, 25,  "He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow . . . .a foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him." Conversely, "The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him," Proverbs 23:24.  Parents would rather kill their own children who would be false prophets, Zechariah 13:3.  Our children should pass on the Eternal's truth, Psalm 78:1-8.

A man that is born of woman lives a short life, Job 14:1, and can't really be righteous, 15:14, 25:4, Psalm 51:5.  The day of death (of a righteous person) is better than the day of one's birth, Ecclesiastes 7:1.  "As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun," Psalm 58:8.  "If a man beget an hundred children, and live many years, so that the days of his years be many, and his soul be not filled with good, and also that he have no burial: I say, that an untimely birth is better than he," Ecclesiastes 6:3.

Every baby born should remind us of the Messiah's birth, a birth in which we should continually rejoice, Isaiah 7:14, a virgin shall conceive and bare a son. For unto us a child is born, Isaiah 9:6.

Eve's Curse?

Genesis 3:16 needs to be clarified relative to giving birth.  The New International Version translates this verse:  "To the woman [Eve] He said, I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children.  Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."  Because of Eve's sin of disobedience to the Eternal, bringing forth of children and raising them would be painful toil, much hard work (Hebrew word for pain is etsev, "grievous, hard work, toil, painful struggle").  In addition, Eve would be placed under the authority and rule (Hebrew mashal) of her husband.  Just as the Eternal rules over us (Judges 8:23), the husband is to lovingly rule over the wife.  Rebellion of the wife against the husband is sin; she must "reverence" (hold in deep awe) her husband, Ephesians 5:22-33.  She must never tell him "no" unless his command is contrary to God's law!

Furthermore, Adam also received the Eternal's judgment because he followed Eve in her sin, Genesis 3:17-19 (NIV), " . . . Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil [etsev] you will eat of it all the days of your life.  It will produce thorns and thistles for you . . . .  By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."

Eve's judgment did not end once she had given birth to children: the real labor began after the children were born, and the real grievous pains came when problems arose and Cain slew Abel.

Mankind in general has woefully misunderstood God's "curse" on Adam and Eve.  They feel that God was unfair, and, as a result, have striven ever since to nullify or do away with the righteous judgments of the Almighty.  The Creator's judgment was actually done for sinful mankind's benefit to give people work to do.  Idleness leads to unhappiness, boredom and more sin.  Proverbs 14:23 states, "in all labor [etsev] there is profit."  Work is not a curse -- neither is a wife being put under her husband's rule since the parallel type is the Church being under Christ, Ephesians 5:21-33.

Here is a correct explanation of Genesis 3:16-19:

            (1) These judgments apply to us, not because of the "original sin" of Adam and Eve, but because of our own sins, in following their footsteps in rebellion against God.

            (2) Some women have relatively easy and painless deliveries, others have extremely painful childbirth. The difference is often due to the health of the mother and her heredity, not necessarily because of the degree of sin.

            (3) Many women today try to get around the pain of childbirth by taking drugs to alleviate the pain.  This is harmful to the mother and the baby.  Millions go even farther and don't want the living human being in their wombs, causing it to be aborted (murdered).  All in a vain effort to escape etsev!

            (4) The whole experience of giving birth to and the greater part of rearing the children is the toil given to woman.  When a woman tries to evade this God-given responsibility, she is sinning against her Maker.

            (5) "Women's liberation" is certainly not a new thing, but today's western society is so perverted that the authority of the husband is held up to open ridicule.

            (6) In many Third World countries, especially those dominated by the Moslem religion, the reverse perversion predominates.  Women are treated as slaves. One frequently sees women doing all the hard dirty work, while their husbands relax.  Neither extreme is in accordance with the way of the Eternal.     (7) Men too have tried to circumvent God's judgments. Poisons are used to kill weeds and bugs in a perverse attempt to alleviate the curse of the ground.  The Eternal's way is that of obedience, which sinful mankind rejects, Leviticus 26, Malachi 3:8-12.  Wars are basically fought over the land, and who will dominate it.  What sinful mankind fails to realize is the Eternal owns everything.  The ONLY way to be blessed is to obey Him.

And so, as with Adam and Eve, so it is with us.  Both man and woman have to undergo painful toil (etsev) for their own good.  When a husband and wife labor together in childbirth and every other experience of life, they are brought into a very close relationship with each other, and their Maker.  Far from being merely a curse on womankind that the husband should look upon as pain the woman deserves, natural childbirth is an awe-inspiring example of the righteous judgment, love and mercy of the LORD!  It should bring a husband closer to his wife and children.

Every birth should remind us of the painful effects of sin, and that the Ancient of Days has sent the Son of Man, the Messiah, to be born through pain, live a life of toil, die a painful death in our stead, and most importantly, be resurrected and be accepted by the Father as the atoning sacrifice for the sins of mankind.  In all this painful labor -- etsev -- there is great reward, Proverbs 14:23.

Nursing Mothers -- The Bible Way

A few years ago it was "out of fashion" for mothers to nurse their babies.  The Nestle Company was severely chastised in the American natural health press for selling an infant formula in Africa  that  lacked  necessary  nutrients.  Thousands  of malnourished babies with permanent brain damage resulted.  We never saw the Nestle Company recant.  With problems of clean water and sanitation in Third World countries, the last thing they need is to bottle-feed their babies.  What the Almighty created to be a natural process, and which almost every woman is physically able to do, some reject as an "old fashioned" custom.  The Bible  stands forever.  Nursing is the Bible way.  Scientifically, it is the superior method.

I Thessalonians 2:7 (NKJV), "But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children."  (See also verse 11.)

Moses complained to Yahweh for all he had to put up with, leading the children of Israel out of Egypt.  "Have I conceived all this people?  have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the suckling child, unto the land . . . ,"  Numbers 11:12.  Jacob blessed Joseph with "blessings of the breasts, and of the womb," Genesis 49:25.  Of the Messiah, David prophesied, "But thou art He that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope [margin: keptest me in safety] when I was upon my mother's breasts.  I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother's belly,"  Psalm 22:9-10.

Ephraim's punishment is "a miscarrying womb and dry breasts," Hosea 9:14. The Eternal can teach knowledge to those weaned from the milk and drawn from the breasts, Isaiah 28:9-11.  God will never forsake His own, Isaiah 49:15, "Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee."  To those that flee during the Great Tribulation, " . . . woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!" Matthew 24:19, Luke 23:29.

As Jesus spoke, " . . . a certain woman of the company . . . said unto Him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked.   But He said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it," Luke 11:27-28.  Psalm 8:2 (cited by Christ in Matthew 21:16) reminds us that "out of the mouths of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength."

As Shirley was nursing Amanda, there was certainly the feeling of strength and security in our lives.  Nursing is beneficial to mother and baby.  It is a wonderful thing the Almighty has created.  A far cry from artificial methods.  As Amanda was safe and secure in her mother's arms, so we should be reminded that we are even more safe in the Eternal's bosom.

CONCLUSION

As we watched our little bundle of joy wiggle and coo, we wouldn't trade what we went through for anything in the world.  Sure it was labor.  And it continues to be labor as we care for and raise the new baby.  But, this is as it should be.

"Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which He hath given thee . . . for that is thy portion in this life, and in the labor which thou takest under the sun," Ecclesiastes 9:9.

We encourage couples to have their children as naturally as possible, without drugs, medications and other unnatural methods.  The mother should nurse the baby if at all possible.  Prepare for the birth of your child, and for the many years thereafter of rearing them with love and discipline in the Eternal's ways.  Take the awesome responsibility to train up a child in the way he should go, so even when he is old he will not depart from it.

RECOMMENDED READING

The Natural Childbirth Book, by J. Milburn & L. Smith. An excellent, up-to-date reference textbook for natural childbirth from the Christian perspective.

The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding, published and available through the La Leche League, International, which has local chapters in most large cities.  La Leche helps women to breast feed their babies, and counsels nursing women with nursing problems.

How to Raise a Healthy Child . . . In Spite of Your Doctors by Dr. Robert S. Mendelsohn.  A very helpful book.ê