Disclaimer:

~The views and opinions expressed here are of the blog author and not necessarily of CCAPSG as a whole~

Monday, December 21, 2009

A Message From Pastor Baz:



Merry Christmas from the CCAPSG team,

Well, it's the end of our first year as a blog.

Part of me knows all too well, the draw behind the world of cryptozoology and the paranormal. 
Like so many mysteries that become defined by subcultures, it is a place of new information about the mysteries of the world.
For some, it relieves boredom. For others it gives them community. For researchers it is part of the quest to find out 'how stuff works'.
But like so many other things, it can become 'an idol' the thing in our lives that gets the most attention, that consumes our thinking, and takes us away from the reality of life.

One thing is for sure - for all the ghosts, Yowies, Sasquatches, Chupacabra's, UFO's, Goatmen, Dogmen, Skinwalkers and other anomalies out there that are yet to be even proven to be true, the search for them, even firm conclusions on them, if they ever come - will ultimately never bring us happiness.

It might bring us a sense of excitement in the same way buying a new car, cd, going to a party, having a new partner etc might do. But just like those things, when the polish wears off, we'll need another fix that won't bring us happiness the same way the last thing didn't.

So my encouragement this Christmas is, as exciting as finding out how things work is, or what things are, don't let that define who you are or get your affirmation from it.

Because the Bible says you are made in the image of God and that you were worth dying for.

So your identity is actually someone who is loved by the God of the universe.

Will you recieve that free gift of revelation about who you are to God this Christmas?


True peace is found in the restoration between things that are broken.

Restoration between:

- God and us (the relationship broken by sin, unbelief and making ourselves God).

- Us and others (the relationship broken by self centredness in our intentions and interactions)

- Us and ourselves (getting rid of the false self that we portray to the world).

- Us and the planet.(Proper care of what God has given us)


So as much as I'd like to know what a Chupacabra is, ultimately it's meaningless in the bigger picture.

What I'd much rather know is that you are now free by Jesus' death and ressurection and filled with the only ghost worth knowing - the Holy Spirit.

Restoration can start today, simply by a simple act of faith of believing in Jesus as Gods Son. He will change the way you see yourself and the world.

I hope that you recieve the peace, love and hope of Jesus Christ this Christmas.

Pastor Baz.

Paranormal In The News - Christmas Holidays





UFO Pyramid reported over Kremlin
A giant pyramid which appears to be a UFO hovering over the Kremlin has caused frenzied speculation in Russia that it is an alien spacecraft.
Click here for a link to the news story from the Telegraph newspaper.


Bryony's thoughts - Not entirely sure what to think of this footage, it could be a reflection of something thats inside the car. But what makes it slightly more convincing is the footage of the pyramid shaped UFO from during the day - unless of course its just one big hoax? I mean surely if a huge pyramid shaped UFO was hovering over the Kremlin more people would have reported it and the Russian army would have gotten involved? My opinion is its a hoax. What are your thoughts?

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The Star of Bethlehem: A Paranormal Event?
Was the star of Bethlehem a paranormal event - a miracle - proclaiming the birth of the Messiah? Or was it a natural, if spectacular, celestial event that happened to take place at the same time that some historians reckon that Jesus was born?

Click here for the rest of Stephen Wagners blog from www.paranormal.about.com

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My dead son has miraculous powers, says Lina Tannous

A SYDNEY couple believes their son - "hand-picked by God" - could be Australia's first male saint.
To read more click here


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Reeking Aliens Wake Up Darwin


A TOP End politician says exhaust from a visiting space ship may be responsible for a nauseating stench that descended on Darwin in the dead of night.

Click here for the rest of the story.

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Parramatta Wall Weeps Miracle Oil 
"Thousands of people have started to flock to the western Sydney home of a Catholic couple where oil and ash have started to appear on the walls of the bedroom of their late son who was killed in a car crash last year."

Here is another link about the Michael Tannous house with quotes from a few people who've visited the house. It's interesting to read the varying opinions. To read more click here.

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"Parishioners at one of Canada's oldest Anglican churches will be puzzled by an enduring enigma when they gaze heavenward this Christmas."
Click here for the news story.

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Real Life Stories: Clairvoyant meets Jesus


By Lee-Ann Kelly

Many people who develop an interest in Paranormal activity may have at some point been to a clairvoyant, Tarot reader or Fortune Teller.

Clearly some of these people are gaining information from the spiritual realm. Claims to see loved ones that have “passed over” knowledge of things the clairvoyant could not possibly know. Often visits to clairvoyants bring comfort to those grieving for their loved ones and a sense of peace that they are happy and will meet again with them someday.

Before becoming a Christian I was one of those people who on a few occasions sought insight into my life and future from “mystics” I also spent a few years learning tarot, healing and psychometry (ability in which a person can sense or "read" the history of an object by touching it).

I denounced all of these crafts well before becoming a Christian as I was made fully aware I had opened doors to a spiritual world which were not of God and I again denounced all of my past involvements on becoming a Christian and accepting Jesus into my life.

As Christian’s (followers of Christ) we are made very aware of the spiritual realm both good and evil through Gods Word and what God Himself reveals to us. God clearly tells us not to seek fortune tellers :

Leviticus 19:31 "'Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.

Leviticus 20:6 "'I will set my face against the person who turns to mediums and spiritists to prostitute himself by following them, and I will cut him off from his people.



Spirits can easily masquerade as a loved one and in turn lead you in a direction further away from God and His plan for your life. The easiest way to put it is that God created you in His image with a purpose and destiny in Him and His kingdom so God wrote the instruction manual for you and your life so who better to ask for guidance that the designer! If you bought a new Television you wouldn’t want to read a Washing Machine Manual to set it up! The enemy on the other hand will deceive at any opportunity if it means leading a person away from God’s grace,salvation and plan for your life.

The last time I visited a Clairvoyant was January 2004. Why would I remember the exact date? Read on to find out!

I was staying in Tammworth for the Country Music Festival when I stumbled across a Physic Fair. Why not I thought. I paid my money and took my place at a small table across from a man in his 40’s. I was ready to hear what the future had in store for me and was single at the time so keen to hear of the prospect of a new relationship. The man reached across the table and took my hands in his, closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. “Here we go” I was thinking. Already sceptical of what he was going to say.

A minute passed and suddenly the man jolted back in his chair at the same time letting go of my hands. His eyes were wide as dinner plates and the blood drained out of his face. I was feeling pretty shocked and scared at that moment. What on earth had he seen?

His voice quivering he stammered out the words “Jesus is with you”. I remember smiling at him and saying “I know” as a feeling of amazing peace flooded through my entire body. He repeated “No..you don’t understand” “Jesus is REALLY with you”. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat and again smiled and said to him “Yes I know”.

At any moment I thought this guy was going to drop off the chair!

He then said “ No Jesus is standing right next to you! I saw Him!”.

I smiled and said to the guy “ Well I guess thats all I really need to know” and I thanked him and got up and left leaving him sitting as white as a sheet with his mouth open to the floor.. I skipped around all day knowing that Jesus was with me!

Just 3 months after this happened I met a lady who began sharing the Gospel with me. I picked up a bible for the first time in my life (other than short stints of reading in hotels over the years).

My friend had advised me to pray before reading the bible that God would reveal His truth to me. I never forget praying and opening the pages and there staring back at me in red was the following scripture spoken by Jesus. "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." -- John 14:6

As I read each day the words literally jumped off the pages! I discovered that the spiritual hunger I had felt for years, the same hunger which drove me to study many religions and occult practices was now finally being fed. Reading for hours each day I discovered that through the bible God was speaking directly to me and showing me His love for me and the plan he had for my life.

Lee-Ann Kelly

Monday, December 14, 2009

Real Life Stories - The Magic Sand Poltergeist


Once again this series of real life stories has the theme of Indigenous artefacts and the resultant chaos that occurs when they are brought into the homes of naïve westerners.



Last week we talked about the ‘cursed keyring’. This weeks story is about relics that had been in a family for years.



Often when someone we love dies, we cherish the things they collected in their lifetimes. It reminds us of what they did and who they were. Sometimes it’s furniture, books, antiques or other collectibles. Other times they are items from another culture they visited.



That is where our story begins..



Years ago ‘P’ lost his beloved father and grief stricken he kept his dad’s items in storage. ‘P’ was married with three beautiful kids and a senior position in aviation – life was going well - but he mourned for his dad and began to go through his old belongings.



He found an old Aboriginal midden (used to store and cook shellfish) and a glass jar full of colourful sand in layers – with distinct images of birds between the layers. He remembered this was known as magic sand and was meant to have spiritual meaning to the Aboriginals. He placed the midden at the back door of his family home, at the base of the steps. The magic sand was placed inside the house.

From that point onwards It took many months for ‘P’ to raise the subject with me, but when he did the events that were taking place at his house sounded very familiar.



“Baz, can you and the elders come and pray for my house, there are twenty pound weights being thrown around downstairs when no one is down there, wind out windows are opening and closing of their own accord and footsteps that come up the back stairs, then go onto the roof and over our room happen all the time”? I confirmed these events with his wife and noting that this sounded very unusual indeed promised to organise a team to do deliverance prayer at his house. This was at a time when CCAPSG did not have an investigative arm or equipment to check for other natural phenomenon. We treated it with what we had – faith.



The elders of the Church did go and pray, but I did not due to other things that were on. ‘P’ was upset with me for not coming and rang me to let me know. I explained my absence and as we sorted things out amicably, firstly on the phone and them over coffee more of the story came out.



The events had not subsided.



Even worse, now a dark cloud of ‘malevolence’ had crept up the stairs at night, a phenomenon that was palpable to the point that ‘P’ could trace it’s journey as it moved up the three levels of the house.



The footsteps continued as did night terrors and they always emanated from the area where the midden was. Strange behaviour by Ravens in the area around the midden only intensified the feelings that they were being watched all the time.



Then the penny dropped. All the occurrences started when the midden and magic sand was brought into the house.



We discussed it and ‘P’ decided he needed to get rid of the items.



Guess what?



As soon as they were removed the phenomenon also ceased.



When I became a Christian in 2000, I had a lot of stuff in my house that had been used ceremonially (for example animal fetishes) as my wife worked in a Native American Art Gallery.. We simply got rid of those items and kept the others that had not. We were simply more aware of what had gone on in my wife’s house as a child and realised we wanted a clean house with no unwelcome visitors. This is not a ‘fundamentalist’ mindset – it’s common sense when you have experienced horrific phenomenon before that was linked to a ceremonial item. I hope this story encourages us to be on guard and realise that at times we need to do what was done in the book of Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament.



From Acts 19:11-20 (NIV)

11God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.

13Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, "In the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out." 14Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. 15(One day) the evil spirit answered them, "Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?" 16Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.

17When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. 18Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed their evil deeds. 19A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.[a] 20In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.

Let me make this clear - by no means are we encouraging people to randomly destroy items from other cultures which can be so rich in history, art and legacy, but to be very discerning about what you buy or allow yourself to inherit and what you put in your house. It’s important to realize that when something gets in to our lives through those entry points that we can’t let the financial cost of the item dictate whether it has permission to stay in our homes – the long term cost is far greater in the toll it can take on our families.

By Pastor Baz

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Paranormal In The News This Week 14/12/09


"Entitled “Many Americans Mix Multiple Faiths,” the report points out that many Americans are now choosing to “blend Christianity with Eastern or New Age beliefs” and that “sizable minorities of all major U.S. religious groups” said that they have had supernatural experiences, like encountering ghosts."
An article regarding The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life - Click here to read more from the article in NY Times. And click here for Pew Forum website.
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"THE ghostbusters of reality television never actually see dead people. They spend an awful lot of time talking to them, though"

Click here to read more of this article from the NYtimes...
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Jack Black Studying Cryptozoology
"Having hit it big with Kung Fu Panda, Jack Black is delving back into animation, albeit behind the camera this time, for a film about Cryptozoology."


Click here to read the rest of the article from Empire online.

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"I stumbled across this article in the Sydney Morning Herald about Ghost Hill Road, Bilpin."
Click here to read more from the blog post regarding the Sydney Morning Heralds article on Ghost Hill Road.

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Click here for some Christmas themed paranormal encounters from paranormal.about.com

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Click photo for link to a news story about a ghost at Bents opera house. Some people claim to see the image of a ghost in this shot.



Our opinion is that the orb is dust in the air and the "figure" is something called matrixing where the brain tries to find a recognisable image within a pattern.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Black Mass Ghost Photo From The Villisca Axe Murder house



Background
For those that haven't heard the story - The Villisca Axe murders happened on June 10, 1912 in Villisca, Iowa, USA. 2 adults and 6 children were murdered in their beds and no murderer has ever been found. The house hasn't changed too much in the 97 years since the murder. In 1994 the Linns bought the property and restored it to its original condition and it is now listed on the national registrar of historic places. The house is now open to ghost tours. To read more click here for the official website.


The Photo
Jeff Ulmer recently went to the Villisca Axe Murder House with AGH Nation for the Merry Axe-mas event. He experienced a few things there including hearing whispers in the blue room and a very low loud growl in the cellar but the most impressive piece of evidence is the photo taken above. Two minutes after walking into the house Jeff snapped a few photos, neither the photos before or after have this black mass in them. Interestingly enough the group that had gone in the room before Jeff went in had apparently been provoking whatever entity might be there to show themselves in the name of Jesus Christ. It seems it worked because when Jeff went into the bedroom he said he could feel the energy in there and snapped the photos. It's best to hear the story straight from the person who experienced it and thankfully Jeff did a video the same night documenting his experience.



Photos and video provided by Jeff Ulmer.


Monday, December 7, 2009

Paranormal in the news 7/12/09


"Haunted" woman loses 20kg in 2 weeks
"A 37-year-old Chinese woman from Englor claimed that she has been haunted by a "female ghost" every night over the past two weeks and her weight dropped from 70kg to 50kg as she had to withstand mental torture everyday." click here for news story.

"This is a very strange story. I think of it often and always fill with that fear one feels when experiencing one of those “close calls” in life.
I was 23 at the time. I was married and had a three year-old son. I was just a young woman like any other. I stayed home with my child..."
To read more click here


From Rick Phillips, 'The Anomaly Man': Hello, welcome back to what is now the second annual listing of The Top 10 Anomalous, Dubious, Hoax, Events and Links of 2009 - a year end tradition started at The Heavy Stuff. This year, like last, we have a bevy of links that appeared on the internet that qualified as anomalous in many areas of ParaNormality - but - ...
to read more click here for the Phantoms and Monsters link or here for The Heavy Stuff link.


Spiralling light baffles experts.
A mysterious light display appearing over Norway last night has left thousands of residents in the north of the country baffled.

Click here for link to news story and video.

The cursed Keyring



This series of real life stories has a consistent theme. Indigenous artefacts and the resultant chaos that occurs when they are brought into the homes of naïve westerners.



Whether it is the story of the Hexham heads in the UK, to the stories in this series including the Churinga Stone tale, artefacts can literally ‘unleash hell’ in our homes.



That is not to say that all artefacts have these problems associated with them. But it does appear when you look at the cases, that artefacts used ceremonially or with religious purpose in mind (and with a curse in some cases if removed from the tribe) tend to be the biggest culprits.



Pastor Robin Swope, the Paranormal Pastor, made a statement in his excellent book “An Exorcists Field Guide” that “….There are times when the practice that harbours occult focus or power might be an innocent thing in and of itself. Likewise there can be seemingly occult practices made by the owner of resident that have no occult power or entanglements (Page 154).



So sometimes items or practices that seem to have occult ties are not and others that do not appear at surface level to do. And they don’t need to be indigenous artefacts to have weird ties to the spirit realm. Sometimes we make things ‘spiritual’ by the agreements we unwittingly make with them. One example is my old Bible study teacher’s story about his Jim Beam keyring. On the surface it had no occult ties whatsoever. It was simply a pewter keyring with a ceramic logo on it. But when my teacher in his youthful exuberance made the statement that ‘the keyring would be his lucky charm and he would always have it with him’ something shifted….or acknowledged that agreement.



So much for luck. Within days he was nearly run over by a car that killed the dog he was walking, who was his best mate as a youngster. Then a series of unfortunate events unfolded withing the next couple of weeks. Was it just coincidence…..this keyring was anything but good luck. He took it to a nearby creek and threw it in. He was glad to be rid of it.



The next morning as he went to get dressed he opened his sock draw – and there neatly laid out on top was the keyring.



That was the first of many attempts to detach himself from it. Every time he threw it away it returned. People would bring it back to him saying “isn’t this your keyring mate, I found it in the strangest place”.



He was sure he had brought some sort of horrific curse upon himself as not only was the keyring continually coming back, but the bad luck events continued to unfold.

Like so many of these stories, and it is now almost a cliché in this blog, it was only prayer and the name of Jesus that ended the cycle of the curse.



So next time you worry about the Papuan New Guinean war masks that are staring at you on your wall being demonised, remember that is often the agreements we make that start the spiritual wars we have to endure.



For more information on dealing with issues like this, we recommend Pastor Swope’s latest book via amazon

By Pastor Baz

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Real Life Stories: The Angel Apparition


by Lee-Ann Kelly from CCAPSG.

I lost a cousin to suicide about 12 years ago. Justin was just 21. A few years after his death I was at my Auntie's house (his mum) I was talking about Justin and how much I missed him.
My Auntie was hesitant but asked me to her bathroom to show me something. It was kind of weird. She pointed to a tile over the bathroom tap and said look there and see what you can see. I looked at the tile and it looked like any other tile to me. In my head I thought "nope I dont see anything" I was just about to let those exact words leave my mouth when presto! There on the tile was a perfect apparition of an angel sitting with legs crossed and wearing a t-shirt (you could see the outline of a fitted tshirt and wings were outstretched behind.)
I seriously nearly fell on the floor. My Auntie then took me to their lounge room and showed me a black and white professional photo that Justin had done right before his death. There was a photo of him sitting in the exact position with the exact t-shirt on, the only difference was in the black and white photo he had no wings.

Remember: I saw the tile before I saw the photo and the apparition was a replica of the photo.

Do I believe in apparitions.......??

Absolutely!

Do I know why they appear or from what source?

No.