Soul and spirit. . .

Question: Could you please explain to me whether the soul and spirit are the same in the Bible?

Response: First Thessalonians 5:23 clearly states, "I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless."

Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the Word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the "dividing asunder of soul and spirit."

There is a distinction between soul and spirit and it takes an extremely sharp (i.e., supernatural) instrument to discern it. Consequently, any attempt at human definition must fall short.

The soul is said to include the mind, the will, and the emotions. Jesus, in His humanity, said that His soul was "exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death..." (Mt 26:38. See also Job 10:1, Ps 119:28, Zec 11:8, etc.).

Some might point out that Jesus was also troubled in His spirit:

"When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me" (Jn 13:21 KJV).

It is clear that the spirit addresses issues beyond the mind, the will, and the emotions.

When He was dying on the Cross, Jesus committed his "spirit" into His Father's hands (Lk 23:46).

As for the human spirit, we know that at death it returns to the Lord who gave it (Eccl 12:7, 2 Cor 5:8, Phil 1:23).

Prior to the resurrection, it is "souls" that stand before God:

"And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God" (Rv 20:4).

Although Scripture gives us no exact definitions of soul and spirit, from the verses quoted and many others, we are assured that they are different parts of the makeup of humans.

(From Berean Call ministry newsletter.)

Legacy. . .

Hot Air » How does one become a “worst American?”

2. Rachel Carson and William Ruckelshaus – The banning of DDT has led to 60 million dead worldwide.

1. The Rosenbergs – No Americans have done more to help create the Evil Empire and its sister states (including China) then the Rosenbergs. More have suffered and died as a result of this then I can comprehend.

A good name is better than precious ointment (Ecclesiastes 7:1).

Quisling

Quisling (ˈkwɪzlɪŋ) — n
a traitor who aids an occupying enemy force; collaborator.

After Major Vidkun Quisling (1887--1945), Norwegian fascist politician who headed the puppet government during the German occupation of Norway in World War II; shot for treason after German defeat. First used in London Times of April 15, 1940.
Vidkun Quisling - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Synonyms:
collaborator, betrayer, defector, Judas,** snake in the grass, sympathizer, turncoat.

** "And while He yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people. Now he that betrayed Him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is He: hold Him fast. And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed Him. And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took Him" (Matthew 26:47-50).

Friend = Gr. Hetaire, comrade. How touching that the Lord welcomes Judas as friend.

Jesus! what a Friend for sinners!
Jesus! Lover of my soul;
Friends may fail me, foes assail me,
He, my Savior, makes me whole.

Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Hallelujah! what a Friend!
Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
He is with me to the end.

Words: J. Wil­bur Chap­man, 1910. Music: Hy­fry­dol, Row­land H. Prich­ard, 1830.

Elul: The Lord Is In Our Fields

Tuesday night was the first night of the Hebrew month of Elul. In this month - the King is in the field. Anyone can approach him. Grace, and absolution are easy for those who draw near - who return.

The month is special in preparation for the Jewish High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah (Feast of Trumpets, September 9) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement, September 18). See Leviticus 23.

When Moses ascended Mount Sinai for forty days to receive the Ten Commandments, G-d’s Law, the Hebrews were fearful he would not return and created a Golden Calf to worship. When Moses descended, in anger he smashed the tablets. G-d instructed Moses to again climb Mount Sinai to receive a replacement. Forty days later, during which time Moses asked G-d to forgive the Hebrews’ sin he was instructed that the Israelites repent of their weakness and faithfully observe certain holy days.

The first day of Elul is the second time Moses went up on Mount Sinai, and 40-days later, when Moses returns, Yom Kippur, is when our fate is sealed based upon our acts. We search ourselves for our failings, commit to cease them, sincerely apologize to those we’ve harmed, and create new ways of behavior. The process is called Teshuvah, or return. Elul: The Lord Is In Our Fields - Maggie's Farm

The above post is from Maggie's Farm and from a Jewish religious man. It is interesting to me to see the modern use of these feasts.

A Christian would interpret these verses and these feasts as involving Israel in the future. In taking the contract of the Law, we would say that Israel gave up grace for law. What, under law, was conditional, is under grace, freely given to every believer. Some verses to read: Romans 3:19-26; Galatians 4:1-3; 3:6-25.

Moon touch the earth?

Just amazed to see how things "work out" with relationships gone sour. Like my Mom said, "I wouldn't be surprised to see the moon come down and touch the earth." What a Great God we have! - Lois Greenlund

Lois is my sister...this is from a post on FaceBook after a bad day was replaced with a good day. God shows up and He is effectively working in those who believe (I Thessalonians 2:13), through His Word.

Mother's walk with this God produced great faith...God could do the impossible. It wouldn't surprise her. How about you?

Adios, Gray Lady

"Perhaps one picks up all newspapers in anticipation and puts them down in disappointment. But the New York Times, at no extra charge, also leaves one feeling one lives in immitigably dreary times, and it does so daily. I don’t need it. Cancel my subscription, please. Joseph Epstein" Adios, Gray Lady

I feel this about the newsgathers also...where is the important news?

I am so thankful for our young Pastor, who studies God's Word, and gives us some "real" stuff that is very GOOD NEWS to this sad, dreary world and its inhabitants. (You can hear Pastor Bryan on Grace Life Bible Church web site on right side of this page.)

P.S. Joe Epstein is always worth reading, and if he is off the NYT...well, not good news for them.

Doctors - A "dead parrot" profession?

The Doctor Will See You Now – Or Else! | The Doctor Is In

In Monty Python terms your profession is (was) much like the parrot:

‘E’s not pinin’! ‘E’s passed on! This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be! ‘E’s expired and gone to meet ‘is maker! ‘E’s a stiff! Bereft of life, ‘e rests in peace! If you hadn’t nailed ‘im to the perch ‘e’d be pushing up the daisies! ‘Is metabolic processes are now ‘istory! ‘E’s off the twig! ‘E’s kicked the bucket, ‘e’s shuffled off ‘is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin’ choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-PARROT! : )

Let's hope not...my aches and pains are only increasing with increasing age! And all those medical insurance premiums that we paid for through the years are finally going to be needed...hopefully the Doctor will be in.

What remains. . . death of a child

What no one tells you is that in the months and years to come, people will forget, but you will not. Something in you has died as well, and it awaits resurrection with your child’s body. You will carry this hole in you all your days, and there are no words or heavenly equations to make it good, not so long as you breathe while your child does not.

WORLDmag.com Community What remains

Our first grandchild was stillborn. We do carry him with us every day...wondering what he would be doing...five years ago already. Our last breath will be with the expectation of seeing Jack. That's just the way it is.

Behavior . . .

The best predictor of behavior is past behavior.

Oh, oh! It seems to imply that one cannot change very easily. Our natural default in life is to our flesh nature, i.e. self. Scripture says to "reckon" ourselves dead to the flesh and "alive" unto the Spirit. It takes a conscious commitment to "reckon," doesn't it?

reck·on   
–verb (used with object)
1. to count, compute, or calculate
2. to esteem or consider
3. to think or suppose

To suppose one can control our natural default for a higher law, one that supersedes the lower. In Christ, we can.

The sun is waking up. . .

The sun's surface erupted early Sunday, blasting tons of plasma into space -- and right at the Earth. Astonishing new pictures from NASA show the giant flares and clouds of ionized gas erupting from the star.

The "garish sun" . . .

MUSING…within our measure. 2 Cor. 10:13; Eph. 4:13
(Written for The Grace Messenger, August 2000.)

Give me my Romeo; and, when he shall die,
Take him and cut him out in little stars,
And he will make the face of heaven so fine
That all the world will be in love with night,
And pay no worship to the garish sun.
- Juliet, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

Hide me from the day’s garish eye. - John Milton

These are the only two reference to “garish” in the Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, 12th Edition. The word “garish” has intrigued me since friend Karlyn and I sang the song, Lead, Kindly Light many years ago. The second verse says:

I was not ever thus, nor prayed that Thou
Shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path;
but now lead Thou me on!
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
Pride ruled my will.
Remember not past years!

The “garish sun” is in full sway in the August circuit of the heavenly spheres. Psalm 19:6, “…the sun…his going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.”

August is the crown of the summer. Its name is from the Latin augustus, root of augeo, meaning of awe, impressing awe, magnificent, inspiring reverence.

In thinking of august reverence, Jesus speaks a parable in Matthew 21 concerning a vineyard. The householder of the vineyard goes away after giving the vineyard to a keeper, and in time the householder sends servants to collect the fruit, but the keepers beat, kill and stone the servants. The householder then sends his own son saying, “They will reverence my son.” They did not reverence the son but “caught him and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.” Jesus indicted those wicked keepers of the vineyard in verse 44 with these words, “…whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.” The interpretation of the parable is that God the Father is the householder, Jesus Christ is the Son and the “Stone,” that either, by a broken and contrite heart you will acknowledge, or you will face Him as a "grinding Stone".

Jesus Christ will come back to earth one day. In the Book of Revelation there is a picture of this coming: “…every man hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?" (Revelation 6:16, 17).

Oh, the August sun can be garish and relentless. We seek relief from its heat knowing that soon the circuit will bring on cooler days and nights. But when it is our day to stand before Jesus Christ, the “judge of all the earth,” as everyone must one day, there will be no way to assuage the pitiful condition revealed under the heat of His gaze. It would be our worst nightmare if not for our standing “in Christ." In Christ, robed in His perfect righteousness, we can stand, not condemned, but delivered “from the wrath to come” ( I Thess l:10).

Are you “in Christ?” If you put your trust in Him alone, not in a church, not in a sacrament, not in any good work you have done, but Christ alone because of what He did on the cross for you, He will freely forgive you and welcome you and clothe you in His righteousness. Why stand condemned with the garish, wicked world when you can stand “in Christ” in His awesome glory? Why not trust Him now—it will truly be an awesome August for you.

CHANGE OF RAIMENT

Lord Jesus, all my sin and guilt
Love laid of old on Thee;
Thy love the cross and sorrow willed,
Love underserved by me.
The victory over death and hell
Thou, Lord, for me didst win;
And Thou hast nailed upon Thy Cross
All, all my sin.

Enfolded, O my Lord, in Thee,
And hid in Thee, I rest,
Enwrapped in Christ’s own purity,
Secure upon Thy breast.
Had I an angel’s raiment fair
With heavenly gems unpriced,
That glorious garb I would not wear:
My robe is Christ.
- Gerhardt Tersteegen

What's in a name?

“A rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet”

When the mist is in the gloamin'

"Gloaming" invokes such a magical time of day. A time between light and dark, dark and light. Old English from glom "twilight," related to glowan "to glow," hence "glow of sunrise or sunset." Preserved in Scotland and reintroduced by Robert Burns and other Scottish writers after 1785.

“The Heather On the Hill” song from the musical Brigadoon
Tommy:
Can't we two go walkin' together, out beyond the valley of trees?
Out where there's a hillside of heather, curtsyin' gently in the breeze.
That's what I'd like to do: see the heather--but with you.
The mist of May is in the gloamin', and all the clouds are holdin' still.
So take my hand and let's go roamin' through the heather on the hill.
The mornin' dew is blinkin' yonder. There's lazy music in the rill,
And all I want to do is wander through the heather on the hill.
There may be other days as rich and rare.
There may be other springs as full and fair.
But they won't be the same--they'll come and go, For this I know:
That when the mist is in the gloamin', and all the clouds are holdin' still,
If you're not there I won't go roamin' through the heather on the hill,
The heather on the hill.

Brigadoon is a lovely musical. The reviewer says -- When the hectic pace of the modern world threatens to overtake you, consider a brief vacation in the highlands of Scotland...and as one character says, "There must be an awful lot of folk searching for a Brigadoon"--Amazon.com: Brigadoon: Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, Cyd Charisse…

Ah, but consider what the Lord Jesus promises, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16.33). Better than a Brigadoon...this is for eternity.

Conscience

"They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions, but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience."- Atticus Finch, To Kill A Mockingbird
Amazon.com: To Kill a Mockingbird

"For there is no respect of persons with God...For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also being witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another:" (Romans 2:11, 14-15).

Just keep swimming. . .

Abraham Lincoln told this story:
It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence, to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: “And this, too, shall pass away.” How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction!

Finding Nemo said it simpler. “Just keep swimming."

Big Hollywood - What I Learned From ‘Finding Nemo’

"There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it" (I Corinthians 10:13).

Afraid of the light. . .

“We can forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” Plato

"But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: in whom the god of this world (Satan) hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them" (II Corinthians 4:3,4).

Whittaker Chambers review

"Understanding that happiness is not a sufficient purpose of his existence, man recognizes that responsibility for himself and those he loves is the real challenge… "
Whittaker Chambers, God, and Glenn Beck The Daily Caller

A comment from "Liberty for All" on the above article:
But in serving others, don’t we try and make them happy? “Here’s some food and shelter, just don’t enjoy it!” Sounds a little confusing. Calvinism? I prefer Camus’ “Myth of Sysiphus” for inspiration. Keep pushing that rock up the hill, and it’s okay to smile on a job well done, even as it rolls back down. (Obviously Liberty does not understand the tenets of God's Grace very well. I believe that Christians are the only ones who can possibly be happy even in this present evil age, knowing and having hope, in Christ. After all, He said a number of times to us...Be of good cheer, based on the victory He won over sin, flesh and the devil. Alleluia!)

Whittaker Chamber's "Witness" is one of my top reads. I can't think of a book that exceeds his in thought, courage and practice. Also scroll down and find my posting on Sysiphus (April 25th). Existentialism settles for the mundane as you can discern by Liberty for All comment - Sysiphus and Camus may express a way of looking at life, but what a downer! Only Christianity holds out a glorious future and "good hope through grace" for the day.

Looney Tunes

Of course, you realize, this means war! - Bugs B

Grand-daughter and I are into my Looney Tune Golden Collection DVD. We love Tweedy, Bugs, Porky, Sylvester and those little mice. I laugh out loud when she is watching with me. Grand kids are grand companions!

Tisha B'Av

Roman General Titus destruction of Jerusalem 70 A.D. relief from Arch of Triumph
Tisha B'Av

Tisha B'Av (9th of Av) Gregorian calendar: Jewish Year 5770: sunset July 19, 2010 - nightfall July 20, 2010

Tisha B'Av, the Fast of the Ninth of Av, is a day of mourning to commemorate the many tragedies that have befallen the Jewish people, many of which have occurred on the ninth of Av.

Tisha B'Av primarily commemorates the destruction of the first and second Temples, both of which were destroyed on the ninth of Av (the first by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.; the second by the Romans in 70 A.D.).

In synagogue, the book of Lamentations is read and mourning prayers are recited. The ark (cabinet where the Torah is kept) is draped in black.

(I'm going to read Lamentations and cry with Jeremiah at the ruin of sin that man has embraced and is embracing today. And also rejoice in the hope we only find in the LORD,

"This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The LORD is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him" (Lamentations 3:22-25).

Green batteries. . .

Obama’s Michigan trip highlights misguided federal push for ‘green’ auto batteries that cost and pollute more than market-driven competitors.

grayzel
Tell me why anyone would think an electric car would be green? Where does electricity to charge the lithium battery come from? Where does the lithium come from? I just have to shake my head at all the stupidity. (Me too.)

That Will to Divest

"In American poetry, the contest between glut and starvation is inevitably epitomized by Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson. Between these two, Kay Ryan would of course choose Dickinson."

That Will to Divest by Kay Ryan:

Meaning: once
You've swept
the sheIves
of spoons
and plates
you kept
for guests,
it gets harder
not to also
simplify the larder,
not to dismiss
rooms, not to
divest yourself
of all the chairs
but one, not
to test what
singleness can bear,
once you've begun.

"Kay Ryan, poet laureate of the United States. To a poet like Ryan, nothing could be more of an anathema than bigness. Open 'The Best of It'- there have been great poets devoted to glut, but Ryan belongs to the other."

(I've got the 'will to divest' and have been trying to get at it all year...just can't seem to get a 'round tuit'. Do you have one? - Linda)

Turn your eyes upon Jesus . . .

"...I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord" ( Philippians 3:8).

Washington. . just a little shake. . .

Was that an earthquake? Yes - wtop.com

But a future Day of the Lord will involve a real shake:

"For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:...In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tips of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of His majesty, when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth" (Isaiah 2: 12, 20-21).

Jekyll Island

Other attempts were made to resurrect a central bank in America but none succeeded until the creation of the Federal Reserve System at the hands of a well-documented conspiracy. “The situation we are confronted with did not happen in the last few years, but began in 1913 when a group of cunningly deceitful legislators passed the Federal Reserve Act on December 24 at 11:45 p.m., after those who were opposed went home for Christmas,” Veon noted.

“[T]here was an occasion near the close of 1910, when I was as secretive, indeed, as furtive as any conspirator. . . . I do not feel it is any exaggeration to speak of our secret expedition to Jekyll Island as the occasion of the actual conception of what eventually became the Federal Reserve System . . . ,” wrote Frank A. Vanderlip, one of the men who created the Fed. He went on to become president of New York’s National City Bank, a forebear of today’s Citibank.
Townhall - Jim Marrs - The Necessary Death of the Bank of the United States - Full Article

It is the best course to acknowledge the One (God Almighty - "El Shaddai") who owns "the cattle upon a thousand hills" (Psalm 50:10). And remember to:

"Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy" (I Timothy 6:17).

Isaiah 14:11,12

Doris Augustsson: Satan som ville sätta sig över Gud! Lusifer var musiker i himlen, men blev nerkastad till jorden tillsammans med sina änglar.

Translation from Bing: Satan who wanted to sit over God! Lusifer was a musician in the sky, but became nerkastad to earth together with his angels.

(It rejoices my heart to see some of the people of my ancestral home reading and understanding God's Word. I'll meet them in heaven one day. - Linda)

Eclipse

Pacific July 11, 2010 Total Solar Eclipse.

"And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years" (Genesis 1:14).

Character building . . .

"Always do what you are afraid to do."- Emerson

NPR - National Public Radio

The usual NPR news piece consists of a leftie reporter interviewing a leftie politician. Sometimes another leftie will be allowed to chip in with the observation that the other two lefties aren't far enough left. When NPR's well of leftism runs dry in the wee hours, local stations often retransmit leftism from the BBC. A real laugh riot, and we're forced to pay for every glorious second of it
Townhall - National Public Radio: Choosing Sides and Controlling the Terms Of the Debate With Our Money

"And He (Jesus) spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into the ditch? (Luke 6:39).

Plutocracy

MEANING: noun,
1. Government by the wealthy.
2. A country or state governed by the wealthy people.
3. Wealthy ruling class.
ETYMOLOGY:From pluto- (wealth) + -cracy (rule). From Greek ploutokratia,(wealth, overflowing riches).

Seems that's where Socialism ends. Keep everyone poor except the few at the top while they are rich, rich, rich, and getting richer.

A must read is Orwell's "Animal Farm" where the animals start out equal but it all to soon ends with the pigs revising the rules because: "All animals are created equal, but some animals are more equal than others". Amazon.com: Animal Farm (9781412811903): George Orwell: Books

Don't envy the rich of this world. Read Psalm 73 and tremble for them.

"...these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches...Surely Thou didst set them in slippery places: Thou castedst them down into destruction. How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment!" (Psalm 73: 12, 18-19).

God instructs us, who live in the dispensation of His grace, to pray for men (mankind) that they may be saved, indeed pray for ALL people is His will, "God our Saviour who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth" (I Timothy 2:4). Rich or poor, Jew or Gentile, man or women, ALL to be saved, and in this age of Grace it is an open invitation to ALL based upon the atonement of the cross of Jesus Christ for ALL. Good news!

The cross liberates the soul

In New York Harbor stands a lady,
With a torch raised to the sky;
And all who see her know she stands for
Liberty for you and me.

I'm so proud to be called an American,
To be named with the brave and the free;
I will honor our flag and our trust in God,
And the Statue of Liberty.

On lonely Golgotha stood a cross,
With my Lord raised to the sky;
And all who kneel there live forever
As all the saved can testify.

I'm so glad to be called a Christian,
To be named with the ransomed and whole;
As the statue liberates the citizen,
So the cross liberates the soul.

Oh the cross is my Statue of Liberty,
It was there that my soul was set free;
Unashamed I'll proclaim that a rugged cross
Is my Statue of Liberty!

© Statue of Liberty - Words & Music by Neil Enloe
YouTube - Ivan Parker - Statue of Liberty

The trodden down Christ. . .

The Cross proclaims that God is love, a love that conquers by the shedding of Christ's own precious blood for sinners:

In weakness like defeat
He won the victor's crown;
Trod all His foes beneath His feet
by being trodden down.

"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds" (Hebrews 12:2,3).

"For though He was crucified through weakness, yet He liveth by the power of God. " (II Corinthians 13:4).

"...the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men"(I Corinthians 1:25).

Who but an omniscient God would have devised such a plan? "Contradiction of sinners against Himself"...thank you, Jesus.

Pagan vanities. . .Hammer of Zeus

Greece lightning: Ancient Parthenon lit from above as storm breaks over Athens | Mail Online

Jupiter = Latin for Gr. Zeus, the national god of the Greeks. Mercurius = Gr. Hermes.

"And they called Barnabas, Jupiter; and Paul, Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker....which when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of, they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people crying out. and saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein" (Acts 14:12, 14, 15).

More Peter Sellers

Peter Sellers: "Do you have a room?" "Room" = "zimmer" in German. "Does your dog bite?" Just a bit of help with the dialogue.

Does your dog bite? - Maggie's Farm#comments

A must read about dogs is James Thurber's short story, "The Dog That Bit People" -- be prepared to laugh. It is also a superb piece of writing.

Psalm 93

"The LORD reigneth, He is clothed with majesty; the LORD is clothed with strength, wherewith He hath girded Himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved. Thy throne is established of old: Thou art from everlasting" (Psalm 93:1-2).

The LORD has come to begin His glorious reign over the earth. It is Jehovah the Son. He has a garment of majesty...a visible glory. "For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Glory of the Lord" (Hab. 2:14).

All this is future, but what a glorious future it will be!

Lincolnesque

Once on the road Lincoln was stopped by an old woman who informed him that he was just about the ugliest man she'd ever seen. He said, "Ma'am, I can't help my face." She replied, "No, I guess not. But you could stay home."

(Some days, me too!)

Chauncey Gardiner. . .

Amazon.com: Being There: Peter Sellers Oh, boy...stupid is as stupid does, somebody said -- Forest Gump wasn't it? I found the movie (Being There) agonizing--who could be that naive? And who could not see his naivete?

Peter Sellers is always a hoot to watch though, and in my mind's eye can still see his innocent, simple face as he plays Chauncey Gardiner. The movie is built on the premise that people see what they want, not necessarily on what is real.

The Bible says there is coming a man who will deceive the world. Daniel speaks of him: "And in his estate (the one destroyed in verse 20) shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceable, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries" (Daniel 11:21).

And the Apostle Paul tells us about him: "...that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4).

People will see what they want...but not see what is real. Let's not be deceived...keep reading the Book of Truth.

Psalm 40:1

"I waited patiently for the LORD; and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry."

Curmudgeons. . .

Five Best Books on Curmudgeons | By John Derbyshire - WSJ.com

Disaster can be our friend...

From David Warren:

A merciful God allows us to suffer the consequences of our stupidities, including especially our moral stupidities, even in this world. It does not always seem merciful at the time. But just as nature has a way of rectifying her imbalances -- painfully, perhaps, but effectively all the same -- so human nature contains the seeds of recovery. Disaster can be our friend.

davidwarrenonline.com - NEWSPAPER COLUMNS

Black Swan Theory

Black swan theory What is fragile should break early while it is still small. Nothing should ever become Too Big to Fail.
No socialisation of losses and privatisation of gains.
People who were driving a school bus blindfolded (and crashed it) should never be given a new bus.
Do not let someone making an "incentive" bonus manage a nuclear plant – or your financial risks.
Counter-balance complexity with simplicity.
Do not give children sticks of dynamite, even if they come with a warning.
Only Ponzi schemes should depend on confidence. Governments should never need to "restore confidence".
Do not give an addict more drugs if he has withdrawal pains.
Citizens should not depend on financial assets or fallible "expert" advice for their retirement.
Make an omelette with the broken eggs.

"If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come." (written by Job, chapter 14:14, 1520 B.C.).

"Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." (written by the Apostle Paul, 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 59 A.D.)

Impossible? Nothing is impossible to God! Call it a Black Swan if you want, I call it Good News!

Must I not wonder?

"What good am I, if I'm like all the rest?"

What good am I, if I'm like all the rest
If I just turn away when I see how you're dressed
If I shut myself off so I can't hear you cry
What good am I ?

What good am I if I know and don't do
If I see and don't say, if I look right through you
If I turn a deaf ear to the thunderin' sky
What good am I ?

What good am I while you softly weep
And I hear in my head what you say in your sleep
And I freeze in the moment like the rest who don't try
What good am I ?

What good am I then to others and me
If I had every chance and yet still fail to see
If my hands are tied must I not wonder within
Who tied them and why and where must I have been.

What good am I if I say foolish things
And I laugh in the face of what sorrow brings
And I just turn my back while you silently die
What good am I ? - Bob Dylan

"I looked on my right hand, and behold, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul." (Psalm 142:4)

Conservatives and Libertarians

Conservatives believe that (limited) constitutional government is essential "to secure these rights"— to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Libertarians repudiate this insight of the Founding Fathers. They oppose all government, and they repudiate the need for social cultivation of the social bond, for public authority, and of legally enforced rules. They are opposed to the Constitution and to the American heritage. Indeed, libertarians repudiate essential elements of civilization as it has historically developed everywhere. To paraphrase Lord Keynes, they "repudiate all versions of the doctrine of original sin, of there being insane and irrational springs of wickedness in most men. [They are] not aware that civilization [is] a thin and precarious crust erected by the personality and the will of a very few, and only maintained by rules and conventions skillfully put across and guilefully preserved. [They have] no respect for traditional wisdom or the restraints of custom. [They] lack reverence . . ." They are a belated offspring of the eighteenth century Enlightenment, of rationalism in its most virulent form. They believe that we can do away with the perennial tension between the individual and the group by denying the legitimacy of any social authority.

United States v. Timothy Emerson, Potowmack Institute, amicus curiae, Appendix G

Diet. . .

Someone said this, and it is a great rule of thumb: “Eat food. Not much, mostly plants.”

Need encouragement?

"And David encouraged himself in the LORD his God" (I Samuel 30:6b).

Freedom...

A lawn is nature under totalitarian rule. -Michael Pollan, author, journalism professor (b. 1955)

Nature was cursed in the Garden of Eden for Adam and Eve's sin (Genesis 3:17). Blame our adversary Satan, who deceived Eve into biting that apple with the result of God's judgment causing the creation to be filled with weeds. We've been at war with the weeds ever since. And with the totalitarian rule of Satan, the 'god of this world.'

The good news is Jesus Christ defeated our adversary at the cross and we can now stand in glorious freedom. There is now an escape from the totalitarian rule of the evil one, and one future day creation will be loosed too (Romans 8:21). No more weeds! Alleluia!

So, as we wait: "Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage" (Galatians 5:1). And get out that weed spray!

Exit

Alcoholism is a dark tunnel only the addict would understand. Its initial welcome is heaven itself.

The exit from the tunnel, if there is one, is filled with the hell of many cold turkeys and pitch black despair about everything.

Only God, as far as I’m concerned, can get us out of it.

If you don’t believe in God?

You’ll die from the addiction to alcohol. (- Michael Moriarty, Big Hollywood)

Olivia's Peonies

Olivia's bouquet to her Amma. They are delicate scented, not heavy to make you tire of them. I think they suit Olivia well. I know they suit me.

History Returns to Europe

Perhaps if everybody ends up about the same, regardless of effort or achievement, then life must be enjoyed mostly in the here and now. Why sacrifice for children, or put something aside for heirs, or worry over a judgment in the afterlife? The more the European Union talks about its global caring, the less likely its own citizens are to have children.
Victor Davis Hanson : History Returns to Europe - Townhall.com

Things we can't not know. . .

"...there are things we can't not know. We'd have to suppress our conscience not to know those things--and that's exactly what Romans 1 is talking about, that people may suppress the truth in unrighteousness" (Romans 1: 18-19).

- from The Case For The Real Jesus by Lee Strobel, p. 238 The "Yuck Factor."

The "yuck factor" is when we don't even have to think through certain issues. We know immediately it is wrong. We'd have to suppress our conscience not to know.

Never grow old. . .

"They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them." ~ Laurence Binyon

Army Capt. Ed Arntson, Chicago at Arlington

Memorial Day

Washington at Valley Forge

Arnold Friberg, painter of the famous work “Prayer at Valley Forge,” died last week (July 2010) at the age of 96.

Truth. . . death to the ego...kind of tickles. . .

From One Cosmos. He reads books that I would not.

A sample of Gagdad's recent musings:

...it is hopeless to defer to biology as to the nature of Life as such. A biologist knows no more about the nature of life than a watchmaker does about the nature of time.

Or something like this, from a more recent post:

Truth must be sufferered... Why is that? Because to know a truth -- i.e., genuine objectivity -- is death to the ego. But once the ego is out of the way, it doesn't hurt at all. In fact, it kind of tickles.

(I've never regretted the loss of perceived truth to real truth. . . although I've never considered it to be like tickles. : ) - Linda)

Isaac and Christ

Isaac was not a little child when offered by his father, but rather he was precisely the same age as Jesus at His crucifixion. If Isaac was offered right around the time of his mother's death, he would have been about age 35½. This is supported by the fact that Sarah's death is the very next event recorded in Genesis (23:1).

Isaac is called a "lad" or "boy" in Gen 22:5 & 12, but this word (nah'-gar) is exactly the same as used of the "young men" in the same verse; it is used of Joshua in Ex 33:11 during the year of the Exodus, when he was 53 years old. Obviously, then, Isaac need not have been a child.

Isaac carried the wood of his own sacrifice (Gen 22:5), as did Jesus; He was immobilized, as was Jesus. Both actual sacrifices, of ram and Christ, were trapped by horns (Jesus on the ‘horns’ of the cross — an ancient, technical description); and both were crowned by thorns (the brambles, in the case of the ram).

Most Ancient Days: Chapter 6 -- Kings of the Nile: Egypt from Babel to Sodom

Behavioral microchips. . .

English: I broke the glass.
French: J’ai caissez le verre.
Spanish: El vaso se cayó y se rompió. (The glass fell and broke itself).

While French and Italian form the responsible, accountable sentence as do other Indo-European languages, Spanish holds over the Arabic passive “not me!” form.

When an infant learns its mother tongue from its mother, these things get programmed into its little behavioral microchips.

Northern Europe and Northern Asia have formed us well.

(from pelaut comments on - Works and Days » Reflections on Small Town American by Victor Davis Hanson.)

Language...the Lord said to let your yes be yes and to let your no be no...and to be accountable. That's the language of what is true and what is not. You think? - Linda

Why Aren't Earth's Oldest Trees Older?

This towering giant sequoia stretches 275 feet, about as tall as a 27-story high-rise building, and is 102.6 feet around. That makes it the largest (by volume) individual tree in the world. The general lives in the Sequoia National Park in California. Scientists believe this tree could be anywhere from 2,300 years old to 2,700 years old.
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010

The sheer girth of certain ancient, wizened trees can take one's breath away. Although the age estimates given for these antique specimens vary from a few to tens of thousands of years, the majority of them are consistent with a biblical timeframe for earth history.

The oldest individual still-living tree is in California. Appropriately nicknamed Methuselah, the hardy bristlecone pine from the dry and salty high elevation of Inyo National Forest is in a protected area.

Wired Science stated that Methuselah was 4,765 years old.

Why is Methuselah, or any other long-living tree, not a great deal older than this if the earth itself is millions of years old?

The very oldest known tree better fits a biblical age for the earth of thousands, not millions, of years.

1. Ghose, T. The Oldest Trees on the Planet. Wired Science.
2. Earle, C. J., ed. Pinus longaeva. The Gymnosperm Database.
3. Schulman, E. 1954. Longevity under Adversity in Conifers.
4. Lorey, F. 1994. Tree Rings and Biblical Chronology.
5. Vardiman, L. 2008. A Dark and Stormy World.

Swedes "the tragic view". . .

I recall two caricatures of the Kingsburg Swedes — “dour” and “dumb.” But I think both pejoratives, in truth, were not really so pejorative. “Dour” is perhaps shorthand for “the tragic view.” The Kingsburg Swedes understood that no one gets out alive, and that we must brace and endure with dignity the premature death of the good, the unforeseen hail at harvest that ruins the ingenious farmer and misses his less adept counterpart, the market collapse that ensures failure for the otherwise perfect harvest. This is not fatalism, but rather a gallantry in accepting our all too brief existences, rather than raging against the unfairness of it all and expecting “them” to “make it better — or else.”

“Dumb” also was a misnomer. So was “naïve.” Mostly, I heard that Swedes did not go into packing, brokerage, real estate, buying and selling. They sold their crops when they could have gotten more with tougher bargaining, and bought too high when they might have worn down the seller. They paid their taxes, when write offs were to be had. In other words, they never got rich, and assumed that their own amazing capability for hard work might give them leeway, some margin in which they might not otherwise have to be so brutal to others to survive. (-Victor Davis Hanson)

Works and Days » Reflections on Small Town America

(Victor Hanson has captured qualities that have puzzled me all my life about father and his thinking. The tragic view, indeed! And why keep us so poor by doing work and then charging the lowest rate? I was angry for this so many times in my growing up years. Dr. Hanson has proposed a positive spin and my heart says that this tragic view is true to my father, and perhaps to myself too. Why does it take so long to understand? Grrrrrr! - Linda)

"...they are all dumb dogs"

"And tomorrow will be like today, only more so" (Isaiah 56:12 NSV).

"Come ye, say they, I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink; and to morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant" (Isaiah 56:12 KJV).

Who are they?

"His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber. Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and the are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter" (Isaiah 56:10,11).

Sounds like our leaders today, doesn't it?.

Human history vs. Bible history. . .

The question of human history versus Biblical history:

Romans 3:4 “… yea, let God be true, but every man a liar”

1 John 5:9 “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.”

(From Johny Varghese, Grace India Ministry, johnyvarghese@comcast.net)

An excellent mother . . .

Suzie is a Gordon Setter; her official name is “Oh Susannah of Springset Kennels.”

The owner of the kennel taught Sunday school with my husband and we got Suzie as a breeder dog. She provided one litter of puppies and then became our dog for free.

Note: Suzie was described by the kennel owner as being an excellent mother because she didn’t kill any of her children.

By that measure, I’m an excellent mother myself.

(Me, too.)