I saw this quote: “Preach the gospel always, if necessary use words . . .”
- St. Francis of Assisi
and thought of this verse: Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men.
- II Cor. 3:2
Entry #26: So, I’ll Let My Words Be Few
Entry #25: Razing Hell/God Bless You!
What do you think of upon hearing the expression “razing hell?” Many would most likely think of someone getting mad about something and causing a big ruckus. To RAZE does not mean to lift, neither is it associated with shaving, nor is the word perhaps used as one might think. RAZING means to destroy utterly. In the Bible, the children of Edom had thoughts of seeing Jerusalem RAZED, demolished—even to the foundation (Ps. 137:7), but God had other plans about RAZING, and it wasn’t to destroy Jerusalem! It was to destroy the place that was not meant for HIS PEOPLE—hell. It is not God’s will that any perish, but that ALL SHOULD COME TO REPENTANCE. It is God’s will to BLESS us that we may BLESS others. Consider the following:
GOD BLESS YOU!
I seek in prayerful words, dear friend,
My heart’s true wish to send you,
That you may know that, far or near,
My loving thoughts attend you.
I cannot find a truer word,
Nor better to address you;
Nor song, nor po-em have I heard,
Is sweeter than God bless you!
God bless you, so I’ve wished you all,
Of brightness life possesses;
For can there any joy at all
Be yours unless God blesses?
God bless you! So I breathe a charm
Lest grief’s dark night oppress you,
For how can sorrow bring you harm
If ‘tis God’s way to bless you?
And so, “through all thy days
May shadows touch thee never”
But this alone—God bless thee—
Then art thou safe forever.
- Author Unknown
Entry #24: Success. What’s It To You?
Success is only mentioned one time in the Bible. Before reading any further, does anyone know the verse where success is mentioned? See answer below.
Success is speaking words of praise,
In cheering other people’s ways,
In doing just the best you can,
With every task and every plan,
It’s silence when your speech would hurt,
Politeness when your neighbor’s curt,
It’s deafness when the scandal flows,
And sympathy with others’ woes,
It’s loyalty when duty calls,
It’s courage when disaster falls,
It’s patience when the hours are long,
It’s found in laughter and in song,
It’s in the silent time of prayer,
In happiness and in despair,
In all of life and nothing less,
We find the thing we call success.
—AUTHOR UNKNOWN
This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
- Joshua 1:8
Entry #23: Can You Say This In One Breath?
A sea splits sending off sinister select servants of the sadist Pharoah slashing swords skyward squarely toward Israelites, barely seaworthy, not sanctioned divinely but satanically, they scrambled into the sea seam scantly settled until staggering waves severely and swiftly sprung sweeping them sdeath.
Entry #22: The Chosen Fast
My entry #21 about What Would Jesus Eat was really meant more for FUN than anything else. (I categorized the entry in the Fun Stuff category.) I had had some intense, serious moments and wanted to “lighten up” a bit. I’m serious again now, though, and am thinking along opposite lines—about FASTING. Matt Redman, a worship leader (anyone know him?), sings a song entitled, “Justice and Mercy.” In it, he talks about the Lord’s chosen fast. I thought of this verse in Isaiah: Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS NOT MEAT AND DRINK, BUT RIGHTEOUSNESS, PEACE, AND JOY IN THE HOLY GHOST. Perhaps the kingdom of God—the righteousness, peace, and joy we want—doesn’t always come thru the things we deem as necessary (our food, our clothes). God knows we need those, but seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God for the things you want. I want MORE—more faith in HIM, clearer thinking, more love for my fellow man, less self-centeredness and MORE, MORE, MORE of HIM. Maybe I should try fasting a bit MORE. Oh, help me Lord! Not everyone CAN fast, but if you can, don’t ask why. Say, WHY NOT!!!
Entry #21: Cooking With A Higher Power
Click photo to enlarge.
My brother-in-law Mike hates fish. One day my brother John called and jokingly interrogated Mike, “Did not OUR LORD eat fish? We all (my mom, sister Karen & I who love fish) bursted out laughing. Mike was speechless, half grinning, red faced. I found an ad for this book to settle once and for all the question, WHAT WOULD JESUS EAT? Anthony Chiffolo and Rayner Hesse, Jr., detail 18 meals—16 dinners, a lunch and a breakfast—found in the Scriptures. The authors spent 3+ years on research. One example: The Lovers in the Garden (found in Song of Solomon). The meal features Spiced Baked Fish, Pounded Chicken Breast with Pomegranite and Walnuts (I love both), Solomon’s rainbow of Vegetables, Sephardic Wedding Rice, and Pleasant Fruits in Cinnamon Spice Syrup. What Chiffolo and Hesse concocted in their book, Cooking With the BIBLE, is almost equal parts spiritual, historical and gastronomical—truly FOOD FOR THOUGHT!
Entry #20: One Solitary Life
Jesus is Lord – Excerpts from “One Solitary Life” (author unknown)
Jesus is Lord, yet He declares His Lordship through the power of humility and grace…“Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty and then for three years was an itinerant preacher. He never owned a home. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put his foot inside a big city. He never traveled more than two hundred miles from the place where He was born. He never did one of those things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself….
“While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed on a cross between two thieves. While he was dying his executors gambled for the only piece of property he had on earth – His coat. When he was dead, He was taken down and laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.
“Nineteen long centuries have come and gone and today He is the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of the column of progress. I am far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever were built, all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that one solitary life.”
Entry #19: A Truly Great Church
Since Stockton’s big “Landmark 2007″ meeting, there has been some discussion about church size, not only buildingwise (Stockton’s new church building may be considered to be the largest building [in the US] that was ACTUALLY BUILT TO BE A CHURCH), but also peoplewise and thoughts and feelings about attending a small church versus a large church. I came across this poem that I had remembered from a little while back and came to a conclusion that as I Cor. 3:9 says, “For we are labourers TOGETHER with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are GOD’s BUILDING.” See what you think:
CHURCHES
Beautiful is the large CHURCH
With stately arch and steeple
Neighborly is the small CHURCH
With groups of friendly people
Reverent is the old CHURCH
With centuries of grace
And a wooden or a stone CHURCH
Can hold an altar place
And whether it be a rich CHURCH
Or a poor CHURCH anywhere
Truly it is a GREAT CHURCH
IF GOD IS WORSHIPPED THERE
(Author unknown)
Entry #18 Inspiration BEFORE Expiration! (author unknown)
I have been away from blogging for a while. My last entry was just after Christmas. THEN the family computer broke down. We finagled for a while (3+ weeks) over the phone with Dell technicians (in other countries). I guess if you’re not a business, you don’t get “American service” as easily as you get “foreign service.” My brother-in-law talked to workers from El Salvador, San Salvador, India. I don’t YET have a laptop, so I had some computer down time to gather thoughts. THEN, when the computer was fixed, and I was just about to blog again, there was a flurry of use for “other computer things.” I’m FINALLY here, Jan. 30, with my 18th blog entry. Here’s a quick thought (by an author unknown). My next 2 entries will be from authors unknown. Tell me what you think of this thought:
O Lord, let us have ASPIRATION
To be an INSPIRATION
Before EXPIRATION.
Entry #17 Photo Stamps
Here’s something that’s kind of fun and not too expensive. Click on the following link, and see what you think: Photo Stamps
