Posts

Reflecting Jesus

Image
The world is always getting caught up in a false segregation - mostly through politics. They will divide and divide, calling the opposite their enemy. It is always war, always battle, always competition between them. Yet, for all their allegiances, they fail to realize that they are indeed one and the same. The right wing and the left wing all belong to the same bird as the saying goes. And yet, for the true Believer in Jesus Christ, this does not apply to us. We do not belong to this world, it is not our home nor is it our kingdom. Thus, as belonging to the body of Christ, we are not a part of the proverbial "bird". We are different, we are of the true segregation. For Christ Himself, segregates those who belong to Him (who have been redeemed) and those who do not belong to Him (regardless of their religious claims). He will do so with final judgment in the end. The tares, the goats....will be cast out into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  T...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Case of Deception

Image
If someone is confident in information that they believe is true, yet the information is actually false.....how can they be corrected if they insist the lie is truth? It's a question I found myself asking today when I took my daughter to a new homeschool class. The class was taught on a large property right up the road from us, and I was excited because it was to be a class on what they called "plant structure". It wound up being a class on plant identification, with the emphasis being on identifying certain plants that pertain to a certain criteria (in this case: leaves of three). I have been foraging for almost 15 years, so learning to identify and utilize plants in nature is right up my alley. I signed my daughter up with the sole intention of her finding new friends, learning something new or being reminded of something already taught, and a potential chance of me finding a new friend that I can relate to and share knowledge with.  Fast forward to the actual class and...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Question of Turnips

Image
       I grow a vegetable garden three seasons out of the year and it is no surprise that the LORD often speaks to me during my hours out in the garden. I enjoy my time spent with Him there! Currently, I am growing turnips - for both the greens and roots. Since my seeds sprouted, I've kept a watchful eye on my turnip patch, which is in a raised bed.      At first, because they were so small, I scattered the turnip seeds and lightly pressed them down into the fresh garden soil. Over the course of a couple of weeks, the seeds germinated, but I did nothing with them. After about three weeks, the sprouts were big enough to where they had secondary leaves and weren't too big nor established. So, that was when I was able to thin them out - transplanting the "extras" to spots in the bed to where in the end, all of my turnips were evenly spaced out and not crowded.     When the seeds germinated, I didn't question their identity. I assumed that they w...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Hill of Truth

Image
I've had a lot on my mind lately, with just everything. Some days I breeze through on a roll, getting things done, working as a busy little bee. Other days, I feel like I am drowning in a bog of quicksand. My family observes Sundays as a Sabbath day of rest. Other than fellowshipping together, studying God's Word, and worshipping - we always make it a point to do some kind of family activity that involves being in the outdoors (weather permitting).  This past Sunday, we went to our favorite hiking (and kayaking) grounds that is just a skip hop away from our home. We picked our desired trails, set a course, and got going on our weekly appreciation trek of God's creation. It is during these hikes (or kayaking ventures since it's next to a river), that I talk to the Lord, listen, and just rest. Yeah, I'm hiking up and down ridges and sometimes it's hot, sometimes it's cold and I'm left with sore muscles in the end, but it is truly a rest for me. Spiritually...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Lesson On Heed

Image
In case you didn't know, we homeschool our two children. Once a month, my second grader has to do an oral reading test where I test him on pronunciation of words, reading speed, and comprehension. Because the curriculum we use didn't give me additional short stories to have him read, I had to make up and write my own stories. The below story was written when my oldest child was in second grade, but the lesson it teaches is timeless.  As with anything I do, I give all the glory and credit to the Holy Spirit. He knew that someday I would need to share this story again, so that someone would read it and perhaps take it to heart. It's a cute little story, but one we all need to remember.  The Foolish Fish There was once a large lake where many fish lived. One sunny day, a big hungry fish was sitting by a rock on the bottom of the lake. It was a pretty day and the water was warm and calm.  He heard a plop and a splash, and he looked up to see a wriggling worm sinking down in t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Nehemiah's Wall

Image
17  Those who built on the wall, and those who carried burdens, loaded themselves so that with one hand they worked at construction, and with the other held a weapon.  18  Every one of the builders had his sword girded at his side as he built.... - Nehemiah 4:17-18 The story behind this passage takes place after the Babylonian exile of the Israelites, when King Artaxerxes ruled the empire and a small remnant of Israelites had returned to the devastated and destroyed city of Jerusalem some time earlier. Along with the priest Ezra, Nehemiah helped to organize those who were there in the rebuilding of the city wall (defense) as well as their residences.  We know that the Jews there in Jerusalem encountered opposition from the get-go as well as had to deal with their own "issues". Some people will focus on these issues, as an illustration that when we come out of Babylon (spiritually), that we have to leave Babylon truly behind (no long conforming to the patterns of this...
Post a Comment
Read more