Reading in Haggai, this morning.

This morning, while reading in Haggai, it occurred to me that we are often like the Israelites in how we conduct our lives from time to time.

In Haggai chapter 1, the Lord is getting on to the people for tending to their own lives and not tending to God's business, or the business He had charged them with.

Uh oh!

The thing is, there were consequences for their choices and actions. Let's read and discover what was happening to them.

Haggai 1 (Amplified Bible)

vs 4 Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house [of the Lord] lies in ruins?

vs 5 Now therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways and set your mind on what has come to you.

vs 6 You have sown much, but you have reaped little; you eat, but you do not have enough; you drink, but you do not have your fill; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages has earned them to put them in a bag with holes in it.

vs 7 Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways (your previous and present conduct) and how you have fared.

vs 8 Go up to the hill country and bring lumber and rebuild [My] house, and I will take pleasure in it and I will be glorified, says the Lord [by accepting it as done for My glory and by displaying My glory in it].

vs 9 You looked for much [harvest], and behold, it came to little; and even when you brought that home, I blew it away. Why? says the Lord of hosts. Because of My house, which lies waste while you yourselves run each man to his own house [eager to build and adorn it].

vs 10 Therefore the heavens above you [for your sake] withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its produce.

vs 11 And I have called for a drought upon the land and the hill country, upon the grain, the fresh wine, the oil, upon what the ground brings forth, upon men and cattle, and upon all the [wearisome] toil of [men's] hands."

Our text says they were sowing much, reaping little. Bringing home the harvest, only to watch it blow away. Earning wages, putting them into bags with holes in them. I see that as they were making the money, but God wasn't blessing that money for maximum provision in their lives. Their earnings were not staying with them long enough to bless them. Today, I would illustrate that as follows. I bring home my paycheck, I have more than the normal amount of car repairs, house repairs, I don't find things on sale at the store as often, my clothes wear out too fast and need replacing, you get the idea. I am getting nickel and dimed to the point where any extra money I might have had is consumed, plus some, on stuff that just seems to keep coming up or happening to me.

Well, this was happening to them because they were not tending to the commandment of God in their life. I am reminded of the scripture in Matthew chapter 6 verse 33, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you". (KJV) God blesses His people who put Him first.

Verse 12 (AMP) of our text says "...the people... ....listened to and obeyed the voice of the Lord their God... ....completely... ....and the people [reverently] feared and [worshipfully] turned to the Lord".

The second part of Joshua chapter 24 verse 23 reads, "...incline your heart unto the LORD God of Israel". (KJV)

We need to live lives that are lived for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We need to make sure we are building the "Lord's house" in our lives and not our own. We need to make sure we are doing things that glorify our Lord, done for His glory. Christ's righteousness has already been imputed to those who believe in Him and His death on the cross, the power of His shed blood, and resurrection. We need to seek Him and be about the Master's business. Prosper spiritually in relationship with God and in glorifying Him and what He has given you will work harder for you.

More Pictures from Lancaster PA Area June 6 2006

I had heard of this town, but now I can say I have been here.



My wife's Pretzel that she made at the Intercourse Pretzel Factory.

The pretzel I made.

It's official!

A wonderful place to eat! Beats anything around here.

Who are the Amish People?

Ever wondered stuff like:

• Who are the Amish? Are they the same as the Pennsylvania Dutch?
• Why do they dress that way?
• What is the history of the Amish?
• The Amish seem stuck in history. Why don't they accept modern ideas and innovations?
• Do they speak English?
• What's an Amish wedding like?
• Do Amish children go to school?

Well, if you have then, this amish web page will certainly be informative.

Pictures from Lancaster Pennsylvania area

Pictures taken June 5 while visiting Lancaster PA.

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Lots of buggies out here in Amish Country.

Typical Amish farm. No electric. All horse powered.

Strasburg Railroad

John the Baptist's Witness

Reading in the Amplified Bible from John chapter 1:

v7 This man came to witness, that he might testify of the Light, that all men might believe in it [adhere to it, trust it, and rely upon it] through him.

v29 The next day John saw Jesus coming to him and said, Look! There is the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world!

v32 John gave further evidence, saying, I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and it dwelt on Him [never to depart].

v34 And I have seen [that happen--I actually did see it] and my testimony is that this is the Son of God!

v35 Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples,

v36 And he looked at Jesus as He walked along, and said, Look! There is the Lamb of God!

v37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Him.

Hell, Michigan has it's big day on 6-6-06.

The town of Hell, Michigan is getting it's spot in the limelight today. They have special t-shirts and activities going on.

You can read more here on CNN.

RoadsideAmerica.com has a writeup to.

Personally, I question: "Wouldn't the real 6-6-6 have occured 2000 years ago?"

But then, they wouldn't have known about the mark of the Beast since John wouldn't have received the revelation yet... But then they weren't even recording time on the calender like we are now, didn't our calendar system came later?

Driving through Pennsylvania on Sunday June 4 2006

Okay, I will admit it, I like driving through the tunnels in Pennsylvania! There are several of them and most of them aren't very short.

This is a picture inside the Kittatinny Mountain tunnel, just before the Blue Mountain Tunnel.

My wife was getting on to me for not stopping at the different Starbucks we passed on the way. But then we discovered the Service Plaza's on the turnpike have Starbucks in them. Whew hoo!!

It is hard to see, but the Starbucks logo is on the left front door of the Turnpike Service Building. If you click on the picture you would probably be able to see it in the larger fullsize image.

Busch Stadium

Picture taken from the exit lane on I-55 to I-70 eastbound, on June 3, 2006, 8:54am.

Zoomed in on the middle of the above picture.

Iran law requires Jews wear yellow, Christians wear red.

Two articles were published on YNetNews.com
one called Exiles: Iran Jews to wear yellow ribbons,
the other Iran weighing 'national uniform' for all.

In the first one...

"Iranian expatriates reveal that ‘National Uniform Law’ authorized by Iranian parliament includes clause obligating Iranian Jews to wear yellow ribbon; Christians, other minority members to wear colored ribbons as well."

Read the full story here.

Apparantly Jews would wear yellow, Christians would wear red, Islamic Iranians would be required to wear more traditional Islamic dress, ...you get the picture.

Hitler required Jews to be adorned with yellow before he started killing them.

Hmmm....

The thing is though, on the 'net there is a disagreement about whether this is really true or not, whether there really is a law like this. I did hear a short blurb about it on the christian radio SRN news today. That is how I became aware of this. But I didn't catch all of what they said about it.

Canada's National Post originally stirred the pot with it's reporting of this story. The New York Post Online had a story as well.

Missouri Redneck's Deer Stand

Missouri Redneck's Deer Stand

What God did for us.

What God did on our behalf for believers, through Christ's death on the cross.

Colossians 2:15-15 (NIV)

"When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."

Guilt can no longer work against believers. Satan the accuser, the source of guilt, was defeated by Christ when Christ died on the cross, when Christ shed His blood, when Christ was gloriously raised from the dead through the power of the Holy Spirit. Christ carried our guilt to the cross. He stood in for us and paid the price that was required for our guilt. Our faith in Christ becomes our basis for righteousness. Righteousness is imputed to us when we believe in Jesus.

Romans 10:4 (NIV)

"Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes."

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

Christ personally defeated Satan when Satan tempted him in the wilderness. For our benefit, on our behalf as believers, when Christ gave His life on the Cross, Christ defeated Satan once and for all.

Guilt and condemnation no longer defeats us like it did prior to Christ's death and resurrection. In Christ, the accuser's weapon of guilt has been nullified. It has been made useless. Publicly, the powers of darkness were disarmed from being able to use guilt as a weapon. Christ has made a public spectacle of these powers, celebrating their defeat by what He accomplished on the cross. Jesus did not do this for himself, He was already perfectly righteous. No, He did it for us, the sinners, the unrighteous, the unholy, the lost and unsaved. Christ defeated Satan for us. Do our lives reflect that victory, that triumph of Christ over Satan? Is it demonstrated by how we live, worship, love God and those around us?

2 Corinthians 2: 14 (NIV)

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him."

The victory has been won, Satan is a defeated foe. Jesus won. He triumphed. It is our job here on earth to enforce that victory in our lives. Jesus has given us a robe of righteousness. We stand not condemned. We have authority as believers on this earth. Let us enforce the victory that Jesus obtained on the cross.

(Inspired from reading Derek Prince's writings on spiritual warfare)

Model Airplane Flight Video

Now, really, think about it.

Isn't it just amazing that a heavy piece of metal can float in the water? That's what a big ship or vessel is.

And isn't it just as amazing that man can build a metal monstrosity that can soar through the air defying gravity? Or is it more amazing that we will get into these airborn machines and leave the safety of having sand between our toes and shade trees above our heads?

Some guys built a model airplane. What a hobby, particularly at the scale they did it.

Here are the specs that were in the email forward.

• Actually has 8 "real turbines" at about $1500 each!
• It took over 2 years to build.
• It has a wing span of about 22 feet and takes multiple pilots, as there are so many things to control.
• Do you think they were nervous during the maiden flight?
• It's unbelievable that someone would make this --- all real turbines!
• Check out the movie link below to see the first flight.

Don't know what is fact or fiction, but the video link below will speak for itself.

http://www.mcgirt.net/RC/VIDEOS/Giant_B52/B52_flight2.wmv

(This email forward was courtesy of my father-in-law.)

Da Vinci Code

I bought a little book co-authored by Lee Strobel called "Exploring The Da Vinci Code" from a local book store. It is a pocket sized book. I thought it could stand in as the cliff notes version of the book written by (ahem, plagiarized?) by Brown. The book store charged two more dollars for it then I could have gotten it for online, but I guess that is the cost of shopping locally. In case you are wondering it was $4.99 plus tax.

I didn't read the *fiction* novel "The Da Vinci Code". Never will.

Can't imagine I would watch the movie either.

Anyway, I took the book to work and laid it on my desk, out in the open, to be seen by all. I worked this weekend and thought I might get to glance through it while waiting on the computer to process. Didn't happen. But then it occurred to me that maybe I should leave it on the desk. Maybe someone where I work is reading/watching the DVC and might have some questions or might want to actually read Strobel's book.

It has turned out to be a conversation piece.

One person I talked to talked about a lot of different things concerning the DVC, God, religion, the Holy Spirit, and being born again. In the end, when I asked them if they thought they would go to heaven if something happened to them today or tomorrow, they admitted they really didn't know.

Another person told me they read the DVC book, asked if I had, which I hadn't, but I offered Stobel's book to them if they wanted to read it. I think this person just might borrow it before it is over with.

1 John 4 (The Amplified Bible)

1 BELOVED, DO not put faith in every spirit, but prove (test) the spirits to discover whether they proceed from God; for many false prophets have gone forth into the world.

2 By this you may know (perceive and recognize) the Spirit of God: every spirit which acknowledges and confesses [the fact] that Jesus Christ (the Messiah) [actually] has become man and has come in the flesh is of God [has God for its source];

3 And every spirit which does not acknowledge and confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh [but would annul, destroy, sever, disunite Him] is not of God [does not proceed from Him]. This [nonconfession] is the [spirit] of the antichrist, [of] which you heard that it was coming, and now it is already in the world.

The Spider's Web

My pastor forwarded this one:

THE SPIDER'S WEB

During the War, a US marine was separated from his unit. The fighting had been intense, and in the smoke and the crossfire he had lost touch with his comrades.

Alone in the hills, he could hear enemy soldiers coming in his direction. Scrambling for cover, he found his way up a high ridge to several small caves in the rock. Quickly he crawled inside one of the caves. Although safe for the moment, he realized that once the enemy soldiers looking for him swept up the ridge, they would quickly search all the caves and he would be killed.

As he waited, he prayed, "Lord, if it be your will, please protect me. Whatever your will though, I love you and trust you. Amen."

After praying, he lay quietly listening to the enemy begin to draw close. He thought, "Well, I guess the Lord isn't going to help me out of this one.." Then he saw a spider begin to build a web over the front of his cave.

As he watched, listening to the enemy searching for him all the while, the spider layered strand after strand of web across the opening of the cave.

"Ha, he thought. "What I need is a brick wall and what the Lord has sent me is a spider web.
God does have a sense of humor."

As the enemy drew closer he watched from the darkness of his hideout and could see them searching one cave after another. As they came to his, he got ready to make his last stand. To his amazement, however, after glancing in the direction of his cave, they moved on. Suddenly, he realized that with the spider web over the entrance, his cave looked as if no one had entered for quite a while. "Lord, forgive me," prayed the young man. "I had forgotten that in you a spider's web is stronger than a brick wall."

Where is the Great Christian Storehouse?

On El Borak's Myopia, he has offered an opinion on tithing, that I thought was interesting. So I am sharing it here in case you don't follow El B's blog.

The Church is not a business

"In the stern tones of a bill collector, the letters sent to nearly half the members of the Holy Tabernacle Church of God in Christ Apostolic offered its members a worldly choice: Pay up or get kicked out.

Alfreda Moore, the church's executive secretary, had written to more than 200 congregrants..." (more)...

Yikes, What a Ride!

Eduardo Gallo, May 11, 2006 at Madrid's Las Ventas

Wedding Anniversary

I treated my wife to a trip to Chateau on the Lake in Branson for our anniversary. It was very nice. Probably the *nicest* hotel property we have ever stayed at. We really enjoyed our stay there. I didn't want to come back home. They had good food on the property including scrumptious sweet treats. I took some pictures of the property. We stayed on the third floor in a Chateau King room overlooking the lake.

Looking up the hill to the front (lobby side) of the Chateau.

From the third floor looking down into the second and first floor atrium area. The Chateau has lots of stuffed wild animals in the falls area. The glass elevators face the woodsy atrium area. Pretty neat ride up and down them!

Looking up in the middle of the hotel from the third floor of the Chateau.

The Chef here cooks some pretty good food. My wife had salmon and I had a big veal chop. Both of our dinners at the Chateau Grille were excellent!

While we were in Branson, we went to the new Titanic museum. Very interesting place! Here's a picture of the grand staircase recreated to be like the real one on the Titanic. (Except for the handrail in the center of the staircase to the left.)

How to correctly discipline a child

An email forward:

Most of America's populace think it improper to spank children, so I have tried other methods to control my kids when they have one of "those moments."

One that I found effective is for me to just take the child for a car ride and talk.

They usually calm down and stop misbehaving after our car ride together.

I've included a photo below of one of my sessions with my son, in case you would like to use the technique.

Sincerely,
A Friend

Vain Babblings

I read a commentary on 1 Timothy 1:6 which says:

"Verse 6. From which some having swerved From which some, though they have pretended to aim at the τελος, scope, or mark, have missed that mark. This is the import of the original word αστοχησαντες.

Turned aside unto vain jangling The original term, ματαιολογιαν, signifies empty or vain talking; discourses that turn to no profit; a great many words and little sense; and that sense not worth the pains of hearing. Such, indeed, is all preaching where Jesus Christ is not held forth." (emphasis added)

This reminded me, as a blogger and as a part of the body of Christ, that I have a responsibility to make sure that words I speak or write, or discussions I participate in should edify my brother and sister in Christ and encourage them in their walk of faith, not divide and create strife among the body. Biblical truth must be at the center of everything we conclude. The writers in the Bible gave several warnings telling it's hearers to not get involved in doctrine that is a even just a slight twist from the truth and to avoid vain babblings.

God help us all.

K-Fish

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Zephaniah and Rebellion

I was reading in Zephaniah last night and found something that I have been pondering since. God's prophet was talking about Jerusalem. In the Amplified version the passage reads:

"She did not listen to and heed the voice [of God]; she accepted no correction or instruction; she trusted not in the Lord [nor leaned on or was confident in Him, but was confident in her own wealth]; she drew not near to her God [but to the god of Baal or Molech]." Zephaniah 3:2

The previous verse says "Woe to her that is rebellious...". This clued me in that the prophet was detailing what activities man engaged in that God viewed as rebellion. I thought to myself, "Well this deserves a second look, because it may shed light into an area in my life that God may be not pleased with." So let us look at the verse again from the first person perspective.

• I did not listen to and heed the voice of God.
• I did not accept correction or instruction.
• I did not trust in the Lord, I was confident in my own means.
• I did not lean on in Him, I relied on my own strength and ability.
• I was not confident in Him, I was filled with unbelief and took matters into my own hands.
• I did not choose activities that would draw me closer to God, but instead pursued the things and sin of the world.

Uh oh. I am guilty on all counts. Thank God for the blood of Jesus and it's cleansing power!

Now let us look at the verse differently (this is how I have it highlighted in my bible).

• I listen to and heed the voice of God.
• I accept correction or instruction.
• I trust in the Lord, I put no confidence in my own means.
• I lean on in Him, He is my Strong Tower and Refuge.
• I am confident in Him, I believe in Him doubting nothing.
• I choose activities that draw me closer to God, daily I submit to God.

This is my prayer, and I pray it be reality in how I live my life, In Jesus' name, So let it be (amen).