Monday, February 4, 2008
Titus 3:4-7
But when the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that being justified by His grace, we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
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157 comments:
Cookies will have to suffice, Alesia, until the cake is ready?
Do you suppose there will be a wedding cake when we celebrate in heaven?
I'm using my own computer on a family member's access. It's only 5:37am here and we're getting on the road soon. We should be in NE Georgia by 4pm.
This might be the last hurrah until Tues the 11th.
blessings to you all
lori
NY GIANTS - Super Bowl Champs!!!
It's funny....I actually thought this last night...
This feels soooooo good, I can't imagine what the rapture will feel like!
I'm a sports nut and an end times nut!
then my feelings must be like what those who are left behind will feel like.
PATS 2008 RIP :-(
Lori
yes-with real buttercream icing!
on a more serious note-I had ordered Dr Frucht's Footsteps of the Messiah just before Christmas and it was soooo popular that I just got it! Backorder forever.
Jim
I linked to those two sites on the last posting toward the end
Does anybody know if Gen Wesley Clark has come out and publicly endorsed any one yet in the presidential race? I discovered on the Levi Cohen website that he recently discovered he is of Cohen lineage. He was at one time running for President himself I think?
JIB,
The last presidential race was the one that Gen. Clark, now retired, tried his hand at the democratic nomination. It was his position on the Iraq conflict that promoted his decision to run.
DAVEESCHATOLOGY! I had to stop watching because I got too excited but I listened from a distance and I can handle that way a lot better. I love the Giants and have for a long time. I know they are excited too but even from just listening, I was awake until 4:30 a.m. just enjoying watching all of the cameo shots shown on different TV stations. Jim said I ate 3 bags of chips but I don't remember it. I don't think I did because I don't salt very well and I am fine this morning.
Yeah! Giants, Go!
Now about the rapture, that is going to be 1000's of times greater!
Everyone have their flight suits on?
Grany
Anyone else here disappointed with the Superbowl ads? There were only three that I actually ran back and watched again: the Budweiser ad where the guy lit the candles by blowing on them; the screaming animal Bridgestone ad, and the power water ad with the dancing lizards.
('Course, my tivo stopped recording half an hour before the end, so I may have missed some really good ads, but I doubt it.)
<><
Shalom, Grany! You wrote:
Yeah! Giants, Go!
Now about the rapture, that is going to be 1000's of times greater!
Everyone have their flight suits on?
Sooo... you're saying that the Giants winning the Superbowl is one of the signs of the End Times, maybe of the Apocalypse? I thought that was an honor reserved for the Cubs.
Say... Aren't the Nephilim supposed to be Giants... ?
<><
Jim, this is scary, I was thinking the same thing about the Giants/Nephilim! I'm even starting to wonder about the basket ballers who train at my gym. I wanna ask, "Hey buddy, how well did you know your father?"
JIM AND MAC,
You guys have been eating far too many wild mushrooms lately. Those Giants in New York are late bloomers and the Neph's were more like Grimes Fairy Tales.
But now as far as the Giants Football Team is concerned. If I have to come face to face with a neph at any time soon, those are the guys I want backing me and running interference for me. I don't want any flakey fella waltzing around singing tala tala!
Jim, those ads were a new wave of intellectual projection into the weaker minds of the day. If we are going to enjoy the action, we have to get those old Miller Highlife ads back and the Budweiser along with them. I miss my Horses!
When I was a little squirt (many years ago) my uncle owned a team of those work horses (Clydesdale) and I loved riding on their backs. My legs stuck straight out to the sides because they were so huge. But they were the greatest animals in the world. They got a lot of miles to the gallon and maintenance was really reasonable.
Back to the Giants! Weren't they pretty!
Grany
I posted this at Joel's and I'm posting it here as well because I think Kelley makes some insightful points about human nature:
It's a crazy phenomenon of human nature that when we're promised something we know we don't deserve, we begin hedging our bets as the time draws near, coming up with reasons why it probably won't happen. And the more important that something is to us the harder it is to believe we'll really get it.
Is The Pre-Wrath Case Getting Stronger?
Grany, you could be right about the mushrooms. I've noticed one or two growing here & there around the cave. Time for a clean up. At least the Nephs won't fit through the front door.
MAC,
You have to get right on those mushrooms before they take over. By the way, there are added benefits to cave dwelling. The size of those guys are such that back problems are probably a big thing with them and just the fact they they can't wear any of your clothes should give you some comfort. Especially socks!
LOL.
@;o oh yeah
Grany
I knew I liked you Grany!
If I was any older than 35, I think my heart would have failed in the fourth quarter. It's so much fun though.
Here is an update on the Middle East Internet Outage:
According to slashdot.org, a fourth undersea cable has now been damaged:
http://hardware.slashdot.org/hardware/08/02/04/0158249.shtml
Here is another story regarding this situation that I found linked off of drudgereport.com:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/04/2153974.htm?section=world
I'm still wonder if this is coincidence or not...
TexasDave
Nothing like a few good laughs!
BTW the game last night was FABULOUS!!!!! WOW!!!
So exciting!!
And I'm not a real big football fan, but that was GREAT!
Thanks for the newest links about the cable, Dave...I'm going to check it out right now.
And stay away from those mushrooms!!! LOL
<><
Great BIble verses too, Alesia or Mr Hyde! I love them!
Maranatha!
Pray for peace in Jerusalem!
Mac;
Thanks for posting the answer from Jack Kelley. I think he has a valid piont about human nature there! I sure know it applies to me.
Here is an explanation from Grant Jeffery that I found helpful. Although he talks about post-trib, it applies to the other positions as well.
From TRIUMPHANT RETURN
by Grant R. Jeffrey
Several incorrect premises have caused some to reject the pretribulation Rapture and accept the position called the "postribulation Rapture." The first premise is an emotional contention that it would be unfair for the modern Church to escape to heaven scot free to escape the martyrdom that other believers have experienced. While it is easy to understand such an emotion, it would be wrong to deny the doctrine of the pretribulation Rapture on this basis alone. The reality is that while many Christians have endured tremendous persecutions and tribulations, untold millions of believers have lived out their lives in times of peace. Furthermore, all of those Christians who died in either peace or persecution throughout history have already escaped the Great Tribulation.
An underlying attitude of many critics is their inorrect and unscriptural belief that the Church will somehow be purified by enduring the wrath of the Antichrist. However, the Scriptures declare that we are purified solely by the completed work of Christ on the Cross. If the Lord delays His return much longer, the rising tide of persecution of Christians affect the Church across the world. However, this will not constitute the Tribulation period which will be characterized by the wrath of God poured out from heaven on the unrepentant sinners during the final seven years of this age. Some critics have claimed that those who teach the hope of the pretribulation rapture are leaving Christians unprepared for the possibility of the coming persecution of the Tribulation period. However, in thirty-five years of teaching Bible prophecy, I have not witnessed pretribulation Rapture teachers instructing Christians that they are immune from end-time persecution. The prophecy teachers, myself included, who believe God promises that Christians will escape "wrath of God" in the Tribulation often warn believers that persecution is coming, even in North America, if the Lord tarries much longer. However, the postribulation Rapture position can rob the Church of her blessed hope. Jesus promised, "I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth" (Revelation 3:10).
The second and more important reason why some are teaching that the Church will be present during this terrible time is the failure to distinguish between God's plan for Israel and His plan for the Church, especially in the prophecy revealed by Christ in Matthew 24. They often acknowledge that there is strong biblical evidence for a pretribulation Rapture; however, they inevitably come back to their interpretation of Matthew 24, which seems to indicate that the Rapture follows the events of the Great Tribulation.
In the passage in Matthew 24, Christ is on the Temple Mount explaining to His Jewish disciples the events that will occur in Israel and in other nations that will lead to the return of Christ as their Jewish Messiah. The disciples' question that Jesus was answering concerned the coming of Israel's long-promised Kingdom, not the coming of Christ for His Church (which they did not even know about). It is easy to forget that, at this point, before the crucifixion of our Lord and the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, there was no such thing as a Christian Church. If you had told one of the disciples during the week before Christ's crucifixion that someday there would be an organization based on Christ's teachings, called the Church, and that 99 percent of its members would be uncircumcised Gentiles who would follow neither Jewish law nor offer Temple sacrifices, he would probably have fallen off his chair in shock and disbelief. One of the classic mistakes in interpretation is to take this conversation between Christ and His Jewish disciples concerning the messianic kingdom and read back into it the reality of the Christian Church which did not come into existence until the Jews rejected Christ and God breathed life into His Body of believers.
God Bless!
Donna,
This lil diddy would be courtesy of the Mr Hyde man (he came out of his closet just for us).
Oh what a good boy!!
Hi all,
I'm posting an urgent prayer request over at the prayer blog re: my little friend Jacob....please read when you have a minute.
Thanks,
Jen
I have posted a new post on my blog, concerning the 6 Seals in Revelation Ch. 6, and how I believe they represent the era of the Age of Grace - the Church Age, and how it is rapidly coming to a close.
The exciting thing is that Scripture (James 5:7-8) says that in the Last of the Last Days there will be a further outpouring of both the Former (Acts 2) and Latter Rain of Holy Spirit together - I believe we are about to see this happen, and it will result in a great harvest of souls.
We are now at the Last of the Last Days - Jesus is coming back VERY soon.
Are you ready?
John
Gt, that article by Kelley mentions God's grave and so does the verse in Hyde's new post. Currently, I need to constantly be reminded about the TRUTH of God's GRACE. Kelley pretty well defined my guilty attitude toward the rapture - why would he spare a sinner like me?
All that rapture talk at Joel's is beginning to tire me. Someone said it before - nothing will ever be resolved and it'll just go around in circles. Frankly I prefer to talk about Nephilim and that's saying something.
"God's grave" that should be GRACE!
Jen, I've read your post and am praying.
The Gospel according to Rick Warren.
Rick Warren answers the Davos Question
The Power of His Presence
Daily Devotions
From the Writings of Ray Stedman
A Note Of Joy
February 5th
READ: Ecclesiastes 2:12-26
This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness (Ecclesiastes 2:24b-26a)
The true message of this book is that enjoyment is a gift of God. There is nothing in possessions, in material goods, in money; there is nothing in people themselves that can enable them to keep enjoying the things they do. But it is possible to have enjoyment all your life if you take it from the hand of God. It is given to those who please God.
Wisdom and knowledge have been mentioned before as things you can get from "under the sun," but they will not continue. To have added to them the ingredient of pleasure, of continual delight unceasing throughout the whole of life, you must take it from the hand of God. The person who pleases God is given the gift of joy.
It is wonderful to realize that this book teaches us that God wants us to have joy. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul said, "[He] richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment (1 Timothy 6:17). It is God's desire and intent that all the good things of life that are mentioned here should contribute to people's enjoyment; but only, says this Searcher, if you understand that enjoyment does not come from things or people. It is an added gift of God, and only those who please God can find it.
How do you please God? In many places in Scripture we are told that without faith it is impossible to please God. It is faith that pleases Him, belief that He is there and that everything in life comes from His hand. Underscore in your minds the word all. Pain, sorrow, bereavement, disappointment, as well as gladness, happiness, and joy—all these things are gifts of God. When we see life in those terms, any and every element of life can have its measure of joy—even sorrow, pain, and grief. These things were given to us to enjoy.
This is also the message of Romans 8:28: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." It is also the message of Proverbs 3:5-6: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."
Father, all things come from Your hands. I thank You that You sent Your Son that I might have Your joy within me.
Good morning everyone!
I'm praying for all from the prayer request.
Jen - what horrible news for poor Jacob & family. That poor baby's been through sooo much!
JCChick - how's your friend doing?
Mac - know what you mean about the discussion at Joel's. argh
John - looking forward to reading your new post, thanks!
GT & Mac - you're both blowing me away with your comments ~good stuff~
Have a God filled day all!
Mac,
that video is shocking and saddening but as many of the comments said this falling away from the faith was foretold because there is just no other word for what Rick Warren is doing. One of the sections I read through in Frucht's book Footsteps last night was the section on the seven churches and the historical perspective model which I found fascinating and gave me much food for thought.
Jen
so sad for Jacob and his family. it must be very difficult and his folks must be absolutely phenomenal people. I usually delete all the comments that come to my email in follow up except for the ones from the prayer blog-those I keep. when I get around to downloading the mail I'll go through and put them on a more formal list instead of the running one I am keeping in my head.
one thing all this talk and fellowshipping with you all has done for me is I find myself looking more toward the sky than I ever have-on clear nights with a brilliant moon or the moon or sun shining through the clouds so that the clouds are outlined in light just catching my eye-my heart races and I think with anticipation "Tonight/Today Lord?" and am disappointed when it is not tonight but still yet to come.
What will it be like to experience the miracle of the Rapture. I've been thinking about what it feels like to be absent from the body but present with the Lord. You know that really should blow our minds. That the God of the universe would care enough to sen His Son so that we could be restored to fellowship with Him and He planned for this from the beginning. One of the things that hit me that really hadn't impressed me before was truly God's love and Christ's love and willingness to die. I think sometimes we get just talk a little to pat or blase or fire John 3:16 off without really thinking about what it actually means. In another scripture (not remembering which at the moment and don't have time to look it up) that many would die for a family member and some even a friend but not many for their enemies. That is what we were when Christ died for us. He died for us when we were estranged from Him. But here is the truly amazing part-He died for the whole sins of the world, took the punishment for the sins of the whole world INCLUDING those of the people HE knew ahead of time would reject Him and never want to be brought back into fellowship with Him. How many of us would willingly take any punishment large or small for someone who would neither thank us nor be grateful for our actions and would in fact mock our efforts and make fun of us and call us names. I'm thinking not many if any. And yet Christ did. He took all sins upon Himself even the sins of people that He knew would never want anything to do with Him and would mock Him and spit upon Him.
No I haven't been under a rock and yes I knew that He died for all but for some reason it never hit me that He died knowing there would be those who would never be reconciled and He still took their punishment as well. And we are to have His mind and reflect His love to the world around us. How good a job are we really doing? I think I come up short quite frankly don't know about you.
JIB,
That is an AWESOME post on God's unconditional love for us.
Thank you, it really blessed me.
God bless you,
John
RE the posts on Joel's - I think it was Mac who really summed up the situation - Ms. Kathy Hall does not want to hear anything other than her own pre-wrath view point. It will not matter how many people point out the inconsistencies and wrong interpretations in her approach - she is stuck with her basic premises that there is a pre-wrath rapture.
My only hope is that she is truly saved, and goes out with the first load - otherwise she will be going out in the pre-wrath load, having suffered through half the Tribulation period - my only comment on that is thank God for His mercy...
John
I have great news! My repeat mammogram/ultrasound was completely normal and nothing out of the ordinary for any woman, even one my age.
I wanted to thank everyone for their prayers and other than being worn out from maneuvers, I am home, praising God and thanking him for all of you wonderful people.
I will post on the prayer page but wanted to let out a huge shout~~~GLORY~~~~!!!!!
Love you all,
Grany
Grany, Great news! G_D is good!
<><
Congrats, Grany
That's got to be a load of your mine. Anything is possible by Christ..
Mike
Grumpy,
Expect Fed to lower Dow to 8,000
Saw this WND and was wondering what your thoughts might be on the matter. Seemed a little out there to me but I'm no expert on fed think..
Mike
Grany,
That is wonderful news! I will move your name to the "joys" side of my prayer list now!
I was going to post a question for Grumpy earlier, but a headache took me away from the computer til now. I read an article on WND (actually, I didn't understand more than 10% of it since it was all about very complex economic matters and I don't have much in the way of a math-oriented mind) about the falling stock markets being orchestrated by the gov. to allow for a recession while promoting economic growth in the longterm. It was truly Greek to me, but I think that was the main gist of the article. I was interested in his thoughts on it.
Now, just before posting here, I see that the markets fell nearly 400 points today, so I'm really eager to hear his thoughts.
Here's the link:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=60041
Can you translate, Grumpy?
Blessings,
Jen
John, I have no doubt whatsoever that Kathy is saved. She’s just got this zeal to convert others to the Prewrath “truth”. I’ve seen this phenomenon occur at the Omega Letter forum and elsewhere. But I’d just like to see other topics being discussed for awhile. As I said to GT, I’m convinced we don’t know for sure – we just think we do. We (Bible scholars & lay people) look at the same scriptures and come away with different ideas on so many other topics. Berner’s book demonstrates this clearly to me as does Pentecost’s “Things To Come”.
Wilma – praise God!!
Mike,
That's too funny...crossed paths with you! What are the chances?
Jen
jib,
I have to confess that I've often hoped that if I experienced the rapture, it would be during a math department meeting where a lot of faculty were present and my disappearance would be noticed. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has thought about where they wanted to be at that moment.
><>
Jib;
Absolutely awesome thoughts on God's grace! I know that I don't fully realize the depth of God's love in sending his son. I suspect we all will be learning about that for all eternity future!
Also,I am with you there on looking toward the sky, I look at least once a day!! I cannot wrap my small mind around what the rapture will be like, but we know it will happen just as Paul wrote about it!!
mac;
You said; "Currently, I need to constantly be reminded about the TRUTH of God's GRACE. Kelley pretty well defined my guilty attitude toward the rapture - why would he spare a sinner like me"?
My thoughts exactly when I firts saw that on his site.
Thank all of you for your comments and contributions, they all bless me very much!
God Bless!
Man did I come late to the party! I don't visit the cave for a couple of days and I miss all the fun!
That was the best Super Bowl I have ever seen!!! I was 10 feet in the air when Eli threw that last touchdown pass. I have never heard my wife yell so loud before!
It is not that I am a big Nephilims, er I mean Giants fan, I just cannot stand the Patriots! They have eliminated my Chargers in the playoffs the last two years (though the Chargers were so banged up this year that it would have been an even bigger miracle for them to beat New England than the Giants to prevail against them).
There is nothing better than watching Tuck sack Brady! Take that Mr. GQ!
I saw that old cranky pants (Bill) was his usual dynamic self in the interview after the game. However, I do have to give him credit for wearing a new sweat shirt (with the sleeves cut off of course) for the game. I guess he must have thought it was a special occasion. :-)
It is pretty cool that little Payton, er, I mean Eli (my wife insists that I call him Eli now instead of little Payton) won the Super Bowl after so much bad press (I am one of the guilty ones for saying he stinks for most of the last two seasons). Actually, my wife has been correcting me for weeks now when I would call him little Payton. She would say, "His name is Eli! He has his own NFL team!!!" Well, as usual, my wife is correct. Doohhhh! I will never hear the end of it!
As a side note, I told my wife on the drive home from church on Sunday afternoon that it would be ironic if the Patriots lost because of “spygate.” The last few weeks, our pastors have been preaching from 2 Timothy. 2 Timothy 2:5 says, "an athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules." I was wondering if that verse would prove to be true in this case. Maybe it was. The Good Book is never wrong. :-)
I ran across this article on the jpost today that I thought was pretty interesting:
Digital World: The underwater cable libel
God Bless,
Harold
Jib - Great post!
Grany - FANTASTIC news, Hallelujah!!!
Grany! That is wonderful!
Bless you!
Grace
wilma
Once again God answers prayer!
Hi Guys,
Still catching up! I missed plenty of posts.
GRAN - What fantastic news!!! A great relief, I am sure. Many Blessings to you and your Jim.
JIB - awesome post on God's love for us. I will never be able to look up at the stars and not think of what you posted.
Pleased you all enjoyed The Super Bowl. What comments to the race of all races, Hillary or Obama for democrats and McCain for republicans?
Have a great day
jeri.
Harold, Shalom!
I hadn't heard that bit about the Israelis cutting the underwater cables. All the conspiracy theories I'd read about centered around a US operation to isolate Iraq prior to our invasion. If anyone brought up Israel, it was kinda like someone tossing out a bone (as in, oh, yeah, this is the Middle East, so Israel has to be involved somehow. Besides, they've got cooler spy tech than we do.) But the main focus has been on the US.
<><
Jeri from SA, Shalom!
RE: the primary results, I'm still hoping none of the candidates get a clear majority before the conventions. That would make the conventions SO boring. As it is, I used to be mildly in favor of McCain, because I always thought he was a straight shooter. Now I'm not so sure. I don't know if you've ever heard about Ann Coulter. She's a super-conservative columnist, commentator, author, etc. Last week she said that if McCain won the Republican nomination, she would start campaigning for Hillary!
I don't have any respect for Coulter -- she strikes me as someone who, during the '60s, would support Alabama's attempts to thwart the US Supreme Court's racial integration orders. Not because she had anything against the American Negro per se, but that the Supreme Court's actions were contrary to the principle of States Rights. (And if you're scratching your head over that analogy going, "Huh?", I'm sorry I can't think of any better analogy to show how reactionary I find her. Wait -- Imagine P.W. Botha coming out in favor of and campaigning for Nelson Mandela.) In any case, for Coulter to make such a radical statement (this from a woman who said the Democrats and Bill Clinton in particular were guilty of treason and should be tried as traitors) means that maybe I should look at McCain again with a more critical eye.
<><
Oh, God, How wonderous are your ways and I delight myself in your presence. You alone are worthy of our praise and adoration. Blessed be the Name of the Lord.
I just had to let out some praise you all, cause I just gotta. I purchased a new CD by Judy Jacobs entitled Almighty Reigns and if you are having problems just finding the words to praise Him, you need to hear this CD. She starts off with "Lord God of Abraham" then moves on to "Almighty Reigns", "All Belongs To You", "Loving You More Each Day", etc. By the time the last song is ready to be heard you get blessed with "Stay Close". Judy is the one who did "Days of Elijah" and I mean I have driven all over this part of the country and all of Texas with that song resounding out of my car's sun roof. I know in the cooler climes the window in top of the car is called a moonroof but here in Okieland we have more sun than moon so, it is my SunRoof!
Jim, I wish I could send you up some of this marvelous sun and nice weather. It is saying that we are going to get into the upper 40's today but we are already there and it is still morning.
I feel so good this morning and I would just love to run around and hug everyone's neck and praise the Name of the Lord but, when all else fails I will just send you my heartfelt blessings and know that God's hugging you for me.
Thanks again for all your prayers. We defeated the enemy didn't we!!!!!
Shalom
Grany
I guess if it is Hillary, Hussein Obama or McCain.....it's just a matter of which liberal you want to blame for not securing the border, raising taxes and creating terrible environmental wacko economy killing policies.
I would have a REALLY hard time getting behind McCain if he is the nominee. There is much to dislike about him. In too many ways he is indistinguishable from Madame Hillary or Hussein Obama. He not only caves in to liberals, he activity embraces their ideals for the most part.
I'm usually very interested and very mentally involved during these election periods, but I'm becoming very disheartened by the choices we have before us.
God will put whomever He wants in that office though. He has a plan. It might not be a plan that involves a thriving future for this country though.
Store up some treasures in Heaven!
I'm sure we're in for a wild ride after this next election.
Let's just keep reminding ourselves-"God ordained, God ordained, God ordained."
I'm so tired right now after two tornado sirens last night I could just crawl into a hole and hibernate.
I took the girls to the neighbors basement for the first siren and my husband just stayed home.
Then he did the usual and slept through the 2nd siren. He thinks I'm nuts for heeding the tornado warnings and camping out in the closet w/the kids.
Sound familiar?
Lisa
Daveschatology - My sentiments EXACTLY.
Jim - disagree with ya about Ann Coulter. I understood the point she was trying to make, McCain is worse than Hillary & for ME that's saying ALOT! Ann Coulter has a gruff, irritating manner of getting her point across, but I agree with her on a number of things.
Very sad to say, it looks like a democrat is going to be the next president.
Lisa - Glad to here everyone is safe!
Amen, Dave! Amen!
I understand that McCain's mother said that if her son were the Republican nominee, a lot of people would hold their noses and vote for him.
So Jim, I can understand why Ann Coulter would say she'd vote for Hillary over McCain. If he were elected, I quite frankly think McCain as president would be about the same as having a democrat for president. I will likely hold my nose and vote for him, but the temptation to vote for Hillary if she's the democrat nominee is certainly there. If things are going to go to pot, I'd rather it be with a democrat president, but I don't think that's a good way of deciding who to vote for. There have to be some positive differences for this country, but they're a little murky for me right now.
><>
"If things are going to pot..."
seems to me like they already have!
This country is in terrible shape!
What's all this about giants at the super bowl? Who did they play -dwarfs? Sounds like a fairy tail to me! Is that coffee I smell? Did someone remove the mushrooms?
Mr C, you be careful what you say about Ms Coulter. She's a fine gal; nothing a few plates of pasta can't fix!
The mushrooms must still be around somewhere as it sounds as if people are still eating them! :)
Anne Coulter....I can't get past her obnoxious, annoying style and manner....she's really hard to listen to no matter what she's saying!
Lisa, I was wondering if anyone on this had been affected by the tornados. WOw, that must have been scarey! SOunds like you did the right thing to me..better safe then sorry, espec with kids, etc.
Grany, thank GOd your tests came back fine! That sure is a relief and makes things easier!
But if the did did not come back fine....well, praise God, too.
He is in control of ALL things. Even things that seem terrible at the time.
I'm sure the disciples beheadings and killings did not seem like a good thing at the time.
For
"He works all things to together for good..."
and
"For the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that is to be revealed."
<><
I don't know that I've ever heard her speak for any length of time but her books are excellent-infomrative and entertaining at the same time.
I think she's a little over the top on McCain but she is entitled to her opinion.
Jeri
Obama and Clinton are essentially tied and have the same number of delegates (obama has 2 more than she). McCain is clearly the Republican front runner. It will be interesting to see who he picks for VP. My bets are Huckabee or Paul. I don't think he'll give the nod to Romney but I could be wrong. A nod to any of them likely would shore up what the Republicans need to win. If you actually look at the numbers Paul has done better than both McCain, Romney and Huckabee in some states. He consistently wins between 4-20% usually around 8%. If they don't tap him for Republican VP and he decides to run as an indpendent this race could get really interesting. Many however feel that Obama will be the next President-God Help us!
Grany,
Praise God from whom all Blessings flow! I suspected that it would go like it did.
I don't know that I can really claim the credit for my other post-I do believe the Holy Spirit had quite a bit to do with those insights and I am glad my thoughts touched others the way I was touched.
Jib, you said: “one thing all this talk and fellowshipping with you all has done for me is I find myself looking more toward the sky than I ever have-on clear nights with a brilliant moon or the moon or sun shining through the clouds so that the clouds are outlined in light just catching my eye-my heart races and I think with anticipation "Tonight/Today Lord?" and am disappointed when it is not tonight but still yet to come.”
When I used to walk Mac in the evenings, the route would take me to a hill and it would always be nearly sunset where I could see a vast panorama of clouds and colours over the city. I’d stop for a moment and the thoughts you expressed in your post would wash over me. I really miss that. Thanks for that post.
this guy isn't a Christian but this is a really interesting theory on the tower of Babel
Tower of Babel
i found this on page 11 of the ooparts and ancient tech site
'Iran testing advanced centrifuge'
Jib,
Mac reminded me about your post. It really is a beautiful thought and quite touching.
I also remember one that Mac posted which touched me as well.
Thank you for sharing your spiritual thoughts- It's truly a blessing to all who enter-THE CAVE.
The fellowship is priceless.
Lisa
JIB, Shalom!
Just LUV the posting on the Tower of Babel! I'm going to send it to my daughter who's the budding astronaut/roboticist. She's 13 (or will be in 3 weeks), so I can just imagine her reaction. ("Oh, Daaaadd!")
<><
I'm an Ann Coulter fan. Back in 2004 when I visited my friends in Virginia, they took me to the Virginia conservative action PAC meeting (not sure the exact name of the PAC, but I think that was it). Ann Coulter was the speaker. I thoroughly enjoyed her. In fact, that's why they took me.
Afterward, she autographed copies of her book "How to Talk to a Liberal If You Must." I have a picture with her.
Now, if I could just get a picture of me with Rush, I'd be a very happy camper!
Donna,
Maybe I should have said "if the country is going to go to pot even more than it already has."
><>
Mac
good memories of great times with a faithful friend. I miss my cat still so much that sometimes it hurts. I have a large orange fuzzy hole in my heart.
Jim
I read that article and thought of you :-) Have you had much of a chance to go through that out of place artifacts site yet-it's pretty much more of the same. pages and pages of it!
So Guys,
Please give us a brief history on McCain. I know he was a POW for 7 years during and after the Vietnam war and that he was a pilot but that is all. I gather he seems to be a fence sitter and now drifts between the 2 parties of Dems and Republicans. What is his stance on abortion, immigrants, his belief in Christ, etc.?
Dave - you say there is much too dislike about him, please explain! We do not have the insight you guys do...I also do not know much about Romney and what makes him tick?
Jim - I loved your SA viewed analogy for your candidates - poles apart. PW Botha died last year and was not missed by many! What are the answers for better candidates?
Lisa - Praise the Lord that no one was hurt by the Tornados in your area.
Jib - Who is worse Hillary or Obama? You seem to think Obama is worse, is it his Islamic history or his liberal views or both? Who would make a better VP, Romney or Huckabee and why? Ultimately it is in the Lord's hands but insight never hurt anyone!
Thanks and God bless
jeri.
McCain wants amnesty for our 12 mil plus illegals that are here and wants to do nothing to secure the border for starters. He has co-sponsored some dubious legislation with Teddy Kennedy and then there is the Keating Scandal in which substantial monies were illegally donated by Keating to McCain to essentially buy McCain. He also is also pretending to be a conservative when at best he is a liberal republican-in fact there honestly isn't much difference between Hillary and McCain when it comes right down to it. the campaign finance bill to limits types of monies donated to those running for national office did nothing other than make it more difficult for the unknowns to run and get into office. My impression from conservative commentators like Coulter is that it isn't a conservative piece of legislation in the least.
Obama's political record speaks for itself. He has 100% approval ratings from folks like the AFL CIO, The National Educations Assoc and Planned Parenthood-some of the worst elements in our society. George Soros is a major backer, MoveOn.org has just endorsed him, the Kennedy's think he's wonderful. His church is all about Africa and blacks and they practice discrimination. the pastor whom Obama claims as his biggest mentor is very anti-semitic. He doesn't even remotely have the needed experience to be President. While he talks about change in Washington as someone I talked to the other day said he doesn't have the political capital to back himself up and we may just be treading water for 4 years depending on what kind of congress and senate is elected. People only thought Bush was a huge disaster. While Obama might certainly be popular abroad it will be at the expense of our national sovereignty. I think one of my problems with Obama is that he comes across as more fake than the rest of them-may be because he's trying so hard to be sincere. He uses a lot of sophistry to explain why he abstains from difficult votes or why he votes as practically the only person to vote for something. For example he voted against the partial birth abortion bill because we didn't need another law as that was something that was already illegal and it wasn't actually being done in large number. Problem is he is wrong on all accounts. He doesn't generally vote on complicated issues other than to say present. He can't or won't take a stand on the tough stuff. Reminds me of the Laodicean church-neither hot nor cold. His past religious upbringing is just the straw that broke the camels back for me.
Hillary smiles a lot and tries to come across as less fake but note the fangs and she is somewhat a known quantity. She is every bit as liberal as Obama if you read stories from people in her past. She is just more sneaky about it. Of the two-I would much prefer Hillary in the white house than Obama although I don't know that she'd be much better once she was actually in power. The word paybacks come to mind and lots of them.
Huckabee is a Christian pastor who doesn't have the courage of his convictions. When asked what he thought Britney Spears should do-he really had no answer. Said he guessed she could pray or something. huh?? Kind of a stupid question but really the man used to be a pastor in the Southern Baptis convention (conservative and evangelical) so I'd have thought he could come up with a less wishy washy answer. Granted not a matter of state but for me shows that he's too interested in being politically correct and not jeopardizing his run for President. You know if he had answered they way he might have when he was a pastor and not a politician his run for the white house would be over since only the conservatives would applaud his answer. Keep in mind that Ms Spears actually grew up in a Southern Baptist Church so it's not like she doesn't have the background to understand his comments.
Romney I have mixed feelings about but like him better than any of the others with the exception of Paul. While I don't think Paul has a chance of being elected I think because he did get a lot of support and appeals to a lot of people even in the democratic party he'll wield some influence at the convention.
my pick for VP would be Paul or Romney but don't see either happening. Huckabee will likely get the nod however if McCain is smart.
Jeri from SA, Shalom!
About McCain: I'm doing this off the top of my head, so if anyone else has the particulars, just chime in. The biggest thing that's raising warning flags for me about McCain is that the person on his election staff who's in charge of Hispanic outreach is a Mexican citizen who used to be a member of the Mexican Cabinet, at a time when the Mexican government was actively working to get as many Mexicans as possible into America. (It was easier for them to get Mexicans to go to America to work and send the dollars back home, than it was for them to build up their own economy.) While I think all the candidates should have the smartest people possible around them, I have real problems with someone with such strong ties to a foreign government advising him on how to treat that government's citizens on American soil. Particularly when we've been having problems with border incursions from that country.
The biggest problem McCain has been having is that he has been portraying himself as a strong conservative, yet he has been involved in some of the most liberal pieces of legislation around. To me, this is not necessarily a bad thing. I'm tired of the contempt that each side shows the other, and the ability to develop a consensus among your opponents should be rewarded. At the same time, it makes it difficult to see just what his beliefs are and what issues are there on which he simply will not compromise. I don't know what his religious beliefs are, and I'm leery of relying on a candidate's self-description of his or her beliefs. I prefer to go by his or her actions: politics is the art of compromise; and the things you will not compromise on are your core beliefs. So far, I haven't been able to find issues that he won't compromise on. It may be that his "core belief" issues haven't come up in the political arena. I don't know. It's going to take closer analysis of his voting record and his speeches to figure out his true "core beliefs".
<><
Jim
very good points about McCain. So that was what was dancing around half formed in my head. I also have no idea what McCain stands for on anything and as Jim says he seems willing to compromise on just about anything.
I'll give Hillary this-we know where she stands and for what she stands. She sticks to her guns better than he does so may be Coulter is right!
Jeri,
One thing people dislike about McCain is McCain/Feingold campaign finance reform. Many conservatives call it a restriction of freedom of speech. A random google search brought up the following. Sorry I don't have time to do the href thing, so I hope this works.
http://www.reason.com/news/show/34642.html
<><
Jeri,
As JIB said, McCain wants amnesty. He, however, claimed it wasn't amnesty. He claimed that there were certain things that illegals were required to do in order to get on the path to citizenship. Maybe someone can help me out with some details.
Many conservatives saw that as 1) allowing the illegals to "jump to the head of the line" ahead of others who are going through the proper legal channels to citizenship 2) another way of saying that they were being granted amnesty.
><>
JIB, Shalom! You wrote:
I'll give Hillary this-we know where she stands and for what she stands. She sticks to her guns better than he does so may be Coulter is right!
You know, it was that "gun-sticking-to" thing that originally drew me to McCain! I don't want Obama -- he needs to be "baked" a little more before I'd consider him. I'm beginning to think Romney should be the Republican candidate, although the historical precedents send chills down my spine.
Jeri, in case you're wondering: in 1928 the election was between Herbert Hoover on the Republican side, and Al Smith on the Democrat side. Herbert Hoover had been Secretary of Commerce under Presidents Harding and Coolidge. (Harding died in office and was succeeded by Coolidge.) He got the position because of the excellent work he had done organizing relief for Europeans after World War I, so he was known as an excellent administrator. Al Smith was the Governor of New York. He was also Catholic, the first Roman Catholic to have been nominated for the Presidency by a major political party.
The election that year was one of the most one-sided victories in American Presidential politics. The country was still doing well under the Republican Party in the economic boom times of the 1920's, so anyone the Democrats nominated would have a hard time. Smith's Catholicism played against him, and in the end, he carried only six states, all in the South.
Now we have Mitt Romney, who may become the first Mormon nominated to be President by any major political party, and people just don't know what to do about that. I have to laugh at Al Smith carrying the South, the Bible Belt of America, thinking of all those people who have to choose between a Republican (Lincoln was a Republican and the reason why the South has been voting Democrat since the Civil War) and a Catholic who would be taking his orders from the Vatican. Now we may have a choice between a conservative Mormon and a hyper-liberal non-traditional candidate. Should be fun.
<><
Shalom, all! I just got this email from One Jerusalem. I'm copying it here for your enjoyment:
===========================
Dear Friend of Jerusalem,
The makers of Monopoly are inviting fans worldwide to vote in an on-line contest to determine which 22 cities will be etched in the collective memory for a new global edition of the 75-year-old game.
The contest, which got under way this week and will continue through February 28, will allow Monopoly fans the world over to cast their ballots for the 10 best cities from a pre-selected list, including Jerusalem, Israel.
() The 20 cities with the highest number of votes will appear on the new global Monopoly board.
() Please ONLY vote for Jerusalem. Voting for other cities will reduce Jerusalem’s relative scoring.
() Jerusalem is currently listed at #21. With your help, it can make the final cut.
() You can vote EVERY DAY up to Feb. 28.
Here are step-by-step instructions. Please VOTE NOW!
1. Go to Hasbro's site.
2. In the right-pane, click ‘Sort By: Cities’ (see our diagram)
3. Scroll down to ‘Jerusalem, Israel’ > Click it.
4. A pop-up appears, click ‘Add to My Cities’
5. A small picture of Jerusalem should appear in lower section of the screen. (Please do not select any other cities. This would reduce Jerusalem’s scoring.)
6. Click Vote.
7. Click ‘Create your login now.’
8. Enter a desired Username and Password > Click Save.
9. You will receive a confirmation email at the entered address.
10. Click the link in the email.
11. Once a day until Feb. 28, repeat Steps 1 through 6.
12. Forward this message to others.
<><
Sorry to tell you all this but Romney has suspended his campaign for president. Due to his lack of delegates in the super Tuesday process he has decided to suspend his efforts.
One more down and that is now a narrow selection.
Shalom, all! Here's another nail in the coffin of Western Civilization:
Sharia law in UK is 'unavoidable'
The Archbishop of Canterbury says the adoption of certain aspects of Sharia law in the UK "seems unavoidable".
<><
Jeri,
Ann Coulter sums up what's wrong with McCain pretty well. And she does it with a sarcastic wit that I love. (Is anyone here surprised?)
What Coulter thinks about McCain
I think she sums it up well, saying it would be a disaster with Hillary or with McCain, but at least with Hillary, the Democrats would get the blame and we could recover after 4 years.
I don't think I could vote for him.
Yes, Ann Coulter summarizes it quite well.
When I came home from work yesterday, I commented to my mother that it appeared we were going to have to go out and get nose plugs in order to vote. She told me that she refuses to vote for McCain. Her comment was: "We survived Bill, we'll survive Hillary."
><>
I am rather shocked by Romney quiting. I figured him to hang on a bit yet. Not unexpectedly Huckabee has said he'd accept the nod for VP and Rush Limbaugh is promoting that very thing today! Am I good or what!
I came across this article that I thought was bizzare & wondered if anyone else heard of the rapture happening this way.
Dead in Christ
I've never heard this before.
Obviously we should not believe everything we read, and things can be taken out of context.
Using a verse here and there people can probably make a case for most anything they want.
Anything is possible of course!
Alesia,
I think this person is very creatively interpreting scripture and seeing what he wants to see, the same as Kathy at Joel's does when it comes to the pre-wrath rapture.
><>
weird article and the verse is taken out of context. furthermore it violates the doctrine of imminence-that the rapture could happen at anytime and unexpectedly.
Jib - I agree completely - very weird.
I didn't know if this was a well known ideology or not, is all.
I was really surprised when I read this because it was linked to someones blog that I, generally, find pretty useful.
Alesia, Jib and Donna,
If you read the passages concerning the Rapture and the events of the last of the last days (NOW!!) carefully you will notice something (I hope):
Joel 2:23, 28-31 (promise of the outpouring of God's Holy Spirit on ALL flesh - including the promise of the former and the latter rains (together) in the first month):
23 Be glad then, you children of Zion,
And rejoice in the Lord your God;
For He has given you the former rain faithfully,
And He will cause the rain to come down for you—
The former rain,
And the latter rain in the first month.
. . . .
28 “And it shall come to pass afterward
That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.
29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:
Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. [NKJV]
Zechariah 10:1 - the call for us to pray for the latter rain (if you go to my blog and read the latest entry, you will see this how this happened in 1901-1906):
Ask the Lord for rain
In the time of the latter rain.
The Lord will make flashing clouds;
He will give them showers of rain,
Grass in the field for everyone. [NKJV]
Acts 2:16-21 (Partial fulfillment of Joel's prophecy concerning the "former rains" - the Greek implies that what Peter is talking about is only the beginning of the fulfillment - there's more to come!):
16 “But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17 ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.
18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
And they shall prophesy.
19 I will show wonders in heaven above
And signs in the earth beneath:
Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.
20 The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
21 And it shall come to pass
That whoever calls on the name of the Lord
Shall be saved.’ [NKJV]
1 Cor 15:51-53 (the Rapture - notice how the dead are raised, but we who are alive are changed; it also seems to imply that when the dead are raised, we who are alive are changed at the same time):
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. [NKJV]
2 Thess 2:15-17 (again see how the dead are raised first, and only AFTER that are we who are alive taken up into the air - again a clear time delay - unspecified) - but in conjunction with 1 Cor 15 it seems to be saying clearly that there is a delay between the dead being raised up and we who are alive being translated up into the sky):
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. [NKJV]
James 5:7 - the promise of the "latter rains" - this occurred in the period 1901 -1906 - the Welsh Revival and the Azusa St. Revival in SF - the promise of the "former and latter rains together" - this is yet to come:
7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord [return of the Jesus for His saints = the Rapture]. See how the farmer [God] waits for the precious fruit of the earth [souls of men], waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain [promise of the completed outpouring of Holy Spirit as promied in Joel 2:23].
8 You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. [NKJV]
Revelation 6:12-14 (sixth seal)
12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood [the glorious light of the angels and returning saints together with Jesus in His Glory would be enough to make anything else look dark in comparison].
13 And the stars of heaven [that's all the "dead in Christ" saints and the angelic hosts of the Lord coming for us] fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.
14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up [= the saints being raptured - we are God's living epistle = scroll], and every mountain [major nation] and island [smaller nations, people groups, tribes, clans, etc.] was moved out of its place [I too would be "moved out of my place" - scared witless - if I wasn't saved]. [NKJV]
Notice that in the passages in 1 Cor 15 and 2 Thess 2 Paul specifically mentions that there is a (unspecified) time period - delay - between when the dead in Christ arise and meet the Lord in the air, and when we meet them them in the air - but we who are alive are changed in an instance. Perhaps this is the 40 days delay.
One more thing - it is evident from Joel's prophecy and Revelation 6 that the event of the Rapture (what most commentators call "cosmic disturbances" is actually due to the light of the redeemed of the Lord, those "in the sky" who have come back with Jesus, and those of us here, still on the ground for a period of time.
I think that the whole world will notice - which is why you see recorded in Revelation 6:15-17 that the people on earth (the ones who are NOT saved) try to hide in/under the mountains - to get away from the light, which is so bright it make the sun go dark in comparison, and the moon cease to give its light. They will certainly notice us if we are here in our glorified bodies for 40 days - and the "dead in Christ" and the angels are in sky above!!
John
Update on Internet access in the middle east
According to slashdot.org, a fifth internet cable was cut in the middle east. This was posted yesterday 2/6.
http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/02/06/1431206
It really makes you wonder what is going on.
TexasDave
John,
Hmmmm. Now that is interesting. AND it would shoot holes in the theory about a "Secret Rapture," wouldn't it? It's something to consider, isn't it?
John, that is all news to me and I am going to do some serious digging. My first question regarding the comparison is a simple one. What was the purpose of Jesus' 40 delay in ascension to the right hand side of the Father? What did he accomplish with it and how does it relate to a 40 day delay in the rapture of the dead and those who are alive? And also, where is the witness in the OT that gives the delay? Scripture to scripture.
My first impression of the link/article Alesia brought to our attention: another left field theory. I agree with JIB on the doctrine of imminence-that the rapture could happen at anytime and unexpectedly. Right now, I don't buy it!
I do know that the latter rain doctrine is true and the best is yet to come.
I just read the headlines that Mitt Romney is leaving the Republican party also. I really think this man could have had an enormous effect on this country and our financial situation. His being a Mormon probably had more to do with it than anything but it is sad to see him discouraged like he is now.
We all need to be praying for these men and women who put their selves out in the limelight.
Grany
Sorry everyone! I just received a correction from my Fox News feed that Romney was not leaving the Republican party but simply suspending his campaign. Someone goofed! I was a little too quick to report it, so please forgive me.
Grany
As I mentioned before, I think we have to be careful. There seem to be a lot of 'left field theories' out there these days, just as He told us there would be.
He told us to be careful, as so we should.
I prefer to spend time listening and learing abou current events in light of BIble prophecy, there is so much going on now! It's hard to keep up with it all!
Israel, Jerusalem, the Temple planning, Sanhedrin, China, Russia, Iran....
Interesting....I just spotted this article on Jan Markells Olive Tree Ministry site titled Born Again Christians No Longer Favor Republicans
Donna,
I don't buy that!
IF, that is true it is ONLY because the republican pool is so horrifically weak.
There is no way I can vote for Hillary, Obama or McCain - so this may be the first time in my life I abstain from voting! It seems ludicrous to me to vote, just for the sake of voting for someone.
Syria acquiring Russian rockets at 'furious' pace
That last link looks like it did not work so:
FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU
Syria acquiring Russian rockets at 'furious' pace
Security official: 'It's like a return to the Cold War'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: February 06, 2008
7:13 pm Eastern
By Aaron Klein
© 2008 WorldNetDaily
JERUSALEM – Syria, aided by Russia and Iran, in recent months has been furiously acquiring rockets and missiles, including projectiles capable of hitting the entire state of Israel, according to Jordanian and Israeli security officials speaking to WND.
A Jordanian security official said one of the main reasons Damascus did not retaliate after Israel carried out its Sept. 6 airstrike inside Syria allegedly targeting a nascent nuclear facility was because Syria's rocket infrastructure was not yet complete.
The official said after the Israeli airstrike, Syria picked up the pace of acquiring rockets and missiles, largely from Russia with Iranian backing, with the goal of completing its missile and rocket arsenal by the end of the year. The Jordanian official said Syria is aiming to possess enough projectiles to fire over 100 rockets into Israel per hour for a sustained period of time.
(Story continues below)
"The Syrians have three main goals," explained the Jordanian official. "To maximize their antitank, antiaircraft and ballistic missile and rocket capabilities."
According to Israeli and Jordanian officials, Syria recently quietly struck a deal with Russia that allows Moscow to station submarines and warboats off Syrian ports. In exchange, Russia is supplying Syria with weaponry at lower costs, with some of the missiles and rockets being financed by Iran.
"The Iranians opened an extended credit line with Russia for Syria with the purpose of arming Syria," said one Jordanian security official.
"Russia's involvement and strategic positioning is almost like a return to its Cold War stance," the official said.
Both the Israeli and Jordanian officials told WND large quantities of Syrian rockets and missiles are being stockpiled at Latakia, Syria's main port on the Mediterranean Sea, as well as at Syria's Tartus port, another major port area south of Latakia and north of Damascus.
Syria's new acquisitions include Russia's S-300 surface-to-air missile defense shield, which is similar to the U.S.-funded, Israeli engineered Arrow antimissile system currently deployed in Israel. The S-300 system is being run not by Syria but by Russian naval technicians who work from Syria's ports, security officials said.
New ballistic missiles and rockets include Alexander rockets and a massive quantity of various Scud surface-to-surface missiles, including Scud B and D Scud missiles.
Israeli security officials noted Syria recently test-fired two Scud-D surface-to-surface missiles, which have a range of about 250 miles, covering most Israeli territory. The officials said the Syrian missile test was coordinated with Iran and is believed to have been successful. It is not known what type of warhead the missiles had.
In addition to longer range Scuds, Syria is in possession of shorter range missiles such as 220 millimeter and 305 millimeter rockets, some of which have been passed on to Hezbollah.
Israel has information Syria recently acquired and deployed Chinese-made C-802 missiles, which were successfully used against the Israeli navy during Israel's war against the Lebanese Hezbollah militia this past July and August. The missiles were passed to Syria by Iran, Israeli security officials told WND.
Russia recently sold to Syria advanced anti-tank missiles similar to the projectiles that devastated Israeli tanks during the last Lebanon war, causing the highest number of Israeli troop casualties during the 34 days of military confrontations. Syria and Russia are negotiating the sale of advanced anti-aircraft missiles.
Seemingly confirming the information, Mossad Chief Meir Dagan told the Knesset yesterday Syria's military recently has accelerated its acquisition of arms. He did not list specific new weapons or disclose information about Russia's involvement.
“The military alliance between Damascus and Teheran has accelerated the arms race in the region,” said Dagan at a meeting of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
Dagan stated Syria's moves do not necessarily indicate the country is likely to strike at Israel.
I wonder why there is so little info on the internet cable situation in the mideast...
I've heard Charles Capps teach that he believes we will have 40 days in our glorified bodies too before the rapture. His premise is that we are joint airs with Jesus, and because he had 40 days, we will too. He is the only one I ever heard teach that, and I thought if this is the case, wouldn't others be given that incite as well?
Hi Guys,
I have left an article on Joel's site about the "conservatives" and Christians. An interesting read but abit above non-Americans as we don't know some of the people in the article.
Thanks for the in sight. So Romney is out, what now?
Have a great weekend filled with Christ
jeri.
Alesia said, "There is no way I can vote for Hillary, Obama or McCain - so this may be the first time in my life I abstain from voting! It seems ludicrous to me to vote, just for the sake of voting for someone."
Alesia, Since I am not enthusiastic about any of the Republican candidates and am irritated by the way they've been shooting themselves in the foot again and again, I understand your frustration but want to make this point:
From the following article you can see that many of our Supreme Court justices are getting up there in age. If we have a Democrat in the White House I can imagine some of them thinking of retiring before the Republicans get back control (2012) so that a Dem president can appoint the new justice. This could be devastationg to many of the issues conservatives believe to be important, not just Roe v. Wade. This problem will be exzcerbated if the Dems control the Senate and House.
From Ed Whelan:
http://bench.nationalreview.com/
In case you were wondering, here, in descending order, are the projected ages of the current justices on January 20, 2013 (at the end of the next presidential term) and on January 20, 2017 (at the end of the following term—possibly the second term of the next elected president):
Justice Stevens: 92, 96
Justice Ginsburg: 79, 83
Justice Scalia: 76, 80
Justice Kennedy: 76, 80
Justice Breyer: 74, 78
Justice Souter: 73, 77
Justice Thomas: 64, 68
Justice Alito: 62, 66
Chief Justice Roberts: 57, 62
Pardon my typo, that should be "exacerbated"
A quick note about voting this November.....
Remember, even though I am with some of you (I just can't see myself voting for McCain or whatever garbage the Dems give us), there still will be important House, Senate and local candidates to vote for. So don't abstain from voting altogether. Conservatives have lost the presidency this time, but let's not throw the other races away too.
Davey, I agree whole heartedly. If you don't want to vote for the presidency, find out for sure how you can bypass that one and still make your ballot count. Used to be so simple but just make sure your efforts are not wasted.
I don't have any confidence in any of the Disney characters who are currently smacking their lips together in self praise. I know this country could come up with better material than we now have and I would like to place some well deserved blame on the media. Does anyone else get very ill like I do trying to listen to what the news is? Keith Olberman on MSNBC is one of the worst ones. Didn't his momma send him to school somewhere?
If you all believe the Mayan Calendar story, we won't have to worry about the 2nd term presidents from this election.
JIB, I finally got to read your comments about watching the heavens like never before and I have to tell you, I know what you mean. I see those soft white clouds scattered all over the sky and I wonder, "Abba, you been walking around heaven looking us over? You about ready to send our Bridegroom back for us? You got anything else planned or do we just soar with the eagles real soon? I listened to my CD by Judy Jacobs late last night and I can tell you all, I soared! What a wonderful way to enter into God's rest!
Everyone, have a great day and remember, in Israel right now it is their Sabbath.
Shalom
Grany
Does anyone know details about the United Methodist Church?
Replacement Theology?
Homosexuals?
The only thing I know is that they have the "basic" Christian beliefs but I don't know if/where that spins off.
George Bush is a member- that should tell me something but I'm not sure what.
Lisa
So let me get this straight-
The ressurected dead would walk around the earth for 40 days like Jesus did?
When the dead were ressurected in Jesus day- did "everyone" witness for 40 days or just Jesus? (I guess the others would not preceed Jesus entering heaven.)
I'm trying to figure out what this 4o day spirit fest would accomplish at this point in time.
Doesn't sound right to me. But could you imagine- we'd have more that an entire month for the Church to get their affairs in order before BLAST OFF>
What next?
Lisa
LATE NITE LISA,
OK, my husband and all of his family from colonial days in Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi were are Methodists. I tried but I failed! When I go to church it is to grow in the Word and faith. Not for Social gathering as it is now at most Methodist Churches. If you are a member of one that preaches the word of God entirely then I am very happy for you. But also, these remarks were found on the main web site for the United Methodist Church. I was going to copy the whole article but it is way too long, will be wasted space and so here is a link you can copy
and paste. http://archives.umc.org/interior.asp?ptid=4&mid=3453
The article sounded like GW Bush wrote it or at least Condi did. I leave the conclusions to you.
As far as homosexual stance, you might type that into the search box on their page and see if they have stated their position on it.
Hope this helps some.
Grany
Why teenagers have a lot in common with cats:
1. Neither teenagers nor cats turn their heads when you call them by name.
2. No matter what you do for them, it is not enough. Indeed, all human efforts are barely adequate to compensate for the privilege of waiting on them hand and foot.
3. You rarely see a cat walking outside of the house with an adult human being, and it can be safely said that no teenager in his or her right mind wants to be seen in public with his or her parents.
4. Even if you tell jokes as well as Jay Leno, neither your cat nor you teen will ever crack a smile.
5. No cat or teenager shares you taste in music.
6. Cats and teenagers can lie on the living-room sofa for hours on end without moving, barely breathing.
7. Cats have nine lives. Teenagers carry on as if they did.
8. Cats and teenagers yawn in exactly the same manner, communicating that ultimate human ecstasy -- a sense of complete and utter boredom.
9. Cats and teenagers do not improve anyone's furniture.
10. Cats that are free to roam outside sometimes have been known to return in the middle of the night to deposit a dead animal in your bedroom. Teenagers are not above that sort of behavior.
Thus, if you must raise teenagers, the best sources of advice are not other parents, but veterinarians. It is also a good idea to keep a guidebook on cats at hand at all times.
And remember, above all else, put out the food and do not make any sudden moves in their direction. When they make up their minds, they will finally come to you for some affection and comfort, and it will be a triumphant moment for all concerned.
As for the use of catnip as a reward or an enticement for teenagers, it is still being hotly debated.
Let's try that one more time... trying to get the formating right...
Shalom, all! I'm going to post this on Joel's site too, but I wanted to give you people a first look at it.
I've finally gone and gotten significant dates in Israeli history written down and converted for the next 2-3 years. I'm going to post this in two messages. The first one will be stuff like Kristalknacht to show the date in the Jewish calendar when the event occurred, and when the anniversary of that date will be in the Gregorian calendar. I also included the Birthday of the Prophet on the assumption there will be Muslim violence on or around that date.
The second message will be the dates of significant Jewish feasts and fasts for the next three years.
I'll have a third message with some analysis. For example, the 6-Day War started on the 5th anniversary of Adolf Eichmann's execution. Vengeance from beyond the grave...
(All Jewish dates begin at sundown the day before the Gregorian date)
Dates:
Israel Independence Day
. 5 Iyyar 5708 -- 14 May 1948
. 3 Iyyar 5768 -- 8 May 2008 (Moved due to Shabbat)
. 5 Iyyar 5769 -- 29 Apr 2009
. 6 Iyyar 5769 -- 20 Apr 2010 (Moved due to Shabbat)
Adolf Eichmann Hanged
. 26 Iyyar 5722 30 May 1962
Start of 6-Day War
. 26 Iyyar 5727 -- 5 Jun 1967
. 26 Iyyar 5767 -- 14 May 2007
. 26 Iyyar 5768 -- 31 May 2008
Yom Yerushalayim (Unification of Jerusalem)
. 28 Iyyar 5727 -- 7 Jun 1967
. 28 Iyyar 5767 -- 16 May 2007
. 28 Iyyar 5768 -- 2 Jun 2008
End of 6-Day War
. 3 Sivan 5727 -- 11 Jun 1967
. 3 Sivan 5768 -- 10 Jun 2008
Birthday of the Prophet (Mawlid al-Nabi)
. 13 Adar II 5768 -- 20 Mar 2008 (Holy Thursday)
. 13 Adar I 5769 -- 9 Mar 2009
Zechariah 1:7
. 24 Sh'vat 5768 -- 30 Jan 2008
. 24 Sh'vat 5769 -- 18 Feb 2009
Kristalnacht
. 15 Cheshvan 5699 -- 9 Nov 1938
. 15 Cheshvan 5769 -- 13 Nov 2008
. 15 Cheshvan 5770 -- 2 Nov 2009
(cont...)
(...cont.)
Purim
. 14 Adar II 5768 -- 21 Mar 2008
. 14 Adar 5769 -- 10 Mar 2009
. 14 Adar 5770 -- 28 Feb 2010
Passover
. 15 Nisan 5768 -- 20 Apr 2008
. 15 Nisan 5769 -- 9 Apr 2009
. 15 Nisan 5770 -- 30 Mar 2010
Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Memorial Day)
. 27 Nisan 5768 -- 2 May 2008
. 27 Nisan 5769 -- 21 Apr 2009
. 27 Nisan 5770 -- 10 Apr 2010
Shavu'ot (Pentacost)
. 6 Sivan 5768 -- 9 Jun 2008
. 6 Sivan 5769 -- 29 May 2009
. 6 Sivan 5770 -- 19 May 2010
Tisha B'Av
. 9 Av 5768 -- 10 Aug 2008
. 9 Av 5769 -- 30 Jul 2009
. 9 Av 5770 -- 20 Jul 2010
Rosh HaShanah (Feast of Trumpets)
. 1 Tishrei 5769 -- 30 Sep 2008
. 1 Tishrei 5770 -- 19 Sep 2009
. 1 Tishrei 5771 -- 9 Sep 2010
Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement)
. 10 Tishrei 5769 -- 9 Oct 2008
. 10 Tishrei 5770 -- 28 Sep 2009
. 10 Tishrei 5771 -- 18 Sep 2010
Sukkot (Feast of Tents)
. 15 Tishrei 5769 -- 14 Oct 2008
. 15 Tishrei 5770 -- 3 Oct 2009
. 15 Tishrei 5771 -- 23 Sep 2010
Asara B'Tevet:
(This is a day of fasting and prayer where the Kaddish -- the Jewish prayer for the deceased -- is recited on this day for people whose date or place of death is unknown. Consequently, many rabbis have designated it as a day of remembrance for the Holocaust, in addition to or instead of Yom HaShoah or Tisha B'Av. Because of the way the Jewish Calendar is structured, it does not occur in 2008 and occurs twice in 2009.)
. 10 Tevet 5769 -- 6 Jan 2009
. 10 Tevet 5770 -- 27 Dec 2009
. 10 Tevet 5771 -- 16 Dec 2010
<><
Good morning, Mr Carroll (relatively speaking) - how is the coffee? I'm not sure what you are trying to acieve with those dtaes, but if your motive is to confuse mac then you have succeeded.
Well, mac's off to the gym and I'm retiring back to my closet.
I think he meant...dates!
Jen,
Thanks for your comments on my latest blog entry - I have tried to answer your question there in the next comment...
John
Dates are OK, but I prefer raisins.
There was a thread a couple of weeks ago about Zechariah 1:7 -- "In the second year of Darius, on the twenty-fourth day of Shebat, the eleventh month, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah, son of Berechiah, son of Iddo, in the following way:" Then, in verse 12 it says: "Then the angel of the Lord spoke out and said, "O LORD of hosts, how long will you be without mercy for Jerusalem and the cities of Judah that have felt your anger these seventy years?"" Looking back 70 years from now, it turns out Kristalnacht, which is considered by historians to be the beginning of the Holocaust, was about 70 years ago. In fact, the beginning of the 70th year since Kristalnacht is on Nov. 13 of this year and will go on until Nov. 2 of next year. During the 70th year the L-rd will turn to Jerusalem in mercy and again choose Jerusalem. So IF the 70 years of anger against the cities of Judah (i.e., the lands controlled by the Palestinian Authority) is the 70 years between the beginning of the Holocaust and now, then we should see something happen in the PA starting around Nov. 13.
Also, the 40th year since the reunification of Jerusalem ends on June 2 of this year, and the 60th year since Israel became independent begins May 8. That's a 3-week overlap period where there's the possibility that something -- I don't know what -- will happen. I DO know that President Bush will visit Israel during this time, but I don't know if that will have any significance.
As for the other dates, well, Muslims have a sense of history, and it's not uncommon for Israel to be attacked during some religious holiday or fast, so these are the dates that might be the most "active".
As for the coffee, please tell Mr. Hyde that it's much improved, and to extend my thanks for replacing the water filter. Also, I wouldn't be too hasty in getting rid of the mushrooms. They can be quite tasty cooked in butter with a bit of wine, and I believe I saw a truffle towards the back of the cave...
<><
Great Granny 5
Thanks for that link re:Israel/Palestine Conflict.
That answers quite a bit.
My affiliation has been non-denominational.
My husband on the other hand. Is from the Methodist background although his parents were not "religious" so to speak.
He's recently "born again" and is really a baby in terms of his knowledge.
Our problem lies in moving and finding a new Church to attend.
He hates the contemporary music and longs for "Pipe organs" and "Choir" music. He also likes to dress nice and can't stand to see people in jeans and casual wear.
Although I prefer that style of worship more as well I'm not willing to sacrifice the "truth" so I can enjoy the music.
He met some people who attend a United Methodist nearby and told him how great it was, people dressed up, and the music was his style. So for obvious reasons he now wants to check it out.
I'm willing to compromise and find a new Church he likes as well but like I said I'm not willing to compromise Israel and what I believe is the truth in teaching.
I'm finding the Methodists are very political although they claim not to be. The Council of Bishops have called for the immediate Iraq withdrawal.
This is their quote:
The bishops said their position is based on Jesus Christ's call for "his followers to be peacemakers."
"Every day that the war continues, more soldiers and innocent civilians are killed with no end in sight to violence,bloodshed and carnage."
"The Iraq war is not just a political issue or military issue. It is a moral issue. War is sin. It is evil. War is incompatible with the teachings of Jesus."
Christians must be "peacemakers that we might be known as children of God."
Once the troops leave,"the church needs to be about helping the Iraqi people rebuild their lives."
I tried to look up the "homosexual" issue but what I found was vague so I sent them an email.
Anyway, it's always something.
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
My dad's family was Methodist since I can find the documentation...back into the early 1800s, so we've had a lot of experience in that denomination. I know in their earlier days, they were very evangelistic and had "charges" that a pastor would be sent to cover/build up. In my small town, there were many tinier villages that lay all over the counties. It was common until the 1980s for a Methodist minister to have 5-6 charges in his care, which meant 5-6 congregations to pastor, which meant 5-6 sermons to give each Sunday. They used to ride between churches on horseback (my great-grandparents often let the pastor take a break at their farm during his rides.) My grandfather was superintendent of his church and often he would have to start the Scriptural reading before the minister arrived from his last sermon. The churches in our area eventually meshed into larger congregations (I think there are 2 still open in that charge...I told the story of ringing the bell for the last time when my grandparents' church closed.)
The Methodist church that I was raised in (when we weren't going to the Presby church) was a single congregation because it was in town...large stone building, beautiful glass windows, etc. In the first half of the 1900s there was a very active CE group (Christian Endeavor) but that has long since faded away. My parents stayed in the church as long as they could, but when on Easter Sunday there was more talk about beating the congregation down the road in daffoldil sales for the cancer drive, they called it quits. They're in a small church (maybe 100 members) just like they started when they got married. It has it's problems, too, but so far the message is still centered on the gospel.
My parents were also very concerned about the move toward the acceptance of homosexuals in leadership positions. They were watching that issue closely before they left.
That's probably not much help, but thought you might find the contrast between earlier/current trends helpful.
Blessings,
Jen
donna;
you said; "As I mentioned before, I think we have to be careful. There seem to be a lot of 'left field theories' out there these days, just as He told us there would be".
I couldn't agree more! I first heard about the "40 days" theory just this year, It seems that everyone just reads into the Bible whatever they want it to say and the interpretations about eschatology get weirder and weirder. All scripture has to agree, one cannot just pick one example and read into it an interpretation. On obscure passages you have to look at the more clear ones also to get the proper meaning. It seem as though some are reading just one passage that is unclear and assigning an interpretation by that passage or taking one out of context and assigning doctrine to it. Well anyway, thats my rant for today.
I have a question for anyone who would care to comment: Will believer get a warning just before the rapture? This was another theory I heard just recently. It is based on the idea that God never does anything without informing his people. Any comments?
God Bless!
I'd have to agree with Wilma-what does the 40 days "do" in the scheme of things. I think it destroys the imminence of the rapture. If everyone gets a visible warning by a bunch of dead people walking around they can wait until then to deal with their sin since they know they have the time. I think the reason for 40 days was so that there would be multiple eye witness that Christ was raised from the dead so there would be little room for question. Perhaps since Christ's first coming is typified by some of the Jewish feasts there had to be a 40 day delay-just speculation.
For what it's worth I've never believed in a secret rapture in the sense that no one would have any idea where people went and what happened. I have thought it to be secret in the matter of timing but not otherwise.
I think this is part of what Mac I think posted about the pre wrath scenario from Jack Kelly I think it was that as the time obviously grows near people don't want to hold to the traditional pre trib interpretation but want to put their own spin on things and find a way to make scripture match.
Correction, my previous post question should read: Will believers get a warning just before the rapture?
God Bless!
I have another question to anyone who would care to answer or comment. I read on another prophecy site the following comment:
"Those that teach the millennial return of Jesus Christ are receiving more and more persecution in the world. It is not even allowed in China. Now mainstream denominations will ostracize those who actually believe that Jesus will return in our time".
My question; Does anyone have information on the return of Jesus not being allowed to be taught in
china? I haven't run across any info on this anywhere. Thanks for your replies.
God Bless!
GT - I have 3 articles on my blog about persecution in China.
Look under the "Born Again Lifestyle News" Mao Spins in his Grave article.
There are 2 under the "Worthy Christian News" section as well.
GT, my understanding is that until recently, the Chinese Gov only allowed Gov sanctioned churches. The official Bibles usually came without the book of Revelation and, yes, they discouraged any talk of Christ’s return as they saw that as a threat to their authority. I got a lot of my info from Paul Hattaway’s “Heavenly man”. I’m not sure what the exact situation is now as I’ve heard mixed reports out of the media. But I suspect Christian persecution is still rampant.
Asia Harvest
The Voice of the Martyrs
Chinese house church
What theology teaches the following:
1) We are now living in the 1000 yr millenial period - but that it is actually longer than 1000 yrs.
(couldn't tell me why that was)
2) The tribulation is already past.
3) Revelation was only meant for the 7 churches (back in the time it was written) It is NOT for us.
4) Many parts of the bible are not meant for us but were specifically for people during the time it was written, to better understand.
This is what my "church of Christ" co-worker was just telling me he believes.
I asked him to explain Isiah 17 & Ezekiel & he said that he couldn't. I, kindly, asked how he could make a stand on something without understanding or answering all that goes with it.
Needless to say, the conversation went downhill from there & quickly ended.
I also asked what his church believed: dispensational, covenant or replacement theology - he had never heard of that before.
This man is an elder at his church & preaches all over the state - scary.
Say, where's Grumpy? I'm still waiting for his wisdom on the Fed, the Dow and the 8,000.
Mac,
I forgot to say - I really like the church picture. I LOVE castles & it reminds me of a little one.
mac and alesia;
Thanks for your links and articles in regard my question. I will definitely read them. The reason I asked is, some time ago on Joel's blog there was a person that was either Chinese or was connected to China missions in some way. He was very upset that the pre-trib view was being commented about because of the persecution in China and other places saying that americans were weak in believing the pre-tib pre-mil. In view of that I was wondering if believers in China were rejecting this view due to the persecution.
alesia; To answer your questions in order.
1) This is commonly known as a post-mill belief. It can also be a verson of A-mill.
2)This is Historicism, the trib is viewed as occuring at the time of the Nazi holocaust or as in Preterism, at an earlier time around the destruction of Jerusalem (70AD).
3)This would be more of a Preterist belief. They believe that most if not all of the Book of Revelation was completed in the first century AD. A complete Preterist (as opposed to a partial Preterist) believes that Christ returned spiritually in the first century and does not believe He will return bodily to earth.
4) This would also be a Preterist belief, as in the Book of Revelation.
Preterists also generally follow a replacement theology, since they do not believe in a literal future 1000yr Kingdom on Earth.
Hope this helps.
Also alesia; You have a wonderful blog, lots of information and links, really comming along nice!
I wanted to include a link to a prophecy site that has been very informative to me;
http://www.thepropheticyears.com/
This site has good studies on eschatology and a current events blog for information and news related to prophecy.
God bless!
GT, yes, I know Don Koenig's site but haven't visited in a while. He's provided me with some very good commentary and links!
It's a pity that the person from China felt that way but totally understandable.
I forgot to include the link below. They e-mail me from time to time with prayer requests. Check out their mission statements. I know they believe in the Second Coming but do not have an official belief about the rapture. I know they see most of the Western churches as soft. We can learn a lot from their trials and faith!
Back to Jerusalem
Thanks so much GT - for the entire comment.
I am going to send to my friend, I asked him these questions & he didn't know. how is it possible that he is a preacher & not know these? Now, I don't know what most of these mean, but I don't get up to teach & preach to others.
I've added the recommended site to the blog - it looks really good (guess another night of no sleep) LOL
mac;
Thanks for the additional link, I am greatly encouraged when reading about the miracles and work that God is doing in these asian countries and around the world! The name of that site is "Back to Jerusalem", ("from the great wall of China back to Jerusalem"). I sincerely hope they don't stop at Jerusalem but come all the way to the US from coast to coast!! We sure could use their "brand" of Bible belief here in the states.
I am so tired of hearing about the watered down version of the Bible we get here!
alesia;
You are welcome, I hope I got everything straight in that answer. Thank you for the links about China, as I said above I love reading about how God is moving around the world, it sure contrasts to the church of Laodicea we have in the west!
God Bless!
Obama the Friendly Black Guy
HI Guys,
Just checking in briefly. I've loved reading everyone's comments today and I have to agree Alesia, your blog looks awesome.
I hope to get some time to spend looking at some of the info on it.
As far as people and churches go, most people have no idea (or care) what their denomination teaches about most topics.
They also seem to pick and choose what to believe when they do know what their denomination teaches.
To summarize, if someone belongs to a certain church, it does not necassarily mean they know or believe whatever that denomination stands for.
So I just wanted to bring that up.
Jim I will try to look over the info you sent. I am really into dates, etc, but it sure can be overwhelming.
<><
Maranatha!
I got word a little while ago that my father is back in the hospital.
Poor guy has gone thru a lot the past 8 months or so. Please lift him up in your prayers.
We pray in Jesus name, Father, for you to reveal Yourself to my father, and to all of our families and loved ones and all of your creation, and to bring him into Your arms at the appointed time. Amen!
I just wanted to remind folks that we should 'hate the sin but not the sinner' that goes for everything...gluttony, fornication, including homosexuality.
We need to remember to:
Love your neighbor as yourself.
and to
Take the log out of your own eye before you try to take the speck out of someone elses.
Remember: We are/were all guilty. We are all sinners. Praise God that He sent HIs only begotten Son to die in our place for our sins.
(When it comes to pedophilia I have to admit I am close to hating the sinner, so I am guilty there.)
<><
I realize I may be starting WWIII, but I just had to get that out!
DOnna,
I loved your prayer for your father/our loved ones who need to know the Lord. Mind if I copy it/share it with others? Praying for those who don't recognize Him can get exhausting/frustrating over the long haul. Having a fresh set of words to work with and focus on can make a big difference!
Thanks for sharing and know that I'll be praying for your dad.
Blessings,
Jen
Donna, amen to both your posts and to what Jen said.
I can't remember how I first came across this site but I rediscovered it in my favourites folder last night as I was doing some research.
Jesus Christ is - The Wonderful One
Hi Jim- Thanks for all the dates!I realize it was alot of work and time for you to put that together,and I really appreciate it! There is supposed to be another solar eclipse/blood moon on Feb.21. wonder if that will be significant in any way.
Jamie
Morning all,
Just wanted to add a few thoughts on the 40-day period of the dead in Christ being seen.
I, too, have never heard of the teaching (but then again, I am coming to realize I really don't know much about the Scriptural endtimes teachings!). I have many additional questions about who/when/why, but one thought that crossed my mind was that, Wow, that would give credence to all those who insist that there are other life forms/forces out there and it's just a matter of time before they reveal themselves on Earth. With all the recent increase in UFO sightings, the increase of TVs shows dedicated to UFOs, cmmunicating with the spirit world, etc. it would give a lot of people a reason to say "See, I told you so!" And then when the rapture occured, anyone whose mind wasn't centered on Scripture would be easily led into wrong reasons and explanations....a great delusion.
My first reaction is to put up a wall and say, that's too crazy to be true. But then I wonder what I would have accepted had I been walking through the desert with Moses, watching God go before me in a cloud and pillar of fire, or had I been with Jesus when I watched Him walk on water. Those things, too, would have blown my mind.
Well, those are some early morning ramblings to start the day with!
Blessings,
Jen
I grew up attending Methodist churches in Illinois, and I attended one down here. The basic philosophy I learned in that church was "you can believe anything, and be a Methodist".
When attending down here in Texas, the church acquired a new pastor. His goal was to boost attendance, so they changed the service format from traditional Methodist hymns to having a praise band. I was appalled to attend service one Sunday when the band played all Beatles tunes. It bothered me so much that I met with the pastor to discuss. "Let it Be" and "My sweet Lord" is not exactly Christian worship songs, but the pastor begged to differ with me. He must have taken a lot of flak for that, though because it didn't happen again. They kept the praise band but at least started using contemporary worship songs. Very little Gospel preached, and if you were to look at the Bible verses used it was the same dozen over and over again. Nothing ever from Revelation.
I think the Methodist church's TV commercials are the most telling of their theology though: "When life brings you lemons, make lemonade -- brought to you by the United Methodist Church". 2000 years of Christianity watered down to that. I think it speaks for itself.
Just my two cents...
TexasDave
Here are some of the Methodist Church's current TV spots. Judge for yourself.
http://unitedmethodist.org/tvspotsframe.html
TexasDave
Hi Mac-thanks for the WONDERFUL ONE site! I just spent two hours reading and not getting my work done.......
Jamie
Of course, Jen, you can use anything like that anytime. Thank you for your prayers.
I will check out the wonderful one site, Mac, thanks again for all of your time and energies!
Thanks to all!
<><
Jen, Shalom!
Your comment made me remember a science fiction short story from a few years ago, where someone develops the technology needed to revive and resuscitate "corpsicles" -- those people who have had their bodies frozen at the time of death, in the hopes that in the future they can be brought back to life and cured of whatever killed them. Unfortunately, people found out the hard way that the soul/intelligence that left the body at death isn't the one that comes back when the body is brought back.
If you have all these dead coming back with glorified bodies, I can see a couple of things happening. First of all, this is supposed to last 40 days, right? What happens to the saved who die during that 40 days? Do they come back right away with glorified bodies? Will we have a 40-day period where no one dies in the entire world, or will it be 40 days where only the unsaved die?
Next, is it ONLY the saved who come back? Will there be millions (billions?) of glorified saved, accompanied by millions of unsaved dead?
Finally, if the unsaved dead don't rise, how many demons will be mimicking them and spreading false gospels? Sure, my Uncle Fred came back and has been telling us about heaven and praising the name of Jesus; but your Aunt Celeste came back and is talking about the Seventh Heaven, praising Allah, and warning us about what will happen if we don't start praising Allah, too. She won't even USE the name of Jesus, saying that it's evil.
<><
Shalom, all! I couldn't believe this when I heard this on "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" on NPR, but it's true:
Israeli soldiers suspended for mooning Palestinians
"Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" is a comedy quiz show on NPR, where people get asked questions about last week's news. You can listen to the show by going here, and either click "Listen to show" or click "Bluff the Listener" to hear just this story.
<><
Heeeeeeeeeeeeey, has everyone been raptured? Have I been left behind? Just me, the bats and the odd mushroom?
HI MAC,
We are all still here just being lazy tonight (Okie time) and it really seems odd. I would like to think it has to do with Valentine's day coming up and everyone is out getting sweet things for their honey's. However, I don't think that includes this group. They are most generally pretty dedicated Bible seekers.
I have been doing a lot of digging into the 40 days that Jesus was seen in Jerusalem/Judeah after his crucification. There is a mountain of ideas in this regard and I found a web site that you would probably find very interesting also. In fact, I could see where it would greatly appeal to men in general that are believers. Now if I can just find out where I put the reference. I will post it when I do. All I did was enter 40 days crucifixion and it brought up a wealth of sites. You have to use discernment though and I know you will but I just wanted to warn everyone out there that so many are following after religious rabbits and it will get you confused and deceived.
So, Mac, the rapture has not happened, we are all still here but just being still for awhile.
Blessings brother,
Grany
Hey, just checking in. I guess it's been quiet!
Hope you guys are all well.
Have a good nights sleep...or a great day depending on where you live!
<><
In Defense Of Chuck Smith & Calvary Chapel, Dave Hunt, & Roger Oakland
Women On The Watch
Thanks for the info on the Methodists. I know what I'm looking at now.
I can't control what my husband wants to do-but hopefully can be a good influence.
I tried to explain some things to him but was then labled as "Self-Righteous." I'm also too into my "Christian-ness."
So he plans to try it out when I'm out of town w/the kids. Obviously the music is more important to him than the message-and he's just not mature in faith and doesn't "Get it."
So I must be doing something right since Satan is giving me his best.
I absolutely will not attend that Methodist chuch so if this ends up dividing the family-so be it.
Hopefully he'll eventually come to his senses.
Right now we're off to Chuch-The one I'm willing to attend.
Lisa
Hi all,
I posted this on my blog, but then thought, maybe people don't go snooping quite like I do! So I thought I'd post here as well, since I really want everyone to read it.
The Room
I can't quite describe the emotion I felt upon reading this.
That's a good article, Alesia. A powerful lesson for us.
Jim,
only the saved that are dead will be raptured followed by the living raptured. you do make a good point however about what would happen to death during that time.
the Old Testament saints and the dead Tribulation saints will be resurrected at the end of the Tribulation before the Millennial Kingdom start as they are the friends that are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.
The unsaved dead are not resurrected until after Satan is defeated for all eternity at the end of the Millennial Kingdom.
does that help?
Mac
no Rapture yet-we went to a Renaissance Fair yesterday and spent the afternoon recovering today. always a lot of fun though.
Alesia
I've seen that before and it never fails to make me introspective to say the least.
one article says Olmert is in secret talks to divide Jerusalem and one says no
Yes Division Talks
No Divisions Talks
Lightshine, Shslom! You wrote:
There is supposed to be another solar eclipse/blood moon on Feb.21. wonder if that will be significant in any way.
You HAD to ask, didn't you? Of course, that sent me on a course of "just a little research" and now here it is, 11:02 on Sunday night. Along the way, I've run into some pretty wierd New Age stuff and some truly diabolical "Christian" sites (BTW, if you ever run across the "Watch Unto Prayer" site, approach it with extreme caution! They start out sounding Bible-based, but in their "Bible Prophecy" section, they have articles with titles like, "THE ZIONIST CONSPIRACY ~ The Synagogue of Satan" and "THE 6-POINTED STAR: THE MARK OF THE BEAST ~ Star of David or Star of Remphan?")
In any case, the answer is a definite maybe. There are no biblical feasts or biblically-significant dates on Feb. 21 of this year. According to the "Hebrew Date Converter" Feb. 21 2008 is 15 Adar I 5768. (This year is a Jewish leap year, so there are the months of Adar I and Adar II.) It's one month before Purim (which reminds me: if you haven't seen "One Night With the King", go out and rent it tonight! It is the biblical story of Ruth, and it is excellent!)
The reason I'm saying "maybe" has to do with the astrological symbolism of this blood moon. I'm not one to try to have the stars predict the future -- that is expressly forbidden. But if the stars reflect the issues of the day (as they may well do for Israel), then it at least indicates an interesting time.
I refer you to this news article: Coming Feb. 20: Total Eclipse of the Moon from Space.com. The entire article is interesting, but I was struck by the final paragraph:
As a bonus, during the eclipse the moon will be situated, in our sky, near the planet Saturn and the bright bluish star Regulus in the constellation of Leo. The effect will be to create a uniquely beautiful triangle in the sky consisting of the totally eclipsed moon, a bright naked-eye planet and one of the 21 brightest stars in the sky. You can see an illustration of this here In ancient times, the constellation Leo represents is Israel (Leo = Lion = Lion of Judah). The planet Saturn is associated with restriction, limitation, and boundaries. The star that is next to the "e" in "The Moon" and which forms the third point of the triangle is Regulus, the King Star.
So you have a blood-red moon, a herald of sorts indicating times of conflicts, in association with Saturn, the planet linked to limitations and borders. Both of these heavenly objects are travelling with Leo, the zodiac symbol for Israel, linked through the King Star. I would guess that this has something to do with Israeli borders, possibly with the division of Jerusalem.
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Ruth????
Good God's Day everyone!
I have had my cuppa coffee and I am ready to rumble. Now if I could just get up off of this chair, I will have a busy day.
ALESIA, thank you for that post on the index cards. I copied and sent it to many others and all of the ones I sent it too have replied. Seems this message is a very good wake up call for most of us.
We spent Sunday visiting with a very dear friend and it was so good just to talk and laugh with one another. My goodness time flew so fast and yet we have those memories that will last as long as we do. Our friendships are important but it is so easy to neglect. I wonder if there is a card in the file labeled "Friends I have Neglected"?
Well, anyway, it was a worthwhile day and I am still savoring it!
JIM, I copied your dates listed and have shared them with one of my young friends who is in seminary. He is most excited about getting them. I know it took a lot of time to compile them and I do appreciate them. YOU DO GOOD WORK! I enjoyed your latest posting also on the blood red moon and the info from space.com. In fact, I linked to space.com for hubby to enjoy and he is still talking about it. He is very interested in astronomy and space so that information really interested him. He is totally amazed at all of the technical conversations here.
But not to worry! Hubby can't get onto my internet connection or to the blog without signing in first with his OWN NAME. I clipped his wings and he has learned his lesson.
I send him a copied version of the comments in his email and he really enjoys all of the men's comments.
Still digging in the 40 days subject and finding a wealth of info along the way. Many, many rabbits also but they have lead to some really interesting side subjects.
Talk to you all later.
Mucho love,
Grany
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