Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †
Posted in Uncategorized
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awwwwww – cute as can be
MAGA
Giving Thanks Always
By Pastor Kevin Sadler
“Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 5:20).
Under the law and its sacrificial system, there were sin offerings. Sin offerings were constant reminders of the sinfulness of the ones bringing the sacrifices, continuous reminders of their ongoing need for forgiveness, atonement, cleansing, and righteousness (Heb. 10:3).
The sacrificial system included not only sin offerings, but also thank offerings. These sacrifices were outward expressions of thanksgiving by the children of Israel in response to God’s merciful provisions for both their spiritual and physical needs. God wanted them offered, not by obligation, but by free will: “And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the Lord, offer it at your own will” (Lev. 22:29).
As believers under grace, we don’t bring an ongoing sacrifice for sin; instead we praise God and rest in the once-for-all, perfect sacrifice for sin by Christ at the Cross. We also don’t bring thank offerings to the Lord in the manner Israel did under the law but, like Israel, we do offer our thanksgiving to God out of our own free will, thanking Him for His grace in providing for our spiritual and physical needs.
Thanksgiving crucifies self. It is unselfish and humble. Thanksgiving recognizes God as the Source of everything. Thanksgiving, the holiday, and thanksgiving in everyday life, remind us of our dependence on God and the continual blessings that flow from His hand.
Ephesians 5:20 instructs us when to give thanks: “always.” It tells us what to give thanks for: “all things.” It shows us who we give thanks to: “God and the Father.” It teaches us how to give thanks: “in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The appropriate response to what God has done and given is thanksgiving. If we are thankless, we’re not looking for or seeing God in our lives. We give thanks always because we are continually the beneficiaries of His grace and goodness. In Acts, God’s Word tells us that “He giveth to all life, and breath, and all things” (17:25) and that “He did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness” (14:17).
We give thanks to God “for all things.” “All things” means both spiritual (Eph. 1:3-14; et al) and physical blessings (1 Tim. 6:17). To thank God for both spiritual and physical blessings consecrates everything and all of life to Him. And above all, we thank God for His greatest gift of all: His Son and the victory over sin and death that we have in Him.
“But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:57).
https://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/giving-thanks-always/
Ephesians 5:20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
Hebrews 10:3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
Leviticus 22:29 And when ye will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving unto the LORD, offer it at your own will.
Acts 17:25 Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
Acts 14:17 Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.
Ephesians 1:3 ¶ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
8 Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
1 Timothy 6:17 Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;
1 Corinthians 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Allison Young sings like she lives her music . . .
Let’s rock!
ELO still sounds like ELO. MAGA
For more understanding of things most important, I would like to post a link to a very special movie that has been patterned around the Gospel teachings of true Love.
I hope you’ll give it a look and pray that it might help you along the way.
Looks great!
I’ll get back to it!
Same here. But, first I am going to get a full box of Kleenex since it appears I might need it.
Thanks for posting! I’m not much of a movie goer but for some reason I watched it. Great little movie and like Auscitizenmom, below, says be sure to have the tissues ready.
This was a lesson. Thank you for it. 🙂
. . . but deliver us from the Evil One.
Amen!
Prayer of Saint Ioannikios the Great of Bithynia (+ 846)
My hope is the Father, my refuge the Son, my protection the Holy Spirit. O Holy Trinity, glory to Thee.
The Jesus Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner.
The 50th Psalm Septuagint (Psalm 51 KJV)
Must watch movie for this weekend…
Risen.
One of my favorite scenes from the movie…
Home Sweet Home. Anyone remember concerts?
The best IS yet to come ❣
Remembrance of our eternal creation….The Spirit Carries On.
Excellent lesson of Truth and very beautiful song from Dream Theatre…
Yesterday was the Third Friday of Great Lent in the Orthodox Christian Church.
The service of Compline with the Akathistos or Akathist Hymn was in the evening (or later for those who fell asleep too early).
The Akathist Hymn is also the Salutations to the Theotokos, the Mother of God, the Ever-Virgin Mary. It is many centuries old and has been prayed and chanted numberless times, including in times of extreme danger and in times of peace. It is closely tied historically to the former Imperial Capital of Constantinople.
It is fitting to ask the Mother of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to pray for us to her divine Son. Many of us have our own mothers who still pray for us or are mothers who pray for their offspring. Who would dismiss a mother’s prayers?
“To thee, O Guardian Leader, do I, thy City, ascribe hymns of victory and thanksgiving, having been delivered from perils, O Theotokos, but as thou hast dominion invincible, do thou free me from dangers of every kind, that I might cry to thee: Rejoice unwedded Bride.”
Beautiful.
The bodily Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is tremendously important. Death is man’s greatest enemy and it has conquered all men – but Christ. Cities and nations, like people, are born and grow for a season and then fade away. Homes, clothes, even vehicles, wear out and eventually go back to dust, just as do their owners. The Bible describes this universal reign of decay and death as “the bondage of corruption” (Romans 8:21). In science it is recognized as the Second Law of Thermodynamics – the Law of Increasing Entropy. Left to themselves, every system tends to become disordered, to run down and eventually die. All the founders of great religions and movements have died and you can visit their graves. Zoroaster, Confucius, Buddha, Muhammad, Marx and Lenin. They are all dead and decayed in the grave. But Jesus Christ is alive!
So, what difference does that make? You may ask. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is vitally important because it demonstrates Christ’s victory over death, it gives hope to all mankind, it shows that eternal life is available to believers, it points to the ultimate triumph of God over all evil and it provides an indisputable proof that the message about Jesus Christ, as both Judge and Saviour, is true. “Because He has appointed a Day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man Whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” Acts 17:31
The Research of Skeptics
The Resurrection is so important and foundational to Christianity that it has been targeted for the most relentless attacks. Frank Morison, a lawyer, determined to disprove the Resurrection and thereby undermine Christianity. The result of his exhaustive investigations was his conversion to Christ and the publication of his book: “Who Moved the Stone?” which decisively demonstrates the overwhelming evidence for the Resurrection.
A skeptical university lecturer, Josh McDowell, determined to disprove Christianity by investigating evidence against the Resurrection. The result was his conversion to Christ and publication of the monumental: “Evidence That Demands a Verdict” which exhaustively and conclusively presents documentation and evidence upon evidence substantiating the historical truth, factual accuracy, archaeological evidence, manuscript evidence, fulfilled prophecies, transformed lives and other indisputable evidences which support the fact of the Resurrection of Christ from the dead and the truth claims of Christianity.
Thomas Arnold, Professor of History at Oxford University, one of the greatest historians of the 19th Century wrote: “I know of no one fact in the history of mankind which is proved by better, fuller evidence of every sort, to the understanding of a fair enquirer, than the great sign which God has given us that Christ died and rose from the dead.”
Simon Greenleaf, an unbelieving Jew, recognized as one of the most skilled legal minds ever produced, developed the Harvard Law School. He is recognized as the top authority on what constitutes sound evidence. After being challenged by a student if he had examined the evidence for the Resurrection, Simon Greenleaf made a thorough and exhaustive examination of the objective evidence and the testimony of the four Gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. In his book: “The Testimony of the Evangelists” (Baker, 1874) he concluded: “It was therefore impossible that they could have persisted in affirming the truths they have narrated, had not Jesus actually risen from the dead and had they not known this fact as certainly as they knew any other fact.”
Simon Greenleaf declared that any court of law, if presented with the evidence of the Resurrection, would have to give a verdict in favor of the integrity and accuracy of the Gospel writers and the fact of the Resurrection.
“And declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of Holiness, by the Resurrection from the dead.”
Romans 1:4
–Dr. Peter Hammond
Fantastic read. Thanks for sharing.
DD
Here’s more ~ ~ ~
What are the facts? The religious leaders, the Pharisees and Sadducees, who had campaigned and conspired to have Christ arrested and executed on trumped-up charges, had a compelling interest in disproving any claims of the Resurrection. They had presumed that the execution of Jesus would eliminate this threat to their religious power base and silence His supporters. These Jewish religious leaders had great concerns about the corpse of Jesus and they approached the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, for a military detachment to secure the tomb (Matthew 28:62-64).
The Roman governor’s priority in the volatile province of Palestine was to preserve peace and stability. He recognized the political problems that would ensue if anything happened to this religious Teacher whom he had three times declared innocent and ultimately washed his hands in front of the crowd declaring, “I am innocent of this Man’s Blood” (Matthew 27:24). His wife had warned him: “Do not have anything to do with that innocent Man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of Him.” (Matthew 27:19)
Pilate was only too aware that a travesty of justice had taken place and the last thing he needed was a review of his shameful conduct and dereliction of duty in this case. Ensuring that the victim’s corpse remained buried was definitely in Pilate’s political interests as well. “‘Take a guard’, Pilate answered. ‘Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how’. So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.” Matthew 27:65
The Roman Guard
The chief priests had approached the Roman governor. The Greek word Koustodia is used to describe the detachment of soldiers, it was evidently a Roman guard. If only a Temple guard had been used, there would have been no need to approach Pilate to issue the order. Additionally, the concern of the guards after the Resurrection to be protected from consequences from the governor (Matthew 28:14) confirms that those guarding the tomb were Roman soldiers. The detachment would have consisted of at least sixteen soldiers with four men placed directly in front of the entrance of the tomb, on duty, at any time. Under Roman military law any guard who deserted his post, or who fell asleep on duty, would face crucifixion. Typically, if Roman soldiers allowed a prisoner to escape they would face the same sentence as the prisoner – in this case crucifixion.
The seal placed on the stone at the entrance to the tomb signified the administrative authority of Rome and only an authorized officer of Rome would be permitted to break the seal. Anyone breaking a Roman seal without permission would be tracked down and executed.
Although the intention of the religious and political leaders had been to ensure that the phenomenon of Jesus ended at the tomb, their extraordinary security measures have only served to confirm the truth that they had murdered an innocent Man and that Jesus Christ was truly the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, “the Firstborn from the dead and the Ruler of the kings of the earth… the One Who lives and was dead and behold, I am alive forevermore.” Revelation 1:5,18.
Christ’s Victory Over Death
“Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men. But the angel answered and said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus, Who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold I have told you’. So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to bring His disciples word. And as they went to tell His disciples, behold Jesus met them, saying ‘Rejoice!’, so they came and held Him by the feet and worshipped Him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee and there they will see Me.'” Matthew 28:1-10
Attempts to Avoid the Truth of the Resurrection
To explain away the empty tomb, the enemies of the Gospel have had to resort to some desperate deceptions. The first was to suggest that the disciples had stolen the body. This incredible theory suggests that those same disciples who had slept in the garden, fled at His arrest, denied Him before a young woman, were hiding in fear behind locked doors, could have unitedly overcome sixteen professional Roman soldiers, dared to break a Roman seal, moved a two-ton tombstone, just to steal a corpse! A dead Messiah would have served absolutely no purpose for the disciples. What possible motivation could they have had, even had they possessed the ability to overcome the military, political and logistical obstacles? They had nothing to gain and everything to lose. Every one of the disciples suffered severe persecution, most dying as martyrs for the Faith. Would you die for a lie?
Conclusion ~~~
Did Jesus Really Die?
Others have questioned whether Christ had really died on the Cross. Perhaps He only fainted? This ‘swoon theory’ would have us believe that the Roman soldiers, who were professional killers, (the centurion in charge, would most probably have already supervised dozens if not hundreds of executions), had failed to ensure that this high-profile political prisoner was not actually dead. Considering the vicious flogging which the Lord had already endured, the excruciating torture of crucifixion and the spear thrust into His side, with blood and water flowing out, all provide convincing evidence of death.
Yet, those advocating the swoon theory would have us believe that One Who had endured such savage flogging, crucifixion and a spear thrust to the heart, could not only have survived the legendary Roman military efficiency, but that He was revived on a cold slab in a cold tomb. Further that He somehow disengaged from the grave clothes and one hundred pounds of spices, ointments and wrappings which had effectively mummified Him, rolled away the two-ton stone, overpowered, or eluded, the Roman soldiers and somehow found and impressed the disciples with His Deity? These suggestions have only to be mentioned in order to be dismissed as unbelievable.
The Empty Tomb
Another desperate attempt to explain away the Resurrection of Christ has been that they went to the wrong tomb. All of them, Mary Magdalene, Peter, John, the other women, all went to the wrong tomb. Somehow neither the Pharisees, nor the Sadducees, nor the Roman soldiers, nor Joseph of Arimathea, whose tomb it was, thought to point out that the tomb was in fact still occupied! However, this theory is also impossible, as the tomb was not in a cemetery, but in a garden privately owned by Joseph of Arimathea. There was no other tomb in that garden.
The Absence of the Body
All that the Roman and Jewish leaders had to do in order to end Christianity forever was produce the corpse of Jesus. But they couldn’t do it. Even when the Apostle Peter stood up on the day of Pentecost and proclaimed: “Therefore, let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” Acts 2:36. “And with great power the apostles gave witness to the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus.” Acts 4:33. Many thousands in Jerusalem, including many Pharisees, came to faith in Jesus Christ.
The Crisis of Credibility
To the Jewish religious leaders, this was their worst nightmare, a disaster. The proclamation of the Resurrection of Christ undermined their power and credibility. Thousands of their followers now believed that they had condemned an innocent Man, the Messiah Himself. The new religion of Christianity was undermining the power base and credibility of the Pharisees and Sadducees. If the body of Jesus could have been found, Christianity could be stopped dead in its tracks and the threat to the religious status quo would have ended. Since they desperately needed Jesus’ corpse, the Jewish leaders would have used every means at their disposal to hunt it down and find it – if that was possible.
The Testimony of Eye Witnesses
However, we are not only dealing with the empty tomb and the absence of the body, but the testimony of eyewitnesses. On at least twelve separate occasions Jesus Christ was seen after rising from the tomb. Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-18; Mark 16:9); the other women (Matthew 28:8-10); Peter (Luke 24:34); the two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35); ten of the disciples (Luke 24:36-43; John 20:19-24); all eleven disciples, eight days later (John 20:24-29); seven disciples by the Sea of Tiberius (John 21:1-23); to five hundred at one time (1 Corinthians 15:6); to James (1 Corinthians 15:7); to all eleven apostles and others, at the Ascension (Acts 1:3-12); Paul (Acts 9:3-8); and John (Revelation 1:12-18), all saw the Lord bodily raised from the dead.
To explain away the testimony of all these eyewitnesses, enemies of Christianity suggest that these were merely hallucinations, perhaps as a result of hypnosis or hysteria. However, while hallucinations tend to be unique psychological experiences of an individual, we are here dealing with a large number of individuals, who at different times, in different groups, in different places, both indoors and outdoors, on a hilltop, along a roadside, by a lakeshore, all saw the Lord. They saw Him, they ate with Him, they saw the wounds in His hands and in His side.
Far from being gullible, it would appear that His disciples were very skeptical and slow to believe. Thomas declared that he would not believe that Christ had risen unless he personally placed his fingers in the nail prints in His hands and feet and his hand in the wound in His side.
The Transformation of the Disciples
Not only do we have the testimony of the eyewitnesses, but the dramatic transformation of the disciples. The Resurrection of Christ from the dead transformed the disciples’ grief to joy, their cowardice to boldness, their skepticism to faith and their doubt to determination. It turned Saul, the persecutor of the Church into Paul the Apostle of the Church.
The Transformation of History
It also transformed society and history. It changed the Jewish Sabbath (Friday sunset to Saturday sunset ) into the Christian Lord’s Day (Sunday). What else could explain the replacement of Saturday as the Jewish day of rest into Sunday as the Christian Lord’s Day? The Resurrection transformed a Jewish remnant into the worldwide Christian Church. Over two billion people worldwide describe themselves as Christians who believe in the Resurrection of Christ from the dead. The very existence of the largest religious movement in the history of the world is another powerful evidence of the truth of the Resurrection.
Prophetic Fulfillment
Jesus Himself had prophesied His Resurrection from the dead. Because of His fulfillment of this, we can be absolutely certain that Jesus Christ is God with us, as He claimed. By His Resurrection we can know that our sins are forgiven through His Blood sacrificed on the Cross of Calvary: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God in this way loved the world, that He gave [lifted up on the Cross] His only begotten Son, that Whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” John 3:14-16.
Full Salvation
Because of Christ’s death on the Cross, we believers can rejoice that our sins are paid for – we are forgiven, justified by faith.
Because of Christ’s Resurrection from the dead, we believers can rejoice in the prospect of eternal life.
Because of Christ’s Ascension, we believers can know that He has all authority and that His Great Commission will be accomplished on earth.
Because of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, we believers do not need to trust in our own abilities, but in His power alone. “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit says the Lord.”
Proclaim It to the Nations
William Sangster – the church leader and hymn writer – suffered from increasing paralysis which finally prevented him from even being able to talk. On his last Easter before he died, he wrote: “How terrible to wake up on Easter and have no voice to shout, ‘HE IS RISEN’, far worse, to have a voice and not to want to shout!”
We serve a risen Savior! Death is defeated. Christ has risen – victorious over death, hell, satan and the grave.
Jesus Christ is the Resurrection and the Life. He who believes in Christ, though he may die, yet shall he live (John 11:25).
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” 1 Peter 1:3
–Dr. Peter Hammond
I watched the movie Ben Hur last night. Released in 1959. I had the largest sets used up to that time and only Gone With the Wind beat it out for the box office gross. Over 200 camels and 2,500 horses were used in the production. To this day the Chariot race remains one of the most watched action scenes.
The movies is based on a novel Ben Hur: A tale of Christ written by General Lew Wallace, a Hoosier. Wallace served during the Civil War. At the battle of Shiloh he . That battle was the first of the really savage big battles during that war. The high casualties and general savagery of the battle finally ended the notion held by many on both sides at the time that the war would end quickly and be a relatively bloodless affair.
Grant forces consisted of several different units converging at Pittsburg Landing on the Tennessee River. But the Confederate attack came before his forces had all arrived. Lew Wallace commanding a Division was the furthest away from the field of battle when the Confederates attacked in force driving the Union forces under Grant almost back into the river.
Wallace fell out of favor with Grant as a result of the delay in the arrival of his Division. Grant desperate for reinforcement sent multiple messages to Wallace but the messages arrived out of sequence were not complete in their details, and conflicted with a contingency plan formulated by Grant’s inexperienced staff which Grant apparently was not briefed on. All of this confused Wallace as to exactly what road he was to take to arrive. Wallace’s Division did arrive and did help swing the battle in favor of the Union the next day.
Grant, his staff, and Wallace all made mistakes but in the end Wallace was the scape goat and would never serve directly under Grant in one of his Armies again.
Wallace did however go on to provide great service to the Union. He was instrumental in organizing a defense against Morgan’s raid and was on the military tribunal that tried the Lincoln assassination conspirators. He later served as a diplomate dealing with the Ottoman Empire.
He retired to his home in Crawfordsville, IN. The study still stands and serves as a museum today. COVID-19 Reopening Announcement – General Lew Wallace Study & Museum (ben-hur.com)
It was under a big beech tree that stood outside his study that he wrote his most famous novel. Ben Hur: A Tale of Christ, was published in 1880 and was the best selling novel in US history until Gone With the Wind was published in 1936.
To add to your thoughts
Wallace completed Ben Hur, while governor of New Mexico. While in NM he is also known for signing the death warrant for Billy the Kid and for his NM quote `All calculations based on our experiences elsewhere fail in New Mexico.’
He also served on the tribunal that sentenced Confederate Capt. Henry Wirz to death by hanging. Wirz was the commander of the infamous POW compound at Andersonville.
Though the horrible conditions at Andersonville have become legendary. Nearly 13,000 Union soldiers died there. But the fact is that by the time that camp was established the Confederacy could hardly take care of it’s own soldiers let alone enemy prisoners. Also conditions in several Union POW prisons were not much better than those at Andersonville and the Union did have the means to have taken better care of their Confederate prisoners.
When I visited the site about 20 years ago there was still a statue of Wirz standing in the town square. I would be surprised if it still stands considering the way things are now.
I was taught by local historians that people in North Carolina starved during the Civil War, eating bark off the trees to try and survive. Horrible situation
According the Lew Wallace museum the bulk of Ben Hur was written under a Beech tree at his Crawfordsville home.
Ben-Hur Beech and Wallace Statue – General Lew Wallace Study & Museum (ben-hur.com)
I always enjoy a Rah post. Either on military history and surprisingly -OTR driving. A fine wordsmith, the posts keep me reading from beginning to end.
A visit to Shiloh National Military Park should not disappoint. I found it to be respectful and somber, quiet, with little commercialization. It lacked a General Pickett Buffet but kept the reverence needed for a memorial.
Thanks for reminding of the upcoming anniversary this coming Tuesday
Thank you! That is a very nice complement.
And yes Shiloh is a special place. I have been there 3 times over the course of my life time but did not really get a handle on the battle until the last time.
It can be confusing since the two sides fought over the same ground several times with the lines flowing and ebbing back and forth. At one place a Confederate artillery piece stands facing one direction and a Union artillery piece right beside it faces the opposite direction. Both represent the location of batteries of the two sides that stood at that exact same position at different times during the battle.
If your down there again and get to nearby Savannah, TN check out Cherry Mansion. Though it is privately owned one can see it very well from the bridge. That was Grant’s HQ. Legend has it that Grant and his staff were just sitting down for breakfast when they heard the cannon fire at Pittsburg Landing about 7 miles from the battlefield. Grant and his staff immediately boarded a steam ship and headed up river towards the sound of the guns.
My father bought 13 acres along the Tennessee river when I was a kid. When I was 14 I spent a summer down there helping my grandfather build a house on that property. That was the first time I visited the battlefield. Grant and the various steamships and gunboats supporting the Union troops would have gone right past that piece of land and it sparked my imagination.
Great post as usual.
Happy Caturday, y’all
H/T TheLastRefuge
Ha!
— too funny
IF THOU HADST KNOWN!
“If thou hadst known…in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.” Luke xix. 42
Jesus had entered into Jerusalem in triumph, the city was stirred to its foundations; but a strange god was there, the pride of Pharisaism; it was religious and upright, but a “whited sepulchre.”
What is it that blinds me in this “MY day”? Have I a strange god – not a disgusting monster, but a disposition that rules me? More than once God has brought me face to face with the strange god and I thought I should have to yield, but I did not do it. I got through the crisis by the skin of my teeth and I find myself in the possession of the strange god still; I am blind to the things which belong to my peace. It is an appalling thing that we can be in the place where the Spirit of God should be getting at us unhinderedly, and yet increase our condemnation in God’s sight.
“If thou hadst known” – God goes direct to the heart, with the tears of Jesus behind. These words imply culpable responsibility; God holds us responsible for what we do not see. “Now they are hid from thine eyes” – because the disposition has never been yielded. The unfathomable sadness of the “might have been!” God never opens doors that have been closed. He opens other doors, but He reminds us that there are doors which we have shut, doors which need never have been shut, imaginations which need never have been sullied. Never be afraid when God brings back the past. Let memory have its way. It is a minister of God with its rebuke and chastisement and sorrow. God will turn the “might have been” into a wonderful culture for the future.
Oswald Chambers
April 3rd Devotional
Scenes Beyond the Grave – Marietta Davis
Chapter XXVII – A P O L L Y O N
27:1
As the voices ceased, the conspiracy against the Lamb of God arose as from a smoking pit, and appeared above the throng of exasperated mortals, in the form of a demon of gigantic dimensions. Upon his head were many horns, each of which emitted a volume of lurid flame, which, like a cloud, enveloped that portion of the earth in the burning magnetism of fiendish hate. Upon his forehead was written, “Crucify Him, crucify Him; for He is not worthy to live. He is a seducer of the people.” And upon his breast was written, “Apollyon;” or the “Manifestation of Enmity to Good.” Upon his heart was seen in blazing characters, “Jesus shall not triumph; but death shall doom him to the tomb where mortals slumber, and inactivity reigns. There he who has called himself the Son of God, and made himself equal with God, shall feel the death-fetters of my irrevocable decree. Then I will dash his followers upon the rocks of human prejudice; gloom, and oppression, and dismay shall be their lot throughout all ages.”
“Hear ye this,” said a sepulchral voice, “hear ye this,” hissed ten thousand serpent-tongued demoniac visages, while the vault below quivered as if some mighty potentate of a nether region had, with his blazing sceptre, touched the fountain, the mighty deep.
Then arose out of the pit a flame, which, although concealed from mortals, ascended amid this throng, causing the sphere of their being to blend and burn like mingling flames; and as each appeared a self-supporter of the fiery element, so by coalescence the intensity was increased until the host presented the appearance of a burning destructive tempest. This, as a magnetic principle, pervaded the congregation of mortals, who were instruments in the external, inspired to consummate the merciless and fiendish design upon Jesus, the meek and humble sufferer.
“The battle heightens,” said an angel, who stood above the tempest in the atmosphere of heavenly purity; “With wonder, all ye heavens, behold the scene. Now death and hell combine; now the powers of evil charge upon the God-Man, who, while contending with the united force of enmity and destruction, by reason of sympathy with the race of mortals, is weighed down with the sorrows and sins of men.”
“And,” said another voice, “who shall determine the issue? For lo! myriads of the servants of evil congregate, and mortals who surround the sufferer are becoming like those who inspire them.”
To be continued…
Mornin’ infidels!
Mornin’ WeeWeed
Happy Caturday!
Afternoon DI!
Evening, WeeWeed!
The Catholic Church is Under Attack and Is Being Used by the Likes of George Soros and John Podesta
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The Christian faith in America is under attack and has been for some time. Some of these coordinated attacks are backed by billionaire George Soros.
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https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/04/catholic-church-attack-used-likes-george-soros-john-podesta/
Verse of the Day for Saturday, April 3, 2021
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“Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee.”
Job 22:21 (KJV)
Thank You, Jesus, for blessings received and prayers answered!!!
BE MY VOICE
PRAYING ON THE ARMOR OF GOD
Father God, I now follow your command to put on the full armor of God, because my battle is not against flesh and blood but against rulers, authorities, the powers of this dark world and against spiritual forces of evil in the unseen world.
I first pray on the Belt of Truth that it may be buckled around my waist, may I be centered and encircled by your truth dear Lord. Hem me inside all that is true and right, and may I be protected and held up by the truth of your living word, in my Lord Jesus name.
I pray on the Breastplate of righteousness, please protect my vital organs and my inner man, cover my integrity, my spirit, and my soul. Guard my heart for it is the wellspring of life, please strengthen and guard the most vulnerable places in my life with that which is right, good, and noble that I might not receive a fatal blow from the enemy, in my Lord Jesus name.
I pray on the Gospel Shoes of Peace. I choose to stand in the shoes of your good news, and on the firm foundation of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the solid eternal rock. All other ground is sinking sand, I pray that I will not slip or fall, but that my feet would be firmly fitted on your lordship, my Lord Jesus. I choose to stand on you, so that the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus, the eternal Rock of Ages. I receive your holy peace now my Lord, from the sole of my feet to the crown of my head, in my Lord Jesus name.
I pray the Shield of Faith into my hand now. As I take up the shield of faith, I ask that you might extinguish every dart and arrow, that is launched from the enemy to take me down spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, and every attempt of the enemy to destroy my joy. I ask that my faith in you would make it flame out. Extinguish every flaming arrow that would come against me, my life, my family, my home, or my ministry. May my faith always be out in front of me like a shield. Give me the courage to “faith my fears” by choosing to walk by faith and not by sight, in my Lord Jesus name.
I pray on the Helmet of Salvation, that you might protect my mind from the thoughts that can lead me astray. I choose to take every thought captive, and arrest all intentioned ideas and motives that would harm others, or distract me from your holy will for me. I submit every captured thought to the Lordship of my Lord Jesus Christ, and ask that you would imprison those thoughts that are not of you my Lord. Transform my mind and renew my thinking that I may think God thoughts, and have a sober mind that is focused on your glory. Please protect me from being double minded that I may allow my mind, I reject to live an earthly life, because I choose to live a holy one, governed by you My Lord Jesus, the prince of peace, please have my mind to be saturated with the holy mind of Christ, in my Lord Jesus name.
Finally, I take up the Sword of the Spirit which is the holy word of God, I pray this powerful offensive weapon into my hand, and ask that your holy word would be fitting for every encounter I face. As the enemy gets close to me, please give me the insight, wisdom, and skill to wield the word of God to drive away the enemy, in my Lord Jesus name.
May the enemy and his team flee from me, upon hearing the word of God spoken by the power and direction of the Holy Spirit. Give me the sword of the spirit to cut through the wiles of the devil, so that I may discern the schemes of the enemy when he is near.
With all kinds of prayers, supplication, and intercession I pray to you my Lord God as the one who fights my battles. Now that I’m in your holy powerful armor, I walk away covered and ready to face my day as you go before me, and please protect me in the midst of the spiritual warfare in this unseen world, in my Lord Jesus name.
Thank you my Lord, for the spiritual weapons of armor and prayer that you have given me. It is written no weapon formed against me shall prosper, and you will refute every tongue that accuses me.
Thank you Father God, my Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit, that I am more than a conqueror in my Lord Jesus. I pray all of this in the mighty name of my Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ, amen.
This is my first attempt at posting a link.
It is a duet by 2 young ladies, celebrating our Lord, Jesus Christ. Hope it works!
https://www.facebook.com/599225038/posts/10159471470515039/?d=n
What I suspected all along.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2021/04/wake_up_people_science_shows_mask_zealots_were_very_very_wrong.html
I’m sorry, I don’t have a link. But, I read a day or so ago that wearing masks is very bad for the lungs, is already showing up, and and I believe that that is going to eventually come out.
Matthew 11:28-30
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Mr 7:5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?”
Mark7: 6 He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.
7 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
8 “For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men–the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.”
9 He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.
Mr 16:15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.
A Major hurdle is past now….I have a new roof instead of the blue tarp. It seems I was the last one in the neighborhood to get it done. So I am saying goodbye to Laura 😛 😛 😛
🙂
THANK YOU!
Courtesy K.T. at Ace’s HQ:
How C.S. Lewis Predicted the Woke Nightmare
https://townhall.com/columnists/jaredwhitley/2021/03/27/how-cs-lewis-predicted-woke-education-could-turn-democracy-into-dictatorship-n2586801
Jared Whitley, Posted: Mar 27, 2021 12:01 AM
“We now have an intelligentsia which, though very small, is very useful to the cause of Hell.” -C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters
“A masterful piece of religious prose disguised as satire, C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters is a series of messages from senior devil Screwtape to his protégé Wormwood on how best to corrupt mortals. Originally released during World War II, its tight 175 pages provide charming, timeless wisdom.
“In an addendum released shortly before the author’s death in 1963 – Screwtape Proposes a Toast – Lewis pivots from dispensing universal wisdom to directly criticizing social trends of his day, trends which have gone from mere whispers on college campuses 60 years ago to become orthodoxy with the power of law today. Reading it today, it feels like the author was more prophet than professor.”
Edit: And do read the PDF to which they link: https://www.samizdat.qc.ca/arts/lit/Toast_CSL.pdf
Blue NY, MI Report More COVID Cases in Last 7 Days than TX and FL (breitbart.com)
Uh Huh! Bet the numbers would look even worse if reported as a percentage of population.
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God Bless,
Just watched my granddaughter get married to her soldier down in Texas on ZOOM. They are very happy and I think that it is going to work. In a couple months they head for S. Korea.
Best wishes to your family, rah, and wishing blessings for their life togethet
Thank you!
It’s Friday… But Sunday’s a Coming!
lilbirdee12’s prayer:
Our Heavenly Father, Your children come to you tonight to ask for healing and peace throughout our country so that we may return to being One Nation Under God. Guide us to be leaders in Your Kingdom, spreading Your Love and Salvation to all. Forgive us our sins and deliver us from evil.
Lord, we ask for a blanket of protection over all our troops and law enforcement who serve to defend and protect us. Bless our representatives with the strength and wisdom they need to achieve the path You have chosen for us.
Please place Your Guardian Angels of Protection around Donald Trump and his family as they seek to lead America back to You. Also, we pray for Angels to protect and support our Sundance as he works for justice and peace.
Grant us patience, Lord, as the evil ones try to anger us and cause us to fall.
Spread blessings over Israel and Netanyahu.
We humbly ask that You please comfort those who are grieving and in pain.
Thank you Father, for Your Love and the gift of Life.
In Jesus name, we pray. Amen.
Amen
Amen.
Amen.
Amen.
Quite a show in Egypt https://www.egypttoday.com/Article/4/100469/Egypt’s-Pharaohs-Golden-Parade-A-majestic-journey-that-history-will
✝️ test on