23 September 2017

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Saturday, 23 September 2017

Saturday.  In Autumn.  At home.
I had intended, fully, to get up and do the roof re-coat stuff today:  it's warm enough and should be dry enough for the next few days for it to "set" properly.  I put on some very old, very torn-up and ready to be discarded jeans and shoes, and a shirt that once meant something (from a grateful customer who shortly thereafter moved to Mexico, leaving their own workforce suddenly jobless, as well as those of us  their supplier base.  So a recognition shirt from Whirlpool means little to me and if/when the roof coating stuff gets on it, who cares?).  Came outside to discover that niece and husband and kids had vanished.  He has, somewhere, the ladder that I need in order to gain access to the roof.  I have a key to his garage (and house) and took a quick look in there but didn't see the ladder.  And I don't feel comfortable going into their house in their absence.  Wife might, and niece's mother might, etc. but I don't.  So it will wait until they get home, which may be after dark as it was last weekend.  They don't answer to me and it's none of my business.  But I wish that I had that ladder.
Likewise, once that coating thing was done, actually before starting, I was going to run to the auto parts  store and get some automatic transmission fluid.  I need to change out that radiator, but there are coolant lines into it that bring ATF in and out and we can presume some loss during the swapout.  I have none at all (yes, I should have foreseen that).  So I was going to pick up a quart of ATF, stop at the grocery across the street for the things they were  out of yesterday, come home, coat the roof while the car was cooling down and then start the radiator change.  With Bobby (next door neighbor and niece's husband) nearby to answer questions, lend a hand if needed, etc.
So, not to be.

It's in the upper 80's here, unusual for this time of year here, and of course it's after I packed away about all of my summer-weight shirts, etc.  So not much physical activity going on.

Watching the earthquakes in central Mexico.  Our one son-in-law's mother is from Queretaro province, which is not too far from there though not much affected by it all, but she's all upset about it.  The 7.1 quake was the other day, with a 6.7 last night or so, and other, smaller, aftershocks as well.
And we see warnings that a major dam in Puerto Rico is in danger of catastrophic failure as a result of the hurricane that pummeled that land earlier in the week.  Some 70,000 residents have been warned to evacuate immediately.  Not sure how they can or to where, and much of the rest of that island is in bad shape and will be for the foreseeable future.

And much trouble elsewhere. 
I was once told that "peace" is the word we use to recognize that there are, occasionally, brief interludes between wars and fightings, a rather unusual thing in history.  At one time, that seemed terribly mean.  Now, well, it seems pretty accurate.

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Our Old Testament reading is chapters 6, 7, and 8 of the Song of Solomon, completing out passage through it. 


Song of Solomon 6
1 Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee. 2 My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies. 3 I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies. 4 Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners. 5 Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead. 6 Thy teeth are as a flock of sheep which go up from the washing, whereof every one beareth twins, and there is not one barren among them. 7 As a piece of a pomegranate are thy temples within thy locks. 8 There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and virgins without number. 9 My dove, my undefiled is but one; she is the only one of her mother, she is the choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and blessed her; yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her. 10 Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners? 11 I went down into the garden of nuts to see the fruits of the valley, and to see whether the vine flourished and the pomegranates budded. 12 Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib. 13 Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee. What will ye see in the Shulamite? As it were the company of two armies.

Song of Solomon 7
1 How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince's daughter! the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a cunning workman. 2 Thy navel is like a round goblet, which wanteth not liquor: thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with lilies. 3 Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins. 4 Thy neck is as a tower of ivory; thine eyes like the fishpools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bathrabbim: thy nose is as the tower of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. 5 Thine head upon thee is like Carmel, and the hair of thine head like purple; the king is held in the galleries. 6 How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights! 7 This thy stature is like to a palm tree, and thy breasts to clusters of grapes. 8 I said, I will go up to the palm tree, I will take hold of the boughs thereof: now also thy breasts shall be as clusters of the vine, and the smell of thy nose like apples; 9 And the roof of thy mouth like the best wine for my beloved, that goeth down sweetly, causing the lips of those that are asleep to speak. 10 I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me. 11 Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages. 12 Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine flourish, whether the tender grape appear, and the pomegranates bud forth: there will I give thee my loves. 13 The mandrakes give a smell, and at our gates are all manner of pleasant fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for thee, O my beloved.
 
Song of Solomon 8
1 O that thou wert as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother! when I should find thee without, I would kiss thee; yea, I should not be despised. 2 I would lead thee, and bring thee into my mother's house, who would instruct me: I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate. 3 His left hand should be under my head, and his right hand should embrace me. 4 I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, until he please. 5 Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? I raised thee up under the apple tree: there thy mother brought thee forth: there she brought thee forth that bare thee. 6 Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. 7 Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned. 8 We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for? 9 If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will inclose her with boards of cedar. 10 I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favour. 11 Solomon had a vineyard at Baalhamon; he let out the vineyard unto keepers; every one for the fruit thereof was to bring a thousand pieces of silver. 12 My vineyard, which is mine, is before me: thou, O Solomon, must have a thousand, and those that keep the fruit thereof two hundred. 13 Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken to thy voice: cause me to hear it. 14 Make haste, my beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices.



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Today's New Testament reading has us beginning the Epistle to the Galatians, chapter 1.
 Now, some investigation into the term "Galatia" can take you in some unexpected directions.
Galatia is, generally, a region of what we now call "Asia Minor", meaning central Turkey.  And, like most of the world actually, has been a region of changing tribes, changing empires, various armies and cultures, and all the rest.  Some of those tribes and cultures we refer to now as Celtic, a term that I foolishly thought referred to some groups in the British Isles, but which  once were found (and dominant) in places like modern Turkey and the area. 
Galatia was, and that same territory still is, known as a pretty poor area.  So Paul was definitely not dealing with the elites of the time.  But he thought it was worthwhile, following the Lord's lead.



Galatians 1
1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) 2 And all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia: 3 Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, 4 Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: 5 To whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. 6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: 7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. 10 For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. 11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. 12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. 13 For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it: 14 And profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, 16 To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: 17 Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus. 18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. 19 But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord's brother. 20 Now the things which I write unto you, behold, before God, I lie not. 21 Afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia; 22 And was unknown by face unto the churches of Judaea which were in Christ: 23 But they had heard only, That he which persecuted us in times past now preacheth the faith which once he destroyed. 24 And they glorified God in me. 





22 September 2017

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Friday, 22 September 2017

A day of sorrow.  Today is the first day of Autumn.  There are those who love the Fall, who even like Winter.  I am NOT one of them and never ever ever will be.  Spring is my time.  It's all downhill from there.  May, in particular.  Some like the changing leaf colors, I simply realize that means they are dying and, will soon fall to the ground and rot.  And this whole area will look, to me at least, like old black and white photos of Soviet-era East Germany or Bulgaria.
😣

I had several things on tap to be done today.  Got not one even well begun.  Wife has had a bad few days and I didn't want to leave her.  I did stuff some more antifreeze into the old chariot and made the trip to the local grocery store and picked up some foodstuffs we were needing, coordinated with some pretty neat sales they had going.  Foolishly, I waited until afternoon to go.  Wife had intended to come along, but was simply not up to it.  Naturally, by the time I got there, MANY of the advertised sale items were sold out.  They promised to have the shelves restocked by morning, so I'll be heading out early on that.

Later, I got with niece next door and we pulled the dead and dying cucumber,  pepper, and green bean plants out of the garden and threw them on the fire pit.  The tomatoes are still producing, some at least, and so we removed some of the dead parts, got some nice yellow grape tomatoes and some not-quite-red Roma tomatoes.  Supposed to be warm the next few days, so we may get a few more.  After that, we will wait until the frost and then harvest the celery stalks.  They didn't do great but we should get a good half dozen to split.

I see that the political bombast continues.  I expect that will continue long after I am gone.
I did see one thing that saddened me a bit.  As some know, we lived for a time in western Arkansas, right on the Oklahoma line.  If you are one of the remaining Elvis Presley fans, there is a picture of him getting his first Army haircut.  The person performing that cut was a fellow named Fred Kinslow.  Fred was a good guy, he used to cut my hair in fact.  He passed away this morning.  One of his sons, Fred jr. in fact, passed away during our time there and I substituted as leader of the senior men's Bible study group for a bit under a year while Fred and his late wife recovered.  A good guy, but another link to the past gone.

And another tough week coming up.  The 27th is our older daughter's birthday.  She has cut ALL contact with us for almost two years now.  Makes it tough, particularly on Dear Wife.   And it adds an unwelcome aggravation to her physical challenges, something she really does not need.

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Our Old Testament reading today is chapters 4 and 5 from the Song of Solomon.
Pretty "hot" stuff there, and I for one would not want to be the one leading a class of teenagers on this text.

Song of Solomon 4
1 Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from mount Gilead. 2 Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep that are even shorn, which came up from the washing; whereof every one bear twins, and none is barren among them. 3 Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, and thy speech is comely: thy temples are like a piece of a pomegranate within thy locks. 4 Thy neck is like the tower of David builded for an armoury, whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men. 5 Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins, which feed among the lilies. 6 Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense. 7 Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee. 8 Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards. 9 Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck. 10 How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices! 11 Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honeycomb: honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon. 12 A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed. 13 Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard, 14 Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices: 15 A fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon. 16 Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.


Song of Solomon 5
1 I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved. 2 I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night. 3 I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? 4 My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him. 5 I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. 6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer. 7 The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me. 8 I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love. 9 What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? 10 My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. 11 His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. 12 His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. 13 His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. 14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. 15 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. 16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.



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The reading in the New Testament here is chapter 13 of 2nd Corinthians, completing the work.

II Corinthians 13
1 This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. 2 I told you before, and foretell you, as if I were present, the second time; and being absent now I write to them which heretofore have sinned, and to all other, that, if I come again, I will not spare: 3 Since ye seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, which to you-ward is not weak, but is mighty in you. 4 For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you. 5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates? 6 But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates. 7 Now I pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved, but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as reprobates. 8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. 9 For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection. 10 Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not to destruction. 11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you. 12 Greet one another with an holy kiss. 13 All the saints salute you. 14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.

21 September 2017

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Thursday, 21 September 2017

Another day.  I'm in pain, Wife is running a fever again.  Not a good thing.  But we shall get through.
As I sit here at the desk, there is a gray and white cat head-butting my back, wanting attention and chin scratches and all that stuff.  I'm not a  pet person, but he believes that I am "his" human.  As the old semi-joke has it, "dogs have owners.  Cats have staff.", and it seems to be true.  I am expected to interrupt whatever I am doing and rub his head or something.  I'm safe in the shower, but that's about it.  But then, I can be a pest as well, and too often have been.  They didn't shoot me.  OK, a few tried and I have some knife scars here and there, but I'm still around.  If the Lord didn't let them kill me, I guess I can let even a pesky cat live as well.  And he's better looking, a small distinction to be sure.

The news reports are that there is no electricity at all on Puerto Rico, and  many areas may be without power for a year or so.  Not good.  Now, yes, 150  years ago, there was no electricity on Puerto Rico, and they survived (barely).  But there wasn't any to your house in Cleveland or Chicago or Baltimore either, but I don't hear even the most fervent "greenie" types agitating to rip out the wires and go back to cooking over dried cow dung.  If so, it escaped my attention.  So things are going  to be pretty rough there for a good while.  Numerous groups are sending help, notably faith-based ones, but they're already pretty stretched due to the storm damage in Texas and in Florida.
And they're still finding bodies, and a few survivors, from the 7.1 earthquake just south of Mexico City.  Will be a good while dealing with that.
Trouble all over the place, and getting worse, rapidly.

I came across a column posted by someone I occasionally correspond with, Deanna Chadwell by name.  Among her other accomplishments, she's a teacher at Pacific Bible College, in Oregon.  The column is up at American Thinker, and it is titled as Holes In Our Heads, a discussion of, and a pointer to, several studies here and here, research indicating that various attitudes and lifestyles, like marijuana use for example, seem to have very visible effects upon the brain itself, particularly in the amygdala, and that this may in part explain the truly bizarre behaviors we are seeing on the lefty loons, the "antifa" crowd, the militant homosexuals, and others.  Some discussion on how changes in conduct and belief can affect changes in the other direction.  Interesting, and worth the read.

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Today's Old Testament read, chapters 1, 2, and 3 of the Song of Solomon, is, to say the least, a bit of a change.  Putting it mildly.
It is, incidentally, by no means certain that this came from King Solomon.  Jewish scholars place it after the first Exile.  It was accepted into the Jewish canon with the "Writings", back around 200 B.C.  It seems to be the words between two lovers, husband and wife.   Christians frequently class it as indicative of the love between Christ and the Church, which fits.
This is one of those parts of Scripture that, as a kid including certainly as a teen, I NEVER EVER heard mentioned or taught in that little country church.  Not once, not ever, it was sort of skipped over as if it did not exist, and that is probably still the case in most churches today. 

Song of Solomon 1
1 The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s. 2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine; 3 your anointing oils are fragrant; your name is oil poured out; therefore virgins love you. 4 Draw me after you; let us run. The king has brought me into his chambers. We will exult and rejoice in you; we will extol your love more than wine; rightly do they love you. 5 I am very dark, but lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon. 6 Do not gaze at me because I am dark, because the sun has looked upon me. My mother’s sons were angry with me; they made me keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard I have not kept! 7 Tell me, you whom my soul loves, where you pasture your flock, where you make it lie down at noon; for why should I be like one who veils herself beside the flocks of your companions? 8 If you do not know, O most beautiful among women, follow in the tracks of the flock, and pasture your young goats beside the shepherds’ tents. 9 I compare you, my love, to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots. 10 Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels. 11 We will make for you ornaments of gold, studded with silver. 12 While the king was on his couch, my nard gave forth its fragrance. 13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh that lies between my breasts. 14 My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms in the vineyards of Engedi. 15 Behold, you are beautiful, my love; behold, you are beautiful; your eyes are doves. 16 Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful. Our couch is green; 17 the beams of our house are cedar; our rafters are pine.

Song of Solomon 2
1 I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys. 2 As a lily among brambles, so is my love among the young women. 3 As an apple tree among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved among the young men. With great delight I sat in his shadow, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. 4 He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love. 5 Sustain me with raisins; refresh me with apples, for I am sick with love. 6 His left hand is under my head, and his right hand embraces me! 7 I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or the does of the field, that you not stir up or awaken love until it pleases. 8 The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes, leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills. 9 My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, there he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, looking through the lattice. 10 My beloved speaks and says to me: “Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away, 11 “for behold, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone. 12 “The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. 13 “The fig tree ripens its figs, and the vines are in blossom; they give forth fragrance. Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away. 14 “O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the crannies of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely. 15 “Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.” 16 My beloved is mine, and I am his; he grazes among the lilies. 17 Until the day breathes and the shadows flee, turn, my beloved, be like a gazelle or a young stag on cleft mountains.

Song of Solomon 3
1 On my bed by night I sought him whom my soul loves; I sought him, but found him not. 2 I will rise now and go about the city, in the streets and in the squares; I will seek him whom my soul loves. I sought him, but found him not. 3 The watchmen found me as they went about in the city. “Have you seen him whom my soul loves?” 4 Scarcely had I passed them when I found him whom my soul loves. I held him, and would not let him go until I had brought him into my mother’s house, and into the chamber of her who conceived me. 5 I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or the does of the field, that you not stir up or awaken love until it pleases. 6 What is that coming up from the wilderness like columns of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all the fragrant powders of a merchant? 7 Behold, it is the litter of Solomon! Around it are sixty mighty men, some of the mighty men of Israel, 8 all of them wearing swords and expert in war, each with his sword at his thigh, against terror by night. 9 King Solomon made himself a carriage from the wood of Lebanon. 10 He made its posts of silver, its back of gold, its seat of purple; its interior was inlaid with love by the daughters of Jerusalem. 11 Go out, O daughters of Zion, and look upon King Solomon, with the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding, on the day of the gladness of his heart.


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Our New Testament reading is chapter 12 of 2nd Corinthians.

II Corinthians 12
1 I must go on boasting. Though there is nothing to be gained by it, I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven–whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. 3 And I know that this man was caught up into paradise–whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows– 4 and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. 5 On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses– 6 though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. 7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 11 I have been a fool! You forced me to it, for I ought to have been commended by you. For I was not at all inferior to these super-apostles, even though I am nothing. 12 The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works. 13 For in what were you less favored than the rest of the churches, except that I myself did not burden you? Forgive me this wrong! 14 Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. 15 I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less? 16 But granting that I myself did not burden you, I was crafty, you say, and got the better of you by deceit. 17 Did I take advantage of you through any of those whom I sent to you? 18 I urged Titus to go, and sent the brother with him. Did Titus take advantage of you? Did we not act in the same spirit? Did we not take the same steps? 19 Have you been thinking all along that we have been defending ourselves to you? It is in the sight of God that we have been speaking in Christ, and all for your upbuilding, beloved. 20 For I fear that perhaps when I come I may find you not as I wish, and that you may find me not as you wish–that perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder. 21 I fear that when I come again my God may humble me before you, and I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality that they have practiced.

20 September 2017

Today's Readings and Stuff -- mostly "stuff" -- Wednesday, 20 September 2017

The "stuff" first, I guess.
I've been pretty much off-line for several days.  For several reasons at that.

  • Today is a somber day for me.  Today is the anniversary of my father's passing.  It was six years ago today that I got the call from my youngest brother that simply said, "dad's gone".  We'd been expecting it for some time: not only was he, by far, the longest-lived male member of the family that we had been able to determine, but we had been up visiting around the 4th of July.  He'd not looked well then, and I pretty much knew it would be our last meeting on this earth.  But it was hard, and it still is.  Affects my outlook on things, sorry.  Doesn't help that when both he and my mother passed (she in spring of 2007), we were living nearly a thousand miles away and were lucky to be able to make the trip once or twice a year to see them.  Hard to escape the feelings of guilt there.
  • And then ...  I had an accident with injury Sunday afternoon.  Not a car wreck, but I'd been helping niece's husband, next door, rearrange some kid's play stuff in the yard.  Was carrying a small trampoline, when I stumbled over something and fell, landing with my ribs on the steel frame.  I lay on the ground in pain for a while, was finally able to get back up with difficulty.  It appears that I have either a cracked or a bruised rib now, which will take an appreciable time to heal.  Can barely roll over in bed and getting up is a real challenge.  And, naturally, it's on the side I prefer to lay on:  I've never in my whole life been able to sleep on my back, ever.  So I'm living on heavy doses of wife's 800 mg Ibuprofen, Naprosyn, and aspirin.  It's what we have.
    • added to that is that I'd planned to make a short trip this afternoon to help unload boxes of books being donated to a foreign mission organization.  But as it stands, there is simply no way that I can haul much of anything.  No can do.  Big guilt trip there, but simply out of the question.
So I've been out of the mix for several days.  Likely to be so for several more.  I had to, somehow, drive Wife to the store yesterday (retirement check hit, so we were paying bills hoping to do so before the water, electric, and gas companies shut us off, and then pick up a few groceries), but I did the driving and walked beside her as she pushed the buggy.  That was the extent of my involvement, actually, I wasn't even good at helping her carry the bags into our hovel.
Of course, the trip caused the car to overheat, BIG time: red lights flashing and the thing was boiling over as we debarked.  The new radiator arrived, but it's going to be a few days before I'm up to doing the replacing, more than I can do right now.

Sorry for the tale of woe.
Other people are having a pretty rough time of it.  A category 5 hurricane hit Puerto Rico, where we have a few contacts.  A 7.1 earthquake hit just outside of Mexico City, an area that is near the hometown of younger daughter's mother-in-law, with considerable loss of life.  And the "usual" depredations worldwide of the demon-besotten heathen adherents of Islam.  So things are tough all over.
But we have much to give thanks for.  Things are tough, but I had a place to sleep last night and food to eat, and a beautiful woman beside me.  God is good.  Circumstances sometimes aren't but the game isn't over yet.

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The Old Testament readings for the last few days have been in the book of Ecclesiastes.
Today's passage, chapters 10, 11, and 12, completes that journey.
I've chosen to recreate this today in the ESV version, I think it makes some of the terms more understandable:  the implications of some of those terms has changed since 1611 when the King James came out.  Your mileage may vary.

Ecclesiastes 10
1 Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a stench; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. 2 A wise man’s heart inclines him to the right, but a fool’s heart to the left. 3 Even when the fool walks on the road, he lacks sense, and he says to everyone that he is a fool. 4 If the anger of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your place, for calmness will lay great offenses to rest. 5 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, as it were an error proceeding from the ruler: 6 folly is set in many high places, and the rich sit in a low place. 7 I have seen slaves on horses, and princes walking on the ground like slaves. 8 He who digs a pit will fall into it, and a serpent will bite him who breaks through a wall. 9 He who quarries stones is hurt by them, and he who splits logs is endangered by them. 10 If the iron is blunt, and one does not sharpen the edge, he must use more strength, but wisdom helps one to succeed. 11 If the serpent bites before it is charmed, there is no advantage to the charmer. 12 The words of a wise man’s mouth win him favor, but the lips of a fool consume him. 13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness, and the end of his talk is evil madness. 14 A fool multiplies words, though no man knows what is to be, and who can tell him what will be after him? 15 The toil of a fool wearies him, for he does not know the way to the city. 16 Woe to you, O land, when your king is a child, and your princes feast in the morning! 17 Happy are you, O land, when your king is the son of the nobility, and your princes feast at the proper time, for strength, and not for drunkenness! 18 Through sloth the roof sinks in, and through indolence the house leaks. 19 Bread is made for laughter, and wine gladdens life, and money answers everything. 20 Even in your thoughts, do not curse the king, nor in your bedroom curse the rich, for a bird of the air will carry your voice, or some winged creature tell the matter.


Ecclesiastes 11
1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. 2 Give a portion to seven, or even to eight, for you know not what disaster may happen on earth. 3 If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth, and if a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie. 4 He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap. 5 As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything. 6 In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good. 7 Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. 8 So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many. All that comes is vanity. 9 Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. 10 Remove vexation from your heart, and put away pain from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.


Ecclesiastes 12
1 Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”; 2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain, 3 in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed, 4 and the doors on the street are shut–when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low– 5 they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets– 6 before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern, 7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. 8 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity. 9 Besides being wise, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge, weighing and studying and arranging many proverbs with great care. 10 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. 11 The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. 12 My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. 13 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.


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The New Testament readings for the last few days have been in 2nd Corinthians,  Sunday's was chapter 9 and the next few days continuing.  Today's reading is verses 16-33 of chapter 11.
 No, the life of a Christian evangelist is not and has never been an easy one.


II Corinthians 11:16-33
16 I say again, Let no man think me a fool; if otherwise, yet as a fool receive me, that I may boast myself a little. 17 That which I speak, I speak it not after the Lord, but as it were foolishly, in this confidence of boasting. 18 Seeing that many glory after the flesh, I will glory also. 19 For ye suffer fools gladly, seeing ye yourselves are wise. 20 For ye suffer, if a man bring you into bondage, if a man devour you, if a man take of you, if a man exalt himself, if a man smite you on the face. 21 I speak as concerning reproach, as though we had been weak. Howbeit whereinsoever any is bold, (I speak foolishly,) I am bold also. 22 Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I. 23 Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. 24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. 28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not? 30 If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities. 31 The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not. 32 In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king kept the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desirous to apprehend me: 33 And through a window in a basket was I let down by the wall, and escaped his hands.