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Archive for October, 2022

Joy with Humility

Posted in Connotations, Consequences, Dependence, Faith, God Thoughts, God's Word, Joy, tagged , , , , on October 30, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Pastor continued his exposition of Philippians today. He explained with references that the dual themes of the book are joy and humility. Paul presents himself as a bondservant, equal to Timothy, and the Philippians as saints, that is, sanctified slaves. The scriptural bondservant or slave is not a compelled or degraded slave of our understanding, but a voluntary servant to a great and glorious master who makes us kings and priests.

I heard the whole sermon, but I had a moment of mental wondering when he said the following: “I am content to be a third-row galley slave pushing the kingdom of God forward. I am not the captain of the ship.”

My mind went immediately to the scene in the movie, “Ben Hur”, in which Judah Ben-Hur (Charleton Heston) is being punished unjustly by being a Roman galley slave. The general admires him and has his chains undone before the battle begins. Judah in his mid-ship starboard placement rows defiantly with anger. Later, when the ship is sunk by a portside ramming, he rescues the drowning but victorious general to be adopted as his son and victorious companion in the parade before the emperor in Rome.

All of this flashed through my mind but is not where my focus alighted. The pastor was talking about humility that is not recognized, not angry pride that is rewarded. I visualized a third-row port-side galley slave rowing for all he is worth going down with the ship. Am I willing to stay in my voluntary bonds to further the kingdom of God when this ship called America goes down? Oh, yes, I will receive reward in heaven, but I may never see any praise or reward or even the results of my efforts on this side of heaven. One day soon persecution is coming and the cause of Christ will be a punishable crime, even a capital offense. How many will stay at their post and keep rowing then? Who among us will continue “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”? (Hebrews 12:2) And who among us will “consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (v.3)? Will we be able to continue to the point of shedding blood though we “have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin.”? (v.4) God is so very gracious to call his bondservants to do hard things but with abundant reward with joy now and into eternity. “Therefore, we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18) Let us focus on these things, brothers and sisters. Unbelievers seek this path of salvation, purpose, and reward “while it is said, “Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me.”” (Hebrews 3:15) Repent, believe, and serve our great and glorious Master, Jesus Christ.

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A Colorful Day Out

Posted in General on October 17, 2022| Leave a Comment »

I may have a new climbing partner in my new locale. He was sure interested in learning and trying. We tried a new crag for us both at Bays Mountain Park. The cliffs are small, 25 to 40 tall, but the rock is solid sandstone with a mixture of moderate trad and sport routes. Out of the 15 some odd climbs, we did four before the sprinkling and dim light chased us off. Other than one day at a climbing gym, I had not been climbing for 6 months or regularly for 9+ months.

I thought about what goes first when we don’t keep up a regular climbing schedule. I think I may lose abilities in the following order as time progresses:

Speed goes first, followed by power, then endurance, next strength, and finally coordination.

I think that it is similar in running. I feel certain that research has greatly favored running, but gurus and researchers in both sports can probably provide the reasons why my hypothesis for the progression of deterioration is right, wrong, or some of both. Items like VO2 Max probably play into the first two while lactic acid threshold may curtail the continuance of the next two. Coordination is somehow a muscle memory issue, but what bio-chemical process enables or degenerates that ability? I so wish that someone who has a deeper knowledge of these issues would enlighten me.

That rabbit trail tangent having been run down to a dead-end*, check out the few pictures I took of the proceedings of our outing at A Few Colorful Climbs.

*In my poor knowledge base at least

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A Day in the Sun

Posted in Family, Grandchildren, Outdoors, Photo, Relationship, tagged , , , , , on October 11, 2022| Leave a Comment »

I went to a family reunion last weekend, but the majority of the people there were from an in-law’s family. They were nice people, but I didn’t have much to say to them since our connection is tenuous at best. Instead, I talked to the few closer relatives there and most spent time with my oldest son and his family. The day was absolutely beautiful and at that perfect temperature so that you could warm up in the sun and cool down in the shade. And it all took place by a lake with plenty of views, wildlife, playgrounds, walkways, easy places to lounge, and smiles. Click on Grandchildren Run to see what we enjoyed.

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Walking in a New Place

Posted in Beauty, Blessing, Change, General, Nature, Outdoors, Photo, tagged , , , , , on October 9, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Moving, unpacking, settling in, finding your way around, starting a new job are time consuming. One must make time for the more relaxing moments. My preferred way to relax is walking. Having a job that involves standing is not good for flow of body fluids, so I walk, observe, think, and pray during my lunch break or converse with my wife during evening walks. The pictures at Fall Begun come from three different walks, two at lunch and one in the evening. I feel so blessed to live in a part of the world where seasons change, and I work and live in neighborhoods where I may daily range. God gifts many larger blessings, but the smaller daily ones help to fortify the soul for daily stresses. Be active or quiet and at any rate contemplative so that you may absorb the goodness of God in His creation and through His other manifold blessings. Being contemplative means quiet and open to observation both internal and external.

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Mr. M

Posted in Delights, General, Nature, Outdoors, tagged , , , on October 8, 2022| Leave a Comment »

As I walked the other day, I observed a Mockingbird pestering a Redtail Hawk. Plucky birds that they are, he cut in and out, notifying the hawk that he was in his territory. The hawk made his ponderous circle upward to free himself from the pest. You know that if he got ahold of Mr. M he would shred him between his talons and beak, but it is not to be because Mockingbirds can make much quicker cuts that hawks can’t follow.

A few days later I heard a Mockingbird as it sat singing in a Maple tree as I walked past. He jumped up to the powerline as I passed under the tree and continued to sing. I have lost count at around 25 to 30 different songs of an educated Mockingbird that used to sit on the light pole where I once taught school, entering under his joyous morning songs. And that reminds me how that I don’t like the name Mockingbird, because they don’t sneer or make fun. Neither do they plagiarize their songs since they give credit to their composers by the songs they sing and to the Creator of them all. Perhaps they should be called Song Learning Birds or Repeater Birds or Remix Songbirds. Anyway, I love to hear them sing.

Yet another day walking I observed Mr. M making a perfect two point landing on a lawn. Approaching at full speed, he flared his flight feathers at the last possible split second and seemed to simply step off of the air onto the lawn. My eye could hardly follow the transition for the speed, but Mr. M executed the move into a bush not long after and I caught more of the action. Then he flew almost vertically from bush to an altitude of 30 feet to peck at an intruding competitor. The two M’s made their quick cuts to claw at and peck toward one another in quick succession. I thought how much more dangerous they were to one another than the hawk was to Mr. M or visa-versa.

I could not have seen any of the flight action had it not been for the color and flashing of feathers. Their lateral tailfeathers are white against the gray background of the rest. They have white mid-wing feathers that barely show until they spread their wings wide. When Mr. M turned his wings downward for the perfect landing, the white on dark gray feathers showed straight in my direction. M’s are not so colorful as other birds but they always seem to be dressed up for any occasion, looking rather sharp.

All of the brief encounters with Mr. M over the past week have caused me to reflect on this pleasure at observing him in various ways and at various times. I have always favored the species, but I think that I could now say that Mr. M at least ranks if not holds the highest regards in my mind among birds. His Creator is certainly of the most intelligent, beauty-loving, design worthy sort, unmatched by any other.

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Zombies

Posted in Consequences, Forgiveness, General, Gospel, Salvation, Work of Jesus, tagged , , , , , on October 1, 2022| Leave a Comment »

The preacher said, “It is inexplicable to me why there is an interest in zombies.” He explained that zombies are animated corpses in certain pagan worship rituals, particularly in Africa. In modern culture they are walking dead corpses that mindlessly go around eating people.

So, what was a preacher doing talking about zombies, and is it really inexplicable? Genesis 2:17 says, “From the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” And “since by a man came death,” and “in Adam all die” (I Corinthians 15:21,22), then all of unregenerate mankind are walking dead, zombies, physically alive and deteriorating toward death and spiritually dead. (1)

Our physical vitality is the reason we don’t immediately understand our spiritual death, but I believe that there is another reason that most of the society doesn’t believe it. Death is defined in our culture as annihilation. Afterall, if we are no more than a set of chemical reactions slated to one day end, then this life is all that there is and death ends existence. I think that the strongest evidence that this is the prevailing idea about death is found in what happens after a mass shooter has done his worst. Almost always one does or attempts to take his/her (2) own life. Why do they do that? I believe that they think that they are getting away with it, since there is no afterlife and no consequences for their murders.

But as the preacher said and I heartily affirm, the Scripture teaches that death is a separation. By this definition there are three types of death: 1) physical (2 Corinthians 5:1-10), 2) spiritual (Isaiah 59:2), and 3) eternal (Matthew 7:21-23, Revelation 20:14-15). God has made us to be eternal being, not existing from eternity past, but continuing on into eternity future, some to eternal life (John 3:16) and others to eternal death (Romans 6:23, Revelation 20:14). Therefore, the spiritual zombies of this world are triply dead, already dead, deteriorating toward death, and eventually permanently dead. I further believe that this biblical definition of death helps us to understand the concept of hell. Whatever hell is, it need be no more than separation from God and His good gifts of common grace. Those who hate God, all who are lost, long to be far from Him. He will oblige them with separation from Him and all that he provides. There will be no hanging out with your buddies in hell. There will be a mutual separation, death, of all beings from one another because of hatred and fear and the absence of God and His grace.

And the fascination with zombies does not seem inexplicable to me. Those who are called to eternal life love and seek life. Those who are destined for eternal death, love and pursue death. From my experience of talking with, listening to, and observing students, death is fascinating to those not seeking after eternal life. I suspect that somehow, they feel an association with zombies because they innately know that it is an analogy for their life. They lack purpose, wonder if life and thought is real or illusory, and believe death is a natural part of life rather than an intrusion foisted upon life through the agency of sin.

If you have held on this long, you may think this a needlessly morbid diatribe upon humanity. However, it is needful to jolt some into hearing the solution and encouragement. Whereas “the wages of sin is death”, encouragingly, “the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23), for “there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name [Jesus] under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4;12) Sinner, take heed to it, turn away from sin in both your love of it and pursuit of it (repent), and believe in the Lord Jesus as your Rescuer from zombie death in all of its forms. Do not say that you must see to believe. Dead people cannot see or believe. Call out to God to bring you to life, no longer separated from Him, so that believing you may see. You will be eternally grateful and alive.

  1. “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12) We are sinners by nature and by practice.
  2. Why almost none of the mass shooters are females is a discussion for another day about the brokenness of males in our society and how it manifests as opposed to the brokenness of females and how it manifests in equally destructive ways not so viscerally apparent.

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Overflows from the Heart

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