Christian Photographers Community

Check out our Member Testimonies! [/size]


Link of the day...[/font]

• Back to the Bible  Charles Hadden Spurgeon's Morning and Evening devotionals.

• Creation Moment Listen to the Creation Moment every day for a new creation moment!  We can learn a lot from these!  Terrific if you are home schooling.

Verse for Today...[/font]

"For it is written:
       "As I live, says the LORD,
       Every knee shall bow to Me,
       And every tongue shall confess to God."[/color]
~Romans 14:11 NKJV~[/list]


Quote of the Day...[/font]

 "Prayer can do anything that God can do."
~E. M. Bounds~[/list]


Some News We Should Know About...

• Marriage based on two genders, Ottawa argues
  The institution of marriage is a universal concept based on the union of man and woman and cannot be extended to gay and lesbian couples, a government lawyer argued today as seven same-sex couples sought the right to legally wed.      (I'm not sure how long this argument by the legal dept. in Ottawa will last here in Canada!)

• Photo Moment: Blackbird Sees Its Own Breath in Cold Weather [/b]  

From our forums...

• Christian Book Exchange Get books or donate them!  Wonderful!
  
  
• In The Kitchen We can never have too many recipes!  Post your favorites here!
  

---

Morning Devotional...


David was greatly distressed...but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.                     1 Samuel 30:6


Many of God's dear people have been greatly distressed. David, and you and I as well, have known such days.

How wonderful, as we take the initiative to encourage ourselves in the Lord, then the Lord will encourage us.

What a truth! What a promise and what a God!

May we encourage ourselves in the Lord today, as we read His Word, speak to Him in prayer, and sing praises to Him.

                                                                  ~Arnot P. McIntee~

Hi, it is still Wednesday night here on the plains.  I just can't seem to get here before closing time!  

We have been away to Amarillo for two days.  Came home tired.  Hubby was not feeling well, so he stayed home while I went to church.  Pastor Doug is teaching the book of Acts, and it is great.  

I tried two different times recently to post here, and failed.  Somehow my message disappeared before I could get it posted, and was so late I just went on to bed.  One time I hit preview, and then "back" and it was gone.  The other time I guess my 60 minutes had expired and I didn't know it, and it wouldn't go.  What luck!  

Hope all of you are doing well.  
Have a great day, and take care.  
Love, Janice

Hi Janice!

Yes, you've been missed.  I'm sorry you had trouble posting.  Glad you finally got to post in here.

I love the book of Acts!  Enjoy your Bible Studies!

Drat,  I just lost my post again

I enjoyed the scripture reading this morning.  When it seems that there is nothing to encourage us, we can encourage ourselves in the Lord.

I enjoyed the French conversations last night.  Perhaps we ought to open a French conversational thread I'd enjoy that.

I trust that everyone will have a great day today.

God bless and see y'all later.

Anthony.

Meika,  with regards to your thoughts about loving our enemies.  I would say that if people commit evil against us, the Lord (who judges matters perfectly) will bring judgement upon them.  That is, unless they repent of the evil that they have commited.  But it is best to leave such judgments for God to make.  It is not good for us to decide who is and who is not evil, and we should never seek to avenge ourselves or bear grudges against people, because it is only God who can make judgments regarding what is inside of a man or woman.  All that we can do is to seek to  be pure ourselves and keep in a loving spirit.  If we decide to be angry with someone, we could end up being angry with the wrong ones (because we cannot see inside a person's heart and decide which ones are evil and which ones are good).

That is my understanding of some of those scriptures that you quoted.

Anthony.

This make me think of the sad story when God ask Abraham to kill his only son. I often think of this story. I know today Mr Abraham would be judged by all those who know him as a very evil man for killing his child. It would not be believed by anyone today that it was Gods wish. He would go to a jail for doing what is "right" only in the eyes of God. And he would go to his grave a very lonley sad man.
I do understand this is why we are not to judge others. But so often the words of the bible talk about those who are evil. are they evil only for what they do?
Mr Lott was sent into the city to find only one good man. The city was destroyed because he could not find even 1 good man. Did he not have to judge every man in this city? How did he know what was in the hearts of these evil people?

Good morning everyone.  I'm not going to post any particular replies, but I like seeing the threads.  Just wanted to say I'm still around .  I got my garden planted last night! .  Anyway, I have to get to work.  Jen.

Hello Jen.  It is good to see you posting.  I had wondered if you were ok.  You will have to take a photograph of your garden and let us all take a look.  That would be cooool.

God bless.

Anthony.

Good Morning all,

We had a wonderful Spirituality session at church last night - it is a tight group of about a dozen regulars.  We have been discussing testimonies written by some church members.  

I certainly hope that no one misunderstood my previous post on Franklin Graham - I never meant to endorse anything on being politically correct in order to be invited back to Littleton, Colorado.  

I am thinking of Sonja as this is the day of her son's appointment with doctors.  

Peace,

Carol  

Good morning everyone.  Thanks for the devotional Pat. When we are discouraged we can remember the blessings we have in Christ and find strength regardless of our problems.  How does the line in the song go?  "When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,  Count your many blessings, see what God hath done."

1 Sam 30:6  David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.  (NIV)

Meika, you make very good thoughts about Abraham and Lot.  Here are some things which may help you.  

If you go back and read the story again you will see that neither Lot nor Abraham had to decide about how many righteous men were in Sodom.  It was God who did that.  God did not see even 10 righteous men in the city and so he destroyed it.  Lot was at that time a righteous man and he did escape the destruction.

In the case of Abraham he did not actually kill his son Isaac.  He was willing to do it but God stopped him before he did it.  Abraham's faith was so great he believed that if he sacrificed his son God could raise him back from the dead.

Gen 22:11-13  But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied.  "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."  Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.  (NIV)

Heb 11:17-19  By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son,  even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned."  Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death. (NIV)

Meika, you ask such thoughtful questions.  Thank you for doing this.  God bless you.

--- Papa John      

Meika ~ I don't know if my Daily Encounter this morning will help or not, but at the end it tells us we are not to judge people, but we are to judge what
others do, say, and teach. I will post the complete writings. As usual I find it very interesting!

[size=3 ONE WAY TO GOD: FACT OR FICTION?

"Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6,
NIV).

A Daily Encounter reader writes: "About your 'I Hate
Religion' article. It seems pretty judgmental to me. Are
you saying that the ONLY right way to worship the one true
God is Christianity? If you are, I have a little quote for
YOU, 'Judge not lest ye be judged.'"

Hello Judy (name changed), you ask if I am saying that the
only way to God is Christianity. Actually, I'm quoting
Jesus and God's Word. Jesus said without apology, "I am the
way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father
except through me." And again, "Nor is there salvation in
any other, for there is no other name under heaven given
among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12, NKJV).

In actuality, had there been any other way to God, why
would Jesus, the Son of God, have come to earth to die on
the cross for our sins? Furthermore, I would much rather
listen to what God has said than listen to what man-made
religions say. Also, when we decide what is/are the way/s
to God, we put ourselves above God and his Word. This is a
very dangerous path to follow.

As Jesus also said, "Enter through the narrow gate. For
wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to
destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the
gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few
find it" (Matthew 7:13-14, NIV).

Yes, it is true that Jesus said, "Judge not, that ye be not
judged" (Matthew 7:1). At the same time God's Word also
says, "But he that is spiritual judges all things" (1
Corinthians 2:15). In other words, while we are not to be
judgmental towards people, we are to be wise and judge what
others do, say, and teach.

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please give me a love for your
Word so that I will always know the truth of what you say,
and so that I am not deceived by what others say--no matter
how comfortable their words may be. Help me to always
choose the way of your Truth, no matter how uncomfortable
and unpopular that may be. Thank you for hearing and
answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

<)))><<[/size]

When copying, please include the following: From
   Daily Encounter (c) Dick Innes 2003. Subscribe
   from: http://www.actsweb.org/subscribe.htm

Good Morning. Thank you Pat, PapaJohn and Jerry for the devotionals this morning. All of them give us much to think about and to alway look to God for the answers to everything.

It's back to work today at the library. I have been spening entirely too much time on the computer and need to do less lurking while at home, there is so much to do to get ready for the big move in about 2 months.
I will return later.

Marilyn

Good Morning Everyone...

I'm just in from having my hair done!  So I'm "bootiful" as my grandchildren used to say!!!

I'm rushing around now getting ready for my little trip into Toronto for Janice's graduation tonight from Seminary.  Oh, Larry, that reminds me.  I never answered your question!  No, Janice isn't planning on going into the ministry.  In our church, we don't have women pastors but she's maybe planning on doing some teaching in a Christian school or maybe she'll go on to the next level and get the next diploma.  Who knows!?  I do know that Jack would be so pleased with her.  I think that she got 87% in her Greek!!!

Mieka, thanks for asking these questions.  Please don't stop!  It's so nice to read the many answers that you get from the ones in here and we're all learning as a result.  So thanks go to YOU!!

I hope you all enjoyed that hymn today.  I have it playing at the moment and I love the melody.

Now, I must run and do a few things before getting ready to leave.  Phil is coming here to shower and clean up and then we'll go to Toronto in my car instead of his big old work truck!

It is very important to be able to encourage ourselves in the Lord.  This morning's devotional brought to mind a time when Darrel and I were traveling.  We were in an airport restaurant/bar in some Central American airport, and there were many people there who were drinking, swearing, and telling ribald jokes.  It grieved my spirit so much, and I prayed about it, and the Lord said "You do not have to listen to what is going on around you.  Don't you have My Word?"  And I dug out my little travel Bible and began to read, and encourage myself in the Lord.  In just a few minutes' time, I felt like singing and praising the God of heaven and earth, and the stuff around me just faded away.

You're probably wondering why I didn't just go somewhere away from there.......because we were with a group, and I didn't want to get lost from them.  But God can change the circumstances around us!  We just have to remember to call on Him and ask in faith!  PHHN!!

Meika, your questions are so thoughtful, and cause us to dig into the Word.  What a blessing you are, little one!  I love you!

The wind is blowing again today, and this time from the North, so the tumbleweeds are all going the other direction today.  I surely hope they bypass us!!!

Did you all click on today's "Photo Moment" up in the New Every Morning?

Meika - it is evident that you do much thinking and that you care a great deal about the things you read.  That is very good.  Keep reading God's Word - it will do you much good.

I do think that Papa John's answers to the things you wrote were very good answers.  Please read those two parts of the Bible (regarding Abraham's potential sacrifice of his son and about the cities of Sodom and Gemorah) again - very slowly and carefully.  Indeed Abraham never did actually sacrifice his son.  But he had to be willing to part with him if it were God's will.  But please notice Abraham's answer to Isaak before going up to the mountain.  When he asked him what they would use to sacrifice he told them that God would provide.  Evidently he believed in his heart that God would not finally require him to sacrifice his son.  God did provide the ram caught in the thicket.  And, as Papa John says, it was God Who looked over the people of the cities and decided that there were none righteous.  It was not Lot.  God bless you as you continue to read!

Good Morning Pat

Wow  you have a busy few hrs. ahead of you....i  pray that you have a safe trip and a wonderful with your family today.....give your Daughter my congrats will you?

good morning all the rest sorry I do not have the time to write this morning it has been a very busy time all morning....but I will get back later on through the day Lord willing.....God bless you all today...
Paulette...

What a great devotional!  And Mieka...you are sure bringing out great thoughts and questions!  I can hear the pages of our Bibles turning.  I truly believe you have been given godly answers to your thoughts and questions.  Keep it up!  When you learn, we all learn.  

I received this in an email today.....

---

This is something to really remember! After September 11, I happened to call a man on business whom I didn't know and haven't, nor will probably ever, talk to again. But on this particular day, he felt like talking. He was the head of security for a company that had invited the remaining members of another company who had been decimated by the attack on the Twin Towers to share their office space.

With his voice full of awe, he told me stories of why these people were alive and their counterparts were dead. In the end, all the stories were just about the little things that happen to us.

You might know, the head of the company got in late that day because his son started kindergarten.

Another fellow was alive because it was his turn to bring donuts.

There were other stories that I hope and pray will someday be gathered and put in a book.

The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work, but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid. That is why he is alive.

Now when I am stuck in traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone.... all the little things that annoy me.... I think to myself.....This is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment.

May God continue to bless you with all those "annoying" things.

Never drive faster than your angel can fly!
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

---

?º°`°º?ø,¸¸,ø?º°`°º?ø?º°`°º?ø,¸¸,ø?º°`°º?ø?º°`°º?ø,¸¸,ø?º°`°º?ø?º°`
"Use your hindsight to improve your forsight."

Marilyn ~ I forgot to mention, I love your little animations...

By the way, Pat - that was a fantastic photo they had of the bird seeing its breath!

Good Morning:
  Todays devotional is excellent, as yesterday was a day of discouragement.   My Aunt has been quite ill, she refuses to see a Dr, go to the hospital and infact does not even have a Dr.  but it does seen that today she is some better so that is good.

The postings have been sunshine to my soul.

Ruth

Thank you Etta Sue. I have them saved to a place where I can still post them here..  I am almost ready for work face on, hair curled and only need to dress. Got lots of time before I leave.
It is supposed to be very windyhere today also, 20-30 mph. It's 59 f. now and going up to 75 F.
We could use more rain as the water table is down from the drought the last 2 years. However the water in the wells where I live is so alkaline that it is awful even for showers. Everyone on the north side of the highway has to have the water hauled in by truck. for miles.

ttyl  Marilyn

Mr Anthony, I thank you for your words about loving our enemies. I think the evil is then what is done, and not those who do it, yes?

Mr John, (Captain John   ), I did know that Abraham did not kill his son, It was my wonder what would happen today if he did it. I think everyone would wrongly judge him for it, if he is to kill his son.

I know that God saw the people of the cities of Sodom and Gemorah as evil. I thought he ask of Lott to go into the city. If he could find (I thought it is 1 good man but perhaps 10) only then God would save the city. I thought this is strange because he ask Mr Lott to judge them. To see if he can find anyone worthy of God. I know God knows all who are good and evil, but I thought this was done for Mr Lott to undarstand why the city had to go. (I like this story, I will read it again).

Mr Sowers, this is a great help to me, I thank you.

Yes, it is true that Jesus said, "Judge not, that ye be not
judged" (Matthew 7:1). At the same time God's Word also
says, "But he that is spiritual judges all things" (1
Corinthians 2:15). In other words, while we are not to be
judgmental towards people, we are to be wise and judge what
others do, say, and teach.

Mr Moak, your answers are always so wonderful and complete and easy for me to undarstand. I hope you never see my questions as a challenge to Gods words. It is only my wish to learn them as they were written.

Ms Janet , when you say to me: What a blessing you are, little one!
These are the words of my dear friend Mr Choy. I had to cry when I read this. The sadness I find is only that which was my delight.

I love all of you here, these answers are far more than I could hope for.

I believe Meika has been sent to all of the rest of us as a blessing from God to make us all think and to study his word a little more, so I pray you will keep asking questions of us Meika! You are a prize to all of us!

Jerry

Mieka ~ I am sorry I have been spelling your name wrong!

  Now these words make me cry Mr Sowers. I had a fear if my questions would only make others angry at me here. I am so glad I can ask them. and so thankful for the answers that help me to know it as it is written.

Quote from: Jerry L. Sowers on April 24, 2003, 01:05:36 PM
Mieka ~ I am sorry I have been spelling your name wrong!

, it is quite ok Mr Sowers , I did not even see it.

Mieka, we are all enjoying your questions.  It is good to look more deeply into the scriptures and you are helping us as a group to do just that.  Keep them coming.

Anthony.

Mieka: I have to agree with the words of Jerry and Anthony, you are truly a blessing to all of us here. So your name means a little fish. Jerry would you send me a photo of Bubba and some comentary. I know he isn't your cat. but he is such a BUBBA ha ha.
Pat: may I have photos of Geordie and Lauren for Bebe's pet page.

Marilyn