This big beautiful Grey Heron was hiding in the weeds. I barely saw him. I had to kind of sneak up closer and closer to get a good picture.
I’m sure he saw me.
These animal are so skittish.
I knew I had to be content with a picture like this–of him hiding in the weeds. Suddenly he flew off.
Why dost Thou stand afar off, O Lord?
Why dost Thou hide Thyself in times of trouble?
Psalm 10:1
Moses, like Abraham, was a great intercessor. He was the one whom the Lord spoke to face to face just as a man speaks to his friend.
Now when Moses was upon Mount Sinai receiving Gods laws, the people down below concluded that he had died since he had been gone so long. For this reason, they persuaded Aaron to make a golden calf; and they worshiped it, and sacrificed to it; and they corrupted themselves with alcohol and immoral activity. Here is the Scripture reference in Exodus 32:7-14:
Then the Lord spoke to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. 8 They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them. They have made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshiped it, and have sacrificed to it, and said, ‘This is your god…
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Lately I have been wondering what is going on in some people’s minds—because of the things they do to themselves or the way they act (improperly). I think we may have a clue as to what brings on this kind of a mind by where it is talked about. Paul uses this word in Romans 1:28 and again in 2 Timothy 3:8. In both places he is addressing sin, out of control sin. And in Romans he addresses, in particular, homosexuality.
The Greek word, which is sometimes translated “depraved,” means “not passing the test.” It describes a mind that is useless or worthless and something that is discarded, like worthless metal. According to Wycliffe, it refers to a mind that is unapproved by God. It is a mind that will produce only that which is improper (things that are listed in Romans 1:29-31).
In the Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, it is suggested that when men thought fit to cast out the knowledge of God in their mind, God gave them over to an outcast or worthless mind. John MacArthur suggests, similarly, that when men abandon God, He will abandon them.
I think that this situation will occur mostly in people who have corrupted themselves with sexual sin, because it is sexual sin that destroys a person at the deepest level like no other sin. It takes control of the whole person. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6:18, this sin goes against our own body. Satan loves to attack people and nations with sexual sin, and homosexual sin, because it will destroy from within.
As far as God giving up on people or giving them over to a reprobate mind, it may seem cruel and unloving to God; however, we have to remember that God will not force anyone to obey Him. He gives us all free will. He has warned us of sin and its corrupting nature. And He wants us to come to Him and trust Him; but He will not force us.
Again, a warning has come to us of the corrupting nature of sin, and especially sexual sin. And though God uses the word reprobate only in the context of out-of-control sin (like in Romans one), I think in the end all those who do not choose salvation by the Savior, will they not all be reprobates? For God will indeed say to them “I never knew you.” And He will say to them, “You rejected Me so I have rejected you.”
The Psalmist writes,
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;
Do not fret, it leads only to evildoing.
9 For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place, and he will not be there.
11 But the humble will inherit the land,
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.
12 The wicked plots against the righteous,
And gnashes at him with his teeth.
13 The Lord laughs at him;
For He sees his day is coming.
(Psalm 37:8-13, NASB)
Oh, I long for the day to see this; to see that the wicked man has no place on this earth—the Lord will bring judgment upon him. And we who believe will live in abundant prosperity and in the love of the Lord.
“And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends, and the Lord increased all that Job had twofold” (Job 42:10). Spurgeon comments, “Intercessory prayer was the sign of Job’s returning greatness…When Job’s soul begun to expand itself in holy and loving prayer for his erring brethren, the heart of God showed itself to him by returning his prosperity and cheering his soul within.” What a marvelous example this is of how God rewards those who please Him by extending themselves in faith to pray for others (Heb. 11:6). If anyone had a good excuse not to intercede for others, it was Job. But in the end, God got a hold of his heart. He melted down his pride so that he repented in dust and ashes (Job 42:6). When we do the same—when we look away from ourselves, from our burdens and sorrows—then God will…
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I can think of a number of interesting things to write about. But there is mainly just one thing on my mind: that evil is infiltrating our country, and the world, and the fact that nothing is being done about it. There are a few voices that are standing up for the truth (which I hear on Newsmax, and conservative radio, and of course from my church). But the overwhelming message is a false message that comes from the media and the Democratic party (the white house).
That false message, that worldly voice, is a voice that suppresses the truth about God and the way He made us. It is a voice that rebels against God and listens only to the voice of lust and of fulfilling our degrading passions. And so, it seems that wherever I go these days I witness the celebration of transgenderism and queers. And then I hear our own President support this evil!
And lately I see rainbow banners everywhere celebrating Pride Month. And I am reminded that this must have been how it was just before the flood when only Noah was found righteous. Yes, I think we are almost there; it is almost time to be rescued on the Ark before the world again is destroyed, this time by fire and wind and hail and earthquakes.
But praise God! We (all believers) will be rescued out of it—just as Noah was.
I feel so sad to hear how badly our former President is being treated. It is so unfair to treat him like a criminal when others who came before him did far worse things and got by with it. The things they are charging him with now are only to keep him from running for office again. And, as we know, the Biden family is getting away with murder. They are so corrupt! The Clintons, Obama, and now the Biden’s are so very corrupt. And they all have been selling out our country to China and Russia. Yes, I’m sure they know all our classified secrets; Biden has told them. And how much did they get? Millions, even billions! And we do nothing! They get away with it. I heard someone say today that we have turned into Venezuela. Yes, it was Guiliani that said it. He should know. Since Biden has been in office he has turned this country into Venezuela.
Now why is Biden and his team of mobsters so intent on convicting and locking Donald Trump up? That question is easy. It is because if he returns to office he will start revealing the truth about them. And, as the bible says, “Everyone who does evil hates the Light.” And he “will not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed” (Jn. 3:19-20).
I sure do not think that Donald Trump is like Christ; but I think he certainly can and will be used for God’s good purpose and for bringing His judgment to this Nation. And I think people are fearing that he can and will do it—expose their sins. I would so like to see judgment fall on the Biden’s. They are a crime family if I have ever seen one. God’s judgment needs to come to them. It is the best thing that could happen to them and to this country—to see justice done.
I was going to write a little on my own situation, but it seems that this topic has trumped everything. These are such evil days—as in the days of Noah. Is there no turning back? How can it get any worse? Yet it seems to be getting worse and worse.
AI is more in the news now. It will and already is being used for evil purposes. It will help students cheat on their assignments. It will be used for every immoral deed. I’m sure it will be used in the porn industry, and to bring more and more immorality to the world. AI will be used by every criminal, and of course it will be used in war. If you think that AI will be used for good and for peace, I kind of doubt it. Since humans are sinful and humans program AI, how can AI ever produce anything good? In fact, it will be AI that will give life and a voice to the image of the beast, and all people will be force to worship him or they will die (Rev. 13:15).
This is one of my news post, which I have been putting in one of my blog pages entitled, U.S. and World News. Please check it out. This one below is quite shocking, but I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised, since the world is not from the Father but is of the devil. All that is in the world is always apposed to the things of God, and likewise we are naturally opposed to the world (that is the evil things in the world)–read 1 John 2:15-17.
By Eric Utter, May 19, 2023
Facebook flagged with a warning — and then deleted — a post that simply read, “Jesus died so you could live” due to a “hate speech” violation, or so alleges Billy Hallowell, a former writer for Glenn Beck’s TheBlaze.
FaceBook considers “Jesus died so you could live” hate speech? It is just the opposite. It is, literally, the ultimate in love speech. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Hate speech? Goes against FaceBook’s community code? That tells you everything you need to know about Meta, Zuckerberg…and the “values” and agenda of the Left.
This is simply part of a broader war on Christianity, one now being fought in the West. Remarkably, even allegedly Christian institutions are aiding and abetting progressives in their attacks on Christianity. As just one of countless examples, a professor at Fordham, a purportedly Catholic university, believes that Christianity, going back to St. Paul the Apostle, is to blame for racism and antisemitism…to this day. Professor Magda Teter’s new book, titled “Christian Supremacy,” was recently published. A description of the book says it offers “a profound reckoning with history that traces the roots of the modern rejection of Jewish and Black equality to an enduring Christian heritage of exclusion, intolerance, and persecution.”
This beautiful full tree by this full creek gives us a picture of the blessings of God upon all who trust in Him. We can be blessed with all His goodness when we trust in Him. And we will fear nothing but will continue to enjoy the blessings of the Lord as long as we are nourished by His life.
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord
And whose trust is the Lord.
8 “For he will be like a tree planted by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
Nor cease to yield fruit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8
It is certainly clear from scripture that we have a great job ahead of us—to pray for all men. But why must we do it? And if we must do it, how do we get motivated to do it?
Why do we have a responsibility to intercede for people? The answer is that God has made us responsible by making us His priests. As priests He has commissioned us and called us to intercede for all men.
With this calling He has given us a desire deep inside us to intercede. And so, even though we may at times regret the hard work of intercession, deep inside our soul we secretly love it. Yes, we love to be involved with Christ in His work. For as His interceding priests we have the glorious privilege of ruling with Him and extending His rule. Hence, in no other way can we…
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1. That God would give you wisdom to see clearly and really understand who Christ is and all that He has done for you (Eph. 1:17).
2. That your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can see something of the future He has called you to share (Eph. 1:18).
3. That you will realize that God has been made rich because we who are Christ’s have been given to Him (Eph. 1:18).
4. That you will begin to understand how incredibly great His power is to help those who believe Him (Eph. 1:19).
5. That out of His glorious unlimited resources He will give you the mighty inner strength of His Holy Spirit so that Christ may be more and more at home in your heart as you trust in Him (Eph. 3:16,17).
6. That your roots will go down deep into…
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Stephen Nielsen 