most of this week was rain and threat of rain. as a result i was only able to work for pay yesterday. so i'm about at the middle of march as far as meeting my 20 hr a week goal for pay-work.
in watchman nee's 'sit,walk,stand' he says that nothing has done greater damage to our testimony than trying to be right and demanding right of others. this struck a responsive chord. God gives rain on the just and the unjust. the just are really not one whit more just than the unjust. they are only declared to be just. we're all just as wicked as the next guy...if not more! whoever keeps the whole law and yet offends in one point is guilty of all. there is no one that is good, not even one. i am so busy casting judgment on others and focusing on the few moth-eaten, 'good works' i do.why not just be like God? rom. 2.4 says that the kindness of God leads to repentance. kindness...withholding what we deserve again and again with the dawning and outworking of each new day...a readiness to help us in innumerable ways by serving us and making Himself useful, doing good to us.
when i was little i would play imaginary baseball games in the backyard. often a ball would go over into mr. morrow's yard. if no one was home i would jump the fence and retrieve it. most times mr. morrow would come out and get my ball and give me a warning against hitting balls in his yard and keep the ball much to my anger. after all, i really tried not to hit them over. couldn't he give me a break since they did not hurt his property? i live next to a little boy named kyle who deliberately throws his balls over in my yard and wants me to throw them back. i, being much better than mr. morrow, said he could walk around and get his ball...God has been speaking to me about this. after reading nee's encouragement not to 'stand on my rights'...last night i swallowed hard and went out and threw kyle's ball back.
have a good week. love, dad
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
5.26.09 GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD
this article is from a group, C.A.R.E., of which i must be a member as long as i get grass-fed milk/butter from the farmer i go to in bird-in-hand, pa. my prayer is that everyone who reads this would see the clear-and-present-health-danger involved in eating anything that comes through the normal food supply chain and begin taking steps to get out of it by moving toward such goals as 1) growing ALL your own food - honey,vegetables, fruit, nut-bearing trees, animals, you-name-it, etc., 2) establishing a network of relationships with like-minded people you can trust and with whom you can barter food, 3) learning the art and wisdom of foraging and 4) not cheating when you are 'out'. you may feel fine but your health is, in our current circumstances, likely a ticking time bomb, 5) if you can't or won't do the above but have called upon the Name of the Lord Jesus you are likely to see Him sooner than later. (i have no desire to be here forever but as long as i'm here i want to love the Lord my God with all strength possible) if the estimate of this article is correct AT LEAST 70% EVERYTHING YOU ARE currently EATING IS GMO-CONTAMINATED...and it may be safe to say that God intended us to eat things He created rather than plants created by Monsanto.
Where is this GMO Leading Us? Andrew K. Shetler, Jr. Reprinted with the author’s permission.
Do we think using the worldly technology of genetically modified seeds doesn’t really matter? Are the scientists of today, in their worldly wisdom which is an enmity to God, trying to do things which really belong to God? Are we so lured by the convenience of not having to cultivate or weed that corn or soybean field that we don’t really give it much thought? What about God’s words, after mankind’s fall, when He said, “Thorns and thistles shall it bring unto thee,” and “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat thy bread, till thou return unto the ground.” Do we stop to think what we are funding when we pay the price for that bag of RoundUp Ready corn or soybean seed? How much more does it cost because of “tech fees”? Whether we care to admit or nor not, we are choosing what we support with the money we spend. And God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth.” And it was so. God’s plan was that the seeds these plants produced would be the basis for the next crop. But by becoming enticed by these genetically engineered traits, man’s inventions in the very substance of life which God had created, farmers have become ensnared and dependent by supporting huge companies that want to monopolize the world’s food supply.
Another question we should ask is: Are GMO’s healthy and safe? Numerous tests and observations have shown that they are not! I read an article that said conservationists who are planting corn specifically for the deer will not plant GM corn. Wild deer will not graze GM corn
stalks unless close to starving. So, what about us intelligent humans? What kind of choices do we make? Genetically modified Bt cotton has taken over much of India’s cotton production,
despite evidence of toxic side effects that have killed a number of goats and sheep that grazed on the post-harvest hybrid.
In a case report commissioned by Greenpeace, it said that there were “statistically significant” effects in the blood and organs of laboratory rats fed GM corn. The report said rats suffered
liver and kidney toxicity and differences in weight gain between sexes. It also contains Monsanto’s own health and safety trial of the GM corn, which also showed significant differences between rats eating the GM corn and those eating other corn. Monsanto, of course, said
the differences pose no health or safety risk.
Consider that almost 70% of the products we buy at the grocery store contain genetically engineered food. Yet we don’t know the long-term impact on our health, the environment, etc. Corn and soy are the two main culprits sincenearly all processed food use ingredients such as corn syrup, corn starch, or soy lecithin. GM corn and soy first entered the human food supply in 1996. The introduction of genetically engineered crops has confronted farmers with a host of new challenges and problems, including the loss of export markets, and vigorous pursuit and prosecution by companies for purported patent infringement. Farmers are being sued and harassed for doing what they have always done; all-out war is being waged on how farmers use their seed and conduct their farming.
Leading the assault is the multi-billion dollar Monsanto Company, headquartered in the St. Louis suburb of Creve Coeur. Monsanto is largely responsible fore the prevalence of genetically engineered organisms in our environment today. Their domination of biotechnology thus far has little to do with any economic or environmental benefits to the farmers. They provide 90% of the seed technology of the world’s genetically engineered crops. Already in 2005, they held 647 bio-tech plant patents, more than any biotech company.
They spend hundreds of millions of dollars and have scores of scientists working to develop new genetically engineered crops. The main factor in their success is their ability to control the adoption of their patented technology. They have three main tactics: buying or merging with most major seed companies; their multitude of patents; and the requirement that any farmer
purchasing their seed must first sign an agreement prohibiting the saving of seed, thereby forcing farmers to repurchase Monsanto’s seed every year. In less than a decade, Monsanto’s patented genetic traits have contaminated more than half of the conventional corn and soybean seed supply, and nearly all of the conventional canola seed supply in the United States. In 2008, GM sugar beet seed became available commercially.
Biological contamination of non-GM crops with pollen from GM crops has become a serious problem. Pollen drift is also causing contamination in organic crops. Because of their patents, when any non-engineered crop becomes contaminated with patented traits, that crop effectively becomes the property of Monsanto. Once the farmer signs Monsanto’s Technology Agreement, they are bound by Monsanto’s oversight. This agreement requires farmers to give up their time honored practice of saving seed, a crucial practice upon which the expansion of germplasm base in modern agriculture depends. Monsanto’s Technology Agreement also gives it substantial protections by holding farmers liable for its own uncontrollable technology.
Historically, life forms were excluded from patent laws based on the common human inventions. Then, in 1970, Congress enacted the Plant Variety Protection Act (PVPA), an alternative form of plant variety protection on sexually producing plants. But one of the two exemptions to this was that farmers were allowed to save seed for replanting. The first patent on life was awarded in1980 when the Supreme Court ruled that living organisms (in this case, bacterium) could be patented. This decision paved the way for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) to decide that sexually producing plants are patentable. They began accepting patent applications for such plants, despite the fact that Congress had never given the U.S. PTO authority to grant utility patents for sexually producing plants. Unlike the PVPA, the patent allows its holders to exclude others from using the patented variety for research and agricultural purposes.
Monsanto’s research lead to the development of two main types of GM crops; herbicide-tolerant and insect-resistant. Herbicide-tolerant crops are engineered to withstand applications of RoundUp, Monsanto’s most popular herbicide. Since the introduction of the herbicide-tolerant crops, nine years ago, herbicide use in the U.S. has increased by138 million pounds.
Insect-resistant varieties are engineered so that a toxin normally produced by a naturally occurring bacteria, Bacillus Thuringiensis (Bt), is instead produced by the plant. The Bt toxin kills butterflies, moths, and beetles upon ingestion. Bt is one of the most effective pesticides available for organic growers. Widespread plantings of Bt crops could lead to insect resistance, reducing the effectiveness of this natural insecticide.
Monsanto spares no expense in investigating and prosecuting farmers suspected of patent infringement, committing seventy–five employees and an annual $10 million to the effort. Innocent or not, many farmers are coerced into settling out of court, therefore much of the public is unaware of their ruthless tactics. Often one provision of out-of-court settlements is that farmers are not allowed to disclose settlement amounts or they face further sanctions.
They promote a toll-free phone number that allows farmers and businesses to place confidential calls to the company and report suspected “infringement”activities by neighbors and customers. “Farmers are being sued for having GMO’s on their property that they did not buy, do not want, will not use, and cannot sell,” said one farmer. One farmer, who never saw an agreement, settled for upwards of $100,000. He recounted that the company told him, “We own you, we own anybody that buys our RoundUp Ready products.” This farmer asserts that he was never told that he could not save his seed, only that he was not allowed to sell it to others. At least six of the ninety lawsuits brought by Monsanto, up until 2005, involved the forged signature of a farmer on a technology agreement, a practice common among seed dealers. Even though at least twenty-five of the farmers sued by Monsanto never signed an agreement (most of them have never seen one), the court does not bar themfrom suing them for patent infringement, only from suing to enforce the terms ofthe technology agreement. The largest recorded judgement made in favor of Monsanto, of dozens and dozens of cases, as a result of a farmer lawsuit is$3,052,800.
Much of the information for this article GMO’s comes from a report already published in 2005, Monsanto vs. U.S. Farmers (Center for Food Safety, 660 Penn Ave., SE #302, Washington, DC 2003), so many of the figures are outdated already. This report contains much information and details about the company’s prosecutions, many of which are almost unbelievable! Information was also taken from The Organic & Non-GMO Report (P.O. Box436, Fairfield, IA 52556).
Where is this GMO Leading Us? Andrew K. Shetler, Jr. Reprinted with the author’s permission.
Do we think using the worldly technology of genetically modified seeds doesn’t really matter? Are the scientists of today, in their worldly wisdom which is an enmity to God, trying to do things which really belong to God? Are we so lured by the convenience of not having to cultivate or weed that corn or soybean field that we don’t really give it much thought? What about God’s words, after mankind’s fall, when He said, “Thorns and thistles shall it bring unto thee,” and “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat thy bread, till thou return unto the ground.” Do we stop to think what we are funding when we pay the price for that bag of RoundUp Ready corn or soybean seed? How much more does it cost because of “tech fees”? Whether we care to admit or nor not, we are choosing what we support with the money we spend. And God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth.” And it was so. God’s plan was that the seeds these plants produced would be the basis for the next crop. But by becoming enticed by these genetically engineered traits, man’s inventions in the very substance of life which God had created, farmers have become ensnared and dependent by supporting huge companies that want to monopolize the world’s food supply.
Another question we should ask is: Are GMO’s healthy and safe? Numerous tests and observations have shown that they are not! I read an article that said conservationists who are planting corn specifically for the deer will not plant GM corn. Wild deer will not graze GM corn
stalks unless close to starving. So, what about us intelligent humans? What kind of choices do we make? Genetically modified Bt cotton has taken over much of India’s cotton production,
despite evidence of toxic side effects that have killed a number of goats and sheep that grazed on the post-harvest hybrid.
In a case report commissioned by Greenpeace, it said that there were “statistically significant” effects in the blood and organs of laboratory rats fed GM corn. The report said rats suffered
liver and kidney toxicity and differences in weight gain between sexes. It also contains Monsanto’s own health and safety trial of the GM corn, which also showed significant differences between rats eating the GM corn and those eating other corn. Monsanto, of course, said
the differences pose no health or safety risk.
Consider that almost 70% of the products we buy at the grocery store contain genetically engineered food. Yet we don’t know the long-term impact on our health, the environment, etc. Corn and soy are the two main culprits sincenearly all processed food use ingredients such as corn syrup, corn starch, or soy lecithin. GM corn and soy first entered the human food supply in 1996. The introduction of genetically engineered crops has confronted farmers with a host of new challenges and problems, including the loss of export markets, and vigorous pursuit and prosecution by companies for purported patent infringement. Farmers are being sued and harassed for doing what they have always done; all-out war is being waged on how farmers use their seed and conduct their farming.
Leading the assault is the multi-billion dollar Monsanto Company, headquartered in the St. Louis suburb of Creve Coeur. Monsanto is largely responsible fore the prevalence of genetically engineered organisms in our environment today. Their domination of biotechnology thus far has little to do with any economic or environmental benefits to the farmers. They provide 90% of the seed technology of the world’s genetically engineered crops. Already in 2005, they held 647 bio-tech plant patents, more than any biotech company.
They spend hundreds of millions of dollars and have scores of scientists working to develop new genetically engineered crops. The main factor in their success is their ability to control the adoption of their patented technology. They have three main tactics: buying or merging with most major seed companies; their multitude of patents; and the requirement that any farmer
purchasing their seed must first sign an agreement prohibiting the saving of seed, thereby forcing farmers to repurchase Monsanto’s seed every year. In less than a decade, Monsanto’s patented genetic traits have contaminated more than half of the conventional corn and soybean seed supply, and nearly all of the conventional canola seed supply in the United States. In 2008, GM sugar beet seed became available commercially.
Biological contamination of non-GM crops with pollen from GM crops has become a serious problem. Pollen drift is also causing contamination in organic crops. Because of their patents, when any non-engineered crop becomes contaminated with patented traits, that crop effectively becomes the property of Monsanto. Once the farmer signs Monsanto’s Technology Agreement, they are bound by Monsanto’s oversight. This agreement requires farmers to give up their time honored practice of saving seed, a crucial practice upon which the expansion of germplasm base in modern agriculture depends. Monsanto’s Technology Agreement also gives it substantial protections by holding farmers liable for its own uncontrollable technology.
Historically, life forms were excluded from patent laws based on the common human inventions. Then, in 1970, Congress enacted the Plant Variety Protection Act (PVPA), an alternative form of plant variety protection on sexually producing plants. But one of the two exemptions to this was that farmers were allowed to save seed for replanting. The first patent on life was awarded in1980 when the Supreme Court ruled that living organisms (in this case, bacterium) could be patented. This decision paved the way for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) to decide that sexually producing plants are patentable. They began accepting patent applications for such plants, despite the fact that Congress had never given the U.S. PTO authority to grant utility patents for sexually producing plants. Unlike the PVPA, the patent allows its holders to exclude others from using the patented variety for research and agricultural purposes.
Monsanto’s research lead to the development of two main types of GM crops; herbicide-tolerant and insect-resistant. Herbicide-tolerant crops are engineered to withstand applications of RoundUp, Monsanto’s most popular herbicide. Since the introduction of the herbicide-tolerant crops, nine years ago, herbicide use in the U.S. has increased by138 million pounds.
Insect-resistant varieties are engineered so that a toxin normally produced by a naturally occurring bacteria, Bacillus Thuringiensis (Bt), is instead produced by the plant. The Bt toxin kills butterflies, moths, and beetles upon ingestion. Bt is one of the most effective pesticides available for organic growers. Widespread plantings of Bt crops could lead to insect resistance, reducing the effectiveness of this natural insecticide.
Monsanto spares no expense in investigating and prosecuting farmers suspected of patent infringement, committing seventy–five employees and an annual $10 million to the effort. Innocent or not, many farmers are coerced into settling out of court, therefore much of the public is unaware of their ruthless tactics. Often one provision of out-of-court settlements is that farmers are not allowed to disclose settlement amounts or they face further sanctions.
They promote a toll-free phone number that allows farmers and businesses to place confidential calls to the company and report suspected “infringement”activities by neighbors and customers. “Farmers are being sued for having GMO’s on their property that they did not buy, do not want, will not use, and cannot sell,” said one farmer. One farmer, who never saw an agreement, settled for upwards of $100,000. He recounted that the company told him, “We own you, we own anybody that buys our RoundUp Ready products.” This farmer asserts that he was never told that he could not save his seed, only that he was not allowed to sell it to others. At least six of the ninety lawsuits brought by Monsanto, up until 2005, involved the forged signature of a farmer on a technology agreement, a practice common among seed dealers. Even though at least twenty-five of the farmers sued by Monsanto never signed an agreement (most of them have never seen one), the court does not bar themfrom suing them for patent infringement, only from suing to enforce the terms ofthe technology agreement. The largest recorded judgement made in favor of Monsanto, of dozens and dozens of cases, as a result of a farmer lawsuit is$3,052,800.
Much of the information for this article GMO’s comes from a report already published in 2005, Monsanto vs. U.S. Farmers (Center for Food Safety, 660 Penn Ave., SE #302, Washington, DC 2003), so many of the figures are outdated already. This report contains much information and details about the company’s prosecutions, many of which are almost unbelievable! Information was also taken from The Organic & Non-GMO Report (P.O. Box436, Fairfield, IA 52556).
Sunday, May 24, 2009
5.24.09 MAY YOU LIVE FOREVER!
this week i got thinking about joy (II cor. 6.10 - sorrowful yet always rejoicing; I thes. 1.6 - you..received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit). happiness depends on what happens, circumstances. joy does not. i followed thru webster's (such as 'rejoice, delight, pleasure, sufficient, adequate etc.) to see if i could get more insight. i believe it was 'adequate' or another that gave me a better handle to understand what is involved in joy when it said, 'to be ENOUGH'. so evidently joy and contentment are closely related. i'm scared to death of being ill-thot of, of losing others' approval, of losing the security that comes from having a place to live, enough to eat, clothes to put on, things of whatever nature that make my life easier, 'nice'. what would i ever do if everyone i knew hated me, i was starving, naked and had no safe place to go. i would say that my thot that an unseen God is ENOUGH has hardly been put to the test. i certainly don't, inwardly, LIVE this. there are people and things that are essential. to be stripped of all but God might be a test far too strong for my supposed faith. all i can say is, if i lived 'Jesus, You are enough, period', i would live a vastly different life than the one i do now.
along this line... i received an extreme devotional in which the words of rachel scott, one of the christian students killed at columbine high school, convicted me. she said in her journal something to the effect that she lost all her friends at school due to her open witness to Jesus. i keep being haunted by jeremiah, 'oh Lord, You have deceived me and i was deceived. You have overcome me and prevailed. i have become a laughingstock all day long. EVERYONE mocks me. for each time i speak, i cry aloud. i proclaim violence and destruction, because for me the word of the Lord has resulted in reproach and derision all day long. but if i say, "i will not remember Him or speak anymore in His name", then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire shut up in my bones and i am weary of holding it in and i cannot endure it. for i have heard the whispering of many, terror on every side! denounce him; yes, let us denouce him! ALL MY TRUSTED FRIENDS, watching for my fall, say, "perhaps he will be deceived, so that we may prevail against him and take our revenge on him". but the Lord is with me like a dread champion...' (20.7f) i am haunted by Jesus words, '..do not fear...therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, i will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. but whoever denies mMe before men, i will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. do not think that i came to bring peace on the earth. i did not come to bring peace, but a sword. for I came to set a man against his father..and a man's enemies will be the members of his household. he who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me...he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me..he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me..he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it'...may God have mercy and make Himself alone ENOUGH for me.
this in the local prolife paper: margaret sanger, founder of planned parenthood, said, 'we want fewer and better children...we cannot make the social life and world peace we are determined to make, with the ill-bred, ill-trained swarms of inferior citizens that you inflict on us'. due to the religion of birth control and our rampant immoral disregard for God's restriction of sex to married-for-life couples we have become a nation in chaos: 38% of newborns do not have married parents (highest out-of-wedlock pregnancy rate in the vanishing western world); 20% of us have sexually transmitted disease.
confronted by two candidates for souderton borough council who believe they have the right to spend my $ on more than the bare necessities i had to do two write-in's, one for jim donnelly (an unknowing neighbor) and one for me. someone this week asked why i didn't run for office. i said because no one would vote for me. my platform: ONE -make public all that is 'going on' on the 'inside' and actively seek to DISCUSS EVERYTHING WITH EVERYONE and make response and (if my chosen course of action is out of line with the people - PUT IT TO A REFERENDUM! - quickly step aside; TWO - VOTE AGAINST SPENDING ONE DOLLAR FOR ANYTHING individuals can do for themselves (in souderton two examples of needed items are the maintenance of roads and of the town sewer plant); THREE - GET RID OF every thing, as a function of GOVERNMENT, that is not necessary (let this be done, by referendum if necessary, by private individuals, etc.). FOUR - start the process of ENDOWment of necessities so that in time taxes become a thing of the past and no person can lose their property due to illness, poverty, etc. FIVE - structure the law so that the PEOPLE'S VOICE PREVAIL perpetually. obviously a utopian scheme! alas, it's the only one i could enthusiastically be a part of and support during my vaporous time here on earth.
reading an article about lydia mikhailovna vins, in an article mom left, i found the first PROPOSAL i ever read that deeply resonated as one (theoretically...i don't see it ever happening!) that i could enthusiastically make. when she was 20 peter, her future husband' said, 'if you are willing to die in the mud, the swamps and the forests of siberia, then marry me'. my kind of proposal!
this week the Lord surprised me. first, after putting silvered asphalt on shirley's barn roof and front and back flat roofs on our shared twin, she blew me away with a check for $500!! i tried to tell her, as i had told her before, that i didn't want anything but she insisted. in so doing she paid me, after deducting for the material i used, $7.50 an hour above my normal rate!!! thank You Lord for the unexpected blessing!!!!
second, i was given a referral where the guy wanted an estimate. it was a large old house in very poor shape that had wall paper throughout most of it that needed to be removed. it would have taken over 250 hours and therefore impossible to complete by the june 15 end date. my old mode would be to throw out everything that God is building in my life in order to work like a madman gathering nuts for the winter. God seems to be calling me to gather manna (no more than 8 hours per day) and trust Him, not myself, to meet my physical needs. amazingly i was able to let the 'pot of gold' which would have quickly caught me up to date without looking back. occasionally the devil plants the 'you're crazy...you'll regret this'. if so, then the God of the Bible is not who He says He is, so it doesn't matter anyway then...right?
third, actually worked about 17 hours for pay this week so that was cool. finish up briefly tomorrow morning and then can get back to focusing completely on spiritual infrastructure and the restoration of 54.
went to living fellowship church in franconia today to catch up with a friend, pete, i met at the wild at heart men's retreat. am going thru alot of spiritual warfare and am becoming more aware of how the wicked spirit has ...well basically THROTTLED my spirit and deceived me in various ways for as long past as i can remember. am steadily seeking to attack through ongoing prayer fortresses within me he has established to the thwarting of God's will. i'm asking God to release in me a deep anger at what he has and is doing to the end that i will, in the word's of uncle buddy robinson 'gum him til i die'. have been studying and meditating a good bit on ephesians 6.10-20. in the flesh, i am like a lonely, scared waif now that i am leaving my church family. Lord, help me trust You.
got my boarding pass to dearborn, michagan which i have to figure how to get printed. need to learn how to take public trains to the airport (we leave am, june 16, and get back about lunch on june 22. am trying to get a copy of the koran to read. i have a heart for no one. who ever heard of a person on mission who did not have a heart. am comforted that following God is in the DOING and not in the feeling, thinking, willing. may He somehow allow His precious words of eternal life to be poured out of me and prepared hearts to drink in the life-giving water. hope you have a good week. love, dad
along this line... i received an extreme devotional in which the words of rachel scott, one of the christian students killed at columbine high school, convicted me. she said in her journal something to the effect that she lost all her friends at school due to her open witness to Jesus. i keep being haunted by jeremiah, 'oh Lord, You have deceived me and i was deceived. You have overcome me and prevailed. i have become a laughingstock all day long. EVERYONE mocks me. for each time i speak, i cry aloud. i proclaim violence and destruction, because for me the word of the Lord has resulted in reproach and derision all day long. but if i say, "i will not remember Him or speak anymore in His name", then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire shut up in my bones and i am weary of holding it in and i cannot endure it. for i have heard the whispering of many, terror on every side! denounce him; yes, let us denouce him! ALL MY TRUSTED FRIENDS, watching for my fall, say, "perhaps he will be deceived, so that we may prevail against him and take our revenge on him". but the Lord is with me like a dread champion...' (20.7f) i am haunted by Jesus words, '..do not fear...therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, i will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. but whoever denies mMe before men, i will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. do not think that i came to bring peace on the earth. i did not come to bring peace, but a sword. for I came to set a man against his father..and a man's enemies will be the members of his household. he who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me...he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me..he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me..he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it'...may God have mercy and make Himself alone ENOUGH for me.
this in the local prolife paper: margaret sanger, founder of planned parenthood, said, 'we want fewer and better children...we cannot make the social life and world peace we are determined to make, with the ill-bred, ill-trained swarms of inferior citizens that you inflict on us'. due to the religion of birth control and our rampant immoral disregard for God's restriction of sex to married-for-life couples we have become a nation in chaos: 38% of newborns do not have married parents (highest out-of-wedlock pregnancy rate in the vanishing western world); 20% of us have sexually transmitted disease.
confronted by two candidates for souderton borough council who believe they have the right to spend my $ on more than the bare necessities i had to do two write-in's, one for jim donnelly (an unknowing neighbor) and one for me. someone this week asked why i didn't run for office. i said because no one would vote for me. my platform: ONE -make public all that is 'going on' on the 'inside' and actively seek to DISCUSS EVERYTHING WITH EVERYONE and make response and (if my chosen course of action is out of line with the people - PUT IT TO A REFERENDUM! - quickly step aside; TWO - VOTE AGAINST SPENDING ONE DOLLAR FOR ANYTHING individuals can do for themselves (in souderton two examples of needed items are the maintenance of roads and of the town sewer plant); THREE - GET RID OF every thing, as a function of GOVERNMENT, that is not necessary (let this be done, by referendum if necessary, by private individuals, etc.). FOUR - start the process of ENDOWment of necessities so that in time taxes become a thing of the past and no person can lose their property due to illness, poverty, etc. FIVE - structure the law so that the PEOPLE'S VOICE PREVAIL perpetually. obviously a utopian scheme! alas, it's the only one i could enthusiastically be a part of and support during my vaporous time here on earth.
reading an article about lydia mikhailovna vins, in an article mom left, i found the first PROPOSAL i ever read that deeply resonated as one (theoretically...i don't see it ever happening!) that i could enthusiastically make. when she was 20 peter, her future husband' said, 'if you are willing to die in the mud, the swamps and the forests of siberia, then marry me'. my kind of proposal!
this week the Lord surprised me. first, after putting silvered asphalt on shirley's barn roof and front and back flat roofs on our shared twin, she blew me away with a check for $500!! i tried to tell her, as i had told her before, that i didn't want anything but she insisted. in so doing she paid me, after deducting for the material i used, $7.50 an hour above my normal rate!!! thank You Lord for the unexpected blessing!!!!
second, i was given a referral where the guy wanted an estimate. it was a large old house in very poor shape that had wall paper throughout most of it that needed to be removed. it would have taken over 250 hours and therefore impossible to complete by the june 15 end date. my old mode would be to throw out everything that God is building in my life in order to work like a madman gathering nuts for the winter. God seems to be calling me to gather manna (no more than 8 hours per day) and trust Him, not myself, to meet my physical needs. amazingly i was able to let the 'pot of gold' which would have quickly caught me up to date without looking back. occasionally the devil plants the 'you're crazy...you'll regret this'. if so, then the God of the Bible is not who He says He is, so it doesn't matter anyway then...right?
third, actually worked about 17 hours for pay this week so that was cool. finish up briefly tomorrow morning and then can get back to focusing completely on spiritual infrastructure and the restoration of 54.
went to living fellowship church in franconia today to catch up with a friend, pete, i met at the wild at heart men's retreat. am going thru alot of spiritual warfare and am becoming more aware of how the wicked spirit has ...well basically THROTTLED my spirit and deceived me in various ways for as long past as i can remember. am steadily seeking to attack through ongoing prayer fortresses within me he has established to the thwarting of God's will. i'm asking God to release in me a deep anger at what he has and is doing to the end that i will, in the word's of uncle buddy robinson 'gum him til i die'. have been studying and meditating a good bit on ephesians 6.10-20. in the flesh, i am like a lonely, scared waif now that i am leaving my church family. Lord, help me trust You.
got my boarding pass to dearborn, michagan which i have to figure how to get printed. need to learn how to take public trains to the airport (we leave am, june 16, and get back about lunch on june 22. am trying to get a copy of the koran to read. i have a heart for no one. who ever heard of a person on mission who did not have a heart. am comforted that following God is in the DOING and not in the feeling, thinking, willing. may He somehow allow His precious words of eternal life to be poured out of me and prepared hearts to drink in the life-giving water. hope you have a good week. love, dad
Sunday, May 17, 2009
5.17.09 MAY YOU LIVE FOREVER!
well, been out of work for 8.5 weeks now so i'm back down at about 10 hr per week work for 2009 so far. it will be interesting to see how God provides. one thing He is trying to teach me is patience. i could have worked for about 3 weeks now but a combination of almost constant rain and/or threat of rain on the one hand and being right in the midst of trying desperately (because of the aforementioned weather conditions) to finish painting the barn roof and the flat roofs for shirley and i - which has taken the few remaining good painting days to complete - has made it 'impossible' to 'paint for pay'. Lord, how long? if we have decent weather i hope to complete all the home projects by silverizing the back flat roof and putting a final coat of stain on the back deck tomorrow am.
another reason i am fighting to finish home-projects-in-process is because it is beginning to look like i may be elsewhere painting, etc. for a while. recently while reading a newsletter from a guy whose vision/ministry is seeking to be a catalyst between american and arab christians i came across news that he is heading to dearborn, michigan in june. the attraction is called arab festival and in its 13th year is attracting more than 300,000 muslims from canada and the u.s. it is like a three day giant block party with hookah, middle eastern cuisine and music, etc. in reading about it, oddly enough i sensed a special connection, began praying about it and decided to cast a lot...Lord, should i go?...yes. so the next day with a sense of hastening i called denny and asked him when i needed to let him know i was going. he said, 'yesterday'...and laughed. he said he would send some more info and i promised to give him a commitment the next day. the next day he gave the # of the agent booking and i called and gave her the ticket price by credit card in time for her to book our flight. so, COOL! it's wierd because i sense no special 'call' to evangelize muslims nor any desire to fly but sense a definite 'call' to dearborn for whatever reason.
checking it out on the web yielded some interesting info about the event. there are a handful of churches/christian ministries which will be there. george saieg (i think i butchered his last name), a muslim who has believed Christ has been going to the festival for a few years now. from california, denny somehow made a connection with him and so we few who are coming from the east coast will be learning from and working with george. his site was interesting. he shared several occurances. one was of him meeting a man whom he had given a dvd of the Jesus film (?) or something like that the year before. the man said something to the effect that he had viewed it and believed everything and then asked what he should do next. another was of a man to whom he had given the dvd one day. the man came up to him the next day crying and saying, i need to be saved...so who knows. only God changes hearts. i nor anyone else can do anything...only just be available to be His hands and feet.
i was concerned about eating junk food. denny said george will be handling all the food, that it will be middle eastern and to some degree kosher. george will be training us how to share Christ with muslims. we will not have a tent or anything. evidently we will just be in the milling crowds talking with people about stuff and offering stuff for them to consider. i'm guardedly-extremely excited, if that makes any sense. the actual festival is friday-sunday, june 19-21...5-11pm, noon-llpm, noon-10 pm. we should leave for home monday morning. everything is foggy though and i may have a few (or many) of these details wrong.
the day i put the $ down for the airplane, God sent me a job painting an apartment. every time i step out in faith He provides! He is just so true to what He says. i don't know this for sure but sense that my trust in Him may be growing stronger. i hope so and i pray that He will bring me to the place where i seek FIRST His kingdom and righteousness giving NO WORRY to how He will provide needs.
recently read an article from the group of farmers from which i get grass-fed milk and butter (C.A.R.E.) that stated that 70% of the mainstream food supply in this country is wholly or partially tainted with food grown from genetically modified seed. this seed is almost exclusively owned by the giant monsanto corporation which holds 60 or so patents for genetically modified plants. it reported that monsanto is currently running aggressively at the goal of holding a complete monopoly when it comes to seeds. they are buying out everyone and want to become the only source of seeds. they are attacking small family farms through unethical tactics in order to intimidate them into using only monsanto seed or driving them out of business. gmo plants are 'engineered' to send out toxins that kill the insects that might threaten them. animals will refuse to eat them while foraging but instead choose natural plants. they threaten organic crops by cross-pollinating with them thus corrupting them and destroying their value as nutritious food for human consumption. so...could i encourage you to concider doing what ever it takes to grow your own food, with only natural compost, and/or buy it from a source you can trust. (much 'organic' food is on the market which is produced by corporations who do not have integrity which calls into question the integrity of what they produce).
have been learning lessons about the lot and its use. 1. unless i need to make a decision immediately which i sense should be by lot it seems best not to cast the lot prematurely. the best seems to be in prayer about the decision and recommit it to God everytime it resurfaces in the mind. let it 'stew' before God and wait for revelation through His word that might provide direct guidance without the use of the lot. weigh, consider, pray. maybe even come to a sense, provisionally, about a guidance and then, if necessary, cast a lot. 2. always follow a lot when cast. 3. when the answer of the lot is perplexing ask God 'why' and wait for Him to teach thru the word etc. i have several times been rebuked in spirit after casting a lot. when this happens it seems best to sincerely ask God the nature of the rebuke.
this happened when i cast a lot about whether or not God wanted me to buy stuff at the rummage sale at church this week. the answer was 'yes'. the two-day sale is wednesday-thursday. i went over to the church late tuesday night to get the best of what was available and put it aside to purchase the next morning when the sale officially opened its doors. i felt rebuked on returning home. what, Lord? what is wrong. do You not want me to buy the things...You said 'yes'? i normally, between rummage sales in may and october make note of anything i might need in the area of clothing, household supplies etc. as i collected the things i would buy there were things - nice things- that i put aside for myself that were not on that list. as i went to bed it came to me that i should not put aside for myself but let God put aside for me what He wanted me to have. the next morning i got up and went over early and put all the things i got back where i found them so that they could be purchased by whoever with the thot in my heart...Lord, You will preserve for me the very things that You want me to have and then it will not be me providing for myself but a joyful sense of You providing for me what You know i need. well i went back again thursday the last day of the sale - $2 a bag sale day. first, i had a backpack on the list and hadn't found any tuesday pm. when i walked in and asked if they had any, the lady led me to what almost looked like a brand new and very sturdy ll bean bag. AWESOME out of the gate. then i went to the hat box and found an extremely warm and outlandish beanie that had been on the list to replace the beanie recently lost (that you, dearest kate, had made me years ago) and to comfort me in my loss...and another nice beanie i had not seen the first time. i had put away 4 pairs of thick, warm woolen socks that had been on the list for protection thru a coming winter...and they were all still there! i got a better sweatshirt, warmer and heavier than the one i put back, and found three pairs of really beefie sweat pants (i had found no sweat pants the first time). saw a beautiful and sturdy belt i had not seen (this had not been on the list but something i could use coming up). i found the heavy woolen sweater i had had a very difficult time putting back and am so grateful for it and another one to boot. this winter will be much warmer for me thanks to the Lord's provision! i am almost done reading wild at heart and was on my way to calvary church of souderton's library to renew it if possible. passing the book table ....you guessed it!!!...there it was. plus i found 2 other books that will be excellent reading for when i get old and immobile. this last was the clincher. God, for trusting His provision rather than my own gave me far more exceedingly abundantly than i could have asked or thot. GOD IS GOOD! i had $3 in my wallet. i had the sweatshirt and the beanie on and had stuffed (oh, i forgot...3 underpants too!) everything in the bean bag. i asked and was told the charge was $3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! have a good week. love, dad.
another reason i am fighting to finish home-projects-in-process is because it is beginning to look like i may be elsewhere painting, etc. for a while. recently while reading a newsletter from a guy whose vision/ministry is seeking to be a catalyst between american and arab christians i came across news that he is heading to dearborn, michigan in june. the attraction is called arab festival and in its 13th year is attracting more than 300,000 muslims from canada and the u.s. it is like a three day giant block party with hookah, middle eastern cuisine and music, etc. in reading about it, oddly enough i sensed a special connection, began praying about it and decided to cast a lot...Lord, should i go?...yes. so the next day with a sense of hastening i called denny and asked him when i needed to let him know i was going. he said, 'yesterday'...and laughed. he said he would send some more info and i promised to give him a commitment the next day. the next day he gave the # of the agent booking and i called and gave her the ticket price by credit card in time for her to book our flight. so, COOL! it's wierd because i sense no special 'call' to evangelize muslims nor any desire to fly but sense a definite 'call' to dearborn for whatever reason.
checking it out on the web yielded some interesting info about the event. there are a handful of churches/christian ministries which will be there. george saieg (i think i butchered his last name), a muslim who has believed Christ has been going to the festival for a few years now. from california, denny somehow made a connection with him and so we few who are coming from the east coast will be learning from and working with george. his site was interesting. he shared several occurances. one was of him meeting a man whom he had given a dvd of the Jesus film (?) or something like that the year before. the man said something to the effect that he had viewed it and believed everything and then asked what he should do next. another was of a man to whom he had given the dvd one day. the man came up to him the next day crying and saying, i need to be saved...so who knows. only God changes hearts. i nor anyone else can do anything...only just be available to be His hands and feet.
i was concerned about eating junk food. denny said george will be handling all the food, that it will be middle eastern and to some degree kosher. george will be training us how to share Christ with muslims. we will not have a tent or anything. evidently we will just be in the milling crowds talking with people about stuff and offering stuff for them to consider. i'm guardedly-extremely excited, if that makes any sense. the actual festival is friday-sunday, june 19-21...5-11pm, noon-llpm, noon-10 pm. we should leave for home monday morning. everything is foggy though and i may have a few (or many) of these details wrong.
the day i put the $ down for the airplane, God sent me a job painting an apartment. every time i step out in faith He provides! He is just so true to what He says. i don't know this for sure but sense that my trust in Him may be growing stronger. i hope so and i pray that He will bring me to the place where i seek FIRST His kingdom and righteousness giving NO WORRY to how He will provide needs.
recently read an article from the group of farmers from which i get grass-fed milk and butter (C.A.R.E.) that stated that 70% of the mainstream food supply in this country is wholly or partially tainted with food grown from genetically modified seed. this seed is almost exclusively owned by the giant monsanto corporation which holds 60 or so patents for genetically modified plants. it reported that monsanto is currently running aggressively at the goal of holding a complete monopoly when it comes to seeds. they are buying out everyone and want to become the only source of seeds. they are attacking small family farms through unethical tactics in order to intimidate them into using only monsanto seed or driving them out of business. gmo plants are 'engineered' to send out toxins that kill the insects that might threaten them. animals will refuse to eat them while foraging but instead choose natural plants. they threaten organic crops by cross-pollinating with them thus corrupting them and destroying their value as nutritious food for human consumption. so...could i encourage you to concider doing what ever it takes to grow your own food, with only natural compost, and/or buy it from a source you can trust. (much 'organic' food is on the market which is produced by corporations who do not have integrity which calls into question the integrity of what they produce).
have been learning lessons about the lot and its use. 1. unless i need to make a decision immediately which i sense should be by lot it seems best not to cast the lot prematurely. the best seems to be in prayer about the decision and recommit it to God everytime it resurfaces in the mind. let it 'stew' before God and wait for revelation through His word that might provide direct guidance without the use of the lot. weigh, consider, pray. maybe even come to a sense, provisionally, about a guidance and then, if necessary, cast a lot. 2. always follow a lot when cast. 3. when the answer of the lot is perplexing ask God 'why' and wait for Him to teach thru the word etc. i have several times been rebuked in spirit after casting a lot. when this happens it seems best to sincerely ask God the nature of the rebuke.
this happened when i cast a lot about whether or not God wanted me to buy stuff at the rummage sale at church this week. the answer was 'yes'. the two-day sale is wednesday-thursday. i went over to the church late tuesday night to get the best of what was available and put it aside to purchase the next morning when the sale officially opened its doors. i felt rebuked on returning home. what, Lord? what is wrong. do You not want me to buy the things...You said 'yes'? i normally, between rummage sales in may and october make note of anything i might need in the area of clothing, household supplies etc. as i collected the things i would buy there were things - nice things- that i put aside for myself that were not on that list. as i went to bed it came to me that i should not put aside for myself but let God put aside for me what He wanted me to have. the next morning i got up and went over early and put all the things i got back where i found them so that they could be purchased by whoever with the thot in my heart...Lord, You will preserve for me the very things that You want me to have and then it will not be me providing for myself but a joyful sense of You providing for me what You know i need. well i went back again thursday the last day of the sale - $2 a bag sale day. first, i had a backpack on the list and hadn't found any tuesday pm. when i walked in and asked if they had any, the lady led me to what almost looked like a brand new and very sturdy ll bean bag. AWESOME out of the gate. then i went to the hat box and found an extremely warm and outlandish beanie that had been on the list to replace the beanie recently lost (that you, dearest kate, had made me years ago) and to comfort me in my loss...and another nice beanie i had not seen the first time. i had put away 4 pairs of thick, warm woolen socks that had been on the list for protection thru a coming winter...and they were all still there! i got a better sweatshirt, warmer and heavier than the one i put back, and found three pairs of really beefie sweat pants (i had found no sweat pants the first time). saw a beautiful and sturdy belt i had not seen (this had not been on the list but something i could use coming up). i found the heavy woolen sweater i had had a very difficult time putting back and am so grateful for it and another one to boot. this winter will be much warmer for me thanks to the Lord's provision! i am almost done reading wild at heart and was on my way to calvary church of souderton's library to renew it if possible. passing the book table ....you guessed it!!!...there it was. plus i found 2 other books that will be excellent reading for when i get old and immobile. this last was the clincher. God, for trusting His provision rather than my own gave me far more exceedingly abundantly than i could have asked or thot. GOD IS GOOD! i had $3 in my wallet. i had the sweatshirt and the beanie on and had stuffed (oh, i forgot...3 underpants too!) everything in the bean bag. i asked and was told the charge was $3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! have a good week. love, dad.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
5.10.09 MAY YOU LIVE FOREVER!
well this was certainly another week in which i was totally out of control. first of all it rained most all week which did away with my plans to paint. fortunately so, as it turned out, for my wrestling over whether or not to leave leidy church led me to finally cast a lot on the question - Lord, do You want me to leave leidy church? the answer was yes. i then drew lots on the year (2009), month (june), and day(7th) for my last sunday there. had a peace through this but once it was established all hell broke lose in my human part. the anguish of leaving my church family was intense. the fact that i face a totally unknown future in this important area. (the only church that i had thought maybe was where God might be leading me came up 'no')...so, yea... then i put a number of ways in which i could leave the church down and drew 'call everyone you know in the church immediately'. i know alot of people so it came to about 200 'units' (families, individuals). started out calling pastor john. he disagreed with the way i made the decision stating that the lot is no longer for today. he offered two books which i said i would be happy to read. then i started the hours long process of calling everyone to 1) tell them i am leaving and when and 2) to ask prayer for God's direction as to where i am to go. it has taken the better part of two days and i still have 5 or so to complete monday morning. very interesting time. fortunately i called during the day so many were not home and i could just leave the message..otherwise i would still face a long list. got some very good counsel. some reported having similar experience and it was good to hear how these turned out for them. i'm ok on the surface but it is proving very difficult leaving my 'family' of the last 8 years. to those who wanted to find out the real reason i shared that there are things that disturb me at church but that is true in every church situation and relationship...things are never perfectly like we would like them to be...but there is no 'reason' why i am leaving for i know that it will just be the same in the next place maybe with a slightly different twist. soooo this leaving business may not be real easy. i may quail and 'not be able to deal with it' and return. i have no idea. following God offers no security or certainty. we'll just see what develops. if this stark, dark leaving is indeed His leading i call upon the God who said to abram,'GO FORTH from your country and from your relatives and from your father's house to the land which I WILL SHOW YOU... and so you shall be a blessing...'to go before and guide me in His way.
it's now monday evening and i have read the two books and studied the word 'lot' in the Bible. the first book, just do something by kevin deyoung is well written but unfortunately is written to his generation (20-30 something) who, he says, are marked by indecision. that would be the opposite for most of what i have done in life has been the result of impulsiveness...i'm on the other end of the spectrum.
he talks of 3 'wills of God'. 1. God's will of decree. this refers to things as they are and cannot be thwarted or changed by man. 2. God's will of desire. this refers to things as they ought to be and this can be disregarded by man. it is the area of God's will revealed in the Bible. these two areas are covered in deuteronomy 29.29 'the secret things belong unto the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law'. 3.God's will of direction. we are, within the bounds of 1 and 2, free to make our own choices in this area. there is now exact path we are supposed to take, no best and second best. we are not to treat things in this area as more important than they are. he says here, 'waiting for God's direction is a mess!'
i would disagree here based upon what i get from nee who would say generally (sometimes circumstances decide for us, sometimes we use what might be called 'sanctified common sense') we are to wait for the intuition of the spirit in sensing what God wants us to do and only then move. being aware that there are many counterfeits which can seem to be of God, we are to be constantly monitoring our own thots and their source (is this my thot or did it just 'appear' in my thots from the outside - the wicked spirit). we need to be asking is this just driven by my own emotion, bent, motivation. in my my use of the lot in many cases is revealing that often my sensing about something is what 'comes up' with the lot...but not always! so i am learning a bit to begin to recognize the intuition of the spirit and how it 'works' or 'looks'. sometimes it is very different though, sometimes enough to really be very puzzling or difficult. as deyoung says, the word decide comes from the latin decidere meaning 'to cut off'. when you throw the lot, when you decide you cut off all other options! uncle hugh reported this same phenomenon and said it led him to ask God to show him and said that God taught him much in this way. i would say that it has been, in a beginning kind of way, very instructive to me also as i have gone to the God about lots i did not understand.
finally deyoung speaks of God's will of desire. 1.God guides us by His invisible providence at all times. eph. 1.11 2. God can speak to His people in many different ways, guiding them by their conscious cooperation. heb. 1.2 3. since Christ was here God has spoken to us by Christ. 4.God continues to speak to us by His Son through His spirit in the Bible in heb. 3.7 the writer quotes psalm 95 written 1000 yrs. before saying, 'the Holy Spirit SAYS'. 5. apart from the Spirit working through the scripture God does NOT promise to use any other means to guide us nor should we expect Him to. (as the author of the second book says on this point -the author of this book took the above 5 points from the second author- it is always hard to prove a negative and says, 'it may be that there is a promise in scripture we have not yet found'...an i am thinking of proverbs 16.33 -the LOT is cast into the lap, but ITS EVERY DECISION IS FROM THE LORD.
so, my thot is that nothing is said against the lot in deyoung's book. he takes the view that in the area of God's will of direction we are free to do whatever we choose within the bounds of the God's will of desire (the only area we have any choice in). he doesn't speak against lots, he doesn't mention them. so, within the scope of his opinion, i am evidently free, in the area of direction, to seek it as led by means of the lot. the second book adds nothing more, says nothing about lots.
lot is used in the old testament about 70 times, 2 in the new testament (those who tend maybe to be stronger in dispensational outlook remind me that both occur before pentecost when the church age begins...they therefore dismiss the lot as only for the nation of israel. my question to them is 'if that is true what does proverbs 16.33 mean for although all the Bible was not written to us, all was written for us'? (II tim. 3.16)
in the old testament lot signifies: 1. a portion of the land of palestine given to the 12 tribes of israel, 2. on the day of atonement it was cast to decide which of two goats was to be sacrificed and which was to be sent into the wilderness (the both symbolize God's covering (with His blood) and removal (scapegoat sent away) of sin, 3. victors cast lots in order to divide the spoil, 4. lots determined assignments such as the 24 sections of the sons of aaron who ministered in the tabernacle, the musicians who served in the temple during the time of david, the gatekeepers of the same time, the men choosen to fight against gibeah, the people who were to reside in jerusalem and those choosen to supply wood for the altar's fire during the time of nehemiah, 5. used to discover the guilty (aachan, jonah), 6. to settle disputes prov.18.18, 7. one's lot referred to one's circumstances or life, 8. in reference to one's recompense or reward.
it comes from the hebrew word goral meaning pebble and by metonymy 'lot', because small stones were used to cast lots thrown or allowed to fall in such a way as to determine a choice. six hebrew verbs are used io describe the method of such determining -the lot is said to 'come up, out, upon,for' a person or thing. not much is known though about the actual methods used. another source says that in Biblical times the lot generally recommended 'itself as a sort of appeal to the Almighty secure from all influence of passion and bias' and was esteemed by the ancients.
my research so far enables me with good conscience to use the lot, when such use seems good, to determine God's will of direction.
well this is looong enough. hope you have a good week. love, dad
it's now monday evening and i have read the two books and studied the word 'lot' in the Bible. the first book, just do something by kevin deyoung is well written but unfortunately is written to his generation (20-30 something) who, he says, are marked by indecision. that would be the opposite for most of what i have done in life has been the result of impulsiveness...i'm on the other end of the spectrum.
he talks of 3 'wills of God'. 1. God's will of decree. this refers to things as they are and cannot be thwarted or changed by man. 2. God's will of desire. this refers to things as they ought to be and this can be disregarded by man. it is the area of God's will revealed in the Bible. these two areas are covered in deuteronomy 29.29 'the secret things belong unto the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law'. 3.God's will of direction. we are, within the bounds of 1 and 2, free to make our own choices in this area. there is now exact path we are supposed to take, no best and second best. we are not to treat things in this area as more important than they are. he says here, 'waiting for God's direction is a mess!'
i would disagree here based upon what i get from nee who would say generally (sometimes circumstances decide for us, sometimes we use what might be called 'sanctified common sense') we are to wait for the intuition of the spirit in sensing what God wants us to do and only then move. being aware that there are many counterfeits which can seem to be of God, we are to be constantly monitoring our own thots and their source (is this my thot or did it just 'appear' in my thots from the outside - the wicked spirit). we need to be asking is this just driven by my own emotion, bent, motivation. in my my use of the lot in many cases is revealing that often my sensing about something is what 'comes up' with the lot...but not always! so i am learning a bit to begin to recognize the intuition of the spirit and how it 'works' or 'looks'. sometimes it is very different though, sometimes enough to really be very puzzling or difficult. as deyoung says, the word decide comes from the latin decidere meaning 'to cut off'. when you throw the lot, when you decide you cut off all other options! uncle hugh reported this same phenomenon and said it led him to ask God to show him and said that God taught him much in this way. i would say that it has been, in a beginning kind of way, very instructive to me also as i have gone to the God about lots i did not understand.
finally deyoung speaks of God's will of desire. 1.God guides us by His invisible providence at all times. eph. 1.11 2. God can speak to His people in many different ways, guiding them by their conscious cooperation. heb. 1.2 3. since Christ was here God has spoken to us by Christ. 4.God continues to speak to us by His Son through His spirit in the Bible in heb. 3.7 the writer quotes psalm 95 written 1000 yrs. before saying, 'the Holy Spirit SAYS'. 5. apart from the Spirit working through the scripture God does NOT promise to use any other means to guide us nor should we expect Him to. (as the author of the second book says on this point -the author of this book took the above 5 points from the second author- it is always hard to prove a negative and says, 'it may be that there is a promise in scripture we have not yet found'...an i am thinking of proverbs 16.33 -the LOT is cast into the lap, but ITS EVERY DECISION IS FROM THE LORD.
so, my thot is that nothing is said against the lot in deyoung's book. he takes the view that in the area of God's will of direction we are free to do whatever we choose within the bounds of the God's will of desire (the only area we have any choice in). he doesn't speak against lots, he doesn't mention them. so, within the scope of his opinion, i am evidently free, in the area of direction, to seek it as led by means of the lot. the second book adds nothing more, says nothing about lots.
lot is used in the old testament about 70 times, 2 in the new testament (those who tend maybe to be stronger in dispensational outlook remind me that both occur before pentecost when the church age begins...they therefore dismiss the lot as only for the nation of israel. my question to them is 'if that is true what does proverbs 16.33 mean for although all the Bible was not written to us, all was written for us'? (II tim. 3.16)
in the old testament lot signifies: 1. a portion of the land of palestine given to the 12 tribes of israel, 2. on the day of atonement it was cast to decide which of two goats was to be sacrificed and which was to be sent into the wilderness (the both symbolize God's covering (with His blood) and removal (scapegoat sent away) of sin, 3. victors cast lots in order to divide the spoil, 4. lots determined assignments such as the 24 sections of the sons of aaron who ministered in the tabernacle, the musicians who served in the temple during the time of david, the gatekeepers of the same time, the men choosen to fight against gibeah, the people who were to reside in jerusalem and those choosen to supply wood for the altar's fire during the time of nehemiah, 5. used to discover the guilty (aachan, jonah), 6. to settle disputes prov.18.18, 7. one's lot referred to one's circumstances or life, 8. in reference to one's recompense or reward.
it comes from the hebrew word goral meaning pebble and by metonymy 'lot', because small stones were used to cast lots thrown or allowed to fall in such a way as to determine a choice. six hebrew verbs are used io describe the method of such determining -the lot is said to 'come up, out, upon,for' a person or thing. not much is known though about the actual methods used. another source says that in Biblical times the lot generally recommended 'itself as a sort of appeal to the Almighty secure from all influence of passion and bias' and was esteemed by the ancients.
my research so far enables me with good conscience to use the lot, when such use seems good, to determine God's will of direction.
well this is looong enough. hope you have a good week. love, dad
Sunday, May 3, 2009
5.3.09 MAY YOU LIVE FOREVER!
i thank God for nate and jen inviting me into their home. for quite a while i had difficulty transferring into the world of grandfather. rather than cooing, ahhhing, smothering i took the true patriarchal position that if the child is to SEE ME, he will be presented to me in my own home!!!! i am such a royal goofball. most of the thoughts and ideas i have apart from those God has so far patiently HAMMERED into the proper form are bizarre and ridiculous...something that anyone who has had to relate to me is very well aware of already. anyway, i am amazed at what God is doing through this weekly visit right after church on sunday. it is the Lord pouring oil and wine into some deep wounds. (i can't wait to see Him when i get 100% healed and my sin-riddled/diseased soul drops away forever. AHHHHH, just like diving into deliciously refreshing water when oppressed by strength-draining fatigue and exhaustion...only billions of times better.) i think silas actually remembers me and always greets me with a sweet, wide smile and dancing eyes. another of the multitude of good gifts i don't deserve. thank you nate and jen for inviting me in...maybe God will give me some opportunity to be to my grandson what i never, ungodly, was to my children.
this week i continued to wage war against things that other people have no problem with. in particular i am continuing to have a battle royal just to do the 7 daily duties and this is set in the context of warring to 'seek first God's kingdom and His righteousness AND BELIEVE THAT all the needs necessary for life will be provided. as no work has come in in a while i am thinking more and more about fixing the house up and renting it and then renting a room somewhere and trying to living off the house rental income. probably another quixotic scheme but i am, on wobbling knees, attempting to walk in that direction. i am scared to death to put the question to the lot because then i would have to really trust the Lord if the answer was no. next year, in the original thot, is limited to10 hours per week and then no income after that. i don't know...but anyway, on the outside i am leading a more and more restricted, boring life but inside there is a titanic, ongoing battle going on in the struggle to establish what might be called the infrastructure of my soul summed up in the dictum : ALWAYS DO WHAT YOU SHOULD BEFORE YOU DO WHAT YOU WANT. my whole life has been summed up largely by the latter half and to break the back of that lifelong habit is a killer. it has made me so aware of how important it is for: 1) parents to do that 2) to guide their children into that. if one is happening two may only involve a tweek here or there. character, i would say, is rather caught than taught. thank God for mom, is all i can say. she habitually lived this way and you...and i (i don't know where i would be without her example in this!) have benefitted. so i warred on this week. progress is slow but progress is definitely being made. its amazing to think what a person can achieve for God if he is mastered rather than going about having to always do whatever he wants.
it is now monday evening. last week while working on cleaning up the basement i listened to the bondage breaker written by neil anderson. God's up to something because He is leading me to strong teaching about demonization of people who profess to be christian. i certainly am aware of the activity of the evil spirit in my life but little is said about this publicly that i am aware of. nee, wild at heart men's retreat and its sponsoring church, harvest community fellowship and now neil anderson's book. i've listened to it twice this week. now i need to internalize and apply what i am learning.
haven't worked for 6.5 weeks so my weekly hourly average has plummeted to just over 11 hours a week. it's been raining a lot lately but several small jobs await when dry weather reappears. also just received a call from someone inquiring about a room. so i'm deep in prayer that God would clearly lead by open or shut doors in this.
read about a pastor in california who was harassed by a planned parenthood for his standing quietly outside with a Jesus-loves-you-and-your-baby-let-us-help poster and asking women entering for permission to speak with them about abortion alternatives and offering literature detailing such. he refused a plea bargain which would have kept him away from the center, so he served 30 days in jail. while in he had a conversation with an 18 year old man (30 men were sleeping in the same area) whose 'woman' had aborted their baby which he reported as follows - it was her choice to abort..yes i know that ,but what did you do? did you offer to marry her?..no..did you offer to help her raise the child?..no..did you tell her you love her and that you were going to go the distance with her as a man should, even if she decided to give child up for adoption?..no..no one ever told me what an abortion is. no one ever made it plain (started to cry)...God can forgive you... when others in the cell mouthed pro-choice slogans he said,'but when i forced them to complete the sentence,"i believe that a woman has a right to choose to kill an innocent life" they couldn't do it'.
regarding my feverish unrest about all that's going on, read this statement, which resonated, made by michael cromartie who is currently a member of the US commission on international religious freedom..'because of reading augustine i have a chastened view of politics which is that we live in two kingdoms. we are to bring approximate justice to basically insoluble problems. that's reinhold neibuhr, having read augustine: because the world is fallen, because it is decayed..we will never bring in any kind of utopia. that's a warning to people on the right and on the left'.
it's interesting. everytime i cast the lot on a question of rebuking someone it comes up no. today i got yes on 'asking questions' and 'tell what i am thinking and doing' but consistent no on the other. is God telling me i have an especially virulent 'i-have-a-log-in-the-eye' disease? i don't know but He may be hinting in that direction.
to anyone who happens to read this, i extend an invitation to respond (at stephen.paine@gmail.com) to the following questions. i'm currently reading wild at heart. at this point in the book the author is talking about how we men (probably women too) are all posers...deathly afraid of showing our real selves and he invites the reader to accept God's invitation to leave all you rely upon and venture out with Him. he says we can do this proactively on our own or wait for God to bring the imposter/false self down in His own time. he then says what i was thinking - you have no clue what your false self is? ask those who know you:
1. what is my effect upon You?
2. what am i like to live (work) with?
3. what DON'T you feel free to bring up with me?
so...please...be honest with me. i will be everlastingly grateful, for you see i can't see myself.
hope you have a good week. love, dad
this week i continued to wage war against things that other people have no problem with. in particular i am continuing to have a battle royal just to do the 7 daily duties and this is set in the context of warring to 'seek first God's kingdom and His righteousness AND BELIEVE THAT all the needs necessary for life will be provided. as no work has come in in a while i am thinking more and more about fixing the house up and renting it and then renting a room somewhere and trying to living off the house rental income. probably another quixotic scheme but i am, on wobbling knees, attempting to walk in that direction. i am scared to death to put the question to the lot because then i would have to really trust the Lord if the answer was no. next year, in the original thot, is limited to10 hours per week and then no income after that. i don't know...but anyway, on the outside i am leading a more and more restricted, boring life but inside there is a titanic, ongoing battle going on in the struggle to establish what might be called the infrastructure of my soul summed up in the dictum : ALWAYS DO WHAT YOU SHOULD BEFORE YOU DO WHAT YOU WANT. my whole life has been summed up largely by the latter half and to break the back of that lifelong habit is a killer. it has made me so aware of how important it is for: 1) parents to do that 2) to guide their children into that. if one is happening two may only involve a tweek here or there. character, i would say, is rather caught than taught. thank God for mom, is all i can say. she habitually lived this way and you...and i (i don't know where i would be without her example in this!) have benefitted. so i warred on this week. progress is slow but progress is definitely being made. its amazing to think what a person can achieve for God if he is mastered rather than going about having to always do whatever he wants.
it is now monday evening. last week while working on cleaning up the basement i listened to the bondage breaker written by neil anderson. God's up to something because He is leading me to strong teaching about demonization of people who profess to be christian. i certainly am aware of the activity of the evil spirit in my life but little is said about this publicly that i am aware of. nee, wild at heart men's retreat and its sponsoring church, harvest community fellowship and now neil anderson's book. i've listened to it twice this week. now i need to internalize and apply what i am learning.
haven't worked for 6.5 weeks so my weekly hourly average has plummeted to just over 11 hours a week. it's been raining a lot lately but several small jobs await when dry weather reappears. also just received a call from someone inquiring about a room. so i'm deep in prayer that God would clearly lead by open or shut doors in this.
read about a pastor in california who was harassed by a planned parenthood for his standing quietly outside with a Jesus-loves-you-and-your-baby-let-us-help poster and asking women entering for permission to speak with them about abortion alternatives and offering literature detailing such. he refused a plea bargain which would have kept him away from the center, so he served 30 days in jail. while in he had a conversation with an 18 year old man (30 men were sleeping in the same area) whose 'woman' had aborted their baby which he reported as follows - it was her choice to abort..yes i know that ,but what did you do? did you offer to marry her?..no..did you offer to help her raise the child?..no..did you tell her you love her and that you were going to go the distance with her as a man should, even if she decided to give child up for adoption?..no..no one ever told me what an abortion is. no one ever made it plain (started to cry)...God can forgive you... when others in the cell mouthed pro-choice slogans he said,'but when i forced them to complete the sentence,"i believe that a woman has a right to choose to kill an innocent life" they couldn't do it'.
regarding my feverish unrest about all that's going on, read this statement, which resonated, made by michael cromartie who is currently a member of the US commission on international religious freedom..'because of reading augustine i have a chastened view of politics which is that we live in two kingdoms. we are to bring approximate justice to basically insoluble problems. that's reinhold neibuhr, having read augustine: because the world is fallen, because it is decayed..we will never bring in any kind of utopia. that's a warning to people on the right and on the left'.
it's interesting. everytime i cast the lot on a question of rebuking someone it comes up no. today i got yes on 'asking questions' and 'tell what i am thinking and doing' but consistent no on the other. is God telling me i have an especially virulent 'i-have-a-log-in-the-eye' disease? i don't know but He may be hinting in that direction.
to anyone who happens to read this, i extend an invitation to respond (at stephen.paine@gmail.com) to the following questions. i'm currently reading wild at heart. at this point in the book the author is talking about how we men (probably women too) are all posers...deathly afraid of showing our real selves and he invites the reader to accept God's invitation to leave all you rely upon and venture out with Him. he says we can do this proactively on our own or wait for God to bring the imposter/false self down in His own time. he then says what i was thinking - you have no clue what your false self is? ask those who know you:
1. what is my effect upon You?
2. what am i like to live (work) with?
3. what DON'T you feel free to bring up with me?
so...please...be honest with me. i will be everlastingly grateful, for you see i can't see myself.
hope you have a good week. love, dad
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