Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Cyprus; Behind the smoke and mirrors
This Cyprus bailout stuff is fascinating. There is so much smoke and mirrors going on. Here's the real deal as I see it.
On 15 August 1971, the United States unilaterally terminated convertibility of the U.S. dollar to gold. This brought the Bretton Woods system and the Gold Standard to an end and saw the dollar become fiat currency. Fiat currency is money that a government has declared to be legal tender, despite the fact that it has no intrinsic value and is not backed by reserves. Historically, most currencies were based on physical commodities such as gold or silver, but fiat money is based solely on faith.
The end of the Bretton Woods system created the situation in which the United States dollar became a reserve currency used by the world. A reserve currency is money, the U.S. dollar, held by central banks of other countries and other major financial institutions as a means to pay off international debt obligations, or to influence their domestic exchange rate.
The international debt obligations is the interest on printing money out of nothing. The United States dollar is printed with debt attached. Every dollar comes with interest attached at the time of printing. This interest can NEVER be paid back. The system will collapse.
The world's paper money is fiat money. Because fiat money is not linked to physical reserves, it risks becoming worthless due to hyperinflation. As a result, foreign nations closely monitored the monetary policy of the United States in order to ensure that the value of their reserves is not adversely affected by inflation.
What is happening in Cyprus is due to the fact that nobody can ever pay back the world debt of printing money out of nothing. The debt can be shuffled around as we see in bailouts and Japan buying U.S. debt, but the debt remains. Printing more money lowers the value of money in circulation, causing inflation, making commodities go up in price. This too is an illusion. Commodities have no value other than what somebody is willing to pay for them. When the dollar losses value prices look like they go up cause it takes more money to buy the commodity. It's just inflation but since people are buying or giving value to an item we call it investing. Gold is still just a rock.
The world wide financial crises we see in the news everyday is the result of International Bankers controlling the worlds money supply. All the news about Cyprus really doesn't matter if nobody understands what is causing it to happen behind the smoke and mirrors.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Editing and updating.
Blogger made me update my template on here. I hate this layout. Will be editing and updating and starting to post again I'm thinking.
Testing!
Just checking to see if I can still post on here since it's been a few years.
Jesus is returning really soon!
Jesus is returning really soon!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
In God We Trust
"Every one has heard people quarrelling. Sometimes it sounds funny and sometimes it sounds merely unpleasant; but however it sounds, I believe we can learn something very important from listening to the kind of things they say. They say things like this: "How'd you like it if anyone did the same to you?" - "That's my seat, I was there first!" - "Leave him alone, he isn't doing you any harm" - "Why should you shove in first?" - "Give me a bit of your orange, I gave you a bit of mine" - "Come on, you promised!". People say things like that every day, educated people as well as uneducated, and children as well as grown-ups.
It looks very much as if both parties has in mind some kind of Law or Rule of fair play or decent behavior or morality or whatever you like to call it, about which they really agreed. And they have. If they had not, they might, of course, fight like animals, but they could not quarrel in the human sense of the word. Quarrelling means trying to show that the other man is in the wrong. And there would be no sense in trying to do that unless you and he has some sort of agreement as to what Right and Wrong are" -Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis.
This letter is not about Republicans and Democrates. It's not about liberals nor conservatives. It's about Right and Wrong.
I wholeheartedly believe this to be true...
...NOBODY CAN SPEND THEY'RE WAY OUT OF DEBT!
Do we agree? Do you agree? If we can not agree with this most basic of principles then I would like to suggest that you read no further and go back to believing "Barack Obama is not a socialist, he is not a communist, and he is not spending us into a black hole". As for the rest of you, please continue.
Some of you have attended Tea Parties. Some of you are watching the news and wondering what is going on. The rest, well, they are probably not reading this. Ya know, Michael Jackson died. No disrespect but there are life changing events happening in the world. It's time to focus.
And what should that focus be? Cap & Trade? Universal Healthcare? Hate Speech? How about giving the Federal Reserve even more power?
Those are some very disturbing things to be greatly concerned about indeed and I disagree with all of them. I believe we should all stand up and speak out against these things but these things are not where our focus should be.
Our focus should be on God!
There is right and wrong! Why? It's like gravity. It's a law! Right and wrong can not be subjective. Right is right, wrong is wrong, like on or off, black or white.
The problem with America and the world is people are not looking to God. Here is what happened to Isreal when they stopped looking to God.
1 Samuel chapter 8 begining at verse 11, (brackets are mine)
11 And he said, This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots.
(Not that the goverment has this authority by their office, but that such as reign in God's wrath would usurp this over their brethren, contrary to truths that are "self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certian unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" -The Declaration of Independence)
12 And he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots.
(This speaks of hard labor and war. There is no choice in this.)
13 And he will take your daughters to be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to be bakers.
(Women will not be exempt from the toil. This too is not by choice.)
14 And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.
("By fraud or force, as Ahab did from Naboth. He will not only take the fruits of your lands for his own use, but will take away your possessions to give to his servants" -Wesley. No property rights means no private property. Can you say wealth redistribution? How about being told where you will live?)
15 And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants.
(Could this be taxes for bailouts and lobbyist friends impossed upon the people?)
16 And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work.
(Do I need to explain this?)
17 He will take the tenth of your sheep: and ye shall be his servants.
(Still taking your property and labor away. "That is, he will use you like slaves, and deprive you of that liberty which now you enjoy" -Wesley)
18 And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day.
(We must repent! Repentance is the answer!)
When America removes God from every public place and Christians sit silently this is what we can expect from our goverment. When we deconstruct books and progressively push ethical relativism denying that anything has any real meaning other than what one makes of it, we deny God.
Everyone knows, even those who deny, right from wrong. It's the "work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness" (Romans 2:15).
If America will not have God rule then we will "find the yoke exceedingly heavy. Those that submit to the government of the world and the flesh, are told plainly, what hard masters they are, and what tyranny the dominion of sin is. The law of God and the manner of men widely differ from each other; the former should be our rule in the several relations of life; the latter should be the measure of our expectations from others. These would be their grievances, and, when they complained to God, he would not hear them. When we bring ourselves into distress by our own wrong desires and projects, we justly forfeit the comfort of prayer, and the benefit of Divine aid. The people were obstinate and urgent in their demand. Sudden resolves and hasty desires make work for long and leisurely repentance. Our wisdom is, to be thankful for the advantages, and patient under the disadvantages of the government we may live under; and to pray continually for our rulers, that they may govern us in the fear of God, and that we may live under them in all godliness and honesty. And it is a hopeful symptom when our desires of worldly objects can brook delay; and when we can refer the time and manner of their being granted to God's providence." -Matthew Henry’s Commentary
The American motto is, "In God We Trust".
It is time to repent and "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). Then perhaps the Lord will tarry His soon return, "can ye not discern the signs of the times?" (Matthew 16:3), but I digress.
It looks very much as if both parties has in mind some kind of Law or Rule of fair play or decent behavior or morality or whatever you like to call it, about which they really agreed. And they have. If they had not, they might, of course, fight like animals, but they could not quarrel in the human sense of the word. Quarrelling means trying to show that the other man is in the wrong. And there would be no sense in trying to do that unless you and he has some sort of agreement as to what Right and Wrong are" -Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis.
This letter is not about Republicans and Democrates. It's not about liberals nor conservatives. It's about Right and Wrong.
I wholeheartedly believe this to be true...
...NOBODY CAN SPEND THEY'RE WAY OUT OF DEBT!
Do we agree? Do you agree? If we can not agree with this most basic of principles then I would like to suggest that you read no further and go back to believing "Barack Obama is not a socialist, he is not a communist, and he is not spending us into a black hole". As for the rest of you, please continue.
Some of you have attended Tea Parties. Some of you are watching the news and wondering what is going on. The rest, well, they are probably not reading this. Ya know, Michael Jackson died. No disrespect but there are life changing events happening in the world. It's time to focus.
And what should that focus be? Cap & Trade? Universal Healthcare? Hate Speech? How about giving the Federal Reserve even more power?
Those are some very disturbing things to be greatly concerned about indeed and I disagree with all of them. I believe we should all stand up and speak out against these things but these things are not where our focus should be.
Our focus should be on God!
There is right and wrong! Why? It's like gravity. It's a law! Right and wrong can not be subjective. Right is right, wrong is wrong, like on or off, black or white.
The problem with America and the world is people are not looking to God. Here is what happened to Isreal when they stopped looking to God.
1 Samuel chapter 8 begining at verse 11, (brackets are mine)
11 And he said, This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots.
(Not that the goverment has this authority by their office, but that such as reign in God's wrath would usurp this over their brethren, contrary to truths that are "self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certian unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" -The Declaration of Independence)
12 And he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots.
(This speaks of hard labor and war. There is no choice in this.)
13 And he will take your daughters to be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to be bakers.
(Women will not be exempt from the toil. This too is not by choice.)
14 And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.
("By fraud or force, as Ahab did from Naboth. He will not only take the fruits of your lands for his own use, but will take away your possessions to give to his servants" -Wesley. No property rights means no private property. Can you say wealth redistribution? How about being told where you will live?)
15 And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants.
(Could this be taxes for bailouts and lobbyist friends impossed upon the people?)
16 And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work.
(Do I need to explain this?)
17 He will take the tenth of your sheep: and ye shall be his servants.
(Still taking your property and labor away. "That is, he will use you like slaves, and deprive you of that liberty which now you enjoy" -Wesley)
18 And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day.
(We must repent! Repentance is the answer!)
When America removes God from every public place and Christians sit silently this is what we can expect from our goverment. When we deconstruct books and progressively push ethical relativism denying that anything has any real meaning other than what one makes of it, we deny God.
Everyone knows, even those who deny, right from wrong. It's the "work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness" (Romans 2:15).
If America will not have God rule then we will "find the yoke exceedingly heavy. Those that submit to the government of the world and the flesh, are told plainly, what hard masters they are, and what tyranny the dominion of sin is. The law of God and the manner of men widely differ from each other; the former should be our rule in the several relations of life; the latter should be the measure of our expectations from others. These would be their grievances, and, when they complained to God, he would not hear them. When we bring ourselves into distress by our own wrong desires and projects, we justly forfeit the comfort of prayer, and the benefit of Divine aid. The people were obstinate and urgent in their demand. Sudden resolves and hasty desires make work for long and leisurely repentance. Our wisdom is, to be thankful for the advantages, and patient under the disadvantages of the government we may live under; and to pray continually for our rulers, that they may govern us in the fear of God, and that we may live under them in all godliness and honesty. And it is a hopeful symptom when our desires of worldly objects can brook delay; and when we can refer the time and manner of their being granted to God's providence." -Matthew Henry’s Commentary
The American motto is, "In God We Trust".
It is time to repent and "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). Then perhaps the Lord will tarry His soon return, "can ye not discern the signs of the times?" (Matthew 16:3), but I digress.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
... One Year Later
If anyone has ever checked in on this here old blog of mine in the past year they would have saw a couple post about me making music and asking for your support.
I have deleted those post and thus the last post is over a year old now.
Much has happened in the past year. None of it has helped my walk with the Lord. Most of it has helped me walk away. If you would like to pray about that I would appreciate it.
I have changed jobs and that had much to do with everything. I slowly started dropping the things I love the most. I quit going to night seminary. I couldn't accept my pastor paying for the classes anymore when I wasn't doing my part anymore at church and had become discontent completely with the church I attend (yes, I still go there, not often enough).
I stopped making music. I stopped reading my bible. I stopped praying.
As of this writing most of these things are still current.
I'm going to go over this blog and fix any broken links and whatnot.
I'm thinking maybe I'll start posting again. I'm thinking I miss the challenge of the study it takes to write the Deeper Truth. I know I miss being in the Word and have been picking it up lately, just picking it up, not opening it, yep, I suck.
I'm thinking I miss making music but I won't be trying to bring that into this blog anymore.
I looked over some of the writings here. The Lord really has blessed me hasn't He? I should do something more with it. That sorta seems to be a thing with me through out the writings here. A head full of Deeper Truth and me stumbling and bumbling through my life.
"Sometimes I feel I am lost in darkness. Sometimes I tarry a little too far behind my Shepherd.
He understands. He holds up, He whispers to His flock to remain still for a moment, while He turns to coax me back into the light." from Curious Servant's Art
Wonder if anyone will even know I wrote something .... One Year Later
I have deleted those post and thus the last post is over a year old now.
Much has happened in the past year. None of it has helped my walk with the Lord. Most of it has helped me walk away. If you would like to pray about that I would appreciate it.
I have changed jobs and that had much to do with everything. I slowly started dropping the things I love the most. I quit going to night seminary. I couldn't accept my pastor paying for the classes anymore when I wasn't doing my part anymore at church and had become discontent completely with the church I attend (yes, I still go there, not often enough).
I stopped making music. I stopped reading my bible. I stopped praying.
As of this writing most of these things are still current.
I'm going to go over this blog and fix any broken links and whatnot.
I'm thinking maybe I'll start posting again. I'm thinking I miss the challenge of the study it takes to write the Deeper Truth. I know I miss being in the Word and have been picking it up lately, just picking it up, not opening it, yep, I suck.
I'm thinking I miss making music but I won't be trying to bring that into this blog anymore.
I looked over some of the writings here. The Lord really has blessed me hasn't He? I should do something more with it. That sorta seems to be a thing with me through out the writings here. A head full of Deeper Truth and me stumbling and bumbling through my life.
"Sometimes I feel I am lost in darkness. Sometimes I tarry a little too far behind my Shepherd.
He understands. He holds up, He whispers to His flock to remain still for a moment, while He turns to coax me back into the light." from Curious Servant's Art
Wonder if anyone will even know I wrote something .... One Year Later
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Ecclesiastes 2:16-20
"For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool forever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool.
Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit.
Yea, I hated all my labor which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.
And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labor wherein I have labored, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.
Therefore I went about to cause my heart to despair of all the labor which I took under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 2:16-20).
People often say that money can not buy happiness. You may not agree but it seems to me that the people who tell me that the most, have money. People without usually will add, "but I would like to try". I think Solomon was telling us as part of the over all message in Ecclesiastes that money does not bring happiness. I must confess as I believe I have done before that as I study Ecclesiastes I am always thinking, "but I would like to try".
Why though? Why would I like to try? Well, because I don't have faith like I thought I did. When faced with all the financial problems that I posted about recently I didn't turn to God. I sat down to write another Ecclesiastes post and read "Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit" (Ecclesiastes 2:17) and thought.....EXACTLY! Have you ever done that? I think it is something I have done numerous times and I have a feeling I will do it again. I suppose that is how God grows our faith.
Solomon does something in these verses I often see people with money do. They take all the credit. Do you suppose Solomon really did any of the labor? I think not. Do you suppose Solomon went out and told the workers that success was vanity and vexation of spirit? I bet he did.
Here's something you should never do if you own your own company. You should never ever complain about money to your employees. It makes them feel like their job is not good enough. It is even worse in Solomons case....... You should never complain about money while it is obvious that your doing well and your employees are struggling. This inspires bitter feelings.
Solomon was the richest man ever and to take the credit for their labor and say he wasn't happy with it while the labors saw how he prospered...... doesn't exactly inspire anyone to follow God and it obviously brought Solomon nothing but misery.
I see Christians today who have plenty but give nothing or if they do give, they give to some foreign country, charity, and/or anything other than those around them. I see Christians in charge of others who tell them to "tighten up" while they are buying new cars, trucks, motor homes, and taking trips. I bet Solomon told his labors to work harder and they looked at the life he was leading and thought .......why?
So money doesn't buy happiness, what then? Maybe it's the idea that it brings security. I certainly only saw nothing but doom in my recent financial trouble. I wanted the security that money brings. I wanted the peace the security would bring. Awwwww......but look at Solomon. Money and security did not bring peace. He broke fellowship with God and Ecclesiastes is the result. I broke fellowship with God and the previous few post are the results.
There is no peace outside Jesus. It's a lesson I must learn again and again. It's a lesson I offer to you to learn yet again. Without Jesus as my focus I see nothing but people prospering while I struggle. With Jesus as my focus I see nothing but Him. What else is there?
Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit.
Yea, I hated all my labor which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.
And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labor wherein I have labored, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.
Therefore I went about to cause my heart to despair of all the labor which I took under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 2:16-20).
People often say that money can not buy happiness. You may not agree but it seems to me that the people who tell me that the most, have money. People without usually will add, "but I would like to try". I think Solomon was telling us as part of the over all message in Ecclesiastes that money does not bring happiness. I must confess as I believe I have done before that as I study Ecclesiastes I am always thinking, "but I would like to try".
Why though? Why would I like to try? Well, because I don't have faith like I thought I did. When faced with all the financial problems that I posted about recently I didn't turn to God. I sat down to write another Ecclesiastes post and read "Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of spirit" (Ecclesiastes 2:17) and thought.....EXACTLY! Have you ever done that? I think it is something I have done numerous times and I have a feeling I will do it again. I suppose that is how God grows our faith.
Solomon does something in these verses I often see people with money do. They take all the credit. Do you suppose Solomon really did any of the labor? I think not. Do you suppose Solomon went out and told the workers that success was vanity and vexation of spirit? I bet he did.
Here's something you should never do if you own your own company. You should never ever complain about money to your employees. It makes them feel like their job is not good enough. It is even worse in Solomons case....... You should never complain about money while it is obvious that your doing well and your employees are struggling. This inspires bitter feelings.
Solomon was the richest man ever and to take the credit for their labor and say he wasn't happy with it while the labors saw how he prospered...... doesn't exactly inspire anyone to follow God and it obviously brought Solomon nothing but misery.
I see Christians today who have plenty but give nothing or if they do give, they give to some foreign country, charity, and/or anything other than those around them. I see Christians in charge of others who tell them to "tighten up" while they are buying new cars, trucks, motor homes, and taking trips. I bet Solomon told his labors to work harder and they looked at the life he was leading and thought .......why?
So money doesn't buy happiness, what then? Maybe it's the idea that it brings security. I certainly only saw nothing but doom in my recent financial trouble. I wanted the security that money brings. I wanted the peace the security would bring. Awwwww......but look at Solomon. Money and security did not bring peace. He broke fellowship with God and Ecclesiastes is the result. I broke fellowship with God and the previous few post are the results.
There is no peace outside Jesus. It's a lesson I must learn again and again. It's a lesson I offer to you to learn yet again. Without Jesus as my focus I see nothing but people prospering while I struggle. With Jesus as my focus I see nothing but Him. What else is there?
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Ecclesiastes 2:16
"For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool forever; seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how dieth the wise man? as the fool" (Ecclesiastes 2:16).
Today we had communion at church. It caused me to reflect, to prove myself, to examine, to reevaluate......it got me praying. I felt unworthy to take communion and thus I zoned out on the preaching and turned my attention to God and found that I have been floundering. Floundering has an interesting definition. It is, "To make clumsy attempts to move or regain one's balance. To move or act clumsily and in confusion". This is and has been me.
I wonder if Solomon was floundering when he wrote the above line. obviously he did not think it would be remembered. I wonder what I'm doing for God that will be remembered. I want to do something.
I decided today that I am a hot coal. I smolder and make a lot of smoke and every now and then I flame up but I'm finding that I can't seem to catch anything on fire. It's hard to smolder. I miss my seminary extension classes and can't wait for them to start up again but I'm drifting off topic.
There was a man who drove through the fields one day picking up teenagers who were doing their chores. He spotted a boy bailing hay and asked if he would like to join the others on his old flatbed truck and come to a revival. That boy accepted. We know him as Billy Graham. We don't remember the man driving the truck but I wonder if he was smoldering until the day God used him to catch Billy Graham on fire.
I hope that I can catch something on fire here. I hope I can make a difference. I hope that God will use me to put something here worthy of remembering and I hope it's not me getting in the way of starting a fire. I hope I am done floundering.
Today we had communion at church. It caused me to reflect, to prove myself, to examine, to reevaluate......it got me praying. I felt unworthy to take communion and thus I zoned out on the preaching and turned my attention to God and found that I have been floundering. Floundering has an interesting definition. It is, "To make clumsy attempts to move or regain one's balance. To move or act clumsily and in confusion". This is and has been me.
I wonder if Solomon was floundering when he wrote the above line. obviously he did not think it would be remembered. I wonder what I'm doing for God that will be remembered. I want to do something.
I decided today that I am a hot coal. I smolder and make a lot of smoke and every now and then I flame up but I'm finding that I can't seem to catch anything on fire. It's hard to smolder. I miss my seminary extension classes and can't wait for them to start up again but I'm drifting off topic.
There was a man who drove through the fields one day picking up teenagers who were doing their chores. He spotted a boy bailing hay and asked if he would like to join the others on his old flatbed truck and come to a revival. That boy accepted. We know him as Billy Graham. We don't remember the man driving the truck but I wonder if he was smoldering until the day God used him to catch Billy Graham on fire.
I hope that I can catch something on fire here. I hope I can make a difference. I hope that God will use me to put something here worthy of remembering and I hope it's not me getting in the way of starting a fire. I hope I am done floundering.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Between the Head and the Heart
I have often heard that "You can't just have head knowledge. You have to have Him in your heart".
Alright then, got that covered, next......is pretty much my thinking on that.......Until now.
My head explodes with all sorts of stuff. Do I believe it? Heck Ya!
Did I believe God could get us out of our financial difficulties? Did I believe He could calm the storm our household had become?
Yep, but did I believe He would? ......... Awwwwwwww........now I'm falling short.
I was talking with a person today and I was telling them what I'm about to tell all of you who for reasons beyond me frequent my rants and raves at this blog and actually seem to care about them! But I digress, as I was saying, I was talking to somebody today and I told them I felt like at any time God would simply draw a line in the sand and say, "That's it, I'm not taking care of you anymore, time to reap what you have sown your whole wasted life!".
I suppose that characterizes my walk with God. I don't ask for much since I don't think I deserve much. I'm always waiting for Him to punish me..... but He never has....... not really.....Certainly not what I deserve and continue to probably deserve.
So my world was all falling apart and I'm thinking, "This it it! Here comes a life time of devastation upon me. Time to reap what I have sown"........ and so as the deadline drew ever closer and things flew into a disarray at the home front here I do what I always do when I'm upset. I sat down and began to write. A whole bunch of you read that and began praying. I CAN NOT EVER THANK ALL OF YOU ENOUGH!
My dad who I have pretty much treated like a door mat my entire life decided that after his visit down here that something good has happened with my wife and I. He decided that she has made us a nice home. He thought she was happy and was doing a great job raising her kids that have come to live with us. He thought I was a "new person". He didn't think we deserved to lose everything because I was a royal mess up not so very long ago and so he gave us the loan........the day before the deadline.
I received a letter from the IRS today. They did indeed cease my income tax return. It was more than enough to pay them off and we are expecting a tidy return. Student loans are paid off and will not be garnishing my wages. The money that used to goto my ex is now going to my dad. Nobody is comming after me for anything anymore.
Did I believe God could do all these things? YES!
Did I believe He would? No..... I don't think I did........But He did it anyways........and as far as I can tell it's because I ranted and all of you prayed.
THANK YOU!
I think I'm going to start believe that God will bring my daughter back to me in 3 years when she turns 18.
I will try to get back to a regular posting schedule soon, resuming Ecclesiastes.
Alright then, got that covered, next......is pretty much my thinking on that.......Until now.
My head explodes with all sorts of stuff. Do I believe it? Heck Ya!
Did I believe God could get us out of our financial difficulties? Did I believe He could calm the storm our household had become?
Yep, but did I believe He would? ......... Awwwwwwww........now I'm falling short.
I was talking with a person today and I was telling them what I'm about to tell all of you who for reasons beyond me frequent my rants and raves at this blog and actually seem to care about them! But I digress, as I was saying, I was talking to somebody today and I told them I felt like at any time God would simply draw a line in the sand and say, "That's it, I'm not taking care of you anymore, time to reap what you have sown your whole wasted life!".
I suppose that characterizes my walk with God. I don't ask for much since I don't think I deserve much. I'm always waiting for Him to punish me..... but He never has....... not really.....Certainly not what I deserve and continue to probably deserve.
So my world was all falling apart and I'm thinking, "This it it! Here comes a life time of devastation upon me. Time to reap what I have sown"........ and so as the deadline drew ever closer and things flew into a disarray at the home front here I do what I always do when I'm upset. I sat down and began to write. A whole bunch of you read that and began praying. I CAN NOT EVER THANK ALL OF YOU ENOUGH!
My dad who I have pretty much treated like a door mat my entire life decided that after his visit down here that something good has happened with my wife and I. He decided that she has made us a nice home. He thought she was happy and was doing a great job raising her kids that have come to live with us. He thought I was a "new person". He didn't think we deserved to lose everything because I was a royal mess up not so very long ago and so he gave us the loan........the day before the deadline.
I received a letter from the IRS today. They did indeed cease my income tax return. It was more than enough to pay them off and we are expecting a tidy return. Student loans are paid off and will not be garnishing my wages. The money that used to goto my ex is now going to my dad. Nobody is comming after me for anything anymore.
Did I believe God could do all these things? YES!
Did I believe He would? No..... I don't think I did........But He did it anyways........and as far as I can tell it's because I ranted and all of you prayed.
THANK YOU!
I think I'm going to start believe that God will bring my daughter back to me in 3 years when she turns 18.
I will try to get back to a regular posting schedule soon, resuming Ecclesiastes.
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Why I Haven't Written
The reason I started writing here was because I am exploding with stuff to say about the Word of God. That, and I wanted to convince myself that life isn't all that bad. Well, I'm still exploding with stuff to say about the Word of God but life is bad and it's been getting worse.
I simply can not sit down here and write hope filled messages when I feel pretty much without hope. I can not continue the study of Ecclesiastes when in reality I envy Solomon. I wish I could know that I am not one paycheck away from being homeless with student loans, my ex, and eventually the IRS doing there very best to make sure I don't bring home any paycheck at all.
I currently have 312$ a month removed for child support. That's all fine and dandy. I accept it. My ex absconded my daughter and after 2 years claimed I abandoned her, took me to court, forced me out of her life, adopted her to some other man, and won all the child support I didn't pay for the time she was missing. That's 10,000$ left to pay. FINE! It's the consequences of sin.
The IRS says I don't make enough money to pay them the 6000$ dollars my ex stuck on me when she changed our filings and lost the earned income tax credit the last year we were together. FINE! I agree. I don't make enough money to pay that debt, but I would like too and be done with it.
I tried to better myself at one point in my life and went to school to be a welder. I graduated with two welding certificates but nothing really ever came of it. NEVER GET A STUDENT LOAN!!! They are impossible to repay. In any case, unlike the IRS, student loans thinks I make plenty of money. So much so they decided they would help themselves to 181$ a month. FINE! I owe it. I should pay it.
Now if God would simply tell me how I'm going to do it all? I have some ideas but it seems God does not want me to accept my responsibility and pay these debts off. It seems he would rather watch us go under as my marriage crumbles under the burden of "my past.
Oh but Michael, Have you been tithing?
Um.........NO! Show me how!
Well, Have you been going to church?
Ummmmmmm.....NO! I don't feel like making nice with the 3 life long dedicated old women I can't relate too that attend our church.
Well have you at least prayed then?
YES! They bounce off the ceiling.
Are you in sin?
Probably......I probably sin on a by the moment basis in my head.
Well then how can God help you?
I THOUGHT THAT WAS WHAT GOD WAS ALL ABOUT! Ya know, unconditional love, can't earn His favor, all forgiving......helps those who can't help themselves......all that jazz.
It's not like I don't have a plan. If I could borrow 15000$ dollars I could pay student loans off and my ex and then apply the 312$ a month that she was getting to the loan and pay it off in 4 years and be debt free by the time I'm 42.
What about the IRS? Well, they will seize the next couple income tax returns since student loans won't be able to seize them anymore and my ex won't be in line for them. The IRS is the only people making any sense. "Mr. Pendleton, You don't make enough money to pay us!".
Ding Ding Ding! That is the correct answer!
I imagine they will take a cut pretty soon.
But you know what? Nobody is going to give me a loan. No one anywhere at any time is going to accept me for a loan. I have tried. I can't get one. I have bad credit from...guess what? Defaulted student loans!
Never had a credit card. Never bought anything on credit ever till this marriage and the only reason we have the two things we have on credit, a car and a TV, is because they are in my mother -in-laws name.
In any case, my life is crumbling. I can't pay everything and we are going under. My marriage is crumbling. Everything is falling apart and I simply do not feel like writing anymore. Pretty soon the interenet will be turned off anyways.
I simply can not sit down here and write hope filled messages when I feel pretty much without hope. I can not continue the study of Ecclesiastes when in reality I envy Solomon. I wish I could know that I am not one paycheck away from being homeless with student loans, my ex, and eventually the IRS doing there very best to make sure I don't bring home any paycheck at all.
I currently have 312$ a month removed for child support. That's all fine and dandy. I accept it. My ex absconded my daughter and after 2 years claimed I abandoned her, took me to court, forced me out of her life, adopted her to some other man, and won all the child support I didn't pay for the time she was missing. That's 10,000$ left to pay. FINE! It's the consequences of sin.
The IRS says I don't make enough money to pay them the 6000$ dollars my ex stuck on me when she changed our filings and lost the earned income tax credit the last year we were together. FINE! I agree. I don't make enough money to pay that debt, but I would like too and be done with it.
I tried to better myself at one point in my life and went to school to be a welder. I graduated with two welding certificates but nothing really ever came of it. NEVER GET A STUDENT LOAN!!! They are impossible to repay. In any case, unlike the IRS, student loans thinks I make plenty of money. So much so they decided they would help themselves to 181$ a month. FINE! I owe it. I should pay it.
Now if God would simply tell me how I'm going to do it all? I have some ideas but it seems God does not want me to accept my responsibility and pay these debts off. It seems he would rather watch us go under as my marriage crumbles under the burden of "my past.
Oh but Michael, Have you been tithing?
Um.........NO! Show me how!
Well, Have you been going to church?
Ummmmmmm.....NO! I don't feel like making nice with the 3 life long dedicated old women I can't relate too that attend our church.
Well have you at least prayed then?
YES! They bounce off the ceiling.
Are you in sin?
Probably......I probably sin on a by the moment basis in my head.
Well then how can God help you?
I THOUGHT THAT WAS WHAT GOD WAS ALL ABOUT! Ya know, unconditional love, can't earn His favor, all forgiving......helps those who can't help themselves......all that jazz.
It's not like I don't have a plan. If I could borrow 15000$ dollars I could pay student loans off and my ex and then apply the 312$ a month that she was getting to the loan and pay it off in 4 years and be debt free by the time I'm 42.
What about the IRS? Well, they will seize the next couple income tax returns since student loans won't be able to seize them anymore and my ex won't be in line for them. The IRS is the only people making any sense. "Mr. Pendleton, You don't make enough money to pay us!".
Ding Ding Ding! That is the correct answer!
I imagine they will take a cut pretty soon.
But you know what? Nobody is going to give me a loan. No one anywhere at any time is going to accept me for a loan. I have tried. I can't get one. I have bad credit from...guess what? Defaulted student loans!
Never had a credit card. Never bought anything on credit ever till this marriage and the only reason we have the two things we have on credit, a car and a TV, is because they are in my mother -in-laws name.
In any case, my life is crumbling. I can't pay everything and we are going under. My marriage is crumbling. Everything is falling apart and I simply do not feel like writing anymore. Pretty soon the interenet will be turned off anyways.
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Alive and Kicking
I'm alive and kicking. That couple days off from rain is now having it's repercussions and I have been working a bit longer hours plus the past couple Saturdays to make up for it. It's rent and car payment weeks. I wish I lived in a mud hut in the woods.
The heat has just been wiping me out. I get all the heat with none of the benefits lately working inside new construction homes without and power, much less, A/C. Sometimes were lucky and a breeze blows through.
Been working in the yard a bit. Got this bug that I want to have a tropical rain forest in my back yard and so I have been getting all the free plants I can from people. Got 4 banana trees growing now. Think I'm going to make a pond with a fountain back in the bamboo we have and try and get some sorta peaceful spot I can go sit at. If everyone is lucky I just might share it when I'm done. Maybe I'll make me a little mud hut back there too.
My mind definitely hasn't been on the blog. I didn't exactly realize how many days have gone by since I last posted something. I can't even begin to say when I even looked at it. I haven't checked mail in a few days. I know that. I've been coming home and kicking back trying to absorb as much A/C as I can. I have read one book and am just getting going in another. Been awhile since I have read anything completely. Makes me realize how much time I really do spend doing stuff. I was thinking about that Sunday working in the yard. How much time I spend at the computer, working, sleeping, eating, reading........Almost in that order and then I thought......What about God? What time am I spending with Him? I decided that in everything I do I am with Him and went back to pulling dead branches to the road.
Our girls are out of school now and my wife said something when we were at the city pool a couple weeks back about the memories they are going to have of their childhood are going to be memories of me pretty much since when the go to see their dad this summer it is only 2 months out of the year and he doesn't spend any time with them while they are there........sooooooooooo........I have been playing with them a bit more too. We just had a big water fight yesterday and I got my butt kicked at PIG (basketball) tonight.
Anyways, I was sipping on a milk shake my wife made me...YUMMY! and she wanted me to Google something and I checked mail and here I am, and there ya go.
I'll try and get back to a normal posting schedule soon.
The heat has just been wiping me out. I get all the heat with none of the benefits lately working inside new construction homes without and power, much less, A/C. Sometimes were lucky and a breeze blows through.
Been working in the yard a bit. Got this bug that I want to have a tropical rain forest in my back yard and so I have been getting all the free plants I can from people. Got 4 banana trees growing now. Think I'm going to make a pond with a fountain back in the bamboo we have and try and get some sorta peaceful spot I can go sit at. If everyone is lucky I just might share it when I'm done. Maybe I'll make me a little mud hut back there too.
My mind definitely hasn't been on the blog. I didn't exactly realize how many days have gone by since I last posted something. I can't even begin to say when I even looked at it. I haven't checked mail in a few days. I know that. I've been coming home and kicking back trying to absorb as much A/C as I can. I have read one book and am just getting going in another. Been awhile since I have read anything completely. Makes me realize how much time I really do spend doing stuff. I was thinking about that Sunday working in the yard. How much time I spend at the computer, working, sleeping, eating, reading........Almost in that order and then I thought......What about God? What time am I spending with Him? I decided that in everything I do I am with Him and went back to pulling dead branches to the road.
Our girls are out of school now and my wife said something when we were at the city pool a couple weeks back about the memories they are going to have of their childhood are going to be memories of me pretty much since when the go to see their dad this summer it is only 2 months out of the year and he doesn't spend any time with them while they are there........sooooooooooo........I have been playing with them a bit more too. We just had a big water fight yesterday and I got my butt kicked at PIG (basketball) tonight.
Anyways, I was sipping on a milk shake my wife made me...YUMMY! and she wanted me to Google something and I checked mail and here I am, and there ya go.
I'll try and get back to a normal posting schedule soon.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
The Weekend
Sorry I'm late on the next Ecclesiastes post. I'm sorry I'm late with a post period.
I thought about posting Friday but I thought I would wait for Saturday, you see, Saturday was pageant day. My wife and her mom enters one of our daughters in pageants. That means I stay out of the way all day long and/or hide which means usually watch a movie or sit at the computer. Yesterday however was not one of those days. I decided to go outside and rake our yard. While I was at it I raked my mother-in-laws yard and then part of our neighbors. It was like Jesus said, "Are you frustrated? RAKE!". And so I did with 3 big ol scabbed up blisters to show for it.
Today we took the girls to the city pool and now my big fat belly is all tanned and I'm tired from throwing girls through the air and pulling them around the pool at break neck speed!
We probably should be going to church right about now but were going to stay home. I'm just not ready for another sermon on how to get saved....but I digress
I will try tomorrow to get the next Ecclesiastes post up. I know what I want to write about. I have it all in my head. I just need a couple names I don't feel like looking up right now and I'll be set. It's going to be on Ecclesiastes 2:16-17. Just think of what one person can do. Can you think of any examples? I'll give you a hint. Abraham.
Thanks for all your comments on the previous post. I didn't expect that! Just some spontaneous thoughts that dumped out into a post.
Thanks for coming to Deeper Truth!
I thought about posting Friday but I thought I would wait for Saturday, you see, Saturday was pageant day. My wife and her mom enters one of our daughters in pageants. That means I stay out of the way all day long and/or hide which means usually watch a movie or sit at the computer. Yesterday however was not one of those days. I decided to go outside and rake our yard. While I was at it I raked my mother-in-laws yard and then part of our neighbors. It was like Jesus said, "Are you frustrated? RAKE!". And so I did with 3 big ol scabbed up blisters to show for it.
Today we took the girls to the city pool and now my big fat belly is all tanned and I'm tired from throwing girls through the air and pulling them around the pool at break neck speed!
We probably should be going to church right about now but were going to stay home. I'm just not ready for another sermon on how to get saved....but I digress
I will try tomorrow to get the next Ecclesiastes post up. I know what I want to write about. I have it all in my head. I just need a couple names I don't feel like looking up right now and I'll be set. It's going to be on Ecclesiastes 2:16-17. Just think of what one person can do. Can you think of any examples? I'll give you a hint. Abraham.
Thanks for all your comments on the previous post. I didn't expect that! Just some spontaneous thoughts that dumped out into a post.
Thanks for coming to Deeper Truth!
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Jesus is my American Idol!
My wife likes to watch American Idol so we were watching tonight when the contestants all went back to their respective home towns to thousands upon thousands of cheering, screaming, hysterical, people.
All this for people who are not even technically stars yet.
Wouldn't it be nice if we could get that excited about a Savior who died to show how much He loved us and wanted us to be with Him?
Jesus wasn't a star but there was a time when He road into a city to cheering, screaming, hysterical, people......yet the same people screamed "Crucify Him!" only a few short hours later.
People are fickle like that and thus the church is driven in purpose to please the people with it's best American Idol glitz and glam to attract an unfaithful bunch who only want to hear about their best life now.
Perhaps if we would "determined not to know any thing among" the world, "save Jesus Christ, and him crucified" the Holy Ghost would move and produce "The sacrifices of God" which "are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart". "The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit" ( 1 Corinthians 2:2, Psalm 51:17,34:18).
What did that say? The Lord would SAVE them!
We have it all backwards.
"He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him" (Psalm 126:6).
We want to rejoice first. We want feel good messages that will help us find a purpose for our best life now. We don't want to be told that smoking a cigarette is a sin. We don't want to be told that living together out of wedlock is a sin. We don't want to hear about our braty kids that don't listen because we plop them in front of video games and TV's while we work two jobs and marriages crumble chasing an American Idol dream. Nope! We want to forget all that every Sunday when we go to church and hear what a great bunch of people we are and how proud god (small G) is of us for simply showing up every other Sunday for the fourth service.
I'm rambling. This is a spontaneous post. Just something I was thinking about.........maybe God will use it bear some precious seed.
All this for people who are not even technically stars yet.
Wouldn't it be nice if we could get that excited about a Savior who died to show how much He loved us and wanted us to be with Him?
Jesus wasn't a star but there was a time when He road into a city to cheering, screaming, hysterical, people......yet the same people screamed "Crucify Him!" only a few short hours later.
People are fickle like that and thus the church is driven in purpose to please the people with it's best American Idol glitz and glam to attract an unfaithful bunch who only want to hear about their best life now.
Perhaps if we would "determined not to know any thing among" the world, "save Jesus Christ, and him crucified" the Holy Ghost would move and produce "The sacrifices of God" which "are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart". "The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit" ( 1 Corinthians 2:2, Psalm 51:17,34:18).
What did that say? The Lord would SAVE them!
We have it all backwards.
"He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him" (Psalm 126:6).
We want to rejoice first. We want feel good messages that will help us find a purpose for our best life now. We don't want to be told that smoking a cigarette is a sin. We don't want to be told that living together out of wedlock is a sin. We don't want to hear about our braty kids that don't listen because we plop them in front of video games and TV's while we work two jobs and marriages crumble chasing an American Idol dream. Nope! We want to forget all that every Sunday when we go to church and hear what a great bunch of people we are and how proud god (small G) is of us for simply showing up every other Sunday for the fourth service.
I'm rambling. This is a spontaneous post. Just something I was thinking about.........maybe God will use it bear some precious seed.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Ecclesiastes 2:14-15
"The wise man's eyes are in his head; but the fool walketh in darkness: and I myself perceived also that one event happeneth to them all. Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is vanity" (Ecclesiastes 2:14-15).
In the previous Ecclesiastes post we saw that in verse 11 Solomon turns to look back at everything. In verse 12 he turns himself to look back upon his actions. Now he begins to draw conclusions from looking back upon his past and actions.
Solomon knew that the wisdom of a sensible person guides his way of life, but the stupidity of fools misleads them (See Proverbs 14:8). He also knew wisdom is directly in front of an understanding person, but the eyes of a fool are looking around all over the world (See Proverbs 17:24).
The Hebrew word roshe means to shake; the head (as most easily shaken). It would seem that Solomon is saying that a wise man is not easily shaken. The word rendered darkness is kho-shek'. It means, the dark; hence (literally) darkness; figuratively misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness: - dark (-ness), night, obscurity. I am pretty sure Solomon was miserable. I believe he knew he was walking toward destruction and death. I believe he knew he walked in wickedness. If he didn't know while he was walking in those paths he certainly knew when he sat to write Ecclesiastes and looked back at the path he took.
Perhaps Solomons was warning us. Do not let your focus be shaken from the Lord or you will die! In the Word of God separation from God is death. Sin separates us from God. No, We don't lose our salvation but we separate ourselves from God by our sins. God's Word says, "Every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death (James 1:14-15).
Do a search of the word fool in Proverbs. You will find it 41 times in 41 verses. What Solomon says about fools in Proverbs all applies to him! Maybe this is why he says here, "As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise?". Here is one example of what God has to say about a fool through Solomon in Proverbs. "Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit" (Proverbs 25:5).
We are seeing God's answer to Solomons folly in Ecclesiastes. Solomon was drawen away by his lust which caused is eyes to be shaken from the Lord which caused him to walk into darkness where he was separated from the Lord and died spiritually which brought misery and sorrow. God's answer was to rise up 3 adversaries against Solomon which most likely caused havoc in his kingdom. I imagine Solomon was full of regret at this point, looking back, remembering the wisdom God had given him that he exchanged for the folly of the world. Then he said, "that this also is vanity" or pointless.
It is indeed pointless to allow anything to distract us from the Lord, but, God Is Good! "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9). This promise is only for those who know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. If your saved may I ask what foolish decisions have shaken your eyes from the Lord today? May I be so bold as to ask what you might need to bring to God and confess? You don't have to carry that burden anymore. The guilt will be lifted. The darkness will clear.
Death does come for everyone. The wise and fool alike. For the fool who dies without Christ there will be no forgiveness and cleansing. They will be eternally separated from God, the second death. "Death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death" (Revelations 20:14). If you don't know where your going then click below to find out about Jesus. Don't die a fool.
I want to know Jesus
In the previous Ecclesiastes post we saw that in verse 11 Solomon turns to look back at everything. In verse 12 he turns himself to look back upon his actions. Now he begins to draw conclusions from looking back upon his past and actions.
Solomon knew that the wisdom of a sensible person guides his way of life, but the stupidity of fools misleads them (See Proverbs 14:8). He also knew wisdom is directly in front of an understanding person, but the eyes of a fool are looking around all over the world (See Proverbs 17:24).
The Hebrew word roshe means to shake; the head (as most easily shaken). It would seem that Solomon is saying that a wise man is not easily shaken. The word rendered darkness is kho-shek'. It means, the dark; hence (literally) darkness; figuratively misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness: - dark (-ness), night, obscurity. I am pretty sure Solomon was miserable. I believe he knew he was walking toward destruction and death. I believe he knew he walked in wickedness. If he didn't know while he was walking in those paths he certainly knew when he sat to write Ecclesiastes and looked back at the path he took.
Perhaps Solomons was warning us. Do not let your focus be shaken from the Lord or you will die! In the Word of God separation from God is death. Sin separates us from God. No, We don't lose our salvation but we separate ourselves from God by our sins. God's Word says, "Every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death (James 1:14-15).
Do a search of the word fool in Proverbs. You will find it 41 times in 41 verses. What Solomon says about fools in Proverbs all applies to him! Maybe this is why he says here, "As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to me; and why was I then more wise?". Here is one example of what God has to say about a fool through Solomon in Proverbs. "Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit" (Proverbs 25:5).
We are seeing God's answer to Solomons folly in Ecclesiastes. Solomon was drawen away by his lust which caused is eyes to be shaken from the Lord which caused him to walk into darkness where he was separated from the Lord and died spiritually which brought misery and sorrow. God's answer was to rise up 3 adversaries against Solomon which most likely caused havoc in his kingdom. I imagine Solomon was full of regret at this point, looking back, remembering the wisdom God had given him that he exchanged for the folly of the world. Then he said, "that this also is vanity" or pointless.
It is indeed pointless to allow anything to distract us from the Lord, but, God Is Good! "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9). This promise is only for those who know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. If your saved may I ask what foolish decisions have shaken your eyes from the Lord today? May I be so bold as to ask what you might need to bring to God and confess? You don't have to carry that burden anymore. The guilt will be lifted. The darkness will clear.
Death does come for everyone. The wise and fool alike. For the fool who dies without Christ there will be no forgiveness and cleansing. They will be eternally separated from God, the second death. "Death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death" (Revelations 20:14). If you don't know where your going then click below to find out about Jesus. Don't die a fool.
I want to know Jesus
Monday, May 15, 2006
Going to be late posting, SORRY!
I'm sorry I have not got to the next Ecclesiastes post.
We had revival last week. This past weekend was busy. Tonight I have the last classes of the quarter for my seminary extension classes.
Got the final test tonight! *whew*
I will try and get the next post by tomorrow night.
Sorry!
Thanks for coming to Deeper Truth!
We had revival last week. This past weekend was busy. Tonight I have the last classes of the quarter for my seminary extension classes.
Got the final test tonight! *whew*
I will try and get the next post by tomorrow night.
Sorry!
Thanks for coming to Deeper Truth!
Friday, May 12, 2006
Called to Preach
I think I have always knowen that the Lord has a purpose for me. I think I might have even knowen this before I was born again. I believe I was always and still am scared of the purpose. "What if I stumble? What if I fall? What if I lose my step and make a fool of us all? Will the love continue, when my walk becomes a crawl?"*
When I first got saved I got to the part of the Word where Solomon asked for wisdom. Of course this is after Proverbs, and I thought, YES! This is my prayer! This is it! I think the Lord honored that request. I also think Satan stomped all over it and I let him for a long time. Satan did this with one sentence I have heard repeatedly. "You have to have more than a head knowledge". I know better than to let this judgmental statement get the better of me now.
I believe I have been called to preach. I started actually voicing that belief almost two years ago. It scares me to death. I have preached four times. Once on Heaven and the other three times I preached what I believe I am called to preach which is, "the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins" (Mark 1:4).
I have repeatedly heard from people, even my wife, that preaching sin is not what people want to here. I should preach an encouraging message. My pastor has even fell into this trap. This is why I have preached once on Heaven.
I'm not sure I'm called to be a pastor, the fear of failure looms large, but I have no doubt I am called to preach. I think my call is that of Ezekiel. "Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD" (Ezekiel 37:4). I think I am to be an evangelist which I have often heard is a dying thing. I believe I am to be an evangelist to the church.
"God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are" (1 Corinthians 1:27-28).
I believe these verses are me. I was and may still be the foolish thing. I was certainly base.
I have heard that the message of repentance is not being preached anymore. I hear a lot of people talking about that fact. I see a lot of pews that are empty and I see alot of pews full of empty people. I believe the end is near. I believe Jesus is coming soon. I believe the message, "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2) is the right Word for the right time and as scary as it may be and as much as I'm afraid I could be wrong and/or fail I think I am the man called.
I'm just waiting on the Lord to, I guess, have other men see it too.
*lyrics by DC Talk
When I first got saved I got to the part of the Word where Solomon asked for wisdom. Of course this is after Proverbs, and I thought, YES! This is my prayer! This is it! I think the Lord honored that request. I also think Satan stomped all over it and I let him for a long time. Satan did this with one sentence I have heard repeatedly. "You have to have more than a head knowledge". I know better than to let this judgmental statement get the better of me now.
I believe I have been called to preach. I started actually voicing that belief almost two years ago. It scares me to death. I have preached four times. Once on Heaven and the other three times I preached what I believe I am called to preach which is, "the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins" (Mark 1:4).
I have repeatedly heard from people, even my wife, that preaching sin is not what people want to here. I should preach an encouraging message. My pastor has even fell into this trap. This is why I have preached once on Heaven.
I'm not sure I'm called to be a pastor, the fear of failure looms large, but I have no doubt I am called to preach. I think my call is that of Ezekiel. "Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD" (Ezekiel 37:4). I think I am to be an evangelist which I have often heard is a dying thing. I believe I am to be an evangelist to the church.
"God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to naught things that are" (1 Corinthians 1:27-28).
I believe these verses are me. I was and may still be the foolish thing. I was certainly base.
I have heard that the message of repentance is not being preached anymore. I hear a lot of people talking about that fact. I see a lot of pews that are empty and I see alot of pews full of empty people. I believe the end is near. I believe Jesus is coming soon. I believe the message, "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2) is the right Word for the right time and as scary as it may be and as much as I'm afraid I could be wrong and/or fail I think I am the man called.
I'm just waiting on the Lord to, I guess, have other men see it too.
*lyrics by DC Talk
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Ecclesiastes 2:11-13
"Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.
And I turned myself to behold wisdom, and madness, and folly: for what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done.
Then I saw that wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness" (Ecclesiastes 2:11-13).
We covered verse 11 in the previous Ecclesiastes post. I include it here for the first part that says, "Then I looked".
Before chapter 2 verse 11 Solomon was talking about all that he had done. He really hasn't gotten into his full rant yet. Everything before lays the foundation for everything to come. It is in chapter 2 verse 11 that Solomon begins forming Ecclesiastes in his mind. He's looking back now at all that was before this verse. From here on out everything is a review, with more elaboration, of everything already said.
Solomon turns to look back at everything. In verse 12 he turns himself to look back upon his actions. In Ecclesiastes 2:10 I stated, "I am convinced he delved into the deepest darkest sins any of us can imagine". I think Solomon saying, "what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done." is another hint that he did everything we can imagine somebody totally rich, totally powerful, totally in control, and totally in charge can, could, and/or would do.
Notice in verse 13 that it is after everything is said and done he realizes that "wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness". Isn't that the way we are? When we are walking in darkness we are blind. We can't see! At best we can only see what is right in front of us.
When we keep company with folly then folly is all we will know. Everything will be ridiculous. Not ridiculous funny either. Ridiculous as in nothing will make sense. There is no meaning to life in folly. It's all for the moment with no vision beyond that moment. It's when we repent of our ways and turn to the Lord and His wisdom in His Word that we find ourselves looking back at where we were and saying, "Wisdom is better than foolish ways".
If you are like me you have suddenly walked into the light several times and found out just how far in the dark you were. Darkness is always a subtle thing. It creeps in as the light fades but light is always a sudden thing. Light banishes darkness in an instant but darkness will never banish light.
Though I may choose to walk in the Light of the Lord I have often found myself in the dark and wondering how I got there......usually just after the Lord brings me out.
Where are you today?
And I turned myself to behold wisdom, and madness, and folly: for what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done.
Then I saw that wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness" (Ecclesiastes 2:11-13).
We covered verse 11 in the previous Ecclesiastes post. I include it here for the first part that says, "Then I looked".
Before chapter 2 verse 11 Solomon was talking about all that he had done. He really hasn't gotten into his full rant yet. Everything before lays the foundation for everything to come. It is in chapter 2 verse 11 that Solomon begins forming Ecclesiastes in his mind. He's looking back now at all that was before this verse. From here on out everything is a review, with more elaboration, of everything already said.
Solomon turns to look back at everything. In verse 12 he turns himself to look back upon his actions. In Ecclesiastes 2:10 I stated, "I am convinced he delved into the deepest darkest sins any of us can imagine". I think Solomon saying, "what can the man do that cometh after the king? even that which hath been already done." is another hint that he did everything we can imagine somebody totally rich, totally powerful, totally in control, and totally in charge can, could, and/or would do.
Notice in verse 13 that it is after everything is said and done he realizes that "wisdom excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth darkness". Isn't that the way we are? When we are walking in darkness we are blind. We can't see! At best we can only see what is right in front of us.
When we keep company with folly then folly is all we will know. Everything will be ridiculous. Not ridiculous funny either. Ridiculous as in nothing will make sense. There is no meaning to life in folly. It's all for the moment with no vision beyond that moment. It's when we repent of our ways and turn to the Lord and His wisdom in His Word that we find ourselves looking back at where we were and saying, "Wisdom is better than foolish ways".
If you are like me you have suddenly walked into the light several times and found out just how far in the dark you were. Darkness is always a subtle thing. It creeps in as the light fades but light is always a sudden thing. Light banishes darkness in an instant but darkness will never banish light.
Though I may choose to walk in the Light of the Lord I have often found myself in the dark and wondering how I got there......usually just after the Lord brings me out.
Where are you today?
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
*Sigh* Rained out again!
I'm going to go broke without work. I am one of those people who simply cannot afford any days off. Two days in a row is going to cripple us for a month of making up the difference.
Anyways, I'm going to work on the next Ecclesiastes post and God willing get it posted sometime today. ...... EDIT: It's later now. I did yard work and emptied a shed of a bunch of trash. I have revival in a little bit. No new Ecclesiastes post today. Sorry.
If my mom reads this....SEND MONEY!
Yep, I'm a big kid!
Just in case you missed any.....
Ecclesiastes 2:10 and Ecclesiastes 2:11 were posted in the last couple days.
Rain, rain, go away........Awwww, blah, we need it and last night at revival I was thanking God for it.
Anyways, I'm going to work on the next Ecclesiastes post and God willing get it posted sometime today. ...... EDIT: It's later now. I did yard work and emptied a shed of a bunch of trash. I have revival in a little bit. No new Ecclesiastes post today. Sorry.
If my mom reads this....SEND MONEY!
Yep, I'm a big kid!
Just in case you missed any.....
Ecclesiastes 2:10 and Ecclesiastes 2:11 were posted in the last couple days.
Rain, rain, go away........Awwww, blah, we need it and last night at revival I was thanking God for it.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Rained Out, Day Off
I was rained out of work today so I got another post up.
There is three post that came in fairly rapid succession, not counting this one.
Thought I would mention it since the previous two run together sorta.
Have a great day your in!
There is three post that came in fairly rapid succession, not counting this one.
Thought I would mention it since the previous two run together sorta.
Have a great day your in!
Ecclesiastes 2:11
"Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 2:11).
In the last post and the previous verse in Ecclesiastes we saw Solomon chasing after all of his desires and getting every one of them. I closed the previous post with the thought that Ecclesiastes was his portion which was his condition while writing. He was an old broken man regretting every desire he ever laid his eyes on. This verse confirms that. "Then I looked"....and he found "no profit under the sun".
I have throughout these post questioned exactly what Solomon labored to do. I have said he didn't actually labor to do anything. I think the Hebrew word rendered works further solidifies the idea that Solomon did very little with his hands.
The word rendered works in Hebrew is mah-as-eh'. It means, "an action (good or bad); generally a transaction; abstractly activity; by implication a product (specifically a poem) or (generally) property". This word comes from a root word which means, "to do or make".
Solomon looked upon his transactions. He looked upon his actions. He looked upon the results of his transactions which caused things to be done or to be made. A couple of these things I am certain were done by the Lord through him, like building the temple, but most of the things Solomon seems to be taking an account of in Ecclesiastes have very little to do with the Lord. Indeed, his works become little more than activity and product. The end product being "vanity and vexation of spirit". I don't think Solomon could have picked a more apt word to describe his works at this point in his life.
The three Hebrew words after mah-as-eh' are very interesting too. They are: shel "on account of, what soever, which soever: - cause, sake", ...: aw-saw', "to do or make" and, ...: yawd, "a hand (the open one (indicating power, means, direction, etc.)".
So Solomon by his transactions/actions, on his account, caused things to be done or made by his power, means, direction, ect. Solomon certainly was not leaving any room for the Lord to have done anything at all and yet Solomon himself did not labor at all! This is why Solomon found that all he had labored to do was vanity and vexation of spirit, that is, his spirit.
Solomon took pride in things he had not honestly labored for. He looked upon things he commanded to be done by his power and took pride in works that were not his own. He took credit for works that the Lord had done through him. He took credit for works he caused to happen that had nothing to do with the Lord.
As you go through life today give credit where credit is due. "Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law" (Romans 13:7-8).
Don't be a glory hound! "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31).
Whether a parent, a boss, or a king... remember to pat the childs, the employes, the subjects, ect., remember to pat their backs and thank God and give Him the glory for the child, the good employee, the loyal subjects, ect. It was God who put you in the authoritive position and it was God who gave you the child, the employee, the subjects, ect.
In the last post and the previous verse in Ecclesiastes we saw Solomon chasing after all of his desires and getting every one of them. I closed the previous post with the thought that Ecclesiastes was his portion which was his condition while writing. He was an old broken man regretting every desire he ever laid his eyes on. This verse confirms that. "Then I looked"....and he found "no profit under the sun".
I have throughout these post questioned exactly what Solomon labored to do. I have said he didn't actually labor to do anything. I think the Hebrew word rendered works further solidifies the idea that Solomon did very little with his hands.
The word rendered works in Hebrew is mah-as-eh'. It means, "an action (good or bad); generally a transaction; abstractly activity; by implication a product (specifically a poem) or (generally) property". This word comes from a root word which means, "to do or make".
Solomon looked upon his transactions. He looked upon his actions. He looked upon the results of his transactions which caused things to be done or to be made. A couple of these things I am certain were done by the Lord through him, like building the temple, but most of the things Solomon seems to be taking an account of in Ecclesiastes have very little to do with the Lord. Indeed, his works become little more than activity and product. The end product being "vanity and vexation of spirit". I don't think Solomon could have picked a more apt word to describe his works at this point in his life.
The three Hebrew words after mah-as-eh' are very interesting too. They are: shel "on account of, what soever, which soever: - cause, sake", ...: aw-saw', "to do or make" and, ...: yawd, "a hand (the open one (indicating power, means, direction, etc.)".
So Solomon by his transactions/actions, on his account, caused things to be done or made by his power, means, direction, ect. Solomon certainly was not leaving any room for the Lord to have done anything at all and yet Solomon himself did not labor at all! This is why Solomon found that all he had labored to do was vanity and vexation of spirit, that is, his spirit.
Solomon took pride in things he had not honestly labored for. He looked upon things he commanded to be done by his power and took pride in works that were not his own. He took credit for works that the Lord had done through him. He took credit for works he caused to happen that had nothing to do with the Lord.
As you go through life today give credit where credit is due. "Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law" (Romans 13:7-8).
Don't be a glory hound! "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31).
Whether a parent, a boss, or a king... remember to pat the childs, the employes, the subjects, ect., remember to pat their backs and thank God and give Him the glory for the child, the good employee, the loyal subjects, ect. It was God who put you in the authoritive position and it was God who gave you the child, the employee, the subjects, ect.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Ecclesiastes 2:10
"And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labor: and this was my portion of all my labor.
(Ecclesiastes 2:10)
The word joy in this verse means "blithesomeness or glee, (religious or festival)". It's interesting to note that Merriam-Webster defines blithe as, "1: of a happy lighthearted character or disposition, 2: lacking due thought or consideration".
A happy lighthearted character is what I am certain Solomon was thinking here. It was not the joy of the Lord. I think if we just read his next words it verifies his happy lighthearted ways, for he says his heart rejoiced in what? Not in the Lord! His heart rejoiced in his labors.
What exactly was his portion? Who's labor? Did Solomon really have a right to rejoice in anything other than the Lord? I don't think so. It was the Lord who established him. It was the Lord who blessed him. It was all the Lords doing and here is Solomon saying "my labor" twice!
How did Solomon fall so far? Just back up a bit in the same verse. "Whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them", and that was his problem. I probably would have a pretty happy lighthearted character too if I had everything I ever wanted given to me, but Solomon could not find any joy. At least not the kind that comes from being in right standing with God.
What really happened is Solomon got all he desired and it caused blithesomeness or glee which caused him to be lacking due thought or consideration. I am sure Solomon did not mean the second definition when he wrote this but that is what happened with him none the less.
Solomon got everything and anything. He did everything and anything. He saw God perform miracles we can only study and at the same time I am convinced he delved into the deepest darkest sins any of us can imagine. What was his portion? It wasn't the joy he speaks of here. His portion is Ecclesiastes. An old broken man regretting every desire he ever laid his eyes on.
What will your portion be?
(Ecclesiastes 2:10)
The word joy in this verse means "blithesomeness or glee, (religious or festival)". It's interesting to note that Merriam-Webster defines blithe as, "1: of a happy lighthearted character or disposition, 2: lacking due thought or consideration".
A happy lighthearted character is what I am certain Solomon was thinking here. It was not the joy of the Lord. I think if we just read his next words it verifies his happy lighthearted ways, for he says his heart rejoiced in what? Not in the Lord! His heart rejoiced in his labors.
What exactly was his portion? Who's labor? Did Solomon really have a right to rejoice in anything other than the Lord? I don't think so. It was the Lord who established him. It was the Lord who blessed him. It was all the Lords doing and here is Solomon saying "my labor" twice!
How did Solomon fall so far? Just back up a bit in the same verse. "Whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them", and that was his problem. I probably would have a pretty happy lighthearted character too if I had everything I ever wanted given to me, but Solomon could not find any joy. At least not the kind that comes from being in right standing with God.
What really happened is Solomon got all he desired and it caused blithesomeness or glee which caused him to be lacking due thought or consideration. I am sure Solomon did not mean the second definition when he wrote this but that is what happened with him none the less.
Solomon got everything and anything. He did everything and anything. He saw God perform miracles we can only study and at the same time I am convinced he delved into the deepest darkest sins any of us can imagine. What was his portion? It wasn't the joy he speaks of here. His portion is Ecclesiastes. An old broken man regretting every desire he ever laid his eyes on.
What will your portion be?
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