YET

I have no idea if Teddy actually said the attributed statement above, but I like it.
Long view, peoples.
I was going to grumble about a thing or two, but this is better.
Unless there is some catastrophic event which would demand the suspension of our laws, we will be
finished with this President in just a few years.
His 'signature legislation', that which he cherished so much, can be dismantled and tossed away if the People
decide to free themselves of it.
Don't know if that will happen.
But I know this-whatever happens, whoever 'wins' in the next decade or two, we will continue to foul things up. We're human. That's our schtick.
When Christ returns and judges the entire world, all of EVERYTHING that you know will change.
YET.
That Christ hasn't returned YET is good news for you, that Salvation is still an option.
The world will continue in chaos until Christ returns.
Until that day, we are wheat and tares, sinners and Saved growing together. We live in the same world, though we Christians are no longer residents here.
Listen to someone who knows-seek Christ while He may be found. I'd love to see you in Heaven.

Better Best Perfec

¹⁵Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 
¹⁶For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 
¹⁷The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
1 John 2:15-17

If you cannot tell from my stylings verbata, I am left handed. Crummy handwriting is part of the package; I marked up my first Bible after becoming a Christian, but no longer do so.
Listening to a study by Dr Jeremiah this morning, he referenced 1 John chapter 2.
I still have and sometimes use that first Bible-I keep it in the kitchen to read while eating.
Back on this date, December 27, 1981 I circled the above passage and marked the date.
It obviously made a mark on me.
32 years have passed, and I am still here, still struggling with the same stuff, but it is different now:
then I was a child, a newborn in Christ, with just a little bit of wisdom and learning.
The intervening years have been my teachers in both the things of God and the things of the world.
I have learned to trust God more and to put no faith in everything else.
Lustful flesh, lustful eyes, boastful pride. Every evil in the world springs from these roots.
We Christians struggle and suffer in this unfriendly world which hates God and His Children.
But God's Grace is sufficient for each and all of us to bring us through this wicked world and into His rest.
May God by His Grace give you the faith to believe.

Be Jubilant My Feet

I know, I know-this isn't a Christmas post. Christmas has been covered, believe you I.
This isn't really a year end summation post either. But.
But it is something close to my heart.
The crazier the world gets, the closer to God I feel.
With the daily uproar of whatever roars up...more Peace? Absolutely Yes!
God is working His plan for this creation PERFECTLY.
The more things fall apart, the more they seem to fall into place concerning
what the Bible tells us will be the situ right before Christ returns.
The return of Christ will make all things right that now are
terribly wrong.
May God Grant you Peace with Him.

Christmas Angel Parable

The demon looked up from where it stood next to the body lying in the snow. It was that angel again, flying on its usual path.
The demon looked down at the barely breathing body, then up, calling to the angel:
“You remember me. We were created together, and before my fall, my horrible error, we used to fly together.”
The angel looked down, seeing the demon as it was and the body of the man a small flame, like tinder
on a low bush.
“This man I have tormented since he was a little boy. I have done my work well, convincing him that he shares my fate, that there is no Salvation for him.”
“But tell me, angel, will God have mercy on this man? Look at him crying, drunk in a snow bank, unable to rise, but fearing the cold is making that snow his grave.”
The angel was silent. The demon continued.
“His house is near. It’s right there! He could live IF he could find courage, reason, but he sees futility in life, and doesn’t feel deserving of anything but death. I have done my work well.”
“But will God save? Are you His Messenger, come to put Faith in a weak, dying vessel?”
The angel spoke.
“We both know, demon, that God will have mercy on whom He will. Look down at the clay-the fire has gone out, and there is no Salvation for this man.”The demon shook his head.
“Done. On to my next assignment. I hate my job, my existence, and I hate knowing what awaits me.”

Wha?!?

Shock! Amazement! Unprecedented in the annals of all of human history!
Two years ago I had made a mistake on my taxes, which I fixed pronto.
The IRS had not noticed my fix, my amended return and the money I'd sent when I
discovered my mistake. They started sending me letters demanding I pay more.
And...Now ...This!!!
Today I get a letter from the IRS telling me that they were in error, and that they apologise
for their mistake.
wow. 

God's Affordable Care Act

²⁸Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 
²⁹Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 
³⁰For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

God offers Salvation to all. He heals us from the most despicable illness known: Sin. 
He makes it possible for those who are weary and carrying heavy burdens to lay down those burdens and enter in His rest not just for a night or a season, but for all Eternity.  
Why?
Why would God care?
You know the answer given in the Bible: "For God so loved..."
There you go.

UM...

You Know Who You Are

Imitation is the most insincere form of mockery.
If you are not connected to Jesus Christ,
if He is not Lord of your life,
why would you celebrate Christmas?
Who is He to you?
Forget about some priest mumbling words over a baby-you know in your heart whether or not Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior.
If the answer is "NO"...why Christmas?
He is your enemy. He is sending you to hell.
That would be like Christians celebrating the existence of satan. 
If Christmas is a cultural thing only, simply tradition and Christ is not Lord to you,
your tradition is the insincere mockery of what life IS for us who belong to Him.
We celebrate our Savior all of our lives.
We acknowledge Him as Lord seven days a week, not one day a year.
I realize that this post sounds harsh.
The harsh reality is that all are doomed until they are brought face to face with the fact that they NEED a Savior. 
That's how it was for me, that is how it is.
Seek the Lord while He may be found.

Also posted on Finer Dry Wit

Indefinable

Loss...Gain

In our accumulation of days and years it is inevitable that events pass from memory.
Eventually "Pearl Harbor" may become disassociated from the date of the attack, December 7th, 1941.
But we remember, though two generations from now that event may be as distant as Gettysburg is for us.
My mother passed away December 7th, 2010. We who remember her will someday also be just a name,
a memory. And then forgotten.
But this isn't a maudlin post. We all have loss in our lives, whether it is from a major attack during war or the passing of someone we love. But there is more.
See the third picture above? That is a new morning, picture taken today somewhere in the world.
Someone thought it was so beautiful that they wanted to share it with everyone. We might not remember it tomorrow, but while it is here in front of us today, we appreciate the beauty. Sufficient unto the day is the beauty thereof.

Double Duty Rewind From 2010

I sometimes have fun on the intrawebs, and today I was directed to Archive dot org, the Internet Wayback Machine at which I looked up some old FDW posts. I am no prophet, and have proven so by being wrong about the past few elections, but when I saw these two posts, I laughed and decided to mash them together.
From June 21, 2010:

                                             You Waltz In Here...

     “Your waltz in here
     With a handful of gimme
     A mouthful of multiplies
     I go home feeling empty
     From all your signifies”

     Fred Neil-”Handful of Gimmie”
     “Bleecker and MacDougal”-1965

     What a beautiful day! Even in the most grim, we can grin.
     I love the contraction Fred used in the third line of his song:
     “multiple lies=multiplies”-concise.
     So yes, I am suggesting that President Obama has a handful of gimmie-in that he has
     constantly declared  that he needs MORE power, MORE control in order to achieve his goals.
     Not our goals-a stable economy, a secure border, Peace-
     HIS goals-more more more of the world as he imagines it, less less less of the one we grew up   in.
     I think he’s beginning to believe his own press, which is dangerous.
     Once upon a time there was another “Community Organizer” who wanted to re-set the world as he saw fit.
     Unlike Obame, he was laughed at until he made a power grab which landed him in prison.
     Very much like Obama, he wrote his autobiography at an early age, but from his jail cell.
     But enough about Adolph Hitler.
    Here would be a good rule of thumb for President Obama to adopt:
    He should refuse/withdraw his hand from any additional Presidential power which he
   would not like to see wielded by a Republican President.
    Remember the Golden rule-”Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
   Meaning that if President Obama wants to be a good President, he should treat others 
   as he wants to be treated.
   Too simple?
    Right now he expends political capital making enemies of any and all who do not agree with his  agenda.
    Who refuses to budge an inch? Megalomaniacs and egotists who do not respect anyone but themselves.
    And drunks. I just remembered a beauty-
    Back when I was working maintenance for a ski resort, my duties included security.
    One January 1st, the  day after you know what, I’d been herding sheepish drunks all night, working a 15   hour shift.
     Ten in the morning, I’m driving down the road to our woodlot, and I find a young couple
     trudging along, heading nowhere.
     Guess what? I was cursed and called a liar because the guy KNEW where he was going,
     and he wasn’t  going to listen to ANYONE!
     If he had been alone, he might still be on that trail, but his lady friend look tired and about
     ready to keel over. It took both her and I arguing with the great scout to convince him to
     get into the truck-I took them back to their resort, and though she thanked me,
     he had nothing good to say.
     Going the wrong way down a dead end road…
     Won’t listen to anyone…
     Cursing those who disagree with him…
     But enough about Barack Obama.

Aaaaaannnnddddd...the next day, June 22nd:

      Other Wit...Other Wise

     Democrat 23rd Psalm 1950


     The Government is my shepherd
     I need not work
     it alloweth me to lie down on good jobs.
     It leadeth me beside still factories
    It destroyeth mine inititave.
    It leadeth me in paths of a parasite for politic's sake.
    Yea, though I walk through the valley of laziness and deficent spending
    I fear no evil.
   The Government is with me-
    Its Doles and Vote-getters
   They comfort me.
   It prepareth an economic utopia for me by 
   Appropriating the earnings of my grandchildren.
   It filleth my head with false security.
   My efficiency runneth over.
   Surely the Government shall care for me all the days of my life
   And I shall dwell in a fool's paradise forever.

    Old Abe

    Now, that was fun! I corrected the spelling, but that is basically what I found written on an old letter
    sent to my grandfather-'Old Abe' was a friend of his named Dan Kile.
    His tag line at the end of each of his letters:

    "If you want to go through Life completely misunderstood, say exactly what you mean."

So you see, 63 years ago the Democrats were already recognized  for their political stinkerisms. Have a nice day today, December 6, 2013. May God save us from All political parties!

Please God

 <sup>I watched a church service this morning online where the musicians, lead singers and choir were all 'professional grade'-they were singing and playing, praising God through worship. 
I liked it, but I wasn't the audience-they were playing for God, worshiping to please Him. 
I got to thinking about the verses in the Bible where God is pleased, and a few tied together:

 16</sup>After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, 
¹⁷and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is ^£My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”
Matthew 3:16-17
God the Father was pleased in God the Son.

  ⁵While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!” Matthew 17:5
God the Father once more declares His pleasure in His Beloved Son, and commands us to listen to Him.

<sup>THEN

10</sup>    But the LORD was pleased     To crush Him, putting Him to grief;     If He would render Himself as a guilt offering,     He will see His offspring,     He will prolong His days,     And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. Isaiah 53:10
Here's the heart of it. God was pleased to crush His Beloved Son, to put Him to grief. That very act of crushing, death on the cross, was the focal point of all of Creation. Redemption.
Without Christ rendering Himself as a guilt offering to cover our sins, we would all still be lost, and God would have failed...but God never fails.
The outcome of that act:    "He will see His offspring,     He will prolong His days,     And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand." 
We are selfish creatures, even the best of us, and we focus on how things affect us. In this act of redemption, we become His children, we live with Him forever, and we share in His redeemed Creation with Him throughout eternity.
And God is Pleased.

HAPPY P.T.B.D.!!!!!

Arfred: Hi! I'm Arfred!
Barky-Lou: And I'm Barky-Lou!
Together: And we're dogs! (laughter, howls)
Barky-Lou: We thank Doug for letting us guest post here at FDW-when we met him
 online he thought we were humans!
Arfred:  We want to join in Thanking God today-He has given us great humans...
Barky-Lou: Who give us love and shelter and walks and food!
Arfred: Today is a special day-our humans have cleaned the house...
Barky-Lou: And have been cooking for days...
Arfred: And we know what that door knock means...
Together: Prime Table Begging Day!!!!!
Arfred: We won't have to whimper or 'accidentally' bump up against the chair legs-
 all we need to do is sit quietly under the table and wait!
Barky-Lou: Arf, remember last time when that human pup dropped a whole pork chop
 right into your mouth?
Arfred: Do I? You know where I'll be sitting today!
Barky-Lou:  And it all comes from our Creator Who has given us everything!
Together: Happy Prime Table Begging Day, everyone!

I Shake My Head

Typo-that is supposed to be "Doug" shakes head, but enough about me.
Most recent news about our least favorite new political healthcareless thingie is that approximately 80 million Americans who have healthcare through their workplace...will lose their coverage just like the millions of individual policy holders already impacted by the Affordable Care Act.
Will the American people reject this President and his agenda?
They have rejected such before-President Nixon was hounded from the Oval Office, President Carter was laughed out of the same.
Keeping it simple-this is a bad President with a bad agenda. Listen to your conscience.

We Don't Know Jack

Doug-1959 to 1962.
I knew who Popeye was, though I have no memory of the knowing. My parents convinced me to eat spinach because 'Popeye ate spinach'. One of my few memories of our first home before moving in 1962.
Doug-1963 to the present.
My first "television event" memory was of John Kennedy's funeral. It made an impact as it was on TV for days.
I had no comprehension of "Death"-I only knew that something bad had happened, and that everyone was sad.
In my growing up and somehow growing wiser I have heard all sorts of things about John Kennedy's feet of clay, how he did this and started that and this was happening behind the scenes and all of that stuff.
I think he was a good enough man who made an all right President.
Feet of clay, but he did some good.
I'd be honored to have that epitaph.

Shameful and Over

Once again I find myself on a narrow ledge inching forward cautiously-I really do not enjoy politi-bickering and would prefer to not stain my weblog with Partisan stuff. This will be short and sour.
Just read that President Obama is skipping a ceremony tribute to President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address because of "this ACA website mess".
Even if I were a Democrat, I would find that shameful.
150 years ago President Lincoln delivered a speech meant to heal a country that had been at war.
It honored the dead. It honored those who fought.
Abraham Lincoln had issued an Executive Order 11 months previous to Gettysburg which declared
that all Slaves should be FREE.
And the first Black President of the United States can't be bothered to show up to take part in a ceremony.
That is shameful.

Through Early Morning Fog I See

Forgive, please-the title isn't meant to be mocking or sarcastic-just an entry point into a topic
which is more sensitive than many I prattle on about.
Listening to the radio while playing on the interwebs, someone mentioned that this is the anniversary
date for the "Jonestown" massacre, November 18, 1978.
Socialist self proclaimed god-man Jim Jones. Egomaniac and psychopath. Suicide, but taking 918
or so 'followers' with him. Whether most of them decided to drink the poisoned kool-aid of their own volition or were motivated by the guard's guns pointing at them is something known by God, not me.
We've all been touched by someone's suicide if we live long enough. The earliest case for me was one of my older brother's best friends, back in the early 1970's. Then a classmate's brother. Then...
Here's one of the hard truths: there are 'live suicides', people who have given up on life but have not yet arrived at the point where they physically die. Some, such as a certain alcoholic I know, have been on that dark road for years, and may have years yet to go. That is tough.
Here's the thing-most of the world, this secular, crazy inhumane world-most of the world lives without God.
People may put their trust in imitation gods, or imitation god-men such as Jim Jones,but as we were
created to give Glory to the true God, imitations break us away from our purpose.
Lives without purpose? Lives lived without God?  Suicide becomes a 'Why Not?".
I am one of 'those' who have never been so discouraged or troubled that I have considered suicide.  
I cherish Life, and am grateful to God for all that he has given to us, His Creation.
I am cheered by the knowledge that this inhumane world is a temporary pain which will someday be replaced by a Creation without sin, pain, tears, death.
But as I said, all of us have been touched by suicide, and the Season is about to start again.
Be sensitive-those who are troubled, whom you might only see on holidays...be there for them, listen to them; if necessary, take the bottle away.



  

IF YOU LIKE YOUR GOVERNMENT, YOU CAN KEEP IT?

You don't know hard it is to have sworn off political snarking at a time when hilarious chaos is bayoneting the survivors.
Metaphorically, of course. Actual bayoneting would be double nasty when millions are losing their health care.
Others will yammer on and on about this, so, as brevity is the soul of fine dry wit:
President Obama=bad.

(also blogged at Finer Dry Wit)

Shows To Go Ya

So, someone put a good quote with Rob Kennedy. I have no idea if the attribution is correct, or if someone just wanted to put Kennedy with a quote. On the interwebs, it doesn't really matter.
The quote works. Many a public servant (NOT savant) arrives in the power hub an innocent Smeagol and is soon becomes just another Gollum.
For brevity, the current admin is working against the wishes of the majority of the American people.
I have no idea how this will shake out; I'm a notoriously bad judge of politics. But I feel that any over-reach
will be answered by those afflicted. The moral outrage which boiled up 40 years ago when the public believed that their President was lying to them did not die with that generation.
No one likes being lied to, no one respects a liar. No one trusts a liar. When the President has to lie to the American People to get his agenda approved, he is a failure.
Fortunately, this country is greater than any one failure. We will get past this.
You can be patriotic and help with the process of healing by:
1. Being honest. Create or pass along no untruth. Tie your self-respect to the fact that you mean what you say.
2. Reject dishonesty in others. If someone is dis-respecting you by lying to you, call them on it. Call him or her a liar to their face.
If, as a country, we held each other to this standard, can you imagine how much better things would be right now?

If You Need Help

Everything old is new again:
http://sundayassembly.com/
I don't know if the link above will work, but the Sunday Assembly might just top off your tank
if you are looking for an Atheistic church-like group.
Not the Methodists this time-these are true Atheists, banding together to enjoy church without God.
And you know what?
God Love'em. 
I much prefer that they gather together in their group and leave mine alone.
Here's the "Everything Old Is" thing. It's been happening unofficially since there have been believers.
Harry Golden, a former scoundrel who took to kicking against the goads of Racism back before I was evolved used to love singing Christmas Carols with Carolers, or so he said in one of his books.
{an aside-Golden's publication, "The Carolina Israelite" was satirical, sharp and did extremely great work in it's time. It was basically Golden's "BLOG" back from the 1940's to 1968, if you can wrap your head around that concept.}
Back to the other Atheists.
These 'Sunday Assembly' groupings might celebrate "Festivus", if that helps pinpoint them on the theological map.
Again, God Love'em.
I don't see them as mocking God, Who they don't believe in. The originators, a Brit comedy team, seem sincere in their wish to enjoy the experience of Congregating without God. If anything, they are mocking Christian behavior, and we are used to that.
The God Who they pretend doesn't exist will call them to answer for their sins, including the sin of disbelief.
All I can do is pray that God will draw them to Himself and turn their unbelief into Faith in Him.
He did that for me and to me and I am eternally grateful. You could call me one of the "Grateful Alive."

Help

We are untouched by events happening on the far side of the globe...until we know of them.
Two hundred years ago most of the world would not hear of catastrophe in time to be emotionally touched by the event.
Yes, I'm thinking of the Christmas Tsunami, but now we are nearly nine years (!) past that event when
155,000 people died.
Right now the Philippines is enduring a typhoon which has killed at least 10,000 souls.
10,000. And that is just the early estimate for human life-everything else destroyed will have to be rebuilt after the main focus-the human lives lost or saved-is met.
Pray for the Philippines. Send the Red Cross money as you have for so many previous events.
We are here to help each other, as we can.
May God Bless you and the Philippines today.

Pig In A Poke Pizza

Sec: Mr President, are you busy?
P. O.: You can keep
Sec: Yes Sir-there's a Codie on your private line-I'll just put him through.
P.O. : If you like your
Codie: Mr.  President? Codie from Pig In a Poke Pizza. How you doing today?
P.O. : You will see a drop in
Codie: Sir, I'm calling today because we have another problem with with your card on file.
P.O. : Let me be clear: If you like
Codie: Yeah, sir...your card is maxed, and I'm afraid we'll need cash for any further deliveries.
P.O. : We will start by reducing premiums by as much as $2,500 per family!
Codie: Or if you have another card, that would be great. I know your Secret Service guys love our
deep dish!
P.O. :  ...your choice of doctor; keep your plan. The only thing we're going to do is lower costs.
Codie: That reminds, me, I'm afraid we've had to raise our prices a bit to...
P.O.: {click}

Sit On Hands, Play Chicken With Government

Please don't think of this as a partisan political post-I've been keeping a watchful eye on the roll out/roll over the cliff of Obamacare, which is hurting all of us. There are plenty of others yapping about this, so I will confine my post to just one tiny idea:
Wait. Wait and see, wait to see if reality does triumph over the fabulists. Hang on and hope that this bad idea dies because, like Frankenstein's Monster, it was never meant to live. Government never was meant to control healthcare. The idea was stillborn back in the day when it was derisively called "Hillarycare". They couldn't even bring it to a vote. So wait.
I am not signing up for government health care.
The government might decide that if you are on welfare, to continue to receive benefits, you must sign up.
The government might decide that anyone on social security must sign up. Or starve.
The alleged penalty for not signing up for the exchanges or having health care is supposed to be $95.00.
I will wait.
Some patriot might encourage everyone to participate in a denial of service attack against Healthcare,gov, millions of hits per day while not signing up.
I would say no to that-it would work, but I think that Obamacare will fail on it's own, though I can't imagine how the economic damage already done will be fixed.
Ah well. We survived six decades of Jerry Lewis, I guess we can get by.

Just A Friendly Reminder

As we seem to be in the midst of turmoil econopoliticmedicinally, I thought a friendly review of a signpost we passed by a while ago may help us to recapture some context:
"It is not our job to protect the people from the consequences of their political choices.”
Chief Justice John Roberts
Chief Justice Roberts was absolutely right.
If the Supreme Court had vetoed a law passed by the Legislative and signed by the Executive, it would have acted illegally. The Court is to uphold laws, not break them.
Whether the law had merit, whether it had been pushed through with political tricks...didn't matter. I'm proud to say that Roberts did the right thing.
Elections have consequences, and we elected both the President and the Congress. 
If we don't like what we have...well, it turns out that actions have consequences, too, and the actions taken by this present political leadership may make it hard for incumbents of BOTH Parties to be re-elected.
We've been through "Throw the bums out!" a few times before and guess what?
More bums. The names and faces may be different, but the same old same old takes root in their hearts and all of a sudden we're in another mess.
Until the Lord returns and makes all politicians redundant, I suggest the same band-aid that I've promoted for years: Term Limits. Keep them honest (for a politician) by taking away the possibility of staying in power. 
Knowing that after four or so years they will have to go out and live under the laws they make might just temper their grandiosity. 
May God have Mercy on the United States of America.
 

Blame Me-Feel Free!

I don't think it falls outside the purdom of 'being subject peaceably to the authorities' under which we swelter and strive if I offer a bit of constructive every now and again. I still am peaceable(!), and you won't find me raging against the political machine which is grinding us into bits of unhappy dust. Nope~not here will you find any whiff of disloyalty!
But please, feel free to blame me and my compatriots if our country has fallen further into entropic chaos.
May perhaps it {be} is true that all blame can laid at our dirty shoes.
We certainly must seem untrustworthy-we who (yes, I'm going to say it!) vote Republican and/or trust in an invisible God-how can we go on with this charade all of our lives?
You might imagine that we only break away from our main, punishing the poor for being poor and building our empires on the backs of the helpless-to sham pray just enough to impress each other...then back to whipping (figuratively, most of the time) OUR oppressed for not working hard and fast enough
Please, go ahead-fault me. I'm part of the problem, and am unaware of any solution.
I'm the reason your life has gotten so much harder lately.
I'm to blame for all of everything that is wrong.
I did it.
Me.

Walking A Fine Punchline

From a Breitbart article, a comment from President Barack Obama:
"“I’m asking you to be part of Team Obamacare… I’m asking you to help tell you friends, families, coworkers, classmates, neighbors and anyone else what the Affordable Care Act can mean for them,” he said."
I've been doing my part, Mr President, spreading the word about Obamacare and what it will mean for my
friends, family, coworkers etc. 
Here, I yump up on my FDW soapbox and declare to (both of) my readers:
"HANG ON, DEAR FRIENDS! OBAMACARE MAY YET FAIL. IF YOU CAN PAY YOUR INSURANCE PREMIUMS, WELL AND GOOD! IF YOUR INSURANCE HAS BEEN CANCELLED, HANG ON AND HOPE THAT YOU REMAIN HEALTHY! 
THE VERY LAST RESORT MAY BE SIGNING UP FOR OBAMACARE; DO WHAT YOU MUST AND PRAY THAT GOD WILL HAVE MERCY NOT ONLY ON YOU, BUT ON OUR COUNTRY!"

Charismatics~Strange Fire Or Friendly Fire?

So, along with all the rest of the chaos clinging to the sides of the planet, right now some small fuss and furor
is happenin' amongst the Charismatics because of Dr. MacArthur's "Strange Fire" conference.
I say 'small fuss and furor' because I assume that most Charismatics have never heard of Dr MacArthur.
You won't find his books in their bookstores, and the few that know of him are certain that he is wrong about Pentecostalism. So why would they pay any attention to a false teacher?
{shrugs}
I don't often do this, and the link may not work, but:
http://www.tmstrangefire.org/
Here's the here's, friends. Whatever we know now about God and the world we exist in we know as through a glass, darkly.
Meaning that we all can spend our lifetimes studying God's Word and still, no matter how much we learn, we have limited knowledge on this side of the veil.
And on the other side of that same veil, we will know completely what and who is right about the stuff we differ on now.
Why are there Charismatics and non-Charismatics in the body of Christ, the Church? I have no idea.
God knows. And we will find out.

Trust Not In Pastors

In my 30 plus years as a Christian, I have been on quite a journey. Love where I am, and how I got here.
If you think that you are guaranteed Heaven because someone else has told you so, you better get scared straight, sister.
Trust not in pastors or grandmothers or teachers or parents or anyone else who tells you that you are guaranteed Heaven apart from the Grace of God.
If God hasn't brought you to the point of Salvation, you aren't there yet. You are still on your way to hell.
Salvation without repentance is impossible.
But you can find a dozen preachers proclaiming that every Sunday on TV.
You are saved not when you FEEL something, but when God saves you and makes that salvation apparent to you.
I've said before that "God Loves everybody too much to send anyone to hell." is a lie and the basis for many
false ministries.
Trust not in pastors.
If you lack the discernment to know whether or not a pastor is speaking the truth, recognize that as a sign that you are in trouble. You can't test a pastor against your opinions or assumptions, as that would be like testing soap to see of it makes good windows.
You can only check a pastor against the Word of God. And again, not with your assumptions and opinions leading you. Ask God to open the Scriptures for you, to give you discernment regarding what you are reading.
May God keep after you until you are His.

Rock Steady

"Safe and secure from all alarms"
is the promise of God to His children, those brought into His family by His Grace.
Perturbulations may abound, countries may fall, life might shake like Greece...
but those who belong to Him are safe.
Safe in this world and when they exit, safe and secure in the next.
If you can read this, then it is not too late for you to seek God and ask Him
to make you secure. Not just for eternity, but for right now.
May God so Bless you today.

With All Due Respect...

I borrowed the graphic from the Drudge Report, though I had to modify it a bit. Still, with fair use, I note that it came from Drudge.
I got a 'survey' from the National Republican something or other t'other day and I dutifully filled it out.
They asked for money and I said No.
They asked for $15.00 to cover their processing of the survey they had sent me.
No.
They asked me to put a stamp on the return envelope to help save them postage.
Nyet, comrade. Nyet.
Though I am not nearly perfect, though I make mistakes with the skills honed from a lifetime of being human...I didn't make this mess. Politicians broke the country, not me.
In keeping with the earlier posting about not getting into other people's business, I am butting out.
I will pay my taxed like an adult.
I will honor this country, and remain patriotic.
But I will not support politicians until they get their act together, which will probably be never.
In a country of 200 million plus souls, I'm just a drop of water in the ocean-anything I do or don't do is merely a symbolic gesture-it doesn't matter to anyone else even a single little bit. But for the sake of my conscience, I am now a conscientious objector rather than a contentious one.  May change with time,
but that is where I am now.
That graphic up in the header? Surrender and all that? It really doesn't matter anymore. They can make me pay taxes, but they can't make me care.

Long View Is Better

This little guy 50 years ago was me. Right now I sit 5.50 miles from that crabapple tree. That works out to
approximately ten years per mile. Nobody calls me 'Swifty'.
Though this post is in part about what our country is going through right now with the Affordable Care thingie, with the government shut down, with most prominent Republicans getting fitted for "Washington Generals" jerseys...I'm not going to rip or riposte the current events. But I am going to talk about stuff.
In my private library (the one with a shower and sink and...stuff) I'm reading a biography of Will Rogers.
What we are going through now isn't that different from the muck and myre that he would satire on stage
between rope tricks. But everyone has their allotted time and that's it.
My time started approx 54.75 years ago, and will continue until I get to Heaven. Or until Heaven comes to Earth with Jesus Christ.
I have no idea how much time I have left on this sullen rock. But I'm cheered to think that most of my journey is behind me. segue
Right now I exist without 'health insurance'.
I'm not against having it; I enjoyed it for many years until my job went away. COBRA would have wiped out my savings and now, with insurance skying higher and higher, I can't even afford to get dizzy, let alone sick.
It all seems a mess, but even if things get dire...we will survive. I will survive. I trust in God's Providence, which cannot be taxed or taken from me.
May God Bless us all, no exceptions~

Going Forward A Beautiful Day

Repurpose, Reuse, Recycle-both of these have been up before. Today is a beautiful day, and I'm about to go out for a walk.
I have to keep walking-my family is prone to diabetes, and I want to put it off for as long as possible.
That's my Dad up there, standing in front of a haunted house. I might tell that story closer to Halloween.
He had dementia the last five years of his life, and my mother and I had to do all of his injections and medications.
My Dad radar was pinging the other night while watching Boris Karloff in "The Comedy of Terrors"-
Boris was quite old, and his character was feeble and forgetful...as I said, pinging Dad radar.
But also, as I said above, it is a beautiful day. Go enjoy it.

“ἀλλοτριεπίσκοπος·”

15But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men’s matters. 1 Pet 4:15 KJV

15Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; 
1 Pet 4:15NASB

15If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. 1 Pet 4:15 NLT

15for let none of you suffer as a murderer, or thief, or evil-doer, or as an inspector into other men’s matters; 1 Pet 4:15 Young’s Literal Translation

15 μὴ γάρ τις ὑμῶν πασχέτω ὡς φονεὺς ἢ κλέπτης ἢ κακοποιὸς ἢ ὡς ἀλλοτριεπίσκοπος·1 Pet 4:15 Greek New Testament

I threw the Greek in there not just for fun, but also to highlight this: “ἀλλοτριεπίσκοπος·”
Point one is that I am not a Bible scholar, and Greek is, well, Greek to me. But I was listening to Dr. John MacArthur, who IS a scholar, and what he said and has written about
this verse and that word has been kicking around in my head.

The word “ἀλλοτριεπίσκοπος·” is similar to one used elsewhere to describe a church elder, an “Overseer”-in this case one who negatively looks over or into other peoples business.
I’ll come right out and say that the other people in this regard are non-Christians.
If Dr MacArthur is correct, in simple, though we Christians are to live quiet lives obeying
God in the culture in which we find ourselves, we are not to be rabble-rousers against the
Government under which we suffer, nor are we to bring dishonor to the name of Christ by
Getting into other peoples business.
We can speak of how WE live, but we shouldn’t try to tell non-Christians how they should live. We shouldn’t get bent out of shape because pagans are living pagan lives, as if that were remarkable.
Naturally, this is unnatural for us. We are used to speaking out, exercising our right to Free Speech.
MacArthur’s point is that though the speech may be free, though we may have freedom to do all sorts of ungodly things according to the laws of the land…we live under God’s Law, and must restrain ourselves from many sinful actions. Including, according to this verse, telling unGodly people how they should live.
I’ve been guilty of this many times here at FDW, and have railed against the Government. It never occurred to me that such actions were not fitting for a Christian.  I am a Christian first and an American second. If the meaning of this verse is as Dr MacArthur has stated, I need to keep that in mind.

No Shutdown Here, Pal!

Yah, you think you've seen it before-one of my faves for Fall, which I have past-posted.
But this time I mixed it larger up a bit.
sigh
Rather than attempting to punditry something about the situ we are in {now}, I will
assumerate about what will happen a few nexts from now:
the medical thing will be unpopular.
Party in power loses elections.
Other party is no better.
the end.
post script: If it takes pain and suffering for people to seek God, possibly that may in part
explain why Man continually causes trouble, pain and suffering. That's how God got
my attention, and I am ever thankful for those troubles. May God put in you the faith
to believe.

Made Me Smile

I wish you brighter days, friends.

Three Part Answer That Solves Everything

Been stated many times, but God through Solomon said it best:
" ⁵    Trust in the LORD with all your heart     And do not lean on your own understanding.
⁶    In all your ways acknowledge Him,     And He will make your paths straight."
Proverbs 3:5-6

There it is. I need reminding on this just about every day; when I get caught up in strifes, troubles and the muck of this world, it's because I have forgotten this answer and tried to bull through on my own understanding.
I'm a moderately bright guy, and it would be easy for me to fall back on assuming that I have all the answers-that feeds my ego. That builds me up, can set me up... for a fall, because then I'm not trusting God, I'm trusting my imperfect self.
As I noted a while back, God will humble ALL the proud, Christian and pagan alike. This includes me.
Pagans would do well to read and take in this passage of Scripture in Proverbs, because it could be the first step towards God that leads to Salvation. Come over to the Light side...we have cookies, too.

There. That's Much Better

Don't know if you've paid attention, but the last half dozen posts here at FDW have been kind of...harsh.
Don't I know it. What comes out of a man is what does the damage, and my poor and improper response
to things like Christians being murdered and political nonsense becoming the law of the land kinda sorta turned me a bit cynical. Garbage in/Harsh out.
Other events in my life piled on and soured my normal exuberantly sunny disposition.
But God loves His children too much to allow us to stay sour for very long.
Just like other, wiser Christians I will look at the world trusting that God has everything well in
hand. Living by what we see and reacting to what happens isn't faith. Even when terrible things happen, God
has it covered.
So I apologize if my tone recently has been off putting. One of the {few} rules that I set at FDW is that I will
not fake anything-if times have been tough, I will not put on a happy face and pretend that all is just
ducky.
May God Bless you this day.

The Dead Lady Of Clowntown Speaks!

That is, she would 'speak' if she weren't merely a digirecording of the memory of a formerly alive lady.
With the underpeople in revolt, and D'Joan about to be livingly cremated to bring about " 'The Robot, the Rat, and the Copt'"...stay with me now...the Instrumentality will someday make Scanners obsolete.

I'll Tell You

I just spent a few moments looking at the site of a Democrat 'true believer' who thinks that all of the problems this country and world face can be laid at the dirty oil and blood soaked feet of Republicans.
We don't really know why lemmings jump over cliffs, but we do know why DemoLiberals try to run the entire world over cliffs: 
Hatred. Self hate, God Hate, Everyone else Hate.
There is no love in the hearts of Democrats. They simply hate. Hate God, the world that He created, hate themselves for existing, hate existence itself.
You don't advocate abortion out of love and compassion. You don't embrace any and all death religions
while rejecting God out of concern for your fellow man.
It's hate. The Godless who reject God simply hate.
Shame on you.

Time Is Almost Up

Do you have a hundred dollars on you? 10 Tens, 5 Twenties, whatever?
Lay it out in front of you.
Then take approx 3/4 of it, 75 dollars, and separate it from the rest.
Today a suicide bomber did his thing as a Christian church was letting out
from their morning service.
75 women, children and men killed, and reports
are still coming in. There will probably be more.
If you are not at Peace with God, you are considered His enemy, and eternity
will be no better for you than for this suicide bomber.
Christians have been looking for the return of the Lord since He went back
up to Heaven.
We think that we might be coming up on the edge of the final last days, but
what we think doesn't matter. Whether He returns today or a thousand
years from now, those of you reading this today do not have another thousand years.
You might not even have tomorrow.
Seek the Lord while He may be found.

Mankind Is Wishful Thinking

Another day, another mass shooting. Syria is the kickball of global "diplomacy". No wonder "Duck Dynasty"
is such a hit.
Disjointed? How did those three items end up on the same page? Read on.
MAN is not kind. Man is the only creature capable of murder and boy, do we murder!
Early reports may be wrong, but the MAN (or MEN) who killed so many today at that Navy Yard were
doing what comes naturally.
Bash al Assad was murdering Syrians with impunity-the WORLD accepted that as business as usual...until
he unleashed the chemical weapons. Now, all of a sudden, he's a bad guy?!
No, that son of a tyrant has been a bad guy for decades. He was gulfing buddies with Saddam Hussein, even took in Iraq's chemical stash when the World's cops showed up. It's a wonder that Liberals haven't ever put him up for the Nobel Prize.
So-"Duck Dynasty". Never have seen an episode; it seems to be one of the most positive "happy story"
TV shows out there. People tune in, buy the DVDs, the hats and shirts, the duck calls.
Why?
Why does this show seem to resonate with so many?
Because, even though MAN is not KIND...he wishes that we were. He wishes that the world was positive and happy like that family on TV.
All is vanity.
By now you might be wondering about the picture. This is part of my particular twisted psyche. When something bad or evil happens, I seek out something good, positive to help restore my emotional equilibrium.
When my family moved into an farmhouse in 1962 we found this trunk left behind by the former owner.
For years it held my Mother's yarn. Now it is in my house, and I store extra blankets in it. Today I bought some cedar and cut it to fit in the trunk, aromatic and a defense against mustiness. I feel better now. 

"Why So Syria?"

Yeah, sure, we could use a hero right about now. Evil knuckleheads pompositing on the international stage; aside from Obama and Putin there's also the worst ophthalmologist/tyrant EVER!
Killing his own people the old bad ways wasn't enough-once he started using chemical weapons the world looked up from "Duck Dynasty" and started denouncing al-Assaassaaaad in earnest.
President Obama, fresh from the Wally Cox school of MMA threatened to shake his fist at Syria.
While frowning.
Ooh, that'll put a scare into them!
If he really wants to win this proxy fight, President Obama should threaten to send VP Joe Biden over to arrange a beer summit. 
This entire situation is so fouled up-don't ask me what the right answer might be, as there may be no right answers. At least, none that the world would find acceptable.
Whatever happens, it will happen for awhile and then end and something else will happen.
Larry Norman echoed The Preacher when he sang, "Nothing ever changes, everything remains the same-you are what you are till the day that you die." If you don't know the song, there's a twist at the end.

You Have No Health Assurance, World

Don't mind the pix too much-just reminders that God makes the rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
Well, not always. Sitting with friends last night we were discussing how, during the Millennial reign of
Christ, even with God Himself (!) ruling the world (and the universe) from Jerusalem, there will still be knuckleheads who reject His rule.
"Zechariah 14:16-19 (HCSB)
¹⁶  Then all the survivors from the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, and to celebrate the Festival of Booths.
¹⁷  Should any of the families of the earth not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, rain will not fall on them.
¹⁸  And if the people of Egypt will not go up and enter, then rain will not fall on them; this will be the plague the LORD inflicts on the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Booths.
¹⁹  This will be the punishment of Egypt and all the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Booths."

'The survivors from the nations'-after Christ returns and cleans house on planet Earth, there will be some survivors who repopulate the planet. Don't put any faith in the faint hope that you will be able to squeak past the Day of the Lord without repentance. Even if you survive into the Millennium, you will still be confronted with Christ Who IS the Lord of your life-your Liege and your King. You've ignored Him during this age of Grace. Not going to happen then.
Right now the world is focused on Syria and the tyrant who has used 'chemical weapons' which seems to be a more offensive threat than the starvation, torture, bullets and bombs which Assad has 'rained down' on his victims for years.
And, of course, President Obama lacks. He fumbles. He attempts to shift focus and narrative away from his weak lackings.
Just remember the mantra, Odie: "It's All George Bush's Fault!"

And Now About You Christians, You

We’ve got troubles, friends and I’m not talking River City.
Today’s soapbox soliloquy deals with that noxious weed which crops up in every heart:
Pride.
Now Christians, those who have been at this for a few decades, have an instant mental gut
reaction to that word: “I’m okay, Doug is talking about someone else, maybe himself.”
No and yes. No, you’re probably not okay, and yes, I include myself in this, as I also have
problems with pride. That doesn’t negate what I’m about to write.
I see Christians struggling with Pride, and I’m going to use a word (again) that I’ve noted before:
‘canalized’. As in making canals-our minds and egos work along certain paths which, the longer they are trod, become canals, the only ways that we CAN think-call it 'accepted' knowledge.
Thinking outside the box is a poor metaphor-better to say “Have courage to climb up out of your canals
And look at things from a different perspective.”
Here’s the Pride thing. Part of what we take pride in is our knowledge, what we have learned since that Doctor slapped us as babies.
If we had learned everything perfectly, fine and good. But perfect knowledge is impossible for us, and
If our thought canals run deep, accepted knowledge can be faulty (and I mean faulty!) but hard to give up, as we hate to admit
That we are wrong (pride), are afraid to be seen as lacking (pride) and will run all the faster and harder through our canals to prove that we are right (did you guess? PRIDE).

“I preached a GREAT SERMON on humility, had them crying in the pews. Best sermon I ever gave!
My Scripture verse was ‘Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.’ They sure needed to hear it!”

See a problem there, friends? Before I get accused of having a log in my own eye (a Scriptural but human, prideful riposte to one’s Pride being attacked), I’m also Prideful, and God often humbles me, too.
This post isn’t about shooting fiery darts at my brethren, it’s about holding up a mirror and saying, “Do a Pride check-your mind may be so canalized that you
Think that you are doing well, when actually Pride is blinding you to the fact that you need
Humbling.
And God WILL humble. He humbles arrogant pagans and willful, prideful Christians alike.
Christians are humbled for their own betterment; everyone else is humbled for the betterment of us all.
Am I immune to canalized thought paths? Not by your Mothers doughnuts! But I recognize that fact, and I work to see things from different perspectives, climb out of my own (comfortable but deep) canals.
God continues to humble me as I need. This isn’t a case of a sinful sniper joyfully pointing out faults in others-it’s a call for all of us to take a dose of that foul-tasting medicine-humility-and get better.
God won’t lift us up if we think we are already flying high.

Lying Racist Liberal Hypocrites

Beautiful day where you live? Really?
Just a few notes today about the uncharming Lying Racist Liberal Hypocrites. This post has
been kicking around in my head for a while, and it finally made bail.
First, the Lying. Liberals lie to everyone, most especially themselves, as it is the only way that
they can make it through this world which doesn't operate on their principles. They live and have their existence in the funhouse mirror of the real world.
They say that they are the good guys, the ones who Love and affirm Life...while they go about
their daily bidness of hating (rich people, Christians, Conservatives) and protecting the Death Dealers
(Abortionists). See, they only affirm Life for those fortunate enough to have made it out of the womb alive.
Racist. How can a Liberal be racist? Only by what they do and what they say. They proclaim themselves
the protectors of minorities.
BUT
Putting people into groups, identifying groups of peoples by color or ethnicity is... Racist!
Promoting the fiction that such groups need spokesmen, need Protecting from some other 'evil group' is Racist.
Hypocrites-let me count the ways. Actually, just one example will do-
Liberals allow their emotions to be used to promote hatred against "The Rich and Powerful" who, it is assumed, must have made their bucks by exploiting the poor.
You know, like Joe Kennedy or Al Gore or...I'm sorry! Liberals are exempted from the "Hate the Rich" screed as they are somehow morally superior to everyone else. They can make Billlions and still be seated with Jimmy Carter at the Democratic Conventions.
Unless you Liberals (you know who you are) have taken a vow of poverty, and take no part in the United States economy...you are hypocrites for pointing fingers at those who also live, work and make money here. You may be jealous of those others who have succeeded in life, but that doesn't make them evil, it just is evidence that you are Lying Racist Liberal Hypocrites. Have a nice day!

Isaiah 40:6-8 (HCSB)
^"6  A voice was saying, “Cry out!” Another said, “What should I cry out?” “All humanity is grass, and all its goodness is like the flower of the field.
⁷  The grass withers, the flowers fade when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass.
⁸  The grass withers, the flowers fade, but the word of our God remains forever.”"

Pretty flowers, but if you look closely, they are already past prime, starting to wither.
"and all its goodness is like the flower of the field"-every kind act, every bit of good that you or I may 
do in this world, doesn't have a long life. Sad.
If you have been separated from God by your sin (the state of all mankind) and NOT brought back into a right relationship with God through Jesus Christ (the state of the Saved-you know where you stand)...
all of your goodness and love are as nothing. Nothing. Destined to be burnt into nothingness.
There's a lot of talk about 'everlasting love' but, if you are not saved by God, that is just romantic nonsense. 
You won't know love at all in hell. You won't know one pleasure. Just Sad.
"the word of our God remains forever."
If you look in God's Word, see what He declares to be true, your life will change. Even if it changes for the
worse, driving you farther away from God, it will change.  
But there is Life and Salvation available only through God's Word made flesh, Jesus Christ.
Of course, you can find a billion or two peoples from different 'belief systems' who will tell you that I and my Christian brothers and sisters are merely arrogant; they consider us self appointed doorkeepers who would deny all others entrance to Heaven. How dare we suggest that everyone else is wrong!
They (you) are wrong. 
If any of us are arrogant, God will humble us. We aren't doorkeepers-we proclaim to a sinful world that there is but one way to God, and that is through Jesus Christ. We aren't trying to keep you out of Heaven; we want you to come in through the only door possible!
That is love for our fellow man and, unlike the grass that withers and dies, that love is solid through eternity.
 

Returned Random Thoughts Tuesday One Day Early

Hi howdy haven't done one of these in a while. Note picture above.
Okay, I'm better now. I'm being set free from one of my jobs, and will no longer do 70 plus
hours a week.
Even a knucklehead like me can get tired.
In church we are just finishing a Bible study on the book of Ecclesiastes where Solomon, the author inspired by God, details what life is like for both God's people and everyone else. The everyone else don't catch a break.
Yesterday on my first night free from the afternoon job I decided to experience a bit of Summer: photo graphy, dine out, sit in a park; I even made it to a rummage. 
Tonight I'm trying to put my house in order, or at least I WAS, until I sat down here.
Haven't really been paying attention to news but I feel relived rather than deprived.
Let me know when something happe

Caught Between The Rock Of Ages And A Heartless Place

So, here it is. Back when things were rotten, times were tough and people adapted to survive.
We had what we called "The Great Depression" in my parent's lifetimes. It was bad. BAD. No or little work,
crops dying for lack of water, a dustbowl full of dust.
My grandfather moved to the west coast to find a job...for three or four years. When he came back with a friend, my aunt didn't know which one was her daddy.
 My Dad, just a kid, did some spearfishing without license to keep the family fed. The game wardens developed a peculiar blindness. We survived.
I am in no way precognitive, but I think that the policies of the Federal government are going to bankrupt the country and toss us into a financial dustbowl. By design.
But an amazing thing happens when times get tough-people disillusioned by Man's inability to solve any of the problems that Man creates look elsewhere, upwards, and seek God. And He Delivers. Bigtime.
For a short while I have been working about 70 hours a week between two jobs. I feel blessed by God for all that He has provided, including the stamina to work work work.
I began the year by being let go from the job that I had for over a decade. I've done a few things since January, and now I am back at that same job, for now.
But if I lost everything in this world, I would not sweat it or regret a thing. I'm eternal and this world is transitory. God Bless you as you move through it.

Going, Going...

So, y'know...Cancer stinks, right? Heart disease-rotten to the core. Diabetes-they've made inroads towards cures, but still...not good.
A few days ago marked the anniversary of the passing of one Marilyn Monroe. She would have been 87, but will forever be remembered as being 36 or timeless.
The grundoon at her feet lived to a much older age, but his time passed, too.
God makes us an offer we can't refuse. We are allotted some few years to walk on His planet, and then the dust.
At this moment in time I think I have more ailing folks in my life than healthy ones. I'm not doing so great myself; not from sickness but exhaustion which, if left unchecked, can open the door for the bad stuffs.
The dust will get us all, someday.
I feel bad that Marilyn had such an unhappy life, but that life ended when I was three, so all the bad feelings about her death or good feelings about her life are just so much vapor.
If you are going through some bad stuff, made uneasy by disease...it may the persuader God uses to get your
attention. Our milliseconds on earth are a bare fraction of eternity. May God Bless you today, and Bless you into forever.

Why Do I Have To Be This Way?

You might have wondered WHY I and my fellow Christians (true Christians-the ones chosen by God) are such hardline naysayers regarding much of what YOU consider common knowledge or wisdom.
WHY?
Why are we so anti-Abortion?
Why do vote Republican/Libertarian/Other?
Why do we promote such causes/people/ideas which you consider evil or wrong?
Why do we have to be this way?
"¹    How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,     Nor stand in the path of sinners,     Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
²    But his delight is in the law of the LORD,     And in His law he meditates day and night."
Psalm 1:1-2

It's really that easy. We consider the world from the point of view that God is right in all that He says or has done/does/will do.
So everyone who rejects God, which includes most of the world, are enemies of God.
They are (you are?) wicked.
And...
We don't walk with wicked. We won't join you in your journey.
'Nor stand in the path of sinners' might need a bit of understanding.
I stand in the path of sinners every day to impede them, to tell them of God, to turn them away from that path.
But I do not stand in the path of sinners in that I do not follow their path, again the walking metaphor.
I'm going in the opposite direction.
And finally: sitting with the scoffers.
I'm a prime scoffer myself-I scoff at idjits such as President Obama who deserve to be scoffed at.
But those who scoff at God? I may sit at a dinner table with them, but I won't 'sit' with them, accepting their premise that God is worthy of nothing but derision. 
I know better.
And so should you.