A voice in the wilderness. Amazing video!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stPCMvM3R_M&sns=em

A cute video about a lost sheep

A cute video of a little girl reading a story about a lost sheep.

Understanding sheep behavior

John 10:1-16  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 

But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 

To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. 

And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. 

And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. 

This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. 

All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. 

I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. 

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. 

I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. 

But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. 

The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. 

 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. 

 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. 

 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

Jesus often compared believers to sheep. We are His sheep and behave in a sheep like manner. I've been reading about sheep from web pages of people who are modern day sheep keepers or "shepherds". It has been very instructive in proving just how appropriate our Lord's comparison is.
Sheep are among the most docile and vulnerable of all animals. They make ideal prey for the many predators lurking about the flock. They do have strong instincts built into them by their creator. The predominate defensive instinct is the flocking instinct. Sheep will huddle together to present a bigger and more unified presence to the predator.
They are also by nature very strong followers. From the very beginning the ewe will urge the lamb to follow her. This instinct is not much diminished as they grow older. They will follow a bolder member of the flock even into very dangerous ground. A relatively recent instance of 400 sheep following a "leader" over a 15 meter cliff illustrates this point well. Sheep have a high tolerance for pain and will remain silent even while being slaughtered. They will not cry out when injured as this will signal a predator of their weakness. When they follow each other in a line along a path, they will create a path that weaves left and right so they can keep the view behind them open. They will not willingly go around a blind right angle turn or over a blind ridge. They are very wary. A sheep who does not keep watchful is the most vulnerable and will most likely not survive in the wild. Sheep and goats sometimes are mixed together in a flock. Being very different, goats can create problems for the sheep. Goats are much more aggressive and independent than sheep. They will butt and bully and run ahead of the sheep to get to the water first. They will muddy the water before the sheep get there. Goats are not predators to the sheep but are agitators and will harass them. Sheep, when driven by a predator will try to stay together as long as possible but when the pressure exceeds a certain point they will scatter.
All these things make it necessary for the sheep to have a loving, kind shepherd who will gently lead them. See Psa. 23.

The famous rocket scientist Werner Von Braun talks about God

"Dr. von Braun, do you believe in God?" As von Braun's publicity grew, there were more and more occasions when he was asked this age-old question. His answer was always prompt and to the point: "Yes, absolutely!" And then, he would begin to talk in his characteristic von Braun style, with perfect grammar and syntax, letting his carefully chosen words flow like a sparkling mountain stream, while he described his religious convictions with an almost disarming simplicity
He was neither embarrassed nor annoyed by this question. He even seemed grateful for the opportunity to formulate and describe the elements of his religious belief. In essence, he said what Goethe had his Faust say to Gretchen: "Who may say, I believe in him, or I do not believe in him? Does he not embrace and sustain you, me, himself?"
"It seems to me that your question is irrelevant," von Braun would say. "It is so obvious that we live in a world in which a fantastic amount of logic, of rational lawfulness, is at work. We are aware of a large number of laws of physics and chemistry and biology which, by their mutual interdependence, make nature work as if it were following a grandiose plan from its earliest beginnings to the farthest reaches of its future destiny. To me, it would be incomprehensible that there should be such a gigantic master plan without a master planner behind it. This master planner is He whom we call the Creator of the Universe . . . One cannot be exposed to the law and order of the universe without concluding that there must be a Divine intent behind it all."
"For me," he would continue, "there is no real contradiction between the world of science and the world of religion. The two are dealing with two different things, but they are not in conflict with each other. Theologians are trying to describe the Creator; scientists are trying to describe His creation. Science and religion are not antagonists; on the contrary, they are sisters . . . While, through science, man tries to harness the forces of nature around him, through religion he tries to harness the forces of nature within him . . ."  http://www.adherents.com/people/pv/Wernher_von_Braun.html

Feeding sheep or amusing goats

A short exhortation from Charles Haddon Spurgeon

photo by Lee Kindness

Election and Freewill

Election and Freewill Bible Study

TEN REASONS WHY PEOPLE MISS BALL GAMES

TEN REASONS WHY PEOPLE MISS BALL GAMES

10. I was taken to too many games by my parents when I was a kid.

9. I suspect that I was sitting next to some hypocrites because instead of paying attention to the game, they came to see their friends and talked the whole time.

8. It seems the games are always scheduled when I want to do other things, like go to church.

7. The band played numbers I’d never heard before and not the good ol' fight songs.

6. I went to a lot of games but the coach never bothered to thank me.

5. The referees made decisions I couldn’t agree with.

4. Often the game goes into overtime or extra innings and I would be late getting home.

3. The seats were too hard and uncomfortable.

2. The people I sat next to didn’t seem friendly.

1. Every time I went, they asked for money!

(Friday Church News Notes, July 29, 2011, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - 

Current prayer requests

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Oblivious to the Obvious

I have often gone to the refrigerator to look for something and couldn't find it only to have Dottie take one short look and point it out to me. It was there in front of my nose. That's probably the result of me being too lazy to look closely. But on a more spiritual level we often deliberately ignore or overlook the obvious.
When faced with a difficult decision we often tend to;

• look for a way to avoid exposing ourselves to any responsibility
• avoid any pain
• blame others for putting us in this position
• delay
• focus attention elsewhere
• offer illogical choices
• react with anger to anyone who makes us face the logical choice

James 1:5  If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

Parachute Evangelism

Take a look at the video on this web page. This may be worth some of us getting together and doing.

Remember the poor

These are photos from the depression era. Look at them closely and ponder. Be thankful. Be frugal. Has our abundance made us happier or better Christians? The song is by Ichthus from the website www.godlychristianmusic.com

Follow The Thread

The Red Thread

A study about the overriding theme of the Holy Scriptures. As a finely woven tapestry the Word of God contains one dominant thread; That God desires fellowship with mankind and has provided a way to erase all barriers of sin by the shedding of The Blood of The Lamb.

Sparrows and tough love

Matthew 6:26  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 

Proverbs 6:6  Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: 

Proverbs 6:7  Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, 

Proverbs 6:8  Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. 

Dottie and I have been watching a drama of nature unfolding in our back yard. We put up a blue bird house a while back and had some bluebirds in it for a while. This spring though a pair of sparrows beat the bluebirds to it and have fostered a couple of hatchlings. This week a young bird finally came out of the nest, but has been trying to get back in. The mother keeps forcing him away. The young male sparrow has been sitting on the privacy fence or in front of the box begging for food. The mother has ignored him. Do you see any modern day parallels here? There is a balance between trusting God to feed us and not worrying about our sustenance and learning from the ant to not be a sluggard.

The Order of Melchizadek

Three orders of priests are mentioned in the Bible; The Levitical order, the order of Melchizadek and the priests of Baal. The Melchizadek order has certain unique distinctives. It's priests must be born again into it as a member of the Body of Christ. They can be from Jewish or Gentile backgrounds, male or female, bond or free. They offer spiritual sacrifices. They have One Eternal High Priest, Jesus Christ. They all have equal constant access to the throne of Grace. They will as all Melchizadek priests function as priests and kings. As in all priesthoods there is a division of gifts and administrations. The established order of male headship begun in the Garden of Eden is maintained in the position of elders and teachers.

The seven resurrections (raptures)

There is a great debate that is ongoing among believers. That is the issue over the the timing of the "rapture".  It began very early, even during the days of Paul the apostle.


2Th 2:1  Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2Th 2:2  That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
2Th 2:5  Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?

Here Paul comforts the believers in Thessalonica  who were troubled over the false teaching that they were about to go into the tribulation. Two simultaneous events were to happen before the day of Christ and before the man of sin would be revealed. 1. the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and 2. our gathering together unto Him which is commonly called the "rapture" today.
 This gives us a basic chronology for the Church.  The doubts are partly generated by the thinking that there is only one rapture. I believe the Bible describes 7 different resurrections. 


1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
1Co 15:24  Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

The preceding passage teaches among other things that every person ever born will be resurrected. SO there is a "rapture" going to happen to everbody; Jews, Gentiles, Church of God, believers and unbelievers, Old Testament saints and New Testament saints. Also it teaches that every man will be resurrected in his own order. The word order means battalion or group. It does not tell us here how many battalions there are. We know of three from the Book of Revelation that are mentioned that will occur from the time of John until  the coming of the New Jerusalem. The"come up hither" in Rev. 4:1 is the Church. The "come up hither" in Rev.11:12 is the two witnesses and those saved during the tribulation including the 144.000. Rev.20:12-14 is the resurrection of the unsaved dead. So there we have three battalions. Before that there is the resurrection of Jesus and also the resurrection of the Old Testament saints that were held captive in Paradise awaiting the payment for their sins. Jesus of course is the firstborn from the dead and all others are in virtue of that resurrection. Now we have 5 battallions. The other two are Enoch and Elijah from the Old Testament. There is a "pre-trib" rapture, a "mid-trib" rapture, and a"post trib" rapture. So in one sense all those views are right but not by themselves. We should try to get the really big picture.

Lessons from nature

Matthew 6:26  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 

27.  Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 

28.  And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 

29.  And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  

also the Scripture tells us we can learn from;

Psalm 8:3             The Heavens

Proverbs 6:6         The ant

Proverbs 30:26     The conies (rabbit)

Proverbs 30:27     The locusts

Proverbs 30:28     The spider

Proverbs 30:30     The lion

Luke 12:24           The raven

Resurrection Assurance

Matthew 28:5  And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.
6.  He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.
7.  And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you.
8.  And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word.

Christianity stands firmly upon the physical, literal resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. His resurrection was affirmed by angels and He was seen for forty days by over 500 witnesses.



Romans 10:8  But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
9.  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
11.  For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.


True salvation hinges upon the resurrection. It proves the Deity of Jesus and his Sonship and the acceptance of His Sacrifice by the Father.


Acts 2:32  This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.
33.  Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.
34.  For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
35.  Until I make thy foes thy footstool.
36.  Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.


Acts 17:30  And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
31.  Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.

Believed by many to be the garden tomb of Jesus.
photo courtesy flikr member amanderson

The family and friends had a great day of fellowship and good food at Holly Hill Haven.