tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1073479510194965012023-11-16T01:40:40.721-05:00Moving on up!Just my thoughts on life and the hope I have in Jesus Christ. Life can get you down, but God can bring you up!Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.comBlogger103125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-53456266613068783252023-09-15T18:47:00.006-04:002023-09-21T10:35:20.273-04:00Canning and Freezing 2023<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEW-BZgy-aiUZ2WcMK7yLZhbGm9zlAzuvFAARAY1KQVQebBLU9hyphenhyphenon1_OC-guGCBmsQgBMiV9z7kS_RBjVyKbb-TRkIF-PNWSRvM3OYEOMfdRkwR65O4Znod6fYdsZ38PK-1xeGqgPQU/s604/%255BUNSET%255D" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="401" data-original-width="604" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEW-BZgy-aiUZ2WcMK7yLZhbGm9zlAzuvFAARAY1KQVQebBLU9hyphenhyphenon1_OC-guGCBmsQgBMiV9z7kS_RBjVyKbb-TRkIF-PNWSRvM3OYEOMfdRkwR65O4Znod6fYdsZ38PK-1xeGqgPQU/s320/%255BUNSET%255D" width="320" /></a></p></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Frozen Sweet Corn - 55 Quarts (Sept. 12-15, 2023)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Frozen Beets - </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Spaghetti Sauce - 53 Quarts (September 20- , 2023)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Canned Tomatoes - 66 Quarts (September 20-21, 2023)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Purchased from auction:</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;">3 bushel corn - $18 (9/12/23)</div><div style="text-align: center;">2 bushel corn - $4 (9/15/23)</div><div style="text-align: center;">9 - 1/2 bushel #2 Romas - $54 (9/15/23)</div><div style="text-align: center;">3 - 1/2 bushel canners - $10.50 (9/15/23)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-90377873162937128112022-08-10T14:09:00.012-04:002022-11-25T14:41:00.970-05:00Canning and Freezing 2022<p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"> J<span face="arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">ust a record of our canning and freezing for 2022 and</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span face="arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-size: 14.85px;">notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><b><u>Food Preserved:</u></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Sweet Corn - 29 quarts (August 10, 2022)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Dilly Beans - 41 quarts (August 11-24, 2022)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Spaghetti Sauce - 169 quarts (September 6-14, 2022)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Canned Tomatoes - 32 quarts (September 17, 2022)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Oops, probably 100 more quarts of tomatoes, but I forgot to log them.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><b><u>Purchased From Auction:</u></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">3 bushel of sweet corn - $16.50 (August 9, 2022)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">5 1/2 bushel of canner tomatoes - $44 (September 2, 2022)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">6 1/2 bushel of Roma tomatoes - $52 (September 9, 2022)</div>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-85216091965559215332021-08-09T14:48:00.023-04:002021-09-08T12:32:11.035-04:00Canning and Freezing Record for 2021<p style="text-align: center;"> <b style="text-align: center;">Canning and Freezing Record for 2021</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEW-BZgy-aiUZ2WcMK7yLZhbGm9zlAzuvFAARAY1KQVQebBLU9hyphenhyphenon1_OC-guGCBmsQgBMiV9z7kS_RBjVyKbb-TRkIF-PNWSRvM3OYEOMfdRkwR65O4Znod6fYdsZ38PK-1xeGqgPQU/s604/%255BUNSET%255D" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="401" data-original-width="604" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEW-BZgy-aiUZ2WcMK7yLZhbGm9zlAzuvFAARAY1KQVQebBLU9hyphenhyphenon1_OC-guGCBmsQgBMiV9z7kS_RBjVyKbb-TRkIF-PNWSRvM3OYEOMfdRkwR65O4Znod6fYdsZ38PK-1xeGqgPQU/s320/%255BUNSET%255D" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Pickled Beets - 26 Quarts (Aug. 9-13, 2021)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Dilly Beans - 28 Quarts (Aug. 9, 2021)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sun Dills - 9 Gallons (Aug. 10, 2021)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Frozen Sweet Corn - 15 Quarts (Aug. 23, 2021)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Frozen Beets - 62 Quarts (Aug. 25-26, 2021)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Spaghetti Sauce - 184 Quarts, 25 pints (Aug. 30-Sep. 6, 2021)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Canned Tomatoes - 267 Quarts, 7 pints (Aug. 30-Sep. 8 , 2021)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Purchased from auction:</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;">2 Pecks of beets - $8<br />8 half pecks of small pickling cucumbers - $40</div><div style="text-align: center;">10 pecks of beets - $30</div><div style="text-align: center;">21 - 1/2 bushel boxes of canner tomatoes - $63 (sold some)</div><div style="text-align: center;">39 - 1/2 bushel boxes of canner tomatoes - $129.50 (sold some)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-67013935587270464982020-08-24T17:05:00.006-04:002020-09-05T09:26:33.206-04:00Canning and Freezing 2020<p style="text-align: justify;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvdu2lsJ2NL6IPuDLYbvrEsep3lqQzlgRMpbjA_Vrzz9bF_ao2VdMM_Vwk4MMUj7a2OrSo-3mEE1ZhKYYLWBeWuTQWziFUzvHRItAvjZqtQDpiLcg_bcqUh64tNFQkbxOCA_BGRJbuUA/s1600/100_4346.jpg" style="background-color: white; color: #45c8ff; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="333" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvdu2lsJ2NL6IPuDLYbvrEsep3lqQzlgRMpbjA_Vrzz9bF_ao2VdMM_Vwk4MMUj7a2OrSo-3mEE1ZhKYYLWBeWuTQWziFUzvHRItAvjZqtQDpiLcg_bcqUh64tNFQkbxOCA_BGRJbuUA/w500-h333/100_4346.jpg" style="border: none; position: relative;" width="500" /></a></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><br /><br />Just a record of our canning and freezing for 2020 and<br />notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Tomatoes - 210 Quarts (August 24-31)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Spaghetti Sauce - 192 Quarts (September 3-5)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Dilly Beans - 7 Quarts (September 3)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">Bought:</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">15 - 1/2 bushel of roma tomatoes - $120 ($8 a box)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">30 - 1/2 bushel of canners - $59 (varied)</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14.85px;">32 - 1/2 bushel of canners - $48 ($1.50 a box)</span></div>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-82787873250648565812019-09-09T16:25:00.000-04:002019-10-03T12:56:03.009-04:00Canning and Freezing 2019<div style="background-color: white; color: #5d5d5d; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvdu2lsJ2NL6IPuDLYbvrEsep3lqQzlgRMpbjA_Vrzz9bF_ao2VdMM_Vwk4MMUj7a2OrSo-3mEE1ZhKYYLWBeWuTQWziFUzvHRItAvjZqtQDpiLcg_bcqUh64tNFQkbxOCA_BGRJbuUA/s1600/100_4346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #45c8ff; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvdu2lsJ2NL6IPuDLYbvrEsep3lqQzlgRMpbjA_Vrzz9bF_ao2VdMM_Vwk4MMUj7a2OrSo-3mEE1ZhKYYLWBeWuTQWziFUzvHRItAvjZqtQDpiLcg_bcqUh64tNFQkbxOCA_BGRJbuUA/s320/100_4346.jpg" style="border: none; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
Just a record of our canning and freezing for 2019 and<br />
notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</div>
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We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.</div>
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Tomatoes - 152 Quarts (9/9-10/3)</div>
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Spaghetti Sauce - 128 Quarts (9/12-9/16)<br />
Tomato Juice - 28 Quarts (10/3)<br />
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Bought:</div>
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10 Bushel canner tomatoes - $60 (9/6) (Not all for me)<br />
7 Bushel Romas - $42 (9/10) (Not all for me)<br />
3 Bushel Romas - $24<br />
2 1/2 Bushel Romas - $25<br />
100 lbs potatoes - $6<br />
1 Bushel Sweet Italian Peppers - $12<br />
28 Cabbages - $7<br />
1 Bushel small pickles - $13<br />
1 Bushel medium zucchini - $3<br />
5 Bushel #2 canner Romas - $20 (9/13) (Not all for me)<br />
1 Bushel Romas - $5<br />
2 bushel of canners, 1/2 bushel #2 romas - $10 (9/17)<br />
22 Medium Pumpkins - $77<br />
5 -1/2 bushel green beans - $25<br />
16 bushel of Romas - $48 ($1.50 a half bushel) (9/24)<br />
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Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-26613028148071827522018-09-10T13:23:00.006-04:002018-10-03T12:45:08.341-04:00Canning and Freezing 2018<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvdu2lsJ2NL6IPuDLYbvrEsep3lqQzlgRMpbjA_Vrzz9bF_ao2VdMM_Vwk4MMUj7a2OrSo-3mEE1ZhKYYLWBeWuTQWziFUzvHRItAvjZqtQDpiLcg_bcqUh64tNFQkbxOCA_BGRJbuUA/s1600/100_4346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvdu2lsJ2NL6IPuDLYbvrEsep3lqQzlgRMpbjA_Vrzz9bF_ao2VdMM_Vwk4MMUj7a2OrSo-3mEE1ZhKYYLWBeWuTQWziFUzvHRItAvjZqtQDpiLcg_bcqUh64tNFQkbxOCA_BGRJbuUA/s320/100_4346.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
Just a record of our canning and freezing for 2018 and<br />
notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.<br />
<br />
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Spaghetti Sauce - 87 Quarts (August 22-September 5)<br />
Tomatoes - 58 Quarts (September 5)<br />
Tomato Juice - 38 Quarts (September 10)<br />
Pear Sauce - 70 Quarts (September 24-October ??)<br />
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Bought:<br />
7 - 10# boxes of tomatoes - $21 (8/21)<br />
7 bushel romas (from auction) - $42 (9/4)<br />
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Picked:<br />
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11+ Bushel of Pears </div>
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Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-78307556933482391072017-07-28T18:14:00.001-04:002017-10-13T08:21:38.378-04:00Canning and Freezing 2017<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<img height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjis343iIWe6VbOGwFuY4B9VOQ4S2Vok8zp7yFTiVJbpa6pNx9AuMYDePT31pW2EB97CwgaxC2XxrLsxWRiWJLlh4rJvMHrGl5GEezVs0cwZLhEyGMFl91hyPIVU6OCmhmL9R6UMNn-4DU/s400/100_4346.jpg" style="text-align: center;" width="400" /></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Just a record of our canning and freezing for 2017 and<br />
notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.<br />
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Green Beans - 28 Quarts (July 28-??)<br />
Spaghetti Sauce - 55 Quarts (September 22-October 13)<br />
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Bought:<br />
1 bushel romas (from John) - $16 (9/18)<br />
1 bushel romas (from auction) - $4 (10/10)<br />
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Picked:<br />
1 bushel of green beans (July 28)<br />
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Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-465507168005016752016-08-24T16:40:00.002-04:002016-09-10T09:02:46.424-04:00Canning and Freezing 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<img height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjis343iIWe6VbOGwFuY4B9VOQ4S2Vok8zp7yFTiVJbpa6pNx9AuMYDePT31pW2EB97CwgaxC2XxrLsxWRiWJLlh4rJvMHrGl5GEezVs0cwZLhEyGMFl91hyPIVU6OCmhmL9R6UMNn-4DU/s400/100_4346.jpg" style="text-align: center;" width="400" /></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Just a record of our canning and freezing for 2016 and<br />
notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.<br />
<br />
Green Beans - 7 Quarts (August ??)<br />
Canned Tomatoes - 169 quarts (August 23-26)<br />
Spaghetti Sauce - 48 quarts (August 26)<br />
Tomato Juice - 9 quarts (August 26)<br />
Pear Jam - 30 Quarts, 11 Pints (August 31-September 10)<br />
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Bought:<br />
August 23: 20 - 1/2 bushel boxes of Roma tomatoes @ $3 a box ($60 total)<br />
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Picked:<br />
8-10 bushel of pears between the two trees<br />
8 bushel of apples (back tree 9/9/16)</div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-62966558289603981122016-05-06T11:39:00.003-04:002017-06-22T08:21:07.835-04:00The Christian and the Political ProcessThe subtitle of my blog is that life can get you down, but God can bring you up. There are times I lose sight of that. There are times when life gets me down. There are times when it is difficult to see a way through a situation. I say this to say that I am, by no means, and expert at being kept up in the hope that God provides. I am not as well versed at staying in the center of God's peace as I would like to be, indeed as I need to be.<br />
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But with that disclaimer, I think we all need to take opportunities to encourage one another to hope in God. To use prayer, giving of thanks, and letting our requests be made known unto God. This is the biblical path to God's peace guarding our hearts. The path to peace isn't a trouble free way. The path to peace isn't a rearranging of our situation or our circumstances. The path to peace lies in resting in God.<br />
<br />
I have felt that this past week and a half as we have gone without sleep, welcomed a family member into out home, and learned that he will need open heart surgery before he is a year old. At times, I have felt like I must have disconnected myself from my life and been treating it like someone else's. You know, very objective. But I have let it sink in. I know that it is my son who will be facing this. I know Jen and I will be walking down the road that God stretches before us. It feels weird, and God's promise is that it would be. (You know, the passing all understanding part in Philippians 4)<br />
<br />
But it seems like many Christians are losing their mind over the political process in our nation. Like the admonition in Philippians 4 only applies to some circumstances. But the political process isn't exempt from:<br />
<br />
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<span class="text Phil-4-6" id="en-KJV-29449" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;">"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.</span><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;"> </span>And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">God's peace and God's promises apply to politics as well. We need to remember that it applies every time. Every time the candidate I support gets beaten in a primary or election. Every time the 'wrong' party or 'wrong' candidate gains power. Every time a law I disagree with goes through. Every time a biblical principal gets bad press. Every time the world makes it harder to live for God. Every time I struggle to understand how God could allow something to happen. God's peace applies in all of these areas and at all of these times.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So please, when you want to complain about how things are going in politics (or other areas), you need to stop and ask a few questions.<br />1) Have I let God know about my request with thanksgiving?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">2) Am I content to accept the answer God gives? (Even if it is not what I requested)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">3) Am I free from worry in this area of my life?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">4) Have I gotten to the place where I feel God's peace?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Because the truth is, if you haven't done these things, you haven't used the tools that are available to you. And if you have done these things, you won't want to complain. And then, we will be able to glorify God in every circumstance, the way God intends us too.</span></div>
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Don't get stuck looking down. Keep looking up!</div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-90381170941908718352016-04-27T08:56:00.001-04:002016-04-28T10:05:14.863-04:00A Lot to Process, But Only One Focus.I'm a horrible blogger. In fact, if you would ask if I was a blogger, I would tell you no. Like many things in my life, I blog, but am not a blogger. I play guitar, but I am not a musician. I work on my own car, but am not a mechanic. You get the point.<br />
<br />
I have had several purposes for my blog. I have used it to process messages I have preached to help reinforce what I learned from them. I have used it to process events our life. And I have used it to 'remember' things from our life. Things like our canning and freezing every summer, or events that stuck with us.<br />
<br />
Today, I am using it to help process, and to help fulfill my desire that God would be glorified.<br />
<br />
Yesterday was one of the best days of my life. I am blessed to be piling these up. Getting engaged to Jen, marrying my sweetheart, being called to be a pastor, Finding out 11 times that we were expecting, 9 births in our immediate family, 11 nieces and nephews added to our family, not to mention other weddings, children's births, and some truly awesome days.<br />
<br />
Yesterday we also received some of the toughest news we have received as parents. Just saying that makes me feel spoiled by how easy we have had it. The two miscarriages certainly rank higher, but when the doctor says "I know this is a lot to process," I guess that makes it in the list of tough things.<br />
<br />
The short version of what we were told is that Timothy has a couple of holes in his heart. They are not the type of holes that close up on their own. He will need surgery sometime in the next year or so to deal with it. Currently, he is on oxygen and his blood platelet count is low. These are probably related to the holes in the heart.<br />
<br />
We are truly blessed to be able to welcome this little one. We are blessed to have the awesome support of friends and family. We are blessed to have great care given to Timothy to diagnose and move forward with any issues that arise. We are blessed beyond measure with so many aspects of what is going on.<br />
<br />
But we have needs. <br />
We need to glorify God. It is part of who we are. As a child of God, I need to glorify my Father or something is desperately wrong. I want God to be glorified. <br />
We need strength to care for Timothy (and Austin, Larissa, Robert, Jeremiah, Benjamin, Abigail, Jonathan and Joseph). We so often want the strength to come from within us, but we need the strength, and grace, that God gives.<br />
We need wisdom. I am glad I do not have a list of the choices we will need to make in the next year. Or the next month. Or even this next week. But we will need wisdom.<br />
We need our friends and family. Thank you to each of you. We may not always say it, but we love and appreciate all of you. Those that send encouraging words, those that pray, those that have met other needs. We do our best to appreciate all you do, but we fail miserably at expressing it as we should.<br />
<br />
And we have wants.<br />
We want Timothy to get well. We want a good night's sleep. We want comfort and ease. We want freedom from hard circumstances. We want to be independent and handle things on our own.<br />
<br />
I want to keep glorifying God as the most important thing. As you pray for us, please pray that we will not let our wants lie to us or get in our way of us getting our needs met. Strength, grace, wisdom? All gifts from God. Promised. In a certain sense, already met.<br />
<br />
I always like to end these with a verse. This one comes from a sermon from a few weeks ago<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">And this he said to prove him: </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">for he himself knew what he would do.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">- John 6:6</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">This is why I know my needs are already met. God already knew what He would do before we got the news. Before the Dr. knew the news. Before we knew we were expecting. I may not know what this week holds, but God already does, and He already knows how He will handle whatever comes our way.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The same thought from one of my favorite books and movies.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">"</span><span class="smallinitials" style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">I</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened!" </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">(Frodo)</i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">"</span><span class="smallinitials" style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">S</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">o do all who live to see such times but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world Frodo besides evil. Bilbo was meant to find the ring, in which case you also were meant to have it, <b>and that is an encouraging thought!</b>" </span><i style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">(Gandalf)</i></span>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-2210896765754662292015-08-26T13:46:00.000-04:002015-10-13T16:45:07.065-04:00Canning and Freezing 2015<div style="text-align: center;">
<img height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjis343iIWe6VbOGwFuY4B9VOQ4S2Vok8zp7yFTiVJbpa6pNx9AuMYDePT31pW2EB97CwgaxC2XxrLsxWRiWJLlh4rJvMHrGl5GEezVs0cwZLhEyGMFl91hyPIVU6OCmhmL9R6UMNn-4DU/s400/100_4346.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Just a record of our canning and freezing for 2015 and<br />
notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.<br />
<br />
Sweet Corn - 27 quarts (August 26)<br />
Crab Apple Jelly - 7 quarts and 5 pints (August 27)<br />
Spaghetti Sauce - 113 quarts (September 9-22)<br />
Tomatoes for chili - 35 quarts (September 24-25)<br />
Winter squash (frozen) - 13 quarts (October 1-2)<br />
Applesauce - 121 quarts (October 3-13)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Bought:<br />
10 - 1/2 bushel boxes of canner tomatoes @ $6 a box ($60 total)<br />
160 Winter squash @ $0.25 a piece ($40 total)</div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-54455162891499532222015-03-09T07:14:00.001-04:002015-03-09T07:15:16.899-04:00A Christian response in suffering.Yes, I know that a blog is for words. But this blog post is going to be less about written words.<br />
<br />
In thinking through the grieving process and what the Bible has to say about it, I shared yesterday three ways that the truth of the Bible needs to impact our grieving / suffering.<br />
<br />
1) Truth needs to define our suffering<br />
2) Truth needs to limit our suffering (defining the limit)<br />
3) Truth needs to relieve our suffering.<br />
<br />
Those are just the key concepts. I cut off part of the introduction of the message when I recorded, but here is the bulk of it.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.niobebaptist.org/Messages/Christ's%20Sacrifice%202.mp3" target="_blank">"Christ's Sacrifice: A Help in Our Suffering"</a><br />
<br />
Just a reminder to keep looking up in all of life's circumstances.Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-44837779500084773662015-03-06T10:49:00.001-05:002015-03-06T10:49:11.014-05:00The greatest gift in sorrow - permission to grieve<span style="font-family: inherit;">Our week has had its share of ups and downs. The downs center around the loss of our unborn baby. The ups have been much more varied:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> God's love and goodness have been repeated ups.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> The love and kindnesses expressed by friends and family in word and deed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Seeing God's hand at work.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Knowing God's peace.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> The assurance of faith (The substance of things hoped for - Hebrews 11)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Some 'down time' to spend together. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">But the best 'up' I have enjoyed is the permission to grieve. I have often heard people say "It's OK to grieve," "You can be sad, you know," or "You just need to cry it out." Those words, in and of themselves, do not give a person permission to grieve. It gives them a verbal declaration of their approval, but it communicates to the mind instead of the heart.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Permission to grieve comes in so many forms, it is hard to identify. It comes from sadness expressed by friends and acquaintances. Something so simple as an "Aw, I'm sorry" said with genuine concern, to people who say "I don't even have any words to say" have communicated that permission. Permission comes in the validation of feelings. Not telling me how I should be feeling, how long I should feel it, how I should move on, or even what I should expect. Just the simple communication that it is OK to feel what I feel. No one has told us we are doing it wrong. No one has told us we should be in better shape, or in worse shape. No, we have been loved. That love has given us permission to grieve and we are thankful. Our friends and family have lived out Job's advice in Job 6:14 - <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">"To him that is afflicted pity should be shewed from his friend"</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Though we still feel we are walking in uncharted territory and don't know how we are supposed to proceed, we are glad for the leeway to proceed as we feel is right for us.</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-6914169866525222592015-03-05T15:43:00.000-05:002015-03-14T19:27:52.535-04:00Miscarriage: On the loss of a child. . .I have been tempted to write a post since yesterday, but keep procrastinating as I am out of the blogging rhythm. The theme of my blog has echoed in the circumstances of our lives this week, and it was only a matter of time before the post was written.<br />
<br />
Jen was about 4 months into her 10th pregnancy this past week when some signs of trouble surfaced. We have 8 beautiful children, and have lost another to an early miscarriage. After the signs of trouble surfaced we made some calls to get things checked out. Before the tests could be run, things got worse, and our Dr. told Jen she wanted to see her in Labor and Delivery at our local hospital. By 2 am Tuesday morning, we were in the hospital and waiting for an ultrasound. The hospital staff was wonderful. We were concerned, but kept our hopes up.<br />
<br />
The ultrasound technician was wonderful, but we could see between the lines and read that something was wrong. We didn't ask, knowing that her job was hard enough that morning and she probably wasn't allowed to say anything anyway. We got back to the room and soon found out that the baby was not as old (by size) as the pregnancy. The baby had died several weeks ago, and Jen's body was starting the process of delivering the baby.<br />
<br />
Since not many people talk about it, we were not very well equipped to make decisions. Did we want the body? Would we have a funeral? Did we want to bury our child? Were we supposed to be sad? Were we allowed to be sad? Should we side with the easy feelings or grapple with the other feelings that were surfacing? Should we shrug it off or were we allowed to grieve.<br />
<br />
We know what we believe - a baby is a person the moment of conception. That biological process starts off a chain reaction of cell division, reproduction, differentiation of cells and tissue and organ development that just 9 months later ends in the birth of a fully developed baby. Most of the time. Not this time.<br />
<br />
The baby was delivered in the amniotic sac intact. The doctor told us she thought the baby was a baby boy. At the moment of decision we were both low on sleep, confused and decided that we were not prepared to see the baby. We did not want to bring the body home. I didn't realize that I would never be prepared to see the baby but would soon want to see the baby. I didn't realize that holding the baby would be something I would not only want to do, but would be a good step in grieving, in processing what had happened. I cannot undo my choices and I am not stopped from grieving. I am just missing a precious opportunity I had.<br />
<br />
It is now a little over 2 days after the delivery of our baby that died several weeks ago. I still don't know much more than I did then, but I have learned a few things.<br />
<br />
The things I have known all along:<br />
1) God is good. He always is good.<br />
2) God has blessed us in so many ways, more than this blog can hold.<br />
3) All life is precious.<br />
<br />
The things I have learned:<br />
1) Grief is good. Not just in the "Consider it all joy" sense, but in many ways.<br />
Grief has allowed me to feel God's goodness expressed through friends and family.<br />
Grief has allowed me to place a value on our unborn child.<br />
Grief has allowed me to set aside my pride and accept the love and service of others.<br />
Grief has allowed me to sense God's comfort.<br />
Grief has allowed me to focus on my hope as a believer.<br />
2) God's love is enough. As much as I appreciate the love of my family, my<br />
wife, my children and my friends, God's love is on a whole different level.<br />
3) Hope is a choice. I've known this, but I have learned it in a deeper sense<br />
this week. We are saddened with our loss, but are not devastated. We<br />
have questions in our minds, but are not disillusioned with God. I still<br />
know God is good.<br />
<br />
I know, what this post is missing is a verse. A whole verse. But I want to post 2 chapters. Wednesday evenings we have been studying the Psalms. Last week we studied Psalm 127, this week was Psalm 128. If I was disillusioned, I might feel that God was playing some sort of harsh trick on us. But even in the timing of viewing these Psalms, I see God's perfect timing and God's goodness.<br />
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<span class="passage-display-bcv" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px; padding-right: 10px;">Psalm 127-128</span></h1>
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<span class="text Ps-127-1" id="en-KJV-16123" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="chapternum" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; bottom: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-weight: bold; left: 0px; line-height: 0.8em; position: relative;">127 </span>Except the <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-127-2" id="en-KJV-16124" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">2 </span>It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-127-3" id="en-KJV-16125" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">3 </span>Lo, children are an heritage of the <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-127-4" id="en-KJV-16126" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">4 </span>As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-127-5" id="en-KJV-16127" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">5 </span>Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-128-1" id="en-KJV-16128" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="chapternum" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; bottom: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-weight: bold; left: 0px; line-height: 0.8em; position: relative;">128 </span>Blessed is every one that feareth the <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>; that walketh in his ways.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-128-2" id="en-KJV-16129" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">2 </span>For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-128-3" id="en-KJV-16130" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">3 </span>Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-128-4" id="en-KJV-16131" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">4 </span>Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-128-5" id="en-KJV-16132" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">5 </span>The <span class="small-caps" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box; font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.</span></div>
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<span class="text Ps-128-6" id="en-KJV-16133" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; box-sizing: border-box;"><span class="versenum" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">6 </span>Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.</span></div>
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The Psalms speak of God's goodness. Goodness I can see and feel even in the midst of our trial. That's about it from this end. Keep looking up!</div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-39254506879725484902014-12-20T18:32:00.002-05:002014-12-20T18:32:14.556-05:00Rebellious ChildrenI suppose you might expect me to start in on what one of my children was doing in vague terms, or maybe, alternatively, to wax eloquent about how to raise children that don't rebel. If you are looking for either of those sort of posts, you will probably be in for a surprise. It's not that my children are perfect, or that there aren't some truths in the Bible that can help us deal proactively with rebellion in the hearts of our children. It solely has to do with the book of Ezekiel.<br />
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Ezekiel speaks a lot about the rebellion of the people of Israel. How, despite many warnings and interventions by God, they continued to choose a path of rejecting His authority in their lives and continued to choose less than adequate substitutions for God in their lives. It is easy to sit back and shake our heads at the foolish Israelites, it is easy to agree with the judgment God was preparing to mete out in His anger - He had every right to be angry with them! Right?<br />
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But what about us? Good, Christian us. We thank the Lord for our food. We know how to look up a verse in the Bible, maybe even can recite the books of the Bible in order. We pray for other people, we give money to the church, we put in our time being Christians. Certainly we wouldn't be labeled as rebellious! Ezekiel wrote to people facing God's judgment who thought everything was OK much as Jesus spoke to people under judgment (Herod was their King) who thought everything was OK. And we are a people who live in a 'Christian' nation and think things are OK. Well, we wouldn't be as blind as the people in Ezekiel's day, right? The Jews being carried away as captives to Babylon - we'd notice judgment that severe! We'd notice the oppressive government over the people of Israel in Jesus' day as judgment and recognize our needs!<br />
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But have you ever noticed how many wrong people there are out there and it doesn't very often seem to be me? or you? When you drive, do you notice your reckless driving and the laws you break (maybe passing on the right, speeding, rolling stops, unsafe lane changes, 'beating' the red light . . .) or do you notice how many other morons are on the road? Right, me too.<br />
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It makes me wonder if the same blindness impacts us when it comes to God. I don't have to wonder long. David recognized his blindness and asked God to search him, try him, and see if there was any wickedness in him. He knew he couldn't always see it.In Ezekiel 20, God repeats 3 times that the actions He took were "for my name's sake."<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">"But I wrought for my name's sake that it should not be polluted</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> before the heathen" (Vss. 9, 14, 20)</span></div>
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But Israel could only see the unfair treatment they were receiving from God. Again and again Israel was polluting God's sabbaths and going after other Gods. Easy for us to see, in their situation.<br />
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So should we see judgment in every hardship? Absolutely not! (After all, we'd far more likely apply the "everything bad is judgment of God" attitude to others long before we did it to ourselves.) We'd be just as wrong in doing that as in not being willing to see our own rebellion. Ezekiel 20 also focuses on the mercy and grace of God. It repeats again and again all that God did for the people of Israel and all that He will do for them to fix the problem of their rebellion.<br />
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As rebellious children (since maybe we ought to assume we are, rather than assume we aren't), we need to focus on God's mercy. Our need for God's mercy, God's goodness in showing us mercy, the depth of God's mercy that each of us requires. And along with that, we need to place a priority on God's name. As a Christian, we carry it. If God is jealous for His name sake, and we are polluting His name by the lives we live, the thoughts we entertain, the things we feed our minds, well, we should realize that everything isn't as OK as we think.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">"But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Christ Jesus (by grace ye are saved)" Ephesians 2:4-5</span></div>
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If God did that for us when we were dead, just think of the greatness of His mercy he has for his children, and the great desire he has to see us walk in truth!Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-73696457343949648532014-11-02T14:33:00.001-05:002014-11-02T14:33:13.379-05:00What is stopping you from answering the call?When it comes to God's call on our lives, we have a pretty stock set of excuses why we can't respond the way we know we should. "I don't think I can do that," "I don't want to do that," "I'm afraid of what it would look like if I answer God's call," and even "I'm a Christian, isn't that good enough?"<br />
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No, it isn't good enough. God's call goes out to all mankind, and the first call that every person has from God is the call for salvation. God is not willing that any should perish, and He has given the call that "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." People have lots of excuses for rejecting the call for salvation, as well, but I want to focus on what comes next. Salvation doesn't occur in a vacuum. The Bible tells us that "Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God." Our salvation is accomplished through the Word of God working in our hearts to bring forth faith. Easy enough.<br />
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But what comes next? Next, God's call on our life continues. God's call to live holy, God's call to sanctify ourselves, God's call to righteous living. This call is resisted, fought against, and misunderstood. Some fear they will have no fun if they live holy. Some fear they might have to give up something they enjoy or love if they clean the house of their life to sanctify it. Some take this call and try to accomplish it through regulating themselves into some sort of holy-looking submission. Add a bunch of "Do this's" and "Don't do that's" into your life and try to look the part of holy. Between these fears and misunderstandings, it is a wonder that people ever choose to follow Christ. The truth is that sanctification comes the same way salvation by faith comes. It comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. "How shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy Word." "Now ye are clean through the Word I have spoken." All through Scripture, God's call to sanctification is accomplished through His Word. Get in it. Get it in you. Learn, and watch God do the work. "For it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure"<br />
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And our further call? Calls to service, whether as a husband, wife, father, mother, pastor, teacher, salesman, artist, musician, etc. God's call is always to do all to the glory of God. God's call is to make disciples of all nations. God's call is to serve where He has placed us. And it is accomplished the same way - through His Word. "Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. . ." is not just a nice way to spend a Sunday, it is the only way to live a life that please God. If faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God, and if it is impossible to please God without faith. My logic skills from math tell me that it is impossible to please God without hearing His Word. Without being in His Word. Without studying and soaking in His Word.<br />
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The long and short of it all? We can throw out our Christian to do lists "turn every conversation to the gospel," "encourage depressed people," "say this," "don't say that," "do these things," etc. All of which produce guilt in us because we can't possibly do them all. Replace these lists with one thing: dwell on God's Word. Don't read it to check off a box. Really meditate on it. Read a different passage everyday, read the same passage every day, read a prophet, read poetry, read a gospel. Just read it. You will see God for who He is, you will feel the purifying effects of His Word on your life, you will hear his unique call in your life to service.<br />
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Just a few thoughts today, keep looking up!<br />
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<br />Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-14260978744557357642014-10-24T09:44:00.001-04:002014-10-24T09:44:27.169-04:00Can you hear him calling?In our house, there are many noises that can affect a person's ability to hear. We have named each of our noises. We love each of our noises. And we have come to realize that sometimes our noises keep communication from being as effective as it should be. Many times, our noises will respond to a question such as "Why didn't you answer me when I called?" with "I couldn't hear you."<br />
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This past week, we started into the book of Ezekiel. It is a book I have been putting off (officially the 4th from the last book I will preach through - 61 books down, 1 in process for the last 2 years, 1 just started, and 3 'untouched' books of the Bible). I put it off because it contains quite a bit of imagery. I put it off because it is a fairly long book. I put it off knowing that it would be one of my favorites when I finally got into it. I was right.<br />
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The first 3 chapters discuss the call of God in Ezekiel's life. Starting with God calling Ezekiel from where he was, and showing Ezekiel a glimpse of God's glory, majesty, power and awe. Ezekiel's call continues with God telling him it wouldn't be easy - the people he would go to were rebellious. The message he would carry would be sweet - but would also turn bitter, much as the gospel is sweet, but a failure to respond to God's call results in the bitterness of judgment. Finally, God shows Ezekiel that following his call would be worth it.<br />
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*Confession* - I went into Ezekiel to attack the first 3 chapters in one shot, got all the way through them in one message, and managed to cover it all without getting it all covered. God tells Ezekiel that his duties were to give the message that God gave him. He was not responsible for the results. No matter how people responded, Ezekiel was to give the message, and God would count that as a success for Ezekiel.<br />
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But we like to try to control the results. We like to feel like a failure if things don't go the way we want them to. People don't respond to a message by implementing all the great suggestions we give, people don't follow our sage advice about how to do something, children learn the hard way rather than listen, and on it goes. We feel like we didn't do the best we could. We let the results impact how we view our efforts. In a very real sense, when serving God, we often hear a different call. God calls us to be godly friends, and we hear that God calls us to have all our friends respond positively to God. God calls us to be godly parents and we hear that God calls us to have godly children. God calls us to a ministry and we hear that God calls us to 'succeed' in that ministry by whatever standard we impose.<br />
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Sometimes, we just miss his call completely, sometimes we hear his calling wrongly. Either way, the problem is noise. Not the noise of precious children running around. Not the noise of construction projects. Not the noise of neighbors having a party. But noise. Noise that blocks us from "Being still" and knowing that he is God. Noise that keeps us from paying attention to a still small voice. Noises like the desire to be a success drowning out other sounds. Noises like pride, selfish ambition, greed, ungodly thoughts and thought patterns we have programmed into our minds.<br />
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When I struggle to hear something, I don't turn up the noise that is distracting me, I minimize it. When it comes to hearing God, we have to turn down the volume on the noises that distract us.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. - Romans 12:2</span><br />
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What to do today? Find some of the sources of noise in your life and turn them down. Turn off the TV with its nonstop advertising, turn off the radio, stop feeding yourself noise and expecting to hear God's voice. Stop trying to conform to the world, and allow yourself to be transformed by getting in God's Word and letting God's Word get inside you.<br />
<br />Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-5845702366289627072014-07-25T16:08:00.001-04:002014-11-08T20:07:35.826-05:002014 Canning and Freezing List<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjis343iIWe6VbOGwFuY4B9VOQ4S2Vok8zp7yFTiVJbpa6pNx9AuMYDePT31pW2EB97CwgaxC2XxrLsxWRiWJLlh4rJvMHrGl5GEezVs0cwZLhEyGMFl91hyPIVU6OCmhmL9R6UMNn-4DU/s1600/100_4346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjis343iIWe6VbOGwFuY4B9VOQ4S2Vok8zp7yFTiVJbpa6pNx9AuMYDePT31pW2EB97CwgaxC2XxrLsxWRiWJLlh4rJvMHrGl5GEezVs0cwZLhEyGMFl91hyPIVU6OCmhmL9R6UMNn-4DU/s1600/100_4346.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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Just a record of our canning and freezing for 2014 and<br />
notes on what produce we bought from the auction and when.</div>
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We will add to it as we add to our storage shelves and freezer.</div>
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Canned Green Beans - 98 quarts (July 25-August 12)<br />
Frozen Green Beans - 7 quarts</div>
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Sun Dills - 7 gallons (July 25-August 27)<br />
Pickled Banana Peppers (August 12-September 4) - 6 pints, 27 quarts<br />
Blueberries (August 21) - 6 quarts<br />
Sweet Corn (August 26-September 2) - 114 quarts<br />
Spaghetti Sauce (August 27-September 12) - 139 quarts<br />
Frozen Green Peppers (August 27) - 6 quarts<br />
Bread and Butter Pickles (August 27) - 14 quarts<br />
Frozen Banana Peppers - 21 quarts<br />
Canned Tomatoes (September 9) - 92 quarts<br />
Tomato Juice (September 16) - 14 quarts, 6 pints<br />
Pickled Beets (September 24-November 7) - 26 quarts<br />
Pear Sauce (October 1) - 52 quarts<br />
Pears (October 1) - 2 quarts<br />
Pear Jam (October 15) - 19 quarts, 21 pints<br />
Pumpkin (October ?? - November 8) - 12 quarts<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Running Grand Total - 7 Gallons, 649 Quarts, 33 Pints</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Auction Purchases:</span></b><br />
August 26th: 2 bushel canning tomatoes - $21<br />
5 bushel of sweet corn - $30<br />
2 bushel of medium pickles - $14<br />
1 1/2 bushel green peppers - $18<br />
September 2: 7 bushel sweet corn - $35<br />
8 bushel banana peppers - $24<br />
September 9 - 10 - 1/2 bushel romas (lot of 22) - $75<br />
September 16 - 19 1/2 bushel canner tomatoes - $47.50<br />
October ?? - 40 large pumkins - $80<br />
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Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-52727008692763400452014-04-21T08:07:00.001-04:002014-04-21T08:07:15.957-04:00The Easter FuneralThis past week, a dear lady from our church was fighting her last battle, and losing. From the moment I walked into the hospital room and saw her frailty and then as her first words to me were "I don't think I'm going to make it pastor," I knew it would take a miracle to turn things around.<br />
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We prayed, as we have over the last couple of years she has struggled with pneumonia and infections, that God would bring healing to her body. But even as Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday showed improvement in her appearance and even her ability to communicate, it became clearer that it was her time.<br />
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On Friday, she rallied and entertained everyone who came near her with her humor and off the wall comments. On Saturday, she was still and quiet. Her breathing was slower, and a little more labored.<br />
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There is a strange joy in knowing she is ready to go. A strange peace knowing she was at peace with her maker. She had settled that account long ago, knowing that because Jesus died on the cross for her sins, knowing that she trusted in what Jesus had done, she would wake up in the presence of her savior.<br /><br />There is always a sadness in death. A sadness as she told me she wasn't going to make it. But with a follower of Jesus, the sadness is overshadowed. She was still worried about her family. She was still in pain from the broken state of her body. But her humor shown through as we talked about the funeral. After all, Bernice always had a good sense of humor.<br />
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On Saturday night, after all the family had left the hospital for the evening, Bernice quietly breathed her last on this earth and went home to be with her Savior. I imagine it was pretty good day all around for her. As she lay there in the hospital bed, with her family surrounding her, to hear them talking about what 'ma' or 'Aunt Bernice' (niecey) had done for them, or said to them, about what she meant to them. And then, thinking on those thoughts, and looking forward to being reunited with her son, she slipped away from this life. And, just like that, the pain was gone, the mortal bands that held her back were gone and the joy of being surrounded by family was eclipsed by being in the presence of her Savior.<br />
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I remember how much Bernice enjoyed Easter morning in church. Handing out candies to the kids, having her grand-daughters all dressed up in beautiful dresses and by her side, rejoicing in the resurrection! I think this past Easter morning was far more grand and glorious for Bernice.<br /><br />So yes, we will have a funeral this Wednesday morning. We will have visiting / viewing hours on Tuesday night. But these are just details to help those who are left behind. Bernice is already home. And while she awaits the resurrection, she is already free. I will miss her, but because I know she is free, I will celebrate with her. It is the same as when a friend moves away because of a life-changing job offer or opportunity. We celebrate through our sorrow. We will continue our new 'tradition.' In the foyer, greeting all those who come to pay their last respects, will be a cake. A bright and cheery cake that congratulates Bernice on her promotion. It won't erase the tears of sorrow left by her absence, but will remind us that she is finally home.<br /><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It is not death to die,</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
To leave this weary road,</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
And midst the brotherhood on high</div>
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To be at home with God.</div>
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<span style="color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
It is not death to close</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
The eye long dimmed by tears,</div>
</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
And wake, in glorious repose,</div>
</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; display: inline;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;">
To spend eternal years.</div>
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<span style="color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
It is not death to fling</div>
</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Aside this sinful dust</div>
</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
And rise, on strong exulting wing</div>
</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
To live among the just.</div>
</span><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Jesus, Thou Prince of Life,</div>
</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Thy chosen cannot die:</div>
</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><div style="text-align: center;">
Like Thee, they conquer in the strife</div>
</span><span style="color: #333333; line-height: 18px;"><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: center;">
To reign with Thee on high.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: center;">
- Henri Malan, translated by George Bethune</div>
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Because Jesus is risen, there is hope, there is promise, there is life!<br />Keep looking up!</div>
</span></span>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-18255527723552573572014-04-01T08:19:00.003-04:002014-04-01T08:19:39.275-04:00In Difficult Situations . . .You know, there are times when we are tempted to look at what God asks from us (trust and faith) and think "You know, I have faith, but in this situation I just don't see a solution."<br />
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It is times like these that God has us just where he wants us. It is times like these that God is ready to glorify His name because we have run out of options that we can see working out. It is times like these that we know our answer came from God.<br />
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Sometimes, when confronted by a difficult situation, we are tempted to think our situation is worse than anyone else has had to deal with. That our situation is graver, that no one has ever struggled as badly as we have struggled. Among other reasons, I think this is one reason that II Kings 6:24-7:20 is in our Bibles. It is rough. It is raw. And it is hopeless.<br />
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There was a famine in the land so cupboards were bare.<br />
The Syrians had laid siege of Samaria so there was no food or supplies coming into the city.<br />
A donkey's head was sold for 80 pieces of silver. (A year's wages in those days)<br />
Some dove's dung was sold for 5 pieces of silver (20 day's wages)<br />
Two women made a pact to 'share' their sons. (Eating one one day, and the other the next)<br />
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Think about the hopelessness. How bad would it have to be for someone to consider selling dove dung, much less buying it? A year's wages for a donkey head? Even at minimum wage, we're talking over $15,000 in the US economy (I guess I would call that relative dollars - what it would feel like to those of us living in the US today) It was so bad a woman thought to suggest eating children, and even worse, desperate enough that it sounded like a good idea! I am glad that I cannot imagine a situation that tough.<br />
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And in the midst of this, God provides. And his provision involves lepers, the invading army, an incredulous King, and an imaginary army (that the Syrians heard). Wouldn't exactly be my list of things to meet the need, but it was God's. He made the Syrians hear an army that wasn't there. Samaria didn't hear it, but the Syrians did, and they were convinced that the sound itself was such an immanent danger that they needed to flee. It was so terrifying that they cast off the valuables they had grabbed to take with them. They didn't even take their horses, they just ran. He used lepers that no one paid any attention to as part of his solution. Their desperation caused them to go into the camp no matter what the results were. And the king who was so far in disbelief that he knew an empty camp full of food and provision was a trick of their enemy. Add to that the lord, one of the king's trusted advisers, who didn't think God could provide food even if God made windows in heaven. Windows in heaven would be a great trick, but God doesn't need tricks. He always has many avenues available to fulfill His Word to us.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span class="text 2Kgs-7-14" id="en-KJV-9722">They took therefore two chariot horses; and the king sent after the host of the Syrians, saying, Go and see. </span>And they went after them unto Jordan: and, lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. And the messengers returned, and told the king.<span class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;"> </span>And the people went out, and spoiled the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the <span class="small-caps" style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">- II Kings 7:14-16</span></div>
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I don't know what you are facing today. You may feel desperate. You may feel hopeless. Just be encouraged through the story of the Syrians, Elisha, some distraught mothers and some lepers that even when things look hopelessly without remedy, God is able. When we can't see it. When we are struggling to believe it. God can.<br />
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<br />Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-48859782331262467072014-03-25T08:36:00.002-04:002014-03-25T08:36:31.187-04:00What pushes your buttons?I found myself in a familiar feeling situation last week. That feeling of aggravation rising, that feeling that someone was getting on my nerves and working hard to do it. I was, after all, driving in Ohio. I officially labeled it "Home of the Road Rage." Driving along 90 for about 70 or 80 miles, the speed limit changed some 20 times - 55 mph, 65 mph, 70 mph, back and forth - at least it breaks up the monotony. On one the first rises to 70 mph I was accelerating when I noticed a car was coming up on my left. Not wanting to 'fight' him to stop her from completing a pass, I took my foot of the gas and held at 60 or so to let her by. She got to just in front of my van and held steady at 60 or so, just inching forward a car length or two every minute. After several minutes, I decided I should just get up to speed and let them fall in behind me, but as I sped up, she sped up, and pulled in front of me just as I was coming up behind her. Since I was now too close, I pulled out into the left lane when she promptly sped up further. I was laughing at the lunacy of what was happening, but I was getting frustrated. And with good reason, or so I felt. (Side note: I remained relaxed and the trip was without any road rage incident)<br />
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Then came Sunday's services. The evening was covering Matthew 7:1-23 - the incident of the pharisees complaining to Jesus about his disciples eating with unwashed hands. The main lesson? Sin doesn't come from outside of you, it comes from inside you. It is your heart that makes you defiled, not anything that goes into your body. Someone's bad driving cannot make you angry - that is a choice. A pile of money left out in plain sight cannot make you a thief - that is a choice. A caring, attractive person of the opposite sex cannot make you an adulterer or fornicator - that is a choice. Someone cannot push your buttons to get you upset - that is a choice. Our reactions that come from our heart are the cause of our sin.<br />
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Some might say "But how can I change my reactions?" I'm glad they asked.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">How shall a young man cleanse his way, by taking heed thereto according to thy word. - Psalm 119:9</span></div>
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But I'm not young! I can't change!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">If any man be in Christ he is a new creature, old things are passed away, behold all things are become new. - II Corinthians 5:17</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">- Psalm 119:11</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Do not be conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. - Romans 12:2</span></div>
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There's probably a voice inside of you saying that it can't be that simple. That the answer in Scripture sounds too simplistic to work. That voice comes when we don't take the renewing power of God's Word seriously. That voice comes when we let God's voice to us through his word be crowded up by conflicting and competing words from the world around us, even from our own 'wisdom.' That voice comes when we are not serious about being people of the Word and letting it change us.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful, but his delight is in the law of the lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Let the Word of Christ Dwell in you richly . . .</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus . . .</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Be not drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit . . .</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth . . . </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Teach them to your children, when you sit, when you rise . . . .</span></div>
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Old Testament, New Testament, there seems to be a repeated theme of how to live in victory over sin. Of how to erase our 'buttons' that get pressed by people, by our surroundings, by the world system around us. It is sobering to find in Scripture that while the rest of the world says that there is always a cause outside of you making you behave badly, God says it comes from your heart. Fix your heart, fix your problems.<br />
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Several years ago, I tried an experiment. Not of heart change, but to change my reactions. (Of course, you can't change reactions, right?) And I picked one of the hard ones. I didn't want to be ticklish. I decided to become 'not ticklish.' And I learned something very interesting. I could change my reaction. I also had an uncle that liked to find that spot between the neck and shoulder where it would cause you to 'spazz' and hit it. I chose to become 'immune.' Something cold placed on your neck to surprise you and make you jump, right? I changed my 'reaction' to enjoyment. I know, I'm just a little bit stubborn. But the reason I am sharing this is that reactions can be changed by the power of our will, how much more can they be changed if we let the power of God loose in our hearts?<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.</span><br />
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I apologize if some of the verses have an error in them, due to the nature of the post, I went from memory except for checking the end of Romans 12:2 because my mind scrambled it this morning. :)<br />
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Keep looking up!<br />
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<br />Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-10174023658890679652014-01-22T08:37:00.003-05:002014-01-22T10:08:25.122-05:00When Life Gives You Lemons - Personal LossWe have all been faced with loss. Whether the loss of loved ones, the loss of a favorite possession, the loss of reputation, or any number of other types of loss. It is a difficult lemon to deal with as loss often causes us to experience the bitterness of the situation quickly, before we have a chance to add sugar and make the lemonade.<br />
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Having talked with several parents who have lost children through the years, adult children and young children, I am told it is about the worst form of loss a person can experience. Why does it hurt so bad? Because it is unnatural, it is unexpected, it is the loss of not only something close to you, but a piece of you. These are reasons that make any loss hard to bear. The loss of anything seems unnatural to us, we have an expectation of accumulating things, not of losing the things and relationships we have. We struggle with understanding why such difficulty should visit us.<br />
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I'm guessing that you have already figured out where in the Bible we will find the answer to this lemon as Job suffered loss as greatly as any person in the Bible. So the tough part is to figure out what made Job's response a good one, and what principles can we take with us to apply to the losses that come in our lives.<br />
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The first key I think we can learn from Job is that it is OK to grieve. It is not wrong to sorrow. It is not sinful to express sadness. I get why we shy away from it. It makes me uncomfortable to be around someone who is sobbing uncontrollably. Because of that, I feel uncomfortable crying in front of someone else. If we were honest, we would probably say that we would rather that no one cried. Sometimes that feeling makes us feel like it would be wrong to sorrow. But the Bible tells us that Job tore his clothes, shaved his head and fell to the ground. He was sad. He showed his sorrow; he announced it to anyone around him that he grieved the loss of his children, animals and servants greatly. And after talking of this grieving that Job was doing, the Bible tells us that in all this Job did not sin. For us it is important to remember to allow yourself room to grieve, to allow those who have experienced loss time to grieve. Don't try to make yourself stop feeling the loss, don't tell someone else when they should stop feeling sad.<br />
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There is a key to what grief is good and what grief isn't. It's OK to grieve, as long as you still believe. In the New Testament, it talks about grieving, but not as those who have no hope. Christians are to be about hopeful grieving. In Job, it tells us in his grief he fell down and worshipped. Our belief needs to be that God is still on His throne. That God is to be exalted in all of our life's circumstances. That God i good and He cares for us. Job could do this because he did not expect to only be blessed by God.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">"What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips." - Job 2:10b</span><br />
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Because he didn't expect only blessing, he could worship God in the trials. He expected God to be good, but not everything that happened in life to be good. Paul talks about that in the New Testament as well:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose." </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> - Romans 8:28</span><br />
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Job knew that. Job kept God on his throne and understood that God had things under control. It did not lessen the pain of his loss, but it helped him see past his loss to look for what God was doing through it. To seek God's exaltation, even in the midst of his humiliation.<br />
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What do we do with loss? We remember that it is OK to grieve, as long as we still believe.<br />
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I hope you don't need this lesson any time soon personally or to help a friend, but I hope we can all respond to the losses that will come with the wisdom of Job. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom"<br />
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Keep looking up!<br />
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If you would like to hear the sermon behind this post, you can listen in for the next month over <a href="http://www.niobebaptist.org/media.html" target="_blank">here</a>.Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-65696398227327680062014-01-19T07:49:00.000-05:002014-01-19T07:49:11.575-05:00When Life Gives You Lemons - Unanswered PrayerHave you ever noticed a child who was trying to get the attention of a parent while the parent was involved in doing something else. Often, the child will be so focused on getting the attention that they will not wait to be answered. "Mom, mommy, mom, mommy, mom, MOMMY, MOMMMMMMM!" Why is this the natural reaction of a child? Because we like to get answers. We like people to pay attention to us. Especially when we have a need.<br />
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Sometimes when it comes to God, we don't keep asking when we don't get an answer. We feel the same emptiness of not getting a response, but often people will head off and search for another answer. How should we respond to unanswered prayer?<br />
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In the book of Psalms we can find several times when the Psalmist felt that God was not answering his prayer. In Psalm 77, we have a Psalm of Asaph that was written in such a situation. He was troubled by the thought of God, he felt cast off and ignored, forgotten. So what do we do?<br />
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The Psalmist did what the Psalms often portray in these circumstances. The Psalmist told God what was wrong. He complained about his circumstances. Hr knew things used to be better, he knew that it looked very unfair from where he was sitting. He wanted to have an answer to his question: Why was God not responding? You see, the Psalms are great in that you can always find one that starts with how you might be feeling right now. Whether joy or distress, or anywhere in between, there's a Psalm for that. Then what you do is follow the road map laid out in the Psalm is you want to worship God from where you are. This time, the Psalmist laid out his complaint to God. He didn't blame God, but he told God what was wrong.<br />
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Then, the psalmist does a strange thing. His song (or psalm) turns from complaint to praise. In the middle of his trials he is singing a song! He remembers God's goodness, His blessings, His works in times past. He focuses on what God has done and therefore on what God might be doing in his situation.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">"Thou art the God that doest wonders: thou hast declared thy strength among the people." - Psalm 77:14</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">And when we remember who God is and what God does, we will remember that He does not ignore His people. We wil remember that the God of wonders is not limited by our reasoning and our ability to see. We will see God as He is: seated on His throne, in control, and merciful and gracious to His people.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;">What to do with unanswered prayer? Tell God what's wrong, sing to Him a song!</span><br />
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<br />Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-18471600084792563302014-01-06T08:51:00.000-05:002014-01-22T10:08:58.777-05:00When Life Gives You Lemons - Too Much WorkHave you ever felt like you had too large of a mountain of work in front of you? Like the expectations on you were just too much to ever accomplish? Moses was in a similar situation. The leader of over 2 million people, having organized their departure from Egypt, and now responsible for a great crowd of people in a hostile environment away from the only home they had known for over 400 years. He sat from morning to night to judge the needs of the people, to hear their disputes, to teach them God's law, to inquire of God on the difficult issues, to keep everything moving along as it should. To say Moses was in the position of just putting out fires would be an understatement. He was doing very necessary work that had no end in sight. How many times a day did he have to teach "If you steal an ox, you have to give 5 back, if you steal a sheep, you have to give 4 back?"<br />
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Fortunately for Moses, and for us, there is more to life than just survival mode. Than just putting out fire after fire in our lives, but it involves a choice. We have to choose to do what needs to be done to make lemonade with this lemon. The upside of lots of work? Lots of progress. And lots of people means lots of workers! Moses got his solution from Jethro, his father-in-law. The solution is "Don't be proud, work with a crowd!"<br />
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With responsibility often comes the temptation to pride. It sneaks in slowly and makes us think that we are important because of the work we are doing. It makes us feel that we are the only ones that can do this important work. Sometimes we hold onto tasks because we don't want the feeling of not being needed - I won't teach anyone else how to clean the paper jam out of the copier because I like being the copy machine savior for my coworkers. We don't want to let go of tasks because the tasks make us important. We all have to resist this subtle area of pride in our lives and move on to the second half - work with a crowd.<br />
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Jethro suggested choosing men who feared God, who could be trusted, who had integrity and teaching them to answer problems. Rulers over 10, 50, 100 and 1000. I imagine the rulers of ten learned the rule of stealing livestock. I imagine the rulers of 100 learned how to tell what punishment should be given for an ox that has gored (either man or beast). I imagine the rulers over 1000 learned more intricate laws than that. Each had his job to do and the cases they didn't know, or couldn't get to the bottom of they brought to Moses. He always had the option of going to the Lord if he didn't know. Working with a crowd involves trusting trustworthy people to share the load. They have to be trustworthy or we are just neglecting work. We have to trust them, or it just involves us moving arms, legs and mouths of puppets.<br />
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Do you have too much work before you? While school kids have to do their own homework, most of us have the option of following Jethro's advice "Don't be proud, work with a crowd!"<br />
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If you'd like to hear the sermon that goes along with the blog post - it will be available for the next month or so over at<a href="http://www.niobebaptist.org/media.html" target="_blank"> www.niobebaptist.org/media.html </a>Thanks for stopping by!<br />
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<br />Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107347951019496501.post-85209335372351596142014-01-01T09:43:00.001-05:002014-01-01T09:43:20.240-05:00Happy New Year!New Year's brings reflection into most of our lives. What was the past year like? What are my hopes for the new year?<br /><br />Some people decide to make resolutions. Some people set new goals for the year. Many look at the new year as a good time for a new start.<br />
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So what to do with the new year? Are you going to make things better than last year? It is a simple thought, but if you keep doing what you've been doing, you're going to keep getting what you've been getting. If you have not improved in areas over the past year, what will you change to look for improvements this year?<br />More discipline?<br />
More reading?<br />
Healthier eating?<br />
More exercise?<br />
More time in prayer?<br />
More encouraging others?<br />
God honoring attitudes?<br />
The list could be endless of things we could improve. My encouragement would be to work on something that you have help in, that you have support in. If you are a believer, God's Word promises that "He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it" which means spiritual disciplines (seeking to become more like Jesus in your life) comes with built in help. Do you have mutual goals shared with friends (exercise, Scripture reading, weight loss, Bible memory, health goals)? Then focus on encouraging them in reaching the goal. The longer they last in it, the longer you will work on building good habits. Ecclesiastes tells us of the benefit of walking together with others. "A cord of three strands is not easily broken."<br />
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However you treat the new year, I wish you and yours well, and hope that 2014 is a year of growing in grace and becoming more like Jesus.Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09354735537763349078noreply@blogger.com0