"Art thou pale for weariness
Of climbing heaven and gazing on the earth..."
-Percy Bysshe Shelley
(1792-1822)
English Romantic poet
A timely message of warning and hope for America today from
the Reverend Peter Marshall Sr., Scots-American Christian pastor
and beloved man of God, who was twice-elected Chaplain
of the United States Senate from 1947 to 1949.
"Fear not, there is nothing to fear, for I am with you;
do not look around you in terror and be dismayed,
for I am your God.
I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties,
yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and
retain you with My victorious right hand
of rightness and justice.
Isaiah 41:10
A message of warning and hope from American
author and historian Peter Marshall Jr.
"But Jesus replied, You do not realize what you are asking.
Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink,
and to be baptized with the baptism with which
I am baptized? They answered, We are able."
Matthew 20:22
The season is over; the rush and struggle of growing and saving the crops is past for another year, and the time has come when we pause and reverently give thanks for the harvest. For it is not our efforts alone that our measure of success is due, but to the life principle in the earth and the seed, to the sunshine and to the rain-to the goodness of God. "His goodness and mercy does follow us all the days of our lives."
We may not be altogether satisfied with the year's results, and we can do a terrific amount of grumbling when we take the notion. But I am sure we all know in our hearts that we have a great deal for which to be thankful. In spite of disappointments and weariness and perhaps sorrow, His goodness and mercy does follow us all the days of our lives.
As the time approaches when we shall be called upon by proclamations to give thanks, we must decide whether we shall show our thankfulness only by overeating at the Thanksgiving feast. That would seem a rather curious way to show gratitude-simply to grasp greedily what is given!
When a neighbor does us a favor, we show our appreciation of it by doing him a favor in return. Then when the Lord showers favor upon us, how much more should we try to show our gratitude in such ways acceptable to Him, remembering always the words of Christ, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of these, ye have done it unto Me." (Matthew 26:40)
"Thanks For The Harvest"
(November 1921)
Laura Ingalls Wilder
(1867-1957)
Prolific American writer and
Pioneer girl
Taken from the book,
"Little House In The Ozarks"
A Laura Ingalls Wilder Sampler
The Rediscovered Writings
By Laura Ingalls Wilder
Edited by Stephen W. Hines
Guideposts Edition
(1991)
"Mary and Laura Playing Dolls In The Attic"
(1953)
An illustration by Garth Williams
From the book,
"Little House In The Big Woods"
(1932)
By Laura Ingalls Wilder
Joshua and Caleb, a.k.a.
"The Bearded Bible Brothers" remind us that
as children of God we need to focus on the
positive aspects of our relationship with Him.
His goodness and His mercy and His faithfulness
are forever for those who love Him
and honor His name!
"For we walk by faith, not by sight."
2 Corinthians 5:7
When I sit down to eat the feast
"In the beginning, before all time, was the Word,
Christ, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God Himself."
John 1:1
Now, in lean November,
The silent houses
Huddle in despair,
Every front porch
Forlorn, abandoned to
Its mailbox and its mat-
A patch of cold brown
Stubble, uncomfortable
Even to the cat:
"The Lord will go forth like a mighty man,
He will rouse up His zealous indignation and vengeance
like a warrior; He will cry, yes, He will shout aloud.
He will do mightily against His enemies."
Isaiah 42:13
Unto You do I cry, O Lord my Rock,
be not deaf and silent to me,
lest, if You be silent to me,
I become like those going down to the pit.
Hear the voice of my supplication
as I cry to You for help,
as I lift up my hands toward
Your innermost sanctuary
the Holy of Holies.
Drag me not away with the wicked,
with the workers of iniquity,
who speak peace with their neighbors,
but malice and mischief are in their hearts.
Repay them according to their work
and according to the wickedness of their doings;
repay them according to the works of their hands;
render to them what they deserve.
Because they regard not the works of the Lord
nor the operation of His hands,
He will break them down and not rebuild them.
Blessed be the Lord, because He has heard
the voice of my supplications.
The Lord is my Strength and my impenetrable Shield;
my heart trusts in, relies on,
and confidently leans on Him,
and I am helped;
therefore my heart greatly rejoices,
and with my song I will praise Him.
The Lord is their unyielding Strength,
and He is the Stronghold of salvation to His anointed
Save Your people and bless Your heritage;
nourish and shepherd them and carry them forever.
Psalm 28
"You are Lord over all the earth..."
Dr. Todd Baker of Faith Foundations discusses the Gospel of John.
"Joshua and Caleb discuss Frugality vs. Poverty Mentality.
We know that God has called us to live a life of frugality.
But sometimes we can take frugality too far.
Fear is the root of the poverty mentality, yet,
we are called to live by faith."
-Our Jewish Roots
"Faith sees the invisible,
Believes the unbelievable
And receives the impossible."
-Corrie ten Boom
"As America awaits the fate of court battles in key election states,
conservatives are signaling that they have had enough."
-The John Birch Society
"Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that the people may know
that You, the Lord, are God, and have turned their hearts back to You."
1 Kings 18:37
Weeks before this election, I sensed a deep uncertainty about the outcome. As much as I wanted to see President Trump win, I had this nagging sense of alarm within me that he would not be re-elected-at least it would appear so on the surface. Now I see and hear about Christians losing heart, even going so far as abandoning their faith, because they are not only listening to the modern day prophets of Baal, a.k.a the mainstream news media, and so-called "experts" over the outcome of this election, but to well-known "internet preachers" who could not wait to post their "revelations" from God about it on social media and YouTube.
I always ask myself, Are these people truly hearing from God, or is this merely their own wishful thinking? Are we suppose to put our faith in the revelations of someone who says they are hearing from God... or in God Himself?
On the flip side of this situation, a well-known theologian and pastor named John Piper, actually discouraged his listeners from voting for Donald Trump, self-righteously asserting that the past five years, "bear vivid witness" to the "nation-corrupting" infection of "flagrant boastfulness, Vulgarity, immorality, and factiousness' spreading to every level of society"-apparently attributing all of the long-standing deteriorating conditions within our national culture to the 2016 election of President Trump.
Piper's accusations against our president's purported corruptive influence sounds as if he has been influenced by the lies and distortions spewed against Donald Trump by the mainstream media and the Democrats.
Never mind that this man, who became the leader of the free world in 2016, is the most pro-life president in my lifetime. And, I suppose it has slipped the minds of those who think like Piper that Donald Trump not only recognized the city of Jerusalem as the capital of the nation of Israel, but backed up his statement by moving our embassy there.
I have to ask myself, "How is a real Christian suppose to act?" The only wall of separation between myself, a sinner saved by grace, from the unwashed sinners of the world, is the precious blood of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Furthermore, the only One Who sees the innermost heart of human beings is God Himself.
I think if more Christians in America would stay off social media and the Internet, and open up their Bibles to read and carefully study the Word of God, they might have been better prepared for the disappointing outcome of the 2020 presidential election! No battle-whether physical or spiritual- is going to be easy in this world. Jesus Himself told us this in the Gospel of John when He said:
"In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer, take courage, be confident, certain, undaunted! For I have overcome the world. I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you." (John 16:33)
Without faith, nothing is possible. I believe that the outcome of the 2020 election is a wake up call for the church in America. Wake up from your coma of compromise with the world system and woeful ignorance of Scripture before it is too late! God never rewards cowardice. It is time to stand on His Word and deliver!
The situation we are facing today in this nation reminds me of the story of the prophet Elijah, facing off with the prophets of Baal. What was his warning to the people of his day? "How long will you halt and limp between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him! But if Baal, then follow him. And the people did not answer him a word." (1 Kings 18:20)
Elijah soundly defeated and killed the 450 prophets of Baal, and yet, at the pinnacle of victory, after he received word that the wicked queen, Jezebel, was seeking his life, Elijah succumbed to fear and fled to hide out in the wilderness. But God found him and told him to go back to Damascus, and when he arrived to anoint Hazael to be king over Syria. Elijah also anointed Jehu, son of Nimshi, to be king over Israel, and Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah, as the prophet who would eventually replace him.
At this crucial moment of decision, Elijah chose to listen to and obey God, throwing off the crippling spirit of fear, and replacing it with his faith. As a result, 7000 people in Israel, who had not bowed down to Baal, were spared their lives. Then, when Ahab, the king and husband of Jezebel, was weakened during an attack by the Syrians, Jehu, a known opponent of Baal worship, and also a ruthless soldier, seized his throne. Elisha, the prophet chosen to take the place of Elijah, proved to be a relentless foe of the adherents of Baal under Jehu's rule. Although this is a condensed version of the story, after that momentary lapse into fear and defeat, it was Elijah's otherwise unshakable faith and trust in the Living God which secured the victory in the battle of good against evil.
As for the wicked queen Jezebel, who had promoted Baal worship throughout the land, Jehu later ordered her servants to throw her from the window where her blood splattered all over and her corpse was trampled by Jehu's horse. He later ordered her remains to be taken for burial. However, his servants discovered only her skull, her feet, and the palms of her hands were left. The wicked queen's flesh had been ripped away and eaten by stray dogs, just as the prophet Elijah had prophesied!
"For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways, My ways, says the Lord."
Isaiah 55:8
God speaks to us in many ways
Altering our lives, our plans, our days,
And His blessings come in many guises
That He alone in love devises,
And sorrow, which we dread so much,
Can bring a very healing touch...
For when we fail to heed His voice
We leave the Lord no other choice
Except to use a firm, stern hand
To make us know He's in command...
For on the wings of loss and pain,
The peace we often sought in vain
Will come to us with sweet surprise,
For God is merciful and wise...
And through dark hours of tribulation
God gives us time for meditation,
And nothing can be counted loss
Which teaches us to bear our cross.
"Blessings Devised By God"
Helen Steiner Rice
(1900-1981)
"And the Lord will be king over all the earth.
On that day there will be one Lord-
His name alone will be worshiped."
Zechariah 14:9
O God of earth and altar, Bow down and hear our cry;
Our earthly rulers falter, Our people drift and die;
The walls of gold entomb us The swords of scorn divide;
Take not Thy thunder from us, But take away our pride.
From all that terror teaches, From lies of tongue and pen,
From all the easy speeches That comfort cruel men,
From sale and profanation Of honor and the sword,
From sleep and from damnation, Deliver us, good Lord!
Tie in a living tether The prince and priest and thrall;
Bind all our lives together, Smite us and save us all;
In ire and exultation A-flame with faith, and free,
Lift up a living nation, A single sword to thee. A-men.
"O God Of Earth And Altar"
(1906)
G.K. Chesterton
(1874-1936)
English author
"For we are not only wrestling with flesh and blood..."
Ephesians 6:12
I'm going to miss you, Alex.
Jeopardy! will never be the same without you!
Thank you for all the years of lively entertainment
you gave to America and to me.
We love you!
May you rest in peace.
"Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise!"
Psalm 95:2
"Giving Thanks Giving Thanks"
Eve Merriam
(1916-1992)
American poetess and writer
"We all want to feel special.
But are we looking for acceptance
in all the wrong places?
What is our identity in Messiah?
To what has God called us?
What is our destiny?
We need to walk in the fulfillment of knowing
that the Messiah is our Father.
We are blessed and highly favored of God!
When we speak love, we reflect Yeshua."
-Our Jewish Roots
