The Saturday Edition

While the little sugar seekers are out I figure is the best time to cloister away in a darkened house and post the Saturday Edition. This will also serve as a good stimulus to post early, which is what I have been trying to accomplish anyway.

The Poet's Corner

As I sit here in my niche
My nose begins to itche.
I cannot tell why,
Or even try
Not to flinche or twitche, for I itche!

(Ha! You thought somehow I would work in a witche, didn't you)?

That's it for tonight.
Good night!

Friday Quiz

Many famous people have met death at an early age. These two singers are no exception. The anagrams of their names are a jumble of their first and last names, mixed.

LESLIE SPLERV         WISHMAN KALLI

T.G.I.F.

On the eve of a day with different meanings to different people, we will take a look at October 31 in tonight's blog.

Answers to Last Week's Friday Quiz

The waterfowl was a wood duck.

The camouflaged bird was a ruffed grouse.

The three types of buffalo pictured were:
American buffalo or bison, water buffalo, and Cape buffalo.
Sorry that the last one was cropped. I need to learn how to size the big ones.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

'Tis now the very witching time of night,
When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out
Contagion to this world. ~ William Shakespeare

From ghoulies and ghosties
And long-leggedy beasties
And things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord, deliver us! ~ An Old Scottish Saying

Shadows of a thousand years rise again unseen,
Voices whisper in the trees, "Tonight is Halloween!" ~ Dexter Kozen

Those seemingly interminable dark walks between houses, long before street-lit safety became an issue, were more adrenalizing than the mountains of candy filling the sack. Sadly Halloween, with our good-natured attempts to protect the little ones, from the increasingly dangerous traffic and increasingly sick adults, has become an utter bore. ~ Lauren Springer

...And speaking of the dark, there have been some dark things written of history and historians.

Historians are gossips who tease the dead. ~Voltaire, Scribbling Books

History is the sum total of the things that could have been avoided. ~ Konrad Adenauer

The very ink with which all history is written is merely fluid prejudice. ~ Mark Twain, Following the Equator

A history in which every particular incident may be true may on the whole be false. ~ Thomas Babington Macaulay

Perhaps history is a thing that would stop happening if God held His breath, or could be imagined as turning away to think of something else. ~ Herbert Butterfield, Christianity and History

Humor

Tennessee

A Tennessee State trooper pulled over a pickup on I-65. The trooper asked, "Got any ID?" The driver replied, "Bout whut?"

Arkansas

The Sheriff pulled up next to the guy unloading garbage out of his pick-up into the ditch.
The Sheriff asked, "Why are you dumping garbage in the ditch? Don't you see that sign right over your head."
"Yep", he replied. "That's why I dumpin' it here, cause it says: 'Fine For Dumping Garbage'."

A Thought about October 31

Little did Martin Luther realize when he nailed his theses to the church door on this day in history, that the Reformation would lead to the denominations of the protest we call Protestantism. His attempt to reform the church was just that, to bring about change that was much needed. Had he known that this day in history would be marked as the first day of the Reformation, perhaps he would not have chosen such a widely celebrated day.

Rarely, however, does one consider the day on which something as monumental as this is in the works. If anything, Martin Luther would have considered the traffic in and out of the building which would bring people who could read Latin past this door. The laity could not read it, only students and clergy. If the clergy saw it first it may disappear before very many students saw it. The holiday would be the best chance that a lot of students could get to read it before the professors got to it, so that is how Halloween also became Reformation Day.

Thursday's Thoughts

Once again it is getting late, and I have not posted. Why do so many things get put off until the last possible moment? Don't tell me, I think I know.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

"You can judge the quality of their faith from the way they behave. Discipline is an index to doctrine." ~ Tertullian (160 - 225)

Ecclesiastes 7:2 It is better to proceed into a funeral home as a mourner, as this will be the end of all men, than traveling to the local tavern to drink — and the living take it to heart. ~ Solomon (RSVP to God)

"Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith. We should live for the future, and yet find our life in the fidelities of the present; the last is only the method of the first." ~ Henry Ward Beecher (1813 - 1887)

A Thought to Share

Live a disciplined life with as much as the Lord has given you to accomplish it. I have vacillated from being undisciplined to disciplined and back again. I can say from experience living self-disciplined lives is far better, "for the Lord disciplines those He loves." And "no discipline for the moment seems pleasant."

Tertullian understood this, but using his wisdom to judge others is not how Christians are called to live their lives. Solomon knew the difference, but tried every way that there was to live. In the end, he soured on life itself, because he did not include God in many of his years. "Remember now thy creator in the days of thy youth."

He still retained the ability to give sound advice to the end, without maintaining the ability to follow through in his own life. His wives turned his heart from following God. He looked at his approaching day of death as a thing to be desired more than his birthday. Being around that many women might cause any man to feel the same.

Look forward to tomorrow without trepidation. Take hold of it by both handles. Place the handle of anxiety in the hand of God and live by faith. Look for opportunities to praise Him. Commit your day to Him and the way you live it, and He will direct and order it for you. Our future is, after all, already in His hands.

Humor

North Carolina

NEWS FLASH! - North Carolina's worst air disaster occurred when a small two-seat Cessna 150 plane, piloted by two University of North Carolina students, crashed into a cemetery earlier today. Search and Rescue workers have recovered 300 bodies so far and expect the number to climb as digging continues into the evening.

The pilot and copilot survived and are helping in the recovery efforts.


South Carolina

A man in South Carolina had a flat tire, pulled off on the side of the road, and proceeded to put a bouquet of flowers in front of the car and one behind it. Then he got back in the car to wait. A passerby studied the scene as he drove by and was so curious he turned around and went back. He asked the fellow what the problem was.

The man replied, "I have a flat tayre."

The passerby asked, "But what's with the flowers?"

The man responded, "When you break down they tell you to put flares in the front and flares in the back. I never did understand it neither."

Wacky Wednesday

Since I missed Tuesday's post I will make a noble effort to post tonight before midnight.

Today's Quote

"There is nothing wrong with men possessing riches. The wrong comes when riches possess men." ~ Billy Graham

Humor

Louisiana
A senior at Louisiana U was overheard saying, "When the end of the world comes, I hope to be in Louisiana." When asked why he replied, "I'd rather be in Louisiana because everything happens in Louisiana 20 years later than in the rest of the civilized world."

Mississippi
A young man in Mississippi came running into the store and said to his buddy, "Bubba, somebody just stole your pickup truck from the parking lot!"
Bubba replied, "Did you see who it was?"
The young man answered, "I didn't have time to look, but I got the license number."

A Question for You

Pardon me if I diverge from the normal line of Bible questions to ask something for which I have no answer, nor have I heard anyone address.

Why does the Genesis account not record the creation of sound?
Was it created at all? Does it exist as a created thing, or is God's
creation limited to the things we can see and touch?

If sound was created, when was it created? Was it before God called light into existence? If not, what is the meaning of "And God said..."? If before, what was the medium in which it traveled, since sound cannot exist in a vacuum?

The last question is based on the science of sound, but there is also the philosophy of sound which is spawned by the question, "When a tree falls in a forest with no ear to hear, is there a sound?" Philosophically then to some, the ear would have to come before the sound.

Pardon the digression, it is only an example of my consternation. As important as sound is to the "Thus saith the Lord" of scripture, the question remains, "Why does the Genesis account omit sound?"

Monday Madness

When things fit neatly together we feel good about them. The way words form sentences and sentences fit together to make a paragraph is an accepted format that would make us all cringe if suddenly it were any other way. We all resist change to one degree or another. In any change, things do not seem to fit the way we were accustomed to having them.
"Don't call it change, call it 'progress'", we are told. Does that really make any difference? Today's quotes are on the theme of progress. See how they fit together.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” ~ George Bernard Shaw

"All progress is precarious, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

“We all want progress, but if you're on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; in that case, the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive.” ~ C.S. Lewis

"All progress is experimental." ~ John Jay Chapman

“Progress is man's ability to complicate simplicity.” ~ Thor Heyerdahl

"Is it progress if a cannibal uses a fork?" ~ Stanislaw J. Lec

What level we have progressed to now? It all seems to prove --

"The more things change, the more they remain the same." ~ Alphonse Karr

Humor

This weeks jokes consist of a series poking fun at us Southerners. I can laugh along with the rest of them.

Alabama

A group of Alabama friends went deer hunting and paired off in twos for the day. That night, one of the hunters returned alone, staggering under the weight of an eight-point buck.

"Where's Henry?" the others asked.

"Henry had a stroke of some kind. He's a couple of miles back up the trail," the successful hunter replied.

"You left Henry laying out there and carried the deer back?" they inquired.

"A tough call," nodded the hunter. "But I figured no one is going to steal Henry!"

Sunday Praise

It can be found in abundance in many places, but it is not sold in any store. It is not available in all circumstances, but it is desirable in many. Some people would pay a great deal of money for it, but it cannot be bought at any price. It can be obtained without money and maintained at very little cost. Those that have it in abundance may sometimes tire of it. If broken, it can be restored without charge. What is it? (Answer below)

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

"In any situation, the best thing you can do is the right thing; the next best thing you can do is the wrong thing; the worst thing you can do is nothing." ~ Theodore Roosevelt

I am not completely sold on the "any situation" of this quotation. It would follow that doing the wrong thing is better than doing nothing at all. This cannot be the case in any situation. While doing nothing when something must be done is definitely wrong, choosing between two good things does not make one of them wrong. Opinion often makes the call rather than results. Even considering only the results does not justify the means we choose to obtain the results. There are so many situations in life that we had better not apply generalizations that merely sound good. Bully!

"Hate the sin and not the sinner is a precept which though easy enough to understand is rarely practiced, and that is why the poison of hatred spreads in the world." ~ Mahatma Gandhi

There is enough truth here to make this seem like a viable cause for hatred, but is it the real reason? The human heart cries out for justice. When the law is violated, law enforcement seeks to punish the violator. Hatred is not involved. The sinner and his sin are inseparable in the eyes of the law. Only the church of Jesus Christ can truly practice this, because only through Jesus comes forgiveness of sins.

The poison of hatred spreads in the world when there is no forgiveness. Injustice reaps vengeance where there is neither forgiveness nor punishment. Hatred flows from hearts that have never heard the gospel of Christ. Gandhi loved to point out inconsistencies in Christianity. That is not such a bad thing if we heed and correct them.

Humorous Quotes

How is it that our memory is good enough to retain the least triviality that happens to us, and yet not good enough to recollect how often we have told it to the same person? ~François Duc de La Rochefoucauld

Why do they put the Gideon Bibles only in the bedrooms, where it's usually too late, and not in the barroom downstairs? ~ Christopher Morley, Contribution to a Contribution

If you wonder where your child left his roller skates, try walking around the house in the dark. ~ Leopold Fechtner

Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else. ~ Will Rogers

A man may be a fool and not know it, but not if he is married. ~ H.L. Mencken

Biblical Quotes - What is Faith?

Hebrews 11:1-6 "Faith is a firm foundation for us to build our hope upon, a conviction that something we cannot see does exist. On this basis our forefathers gained God's approval. Faith is understanding in our inner being that the spoken word of God set up time and eternity so that what we see may shine out of that which has not been made.
It was through faith Abel offered God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which it testified of him that he was righteous. God bore witness in respect to his gifts and through faith he still speaks, though dead.
It was through faith Enoch was changed so he did not have to experience death, and he was not found because God transferred him; for it was testified before the exchange that he lived to please God. So then without any faith it is entirely impossible to please God; for in coming to Him it is absolutely necessary to believe that He exists, and He is One who rewards those seeking for him." ~ From an unpublished manuscript, RSVP to God.

The Week's Best Link(s)

Tolerance and Religious Freedom

Just a note to explain why this link was selected. The couple spoke out for Jesus and against Mohamed in a way that offended Muslims at a scheduled debate in the couple's hotel. Anyone present was there by their own choice, yet one woman complained she was offended. The British Government then arrested them, imposed sanctions against their business, and released them while awaiting trial on criminal charges for what they said. It is a crucial bit of information concerning the way things are starting to go in another previously free country. We will be seeing more and more of this across Europe and the Americas as Islam strengthens its grip on the western world. Religious persecution will only be leveraged against Christians who name the name of Jesus. Tolerance applies to all others, and those who cry for tolerance the loudest will be the least tolerant of Christians.

ANSWER TO THE LEADING PARAGRAPH QUESTION: When you speak to name it, you break it. It is silence.

The Saturday Edition

Once again it is the weekend. I hope every one had a wonderful week.
I see my images still need some adjustment, but I was glad to be able to post a Friday Quiz this week.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

TODAY WE HONOR OGDEN NASH on the topic of the family

Children aren't happy with nothing to ignore,
And that's what parents were created for.

To keep your marriage brimming
With love in the loving cup,
Whenever you're wrong, admit it;
Whenever you're right, shut up.

I have an idea that the phrase 'weaker sex' was coined by some woman to disarm the man she was preparing to overwhelm.

Marriage is the alliance of two people, one of whom never remembers birthdays and anniversaries, and one who never forgets them.

Oh, what a tangled web do parents weave
When they think their children are naive.

A Thought to Share

This also begins with a quote from Ogden Nash:

"Professional men, they have no cares;
Whatever happens, they get theirs..."

To which I would like to add kings and queens, elected and appointed officials, and ex-wives.

While the world teeters on the brink of global depression the haves rush on with little care about the have-nots. Small businesses fail before larger ones which fail before giant corporations. We will not all go down together, which according to some, indicates we are nor entering a depression, merely a severe recession. What is the difference if you lose your job?

Too many people in Government and high paying jobs are out of touch with the little guy who is economically hurting. Some entrepreneurs have tried lowering the cost of goods and services in the areas in which their businesses function, but they are in the minority. The vast majority of business owners and corporations do not want to be first to drop prices. In fact, some have raised them because profits have shrunk due to less sales.

WalMart has been the leader in volume sales for many years, proving profits could be made from low prices. Lately they have forgotten that, since they have dropped the "Always" from their low price strategy. People are returning to more conventional retailers who have had to drop their prices to compete with the giants and their volume sales tactics.

The way things are going, it appears that even though the year 2012 may not bring the end of the world, it may bring the end of global economy as we know it today.



The Poet's Corner

I have a hankering for food;

I want the stuff that is good.

The problem is that

I am already quite fat,

And dieting may do me no good.



The answers to the Friday Quiz will be posted on Thursday.

The Friday Quiz

What is this genera of waterfowl commonly called?



What is this well camouflaged upland game bird called?




There are pictured below three species commonly called "buffalo". What are the complete and proper common names of each?

T.G.I.F.

Is it really Friday so soon?

Humor

Bumper Sticker: "There's nothing wrong with teenagers that reasoning with them won't aggravate."

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

There is nothing wrong with curiosity unless you are a cat.

"There's nothing wrong with having nothing to say -- unless you insist on saying it." ~Unknown (I guess I had better watch what I write!)

"What's wrong with being a boring kind of guy?" ~ George Bush
(Sounds like he had nothing to say, but said it anyway.)

"There is nothing wrong with making mistakes. Just don't respond with errors." ~ Unknown (This is a time when it might be good to have nothing to say.)

"God isn't what's wrong with the world. It's [He's] just who people blame when there's nowhere to point the finger but at ourselves." ~ James Dye
(I guess people just naturally respond with errors.)

A Thought to Share

A discussion group participant was questioning why so many people want to stretch the creation week into many ages by applying (or misapplying) scripture, such as 2 Peter 3:8? I responded...

There are those who do not want to believe in God except as a nice cozy way to escape eternal damnation. In the mean time, they want to live any way that they chose, not according to His standards as set forth in the Word of God. This kind of a god is not the God of the Bible.

God is a God of complete choice, even to allow people to believe whatever they chose. People are free to put any meaning to scripture that hey chose. We are cautioned, however, to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling." Philippians 2:12. This does not mean we can work our way into heaven. It means we need to be very careful in the way we understand what God is telling us.

Then to answer the question you did not ask, What is God really telling us in 2 Peter 3:8? Is it not teaching us that God existed for so many eons in timeless eternity past that a thousand years is merely as a day as time passes from one millennium to the next? It is not a very old or ancient God we serve, but a timeless God.

Thursday's Thoughts

I got an email that sent a roar of hee-haws out of my mouth that the neighbors 2 doors down might have heard. Since it is fresh on my mind, this may be as good a place to begin as any.

Humor

The joke formerly posted here has been deleted since the humor was derived from belittling the illiterate. I have to admit that it was funny, but I do not wish to spread that type of humor.

A Midweek Guide

Borrowing a question from a discussion group on Facebook, the inquirer wrote,"Why is faith considered a virtue? Is it rude to ask for evidence when someone makes a claim about God?"

There were a lot of good responses. I added my two bits.

I don't consider faith to be a virtue. The Apostle, Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8 & 9 that faith is a gift from God. Through faith we can believe and be saved, but it is only because of God's grace that we can even find faith at all.

A good definition of faith is found in Hebrews 11:1-3 "Faith is a firm foundation for us to build our hope upon, a conviction that something we cannot see does exist. On this basis our forefathers gained God's approval. Faith is understanding in our inner being that the spoken word of God set up the ages so that what we see may shine out of that which has not appeared on the scene."

God rewards faith with greater faith. But verse 6 says, "...without any faith it is impossible to please God; for in coming to Him it is absolutely necessary to believe that He exists, and that He is One who rewards those seeking Him." So we have the obligation to accept the faith He gives, but if we reject it, He will reject us.

It is just and right for God to reject those who reject the faith He gives. He is not one to force himself on anyone. He is not a tyrant that makes people behave in just one way. A person can choose to believe what he wants, act any way that he chooses, and refuse God for all eternity. That is the freedom of choice God gives.

But for those who will allow, He draws them to seek Him as you may be doing now. If so, you can be sure that He will give the faith that you need. It will also be all the evidence that you need.

Something to Share

Monday I kept my appointment with my Dr.'s nurse since his schedule was full. I had been so exhausted lately, and it was time to be evaluated for the (hopefully) positive response to the drug he placed me on. So she ran the EKG and took the paper out of the room. As it turned out, that was the time my pulse rate dropped to new lows -- 38 b/m,she said. I was given the choice of going to the E.R. or seeing a specialist. I chose the specialist. Then it was back to the VA clinic for a blood draw and heart monitor for 24 hrs. Tuesday saw more time in the waiting room at the clinic to have the monitor removed. Now I wait for the results.

God allows the testing of our faith so our faith can grow stronger. My heart rate had been low, averaging 44-45 b/m during the two months of twice daily blood pressure monitoring. But at the time of my appointment it was at the lowest it had been and I felt ready to pass out. After just a short time it was back up where it had been, and I was able to drive again. God is Good!

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

"You can judge the quality of their faith from the way they behave. Discipline is an index to doctrine." ~ Tertullian (160 - 225)

"Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith. We should live for the future, and yet find our life in the fidelities of the present; the last is only the method of the first."
Henry Ward Beecher (1813 - 1887)

Tuesday's Child

We will just have to see what comes up - like tossing a coin!

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

"For the first half of your life, people tell you what you should do; for the second half, they tell you what you should have done." ~ Andrew Carnegie

"Destiny is no matter of chance. It is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved." ~ William Jennings Bryan

Humor, if You Can Call it Humor

Courtroom on Record - Actual records of court proceedings

Attorney: How old is your son?

Witness: I can never remember if he is 35 or 38.

Attorney: How many of those years did your son live with you?

Witness: 45 years.


What did the ostrich say to the penguin at the South Pole?
"Whatever you do don't stick your head in this white stuff... It'll freeze your ears off! Oh, I see I'm too late."
(I know, I said I wouldn't post any of my own. Sometimes a person gets desperate.)

Monday Madness

Pardon the technical problems in trying to post the new Friday Quiz. It is in my computer, but will not transfer to my blog. Due to conflicting schedule, Monday and Wednesday issues will be discontinued temporarily.

Quotable and the Not-so-quotable Quotes

"Yes, it was His payment for our sins that bought our peace. We have been completely healed by His [action] taking our blows. Like sheep, we have all wandered off. Every man has traveled his own path and the LORD has given Him up for all our sins." Isaiah 53:5, 6 RSVP to God.

He who is curious about me is indeed a very curious person, himself.

The Friday Puzzle or Quiz

The Friday puzzle will resume Friday but no pictures until My computer is repaired.

T.G.I.F.

Good morning. It is another great day to be alive!


And a good night. The new Friday Quiz will have to wait until tomorrow.

Quotable and the Not-so-quotable Quotes

"Don't let anyone think less of you because you are young, but be an example to them of what a believer is like, in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, faith, and purity." 1 Timothy 4:12 RSVP to God

The Friday Puzzle Hints

Progressing from left to right, select 32 letters to remain in the same order and form a complete seven word sentence. Use the list only one time through.

HOW TO HIT AT IT IS YET OUR UFO COMA NONE AND DO NOT KEEP UNTO FOR ON TRUE CLUE LED TOO MANY TO GET FACTS OF EMU EMBRALS NEEDS
CLUE: No two of the correct letters will be found adjacent to each other below.
CLUE: None of the letters are further than 4 spaces apart.
CLUE: Regularity is better than irregularity.
CLUE: The first two out of three words are what you need.
CLUE: The last three words of the last clue are the words.
CLUE: The first two words are "What you..."
GIVEAWAY CLUE: HOW TO HIT AT IT IS YET OUR UFO COMA NONE AND DO NOT KEEP UNTO FOR ON TRUE CLUE LED TOO MANY TO GET FACTS OF EMU EMBRALS NEEDS

Thursday's Thanksgiving

To all of you who celebrated Thanksgiving in Canada, a belated Happy Thanksgiving!

For the rest of this post, I will post the new clue to Friday's Puzzle at the bottom, then continue to fill in the "Sandwich" in the middle as time permits.

Quotable...

"No temptation has laid hold of you except things common to humanity. But a faithful God will not let you be tempted above what you are able to endure, but will with the temptation also make a way out, that you may be able to bear it." 1Corinthians 10:13 RSVP to God.

A Thought to Share

Life is such a precious commodity. This has been brought to the forefront of my thoughts this past week. My new granddaughter is already four weeks old and battling her first cold. She is on the mend now, praise the Lord, and just as sweet as ever.

Some people are going through hell-on-earth with losses of jobs, failures of marriages, death of a loved one, or other unbearable conditions. Yet one thing holds true through all of life's troubles. God is in control and has a plan for the other side of the problem. He is there to see people through and give us a way to escape so we may be able to bear it.

The Friday Puzzle Hint

Progressing from left to right, select 32 letters to remain in the same order and form a complete seven word sentence. Use the list only one time through.
Giveaway clues in the morning, full solution at noon.

HOW TO HIT AT IT IS YET OUR UFO COMA NONE AND DO NOT KEEP UNTO FOR ON TRUE CLUE LED TOO MANY TO GET FACTS OF EMU EMBRALS NEEDS

CLUE: No two of the correct letters will be found adjacent to each other.

CLUE: None of the letters are further than 4 spaces apart.

CLUE: Regularity is better than irregularity.

CLUE: The first two out of three words are what you need.

Whacky Wednesday

Tuesday's Child

I read somewhere this past week that October is "Adopt a Child Month" so Tuesday's Child does fit for a couple more weeks. Tonight will be another short post. Helping a friend move takes a lot of energy out of me. Of course on the good side I do not have to go for a walk on these days.

Quotable and the Not-so-quotable Quotes

To the One able to keep you blameless and to establish you unblemished in His sight with glorious joy, glory, majesty, authority, and mighty power to God alone, our deliverance through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all time, now, and for all ages. Amen. Jude 1:24, 25 RSVP to God

(Editorial comment on the book of Jude: for the size (24 verses) Jude is a difficult book to translate because the words normally used to complete a thought are often not in the original. These two verses are literal, without paraphrase or the addition of completer words.)

The Friday Puzzle

HOW TO HIT AT IT IS YET OUR UFO COMA NONE AND DO NOT KEEP UNTO FOR ON TRUE CLUE LED TOO MANY TO GET FACTS OF EMU EMBRALS NEEDS

Progressing from left to right, select 32 letters to remain in the same order and form a complete seven word sentence. Use the list only one time through.
CLUE: No two of the correct letters will be found adjacent to each other.
CLUE: None of the letters are further than 5 spaces apart.
CLUE: Regularity is better than irregularity.

Monday Madness

Tonight there is only time to give the new clue, so without further ado...

Progressing from left to right, select 32 letters to remain in the same order and form a complete seven word sentence. Use the list only one time through.
CLUE: No two of the correct letters will be found adjacent to each other below:
CLUE: None of the letters are further than 5 spaces apart.

HOW TO HIT AT IT IS YET OUR UFO COMA NONE AND DO NOT KEEP UNTO FOR ON TRUE CLUE LED TOO MANY TO GET FACTS OF EMU EMBRALS NEEDS

New clue tomorrow.

Super Sunday

When I stop to think about it, every Sunday is "Super" here in the U.S.A.! And for the most part, all around the world.

Tonight there is only time to finish up the quotations after the super Sunday nap I had after dinner.

Quotable and the Not-so-quotable Quotes

"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education." ~Mark Twain

How true! Some of the things we have learned in school are truly an inhibition to further education. Take the age old friction between academia and experience, for instance. How many of our quotations reflect this?

"Experience keeps a mean school; fools will learn in no other!" ~Unknown. (I heard this one a lot while growing up.) Demeaning to say the least.

"Do you know the difference between education and experience? Education is when you read the fine print; experience is what you get when you don't." ~Pete Seeger

I would say if one does not know the difference between education and experience he is quite lacking in one or the other. ~RR

"Experience is the name everyone gives to his mistakes." ~Oscar Wilde, Lady Windemere's Fan, 1896

Our inventors and early scientists were not uneducated men. Yet through experimentation (trial and error and sometimes many failures) experience became the educator.

"Good judgment comes from experience, and often experience comes from bad judgment." ~Rita Mae Brown

There are ups and downs from learning by experience, no one can deny that.

"Experience is what you got by not having it when you needed it." ~Author Unknown

Humorous, but sometimes there was not enough experience to make the right choice. The same could be said of academic study. There are some things that just aren't taught in books, and much of what is does not prepare one for life. The best things taught in the classroom are good methods of problem solving, and where to look for the answer if you cannot find it by any of those methods. Experience is a slow teacher in those areas of learning.

"If experience was so important, we'd never have had anyone walk on the moon." ~Doug Rader

"Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely." ~Auguste Rodin

"Life can only be understood backward, but it must be lived forward." ~Soren Kierkegaard

My Dutch grandmother told me the Dutch always do things backwards. Fortunately I have only one Dutch grandparent or I might have been named Benjamin Button. Now back to Samuel Clements for a final quote.

"A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way." ~Mark Twain

The Friday Puzzle Hint

Progressing from left to right, select 32 letters to remain in the same order and form a complete seven word sentence. Use the list only one time through.
CLUE: No two of the correct letters will be found adjacent to each other below:
Another clue tomorrow. Answer Friday.

HOW TO HIT AT IT IS YET OUR UFO COMA NONE AND DO NOT KEEP UNTO FOR ON TRUE CLUE LED TOO MANY TO GET FACTS OF EMU EMBRALS NEEDS

The Saturday Edition

While the internet is fascinating, combing it for something to pass along is certainly time consuming. I have no link to recommend this week.
--- Well, hey! I did get a good chuckle out of this one:


Mount Dora got some badly needed rain today, and the drooping plants perked right up. The temperature continues to be warm, but not hot like it was.

Quotable and the Not-so-quotable Quotes

"A lot of people mistake a short memory for a clear conscience." ~ Doug Larson
--- Well, either one will work for me.

The more you forget, the more life becomes filled with surprises. ~RR
The more you forget, the easier life becomes; tell the same jokes, quote the same quotations....

The Poet's Corner


The Bear Went Over to China

There are lands so far away
That they have night when we have day,
And they have day when we have night
So they must live a loathsome plight.

The bear went over to China,
The bear went over to China,
The bear went over to China,
To see what he could see.

The people there have an awful fright
To do their shopping in the night,
Perform their work without sight,
And have to sleep in broad daylight

The other side of the world,
The other side of the world,
The other side of the world,
Was all that he could see.

T.G.I.F.

Why is it whether I start on this early (like this afternoon) or late like most other days, that is the time my eyelids droop, my shoulders slump, and my head begins to bob?

I know I love to write and this is better than the nonsense I write for a good portion of the day, but there is something about having to do something. I guess that is why it gets put off until last on most nights. Anyway, Friday is a fun day and I look forward to this post more than any other day. Today I have decided to do this in installments, so if this does not close with a "good night" of some sort, it is not finished yet.

Quotable and the Not-so-quotable Quotes

"A quotation is a set of words people repeat to express a thought someone else came up with first, often with a wish that they had said them first." ~RAR

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." ~Mark Twain

"Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish." ~Albert Einstein

The Friday Puzzle

Progressing from left to right, select 32 letters to remain in the same order and form a complete seven word sentence. Use the list only once. CLUE will appear Sunday night.

HOW TO HIT AT IT IS YET OUR UFO COMA NONE AND DO NOT KEEP UNTO FOR ON TRUE CLUE LED TOO MANY TO GET FACTS OF EMU EMBRALS NEEDS

Answer will appear next Friday. Have a good night!

Thursday Praise

Today I discovered there is more to life than posting a blog every day. Two girls opened up about their pains and sorrows today. One has been talking with other friends about her problems and just took me into her confidence today. The other had never been able to talk about her pain before and now has three of four people praying for her. If I get permission from them, I will share more, but as of tonight, please pray for them as yet unidentified or unspoken requests.

God bless you all. Praise God for what he is doing. Good night!

Quotes used on this website

This page is being reworked as the repository for quotations used on this site. It is a double listing under topic and author.

Alphabetical by Author

Bridges, Jerry

"Your worst days are never so bad that you're beyond the reach of God's grace. And your best days are never so good that you're beyond the need of God's grace." ~ Jerry Bridges

Piper, John

"Grace is not simply leniency when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon." ~ John Piper

Twain, Mark

"Forgiveness is like the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it." ~ Mark Twain

Alphabetical by Topic

God and Religion

Forgiveness
"Forgiveness is like the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it." ~Mark Twain

Grace

"Grace is not simply leniency when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon." ~ John Piper

"Your worst days are never so bad that you're beyond the reach of God's grace. And your best days are never so good that you're beyond the need of God's grace." ~ Jerry Bridges




Life and Living

"There is no pillow as soft as a clear conscience." ~ from an old French Proverb

Proverbs

"There is no pillow as soft as a clear conscience." ~ from an old French Proverb

Tuesday's Child

At one time and in some paces Tuesday's Child meant children available for adoption or in need of foster care. I use it here as merely the product of the work that goes into the blog on Tuesday. It is then the thoughts given birth today.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes


Take flight if you must! All that you truly need will go with you.

A Thought to Share

There have been many times all through recorded history in which folks have been forced to flee. Sudden urgent relocation has not been common in recent history in the western world, however population shifts have. Current relocation is mainly job related.

I am writing about other reasons for moving, however. Religious persecution began again in many countries in the last century for many reasons. Some initiated the type of flight of which I write. The world under Hitler, the Bolshevik Revolution, the displaced Palestinians, Hungary and Poland to name only two of many overrun countries, genocide against people groups in many parts of the world, and the persecution of Christians worldwide.

I downloaded and filled out my passport application today. I feel it is an important thing to have in these times as situations around the world worsen in some areas and improve in others. I truly do not believe that this is going to be needed in the near future, but I choose to be prepared ahead of time. We should never become so complacent that we would say, "It cannot happen here." May it never be like any of the examples from the last century, but remember, we are not exempt.

This will have to be short tonight. My body can't take another late night like last night. Good night to you all.

Monday Madness

I call it Monday Madness because of the hurry, hurry, hurry generated by the Precepts Bible Study I attend. Prep time occupies all my spare time through the day, then the class in the evening, and finally home to write and post. This crazy schedule lasts for two more weeks!

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

Are there not twenty-four hours in a day? How is it then that I can only make it through twenty before I drop?

To know God is to know God's will.

A Thought to Share

A friend wrote on knowing God's will, "...However sometimes this can take much longer than we want it to, so you must be patient and wait on the Lord. There are many examples of people from the Bible who waited many years before they knew what God wanted them to do; the same applies to us. We must remember that God's timing is different to ours and our responsibility is to be faithful and trust in Him."

That is reminiscent of how the Lord worked in my life. When I turned 35 I can remember thinking, what is God waiting for? When I turned 40 I thought, surely this must be the time of new beginning, Moses was 40 when God called him.

But that was a time when I was filled with pride and the Lord could not use me until I allowed Him to change me. Slowly He chipped away at me and slowly I began to allow Him control over areas of my life that I had always hung onto.

What a difference! I had been trying to do it all backwards, to find God's will without bothering to get to know Him first.

My friend also said, "To know God's will is to know God." I agree, but I think I would state it the other way, To know God is to know God's will. I didn't get to know Him until I began translating the Scriptures into words I can understand from Greek manuscripts. That was what I found was my gift and God's will for me. (It is always His will for us to get to know Him better!!!)

---

Humor

A MAN was flying from Seattle to San Francisco. Unexpectedly, the plane was diverted to Sacramento along the way. The flight attendant explained that there would be a delay, and if the passengers wanted to get off the aircraft the plane would re-board in 50 minutes.

Everybody got off the plane except one lady who was blind. The man had noticed her as he walked by and could tell the lady was blind because her seeing eye dog lay quietly underneath the seats in front of her throughout the entire flight.

He could also tell she had flown this very flight before because the pilot approached her, and calling her by name, said, "Kathy, we are in Sacramento for almost an hour. Would you like to get off and stretch your legs?" The blind lady replied, "No thanks, but maybe Buddy would like to stretch his legs."

Picture this: All the people in the gate area came to a complete standstill when they looked up and saw the pilot walk off the plane wearing sunglasses, led by a seeing eye dog! People scattered. They not only tried to change planes, but they were trying to change airlines!

True story... Have a great day and remember,

THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY APPEAR.

Sunday Sweetness

The family across the street is gone, moved out over night. Brings to mind the phase, "fly-by-night". There is much to be said for those who live cheaply and travel light. The older I get, the more I realize, less is better. Yet change does not come easily. Perhaps some day it will be forced upon us. Until then, my clutter grows.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

Grace is not simply leniency when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon. ~John Piper

A Thought to Share

To answer why do people misinterpret scripture, such as 2 Peter 3:8? There are those who do not want to believe in God except as a nice cozy way to escape eternal damnation. In the mean time, they want to live any way that they choose, not according to His standards as set forth in the Word of God. This kind of a god is not the God of the Bible.

Our God is a God that speaks to us at the end of the ages and warns us, "Throughout this time God is efficiently at work sending them wandering off to believe a lie so that all [of them] might be judged for not believing the truth, but rather choosing lawlessness willingly. 2 Thessalonians 2:11, 12.

God is a God of complete choice, even to allow people to believe whatever they chose. People are free to put any meaning to Scripture that they choose. We are cautioned, however, to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling." Philippians 2:12. This does not mean we can work our way into heaven. It means we need to be very careful in the way we understand what God is telling us.

Then to formulate another question to meet the intent of "Answers to hard questions", What is God really telling us in 2 Peter 3:8?

Is it not teaching us that God existed for so many eons in timeless eternity past that a thousand years is merely as a day as time passes from one millennium to the next? It is not a very old or ancient God we serve, but a timeless God.

Humor

Courtroom on Record - Actual records of court proceedings

Attorney: Will you tell the court your area of expertise?

Expert Witness: Forensic Medicine.

Attorney: You examine dead bodies?

Expert Witness: That is correct.

Attorney: Did you examine the body of the victim?

Expert Witness: I did.

Attorney: Of course you checked to make sure he was dead before you began?

Expert Witness: I beg your pardon?

Attorney: You checked for a heartbeat, if he was breating, blood pressure, or whatever you do, yes, or no?

Expert Witness: No.

Attorney: Then there is a slight possibility he was still alive before you started the autopsy?

Expert Witness: No, there was not even a slight possibility.

Attorney: How could you be so sure without checking?

Expert Witness: Because his brain was sitting in a jar on my desk.

Attorney: Well, is there any way a person could live without a brain?

Expert Witness: It would seem so if he was an attorney!

---

The Saturday Edition

,

It is good to be back in the groove again. Saturday has been such a restful day. Had a nice long nap this afternoon, and watched "Amazing Grace" on DVD. I hope it was a good day for everyone else as well.

The Friday Quiz ANSWERS

1. Bird = Prairie chicken
    One species of prarie chicken is on the endangered species list.
2. Duck = Mallard
    Common in many states, especially in the West.
3. First animal = Armadillo
    Most often seen around here as road kill.
4. Second animal = Common ferret
    Gaining popularity as a house pet.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

"Your worst days are never so bad that you're beyond the reach of God's grace. And your best days are never so good that you're beyond the need of God's grace." ~Jerry Bridges

The Poet's Corner

from my own childhood...

        "Daddy Why..."

"Please tell me why
That I cannot fly
Like a bird, oh so high,
In a cloudless blue sky?"

"I'll tell you why
When you're bigger," said I.

"Oh please, tell me now,
For I feel like the cow
That jumped over the moon."

"I'll tell you quite soon,
Maybe this afternoon
When I finish this tune,
You silly loon."

"Soon it will be June
And if I'm a loon
Then I'll fly to the moon
With your favorite tune
And leave it there!"

Remember to be in the church of your choice tomorrow

Friday Quiz

What game bird is this?


What kind of duck is this?


What kind of animal is this



What kind of animal is this?


Answers in tomorrow's post.

T.G.I.F. Day, Yay and Hooray!

Finally Friday and I can hardly wait to post the Friday Quiz! It has been a perfect day with sun, temperature, breeze and all just right to enjoy. The pumpkins for the AWANA Pumpkin Patch arrived at church yesterday in the cool of the evening, and there was plenty of help unloading an entire truckload. If the weather stays like it has been today, they will keep until Halloween.

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

"Forgiveness is like the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it." ~Mark Twain

This is quite possibly Samuel Clements' greatest work, certainly a legacy in itself.
"An author, philosopher, or statesman can have no greater tribute than to be quoted while he is still lives, and no greater legacy than to be quoted after his death." Therefore I quote myself.

The Week's Best Link(s)

The problem I am having in getting links to work is that I am such a slow learner. It is the html code that is the hangup and I am not that bright when it comes to writing code. I have one I would love to post. If you haven't seen it, "when the wife don't listen" is an absolute must. Copy and paste will work if you are a friend on facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/ronald.allan.richardson?ref=profile#/posted.php?id=1746422807&share_id=172012840539&comments=1#s172012840539

The Friday Quiz

Deciding how long to make the quiz is one thing I have not set in stone. I want to keep it short, but not too short. Your comments would be appreciated. This week is is entitled, "native North American species". Can you identify them? This week I will try to make each one its own posting, or at least a separate one following this.

The First Day of the Rest Our Lives

Quotable and the Not So Quotable Quotes

What strange dreams we people, then awake and cannot remember.



A Thought to Share

Someone objected that "all the carnivores God created could not mean that there was no death in the days before Adam sinned" in one of the discussion groups.

Since we have no eyewitness record of all the animals that lived before the flood, we cannot look up what the animals were in that era. Genesis only records the lives (and deaths) of humans in those early years. Is it safe to assume just because an animal is alive today it was also alive then?

Fossils of carnivores of the mammalian varieties are not found in early strata. All early reptiles have legs, (no snakes until later). This suggests a later creation of animals as we know them today after the animals Noah released from the ark had a chance to establish themselves without predators.

I cannot recall seeing teeth in the jaws of fossil dinosaurs, except in drawings as the artist's concept. Has anyone reading this seen them? I have heard it said that they only ate plants, but cannot speak to this. One upright reptile yielded possession of its body to the devil to tempt Eve. Can we assume it ate some of the fruit to prove to Eve that she would not die?

Contents in the stomachs of the frozen mammals (from the so called Ice Age) has only turned up plants.

There is so much in the way of missing records, both in the fossil record and in the Bible that we probably should not assume one way or the other. However, predators just perhaps did not exist until after the Flood.

Humor

Courtroom on Record - Actual records of court proceedings

Attorney: And what terminated your marriage?

Witness: Death.

Attorney: Will you please specify whose death?

Witness: The death of my husband.
________________________

Attorney: How many children do you have?

Witness: Nine.

Attorney: How many girls?

Witness: Nine

Attorney: How many boys?

Witness: Huh?

Attorney: I said how many boys do you have?

Witness: I done told you I had nine girls, that don't leave no room for no boys.
________________________

It's News to Me

The EPA is now concerning itself with small quantity chemicals entering the environment, "nanoformulations" such as sunscreen, that may or may not cause problems over the next few hundred years. The zinc oxide is sited as having an unknown effect on the environment. Research on the nanoforms is going to cost millions of dollars per year over the next decade, and already the National Institute of Science says EPA is not doing enough.

Zinc oxide? The Food and Drug Administration approved that ages ago for human consumption in supplements. If it could be harmful to the environment in nano quantities, what am I doing taking it in larger doses? Seems like they should stop checking the water at bathing beaches and start checking the effluent from our sewage treatment plants. Or perhaps supplements should be banned. Better yet, disband the EPA into nano particles.