Caption:
“I couldn’t do this problem because an elephant was blocking it.”

Teacher Response: “Elephants have tails. -3 “

Andrew Dickey riding Melbourne in early 2012. Just incredible what he can pull off.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

For more than 2,000 years, navigators from all nations have known how to determine both the direction and position north or south of the Equator by using the North Star, or Polaris. In ancient times, navigators measured the angle of Polaris at their home port, then sailed north or south to bring the star back to the angle of home port, then turned left or right to sail down the latitude to home, keeping the angle constant all the way.

However, scientists know the North Star is not completely reliable as a guiding light. Over tens of thousands of years, changes in the Earth’s axis of rotation will cause it to point to other regions of the sky, tracing out a circle. Other stars along this circle were the pole star in the past and will be again in the future.

The light of truth that comes from proclaiming faith in Jesus is a constant, always-reliable source of navigation and guidance for our lives. The light and hope of Jesus is that He takes away the guilt and pain of our sins so that we can be free of our past. God has a plan of hope for our future that will honor Him.

The iPhone was born in 1983.
Hartmut Esslinger, founder of design firm frog design, designed a touchscreen phone prototype for Apple while he was under contract by the company to work on projects like the Apple IIc.

Never let your dreams die…

We live in a world that isn’t fair. Let’s just be honest. It’s difficult to make sense of how the world works … children dying of cancer, teenagers falling victim to drive by shootings, college students being shot while sitting in a class by a nut case, or whack out religious zealots flying plans into a building killing thousands of innocent people. Make sense of that.

Here is what I think; this is called FREE WILL. God has given each of us the freedom to choose. And the bad part of it is that our choices affect others, and we are affected by what others choose as well. Sometimes this is a good thing, and sometimes it is not a good thing. What a beautiful world it would be if we all made the right choice in every situation… but we don’t.

There are some people who feel that everything is predestined (the choice is already made for you), I am sorry I am not so sure of that line of thinking… because if so, then we are merely puppets moved by strings … no freedoms. And honestly if this is how God “laid it out” (who else would have laid it out but God?) He did a bad job, in my opinion. I would think He would have laid it out to go a little bit better then this, don’t you think?

Now, I do feel there can be some overlapping of the two extremes (total free will vs. predestination) … a middle ground so to speak… where both may be working at different times.

I think God can and does from time to time step in (in response to prayers and our faith) to our world, especially when we ask Him. “Ask and it will be given you, seek and ye shall find…” … you don’t want to hear this anymore than I do BUT … many times we ask God at the moment we need something … “emergency prayers” I call them, when we should be having regular visits with Him because we love Him, not because we need something from Him.

If you want to live God’s plan, then become a God fan.

Absolutely Nothing!

He already loves you. You can’t earn it.

He demonstrated his love for you when he sent His son Jesus to die for us on the cross. John 3:16 This took place before you were born, so he loved you before you existed, so nothing you have done since your birth has changed Gods mind about loving you.

When Jesus died on the cross he died for all the Old Testament saints, and all their sins were in the past. He also died for all the New Testament saints and all their sins were in the future. At the time Jesus died, all my sins were in the future, but he died once for all of them. When I got saved, all my sins in my past, present, and future, were forgiven. Hebrews 10:14 says, “For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.”
Perfected for how long? Forever!

The message of the gospel isn’t about your past; it is about the present and future, about having a healthy loving relationship with your heavenly father. What a great price was paid so He would be able to love us as he does today.

The thief on the cross was told, today you will be with me in paradise, the prodigal son was told by his father, come on home, the women caught in adultery was told to go and sin no more. God is concerned about your future, he has forgiven your past and He says he will never remember it.

For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more .Hebrews 8:12

We have all committed millions of sins and maybe confessed a small fraction of them. That’s why our forgiveness and relationship is reliant on His blood.

If Jesus told Peter one is required to forgive 7 x 70 which is 490 plus times in a day, it also means God treats us the same way.
Jesus went on to teach that we should, love our neighbor as ourselves. Matthew 22:39 Most people have missed this powerful point because of being taught wrong and were blinded to this liberating truth. Jesus said, it is OK to love yourself. Some will struggle with a comment like that but I like to remind those people,….” should we not love what God loves?” The answer is always YES! Then if God loves you, it is OK to love yourself, because if you don’t, you will be unable to love your neighbor the way Jesus desires you too. Jesus said; love your neighbor AS you love yourself. You cannot give what you do not have and you cannot lead where you have not been. If you’re not convinced God loves you, how will you love your neighbor?
Let God Love you and Learn to love yourself…

Presented by our good friends at Dare2Share.org.

They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. Matthew 23:5

Anybody who knows cars knows the name, Ferrari. Not everybody wants a Ferrari, but everybody knows a car that carries the Ferrari name is hot, stylish, fast, and very, very expensive.

To own a Ferrari means you have arrived. Maybe that’s why I wasn’t entirely surprised when Reuters News Service ran a story telling how the police in Rome-Italy had broken up a gang that was selling fake Ferraris. Now, counterfeiting is nothing new in Italy. In Italy you can buy a fake Rolex watch and you can purchase a phony Gucci handbag, but a fake Ferrari is taking things to a whole different level.

According to the article, police confiscated twenty-one cars, with some selling for about twenty thousand euros or about thirty thousand U.S. dollars. And was there a market for a fake Ferrari? You bet. Of the twenty-one cars confiscated, fourteen of them had already been sold to people who wanted to look good.

Sort of like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, don’t you think? No, the Pharisees didn’t buy false Ferraris, but they did dress in a way designed to make others think they were important, pious, and very religious. Back then, Jesus warned His followers not to use those phonies as a role model. On the contrary, in Jesus’ family, the greatest person would be the one who showed His love to the Savior by bending down to serve others.

You know, when Jesus talked that way, He wasn’t just spouting words. Jesus never asked His followers to do something He had not done already. And Jesus, the Son of God had stooped down to serve. Look into Bethlehem’s manger and see the baby; stand before Calvary’s cross and see the Savior’s service of sacrifice. Observe. Jesus stepped down from His position in heaven to live, suffer, die, and rise so all who believe on Him might be saved.
Jesus stepped down so you and I might be brought up.

Awesome Dog.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

One of the great mysteries of life is the difficulty people have in making up their minds.

There is a reason for this: in coming to a decision, most people usually only decide to do something halfway. If you want to see this principle in action, just watch a child jump into a swimming pool for the first time. He wants to be in the water, but he’s just not sure.

That was not the situation for Cortez when he began his conquest of Mexico in 1519. With a small force of less than a thousand men on shore, the story goes that Cortez set fire to his fleet of 11 ships. His soldiers watched their ships — their only link back to the outside world, their only way of escape — burn and sink to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico.

From that moment on there was only one direction they could go: forward — forward into Mexico and forward to meet their future and their fate. Cortez was a fellow who believed in going all the way.

God says people who wish to follow Him should also go all the way. That’s what the Psalmist was telling us: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart” — not with a quarter or half your heart.

The Lord knows it is not wise to try and follow Him and the world. There are too many divided loyalties, too many conflicts. When the world tries to pull us one way, God wants us to go the other.

This leads us to an interesting thought, which might have some practical applications. Are your days filled with confusion, pain, and doubt? Do you seem to be spiritually spinning your wheels without getting anywhere? If so, then ask yourself this: “Am I only going halfway?”

This is why this devotion encourages you to let go of the world and let the Lord take hold of you — all the way. Let Him, because of what His Son has done through His life, death, and resurrection, help and direct you — all the way.

Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Luke 12:7

Sometimes you can just have too much information.

Peter Arvell Browne, a 19th-century Philadelphia attorney had too much information. Mr. Browne collected hair. That’s right: hair.

He got hair from Napoleon, Daniel Webster, the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and the first twelve United States Presidents.

This February 16-18, Mr. Browne’s scrapbook of hair is being displayed by the Academy of Natural Sciences.

Some may think the exhibit which features George Washington’s brown-and-gray locks, James Monroe’s dark curls, and Thomas Jefferson’s reddish-gray hair is a “don’t miss.”

Me? I’ll probably sit this one out. People’s hair just doesn’t interest me that much—even if it does come from the head of someone who was once rich and famous.

In contrast, however, the Lord Jesus says our heavenly Father not only cares about our hair, but He has them numbered as well. That probably shouldn’t be surprising. God is concerned about us from stem to stern. So we might be saved is why He sent His Son into this world to save us—to save our souls, our bodies, and, yes, even our hair.

Fishing under ice from Juuso Mettälä on Vimeo.

Everything is upside down!
The fishermen are standing on the underside of the ice
Some under ice views from beautiful lake Saarijärvi in Vaala, Finland.
Music: Stefano Mocini; The end of the doubs

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

I remember the story of a ship that had to be abandoned because a giant storm had caused it to take in too much water. As the sailors were climbing into the lifeboats to make their escape, one of them suddenly jumped out of his rescue vessel and ran back into the sinking ship. After what seemed like forever, he reappeared holding something under his coat.

What could have been worth this man taking such a risk? Very simple, he had forgotten his compass.

You and I have just entered a new year. No doubt we will, in these next 361 days, encounter some storms. Some of those storms will seem strong enough to sink us.

Although we always need the Savior, it is precisely during the moments when the waves of difficulty are crashing down and we are unsure of our way that we will need to keep our eyes fixed on Christ, our Compass.

So, if you haven’t made any resolutions for this year, I encourage you to make this one: Trust your crucified and ever-living Savior in this new year. And, if you encounter someone who is adrift, share the power of the Lord with that person.

There is no more accurate Compass than our Lord of love who always points the right way for those who trust in Him.

All riders survived these crashes. Hard to believe.

“Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53: 4-5

New Years Resolution? I thought this was interesting.

The people of Korea have an interesting New Year’s custom.
Wishing to forget things unpleasant and make a fresh start, each person recalls all the bad habits he wishes to have removed. Then, he writes all of these evils on a kite, which he flies high into the air. When the kite is almost out of sight, the person cuts the string. The kite makes a nosedive and then disappears out of sight. The individual goes home rejoicing that all the bad things from the past year are gone forever.

Don’t you wish it were that easy?

My experience has taught me that the nasty transgressions and habits of the past have a tendency to stay with us longer than we would ever like. Even a high-flying kite can’t take them away.

No, if anyone is going to start this New Year, or even this new day fresh and forgiven, something more cleansing than a paper kite is going to be needed.

We’re going to need Jesus. Only in Jesus can our sins be sent sailing; only in Jesus can we be given peace. That’s what Isaiah wanted us to know when he wrote, “The chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed.” It is cause for thanksgiving.

Now, I don’t think we ought to throw out the entire Korean custom. The idea of listing all our sins and sorrows is a good one. It’s something repentant Christians ought to do regularly. Just as regularly we should, by the Holy Spirit’s direction, place that list into the nail-pierced hands of the Savior.

When that is done we can rejoice for those bad things from our past are gone forever.