Silver Queen Reflection

Conjunctive

The Silver Queen

Fun, Fun, Fun

The Carnal Nature

This morning, Pastor spoke on the "old man." Now this is something we all as Christians seem to take for granted. Yes, we have a sin nature. Yes, we are to walk according to the Spirit and in doing so will not fulfill its desires. Yes, we must crucify the sin nature daily.

The thought that struck me today was that the sin nature in us is just as heinous, just as wicked, just as evil and deceitful as the day we were saved. It is never changed, is unreconcilable, unredeemable and its every inclination is to subvert God's will and His ways. And this is the nature inside of us...the enemy within.

Why do you think that God through His word warns us over and over to be on our guard, to be alert, to watch and pray? What if not partially to nurture and cultivate a life lived for, through, in and by the Spirit of God? And how can we tell? Consider Galatians 5 which discusses the fruit or outflow of the sinful nature, and the product and produce of a Spirit-led life. Let us be watchful in these last days before He returns to continually put the sinful nature to death on a daily continuing basis.

Riding In Style!

If I get around to getting hitched, this will be the perfect way to leave the church!

Can Your New Beetle Do This?

Still Alive...I think!

So, what do you get when you have a day off, long work days, a holiday and a busy schedule? You guessed it, a COLD! Yup, I got my annual cold this last Monday, kicking in after about four or five days of a slight sore throat. I started getting tired on Monday evening and was completely congested by Tuesday morning. I took a sick day on Tuesday, but went in to work on Wednesday to prep for "Black Friday!" I was supposed to go to the Trott's for Thanksgiving, but instead spent the day at home, trying to shake the cold. Russ and Donna, one of the couples that were at the Trott's, brought a complete set of leftovers by my apartment, so I had a total Thanksgiving dinner from the turkey, to the stuffin' to all the fixin's. Today, the cold is mostly gone, but we had to be at work early, so it's just been a mixed up week. Hopefully this next one will be a little less dramatic!

Proverbs 30:5

"Every word of God is pure..."

"Pure" - You must not expect the full knowledge of Divine mysteries from me, nor from any man, but from the word of God. - John Wesley

A Few More From Ravenhill

We have been spiritually satisfied with so little for so long-
when there is so much land for us to possess!

God's problem today is not Communism,
nor yet Romanism, nor liberalism nor modernism,
nor humanism. God's problem is dead fundamentalism.

I am sure that the main reason we do not have a national revival
beginning with personal revival is that we are content to live without it.

It seems that we have substituted
contributions to God for sacrifice for Him.

Anyone Recognize This Guy?

Another Ravenhill

There is no New Testament evidence that people in those days went to church to get saved. They went to church because they were saved - through the power of the testimony of Spirit-inflamed witnesses.

To the "T"

Excerpts - 1

The following are excerpts from Leonard Ravenhill's "Heart Breathings." They were posted on www.ravenhill.org.

I find it most intriguing to contemplate the fact
that while men are considering what place to
give Jesus Christ in history,
He has alreadydecided what place
to give them in eternity.

Are the things we are living for
worth Christ's dying for?

There can be no leadership of Christ
without the Lordship of Christ.

We have substituted "the Bible says"
for what the Bible does.

If men would read their Bibles more,
They would need to read us writers less.

Ponder what the "Heroes of Faith" did without
a Bible! (Heb. 11)
Consider how little we do having the full
Revelation of Divine Truth.

The Bible is not just a series of puzzles to be deciphered,
it is a chain of commandments to be obeyed.

Five minutes of Divine revelation might
be more illuminating
than five years of Bible school instruction.

Faith is either dead earnest or just dead.

God will test the faith He is going to trust.

"Faith" takes the guesswork out of tomorrow.
It confidently boasts, "My times are in Thy hands."

Too many of us want to make a peace treaty
with Christ, but will not make a total surrender
to Christ.

A secret of victory:
- To do what God wants me to do;
- To do it as He wants it to be done;
- To do it when He wants it done.

We are, each of us, as spiritual
as we want to be.
The throttle is in our own hands.

Knowledge is not character, but character is
developed from knowledge and obedience.

Spiritual maturity comes not by book knowledge
but by strict compliance to the revealed
will of God.

The Beatitudes should really "be" attitudes
of the Christian's life.

Christ has not conquered my affections
if He has to compete for my attention.

From a Kid's Vantage Point!

The Sermon I think this Mom will never forget....
This particular Sunday sermon..."Dear Lord," the minister began, with arms extended toward heaven and a rapturous look on his upturned face. "Without you, we are but dust." He would have continued but at that moment my very obedient daughter (who was listening!) leaned over to me and asked quite audibly in her shrill little girl voice, "Mommy, what is butt dust?"

The Flea
JAMES (age 4) was listening to a Bible story. His dad read: "The man named Lot was warned to take his wife and flee out of the city but his wife looked back and was turned to salt." Concerned, James asked: "What happened to the flea?"

Age
MELANIE (age 5) asked her Granny how old she was. Granny replied she was so old she didn't remember any more. Melanie said, "If you don't remember you have to look in the back of your panties. Mine say five to six."

Smart Bottle
BRITTANY (age 4) had an earache and wanted a painkiller. She tried in vain to take the lid off the bottle. Seeing her frustration, her Mom explained it was a childproof cap and she'd have to open it for her. Eyes wide with wonder, the little girl asked: "How does it know it's me?"

Translation Please?

I'm learning new things all the time. Consider this translation key from a humorous web site...

• It's your decision = "The correct decision should be obvious by now."
• Do what you want = "You'll pay for this later."
• We need to talk = "I need to complain."
• We need = "I want"
• I'm not upset = "Of course I'm upset, you moron!"
• You're so manly = "You need a shave and you sweat a lot."
• This kitchen is so inconvenient = "I want a new house."
• Hang the picture there = "NO, I mean hang it there!"
• I heard a noise = "I noticed you were almost asleep."
• Do you love me? = "I'm going to ask for something expensive."
• How much do you love me? = "I did something today you're really not going to like."
• I'll be ready in a minute = "Kick off your shoes and find a good game on TV."
• What's wrong? Nothing = "Everything."

Images of Architecture

I enjoy taking pictures of different buildings, especially in varied lighting conditions. Here are a couple from around Salt Lake.

Church Meetings and the Power of Self

Today marked the first day of a set of meetings at church that will last all week...well, through Friday night, skipping Saturday, and then closing next Sunday. Our speaker is Charles Tenney from West Virginia.

One thought that has struck me already (as a reminder) is how strong Self is when it comes to denying it. Pastor has called on those who would be willing to fast and pray for these meetings. There of course is a "denying of Self" in those things, but also in attending the meetings each night. That "denying of Self" bleeds over into all areas of serving the Lord.

I'm sure that this is not a new idea to any of you. Personally, I have heard it many times from the pulpit. Yet, I think we become lulled into a complacent attitude toward Self. We acknowledge its presence, but fail to understand its strength and influence in our lives.

Try skipping meals for a day or getting up an hour earlier to study God's word. See how hard Self will rationalize against these things. Faith is Self's archenemy, for faith takes God at His word and walks without needing a rational explanation other than "thus saith the Lord."

Let us begin this week stepping out in faith, denying Self, and living for the glory of God...for that is our purpose. We are created to bring pleasure and glory to God. That is why we are here. May He make a name for Himself in us, His people!

Lightning Pics

Catching lightning with a camera (that could be phrased better!) can be quite difficult without super slow shutter speeds or time lapse, etc. Thus these are the only two pictures I have of lightning. These were taken in Virginia in 2004.

It's A Guy Thing!

I know many of you have probably seen this or something like it, but it was just so funny I couldn't pass it up!

The Guys' Rules­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

At last a guy has taken the time to write this all down. Finally , the guys' side of the story. We always hear "the rules" from the female side. Now here are the rules from the male side. These are our rules! Please note.. these are all numbered "1" ON PURPOSE!

1. Men ARE not mind readers.

1. Learn to work the toilet seat. You're a big girl. If it's up, put it down. We need it up, you need it down. You don't hear us complaining about you leaving it down.

1. Sunday sports. It's like the full moon or the changing of the tides. Let it be.

1. Shopping is NOT a sport. And no, we are never going to think of it that way.

1. Crying is blackmail.

1. Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this one: Subtle hints do not work! Strong hints do not work! Obvious hints do not work! Just say it!

1. Yes and No are perfectly acceptable answers to almost every question.

1. Come to us with a problem only if you want help solving it. That's what we do. Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.

1. Anything we said 6 months ago is inadmissible in an argument. In fact, all comments become null and void after 7 days.

1. If you think you're fat, you probably are. Don't ask us.

1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one.

1. You can either ask us to do something or tell us how you want it done. Not both. If you already know best how to do it, just do it yourself.

1. Whenever possible , please say whatever you have to say during commercials.

1. Christopher Columbus did NOT need directions and neither do we.

1. ALL men see in only 16 colors, like Windows default settings. Peach, for example, is a fruit, not a color! Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have no idea what mauve is.

1. If it itches, it will be scratched. We do that.

1. If we ask what is wrong and you say "nothing," we will act like nothing's wrong. We know you are lying, but it is just not worth the hassle.

1. If you ask a question you don't want an answer to, expect an answer you don't want to hear.

1. When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear is fine... really.

1. Don't ask us what we're thinking about unless you are prepared to discuss such topics as baseball, the shotgun formation,or golf.

1. You have enough clothes.

1. You have too many shoes.

1. I am in shape… round IS a shape!

1. Thank you for reading this. Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the couch tonight; but did you know men really don't mind that? It's like camping.

Epcot Center Trip - August 2003

While Epcot Center was really interesting, enjoying it with Virgil and Patsy made all of the difference in the world. We had so much fun just exploring, trying to figure out the map of the park, eating in a "Mayan" pyramid, getting root beer floats in the American section, and listening to a live band from Morocco. All in all quite a day and one I will never forget! Thanks you guys!

Epcot It Is!

Sho'nuff, it's Epcot Center, well at least the entry to it. I have also forgotten what was inside the ball. Pretty neat piece of architecture at any rate.

Whatsit?

Does anyone recognize this...?

A Couple of Quotes

Humanism says, "The end of being is the happiness of man."
Christianity says, "The end of being is the glory of God."

Is God a means to an end for you or is He the end itself?

Late Birthday Present

Last night I bought myself a late birthday present. For some time I have been wanting an MP3 player, especially now that I have quite a collection of sermons in MP3 format. Since I wanted to take it with me while I run, I wanted one that was small and light. I purchased the 1GB Creative Zen Nano Plus. The one I have is the dark blue version.

Wedding Presents!

There seems to be some kind of moral obligation to "wear" your wedding gifts...

Ken and Bonnie Linder

John (and Trista's hand) Gastkill

Cue Ball

I stared at the cue ball, and it stared back at me as if to say, "Nice haircut, but you don't really think that ball will go in do you?"