Psalms 119:105,110-112


If the Word of God is truly a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, then we are walking in the ways of the Lord, and we are no longer walking in the ways of the flesh. Sin is no longer our practice. Righteousness, holiness and obedience to our Lord and to his commands under the New Covenant are what we now practice in conduct, in thought, in word, and in attitude. It doesn’t mean we are perfect people or that we get everything right all the time (1 John 2:1-2), but it means our Lord is the one directing our path.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

But when this represents our lives, and when we are following the example of Jesus, and we are emulating him and his walk of faith in how we conduct our lives, Satan is going to be against us, and those who are listening to him and not to God are going to be our enemies. Now they won’t all come against us. Many will just ignore us and have nothing to do with us. But others will find it their purpose in life to try to take us down and to try to prove that what we are sharing as the truth is not the truth.

But when this happens to us, and it will soon be much worse according to the predictions of the prophets of old and of the NT apostles, we are not to be afraid. We are not to lose faith as though something strange were happening to us, for Jesus foretold us that these things will take place. He told us we would be hated and persecuted for the sake of his name, and that we would be falsely arrested, and falsely charged of wrongdoing, and that we would be brought before the courts, but that we are not to worry what we should say, for the Holy Spirit will give us the words to say.

So, when you come up against persecution, trust the Lord with your life. Believe in his sovereignty. Believe he is still in control over all things and that nothing can touch us unless God allows it, and he will bring good out of it. And keep holding on to the truth of God’s Holy Word, and keep preaching it, and keep living it, even if many or all people turn against you and do evil against you because of your walks of faith in Jesus Christ.

[Matt 5:10-12; Matt 10:16-25; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 6:22-23; Lu 21:12-19; Jn 15:1-21; Jn 16:33; Jn 17:14; Ac 14:22; Rom 5:3-5; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1 Jn 3:13; Rev 6:9-11; Rev 7:9-17; Rev 11:1-3; Rev 12:17; Rev 13:1-18; Rev 14:1-13]

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Songs in the Night

An Original Work / December 18, 2013

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.” Acts 16:25 NIV ‘84

Lord, I praise You forevermore.
You, my Savior, I now adore.
Hope in heaven awaiting me,
Because You died at Calvary.

I have been forgiven,
And I’m bound for heaven.
Jesus set me free from
All my sin, I say.
I will praise Him always!

Lord, I love You for all You’ve done:
Overcame death, my vict’ry won!
Jesus saved me, and now I’m free!
I rejoice in His love for me.

I will walk in vict’ry!
My sin is but hist’ry!
I am free to please Him
With my life today.
I will love Him always!

Lord, I thank You for giving me
A new life bought at Calvary.
Loving Jesus, I meet with Him.
Tender mercies now flow within.

Lord, I am so thankful;
Through my Lord, I’m able
To sit at His table;
Fellowship with Him.
I will thank Him always!

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It has never been done before, and may not be able to be done. The Senate, which held two trials, obviously won't go along with it.

But that doesn't stop Reps. Elise Stefanik (who is bright enough to know better) and MTG (who isn't) from trying.

And really, since he is adding on more and more indictments and probably convictions on his curriculum vitae on a monthly basis, is it even worth it to try?

Is it ok for a Christian to tell a truth that they know will mislead someone in order to protect a greater truth.

Historian Heather Cox Richardson weighs in on Substack, and it sounds as if the devil you don't know might be as bad as the devil you know.

Yevgeny Viktorovich Prigozhin, the leader of the mercenary Wagner Group, has been increasingly critical of Russia’s military leaders over the past few months, and today he accused the Russian military of attacking his forces. He announced that he was leading his soldiers from Ukraine into Russia, where he promised to retaliate against the leaders of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

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There are no good guys in this struggle. Prigozhin is wanted by the FBI for his involvement in the Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. He funded the Internet Research Agency (IRA), which flooded social media with messages designed to help Trump win the presidency, and his mercenaries have been committing war crimes in Ukraine and African countries, where they often support dictators. And Putin is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes.

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Russians have grown increasingly disenchanted with Putin as seven Russian soldiers die for every one Ukrainian soldier, and the costly war takes a toll on the nation,

A weakened Putin warns the nation that this potential coup could have an even costlier toll on the country.

What we can say with certainty is that this internal struggle shows that Putin’s hold over Russia is weak and that there are significant challenges to it before Russia’s next presidential election, which is supposed to be held on March 17, 2024. It is also certain that this internal fighting is a product of the war against Ukraine going badly for Russia and that it will hurt Russia’s war effort going forward.

As Yale professor Timothy Snyder put it: “wars end when the domestic political system is under pressure.”

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Our country is taking a watch and wait position, not wanting to appear to favor one side or the other (truthfully, neither would be an ally of ours, although both Putin and Prigozhin seem to have been friendly with Trump.

Prayers for the Russian people, who are the real victims in this potential coup.

Jesus in Matthew 7:21 says “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” What is the Will of Our Father? It is that we all be saved, as brought up in John 3:16-17 16. What does it mean that we be saved? In the context of that Verse, it means to have eternal life instead of perishing.

There are two paths to eternal life. One such path is akin to playing the lottery. That path is to simply hope that God, by His Good Graces, will give us eternity with no strings attached, no matter who we are or what we do. Are lottery players required to be and to do anything, other than to pay for a ticket? You might say, ‘Then what is OUR ticket?’ If we go the lottery route to God, our ticket is just being around.

The other path is to do things toward fulfilling God’s Will. This involves the two great commandments of Jesus, which is to devote ourselves to God, and to love each other on that path to such devotion. Devoting ourselves to God is a matter of faith. Loving each other is a matter of works which in turn is one measure of our faith in Him. As James 2:20 says, “Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless?” Where does that come from, in that statement? He says in Verses 14-17, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” Having read that, would you expect James to hold preachers in high regard if their preaching amounts to telling us to ‘Go in peace and find warmth and prosperity’ without doing anything in that regard to help those he speaks to, who are having difficulty or are not capable of those things? Because if they don’t, then they’re among those Jesus refers to as merely saying “Lord, Lord”!

God’s Will that we be saved is primary. There is a secondary aspect to it, which leads us to fulfilling the primary aspect; that is where doing works comes in. 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 tells us to work with our hands in the name of brotherly love. If it isn’t clear that merely preaching alone, as described above, does not fulfill God’s Will, 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 does it more plainly.

Did Jesus’ first disciples merely preach? To the extent the Bible doesn’t say, we have the last Verse of John which tells us that not everything involving Jesus is in the Bible. My guess is their preaching wouldn’t have caught on in the places they visited unless they showed some involvement with the people they were preaching to.

The performance of works in the form of doing things is an essential element toward one’s being saved toward fulfilling the Will of our Father.

Something is very wrong with us indeed. See Matthew 24:12

But the criminal tax investigation of Hunter Biden, led by the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Delaware, has been handled differently than any investigation I've ever been a part of for the past 14 years of my IRS service. ...they acquiesced to a DOJ request to remove the entire team from the Hunter Biden investigation, a team that had been investigating it for over 5 years. Passing the buck and deferring to others was a common theme with IRS CI leadership during this investigation. After you hear my testimony, I believe you will understand why my conscience would not be silenced. My oath of office would have been unfulfilled if I did nothing. I went from a senior leader to a pariah, and the only thing that happened in between was that I blew the whistle

But hey whats a building project without unnecessary deaths.

Yay for Freedom(to kill the workforce)

-
Lets look at a few verses that deal with growing in Grace as = how to effectively "work out your salvation">


1.)""" leaving the first principles"""


The bible is a progressive reveal.

Its God revealing Himself, and its God's showing you how He deals with mankind from beginning to the final revelation.
The Bible reveals this, progressively. Some have classified this as "seasons" or "dispensations", but, its really just the calendar of continuing time, whereby God is showing you what has happened, what is happening right now, and what is to come later, = as the revelation of His dealing with man.
(Foreknowledge)=

And just like you find the beginning of it all , you then find the process of BIBLE revelation changing, and continuing to change.
For example, when Adam and Eve were here, you had no "law of Moses". And after Christ was Crucified, you had a transition from the OT old covenant to the NEW Testament, New Covenant. So, see that CHANGE? That is the progressive revelation that the Bible is showing you.
Currently you are in the "time of the Gentile", and this will end and the Great Tribulation will start and That is the Bible showing you what God is doing next, and next, and next.. That is progressive revelation. = That is the Bible.

The believer is also to change. "from Glory to Glory". From spiritual baby to mature believer.
From babe in Christ, to "The Fullness of the Stature of Christ".....on this Earth.
We are to grow in Grace. We start as spiritual babes in Christ and are to mature to the "fullness of the stature of Christ."
We are to leave the beginning stages, that Paul defines as :

""""Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works""

Now, notice. 1.) "principles of the doctrine of Christ" and 2.) "repentance from dead works"?
This means we are to become grounded, centered, in God's Grace, Hebrews 13:9 ....and from this FAITH foundation, move on to more revelation and deeper Spirituality. But you have to start there, you have to get your FAITH right, or you can't ever move on. And if you have not started there, then you are still in the beginning immature stage of " "repenting from dead works'... This is sinning and confessing. This is the baby stage of Christianity that is not "perfection", which is the mature spiritual stage of discipleship.


2.) """"Dead to the law""""

The Born again, are alive to God, "In Christ" and "dead to the law".
This means that the law, which IS a curse to us, has been resolved by Christ who has "redeemed us from the Curse of THE LAW".
So by being delivered from the "dominion of the law", we are now no longer judged or defined by the Law, which is the "curse".
We now exist here...=."under Grace". This has become our spiritual dominion, We are "dead to the law", or as Paul teachers... "reckon yourselves DEAD"..
See, our old man, our adamic nature our sinful nature, has been "crucified with Christ" and we are risen with Christ in "newness of Life".
This "newness" is our "new Creation" "in Christ" born again spirit.... that is who we have become, by being BORN AGAIN.
We are now become "ONE WITH GOD< IN Christ".
This is now who we are...and never again are we to think of ourselves as a "sinner".
We are now become...."as Christ IS, so are the born again, IN THIS WORLD". This is why God tells you to "be in the world but not of it".... And this reveals how you are to always understand who you have become,= as the "new birth", a Child of the Light, BORN AGAIN.


3.) Harlot

IN Luke 7, you find the core principle of God's Grace which is defined by a Harlot's NEW behavior, who came to Jesus and poured out her utter thankfulness on the Savior, in public.
The principle here is...."to whom much is forgiven".
So, let me show you how this works....
There is a Satanic lie that has deceived many believers which exists as the idea that ..if you understand and believe (Blood Atonement)= that all your sin is always forgiven, then you will live like the devil.
The theologically deceived always teach this as "License to sin" so that you are deceived AWAY FROM the correct understanding of being "made righteous".
And that is the devil's lie. And He created this lie and perpetuates this lie using people to teach this lie from Pulpits, on TV, in Commentaries, and on Forums.
And if you believe it, you will never have the revelation of God's Grace that is your power, your rest, and your total deliverance that leads to your "perfection".
"As many as be perfect"....Paul teaches.
See....
Satan wants to keep you away from this, so that you exist as working, striving, and failing, to try to achieve by self effort what God only provides as the "GIFT of salvation". and "The Gift of Righteousness"
Satan will have you waste your life as a believer, trying to stay reconciled to God, instead of understanding that Christ's sacrifice, Christ's Blood and Death, has become your eternal reconciliation to God.
See Jesus's death, this sacrifice is the "ETERNAL Redemption"... its not part time, or conditional, or based on your behavior.

Now notice the former Harlot in Luke 7.

Jesus said she was forgiven much. And do you see her reaction? This is a former harlot.... A devout sinner, judged to be so by THE LAW and COMMANDMENTS. However, Jesus has not judged her. He has only accepted her and loved her and her reaction to God's GRACE, is to fall at the God-Mans's feet and cry tears on his feet and dry them with her hair.
Now, see that REACTION to GOD's GRACE?
That is the same reaction found in the heart of a true believer who understands that Salvation is a GIFT that can never be lost and will never be taken away.
Saint : Eternal LIFE is not TEMPORARY <!
See.... Her reaction to God's Grace, = is the pure reaction of every heart and mind and life that understands the Amazing Grace of God, that you too will find when you completely understand and come to believe that God always keeps you saved, no matter what.... based on the BLOOD OF GOD, (The Cross) only.

This is the wonder of the effect of Grace as it empowers you to live HOLY.
This is the fact that "the goodness of God, leads you to repentance". Its a fact reader, that when you renew your mind into the real faith that is only found when you leave your self effort to try to be accepted by God, and continually REST in the truth that is the power of God's Grace, that you then find your discipleship as this...= "Christ always gives me the Victory"., and "I can do all things Through Christ".
See, when you come to truly believe that God will always keep you saved with Christ's blood, then you are entering the TRUE revelation knowledge that will set you free from self righteousness that is the cause of sinning and confessing.

Philippians 1:6

The truth is, the more you believe that you have to work (keep law and commandments) and strive to please God, the more you will sin and confess and repeat. Whereas, the more you come to understand the depth's of God's COMPLETED forgiveness for you as The Cross of Christ, the more power you find as this :
= '"Christ always gives me the Victory".

4.) The Effect of the knowledge of Grace : Deliverance & Holy Living

The end result that comes only from knowing and understanding and resting in God's Grace, is that you are arming yourself with the Power of Christ, which is God's Grace.
To truly understand God's Grace, is the "helmet of salvation".... being put on.
Christ said "apart from me, you can do nothing"... and that means, all your self effort to be a "good christian" will fail.
The reason? = Its because Real Christianity is not based on you trying to be good, but rather it is ONLY based on God's goodness existing in you as "Christ in you the hope of Glory"< as who you are become as "the righteousness of God, in Christ".

Here is the thing... A born again person, STARTS, as...>"Made Righteous".
See that?
The born again are not to try to become righteous, as we are already made by NEW BIRTH< to be Righteous, as "the righteousness of God, in Christ".
We START as "the righteousness of God, in Christ".... As That is who we are made to be, as the "new Creation" from the very instant we are born again.
Most believers are trying to get there, by self effort, and that is to be Faith failed as : "apart from me you can do nothing"...Jesus tells us.
See......Trying to stay saved or become righteous, is to "Fall From Grace".
So, the knowledge of Righteousness is..>> 1.) to come to understand who you are become "in Christ", by being Born Again, and live in this mind of real Faith.
This means you rest in the knowledge of the Truth that you are "made righteousness" already, and kept righteous by the BLOOD OF GOD for eternity.......as that REAL FAITH= is how you find your power, victory, and deliverance over the world, the flesh, and the devil.
Its all found by resting completely in God's Grace as your REAL FAITH.

Which ones do you know?

Here is a list:

• England >>> George​

• Wales >>> David​

• Scotland >>> Andrew​

• Ireland >>> Patrick​

• Russia >>> Andrew​

• Germany >>> Michael, the Arch-Angel​

• Grand-Duchy of Baden >>> Bernhard​

• Kingdom of Bavaria >>> Mary, Patrona Bavariae​

• France >>> Joan of Arc = Jeanne d'Arc​

• Spain >>> James​

Prayer for Critical US Supreme Court Case

The US supreme Court will be releasing several more decisions by the end of June and possibly early July. A critical case is 303 Creative v. Elenis. I am requesting prayer for a decision extraordinarily in favor of Lorie Smith, and by extension, the Church of God.

“Lorie Smith, the graphic artist and web designer who owns 303 Creative in Colorado, is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold free speech.”


“Lorie is an artist who specializes in custom graphic and website design and loves to visually convey messages in every site she creates. She started 303 Creative to promote causes consistent with her beliefs and close to her heart through her art. Lorie wants to celebrate marriages between one man and one woman, but she soon learned that a Colorado law would force her to create messages that conflict with her beliefs. On December 5, 2022, Lorie asked the Supreme Court to protect her—and every American’s—right to say what she believes.

Lorie Smith runs a studio called 303 Creative in Colorado that designs and publishes websites for individuals, businesses, churches, charities, and numerous others. Lorie loves the work she does and puts her heart into every design.

Lorie’s free speech rights as an artist give her not only the right to speak but also the right not to speak. Free speech is for everyone, not just those who agree with the government.

It is long past due for creative professionals and artists such as Lorie to stop living under the threat of compelled speech and government coercion.”

The above commentary describes the content of the following videos.

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(REVIEW) America got a glimpse of the happy Duggar family in an hour-long special, “14 Kids and Counting,” way back in 2004. They kept having kids, soaking up viral fame in the reality TV era and raising questions about big families, home schooling and Christianity in America.

Americans would become so captivated by this well-behaved Christian family that 10 seasons of “19 Kids and Counting” would showcase the happy family. However, behind the smiling faces were dark secrets and a religion that resembled a cult. These were the real lives of the Duggar children, who are now growing up and starting families of their own.

“Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets” is the latest docuseries from Amazon Prime that focuses on the family and its connections to the nonprofit organization Institute in Basic Life Principles, created by an unordained teacher named Bill Gothard, who was based in the Chicago suburb of Oak Brook, Ill.

Gothard offered popular seminars on Christian principles for living around the U.S. and expanded his ministry to include a large home-schooling network of thousands of families like the Duggars.

Continued below.

If Joe Biden was sitting next to his son as he sent the message as it suggests, it would be a fatal blow to the president’s repeated claims that he never discussed overseas business deals with his son, and the photographs of Hunter Biden at what appears to be a family gathering at the Delaware home is the strongest indication that he was in close proximity to his father when he threatened the Chinese businessman. The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
With this evidence no one should pretend there is not enough probable cause for an investigation.

Isaiah 7
14Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. 15Curds and honey He shall eat, that He may know to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that you dread will be forsaken by both her kings.

As a practicing Christian all of my life, I was schooled in moralism by operant conditioning. My bad deeds garnered negative responses and my good deeds were rewarded. I must admit, to a certain extent that is true with most families regardless of their religious affiliation or lack thereof. My view and understanding of God was forged by the carrot and stick and as a result I never felt I was good enough. Moralism did make me aware of how weak and helpless I really was but it offered no solution and no means to attain salvation.

I was taught that faith was a thing developed by exercise and this concept was very puzzling to me since I couldn't quite put it into an action plan. This resulted often in my prayers being followed by intense claims of belief and often ultimate disappointment in the results -- I would write this off to my own lack of faith rather than believing that something was broken in that great vending machine in the sky.

When I came upon This forum it struck me that the title, “The Sabbath and The Law” appeared a little strange in that the Sabbath is part of the law rather than something separate from it so that any discussion regarding the Sabbath was also a discussion of of law keeping. And it always been drilled into me that if you break one of The Commandments you break them all. After all, when Moses came down from the mountain the people were breaking the whole law that's why he threw the tablets to the ground even though the people were only specifically trampling the first commandment.

My story is too long to print here but in short I am filled with joy and happiness because God has revealed that my righteousness is not found in keeping the law or in any form of behavior. In fact, my righteousness is not even in my possession for it sits at this very moment at the right hand of God: it is Jesus Christ!

As the Apostle Paul explained, "But it is from Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God [revealing His plan of salvation], and righteousness [making us acceptable to God], and sanctification [making us holy and setting us apart for God], and redemption [providing our ransom from the penalty for sin]" (1 Cor 1:30) When I was trying to earn my salvation or at the least earn Christ's Grace I was acting as my own savior and showing God away from the ultimate Throne of my heart. I was, in fact, Eve plucking the fruit from the tree in the center of the garden.

Does this mean that I am now free to be as sinful as I want to be? If this question is asked of me I always wonder how sinful the inquisitor wishes to be because the truth is that the behavior prescribed by the law, which includes the all Commandments is a lagging indicator of our Salvation found in Christ Jesus. It is the fruit of Salvation and not the root of salvation. When we abide in Jesus Christ we will bear much fruit but we cannot bear much fruit in order to abide in Jesus Christ. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Yes, some people thrive in our society, and flourish, so they can do as they want, others seek more contact with others, and struggle, but what I want until tonight then, are some basic beliefs that do not hold true in society, for example that the eyes only pretend to show a soul, produced by a brain, and there is no soul, even if science says it is real too, and you are only a brain, so that you can challenge each other a little, nothing is real according to most people, so it doesn't matter, I want to challenge this a bit, because people get unhappy with such nonsense, you never get confirmation that you are a real person, the thing is, some kids are born without a brain, they have only the brainstem, it is not part of the brain itself, the brain sits on top like an organ, but you don't actually need this to live, personality, feelings, needs,and so on, sitting in the brain stem, as shown in the picture below, it is somewhat well ingrained in society that you are a brain, because then you are also more primitive and can challenge each other, and nothing is real,

the brain was created to fill the void in the skull and circulate blood, and then it started making hormones that make us feel good, that's why cannibals don't think it was disgusting to eat this organ either, because it wasn't the person itself, the brainstem, your soul then, is more like a muscle, it is what makes you have the power to control a body too, a brain that just sits on top only gets sent signals, and would never have the power to move anything, the brainstem follows the entire spine, almost like a vertebrate, it is what makes you have the power to move, the reason why different areas of the brain light up when you do different things is because it is a very complex machinery to make hormones, there are different compositions based on what you do, that is why you often feel better at a young age than later,because the hormones are new to you, it decreases a little in effect based on the fact that you age, if you are a native who lives in the forest naturally all your life, then the hormones will always feel good, but if you live in a society where your body ages more, then diminishes this effect a little as I said, it is what makes you go bald, look older, get cancer, and so on, because when you hold on to something psychological like a system, or society, the body weakens,

the soul is not made of DNA either, consciousness is transferred from life to life in a different way, DNA was created because, even if the soul maintains the whole body, it would be too difficult to do it with all cells, so DNA was invented to do maintenance of cells automatically, that is why cancer sometimes also occurs in cells, because it happens automatically, there is a general weakening of the body before cancer occurs, it goes beyond the weakest part of the body, say you smoke, then it happens beyond the lungs first if you are a little weakened, it may be that you find more uses for the brain than just circulating blood and making hormones, but that is currently my best theory, because there are actually children completely without a brain and they have personality, eat , moving, laughing, smiling, showing emotions, and so on, some would say that these are primal functions then,so that's why it's in the brain stem, but you can't avoid the fact that some people don't have a brain at all, and yet it works, they usually have some diseases that make life more difficult, since it often follows when development doesn't happen normally , like getting a brain, but it must not be confused with what it is actually for, people will spend thousands of years trying to figure out what the brain is for, and make theories out of nothing based on what a person does in a situation , and then end up with nothing, but that's the way of life for some, don't be one of them, my own gut told me I wasn't a brain, so I tried to figure it out for myself, and it gave me a lot , I've always known that I'm real and alive and have a soul and my eyes are the window to the soul, they don't pretend to be anything

"Earth is being choked by a thick, curling fog of carbon dioxide that coats the planet as the months go by, a series of NASA videos shows. The newly released animations visualize the astonishing scale of human carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions over a year by coloring the invisible greenhouse gas."

Watch the world choke on CO2 in eerie NASA videos of manmade emissions

The Wall Street Journal is reporting:
“Russian authorities stepped up security in Moscow and issued an arrest warrant for Yevgeny Prigozhin, the owner of the Wagner paramilitary group, on charges of mutiny after he called on his troops to oust the country’s military leadership.”

(part 1of 2)
I am posting the following, because it seems very obvious to me there is much misunderstanding when it comes to understanding the promises God made to Israel and the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation.

It is a lengthly post but it will be well worth the read. Blessings

God Does Not Give Up (A Discussion on Plan A/Plan B)

The concepts presented in this chapter should be important to
you because every student of Bible prophecy is overwhelmed by
the sheer volume of data in the Bible. It has been said that a person has to know everything before he can properly understand anything! While this concept is not entirely true, the more we do know about the Bible, the better and richer the story of redemption becomes. God is never simple, but there are simple truths about God that help us understand Him! I would like to introduce you to a larger picture of God than you would normally see if your study of apocalyptic prophecy is limited to the books of Daniel and Revelation. Apocalyptic prophecy is difficult to understand at first because there are so many details that surround and encompass the plan of redemption. Therefore, I hope a few general concepts about the plan of redemption will prove to be helpful.

The Living Trust
The Bible teaches that God created a living trust to redeem man- kind when Adam and Eve sinned. The term, living trust, comes from two Latin words, inter vivos, which mean “between the living.” A living trust is a very practical tool. For example, it permits a wealthy grantor to distribute his assets to his bene- ficiaries over a long period of time without being present or having to micro manage the day-to-day process himself. Therefore, when a grantor establishes a living trust, he appoints a trustee or someone to stand “between the living.” When a person agrees to serve as a trustee of a living trust, he enters into a covenant with the grantor. The trustee promises to carry out the will of the grantor at all costs. This is a solemn responsibility and trustees are usually paid very well for their services. If a trustee fails to keep his promise to the grantor and steals the assets instead of distributing them to the beneficiaries, two things will soon happen. (Remember, the grantor is alive.) First, the grantor will see that his beneficiaries are not receiving the assets he wants them to have and understandably, he will become angry. Second, the grantor will confront the trustee, charging the trustee with dereliction of duty. The grantor may give the trustee a second chance to do the job that he wants done or the grantor may re the trustee and choose someone else. After all, the object of a living trust is the distribution of the grantor’s assets to his beneficiaries and any trustee who thwarts this purpose must be disciplined or eliminated.

Hopefully, this explanation helps you appreciate the overriding concept that the redemption of mankind is built on a living trust. God is the grantor and He chooses trustees to distribute His riches. He has chosen the whole world to be the beneficiaries of His riches. God originally created a living trust when Adam and Eve sinned because sin separated mankind from God. Consequently, sinners can no longer see God, so He chose to establish a living trust. God appointed trustees to be His representatives on Earth. His plan was that His trustees would be living examples of His character and love. Through their example, God wanted His beneficiaries (the whole world) to see Him. In other words, God’s plan was designed so His truth and grace would ow to mankind through His trustees. His trustees were to stand between a living God and the people living on Earth.

God has faithfully carried out everything necessary to make our redemption possible. He has done everything that He said He would do. Unfortunately, God’s trustees have not fulfilled their responsibilities. Bible history reveals that every time God chose a particular group of trustees to distribute the riches of His grace to the world, His trustees eventually failed. They either became distracted from their mission or they rebelled against God. When His trustees become utterly useless, God has no other option than to start over. After selecting a new group of trustees, He moves forward. This process will end with the 144,000. They will be the last group of God’s trustees.

Plan A / Plan B
The process of starting over and over with new trustees will take a few paragraphs to explain. For purposes of discussion, let us assume that Plan A describes God’s first plan for mankind and Plan B is a followup plan that God put into motion when the trustees responsible for Plan A failed. God’s living trust is intact and He will accomplish all that He intends to do with or without man’s cooperation. God will not terminate His living trust until He redeems all sinners who choose to follow Him. Consider the following scenario:
God gave Adam and Eve possession of the Garden of Eden. It was God’s plan that they should live there forever and Adam should serve as “the father” of mankind! (Plan A) However, Adam and Eve sinned and had to be evicted from the Garden of Eden.

1. Plan B: God started over. He made Adam and the patriarchs who followed him trustees of His gospel. The trustee- ship of the patriarchs lasted about 1,600 years (from the fall of man to the flood). It failed miserably because the patriarchs lost sight of God.4 In fact, during the operation of this plan, the world became hopelessly evil and God destroyed all but eight people in Noah’s day.
2. Plan C: About four hundred years after the flood, God start- ed over. He called Abraham out of Ur to be “the father” of the faith-full. Then, God chose Abraham’s descendants to be the trustees of His gospel and He entered into a covenant with them. This 1,500 year plan (1437 B.C. - A.D. 70) failed because Israel would not remain loyal to God long enough to get the job done. Therefore, God destroyed Israel in A.D. 70 because of rebellion.
3. Plan D: During the seventieth week, God started over. Be- cause He made some unconditional promises to Abraham, God had to raise up another group of trustees to keep moving forward. Many Christians do not understand why it is important that believers in Christ are counted as the heirs of Abraham. The heart of this issue involves a promise. God promised Abraham that He would someday give the whole world over to Abraham’s descendants. Thankfully, God considers Abraham’s descendants to be those people who love and trust God as Abraham did! Carefully study this passage and notice that biology does not determine the descendants of Abraham:
   “ ‘Abraham is our father,’ they answered. ‘If you were Abraham’s children,’ said Jesus, ‘then you would do the things Abraham did. As it is, you are determined to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. You are doing the things your own father does.’ ‘We are not illegitimate children [we have a father] they protested. ‘The only Father we have is God himself.’ Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me!’ ”
4. When the nation of Israel passed a point of no return, God rejected Israel as the trustees of His covenant. Consequently, every one who loves and trusts in Christ for salvation becomes Israel, the heir of Abraham. “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” God raised up a new set of trustees for His living trust. He created a new covenant because He needed a new set of trustees. However, this 2,000 year plan (A.D. 30 - 1994) has failed, too. Corporately speaking, God will abandon Christianity and eventually it will be destroyed. Plan E: God will soon start over again, but for the last time. He will select 144,000 people as trustees of His living trust. To ensure the success of their mission, He will first remove their carnal natures. This wonderful miracle will ensure their success. (Incidently, the fallen nature of man explains why all of the previous trustees failed.)

The 144,000 will proclaim the riches of God’s grace and His offer of redemption to the whole world during the Great Tribulation. The 144,000 will not deviate or fail to accomplish their mission. When they complete their mission, everyone on Earth will either have the mark of the beast or the seal of God. I have listed five examples showing that God does not quit. When one group of trustees refuses to cooperate with Him, God moves them out of the way to keep moving forward. God chooses new trustees because He cannot be thwarted! The repetitive process of starting over with new trustees has been synthesized in this book to what I call Plan A and Plan B. Rather than identify each successive plan, I prefer to simplify the concept of starting over by identifying Plan A as a previous plan and Plan B as the plan that follows. I like to do this so that I can make certain categorical statements about Plan B.

For example, Plan B is always better and more glorious than Plan A. Some people, upon hearing this comment say, “You make it sound as though God’s first plan was imperfect!” Actually, God’s earlier plan (Plan A) was perfect because God’s ways are always perfect. However, Plan B is better and more glorious because God uses the failure in Plan A to reveal more about Himself than He previously revealed. Here is an example: If Adam and Eve and their offspring had lived in the Garden of Eden without sinning, Earth would have been “a perfect place” to live. God’s original plan was perfect, but Adam and Eve sinned and God’s in nite love for mankind moved Him to redeem the guilty pair (and their offspring). Plan B was put in motion and as a result, we now see a component of God’s love for sinners that would not be seen if sin had not occurred. Plan A was perfect, but Plan B reveals new things about God which could not be seen in Plan A. This makes Plan B better and more glorious than Plan A.

A Much Different World History
According to the Old Testament, world history would have been much different over the past 2,000 years if the nation of Israel had embraced Jesus as the Messiah at His first advent. If this had occurred, Jesus would not have returned to Heaven. There would have been no need for a second advent. There would have been no need for a New Testament and there would have been no need for the books of Daniel and Revelation because these two prophetic books contain Plan B! For the sake of discussion, let us lump all of the promises and prophecies ancient Israel received into Plan A. Bible history records how Israel rebelled time and time again. God could not carry out His redemptive trust for the whole world because His trustees refused to do the very things that He wanted done. Therefore, God had no choice but to fire Israel for dereliction of duty during the seventieth week. When it became clear that Israel would not receive Him as Messiah, Jesus selected a new set of trustees. He implemented a new covenant between Himself and His new trustees. Keep in mind that the living trust (God’s offer for salvation) remains unchanged. The only element that changes are the trustees.

A Faithful Model
When Jesus selected Israel to be the trustee of the gospel, Jesus gave Israel many laws and regulations. These statutes were perfect because God thoughtfully and deliberately designed them. One set of laws pertained to an intricate ceremonial system (including animal sacrifices), but most people today misunderstand the purpose for this intricate system. God gave the ceremonial system to Israel as a faithful model. This model reveals the dimensions of the plan of redemption. Each process the priests conducted in the earthly ceremonial system faithfully parallels a real process that occurs in Heaven. When Jesus died on the cross, He abolished the ceremonial system along with its perfect laws because the purpose for which the ceremonial system had been created had been fulfilled. This does not mean that the ceremonial system is unimportant today. In fact, the ceremonial system God gave to Israel is profoundly important today because it was a faithful “model” that reveals the plan of redemption. In other words, every theological idea concerning the salvation of mankind has to be evaluated to see if it is in compliance with the ceremonial system God gave to ancient Israel because it is a perfect explanation of redemption’s process.

I like to think of the ceremonial system in this way. Suppose a group grade school students act in a skit that illustrates the separation of the United States from Great Britain. The children thoroughly research the topic and portray the events of history. When the skit is over, we could say two things: First, since this was a skit, when the fifth graders “signed” the Declaration of Independence, they did not sign a valid document. In terms of reality, the skit is just a depiction of the actual events. In terms of “representing” actual events that occurred, their actions were perfect. Second, assuming the skit was a faithful representation of what actually happened, the skit was valuable because everyone could quickly see how the facts together. The skit portrayed the truth even though it was just a shadow of the truth.

The ceremonial system is like a skit revealing God’s living trust. The ceremonial system shadows events that began in Heaven when Adam and Eve sinned. These events will continue to function in Heaven until the sin problem is resolved on Earth and the redemption of sinners is finished. The ceremonial system God gave to Israel was not a reality, but Israel had to faithfully carry out the skit because it was a faithful representation of God’s living trust. The Bible clearly says in Hebrews 10:1-4 that sinners were not redeemed by the blood of animals because the ceremony was not a means to salvation. The ceremonial system has enormous value today because it can be used to test every concept concerning redemption.

Would you say that given the tangible ways the faith is supposed to be lived out, which means having a social impact on your community and potentially the world at large, that Catholics are almost forced to be political creatures? Sure we could say that nobody has to partake in politics by any measure, but are we effectively participating in salvation history with Christ as we're called to do, if we abstain and remain apolitical? It seems like if we're at all devout and sincere in our faith then we have a duty to affect and change the laws, ideas, and mores that govern our respective countries to align better with the uprightness of Catholic doctrine. I mean, at the end of the day that's the truth of it, right?

I mean, I'm trying my hardest to divest from politics and essentially bury my head in the sand. I've just had waaaay too much from both sides. Yet, as a Catholic I feel like social issues (which are inherently political) get equal face time as just about anything else so it's pretty hard to break away for me.

Whether or not it's possible, the way to do it remains entirely elusive to me and I wish there were some gurus out there who knew the best way to climb out of the political pool.

James 1:5-8 ESV


So many people are quoting verse five out of context and they are leaving out the rest of what this says. And so they are giving their listeners the impression that they can ask God for wisdom and it will just be given to them, unconditionally. But that is not what this says. It says we have to ask in faith without doubting or we won’t receive anything from the Lord.

So, what is faith? Well, the word means “persuasion,” and in this case “divine persuasion.” And what is God going to persuade us to do? From what we read in the Scriptures, he persuades us as to his holiness and righteousness, and of our sinfulness, and of our need to repent of our sins and to follow him in obedience in living holy lives, pleasing to him.

But faith is also believing God and his Word, and belief involves putting that word into practice in our everyday lives. For if all we do is just give lip service to God, then that is not genuine faith which saves. For by faith we die with Christ to sin and we are raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves to sin, but as slaves to his righteousness.

So, if we doubt God, what does that mean? It means we don’t believe him, for we are questioning his Word and his wisdom. And those who do this while they profess faith in Jesus Christ are called “double-minded.” And that is a person of two minds and souls, who continually vacillates between opinions, one moment saying he believes God and the next moment not.

And if we are double-minded, and we keep vacillating between following the Lord and not following him, and if we go back and forth between obeying him and obeying sin, then we do not have salvation from sin. And I am not saying here that we must be absolutely perfect! This is about someone who professes one thing with his lips but who lives the opposite.

So, don’t be double-minded. Be people of faith who stay the course and who stand on the truth and who do not go back and forth in opinion and belief as though changing like shifting shadows. Be who God called you to be and stay there. And then be faithful to the Lord and to his calling on your life, and don’t allow yourself to be easily swayed by the opinions of man.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

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Walking in The Light

An Original Work / November 16, 2011
Based off 1 John 1-2

When I lift up my voice, and
Sing praise unto God,
I will fellowship with my
Lord and Savior, King.
In Him there is no darkness.
He is in the light of truth.
If we walk in His light,
From sin He purifies.

If we repent of our sins,
He’ll forgive us now,
When we humble ourselves, and
Before Jesus bow.
The man who says, “I know Him,”
But does not obey His truth,
There is no truth in him.
In darkness still he’s found.

Do not love the world of sin,
For it is hell bound.
If you follow the world, you’ll
Not in Christ be found.
The world and its desires
Will not last; they’ll expire.
The one who does God’s will,
Receives eternal life.

See that what you have heard from
Christ remains in you.
Then, you’ll remain in Christ, and
In His Father, too.
This is what He promised us –
His eternal life with God.
So, continue in Him, and
You’ll receive a crown.

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The court just blew up another MAGA talking point.....

The Supreme Court on Friday ruled for the Biden administration in an important immigration case, saying Texas and Louisiana lacked the legal standing to challenge the executive branch’s priorities on who should be deported.

At issue is a Biden administration policy that says the Department of Homeland Security should focus on arresting recent border crossers and immigrants who pose a threat to public safety, rather than the millions of other noncitizens who have lived here for years.

“Across 25 years and five presidential administrations, the agency has never implemented the INA in the manner that [the states] suggest,” Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar said during oral arguments. “Given congressional funding choices, it would be impossible for DHS to do so.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/06/23/supreme-court-immigration-deportation-biden/

So I'm 22 now and currently in a relationship with my boyfriend who is 31, I deeply love him and wish for us to marry one day.

Everything was okay at first but as the time went on I started realizing he is something special and with that came the regret of him not being my first.

He is my fourth partner, the number didn't bother him that much considering he wasn't a virgin either and had multiple partners before me.

I had my first partner when I was 20 I think, but he left me rather quickly, I was so disappointed but moved on eventually.

After that I had another partner and what bothers me about that relationship is that we moved too fast and slept on our first date, a mistake I will always regret. We broke up after three months cause he would constantly drink to the point of blacking out and would unfortunately abuse his own mother.

Finally I slept with one more person with whom I wasn't in a committed relationship.

I'm afraid my boyfriend will judge me (most likely will) for my rash decisions and think I'm someone who is not worth marrying and that in the end he will leave me as well.

I wish all the time he was my first and one and only, I'm constantly asking myself why couldn't I meet him earlier.

I don't feel worthy of love anymore and even started having suicidal thoughts for which I know is even greater sin, but it's like i can't control my mind at all, this thoughts just keep on coming back.