Hello brothers and sisters,

I need some prayer, I collected a discontinued miniature army from eBay, called Warhammer it's a bretonnian army. I left it with a local painter, the figures come unpainted, she has all my models, and she took my deposit, didn't do much work at all, and now she is refusing to give them back.

They are worth quite a bit of money, and they are rare and hard to come by, it took me a while to collect them.

Please pray she returns them all, and I find the right person to paint them.

*UPDATE*

I received them back, thanks for the prayers, I have found two new painters that can continue the project for me, pray I select the right person to finish the painting of the figures.



Many Thanks
Andy

While the term was used academically and publicly before 2016, the Oxford Dictionary defined it as "relating to and denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief."


Where do we go from here? I really don't know. It seems that all any of us can do is challenge ourselves to seek truth beyond what we want to hear and read. And we can each do better in realizing that our present world views color our interpretations. On matters of importance to us we must dig deeper with more objectivity. It takes work.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism starts with this question.

What is the chief end of man?

Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.

I agree with this because there is nothing greater than His glory. It’s the culmination of all we know about Him. Some have argued that God is more interested in loving us than He is with His glory. If this is true, then the Westminster divines got this wrong. Our chief end should be to love one another.

I think they got it right. God is very concerned about His glory because there is nothing greater. We can’t put an attribute of God (love for instance) above His glory for two reasons. One, God is singular and we cannot divide his attributes like ingredients in a cake. So one can’t be singled out over another. Two, His glory is the culmination of His attributes. So to pull one out (if it was possible) and put it over the culmination of His attributes would make no sense.


You who fear the Lord, praise Him;
All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
And stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel.
— Psalm 22:23

That’s a good command. We should follow it.

Hi,

I am new to this forum and find myself here this evening with a very specific situation that I’d be grateful for some insight on.

I am a wedding musician and recently accepted a booking through a booking agent. However, I did not do my due diligence and was unaware it was a same sex union until after confirming availability.

I do not believe I can actively be a part of this wedding and I think that in my country of residence I could potentially be under threat from discrimination laws for citing my religion.

I could of course provide an unrelated excuse not to do the wedding but would that be essentially denying my faith and God?

Thank you

.

Don’t call it a comeback, blue whales have been here for years, rocking their peers and putting sailors in fear.

The largest animals on Earth are returning to the coastal Californian waters in larger and larger numbers, with sightings on whale-watching trips becoming increasingly common.

According to a 2014 study investigating the impact of ship strikes on the blue whale population, the western Pacific population of these cetaceans has reached 97% of its pre-whaling levels.

“It’s not just one entity that is contributing to the success of the populations rebounding; it’s really the efforts of everyone,” Jennie Dean, Vice President of Education and Conservation at the Aquarium of the Pacific in LA, told KTLA.

“When we’re able to take collective action and think about balance, such that people and the activities that we want to support like shipping, like recreational use, like commercial fishing, all of those things can coexist.”

Commercial fishing tackle can harm whales, and so the industry took measures to reduce this and it worked.

Too many blue whales were killed every year in ship strikes, and so Pacific shipping narrowed their lanes to avoid areas where whales congregate, and are now agreeing to reduce their speeds when entering and exiting harbor areas.

Continued below.

Matt 23:
1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples,
2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses.
3 Therefore, whatever they tell you, do and comply with it all, but do not do as they do; for they say things and do not do them.
4 And they tie up heavy burdens and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as their finger.

It is interesting that Jesus required compliance with the religious teachers, who, though accurate with their presentation of the Law and knowledge of the Scriptures, were corrupt of heart and complicit with His execution and the death of His followers.

We need to be careful today to likewise be mindful that - accurate presentation of scripture does not indicate a right spirit.

Discussion welcome.

Psalms 139:23-24 ESV


What are some circumstances which come to your mind where you might be led to pray this prayer? One of the ones which comes to my mind is when I am being falsely accused of things I know I did not do, or that I believe I did not do. Sometimes the flesh rises up within me, and emotionally and maybe even verbally I resist that accusation without even praying about it first. So then I have to humble myself and pray this prayer.

And I have to ask the Lord if there is any truth at all to what the other person is saying about me. For, as you know, we can be blinded to some things going on in our own lives and minds and attitudes and behaviors, but this is not talking about deliberate and habitual sin. We know we are doing wrong if we choose to consciously disobey the Lord. What I am talking about are those hidden faults that we don’t see that King David talked about.

For sometimes other people can see things in us that we can’t see. Now this is not saying that they are always right or that they are always wrong, but sometimes, too, they are not seeing clearly with the right kind of vision, for they may be judging us according to worldly standards, and by themselves, and by the culture, and by their traditions, and by their own prejudices, and by their own faulty way of thinking regarding how things ought to be.

So, don’t resist them unless it is blatantly obvious that what they are saying is not true, but take what they say to the Lord in prayer and ask the Lord if what they are saying about you is true. Ask the Lord to examine your heart and to show you what is in your heart and in your thinking and your attitudes. And sometimes the Lord will show you things you did wrong and/or that you need to confess and work on and change.

And if someone gives you good counsel, don’t be prideful and resist it. Now, be discerning about the counsel you receive, for not all counsel is godly, and not all counsel is of God, and not all counsel is going to fit with your particular set of circumstances. But we all need to send all counsel we receive through God’s spiritual lens and let him show us what he wants us to do, for even some good counsel may not be what God has for us to do.

And that brings me to another situation, and that has to do with voices in our heads, which can be the voice of God, the voice of Satan who loves to attack us in our minds, or the voice of people from our past who said hurtful things to us, or the voice of the world. We can hear all these voices speaking to us in our minds, not all of them, and not all the time, but God is not the only voice we hear in our minds.

And so we have to sort out these voices we hear and pray and ask God what is of him and what is not, and it isn’t always that clear, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, so what he whispers in our ears may not always be obvious that it is coming from the enemy of our souls, for he doesn’t always lead us to obvious sins, but he may just try to distract us, or to try to make us feel guilty when we have nothing to feel guilty about.

Anyway, we have to test all voices we hear speaking to us, whether they are verbal or they are just in our minds. And we need to pray for spiritual discernment and for the Lord to show us what is from him and what is not. For sometimes those voices that speak to our minds are not of God, and they may put doubts and fears in our minds, or they may try to lead us in the wrong direction, so we need the Lord to try us and show us the truth.

And then we need to pray for the Lord to lead us in the right direction. For, again, we are going to have all kinds of voices speaking to us, and some of them may be accusing us falsely while others may be trying to give us counsel, and some of them may be helping us to see what we cannot see about ourselves. So we need the help of the Lord to sort this all out so that we can follow the Lord and his leading, and not go the wrong direction.

Login to view embedded media Caution: This link may contain ads

Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer

Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897
Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897

Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.

Oh, to be like Thee! full of compassion,
Loving, forgiving, tender and kind,
Helping the helpless, cheering the fainting,
Seeking the wandering sinner to find.

O to be like Thee! lowly in spirit,
Holy and harmless, patient and brave;
Meekly enduring cruel reproaches,
Willing to suffer others to save.

O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.

Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.

Login to view embedded media Caution: This link may contain ads

I have heard different answers to this question. Anyone with good knowledge of Calvin, who knows his view on this topic?

Four children living in squalid conditions while being hidden from first responders were found in an apartment filled with “alcohol, drugs, sex toys” and a dead man, according to an incident report and outraged officials.

“This is sickening,” said At-Large City Councilor Michael Flaherty. “I was informed by people at the scene that there were drugs, alcohol, sex toys all around the apartment as well as a dead body on the floor.”

That fire department report, obtained by the Herald and confirmed by police response, states that a BFD crew was sent to Old Colony Avenue Saturday morning for a call that a man had gone into cardiac arrest and required medical attention. That address is the Mary Ellen McCormack Housing complex run by the city.

However, according to the incident report, firefighters found more than just a routine medical emergency.

“The apartment was in extremely unsanitary conditions. Approximately 6 adults, who appeared to be males, were seen in the apartment,” they wrote, saying they subsequently found “four children in the back bedroom being hidden by an adult male from first responders.”

According to the incident report the children ranged from ages 5 to 10.

“All of the adult parties were being uncooperative and did not provide helpful information. All adults present denied having children inside the apartment,” they wrote.
Fire crews say they filed a “51A form with the appropriate state agency.”

A 51A form is available for download from the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families and is titled “Report of Child(ren) Alleged to be Suffering from Abuse or Neglect.”

A spokesperson for DCF could not be reached to comment on the disposition of the children due to the Juneteenth federal holiday, though the agency does not typically comment on their work.

The fire crews, according to the incident report, performed CPR on the person in cardiac arrest, who apparently died. The Boston Police Department is investigating. A fire department spokesman confirmed a call came in for that address.

Continued below.

1 Timothy 1:17
Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.


Hey friends - Look around you - nothing you see is permanent - nothing...

Church buildings - family - mountains - friends - the sea - cars - your own mortal life... all are temporary, all will pass away.

What you see is not where your hope is....

The most important and permanent certainties are invisible.

We worship the invisible with confidence.


Fear often comes with darkness because we are struggling to see...

But Hey - if our trust is in our invisible God - seeing or not doesn't matter any more.


Luke 21:33
Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

Have a friend who's got cancer in her abdomen and her doc said it's spreading.
Please pray for her and her family at this time.

May The LORD Bless You and Keep You all


Please leave any similar prayers in the comments

"Belmont University, a private Christian college in Nashville, Tennessee, announced last week it had canceled a scheduled event with Promise Keepers citing a conflict of values.

Promise Keepers, a noted Christian men's ministry, said in a press release the event's cancellation occurred after the ministry released a statement at the end of last month, reaffirming its support for biblical marriage between one man and one woman and what it perceives to be the dangers of gender ideology."

Source: CBN News.

A conflict of values? Such as Belmont pandering to the worldly and Promise Keepers following God's word?

Dig this A radical reinterpretation.

Why is the correct translation for John 8:58 "I am" (egō eimi) when using the exact same phrase Yeshua said "I am he" or "I am the man" in John 9:9?

Please let me know if there is a more appropriate forum for this post.

In addition to looking for advice and resources for congregations in crisis and renewal, I’m also looking for help managing interpersonal conflicts in a church setting. It’s naturally more complicated and sensitive in a church than it is in business. Any advice would be helpful.

US District Judge Jay Moody found the Arkansas law to be unconstitutional. This is the latest of similar cases, showing a solid trend in court decisions. The US Supreme Court has yet to weigh in on the issue, so the situation could still change, but things are looking grim for laws against gender-affirming care for kids.

I could be mistaken, but I think an argument can still be made for laws against gender reassignment surgery for children. However, health experts have been able to convince the courts that at least some treatments, such as puberty blockers and hormone treatments, are necessary in certain cases to prevent extreme depression and suicide.

I previously wasn't against outlawing puberty blockers for trans cases, since the FDA hasn't approved them for use in trans cases. But I now feel there's insufficient justification to prevent their use for trans cases, considering their consistent safe use in other situations, and also considering the results of the court cases.

Hopefully we'll get to see a decision by the US Supreme Court on laws like this before too long.

Our Soul, Spirit, and Body & Understanding Why God Says He Has a Soul in Isaiah 42:1.

Isaiah 42:1
”Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.”

Matthew 12:18
”Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.”

What is the soul?

The soul is one's mind, will, and emotions.

The Mind Being a Part of the Soul:

The soul is of three parts—the mind, the will, and the emotion. This is clearly and definitely proved by the Word of God. Proverbs 2:10 gives us the spiritual ground to prove that the mind is a part of the soul. This verse says, “Wisdom will enter your heart, / And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.” Because knowledge is a matter of the mind, this proves that the mind is a part of the soul. Proverbs 19:21 and 24:14 also indicate that knowledge and wisdom are related to the soul. In addition, Psalms 139:14 says, “My soul knows it well.” Since to know is a matter of the mind, this also proves that the mind must be a part of the soul. Psalms 13:2 speaks of bearing concern in the soul. This concern must be something considered in the mind. Lamentations 3:20 says, “My soul remembers them well,” indicating that the soul can remember things. By these verses we can be clear that the mind as the organ to know, to consider, and to remember is a part of the soul.

The Will Being a Part of the Soul:

The second part of the soul is the will. Job 7:15 says, “My soul would choose,” and 6:7 says, “My soul refuses.” To choose and to refuse are both decisions and functions of the will. These passages prove that the will must be a part of the soul. First Chronicles 22:19 says, “Now set your heart and your soul to seek after Jehovah your God.” Just as we set our mind to think, this verse says that we set our soul to seek. This is, of course, to make a decision. That the soul makes a decision also proves that the will is a part of the soul. Numbers 30:2 says, “When a man vows a vow to Jehovah or swears an oath to bind himself by pledge...” The term to bind oneself,which occurs eleven times in this chapter, literally means “to bind one’s soul.” To bind the soul is to make a decision. This chapter in Numbers deals with vows made to the Lord. Since we must make a decision to bind our soul to vow to the Lord, this also proves that the will must be a part of the soul. It would be good for the brothers and sisters, especially the young ones, to remember all these verses. They should pick up the burden to learn this.

The Emotion Being a Part of the Soul:

The emotion comprises many things, including love, hatred, joy, and grief. Song of Songs 1:7 and Psalms 42:1 show us that to love is a function of the soul. This proves that within the soul there is the organ, the function, of the emotion. Second Samuel 5:8, Psalms 107:18, and Ezekiel 36:5 show us that hating, loathing, and despising are also in the soul. Despising in the soul is the hatred of the soul. Since these are emotions, this also proves that the emotion must be a part of the soul.

Joy is a great part of the emotion. Isaiah 61:10 and Psalms 86:4 tell us that joy is in the soul. This again proves that the emotion is a part of the soul. Deuteronomy 14:26 and Jeremiah 22:27 tell us that the soul desires. According to the better translations and Strong’s or Young’s concordances, desire in Jeremiah 44:14 and set their heart in Ezekiel 24:25 are literally lift up the soul. These verses tell us that the desire of the emotion is something in our soul. In addition, 1 Samuel 30:6, Judges 10:16, and Job 30:25 speak of bitterness, misery, and grief in the soul.

The verses of the Scriptures above are the ground to say that within the soul there are three parts—the mind as the leading part with the will and the emotion. These are the best verses to prove this, but they are not the only ones. If we study the entire Scriptures, it is hard to find anything other than these three parts in the soul. These three parts comprise all the functions of the soul.


Source:
THE SOUL HAVING THREE PARTS
(Note: I do not believe everything this author teaches or believes; I merely agree with this portion of his article that I quoted here).

How do you deal with anticipation of The Lord's return and the waiting ?

Jesus is the only thing that matters anyways.

I'm just over it all (The world)

Let's get out of this place. I'm ready.

Please let me know if there is a more appropriate forum for this post.

I’m looking for help to become a more effective lay leader. Our congregation is going through some major changes and there’s a lot of confusion and concern right now. Do you have advice or can you point to resources to help me guide the congregation through these changes?

My 13-year-old nephew just told his big brother that he is gay. But my sister, his guardian, doesn't know that he is gay. I do not want to tell my sister, who is Christian and doesn't believe in that lifestyle. His big brother, my other nephew, told me. Now, I am not judging him because I have same sex attraction as well. My sister already knows this, and she has been great about this (not saying she agrees). She doesn't agree with same sex relationships, and I know that same sex relationships are wrong. She believes it is sinful. In fact, she stopped watching Disney plus because they would promote homosexuality. My nephew told me about his little brother, and I don't think it is my business to tell my sister about it. But my fear is am I doing the right thing by keeping this from her. Yes, I understand that I should mind my own business. But that gets a little blurred to me on when to shut up or when to say something. If I keep my mouth shut and I don't say something and my sister finds out that I knew, would she get mad and tell me that I should have told her? That is what I am afraid of. Both our parents are dead. She is one of the only families that I have.

Hey, something I discovered- apparently there is a bill in the legislature in several states in the USA to transition the standard work week in the state from 5 days/week to 4 day/week, everyone would have 3 days off per week! They are considering rolling this out in California and Pennsylvania! Apparently they are already doing this in France and Sweden and it does work, their society still functions, it does not self-destruct! I thought we could get some debate going. My question is this, what do you think this will do to our society? Good idea or bad idea? I am of the opinion that our economy and GDP may take a hit from this but it may be worth it, if we do this we may have people snapping out of being depressed and suicidal and also people walking out of the mental hospital after making a miraculous recovery! What do you think?

Apparently all it took was Hunter Biden getting the same treatment as nearly all first time tax offenders who eventually pay their bills and drug addicts who agree to continue with a sobriety program.