THE CROSS UNDER THE LEAVES

 

THE CROSS UNDER THE LEAVES By Terry Wilson As I came across this cross lying in the dirt, behind our pond, a cross that once stood tall and proud, but is now lying in the dirt where I placed it earlier in the spring because I had to do some maintenance on the pond where that cross once stood. It is now nearly covered by fallen leaves. As I looked at it, I couldn’t help but think about how easily this can happen in our own lives. Sometimes, in the name of maintaining our lives, managing our responsibilities, dealing with our hardships, and navigating the storms and changing seasons, we slowly move the cross from its rightful place. Not necessarily intentionally, and certainly not always out of rebellion, but simply because life gets busy, burdens become heavy, and other things begin demanding our attention. And before we even realize it, the very thing that should remain at the center of our lives has been pushed to the side and nearly covered by everything else. But here’s what struck me: Even though the cross was nearly covered, it hadn’t moved. It was still there! Sometimes we need to stop, clear away the things that have accumulated in our lives, and bring our eyes back to the cross. Because the circumstances around us may change, the seasons may come and go, and the storms may leave us feeling buried, but Christ remains the same. God doesn’t move, we do. Ya see, I think the danger is that we can become so focused on maintaining everything around us that we neglect the very foundation upon which everything should be built. The leaves didn’t move the cross, it stayed put. The leaves simply accumulated around it, one at a time. And perhaps that’s how it happens with us, too. One disappointment, one hardship, one distraction, one compromise, and one busy season at a time. Maybe it’s time to clear away some leaves. Maybe it’s time to put the cross back where it belongs. Hebrews 12:2 tells us to be “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.” Perhaps we all need to be careful that in our efforts to maintain our life, we don’t remove the very thing that gives our life its meaning. Because the cross should never become something we set aside while we tend to everything else. It must remain at the center of it all. Terry Wilson on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/terry.wilson.33671# Used with Permission

A CITY SET ON A HILL

 

A CITY SET ON A HILL In 1630, four ships with 700 Puritan immigrants set sail for “New England.” At that time, John Winthrop (who was a preacher and a lawyer) gave this prophetic sermon to the Puritan settlers. His sermon is just as relevant today as it was then: You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Matthew 5:14 Now the only way to avoid failure, and to provide for our posterity, is to follow the counsel of Micah 6:8 "to do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with our God." We must be knit together, in this work, as one man. We must approach one other in brotherly affection. We must be willing to abridge ourselves of our excess, for the supply of others’ necessities. We must commerce together in all meekness, gentleness, patience and liberality. We must delight in each other; make other’s conditions our own; rejoice together, mourn together, labor and suffer together as members of the same body. So shall we keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. The Lord will be our God, and delight to dwell among us, as his own people, and will command a blessing upon us. So that we shall see much more of his wisdom, power, goodness and truth, than formerly we have been acquainted with. We must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God, and so cause him to withdraw his present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world. We shall open the mouths of enemies to speak evil of the ways of God. We shall shame God’s worthy servants, and cause curses upon us till we be consumed out of the good land where we are going. Beloved there is now set before us life and good, death and evil, in that we are commanded this day to love the Lord our God, and to love one another, to walk in his ways and to keep his Commandments, that we may live and be multiplied, and that the Lord our God may bless us. But if our hearts shall turn away, so that we will not obey, but shall be seduced, and worship other gods, and pleasures and profits, and serve them; it is propounded unto us this day, we shall surely perish out of the good land. Therefore, let us choose life that we, and our seed may live, by obeying His voice and cleaving to Him, for He is our life and our prosperity. John Winthrop, 1630 A.D., Abridged and updated.

MORSE CODE MASTERY

 

MORSE CODE MASTERY: TINY BEES CONFOUND EVOLUTION How many are Your works, O LORD! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures. Psalm 104:24 Bumblebees are tiny creatures most people overlook, but scientists just uncovered something remarkable about them. When researchers brought bees into a controlled lab setting to study how they learn, they did not give them flowers or scents. Instead, they gave them a totally unfamiliar challenge. The scientists used flashing lights that mimicked simple Morse-code patterns. One quick flash acted like a dot and one longer flash acted like a dash. Only one of these signals led to a sugary reward. Scientists have known for years that bees are quick learners. They can sort colors, scents, and patterns without much trouble. Telling time, however, did not seem possible. Timing shapes many parts of life, from movement to navigation, and most of what we understand about it comes from animals with much larger brains. That is why this experiment surprised so many researchers. These bees were not just reacting to brightness or location. They were analyzing duration itself, something scientists never expected to see in such a small creature. Yet the bees conquered the challenge with ease. They learned to recognize the difference between the dot-like flash and the dash-like flash, even though nothing like this exists in nature. And when the scientists moved the lights around to eliminate shortcuts, the bees continued to choose correctly using timing alone. Their tiny God-designed minds were measuring duration, storing information, recalling the rule, and applying it with precision. This is not random instinct. This is purposeful design. Secular scientists rushed to call this a “surprising evolutionary ability,” but Scripture provides the real foundation for understanding what we see. God created the flying creatures on Day Five and equipped them with learning abilities far beyond what they would ever need in a world of flowers and nectar. The bees carry built-in intelligence, flexibility, and problem-solving that glorifies the One who made them. Psalm 104 declares that God made His works with wisdom. When a bumblebee solves a man-made Morse-style puzzle, it is not evolution whispering. It is creation shouting. Biblical Creation on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/1mill.creationist Used with Permission

CUT FLOWER CULTURE

 

CUT FLOWER CULTURE Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you, so that you may command your children to carefully follow all the words of this Book. For they are not idle words to you: these words are your life. Deuteronomy 32:46-47 In 1962 and 1963, Prayer and Bible reading were banned from school classrooms in the USA due to Supreme Court decisions. In effect, Christianity was severed from our educational systems. A long, slow trend toward secularism and socialism in American society began to take firm hold. American philosopher Will Herberg, coined the term "cut flower culture" in 1951. The metaphor warns that a society which separates its moral principles from its founding cultural or religious roots will eventually wither and die. In his 1951 book, Judaism and Modern Man, Will Herberg described the spiritual rootlessness of modern American and European society. He argued that secularist thinkers attempted to keep the moral principles of Western civilization—such as freedom, justice, and personal dignity—while disengaging them from their scriptural, religious context. "Cut flowers retain their original beauty and fragrance, but only so long as they retain the vitality that they have drawn from their now-severed roots; after that is exhausted, they wither and die." The "cut flower" metaphor suggests that a society can appear beautiful and moral for a time, even after it has severed its connection to its foundational values. However, this vitality is temporary and will not be sustained without the deeper, nourishing roots. THE PHRASE SUGGESTS THAT: Moral principles are not self-sustaining: Ethics and values are not innate and must be supported by a deeper source. Severing roots leads to a slow decay: A society that rejects its traditions and religious history will eventually experience a decline in its moral foundations, even if the effects are not immediately apparent. A society can become spiritually hollow: A society that abandons its spiritual heritage is headed towards spiritual rootlessness. America needs a spiritual renewal. We must recognize the essential value of FAITH in our own personal lives, and acknowledge that our culture cannot move forward successfully without the treasures of the Bible to guide and sustain us.

DAYS OF HEAVEN UPON EARTH

DAYS OF HEAVEN UPON EARTH My children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you. Galatians 4:19 It’s a blessed moment when we are born again; when a new heart is created in us after God’s image. But it’s an even more blessed moment when Christ Himself is born in this new heart. It’s as if Christmas happens within us, and we become, in a real sense, living reflections of Christ. This is the deepest and holiest meaning of Christianity. It is expressed in Paul’s prayer for the Galatians: "My little children, for whom I labor again in prayer until Christ is formed in you." There will come an even more glorious time when we will be transformed into His likeness—spirit, soul, and body—when we are made all new in heaven. So let us live, under this inspiring thought, as little imitations of Christ—living His life, not ours. Let our lives show the beauty of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. Let the world see Christ in us. by A.B. Simpson