Church Work Day

We got a late start.  We scheduled  a work day for 9 am but people just straggled in but we finally got going.  The church building received  two coats of fresh white paint today. 

Sugar Crush

Sugar crush had an electronic agreement I am supposed to read and sign before I can play the game again.  The agreement showed up on my wife's computer as well.  I haven't checked my Kindle but I'm sure it's on there as well and probably on everyone else's copy of the game.  I don't know why it is necessary.  At first I thought it was because I had reached level 200 but as it turned out it doesn't.  Anyway, I decided it better to  delete the game rather than  read and sign a multipage document.  In fact I think there were more than one agreement to be read and signed. 
  Anyone know why?

Gardening News

I still have a couple of watermelons that look good enough to eat, albeit, they are small but the end of season melons have been better this years although last years crop was sweeter and the melons were two to three times as large.  I took down my tomato garden and pulled all the green tomatoes off the vines in the plants I set out in the melon garden. 
  I canned 12 pints of green tomatoes and hot peppers.  Some jars I used Anaheim peppers, some jalapeno peppers, and others I used a hot pepper a friend gave me.  Not quite sure what kind they are.  I changed my formula this year and added a little sugar to the batches at my Mom's suggestion. 
  I didn't replant anything this year but I seldom ever do.  I did pull up an apple tree yesterday.  It seems the truck was decaying below ground level, maybe from insects. 
  I finally see some red clover growing in my peach orchard.  It's not really an orchard: just 8 trees planted together but I'm not sure how many peach trees it takes to make an orchard so I'll call my little group an orchard unless someone objects.  Anyway, clover is supposed to add nutrients to the soil that the peach trees need and the clover should help control weed growth as well. 
  I just can't hardly wait until next year.  I should have a good crop of berries, cherries, and peaches  and maybe even an apple or two. 

Roll-a-coaster Stock Market

Even though the market made a good recovery yesterday I'm still down $800.00 from the 14th.

Shooting of reporter again brings up talk for the need for gun control.

     Taking guns away from American citizens is not a good idea.  During WWI and WWII the American soldier was the most feared soldier in the war.  There are two reasons why.  The first is the Americans grew up handling weapons and were much better shots than people from other countries, including the professional soldiers of Germany.  The second reason is the fierce independence of Americans.  The American soldier did not always react the way enemy soldiers expected and that unpredictability made us fiercesome.   
    What is happening is that there are too many guns in the hands of the mentally unstable and the criminal element.  Where the problem lies is in second hand sales between private citizens and lose of weapons because of theft.  If we could solve those two problems then we can let private, law abiding citizens have their weapons in peace. 

I know what the sign says but....

I know the sign at the church says we are having a yard sale but we aren't.  The man in charge of changing the sign hasn't done it yet.  We are, however, having a painting party the Saturday. 
Talking about yard sales, someone purchased a cat tree at our yard sale but I forgot to give him all the pieces.  If you hear of someone complaining about that then have then come by the church on Saturday and I'll get then the missing piece.  They'll know which church even if you don't. 

Things evened out today but that's not necessarily good.

Found someone to fix and mower and they even came to pick it up and they are local.  That's good but when the man went to load my mower he put it in reverse and slammed into my brand new car which I haven't driven except to bring it home from the dealership. 
  The stock market opened 600 points up but closed 200 points down.  I'm afraid to look. 
I had to send the police to Mom's house because her phone has been off the hook since at least yesterday afternoon.  Glad she's ikay. 

Troubles come in bunches

It was said that troubles come in threes but that would be nice if they stopped there.  I've already told about the computer system going out on my van, leaving me stranded, and causing me to have to junk my van.  What I didn't mention was my lower bridge broke.  I know the original cost was $240.00 to make a mold.  I go get my new bridge or my repaired one today. 
   Either one of those is bad enough but I lost a lot of value n my stocks from the big slide the market took the other day.  That's my three but there is more.  My rider mower has a broken left spindle so it only cuts with one blade  so I have to take it to be repaired.  Only trouble is, the vehicle with the tow bar is sitting in a junk yard somewhere. 
   And it's only Monday. 

Busy week, rough Thursday

  I had much to do on Thursday.  Since Mom's burglary her banking has been up in the air so I needed to help her with that.  I needed to mow, help her clean, and take her shopping.  I also needed to pick up some cakes for her and get them delivered.  In anticipation of the big day I woke up extra early and left Randleman around 6 am for the 2 hour drive to Hickory. 
   I always hate driving through the road construction in Statesville.  If you haven't been there, I--77 and I-40 intersect there and I-40 is being widened to at least six lanes through Statesville so one has to maneuver around orange barrels and weird traffic flows.   The speed limit drops from seventy to fifty-five so when I got to that point I cut off my cruise control and just let my van slow itself down.  When it got to 55 I was just about to give it a little gas when the engine revved and the speedometer zoomed up to seventy and then just as quickly settled back down.  I thought it strange but not so worrisome.  After sneaking my way through the construction, traffic had thinned out and it was again safe to drive with cruise control except my had quick working.  At least that explains the sudden jump in speed or so I thought.
    Everything was fine until I pulled off the interstate in Hickory.  At the first intersection I had to stop and when I did my engine stalled.  The van quickly restarted   and I thought everything was again okay until I stopped the second time.  The engine stalled again.  I knew then something was wrong and I needed to get it checked out.  I thought maybe an hour or two and a couple hundred dollars and I'd be back on my way but I got no where near a garage.  The third time my van died I was moving forward and not stopped.  Fortunately I managed to pull it off the highway   into a parking lot of a business that was not yet opened.  It was 7:55. 
    I called my auto club and a wrecker was dispatched.  I didn't arrived until 9:10 and it was so dilapidated I wasn't sure if it could pick up my van or not but it finally did.  I didn't get to the garage until   9:30 but the technician who could diagnose the problem didn't come to work until 10 and I was told it would be an hour to run the diagnostic.  After making all the appropriate phone calls and waiting patiently I walked up the street at 11:00 to have a bite to eat.  Around 12:30 the garage told me I had to have the van towed to the dealership because the computer system had blown out.  The same tow truck showed up and it took longer the second time to pick the van up than it did the first.  After another 1 mile two my van was dropped at the dealership around 1:30. 
    I had called my wife to come to Hickory.  She could at least help me with Mom as it was way too late for me to get much done by myself.  While waiting for her I decided to dump the van as it was now a piece of junk (it was a 2004 but only had 76,000 miles on it) due to the cost of the repairs.  The dealership generously allowed me $500.00 for it.  I picked out a 2014 Optima and it was 3 o'clock by the time all the paperwork was done except for running my credit and signing with the financial officer.  My wife showed up at the very moment I needed her input but by the time everything was done it was 5. 
  We hurried to Mom's, took her to purchase groceries and put everything away for her.  After a short prayer Debbie and I hit the road. stopping only at Burger King for a well deserved meal.  It was 8:57 pm when I got back home; just enough time for a bathroom break before out 9 o'clock prayer. 
   Bad stuff happens to good people so my troubles for the day was taken it stride.  I was very thankful that the van didn't leave me stranded in Statesville.  When the tow truck came to take me to the first garage I had the thought that it needed to be towed to the dealership but in the heat of the day and the waiting for the wrecker to work the thought slipped my mind.  Sometimes even the most dedicated Christian misses the voice of God giving us instructions.  I wished I had listened but I do give God thanks for keeping me safe.   

Number of jahadists growing

"The number of jihadists is growing" the young lady is quoted as saying before her and her boyfriend were arrested at the airport on their way to the Mideast to join ISIS.  Sadly, she is probably correct. 
The militants are passionate about their cause and though it doesn't make sense to Americans they are willing to die for their hatred of the United States of America.  What can be behind all of this?
  I don't believe there is a military anywhere that is strong enough to defeat the military of America but not all battles are won by might.  Half of Vietnam held the French and then the Americans at bay and finally won victory.  We lost heart in the fight.  The same happened to Russia in their war in Afghanistan.  But even this is a different kind of war. 
  It is a war of the minds and it shall go to the ones with the most resolve.  For many years America was considered a Christian nation and even the non-believers had respect for the cause of Christ.  But this country decided first to embrace evolution and then separation from religion and then we became a nation that embraced the causes of the minorities.  Abortion became the law of the land and then political correctness and then we accepted illegal  immigrants as our own and now we welcome gay couples into our neighborhoods.  Heterosexual couples eschew  marriage but gay couples embrace the ritual.  Our love for Christ has eroded into a acceptance of liberal ideas and now into a hatred for Christians.  Even our churches no longer accept the things of Christ. 
    The scriptures tell us the meaning of them is hidden except to the true believer but instead of trusting God to reveal the scriptures to us we decided to change the Word of God to something easier to read and then to change the parts we find objectionable into something that fits with our ideas. 
In order to attract members preachers left off teaching and preaching the more controversial parts and
then began allowing more of the "world" to come into the church.  One denominations biggest problem with retired ministers is alcoholism.  Now some churches welcome gay couples as members and even appoint gay ministers. 
   It isn't unusual to see beer trucks backed up to the fellowship hall  at some of the larger churches. 
Even the music has changed from dignified to southern gospel   to Christian Rock.  For the few that still go to church it is more of a Sunday Morning thing and most churches are little more than social clubs.  There is no passion for Christ in America anymore.  Even among the fundamental churches that still cling to the King James Bible few can be found that really live for Jesus. 
  Today, it is easier to turn a smart, beautiful, talented  teenage American girl from her dreams of becoming a doctor into a person who wants to kill Americans and destroy America than to interest her in going to church.  America is no different from other world powers.  A leader begins with a passion and as the country grows stronger and stronger the passion eventually dies and the ideas and ideals of that nation begin to decay from within and eventual that nation becomes so corrupt it can no longer stand and it collapse from within.  Babylon. Assyria, Rome, and Russia all fell under their own weight. 
  No, no one will defeat us in battle.  We are decaying from within and one day we will fall. 

If it had been a white guy it might have been different.

   "If it had been a white guy it might have been different."

  A white police officer, 49 years old but new to law enforcement, followed a black guy into a car dealership in response to a burglary call.  It is suspected the officer did not follow protocol.  He was fired because he didn't call for back-up  but he did have his training officer with him.  The officer ordered the unarmed black man to lie down but instead of complying the man approached the officer. 
   The police officer was equipped with a Taser but he pulled out his service pistol and fired 4 shots, killing the alleged burglar.  It is not known at this time whether he pulled his weapon on purpose or by mistake.
  In writing an article for the paper the journalist included a quote from one of the local residents.  Now when the person claimed that "had it been a white guy it might have been different" I don't know what he meant.  Possible choices
1.  If the man killed had been white, no one would have cared.
2.  If the man killed had been white the officer would not have killed him
3.  If the man killed had been white   then it would have been okay if he had been killed.
4.  If the man killed had been white then he would have been Tasssed.
5.  If the man killed had been white the officer would have waited for back-up.
6.  If the man killed had been white he would have complied with the officer's commands.
7.  If the man killed had been white he would have a better way to break in to the dealership rather than drive a car through the showroom window.
8.  If the man killed had been white Obama would have invited him to the white house for a beer. 

  Let's not forget that the officer was in training and nervous.  As often is the case with inexperienced people, we tend to react instinctively and not put or classroom training into practice.  I'm not defending the police officer.  He should have followed his training and in not doing so he put his life in danger plus took the life of another person.  He doesn't deserve to be a police officer.  Maybe a security guard or a school crossing guard, but not a armed officer.  Ill reserve judgement until all the fact are in as to whether he committed murder or some other offense. 

Garden News

Cantaloupes were a bust this year and most of my watermelons were tiny things that ripened to quick and burst open or were tasteless green globes. Insects and birds ate all my grapes and poked holes in my tomatoes as soon as they began to ripen. All my peaches disappeared last Sunday. Tree was loaded on Saturday but on Monday morning there was not one to be found anywhere. Jalapenos were plentiful and the green peppers and chili peppers are producing. The squash died quickly from worm infestation and the green beans didn't produce at all. The yellow wax beans were good though. Cucumbers grew so fast I was picking 30 to forty a week so had to give most of them away. I suppose the lack of rain had a lot to do with the crop failure this year but I just don't understand the reason for the abundance of Japanese beetles and June bugs. What the draught didn't kill the beetles and bugs ate. The saddest thing is I fought harder against disease and insects this year than I ever had before but it seems all I got accomplished is bleaching out the color on my rose bushes. Last fall I removed 300 cedar trees from the vacant lots next door and sprayed my fruit trees earlier and more frequently and cedar rust was just as bad if not worse than ever. I planted three rows of beets but because of the lack of rain I picked only a few and I forgot them and they dried out before I could get them in to fix. Carrots and onions were a bust also as the ground was so hard and dry they had no way to grow. It's almost enough to make a man want to give up gardening. It's been so hot I couldn't even go fishing and with not doing the yard at the church for the first time I just haven't enjoyed my summer as much as in the last several years. A spate with my wife's oldest son kind of put a damper on enjoying my vacation. Car troubles and cataract surgery and Mom's break-in caused me more money than I had anticipated spending and a slumping stock-market cost me dearly. 2015 began with so much promise but unless things improve this year will be as unproductive as my garden.

Liar, liar, pants on fire

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – A tourist claims to have captured video evidence of Bigfoot in North Carolina, but his small-but-fearless pet dog scared the beast away. WBTV reported that Eric Walters of Boone was visiting the Asheville area Thursday morning when he claims to have spotted Sasquatch in Henderson County. Walters said he was walking his Yorkshire Terrier named Zippy when he stumbled upon the mythical creature. He said he originally thought it was a bear, so he started filming with his phone. Zippy immediately sprang into action, allegedly chasing Bigfoot away. “I quickly realized it was not a bear, but a Sasquatch,” Walters said, according to WBTV. “Zippy could tell I was scared and got so riled up that he got loose and went after it.” Walters said Zippy saved him from a “possible encounter” and that he now loves his dog more than ever. “Yorkies are small in size, but bigger than even a Sasquatch in heart,” Walters said. Walters had been renting a cabin with his wife and another couple at the time I saw the video and the little dog and the man with the camera were on the opposite side of the road and the little Yorkie ran back to the man's vehicle. The dog did not chase the creature. It seemed strange to me that the man had what he claimed was an elusive big foot yet he turned away from it to film his Yorkie running away. The sasquatch was probably a friend in a monkey suit.

Where's the outrage?

A 19 year old boy, unarmed, was shot and killed by a police officer and the boy's father asks "Where's the outrage"? He claims his son's death is being ignored because his son is white and the officer is white. What happened was the boy was with a 23 year old woman who had made a drug deal with an undercover officer. When a uniform policeman moved in to make the arrest the boy allegedly accelerated his car towards one of the officers who then shot in self defense. The boy's father claims his son was shot in the back and the attorney hired by the father claims the autopsy proves the car was not moving at the time the boy was shot. I for one can't understand how an autopsy can prove whether the car was moving or not. I can understand how the boy was shot in the back. There were two officers, one in front of the car and the other to the side of the car. The boy could have exposed his back to the shooter as he turned to avoid a full frontal target for the gun aimed at him. That isn't the only possibility. He could have been struck by a bullet from the officer on the side of the car. It could have been a ricochet. An autopsy can't determine that either. What it can do is establish a cause and a time of death and a likelihood cause for his death. What actually happened will most likely be determined by the state's police agency and if their is reasonable cause to believe wrong doing the final determination will be by a jury. We don't need any more outrages or riots. Being a policeperson is a tough job at it's best and a lot of qualified people are not interested in the job because it seems everyone hates the police these days. I do believe it is because so many people smoke marijuana and think it is harmless. Also people think that laws are for everyone else but them. Just drive the speed on our highways and see who the slowest driver is! I have encountered a rotten cop and a few who seemed to enjoy being a legal bully but most are just descent, hardworking folks. Two of the officers helping with my Mom's case are two of the nicest people. The male officer cleaned up the glass from the broken window and then came back later on his own time and his own expense repaired the damage. The other police officer, a woman, has talked with Mom, gave her good advise and a ride to the bank so Mom could get her financial stuff in order. In fact, yesterday the lady officer brought my Mom some peaches and some blueberries she picked herself from a garden. People can badmouth cops all they want but I find that most people approached by the police are just downright disrespectful and it is to the cops credit that they don't get mad. Most are professional and some are just super nice people. If people would drop the antagonistic attitude and realize most often when they deal with the police they are actually in the wrong, and what the police are doing is actually for their benefit or the public good then they wouldn't be so anti-cop. I know it makes one mad to get pulled over and given a ticket one can't really afford and it is embarrassing but it wasn't the cop who made you break the law.

"Who has the right" the young lady asked.

A high school student was given an honorary column in the Courier-Tribune and she asked the question "Who has the right to tell someone their religion is wrong?" Her problem is she wasn't really wanting an answer as she proceeded to tell people that religion is a crutch that makes people feel good and as long as they were happy then they should be left alone. While she is correct about what parts of the world follow which religion it was obvious she lacks a deep understanding of world history, Christianity, and religion. Christianity isn't the religion of Caucasians although most Christians are probably white. It was originally an oriental religion but through the efforts of the Apostle Paul it spread north and west and eventually it was rejected by Jewish people because "nothing good comes from Galilee". Actually Judaism began with Abraham and Sari. God had promised Abraham a son and when Sari became to old to give birth she encouraged Abraham to "go into" her handmaiden, which he did, and a son was born. Later on when Sari was 99 she became pregnant and gave birth to a son by Abraham. Because of birthright issues, Sari encouraged Abraham to forbid her handmaiden and son to continue to reside in their camp so Abraham told them to leave. Abrahams firstborn son, Ismael, was the first born of the people's that settled the Middle East while his son by Sari was the firstborn of the people that would become Jews. Both people's followed the same God but the descendants of Ismael eventually turned to idol worship. Isaac, Sari's son, became the father of Eassu and Jacob, and Jacob had 12 sons, one of whom was Joseph. Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers and was taken to Egypt where he rose to prominence. Jacob took his family to Egypt during a famine and his dependents became slaves in Egypt. They were known as Hebrews. After 400 years Moses lead the Hebrews out of Egypt and they settled in the land of Canaan which was occupied by the decedents of Eassu and Ismael. The two people's have been at war ever since. Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem but grew up in Galilee in Israel. Followers of Christ eventually became known as Christians. His birth had been promised since the beginning and prophets of old gave accurate details of his birth and death. A man named Mohammed arose many hundreds of years later and felt oppressed by the political system in his area. He wrote a book called the Koran (Quran) in which he claimed it was from God. Islam spread throughout the Middle East mainly by force. The girl mentioned Buddha, Islam, and Christianity, as well as other religions. There are a few differences that are worth nothing. Christianity is the only religion that was established by God. The others were established by man. Christianity is the only religion that serves a risen savior. Mohammed is dead, Buddha is dead, and the founders of every other religious movement is dead or will die. Jesus Christ is the only one that rose from the dead. Islam is a religion, Buddhism is a religion, and every other religion is a religion. Many people think Christianity is a religion too and if one thinks of the Roman Catholic Church as representative of Christians then they would be correct. But in reality Christianity is not a religion but a relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. So who has the right to say whose religion is right and whose religion is wrong. God does. And God says that there is no other name under heaven whereby a man can be saved except Jesus Christ.

Rowdy

Rowdy Ronda Rousey is a highly rated fighter. I never watch the stuff but was fascinated by her winning times: 14 sec, 26 sec, 34 seconds. Unbelievable times. I thought maybe she was a kick boxer, a "sport" I don't like. When I was growing up I was the little kid and a target of bullies. I discovered early on that if I threw the first punch I won more often. If the first punch didn't win the fight I just took my opponent off his feet. That made us the same size. What I'm saying is that if the person I'm fighting wants to kick me he better be prepared to kick up because he was definitely going down. Anyway, I just watched some of her fights for the first time. She is more of a wrestler than a boxer or brawler. I never did like wrestling either,

I'm not from Texas

I'm not from Texas so I wish it would rain. Actually, that's not the entire truth. From 1967 to 1968 I went to school in Texas. I joined the service and after my discharge I lived in N>C> for a brief period of time before moving back to Texas. If I had not moved there my life would have been far different. But then, that's another story. The point of that comment is that after Texans have suffered through excessive rain this year I'm sure rain brings a little fear into their lives. All the rain meant for the western and eastern seaboards have fallen in Texas and left us high and dry. My water ponds are clouding up again from excessive algae and the water level has dropped. Even with the monster pump and UV sterilizer I have in my pond, sun shine causes algae to grow much faster than mechanical means can handle. I hate having to add spigot water to the pond. Not only is it expensive but the chemicals in the water are not really good for the fish. Oh what is a man to do? I suppose I'll have to add the water anyway and continue to hope for rain.

Leaky Vessels

One Baptism but many fillings is a popular belief. In support of that view of the scriptures is another popular saying that the Holy Spirit cannot dwell in an unclean temple. However there is not a verse of scripture that supports that last statement although there are two verses taken together from I Corinthians that some claim support that interpretation. I am of the opinion that we are not leaky vessels. I suppose people think we are leaky vessels because they equate the Holy Spirit with a feeling of euphoria or empowerment and sometimes when they are down they believe it is because the Holy Spirit has leaked out. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit comes to all believers when they are saved and places them into the body of Christ, or the church. We are instructed to be filled with the spirit but I believe that command isn't given us because the spirit leaked out. The Holy Spirit is not a feeling but a living being, part of the trinity of God. Jesus said that when He went away he would send a Comforter which is the Holy Spirit to indwell us. I do think that we can become so wrapped up in every day living that we hinder the work of the Spirit. Jesus promised up that he would neither leave us nor forsake us. If the Spirit leaked out then we would not have the Comforter. I know Jesus said if He does not abide in us and we in Him He has no part with us. Based on that if the Spirit leaked out then we would have lost our salvation. But the scriptures tell us we are sealed unto the day of redemption. We are sealed by the Spirit and if we are sealed then the Spirit can't leak out. At the Last Supper Jesus knelt to wash the feet of the disciples but Peter refused. Jesus told Peter that if Peter would not allow him to wash his feet then Peter had no part of Jesus. Peter then said "Not my feet only but all of me". Jesus refused that request to. Peter missed the point of the whole exercise and I do believe many others also miss this vital point. When we are saved and baptized with the Holy Spirit, we have been made clean. We are saved from sin but we are still in the flesh and still dwell in the world. Just as Peter bathed before coming to the upper room but got his feet dusty and dirty on the trip to meeting, we to are cleaned up when we are saved but we still commit sin as we live in this world. Christ doesn't have to be crucified again nor do we have to be resaved every time we sin. We do, however, have to ask forgiveness each day as we transgress against God. That is the washing of the feet. It is true that the Holy Spirit will not dwell in an unclean temple (the temple is the body) but once Christ has cleaned us up we are no longer an unclean temple. But just as any building in this world needs to continually mow the grass we continually need to be forgiven. There are no scriptures that instruct us to be refilled with the Spirit just as there is no scripture that says we are leaky vessels. I think people are confused when they view the scriptures from a human viewpoint rather than a spiritual one.

Windows 10

I now have windows 10. My wife purchased me a new desktop with windows 8.1 at a deep discount price and a free TV and I just upgraded to windows 10. It installed quickly. It seems to be doing fine.