We Who Wrestle with God

https://www.foxnews.com/media/jordan-peterson-shreds-justin-trudeau-changing-tone-after-demolishing-canadas-immigration-system

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/207611500-we-who-wrestle-with-god

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/207611500-we-who-wrestle-with-god

October Surprise

 

October Surprise
Friday, November 1, 2024 by Brave Knight Writers

October 2024 was filled with chaos, confusion, and distractions for our nation and families. We pray our readers were spared or at least will recover from the events. Hurricanes, wars, rumors of war, politics, and drama combined to debase our thoughts and lives. In this blog I share how we handled events we found ourselves dealing with. I may not fully convey the turmoil and undercurrents the events inflicted, but I will share a bit of our struggle to maintain a positive attitude. Reference Ephesians 4:2-3.

We had close family in the path of both Helene and Milton. Helene came at the end of September with horrific damage far inland in the Carolinas, where some of my cousins reside. We were in contact with them, and I volunteered at our church to haul supplies to the area, but my offer went unfulfilled

A cousin asked me to bring my chainsaw and come cut up fallen trees, but common sense told me not to venture into a disaster area without official contacts.

Our children and grandchildren in Sarasota had weathered Helene relatively unscathed. We had prayed heavily for a hedge of protection and knew our prayers mingled with millions of others. Hurricane Milton, drew a direct path on their town and since they are just a few hundred yards from the bay, the storm surge was expected to take their home.

They evacuated to the Fort Lauderdale area and my wife immediately bought the two grandchildren and herself plane tickets. In one day, she swooped in and brought the children back to our home. The operation came off without a major hitch and was covered by our prayers and those of our friends. The children were safe, and the grandchildren were with us. Damage to material things would be as it would be.

The Florida kids seriously thought they suffered frostbite from walking out of Eat-n-Park and to the car!. The next day, they enjoyed a fall pumpkin patch experience like can’t be found in Florida. They enjoyed a corn maze, obstacle course, corn pit, zip line, apple cider slushies and corn dogs. Being a refugee ain’t all bad!

They enjoyed joining Grammy for her 4th grade Sunday School class, a first for them. As we studied the Israelites in the desert, one home-schooled 4th grader informed us all that the word ‘manna’ means, “what is it?”

 

Our 8-year-old soccer fanatic was able to enjoy watching two local soccer games while here. He boldly went to the team huddle after one game, informing the player we went to watch, about the mistakes of the coach in how the playing field was set up. Apparently, he wasn’t wrong.

The undercurrents beneath the hurricane involve culture, politics, religion, and ego. Attitude either overcomes an issue or enhances it. We choose to be overcomers through God’s strength. Fortunately, all these issues were set aside for the good of human survival and under the threat of the storm, rational thought prevailed. Like most families, ours has differing opinions on how life is best viewed. Who thinks what or why doesn’t matter to the point of this writing or in life and death situations. We were blessed to be able to help, none of it was viewed as a sacrifice, and the children brought with them few belongings, but much joy. For the next week we shared this joy with them and with their two cousins who live near us. To have four children aged eight and younger was a handful for two grandparents, but the rewards exceeded any disruption of our routine.

As the week wore on, we wondered when and how we would get the children back to Florida. Miraculously, Milton changed course ever so slightly, and just that 5-mile difference in the huge storm spared the Sarasota home from damage. The community’s infrastructure was disrupted, with streets blocked by fallen trees and debris, and no power or water.

We decided to hook up our camper and take a slow ride to Savannah, Georgia, where we would turn the children over to their parents. In addition to the Florida kids, we would take a seven-year-old and our ancient beagle. We chose Savannah because this is where my wife’s sister resides in a nursing home. A niece with a teenage son lives nearby. We viewed the chance to visit as an added joy.

We are adventurers and have never let fumbles or missteps ruin our travels. If things don’t go as planned, our motto is to shift gears and keep on. Traveling in a vehicle was never a thing for our beagle, so he panted heavily for the first few hours. We coddled him for reassurance, but then, the beagle developed gas. His releases brought tears and shouts for open windows. The gas bombs became a point of laughter and accusations as to who was the guilty party.

We travelled all day with construction delays, potty stops, and a walk at the New River Gorge Bridge. Well, I said we were making this a camping trip, keep in mind the camper we were using is the one we lived in while building our home 16 years ago. The first night, in the cold hills of West Virginia, we discovered the furnace wouldn’t ignite and the floor outside the camper’s bathroom had softened from a water leak. When we arrived at the campground the store was closed, and we couldn’t buy firewood. Even though temperatures dropped, and darkness shrouded in, we let the kids unwind at the camp playground.

My wife hadn’t brought her winter coat, the one with her ATM and credit card in the pocket. We slept in our clothes covered with blanket and towels. Our spirits remained high, and we fended off grumpy thoughts.

Our phones told us our next day’s stretch would be 5.5 hours, which promised us plenty of down time at our lakeside camp in a warmer South Carolina. After ten grueling hours we arrived at our next campsite with the feeling we must have been abducted by aliens, but no, it was the three hours of traffic getting through Charlotte, NC and other construction delays.

In addition to our travel foibles, I was receiving text messages from my children about a most disturbing situation. My ex-wife, their mother, has dementia, and whose husband suffered recent stroke symptoms and personality changes. His brother is a defrocked Catholic priest who has dark sealed history and has entered the picture to manipulate financial matters to gain access to my ex-wife’s rather large estate. He has an attorney and has installed himself as his brother’s advocate. His latest move has been to go to court to claim my ex-wife is a burden and detriment to his brother’s health. Text messages from children report a court order to place their mother in a nursing home in leu of home care, which she can well afford. To add to the indignation, my daughter is to be the one to take her to the nursing home. The ex-priest has convinced her mother my daughter is evil. To be sure, I struggled with resolutions of a sin nature.

As we traveled, I prayed for divine intervention and my wife read Psalm 27 aloud. I prayed silently, in search of God’s face rather than his hand. My prayers in no way asked for a specific solution, rather I stated the situation and asked for intervention. It struck me that my ex-wife, who was raised Catholic, was never a believer and didn’t like priests. Now one is trying to take away all she has. The enemy loves to infiltrate religion and other noble institutions to lead people away from God. This premise certainly would make for a good novel or novella.

Our second campsite in South Carolina was at the lake’s edge. When we booked it, we pictured ourselves walking the nature trails throughout the area. We showed the children the glaring signs warning of alligator dangers posted between our site and the waters. Watching the pond, we spotted alligators drifting in the calm waters well offshore, it was a bit chilling.

We began receiving conflicting and alarming texts about the care of our grown grandson, a Navy veteran. He suffers severe medical conditions, and the protocols at the hospital were threatening his well-being, to say the least.

Our new camp was a half hour drive from the Savannah nursing home. We had plenty of firewood, plenty of sunshine, and warm evenings. The nursing home visit was bittersweet, as my wife’s sister was extremely frail and bedridden. The staff came off as rather inept as they told us we would have to wait to see her as she was in the bath but never came to where we waited to tell us when she was dressed, and they had placed her in her bed instead of in a wheelchair.

The bonus, the 17-year-old great nephew came to the nursing home to meet us. It’s nice to see a young man with a caring heart. The people camping next to us were North Carolina Helene refugees who evacuated before the storm hit. Now, they couldn’t return home because of the damage and had decided to travel the country until the roads to their house were reconstructed. Again, an example of attitude overcoming a dire situation.

On Sunday, the parents arrived, and we enjoyed a leisurely lunch with them before they headed south with their little hurricane refugees. The camp grew silent without three children, as we now had only one, and he is a joy unto himself. He became our full focus. One of the signs of how successful our days were was when the Sarasota parents gave us feedback from the children’s teachers. They said the children were calling their teachers Grammy by mistake!

Another bonus was a text from my daughter, the court order turned out to be a recommendation, not an order, to deliver their mother to a nursing home. I can’t explain how it had all been hashed over by the attorneys as an order and now all the sudden, it was no longer a court order, and arrangements were underway for in-home care for my ex-wife, with no interference from her husband or his ex-priest brother. In my mind, nothing is so evil as someone who claims to be a man of God and yet drives people away from salvation by engaging in evil and selfish works.

Our grandson survived his hospital stay and returned home to recover and heal.

Shortly after we arrived home a fellow author and friend handed us his latest work., Stop Your Stinkin’ Thinkin’ is all about taking charge of the damaging thoughts within our minds, by Richard W. LaFountain.

“Bringing every thought into the obedience of Christ.”

After reading the intro and first chapter, I felt this is what we just lived. Our attitudes had overcome, not only overcome but turned the tables on evil. When you come under attack, never feed your enemy with negative thoughts and actions. Rather, remember Philippians 4: 8 & 9.

 

 

Forever Followers
Tuesday, October 1, 2024 by Brave Knight Writers

 

M. Robert Mulholland Jr. wrote in his book Invitation to a Journey, “If you want a good litmus test of your spiritual growth, simply examine the nature and the quality of your relationships with others.”

Like all aspects of life, one must assess self and others:

 Lamentations 3:40 ESV Let us test and examine our ways and return to the Lord!

Romans 12:3 ESV For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.

As our church encourages everyone to find their place within one of the church’s groups, we chose to join Forever Followers. Recently we attended a gathering of Christians at the home of a couple in the group. The setting exuded beauty and peace, the landscape was filled with gorgeous flowers and plantings. The attendees were a mixed bag of professionals, convenience store clerks, missionaries, and retirees. In attendance were both singles and couples. Basically, it was a cross section of educational and economic society. If anyone had any pretentious thoughts or attitudes they hid them well, because the mingling and conversations flowed between everyone without regard to worldly status. The world pushes its agenda of inclusivity, but inclusivity occurs naturally in another realm. Our short comings make us equal; all have fallen short of the glory of God.

What struck me most about our group was the laughter resonating from the smaller groups which formed on the patio, and in different rooms within the home, as everyone enjoyed the company of those gathered. The relationships derived emulate the standard of perfection the world cannot possibly produce. Such a standard can only succeed and be maintained in a spiritual realm and to a person, everyone at the gathering is aware they fall short in their own special ways but forgive each other for it. This is the essence of the fruits of the Holy Spirit, and just like each fruit of the world has a unique flavor and texture, so do the fruits of the Spirit.

Pay attention to how the definitions of words are being skewed these days, what is that all about? It’s about creating doubt and confusion, blurring the realities and condemning every thought of a standard. When we speak of the fruits of the Spirit, we must hold to the definitions provided, in standards. Love is my first example. The word love gets applied in so many vague or strange ways, it loses meaning. The reason can be found in the inadequacies of our language where instead of creating or using more specific words to define our feelings we opt to just use the word love. True love, the one specific love of the Spirit is defined by selflessness, sacrifice, forgiveness. Hints of love’s flavor run through all the other fruits. So, what are the other fruits of the Spirit? What I saw at our gathering were these, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

What do Christians talk about when they gather for a house party? Non-believers shy away from Christians with fear, some of it based in hear-say, some from personal negative experiences, some totally unfounded self-doubts, or even just lazy thoughts (works don’t make you a Christian but being one takes work).

So how is it possible to hear laughter coming from a group of what non-believers might call judgmental sour-faced Christians who reject the offerings of the world? Well, for myself, I related stories to the group—of growing up above my grandmother’s tavern and how she always packed a pistol and had to have a six pack of beer with her. One female guest spoke of her time in the Air Force working on F-16s. Others shared stories of faulty misadventures in their youth, such as going to a strip club for a bachelor’s party. Surely there was some restraint in play but basically everyone appeared comfortable to share their follies in a humorous manner, making fun of missteps of the past. Another fellow confessed his hatred for a man he worked with and how he overcame it to become friendly with him. He made his journey of hate into a humorous anecdote. There were serious moments, as we started off the evening with a brief prayer and ended it with another prayer. One characteristic runs true in all who gathered, they want to be better people and want to create a peaceful community.

Just before we left for the gathering, I received a text message about my adult grandson being rushed to the hospital for a hole in a collapsed lung. The remedy involved removing a portion of the lung and scraping the inside of the chest cavity to create scarring to reinforce the support structure for his lungs. The surgery would take two hours, everyone at the gathering shared our concerns and offered to pray. How can you place a value on such support? In short, our common beliefs had created a community with common goals based on love. I ask you, as you look around your neighborhood, doesn’t it seem we are overburdened with chasing the things of the world? We barely know those who live near us and as Christians are accused by non-believers with being judgmental. Doesn’t such guilt fall on non-believers as well? Judgements based on the size and quality of houses, cars, lifestyles, race, and political views all ignore and mask the true inner workings of the person. These are the ways our communities end up in division.

Our Christian group does not refrain from exposing their human side, their weaknesses and flaws. One fellow, who is highly educated and professional shared the story of failing to learn French in High School. It was his worst subject, he was failing his second term while all his other grades were stellar. His French teacher took him aside and confided she would grant him a minimal passing grade as she saw no likelihood the French language would have any bearing in his future. Well as fate would have it, he found himself working in France for thirty years, married a French-Canadian woman who was a French language professor and he now owns homes in France and Quebec. This is how a community rolls, to hear other people’s experiences and life journeys endears them to you, builds a community, and relieves the fear of judgment. Before you throw someone under a bus, get to know their story first. There will always be another bus coming along later.

George Alexander Aberle (April 15, 1908 – March 4, 1995), known as eden ahbez, (he never used caps in his name) was an American songwriter and recording artist who said, “So you see it's not an issue of black and white, it's an issue of lovers and haters." In his song recorded by Nat King Cole, he wrote “"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, Is just to love and be loved in return"

Most of this post has attempted to define love, so what about hate? If we look at 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NIV 4 Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. If hate is the opposite of love, then we must assume it to be impatient, unkind, envious, boastful, proud, it dishonors, it is self-seeking, easily angered, keeps records of wrongs. Doesn’t the opposite of love look a lot like selfishness or self-love? The greatest book on the human condition and love is the Bible. Non-believers can dis on it, but without studying the Bible, their words are dribble. Healthy minds study their world. Christianity has been a major influence, standard, and guiding force in our world. The best approach to gaining knowledge is to refer to the basics, so study scripture, while tuning out the static noise generated by haters and mockers.

A Christian who wants to grow (and following Christ is inherently a lifelong journey of walking closer with Christ) takes on the endeavor of lifetime study and seeks fellowship within a community of students. Expect a life of quizzes and exams, the most important aspect comes in the acknowledgement you were challenged. Some challenges you will pass, some you will fail, but take ownership, write your name in bold letters across the top of them all.

1 John 4:8 NIV 8 Whoever does not love, does not know God, because God is love.

So, what does it mean when someone declares, “I don’t believe in God!”?

We recommend among other authors, the works of Richard W. LaFountain, such as Time Alone with God.

 

Taking the Lord’s name in vain
Sunday, September 1, 2024 by Brave Knight Writers

Taking the Lord’s name in vain

You may ask, has the Holy Spirit touched me? Am I truly a Christian? To answer yourself, ask another question—am I a giver, or a taker? Right away a red flag goes up, the church wants my money. The truth is, God wants your time. And what is more valuable than your time?

If you have concerns about how your financial tithings are being used, you are probably in the wrong church. If you want to be sure how things are being managed, get involved and contribute your time and skills. Remember this, but don’t make it your reason: as you shovel out to others, you’ll find God has a bigger shovel and will replenish you.

Malachi 3:10 says, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”

Don’t be the person calling oneself a Christian while engaged in doing selfish things. According to dictionary.com one definition of vain reads: ‘without real significance, value, or importance; baseless or worthless’. We’ve all experienced such people or read about them. Some rise to be leaders of mega churches; others use it in business—or worst of all, to physically and emotionally abuse others.

When using the Lord’s name to disarm or trick people, the Lord’s name depletes in value, importance; and becomes worthless to many. The individual exhibiting such practices turns others against Jesus and hinders the efforts of true Christians from bringing people to Christ.

So, don’t think taking the Lord’s name in vain refers only to swearing or cursing. Although doing such is a grave sin, it pales to the damage don’t by wearing a Christian label, in name only. When we claim to be Christians just to make money or get on other people’s good side, we take the Lord’s name in vain. If you do these things, you serve the anti-Christ.

Ephesians 4:18 “They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.”

When you use the name Christ in your prayers, take His name as an identifier, but then deliberately ignore the Word—His name, you take in vain. (Philippians 2:9-10). Every knee shall bow for the name above all names, Jesus Christ.

 Understand all the significance of being a Christian. Your actions and words must portray the commands, for you have entered a loving submission. Do not misrepresent Christ, either intentionally or in ignorance of the faith Scripture proclaims. If you say you love Jesus, but truly don’t, we take His name in vain and put ourselves among those to whom Christ will say, “I never knew you. Away from me” on judgement day. (Matthew 7:21-23).

Galatians 6:7-8 tells us, “Do not be fooled: You cannot cheat God. People harvest only what they plant. If they plant to satisfy their sinful selves, their sinful selves will bring them ruin. But if they plant to please the Spirit, they will receive eternal life from the Spirit.”

So, you have a dream. Some may support you, while others see you as a target. Here we’ll share a personal example of two aspects of spiritual warfare: taking the Lord’s name in vain versus the power of prayer. Building our homestead (The Instead) was our dream, but it turned into somewhat of a nightmare before a nail was driven. The local building inspector turned down the drawings I had done. An architect’s stamp was required before the plans could move forward. We didn’t know an architect, but as I searched, I had two things in mind. One, I wanted an honest person, and two; I thought if we worked with a female, it might make my wife more comfortable. The search efforts fell on me and soon I had found the answer—a female architect who professed to be a Christian. Our first meeting went well. The architect worked from her home and as we came up the walk, Christian symbols and Bible quotes greeted us.

Matthew 12:36-37 says, “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Well, the architect took my drawing and had us sign a very simple contract. Simple. But with a hook. Any delays in the progression of the designs would incur penalties. We assumed no delays would occur since I had completed drawings.

Meeting after meeting ensued, each identical to the one before, no progress made. Caught in a loop, we lived ground hog day at every meeting. The architect informed us the penalties were mounting, so I contacted my attorney, who told us were hooked. He sent her a letter ending her contract and asked for a bill to settle the issue. We owed ten-thousand dollars with nothing to show for it. She claimed the prints were her intellectual property and refused to give them back. Our dream crashed and burned. We were emotionally bankrupt and financially hurt. Weeks passed before we reconciled ourselves to the idea of forging ahead with a new architect.

“Pray.” My wife was standing over one of those old-fashioned yellow paged telephone directories, and pray we did. Our only expectation was to start fresh with an honest architect. There is no way to explain what happened as my finger dropped through the list of names, but I stopped on one. We set up an appointment where we confessed our story of deception and named the culprit. His eyes lit up. He knew her. As a matter of fact, she had worked for him. He said she had ripped off clients and almost bankrupted him. He said he would love to intervene on our behalf, as he knew where the buried skeletons lay.

It took a couple of weeks before he called us to another meeting to give us our prints. He even made some corrections and stamped them; he said it was quite a privilege to do business on our behalf. You never know when you’ll meet an angel. We’ve lived in the home we built from those prints for 16-years now.

2 Timothy 2:16 ESV says, “But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness.”

What the first architect did will be between her and God. From what we read in scripture; it will not bode well for her. We weren’t alone in her deceptions. As we later found out, she had ripped off our insurance agent in much the same way. She played the Christian until her prey took the bait and was well within her trap, then she collected the blessings of the anti-Christ.

Christians give. They don’t take. And God replenishes.

 

Freedom- Just another Word
Thursday, August 1, 2024 by Brave Knight Writers

One of the great desires espoused by people the world over is to be free. Freedom is also one of the high marks of Christ and Christianity. Yet so many people continue to crucify Christ and enslave themselves. One may wonder why or how these things can be—is it because the human mind creates its own truth or embraces short-term pleasures at the price of long-term peace? Our chemistry tricks us, it fluctuates and becomes influenced by our lifestyles. One of the best chain breakers is to indulge in true love, but issues may lie in confusion over the real meaning of freedom and love. Love should have its basis in freedom and giving support to others. Love never seeks to control or oppress, but it also doesn’t ignore.

There is an ease with being drawn into the physical aspects of life, but the spiritual realm requires effort and courage. Mathew 15:19 states: “For from the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, slander.” All things which enslave us, either by self or by others. Notice, we use the heart to symbolize love but never to symbolize any of these words. Such deceptions mask reality. In Jeremiah 17:9 we see, “The heart is more deceitful than anything else, and incurable—who can understand it?” These two passages are stand-alone truths. If you find a need to argue over them, you are perhaps under the influence of one of the things listed in Mathew.

In our attempts to bring others to understand the truth in our faith, we must remain mindful of Mathew’s words. Christianity was never meant to be spread by oppression. Christ made offers and let those who heard him use their freewill to make their decisions. When Christianity looks like a baited trap, all is lost, and the enemy uses this approach to undermine all efforts of good.

“Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose”, so the lyrics of Janice Joplin go. How tragic. Such words were spoken by someone self-enslaved by chemical stimulants. Even so, the words bear truth and can be found boldly stated in the Bible when Jesus said to his disciples in Mathew 19:21 “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your belongings and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Now that is a hard sell, but it is one way to prove pure love. Anything less is less.

If you look at Proverbs 21: 26, “He is filled with craving all day long, but the righteous give and don’t hold back.” Surviving in a physical world requires selfish thoughts and actions, this makes the above difficult to grasp, we see trickery and selfish motives in these commands because what we see in others is what we know of ourselves. God doesn’t want us to live in poverty, what he wants is for us to loosen our grip on the physical, to clench the spiritual.

 Keep in mind, this world and all it offers only exist for today. Tomorrow is not guaranteed so view what surrounds you as of little value. To be free, cling to nothing of this earth. Janice and the Bible speak the truth, and as in John 8:32, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Freedom requires courage. Untethered from all your perceptions and experiences, you may have the urge to run back to familiar things. Those who seek to control any aspect of existence will never experience freedom, but when we let go of the controls an inner spirit takes over. That can be a frightful concept. Human nature clings to stuff, it helps with terrestrial balance.

 Freedom can be likened to standing on water in a raging storm, clinging to nothing but faith. Even though letting go of faith will drown you, the urge overcomes you and you sink beneath the waves.

We have free will, we make choices. And many of them are counter-intuitive to our best interest. Yet we continue to make our bad choices, then double down to defend and justify them.

So where do we put our freedom to work and what results can we expect? What if someone close to you says, “You are the last person in the world I would ever want to work with”? Two years later, they need help, and you chip in.

Or what if you buy an expensive piece of equipment and you need help to pay for it? So, you offer to do work for someone in a close relationship and instead they hire a stranger? A year later they asked to borrow the equipment. You lend it to them.

You find out your partner has been lying to you for years and unrepentantly cheating. Instead of destroying all you worked for, you help them establish a new independent life.

 What if you generously overpay someone to do work for you, mostly so you can get to see them? As a gift, they hand you a book with the premise “Don’t Expect Those You do Favors For to Owe You”. In this case, it only means they have no idea wherein lies your heart and who you are.

Freedom can be painful, challenging, and on the surface appears to be without reward. The liberty to float above the mess refreshes and frees one from the bondage of revenge and grudges. Don’t expect your actions to change others. But watch for signs and pray for understanding.

In the end, God gives us a get out jail free card. Strive to love no matter the circumstance. Love is not the easy road, it’s the best road.  Romans 5:8 tells us “But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Sacrifice your needs and wants in honor of Jesus Christ. Vengeance begets more pain and suffering. Free yourself.

In The Four Loves, C.S. Lewis said, “Christ did not teach and suffer that we might become, even in the natural loves, more careful of our own happiness. If a man is not uncalculating towards the earthly beloveds whom he has seen, he is none the more likely to be so towards God whom he has not. We shall draw nearer to God, not by trying to avoid the sufferings inherent in all loves, but by accepting them and offering them to Him; throwing away all defensive armour. If our hearts need to be broken, and if He chooses this as the way in which they should break, so be it.”

In Luke 9:23, Jesus said, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will save it.”

 

Baker of Gettysburg

 

The Baker of Gettysburg July 1, 2024Jenny Ashcraft It’s been 161 years since the Battle of Gettysburg raged from July 1 to 3, 1863. It was the bloodiest battle of the Civil War, with more than 50,000 casualties. Amidst the fighting in Adams County, PA, one young woman emerged heroic when she refused orders to flee and baked bread for hungry, weary, and wounded soldiers. The Boston Globe – October 3, 1886 Josephine Rodgers Miller Slyder was born on October 9, 1836. She was living in a farmhouse occupied by her relatives, Peter and Susan Rodgers, on the edge of Emmitsburg Road in Gettysburg when the war came to her front door. Josephine had bread in the oven when the shooting began. Peter and Susan Rodgers fled the farm, but Josephine wanted to wait until her bread came out of the oven. The smell of freshly baked bread attracted hungry soldiers, so Josephine sliced and distributed the fresh bread. With the bread gone and hungry soldiers wanting more, Josephine decided to mix another batch of bread. As fighting intensified, Josephine kept baking. The soldiers offered to pay Josephine for the bread, but she declined. Union General Joseph B. Carr warned Josephine that she was unsafe and needed to flee. Josephine promised to leave soon, but hearing the cries of hungry and wounded soldiers, she continued to bake and distribute bread that was quickly devoured. She also tended to the wounded from both sides. Muncie Evening Press: March 23, 1892 During the battle, artillery shook the foundation of the Rodgers farmhouse, Pickett’s men charged past the house, and Josephine continued to bake. The farmhouse was hit by dozens of shells and bullets, and numerous dead were in the yard. When the battle was over, Josephine was uninjured, but seventeen soldiers were found dead in the house, having crawled there before succumbing to their wounds. Josephine spent days nursing the wounded. Josephine Slyder in 1886 – photo via Find a Grave Following the war, Josephine married her neighbor, William J. Slyder, and moved to Ohio. In July 1886, veterans of the Battle of Gettysburg reunited in Gettysburg. Surviving members of the 1st Massachusetts gathered to unveil a monument on Emmitsburg Road, just south of the Rodgers house. The house still bore the scars of ferocious fighting, bringing back memories of Josephine’s kindness. The 1st  Massachusetts discovered Josephine was alive and living in Ohio, so they paid for her train passage and invited her to Gettysburg as their guest of honor. Josephine was awarded several military decorations and made an honorary member of the 3rd Corps, the only woman to achieve that distinction. Josephine Slyder and veterans from the Battle of Gettysburg in front of the 1st Mass Infantry Regiment monument – photo via Find a Grave Soldiers returned to the old farmhouse and retrieved Josephine’s stove, placing it in front of the regiment’s monument. Josephine was photographed along with many of the soldiers whom she had helped. Josephine died in 1911, but memories of her heroism and kindness have outlived her. If you would like to learn more about Josephine or the Battle of Gettysburg, search Newspapers.com™ today. Share using:

Illumination

 

Illumination
Monday, July 1, 2024 by Brave Knight Writers

A recent event gained me new insights and qualifications. This blog is not intended to bring attention to my situation but rather to everyone’s. It is our nature to go about our daily lives with a feeling of wellbeing, it’s a healthy attitude for our physical existence. Where it all goes awry, we place too much value on our stuff, our importance, and false beliefs. Nothing sorts out reality more than finding yourself crossing over.

In my experience, I lost half my blood due to abdominal aneurysms. My blood pressure dropped to 50/30 and I sensed myself leaving my body. They say your life flashes before you, well, it was more of an awareness of how little, so much means. Daily dramas over trivial and petty disputes really gain nothing. In the big scheme of things, we leave it all behind.

As the medical staff worked to resuscitate me, I had no awareness of their efforts. My wife said there were about a dozen people taking part. A nurse told me they had me hanging by my feet. My memory of this event, although vivid from my own perspective, left me with no recollection of the physical world. Instead, I remember questioning if I should pray to stay in my damaged body or move on to another space. Peace embraced me as I let go of all my worldly blessings and gratefulness overwhelmed me for all my life’s experiences. The prayer I remember mulling was for God’s will be done and to be wrapped in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, to conceal my shortcomings.

My week in the hospital was filled with humor. I harassed my room mate a bit, joked with the doctors and nurses. When the Angio doctor came into the operating room, I asked him if he had watched the latest YouTube videos on the procedure. When my pastor came to pray over me and shared how close I had come to dying, I said, “I saw no bright light, just some flickering flames. What do you think it means?” I asked. He laughed, I guess I need more work. God wants us to laugh, he wants us to celebrate the gift of life and our spiritual birth.

We love our home, it is the fruit of much labor, but I remind myself constantly of the fact we must be willing to walk away at any time. Like our body, everything is temporary. We can’t cling to any of it, nor should we place too high a value on it. In Romans 12:2 we see this lesson, ‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.’

The support, encouragement, and prayer offerings were overwhelming. I received messages from Australia, Africa, Europe, and all over the United States. Most people offered to pray for me, those who stated this showed me they had no fear of scoffers and mockers. Others said I would be in their thoughts, so what does that mean? To me, it meant they didn’t believe in any powers higher than themselves. If true, how would their thoughts do me any good? I appreciate the gesture, but did it have any real value? I refer to Revelation 3:16, the NIV: So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. Then there were those who offered nothing—no inquiry, no prayers or thoughts— close blood relatives who blew off this near-death event as if I were a stranger.

 Well, the event provided great insight into how people would view my passing. Not many people are blessed with such knowledge, it is a game changer. Honesty and truth can be harsh and heart-breaking but it also sets you free and lets you focus on where to place your future efforts and concerns.

Recovery has proven to be a tough process, both physically and emotionally. The doctors have helped physically, and many friends have risen to show their love and concern. The process has shed light on those who care as well as those who don’t. No bitterness forms in my heart, and our prayers will continue for the lost. One question has been answered, would I have what it takes to walk away from everything if the government put stipulations on receiving a number to pay property taxes or engage in business transactions? When Y2K occurred, I watched as people horded and stockpiled supplies. It was never my style. In the event of some worldwide catastrophe, I will let go and walk toward the chaos. My survival will be ushered in by Jesus Christ. Do I wish for death or the world to end? Absolutely not, no one knows when either event will occur, so it is best to build treasures in heavenly places.

Matthew 6:19-21 NIV tells us: ‘Do not store up for yourself treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.’

One of the best medicines for my recovery has come from the children who surround me. In the days prior to my bleeding event, we took five children to Sight and Sound Theatre in Lancaster, PA. to see the Daniel play. We were filled with joy by the performance, special effects, and delight of the children. Boom. From this high point, the next day I found myself bleeding to death. It wasn’t a low point though; it was just an event to remind me how fragile physical life can be. Live, and appreciate every moment you are granted. At my homecoming from the hospital, grandchildren ran to me arms wide for hugs screaming, “Pappy!”

 Luke 18:15-17 ‘Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it. They rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.’

Grateful?” You betcha.