The Cold

Wind can press the cold deeper into your clothing, like relentless icy fingers seeking out the warmth within. Cold and heat are forces in a tug-of-war. We see it in the global weather: Polar vortex winds have created unusually cold weather patterns across the USA. We see the tug-of-war in our garage that we use as a cold cellar (since we have not built a proper root cellar) in the effort to keep that unheated space above the deep freeze temperatures outside. And for sure we see the tug-of-war in our hearts, between the icy cold of selfishness, and the warmth of graciousness, love and self-sacrifice.

So, what is a garden lover to do when conditions are cold and environmentally hostile in our part of the north? Since we have over 2 feet of snow on the level, there is no working with the soil. I am glad about the snow though, as it is a blanket against the very cold sub zero temps we have experienced. So, back to my question, what is a garden lover to do? If you can't fight it, embrace it!

We have enjoyed wilderness winter camping, with low temps of 9 F and wind chill of -10 F. At the time I wondered about our sanity in this endeavor. But after several weeks of preparation, we spent 3 days (two nights) out in the wilderness -winter camping.

We quickly decided we needed to improve on the items packed in for this weekend. The list congealed into three categories:

1) The things we brought that we were glad we had

2) The things we brought that we never used (ugg! for we had to pack them in and out)

3) The things we dearly wish we had brought

Surprisingly, I filled an entire page with items in these three categories. Here is a small sample of my lists:

1) The things we brought that we were glad we had:

• warm clothing (we did not suffer)
• Arctic Sport Muck boots
• chemical hand warmer packets
• thermos 2 cup containers with integrated spoon
• pack snow shovel
• a large pot for melting snow for our water

2) The things we brought that we never used... Well this was a long list. We brought a lot of food, and a lot of clothes, most of both were never touched. We also brought some equipment that was not used, partly because we did not know the exact situation we would find ourselves in, and partly because we are new at winter camping.

3) The things we dearly wish we had brought:

• more reliable fire starting tools (two items failed one after the other at the same meal)
• headlamp (it is really hard to work at fixing a meal in the dark while one hand is occupied holding a flash light. And in the winter, it is dark a lot more than in summer.)
• emergency whistle
• snow shoes (I want to make some! I now have the appreciation that snow shoes are not optional for winter camping in 2-3 foot snow.)

The experience was a good one. We enjoyed the challenge, and had fun in the snow as well. The second night was not as windy, and we had 6" of new fluffy snow when we woke up. I am still in recovery mode from our 10 mile hike one of the days...Whew.

Hopefully the icy fingers of winter will soon start to loosen its death grip, and drip by drip the snow should start to melt. It will be a real joy to see the first crocus this spring.

Consider the tug-of-war in your heart, and share some warmth with others today.

Acceptance vs Performance

I recently heard a sermon in which the speaker used a poster board with two words written on it: "acceptance" at the top, and "performance" at the bottom. These two words were contrasted as a true and false way to look at salvation.

Some today would emphasize a form of salvation in which the only thing man must do is to accept God's gift of grace. Taken to its extreme, this emphasis would teach that acceptance and performance are in conflict with each other, or have nothing to do with each other. They would say only believe, and continue sinning. God's grace covers you, no matter what your performance or intent!

Acceptance of God's gift of salvation is the first step. Our action or performance is not a precursor to God giving His grace to mankind. God's Spirit must first touch the heart for mankind to have the impulse or desire to accept salvation. So the first act of the sinner coming to Christ is to respond to the call to accept salvation. The immediate benefit of salvation is forgiveness from the penalty of past sins. The story of the dying thief on the cross illustrates this immediate bestowal of the promise of salvation. "You will be with me in paradise." Luke 23:43. This portion of the call to salvation extends forgiveness for past sins, and places the sinner at a clean starting point. The call of salvation contains the empowerment of grace and forgiveness.

Is there anything more within the call of salvation? We accept the call, and then we must heed the call. So what is this call? The call of salvation is to become like Jesus. "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." John 17:17. The call is to holiness and a life of purity actuated by the power of God. The call of salvation is for us to be like Jesus. The intent of the call is that we perform. In the instant of accepting salvation, the empowerment of grace is for mankind to resist the character qualities that are at enmity against God.

God loves us and accepts us the way we are, but loves us too much to leave us there. And in this perspective, acceptance is not in conflict with performance. This is not an "either / or" situation. In fact, we can not have acceptance without performance. The two are linked into the same call. They are two tones that blend into the chord of salvation's call. I fear that some would cut the call of salvation of God into parts. Some would accept the gift of grace, but discard the purpose of the call. There is danger of separating these two tones as separate and distinct from each other, or even to present the idea that they clash with each other in disharmony. Remember, God loves you too much to leave you in sin.

From the pen of inspiration, "Even one wrong trait of character, one sinful desire, persistently cherished, will eventually neutralize all the power of the gospel. Every sinful indulgence strengthens the soul’s aversion to God." SC 34. "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?" James 2:20.

So when we talk of salvation there is no need to contrast "acceptance" and "performance". They are two tones within the same beautiful chord. Neither acceptance or performance are based on man's ability, but both are the result of committing our will on the side of God. Neither have one shred of self sufficiency or self righteousness.

May your heart accept the free gift of grace, and be empowered to commit your will to the prompting of His spirit. May we be like Jesus in all we do.

The Joy of Modesty

Modesty is a joy.

In modesty I am talking out the entire way we carry ourselves. It is in how we act and how we dress. Modesty is a precious thing, that I feel it needs to be dusted, polished, and returned to its rightful place in our families.

Our physical form has public space and private space. To be modest means you value yourself enough to protect the private space for your spouse. The focus of modesty is to draw others attention to the public space, and minimize attention to the private space. With that broad principle, you can make your own applications to what is appropriate in action and dress.

But you have to realize that there is a gender difference in what draws the attention. As a generalization, females are drawn by physical touch, and males are drawn by visual cues and form. Males should take care to not draw out affection via touch (1 Cor 7:1), and females should take care to not draw out attention via suggestive dress or exposure of the private spaces (Job 31:1). The male mind has a wonderful ability to fill in spacial patterns. It is part of what God designed in the brains of men. When presented with the rounded leg shape of the thigh (in pants or especially bare) the male mind is drawn to where the spacial pattern meets at the crotch. The male mind does the same spacial patterns related to the female chest when exposed by a low neck line or buttock with skin tight clothing.

Ladies have no need to see men's underwear because of low hanging pants, and men have no need to see the crisp outlines of women's underwear hems through their pants. Looking at modern dress, we see little left to the imagination. Both male and female dress styles seem bent on evocative skin exposure. If clothing does happen to cover the skin, then it is drawn so tight as to be "skin tight" and negating the covering of the skin at all. But does this exposure preserve the joy found in modesty?

It seems to me that there is a deep beauty in a man being properly dressed in appropriate attire, to represent Jesus in his interactions with others, and even that his clothing could be in agreement with the focus of his life. There is a special blessedness seeing a woman in a modest dress, with length well below the knees. My eye is drawn to the radiant face, and I know there is extra beauty preserved within. She is saving herself for the one who would prize and cherish her most; for the one to whom in God's blessing of matrimony she belongs.

And in this modesty there is joy.

Living in the day close to the coming of Jesus means that we have a higher standard to reach than before. "Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame." Rev. 16:15.

There are some action items I would like to suggest:

• Each of us would do well to evaluate the message our clothing portrays, and allow this inspection to yield the best possible sermon that our clothing could present to others. We are bought with a price, therefore we are God's not our own.

• I suggest that married men compliment their wives on modest dress. It is not easy for women to buck the world's fashion system. They will appreciate your support that they are wearing dresses, and knowing you appreciate their saving themselves for you. Let them know you value them.

• It would be good for fathers of young women to share their appreciation of modesty. I would hope this would be more in the line of praise and affirmation rather than rules. To have a young woman decide to save herself from the hands and eyes of others is a truly precious thing.

• I would like to see male peers affirm modesty in young women. I think it also good to have young women let the boys know that they like it when the boys care for their clothing. A little positive peer pressure can go a long way. I remember when in high school a young lady paid a compliment on my clothing, and it was surprising to see how much more important my dress became to me after that ;)

I have no interest in suppression of women, or in making them subservient or of lesser importance. I think modesty in its proper setting elevates and ennobles manhood and womanhood  It shows the appreciation of their innate value, and wanting to preserve and protect it.

Cheers to the beauty and joy of modesty!

"The harvest is Past..."

October 8, 2012 was judgement day for our summer garden. Temps fell to 31 deg just before day break this morning. Sunshine and I went out early in the morning to see how hard the frost had been. The soft and tender tomato leaves were hard and stiff with ice. It was a hard killing frost.

In past years, we have been spared till later in October, with only very light frosts that the plants could resist. The previous two years, our hard frost date were on October 22.

We walked slowly through the garden, mourning for the burst cells and dying tissue all around us. We looked at green tomatoes, green peppers, tomatillos, late corn, late potatoes, green beans still in bloom, okra, sweet potatoes. All tender and frozen hard. Still green under the coating of white frost, but the hour of judgement had come. Death was in process. When I returned to look at the plants later in the day, the tender leaves were wilted and black.

Sunshine thought of a verse: Jeremiah 8:20 "The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved." There is a date at which the march of time will pronounce, "now is the hour of your judgement." It will come for you and I just as surely as this morning was a judgement for our summer garden. Our indifference or our lack of heart preparation will not stop the impending date. God's forbearance will have a point at which there will be no further time in which to prepare.

Are you ready for Jesus to come? Are you clean in your heart, and fit for translation? Has Jesus not only forgiven your sin, but cleaned your character for heaven? Judgement is coming. An example fell our our summer garden this morning.

Exhort

The other day, I was reading Hebrews 10:25 "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching."

I was interested in the verse, because of the very end of the verse: "As ye see the day approaching." Now, what day do you think this is talking about? As I looked at the context, I believe the "day" is the coming of Jesus. The first coming of Jesus was the focus and culmination of the old testament. The second coming of Jesus is the focus and culmination of the entire Bible and the great controversy between Christ and Satan. So, I get really interested in things the Bible tells us to do more and more as the soon coming of Jesus is approaching.

If you agree with me that the coming of Jesus is soon! then what is this that we should be doing. So my attention then went toward this old English word "Exhort." The verse says as we see the coming of Jesus approaching, we need to meet together, and in this meeting or gathering, we need to exhort each other. The meetings together and the act of exhorting needs to increase as Earth's time winds down.

So we gather together, and encourage each other, we call to action, and study together the Word of God. In this we exhort each other.

Follow these select passages that use the word exhort:

• Jer 11:7 'For I earnestly exhorted your fathers in the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, until this day, rising early and exhorting, saying, "Obey My voice." NKJV
• Act 13:15 And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, [Ye] men [and] brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on.
• Act 15:32 And Judas and Silas, being prophets also themselves, exhorted the brethren with many words, and confirmed [them].
• Rom 12:5-8 So we, [being] many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, [let us prophesy] according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, [let us wait] on [our] ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, [let him do it] with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.
• Hbr 3:13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
• Hbr 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
• 1Th 2:11 As ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father [doth] his children,
• 2Th 3:12 Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.
• 1Ti 4:13 Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.
• 1Ti 5:1 Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort [him] as a father, younger men as brothers, NKJV
• 1Ti 6:2 And they that have believing masters, let them not despise [them], because they are brethren; but rather do [them] service, because they are faithful and beloved, partakers of the benefit. These things teach and exhort.
• Tts 1:9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.
• Tts 2:12-15 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.

From these references, I get the idea that exhort is more than just preaching a cerebral teaching. It seems to also involve action on the part of the hearer. Action that is encouraged and mentored by the one exhorting. In this time of earth's history, we need to encourage and prompt each other to action like no other time. We need to gather in small groups, where we are engaged in helping each other grow and develop into the image of Christ.

My challenge to you is to exhort those in your sphere of influence.

Trial by Fire

We have been clearing an overgrown field in order to expand our food growing potential. I feel that we have a window of opportunity to prepare a garden for the coming hard times. In my experience, you can grow food on new land, but the prep of the land takes time. You have to clear it, test and amend it, and incorporate it into your garden master plan. We all have no time to loose.

There is only so much land you can clear by hand, especially if your land has trees. The largest tree we removed was around 50 feet tall and had a diameter of around 2 feet. To remove stumps like these takes a lot of work. We have added mechanical horsepower to help in the process.

In the center of the field, there is a large depression in the earth. Perhaps it is a sink hole, or perhaps an ancient homestead basement. Into this hole we piled brush, cotton wood trees (not good wood for us to save for fire wood), roots and brambles. We lit the pile on fire, and have had it actively burning for several days. Every now and then we stir the pile and get the brush at the edges positioned into the center so it will also burn. After sundown I came to the pile to check on it, and it needed a stir to keep it burning through the night, so I whipped out our brand new tractor with a front end loader to push the logs and brush better into the center of the pile. As I pushed a large pile of brush into the fire, I was not focused on exactly where I was around the pit. The front tires of the tractor fell over a small two foot cliff into the pit, and I soon realized the tractor was completely stuck. Even with 4 wheel drive and all tires spinning, the tractor would not back out over that small cliff.

With the tractor half in the pit and half out I became rather anxious. The pile of new material I had just pushed in was starting to ignite. I lifted the front end loader away from the flames, and wondered what I could do. I could not drive forward, as that would be directly into a now raging inferno, and would assure the total loss of the tractor.

I quickly called a friend who lived several miles away for his help, asking him to bring a chain to add power to pull the tractor out. The short call was ended abruptly with my friend saying, "I am on my way. Click." Next I called Sunshine to bring water in what ever she could find to carry it in. She immediately started filling two 5 gallon buckets at the house. I could walk around the front of the tractor and it was not in the flames and was not too hot to touch. The moments seemed like a long time, and the fire was building. Before Sunshine was able to fill 10 gallons, my neighbor charged up the drive. Oh what a joy to see his headlights coming.

He ran over with his chain, and hopped on the tractor. He knew a trick he had used many times to get unstuck, which I was to green to have understood. I had tried to lift the front end up using the front end loader while backing out, but to no avail. He set the bucket full tilt down, lifted the front of the tractor, and then rotated the tilt of the bucket outward adding a powerful push backwards. This with the four wheel drive and wheel differential engaged he was able to slowly inch the tractor back out of the pit. Just as he got off the tractor, Sunshine flew up with the car, and ran over buckets in hand. What a relief to see the tractor out of the pit on on level ground. We doused the front end loader for good measure, to make sure it was cooled down.

All ended well with not a scratch on the new tractor. This story is a bit humbling. If I was into this blog for ego, I would not retell it. The biggest problem was my lack of experience. A special thanks to a quick responding friend who literally flew in an instant to my side. It seemed impossible to get there as fast as he did. Perhaps angels propelled him onward.


Trials of life

Not every trial in life is one that we drive into. Not every fire is self inflicted. Our 5 year old nephew is recovering from a diagnosis of leukemia. A close friend is in the fire of a preliminary diagnosis of bone cancer. Suffering makes us want to ask, Why? In many cases, the best answer I have found is in Matthew 13:28: "An enemy hath done this."

There is a song that I really appreciate: Walking Through the Flames. It talks about fire. Many years ago, three Hebrew youths where commanded to worship an idol image, or be burned alive. They stood, literally,  for their faith in God. They faced the fury of the king. The only part on them that burned was the ropes that had bound them. You can read the entire story in the Bible: Daniel chapter 3.

With this introduction, read the words of this poem, and notice the 3rd verse. This applies to you and to me. It applies to our times today.


Walking Through the Flames (audio)

Many years ago In a time of woe
Three young men faced a bitter test.
For the king decreed that they not be freed,
But instead he had bound them fast
Because they would not bow the knee except to God on high.
Into the flames with great disdain, these men were thrown to die.

But who would have thought that the flames would set them free?
And who would have thought that they’d gain the victory?
When with God our lot we cast,
We have more than we could ask
We’ll go walking through the flames with the Son of God.

When this evil king had performed this thing,
He sat down upon his throne.
But when he took yet a second look
He cried out with astonished tone,
“Did we not cast into the fire a group that numbered three?
Now they’re walking round as though unbound with a fourth like Deity!”

But who would have thought that the flames would set them free?
And who would have thought that they’d gain the victory?
When with God our lot we cast,
We have more than we could ask
We’ll go walking through the flames with the Son of God.

God has made it known to His very own
Tribulations they must bear.
For this world is not any friend to God.
In His cross we have a share.
But when the hour of trial comes and fire is all around
We’ll find the place we’re walking on is really holy ground.

And praise be to God that the flames will set us free
And praise be to God, we shall gain the victory.
When with God our lot we cast,
We’ll have more than we could ask.
We’ll go walking through the flames with the Son of God.

When with God our lot we cast,
We’ll have more than we could ask.
We’ll go walking, walking, walking through the flames with the Son of God.
With the Son of God!

Thorns

We have set out to reclaim land to expand our farming endeavors. We would love to relocate to more land, but have decided that we will use every opportunity available to us now till the Lord leads elsewhere.

There is an acre of land overgrown with thorns just beyond our existing garden area. There are briers, wild rose brambles, bushes with sharp tips and all this is locked together with wild grape vines. It presents itself as a bulwark against using the land in any productive way. For the past several days we all have been slashing, sawing, lugging, tugging and burning our way through the mass. It is not easy work. There is sweat and tears. Yesterday my oldest son looked down at the snow around his feet and it was staining red. Thorns had pierced his lower leg, and he saw the blood before realizing the poke was actually a cut.

We don't complain, and are excited to see the progress after a full day of work. My youngest son commented today about how good it felt to be exercise tired. (He quickly pointed out he was not tired as in ready to go to bed!) I would guess to date we are about 1/2 way removing the surface material. We have not worked on the roots yet. Perhaps some of the larger tree stumps will rot in the ground a few years before I attempt to dig them up. We hope to put in a small orchard this spring in this reclaimed area.


When creation finished, what was the condition of the land? "And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good." Gen 1:31 Man was placed in a beautiful garden. A place in which they could express their creativity and joy. But when sin entered man's heart, there was a profound change in the soil. I wonder if there is a link between our spiritual connectedness with God, and how our soils perform. The Lord placed a curse on the soil, or did God simply describe how man's choice would impact other systems around him. "Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field.; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground." Gen 3:17-19

An enemy has introduced the thorns, and the thorns are all around us. We can perpetuate the thorns via disobedience, or cooperate with the angels to heal our land by being obedient and in harmony with God.

What thorns could you clear today?

Sabbath

Sabbath. Rest. Some wonder what that really is. Is it attainable in our society? In our world of constant connectivity, 24x7 work, the frantic online society; we face burnout and utter exhaustion without the Sabbath. I think in our modern times, we need the Sabbath more than ever before!

The Sabbath is a weekly 24 hour period of time, an entire day, of rest. It starts with sunset on Friday, through sunset on Saturday, as established at creation. God set the Sabbath as a time of worship, fellowship and reflection, not of focusing on ourselves, our work or our greed.

God established the Sabbath at creation. God blessed it and sanctified it in the old testament. It is one of the ten commandments, and the the only one that starts with the word "Remember". Jesus knew we would be tempted to forget the Sabbath. Jesus kept the Sabbath each week as the seventh-day of the week, the Jewish Sabbath day. The rabbis were furious at Jesus, for he would not heed their man-made laws. He kept God's law. Jesus even rested on the Sabbath in the grave! The new testament church kept the Sabbath, Saturday, the seventh day of the week into the 3rd century. At no time in history has the weekly 7 day cycle been corrupted. At no time has the day of worship been altered or changed by God. If there was a day change, it was from another source (Dan 7:24-25). Obedience to God's law and whom we worship will be a special test in the last days of earths history (Rev 13:11-18). The Bible gives the promise that in heaven, we will all enjoy the weekly Sabbath worship services together through out eternity!

Have you considered taking one day out of your busy week to focus on God, your family and others? You will be richly rewarded if you do! Gather your family together and seek out the special blessing God has dedicated to this day for you and your family.


Resources:

• The Sabbath Song (video)