For" Scripture Sunday":
Why Israel Matters
October 28, 2013 - "Christ said to discern the times. Doing so means we listen carefully to what men of vision might say."
Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-daily/news-and-prophecy/why-israel-matters
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Role of Men 
"What is the proper role of men in the family and society? History reveals extremes from the family dictator to the bumbling sitcom dad. What did God design?
In Genesis 2, we see that Adam was created before Eve. After Adam was done naming all the animals, God then created a very special blessing for him—a woman fashioned from Adam’s own rib. The connection between them was undeniable. Together they had a oneness—they formed a family, a complete unit (verse 24).
With understanding and honor
1. The husband must dwell with his wife with understanding. Of course, this evokes many humorous comments because there are men who feel they can never “understand” their wives. Sadly, many husbands and wives simply do not take sufficient time with each other or even try to get to know each other well enough to “understand” what the other may struggle with or be going through. One-on-one quality time together is necessary, no matter how long a couple has been together.
2. What about the “weaker vessel” part of this passage? Women are generally smaller and not as physically strong as a man. So God is directing husbands to take care of their wives, to look out for, cherish and demonstrate tenderness toward them. When God created woman, He could have made her equal in strength and stature to the man, but He did not. Instead, He gave man the responsibility to protect, care for and give honor to her.
3. The third part of this passage is “being heirs together of the grace of life.” The Moffatt translation states, “You must honor them as heirs equally with yourselves of the grace of life.” The potential to be children of God in His Kingdom is the same for both men and women.
While God established certain roles for men and other roles for women in our physical families, there is nothing in Scripture to indicate one sex has more favor with God, or that one would have preeminence in the coming Kingdom. The relationship between husband and wife today should be harmonious and one of mutual love and respect, knowing that both are to equally inherit eternal life.
Role of a father
There is an old saying about fatherhood: “The greatest gift a father can give to his children is to love their mother.” The family begins when a man and woman are joined as husband and wife. The family grows from the two of them together, and the marriage relationship must remain the bedrock of the family.
From infancy onward, children should be comforted by the close and loving relationship they see demonstrated between their mother and father. This gives stability to the family and credibility to the father as he goes on to properly teach and train his children.
A responsibility to teach
While there should also be times of more formally teaching your children, the inference from these instructions is that teaching should be just a normal part of life. The father should live God’s way of life and teach it to his children through everything he does and says all day long!" Complete article at: http://lifehopeandtruth.com/relationships/family/role-of-men/ by Tom Clark and Mary Clark
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Disciplining Children: Seeing the End From the Beginning
"Raising children is challenging, and there is much disagreement among parents over the proper use of discipline. What is the proper basis for discipline?
When it comes to children and discipline, there is much controversy. Discipline comes in many forms and is given in a variety of ways and for a variety of reasons—some right and some wrong.
The right tool for the right job
It is important that parents choose the right form of discipline to fit their child. All children learn differently, so when it comes to discipline, which is also a teaching tool, it is important that we administer it in a way that our child will understand.
Sometimes children simply do not understand directions and need guidance. For example, if a standing rule in the home is that all action figures be returned to the toy box after playing with them, the children should be made aware of the importance of this rule. Parents might explain the safety hazard of leaving small toys on the floor to ensure their children understand the rule.
It is also important that they understand what the consequence will be for failing to follow the instructions. If the consequence is losing the privilege of playing with the action figures for a day, then we must be prepared to follow through, but should not add additional consequences for the infraction. Consistency is the key for both the parent and child.
Parents must be careful not to punish out of anger. Anger is never a good basis for discipline. Keep in mind that at times it may take additional training and modeling for a child to grasp the importance of a rule.
Parents should ask themselves, “What is it I want my child to learn from this experience?” All parents want children who are responsible and accountable for their behavior. Parents must wisely use discipline in a responsible way.
Discipline is an investment
Teddy Roosevelt once said, “To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.”
Parents are admonished to “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6). There is great satisfaction when, after years of instruction, which includes discipline, a child begins to embrace what he or she has been taught and actually acts on his or her own without help from parents." Complete article at: http://lifehopeandtruth.com/relationships/parenting/disciplining-children/ by Todd Carey
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The 10 Commandments in the Old and New Testaments
Jesus consistently upheld all of the commandments, including observing the seventh-day Sabbath (Matthew 19:17-19; Luke 4:16). “Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city” (Revelation 22:14).
The 10 Commandments given by God in the Old Testament continue to be God’s expectations of Christians today.
The following chart identifies references to the 10 Commandments in both the Old and New Testaments.
Old Testament
New Testament
First Commandment: Exodus 20:3; Deuteronomy 5:7
Matthew 4:10; Luke 4:8; Revelation 14:7
Second Commandment: Exodus 20:4-6; Deuteronomy 5:8-10
Acts 15:20; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Galatians 5:19-20; Ephesians 5:5
Third Commandment: Exodus 20:7; 5:11
Matthew 5:33-37; 1 Timothy 6:1; James 2:7
Fourth Commandment: Exodus 20:8-11; Deuteronomy 5:12-15
Luke 4:16; 23:55-56; Acts 17:1-2; 18:4; Hebrews 4:9; 1 John 2:6
Fifth Commandment: Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16
Matthew 15:4-9; 19:19; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20; Romans 1:29-30; Ephesians 6:1-3
Sixth Commandment: Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5: 17
Matthew 5:21-22; 19:18; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20; Romans 1:29-30; 13:9
Seventh Commandment: Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy 5:18
Matthew 5:27-28; 19:18; Mark 10:11-12, 19; Luke 16:18; 18:20; Romans 7:2-3; 13:9
Eighth Commandment: Exodus 20:15; Deuteronomy 5:19
Matthew 19:18; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20; Romans 13:9; Ephesians 4:28; 1 Peter 4:15; Revelation 9:21
Ninth Commandment: Exodus 20:16; Deuteronomy 5:20
Matthew 19:18; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20; Acts 5:3-4; Romans 13:9; Ephesians 4:25
Tenth Commandment: Exodus 20:17; Deuteronomy 5:21
Luke 12:15; Romans 1:29; 7:7; 13:9; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 5:3, 5
Complete article at: http://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/10-commandments/the-ten-commandments/10-commandments-new-testament/
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The program on WGN TV this morning:
The Value of Women
"In a world that often devalues and dishonors women, where can a woman find her true value and identity? Learn the real truth."
Transcript at: http://www.ucg.org/beyond-today-program/christian-living/value-women
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On This Day:
Newspaper mistakenly declares Dewey president, Nov 3, 1948:
"On this day in 1948, the Chicago Tribune jumps the gun and mistakenly declares New York Governor Thomas Dewey the winner of his presidential race with incumbent Harry S. Truman in a front-page headline: "Dewey Defeats Truman."
Many of America's major newspapers had predicted a Dewey victory early on in the campaign. A New York Times article editorialized that "if Truman is nominated, he will be forced to wage the loneliest campaign in recent history." Perhaps not surprisingly then, Truman chose not to use the press as a vehicle for getting his message across. Instead, in July 1948, he embarked on an ambitious 22,000-mile "whistle stop" railroad and automobile campaign tour. At every destination, Truman asked crowds to help him keep his job as president. His eventual success in the election of 1948 has been largely attributed to this direct interaction with the public and his appeal to the common voters as the political "underdog." At the end of one of his campaign speeches, voices in the crowd could be heard yelling "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" It didn't take long for the phrase to catch on and become Truman's unofficial campaign slogan.
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D.C. residents cast first presidential votes, Nov 3, 1964:
Buttons like this could be seen around D.C. in 1964 as District residents voted in their first Presidential election. (Source: ebay)
"On this day in 1964, residents of the District of Columbia cast their ballots in a presidential election for the first time. The passage of the 23rd Amendment in 1961 gave citizens of the nation's capital the right to vote for a commander in chief and vice president. They went on to help Democrat Lyndon Johnson defeat Republican Barry Goldwater in 1964, the next presidential election.
When the Constitution was drafted, it granted each state the right to choose electors for the presidential election and to elect representation for the House of Representatives and the Senate. The District of Columbia, however, is a federal territory, not a state, so it had not been awarded this right. On March 29, 1961, the 23rd Amendment was ratified, granting residents of the District of Columbia the right to vote for electors in presidential elections for the first time. Before 1961, residents of the District of Columba were unable to vote in presidential elections.
Washington D.C. is not a state because the founders of the country did not want the Federal government to be ran by state laws or to be able to mingle. Since the states are able to make their own laws that would cause problems since the Federal laws are different.
As permitted by the U.S. Constitution, the District is under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Congress and is therefore not a part of any U.S. state."
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Yesterday:
Wendy called me earlier than usual for her Saturday phone call, and told me about their trip to the Texas Renaissance Festival last weekend, and other happenings.
It didn't take me so long to get ready for church, as I had done my hair the evening before, so I had more time to take Misty for a walk around here. Jay wasn't going with me as he is still on the job in Onalaska, TX, which is on Lake Livingston.
Also, the night before, I had set everything up for the crockpot for my contribution to the potluck after church. I turned on the crockpot when I got up at 6.00am, but it wasn't until 8.30am that I realized that I hadn't plugged it in! So I packed it in the car and hoped that it would finish cooking during the service.
Some new faces at church, well, to me anyway! That's the advantage of such a small congregation, everyone is so special, and is missed if absent. One was a lady who had been prayed for every time I was there, she was out of the hospital, so she and her daughter were there. It was great to finally meet them.
Another gentleman, who usually comes with his two pre-teen daughters, arrived with his wife and two little sons, also. The wife told me that she usually stays at home with the two toddlers as they don't behave very well during service, and I found out that was just about right.
An older gentleman (that means he is older than I!), who has been absent for a while, was back. Another lady, Mary, snuck in at the very back, and it was her first visit. She lives close by, and had been looking for a Sabbath, 7th Day church. It must help that there is a better sign out on the road now.
We all enjoyed the song service, prayers for those sick and in need, and then the Bible readings of Genesis chapters 1-6, and parts of Isaiah 42.
The sermon was about the Lord's compassion for His people, and many scriptures were quoted, but I couldn't hear a lot of it, as the two toddlers were taking turns talking or crying. The father and mother were doing their best to keep them quiet. As a contrast, we never hear a peep out of the other three wee ones that another mother brings every week, and she is there on her own. I suspect that their home life is more disciplined, less chaotic and happier, too.
The potluck was great, and several people complimented me on my crockpot dish. Mary didn't know that there was a potluck, and was hesitant about coming in the dining hall. We all cajoled her, so she had a good time eating and talking to us all. We enjoyed talking to her, too. She lives on acreage, is a nurse, and also has free range chickens, but never thought about selling their eggs. She said that she just fed the excess to her dogs! The pastor's wife and I said that we would be happy to buy them. Mary said that she will be back, I hope so.
The weather was just right, and it was a great day.
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