50 Years After the Moon Landing: Are There Greater Leaps Yet to Come? New Study Says to Eat More Beans, Less Beef. Update.

For: ”Scripture Sunday”:

50 Years After the Moon Landing: Are There Greater Leaps Yet to Come?

“Half a century has passed since the first man stepped onto the surface of our moon. How did that event change the world, and what can we expect in the future?

Space travel has fired up our imaginations for many generations. The idea of traveling off this earth and visiting other places in space has been explored in many science fiction books, movies and television shows.

Many older adults today grew up watching space adventure on shows like Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. Then came Star Trek and all the various spin-off shows and movies that have entertained and intrigued generations of fans. And the list could go on and on. This all illustrates the fascination human beings have with exploration of what’s “out there” in the vast reaches of space.

Baby steps into space

The first step toward traveling to other planetary bodies was to put a man on our own moon—in astronomical terms, a trip just “around the block.” Fifty years ago, on July 20, 1969, that was accomplished when astronauts from the Apollo 11 mission successfully landed a lunar module on the surface of the moon.

About six hours after the landing, mission commander Neil Armstrong stepped onto the lunar surface, something no human being had ever done before. At that moment he uttered the now famous line: “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Twenty minutes later, pilot Buzz Aldrin joined him. They spent 21½ hours on the surface of the moon before taking off to rejoin the Columbia spacecraft for the return trip to earth.

Their feat accomplished a goal set by U.S. President John Kennedy eight years earlier—to put a man on the moon before the end of the decade.

Fifty years later it is a bit difficult to comprehend the degree of anxiety the nation felt as the Saturn V rocket blasted off the launchpad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The space program had suffered its share of mishaps, including the devastating Apollo 1 disaster that killed three astronauts just 2½ years earlier.

That anxiety was replaced by elation when the entire mission went off as planned, and the three astronauts (including Michael Collins, who stayed aboard Columbia) splashed down safely on earth after eight days in space.

The impact of the space race

The “giant leap for mankind” could hardly have been understood at that juncture. A barrier had been broken. No longer was space travel something relegated to science fiction. It was now a reality.

But making that trip was not as simple as it appears in science fiction. Much of the technology required to safely put a man on the moon and bring him back had not existed even a decade earlier, so the pace of innovation and development was intense! And while human feet have not yet stepped on a planetary body beyond our moon, the effort at that time has had a profound impact on society.All this growth and development is a testament to the creativity and mental power God gave mankind.

Looking back at the leaps in technology, some estimate that the U.S. space program of the 1960s sped up major technological advancements by 10 to 20 years. In fact, the trickle-down effects of those efforts have led directly to many things we take for granted today, including cellular telephones, wireless equipment and technology, personal computers and tablet computers. While many of us remember when those things didn’t exist, today we find it hard to imagine living without them!

All this growth and development is a testament to the creativity and mental power God gave mankind. Our Creator gave us the ability to reason, plan, design and then implement those designs.

The Bible speaks about a “spirit in man” that God has given human beings that allows us to know “the things of a man” (1 Corinthians 2:11). It is this human spirit that sets us apart from all other life-forms and gives us the amazing mental abilities we have.

The dark side of human creativity

But we should never forget that there is also a dark side to the incredible creativity and power of the human mind.”       Continued at: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/prophecy/blog/50-years-after-the-moon-landing-are-there-greater-leaps-yet-to-come/?

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New Study Says to Eat More Beans, Less Beef

“Transformation to healthy diets by 2050 will require substantial dietary shifts. Global consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes will have to double, and consumption of foods such as red meat and sugar will have to be reduced by more than 50%. A diet rich in plant-based foods and with fewer animal source foods confers both improved health and environmental benefits.”
- Professor Walter Willett, MD Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

A recent report by the EAT-Lancet Commission, comprising of 37 leading scientists from 16 countries whose expertise range from human health, agriculture, political sciences and environmental sustainability, has found that “the global adoption of healthy diets from sustainable food systems would safeguard our planet and improve the health of billions.”
Here are a few excerpts from their report:

• Food is the single strongest lever to optimize human health and environmental sustainability on Earth.
• Unhealthy diets now pose a greater risk to morbidity and mortality than unsafe sex, alcohol, drug and tobacco use combined. Global food production threatens climate stability and ecosystem resilience and constitutes the single largest driver of environmental degradation and transgression of planetary boundaries. Taken together the outcome is dire. A radical transformation of the global food system is urgently needed. Without action, the world risks failing to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement, and today’s children will inherit a planet that has been severely degraded and where much of the population will increasingly suffer from malnutrition and preventable disease.
• How food is produced, what is consumed, and how much is lost or wasted all heavily shape the health of both people and planet. The EAT-Lancet Commission presents an integrated global framework and for the first time, provides quantitative scientific targets for healthy diets and sustainable food production. The Commission shows that feeding 10 billion people a healthy diet within safe planetary boundaries for food production by 2050 is both possible and necessary.

This is not new information. Dr. McDougall has been lecturing on the importance of a starch-based diet, with the addition of fruits and vegetables and no added oils, for the sustainability of both optimal health and the planet, for over 45 years. The gravity of our situation can be remedied overnight by simply choosing the correct foods to eat that will allow both you and the planet to flourish. Allow us, in multiple languages, to show you the way…”  From:  https://mailchi.mp/drmcdougall.com/less-beef-more-beans?

Dr. McDougall's Color Picture Book

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Update.

Another week of moving, sorting and donating stuff.  When will it end?

The buyer of my house and mini-house called me and said that as there was no one living in the mini-house that he wanted to have a crew come in and sheetrock the utility room.  So we moved everything out of it into the greenhouse which has the closest outside door. When the crew arrived they said no, it was the green house that they were supposed to sheet rock and they put everything outside in the carports.  All higgledy-piggledy with no sense of order. They said “we will move it later”, but then they had to move something that they had put right in their own way.  No sense of O-H-I-O…Only Handle It Once.  So the next day Zack and I sorted and straightened it all out, and made pathways through it.  Most of it is supposed to be picked up tomorrow.

Yes, they sheet-rocked the green house, which only has a dirt floor and they didn’t even have an electrician wire it first, so they have a bare, dirt floor, in a room with no electric outlets or lights.  The Buyer is in California, so he doesn’t really know what is needed, I guess, but you would think that whoever is ramrodding the job would have caught that.

My son-in-law had booked last Thursday and Friday off from work a long time ago because he also had the Saturday off and had intended to move me then.  My daughter, Wendy, and I kept on telling him that he was jumping the gun, because I don’t even have the apartment yet, they are still working on it.  I might have some news about it on Tuesday.  Everything is wait and see.  Even the large pieces of furniture that I have for sale, I am waiting to see if they sell or I will be donating them at the last minute.

After all the toting things, and my friends and family picking up stuff this week, I was just too tired and worn out to cook anything for the church potluck. Each evening I was hardly able to walk and couldn’t wait for bedtime, but Friday was really tiring.

So I opened an enormous can of Peaches in Pear Juice and took some Brownies. There were plenty of other dishes so we had a good lunch. The Bible readings were Exo. 27:20-28:30, Hos. 1:4-9, Heb. 4:14-16 and all of Matt. 26. The Teaching was about Don’t Take God Lightly, Have Reverence and Fear. If you look at all the times God has destroyed a nation or batch of people because of their gross immorality, disobedience, or worshipping idols, it really makes you think that you had better mend your ways today! 

10 Questions to Ask Before You Get Married. Update.

For “Scripture Sunday”:

10 Questions to Ask Before You Get Married

“Whether you have someone special in your life right now or not, here are 10 questions to consider when it comes to choosing your future spouse.

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Marriage is a big deal.

In fact, with the exception of your relationship with God, it might be the most important, most life-altering, most far-reaching commitment you’ll ever make in your entire life.

But the decision to commit to God through baptism is a little more clear-cut than the decision to get married. The overall question on the table with baptism is, “Are you going to commit to God’s way of life or not?” With marriage, there’s the added wrinkle of sorting out who you should make that commitment with, and how you can be sure he or she is the right person, and what you should be looking for to be sure.

What helps with that process is knowing the right questions to ask—which is why we’ve put together this list of 10 important questions to ask about the person you want to spend the rest of your life with.

Is this a comprehensive list of every question you’ll ever have to consider before marriage? Not by a long shot. But it is a place to start—and if you’re willing to answer these 10 questions honestly, they should leave you with a clearer picture of whether or not you’re on the right track.

1. Does he or she show you love and respect?

That might feel like an obvious question, but it’s easy to mistake mutual attraction for mutual love and respect. Just because you like each other doesn’t mean your relationship is anchored by these two essential qualities, so take some time to really think about it.

Paul told the congregation at Ephesus, “Let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband” (Ephesians 5:33).

We don’t show love and respect by accident. They aren’t things that just happen. To be consistent in these things, we have to be making a daily effort to express them—and to better understand what God says they mean. If the person you want to marry isn’t actively showing you love and respect, then the foundation of your marriage will be crippled from day one.

2. Are you moving toward the same goals?

Amos asked, “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” (Amos 3:3). By entering into the marriage covenant with someone, you’re agreeing to walk alongside him or her for the rest of your shared lives.

If you’re each looking toward different destinations in life, your marriage will feel the strain. But if you’re both headed the same direction, working with the same goals in mind and operating by the same values, your relationship will blossom and grow in the process.What do you want out of marriage? What do you want your home life to look like? What are your career goals? If you’re each looking toward different destinations in life, your marriage will feel the strain. But if you’re both headed the same direction, working with the same goals in mind and operating by the same values, your relationship will blossom and grow in the process.

3. How does he or she handle stressful situations?

It’s easy to be the best version of ourselves when life is going well—and in the beginning of a relationship, there will be a lot of easygoing, stress-free moments. It might even seem like things will always be that way—but that’s not how it works. Life will inject stress into your relationship, and it’s important to know how your potential spouse handles it.

Early in our relationship, my (then future) wife and I took a wrong turn during a road trip, which led us to a grid of under-construction city streets. After sunset. In an urban area neither of us had been in before.

It was an eye-opening experience because we both saw how the other handled unexpected stress. We made it out of there alive and (relatively) unscathed, and our budding relationship was stronger because of it.

“He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,” says the book of Proverbs, “and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city” (Proverbs 16:32). Marriage works better when the people in it know how to rule their spirits when times get tough—because they will get tough.

4. How does he or she treat others?

One of the most important observations you can make about the person you’d like to marry is how he or she treats others—especially the ones who can’t really do anything about it. Cashiers. Waiters and waitresses. Employees. Total strangers. Anonymous users on the Internet. When there’s no repercussion for being rude or unkind, what kind of personality do you see on display?

Proverbs describes the ideal woman as someone who “extends her hand to the poor, yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy” (Proverbs 31:20), and Jesus gave us the Golden Rule: “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them” (Matthew 7:12). Make sure your potential spouse is someone who extends kindness and compassion to others, even when there’s nothing to gain from it.

5. What if nothing ever changes?

What’s the most annoying trait of your potential spouse-to-be?

Got it? Okay. Now, if that trait never changed—if you knew it was going to stay just as annoying and just as consistent for the rest of your human life—would you still want to marry this person?

It’s a dangerous game to go into marriage expecting your partner to change in a specific way. Sure, life is full of change, but for all you know, that specific trait might stay the same forever or even get worse. And if it does, are you going to be okay with that? Or is that a deal breaker? The marriage covenant is a very permanent thing (Matthew 19:9), so it’s important that we don’t bank on change that might never happen.

6. How focused is he or she on self-improvement?

In contrast to the last question, being a Christian means being committed to change. Following God means seeking out where we’re falling short of His expectations and learning how to do better.

One of the qualities any potential spouse should have is the desire to improve as God reveals areas that need work. Make sure you’re looking to enter into marriage with someone who makes the effort to grow as a Christian.

7.a. Women: Is this a man you can follow and support, even when you disagree with him?

Paul wrote an instruction that can be hard to swallow: “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything” (Ephesians 5:22-24).

But there it is. In the marriage relationship, part of the wife’s role is to submit to her husband. Women, that doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to voice your concerns or express your hopes as your husband leads. It doesn’t mean you’re expected to become some kind of mindless slave or you’re expected to submit to things contrary to God’s instruction. But marriage does mean committing to following where your husband leads, even when you think another direction might work better.

Make sure you marry a man you’re not concerned about having to follow.

7.b. Men: Is this a woman whose input you will value and consider, even when you disagree with her?

Paul had something to say to the husbands too: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her” (Ephesians 5:25). It’s that last part that often gets overlooked. Men, our job is to love our wives as Christ loves the Church. That’s a deep kind of love—a love filled with self-sacrifice and unflinching dedication. A husband should make decisions that place higher value on his wife and family than himself.

Even though it’s our responsibility to take the reins of the relationship, we’re not the boss or the dictator. We’re the husband, and we are to give “honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life” (1 Peter 3:7, emphasis added throughout).

Make sure you marry a woman whose thoughts and opinions will help you make better decisions as a leader.

8. What’s his or her relationship with God like?

More tough words from Paul: “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God” (2 Corinthians 6:14-16).

That’s not optional. That’s not a matter of preference. That’s not a suggestion, a hope or a best-case scenario. This goes back to having the same goals. If the person you’re interested in doesn’t believe in God or in living His way of life, how can you expect to walk together?

Or if that belief or that way of life is just something on the back burner, something that gets pushed aside in favor of other things, do you think the command to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18) is going to be easier or harder for you?

Marry someone whose dedication to living God’s way of life inspires you to do a better job in your own life.

9. Is he or she willing to put God before you?

Ah. Now we’re into really difficult territory. This isn’t the picture Hollywood paints when it talks about romance—or all those inspirational quotes on social media, for that matter. The world around us says that true love is finding someone who makes you the focal point of his or her entire universe, who puts you before anything else.

When we lose sight of who should come first in our life, the other areas of our life are bound to come undone in the process.Marriage is a lot of things, but it shouldn’t be that. Not in a million years.

God was serious when He said, “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3). It wasn’t a joke. Nothing—nothing, not even your cherished wife or husband—is to come between you and your relationship with God (Deuteronomy 13:6-8).

Jesus also emphasized that God is to come first when He spoke His famous words, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

When we lose sight of who should come first in our life, the other areas of our life are bound to come undone in the process. “All these things”—all the blessings and benefits of life, which include marriage—come second to God.

If you want a successful marriage, make sure you’re looking for someone who will put God first—and you second.

10. What’s your relationship with God like?

But then, all this assumes one very important point—that God matters to you too. That you’re making the effort to put Him first in your life. That you treat others with compassion. That you’re making the effort to improve and grow as a child of God. Because, well, it’s a two-way street—if you’re asking these questions about the person you want to marry, then hopefully the person you want to marry will be asking these same questions about you.

Whether you’ve had someone in mind as you’ve made your way through this list or you’re still searching for that special someone, one of the best things you can do is to start making sure you can measure up to the questions on this list too. It’s a lifelong project, and there’s always room for each of us to continue improving ourselves—both for our own sake and for our spouse’s.

The book of Proverbs tells us that “he who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the LORD” (Proverbs 18:22), and again, “Houses and riches are an inheritance from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the LORD” (Proverbs 19:14).

Marriage, entered into by the right people and for the right reasons, is an incredible blessing from God, and it’s never too early (or too late) to start preparing for it.

Want more? Check out our articles “5 Traits Men Should Look for in a Godly Woman” and “5 Traits Women Should Look for in a Godly Man.”

Sidebar: How You Might Be Ruining Your Marriage Before It Even Starts

In many countries, around 50 percent of all marriages end in divorce.

That’s not a great success rate—especially when you consider that no one enters into marriage with the hope that the relationship will end in shambles.

Unfortunately, there are social norms and decisions people make every day that can make nurturing a healthy marriage increasingly difficult. What’s more, some of these can impact your future marriage long before you have a wedding date (or even a spouse) in mind.

If you want a strong marriage, here are two pitfalls to avoid—and why:

Cohabitation

Moving in together is so common these days that it almost raises an eyebrow when two people decide not to live together before they get married. Most people look at cohabitation as a way to test-drive a marriage—to see if everything is satisfactory before making a big commitment.

Here’s why that’s a problem:

Marriage isn’t about everything working perfectly. In fact, if there’s one thing you can count on in marriage, it’s things not working perfectly. If you’re cohabiting—if you’re just two people living together, bound by nothing more than a feeling of affection—it’s a lot easier to walk away when things get tough.

Marriage—at least the kind of marriage God intended for us to have—is a binding commitment between two people. It’s an agreement that when things get difficult, the husband and the wife will put in the effort to make things work.

You can’t test-drive that kind of commitment.

More than that, God designed the sexual union to exist between a husband and wife exclusively. The Bible says, “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge” (Hebrews 13:4). Sex serves as a powerful bond between husband and wife—but the more potential marriages you try and test-drive, the more diluted that bond will be when you finally say, “I do.”

Sexualized content

This one umbrella covers a lot of territory. Yes, we’re talking about outright pornography here, but also anything that uses the idea of sex as a selling point or in a provocative way. That includes everything from sex scenes in popular movies to advertisements that want you to focus less on the product and more on the attractive model displaying it.

Understand that the world is selling you a false (and largely impossible) concept of what sex is and how it works. The more you let that imagery in—the more you believe what the world tells you about how sex should look—the more disappointed and frustrated you’ll be when your own marriage fails to live up to those impossible expectations.

Sex is a fantastic, awesome gift designed by God to bolster and enhance a marriage, which is why Satan is eager to cheapen and trivialize it. You don’t have to be married to negatively impact your future marriage—but the good news is, the opposite is also true. You don’t have to be married to set your future marriage up for success. Making good decisions now—and avoiding the bad ones—can make all the difference later.”

—Jeremy Lallier

About the Author

Jeremy Lallier is a full-time writer working at the Life, Hope & Truth offices in Allen, Texas. He has a degree in information technology, three years’ experience in the electrical field and even spent a few months upfitting police vehicles—but his passion has always been writing (a hobby he has had as long as he can remember). Now he gets to do it full-time for Life, Hope & Truth and loves it. He particularly enjoys writing on Christian living themes—especially exploring what it looks like when God’s Word is applied to day-to-day life. In addition to writing blog posts, he is also the producer of the Life, Hope & Truth Discover video series and regularly writes for Discern magazine.

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Update. 

One week of going through things, tossing things, putting things at the curb, donating, packing, and waiting for people to come and pick up the stuff they wanted.  A lot of things have gone, but there is so much more to get rid of, or keep. My daughter and granddaughter came on Friday evening and took a couple of rolls of fencing and some posts. I fed them Impossible Organic Lamb Pie with Veggies. I made enough pies to take some to church the next day.

For the church potluck, I cooked the two frozen pizzas that I had in the church freezer, and warmed up a big can of vegetarian baked beans and some frozen black-eyed peas.  Fortunately, I had cooked those frozen b/e peas at home, I had no idea that they would take that long to cook!

The Bible readings were Psa. 20 and 63, Exo. 26:31-27:19, Eze 16:10-19, Heb. 8:1-6, and all of Matt. 25. The Teaching was about  The Power of The Holy Spirit.

These have been very tiring, back-breaking days.

Neither Shall They Learn War Anymore. God vs. Satan: The Battle of the Ages. Update.

For “Scripture Sunday”:

Neither Shall They Learn War Anymore

“This phrase reflects a universal longing. But our world is addicted to ever more deadly war. How will the promise of peace really be fulfilled?

[From the January/February 2014 issue of Discern.]

The irony was hard to miss, even for nonreligious people. Here was a militaristic, atheistic global power, bringing to the world a peace gift inspired by—of all things—the Bible.

It was 1959 when the Soviet Union presented to the United Nations a bronze statue of a brawny man wielding a hammer. With it, he was reshaping a weapon representing war and destruction, a sword, into a tool suggesting peace and goodness, a plow.

Coming from a regime that disdained the Bible, persecuted the religious and had recently slaughtered millions of its own citizens, Russia’s gesture rang hollow. But the words on this famous statue, “We Shall Beat Our Swords Into Plowshares,” strongly resonated in the hearts of people around the world, as they do to this day.

When accepting this gift, then Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld declared that “the ancient dream of mankind, reflected in the words of Isaiah,” was the same dream that had inspired the creation of the U.N.

The statue, regrettably, does not cite Isaiah’s exact words. But in a park across the street from the U.N. stands the “Isaiah Wall,” inscribed with more of the prophet’s quote: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation. Neither shall they learn war any more.”

World statesmen often quote this verse in speeches. Musicians set it to songs ranging from the stirring finale in Les Miserables to Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World.” And anyone who reads it can identify with it: “That’s the world I want!” Isaiah’s words beautifully encapsulate a universal longing.” Continued at: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/prophecy/kingdom-of-god/neither-shall-they-learn-war-anymore/

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God vs. Satan: The Battle of the Ages

“Across a span of time and on spiritual battlefields our human minds can only struggle to comprehend, an epic battle has been raging between God and a powerful, evil spirit—Satan the devil. This battle has impacted the course of history in powerful ways (and continues to do so)—but in order to fully understand the battle of God vs. Satan, we have to step back to the earliest pages of human history.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Although we are only given small glimpses of the world prior to man, the Scriptures tell us that during this time Lucifer, one of the high-ranking angels serving before God’s throne, convinced a third of the angels to follow him in rebellion against God (Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:13-16; Revelation 12:7-9).

Apparently, because of this great battle, the beautiful earth God had created (Isaiah 45:18) became “without form, and void” (Genesis 1:2). Because of Lucifer’s rebellion, his name was changed to Satan, meaning “adversary.” His followers, fallen angels, became known as demons.

(To learn what the Bible reveals to us about these fallen angels, read our article “Are Demons Real?”)

After refashioning the earth so it could sustain human life, God created the first man, Adam. Eve, the first woman, was created a short time later. In addition to placing them in the Garden of Eden, where they could live and multiply, God gave them instruction in the way of life that would lead to happiness and eternal life.

But this couple was also given the choice of whether they would obey their Creator or choose their own path. God gave Adam and Eve the first opportunity to rule when He put all things under the feet of man, giving him dominion over the works of God’s hand (Psalm 8:4-8).

Satan the deceiver attacks mankind

Though largely banished to earth (Luke 10:18) with only a few exceptions when he could appear before God’s throne (Job 1:6), Satan and his demons were not ready to concede in their fight against God. Satan the devil soon brought the battle to the Garden of Eden.

Satan convinced the first man and his wife to disregard the instruction and commandments of God. They bought the lie that man can choose for himself what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is evil. As a result of this tragic decision, sin entered the world and death entered by sin. Man cut himself off from the guidance, direction and blessings of God.

From mankind’s perspective, this began the battle of light vs. darkness, right vs. wrong, evil vs. good. Sides were drawn. Camps and philosophies were developed.  Whose side are you on?

Continued at: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/prophecy/kingdom-of-god/god-vs-satan/

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Update.

My neighbor Zack, and I are still digging stuff out of everywhere and sorting it into departments.  Some for this granddaughter, some for the other one, some for this thrift shop, and some for another one. We took many items to the curb, and they have already disappeared.  One man’s trash…..   

This morning we took some shelf units and lots of articles that I have for sale to a storage unit on FM 1097.  It is on the way to Navasota, but only about 7 miles from here.  I rented it for three months, just long enough to get stuff out of the houses and later I can move it, or sell it, at my leisure.  It will be cooler by then, too.  Different friends and family members are coming this week to get what they want.  Just got a call that someone wants all my gardening tools, shovels, rakes, hoes, hoses, etc., but I can’t let my weed whacker, lawnmower, hedge clippers or blower go yet because I still need to maintain the place for the next four weeks.  Then I will be free !!!!

My son-in-law and grandson are coming to move me on the w/e of the 20th, so I have marked everything that is going to the apartment with a patch of blue painter’s tape.  That is the tape that comes off easily without leaving any residue.

For the church potluck on the Sabbath, I took some frozen organic pizzas.  I am trying to get my freezers as empty as possible.  Then I made two sheet pans of oven-fried rutabaga fries. I could have cooked them in my airfryer, but I had so many that I did it in the convection oven. Just about the same thing.  But we had so much food at the potluck that we saved the pizzas for another time. The rutabaga fries went down well, even the kids liked them.

The Bible readings were Psa. 24 and 15, Exo. 26:1-30, Eze. 16:10-19, Heb. 8:16 and all of Matt. 24.  The Teaching was “Jeremiah and The Changing Times.” 

I am so anxious that I won’t have it all moved in time, but we will keep plugging at it day by day.

Searching for Equality on The 4th. Update.

Searching for Equality

On this Fourth of July, Americans are striving for equality. The Bible reveals the true standard of equality.    

Transcript of YouTube: https://youtu.be/QVgH-dFnhGA

[Darris McNeely] “This week is the 4th of July in the United States, a national day of celebration of its independence. The Declaration of Independence was signed on or about July 4th. And it’s a remarkable document in all of history. Probably, the most quoted phrase is that we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. And that has been the ideal throughout American history of creating a society of equality for everyone. It has gone a long way. It’s not been perfect. And today there’s a great deal of discussion about what really would make this country equal for everybody. And some have a different ideology. Some want to go towards socialism, some want to just stay with capitalism. But it’s still a much-debated idea. What is it that makes everyone equal in the phrasing of the

Declaration of Independence is something to think about on this particular day, not just for Americans, but really for everyone.

There was a line from a book that I have often gone to, called “The History of the English Speaking Peoples.” It talks about the history of America and Britain, but it concludes after talking about all of the advancements and the achievements of these peoples throughout the last 200 or so years, and it makes a comment about the English speaking peoples, America, Britain, Australia, Canada, and others being what the author calls the last best hope for mankind. And that as history goes along and should things ever change, he makes this one comment about what these people stand for and I think it’s something to think about at this time. He says, “When the time finally comes to render up the report of their global stewardship and history, there will be much of which to boast and only when another power holds global sway will the human race come to mourn the passing of this most decent, honest, generous, fair-minded and self-sacrificing imperium,” speaking about the English speaking peoples.

And again, as we think about the national day of celebration of the 4th of July, what Thomas Jefferson wrote with the phrase, “All men are created equal,” I think that the best thing I could go back to is what we find in the book of Galatians, where the Apostle Paul wrote about true equality and let’s measure that up against any other human standard of government and our ideas. In Galatians 3:26, Paul writes that, “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many as you have been baptized into Jesus, you have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

That’s the standard. That’s the gold standard for equality from a biblical perspective that Paul writes here. And then he says, “And if you are Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.” That’s the standard of equality.

There’s been no nation in all of history to come up to it. I think that what we might look at with the history of the English speaking peoples has brought a fair measure of prosperity and levels of equality for many people around the world through history. There’s a lot yet still to improve, and it’s only when mankind comes up to the standard of equality that God puts forth that there can be a true celebration.”    From: https://www.ucg.org/beyond-today/beyond-today-daily/searching-for-equality

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Update

It’s been a busy week, because the sale of the houses looks like it will go through.  Some of the closing paperwork was done on Wednesday, but I have to drive back there on Monday to do more, and get the check.

Chris and I went to Navasota to look at my apartment.  It is under 600 sq.ft. but it has everything I need.  It isn’t ready yet, they are replacing the carpet with woodgrain-looking vinyl, and painting the walls.  But I can’t sell my carpet/upholstery cleaner yet as there will be rugs and furniture that will need cleaning.  We measured the rooms and I transferred that to squared paper when I got home.  Any of my furniture that won’t fit, I have taken pictures and listed on Craigslist. If it doesn’t sell before I have to empty the houses, there is a consignment place in Conroe.

Zack and I have dragged most of my stuff out of the front part of big house attic, got it down the stairs and into my van.  Mostly fabric from when I was in the curtain making business, and then lots of picture frames from when I was making and collecting them. It was all donated to a good cause, just to get it out of the way. There are a lot more items in the back half of that attic, but it’s hot up there, even with the fans running. 

Some things, like extra end tables and table lamps I have just put on the side of the road, and people are looking every day to see what I am putting at the curb.  Now some stuff I am keeping to sell at the flea market in between Navasota and College Station.

Some of my larger power tools were given to an elder at the church who is a handyman whose tools were stolen. He needed the table saw and chop saw to make a living.  I don’t want them any more because a man is buying the travel trailer that I was fixing up. Now I won’t have to fool with that. 

I will have to find a corner in the apartment for the things that I think I need to hang onto for now, like my compressor for airing tires, my floor jack, shop vac, mechanic tools, in case I need them.  But all the sanders, staplers, nail guns, sawsall, nails, screws, lumber, trim, plumbing parts, electrical parts, spray paint, wall paint, texture, Kilz, ladders, etc. can all go. 

It is such a relief not having to fix anything any more.  But there is so much stuff to move out of here in the next month, it is a daunting task.  My granddaughter wants all my extra rolls of fencing and posts, and my son-in-law wants my collection of treated lumber, gutters and parts.  It’s all gotta go.

Moving into a little senior apartment seems like there won’t be anything to do, but I’ll find plenty.

Because I had been so busy, I took a steamer and some store bought beef and chicken tamales to church for the potluck.  Then we looked at the ingredients and there was LARD fat, and as you know, we don’t do pork.  Nor does Joel Osteen, if you have ever watched that message of his. https://youtu.be/3UA9cPL0RXg  So for once in all these years I made no food contribution to the potluck.

The Bible readings were Exo.25:1-40, Isa. 66;1,2, 1 Cor. 6:18-20, and all of Matt. 23.  The Teaching was “The Holy Spirit Dwelling in The Believer”.

Trying to get everything out of these houses and storage sheds is going to keep everybody very busy for the next 30 days.