Monday, June 29, 2009

Press For Truth

I want to write today just to write. I need to clear my mind.

The last year has been a sort of extreme personal renewal. As I come upon my last year of undergrad, I have been searching like a crazy person for God in my life, for hope, for anything that points to more life, and mostly researching all things that put fear in my life with the hope of understanding and conquering those fears. I have yet, though, to learn how to swim under water, one of those things that fears me but will come to an end one day; it has not been at the top of my mind in this past year.

I have been a huge follower of the happenings of Nine-Eleven. I am currently watching this video "911 Press For Truth" [http://media.abovetopsecret.com/media/48/911_Press_For_Truth_part_1/]. (If you watch no other one, watch part 5.) I'm not a huge fan of our government, or moreso the elite that seem to have a major hand in everything that happens. From pages I have read, I can assume that people, whether American government or not, fully were aware that something big was going to happen that morning nearly eight years ago. I dont know the full details, and I'm not sure I want to. If the government wants to hide something they will and they'll take out anyone who gets in their way.

The government makes me angry. The American government makes me angry. There are so many things that we are not told as American citizens. Big Pharma makes me angry. The diminishing nutrition in our States upsets me. The lack of attention to health and what keeps people healthy makes me angry. Do you know how the government is controlling the slow death of Americans through the lack of proper health by nutrition and health care?

My father is a brain cancer survivor, a hero to our family, a former NASA employee, an Air Force veteran, a supportive husband, and a father to three very blessed children. The family members often question what made dad so sick, what caused his cancer. My dad loved drinking tea and often put in a sweetener that contained aspartame, a chemical that had ignored studies that revealed lab mice had brain tumors after consuming food with aspartame over some period of time. I dont doubt that it had some sort of attributing factor, but I am not fully blaming the chemical either. I could find out in some years that it is something that is also genetic, but that is also something I am trying to prevent.

I am the best test subject I personally know. I have tried more things with myself than I care to remember. I continue to change my eating habits, extend my sleeping habits, find ways to decrease or balance my work hours, and continue to learn as much as I can as often as I can. My faith grows stronger every day, though I still question many things. Getting through the Old Testament has brought into my head many questions, and I continue to seek answers for both the days of the past and those of the future.

For the end of June, have you heard about the deaths of four celebrities, stories which have taken over the public airways? [http://www.postchronicle.com/news/entertainment/article_212240347.shtml] And with that, the reports of the dead are pulling the attention of America away from the fact that the energy/climate change bill is on its way up and has been [barely] passed by the house of representatives. [http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h2454/show] It is another thing that most Americans are ignorant of, the fact that the media influences us so much. And, when I asked some older gentlement if he heard about the energy bill today at work, he responded with "that's good, right?" Not exactly. I urge you to continue to read and follow the next link.

There are places we can find information, though, that helps us to understand what is happening in our world [if we so desire to KNOW the TRUTH]. (If you desire to learn more, I am willing to help.) But, reading this yesterday made me smile: "In fact, the two biggest green house gas polluters is the oceans, and volcanoes. Do the Democrats plan to control the oceans and volcanoes too? Are you going to outlaw water vapor? Will there be a fine for a volcano daring to erupt?" [http://politicalpistachio.blogspot.com/2009/06/climate-bill-hr-2454-disaster-for.html] Have you seen the movie "The Inconvenient Truth?" It's garbage. Global warming is garbage. NEWSFLASH. Global warming is a natural occuring pattern over God only knows how long on this Earth. We are pawns and we will believe what we are told.

I won't deny that I think Amercans especially need to "do their part" in learning to be less wasteful, but global warming has become the next big hoax. We waste so many resources and how many of us really recycle as well as we could? How many of us actually know what can be recycled or even where to take it? How many of us are teaching our kids or the youth to be more kind to the environment? How many of us are being proactive to even conserve energy or water? I doubt that the energy bill as it currently stands will pass. It would be a terrible thing if it did, but I think some things are definitely in order to change. I think we need to become more like Boulder, CO or the state of Pennsylvania and others that are increasing the rate of recycling, making it a necessity, and setting goals towards reducing wasted resources.

Still, as a country the majority of us are force fed lies and told what to do, what to believe, and need to stand up for ourselves a bit more. Do you agree? I'd like to hear your opinions. If you have websites to share that may help advance my own knowledge please do so. I have a last site for this message that I encourage you to watch. It touched me to an extent that I don't know I can properly explain. I can simply say I am happy to be what I stand up and present myself as. Enjoy!

http://www.worldviewtube.com/video.php/videoid-4207/Brannon-Howse/Brannon-Howse

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Day 6 Exodus 16-28

Day 6 Exodus 16-28

Exodus 18:15-16 “Moses answered him, ‘Because the people come to me to seek God's will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God's decrees and laws.’”

Exodus 19:3-6 “Then Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain and said, ‘This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.’”

- The Lord speaks with Moses telling him the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai (See Exodus 20).

- Rules about both servants and injuries to both people and animals are announced as well as further rules regarding people and property.

Exodus 23:25-26 “Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you, and none will miscarry or be barren in your land. I will give you a full life span.”

Exodus 24:7-8 “Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, ‘We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey.’ Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, ‘This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.’”

Exodus 24:12 “The LORD said to Moses, ‘Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and commands I have written for their instruction.’”

- Moses receives instruction for the building and furnishing of the tabernacle.

- He also receives instruction on bringing Aaron and his sons to serve as priests, as well as details on the garments they are to wear.

Friday, June 5, 2009

Day 5 of 90 day Bible challenge!

Day 5 – Reading Exodus 1-15

- Egypt receives a new ruler generations after Joseph who does not know of Joseph.

- This new ruler works the Israelites hard and seeks to have their newborn boys killed.

Exodus 1:22 “Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: ‘Every boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.’”

- Pharaoh’s daughter found a child in the river bank, sought a Hebrew woman to nurse him (his own mother), and took him, Moses, as a son when he became older.

Exodus 2:10 “When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, ‘I drew him out of the water.’”

- Moses killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew. It became known to Pharaoh, and Moses fled.

- Moses helped water a flock at a distant well, stayed with the owner of the flock and received a wife.

Exodus 2:23-25 “During that long period, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God. God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.”

-God speaks to Moses through a burning bush telling him to go to Egypt to bring out the Israelites.

Exodus 3:19-22 “But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go. ‘And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposed toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed. Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the Egyptians.’”

- At Moses’ and Aaron’s arrival, Pharaoh increases the work the Israelites must complete, but God is still persistent with Moses telling him he will bring them out of Egypt.

Exodus 7:1-5 “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. You are to say everything I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his country. But I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and though I multiply my miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt, he will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites. And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it.’”

Exodus 8:22-23 “But on that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen, where my people live; … so that you will know that I, the LORD, am in this land. I will make a distinction between my people and your people. This miraculous sign will occur tomorrow.”

- The Lord performed many harsh miraculous signs against the Egyptians.

Exodus 12:12-14 “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn—both men and animals—and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt. This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD -a lasting ordinance.”

- After life was taken from the firstborns of the Egyptian households and their flocks, Pharaoh finally let the Israelites free from the land of Egypt.

Exodus 13:14-16 “In days to come, when your son asks you, 'What does this mean?' say to him, 'With a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed every firstborn in Egypt, both man and animal. This is why I sacrifice to the LORD the first male offspring of every womb and redeem each of my firstborn sons.' And it will be like a sign on your hand and a symbol on your forehead that the LORD brought us out of Egypt with his mighty hand."

Exodus 14:13-14 “Moses answered the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.’”

- The Egyptians went after the Israelites to the Red Sea, Moses raised his staff, the waters divided, and the Egyptians followed them on the dry land before the sea returned undivided. The Israelites made it through safely, but not one of the Egyptians survived because the waters came down upon them.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Day 4: Genesis 41-50

It is day four! The reading for today includes Genesis 41 to 50, which concludes our reading of Genesis! The reading covers Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams of seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine, Jacob’s sons travel to Egypt for food, but Joseph sends them with food asking them to bring their youngest brother (the brothers did not recognize Joseph), the brothers return with Benjamin and feast with Joseph, Joseph tells them who he is, the family of Joseph move closer during the famine into Egypt at Goshen, Israel (Jacob) blesses the sons of Joseph and all of his own sons, and both Jacob and Joseph die.

Genesis 41:39-40 “Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.’”

Genesis 41:55-57 “When all Egypt began to feel the famine, the people cried to Pharaoh for food. Then Pharaoh told all the Egyptians, "Go to Joseph and do what he tells you." When the famine had spread over the whole country, Joseph opened the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe throughout Egypt. And all the countries came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the world.”

Genesis 42:33-34 “Then the man who is lord over the land said to us, 'This is how I will know whether you are honest men: Leave one of your brothers here with me, and take food for your starving households and go. But bring your youngest brother to me so I will know that you are not spies but honest men. Then I will give your brother back to you, and you can trade in the land.'”

Genesis 43:15-16 “So the men took the gifts and double the amount of silver, and Benjamin also. They hurried down to Egypt and presented themselves to Joseph. When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, ‘Take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and prepare dinner; they are to eat with me at noon.’”

Genesis 44:27-29 “Your servant my father said to us, 'You know that my wife bore me two sons. One of them went away from me, and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.” And I have not seen him since. If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in misery.'”

Genesis 45:17-20 “Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘Tell your brothers, “Do this: Load your animals and return to the land of Canaan, and bring your father and your families back to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt and you can enjoy the fat of the land.” You are also directed to tell them, “Do this: Take some carts from Egypt for your children and your wives, and get your father and come. Never mind about your belongings, because the best of all Egypt will be yours.”’”

Genesis 46:2-6 “And God spoke to Israel in a vision at night and said, ‘Jacob! Jacob!’ ‘Here I am,’ he replied. ‘I am God, the God of your father,’ he said. ‘Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again. And Joseph's own hand will close your eyes.’ Then Jacob left Beersheba, and Israel's sons took their father Jacob and their children and their wives in the carts that Pharaoh had sent to transport him. They also took with them their livestock and the possessions they had acquired in Canaan, and Jacob and all his offspring went to Egypt.”

Genesis 47:20-24 “So Joseph bought all the land in Egypt for Pharaoh. The Egyptians, one and all, sold their fields, because the famine was too severe for them. The land became Pharaoh's, and Joseph reduced the people to servitude, from one end of Egypt to the other. However, he did not buy the land of the priests, because they received a regular allotment from Pharaoh and had food enough from the allotment Pharaoh gave them. That is why they did not sell their land. Joseph said to the people, ‘Now that I have bought you and your land today for Pharaoh, here is seed for you so you can plant the ground. But when the crop comes in, give a fifth of it to Pharaoh. The other four-fifths you may keep as seed for the fields and as food for yourselves and your households and your children.’”

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Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Day 3 of 90 day Bible challenge!

It is now day three with reading from Genesis 29 to 40! [I do realize I am getting these out a bit late, but I will get all caught up and perhaps ahead this weekend!] This section of chapters covers quite a bit of the stories of Jacob and the beginning of Joseph. It begins with Jacob and his earning of his two wives Leah and Rachel, and it continues with the birth of his children. Rachel’s first child is Joseph, and her second is Benjamin. The story of Jacob goes on with a lot of traveling, his meeting with his brother Esau, and again more travels as he returns to Bethel. Soon after, the deaths of Rachel and Isaac occur. It then turns toward Joseph to tell about his dreams of ruling over his brothers, his brothers’ plan to kill him, but then they sell him as a slave, and Joseph ends up in Egypt.

Genesis 32:20 “And be sure to say, ‘Your servant Jacob is coming behind us … later, when I see him, perhaps he will receive me.’"

Genesis 34:25,31 After Dinah was raped: “Three days later, while all of them were still in pain, two of Jacob's sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brothers, took their swords and attacked the unsuspecting city, killing every male. … they replied, ‘Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?’”

Genesis 37:26-27 “Judah said to his brothers, ‘What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? Come, let's sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.’ His brothers agreed.”

Genesis 39:5 “From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph.”

Genesis 39:20-23 “Joseph's master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph's care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.”

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Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Day 2 of 90 day Bible challenge!

It is day two with reading from Genesis 17 to 28! How is the reading going? Are you using BibleGateway.com to listen along as you read, just as I am? The reading for today covers the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the birth of Isaac, Abraham’s sacrifice on the mountain of the Lord, the death of Sarah, the finding of Rebekah as a wife for Isaac, the death of Abraham, and Jacob’s deceit against his brother Esau.

Genesis 17:16 “I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her.”

Genesis 18:14 “Is anything too hard for the Lord?”

Genesis 22:15-18 Abraham’s devotion and obedience to the Lord brings affirmed promise of many descendents.

Genesis 24:15 “Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder.”

Genesis 25:28 “Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.”

Genesis 25:31 “Jacob replied, ‘First sell me your birthright.’”

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Monday, June 1, 2009

Beginning in the Pentateuch

Have you begun reading? The 90 day Bible challenge is in full swing. June 1st had an assignment of Genesis 1-16. It holds information on the creation of this world as being of God’s will, how man and woman were created in His image, their moral disobedience that resulted in the beginning of sin, how the consequences of sin are now among all peoples, and journeys into the lives of Noah through the flood and Abraham as he awaits a child.

Genesis 2:2-3 “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”

Genesis 4:7 “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”

Genesis 6:3 “Then the LORD said, ‘My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years.’”

Genesis 9:8-16 The rainbow as a reminder of the covenant God has with Noah; He will never again destroy life on Earth by use of a flood.

Genesis 15:1 “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.”

Genesis 15:18 God’s promise of land to Abram for his descendants

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Let's stay on top of this reading! I'll be back tomorrow with more updates!