Follow in His steps

1 Peter 2:21
To this you were called, … that you should follow in his steps.

I was listening to a radio preacher today covering 1 Ptr 2. He talked about following in the steps of Christ.

Jesus was the second Adam. (1 Corinthians 15:45-47) The thought that struck me at that time is that we can choose to follow in the steps of the second Adam which is obedience in Christ, or we will follow in the steps of the first Adam in disobedience.

Selah, Think on these things.

Creation

Most people think that in Genesis 1 God created light, God created the land and the seas, God created plant life, God created the sun and the moon ... etc.

If you will read Genesis 1 carefully, that's not what it says. In verse 1, God created the heaven and the earth. In verse 21 God created "the great crocodiles (interesting translation), and every living creature that moves ...And in verse 27 God created Mankind in his image.The definition of 'create' I learned many years ago was 'to bring into existence something which had never before existed.'

In verse 3 God said, Let there be light. So whatever light consisted of had already been in existence before, but had been destroyed in the war between verse 1 and verse 2.

In verse 6 God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters. Nothing new had to be created for this.

In verse 9 God said Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together. So in verse 6 and 9, day 2 and the first part of day 3, God just rearranged what was already created and brought forth by His Words.

In verse 11 God said Let the earth bring forth grass ... He formed plant life. But He didn't create anything here. So these things also must have existed in the First Heaven and Earth.

In verse 14 God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven. And the sun and the moon and the stars were set in their place and set in their courses. Plant life needed light, but not the light of the sun and the moon on that first day of life.

In verse 20 God said Let the water swarm abundantly with moving creatures that have life, and let birds fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And the waters and the skies above were populated.

In verse 24 God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind, and cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the earth after its kind. And the lands were populated.

In verse 26 God said,Let us make Mankind in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, 27 So God created Mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created him: male and female he created them.

Finally God creates something new! What is the "image of God"? God is spirit (Jn 4:4). He does not have a physical body. What God created on the sixth day is a man with spirit. (Unfortunately, Adam and Eve gave up that spirit in the Garden of Eden when they chose to disobey God's only commandment.)

Light

Gen 1:3 And God said, Let there be light and there was light.
Gen 1:14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; ...
1:16 And God made the two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; and the stars also.

So God called forth light on the first day and he made the sun, moon and stars of the fourth day. So what was the light? Where did it come from and what did it do?

It must have been something spiritual. Something that holds the world together. God did nothing that week without it.

Selah. Think on these things.

"Without form and void"

I mentioned last week that Gen 1:2 says that the "earth was without form and void (Hebr- tohu va bohu)." The other use of that phrase, tohu va bohu, is in Is 46:18 - "For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain (tohu va bohu), he formed it to be inhabited." If it was that way, but He did not create it that way, what happened? There was a war in heaven, when Lucifer and 1/3 of all the angels rebelled against God. One theory is that that war happened between Gen 1:1 and Gen 1:2. I tend to agree, but I can't prove it so I will not say it is absolutely so. But, then again, there is a lot I won't express that way! :-)

Trees - Garden of Eden

I was reading an article in Acres, USA, last night and this statement grabbed my attention: "The Old English word, æppel (apple) referred to any fruit in general, not solely ..." (to what we call an apple).

There appear to be two trees in Gen 2 and 3: The tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:17) and the tree of life (Gen 2:9). I don't know anything about these.

That Eve and Adam ate of the fruit (æppel?) may have been the origin of them eating an apple, as in Old English. Nowhere is an apple referenced in this part of scripture.

(I can't seem to figure out how to post comments, so for this first entry I'll just add to my original post.)

From Colleen:

I’m wondering if it wasn’t a physical tree at all, rather a choice.

The tree of knowledge of good and evil: Not a tree where you eat fruit, buThe t rather a choice to trust God and obey Him, or to obey Satan.

So, perhaps a choice was given:

God told them they could eat from the tree of life: God’s ways, His instructions, His guidance, trusting Him, and doing all He commanded them; OR

God’s warning (not to eat from the tree of Knowledge of good and evil): Satan’s ways, his instructions, his lies, his suggestions, etc.

Even listened to Satan and took his advice, but that doesn’t mean it was physical fruit to eat. It was more like not acting on God’s word when the temptation came to them in the garden. Much like Yeshua was tempted by Satan in the wilderness. Yeshua chose God’s words and instructions over Satan’s.

Adam and Eve chose to reject the tree of life (Christ) and ate from the wicked tree (Satan’s temptations in the garden)

In my opinion, Genesis is not talking about real trees and real fruit you eat through your body. It was talking about the choice between God and Satan.

...

The underlying message is indisputably (I hate that word, but is 'generally accepted' at least) about obedience. Eve may have been deceived, but there is no indication that Adam was.

The first recorded words from God to man were "Of every tree of the garden thou mayst freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it" for on the day that thou eatest thereof it thou shalt surely die." These words were spoken to Adam before Eve was made. Did he not pass the word sufficiently? Did she not hear?

But when it came to her offering it to him, he accepted and no word of objection was given in the scriptures.

His response to God: The woman made me do it.
Hers: The serpent deceived me and I ate it. (The devil made me do it.)

Jesus, the second Adam, overcame deception and temptations of the devil by feeding God's words right back at him. Our salvation is based on that decision.

More about the method of deception and the temptations later.

Let's try this again

I'm starting a Bible study. Or more (so far) like a thought for a day. I'll also try to pick up on my garden which is doing much better this year.

Books-Civil War vs Health Care Control

When I retired 2 1/2 years ago I was given a passel of books. Those of you who know me, know that I am a voracious reader. I have read almost all of those books and all other books by those authors, at least in that series.

I started again this past week "Lincoln," an historical novel by Gore Vidal. As I began reading, I began to notice the similarities between then and now.

I don't have at my fingertips all the statistics, but the root cause of the Civil War was not slavery, but states' rights. The Southern states wanted the right to determine whether or not to retain slavery as a way of life. Today's issue is federally mandated health "care."

Last I heard, 13 states' attorneys general have suits ready, if not already filed, questioning the legality of the bill under the Constitution. Many states have declared that they will not enforce this law. At what point did the Federal Government acquire the right to mandate that a citizen purchase a product or service provided by a private corporation that the citizen may not need and/or want and/or be able to afford? Do we work for them? Or do they work for us?

There has been talk among individuals of secession. There has been talk among individuals of war if this product is forced upon us the citizens of these United States. I don't know how many, if any, of the people saying these things are serious. It doesn't really matter. This issue has become one that needs further consideration rather than the standard assurance by the government that they know what they are doing and that they can do what they have never done before: run a business profitably. Or at least not at a loss.

Does anyone really know what is in this bill? The bill that the president talks about seems to be different than the one that Congress has now passed. Our "representatives" in Washington need to at least read the whole bill and consider the long term ramifications before they vote. Oops! Too late!

Quote from Lincoln

	"Any people anywhere being inclined and having the power, have the right to rise up and shake off the existing government." Rep. Abraham Lincoln. Is it coming to that?

Jefferson Bass

We went tonight to see/hear Jefferson Bass, represented by his real life authors, Dr Bill Bass of UT's Body Farm and John Jefferson. They were accompanied by Art Bohannon, the nationally renowned finger-print expert, who appears in all their books.

They spoke for about half an hour about their new book, The Body Thief, which is based on the real-life problem of crematoriums that harvest body parts before cremating the rest of the remains, and about how the Body Farm came to be.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first three books in the series and highly recommend them to anyone who likes murder mysteries and/or forensic anthropology.

They have videos of the Body Farm itself at their website: www.jeffersonbass.com

Another Saturday Night at the V

Another Saturday Night at the V

This week at the V was just another tag-team message. When Pastor Mark got up to share his
message for the week, the Holy Spirit told him no, not that message today. So he opened the
floor and several people got up to share what was on their minds. As always, it turned into
a really coherent message.

Ally - Do I come here to fill up my tank? Or am I here for Him? If filling my own tak is the
primary reason I'm here, it won't last me all week. If I'm here for me, it's just not enough.
If I'm here for Him, I'll want to continue worshipping.

Jeff - When we were kids and there was a dirt pile, we would always go play King of the Hill.
We'd get all dirty and run home where Mom would clean us up. We weren't ashamed. We had no doubts that we might not be acceptable. We don't wonder if she will still love us. We just
go home and get clean.

MarkO - Be children before Him. "We love you, Daddy!"
[My comment - Jesus called the Father Abba, the Aramaic form of the most familiar address of
a father - Daddy!]

Pastor Mark had a tape in the car that he had planned to play and it fit in right here:
"We got the Best Daddy in the Whole World."
"Don't try to be the next Who's Who, Only try to be the best you. He loves me like I am."

Pastor Mark - There are three ways to love the Lord and they all have their place.
1- Out of duty
When you're feeling down and really don't want to. We all have those days.
Should be the exception not the rule.
2- Out of Fear
Hellfire and brimstone. Can get people reconciled, but, again, not the best way
Should be the exception not the rule.
3- Out of Love
The best way. [I Cor 13] Out of affection. If we do this we will endure the hard
times, and there will be hard times.

Robin - This love is not obedience per se as much as trust. As we learn to trust we have
no more doubts that God will support, strengthen and protect us.

?? - Applied to a marriage, this is the same love. It becomes trust. My wife will
support me and trust me to care for her as she learns that I will do so. If someone attacks
your kids, what is your reaction? Will our Heavenly Father do less?

Robin - Esther: Prepared herself for 12 months to be beautiful before her King.

Jeff - Peace, as it is used in all places in the bible, always refers to coming into unison
with God.

Some of my thoughts:

Is this situation to big for God? Can I do it better? Is it just too routine to bother Him?
He does care for me, so why shouldn't I do it His way? Why should I not check in with
everything that I do? And that means everything, not just the "big decisions." you know the
ones that I take to Him because I can't do it myself. The ones that we tend to ask about so we
can get His affirmation that we have already made the right decision.


***

On the way home I heard a song on WIVK (the Frog) that moved me. I've already
screwed it up so bad that will you please turn the wine back into water.



T GRAHAM BROWN TURN THE WINE BACK INTO WATER LYRICS



You've heard a multitude of prayers on my behalf
I pray one more is not too much to ask
I've tried to fight this battle by myself
But its a war that I cant win without your help

Tonight I'm as low
As any man can go
I'm down and I can't fall much farther
And once upon a time you turned the water into wine
Now on my knees I'm turning to ya Father
Can you help me turn the wine back into water

So many times I've hurt the ones I love
I've pushed them to the edge of giving up
They've stood by me but how much can they stand
If I don't put this bottle in your hand

Tonight I'm as low
As any man can go
I'm down and I can't fall much farther
And once upon a time you turned the water into wine
Now on my knees I'm turning to ya father
Could you help me turn the wine back into water

I shook my fists at heaven
For all the hell that I've been through
Now I'm begging for forgiveness
And a miracle from you

Cause tonight I'm as low
As any man can go
I'm down and I can't fall much farther
And once upon a time you turned the water into wine
Now on my knees I'm turning to ya father
Could you help me turn the wine back into water

Could you help me turn this wine back into water

yeah yeah
Lyrics > T. Graham Brown Lyrics > T. Graham Brown Wine Into Water Lyrics

http://www.justsomelyrics.com/615011/T-Graham-Brown-Turn-The-Wine-Back-Into-Water-Lyrics

Census

I am considering the census this morning. How much info am I required to give?

I have been greatly insulted by Census Bureau advertising this year. Why to the Feds need to know how many people are here so we can increase the number of stop lights or the number of buses? Have they ever been involved in this process before? Have they ever needed to know how many teachers we need to have next year? Haven't these things always been handled locally? Is this just a case of the Feds sticking their noses into local issues?

I recommend this (http://www.newswithviews.com) article -- Michael LeMieux -- Census and the Constitution. You should check this out at, http://www.newswithviews.com/LeMieux/michael118.htm

Flats/Sprouts

I have a bunch of seeds planted in my newspaper pots and in flats. A lot of them have already sprouted.






Unfortunately, with all the cold and rain/snow over the past couple of months, the beds aren't ready yet! :-( I have the first bed turned over, but nowhere near ready for sprouts yet.



Now I need to go get a load of compost to work into the bed when it gets to that stage.

Spring is Here!

I stepped out the door this morning and saw this! The first crocuses of the season.

IT MUST BE SPRING!

The Second Amendment

New High-Tunnel

Feb 22 Update
Well we got the tunnel set up Sunday afternoon and Sunday night we had a pretty good storm blow through. the tunnel didn't stand up too well.

I guess next year I'll use something stronger in the way of support poles, maybe PVC,





****************************************************



Well, we finally got the plastic draped over the scavenged tent poles and have a high-tunnel that's about 6 ' high. I used 6m plastic, thanks to recommendations here. I d'ruther it was about 3' wider and about 4' longer, but it's doable for this year. Assuming, of course, that it stands up to the rain and wind. We might get some rain tonight, so we can see how it does there. Don't know when we'll get wind.

I think next year I'll try to frame it with PVC. For those who have done it, do you secure the plastic to the frame somehow? If so, how? I have it anchored with rocks at the moment.

Trappist Monastery Fudge

Last weekend Mother and Dottie (my mother-in-law and sister-in-law) went to a Trappist monastery for a personal retreat. They are Catholic; Mother is a Sister of the Franciscan Order.

[Aside: Mother is a Sister. Therefore, Mother Mary is Sister Mary. ???? ]

Dears that they are, they brought me home some "Gethsemani Trappist Kentucky Bourbon Chocolate Fudge! 8-) That stuff never lasts around my house.

Apparently they get the bourbon donated from a local distillery. I guess it doesn't really

Seed train is a'comin'
there's dancin' today!

The seed train arrived today and I'm all excited. Besides the beginning of planting for the spring garden I have some new seeds to play with. I don't have a lot of unallocated garden space, so all I grabbed from gthe train is a packet of cinnamon basil and some cumin. I guess that's another little bit of the flower garden that's going to be herbs. I still need to prune what's there and clean up from fall, but I'm ready to dig.

I also have my tunnel framed and need to get the plastic cover over it before the snow arrives tomorrow. Hoping I can get some help from the nephews tomorrow.

I also was led to the Knoxville Permaculture Guild by my sister in Bellingham, WA, this week. And, of all things, they have a seed exchange today, so that's where I'll be this afternoon. Maybe I'll get to meet some more local gardeners.

I got the application for the farmers market this week. One of the things it asks for is two references from people who "know my operation." Nobody here in Knoxville knows who I am in the field except Michelle, my contact for the seed trains. Maybe I'll meet someone today who can fill that other slot. (I hope.)

I told Kayla this mornbing that I have about three full days worth of work to do by this morning. I guess I'll be busy for the rest of the summer.

Update: I met some interesting people today. I was impressed that so many of the people at the seed exchange were young, mostly college kids was my impression. I didn't pick up any new seeds, but I left quite a few. Some people were excited about some of my seeds. Time to get planting, then to get ready for the next exchange, whenever it may be.

Spring is coming

Spring is coming ... soon ... I hope. I'm ready.

WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF EAST TENNESSEE UNTIL 4 OCLOCK THURSDAY MORNING. WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS OF 25 TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED TONIGHT WITH GUSTS POSSIBLY UP TO 55 MPH AT TIMES.

WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE SMOKY MOUNTAINS WITH SNOW EXPECTED TODAY THROUGH TONIGHT. FORECASTERS EXPECT ACCUMULATIONS OF 3 TO 10 INCHES WITH BLIZZARD CONDITIONS IN THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS.

BRR!!!

Building a Tunnel for the Garden

I am in the process of building a tunnel for the gardens. For support I reclaimed some old flexible fibreglas tent poles. I am in the process of tying the ends of each pole together with fishing line. Mother taught me how to tie fishing line yesterday. (I know it's simple, but if you don't know the tricks or the knots ...) I now have one pole tied and it'll be about 8' tall and 13.5' across the base. If I space them about 4' apart, they'll cover two 5x20' beds at a time with room underneath to work the soil ... if it ever dries out and warms up! But it's too cold outside at the moment to do more than one pole at a time. So in between I'll put together some newspaper pots to start seeds next week. (Is it that time already???)

And I still have lots of beds to prepare before planting out.

Seed Train/Left-Handed Scissors

what is a sseed train? There are several hundred members on the gardening forum I participate in. A seed packet may have anywhere from 50 to about 1000 seeds. I use anywhere from 4 to about 75 seeds of any one kind. A seed train is a package of excess seeds that gets mailed around the country to wiiling participants. When it gets here, I'll add some of my excess seeds and take whatever I may want. We have a medicinal/herb train due here in Knoxville sometime in the next week or so.

I found in Windows Office a template for a seed packet. So I printed some out and grabbed a pair of scissors to cut them down to size. Unfortunately I must have grabbed a pair that belonged to my late wife - left-handed ones! :( I never realized how difficult it could be to try to cut along a line while looking over to the wrong side of the scissors. David, you want a pair of scissors?