Hurricane Ike in 2008 was the size of the entire Gulf of Mexico.
Psalm 97
1 The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!
2 Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3 Fire goes before him
and burns up his adversaries all around.
4 His lightnings light up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.
6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
and all the peoples see his glory.
7 All worshipers of images are put to shame,
who make their boast in worthless idols;
worship him, all you gods!
8 Zion hears and is glad,
and the daughters of Judah rejoice,
because of your judgments, O Lord.
9 For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
10 O you who love the Lord, hate evil!
He preserves the lives of his saints;
he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light is sowna for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!
I think until Hurricane Rita and Ike roared in and so many people were grid locked - I thought I was impervious. We were not leaving, for Hurricane Ike. I was pregnant and would have delivered Isabelle if we tried to leave. ABC's Houston Channel 13 was amazing telling about premature babies and Barimetric Pressure. I don't think I've ever prayed harder for premature babies (and I've had two) and still remember the compassion of Travis Herzog. Galveston premature babies were air lifted.
Until then this gridlock, I guess I believed I was blessed enough or smart enough to escape most trouble.
Recently, it was disclosed Facebook sorts out bad news with a bias.
And I saw this on a friend's FB and really laughed, for quite earnestly, real, out loud. We are so fussed up with opinions.
You know we get to - VOTE. And we get to write and email our elected officials. And then what we can do the best is Pray for the Nation and the leaders. And after that we get to listen in a style that says I will listen to you. And whatever we speak - we can be assured - most people are going to do what they are going to do.
Two women I know have been friends for 40 years. They had a huge squabble over President Obama and quit speaking. I told the one I know well, "President Obama does not know you, call her back and make friends again. You won't hurt President Obama's feelings!"
And I'm mostly centrally located on the political test, my son gave me, and lean to Pro Life.
The Good News, regardless of the anxieties and the wails and sirens of the news, is this - Hurricane Ike left. We all survived, by the Grace of God.
In Prayer. In expectation of faith, hope and Love. God is going to be there when we call Him. One of the largest uses of the internet is people looking up Prayer and Bible and Churches.
"Lies, damned lies, and statistics" - Mark Twain.
The Pew Report says we are an active Christian Nation.
Perhaps we like Bad news too very much.
The Actual Upward Path to the Disciple John's Home on Patmos Island with a Great View
Dennison Forum 2014
Online searches say much about our fascinations, fears, and faith. According to Yahoo!, these were the top 10 searches in 2014, from number 10 to number one: Jennifer Aniston, the iPhone 6, Miley Cyrus, the Disney movie Frozen, Kim Kardashian, Kaley Cuoco, Jennifer Lawrence, Ariana Grande, Minecraft, and Ebola. Clearly, we're fascinated by Hollywood and high tech, and afraid of diseases.
Notice what topic was missing: God.
Does this mean that the Lord is absent from the Internet? Not at all. According to the Barna Group, one third of all Millennials (adults ages 18-29)
regularly view online videos pertaining to faith.
The number increases to more than half of Christian Millennials.
What about other spiritual resources? When asked where they would go if seeking spiritual guidance,
41 percent of Millennials and 29 percent of adults 30 years and older say they would "talk or listen to an inspirational person."
Twenty-two percent of Millennials and 28 percent of adults 30 and older would "read an inspirational book." However, only one in six from both groups says he or she would turn to the church.
It is obvious that the church must go to those who will not come to us. Marketing exists because businesses know they can't wait on customers to find them. Jesus called his first followers to be "fishers of men" (Matthew 4:19). Fishermen don't wait for fish to jump into their boat.
(Plato said young people are the worst ever. And Average Church Attendance has always been with 50 year olds - their parents wore out their own knees. Keep praying.)
We are told Porn is up 83% and Heroin is up 32%. How many Heroin users do you know? Has the number increased over the years? Did you know that you have to spell s and m for that to roll up on the Google Search. And still the Pew Report says 83% of the USA prays to God and expects Him to hear.
In Law, in trials, - this is called the Moose Head Truth of Life Applications. The Pew Charitable Trust says not a 32% increase - 1% of the population has tried Heroin.
We have a Presidential Candidate who says we should, bluntly, reevaluate what we read about in the news.
Accordingly, is still a lot of interest in The GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ.
We have come so far. God has seen us through so much.
Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.
Abraham Lincoln
Father God,
As a Nation, we long for the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding.
This will guard our hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
We achieve this finally brothers and sisters. Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think on these things.
Remember, remember, remember what God has taught you. Remember your own Living Parables from Father God. When you have seen what God says come forth in life in fruition. Whatever you have learned and received and heard, and seen, put these things into practice.
The Promises of God are true. We can lift our concerns up to the Jesus Christ. We can lift our gratitude, especially when we feel doubtful. Remember our blessings, what we have enjoyed in life. We can find people we think of - and pray for them. The News? Pray for the News and the People. We can believe we have overcome and continue to overcome. We can believe God has a path for us. We can live believing this.
And, we believe, and we believe until we know - the God of peace will be with us. And in doing this Good News, we can expect this Light of Christ to Shine forth as He has done for us before and will Continue.
Let us Bless the Lord God.
Thanks be unto willingness of the Father, Abba, His Holy Spirit and our Savior Jesus Christ.
Our Living God!
Amen.
♔ Lord Jesus Saves! †
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