the lion, the bear and the eagles wings

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.Galatians 5:1 How did I develop this appetite? first curiosity...then repitition and THE HOOK !! Why is it so difficult for ME to keep the discipline of bible study/reading... yet so easy to fall into television watching or internet browsing? But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee. Ezekiel 2:8 Recently I have attended some meetings of Narcotics anonymous. The first meeting was a shocker....the language was gross. Subsequent meetings seemed to want me to blend in with the "I am so and so and I am an addict"....I found it very difficult. Let me just set the record straight... my only 'encounter' with narcotics in the classical sense is through the nurses in my family...they tell horror stories about the "locked storage" at the hospital and about nurses who "USE". Anyhow, I was challenged by two friends of mine who I first noticed because they were unusually curteous on the job. They said Good morning to each other every morning and addressed each other as Sir. They also tried to be an encouragment to others on the job....also they were very interested in reading and discussing or talking through problems. We worked together at one company then our paths crossed again on another contract and yet for a third time we meet again.... over the course of six or more years our freindship remained. One lost his wife...supposedly to "the ministry" the other was on the verge of having his family destroyed - chronic dysfunction - when his 'sponsor' pointed out to him the folly of 'running away'......so why would I allow myself to "go to the meetings." Well my interest in these 'dudes' just kept growing because all my attempts to "witness" seem to no avail because apparently their salvation was already secured in "the meetings". ....and their "witness" to me was more 'attractive' than mine !!!! TO BE CONTINUED....my wanderings in the "ROOMS" __________________ The first beast was a like a lion that had the wings of an eagle, while the second beast was a bear described as having "three ribs in the mouth of it." ______________ Awake Zion Awake Awake and trim your lamps Awake Zion Awake Awake and trim your lamps for the stars of heaven shall fall and the moon will turn into blood and the Son of man shall appear ZION AWAKE !!!!! _____________ Iran biblical Persia?....how about Sheba and Didan? Brother to Sheba and grandson to Abraham, Dedan is an important patriarch of the Arab tribes. His sons are the Asshurim (unrelated to Asshur, son of Shem), the Letushim and the Leummim. Their territories are unknown, except by indirect reference. This is true of most Arab tribes, since until recent times, they were nomadic, traveling from one trading site to another, lodging in a widespread network of oases. For centuries, territory was less important to them than trade. In the following scripture, Isaiah depicts Dedan in this very setting: "The burden upon Arabia. In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye traveling companies of Dedanim. "The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled. "For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war. "For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Within a year, according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail: "And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the LORD God of Israel hath spoken it" (Isa. 21:13-17). ---------------------------- Me and Jo were on our way to the supermarket to get meat for dinner after church one sunday. Somehow the discussion turned to the FAMILY CHRONICLE BLOG. Quickly the topics changed an finally settled on PRIVACY. Jo thinks that people keep secrets because in his own words "they are embarrassed". I pressed him as to what he meant. Turns out we hit a mainstream of emotion. The old american dilema of free speach versus THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY....needless to say we could not solve the problem either....this seems to be an age old problem anyway....for instance my old friend and mentor Jon was sentenced to death because he would not mind his own business....of course it does seem that Jon had some other issues...lets face it he was an introvert..maybe or a recluse for sure he was a loner who wore unusual clothing and had a peculiar diet and like Jerry before him he upset the powers that be by "speaking his mind"....JESUS SAYS HE WAS A HERO Which Bible hero do you most want to be like? Brave Esther? Faithful Abraham? Wise Solomon? Before you answer, I should mention that Jesus long ago announced his choice for best hero from among all the people up until his time. Jesus said none was greater than John the Baptist.John was a Jewish prophet in the days before Jesus began ministering. Every one of the four Gospels explains John’s purpose by quoting Isaiah 40: “He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming!’” (Matthew 3:3, NLT; see also Mark 1:3; Luke 3:4; John 1:23). John helped people get ready for Jesus by preaching that they should repent—turn to God—and be baptized. There’s much to admire about John. BTW...they threw Jerry into a sewage pit!!! My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city. Jeremiah 38:9 PostScript Maybe it is an attention getting thing...... The bible is full of stories that seem outlandish but do GRAB my attention from time to time personally....I will go with this over the nightly news EVERYTIME....