Sprague Trivia
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Politicians with depraved minds Bible Study
Romans 2:18 New American Standard translation (My comments are in parenthesis and in red.)
18 The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.
19 Because that which is know about God is evident within them for God made it evident to them. (God, evidently has created man to instinctively recognize his existence.)
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, eternal power ,and divine nature are clearly seen, being understood through that what has been made so that they are without excuse. (If you woke up some morning and saw a Cadillac in your driveway common sense would tell you that someone had to have designed and made the Cadillac. In the same manner, when one looks at the creation common sense tells one that there must be a Creator and that this creator is invisible, of a different order than the creation itself and must be mighty in power.)
21,22 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks; (Evidently, everyone at some point in their childhood knows God.; but not everyone honors Him as God and gives thanks to Him when this awareness is made real.)
but they became futile in their speculations and their foolish hearts were darkened,. (Rationalization of their unwillingness to acknowledge God sets in.) Professing themselves to be wise they became fools. (Think college professors and other elites that deny the existance of a creator)
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24 Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them.
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26 For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions and their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural.
27 And in the same way also, the men abandoned the natural function of the women and burned in their lusts one toward another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their persons the due penalty for their error.
28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind to do those things which are not proper. (Politicians and others that justify homosexual practice do so because God has given them over to such because of their rejection of His ordinances.)
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32 And although they know the ordinance of God that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same; but also give hearty approval to those the practice them (Those that approve and support gay rights are doing so because of a “depraved mind” brought about by their first rejection of any acknowledgment of a Creator.)
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
My new respect for the Amish
We recently sold our farm to an Amish family. This is the type of Amish that do not believe in using electricity, cars, or any other modern conviences. In the back of my mind I have always wondered how they could compete in the farming business today where we have huge farms with huge tractors and large herds of cows. They can only farm small acreages with their horses and non-modern equipment, especially when one considerst that there is very little profit margin in dairy farming today and farms are very expensive. In spite of all these obsticals, they seem to have the money for large down-payments and and then pay off whatever remaining debt they have in a very short time.
All of the above handcaps have always made me wonder how can they make it in today's competative market. Well, I did a little mental math and a whole new picture emerges. If you don't use electricty, that means no electric bills, and they don't have phones, so no phone bill. Naturally they don't have TV's., so no cable bills. We then can go on and on; no gas bills, no car expenses, and very little food expenses because they all have their own gardens and raise their own chickens, etc. Because they don't accept Social Security, they don't have any SS deductions and one begins to discover that whereas, ordinary famers have tremendous expenses, the Amish have almost not. Consequently, whatever milk check they have is almost all profit that can be used to pay off any loan they might have on the farm.
In addition a new moral environment emerges. No TV means no MTV, no video games, no corrupting movies, etc. No radios mean no rap and pop music corrupting their children's impressionable minds. What you are left with is a simple moral wholesome life style right in the midst of a corrupt and evil society that they are almost completely isolated from. All things considered, one begins to wonder? Who is better off, us with all of our modern conveniences or they with their simple uncluttered livestyle.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Gore's Global Warming Theory debunked by simply math.
I recently read an interesting article from the Detroit News debunking Gore's global warming theory. A summary of article is:
1. Carbon dioxide is not a pollutant. (We already knew that.)
2. CO2 makes up 3/10 of 1 percent of our atmosphere according to Encyclopedia Britannica or 0.0582% by weight.
3. 57% of CO2 is created by evaporation of the water from earths oceans.
4. 38% is created by breathing animals and decaying plant and animal matter.
5. This leaves 5% left that belongs to man
Of this 5% man-made contribution, 30% is blamed on the US, which means that the US is responsible of 1.5% of global man-made CO2 emissions. Now if Gore has his way and we wreck our economy and way of life by cutting our emissions in half, we would only be reducing total CO2 emissions by a minuscule amount of only 3/4 of 1 percent of the total CO2 emissions on the earth, hardly enough to be even noticed by the climate. According to Gore, does that mean that we are doomed and the earth is truly going to burn up in a matter of months or at the most a few years?
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Great article about how the Dems and mainstream media sing the same tune before every election that exaggerates the woes of the Republican Party and sing the song of victory for the Dems.
Biblical Christianity
Biblical Christianity
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Sprague Trivia
I just returned from visiting my aunt, who is a Palestinian whose parents live in Israel. Theresa is a strong Christian and a close part of our family. Her Palestinian family lives in Haifa and had to evacuate when the Hezbollah rained missiles down on Haifa. If anyone of a Middle Eastern background should be upset over Hezbollah, she should. However, such is not the case. When we came to visit her today she had a 34 page colored slide presentation printed out for me to read. It consisted of 34 pages of quotes from various Israeli leaders past and present on their intentions to reclaim huge amounts of Arab territory for Israel. After reading these various quotes, I can understand the animosity that the Arabs feel toward the Jews. The problem is that one could find even more inflammatory quotes on the part of Arabs toward Jews. Consequently, I don't think that there will ever be any possible peace settlement in that area until one side or the other subdues the other to total submission, which on the Arab side means total genocide of the Jewish race. Of course, we as Christians know "the rest of the story" as Paul Harvey likes to say. Jesus is coming soon!
I just returned from visiting my aunt, who is a Palestinian whose parents live in Israel. Theresa is a strong Christian and a close part of our family. Her Palestinian family lives in Haifa and had to evacuate when the Hezbollah rained missiles down on Haifa. If anyone of a Middle Eastern background should be upset over Hezbollah, she should. However, such is not the case. When we came to visit her today she had a 34 page colored slide presentation printed out for me to read. It consisted of 34 pages of quotes from various Israeli leaders past and present on their intentions to reclaim huge amounts of Arab territory for Israel. After reading these various quotes, I can understand the animosity that the Arabs feel toward the Jews. The problem is that one could find even more inflammatory quotes on the part of Arabs toward Jews. Consequently, I don't think that there will ever be any possible peace settlement in that area until one side or the other subdues the other to total submission, which on the Arab side means total genocide of the Jewish race. Of course, we as Christians know "the rest of the story" as Paul Harvey likes to say. Jesus is coming soon!
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Please read the news article below. What I find particularly interesting about the iman's second coming is that the Iman Mahadi is that the iman has been dead since the 874 A.D. and the Shiites belief is that he will come again. This is a very similar description that the Bible gives of the beast (anti-christ) in Rev. 13:2- "and the dragon (satan) gave him (anti-christ) his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him."
What I find as an amazing coincidence is that the Shiite Muslim belief is that Iman Mahadi is going to come back to life as the Muslim Savior. I can easily picture a man rising up out of the Middle East in the future that will claim to be this iman and do miracles as the scripture predicts he will do and the whole Muslim world will think that he is their promised Messiah.
P.S. I can make such comments as above without fear of being proven wrong because I am not a radio, TV, or book writer that has to worry about eating his own words should this theory be proven wrong. I don't believe that this is the end, because there are other events such as the establishing of 10 kingdoms in that part of the world that must be in place before the anti-christ arises. But the point of interest is that there is a belief in place already that does believe in the restoration of a man who has a been dead and appears to come back to life. What is possible is that this crazy Iranian leader "Ahmadinejad sees himself as Allah’s instrument to pave the way for Imam Mahdi" that would not hesitate to do something catastrophic that could pave the way for the 10 kingdoms to arise and make way for the anti-christ.
Iran Hints at Aug. 22 Doomsday for Israel
Noted Middle Eastern scholar Bernard Lewis warns that Iran is preparing for an apocalyptic "end of time” – and that it could come as soon as August 22.
The July 28 edition of NewsMax’s Insider Report pointed to the connection between that date, when Iran leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said his country would respond to Western demands regarding Iran’s nuclear program, and a possible attack on Israel.
Now Lewis, professor emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton, writes about that scenario. He notes in the Wall Street Journal that this year, August 22 corresponds, in the Islamic calendar, to the night when Muhammad flew first to "the farthest mosque” – usually identified with Jerusalem – and then to heaven and back.
"This might well be deemed an appropriate date for the apocalyptic ending of Israel and if necessary the world,” writes Lewis, whose most recent book is "From Babel to Dragomans: Interpreting the Middle East.”
He also points to an intriguing reason why the Iranians might not fret at all about an Israeli counterstrike – even with nuclear weapons.
What deterred both sides from using nuclear weapons during the Cold War was the concept of MAD, mutual assured destruction. But the "apocalyptic worldview” of Iran’s current leaders works against that concept, according to Lewis.
Ahmadinejad is a strong believer in the Shiite tradition of a 12th imam, the so-called "hidden” Imam Mahdi who Allah has miraculously kept alive since his disappearance in 874 A.D.
Shiites believe Imam Mahdi will return at a time of great global chaos – and the Web site Zionist.com states: "Ahmadinejad sees himself as Allah’s instrument to pave the way for Imam Mahdi.”
According to Lewis, Ahmadinejad and his followers "clearly believe that this time is now.”
He cites the phrase "Allah will know his own” to explain why Iran might be willing to usher in the apocalypse even if it means the death of many Muslims.
"It means that while infidel, i.e., non-Muslim, victims will go to a well-deserved punishment in hell, Muslims will be sent straight to heaven,” enjoying "the rewards without the struggles of martyrdom.”
For people with this mindset, Lewis writes, "MAD is not a constraint; it is an inducement.”
He adds: "It is far from certain that Mr. Ahmadinejad plans any such cataclysmic events precisely for Aug. 22, but it would be wise to bear the possibility in mind.”
And in the long term, Lewis feels, the best hope of staving off an Iranian-spurred conflagration "is to appeal to those Muslims, Iranians, Arabs and others who do not share these apocalyptic perceptions and aspirations, and feel as much threatened, indeed even more threatened, than we are.”
What I find as an amazing coincidence is that the Shiite Muslim belief is that Iman Mahadi is going to come back to life as the Muslim Savior. I can easily picture a man rising up out of the Middle East in the future that will claim to be this iman and do miracles as the scripture predicts he will do and the whole Muslim world will think that he is their promised Messiah.
P.S. I can make such comments as above without fear of being proven wrong because I am not a radio, TV, or book writer that has to worry about eating his own words should this theory be proven wrong. I don't believe that this is the end, because there are other events such as the establishing of 10 kingdoms in that part of the world that must be in place before the anti-christ arises. But the point of interest is that there is a belief in place already that does believe in the restoration of a man who has a been dead and appears to come back to life. What is possible is that this crazy Iranian leader "Ahmadinejad sees himself as Allah’s instrument to pave the way for Imam Mahdi" that would not hesitate to do something catastrophic that could pave the way for the 10 kingdoms to arise and make way for the anti-christ.
Iran Hints at Aug. 22 Doomsday for Israel
Noted Middle Eastern scholar Bernard Lewis warns that Iran is preparing for an apocalyptic "end of time” – and that it could come as soon as August 22.
The July 28 edition of NewsMax’s Insider Report pointed to the connection between that date, when Iran leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said his country would respond to Western demands regarding Iran’s nuclear program, and a possible attack on Israel.
Now Lewis, professor emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton, writes about that scenario. He notes in the Wall Street Journal that this year, August 22 corresponds, in the Islamic calendar, to the night when Muhammad flew first to "the farthest mosque” – usually identified with Jerusalem – and then to heaven and back.
"This might well be deemed an appropriate date for the apocalyptic ending of Israel and if necessary the world,” writes Lewis, whose most recent book is "From Babel to Dragomans: Interpreting the Middle East.”
He also points to an intriguing reason why the Iranians might not fret at all about an Israeli counterstrike – even with nuclear weapons.
What deterred both sides from using nuclear weapons during the Cold War was the concept of MAD, mutual assured destruction. But the "apocalyptic worldview” of Iran’s current leaders works against that concept, according to Lewis.
Ahmadinejad is a strong believer in the Shiite tradition of a 12th imam, the so-called "hidden” Imam Mahdi who Allah has miraculously kept alive since his disappearance in 874 A.D.
Shiites believe Imam Mahdi will return at a time of great global chaos – and the Web site Zionist.com states: "Ahmadinejad sees himself as Allah’s instrument to pave the way for Imam Mahdi.”
According to Lewis, Ahmadinejad and his followers "clearly believe that this time is now.”
He cites the phrase "Allah will know his own” to explain why Iran might be willing to usher in the apocalypse even if it means the death of many Muslims.
"It means that while infidel, i.e., non-Muslim, victims will go to a well-deserved punishment in hell, Muslims will be sent straight to heaven,” enjoying "the rewards without the struggles of martyrdom.”
For people with this mindset, Lewis writes, "MAD is not a constraint; it is an inducement.”
He adds: "It is far from certain that Mr. Ahmadinejad plans any such cataclysmic events precisely for Aug. 22, but it would be wise to bear the possibility in mind.”
And in the long term, Lewis feels, the best hope of staving off an Iranian-spurred conflagration "is to appeal to those Muslims, Iranians, Arabs and others who do not share these apocalyptic perceptions and aspirations, and feel as much threatened, indeed even more threatened, than we are.”
