From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Wed Jun 1 22:47:28 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Wed, 01 Jun 2011 22:47:28 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Thursday - Proverbs 16 Message-ID: <4DE6F9C0.5050907@bibleseven.com> Thursday Proverbs 16 16:1 The intentions of the heart belong to a man, but the answer of the tongue comes from the Lord. 16:2 All a person's ways seem right in his own opinion, but the Lord evaluates the motives. 16:3 Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will be established. 16:4 The Lord works everything for its own ends -- even the wicked for the day of disaster. 16:5 The Lord abhors every arrogant person; rest assured that they will not go unpunished. 16:6 Through loyal love and truth iniquity is appeased; through fearing the Lord one avoids evil. 16:7 When a person's ways are pleasing to the Lord, he even reconciles his enemies to himself. 16:8 Better to have a little with righteousness than to have abundant income without justice. 16:9 A person plans his course, but the Lord directs his steps. 16:10 The divine verdict is in the words of the king, his pronouncements must not act treacherously against justice. 16:11 Honest scales and balances are from the Lord; all the weights in the bag are his handiwork. 16:12 Doing wickedness is an abomination to kings, because a throne is established in righteousness. 16:13 The delight of kings is righteous counsel, and they love the one who speaks uprightly. 16:14 A king's wrath is like a messenger of death, but a wise person appeases it. 16:15 In the light of the king's face there is life, and his favor is like the clouds of the spring rain. 16:16 How much better it is to acquire wisdom than gold; to acquire understanding is more desirable than silver. 16:17 The highway of the upright is to turn away from evil; the one who guards his way safeguards his life. 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. 16:19 It is better to be lowly in spirit with the afflicted than to share the spoils with the proud. 16:20 The one who deals wisely in a matter will find success, and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord. 16:21 The one who is wise in heart is called discerning, and kind speech increases persuasiveness. 16:22 Insight is like a life-giving fountain to the one who possesses it, but folly leads to the discipline of fools. 16:23 A wise person's heart makes his speech wise and it adds persuasiveness to his words. 16:24 Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. 16:25 There is a way that seems right to a person, but its end is the way that leads to death. 16:26 A laborer's appetite works on his behalf, for his hunger urges him to work. 16:27 A wicked scoundrel digs up evil, and his slander is like a scorching fire. 16:28 A perverse person spreads dissension, and a gossip separates the closest friends. 16:29 A violent person entices his neighbor, and leads him down a path that is terrible. 16:30 The one who winks his eyes devises perverse things, and one who compresses his lips brings about evil. 16:31 Gray hair is like a crown of glory; it is attained in the path of righteousness. 16:32 Better to be slow to anger than to be a mighty warrior, and one who controls his temper is better than one who captures a city. 16:33 The dice are thrown into the lap, but their every decision is from the Lord. Prayer Lord, You are in control, You are the standard for good and evil, right and wrong, wise and unwise, righteous and unrighteous. When I need answers may You always be the first place I go. Commentary Solomon returned to his theme that a person apart from the Lord and His wisdom "All a person's ways seem right in his own opinion, but the Lord evaluates the motives." and that one must choose to "Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will be established." He observed that for the one who belongs to the Lord God "A person plans his course, but the Lord directs his steps." Solomon declares the standard of earthly ethics and justice, and the certain justice of eternity, to be of the Lord "Honest scales and balances are from the Lord; all the weights in the bag are his handiwork." He warns again that choices have consequences "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.", a haughty spirit being arrogant and unteachable. Solomon noted the linkage between the essential physical needs, not optional lusts, of the body and positive motivation "A laborer's appetite works on his behalf, for his hunger urges him to work." He returned to his warning as to the influence of those with whom associates "A wicked scoundrel digs up evil, and his slander is like a scorching fire." Solomon warned again of the trouble caused by gossip "A perverse person spreads dissension, and a gossip separates the closest friends. A violent person entices his neighbor, and leads him down a path that is terrible." He observed that, among those who obey the Lord God, wisdom is gathered over time "Gray hair is like a crown of glory; it is attained in the path of righteousness." Solomon returned to the outward expression of an inward peace "Better to be slow to anger than to be a mighty warrior, and one who controls his temper is better than one who captures a city." And he concluded Chapter Sixteen with a return to the observation that the events of life for one who belongs to the Lord are not random "The dice are thrown into the lap, but their every decision is from the Lord." Interaction Consider The life of one who truly belongs to the Lord is not random, unlike most of what happens in the life of the one who lives without the Lord. Discuss Why would an emphasis on the Lord God's justice and His involvement in the life of a believer be so important to emphasize? Could it be part of his strategy to keep people from arrogance? Reflect Solomon keeps warning about the bad consequences of bad company and living without the wise counsel of the Lord God. Share When have you experienced or observed the destructive impact of gossip? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your walk where He has "guided your steps", of which you had not previously been aware. Action: Today I will give thanks for the Lord God's loving care and His blessed intervention in my life when I needed it. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Friday's text will be: Proverbs 17 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Thu Jun 2 23:22:16 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Thu, 02 Jun 2011 23:22:16 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Friday - Proverbs 17 Message-ID: <4DE85368.7020409@bibleseven.com> Friday Proverbs 17 17:1 Better is a dry crust of bread where there is quietness than a house full of feasting with strife. 17:2 A servant who acts wisely will rule over an heir who behaves shamefully, and will share the inheritance along with the relatives. 17:3 The crucible is for refining silver and the furnace is for gold, likewise the Lord tests hearts. 17:4 One who acts wickedly pays attention to evil counsel; a liar listens to a malicious tongue. 17:5 The one who mocks the poor insults his Creator; whoever rejoices over disaster will not go unpunished. 17:6 Grandchildren are like a crown to the elderly, and the glory of children is their parents. 17:7 Excessive speech is not becoming for a fool; how much less are lies for a ruler! 17:8 A bribe works like a charm for the one who offers it; in whatever he does he succeeds. 17:9 The one who forgives an offense seeks love, but whoever repeats a matter separates close friends. 17:10 A rebuke makes a greater impression on a discerning person than a hundred blows on a fool. 17:11 An evil person seeks only rebellion, and so a cruel messenger will be sent against him. 17:12 It is better for a person to meet a mother bear being robbed of her cubs, than to encounter a fool in his folly. 17:13 As for the one who repays evil for good, evil will not leave his house. 17:14 Starting a quarrel is like letting out water; stop it before strife breaks out! 17:15 The one who acquits the guilty and the one who condemns the innocent -- both of them are an abomination to the Lord. 17:16 Of what use is money in the hand of a fool, since he has no intention of acquiring wisdom? 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a relative is born to help in adversity. 17:18 The one who lacks wisdom strikes hands in pledge, and puts up financial security for his neighbor. 17:19 The one who loves a quarrel loves transgression; whoever builds his gate high seeks destruction. 17:20 The one who has a perverse heart does not find good, and the one who is deceitful in speech falls into trouble. 17:21 Whoever brings a fool into the world does so to his grief, and the father of a fool has no joy. 17:22 A cheerful heart brings good healing, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. 17:23 A wicked person receives a bribe secretly to pervert the ways of justice. 17:24 Wisdom is directly in front of the discerning person, but the eyes of a fool run to the ends of the earth. 17:25 A foolish child is a grief to his father, and bitterness to the mother who bore him. 17:26 It is terrible to punish a righteous person, and to flog honorable men is wrong. 17:27 The truly wise person restrains his words, and the one who stays calm is discerning. 17:28 Even a fool who remains silent is considered wise, and the one who holds his tongue is deemed discerning. Prayer Lord, You are with those who are truly Yours at all times, and some of those times are difficult because we have made it necessary for us to learn the hard way. May I never doubt Your love or Your presence and may I always seek-out what it is I may learn from You in every circumstance. Commentary Solomon reinforced the message that the Lord God uses challenges in our lives to mature us "The crucible is for refining silver and the furnace is for gold, likewise the Lord tests hearts." He also reinforced the message that a wise person is teachable and an unwise one is not "A rebuke makes a greater impression on a discerning person than a hundred blows on a fool." He reinforced the message of consequences for choices "As for the one who repays evil for good, evil will not leave his house. Starting a quarrel is like letting out water; stop it before strife breaks out! The one who acquits the guilty and the one who condemns the innocent -- both of them are an abomination to the Lord .... A cheerful heart brings good healing, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." Solomon taught that true friendship is a significantly more valuable relationship than a casual acquaintance and that a fellow family member (among people of common-faith) is dependable "A friend loves at all times, and a relative is born to help in adversity." He returned to the theme of justice "It is terrible to punish a righteous person, and to flog honorable men is wrong." Solomon concluded with a reminder that there are outward symbols of a wise person which are also true of a no-yet-wise person who is available to receive wisdom "The truly wise person restrains his words, and the one who stays calm is discerning. Even a fool who remains silent is considered wise, and the one who holds his tongue is deemed discerning." Interaction Consider There is a cause and effect relationship between choosing wisdom and playing the fool. Discuss How dark must the spiritual condition of a person be to "... punish a righteous person, and to flog honorable men ..."? Reflect Investing in one true friendship is far more valuable than selling-out for momentary pleasure or recognition and is more valuable than dozens of casual acquaintances. Share When have you observed one person learning from an appropriate rebuke and another repeating the same error despite bad result over and over again? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a person into whom He wants you to invest for a true friendship. This person will be a fellow believer, will not be a romantic interest, will not be someone whose resources you seek for personal benefit, and will return the investment equally. Action: Today I will humbly accept the leading of the Holy Spirit, confirmed by a prayerful fellow believer -- preferably someone who is Biblically qualified to be an "elder", and I will begin a conversation about building a deeper friendship. If it is of the Lord they will have received the same directive from the Holy Spirit and it will have been confirmed by at least one other -- other than you. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Saturday's text will be: Proverbs 18 - 19 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller at lightlink.com Thu Jun 2 23:41:29 2011 From: fmiller at lightlink.com (Fred A. Miller) Date: Thu, 02 Jun 2011 23:41:29 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] OT: Hedge fund star calls for Microsoft CEO to go Message-ID: <4DE857E9.2030305@lightlink.com> http://www.itnews.com.au/News/258747,hedge-fund-star-calls-for-microsoft-ceo-to-go.aspx -- "Gun control is like trying to reduce drunk driving by making it tougher for sober people to own cars." - Unknown -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Fri Jun 3 22:57:56 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Fri, 03 Jun 2011 22:57:56 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Saturday - Proverbs 18 - 19 Message-ID: <4DE99F34.2010707@bibleseven.com> Saturday Proverbs 18 - 19 18:1 One who has isolated himself seeks his own desires; he rejects all sound judgment. 18:2 A fool takes no pleasure in understanding but only in disclosing what is on his mind. 18:3 When a wicked person arrives, contempt shows up with him, and with shame comes a reproach. 18:4 The words of a person's mouth are like deep waters, and the fountain of wisdom is like a flowing brook. 18:5 It is terrible to show partiality to the wicked, by depriving a righteous man of justice. 18:6 The lips of a fool enter into strife, and his mouth invites a flogging. 18:7 The mouth of a fool is his ruin, and his lips are a snare for his life. 18:8 The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down into the person's innermost being. 18:9 The one who is slack in his work is a brother to one who destroys. 18:10 The name of the Lord is like a strong tower; the righteous person runs to it and is set safely on high. 18:11 The wealth of a rich person is like a strong city, and it is like a high wall in his imagination. 18:12 Before destruction the heart of a person is proud, but humility comes before honor. 18:13 The one who gives an answer before he listens -- that is his folly and his shame. 18:14 A person's spirit sustains him through sickness -- but who can bear a crushed spirit? 18:15 The discerning person acquires knowledge, and the wise person seeks knowledge. 18:16 A person's gift makes room for him, and leads him before important people. 18:17 The first to state his case seems right, until his opponent begins to cross-examine him. 18:18 A toss of a coin ends disputes, and settles the issue between strong opponents. 18:19 A relative offended is harder to reach than a strong city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a fortified citadel. 18:20 From the fruit of a person's mouth his stomach is satisfied, with the product of his lips is he satisfied. 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love its use will eat its fruit. 18:22 The one who finds a wife finds what is enjoyable, and receives a pleasurable gift from the Lord. 18:23 A poor person makes supplications, but a rich man answers harshly. 18:24 A person who has friends may be harmed by them, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. 19:1 Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity than one who is perverse in his speech and is a fool. 19:2 It is dangerous to have zeal without knowledge, and the one who acts hastily makes poor choices. 19:3 A person's folly subverts his way, and his heart rages against the Lord. 19:4 Wealth adds many friends, but a poor person is separated from his friend. 19:5 A false witness will not go unpunished, and the one who spouts out lies will not escape punishment. 19:6 Many people entreat the favor of a generous person, and everyone is the friend of the person who gives gifts. 19:7 All the relatives of a poor person hate him; how much more do his friends avoid him -- he pursues them with words, but they do not respond. 19:8 The one who acquires wisdom loves himself; the one who preserves understanding will prosper. 19:9 A false witness will not go unpunished, and the one who spouts out lies will perish. 19:10 Luxury is not appropriate for a fool; how much less for a servant to rule over princes! 19:11 A person's wisdom makes him slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense. 19:12 A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass. 19:13 A foolish child is the ruin of his father, and a contentious wife is like a constant dripping. 19:14 A house and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the Lord. 19:15 Laziness brings on a deep sleep, and the idle person will go hungry. 19:16 The one who obeys commandments guards his life; the one who despises his ways will die. 19:17 The one who is gracious to the poor lends to the Lord, and the Lord will repay him for his good deed. 19:18 Discipline your child, for there is hope, but do not set your heart on causing his death. 19:19 A person with great anger bears the penalty, but if you deliver him from it once, you will have to do it again. 19:20 Listen to advice and receive discipline, that you may become wise by the end of your life. 19:21 There are many plans in a person's mind, but it is the counsel of the Lord which will stand. 19:22 What is desirable for a person is to show loyal love, and a poor person is better than a liar. 19:23 Fearing the Lord leads to life, and one who does so will live satisfied; he will not be afflicted by calamity. 19:24 The sluggard plunges his hand in the dish, and he will not even bring it back to his mouth! 19:25 Flog a scorner, and as a result the simpleton will learn prudence; correct a discerning person, and as a result he will understand knowledge. 19:26 The one who robs his father and chases away his mother is a son who brings shame and disgrace. 19:27 If you stop listening to instruction, my child, you will stray from the words of knowledge. 19:28 A crooked witness scorns justice, and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity. 19:29 Judgments are prepared for scorners, and floggings for the backs of fools. Prayer Lord, You make Your wisdom available, but we must choose to acquire it and to apply it. May I always respond to Your leading to seek out and apply Your gifts of wisdom to me. Commentary Solomon returned to his theme of choices and consequences "One who has isolated himself seeks his own desires; he rejects all sound judgment ... The name of the Lord is like a strong tower; the righteous person runs to it and is set safely on high ... The one who gives an answer before he listens -- that is his folly and his shame ... A foolish child is the ruin of his father, and a contentious wife is like a constant dripping ... The one who is gracious to the poor lends to the Lord, and the Lord will repay him for his good deed ... Listen to advice and receive discipline, that you may become wise by the end of your life ... If you stop listening to instruction, my child, you will stray from the words of knowledge ... A relative offended is harder to reach than a strong city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a fortified citadel." He again warns that many will speak without knowledge "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding but only in disclosing what is on his mind." Justice is important to the Lord God "It is terrible to show partiality to the wicked, by depriving a righteous man of justice." The Lord God expects everyone one to honor their contracts and to give their best-effort "The one who is slack in his work is a brother to one who destroys." Money can be isolating from the realities of daily life and may falsely persuade the wealthy that they are safer than others "The wealth of a rich person is like a strong city, and it is like a high wall in his imagination." We need encouragement in fellowship so that we may remain strong "A person's spirit sustains him through sickness -- but who can bear a crushed spirit?" The value of a choice to listen and learn is amplified when one listens intentionally for additional wisdom "The discerning person acquires knowledge, and the wise person seeks knowledge." Solomon revisited the importance of the wife that is from the Lord and centered upon the Lord "The one who finds a wife finds what is enjoyable, and receives a pleasurable gift from the Lord ... A house and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the Lord." The vulnerability that is required in the overall investment to build and maintain true friendships means that they can hurt one more-deeply than a casual acquaintance or a stranger, but even so, a true friend remains true in spite of some hurts "A person who has friends may be harmed by them, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." A wise person makes different choices for different reasons than an unwise person "A person's wisdom makes him slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense." While a firm hand is necessary in parenting, excessive violence is not "Discipline your child, for there is hope, but do not set your heart on causing his death." We need to allow people to receive some of the consequences of their destructive behavior else they will fail to learn "A person with great anger bears the penalty, but if you deliver him from it once, you will have to do it again." Humankind has always had notions, from the Garden until the present, but in the end the sovereign big-picture plan of the Lord God is irresistible "There are many plans in a person's mind, but it is the counsel of the Lord which will stand." Interaction Consider An intentionally-wise person benefits not only him or her-self but also others. Discuss Why is history so replete with people in power "showing partiality to the wicked" when that same history demonstrates irrefutably that then end of such choices is disaster? Reflect Wisdom brings discernment of where balance lies, be it in the discipline of a child, allowing violent people to learn from consequences, choosing to overlook an offense, choosing to seek more wisdom, and/or choosing to sacrifice for one more-needy. Share When have you observed a person excused from consequences for destructive choices -- only to repeat the error? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place where you might acquire greater wisdom if you make the effort to seek it out, beyond merely listening to teaching. Action: Today I will intentionally follow where the Holy Spirit leads, beginning each day in search of greater wisdom behind knowledge -- where understanding and application will take me. I will share the blessing of that obedient experience with a fellow believer. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Sunday's text will be: Proverbs 20 - 21 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From hpp3 at lavabit.com Sat Jun 4 01:49:45 2011 From: hpp3 at lavabit.com (Eddy) Date: Fri, 3 Jun 2011 22:49:45 -0700 Subject: [Linux4christians] Repartitioning the hard way... Message-ID: <20110603224945.0000768f@unknown> OK, I must first ask forgiveness for not putting /home on a separate partition, but the day is past, and now I'm contemplating an upgrade with no backup disk available, and I have a lot of stuff I want to keep. I'm running Xubuntu 9.10 with ext4 filesystem on a 150G hard drive. I want to move the data to the "front" of the drive (or at least out of the way) so I can split the drive, copy my home directory to the new partition, then upgrade or change the OS (no recommendations, please...) all without losing my home directory data. The hard drive is only 44% full, so I'm not starving for room, but I'm wondering exactly how to accomplish what I need. There are many partitioning tools for Windows that ease the task of re-doing partitions by first defragmenting and moving data to the beginning of the disk so as to avoid losing data when re-partitioning. From everything I've read, the promised ext4 defragmenting tools aren't really stable or ready. I've read in a few forum and blog posts that [Qt/G]parted can handle moving data out of the way before putting in planned new partition points, but I can't find any hard info on how to do it. If I had the extra cash, I'd just grab a second hand disk from the computer store down the street and call it good, but I'm a little short... Thoughts? -Eddy From usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com Sat Jun 4 01:54:57 2011 From: usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com (usacomputertech) Date: Fri, 03 Jun 2011 22:54:57 -0700 Subject: [Linux4christians] Saturday - Proverbs 18 - 19 In-Reply-To: <4DE99F34.2010707@bibleseven.com> References: <4DE99F34.2010707@bibleseven.com> Message-ID: <4DE9C8B1.3050700@mindblowingidea.com> This is a list of dont's like the though shall not's of the 10 commandments. Where is the part about But a wise man... On 06/03/2011 07:57 PM, dcolburn at bibleseven.com wrote: > > > Saturday > > > Proverbs 18 - 19 > > > 18:1 One who has isolated himself seeks his own desires; he rejects > all sound judgment. > > 18:2 A fool takes no pleasure in understanding but only in disclosing > what is on his mind. > > 18:3 When a wicked person arrives, contempt shows up with him, and > with shame comes a reproach. > > 18:4 The words of a person's mouth are like deep waters, and the > fountain of wisdom is like a flowing brook. > > 18:5 It is terrible to show partiality to the wicked, by depriving a > righteous man of justice. > > 18:6 The lips of a fool enter into strife, and his mouth invites a > flogging. > > 18:7 The mouth of a fool is his ruin, and his lips are a snare for his > life. > > 18:8 The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down into > the person's innermost being. > > 18:9 The one who is slack in his work is a brother to one who destroys. > > 18:10 The name of the Lord is like a strong tower; the righteous > person runs to it and is set safely on high. > > 18:11 The wealth of a rich person is like a strong city, and it is > like a high wall in his imagination. > > 18:12 Before destruction the heart of a person is proud, but humility > comes before honor. > > 18:13 The one who gives an answer before he listens -- that is his > folly and his shame. > > 18:14 A person's spirit sustains him through sickness -- but who can > bear a crushed spirit? > > 18:15 The discerning person acquires knowledge, and the wise person > seeks knowledge. > > 18:16 A person's gift makes room for him, and leads him before > important people. > > 18:17 The first to state his case seems right, until his opponent > begins to cross-examine him. > > 18:18 A toss of a coin ends disputes, and settles the issue between > strong opponents. > > 18:19 A relative offended is harder to reach than a strong city, and > disputes are like the barred gates of a fortified citadel. > > 18:20 From the fruit of a person's mouth his stomach is satisfied, > with the product of his lips is he satisfied. > > 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who > love its use will eat its fruit. > > 18:22 The one who finds a wife finds what is enjoyable, and receives a > pleasurable gift from the Lord. > > 18:23 A poor person makes supplications, but a rich man answers harshly. > > 18:24 A person who has friends may be harmed by them, but there is a > friend who sticks closer than a brother. > > > > 19:1 Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity than one who > is perverse in his speech and is a fool. > > 19:2 It is dangerous to have zeal without knowledge, and the one who > acts hastily makes poor choices. > > 19:3 A person's folly subverts his way, and his heart rages against > the Lord. > > 19:4 Wealth adds many friends, but a poor person is separated from his > friend. > > 19:5 A false witness will not go unpunished, and the one who spouts > out lies will not escape punishment. > > 19:6 Many people entreat the favor of a generous person, and everyone > is the friend of the person who gives gifts. > > 19:7 All the relatives of a poor person hate him; how much more do his > friends avoid him -- he pursues them with words, but they do not respond. > > 19:8 The one who acquires wisdom loves himself; the one who preserves > understanding will prosper. > > 19:9 A false witness will not go unpunished, and the one who spouts > out lies will perish. > > 19:10 Luxury is not appropriate for a fool; how much less for a > servant to rule over princes! > > 19:11 A person's wisdom makes him slow to anger, and it is his glory > to overlook an offense. > > 19:12 A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like > dew on the grass. > > 19:13 A foolish child is the ruin of his father, and a contentious > wife is like a constant dripping. > > 19:14 A house and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent > wife is from the Lord. > > 19:15 Laziness brings on a deep sleep, and the idle person will go hungry. > > 19:16 The one who obeys commandments guards his life; the one who > despises his ways will die. > > 19:17 The one who is gracious to the poor lends to the Lord, and the > Lord will repay him for his good deed. > > 19:18 Discipline your child, for there is hope, but do not set your > heart on causing his death. > > 19:19 A person with great anger bears the penalty, but if you deliver > him from it once, you will have to do it again. > > 19:20 Listen to advice and receive discipline, that you may become > wise by the end of your life. > > 19:21 There are many plans in a person's mind, but it is the counsel > of the Lord which will stand. > > 19:22 What is desirable for a person is to show loyal love, and a poor > person is better than a liar. > > 19:23 Fearing the Lord leads to life, and one who does so will live > satisfied; he will not be afflicted by calamity. > > 19:24 The sluggard plunges his hand in the dish, and he will not even > bring it back to his mouth! > > 19:25 Flog a scorner, and as a result the simpleton will learn > prudence; correct a discerning person, and as a result he will > understand knowledge. > > 19:26 The one who robs his father and chases away his mother is a son > who brings shame and disgrace. > > 19:27 If you stop listening to instruction, my child, you will stray > from the words of knowledge. > > 19:28 A crooked witness scorns justice, and the mouth of the wicked > devours iniquity. > > 19:29 Judgments are prepared for scorners, and floggings for the backs > of fools. > > > > > Prayer > > > Lord, You make Your wisdom available, but we must choose to acquire it > and to apply it. May I always respond to Your leading to seek out and > apply Your gifts of wisdom to me. > > > > Commentary > > > Solomon returned to his theme of choices and consequences "One who has > isolated himself seeks his own desires; he rejects all sound judgment > ... The name of the Lord is like a strong tower; the righteous person > runs to it and is set safely on high ... The one who gives an answer > before he listens -- that is his folly and his shame ... A foolish > child is the ruin of his father, and a contentious wife is like a > constant dripping ... The one who is gracious to the poor lends to the > Lord, and the Lord will repay him for his good deed ... Listen to > advice and receive discipline, that you may become wise by the end of > your life ... If you stop listening to instruction, my child, you will > stray from the words of knowledge ... A relative offended is harder to > reach than a strong city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a > fortified citadel." > > He again warns that many will speak without knowledge "A fool takes no > pleasure in understanding but only in disclosing what is on his mind." > > Justice is important to the Lord God "It is terrible to show > partiality to the wicked, by depriving a righteous man of justice." > > The Lord God expects everyone one to honor their contracts and to give > their best-effort "The one who is slack in his work is a brother to > one who destroys." > > Money can be isolating from the realities of daily life and may > falsely persuade the wealthy that they are safer than others "The > wealth of a rich person is like a strong city, and it is like a high > wall in his imagination." > > We need encouragement in fellowship so that we may remain strong "A > person's spirit sustains him through sickness -- but who can bear a > crushed spirit?" > > The value of a choice to listen and learn is amplified when one > listens intentionally for additional wisdom "The discerning person > acquires knowledge, and the wise person seeks knowledge." > > Solomon revisited the importance of the wife that is from the Lord and > centered upon the Lord "The one who finds a wife finds what is > enjoyable, and receives a pleasurable gift from the Lord ... A house > and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the > Lord." > > The vulnerability that is required in the overall investment to build > and maintain true friendships means that they can hurt one more-deeply > than a casual acquaintance or a stranger, but even so, a true friend > remains true in spite of some hurts "A person who has friends may be > harmed by them, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." > > A wise person makes different choices for different reasons than an > unwise person "A person's wisdom makes him slow to anger, and it is > his glory to overlook an offense." > > While a firm hand is necessary in parenting, excessive violence is not > "Discipline your child, for there is hope, but do not set your heart > on causing his death." > > We need to allow people to receive some of the consequences of their > destructive behavior else they will fail to learn "A person with great > anger bears the penalty, but if you deliver him from it once, you will > have to do it again." > > Humankind has always had notions, from the Garden until the present, > but in the end the sovereign big-picture plan of the Lord God is > irresistible "There are many plans in a person's mind, but it is the > counsel of the Lord which will stand." > > > > Interaction > > > Consider > > An intentionally-wise person benefits not only him or her-self but > also others. > > > Discuss > > Why is history so replete with people in power "showing partiality to > the wicked" when that same history demonstrates irrefutably that then > end of such choices is disaster? > > > > Reflect > > Wisdom brings discernment of where balance lies, be it in the > discipline of a child, allowing violent people to learn from > consequences, choosing to overlook an offense, choosing to seek more > wisdom, and/or choosing to sacrifice for one more-needy. > > > Share > > When have you observed a person excused from consequences for > destructive choices -- only to repeat the error? > > > > Faith in Action > > > Prayer: > > Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place where you might acquire > greater wisdom if you make the effort to seek it out, beyond merely > listening to teaching. > > > > Action: > > Today I will intentionally follow where the Holy Spirit leads, > beginning each day in search of greater wisdom behind knowledge -- > where understanding and application will take me. I will share the > blessing of that obedient experience with a fellow believer. > > > Be Specific ______________________________________________________ > > > Sunday's text will be: Proverbs 20 - 21 > > > > -- > > Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, > Have anhttp://Ultrafidian.com Day! > David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > Personal Site:http://bibleseven.com > Bible Resources:http://bible.org > Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 > Defend free speech or lose your freedom. > I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > > > _______________________________________________ > Linux4christians mailing list > Linux4christians at thelinuxlink.net > http://www.thelinuxlink.net/mailman/listinfo/linux4christians -- http://www.youtube.com/user/usacomputertec Watch My Youtube Videos USA COMPUTER TECH COMPUTER RESCUE Justin Breithaupt (509) 730-5576 (208) 750-5628 e-mail: usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com website: www.mindblowingidea.com/ComputerRescue.html Support Forum: http://justuselinux.iboards.us/ More About Me: http://www.google.com/profiles/usacomputertec They say that money talks, if so what does it say? IN GOD WE TRUST If your a fan of JULinux Please send an e-mail to Ladislav Bodnar distro at distrowatch.com asking him to put JULinux on his site. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... 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Name: in_god_we_trust.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 16087 bytes Desc: not available URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sat Jun 4 23:37:58 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sat, 04 Jun 2011 23:37:58 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] =?windows-1252?q?Sunday_-_Proverbs_20_=96_22?= =?windows-1252?q?=3A16?= Message-ID: <4DEAFA16.2070109@bibleseven.com> Sunday Proverbs 20 ? 22:16 20:1 Wine is a mocker and strong drink is a brawler; whoever goes astray by them is not wise. 20:2 The king?s terrifying anger is like the roar of a lion; whoever provokes him sins against himself. 20:3 It is an honor for a person to cease from strife, but every fool quarrels. 20:4 The sluggard will not plow during the planting season, so at harvest time he looks for the crop but has nothing. 20:5 Counsel in a person?s heart is like deep water, but an understanding person draws it out. 20:6 Many people profess their loyalty, but a faithful person ? who can find? 20:7 The righteous person behaves in integrity; blessed are his children after him. 20:8 A king sitting on the throne to judge separates out all evil with his eyes. 20:9 Who can say, ?I have kept my heart clean; I am pure from my sin?? 20:10 Diverse weights and diverse measures ? the Lord abhors both of them. 20:11 Even a young man is known by his actions, whether his activity is pure and whether it is right. 20:12 The ear that hears and the eye that sees ? the Lord has made them both. 20:13 Do not love sleep, lest you become impoverished; open your eyes so that you might be satisfied with food. 20:14 ?It?s worthless! It?s worthless!? says the buyer, but when he goes on his way, he boasts. 20:15 There is gold, and an abundance of rubies, but words of knowledge are like a precious jewel. 20:16 Take a man?s garment when he has given security for a stranger, and when he gives surety for strangers, hold him in pledge. 20:17 Bread gained by deceit tastes sweet to a person, but afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel. 20:18 Plans are established by counsel, so make war with guidance. 20:19 The one who goes about gossiping reveals secrets; therefore do not associate with someone who is always opening his mouth. 20:20 The one who curses his father and his mother, his lamp will be extinguished in the blackest darkness. 20:21 An inheritance gained easily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end. 20:22 Do not say, ?I will pay back evil!? Wait for the Lord, so that he may vindicate you. 20:23 The Lord abhors differing weights, and dishonest scales are wicked. 20:24 The steps of a person are ordained by the Lord ? so how can anyone understand his own way? 20:25 It is a snare for a person to rashly cry, ?Holy!? and only afterward to consider what he has vowed. 20:26 A wise king separates out the wicked; he turns the threshing wheel over them. 20:27 The human spirit is like the lamp of the Lord, searching all his innermost parts. 20:28 Loyal love and truth preserve a king, and his throne is upheld by loyal love. 20:29 The glory of young men is their strength, and the splendor of old men is gray hair. 20:30 Beatings and wounds cleanse away evil, and floggings cleanse the innermost being. 21:1 The king?s heart is in the hand of the Lord like channels of water; he turns it wherever he wants. 21:2 All of a person?s ways seem right in his own opinion, but the Lord evaluates the motives. 21:3 To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. 21:4 Haughty eyes and a proud heart ? the agricultural product of the wicked is sin. 21:5 The plans of the diligent lead only to plenty, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. 21:6 Making a fortune by a lying tongue is like a vapor driven back and forth; they seek death. 21:7 The violence done by the wicked will drag them away because they refuse to do what is right. 21:8 The way of the guilty person is devious, but as for the pure, his way is upright. 21:9 It is better to live on a corner of the housetop than in a house in company with a quarrelsome wife. 21:10 The appetite of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor is shown no favor in his eyes. 21:11 When a scorner is punished, the naive becomes wise; when a wise person is instructed, he gains knowledge. 21:12 The Righteous One considers the house of the wicked; he overthrows the wicked to their ruin. 21:13 The one who shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and will not be answered. 21:14 A gift given in secret subdues anger, and a bribe given secretly subdues strong wrath. 21:15 Doing justice brings joy to the righteous and terror to those who do evil. 21:16 The one who wanders from the way of wisdom will end up in the company of the departed. 21:17 The one who loves pleasure will be a poor person; whoever loves wine and anointing oil will not be rich. 21:18 The wicked become a ransom for the righteous, and the faithless are taken in the place of the upright. 21:19 It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and easily-provoked woman. 21:20 There is desirable treasure and olive oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish person devours all he has. 21:21 The one who pursues righteousness and love finds life, bounty, and honor. 21:22 The wise person can scale the city of the mighty and bring down the stronghold in which they trust. 21:23 The one who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps his life from troubles. 21:24 A proud and arrogant person, whose name is ?Scoffer,? acts with overbearing pride. 21:25 What the sluggard desires will kill him, for his hands refuse to work. 21:26 All day long he craves greedily, but the righteous gives and does not hold back. 21:27 The wicked person?s sacrifice is an abomination; how much more when he brings it with evil intent! 21:28 A lying witness will perish, but the one who reports accurately speaks forever. 21:29 A wicked person shows boldness with his face, but as for the upright, he discerns his ways. 21:30 There is no wisdom and there is no understanding, and there is no counsel against the Lord. 21:31 A horse is prepared for the day of battle, but the victory is from the Lord. 22:1 A good name is to be chosen rather than great wealth, good favor more than silver or gold. 22:2 The rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the creator of them both. 22:3 A shrewd person sees danger and hides himself, but the naive keep right on going and suffer for it. 22:4 The reward for humility and fearing the Lord is riches and honor and life. 22:5 Thorns and snares are in the path of the perverse, but the one who guards himself keeps far from them. 22:6 Train a child in the way that he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. 22:7 The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender. 22:8 The one who sows iniquity will reap trouble, and the rod of his fury will end. 22:9 A generous person will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor. 22:10 Drive out the scorner and contention will leave; strife and insults will cease. 22:11 The one who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious ? the king will be his friend. 22:12 The eyes of the Lord guard knowledge, but he overthrows the words of the faithless person. 22:13 The sluggard says, ?There is a lion outside! I will be killed in the middle of the streets!? 22:14 The mouth of an adulteress is like a deep pit; the one against whom the Lord is angry will fall into it. 22:15 Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him. 22:16 The one who oppresses the poor to increase his own gain and the one who gives to the rich ? both end up only in poverty. Prayer Lord, You remind us over and over that we have choices and are rewarded according to our choices. May I choose the path of Your wisdom. Commentary Solomon cautioned against drunkenness, not against all alcohol consumption ?Wine is a mocker and strong drink is a brawler; whoever goes astray by them is not wise.? He observed that it is very difficult to discern the motives in a person's heart ?Counsel in a person?s heart is like deep water, but an understanding person draws it out ? but that such discernment is necessary when seeking trusted advisers and confidants ?Many people profess their loyalty, but a faithful person ? who can find?? He warned again against gossip ?The one who goes about gossiping reveals secrets; therefore do not associate with someone who is always opening his mouth.? He returned to his prior warning to children ?The one who curses his father and his mother, his lamp will be extinguished in the blackest darkness.? Solomon warned that receiving 'easy money' at a young age may have a troublesome impact on the perspectives and priorities of a person ?An inheritance gained easily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end.? He rephrased ?Vengeance is Mine says the Lord? as ?Do not say, ?I will pay back evil!? Wait for the Lord, so that he may vindicate you.? Solomon observed that for those who belong to the Lord ? He is actively involved in their lives and it is not always apparent what is His long-term goal or path ? we must be faithful in the moment and not imagine we know it all ?The steps of a person are ordained by the Lord ? so how can anyone understand his own way? All of a person?s ways seem right in his own opinion, but the Lord evaluates the motives.? He warned against an emotional rush to ?swear commitment? to a course of action ?It is a snare for a person to rashly cry, ?Holy!? and only afterward to consider what he has vowed.? Speaking to wise people and not fools, Solomon encourages them to view difficulties ? even physical trauma ? as opportunities to learn and to grow ?Beatings and wounds cleanse away evil, and floggings cleanse the innermost being.? Solomon returned again to the choices (both of action and of attitude) and consequences teaching ?To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice ... Doing justice brings joy to the righteous and terror to those who do evil ... Haughty eyes and a proud heart ? the agricultural product of the wicked is sin ? There is desirable treasure and olive oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish person devours all he has ? The one who pursues righteousness and love finds life, bounty, and honor ? The one who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps his life from troubles ? A shrewd person sees danger and hides himself, but the naive keep right on going and suffer for it.? He warned again that one should be very care in choosing a spouse ?It is better to live on a corner of the housetop than in a house in company with a quarrelsome wife ? It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and easily-provoked woman.? Solomon reminded that selfishness in the face of obvious need ? that one can meet with a little sacrifice ? is seen by the Lord ?The one who shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and will not be answered ? The one who oppresses the poor to increase his own gain and the one who gives to the rich ? both end up only in poverty ? A generous person will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor.? Solomon counseled that ones integrity-earned reputation is a major priority ?A good name is to be chosen rather than great wealth, good favor more than silver or gold.? He noted that it is not wealth that determines true value, but rather ones relationship with the Lord ?The rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the creator of them both.? Solomon returned to his wisdom about raising children ?Train a child in the way that he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it ? Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him.? He warned that those who belong to the Lord God must set boundaries in their fellowships, and that will include sometimes 'dis-inviting' those who oppose Him ?Drive out the scorner and contention will leave; strife and insults will cease.? Solomon warned that one who has made the Lord God angry, likely due to chronic and unrepentant sin, rebellion, and a ?haughty?/unteachable spirit will be give the world-without-God that they have demanded and earned ?The mouth of an adulteress is like a deep pit; the one against whom the Lord is angry will fall into it.? Interaction Consider There are no places of significance in our lives to which the Word of God does not speak. Discuss Why would Solomon emphasize the importance of extra care in choosing a spouse? Reflect Blessings come to those who are faithful, be it to the Lord God's call to care for the truly poor, or to His call that we be people of integrity, or in the raising of children, and always in the pursuit of righteousness. Share When have you observed someone, perhaps a celebrity or politician, whose birth into great wealth has caused them to lack wisdom? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you an opportunity to assist someone who is genuinely poor, perhaps only briefly-poor, and perhaps chronically poor. Action: Today I will sacrificially assist the one whom the Lord has revealed, and it will be both in physical assistance and in prayer. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Monday's text will be: Proverbs 22:17 - 24 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sun Jun 5 22:05:19 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sun, 05 Jun 2011 22:05:19 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Monday - Proverbs 22:17 - 24 Message-ID: <4DEC35DF.3070407@bibleseven.com> Monday Proverbs 22:17 - 24 The Sayings of the Wise 22:17 Incline your ear and listen to the words of the wise, and apply your heart to my instruction. 22:18 For it is pleasing if you keep these sayings within you, and they are ready on your lips. 22:19 So that your confidence may be in the Lord, I am making them known to you today -- even you. 22:20 Have I not written thirty sayings for you, sayings of counsel and knowledge, 22:21 to show you true and reliable words, so that you may give accurate answers to those who sent you? 22:22 Do not exploit a poor person because he is poor and do not crush the needy in court, 22:23 for the Lord will plead their case and will rob those who are robbing them. 22:24 Do not make friends with an angry person, and do not associate with a wrathful person, 22:25 lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare. 22:26 Do not be one who strikes hands in pledge or who puts up security for debts. 22:27 If you do not have enough to pay, your bed will be taken right out from under you! 22:28 Do not move an ancient boundary stone which was put in place by your ancestors. 22:29 Do you see a person skilled in his work? He will take his position before kings; he will not take his position before obscure people. 23:1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler, consider carefully what is before you, 23:2 and put a knife to your throat if you possess a large appetite. 23:3 Do not crave that ruler's delicacies, for that food is deceptive. 23:4 Do not wear yourself out to become rich; be wise enough to restrain yourself. 23:5 When you gaze upon riches, they are gone, for they surely make wings for themselves, and fly off into the sky like an eagle! 23:6 Do not eat the food of a stingy person, do not crave his delicacies; 23:7 for he is like someone calculating the cost in his mind. "Eat and drink," he says to you, but his heart is not with you; 23:8 you will vomit up the little bit you have eaten, and will have wasted your pleasant words. 23:9 Do not speak in the ears of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words. 23:10 Do not move an ancient boundary stone, or take over the fields of the fatherless, 23:11 for their Protector is strong; he will plead their case against you. 23:12 Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to the words of knowledge. 23:13 Do not withhold discipline from a child; even if you strike him with the rod, he will not die. 23:14 If you strike him with the rod, you will deliver him from death. 23:15 My child, if your heart is wise, then my heart also will be glad; 23:16 my soul will rejoice when your lips speak what is right. 23:17 Do not let your heart envy sinners, but rather be zealous in fearing the Lord all the time. 23:18 For surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off. 23:19 Listen, my child, and be wise, and guide your heart on the right way. 23:20 Do not spend time among drunkards, among those who eat too much meat, 23:21 because drunkards and gluttons become impoverished, and drowsiness clothes them with rags. 23:22 Listen to your father who begot you, and do not despise your mother when she is old. 23:23 Acquire truth and do not sell it -- wisdom, and discipline, and understanding. 23:24 The father of a righteous person will rejoice greatly; whoever fathers a wise child will have joy in him. 23:25 May your father and your mother have joy; may she who bore you rejoice. 23:26 Give me your heart, my son, and let your eyes observe my ways; 23:27 for a prostitute is like a deep pit; a harlot is like a narrow well. 23:28 Indeed, she lies in wait like a robber, and increases the unfaithful among men. 23:29 Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds without cause? Who has dullness of the eyes? 23:30 Those who linger over wine, those who go looking for mixed wine. 23:31 Do not look on the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly. 23:32 Afterward it bites like a snake, and stings like a viper. 23:33 Your eyes will see strange things, and your mind will speak perverse things. 23:34 And you will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea, and like one who lies down on the top of the rigging. 23:35 You will say, "They have struck me, but I am not harmed! They beat me, but I did not know it! When will I awake? I will look for another drink." 24:1 Do not envy evil people, do not desire to be with them; 24:2 for their hearts contemplate violence, and their lips speak harm. 24:3 By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; 24:4 by knowledge its rooms are filled with all kinds of precious and pleasing treasures. 24:5 A wise warrior is strong, and a man of knowledge makes his strength stronger; 24:6 for with guidance you wage your war, and with numerous advisers there is victory. 24:7 Wisdom is unattainable for a fool; in court he does not open his mouth. 24:8 The one who plans to do evil will be called a scheming person. 24:9 A foolish scheme is sin, and the scorner is an abomination to people. 24:10 If you faint in the day of trouble, your strength is small! 24:11 Deliver those being taken away to death, and hold back those slipping to the slaughter. 24:12 If you say, "But we did not know about this," does not the one who evaluates hearts consider? Does not the one who guards your life know? Will he not repay each person according to his deeds? 24:13 Eat honey, my child, for it is good, and honey from the honeycomb is sweet to your taste. 24:14 Likewise, know that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, you will have a future, and your hope will not be cut off. 24:15 Do not lie in wait like the wicked against the place where the righteous live; do not assault his home. 24:16 Although a righteous person may fall seven times, he gets up again, but the wicked will be brought down by calamity. 24:17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and when he stumbles do not let your heart rejoice, 24:18 lest the Lord see it, and be displeased, and turn his wrath away from him. 24:19 Do not fret because of evil people or be envious of wicked people, 24:20 for the evil person has no future, and the lamp of the wicked will be extinguished. 24:21 Fear the Lord, my child, as well as the king, and do not associate with rebels, 24:22 for suddenly their destruction will overtake them, and who knows the ruinous judgment both the Lord and the king can bring? Further Sayings of the Wise 24:23 These sayings also are from the wise: To show partiality in judgment is terrible: 24:24 The one who says to the guilty, "You are innocent," peoples will curse him, and nations will denounce him. 24:25 But there will be delight for those who convict the guilty, and a pleasing blessing will come on them. 24:26 Like a kiss on the lips is the one who gives an honest answer. 24:27 Establish your work outside and get your fields ready; afterward build your house. 24:28 Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause, and do not deceive with your words. 24:29 Do not say, "I will do to him just as he has done to me; I will pay him back according to what he has done." 24:30 I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of one who lacks wisdom. 24:31 I saw that thorns had grown up all over it, the ground was covered with weeds, and its stone wall was broken down. 24:32 When I saw this, I gave careful consideration to it; I received instruction from what I saw: 24:33 "A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to relax, 24:34 and your poverty will come like a bandit, and your need like an armed robber." Prayer Lord, Your wisdom applies to every part of our lives, and You have made it plainly know in Your Book. May I read and trust and obey. Commentary Solomon again pleaded with his readers to intentionally receive wisdom "Incline your ear and listen to the words of the wise, and apply your heart to my instruction. For it is pleasing if you keep these sayings within you, and they are ready on your lips ... Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to the words of knowledge ... By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; by knowledge its rooms are filled with all kinds of precious and pleasing treasures." He cautioned that against the love of money "Do not wear yourself out to become rich; be wise enough to restrain yourself." Solomon addressed the raising of children "Do not withhold discipline from a child; even if you strike him with the rod, he will not die. If you strike him with the rod, you will deliver him from death." and the responsibilities of children My child, if your heart is wise, then my heart also will be glad; my soul will rejoice when your lips speak what is right ... Listen, my child, and be wise, and guide your heart on the right way ... Listen to your father who begot you, and do not despise your mother when she is old." He observed that the true power of genuine and maturing-faith shows under stress "If you faint in the day of trouble, your strength is small! Although a righteous person may fall seven times, he gets up again, but the wicked will be brought down by calamity." Solomon warned that we must keep our hearts right, desiring faith and blessing for others, even our enemies "Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and when he stumbles do not let your heart rejoice, lest the Lord see it, and be displeased, and turn his wrath away from him." and that we must leave vengeance to the Lord "Do not say, "I will do to him just as he has done to me; I will pay him back according to what he has done."" Interaction Consider We must be constantly-seeking wisdom, even thought it may be inconvenient to acquire and equally inconvenient to apply. Discuss What is the down-side to celebrating the troubles of your enemy? Reflect A deep faith-walk with the Lord God brings confidence and power -- and it will show under stress. Share When have you observed someone "wear [themselves] out to become rich" because of a lack of self-restraint? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you an opportunity in your life to "Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to the words of knowledge." Action: Today I will prayerfully follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit and will share the experience with a fellow believer as an encouragement to them. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Tuesday's test will be: Proverbs 25 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From daniel at centurion.net.nz Mon Jun 6 10:55:43 2011 From: daniel at centurion.net.nz (Daniel Reurich) Date: Tue, 07 Jun 2011 02:55:43 +1200 Subject: [Linux4christians] Repartitioning the hard way... In-Reply-To: <20110603224945.0000768f@unknown> References: <20110603224945.0000768f@unknown> Message-ID: <1307372143.2891.195.camel@localhost.localdomain> Hi Eddy, On Fri, 2011-06-03 at 22:49 -0700, Eddy wrote: > OK, I must first ask forgiveness for not putting /home on a separate > partition, but the day is past, and now I'm contemplating an upgrade > with no backup disk available, and I have a lot of stuff I want to keep. > I'd strongly recommend you get a good backup of the information you need to retain - 2 backups if you can afford it. Your asking for pain if you don't have a backup. > I'm running Xubuntu 9.10 with ext4 filesystem on a 150G > hard drive. > I want to move the data to the "front" of the drive (or at least out of > the way) so I can split the drive, copy my home directory to the > new partition, then upgrade or change the OS (no recommendations, > please...) all without losing my home directory data. > The hard drive is only 44% full, so I'm not starving for room, but I'm > wondering exactly how to accomplish what I need. Short answer: resize2fs. > There are many partitioning tools for Windows that ease the task of > re-doing partitions by first defragmenting and moving data to the > beginning of the disk so as to avoid losing data when re-partitioning. > >From everything I've read, the promised ext4 defragmenting tools aren't > really stable or ready. Fragmentation won't be a problem for you unless you've filled your hdd nearly full with data and then deleted it. Run: `resize2fs -P /dev/ to find out the minimum filesystem size you can reduce too. > I've read in a few forum and blog posts that [Qt/G]parted can handle > moving data out of the way before putting in planned new partition > points, but I can't find any hard info on how to do it. > You'll be wanting to undertake this sort of operation from a live-cd| dvd|flashdisk, and that means GUI tools may not be a realistic option. Command line is usually the chosen environment for these sorts of invasive changes. > If I had the extra cash, I'd just grab a second hand disk from the > computer store down the street and call it good, but I'm a little > short... > Don't do anything without a good backup or 2 of your data!! > Thoughts? Backups and planning. Read the man-pages on the necessary tools (x2) and write out your detailed plan. Then pray and follow your plan. It's a bit of a process, not overly difficult, but requires some care and forethought, and a bit of time. Regards, -- Daniel Reurich. Centurion Computer Technology (2005) Ltd Mobile 021 797 722 From preston.lists at gmail.com Mon Jun 6 12:07:07 2011 From: preston.lists at gmail.com (Preston Boyington) Date: Mon, 06 Jun 2011 11:07:07 -0500 Subject: [Linux4christians] Repartitioning the hard way... In-Reply-To: <1307372143.2891.195.camel@localhost.localdomain> References: <20110603224945.0000768f@unknown> <1307372143.2891.195.camel@localhost.localdomain> Message-ID: <4DECFB2B.2060008@gmail.com> Daniel Reurich wrote: > Hi Eddy, > > On Fri, 2011-06-03 at 22:49 -0700, Eddy wrote: >> ...I'm contemplating an upgrade >> with no backup disk available, and I have a lot of stuff I want to keep. how much space are we talking about? 20-30 Gig? 100 Gig? the reason I ask is that the size/number of the files _can_ affect the advice. If you have a DVD burner and time on your hands then going through a stack of blank DVDs isn't that big of a deal on 30 Gig. moreso on 80+ Gig since you'll want to check the files to be sure you didn't get a bad burn. this also stands for large file copying (sync'ing is better IMO) to another drive. > I'd strongly recommend you get a good backup of the information you need > to retain - 2 backups if you can afford it. Your asking for pain if you > don't have a backup. absolutely agree. > >> I want to move the data... then upgrade or change the OS (no recommendations, >> please...) that's alright, I'm willing to let you stumble along in darkness. ;-) >> I've read in a few forum and blog posts that [Qt/G]parted can handle >> moving data out of the way before putting in planned new partition >> points, but I can't find any hard info on how to do it. >> > You'll be wanting to undertake this sort of operation from a live-cd| > dvd|flashdisk, and that means GUI tools may not be a realistic option. > my experience with Gparted, and GUI (r)sync/mirror software in Linux has been very good over the last several years. > Command line is usually the chosen environment for these sorts of > invasive changes. with the newer programs available I'll go with this as "preference" for the most part. this is dependent on particular file systems and confidence/experience of the user. >> If I had the extra cash, I'd just grab a second hand disk... there's not a magic bullet for this. if you don't use a backup then be prepared to lose your data. NO software is perfect and anything can go wrong at any time. Be aware, you probably won't be able to create a partition at the "front" of the drive. using Gparted you'll be shown the available free space at the end of the drive. If you are going to put Microsoft Windows on the machine this will be an issue. not because "it's not Linux", but because Windows doesn't like running from someplace other than the first partition. Linux/BSD is much more forgiving on where things are partitions wise. as stated earlier, use either a LiveCD or a LiveUSB. I'll suggest something like Puppy Linux (just used latest 525 and was pleased). Puppy has Gparted and GUI file sync'ing programs that will help you through. as far as creating a bootable USB flash drive, I would suggest UNetBootin. with it you can grab a LiveCD iso image and install it to the flash drive with just a few clicks. these are just my suggestions. YMMV. From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Mon Jun 6 22:56:25 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Mon, 06 Jun 2011 22:56:25 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Tuesday - Proverbs 25 Message-ID: <4DED9359.8010603@bibleseven.com> Tuesday Proverbs 25 Proverbs of Solomon Collected by Hezekiah 25:1 These also are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of King Hezekiah of Judah copied: 25:2 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, and it is the glory of a king to search out a matter. 25:3 As the heaven is high and the earth is deep so the hearts of kings are unsearchable. 25:4 Remove the dross from the silver, and material for the silversmith will emerge; 25:5 remove the wicked from before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness. 25:6 Do not honor yourself before the king, and do not stand in the place of great men; 25:7 for it is better for him to say to you, "Come up here," than to put you lower before a prince, whom your eyes have seen. 25:8 Do not go out hastily to litigation, or what will you do afterward when your neighbor puts you to shame? 25:9 When you argue a case with your neighbor, do not reveal the secret of another person, 25:10 lest the one who hears it put you to shame and your infamy will never go away. 25:11 Like apples of gold in settings of silver, so is a word skillfully spoken. 25:12 Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover to the ear of the one who listens. 25:13 Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to those who send him, for he refreshes the heart of his masters. 25:14 Like cloudy skies and wind that produce no rain, so is the one who boasts of a gift not given. 25:15 Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a soft tongue can break a bone. 25:16 When you find honey, eat only what is sufficient for you, lest you become stuffed with it and vomit it up. 25:17 Don't set foot too frequently in your neighbor's house, lest he become weary of you and hate you. 25:18 Like a club or a sword or a sharp arrow, so is the one who testifies against his neighbor as a false witness. 25:19 Like a bad tooth or a foot out of joint, so is confidence in an unfaithful person at the time of trouble. 25:20 Like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar poured on soda, so is one who sings songs to a heavy heart. 25:21 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, 25:22 for you will heap coals of fire on his head, and the Lord will reward you. 25:23 The north wind brings forth rain, and a gossiping tongue brings forth an angry look. 25:24 It is better to live on a corner of the housetop than in a house in company with a quarrelsome wife. 25:25 Like cold water to a weary person, so is good news from a distant land. 25:26 Like a muddied spring and a polluted well, so is a righteous person who gives way before the wicked. 25:27 It is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it honorable for people to seek their own glory. 25:28 Like a city that is broken down and without a wall, so is a person who cannot control his temper. Prayer Lord, a life walked with You, according to Your wisdom looks different than that of a person without You, or a believer who does not pursue and apply wisdom. May my life be useful to You because I am teachable and willing ... Commentary As noted in the Chapter heading, these are "Proverbs of Solomon Collected by Hezekiah", and so there is some considerable overlap with the message/text of other Proverbs. Solomon remarked that the Lord God did not choose to make all things obvious because He knows that some matters are only valued and understood after one has worked-through the full context of them, so for one who He calls to leadership "It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, and it is the glory of a king to search out a matter ..." and that is why "As the heaven is high and the earth is deep so the hearts of kings are unsearchable ..." because their hearts belong to Him and it is in that process where the Lord does "Remove the dross from the silver, and material for the silversmith will emerge; remove the wicked from before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness." He warned "Do not go out hastily to litigation, or what will you do afterward when your neighbor puts you to shame? When you argue a case with your neighbor, do not reveal the secret of another person, lest the one who hears it put you to shame and your infamy will never go away." He encouraged "Like apples of gold in settings of silver, so is a word skillfully spoken. Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover to the ear of the one who listens.", again observing that a wise person is teachable. Solomon counseled that choosing those we trust is important "Like a bad tooth or a foot out of joint, so is confidence in an unfaithful person at the time of trouble." He also shared this wisdom with those who would counsel and encourage the hurting "Like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar poured on soda, so is one who sings songs to a heavy heart." Solomon combined two images in one verse "If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will heap coals of fire on his head, and the Lord will reward you.", the first is that in showing your right-heart in contrast to the evil-heart of your enemy you shine light into their darkness, and he referenced the practice of giving hot coals to a guest to warm them on the way home and with which they'd then start their fire at home (the head-part referenced the head gear which held the coals without burning one yet still passed heat to the head). He warned that it was a terrible thing when a righteous person allowed him/her-self to be drawn into the value-system of a wicked person "Like a muddied spring and a polluted well, so is a righteous person who gives way before the wicked." Solomon warned against gluttony, of food or of fame "It is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it honorable for people to seek their own glory." He returned to his counsel that choices have consequences, in this case one who is out of control becomes vulnerable and weak "Like a city that is broken down and without a wall, so is a person who cannot control his temper." Interaction Consider Proverbs 25:26 Solomon warned that it was a terrible thing when a righteous person allowed him/her-self to be drawn into the value-system of a wicked person "Like a muddied spring and a polluted well, so is a righteous person who gives way before the wicked." Wow! Ouch! Think of all of the excuses we hear for selling-out to the world! Discuss How does a person who fails to control his/her anger become more vulnerable? Reflect Choosing those whom we trust is very important, whether it is a spouse (if the Lord God calls us out of undistracted single-service to Him), a business associate, a leadership advisor, or in any other venue. Share When have you observed someone bringing an accusation against another, and then dragging third-parties into the debate, only to be shown a fool and having lost friendships. Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your life where you are allowing yourself to be drawn into the value-system of an unrighteous person, or group of people, or philosophy. Action: Today I will repent of the error which the Holy Spirit has revealed to me and act intentionally to break the unrighteous influence in my life. I will refuse to sell-out to anything that is not of-God and which does not draw me nearer to righteousness rather than nearer to the fire of sin. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Wednesday's text will be: Proverbs 26 - 27 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From hpp3 at lavabit.com Tue Jun 7 03:44:14 2011 From: hpp3 at lavabit.com (Eddy Martin) Date: Tue, 07 Jun 2011 00:44:14 -0700 Subject: [Linux4christians] Repartitioning the hard way... In-Reply-To: <1307372143.2891.195.camel@localhost.localdomain> References: <20110603224945.0000768f@unknown> <1307372143.2891.195.camel@localhost.localdomain> Message-ID: <4DEDD6CE.6080603@lavabit.com> On 06/06/2011 07:55 AM, Daniel Reurich wrote: > I'd strongly recommend you get a good backup of the information you need > to retain - 2 backups if you can afford it. Your asking for pain if you > don't have a backup. Believe me, I've been there! I've also been saving up for an external drive for backups and hopefully I can eventually swing for a larger hard drive to put in the home server for another backup location. Right now, it's just used to transfer files between me, my wife, and my son, so it doesn't need to be very large. > Short answer: resize2fs. I just looked it up; resize2fs works on ext4 partitions as well. Very nice. > Fragmentation won't be a problem for you unless you've filled your hdd > nearly full with data and then deleted it. > Run: `resize2fs -P /dev/ to find out the minimum filesystem > size you can reduce too. I wasn't actually worried about fragmentation, it's just that's how they accomplish live resizing on the Windows. resize2fs reports I can go to 19 gigs. Not bad, not bad at all. > You'll be wanting to undertake this sort of operation from a live-cd| > dvd|flashdisk, and that means GUI tools may not be a realistic option. > > Command line is usually the chosen environment for these sorts of > invasive changes. All the *buntu live desktop disks have some sort of parted installed, IIRC, and I've got a bunch of those lying around so it shouldn't be a problem. > Don't do anything without a good backup or 2 of your data!! Right. I wouldn't go wiping the original until I had a confirmed and checked backup first. My hope is in the next life, not this, so if I HAD to lose all my data (whether by force or accident matters little) I'm sure the sun will rise again the next day. Either way, I'll do what I can to keep what I have. Thanks for all the info... -Eddy From hpp3 at lavabit.com Tue Jun 7 03:44:19 2011 From: hpp3 at lavabit.com (Eddy Martin) Date: Tue, 07 Jun 2011 00:44:19 -0700 Subject: [Linux4christians] Repartitioning the hard way... In-Reply-To: <4DECFB2B.2060008@gmail.com> References: <20110603224945.0000768f@unknown> <1307372143.2891.195.camel@localhost.localdomain> <4DECFB2B.2060008@gmail.com> Message-ID: <4DEDD6D3.1010300@lavabit.com> On 06/06/2011 09:07 AM, Preston Boyington wrote: > how much space are we talking about? 20-30 Gig? 100 Gig? the reason > I ask is that the size/number of the files _can_ affect the advice. > If you have a DVD burner and time on your hands then going through a > stack of blank DVDs isn't that big of a deal on 30 Gig. moreso on 80+ > Gig since you'll want to check the files to be sure you didn't get a > bad burn. If 'du -cs' is to be trusted, I have ~ 60G in my home folder, about half of which is taken up by VMware and Virtualbox stuff. It's only Windows, that can go... ;) > my experience with Gparted, and GUI (r)sync/mirror software in Linux > has been very good over the last several years. Very good. I've used it to good effect when partitioning a new drive for installation or extra storage, but not on a 'live' system. Now that I think of it, I could probably test out many of these ideas on a virtual machine, just to get the steps down. Hmmm... > Be aware, you probably won't be able to create a partition at the > "front" of the drive. using Gparted you'll be shown the available > free space at the end of the drive. If you are going to put Microsoft > Windows on the machine this will be an issue. not because "it's not > Linux", but because Windows doesn't like running from someplace other > than the first partition. > > Linux/BSD is much more forgiving on where things are partitions wise. Oh no, that wasn't my concern at all, I was just hoping to keep the existing data where it is, perhaps "scooting" it more towards the 'front' to make room for a new partition. Then, I'd copy my home stuff into the new spot and re-install into the old. That way, upgrading is more comfortable and backups more convenient. > as stated earlier, use either a LiveCD or a LiveUSB. I'll suggest > something like Puppy Linux (just used latest 525 and was pleased). > Puppy has Gparted and GUI file sync'ing programs that will help you > through. > > as far as creating a bootable USB flash drive, I would suggest > UNetBootin. with it you can grab a LiveCD iso image and install it to > the flash drive with just a few clicks. > > these are just my suggestions. YMMV. Thank you, I appreciate all of this very much. -Eddy From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Tue Jun 7 22:49:16 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Tue, 07 Jun 2011 22:49:16 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Wednesday - Proverbs 26 - 27 Message-ID: <4DEEE32C.60309@bibleseven.com> Wednesday Proverbs 26 - 27 26:1 Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool. 26:2 Like a fluttering bird or like a flying swallow, so a curse without cause does not come to rest. 26:3 A whip for the horse and a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools! 26:4 Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you yourself also be like him. 26:5 Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own estimation. 26:6 Like cutting off the feet or drinking violence, so is sending a message by the hand of a fool. 26:7 Like legs that hang limp from the lame, so is a proverb in the mouth of fools. 26:8 Like tying a stone in a sling, so is giving honor to a fool. 26:9 Like a thorn that goes into the hand of a drunkard, so is a proverb in the mouth of a fool. 26:10 Like an archer who wounds at random, so is the one who hires a fool or hires any passer-by. 26:11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. 26:12 Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. 26:13 The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! A lion in the streets!" 26:14 Like a door that turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed. 26:15 The sluggard plunges his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth. 26:16 The sluggard is wiser in his own estimation than seven people who respond with good sense. 26:17 Like one who grabs a wild dog by the ears, so is the person passing by who becomes furious over a quarrel not his own. 26:18 Like a madman who shoots firebrands and deadly arrows, 26:19 so is a person who deceives his neighbor, and says, "Was I not only joking?" 26:20 Where there is no wood, a fire goes out, and where there is no gossip, contention ceases. 26:21 Like charcoal is to burning coals, and wood to fire, so is a contentious person to kindle strife. 26:22 The words of a gossip are like delicious morsels; they go down into a person's innermost being. 26:23 Like a coating of glaze over earthenware are fervent lips with an evil heart. 26:24 The one who hates others disguises it with his lips, but he stores up deceit within him. 26:25 When he speaks graciously, do not believe him, for there are seven abominations within him. 26:26 Though his hatred may be concealed by deceit, his evil will be uncovered in the assembly. 26:27 The one who digs a pit will fall into it; the one who rolls a stone -- it will come back on him. 26:28 A lying tongue hates those crushed by it, and a flattering mouth works ruin. 27:1 Do not boast about tomorrow; for you do not know what a day may bring forth. 27:2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; someone else, and not your own lips. 27:3 A stone is heavy and sand is weighty, but vexation by a fool is more burdensome than the two of them. 27:4 Wrath is cruel and anger is overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy? 27:5 Better is open rebuke than hidden love. 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are excessive. 27:7 The one whose appetite is satisfied loathes honey, but to the hungry mouth every bitter thing is sweet. 27:8 Like a bird that wanders from its nest, so is a person who wanders from his home. 27:9 Ointment and incense make the heart rejoice, likewise the sweetness of one's friend from sincere counsel. 27:10 Do not forsake your friend and your father's friend, and do not enter your brother's house in the day of your disaster; a neighbor nearby is better than a brother far away. 27:11 Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad, so that I may answer anyone who taunts me. 27:12 A shrewd person sees danger and hides himself, but the naive keep right on going and suffer for it. 27:13 Take a man's garment when he has given security for a stranger, and when he gives surety for a stranger, hold him in pledge. 27:14 If someone blesses his neighbor with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be counted as a curse to him. 27:15 A continual dripping on a rainy day and a contentious wife are alike. 27:16 Whoever hides her hides the wind or grasps oil with his right hand. 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so a person sharpens his friend. 27:18 The one who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit, and whoever takes care of his master will be honored. 27:19 As in water the face is reflected as a face, so a person's heart reflects the person. 27:20 As Death and Destruction are never satisfied, so the eyes of a person are never satisfied. 27:21 As the crucible is for silver and the furnace is for gold, so a person is proved by the praise he receives. 27:22 If you should pound the fool in the mortar among the grain with the pestle, his foolishness would not depart from him. 27:23 Pay careful attention to the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds, 27:24 for riches do not last forever, nor does a crown last from generation to generation. 27:25 When the hay is removed and new grass appears, and the grass from the hills is gathered in, 27:26 the lambs will be for your clothing, and the goats will be for the price of a field. 27:27 And there will be enough goat's milk for your food, for the food of your household, and for the sustenance of your servant girls. Prayer Lord, the world is filled with fools, those who choose to live without You -- or those who belong to You but who choose to frequently ignore Your wisdom. May I study Your Word, learn about Your wisdom, and choose not to be counted among the fools. Commentary The collection of Solomon's proverbs began with several specific to fools "Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool." He observed that a curse uttered by a fool, without the Lord God's approval because it lacked a cause, was meaningless "Like a fluttering bird or like a flying swallow, so a curse without cause does not come to rest." Solomon juxtaposed two cases where a fool said something and the wise person had to choose if and how they would respond. The NET Translator's notes postulate that in the first case one is dealing with something not even worthy of a reply, and in the second a matter demanding a correcting-reply so that in something important the fool is not left believing himself to be correct "Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you yourself also be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own estimation." He observes that a fool does not learn from his/her mistakes "Like a dog that returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly." He taught that an arrogant and prideful man who gives no credit for wisdom to the Lord God is less teachable than a fool "Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him." Solomon often warned against gossip "Where there is no wood, a fire goes out, and where there is no gossip, contention ceases." He warned against presuming upon the circumstances of a day not yet lived "Do not boast about tomorrow; for you do not know what a day may bring forth." Solomon warned against boasting "Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; someone else, and not your own lips." He observed that jealousy poisoned relationships whereas wrath and anger tended to be events with consequences, but also with clear beginnings and endings "Wrath is cruel and anger is overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy?" Solomon contrasted the hurt that may come from a friend's words and the false praise of an enemy "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are excessive." He presented a three-part wisdom; first that one needs to stay close to friends, second that one should not either bring trouble into their brother's home or only go to him when in trouble, and third that one should develop nearby friends for support when existing family and friends are at a distance "Do not forsake your friend and your father's friend, and do not enter your brother's house in the day of your disaster; a neighbor nearby is better than a brother far away." Solomon observed that bellowing blessings at someone early in the morning is unlikely to be received well "If someone blesses his neighbor with a loud voice early in the morning, it will be counted as a curse to him." He repeats his warning to choose a spouse wisely "A continual dripping on a rainy day and a contentious wife are alike ... and he warned that trying to keep such a woman from being an embarrassment is like trying to hide the wind or to hold wind in your bare hand "Whoever hides her hides the wind or grasps oil with his right hand." Solomon encouraged believers to discuss important matters with an eye toward wisdom "As iron sharpens iron, so a person sharpens his friend." He noted that ones heart drives ones attitude and behavior and thereby displays the essence of a person "As in water the face is reflected as a face, so a person's heart reflects the person." Solomon concluded that the lust of the eyes are an endless source of worldly desire "As Death and Destruction are never satisfied, so the eyes of a person are never satisfied." Interaction Consider One does not always has to respond to every foolish thing that people say, but wisdom helps one to know when a wrong statement made about serious matter requires a correction. Discuss Why might Solomon place such a high value on friendship? Reflect Jealousy is toxic to relationships, among co-workers, neighbors, associates of other types, and romantic relationships. Share When have you experienced the frustration of dealing with a fool? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you an opportunity in a relationship with a fellow believe where an "iron sharpening iron" discussion of important matters would lead to more maturity through shared wisdom. Action: Today I will prayerfully begin seeking a Christian person and a time and a plan for an "iron sharpening iron" peer-discipleship fellowship. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Thursday's text will be: Proverbs 28 - 29 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From preston.lists at gmail.com Wed Jun 8 09:16:59 2011 From: preston.lists at gmail.com (Preston Boyington) Date: Wed, 08 Jun 2011 08:16:59 -0500 Subject: [Linux4christians] Repartitioning the hard way... In-Reply-To: <4DEDD6D3.1010300@lavabit.com> References: <20110603224945.0000768f@unknown> <1307372143.2891.195.camel@localhost.localdomain> <4DECFB2B.2060008@gmail.com> <4DEDD6D3.1010300@lavabit.com> Message-ID: <4DEF764B.1020101@gmail.com> Eddy Martin wrote: > On 06/06/2011 09:07 AM, Preston Boyington wrote: >> how much space are we talking about? 20-30 Gig? 100 Gig? the reason >> I ask is that the size/number of the files _can_ affect the advice. >> If you have a DVD burner and time on your hands then going through a >> stack of blank DVDs isn't that big of a deal on 30 Gig. moreso on 80+ >> Gig since you'll want to check the files to be sure you didn't get a >> bad burn. > > If 'du -cs' is to be trusted, I have ~ 60G in my home folder, about half > of which is taken up by VMware and Virtualbox stuff. > It's only Windows, that can go... ;) > >> my experience with Gparted, and GUI (r)sync/mirror software in Linux >> has been very good over the last several years. > > Very good. > I've used it to good effect when partitioning a new drive for > installation or extra storage, but not on a 'live' system. > Now that I think of it, I could probably test out many of these ideas on > a virtual machine, just to get the steps down. > Hmmm... I wouldn't see it as a problem, although it may be time consuming depending on your system. patience is rewarded here. the reason I usually suggest Puppy over Ubuntu/Fedora/Knoppix/whatever is the small footprint it takes in RAM. this way there's more for the resizing and moving process. there _is_ a Gparted LiveCD, but it weighs in at (virtually) the same size as Puppy although it doesn't have the same level of maturity. add that Puppy offers several other tools that might help out and my recommendation easily tips to it. let me know how it turns out. From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Wed Jun 8 23:42:36 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Wed, 08 Jun 2011 23:42:36 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Thursday - Proverbs 28 - 29 Message-ID: <4DF0412C.8040305@bibleseven.com> Thursday Proverbs 28 - 29 28:1 The wicked person flees when there is no one pursuing, but the righteous person is as confident as a lion. 28:2 When a country is rebellious it has many princes, but by someone who is discerning and knowledgeable order is maintained. 28:3 A poor person who oppresses the weak is like a driving rain without food. 28:4 Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law contend with them. 28:5 Evil people do not understand justice, but those who seek the Lord understand it all. 28:6 A poor person who walks in his integrity is better than one who is perverse in his ways even though he is rich. 28:7 The one who keeps the law is a discerning child, but a companion of gluttons brings shame to his parents. 28:8 The one who increases his wealth by increasing interest gathers it for someone who is gracious to the needy. 28:9 The one who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination. 28:10 The one who leads the upright astray in an evil way will himself fall into his own pit, but the blameless will inherit what is good. 28:11 A rich person is wise in his own eyes, but a discerning poor person can evaluate him properly. 28:12 When the righteous rejoice, great is the glory, but when the wicked rise to power, people are sought out. 28:13 The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses them and forsakes them will find mercy. 28:14 Blessed is the one who is always cautious, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into evil. 28:15 Like a roaring lion or a roving bear, so is a wicked ruler over a poor people. 28:16 The prince who is a great oppressor lacks wisdom, but the one who hates unjust gain will prolong his days. 28:17 The one who is tormented by the murder of another will flee to the pit; let no one support him. 28:18 The one who walks blamelessly will be delivered, but whoever is perverse in his ways will fall at once. 28:19 The one who works his land will be satisfied with food, but whoever chases daydreams will have his fill of poverty. 28:20 A faithful person will have an abundance of blessings, but the one who hastens to gain riches will not go unpunished. 28:21 To show partiality is terrible, for a person will transgress over the smallest piece of bread. 28:22 The stingy person hastens after riches and does not know that poverty will overtake him. 28:23 The one who reproves another will in the end find more favor than the one who flatters with the tongue. 28:24 The one who robs his father and mother and says, "There is no transgression," is a companion to the one who destroys. 28:25 The greedy person stirs up dissension, but the one who trusts in the Lord will prosper. 28:26 The one who trusts in his own heart is a fool, but the one who walks in wisdom will escape. 28:27 The one who gives to the poor will not lack, but whoever shuts his eyes to them will receive many curses. 28:28 When the wicked gain control, people hide themselves, but when they perish, the righteous increase. 29:1 The one who stiffens his neck after numerous rebukes will suddenly be destroyed without remedy. 29:2 When the righteous become numerous, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan. 29:3 The man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, but whoever associates with prostitutes wastes his wealth. 29:4 A king brings stability to a land by justice, but one who exacts tribute tears it down. 29:5 The one who flatters his neighbor spreads a net for his steps. 29:6 In the transgression of an evil person there is a snare, but a righteous person can sing and rejoice. 29:7 The righteous person cares for the legal rights of the poor; the wicked does not understand such knowledge. 29:8 Scornful people inflame a city, but those who are wise turn away wrath. 29:9 If a wise person goes to court with a foolish person, there is no peace whether he is angry or laughs. 29:10 Bloodthirsty people hate someone with integrity; as for the upright, they seek his life. 29:11 A fool lets fly with all his temper, but a wise person keeps it back. 29:12 If a ruler listens to lies, all his ministers will be wicked. 29:13 The poor person and the oppressor have this in common: the Lord gives light to the eyes of them both. 29:14 If a king judges the poor in truth, his throne will be established forever. 29:15 A rod and reproof impart wisdom, but a child who is unrestrained brings shame to his mother. 29:16 When the wicked increase, transgression increases, but the righteous will see their downfall. 29:17 Discipline your child, and he will give you rest; he will bring you happiness. 29:18 When there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint, but the one who keeps the law, blessed is he! 29:19 A servant cannot be corrected by words, for although he understands, there is no answer. 29:20 Do you see someone who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him. 29:21 If someone pampers his servant from youth, he will be a weakling in the end. 29:22 An angry person stirs up dissension, and a wrathful person is abounding in transgression. 29:23 A person's pride will bring him low, but one who has a lowly spirit will gain honor. 29:24 Whoever shares with a thief is his own enemy; he hears the oath to testify, but does not talk. Prayer Lord, You teach us about choices and consequences and how the condition of our hearts -- and those of leaders -- has a major impact upon the way we think and act. May I take the time to access what is my heart-condition before I speak and before I act. Commentary Solomon challenged leaders to be wise and warned of the consequences of the wrong people in power "When a country is rebellious it has many princes, but by someone who is discerning and knowledgeable order is maintained ... When the righteous rejoice, great is the glory, but when the wicked rise to power, people are sought out ... When the wicked gain control, people hide themselves, but when they perish, the righteous increase ... When the righteous become numerous, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan ... Like a roaring lion or a roving bear, so is a wicked ruler over a poor people ... The prince who is a great oppressor lacks wisdom, but the one who hates unjust gain will prolong his days ... If a ruler listens to lies, all his ministers will be wicked." He explained that those with few resources who abuse those with little power are foolish "A poor person who oppresses the weak is like a driving rain without food." Solomon repeated his teaching that "The one who gives to the poor will not lack, but whoever shuts his eyes to them will receive many curses. And that how one treats matters of justice involving the poor speaks of the condition of their heart "The righteous person cares for the legal rights of the poor; the wicked does not understand such knowledge ... Evil people do not understand justice, but those who seek the Lord understand it all." He returned to his theme of choices and consequences "A poor person who walks in his integrity is better than one who is perverse in his ways even though he is rich ... The one who keeps the law is a discerning child, but a companion of gluttons brings shame to his parents ... The one who leads the upright astray in an evil way will himself fall into his own pit, but the blameless will inherit what is good ... The one who covers his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses them and forsakes them will find mercy ... Blessed is the one who is always cautious, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into evil ... The one who works his land will be satisfied with food, but whoever chases daydreams will have his fill of poverty ... The one who trusts in his own heart is a fool, but the one who walks in wisdom will escape ... A person's pride will bring him low, but one who has a lowly spirit will gain honor." Solomon described the prison of nitpicking and sin that comes from one who lacks a sense of wisdom-informed justice "To show partiality is terrible, for a person will transgress over the smallest piece of bread." He called upon the wise to refuse to get involved with those who cause trouble "Scornful people inflame a city, but those who are wise turn away wrath." Solomon explained why true Christians are often targets in the secular world "Bloodthirsty people hate someone with integrity; as for the upright, they seek his life." [Bloodthirsty might be taken to refer to those who serve the enemy.] He challenged leaders of the faithful to proclaim the Word of God "When there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint, but the one who keeps the law, blessed is he!" Interaction Consider Proverbs 28:2 /"When a country is rebellious it has many princes, but by someone who is discerning and knowledgeable order is maintained."/ The Lord God allows nations to be fragmented, though that is not His preference, He does not always micromanage - for if He did there would be no free will - and absent free will there is no true relationship. What He seeks is a restoration of relationship with His Creation, one heart at a time. Amen? Discuss Why is it that true Christians always become targets of sinners? Reflect The failure of leaders of believers to teach the Word is one reason that so many Christians are so weak and confused. Share When have you observed the Lord God blessing someone who cares for the poor? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to a leader, or a leadership selection process, that requires your prayer -- because the nature of a leader will be reflected in the way he treats the people. Action: Today I will pray in earnest for the leader or leadership selection process which the Holy Spirit has pointed out to me. I will invite others to pray in-agreement with me. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Friday's text will be: Proverbs 30 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller6 at verizon.net Thu Jun 9 01:22:38 2011 From: fmiller6 at verizon.net (Fred A. Miller) Date: Thu, 09 Jun 2011 01:22:38 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] What's the future of OpenOffice.org? | Applications - InfoWorld Message-ID: <4DF0589E.9030302@verizon.net> http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/faq-whats-the-future-openofficeorg-937?source=IFWNLE_nlt_openenterprise_2011-06-08 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller6 at verizon.net Fri Jun 10 23:48:46 2011 From: fmiller6 at verizon.net (Fred A. Miller) Date: Fri, 10 Jun 2011 23:48:46 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Worth a read Message-ID: <4DF2E59E.8010307@verizon.net> Worth a read: http://www.h-online.com/open/features/Novell-s-open-source-legacy-wake-up-little-SuSE-1254835.html "Novell's unrequited romance with Linux and free software is over. Having completed its $2.2 billion takeover, Attachmate is dividing the spoils. Novell and its legacy networking business will survive in Utah. NetIQ will inherit Novell's identity and security management solutions, and SUSE has been given autonomy and control of Novell's open source projects from its base in Nuremberg." -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sat Jun 11 00:38:01 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sat, 11 Jun 2011 00:38:01 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Friday - Proverbs 30 Message-ID: <4DF2F129.3090209@bibleseven.com> I apologize that this is a day late - we had some trouble with the bibleseven.com domain. Friday Proverbs 30 The Words of Agur 30:1 The words of Agur, the son of Jakeh; an oracle: This man says to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ukal: 30:2 Surely I am more brutish than any other human being, and I do not have human understanding; 30:3 I have not learned wisdom, nor do I have knowledge of the Holy One. 30:4 Who has ascended into heaven, and then descended? Who has gathered up the winds in his fists? Who has bound up the waters in his cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name? -- if you know! 30:5 Every word of God is purified; he is like a shield for those who take refuge in him. 30:6 Do not add to his words, lest he reprove you, and prove you to be a liar. 30:7 Two things I ask from you; do not refuse me before I die: 30:8 Remove falsehood and lies far from me; do not give me poverty or riches, feed me with my allotted portion of bread, 30:9 lest I become satisfied and act deceptively and say, "Who is the Lord?" Or lest I become poor and steal and demean the name of my God. 30:10 Do not slander a servant to his master, lest he curse you, and you are found guilty. 30:11 There is a generation who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers. 30:12 There is a generation who are pure in their own eyes and yet are not washed from their filthiness. 30:13 There is a generation whose eyes are so lofty, and whose eyelids are lifted up disdainfully. 30:14 There is a generation whose teeth are like swords and whose molars are like knives to devour the poor from the earth and the needy from among the human race. 30:15 The leech has two daughters: "Give! Give!" There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, "Enough" -- 30:16 the grave, the barren womb, land that is not satisfied with water, and fire that never says, "Enough!" 30:17 The eye that mocks at a father and despises obeying a mother -- the ravens of the valley will peck it out and the young vultures will eat it. 30:18 There are three things that are too wonderful for me, four that I do not understand: 30:19 the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship in the sea, and the way of a man with a woman. 30:20 This is the way of an adulterous woman: she eats and wipes her mouth and says, "I have not done wrong." 30:21 Under three things the earth trembles, and under four things it cannot bear up: 30:22 under a servant who becomes king, under a fool who is stuffed with food, 30:23 under an unloved woman who is married, and under a female servant who dispossesses her mistress. 30:24 There are four things on earth that are small, but they are exceedingly wise: 30:25 ants are creatures with little strength, but they prepare their food in the summer; 30:26 rock badgers are creatures with little power, but they make their homes in the crags; 30:27 locusts have no king, but they all go forward by ranks; 30:28 a lizard you can catch with the hand, but it gets into the palaces of the king. 30:29 There are three things that are magnificent in their step, four things that move about magnificently: 30:30 a lion, mightiest of the beasts, who does not retreat from anything; 30:31 a strutting rooster, a male goat, and a king with his army around him. 30:32 If you have done foolishly by exalting yourself or if you have planned evil, put your hand over your mouth! 30:33 For as the churning of milk produces butter and as punching the nose produces blood, so stirring up anger produces strife. Prayer Lord, You cause us to learn from the past and you tell us of things that are important to our present and our future, and all the while You remind us of Jesus. May I take heed of Your Word and center my life upon it! Commentary There is much scholarly debate as to the authorship of the Thirtieth Proverb. There is no reference to Agur, or his father Jakeh, elsewhere in the Word of God. Some have speculated that the name Agur was an assumed name used by Solomon for some reason, others that it was indeed another person, just as some of the Psalms were not of David. The Book was included in the Biblical canon at the prompting of Holy Spirit -- so it matters not who was the human scribe. Proverbs Thirty begins with a parable of a sort "This man says to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ukal: Surely I am more brutish than any other human being, and I do not have human understanding; I have not learned wisdom, nor do I have knowledge of the Holy One." It then continues with a litany of the things about the Lord God which "This man" does not understand. [Note: This was written a very long time before the birth of Jesus.] "Who has ascended into heaven, and then descended? Who has gathered up the winds in his fists? Who has bound up the waters in his cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name? -- if you know!" The sanctity of the Word of God was emphasized: "Every word of God is purified; he is like a shield for those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, lest he reprove you, and prove you to be a liar." The NET Translator's Notes explain that one should understand the term "generation" in the following texts to refer to a sub-population in the society and time of the author "There is a generation who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers. There is a generation who are pure in their own eyes and yet are not washed from their filthiness. There is a generation whose eyes are so lofty, and whose eyelids are lifted up disdainfully. There is a generation whose teeth are like swords and whose molars are like knives to devour the poor from the earth and the needy from among the human race." It was common in ancient times, from Biblical and extra-Biblical writings, to use an incremental phrase which began with one number for a list and to then expand it "There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, "Enough" -- the grave, the barren womb, land that is not satisfied with water, and fire that never says, "Enough!" ... There are three things that are too wonderful for me, four that I do not understand: the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship in the sea, and the way of a man with a woman ... Under three things the earth trembles, and under four things it cannot bear up: under a servant who becomes king, under a fool who is stuffed with food, under an unloved woman who is married, and under a female servant who dispossesses her mistress ... There are four things on earth that are small, but they are exceedingly wise: ants are creatures with little strength, but they prepare their food in the summer; rock badgers are creatures with little power, but they make their homes in the crags; locusts have no king, but they all go forward by ranks; a lizard you can catch with the hand, but it gets into the palaces of the king ... There are three things that are magnificent in their step, four things that move about magnificently: a lion, mightiest of the beasts, who does not retreat from anything; a strutting rooster, a male goat, and a king with his army around him." The warning of Solomon to recognize that choices have consequences was continued here: "If you have done foolishly by exalting yourself or if you have planned evil, put your hand over your mouth! For as the churning of milk produces butter and as punching the nose produces blood, so stirring up anger produces strife." Interaction Consider Whether written by Solomon, at the behest of the Lord God, or by another these Proverbs bring great wisdom. Discuss How could anyone observe these examples in Creation, despite the ravages of the Fall, and not see the Hand of the Lord God? "... ants are creatures with little strength, but they prepare their food in the summer; rock badgers are creatures with little power, but they make their homes in the crags; locusts have no king, but they all go forward by ranks; a lizard you can catch with the hand, but it gets into the palaces of the king"? Reflect The problem of the sub-population of rebellious people in the author's time remains a problem in ours as well. Share When have you closely-observed the activities of ants and marveled at Creation? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you something that is "... so wonderful in your eyes" that it causes you to look to the Lord God in awe. Action: Today I will take the time to pause and study Creation all-around me. I will then give praise to the Lord God for His mighty works. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Saturday's text will be: Proverbs 31 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have anhttp://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site:http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources:http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sat Jun 11 00:38:28 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sat, 11 Jun 2011 00:38:28 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Saturday - Proverbs 31 Message-ID: <4DF2F144.207@bibleseven.com> Saturday Proverbs 31 The Words of Lemuel 31:1 The words of King Lemuel, an oracle that his mother taught him: 31:2 O my son, O son of my womb, O son of my vows, 31:3 Do not give your strength to women, nor your ways to that which ruins kings. 31:4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to crave strong drink, 31:5 lest they drink and forget what is decreed, and remove from all the poor their legal rights. 31:6 Give strong drink to the one who is perishing, and wine to those who are bitterly distressed; 31:7 let them drink and forget their poverty, and remember their misery no more. 31:8 Open your mouth on behalf of those unable to speak, for the legal rights of all the dying. 31:9 Open your mouth, judge in righteousness, and plead the cause of the poor and needy. The Wife of Noble Character 31:10 Who can find a wife of noble character? For her value is far more than rubies. 31:11 The heart of her husband has confidence in her, and he has no lack of gain. 31:12 She brings him good and not evil all the days of her life. 31:13 She obtains wool and flax, and she is pleased to work with her hands. 31:14 She is like the merchant ships; she brings her food from afar. 31:15 She also gets up while it is still night, and provides food for her household and a portion to her female servants. 31:16 She considers a field and buys it; from her own income she plants a vineyard. 31:17 She begins her work vigorously, and she strengthens her arms. 31:18 She knows that her merchandise is good, and her lamp does not go out in the night. 31:19 Her hands take hold of the distaff, and her hands grasp the spindle. 31:20 She extends her hand to the poor, and reaches out her hand to the needy. 31:21 She is not afraid of the snow for her household, for all of her household are clothed with scarlet. 31:22 She makes for herself coverlets; her clothing is fine linen and purple. 31:23 Her husband is well-known in the city gate when he sits with the elders of the land. 31:24 She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes. 31:25 She is clothed with strength and honor, and she can laugh at the time to come. 31:26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and loving instruction is on her tongue. 31:27 She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. 31:28 Her children rise up and call her blessed, her husband also praises her: 31:29 "Many daughters have done valiantly, but you surpass them all!" 31:30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised. 31:31 Give her credit for what she has accomplished, and let her works praise her in the city gates. Prayer Lord, You lead a mother to counsel her son with wisdom that applies to all sons, and which elevates the status and value of women who belong to You to the level of value You desire for them. May I see women through Your eyes and respect them as You have instructed. Commentary There is considerable scholarly debate as to the authorship of this Proverb. Some insist that Lemuel is a forgotten synonym for Solomon; making the "mother" Bathsheba. Some insist that it is the name of a non-Jewish king of a non-Jewish nation whose writing was believed to have been prompted by the Lord God. And some insist that it is a latter king, and again, Lemuel would be a forgotten synonym for their Biblically-recorded name. There is one other possibility, it could be Solomon, and he could have been using synonyms for all kings ("my son") and for wisdom ("mother") which had previously been characterized or humanized as "she" [e.g. Prov. 1:20]. What all of these speculations have in common is that the object of the mother's writing is a son whom she anticipates will become king, and who at the time of his written recollections of her teaching, is indeed a king (literally or rhetorically). An additional perspective, as one reads the text, is that the context of the man in relationship with his lifestyle choices and his wife is therefore initially that of a king-in-waiting, and then the context of the king with a wife. The lingering question is, therefore, to what degree may the instructions of the text be extrapolated to non-royalty? Prior to his marriage, and perhaps even his kingship, the son is warned to be cautious about his choices "Do not give your strength to women, nor your ways to that which ruins kings. It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to crave strong drink, lest they drink and forget what is decreed, and remove from all the poor their legal rights." Once he has become king the son is to be an advocate for justice "Open your mouth on behalf of those unable to speak, for the legal rights of all the dying. Open your mouth, judge in righteousness, and plead the cause of the poor and needy." If a man is to marry then there are some characteristics of a wife which wisdom defines and in this fallen world ones which are exceptional "Who can find a wife of noble character? For her value is far more than rubies. The heart of her husband has confidence in her, and he has no lack of gain. She brings him good and not evil all the days of her life." The characteristics of the women were further detailed; she is competent in the acquisition of resources and not afraid of hard and humble labor "She obtains wool and flax, and she is pleased to work with her hands." She has servants, yet she chooses to rise early to see that they and the rest of her household has food (thought it does not say that she prepares it -- she "provides" it) "She also gets up while it is still night, and provides food for her household and a portion to her female servants." She is an entrepreneur who is allowed to engage in commerce "She considers a field and buys it; from her own income she plants a vineyard." The clothing she makes, or perhaps causes to be made, bear the colors of royalty and of wealth "She is not afraid of the snow for her household, for all of her household are clothed with scarlet. She makes for herself coverlets; her clothing is fine linen and purple." One did not sit with the "elders of the land" at the "city gate" unless one has standing in the community and, as the NET Translator's Notes explains, they were there to judge the people and he would have been a peer -- a judge -- as well "Her husband is well-known in the city gate when he sits with the elders of the land." She is a woman of confidence, of integrity, and of substance "She is clothed with strength and honor, and she can laugh at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and loving instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness." She has earned the respect of her children and of her husband "Her children rise up and call her blessed, her husband also praises her: "Many daughters have done valiantly, but you surpass them all!"" Because she belongs to, and obeys, the Lord God she is found worthy of approval by the judges at the "city gates" - it is the "works" that flow from her faithfulness that they judge -- and they find nothing in her 'resume' to hold against her "Charm is deceitful and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised. Give her credit for what she has accomplished, and let her works praise her in the city gates." Interaction Consider It would be a considerable stretch to make of Proverbs 31 a pure riddle, within which one must find alternative meanings for every detail, but some have done so. It seems more probable that the descriptions are intended to be more generic, describing the practical living-out of wisdom in the life of the man (the son and later the husband), and of the wife. Discuss If one accepts the high-value and huge-freedom granted to the woman, with the praise of the judges at the city gates, how is it that religious leaders later chose to make of women something much less? Reflect Would the son have been worthy of this remarkable woman had he failed to keep the wisdom of his mother? Share When have you experienced or observed the wisdom of the Lord God poured-out through his mother? [Consider the mother and aunt of Paul's NT protege Timothy.] Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a young person with whom you might share this Proverb. Action: Today I will share Proverbs 31 with the one whom the Holy Spirit has directed. My purpose will be to focus them on the working-out of wisdom that may occur in their lives and the positive fruit of that wisdom. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Sunday's text will be: Ecclesiastes 1 - 2 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have anhttp://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site:http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources:http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sat Jun 11 22:52:26 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sat, 11 Jun 2011 22:52:26 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Sunday - Ecclesiastes 1 - 2 Message-ID: <4DF429EA.5080004@bibleseven.com> Sunday Ecclesiastes 1 - 2 Title 1:1 The words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem: Introduction: Utter Futility 1:2 "Futile! Futile!" laments the Teacher, "Absolutely futile! Everything is futile!" Futility Illustrated from Nature 1:3 What benefit do people get from all the effort which they expend on earth? 1:4 A generation comes and a generation goes, but the earth remains the same through the ages. 1:5 The sun rises and the sun sets; it hurries away to a place from which it rises again. 1:6 The wind goes to the south and circles around to the north; round and round the wind goes and on its rounds it returns. 1:7 All the streams flow into the sea, but the sea is not full, and to the place where the streams flow, there they will flow again. 1:8 All this monotony is tiresome; no one can bear to describe it: The eye is never satisfied with seeing, nor is the ear ever content with hearing. 1:9 What exists now is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing truly new on earth. 1:10 Is there anything about which someone can say, "Look at this! It is new!"? It was already done long ago, before our time. 1:11 No one remembers the former events, nor will anyone remember the events that are yet to happen; they will not be remembered by the future generations. Futility of Secular Accomplishment 1:12 I, the Teacher, have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. 1:13 I decided to carefully and thoroughly examine all that has been accomplished on earth. I concluded: God has given people a burdensome task that keeps them occupied. 1:14 I reflected on everything that is accomplished by man on earth, and I concluded: Everything he has accomplished is futile -- like chasing the wind! 1:15 What is bent cannot be straightened, and what is missing cannot be supplied. Futility of Secular Wisdom 1:16 I thought to myself, "I have become much wiser than any of my predecessors who ruled over Jerusalem; I have acquired much wisdom and knowledge." 1:17 So I decided to discern the benefit of wisdom and knowledge over foolish behavior and ideas; however, I concluded that even this endeavor is like trying to chase the wind! 1:18 For with great wisdom comes great frustration; whoever increases his knowledge merely increases his heartache. 2:1 Futility of Self-Indulgent Pleasure I thought to myself, "Come now, I will try self-indulgent pleasure to see if it is worthwhile." But I found that it also is futile. 2:2 I said of partying, "It is folly," and of self-indulgent pleasure, "It accomplishes nothing!" 2:3 I thought deeply about the effects of indulging myself with wine (all the while my mind was guiding me with wisdom) and the effects of behaving foolishly, so that I might discover what is profitable for people to do on earth during the few days of their lives. Futility of Materialism 2:4 I increased my possessions: I built houses for myself; I planted vineyards for myself. 2:5 I designed royal gardens and parks for myself, and I planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. 2:6 I constructed pools of water for myself, to irrigate my grove of flourishing trees. 2:7 I purchased male and female slaves, and I owned slaves who were born in my house; I also possessed more livestock -- both herds and flocks -- than any of my predecessors in Jerusalem. 2:8 I also amassed silver and gold for myself, as well as valuable treasures taken from kingdoms and provinces. I acquired male singers and female singers for myself, and what gives a man sensual delight -- a harem of beautiful concubines! 2:9 So I was far wealthier than all my predecessors in Jerusalem, yet I maintained my objectivity: 2:10 I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure. So all my accomplishments gave me joy; this was my reward for all my effort. 2:11 Yet when I reflected on everything I had accomplished and on all the effort that I had expended to accomplish it, I concluded: "All these achievements and possessions are ultimately profitless -- like chasing the wind! There is nothing gained from them on earth." Wisdom is Better than Folly 2:12 Next, I decided to consider wisdom, as well as foolish behavior and ideas. For what more can the king's successor do than what the king has already done? 2:13 I realized that wisdom is preferable to folly, just as light is preferable to darkness: 2:14 The wise man can see where he is going, but the fool walks in darkness. Yet I also realized that the same fate happens to them both. 2:15 So I thought to myself, "The fate of the fool will happen even to me! Then what did I gain by becoming so excessively wise?" So I lamented to myself, "The benefits of wisdom are ultimately meaningless!" 2:16 For the wise man, like the fool, will not be remembered for very long, because in the days to come, both will already have been forgotten. Alas, the wise man dies -- just like the fool! 2:17 So I loathed life because what happens on earth seems awful to me; for all the benefits of wisdom are futile -- like chasing the wind. Futility of Being a Workaholic 2:18 So I loathed all the fruit of my effort, for which I worked so hard on earth, because I must leave it behind in the hands of my successor. 2:19 Who knows if he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will be master over all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so wisely on earth! This also is futile! 2:20 So I began to despair about all the fruit of my labor for which I worked so hard on earth. 2:21 For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; however, he must hand over the fruit of his labor as an inheritance to someone else who did not work for it. This also is futile, and an awful injustice! Painful Days and Restless Nights 2:22 What does a man acquire from all his labor and from the anxiety that accompanies his toil on earth? 2:23 For all day long his work produces pain and frustration, and even at night his mind cannot relax! This also is futile! Enjoy Work and its Benefits 2:24 There is nothing better for people than to eat and drink, and to find enjoyment in their work. I also perceived that this ability to find enjoyment comes from God. 2:25 For no one can eat and drink or experience joy apart from him. 2:26 For to the one who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner, he gives the task of amassing wealth -- only to give it to the one who pleases God. This task of the wicked is futile -- like chasing the wind! Prayer Lord, You arr the source of appropriate pleasure and of wisdom. May I always look to You, rather than the world, so that my pleasures are blessed by You and my choices flow from Your wisdom. Commentary Solomon began the lament of Ecclesiastes with a sweeping declaration ""Futile! Futile!" laments the Teacher, "Absolutely futile! Everything is futile!"" He then stepped through a series of contexts where his thesis is supported: "Futility Illustrated from Nature" "Futility of Secular Accomplishment" "Futility of Secular Wisdom" "Futility of Self-Indulgent Pleasure" "Futility of Materialism" He paused to contrast wisdom with folly and found wisdom the better: "Wisdom is Better than Folly" Then he returned to his litany of futility: "Futility of Being a Workaholic" "Painful Days and Restless Nights" And finally, at the conclusion of his first two chapters, he completed his summary with the discovery that the Lord God is the One Who gives meaning to appropriate pleasure. "Enjoy Work and its Benefits" Interaction Consider Solomon's use of the phrase "like chasing the wind" is very similar to a phrase in the Proverbs "grasping oil in your right hand". Both are impossible endeavors. Discuss Why would Solomon, with all of his God-gifted wisdom, need to go through so much to discern that "There is nothing better for people than to eat and drink, and to find enjoyment in their work. I also perceived that this ability to find enjoyment comes from God." Reflect People in the secular world rise in the morning knowing that in the eyes of their peers, and apart from the Lord God, they have no inherent value. So they spend their day trying to earn value in the eyes of others who work up feeling equally-empty and valueless. Share When have you experienced futility in the pursuit of worldly priorities? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your life where you are striving toward worldly values rather than the Lord God's priorities, even in some small and unaware way. Action: Today I will confess and repent, seek and receive the Lord God's forgiveness, and then act to alter the priorities of my life; great or small. It may be about my appearance, car, finances, home, power, prestige, or some other area. I will ask a fellow believer to assist me with accountability and prayers in-agreement. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Monday's text will be: Ecclesiastes 3 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From daniel at centurion.net.nz Sun Jun 12 18:26:40 2011 From: daniel at centurion.net.nz (Daniel Reurich) Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2011 10:26:40 +1200 Subject: [Linux4christians] What's the future of OpenOffice.org? | Applications - InfoWorld In-Reply-To: <4DF0589E.9030302@verizon.net> References: <4DF0589E.9030302@verizon.net> Message-ID: <1307917600.6595.53.camel@localhost.localdomain> Openoffice will continue as before developing slowly and driven mostly by IBM and other proprietary vendors of Openoffice. LibreOffice will have the advantage of both being able to cherrypick from contributions to the openoffice codebase as well as have the best contributions from open source developers that don't want their contributions being taken and used without recompense in proprietary Openoffice.org based products. This will continue until their is enough divergence between the Libreoffice codebase and the Openoffice.org codebase that the effort of integrating features from the Openoffice.org codebase into Libreoffice will be more effort then writing them from scratch. From this point on, one of the projects will diminish into obscurity and the other will own the market. My bet is that Libreoffice will eventually take the market share, and openoffice will be only feature as a part of LO's history within 10 years. Daniel. On Thu, 2011-06-09 at 01:22 -0400, Fred A. Miller wrote: > http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/faq-whats-the-future-openofficeorg-937?source=IFWNLE_nlt_openenterprise_2011-06-08 > _______________________________________________ > Linux4christians mailing list > Linux4christians at thelinuxlink.net > http://www.thelinuxlink.net/mailman/listinfo/linux4christians -- Daniel Reurich. Centurion Computer Technology (2005) Ltd Mobile 021 797 722 From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sun Jun 12 23:09:35 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sun, 12 Jun 2011 23:09:35 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Monday - Ecclesiastes 3 Message-ID: <4DF57F6F.2060903@bibleseven.com> Monday Ecclesiastes 3 A Time for All Events in Life 3:1 For everything there is an appointed time, and an appropriate time for every activity on earth: 3:2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot what was planted; 3:3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 3:4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance. 3:5 A time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 3:6 A time to search, and a time to give something up as lost; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; 3:7 A time to rip, and a time to sew; a time to keep silent, and a time to speak. 3:8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace. Man is Ignorant of God's Timing 3:9 What benefit can a worker gain from his toil? 3:10 I have observed the burden that God has given to people to keep them occupied. 3:11 God has made everything fit beautifully in its appropriate time, but he has also placed ignorance in the human heart so that people cannot discover what God has ordained, from the beginning to the end of their lives. Enjoy Life in the Present 3:12 I have concluded that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to enjoy themselves as long as they live, 3:13 and also that everyone should eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all his toil, for these things are a gift from God. God's Sovereignty 3:14 I also know that whatever God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken away from it. God has made it this way, so that men will fear him. 3:15 Whatever exists now has already been, and whatever will be has already been; for God will seek to do again what has occurred in the past. The Problem of Injustice and Oppression 3:16 I saw something else on earth: In the place of justice, there was wickedness, and in the place of fairness, there was wickedness. 3:17 I thought to myself, "God will judge both the righteous and the wicked; for there is an appropriate time for every activity, and there is a time of judgment for every deed. 3:18 I also thought to myself, "It is for the sake of people, so God can clearly show them that they are like animals. 3:19 For the fate of humans and the fate of animals are the same: As one dies, so dies the other; both have the same breath. There is no advantage for humans over animals, for both are fleeting. 3:20 Both go to the same place, both come from the dust, and to dust both return. 3:21 Who really knows if the human spirit ascends upward, and the animal's spirit descends into the earth? 3:22 So I perceived there is nothing better than for people to enjoy their work, because that is their reward; for who can show them what the future holds? Prayer Lord, You have decided that You will allow humankind a free will in matters that are not reserved for Your sovereign will and therefore many of the activities of man are directed by man. May I be in constant communication with the Holy Spirit so that I will recognize the difference between Your moral and sovereign will and give You the glory in both. Commentary Solomon declared that the Lord God allows for order -- but that He has delegated much of that to humankind "For everything there is an appointed time, and an appropriate time for every activity on earth:" He then provided a list of examples: "A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot what was planted;" "A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;" "A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance." "A time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;" "A time to search, and a time to give something up as lost; a time to keep, and a time to throw away;" "A time to rip, and a time to sew; a time to keep silent, and a time to speak." "A time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace." Solomon then observed that the Lord God has a perfect plan for each of us, but that he allows us to make our own choices, and therefore we are unaware of His big-picture plan, rather we wrestle with His moral preferences at every decision-point. He repeated, from the Psalms, that humankind is expected to work hard and to reap benefits from their labors, and not to postpone all enjoyment for Heaven "... everyone should eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all his toil, for these things are a gift from God" Solomon then contrasted God's Sovereignty with his just-described moral will. He concluded the chapter in a pessimistic mood, wondering when he found injustice in the courts, and observing that both animal and man return to dust; then wondering if the human spirit rose toward heaven at death whereas those of animals descended. Interaction Consider It is of course a wrong-headed postulate, because animals have no eternal spirit and humans will be divided between Heaven and Hell. Discuss It is possible to have a genuine two-way relationship if the terms of it are imposed by One? Reflect The NET Translator's Notes explain that the Lord God directs some activities but allows humankind to determine the "appointed time" . Share When have you experienced or observed the truth that enjoying the fruits of your labor proved a blessing of the Lord God? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you an activity about which timing you were troubled but then discovered was in the Lord God's perfect timing as He worked through humankind to guide the events. Action: Today I will reflect and marvel, - then give thanks and praise to the Lord God. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Tuesday's text will be: Ecclesiastes 4 - 5 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From mwmcmlln at mnsi.net Mon Jun 13 01:25:07 2011 From: mwmcmlln at mnsi.net (Mike McMullin) Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2011 01:25:07 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] What's the future of OpenOffice.org? | Applications - InfoWorld In-Reply-To: <1307917600.6595.53.camel@localhost.localdomain> References: <4DF0589E.9030302@verizon.net> <1307917600.6595.53.camel@localhost.localdomain> Message-ID: <1307942707.9170.4.camel@P-733-Lin> On Mon, 2011-06-13 at 10:26 +1200, Daniel Reurich wrote: > Openoffice will continue as before developing slowly and driven mostly > by IBM and other proprietary vendors of Openoffice. > > LibreOffice will have the advantage of both being able to cherrypick > from contributions to the openoffice codebase as well as have the best > contributions from open source developers that don't want their > contributions being taken and used without recompense in proprietary > Openoffice.org based products. > > This will continue until their is enough divergence between the > Libreoffice codebase and the Openoffice.org codebase that the effort of > integrating features from the Openoffice.org codebase into Libreoffice > will be more effort then writing them from scratch. From this point on, > one of the projects will diminish into obscurity and the other will own > the market. > > My bet is that Libreoffice will eventually take the market share, and > openoffice will be only feature as a part of LO's history within 10 > years. > > Daniel. This does make me wonder about what's up with StarOffice? I'd buy it again with the 6 seat license it had last time I looked. From daniel at centurion.net.nz Mon Jun 13 04:32:11 2011 From: daniel at centurion.net.nz (Daniel Reurich) Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2011 20:32:11 +1200 Subject: [Linux4christians] What's the future of OpenOffice.org? | Applications - InfoWorld In-Reply-To: <1307942707.9170.4.camel@P-733-Lin> References: <4DF0589E.9030302@verizon.net> <1307917600.6595.53.camel@localhost.localdomain> <1307942707.9170.4.camel@P-733-Lin> Message-ID: <1307953931.3548.9.camel@localhost.localdomain> On Mon, 2011-06-13 at 01:25 -0400, Mike McMullin wrote: > On Mon, 2011-06-13 at 10:26 +1200, Daniel Reurich wrote: > > Openoffice will continue as before developing slowly and driven mostly > > by IBM and other proprietary vendors of Openoffice. > > > > LibreOffice will have the advantage of both being able to cherrypick > > from contributions to the openoffice codebase as well as have the best > > contributions from open source developers that don't want their > > contributions being taken and used without recompense in proprietary > > Openoffice.org based products. > > > > This will continue until their is enough divergence between the > > Libreoffice codebase and the Openoffice.org codebase that the effort of > > integrating features from the Openoffice.org codebase into Libreoffice > > will be more effort then writing them from scratch. From this point on, > > one of the projects will diminish into obscurity and the other will own > > the market. > > > > My bet is that Libreoffice will eventually take the market share, and > > openoffice will be only feature as a part of LO's history within 10 > > years. > > > > Daniel. > > This does make me wonder about what's up with StarOffice? I'd buy it > again with the 6 seat license it had last time I looked. It I don't think StarOffice exists any longer. I believe it was renamed to OracleOpenOffice.org. Unless you need the proprietary extensions and commercial level support, just download and install LibreOffice or OpenOffice.org -- Daniel Reurich. Centurion Computer Technology (2005) Ltd Mobile 021 797 722 From jonathon.blake at gmail.com Mon Jun 13 13:58:49 2011 From: jonathon.blake at gmail.com (jonathon) Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2011 17:58:49 +0000 Subject: [Linux4christians] What's the future of OpenOffice.org? | Applications - InfoWorld In-Reply-To: <1307917600.6595.53.camel@localhost.localdomain> References: <4DF0589E.9030302@verizon.net> <1307917600.6595.53.camel@localhost.localdomain> Message-ID: <4DF64FD9.2070000@gmail.com> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 On 12/06/2011 22:26, Daniel Reurich wrote: > LibreOffice will have the advantage of both being able to cherrypick from contributions What contributions? Something _nobody_ has adequately explained is where these contributions are going to miraculously appear from. >the effort of integrating features from the Openoffice.org codebase into Libreoffice will be more effort then writing them from scratch. The current code base differences are almost at that point. > My bet is that Libreoffice will eventually take the market share, Under the moniker of Apache OpenOffice.org, that program will not be on the radar of anybody other than techies who consider a distributed binary to be: ./configure ./make ./make test ./make install ./make cleanup on 13/06/2011 05:25, Mike McMullin wrote: > This does make me wonder about what's up with StarOffice? Up to roughly OOo 1.1.5, StarOffice and OOo were roughly equivalent. StarOffice included a couple of priority things --- Adabase D was probably the best known. For OOo 2.x, StarOffice incorporated "popular features" from OOo. By the time OOo 3.x rolled around, Sun had started focussing far more effort into OOo, than StarOffice. When Oracle purchased Sun, StarOffice was rebranded Oracle OpenOffice, and distributed with a US$35 seat license. Oracle announced and retracted that Oracle Cloud Office would replace Oracle OpenOffice. The data I've read is contradictory, and fuzzy, but one of the following happened: * Oracle abandoned Oracle Cloud Office, and Oracle OpenOffice; * Oracle turned over Oracle Cloud Office and Oracle OpenOffice to IBM, along with all of the relevant support contracts; > I'd buy it again with the 6 seat license it had last time I looked. What specific functionality are you looking for? It is possible that that functionality has been wrapped into LibreOffice. jonathon - -- All emails sent to this with email address with a precedence other than bulk, or list, are forwarded to Dave Null, unread. * English - detected * English * English -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.11 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org/ iQEcBAEBAgAGBQJN9k/VAAoJEDqP6lg9AbnKECYH/RQArOYqUmRMosrKqNMD9+68 sbWWE3gTJW2DzvnCHGKpePqUFLlAhkwb9O2o7Jy7r7ACMoWTiMeifJ9jG51yqQfy vNn3ntXf4JFDnpS3i+O8f+XaWvTp63ELn98kIEw3eX9/oNMLyP58+exyWPRXvytu 2fgxJsofPBrwSXWDFeDUdeCVh1bw2yHLhPrAAd+RjeWOiE49z7a2ICknFeoBmZm6 uBs1/5x5QxEraMjDhOnYe9+704uAvwXHzFzuKVAhqhjPoULjMOa4H49vNjNmXbuH G7+S0leeARl2DGHVk1bhDWCnmmGl4q7bbXIWeVfKYAjereVy3BXAfVei8I1NSSw= =DLkI -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Mon Jun 13 23:11:54 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2011 23:11:54 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Tuesday - Ecclesiastes 4 - 5 Message-ID: <4DF6D17A.5060800@bibleseven.com> Tuesday Ecclesiastes 4 - 5 Evil Oppression on Earth 4:1 So I again considered all the oppression that continually occurs on earth. This is what I saw: The oppressed were in tears, but no one was comforting them; no one delivers them from the power of their oppressors. 4:2 So I considered those who are dead and gone more fortunate than those who are still alive. 4:3 But better than both is the one who has not been born and has not seen the evil things that are done on earth. Labor Motivated by Envy 4:4 Then I considered all the skillful work that is done: Surely it is nothing more than competition between one person and another. This also is profitless -- like chasing the wind. 4:5 The fool folds his hands and does no work, so he has nothing to eat but his own flesh. 4:6 Better is one handful with some rest than two hands full of toil and chasing the wind. Labor Motivated by Greed 4:7 So I again considered another futile thing on earth: 4:8 A man who is all alone with no companion, he has no children nor siblings; yet there is no end to all his toil, and he is never satisfied with riches. He laments, "For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?" This also is futile and a burdensome task! Labor is Beneficial When Its Rewards Are Shared 4:9 Two people are better than one, because they can reap more benefit from their labor. 4:10 For if they fall, one will help his companion up, but pity the person who falls down and has no one to help him up. 4:11 Furthermore, if two lie down together, they can keep each other warm, but how can one person keep warm by himself? 4:12 Although an assailant may overpower one person, two can withstand him. Moreover, a three-stranded cord is not quickly broken. Labor Motivated by Prestige-Seeking 4:13 A poor but wise youth is better than an old and foolish king who no longer knows how to receive advice. 4:14 For he came out of prison to become king, even though he had been born poor in what would become his kingdom. 4:15 I considered all the living who walk on earth, as well as the successor who would arise in his place. 4:16 There is no end to all the people nor to the past generations, yet future generations will not rejoice in him. This also is profitless and like chasing the wind. 5:1 Rash Vows Be careful what you do when you go to the temple of God; draw near to listen rather than to offer a sacrifice like fools, for they do not realize that they are doing wrong. 5:2 Do not be rash with your mouth or hasty in your heart to bring up a matter before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth! Therefore, let your words be few. 5:3 Just as dreams come when there are many cares, so the rash vow of a fool occurs when there are many words. 5:4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in paying it. For God takes no pleasure in fools: Pay what you vow! 5:5 It is better for you not to vow than to vow and not pay it. 5:6 Do not let your mouth cause you to sin, and do not tell the priest, "It was a mistake!" Why make God angry at you so that he would destroy the work of your hands?" 5:7 Just as there is futility in many dreams, so also in many words. Therefore, fear God! Government Corruption 5:8 If you see the extortion of the poor, or the perversion of justice and fairness in the government, do not be astonished by the matter. For the high official is watched by a higher official, and there are higher ones over them! 5:9 The produce of the land is seized by all of them, even the king is served by the fields. Covetousness 5:10 The one who loves money will never be satisfied with money, he who loves wealth will never be satisfied with his income. This also is futile. 5:11 When someone's prosperity increases, those who consume it also increase; so what does its owner gain, except that he gets to see it with his eyes? 5:12 The sleep of the laborer is pleasant -- whether he eats little or much -- but the wealth of the rich will not allow him to sleep. Materialism Thwarts Enjoyment of Life 5:13 Here is a misfortune on earth that I have seen: Wealth hoarded by its owner to his own misery. 5:14 Then that wealth was lost through bad luck; although he fathered a son, he has nothing left to give him. 5:15 Just as he came forth from his mother's womb, naked will he return as he came, and he will take nothing in his hand that he may carry away from his toil. 5:16 This is another misfortune: Just as he came, so will he go. What did he gain from toiling for the wind? 5:17 Surely, he ate in darkness every day of his life, and he suffered greatly with sickness and anger. Enjoy the Fruit of Your Labor 5:18 I have seen personally what is the only beneficial and appropriate course of action for people: to eat and drink, and find enjoyment in all their hard work on earth during the few days of their life which God has given them, for this is their reward. 5:19 To every man whom God has given wealth, and possessions, he has also given him the ability to eat from them, to receive his reward and to find enjoyment in his toil; these things are the gift of God. 5:20 For he does not think much about the fleeting days of his life because God keeps him preoccupied with the joy he derives from his activity. Prayer Lord, You teach us to be in balance, to enjoy every moment of life as a gift from You, and to share what we have as Your blessing through us to others. May I be generous, never envious of others, never coveting wealth for its own sake, and participate fully in each day -- as tomorrow in this world is not promised to me. Commentary Solomon decided to " ... again considere(d) all the oppression that continually occurs on earth." and in his flesh decided that due to the lack of compassion those who died were better-off than those who continued to live, and those who had never been born the most-blessed. He considered the matter of balance in how one engaged in skilled work, observing that some acted from a heart of pride -- competing against others -- while others didn't develop their skills at all. He concluded that a balance was necessary. He considered a person who worked and lived alone, with no children or sibling(s), yet worked hard and then wondered to what purpose -- for lack of someone to bless and to share. He then observed that two were likely to be more productive working in harmony, could help one-another when ill or injured, and could defend themselves better than if alone. He illustrated using the physics of a woven rope where two cords were stronger than one and three even stronger. Solomon observed that a old king who had become unteachable, as he still longed for more-prestige, was less-valuable than a younger king with some humility. He warned that one who rushed into the presence of God to make promises had best be careful that they are ones he can fulfill, otherwise he may anger the Lord God. Solomon people to not be surprised by government corruption as foolishness and greed would lead them to confiscate the produce of fields whose produce was already theirs. He further observed that there may be some accountability found in levels of government. He warned that when coveted money it would always be spent as it was earned and keep one awake worrying about the acquisition of more. This he contrasted with the peace of the one who worked to pay bills but who was not obsessed with greater and greater wealth. Solomon observed that one who hoarded money for the sake of amassing wealth would find himself constantly-troubled by fear of its loss, and when lost through misfortune, discover an empty life was all that remained. He concluded that one should enjoy what the Lord God has provided in each moment as a gift and not worry about the future. Interaction Consider When Solomon said that one should enjoy what the Lord God has provided in each moment as a gift and not worry about the future, he was not teaching carelessness and a failure to prepare, but was instead speaking about enjoying moments that would pass and never return. Discuss Why would Solomon make such a big deal about money? Reflect In each illustration of Solomon is not the heart-condition of the person the primary determiner of wisdom or foolishness? Share When have you experienced or observed an obsession with competing with others out or envy and pride leading to an empty and troubled life? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to me a place where I have made promises to the Lord God that I have not kept. Action: Today I will make good on my promise to the Lord God and will be more careful in the future as to what commitments I make. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Wednesday's text will be: Ecclesiastes 6 -- 7:14 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Tue Jun 14 23:06:36 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Tue, 14 Jun 2011 23:06:36 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] =?windows-1252?q?Wednesday_-_Ecclesiastes_6_?= =?windows-1252?q?=96_7=3A14?= Message-ID: <4DF821BC.8080503@bibleseven.com> Wednesday Ecclesiastes 6 ? 7:14 Not Everyone Enjoys Life 6:1 Here is another misfortune that I have seen on earth, and it weighs heavily on people: 6:2 God gives a man riches, property, and wealth so that he lacks nothing that his heart desires, yet God does not enable him to enjoy the fruit of his labor ? instead, someone else enjoys it! This is fruitless and a grave misfortune. 6:3 Even if a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years ? even if he lives a long, long time, but cannot enjoy his prosperity ? even if he were to live forever ? I would say, ?A stillborn child is better off than he is!? 6:4 Though the stillborn child came into the world for no reason and departed into darkness, though its name is shrouded in darkness, 6:5 though it never saw the light of day nor knew anything, yet it has more rest than that man ? 6:6 if he should live a thousand years twice, yet does not enjoy his prosperity. For both of them die! 6:7 All of man?s labor is for nothing more than to fill his stomach ? yet his appetite is never satisfied! 6:8 So what advantage does a wise man have over a fool? And what advantage does a pauper gain by knowing how to survive? 6:9 It is better to be content with what the eyes can see than for one?s heart always to crave more. This continual longing is futile ? like chasing the wind. The Futile Way Life Works 6:10 Whatever has happened was foreordained, and what happens to a person was also foreknown. It is useless for him to argue with God about his fate because God is more powerful than he is. 6:11 The more one argues with words, the less he accomplishes. How does that benefit him? 6:12 For no one knows what is best for a person during his life ? during the few days of his fleeting life ? for they pass away like a shadow. Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth. Life is Brief and Death is Certain! 7:1 A good reputation is better than precious perfume; likewise, the day of one?s death is better than the day of one?s birth. 7:2 It is better to go to a funeral than a feast. For death is the destiny of every person, and the living should take this to heart. 7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter, because sober reflection is good for the heart. 7:4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of merrymaking. Frivolous Living Versus Wisdom 7:5 It is better for a person to receive a rebuke from those who are wise than to listen to the song of fools. 7:6 For like the crackling of quick-burning thorns under a cooking pot, so is the laughter of the fool. This kind of folly also is useless. Human Wisdom Overturned by Adversity 7:7 Surely oppression can turn a wise person into a fool; likewise, a bribe corrupts the heart. 7:8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning; likewise, patience is better than pride. 7:9 Do not let yourself be quickly provoked, for anger resides in the lap of fools. 7:10 Do not say, ?Why were the old days better than these days?? for it is not wise to ask that. Wisdom Can Lengthen One?s Life 7:11 Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing; it benefits those who see the light of day. 7:12 For wisdom provides protection, just as money provides protection. But the advantage of knowledge is this: Wisdom preserves the life of its owner. Wisdom Acknowledges God?s Orchestration of Life 7:13 Consider the work of God: For who can make straight what he has bent? 7:14 In times of prosperity be joyful, but in times of adversity consider this: God has made one as well as the other, so that no one can discover what the future holds. Prayer Lord, Your message is consistent and simple ? if we look toward Your perfect will for our lives and live through the wisdom that You provide we may expect a better result than if we disobey and foolishly disregard Your perfect wisdom. May my heart be submitted to You, no matter what. Commentary Solomon argued that a man may have given to him, by the Lord God, everything that his heart desires but may also be denied of the joy of it ? passing it on to others ? therefore, his life is worse than one never born. [The text does not clearly explain but it seems that the man was irresponsible and/or ungrateful with what he had been given. The text following suggests that the problem was an absence of being content with that he had and therefore obsessed with the acquisition of more.] He then argued that it was pointless for the man to argue with the Lord God about his fate because everything was ?... foreordained, and what happens to a person was also foreknown.? This sounds like fatalism but really represents covenant or conditional-related outcomes based upon choices. If the man is ungrateful and obsessed with the endless pursuit of wealth then he has no expectation of the Lord God's blessing. If the man is grateful and content with has been given him by the Lord then he will be blessed. Solomon taught that ?A good reputation is better than precious perfume;?, which means that an ethical lifestyle was very important, and ?...likewise, the day of one?s death is better than the day of one?s birth.?, because one no longer had to strive to keep a good reputation. He declared ?It is better to go to a funeral than a feast. For death is the destiny of every person, and the living should take this to heart ...Sorrow is better than laughter, because sober reflection is good for the heart. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of merrymaking.? because the ones left behind could find value in the study of the life of the recently deceased and in the recognition that they would not live forever to bring closure to everything they had left undone and/or unsaid and/or unreconciled. Solomon returned to a theme of Proverbs, warning that one who lived a shallow and meaningless life wasted his or her life. He then warned that one who appeared wise, based on mere human knowledge and philosophy, would abandon their prideful-certainty in times of trouble. He also warned that looking back upon human achievements and worldly history and declaring the ?old days? better than today was foolish. Solomon taught that wisdom preserved life, because it protected one from foolish choices, and wisdom also acknowledged God?s involvement in life based upon man's heat-centered choices to obey or disobey ? and the consequences of those choices. He concluded that one must at all times be joyful that one belongs to the Lord God, good or difficult, because you neither know what things lie ahead nor why, and you cannot change them, so trust the Lord to get you through. Interaction Consider Accepting that the Lord God has the big-picture under control and that He does all things for His good purpose, makes the dealing with worldly imperfections more bearable. Discuss Why did Solomon repeat the phrase that deal was often better than life? Reflect As is the teaching throughout the Bible, the Lord God knows our hearts, so He know why we do what we do ? not matter if we appear to be wise or foolish to fellow human beings. Share When have you observed someone with many blessings from the Lord God wasting their life because they were never satisfied? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you an opportunity to celebrate the promise of Heaven and the many gifts of the Lord God in the midst of difficulty. Action: Today I will rake the time to remember all that the Lord God has done for me and praise Him, I will also seek what I may learn from the present difficulty and praise Him for maturing me, and finally I will allow Him to be my comfort and strength and I will praise Him for that. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Thursday's text will be: Ecclesiastes 7:15 - 8 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Wed Jun 15 23:40:48 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Wed, 15 Jun 2011 23:40:48 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Thursday - Ecclesiastes 7:15 - 8 Message-ID: <4DF97B40.50304@bibleseven.com> Thursday Ecclesiastes 7:15 - 8 Exceptions to the Law of Retribution 7:15 During the days of my fleeting life I have seen both of these things: Sometimes a righteous person dies prematurely in spite of his righteousness, and sometimes a wicked person lives long in spite of his evil deeds. 7:16 So do not be excessively righteous or excessively wise; otherwise you might be disappointed. 7:17 Do not be excessively wicked and do not be a fool; otherwise you might die before your time. 7:18 It is best to take hold of one warning without letting go of the other warning; for the one who fears God will follow both warnings. Wisdom Needed Because No One is Truly Righteous 7:19 Wisdom gives a wise person more protection than ten rulers in a city. 7:20 For there is not one truly righteous person on the earth who continually does good and never sins. 7:21 Also, do not pay attention to everything that people say; otherwise, you might even hear your servant cursing you. 7:22 For you know in your own heart that you also have cursed others many times. Human Wisdom is Limited 7:23 I have examined all this by wisdom; I said, "I am determined to comprehend this" -- but it was beyond my grasp. 7:24 Whatever has happened is beyond human understanding; it is far deeper than anyone can fathom. True Righteousness and Wisdom are Virtually Nonexistent 7:25 I tried to understand, examine, and comprehend the role of wisdom in the scheme of things, and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the insanity of folly. 7:26 I discovered this: More bitter than death is the kind of woman who is like a hunter's snare; her heart is like a hunter's net and her hands are like prison chains. The man who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is captured by her. 7:27 The Teacher says: I discovered this while trying to discover the scheme of things, item by item. 7:28 What I have continually sought, I have not found; I have found only one upright man among a thousand, but I have not found one upright woman among all of them. 7:29 This alone have I discovered: God made humankind upright, but they have sought many evil schemes. Human Government Demonstrates Limitations of Wisdom 8:1 Who is a wise person? Who knows the solution to a problem? A person's wisdom brightens his appearance, and softens his harsh countenance. 8:2 Obey the king's command, because you took an oath before God to be loyal to him. 8:3 Do not rush out of the king's presence in haste -- do not delay when the matter is unpleasant, for he can do whatever he pleases. 8:4 Surely the king's authority is absolute; no one can say to him, "What are you doing?" 8:5 Whoever obeys his command will not experience harm, and a wise person knows the proper time and procedure. 8:6 For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, for the oppression of the king is severe upon his victim. 8:7 Surely no one knows the future, and no one can tell another person what will happen. 8:8 Just as no one has power over the wind to restrain it, so no one has power over the day of his death. Just as no one can be discharged during the battle, so wickedness cannot rescue the wicked. 8:9 While applying my mind to everything that happens in this world, I have seen all this: Sometimes one person dominates other people to their harm. Contradictions to the Law of Retribution 8:10 Not only that, but I have seen the wicked approaching and entering the temple, and as they left the holy temple, they boasted in the city that they had done so. This also is an enigma. 8:11 When a sentence is not executed at once against a crime, the human heart is encouraged to do evil. 8:12 Even though a sinner might commit a hundred crimes and still live a long time, yet I know that it will go well with God-fearing people -- for they stand in fear before him. 8:13 But it will not go well with the wicked, nor will they prolong their days like a shadow, because they do not stand in fear before God. 8:14 Here is another enigma that occurs on earth: Sometimes there are righteous people who get what the wicked deserve, and sometimes there are wicked people who get what the righteous deserve. I said, "This also is an enigma." Enjoy Life In Spite of Its Injustices 8:15 So I recommend the enjoyment of life, for there is nothing better on earth for a person to do except to eat, drink, and enjoy life. So joy will accompany him in his toil during the days of his life which God gives him on earth. Limitations of Human Wisdom 8:16 When I tried to gain wisdom and to observe the activity on earth -- even though it prevents anyone from sleeping day or night -- 8:17 then I discerned all that God has done: No one really comprehends what happens on earth. Despite all human efforts to discover it, no one can ever grasp it. Even if a wise person claimed that he understood, he would not really comprehend it. Prayer Lord, You see endless details that we fail to notice, let alone understand. May I simply trust You and not try to understand everything about You with my limited human capacity. Commentary Solomon warned that attempting, in the flesh, to be at an extreme of righteousness or unrighteousness would likely have a bad outcome; in the first case a lack of joy and a disappointing ending, in the second foolishness that could lead to an early demise after a pointless and destructive existence. He observed that none go without sinning therefore wisdom is necessary to restore them to right-thinking and acting. He also warned that the compliments of other people might lead one to a distorted self-image. Solomon confessed that he tried to understand the dilemma of too-righteous versus too-unrighteous, having declared "I am determined to comprehend this", only to discover "... it was beyond my grasp. Whatever has happened is beyond human understanding; it is far deeper than anyone can fathom ... This alone have I discovered: God made humankind upright, but they have sought many evil schemes." He taught that one way to discern a "wise person" who may know "the solution to a problem" one might observe that a "... person's wisdom brightens his appearance, and softens his harsh countenance." He further instructed "Obey the king's command, because you took an oath before God to be loyal to him." with the qualifier that while the king did no know the future, he had power over your immediate future -- so obey and stay out of trouble with him -- disobey and risk great trouble. In the context of kings [and others with authority] Solomon shared the warning "Sometimes one person dominates other people to their harm." He struggled with what he called "the law of retribution", which he believed to mean that evil was always punished "... I have seen the wicked approaching and entering the temple, and as they left the holy temple, they boasted in the city that they had done so. This also is an enigma." Solomon warned "When a sentence is not executed at once against a crime, the human heart is encouraged to do evil." He recognized the power of forgiveness as part of the Lord God's grace toward those who surrender to Him "Even though a sinner might commit a hundred crimes and still live a long time, yet I know that it will go well with God-fearing people -- for they stand in fear before him." He also recognized that the unrepentant would face an angry God "But it will not go well with the wicked, nor will they prolong their days like a shadow, because they do not stand in fear before God." Solomon was puzzled because he could not see as the Lord God sees and thus it appeared to him that "Sometimes there are righteous people who get what the wicked deserve, and sometimes there are wicked people who get what the righteous deserve." He taught "So I recommend the enjoyment of life, for there is nothing better on earth for a person to do except to eat, drink, and enjoy life. So joy will accompany him in his toil during the days of his life which God gives him on earth." Solomon concluded that trying "... to gain wisdom and to observe the activity on earth ... would prevent one "... from sleeping day or night", because "... all that God has done" is beyond "... all human efforts to discover it, no one can ever grasp it. Even if a wise person claimed that he understood, he would not really comprehend it." Interaction Consider One has to stuff the Lord God into a man-sized box in order to comprehend Him, and all that He has done -- and why -- and He simply does not fit. Discuss Where might Solomon have come up with the notion of "the law of retribution"? Reflect If Solomon, with the gift of extraordinary wisdom, could not comprehend all of the Lord God how could any other person imagine they could do so better? Share When have you experienced or observed the forgiveness and grace of the Lord God that overcame a long history of sin? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place where you may not be enjoying the gifts of the Lord God fully because you are too troubled with attempting to understand all of the details. Action: Today I will pause to enjoy the gifts of the Lord God and I will give thanks. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Friday's text will be: Ecclesiastes 9 - 10 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Thu Jun 16 23:19:24 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Thu, 16 Jun 2011 23:19:24 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Friday - Ecclesiastes 9 - 10 Message-ID: <4DFAC7BC.3030906@bibleseven.com> Friday Ecclesiastes 9 - 10 Everyone Will Die 9:1 So I reflected on all this, attempting to clear it all up. I concluded that the righteous and the wise, as well as their works, are in the hand of God; whether a person will be loved or hated -- no one knows what lies ahead. 9:2 Everyone shares the same fate -- the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the ceremonially clean and unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. What happens to the good person, also happens to the sinner; what happens to those who make vows, also happens to those who are afraid to make vows. 9:3 This is the unfortunate fact about everything that happens on earth: the same fate awaits everyone. In addition to this, the hearts of all people are full of evil, and there is folly in their hearts during their lives -- then they die. Better to Be Poor but Alive than Rich but Dead 9:4 But whoever is among the living has hope; a live dog is better than a dead lion. 9:5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything; they have no further reward -- and even the memory of them disappears. 9:6 What they loved, as well as what they hated and envied, perished long ago, and they no longer have a part in anything that happens on earth. Life is Brief, so Cherish its Joys 9:7 Go, eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a happy heart, because God has already approved your works. 9:8 Let your clothes always be white, and do not spare precious ointment on your head. 9:9 Enjoy life with your beloved wife during all the days of your fleeting life that God has given you on earth during all your fleeting days; for that is your reward in life and in your burdensome work on earth. 9:10 Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, the place where you will eventually go. Wisdom Cannot Protect against Seemingly Chance Events 9:11 Again, I observed this on the earth: the race is not always won by the swiftest, the battle is not always won by the strongest; prosperity does not always belong to those who are the wisest, wealth does not always belong to those who are the most discerning, nor does success always come to those with the most knowledge -- for time and chance may overcome them all. 9:12 Surely, no one knows his appointed time! Like fish that are caught in a deadly net, and like birds that are caught in a snare -- just like them, all people are ensnared at an unfortunate time that falls upon them suddenly. Most People Are Not Receptive to Wise Counsel 9:13 This is what I also observed about wisdom on earth, and it is a great burden to me: 9:14 There was once a small city with a few men in it, and a mighty king attacked it, besieging it and building strong siege works against it. 9:15 However, a poor but wise man lived in the city, and he could have delivered the city by his wisdom, but no one listened to that poor man. 9:16 So I concluded that wisdom is better than might, but a poor man's wisdom is despised; no one ever listens to his advice. Wisdom versus Fools, Sin, and Folly 9:17 The words of the wise are heard in quiet, more than the shouting of a ruler is heard among fools. 9:18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner can destroy much that is good. 10:1 One dead fly makes the perfumer's ointment give off a rancid stench, so a little folly can outweigh much wisdom. Wisdom Can Be Nullified By the Caprice of Rulers 10:2 A wise person's good sense protects him, but a fool's lack of sense leaves him vulnerable. 10:3 Even when a fool walks along the road he lacks sense, and shows everyone what a fool he is. 10:4 If the anger of the ruler flares up against you, do not resign from your position, for a calm response can undo great offenses. 10:5 I have seen another misfortune on the earth: It is an error a ruler makes. 10:6 Fools are placed in many positions of authority, while wealthy men sit in lowly positions. 10:7 I have seen slaves on horseback and princes walking on foot like slaves. Wisdom is Needed to Avert Dangers in Everyday Life 10:8 One who digs a pit may fall into it, and one who breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake. 10:9 One who quarries stones may be injured by them; one who splits logs may be endangered by them. 10:10 If an iron axhead is blunt and a workman does not sharpen its edge, he must exert a great deal of effort; so wisdom has the advantage of giving success. 10:11 If the snake should bite before it is charmed, the snake charmer is in trouble. Words and Works of Wise Men and Fools 10:12 The words of a wise person win him favor, but the words of a fool are self-destructive. 10:13 At the beginning his words are foolish and at the end his talk is wicked madness, 10:14 yet a fool keeps on babbling. No one knows what will happen; who can tell him what will happen in the future? 10:15 The toil of a stupid fool wears him out, because he does not even know the way to the city. The Problem with Foolish Rulers 10:16 Woe to you, O land, when your king is childish, and your princes feast in the morning! 10:17 Blessed are you, O land, when your king is the son of nobility, and your princes feast at the proper time -- with self-control and not in drunkenness. 10:18 Because of laziness the roof caves in, and because of idle hands the house leaks. 10:19 Feasts are made for laughter, and wine makes life merry, but money is the answer for everything. 10:20 Do not curse a king even in your thoughts, and do not curse the rich while in your bedroom; for a bird might report what you are thinking, or some winged creature might repeat your words. Prayer Lord, everyone will one day die, and so what is in this world will one day pass away. May I remember that this time is brief and temporary compared to eternity with You my Lord. Commentary Solomon acknowledges; drawing upon all of his God-gifted wisdom, and after all of his flesh-driven research, that everyone dies. He further qualifies this "... the hearts of all people are full of evil, and there is folly in their hearts during their lives, then they die." He then observed, from a flesh-based perspective, that once-dead a person has no value in this world -- so from a flesh-based perspective any living being has more value and any dead one. He encouraged the living to enjoy the positive things of this life fully as they are gone at death. Solomon reported his observation that neither the wise or the foolish can control their future, either may dies in a sudden event. He observed that wisdom is superior to might but "... a poor man's wisdom is despised; no one ever listens to his advice.", so those who will not listen -- based only on the external appearance -- become fools, absent the wisdom they missed. Solomon taught that one foolish person in the wrong position of authority can overwhelm the wisdom of the wise and that those in power should be very careful whom they choose. Likewise, he taught that in everyday life wisdom can protect us from trouble; e.g. falling in the hole we are digging, working around places where there may be snakes, avoiding injury from stones and logs in the workplace. Solomon contrasted the positive reputation of the wise person with the worthless words and deeds of a fool. He also observed that leaders needed to be wise for if they are foolish they will also be worthless to themselves and the people. Interaction Consider The death that comes to all proves that the things of this earth are not to be considered nearly as important as the things of the Lord God. Discuss Why might it have been so difficult for Solomon to see the truth that death is 'the great equalizer'? Reflect When leaders unwisely choose the unwise as advisers it goes badly for everyone. Share When have you experienced of observed an unwise leader surround himself with fools? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you someone from whom you would not usually seek wisdom but who has some for you. Action: Today I will humbly seek-out the one whom the Holy Spirit designates and ask them to share what the Lord God has gifted them to share. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Saturday's text will be: Ecclesiastes 11 - 12 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller at lightlink.com Fri Jun 17 00:51:10 2011 From: fmiller at lightlink.com (Fred A. Miller) Date: Fri, 17 Jun 2011 00:51:10 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] As Microsoft's monopoly crumbles, its mobile future is crucial Message-ID: <4DFADD3E.7060500@lightlink.com> As Microsoft's monopoly crumbles, its mobile future is crucial The latest real-world data on web usage confirms that Microsoft's once-dominant position in the world of personal computing is crumbling. Microsoft's share of the web dropped below a key level for... READ FULL STORY -- "Gun control is like trying to reduce drunk driving by making it tougher for sober people to own cars." - Unknown -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sat Jun 18 00:17:41 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sat, 18 Jun 2011 00:17:41 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Saturday - Ecclesiastes 11 - 12 Message-ID: <4DFC26E5.2010006@bibleseven.com> Saturday Ecclesiastes 11 - 12 Ignorance of the Future Demands Diligence in the Present 11:1 Send your grain overseas, for after many days you will get a return. 11:2 Divide your merchandise among seven or even eight investments, for you do not know what calamity may happen on earth. 11:3 If the clouds are full of rain, they will empty themselves on the earth, and whether a tree falls to the south or to the north, the tree will lie wherever it falls. 11:4 He who watches the wind will not sow, and he who observes the clouds will not reap. 11:5 Just as you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones form in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything. 11:6 Sow your seed in the morning, and do not stop working until the evening; for you do not know which activity will succeed -- whether this one or that one, or whether both will prosper equally. Life Should Be Enjoyed Because Death is Inevitable 11:7 Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for a person to see the sun. 11:8 So, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all, but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many -- all that is about to come is obscure. Enjoy Life to the Fullest under the Fear of God 11:9 Rejoice, young man, while you are young, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes, but know that God will judge your motives and actions. 11:10 Banish emotional stress from your mind. and put away pain from your body; for youth and the prime of life are fleeting. Fear God Now Because Old Age and Death Come Quickly 12:1 So remember your Creator in the days of your youth -- before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you will say, "I have no pleasure in them"; 12:2 before the sun and the light of the moon and the stars grow dark, and the clouds disappear after the rain; 12:3 when those who keep watch over the house begin to tremble, and the virile men begin to stoop over, and the grinders begin to cease because they grow few, and those who look through the windows grow dim, 12:4 and the doors along the street are shut; when the sound of the grinding mill grows low, and one is awakened by the sound of a bird, and all their songs grow faint, 12:5 and they are afraid of heights and the dangers in the street; the almond blossoms grow white, and the grasshopper drags itself along, and the caper berry shrivels up -- because man goes to his eternal home, and the mourners go about in the streets -- 12:6 before the silver cord is removed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the well, or the water wheel is broken at the cistern -- 12:7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the life's breath returns to God who gave it. Concluding Refrain: Qoheleth Restates His Thesis 12:8 "Absolutely futile!" laments the Teacher, "All of these things are futile!" Concluding Epilogue: Qoheleth's Advice is Wise 12:9 Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught knowledge to the people; he carefully evaluated and arranged many proverbs. 12:10 The Teacher sought to find delightful words, and to write accurately truthful sayings. 12:11 The words of the sages are like prods, and the collected sayings are like firmly fixed nails; they are given by one shepherd. Concluding Exhortation: Fear God and Obey His Commands! 12:12 Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. There is no end to the making of many books, and much study is exhausting to the body. 12:13 Having heard everything, I have reached this conclusion: Fear God and keep his commandments, because this is the whole duty of man. 12:14 For God will evaluate every deed, including every secret thing, whether good or evil. Prayer Lord, You desire that we enjoy the gifts You give us in this life, but in the context of what is honoring to You -- and you want us to know that You see everything. May I be constantly aware of Your presence, so that when I enjoy Your gifts, I do not lose perspective and dishonor You in my flesh. Commentary Solomon shared his learning that one must invest in diverse enterprises as one cannot be certain that any single investment will prosper, he further shared that one should start work early on a good weather day and continue throughout as one could not know what tomorrow might bring. He advised "Follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes, but know that God will judge your motives and actions." because life is short, and also to avoid emotional stress and physical pain [presumably via the application of wisdom]. Solomon counseled "So remember your Creator in the days of your youth -- before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you will say, "I have no pleasure in them" ... and the dust [from which you came] returns to the earth as it was, and the life's breath returns to God who gave it." There is some scholarly debate as to the meaning of the phrase "Qoheleth's Advice is Wise", especially as to the identity of Qoheleth. The most-common thought is that it referred to Solomon but the phraseology that follows implies more than one person is intended as the source of the wisdom writings. "Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught knowledge to the people; he carefully evaluated and arranged many proverbs. The Teacher sought to find delightful words, and to write accurately truthful sayings. The words of the sages are like prods, and the collected sayings are like firmly fixed nails; they are given by one shepherd." [Clearly the "one shepherd" is the Lord God.] He concluded with the stern advice to not accept anything external to the wisdom teaching as equivalent because such would cause endless "... study" which would be "... exhausting to the body." He also advised "Fear God and keep his commandments, because this is the whole duty of man. For God will evaluate every deed, including every secret thing, whether good or evil." Interaction Consider Diversification of investments has become a modern practice but Solomon recommended it many hundreds of years ago. Discuss Does it not seem an unheeded warning from Solomon to avoid adding to the wisdom teaching as the additions would be come burdensome -- which is precisely what the Pharisees and Sadducee's did? Reflect The balance between following "... the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes" while remaining constantly aware (and therefore guided by the knowledge) that "... God will judge your motives and actions." remains a challenging one. Share When have you struggled with the balance between following "... the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes" and living righteously before the Lord God? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place where you have become out of balance in your walk; following "... the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes" too far from the path of righteousness. Action: Today I will confess and repent, seek forgiveness and accept it from the Lord God, and adjust my walk in the direction of righteousness and away from the things of the flesh. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Sunday's text will be: Song of Solomon 1 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sat Jun 18 23:45:03 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sat, 18 Jun 2011 23:45:03 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Sunday - Song of Songs 1 Message-ID: <4DFD70BF.5030601@bibleseven.com> Sunday Song of Songs 1 Title/Superscription 1:1 Solomon's Most Excellent Love Song. The Desire for Love 1:2 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Oh, how I wish you would kiss me passionately! For your lovemaking is more delightful than wine. 1:3 The fragrance of your colognes is delightful; your name is like the finest perfume. No wonder the young women adore you! 1:4 Draw me after you; let us hurry! May the king bring me into his bedroom chambers! /*The Maidens*/ /*to the Lover:*/ We will rejoice and delight in you; we will praise your love more than wine. The Beloved to Her Lover: How rightly the young women adore you! The Country Maiden and the Daughters of Jerusalem 1:5 /*The Beloved to the Maidens:*/ I am dark but lovely, O maidens of Jerusalem, dark like the tents of Qedar, lovely like the tent curtains of Salmah. 1:6 Do not stare at me because I am dark, for the sun has burned my skin. My brothers were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards. Alas, my own vineyard I could not keep! The Shepherd and the Shepherdess 1:7 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Tell me, O you whom my heart loves, where do you pasture your sheep? Where do you rest your sheep during the midday heat? Tell me lest I wander around beside the flocks of your companions! 1:8 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ If you do not know, O most beautiful of women, simply follow the tracks of my flock, and pasture your little lambs beside the tents of the shepherds. The Beautiful Mare and the Fragrant Myrrh 1:9 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ O my beloved, you are like a mare among Pharaoh's stallions. 1:10 Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments; your neck is lovely with strings of jewels. 1:11 We will make for you gold ornaments studded with silver. 1:12 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ While the king was at his banqueting table, my nard gave forth its fragrance. 1:13 My beloved is like a fragrant pouch of myrrh spending the night between my breasts. 1:14 My beloved is like a cluster of henna blossoms in the vineyards of En-Gedi. Mutual Praise and Admiration 1:15 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ Oh, how beautiful you are, my beloved! Oh, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are like doves! 1:16 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Oh, how handsome you are, my lover! Oh, how delightful you are! The lush foliage is our canopied bed; 1:17 the cedars are the beams of our bedroom chamber; the pines are the rafters of our bedroom. Prayer Lord, Your love for those who have accepted Jesus as Lord is beyond any mere human comparison, but that is the best we can do as we attempt to comprehend it. May I praise You and rest in the encouragement and peace that comes from knowing that you love me with a passion unmatched anywhere in this world. Commentary There is scholarly debate as to authorship; if the texts are written by Solomon or were they written about Solomon, and if are they purely about romantic passion or if there are embedded meanings beyond that. Solomon began with a description of the passion of one of the maidens, who compared his lovemaking to the intoxicating effects of wine, then apologizes for her dark sin due to labor in the sun. The maidens are all as smitten with him as she but she pleads to be invited into his king's chambers. Then he described himself as a shepherd and she as a shepherdess, she asked where he would be with his sheep, so that she would not be following around some other shepherd's flock. He instructed her to follow closely the path of his sheep and thus be near to him. He compared her to a mare among Pharaoh's stallions. [The NET Translator's Notes explain that this was drawn from a story where an enemy of Pharaoh sent a mare among his chariot-pulling stallions to cause them to go wild, but a soldier killed it before the stallions could react.] She responded that he was like myrrh between her breasts as she slept or like henna blossoms in the desert oasis. They concluded by exchanging compliments and her final word described their place of passions "The lush foliage is our canopied bed; the cedars are the beams of our bedroom chamber; the pines are the rafters of our bedroom." Interaction Consider One might draw from the discussion of her following him with his sheep that a parallel-meaning could be the call of Jesus to His "bride" (the church) to do likewise. Discuss Does it fit with the rest of the Biblical text the Song of Songs be merely about romantic passion, especially in the context of possible unwed lust, and possible multiple partners? Or should one look for meaning illustrated in an emotionally-powerful imagery? Reflect The author's knowledge of Egyptian history was remarkably detailed. Share When have you experienced or observed someone as smitten with Jesus as the woman in the text was by Solomon? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the deep and passionate love He has for you. Action: Today I will praise the Lord God and rest in the image of Him welcoming me, with open arms and a smile like the sun, into Heaven. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Monday's text will be: Song of Songs 2 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller at lightlink.com Sun Jun 19 12:58:08 2011 From: fmiller at lightlink.com (Fred A. Miller) Date: Sun, 19 Jun 2011 12:58:08 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] OT: Pray for our nation Message-ID: <4DFE2AA0.9060902@lightlink.com> http://www.greatdanepro.com/Pray%20For%20America/index.htm -- "Gun control is like trying to reduce drunk driving by making it tougher for sober people to own cars." - Unknown -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller at lightlink.com Sun Jun 19 20:49:59 2011 From: fmiller at lightlink.com (Fred A. Miller) Date: Sun, 19 Jun 2011 20:49:59 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Magnificent!! Message-ID: <4DFE9937.30300@lightlink.com> http://www.andiesisle.com/creation/magnificent.html -- "Gun control is like trying to reduce drunk driving by making it tougher for sober people to own cars." - Unknown -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller at lightlink.com Sun Jun 19 20:50:04 2011 From: fmiller at lightlink.com (Fred A. Miller) Date: Sun, 19 Jun 2011 20:50:04 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Magnificent!! Message-ID: <4DFE993C.3030806@lightlink.com> http://www.andiesisle.com/creation/magnificent.html -- "Gun control is like trying to reduce drunk driving by making it tougher for sober people to own cars." - Unknown -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sun Jun 19 23:27:08 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sun, 19 Jun 2011 23:27:08 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Monday - Song of Songs 2 Message-ID: <4DFEBE0C.4040907@bibleseven.com> Monday Song of Songs 2 The Lily among the Thorns and the Apple Tree in the Forest 2:1 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ I am a meadow flower from Sharon, a lily from the valleys. 2:2 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ Like a lily among the thorns, so is my darling among the maidens. 2:3 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved among the young men. I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste. The Banquet Hall for the Love-Sick 2:4 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ He brought me into the banquet hall, and he looked at me lovingly. 2:5 Sustain me with raisin cakes, refresh me with apples, for I am faint with love. The Double Refrain: Embracing and Adjuration 2:6 His left hand caresses my head, and his right hand stimulates me. 2:7 /*The Beloved to the Maidens:*/ I adjure you, O maidens of Jerusalem, by the gazelles and by the young does of the open fields: Do not awaken or arouse love until it pleases! The Arrival of the Lover 2:8 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ Listen! My lover is approaching! Look! Here he comes, leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills! 2:9 My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. Look! There he stands behind our wall, gazing through the window, peering through the lattice. The Season of Love and the Song of the Turtle-Dove 2:10 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ My lover spoke to me, saying: "Arise, my darling; My beautiful one, come away with me! 2:11 Look! The winter has passed, the winter rains are over and gone. 2:12 The pomegranates have appeared in the land, the time for pruning and singing has come; the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. 2:13 The fig tree has budded, the vines have blossomed and give off their fragrance. Arise, come away my darling; my beautiful one, come away with me!" The Dove in the Clefts of En-Gedi 2:14 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places of the mountain crags, let me see your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely. The Foxes in the Vineyard 2:15 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes, that ruin the vineyards -- for our vineyard is in bloom. Poetic Refrain: Mutual Possession 2:16 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ My lover is mine and I am his; he grazes among the lilies. The Gazelle and the Rugged Mountains 2:17 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Until the dawn arrives and the shadows flee, turn, my beloved -- be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountain gorges. Prayer Lord, Your relationship with us is much like that described between Solomon and the woman, You love us passionately yet we are often fearful, timid, and wandering. May I accept Your love and seek-after only You. Commentary The woman described herself humbly as a common flower of the region of Sharon, perhaps a crocus, and a chamomile lily of the valley. Solomon responded, accepting her self-description, that she was therefore "a lily among the thorns". The woman replied that he was like an apple tree among the common trees of the field, continuing the analogy to describe his attention as like the sweet fruit, even as "a banquet hall." She continued that when he held her and she felt loved, then warned other "maidens" to not engage in mere physical passion without a genuine love relationship. Then she exclaimed with delight that he had arrived and was looking at them through the fence. Solomon declared that it is Spring and therefore time for her to come away with him. He compares her to a timid dove, hiding in the protective clefts of the stony hills, and implores her to come out. The woman replied that he should be careful of trouble, that she knows him to have multiple female interests, and she searched for him. Interaction Consider The woman accepts that the man has other physical interests but believes that her relationship is unique as a true love-relationship. Discuss Why would Solomon express special love for this woman yet continue to "graze among the lillies", a probably euphemism for sexual interaction with other maidens? Reflect The woman warns him that there is trouble ahead for their relationship if he continues his wandering ways, or if he is not careful to avoid a temptation designed to subvert theirs. Share When have you experienced or observed someone who was in a relationship that they supposedly valued yet flirted, or worse, with other people? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your walk where you are being relationally-careless. Action: Today I will carefully, intentionally, and prayerfully seek the Holy Spirit's guidance as to any relationship-carelessness in my life and will repent of it (turn away and not return to it). It could be thoughtless flirting, inappropriate online conversations that belong solely to a spouse (whether married or single some things are Biblically-restricted to a marriage relationship), or something more extreme. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Tuesday's text will be: Song of Songs 3 - 4 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Mon Jun 20 23:26:17 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Mon, 20 Jun 2011 23:26:17 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Tuesday - Song of Songs 3 - 4 Message-ID: <4E000F59.4040009@bibleseven.com> Tuesday Song of Songs 3 - 4 The Lost Lover is Found 3:1 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ All night long on my bed I longed for my lover. I longed for him but he never appeared. 3:2 "I will arise and look all around throughout the town, and throughout the streets and squares; I will search for my beloved." I searched for him but I did not find him. 3:3 The night watchmen found me -- the ones who guard the city walls. "Have you seen my beloved?" 3:4 Scarcely had I passed them by when I found my beloved! I held onto him tightly and would not let him go until I brought him to my mother's house, to the bedroom chamber of the one who conceived me. 3:5 /The Adjuration Refrain/ The Beloved to the Maidens: I admonish you, O maidens of Jerusalem, by the gazelles and by the young does of the open fields: "Do not awake or arouse love until it pleases!" The Royal Wedding Procession 3:6 /*The Speaker:*/ Who is this coming up from the desert like a column of smoke, like a fragrant billow of myrrh and frankincense, every kind of fragrant powder of the traveling merchants? 3:7 Look! It is Solomon's portable couch! It is surrounded by sixty warriors, some of Israel's mightiest warriors. 3:8 All of them are skilled with a sword, well-trained in the art of warfare. Each has his sword at his side, to guard against the terrors of the night. 3:9 King Solomon made a sedan chair for himself of wood imported from Lebanon. 3:10 Its posts were made of silver; its back was made of gold. Its seat was upholstered with purple wool; its interior was inlaid with leather by the maidens of Jerusalem. 3:11 Come out, O maidens of Zion, and gaze upon King Solomon! He is wearing the crown with which his mother crowned him on his wedding day, on the most joyous day of his life! The Wedding Night: Praise of the Bride 4:1 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ Oh, you are beautiful, my darling! Oh, you are beautiful! Your eyes behind your veil are like doves. Your hair is like a flock of female goats descending from Mount Gilead. 4:2 Your teeth are like a flock of newly-shorn sheep coming up from the washing place; each of them has a twin, and not one of them is missing. 4:3 Your lips are like a scarlet thread; your mouth is lovely. Your forehead behind your veil is like a slice of pomegranate. 4:4 Your neck is like the tower of David built with courses of stones; one thousand shields are hung on it -- all shields of valiant warriors. 4:5 Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of the gazelle grazing among the lilies. 4:6 Until the dawn arrives and the shadows flee, I will go up to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense. 4:7 You are altogether beautiful, my darling! There is no blemish in you! The Wedding Night: Beautiful as Lebanon 4:8 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, come with me from Lebanon. Descend from the crest of Amana, from the top of Senir, the summit of Hermon, from the lions' dens and the mountain haunts of the leopards. 4:9 You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride! You have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace. 4:10 How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much better is your love than wine; the fragrance of your perfume is better than any spice! 4:11 Your lips drip sweetness like the honeycomb, my bride, honey and milk are under your tongue. The fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon. The Wedding Night: The Delightful Garden 4:12 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ You are a locked garden, my sister, my bride; you are an enclosed spring, a sealed-up fountain. 4:13 Your shoots are a royal garden full of pomegranates with choice fruits: henna with nard, 4:14 nard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon with every kind of spice, myrrh and aloes with all the finest spices. 4:15 You are a garden spring, a well of fresh water flowing down from Lebanon. 4:16 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Awake, O north wind; come, O south wind! Blow on my garden so that its fragrant spices may send out their sweet smell. May my beloved come into his garden and eat its delightful fruit! Prayer Lord, when we become Yours our relationship is "family" and we become exclusively Yours like the "locked garden" of ancient royalty. May I rest in the assurance of Your amazing love for me. Commentary While the woman searched for Solomon she was found by the night watchmen, the guards of the walls. [Her search sounds a little like a person on the threshold of surrendering to the Lordship of Christ but who is clinging to worldly things, having trouble "finding" the Lord, but is "found" by those who already belong to the Lord.] The woman announced that she finally found him and brought him to her mother's home. [There is discussion in the NET Translator's Notes that she wanted to make love in the same room as she was conceived because they had previously made love where he had been conceived.] Solomon's approach is heralded as he traveled in conspicuous luxury to the location of his impending wedding. Solomon then heaps compliments upon the appearance of his bride. His use of "sister" is explained in the NET Translator's Notes as a common ancient phrase in love literature, generally to elevate the level of commitment to ones wife beyond marriage. He also describes her using a term "locked garden" which meaning parallels an ancient custom of private gardens used by royalty -- again amplifying her exclusive relationship with him. Interaction Consider When a person is at the place in their journey where they are responding to the Lord's calling they "seek" and then are "found" by Him. Discuss Given Solomon's propensity to add women to his collection of wives and concubines why might this woman had earned such a special place that he wrote of her? Reflect Solomon, despite the gift of wisdom, seemed to have no comprehension of monogamy nor any fear of sinning via pre-marital sex. Share When have you been seeking an answer to a challenge and wondered where the Lord God was, only to have Him "find" you where you had not looked -- but should have? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a blind-spot in your lifestyle where, like Solomon, you have been missing God's wisdom. Action: Today I will confess and repent, seek and accept the Lord God's forgiveness, and replace that place of sin with something devoted to intentional righteousness. It may be some form of entertainment, a manner of dress, a way of speaking to others, uncontrolled anger, substance abuse/misuse, or other offense to the Holy Spirit within. I will ask a fellow believer to pray in-agreement, and as is appropriate to be my accountability-partner, to challenge and encourage. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Wednesday's text will be: Song of Songs 5 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Tue Jun 21 22:25:57 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Tue, 21 Jun 2011 22:25:57 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Wednesday - Song of Songs 5 Message-ID: <4E0152B5.2070203@bibleseven.com> Wednesday Song of Songs 5 5:1 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ I have entered my garden, O my sister, my bride; I have gathered my myrrh with my balsam spice. I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey; I have drunk my wine and my milk! The Poet to the Couple: Eat, friends, and drink! Drink freely, O lovers! The Trials of Love: The Beloved's Dream of Losing Her Lover 5:2 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ I was asleep, but my mind was dreaming. Listen! My lover is knocking at the door! The Lover to His Beloved: "Open for me, my sister, my darling, my dove, my flawless one! My head is drenched with dew, my hair with the dampness of the night." 5:3 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ "I have already taken off my robe -- must I put it on again? I have already washed my feet -- must I soil them again?" 5:4 My lover thrust his hand through the hole, and my feelings were stirred for him. 5:5 I arose to open for my beloved; my hands dripped with myrrh -- my fingers flowed with myrrh on the handles of the lock. 5:6 I opened for my beloved, but my lover had already turned and gone away. I fell into despair when he departed. I looked for him but did not find him; I called him but he did not answer me. 5:7 The watchmen found me as they made their rounds in the city. They beat me, they bruised me; they took away my cloak, those watchmen on the walls! The Triumph of Love: The Beloved Praises Her Lover 5:8 /*The Beloved to the Maidens:*/ O maidens of Jerusalem, I command you -- If you find my beloved, what will you tell him? Tell him that I am lovesick! 5:9 /*The Maidens to The Beloved:*/ Why is your beloved better than others, O most beautiful of women? Why is your beloved better than others, that you would command us in this manner? 5:10 /*The Beloved to the Maidens:*/ My beloved is dazzling and ruddy; he stands out in comparison to all other men. 5:11 His head is like the most pure gold. His hair is curly -- black like a raven. 5:12 His eyes are like doves by streams of water, washed in milk, mounted like jewels. 5:13 His cheeks are like garden beds full of balsam trees yielding perfume. His lips are like lilies dripping with drops of myrrh. 5:14 His arms are like rods of gold set with chrysolite. His abdomen is like polished ivory inlaid with sapphires. 5:15 His legs are like pillars of marble set on bases of pure gold. His appearance is like Lebanon, choice as its cedars. 5:16 His mouth is very sweet; he is totally desirable. This is my beloved! This is my companion, O maidens of Jerusalem! Prayer Lord, You love us and have many times declared Your love. You, in the person of Jesus, have suffered mistreatment at the hands of those who should have supported You -- the religious leaders -- as You sought us out. May I return as much of Your love as I am capable and may I also seek-after what You call me to be and to do during my brief time in this world, no matter the resistance from those who simply do not understand. Commentary Solomon declares his love for the woman, then in an editorial insertion the text says "The Poet to the Couple: Eat, friends, and drink!", followed by the woman's nightmare where she sees Solomon at the gate but by the time she gets to open it he has left. The woman searches for him again and is accosted, even her robe pulled away from her by the city watchmen, yet she continues her search. She pleads with the maidens to help her to find him but they ask why they should do so -- to which she responds that he is the most-unique man and is her companion. Interaction Consider Solomon switched from an 'actor' in his love story, to editor/poet, and back again. Discuss Why would the city watchmen have treated the woman so roughly? Reflect The woman is so desperate for Solomon that she endures mistreatment and continues to seek him in the night. Share When have you been so desperate for the attention of a person, or a heightened-level of interaction with the Lord God, that your pursuit continued despite the incredulity or even the mocking of others? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to an element of your relationship, or a task He has assigned to you, which He desires you to pursue despite resistance from mere humans. Action: Today I will prayerfully confirm the call of the Holy Spirit and go where He has directed. I will ask more than one fellow-believer to pray in-agreement with me both for verification of my initial right-discernment and for courage and wisdom as I persevere. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Thursday's text will be: Song of Songs 6 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Wed Jun 22 21:22:58 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 21:22:58 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Thursday - Song of Songs 6 Message-ID: <4E029572.7030407@bibleseven.com> Thursday Song of Songs 6 The Lost Lover Found 6:1 /*The Maidens to the Beloved:*/ Where has your beloved gone, O most beautiful among women? Where has your beloved turned? Tell us, that we may seek him with you. 6:2 /*The Beloved to the Maidens:*/ My beloved has gone down to his garden, to the flowerbeds of balsam spices, to graze in the gardens, and to gather lilies. Poetic Refrain: Mutual Possession 6:3 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ I am my lover's and my lover is mine; he grazes among the lilies. The Renewal of Love 6:4 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ My darling, you are as beautiful as Tirzah, as lovely as Jerusalem, as awe-inspiring as bannered armies! 6:5 Turn your eyes away from me -- they overwhelm me! Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from Mount Gilead. 6:6 Your teeth are like a flock of sheep coming up from the washing; each has its twin; not one of them is missing. 6:7 Like a slice of pomegranate is your forehead behind your veil. 6:8 There may be sixty queens, and eighty concubines, and young women without number. 6:9 But she is unique! My dove, my perfect one! She is the special daughter of her mother, she is the favorite of the one who bore her. The maidens saw her and complimented her; the queens and concubines praised her: 6:10 "Who is this who appears like the dawn? Beautiful as the moon, bright as the sun, awe-inspiring as the stars in procession?" The Return to the Vineyards 6:11 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ I went down to the orchard of walnut trees, to look for the blossoms of the valley, to see if the vines had budded or if the pomegranates were in bloom. 6:12 I was beside myself with joy! There please give me your myrrh, O daughter of my princely people. The Love Song and Dance 6:13 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ Turn, turn, O Perfect One! Turn, turn, that I may stare at you! The Beloved to Her Lover: Why do you gaze upon the Perfect One like the dance of the Mahanaim? Prayer Lord, Solomon was a man of many earthly lusts, for fame and wealth, luxury and women. He stumbled into a functional-idolatry of them and it harmed everyone involved. May I grow in Your wisdom to appreciate the things of beauty and value in this world without allowing myself to become captive to them. Commentary The maidens inquired of the troubled woman as to the whereabouts of Solomon, adding that they'd like to go and find him as well. [The text is unclear as to their intent; were they intending to assist her, or were they desirous of his physical affections as well.] She said that she has learned that he had gone to the gardens to "graze" and to "gather lilies", both terms previously used to describe sexual interactions and females. [The NET Translator's Notes explain that there is some debate about the meaning, among which are that he's visiting with his concubines, perhaps fleeing momentarily from the powerful emotions he's experienced with this woman. Other suggest that he was somehow with her, yet not, which logic defies.] The woman declared "I am my lover's and my lover is mine; he grazes among the lilies.", which may have been her assertion that even though Solomon was physically-with other women his heart still belonged to her. Solomon then reappeared, repeating his flowery description of his affection for her, and reinforcing the sense that he had temporarily fled (due to the overwhelming emotions), he said "Turn your eyes away from me -- they overwhelm me!" He continued, saying that he had been to the valley to see how the blooms were coming during the Spring and was overjoyed with them, and so he pleaded with her to return with him there to be together. And, reversing his prior request that she not look at him, he begged her to do so -- referring to her as "Perfect One". She responded to his, asking why he would "... gaze upon the Perfect One like the dance of the Mahanaim?". The NET Translator's Text discusses the various possible meanings of the terms "Perfect One" and "dance of the Mahanaim". The most-simple explanation, and the one flowing consistently with the rest of the text, is the most likely to be correct; he had previously pontificated on her physical perfection and her exceptional emotional connection with him -- to the threshold of idol worship. His open-mouth staring at her would be parallel to one's reaction to an exceptionally passionate and powerful performed by young and talented female dancers -- appealing to both his (and other male spectator's) awe and lust. Interaction Consider Despite the gift of wisdom, great wealth and power, and the blessing of the Lord God -- Solomon was still a mere man of flesh and just as vulnerable to temptation as any man. Discuss Why would the woman want to be in a relationship with a man, king or not, who already had so many other women in his life? Reflect The lust of the eyes is among the greatest enemies of our relationship with the Lord God. Share When have you been frightened by the adulation of others, fearing that you could not live up to it, or fearing that it might overwhelm your self-perspective. Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you how to be your own second-greatest fan and greatest critic, second only to Him. Action: Today I will accept God's teaching that I have value because of my relationship with Him, and that means that I am exceptionally special. I will also partner with Him to search-out those places where I fall-short, and intentionally and prayerfully move toward greater maturity. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Friday's text will be: Song of Songs 7 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From fmiller at lightlink.com Wed Jun 22 22:30:29 2011 From: fmiller at lightlink.com (Fred A. Miller) Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 22:30:29 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Commodore 64 Replicas Shipping Next Week - Gear News at IGN Message-ID: <4E02A545.2070207@lightlink.com> http://gear.ign.com/articles/117/1177177p1.html -- "Gun control is like trying to reduce drunk driving by making it tougher for sober people to own cars." - Unknown -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tbutler at ofb.biz Wed Jun 22 23:07:29 2011 From: tbutler at ofb.biz (Timothy Butler) Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 22:07:29 -0500 Subject: [Linux4christians] Thursday - Song of Songs 6 In-Reply-To: <4E029572.7030407@bibleseven.com> References: <4E029572.7030407@bibleseven.com> Message-ID: <1578DADC-E975-4FC3-BAB2-CAB0F94D4F37@ofb.biz> On Jun 22, 2011, at 8:22 PM, dcolburn at bibleseven.com wrote: > Why would the woman want to be in a relationship with a man, king or not, who already had so many other women in his life? Hmm... I suspect this is either Solomon and his first love or Solomon late in life reflecting on true love. The love in Song of Songs is held up too much as a model of love to be about the flawed side of Solomon, I think. -Tim From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Wed Jun 22 23:18:08 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 23:18:08 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Thursday - Song of Songs 6 In-Reply-To: <1578DADC-E975-4FC3-BAB2-CAB0F94D4F37@ofb.biz> References: <4E029572.7030407@bibleseven.com> <1578DADC-E975-4FC3-BAB2-CAB0F94D4F37@ofb.biz> Message-ID: <4E02B070.8080005@bibleseven.com> I have no doubt that their love was special, among the bevy of lesser flings that appear to have started very early and then multiplied out of control, it seems to rise to a different level. I forget the name of the basketball player who claimed to have bedded 2,000 different women over his career - so such foolishness is not unique. The woman expressed both jealousy and fear of loss over the course of their SoS exchanges - so the threat from other women appears to be real - but she counted on their uniquely-intimate relationship to overcome all. Or so it seems ... the interpretations of SoS are many! :-) BTW: The Lord God struggles with the same with each of us ... > On Jun 22, 2011, at 8:22 PM, dcolburn at bibleseven.com wrote: > > > Why would the woman want to be in a relationship with a man, king > > or not, who already had so many other women in his life? > > Hmm... I suspect this is either Solomon and his first love or > Solomon late in life reflecting on true love. The love in Song of > Songs is held up too much as a model of love to be about the flawed > side of Solomon, I think. > > -Tim -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Thu Jun 23 21:22:46 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Thu, 23 Jun 2011 21:22:46 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Friday - Song of Songs 7 Message-ID: <4E03E6E6.7030505@bibleseven.com> Friday Song of Songs 7 7:1 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ How beautiful are your sandaled feet, O nobleman's daughter! The curves of your thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a master craftsman. 7:2 Your navel is a round mixing bowl -- may it never lack mixed wine! Your belly is a mound of wheat, encircled by lilies. 7:3 Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle. 7:4 Your neck is like a tower made of ivory. Your eyes are the pools in Heshbon by the gate of Bath-Rabbim. Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon overlooking Damascus. 7:5 Your head crowns you like Mount Carmel. The locks of your hair are like royal tapestries -- the king is held captive in its tresses! 7:6 How beautiful you are! How lovely, O love, with your delights! The Palm Tree and the Palm Tree Climber 7:7 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ Your stature is like a palm tree, and your breasts are like clusters of grapes. 7:8 I want to climb the palm tree, and take hold of its fruit stalks. May your breasts be like the clusters of grapes, and may the fragrance of your breath be like apricots! 7:9 May your mouth be like the best wine, flowing smoothly for my beloved, gliding gently over our lips as we sleep together. Poetic Refrain: Mutual Possession 7:10 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ I am my beloved's, and he desires me! The Journey to the Countryside 7:11 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Come, my beloved, let us go to the countryside; let us spend the night in the villages. 7:12 Let us rise early to go to the vineyards, to see if the vines have budded, to see if their blossoms have opened, if the pomegranates are in bloom -- there I will give you my love. 7:13 The mandrakes send out their fragrance; over our door is every delicacy, both new and old, which I have stored up for you, my lover. Prayer Lord, You have often declared Your love for us, Jesus said "How I have longed to gather you to Myself." May I be certain of Your love and respond in-kind. Commentary Solomon, like his father, David was given to pen reams of flowery phraseology -- in this case complimentary -- in much of the Psalms (David) and Ecclesiastes (Solomon) -- considerably more negative. Here Solomon described the physical details of his young wife's body using comparative images which could defy the ability of a reader to comprehend. [What do twin 4-legged gazelles and a woman's breasts have in common, other than the numeric similarity?] He returned to the reference to intoxication, perhaps explaining his poetic excesses, describing kissing her lips as like wine to his senses. After her prior expression of concern for his commitment, followed by her hopeful declaration that his love would bring him back to her, she hears his praise and declares again her certainty of his commitment "I am my beloved's, and he desires me!" Solomon concludes by inviting her to the countryside, saying that if things are in bloom he would make love to her in the gardens. Interaction Consider The woman emphasizes relationship, though she echoes Solomon's emphasis upon physical attributes, which Solomon mostly speaks of the physical. Discuss Might Solomon have been trying to assure the woman with his flowery language, given his growing bevy of young and beautiful wives and concubines from across the known world? Reflect Solomon seemed to have a need to seek-out unusual experiences in unusual locations. Share When have you read a poem or story wherein which the language was so extreme and flowery that it became difficult to follow? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal a place when He likes to meet you. Some place where you break away from the world and where you are the least distracted by the things of the world. Action: Today I will make time to be where the Lord God most effectively touches my heart and mind. It may be a certain room in your home at a certain time of day, it may be a place in your back yard or a park, it may be in a place where believers gather, or somewhere else. The key is to try and find a place that makes intimate communion with Him most-possible. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Saturday's text will be: Song of Songs 8 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Fri Jun 24 23:57:57 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Fri, 24 Jun 2011 23:57:57 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Saturday - Song of Songs 8 Message-ID: <4E055CC5.1030002@bibleseven.com> Saturday Song of Songs 8 The Beloved's Wish Song 8:1 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Oh, how I wish you were my little brother, nursing at my mother's breasts; if I saw you outside, I could kiss you -- surely no one would despise me! 8:2 I would lead you and bring you to my mother's house, the one who taught me. I would give you spiced wine to drink, the nectar of my pomegranates. Double Refrain: Embracing and Adjuration 8:3 /*The Beloved about Her Lover:*/ His left hand caresses my head, and his right hand stimulates me. 8:4 /*The Beloved to the Maidens:*/ I admonish you, O maidens of Jerusalem: "Do not arouse or awaken love until it pleases!" The Awakening of Love 8:5 /*The Maidens about His Beloved:*/ Who is this coming up from the desert, leaning on her beloved? The Beloved to Her Lover: Under the apple tree I aroused you; there your mother conceived you, there she who bore you was in labor of childbirth. The Nature of True Love 8:6 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Set me like a cylinder seal over your heart, like a signet on your arm. For love is as strong as death, passion is as unrelenting as Sheol. Its flames burst forth, it is a blazing flame. 8:7 Surging waters cannot quench love; floodwaters cannot overflow it. If someone were to offer all his possessions to buy love, the offer would be utterly despised. The Brother's Plan and the Sister's Reward 8:8 /*The Beloved's Brothers:*/ We have a little sister, and as yet she has no breasts. What shall we do for our sister on the day when she is spoken for? 8:9 If she is a wall, we will build on her a battlement of silver; but if she is a door, we will barricade her with boards of cedar. 8:10 /*The Beloved:*/ I was a wall, and my breasts were like fortress towers. Then I found favor in his eyes. Solomon's Vineyard and the Beloved's Vineyard 8:11 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-Hamon; he leased out the vineyard to those who maintained it. Each was to bring a thousand shekels of silver for its fruit. 8:12 My vineyard, which belongs to me, is at my disposal alone. The thousand shekels belong to you, O Solomon, and two hundred shekels belong to those who maintain it for its fruit. Epilogue: The Lover's Request and His Beloved's Invitation 8:13 /*The Lover to His Beloved:*/ O you who stay in the gardens, my companions are listening attentively for your voice; let me be the one to hear it! 8:14 /*The Beloved to Her Lover:*/ Make haste, my beloved! Be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices. Prayer Lord, You desire that we be wholeheartedly committed to You, and that we freely give all that we are and all that we possess in this world over to You. May I remain fully surrendered to the Lord God in everything. Commentary The woman wished that Solomon were her very little brother so that when they met in public they could kiss. [The NET Translator's Notes explain that public displays of affection were discouraged but among family members were permitted. The age-hint served to assure that in her daydream no one could question the appropriateness of her kissing her baby brother.] The woman expanded her parallel, as the NET Translator's Notes explain, that she'd like to bring Solomon to the place where she was conceived (and where her mother nursed her little brother) and give to him the intoxicating pleasure of her physical affection. She repeated her description of the touch of Solomon upon her head with one hand and her body with the other. Scholars debate the precise meaning, as in 2:6. This could refer to his impact upon her mind and her body, could refer to his caring and his passion, or could mean literally what it appears to say. [Solomon's predisposition to poetic license is nowhere as imprecise as in these love texts.] She again warns her fellow maidens to avoid physical involvement prior to knowing that the man is truly their beloved. The maidens chronicled the arrival of the couple and the woman remarked that they were near the same tree where they were first intimate and where his mother had begun childbirth (or conceived). The woman asked that Solomon would make a commitment of love that marked his heart as belonging to her, declaring that none of the greatest powers of the earth could overcome it, nor could any sum of money buy it. The woman's brothers, who still think of her as a little girl, declare that they will reward her chastity and defend her innocence. The woman reminds them that she is no longer a little girl (perhaps the transition was celebrated in the earlier Spring-associated text of Solomon), that she was well-defended, and then found love and passion with Solomon. [Note: This appears to be out of time-sequence with the other text as earlier text refers to their wedding.] The woman compared Solomon's vineyard (affections/possessions) to hers, each of which is controlled by each, and hers which she was freely offering to him. Solomon called out to her, observing that the others with him listened for her voice, but desired that he be the one to hear her first. She responded, calling out "Make haste, my beloved! Be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices." Interaction Consider The woman placed a high value on genuine love, on deep commitment, and on all things in common. Discuss Given his tendency to wander from woman to woman might Solomon's desire that he be first, among his companions, to hear her voice be a concern that she might be as promiscuous as he -- and go to the first she met? Reflect It appears that even the king and one of his wives needed to honor the cultural prohibition against public displays of affection. Share When have you longed for the innocence, and associated freedom, of childhood? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your relationship with the Lord God where you need to make a more complete commitment and surrender. It will be one of the many places in your journey to maturity that you will do so. Action: Today I will joyfully and prayerfully commit and surrender where the Holy Spirit directs, separating myself from the bondage of the worldly value I had previously either not recognized or had resisted surrendering. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Sunday's text will be: Isaiah 1 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sat Jun 25 22:13:54 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sat, 25 Jun 2011 22:13:54 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Sunday - Isaiah 1 Message-ID: <4E0695E2.4010501@bibleseven.com> Sunday Isaiah 1 Heading 1:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz during the time when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah reigned over Judah. Obedience, not Sacrifice 1:2 Listen, O heavens, pay attention, O earth! For the Lord speaks: "I raised children, I brought them up, but they have rebelled against me! 1:3 An ox recognizes its owner, a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; but Israel does not recognize me, my people do not understand." 1:4 The sinful nation is as good as dead, the people weighed down by evil deeds. They are offspring who do wrong, children who do wicked things. They have abandoned the Lord, and rejected the Holy One of Israel. They are alienated from him. 1:5 Why do you insist on being battered? Why do you continue to rebel? Your head has a massive wound, your whole body is weak. 1:6 From the soles of your feet to your head, there is no spot that is unharmed. There are only bruises, cuts, and open wounds. They have not been cleansed or bandaged, nor have they been treated with olive oil. 1:7 Your land is devastated, your cities burned with fire. Right before your eyes your crops are being destroyed by foreign invaders. They leave behind devastation and destruction. 1:8 Daughter Zion is left isolated, like a hut in a vineyard, or a shelter in a cucumber field; she is a besieged city. 1:9 If the Lord who commands armies had not left us a few survivors, we would have quickly become like Sodom, we would have become like Gomorrah. 1:10 Listen to the Lord's word, you leaders of Sodom! Pay attention to our God's rebuke, people of Gomorrah! 1:11 "Of what importance to me are your many sacrifices?" says the Lord. "I am stuffed with burnt sacrifices of rams and the fat from steers. The blood of bulls, lambs, and goats I do not want. 1:12 When you enter my presence, do you actually think I want this -- animals trampling on my courtyards? 1:13 Do not bring any more meaningless offerings; I consider your incense detestable! You observe new moon festivals, Sabbaths, and convocations, but I cannot tolerate sin-stained celebrations! 1:14 I hate your new moon festivals and assemblies; they are a burden that I am tired of carrying. 1:15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I look the other way; when you offer your many prayers, I do not listen, because your hands are covered with blood. 1:16 Wash! Cleanse yourselves! Remove your sinful deeds from my sight. Stop sinning! 1:17 Learn to do what is right! Promote justice! Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! Take up the cause of the orphan! Defend the rights of the widow! 1:18 Come, let's consider your options," says the Lord. "Though your sins have stained you like the color red, you can become white like snow; though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet, you can become white like wool. 1:19 If you have a willing attitude and obey, then you will again eat the good crops of the land. 1:20 But if you refuse and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword." Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. Purifying Judgment 1:21 How tragic that the once-faithful city has become a prostitute! She was once a center of justice, fairness resided in her, but now only murderers. 1:22 Your silver has become scum, your beer is diluted with water. 1:23 Your officials are rebels, they associate with thieves. All of them love bribery, and look for payoffs. They do not take up the cause of the orphan, or defend the rights of the widow. 1:24 Therefore, the sovereign Lord who commands armies, the powerful ruler of Israel, says this: "Ah, I will seek vengeance against my adversaries, I will take revenge against my enemies. 1:25 I will attack you; I will purify your metal with flux. I will remove all your slag. 1:26 I will reestablish honest judges as in former times, wise advisers as in earlier days. Then you will be called, 'The Just City, Faithful Town.'" 1:27 Zion will be freed by justice, and her returnees by righteousness. 1:28 All rebellious sinners will be shattered, those who abandon the Lord will perish. 1:29 Indeed, they will be ashamed of the sacred trees you find so desirable; you will be embarrassed because of the sacred orchards where you choose to worship. 1:30 For you will be like a tree whose leaves wither,like an orchard that is unwatered. 1:31 The powerful will be like a thread of yarn, their deeds like a spark;both will burn together, and no one will put out the fire. Prayer Lord, You are holy and righteous and in return for your grace, protection, and provision You require that we respond in obedience and righteousness. May I be increasingly grateful and therefore increasingly faithful in seeking after righteousness through surrender to the working of the Holy Spirit in and through me. Commentary Isaiah was a prophet to Israel a little over 200 years after the reign of King Solomon. His service to the Lord spanned the times of kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Isaiah delivered the message of the Lord God which compared the people of Israel to an ox and a donkey and found the people wanting because of their foolish rebellion. The Lord observed that they are beaten and bruised, suffering and over-run by their enemies, yet they persisted in their rebellion. He further observed that it was only the Lord God who preserved a few survivors, otherwise they would have been utterly destroyed as were the people in Sodom and Gomorrah. The Lord God said, through Isaiah, that He did not want their sacrifices while they were in overt rebellion, and that He would not listen to their prayers either. He told them that they must "Learn to do what is right! Promote justice! Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! Take up the cause of the orphan! Defend the rights of the widow!" He then reminded them of His grace "Though your sins have stained you like the color red, you can become white like snow", but warned that they had been warned and were without excuse were they to fail to repent of their sinful ways in rebellion. His final word of the first chapter is that He would purify them by fire, all who rebelled -- regardless of their station in life -- would be destroyed. Only righteousness could result in a reconciliation and restoration of their relationship with the Lord God -- and the blessings that would flow from that. Interaction Consider Despite all of the losses they had experienced, and the reprieves they had received when they were momentarily repentant, the people continued their rebellious ways. Discuss Why would the people have bothered to pray and to make sacrifices when they refused to obey the Lord God? Reflect Despite their persistent rebellion the Lord God stood ready and willing to forgive and restore them. Share When have you experienced or observed a person going through the motions of 'religion' while living a pagan lifestyle, then expressing frustration that things went badly for them? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your journey with the Lord God where you have been 'talking the talk' but not 'walking the walk'. Action: Today I will confess and repent, seek and receive forgiveness from the Lord God, and make the necessary changes to better align my words with my deeds and to surrender more completely to the Lordship of Christ in my life. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Monday's text will be: Isaiah 2 - 5 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Sun Jun 26 22:29:16 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Sun, 26 Jun 2011 22:29:16 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Monday - Isaiah 2 - 5 Message-ID: <4E07EAFC.4010301@bibleseven.com> Monday Isaiah 2 - 5 The Future Glory of Jerusalem 2:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz. 2:2 In the future the mountain of the Lord's temple will endure as the most important of mountains, and will be the most prominent of hills. All the nations will stream to it, 2:3 many peoples will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the Lord's mountain, to the temple of the God of Jacob, so he can teach us his requirements, and we can follow his standards." For Zion will be the center for moral instruction; the Lord will issue edicts from Jerusalem. 2:4 He will judge disputes between nations; he will settle cases for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nations will not take up the sword against other nations, and they will no longer train for war. 2:5 O descendants of Jacob, come, let us walk in the Lord's guiding light. The Lord's Day of Judgment 2:6 Indeed, O Lord, you have abandoned your people, the descendants of Jacob. For diviners from the east are everywhere; they consult omen readers like the Philistines do. Plenty of foreigners are around. 2:7 Their land is full of gold and silver; there is no end to their wealth. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots. 2:8 Their land is full of worthless idols; they worship the product of their own hands, what their own fingers have fashioned. 2:9 Men bow down to them in homage, they lie flat on the ground in worship. Don't spare them! 2:10 Go up into the rocky cliffs, hide in the ground. Get away from the dreadful judgment of the Lord, from his royal splendor! 2:11 Proud men will be brought low, arrogant men will be humiliated; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. 2:12 Indeed, the Lord who commands armies has planned a day of judgment, for all the high and mighty, for all who are proud -- they will be humiliated; 2:13 for all the cedars of Lebanon, that are so high and mighty, for all the oaks of Bashan; 2:14 for all the tall mountains, for all the high hills, 2:15 for every high tower, for every fortified wall, 2:16 for all the large ships, for all the impressive ships. 2:17 Proud men will be humiliated, arrogant men will be brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. 2:18 The worthless idols will be completely eliminated. 2:19 They will go into caves in the rocky cliffs and into holes in the ground, trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord and his royal splendor, when he rises up to terrify the earth. 2:20 At that time men will throw their silver and gold idols, which they made for themselves to worship, into the caves where rodents and bats live, 2:21 so they themselves can go into the crevices of the rocky cliffs and the openings under the rocky overhangs, trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord and his royal splendor, when he rises up to terrify the earth. 2:22 Stop trusting in human beings, whose life's breath is in their nostrils. For why should they be given special consideration? A Coming Leadership Crisis 3:1 Look, the sovereign Lord who commands armies is about to remove from Jerusalem and Judah every source of security, including all the food and water, 3:2 the mighty men and warriors, judges and prophets, omen readers and leaders, 3:3 captains of groups of fifty, the respected citizens, advisers and those skilled in magical arts, and those who know incantations. 3:4 The Lord says, "I will make youths their officials; malicious young men will rule over them. 3:5 The people will treat each other harshly; men will oppose each other; neighbors will fight. Youths will proudly defy the elderly and riffraff will challenge those who were once respected. 3:6 Indeed, a man will grab his brother right in his father's house and say, 'You own a coat -- you be our leader! This heap of ruins will be under your control.' 3:7 At that time the brother will shout, 'I am no doctor, I have no food or coat in my house; don't make me a leader of the people!'" 3:8 Jerusalem certainly stumbles, Judah falls, for their words and their actions offend the Lord; they rebel against his royal authority. 3:9 The look on their faces testifies to their guilt; like the people of Sodom they openly boast of their sin. Too bad for them! For they bring disaster on themselves. 3:10 Tell the innocent it will go well with them, for they will be rewarded for what they have done. 3:11 Too bad for the wicked sinners! For they will get exactly what they deserve. 3:12 Oppressors treat my people cruelly; creditors rule over them. My people's leaders mislead them; they give you confusing directions. 3:13 The Lord takes his position to judge; he stands up to pass sentence on his people. 3:14 The Lord comes to pronounce judgment on the leaders of his people and their officials. He says, "It is you who have ruined the vineyard! You have stashed in your houses what you have stolen from the poor. 3:15 Why do you crush my people and grind the faces of the poor?" The sovereign Lord who commands armies has spoken. Washing Away Impurity 3:16 The Lord says, "The women of Zion are proud. They walk with their heads high and flirt with their eyes. They skip along and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. 3:17 So the sovereign master will afflict the foreheads of Zion's women with skin diseases, the Lord will make the front of their heads bald." 3:18 At that time the sovereign master will remove their beautiful ankle jewelry, neck ornaments, crescent shaped ornaments, 3:19 earrings, bracelets, veils, 3:20 headdresses, ankle ornaments, sashes, sachets, amulets, 3:21 rings, nose rings, 3:22 festive dresses, robes, shawls, purses, 3:23 garments, vests, head coverings, and gowns. 3:24 A putrid stench will replace the smell of spices, a rope will replace a belt, baldness will replace braided locks of hair, a sackcloth garment will replace a fine robe, and a prisoner's brand will replace beauty. 3:25 Your men will fall by the sword, your strong men will die in battle. 3:26 Her gates will mourn and lament; deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground. 4:1 Seven women will grab hold of one man at that time. They will say, "We will provide our own food, we will provide our own clothes; but let us belong to you -- take away our shame!" The Branch of the Lord 4:2 At that time the crops given by the Lord will bring admiration and honor; the produce of the land will be a source of pride and delight to those who remain in Israel. 4:3 Those remaining in Zion, those left in Jerusalem, will be called "holy," all in Jerusalem who are destined to live. 4:4 At that time the sovereign master will wash the excrement from Zion's women, he will rinse the bloodstains from Jerusalem's midst, as he comes to judge and to bring devastation. 4:5 Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over its convocations a cloud and smoke by day and a bright flame of fire by night; indeed a canopy will accompany the Lord's glorious presence. 4:6 By day it will be a shelter to provide shade from the heat, as well as safety and protection from the heavy downpour. A Love Song Gone Sour 5:1 I will sing to my love -- a song to my lover about his vineyard. My love had a vineyard on a fertile hill. 5:2 He built a hedge around it, removed its stones, and planted a vine. He built a tower in the middle of it, and constructed a winepress. He waited for it to produce edible grapes, but it produced sour ones instead. 5:3 So now, residents of Jerusalem, people of Judah, you decide between me and my vineyard! 5:4 What more can I do for my vineyard beyond what I have already done? When I waited for it to produce edible grapes, why did it produce sour ones instead? 5:5 Now I will inform you what I am about to do to my vineyard: I will remove its hedge and turn it into pasture, I will break its wall and allow animals to graze there. 5:6 I will make it a wasteland; no one will prune its vines or hoe its ground, and thorns and briers will grow there. I will order the clouds not to drop any rain on it. 5:7 Indeed Israel is the vineyard of the Lord who commands armies, the people of Judah are the cultivated place in which he took delight. He waited for justice, but look what he got -- disobedience! He waited for fairness, but look what he got -- cries for help! Disaster is Coming 5:8 Those who accumulate houses are as good as dead, those who also accumulate landed property until there is no land left, and you are the only landowners remaining within the land. 5:9 The Lord who commands armies told me this: "Many houses will certainly become desolate, large, impressive houses will have no one living in them. 5:10 Indeed, a large vineyard will produce just a few gallons, and enough seed to yield several bushels will produce less than a bushel." 5:11 Those who get up early to drink beer are as good as dead, those who keep drinking long after dark until they are intoxicated with wine. 5:12 They have stringed instruments, tambourines, flutes, and wine at their parties. So they do not recognize what the Lord is doing, they do not perceive what he is bringing about. 5:13 Therefore my people will be deported because of their lack of understanding. Their leaders will have nothing to eat, their masses will have nothing to drink. 5:14 So Death will open up its throat, and open wide its mouth; Zion's dignitaries and masses will descend into it, including those who revel and celebrate within her. 5:15 Men will be humiliated, they will be brought low; the proud will be brought low. 5:16 The Lord who commands armies will be exalted when he punishes, the sovereign God's authority will be recognized when he judges. 5:17 Lambs will graze as if in their pastures, amid the ruins the rich sojourners will graze. 5:18 Those who pull evil along using cords of emptiness are as good as dead, who pull sin as with cart ropes. 5:19 They say, "Let him hurry, let him act quickly, so we can see; let the plan of the Holy One of Israel take shape and come to pass, then we will know it!" 5:20 Those who call evil good and good evil are as good as dead, who turn darkness into light and light into darkness, who turn bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter. 5:21 Those who think they are wise are as good as dead, those who think they possess understanding. 5:22 Those who are champions at drinking wine are as good as dead, who display great courage when mixing strong drinks. 5:23 They pronounce the guilty innocent for a payoff, they ignore the just cause of the innocent. 5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire devours straw, and dry grass disintegrates in the flames, so their root will rot, and their flower will blow away like dust. For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies, they have spurned the commands of the Holy One of Israel. 5:25 So the Lord is furious with his people; he lifts his hand and strikes them. The mountains shake, and corpses lie like manure in the middle of the streets. Despite all this, his anger does not subside, and his hand is ready to strike again. 5:26 He lifts a signal flag for a distant nation, he whistles for it to come from the far regions of the earth. Look, they come quickly and swiftly. 5:27 None tire or stumble, they don't stop to nap or sleep. They don't loosen their belts, or unstrap their sandals to rest. 5:28 Their arrows are sharpened, and all their bows are prepared. The hooves of their horses are hard as flint, and their chariot wheels are like a windstorm. 5:29 Their roar is like a lion's; they roar like young lions. They growl and seize their prey; they drag it away and no one can come to the rescue. 5:30 At that time they will growl over their prey, it will sound like sea waves crashing against rocks. One will look out over the land and see the darkness of disaster, clouds will turn the light into darkness. Prayer Lord, You love the people whom You created, and Your desire is to bless them. You ask for integrity, in our relationship with You, and with fellow humankind. May I be attentive to what it is that You want, rather than what the world values, and so become a conduit of Your blessing and truth to others. Commentary Isaiah began with what Constable's Notes explains was a preference of the Lord God for Israel, followed by what was and what was coming as a result, and then a return to His preference. [The middle part is more of a prophesy whereas the rest represents a conditional offer from the Lord Who wants to bless His people for obedience.] Through Isaiah the Lord challenged the people to repent of the worship of mere men and other elements of temporary fallen Creation and to return to Him. Isaiah announced the Lord's discipline, that He would remove from them the leaders -- kings and others -- so that they no longer had the excuse to blame them and so that they would individually and corporately reap the consequences of their rebellion. He continued to detail the consequences, beginning with facial sores on the women whose pride and abuse of their sexuality was offensive to Him, then make the fronts of their heads bald, followed by destitution and slavery. He would also cause the strong young men to die in battle so that there would be seven women begging one man to marry them so that they would no longer be without husbands. The desire of the Lord God would be to make the crops of those who remained in Jerusalem, those whom He had found to be obedient, to be exceptional and He would wipe clean the shame of the women. The Lord God declared that He had created a "vineyard" of opportunity for relationship and for blessing but the people had rebelled and made the "grapes ... sour", so He was about to destroy it all. Interaction Consider When the people of Israel first demanded of the Lord God a mere human king "like the nations around them" they were warned via God's prophet that these kings would bring them trouble, He reminded them that He would be the only King they needed, yet they insisted -- and He gave them their demand and with it the inevitable consequences. Discuss Why was it so difficult for the people to see that the Lord God wanted to bless them and that all of their rebellion was getting them nowhere anyhow? Reflect The evidence of true repentance that the Lord God sought was "... justice, but look what he got -- disobedience! He waited for fairness, but look what he got -- cries for help!" Share When have you experienced or observed that a leader who practices justice creates a healthier environment than one who is arbitrary and selfish? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place where you have preferred the values of the world over those of the Lord God. Action: Today I will confess and repent, seek and accept the Lord's forgiveness, and act to alter my priorities. (It may be in a gray area of financial dealings, integrity in academics, truth-telling in social relationships, or in some other area.) Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Tuesday's text will be: Isaiah 6 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Mon Jun 27 22:38:00 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2011 22:38:00 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Tuesday - Isaiah 6 Message-ID: <4E093E88.80009@bibleseven.com> Tuesday Isaiah 6 Isaiah's Commission 6:1 In the year of King Uzziah's death, I saw the sovereign master seated on a high, elevated throne. The hem of his robe filled the temple. 6:2 Seraphs stood over him; each one had six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and they used the remaining two to fly. 6:3 They called out to one another, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord who commands armies! His majestic splendor fills the entire earth!" 6:4 The sound of their voices shook the door frames, and the temple was filled with smoke. 6:5 I said, "Too bad for me! I am destroyed, for my lips are contaminated by sin, and I live among people whose lips are contaminated by sin. My eyes have seen the king, the Lord who commands armies." 6:6 But then one of the seraphs flew toward me. In his hand was a hot coal he had taken from the altar with tongs. 6:7 He touched my mouth with it and said, "Look, this coal has touched your lips. Your evil is removed; your sin is forgiven." 6:8 I heard the voice of the sovereign master say, "Whom will I send? Who will go on our behalf?" I answered, "Here I am, send me!" 6:9 He said, "Go and tell these people: 'Listen continually, but don't understand! Look continually, but don't perceive!' 6:10 Make the hearts of these people calloused; make their ears deaf and their eyes blind! Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed." 6:11 I replied, "How long, sovereign master?" He said, "Until cities are in ruins and unpopulated, and houses are uninhabited, and the land is ruined and devastated, 6:12 and the Lord has sent the people off to a distant place, and the very heart of the land is completely abandoned. 6:13 Even if only a tenth of the people remain in the land, it will again be destroyed, like one of the large sacred trees or an Asherah pole, when a sacred pillar on a high place is thrown down. That sacred pillar symbolizes the special chosen family." Prayer Lord, You are holy, we are not. May I be as aware of Your holiness as was Isaiah. Commentary Isaiah explained the experience of his calling to the prophetic ministry "I saw the sovereign master seated on a high, elevated throne ..." and He was surrounded by angelic beings who celebrated "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord ..." He was frightened "Too bad for me! I am destroyed, for my lips are contaminated by sin, and I live among people whose lips are contaminated by sin. My eyes have seen the king, the Lord ..." because his (and that of the people around him) imperfection could not survive the presence of the Lord God. He was correct. Isaiah then reported "But then one of the seraphs flew toward me. In his hand was a hot coal he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, "Look, this coal has touched your lips. Your evil is removed; your sin is forgiven."" It was at that moment that Isaiah's heard the call "I heard the voice of the sovereign master say, "Whom will I send? Who will go on our behalf?"" ... and he answered ... "Here I am, send me!" The Lord God then defined Isaiah's prophetic ministry "Go and tell these people ..." who "Listen continually, but don't understand! Look continually, but don't perceive!'" The Lord God then declared that He would "Make the hearts of these people calloused; make their ears deaf and their eyes blind! Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed."" Isaiah asked the Lord how long would this punishment last, to which He replied "Until cities are in ruins and unpopulated, and houses are uninhabited, and the land is ruined and devastated, and the Lord has sent the people off to a distant place, and the very heart of the land is completely abandoned." The Lord concluded His edict of complete national obliteration within the land "Even if only a tenth of the people remain in the land, it will again be destroyed, like one of the large sacred trees or an Asherah pole, when a sacred pillar on a high place is thrown down. That sacred pillar symbolizes the special chosen family." Interaction Consider The celebration of the holiness of the Lord God in Heaven is an amazing thing to imagine. Discuss Would you have the presence of mind for Isaiah to cry out "Here I am, send me!" to the Lord? Reflect Isaiah's very challenging ministry was to people who "Listen continually, but don't understand! Look continually, but don't perceive!'" He was to tell them that terrible trouble, beyond what they had already experienced, awaited them. Share When have you experienced or observed a moment in praise and worship, or in prayerful and intense study of the Word of God, where a sense of His unique holiness overwhelmed you? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your journey where you "Listen continually, but don't understand! Look continually, but don't perceive!'" Action: Today I will confess and repent, ask forgiveness and receive it from the Lord, and then surrender to the Holy Spirit as He leads me to listen with His ears, understand with His wisdom, see with His filter (so that I notice what He says is important), and perceive with His perspective of eternity. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Wednesday's text will be: Isaiah 7 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! 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URL: From member at linkedin.com Tue Jun 28 02:26:37 2011 From: member at linkedin.com (Stephen Wetzel via LinkedIn) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2011 06:26:37 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Linux4christians] Invitation to connect on LinkedIn Message-ID: <1869159069.7542053.1309242397756.JavaMail.app@ela4-bed40.prod> LinkedIn ------------ Stephen Wetzel requested to add you as a connection on LinkedIn: ------------------------------------------ Linc, I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn. - Stephen Accept invitation from Stephen Wetzel http://www.linkedin.com/e/-j0ewem-gpgh4bi0-55/uN_60zL0hTomBZ4lue_6gUdZKVmv4axfuQN76UhZQVrv-jOngs/blk/I2921838089_2/1BpC5vrmRLoRZcjkkZt5YCpnlOt3RApnhMpmdzgmhxrSNBszYOnPAUc3wPe34Oej99bSAQi4ZyoSlUbPAUd34Mc34ScPcLrCBxbOYWrSlI/EML_comm_afe/ View profile of Stephen Wetzel http://www.linkedin.com/e/-j0ewem-gpgh4bi0-55/rsn/1542101/iFcZ/ ------------------------------------------ -- (c) 2011, LinkedIn Corporation -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From raoul.snyman at saturnlaboratories.co.za Tue Jun 28 16:11:34 2011 From: raoul.snyman at saturnlaboratories.co.za (Raoul Snyman) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2011 22:11:34 +0200 Subject: [Linux4christians] OpenLP 2.0 beta 2 is GO! Message-ID: <201106282211.34966.raoul.snyman@saturnlaboratories.co.za> From the OpenLP blog: OpenLP 2.0 beta 2 is GO! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- We are pleased to announce OpenLP 1.9.6 "Enflaming Elijah", also known as 2.0 beta 2. Download it, it is AWESOME! Since the release of beta 1, we have encouraged users to download and use OpenLP 2.0 instead of openlp.org 1.2. This means that OpenLP 2.0 has been put through its paces, and people have been testing it by using it in their services. Of course this opens us up to the discovery of bugs and we have fixed a large number of those as well as introduced a number of improvements. Much to our pleasant surprise, there were actually fewer bugs than we were expecting. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://openlp.org/en/users/raoul/blog/2011-06-26-openlp_20_beta_2_is_go.html -- Raoul Snyman, B.Tech IT (Software Engineering) Saturn Laboratories m: 082 550 3754 e: raoul.snyman at saturnlaboratories.co.za w: http://www.saturnlaboratories.co.za b: blog.saturnlaboratories.co.za From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Tue Jun 28 20:14:26 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2011 20:14:26 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Wednesday - Isaiah 7 Message-ID: <4E0A6E62.7000807@bibleseven.com> Wednesday Isaiah 7 Ahaz Receives a Sign 7:1 During the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel marched up to Jerusalem to do battle, but they were unable to prevail against it. 7:2 It was reported to the family of David, "Syria has allied with Ephraim." They and their people were emotionally shaken, just as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. 7:3 So the Lord told Isaiah, "Go out with your son Shear-jashub and meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. 7:4 Tell him, 'Make sure you stay calm! Don't be afraid! Don't be intimidated by these two stubs of smoking logs, or by the raging anger of Rezin, Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 7:5 Syria has plotted with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah to bring about your demise. 7:6 They say, "Let's attack Judah, terrorize it, and conquer it. Then we'll set up the son of Tabeel as its king." 7:7 For this reason the sovereign master, the Lord, says: "It will not take place; it will not happen. 7:8 For Syria's leader is Damascus, and the leader of Damascus is Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will no longer exist as a nation. 7:9 Ephraim's leader is Samaria, and Samaria's leader is the son of Remaliah. If your faith does not remain firm, then you will not remain secure." 7:10 The Lord again spoke to Ahaz: 7:11 "Ask for a confirming sign from the Lord your God. You can even ask for something miraculous." 7:12 But Ahaz responded, "I don't want to ask; I don't want to put the Lord to a test." 7:13 So Isaiah replied, "Pay attention, family of David. Do you consider it too insignificant to try the patience of men? Is that why you are also trying the patience of my God? 7:14 For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. Look, this young woman is about to conceive and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him Immanuel. 7:15 He will eat sour milk and honey, which will help him know how to reject evil and choose what is right. 7:16 Here is why this will be so: Before the child knows how to reject evil and choose what is right, the land whose two kings you fear will be desolate. 7:17 The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father's family a time unlike any since Ephraim departed from Judah -- the king of Assyria!" 7:18 At that time the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. 7:19 All of them will come and make their home in the ravines between the cliffs, and in the crevices of the cliffs, in all the thorn bushes, and in all the watering holes. 7:20 At that time the sovereign master will use a razor hired from the banks of the Euphrates River, the king of Assyria, to shave the head and the pubic hair; it will also shave off the beard. 7:21 At that time a man will keep alive a young cow from the herd and a couple of goats. 7:22 From the abundance of milk they produce, he will have sour milk for his meals. Indeed, everyone left in the heart of the land will eat sour milk and honey. 7:23 At that time every place where there had been a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels will be overrun with thorns and briers. 7:24 With bow and arrow men will hunt there, for the whole land will be covered with thorns and briers. 7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. Prayer Lord, You rule over all armies and nations, therefore You may choose which will fail and which will have victory -- especially where it impacts Your people. May I never fear (as a child of God) that in the battles of life anything of significance, in the eyes of the Lord, will go other than the way that You decide. Commentary The news had come the king of Judah (of the former nation of Israel, since divided into Israel and Judah) that King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah of Israel and the nation of Ephraim (which had splintered off from Judah) were about to attack, and they were terrified because they were unable to resist such a combined military force. The Lord God directed Isaiah "Go out with your son Shear-jashub and meet Ahaz ... Tell him ... Don't be afraid! Don't be intimidated by these two stubs of smoking logs ... It will not take place; it will not happen." The Lord God, through Isaiah, challenged Ahaz to test His promise by asking for a sign or even a miracle, but Ahaz refused, fearful of testing the Lord, so He declared that Ephraim and Syria would soon be desolate, saying "Look, this young woman is about to conceive and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him Immanuel." but before he reached the age of accountability "... the land whose two kings you fear will be desolate." Interaction Consider The people of Judah saw things only through their human eyes, and so they were terrified, but the Lord God saw their enemies as already defeated; indeed, destroyed. Discuss Why might Ahaz have been so fearful of asking the Lord God for a sign or a miracle? Reflect At one moment the people of Judah were terrified and in the next they learned that their fearful enemies were soon to be wiped from the map, by the Lord God. Share When have you been fearful of a person or situation only to have your prayers answered and the entire threat disappear? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you today something of which you are afraid, with legitimate cause, but which He intends to remove from your life. Action: Today I will raise grateful prayers of praise and thanks to the Lord God. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Thursday's text will be: Isaiah 8 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com Tue Jun 28 22:19:12 2011 From: usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com (usacomputertech) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2011 19:19:12 -0700 Subject: [Linux4christians] Prayer request and status update. Message-ID: <4E0A8BA0.2080901@mindblowingidea.com> Hey guys. I need prayer for me and my GF. God has led me to her and my Spirit Filled Christian friends agree on that. The problem is that she's lying to me and to herself, and she's cheating, and doing who knows what else. She has a lot of pressure on her life. She's in between a rock and a hard place. She either has to choose to continue becoming more self destructive, or to fully accept God and overcome her fears. We are all hoping for the best. In other news I'm making progress on my book and for those of you who want to review the revision you can find it at this link and it will continue to be uploaded at this address so you can re download it from time to time as I update it. http://www.mindblowingidea.com/Brainwashed.pdf Please let me know if you have something to add to it or if you would like to volunteer to edit it. Thanks. -- http://www.youtube.com/user/usacomputertec USA COMPUTER TECH COMPUTER RESCUE Justin Breithaupt (509) 730-5576 (208) 750-5628 e-mail: usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com website: www.mindblowingidea.com/ComputerRescue.html Support Forum: http://justuselinux.iboards.us/ More About Me: http://www.google.com/profiles/usacomputertec They say that money talks, if so what does it say? IN GOD WE TRUST If your a fan of JULinux Please send an e-mail to Ladislav Bodnar distro at distrowatch.com asking him to put JULinux on his site. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: in_god_we_trust.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 16087 bytes Desc: not available URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Tue Jun 28 22:31:18 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2011 22:31:18 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Prayer request and status update. In-Reply-To: <4E0A8BA0.2080901@mindblowingidea.com> References: <4E0A8BA0.2080901@mindblowingidea.com> Message-ID: <4E0A8E76.8090402@bibleseven.com> The simple truth (as you read this think of the retired drill Sargent as a therapist on the Geico commercial) is that she is obviously *not capable of adult emotional relationship* I have learned over the years that the majority of people are chronically- immature and selfish (very few are genuinely messed-up from abuse and/ or bad genetics). There is *no likelihood* she will get right, first with the Lord God, then with you and others close to her, while she is involved in any romantic relationship(s). She needs to get away from all romantic entanglements of any sort, get into a Celebrate Recovery-type Christian group, and deal with her badly damaged self. No person who is unhealthy as a single will magically get healthy in a relationship. Prayers in-agreement for wisdom, courage, and healing ... > usacomputertech wrote: > Hey guys. I need prayer for me and my GF. God has led me to her and > my Spirit Filled Christian friends agree on that. The problem is that > she's lying to me and to herself, and she's cheating, and doing who > knows what else. She has a lot of pressure on her life. She's in > between a rock and a hard place. She either has to choose to continue > becoming more self destructive, or to fully accept God and overcome > her fears. > > We are all hoping for the best. -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com Tue Jun 28 22:53:27 2011 From: usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com (usacomputertech) Date: Tue, 28 Jun 2011 19:53:27 -0700 Subject: [Linux4christians] Prayer request and status update. In-Reply-To: <4E0A8E76.8090402@bibleseven.com> References: <4E0A8BA0.2080901@mindblowingidea.com> <4E0A8E76.8090402@bibleseven.com> Message-ID: <4E0A93A7.8090308@mindblowingidea.com> I agree she has to get right before we can have a relationship, however I will never accept defeat, only victory in Jesus. The people who know us have decided that the chance that she will turn around and decide to leave everything behind is very high. She knows what she needs to do, and she's very close to the end of herself. All we can do is wait and pray. As far as celebrate recovery, that's a great program, but there are those of us who don't respond well to psychiatrists / psychiatrist pastors and I'm one of those types of people. Our type responds best to the Spirit and His Word. I've met psychiatrists who have more problems then their patients and are going threw celebrate recovery, seeing other psychiatrists, and are on medication, and are pastors all at the same time and they can't hold it together. They haven't accepted the Spirit, and haven't fully accepted God. They are a bigger mess than people who know they have a problem and are trying to deal with it. Only those who rely on the Rock will make it. You can lean on others, and programs for support but they will all crumble and fall short of the Rock. The Rock is the only sure foundation. On 06/28/2011 07:31 PM, dcolburn at bibleseven.com wrote: > The simple truth (as you read this think of the retired drill Sargent > as a > therapist on the Geico commercial) is that she is obviously *not capable > of adult emotional relationship* > > I have learned over the years that the majority of people are > chronically- > immature and selfish (very few are genuinely messed-up from abuse and/ > or bad genetics). > > There is *no likelihood* she will get right, first with the Lord God, > then > with you and others close to her, while she is involved in any romantic > relationship(s). > > She needs to get away from all romantic entanglements of any sort, get > into a Celebrate Recovery-type Christian group, and deal with her badly > damaged self. > > No person who is unhealthy as a single will magically get healthy in a > relationship. > > Prayers in-agreement for wisdom, courage, and healing ... > > > usacomputertech wrote: >> Hey guys. I need prayer for me and my GF. God has led me to her and >> my Spirit Filled Christian friends agree on that. The problem is that >> she's lying to me and to herself, and she's cheating, and doing who >> knows what else. She has a lot of pressure on her life. She's in >> between a rock and a hard place. She either has to choose to continue >> becoming more self destructive, or to fully accept God and overcome >> her fears. >> >> We are all hoping for the best. > > -- http://www.youtube.com/user/usacomputertec Watch My Youtube Videos USA COMPUTER TECH COMPUTER RESCUE Justin Breithaupt (509) 730-5576 (208) 750-5628 e-mail: usacomputertech at mindblowingidea.com website: www.mindblowingidea.com/ComputerRescue.html Support Forum: http://justuselinux.iboards.us/ More About Me: http://www.google.com/profiles/usacomputertec They say that money talks, if so what does it say? IN GOD WE TRUST If your a fan of JULinux Please send an e-mail to Ladislav Bodnar distro at distrowatch.com asking him to put JULinux on his site. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: in_god_we_trust.jpg Type: image/jpeg Size: 16087 bytes Desc: not available URL: From fmiller at lightlink.com Wed Jun 29 00:58:47 2011 From: fmiller at lightlink.com (Fred A. Miller) Date: Wed, 29 Jun 2011 00:58:47 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] OT: Fleeing Taliban Message-ID: <4E0AB107.80805@lightlink.com> A fleeing Taliban, desperate for water, was plodding through the Afghan desert when he saw something far off in the distance. Hoping to find water, he hurried toward the oasis, only to find a little old Jewish man at a small stand, selling ties. The Taliban asked, "Do you have water?" The Jewish man replied, "I have no water. Would you like to buy a tie? They are only $5." The Taliban shouted, "Idiot! I do not need an over-priced tie. I need water! I should kill you, but I must find water first!" "OK," said the old Jewish man, "It does not matter that you do not want to buy a tie and that you hate me. I will show you that I am bigger than that. If you continue over that hill to the east for about two miles, you will find a lovely restaurant. It has all the ice cold water you need. Shalom." Cursing, the Taliban staggered away over the hill Several hours later he staggered back, almost dead & said, Your pig of a brother won't let me in without a tie!" -- "Gun control is like trying to reduce drunk driving by making it tougher for sober people to own cars." - Unknown -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Wed Jun 29 22:41:20 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Wed, 29 Jun 2011 22:41:20 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Thursday - Isaiah 8 Message-ID: <4E0BE250.2020504@bibleseven.com> Thursday Isaiah 8 A Sign-Child is Born 8:1 The Lord told me, "Take a large tablet and inscribe these words on it with an ordinary stylus: 'Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.' 8:2 Then I will summon as my reliable witnesses Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah." 8:3 I then had sexual relations with the prophetess; she conceived and gave birth to a son. The Lord told me, "Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz, 8:4 for before the child knows how to cry out, 'My father' or 'My mother,' the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria." 8:5 The Lord spoke to me again: 8:6 "These people have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah and melt in fear over Rezin and the son of Remaliah. 8:7 So look, the sovereign master is bringing up against them the turbulent and mighty waters of the Euphrates River -- the king of Assyria and all his majestic power. It will reach flood stage and overflow its banks. 8:8 It will spill into Judah, flooding and engulfing, as it reaches to the necks of its victims. He will spread his wings out over your entire land, O Immanuel." 8:9 You will be broken, O nations; you will be shattered! Pay attention, all you distant lands of the earth! Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered! Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered! 8:10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted! Issue your orders, but they will not be executed! For God is with us! The Lord Encourages Isaiah 8:11 Indeed this is what the Lord told me. He took hold of me firmly and warned me not to act like these people: 8:12 "Do not say, 'Conspiracy,' every time these people say the word. Don't be afraid of what scares them; don't be terrified. 8:13 You must recognize the authority of the Lord who commands armies. He is the one you must respect; he is the one you must fear. 8:14 He will become a sanctuary, but a stone that makes a person trip, and a rock that makes one stumble -- to the two houses of Israel. He will become a trap and a snare to the residents of Jerusalem. 8:15 Many will stumble over the stone and the rock, and will fall and be seriously injured, and will be ensnared and captured." 8:16 Tie up the scroll as legal evidence, seal the official record of God's instructions and give it to my followers. 8:17 I will wait patiently for the Lord, who has rejected the family of Jacob; I will wait for him. 8:18 Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me are reminders and object lessons in Israel, sent from the Lord who commands armies, who lives on Mount Zion. 8:19 Darkness Turns to Light as an Ideal King Arrives They will say to you, "Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?" 8:20 Then you must recall the Lord's instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. 8:21 They will pass through the land destitute and starving. Their hunger will make them angry, and they will curse their king and their God as they look upward. 8:22 When one looks out over the land, he sees distress and darkness, gloom and anxiety, darkness and people forced from the land. Prayer Lord, You loved the people and they rejected You, and after generations of grace Your discipline came to them. May I remember to respond appropriately and obediently to Your love and not give you a reason to discipline me. Commentary Isaiah was instructed by the Lord God to write a name that meant something similar to "come quickly" and for that name to be witnessed on the tablet by others. Isaiah then went to his wife, labeled as a "prophetess" as was the custom for the wife of a prophet, and they had a child -- whom they obediently named as instructed. Before he was of the age of accountability the king of Assyria was to plunder Ephraim and Syria as prophesied. [Note: There is scholarly debate as to the possible rhetorical vs literal meaning of Isaiah's son as a foreshadowing of Jesus, but the text fails to support that, and such is unnecessary to the later text 7:14 which Jesus is prophesied.] The Lord then prophesied that after obliterating Ephraim and Syria the Assyrians would over-run Israel and Judah and all of the nations around them. [Note: The term "Immanuel" (God with us) is used to describe the nations of Israel, as they were the earthly expression of the Lord God, a vague shadow compared to Jesus the Christ -- The Immanuel" (God literally with/among us - in the flesh.) The Lord God warned Isaiah to take care not to follow the actions and thinking of the people: "Do not say, 'Conspiracy,' every time these people say the word. Don't be afraid of what scares them; don't be terrified." "... recognize the authority of the Lord who commands armies. He is the one you must respect; he is the one you must fear." "He will become a sanctuary, but a stone that makes a person trip, and a rock that makes one stumble -- to the two houses of Israel. He will become a trap and a snare to the residents of Jerusalem. Many will stumble over the stone and the rock, and will fall and be seriously injured, and will be ensnared and captured." "Tie up the scroll as legal evidence, seal the official record of God's instructions and give it to my followers." Isaiah then said "I will wait patiently for the Lord, who has rejected the family of Jacob; I will wait for him. Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me are reminders and object lessons in Israel, sent from the Lord who commands armies, who lives on Mount Zion." Isaiah was warned further that the people, filled with spiritual darkness in their rebellion, would ask him to call upon demons and ghosts and witches in the hope that the dead might tell them of the future of the living. It would be yet another act of foolishness and of rebellion and he was to ignore them as their punishment descended upon them. Interaction Consider The Lord God would protect Isaiah, and others, who honored their relationship with Him but would bring trouble to rebels and create challenges to others who denied His presence. Discuss Why would the Lord God cause Isaiah to write 'Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.' (come quickly) on a tablet for others to see? Reflect Just as Saul turned to witchcraft so also did the people of Isaiah's time. Share When have you observed people acting and thinking in pagan ways in hopes of a God-less magical solution to their problems? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your life where you think 'magically', hoping for a solution to a problem, rather than taking it to the Lord God in faithful and trusting prayer and then leaving it with Him. Action: Today I will confess and repent, seek and accept forgiveness from the Lord God, and then begin a disciplined prayer-practice of bring everything to the Lord in prayer. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Friday's text will be: Isaiah 9 - 10 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From dcolburn at bibleseven.com Thu Jun 30 22:56:09 2011 From: dcolburn at bibleseven.com (dcolburn at bibleseven.com) Date: Thu, 30 Jun 2011 22:56:09 -0400 Subject: [Linux4christians] Friday - Isaiah 9 - 10 Message-ID: <4E0D3749.7090206@bibleseven.com> Friday Isaiah 9 - 10 9:1 The gloom will be dispelled for those who were anxious. In earlier times he humiliated the land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali; but now he brings honor to the way of the sea, the region beyond the Jordan, and Galilee of the nations. 9:2 The people walking in darkness see a bright light; light shines on those who live in a land of deep darkness. 9:3 You have enlarged the nation; you give them great joy. They rejoice in your presence as harvesters rejoice; as warriors celebrate when they divide up the plunder. 9:4 For their oppressive yoke and the club that strikes their shoulders, the cudgel the oppressor uses on them, you have shattered, as in the day of Midian's defeat. 9:5 Indeed every boot that marches and shakes the earth and every garment dragged through blood is used as fuel for the fire. 9:6 For a child has been born to us, a son has been given to us. He shoulders responsibility and is called: Extraordinary Strategist, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 9:7 His dominion will be vast and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. He will rule on David's throne and over David's kingdom, establishing it and strengthening it by promoting justice and fairness, from this time forward and forevermore. The Lord's intense devotion to his people will accomplish this. 9:8 God's Judgment Intensifies The sovereign master decreed judgment on Jacob, and it fell on Israel. 9:9 All the people were aware of it, the people of Ephraim and those living in Samaria. Yet with pride and an arrogant attitude, they said, 9:10 "The bricks have fallen, but we will rebuild with chiseled stone; the sycamore fig trees have been cut down, but we will replace them with cedars." 9:11 Then the Lord provoked their adversaries to attack them, he stirred up their enemies -- 9:12 Syria from the east, and the Philistines from the west, they gobbled up Israelite territory. Despite all this, his anger does not subside, and his hand is ready to strike again. 9:13 The people did not return to the one who struck them, they did not seek reconciliation with the Lord who commands armies. 9:14 So the Lord cut off Israel's head and tail, both the shoots and stalk in one day. 9:15 The leaders and the highly respected people are the head, the prophets who teach lies are the tail. 9:16 The leaders of this nation were misleading people, and the people being led were destroyed. 9:17 So the sovereign master was not pleased with their young men, he took no pity on their orphans and widows; for the whole nation was godless and did wicked things, every mouth was speaking disgraceful words. Despite all this, his anger does not subside, and his hand is ready to strike again. 9:18 For evil burned like a fire, it consumed thorns and briers; it burned up the thickets of the forest, and they went up in smoke. 9:19 Because of the anger of the Lord who commands armies, the land was scorched, and the people became fuel for the fire. People had no compassion on one another. 9:20 They devoured on the right, but were still hungry, they ate on the left, but were not satisfied. People even ate the flesh of their own arm! 9:21 Manasseh fought against Ephraim, and Ephraim against Manasseh; together they fought against Judah. Despite all this, his anger does not subside, and his hand is ready to strike again. 10:1 Those who enact unjust policies are as good as dead, those who are always instituting unfair regulations, 10:2 to keep the poor from getting fair treatment, and to deprive the oppressed among my people of justice, so they can steal what widows own, and loot what belongs to orphans. 10:3 What will you do on judgment day, when destruction arrives from a distant place? To whom will you run for help? Where will you leave your wealth? 10:4 You will have no place to go, except to kneel with the prisoners, or to fall among those who have been killed. Despite all this, his anger does not subside, and his hand is ready to strike again. The Lord Turns on Arrogant Assyria 10:5 Assyria, the club I use to vent my anger, is as good as dead, a cudgel with which I angrily punish. 10:6 I sent him against a godless nation, I ordered him to attack the people with whom I was angry, to take plunder and to carry away loot, to trample them down like dirt in the streets. 10:7 But he does not agree with this, his mind does not reason this way, for his goal is to destroy, and to eliminate many nations. 10:8 Indeed, he says: "Are not my officials all kings? 10:9 Is not Calneh like Carchemish? Hamath like Arpad? Samaria like Damascus? 10:10 I overpowered kingdoms ruled by idols, whose carved images were more impressive than Jerusalem's or Samaria's. 10:11 As I have done to Samaria and its idols, so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols." 10:12 But when the sovereign master finishes judging Mount Zion and Jerusalem, then I will punish the king of Assyria for what he has proudly planned and for the arrogant attitude he displays. 10:13 For he says: "By my strong hand I have accomplished this, by my strategy that I devised. I invaded the territory of nations, and looted their storehouses. Like a mighty conqueror, I brought down rulers. 10:14 My hand discovered the wealth of the nations, as if it were in a nest, as one gathers up abandoned eggs, I gathered up the whole earth. There was no wing flapping, or open mouth chirping." 10:15 Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it, or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it, or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood! 10:16 For this reason the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, will make his healthy ones emaciated. His majestic glory will go up in smoke. 10:17 The light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One will become a flame; it will burn and consume the Assyrian king's briers and his thorns in one day. 10:18 The splendor of his forest and his orchard will be completely destroyed, as when a sick man's life ebbs away. 10:19 There will be so few trees left in his forest, a child will be able to count them. 10:20 At that time those left in Israel, those who remain of the family of Jacob, will no longer rely on a foreign leader that abuses them. Instead they will truly rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 10:21 A remnant will come back, a remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. 10:22 For though your people, Israel, are as numerous as the sand on the seashore, only a remnant will come back. Destruction has been decreed; just punishment is about to engulf you. 10:23 The sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, is certainly ready to carry out the decreed destruction throughout the land. 10:24 So here is what the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, says: "My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of Assyria, even though they beat you with a club and lift their cudgel against you as Egypt did. 10:25 For very soon my fury will subside, and my anger will be directed toward their destruction." 10:26 The Lord who commands armies is about to beat them with a whip, similar to the way he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb. He will use his staff against the sea, lifting it up as he did in Egypt. 10:27 At that time the Lord will remove their burden from your shoulders, and their yoke from your neck; the yoke will be taken off because your neck will be too large. 10:28 They attacked Aiath, moved through Migron, depositing their supplies at Micmash. 10:29 They went through the pass, spent the night at Geba. Ramah trembled, Gibeah of Saul ran away. 10:30 Shout out, daughter of Gallim! Pay attention, Laishah! Answer her, Anathoth! 10:31 Madmenah flees, the residents of Gebim have hidden. 10:32 This very day, standing in Nob, they shake their fist at Daughter Zion's mountain -- at the hill of Jerusalem. 10:33 Look, the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, is ready to cut off the branches with terrifying power. The tallest trees will be cut down, the loftiest ones will be brought low. 10:34 The thickets of the forest will be chopped down with an ax, and mighty Lebanon will fall. Prayer Lord, humankind had an intimate relationship with You in Eden and chose to rebel, Israel has You as their King yet rebelliously-demanded a mere human king, and now that it had been proved that no king or prophet could lead them back to You -- You promised a savior. May I always remember that there is no such thing as works-righteousness, because the entire history of humankind since the Fall proved it impossible; there is only the gift of Jesus the Christ. Commentary Isaiah brought to a hopeless people a promise of hope from the Lord God, that a child is to come who will bring an eternity of freedom and peace, that that child will be of the same 'kind' as the Lord God -- not a mere man -- fulfilling perfectly the promise of the 'Davidic king' which no mere fallen man could ever fill. Meanwhile, the anger of the Lord God against the rebellious Israelites would continue, making their punishment complete. However, the "arrogant" and "godless" Assyrians, and their demonically-insane barbarism, would be punished as well. The Lord God would bring them low, taking away everything that they had not earned as a result of Him using them as His divine "cudgel", therefore leaving nothing. The burdensome domination of Israeli territory would be lifted. In the end of this era of history the Lord God would bring back only a remnant of the huge diaspora of Israelites. Interaction Consider God had declared that His patience with the chronically-rebellious Israel has come to an end -- so the prophesy through Isaiah merely spelled-out how the consequences would play-out. Discuss Why would the Lord God only restore a remnant, rather than the millions of Israelites who had been scattered far and wide? Reflect While the people of his time did not really comprehend the the enormity of the prophesied Savior, Whom the Lord God was announcing through Isaiah, it did establish a baseline for recognizing the One and only Messiah. Share When have you observed someone in business, politics, or sports boasting about a success which they clearly did not earn all on their own? Faith in Action Prayer: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you a place in your life where something has been accomplished for which you have not yet given the Lord God full credit. Action: Today I will humbly acknowledge the blessing of the Lord God which provided for me a success that I have pridefully imagined to be my accomplishment alone. Be Specific ______________________________________________________ Saturday's text will be: Isaiah 11 - 12 -- Draw nearer to the Lord and He will bless you, Have an http://Ultrafidian.com Day! David M. Colburn, DMin. MaCo ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Personal Site: http://bibleseven.com Bible Resources: http://bible.org Teacher's Verse: John 7:16 Defend free speech or lose your freedom. I don't google I SEARCH! Startpage.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: