I’ll be glad when this is over.
My fear is that it won’t be over.
There are strong/organised forces out there working against the USA as it was founded.
Help me pray about this.
It isn’t really about Republican/Democrat anymore.
It’s about the country my grand kids will have
I don’t “like” Trump. But he’s the only thing we have now…
For Chas, to help relieve the fears, the Psalm I now remember at every election:
“Hallelujah!
“My soul, praise the Lord.
“I will praise the Lord all my life;
“I will sing to my God as long as I live.
“Do not trust in nobles,
in man, who cannot save.
When his breath leaves him,
he returns to the ground;
on that day his plans die.
“Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them.
“He remains faithful forever, executing justice for the exploited and giving food to the hungry.
“The Lord frees prisoners.
“The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
“The Lord raises up those who are oppressed.
“The Lord loves the righteous.
“The Lord protects foreigners
and helps the fatherless and the widow,
but He frustrates the ways of the wicked.
“The Lord reigns forever;
Zion, your God reigns for all generations.
Hallelujah”
– Psalm 146
Morning! Not as cute as Bob and Larry but that photo is awesome! The artistry of our Creator never ceases to cause me to catch a breath at the beauty of it all!
Thank you for posting the reminder of in whom we place our trust Phos. This world situation sure isn’t pretty…but God ❤️
I had my teeth cleaned yesterday. Will have to go back to get a filling replaced and two new fillings. I only ever had one filling in my childhood, teens, and twenties – and it was in a childhood tooth that got replaced – but this decade of my life has seen a rapid disintegration of my teeth. I blame stress, since I have always taken daily care of my teeth.
That is an important reminder Roscuro gave us. Too many professing Christians have gone off track in thinking the Republicans and Trump are the answer to all our problems. No, the answer is Jesus.
Another quote I saw fits:
No matter which candidate wins, God is still King of the Earth. (paraphrased)
Thanks for the Psalm, Phos.
But it isn’t t ME that I am concerned abut. I am 90 years old. I have had an eventful and prosperous life.
I thank God every day. You would understand if you knew my early life.
But I am deeply concerned for you, and especially for my great grandkids.
I lived during the time when the USA was the most prosperous and greatest nation on earth.
I see that slipping away.
My nephew’s wife posted this on FB:
“I keep seeing posts about the election saying not to worry, because God is in control. And He is. But don’t let that lure you into complacency.
How many times did God removed his protection over Israel when they disobeyed? He allowed them to be put in bondage in Egypt and Babylon. He allowed corrupt rulers like Ahab. He allowed them to destroy themselves.
Christ gave us two commandments: love God and love your neighbor. Never have I seen such hatred toward one another, such blatant disregard for God’s law. Do you think God hasn’t noticed? Do you think He’ll save us from destroying ourselves?
Go ahead and pray about the outcome of the election. Pray that Biden wins, or Trump wins. But your time would be better spent repenting and praying that God would hold back His wrath from our country.”
Chas, my greatgrandparents of my maternal side were born British citizens when the UK was the greatest and most prosperous nation on earth. They and their descendants, saw all that slip away. But they and their descendants still survived. The UK even still exists, even if only a shadow of its former self. Empires fall, but humanity lives on until the end when Christ returns. Everyone on earth alive today is descended from survivors of former kingdoms and empires, survivors of war and famine and plague and disasters of all kinds. As long as this world continues, humans will survive, because God decreed so in Genesis after the Flood.
You cannot foresee what God is working towards for the future both for the humans who happen to live in the US and also those humans who live outside the US, who are many more in number. But this we know as Christians, that Christ is building his Church and the gates of hell cannot overcome her. Christ’s kingdom is not of this world. Ultimately, the US, and Canada, and the UK, and all other modern countries will have to end, as many other historical kingdoms and countries have already ended, because none of them are the kingdom of Christ. The end of all earthly kingdoms means the beginning of Christ’s eternal reign. The host of heaven sang in John’s vision in Revelation: “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdom of our God and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” We hold our earthly allegiances very lightly indeed, because they will soon no longer exist.
A prayerful day. I have Bible study this morning and this evening. This morning we will be studying psalm 19. Focusing on Him is the only way to make it through.
I stood in line an hour this morning to vote. I met a really nice couple who moved to my town from Santa Barbara. They left because of the fires. When I asked how they ended up here, they have one daughter in FHope and one in PCola. Really nice people. We agreed to meet again in 4 years.
I visited with a few different relatives after we voted. One works as a poll worker. Others were coming or going from voting. We didn’t wait very much. The machine we put our ballots in is finicky. It didn’t want to take my ballot at first because I refuse to fill in the circles of offices with no opposition. Plus, my BIL had put his signature where mine goes. I had to fit mine in over his. He did put his in the right spot, too, which was just underneath mine.
Not to worry about the photo, AJ. I was just surprised to still see it. I always have my bible study/prayer time first in the morning and am not usually on that early. Pain got me up early. Probably the time change also had something to do with that. I love mornings, though.
We voted. No line. No wait. People coming and going. We did not use the machine, just paper and pencil, though nineteen year old may have. I did not stay to watch. She has the right to vote. She knows and cares nothing about the policies or politics. She will either vote with us so she can continue to think she is manipulating husband, or against because she needs to do everything contrary to what I do.
I was able to recognize people even with the masks. More workers than voters. Glad to get it done and glad it is available.
Thanks for those posts Roscuro, such good and important reminders. I think we here in the US — in the better part of a century now — have had an unusually easy time of it. Turmoil is more the norm and we’ve not had a lot of that as a nation. We’ve had mostly peaceful and quiet lives. Our government has been stable, we’ve managed to “get along” with two sides in most elections — until perhaps now. It’s disconcerting. But turmoil brings its own benefits, spiritually, and only God knows what we need in any particular time and place. Our trust always needs to be in Him alone. Those who rule over us are there by his decree and for his purpose, whatever that may be.
Well, I’m off to play editor for a day today, I’m keeping tabs on 4 reporters roaming throughout LA County and then taking what they ‘feed’ me and updating our story throughout the day. I also have an 11 a.m. ‘virtual’ news conference to attend with the county Registrar Recorder.
There was a flier going around last night about a possible demonstration in Long Beach at 3 pm. but I’m hoping nothing much will come of that. I suspect my day will fly by and 5 p.m. will come quickly. I’m already having to take deep breaths, however, so pray for a clear mind and nimble fingers.
Roscuro, those of us concerned for our children and grandchildren are not concerned the US will just drift away like England but that it will plummet like Venezuela. Yes, we know God is there. But we like being able to buy the essentials and we would like to pass on the ease of life we have enjoyed, which comes with the ability to offer hope and refuge to many others from struggling nations. Not a lot of people clamoring to get into Venezuela these days. We do know that persecution brings growth.
Here, a retired friend sent a little funny to make you laugh. It’s a full page of stories about Wal-Mart greeters. This is just one.
Charley, a new retiree/greeter at Walmart, just couldn’t seem to get to work on time. Every day he was 5, 10, 15 minutes late. But he was a good worker, really tidy, clean-shaven, sharp-minded and a real credit to the company and obviously demonstrating their “Older Person Friendly” policies.
One day the boss called him into the office for a talk.
“Charley, I have to tell you–I like your work ethic. You do a bang-up job when you finally get here, but your being late so often is quite bothersome.”
“Yes, I know boss, and I am working on it.”
“Well good, you are a team player. That’s what I like to hear.”
“Yes sir. I understand your concern, and I will try harder.”
Seeming puzzled, the manager went on to comment, “I know you’re retired from the Armed Forces. What did they say to you there if you showed up in the morning late so often?”
The old man looked down at the floor and then smiled. He chuckled quietly, then said with a grin, “They usually saluted and said, Good morning, Admiral, can I get your coffee, sir?
We don’t fear it as in not trusting God. We know He will make it all good. We fear it in that we have had a life of fairly easy pickings, while our children’s children do not appear to be getting that. But our number one prayer is that they will come to Christ. Perhaps God is answering that prayer. Or perhaps God just took us to the edge to peek over at the abyss but will now draw us back. We don’t know. He is still God, whatever He does.
We survived the Civil War. We survived Nixon. We survived Carter and Clinton. We survived Obama. I believe we’ll survive which administration is inaugurated in January. If not, then God’s will be done.
NB: The boarding school mentioned was in Inuvik, one of the infamous residential schools I have talked if before. I have seen the artwork style he does before, but have not read any of his books. Now I will have to get one.
Although I find the above encouraging, I do not agree with all Michael O’Brien’s statements. He says that taxation makes us all complicit in what the state funds. If that were true, then Jesus would have sinned because he paid taxes to Rome, and Rome used those taxes for idolatrous and unjust purposes. Michael O’Brien is an artist, not a trained theologian, so he makes several mistakes in his worldview that better instruction in Scripture would correct.
Things are going smoothly in LA County so far, no lines to speak of being reported but they’re still telling everyone to vote early as it typically bogs down later in the day.
With all the early voting this time, though, not as many — only about 1/2 of the county’s registered voters remain ‘outstanding’ — are turning out to make for a “crunch” on just this single day.
mumsee, well said, we are told to pray for our leaders so we can lead peaceful and productive lives, able to worship God. It’s not wrong to pray for that, certainly.
I’m grabbing a very brief lunch at my home desk, left-over pizza because that’s what reporters all eat on election day. One of our local news radio reporters is holding a “virtual” election night pizza party as now everyone’s so scattered working from home.
My first 2 hours were quiet but it’s gotten a bit busier since then, reporters are sending in “feeds” to add to our block-like story that gets updated in real time (or as close to real time as we can read, edit and post it).
Led Zeppelin is playing next door, meanwhile, on the neighbor’s turntable in the garage.
DJ, no, it is not wrong to pray for rulers so we may live a quiet and peaceable life. But what is a quiet and peaceable life? Remember the context in which Paul wrote that – he was saying to pray for Nero to his immediate audience. One could live a quiet and peaceable life in West Africa where I was, but the corruption of the President-for-life that was then in power kept the country mired in poverty even as he enriched himself. A quiet and peaceable life was possible, yes, but not a prosperous or easy one.
I ended up being on an additional prayer call today with a group of ladies from my church. I felt a bit reluctant when asked, but it was with a few I have not prayed with before. We were on the call for an hour and fifteen minutes. I was thankful that God prompted me to pray for law enforcement during the time.
I expect we will be watching the Hallmark channel again tonight. Art enjoys watching Shakespeare and Hathaway, a Brittish private investigator show on PBS, on Monday evenings. Does anyone else watch it?
Janice, I have tried watching Shakespeare and Hathaway, but it got a bit repetitive. In lieu of Netflix or Prime, I have Britbox, which has all the British mystery series and there are a lot. I would rat Shakespeare and Hathaway as middling. So far, the most interesting ones of the newer productions have both been series based on the work of writer Ann Cleeves. ‘Vera’ is set in the dales of northern England and ‘Shetland’ in the Shetland islands of course, both of which make for gorgeous scenery and musical accents. But some of the older productions available, such as Joan Hickson playing Miss Marple in the 1980s, are still the best.
Looks like voting #s today have topped 2016 numbers already in 7 states.
It’s rather slow here, we have reporters asking where they should go or do … so trying to get them to answer questions about how this election year was different for them with Covid, protests, and such division.
My shift is half over already … my immediate editor is trying to catch a quick nap (he has to work the duration, day and night, for this election).
And, Kare, I found one of this season’s Midsomer Murders programs to be way over the edge so I did not want to watch it all. It was the one about the piano instructor. Did you see that one? I was sad that they went too far out with that one.
Kate, I found Midsomer Murders to be too dark 🙂 I guess the Scots in me ‘gets’ the understated tone of Vera. My ancestors were from the other side of those borderlands on the English-Scottish border, so a little of me feels at home in that setting.
Having a nice visit with other nineteen year old, who stopped by. He went out to go through his stuff that twenty three was going to toss the other day, and feed some leaves to the goats.
~ Seems like #dtla is on high alert for #ElectionDay trouble. City Hall and the Cathedral are fenced off, businesses are boarded up and streets are already closed. Which side is going to blow the first dog whistle tonight? ~
I’ve avoided election day news but both Karen and my brother called so I’ve heard it from both sides of the fence. I just want some peace before the storm.
Mail-in ballots may be the future, but voting with the past has a charm it cannot replace. Built during the McKinley presidency, the Columbarium's 8500 "residents," now bare silent witness to voters choosing the next president. #sanfrancisco#ElectionDaypic.twitter.com/SVe0AosK5N
We also enjoyed The Brokenwood Mysteries out of New Zealand. I love the NZ accent – I worked with a young man with that accent 🙂 I’m hoping he’ll be back when we finally get to return to our jobs.
Yes, the New Zealand accent is like a gentler, softer, more refined version of the Australian accent. There is a lovely elderly couple from New Zealand who go to the city church and showed me great kindness, the husband played the organ and was delighted when I was able to spell him off. When I first met them, the wife introduced herself and her husband, so I never heard his title. It took quite a while before I found out he was a physician specialist and head of a research department at the university where I got my degree. I am pretty sure some of his research led to the development of the medication I now take.
When I was in Nunavut, the head nurse was from Australia. He had a turn for sarcasm, and could say things the rest of us would never get away with saying because of that accent. There was also an Irishman on staff, and a couple of nurses from Newfoundland, which has a distinctive regional accent, so listening to morning report was quite a feast for the ears.
Kare, Eldest in-law is from Newfoundland, and while he has lost most of his accent, his family hasn’t, so I got used to listening to the rhythm and cadence of their pronunciation. Have you ever heard the Cape Breton accent? That can be even more pronounced than the Newfoundland accent. My father has a cousin from there, and this cousin also has a stammer, making listening to him an interesting experience the one time I met him. My father had no trouble understanding him, being from Nova Scotia himself. My father’s family has a slight Nova Scotian accent, although my father, like Eldest in-law, only noticeably – to me – slips into it when speaking with his family. But I think having the slight variation in regional pronunciation between my mother and father might have helped with becoming accustomed to hearing different pronunciations of the same words. It might also explain why Ontarians seem to have difficulty in placing my siblings and I from the way we speak.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a Cape Breton accent. We had a Newfoundlander in our church who thought he’d lost most of his accent – I can’t imagine understanding him when he first came to Alberta 🙂
Hubby had told me that he used to have the stereotypical Boston-area accent when he was younger. But when he entered the Air Force after high school, he was teased a lot. So he made an effort to change his way of speaking.
By the time I met him, he mostly did not have a Boston accent anymore, but it would come out with certain words.
Eldest in-law, whose maternal side is from Cape Breton said that there are variations in the accent, and in one region, they all sound like gangsters, pronouncing ‘you guys’ as ‘youse guys’.
Kizzie, there is a large infusion of Nova Scotia in Boston, as many a Nova Scotian went there for work, including a branch of my father’s family. In the days before passports were needed, my family would go to Nova Scotia by way of New York, Massachusetts, Maine, and Vermont, and stop by and see my father’s uncle in Boston. So, some of the unique accents of Nova Scotia have undoubtedly contributed to the unique Boston blend.
I have a habit of picking up accents. When I would go to New York to visit family I’d return with a slight accent. When I came to Missouri and spent a month visiting my sister before moving here, I returned to Arizona and was accused of having a Southern accent. Now that I live here, I can tell the difference between the various Missouri twangs and a deep South accent.
One of our pastors is from Northern Ireland. He just finished preaching a series on 1,2, and 3 John. When he started, he spoke of “One John.” After a couple of weeks, he said “First John” once or twice, but usually “One John.” By the time he finished the series Sunday, he managed to say “Third John” every time he mentioned the book . . . but mentions of 1 Corinthians still got the “One.” Since my husband and I were watching the livestream and not physically present in the building, we were saying, “Just wait–he’ll get it wrong next time.”
I never knew that such a distinction in the way it was said was made until he started as our pastor.
Wandering Views 
Good morning! Fun to still see my grands up there. I will admit I am prejudiced, though. 😉
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Now I feel bad for taking little Bob and Larry down. 😦
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I’ll be glad when this is over.
My fear is that it won’t be over.
There are strong/organised forces out there working against the USA as it was founded.
Help me pray about this.
It isn’t really about Republican/Democrat anymore.
It’s about the country my grand kids will have
I don’t “like” Trump. But he’s the only thing we have now…
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For Chas, to help relieve the fears, the Psalm I now remember at every election:
“Hallelujah!
“My soul, praise the Lord.
“I will praise the Lord all my life;
“I will sing to my God as long as I live.
“Do not trust in nobles,
in man, who cannot save.
When his breath leaves him,
he returns to the ground;
on that day his plans die.
“Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them.
“He remains faithful forever, executing justice for the exploited and giving food to the hungry.
“The Lord frees prisoners.
“The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
“The Lord raises up those who are oppressed.
“The Lord loves the righteous.
“The Lord protects foreigners
and helps the fatherless and the widow,
but He frustrates the ways of the wicked.
“The Lord reigns forever;
Zion, your God reigns for all generations.
Hallelujah”
– Psalm 146
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Morning! Not as cute as Bob and Larry but that photo is awesome! The artistry of our Creator never ceases to cause me to catch a breath at the beauty of it all!
Thank you for posting the reminder of in whom we place our trust Phos. This world situation sure isn’t pretty…but God ❤️
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I had my teeth cleaned yesterday. Will have to go back to get a filling replaced and two new fillings. I only ever had one filling in my childhood, teens, and twenties – and it was in a childhood tooth that got replaced – but this decade of my life has seen a rapid disintegration of my teeth. I blame stress, since I have always taken daily care of my teeth.
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Do not trust in nobles,
in man, who cannot save.
That is an important reminder Roscuro gave us. Too many professing Christians have gone off track in thinking the Republicans and Trump are the answer to all our problems. No, the answer is Jesus.
Another quote I saw fits:
No matter which candidate wins, God is still King of the Earth. (paraphrased)
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Thanks for the Psalm, Phos.
But it isn’t t ME that I am concerned abut. I am 90 years old. I have had an eventful and prosperous life.
I thank God every day. You would understand if you knew my early life.
But I am deeply concerned for you, and especially for my great grandkids.
I lived during the time when the USA was the most prosperous and greatest nation on earth.
I see that slipping away.
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My nephew’s wife posted this on FB:
“I keep seeing posts about the election saying not to worry, because God is in control. And He is. But don’t let that lure you into complacency.
How many times did God removed his protection over Israel when they disobeyed? He allowed them to be put in bondage in Egypt and Babylon. He allowed corrupt rulers like Ahab. He allowed them to destroy themselves.
Christ gave us two commandments: love God and love your neighbor. Never have I seen such hatred toward one another, such blatant disregard for God’s law. Do you think God hasn’t noticed? Do you think He’ll save us from destroying ourselves?
Go ahead and pray about the outcome of the election. Pray that Biden wins, or Trump wins. But your time would be better spent repenting and praying that God would hold back His wrath from our country.”
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Amen, Peter L’s wife. Who is elected is just a man and we have a system, broken as it is. But the hatred…..
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Chas, my greatgrandparents of my maternal side were born British citizens when the UK was the greatest and most prosperous nation on earth. They and their descendants, saw all that slip away. But they and their descendants still survived. The UK even still exists, even if only a shadow of its former self. Empires fall, but humanity lives on until the end when Christ returns. Everyone on earth alive today is descended from survivors of former kingdoms and empires, survivors of war and famine and plague and disasters of all kinds. As long as this world continues, humans will survive, because God decreed so in Genesis after the Flood.
You cannot foresee what God is working towards for the future both for the humans who happen to live in the US and also those humans who live outside the US, who are many more in number. But this we know as Christians, that Christ is building his Church and the gates of hell cannot overcome her. Christ’s kingdom is not of this world. Ultimately, the US, and Canada, and the UK, and all other modern countries will have to end, as many other historical kingdoms and countries have already ended, because none of them are the kingdom of Christ. The end of all earthly kingdoms means the beginning of Christ’s eternal reign. The host of heaven sang in John’s vision in Revelation: “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdom of our God and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” We hold our earthly allegiances very lightly indeed, because they will soon no longer exist.
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A prayerful day. I have Bible study this morning and this evening. This morning we will be studying psalm 19. Focusing on Him is the only way to make it through.
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I stood in line an hour this morning to vote. I met a really nice couple who moved to my town from Santa Barbara. They left because of the fires. When I asked how they ended up here, they have one daughter in FHope and one in PCola. Really nice people. We agreed to meet again in 4 years.
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I visited with a few different relatives after we voted. One works as a poll worker. Others were coming or going from voting. We didn’t wait very much. The machine we put our ballots in is finicky. It didn’t want to take my ballot at first because I refuse to fill in the circles of offices with no opposition. Plus, my BIL had put his signature where mine goes. I had to fit mine in over his. He did put his in the right spot, too, which was just underneath mine.
Not to worry about the photo, AJ. I was just surprised to still see it. I always have my bible study/prayer time first in the morning and am not usually on that early. Pain got me up early. Probably the time change also had something to do with that. I love mornings, though.
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We voted. We picked a good time too. Only waited about 10 minutes. 🙂
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We voted. No line. No wait. People coming and going. We did not use the machine, just paper and pencil, though nineteen year old may have. I did not stay to watch. She has the right to vote. She knows and cares nothing about the policies or politics. She will either vote with us so she can continue to think she is manipulating husband, or against because she needs to do everything contrary to what I do.
I was able to recognize people even with the masks. More workers than voters. Glad to get it done and glad it is available.
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Thanks for those posts Roscuro, such good and important reminders. I think we here in the US — in the better part of a century now — have had an unusually easy time of it. Turmoil is more the norm and we’ve not had a lot of that as a nation. We’ve had mostly peaceful and quiet lives. Our government has been stable, we’ve managed to “get along” with two sides in most elections — until perhaps now. It’s disconcerting. But turmoil brings its own benefits, spiritually, and only God knows what we need in any particular time and place. Our trust always needs to be in Him alone. Those who rule over us are there by his decree and for his purpose, whatever that may be.
Well, I’m off to play editor for a day today, I’m keeping tabs on 4 reporters roaming throughout LA County and then taking what they ‘feed’ me and updating our story throughout the day. I also have an 11 a.m. ‘virtual’ news conference to attend with the county Registrar Recorder.
There was a flier going around last night about a possible demonstration in Long Beach at 3 pm. but I’m hoping nothing much will come of that. I suspect my day will fly by and 5 p.m. will come quickly. I’m already having to take deep breaths, however, so pray for a clear mind and nimble fingers.
And not too much chaos to try to keep tabs on.
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Roscuro, those of us concerned for our children and grandchildren are not concerned the US will just drift away like England but that it will plummet like Venezuela. Yes, we know God is there. But we like being able to buy the essentials and we would like to pass on the ease of life we have enjoyed, which comes with the ability to offer hope and refuge to many others from struggling nations. Not a lot of people clamoring to get into Venezuela these days. We do know that persecution brings growth.
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Today, the final poll is taken, at last. We will see what happens.
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And what mumsee says
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And here’s a link to World Magazine’s election coverage throughout today and tonight (and beyond, I suspect):
https://world.wng.org/tags/campaign_2020
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Amen, Mumsee.
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Here, a retired friend sent a little funny to make you laugh. It’s a full page of stories about Wal-Mart greeters. This is just one.
Charley, a new retiree/greeter at Walmart, just couldn’t seem to get to work on time. Every day he was 5, 10, 15 minutes late. But he was a good worker, really tidy, clean-shaven, sharp-minded and a real credit to the company and obviously demonstrating their “Older Person Friendly” policies.
One day the boss called him into the office for a talk.
“Charley, I have to tell you–I like your work ethic. You do a bang-up job when you finally get here, but your being late so often is quite bothersome.”
“Yes, I know boss, and I am working on it.”
“Well good, you are a team player. That’s what I like to hear.”
“Yes sir. I understand your concern, and I will try harder.”
Seeming puzzled, the manager went on to comment, “I know you’re retired from the Armed Forces. What did they say to you there if you showed up in the morning late so often?”
The old man looked down at the floor and then smiled. He chuckled quietly, then said with a grin, “They usually saluted and said, Good morning, Admiral, can I get your coffee, sir?
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Mumsee, I understand all that. Who doesn’t want comfort and security? But it is still no reason to fear the future that God is making.
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We don’t fear it as in not trusting God. We know He will make it all good. We fear it in that we have had a life of fairly easy pickings, while our children’s children do not appear to be getting that. But our number one prayer is that they will come to Christ. Perhaps God is answering that prayer. Or perhaps God just took us to the edge to peek over at the abyss but will now draw us back. We don’t know. He is still God, whatever He does.
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We survived the Civil War. We survived Nixon. We survived Carter and Clinton. We survived Obama. I believe we’ll survive which administration is inaugurated in January. If not, then God’s will be done.
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This was encouraging to me to read – hope in God in the midst of a clear view of the reality of life: https://world.wng.org/2020/10/out_of_desolation_fruitfulness
NB: The boarding school mentioned was in Inuvik, one of the infamous residential schools I have talked if before. I have seen the artwork style he does before, but have not read any of his books. Now I will have to get one.
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Although I find the above encouraging, I do not agree with all Michael O’Brien’s statements. He says that taxation makes us all complicit in what the state funds. If that were true, then Jesus would have sinned because he paid taxes to Rome, and Rome used those taxes for idolatrous and unjust purposes. Michael O’Brien is an artist, not a trained theologian, so he makes several mistakes in his worldview that better instruction in Scripture would correct.
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Things are going smoothly in LA County so far, no lines to speak of being reported but they’re still telling everyone to vote early as it typically bogs down later in the day.
With all the early voting this time, though, not as many — only about 1/2 of the county’s registered voters remain ‘outstanding’ — are turning out to make for a “crunch” on just this single day.
mumsee, well said, we are told to pray for our leaders so we can lead peaceful and productive lives, able to worship God. It’s not wrong to pray for that, certainly.
I’m grabbing a very brief lunch at my home desk, left-over pizza because that’s what reporters all eat on election day. One of our local news radio reporters is holding a “virtual” election night pizza party as now everyone’s so scattered working from home.
My first 2 hours were quiet but it’s gotten a bit busier since then, reporters are sending in “feeds” to add to our block-like story that gets updated in real time (or as close to real time as we can read, edit and post it).
Led Zeppelin is playing next door, meanwhile, on the neighbor’s turntable in the garage.
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One of our reporters turned in this from the field (I blocked out her name):
~ At Telfair Elementary School in Pacoima, XXX XXXX of San Fernando came to vote on her day off from work as a nursing assistant in a hospital.
“They helped me do it,” she said in Spanish of the poll workers who gave her a hand navigating the voting machine. “It was perfect.”
XXX, who immigrated to the U.S. from El Salvador some 30 years ago, wore a red, white and blue headband.
She said she had been too busy with work to vote until Tuesday.
“I’m very grateful for all this country has given me,” she said. “I brought my children and they helped my family. I don’t know how to repay them.”
When asked whether she was afraid of voting due to the coronavirus, Cacique said: “God will help us, right?” ~
++++++++++
And there was this:
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oops
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Oh, it came through, sorry for the double post
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DJ, no, it is not wrong to pray for rulers so we may live a quiet and peaceable life. But what is a quiet and peaceable life? Remember the context in which Paul wrote that – he was saying to pray for Nero to his immediate audience. One could live a quiet and peaceable life in West Africa where I was, but the corruption of the President-for-life that was then in power kept the country mired in poverty even as he enriched himself. A quiet and peaceable life was possible, yes, but not a prosperous or easy one.
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I ended up being on an additional prayer call today with a group of ladies from my church. I felt a bit reluctant when asked, but it was with a few I have not prayed with before. We were on the call for an hour and fifteen minutes. I was thankful that God prompted me to pray for law enforcement during the time.
I expect we will be watching the Hallmark channel again tonight. Art enjoys watching Shakespeare and Hathaway, a Brittish private investigator show on PBS, on Monday evenings. Does anyone else watch it?
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Janice, I have tried watching Shakespeare and Hathaway, but it got a bit repetitive. In lieu of Netflix or Prime, I have Britbox, which has all the British mystery series and there are a lot. I would rat Shakespeare and Hathaway as middling. So far, the most interesting ones of the newer productions have both been series based on the work of writer Ann Cleeves. ‘Vera’ is set in the dales of northern England and ‘Shetland’ in the Shetland islands of course, both of which make for gorgeous scenery and musical accents. But some of the older productions available, such as Joan Hickson playing Miss Marple in the 1980s, are still the best.
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Janice, I watch Shakespeare and Hathaway as well as Death in Paradise and Midsomer Murders. He’d probably like those other two as well.
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Touche, roscuro.
Looks like voting #s today have topped 2016 numbers already in 7 states.
It’s rather slow here, we have reporters asking where they should go or do … so trying to get them to answer questions about how this election year was different for them with Covid, protests, and such division.
My shift is half over already … my immediate editor is trying to catch a quick nap (he has to work the duration, day and night, for this election).
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Husband and I find Vera to be a little too dark. I much prefer the mysteries with a bit of comedy mixed in.
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It strikes me as rather odd that we use the term “battleground” states. Doesn’t that seem rather violent? Cancel….
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Yes, Kare, he does watch those other two and enjoys them a lot, as well as Vera. I like the ones with humor mixed in, too.
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And, Kare, I found one of this season’s Midsomer Murders programs to be way over the edge so I did not want to watch it all. It was the one about the piano instructor. Did you see that one? I was sad that they went too far out with that one.
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Kate, I found Midsomer Murders to be too dark 🙂 I guess the Scots in me ‘gets’ the understated tone of Vera. My ancestors were from the other side of those borderlands on the English-Scottish border, so a little of me feels at home in that setting.
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We voted. No line at 2:30pm. Then, since it’s 75 degrees and sunny in November, we went to our favorite park and took a long walk/hike.
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Long lines and waiting here.
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Having a nice visit with other nineteen year old, who stopped by. He went out to go through his stuff that twenty three was going to toss the other day, and feed some leaves to the goats.
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From twitter:
~ Seems like #dtla is on high alert for #ElectionDay trouble. City Hall and the Cathedral are fenced off, businesses are boarded up and streets are already closed. Which side is going to blow the first dog whistle tonight? ~
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I really like the music and location of Vera.
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I’ve avoided election day news but both Karen and my brother called so I’ve heard it from both sides of the fence. I just want some peace before the storm.
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Georgia’s high on everyone’s radar tonight
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And polls are starting to close across the country.
My shift ends in an hour. It wasn’t as crazy as I thought it would be but had a few periods that took some real juggling.
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My wife was a suburban housewife.
She always voted the way I did.
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We’ve also started watching Dr. Blake Mysteries out of Australia – the theme music for that show is amazing.
For British comedy, Keeping Up Appearances is quite hilarious.
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We also enjoyed The Brokenwood Mysteries out of New Zealand. I love the NZ accent – I worked with a young man with that accent 🙂 I’m hoping he’ll be back when we finally get to return to our jobs.
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My parents were a split ticket 🙂 One Republican, one Democrat.
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Yes, the New Zealand accent is like a gentler, softer, more refined version of the Australian accent. There is a lovely elderly couple from New Zealand who go to the city church and showed me great kindness, the husband played the organ and was delighted when I was able to spell him off. When I first met them, the wife introduced herself and her husband, so I never heard his title. It took quite a while before I found out he was a physician specialist and head of a research department at the university where I got my degree. I am pretty sure some of his research led to the development of the medication I now take.
When I was in Nunavut, the head nurse was from Australia. He had a turn for sarcasm, and could say things the rest of us would never get away with saying because of that accent. There was also an Irishman on staff, and a couple of nurses from Newfoundland, which has a distinctive regional accent, so listening to morning report was quite a feast for the ears.
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Roscuro, I find the Newfoundland accent very difficult to understand. Much more so than many other accents.
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No one has trouble understanding me 😂
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Kare, Eldest in-law is from Newfoundland, and while he has lost most of his accent, his family hasn’t, so I got used to listening to the rhythm and cadence of their pronunciation. Have you ever heard the Cape Breton accent? That can be even more pronounced than the Newfoundland accent. My father has a cousin from there, and this cousin also has a stammer, making listening to him an interesting experience the one time I met him. My father had no trouble understanding him, being from Nova Scotia himself. My father’s family has a slight Nova Scotian accent, although my father, like Eldest in-law, only noticeably – to me – slips into it when speaking with his family. But I think having the slight variation in regional pronunciation between my mother and father might have helped with becoming accustomed to hearing different pronunciations of the same words. It might also explain why Ontarians seem to have difficulty in placing my siblings and I from the way we speak.
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I don’t think I’ve ever heard a Cape Breton accent. We had a Newfoundlander in our church who thought he’d lost most of his accent – I can’t imagine understanding him when he first came to Alberta 🙂
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Hubby had told me that he used to have the stereotypical Boston-area accent when he was younger. But when he entered the Air Force after high school, he was teased a lot. So he made an effort to change his way of speaking.
By the time I met him, he mostly did not have a Boston accent anymore, but it would come out with certain words.
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One thing I could not break him of was saying “idear” for “idea”. 😀
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Eldest in-law, whose maternal side is from Cape Breton said that there are variations in the accent, and in one region, they all sound like gangsters, pronouncing ‘you guys’ as ‘youse guys’.
Kizzie, there is a large infusion of Nova Scotia in Boston, as many a Nova Scotian went there for work, including a branch of my father’s family. In the days before passports were needed, my family would go to Nova Scotia by way of New York, Massachusetts, Maine, and Vermont, and stop by and see my father’s uncle in Boston. So, some of the unique accents of Nova Scotia have undoubtedly contributed to the unique Boston blend.
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I have a habit of picking up accents. When I would go to New York to visit family I’d return with a slight accent. When I came to Missouri and spent a month visiting my sister before moving here, I returned to Arizona and was accused of having a Southern accent. Now that I live here, I can tell the difference between the various Missouri twangs and a deep South accent.
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One of our pastors is from Northern Ireland. He just finished preaching a series on 1,2, and 3 John. When he started, he spoke of “One John.” After a couple of weeks, he said “First John” once or twice, but usually “One John.” By the time he finished the series Sunday, he managed to say “Third John” every time he mentioned the book . . . but mentions of 1 Corinthians still got the “One.” Since my husband and I were watching the livestream and not physically present in the building, we were saying, “Just wait–he’ll get it wrong next time.”
I never knew that such a distinction in the way it was said was made until he started as our pastor.
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Kare, I need to look up Brokenwood Mysteries.
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