24 thoughts on “Our Daily Thread 10-29-24”

  3. I hate to start more controversy, but I say no Christmas tree until after Thanksgiving, unless it is purely for logistics. For example, if one must travel and it has to get up for some reason before.

    🙂

    It does look like any snow will go south of us. I am okay with it coming here, however. Just not feet at a time. All things in moderation.

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  4. Morning. It seems they have removed the snow from our forecast…just nose freezing temps now. I shall hold off on bringing the tree upstairs!!😂🎄(but you know how those forecasts go…we just may see flakes flying before it’s all said and done!)

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  5. Good morning, all, at a beautiful thirty seven. Snow remains in our forecast, with temps mid thirties to mid forties, but they keep pushing it back. Big shovels, apparently, to be able to move entire snow systems like that.

    mumsee

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  6. I agree with Kathaleena. Our tradition is to put up and decorate the Christmas tree a day or two after Thanksgiving. Although ours is still up from last year, it is not decorated, and I have not been turning the lights on.

    However, as I grow older, I find myself wanting to get into “the Christmas spirit” earlier, even sometimes in October, although I refrain from that impulse. It may be the sadnesses and disappointments that have added up in my life that can make me yearn for the sweet Christmastime feeling.

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  8. Only two of us Bible study ladies prayed on our prayer call today: the white Janice and the black Janice. One other lady started with us but had to drop off. We talked and prayed from 10:30 unttil 12:00. We covered it all, even someone flying from Colorado to Georgia to be at the bedside of a dying father. Where two or more are gathered! We are on different sides politically, but we are, above all, Sisters in Christ.

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  9. Buying real trees, the early set up isn’t possible. 🙂

    It has long been a tradition to start “decorating” with the lights, etc., on the weekend after Thanksgiving. Now I suppose it’s the weekend after Halloween.

    We had snow flurries in our local mountains in recent days and should get a little rain, maybe, soon. The coast is cold.

    • dj

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  10. Thoughts on Halloween and its various iterations in our culture and over time:

    ~ Halloween today reflects various cultural forces that have influenced its meaning and practice over time. For some, it remains a fun celebration of creativity and community; for others, it’s a more complicated symbol, one that reflects our culture’s ongoing fascination with death, darkness, and the supernatural. These shifting meanings highlight both the fluidity of cultural practices and the persistent human desire for what Halloween represents—connection, identity, and transcendence. ~

    https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/halloween-you-remember/

    • dj

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  11. And special Christian friends in upstate NY include a public defender (now retired) so I also enjoyed reading this piece and it reminds me of the conversations we had so many years ago when I’d visit:

    https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/biblical-principles-public-defender/

    ~ … True, my clients—those people—undoubtedly are wrongdoers who are often guilty, at least of something. None of my clients is naturally righteous; they’ve all turned away, and not one of them does good (Ps. 14:3). They’re sinners. Yet at the same time, they’re fearfully and wonderfully made in God’s image (Ps. 139:14). Their God-given value survives their wrongdoing, just as a crime victim’s dignity withstands the harm she’s suffered. My clients are my neighbors, and they’re entitled to my love.

    So how can I defend them? The gospel helps. More than a mere example, Jesus gives the power and strength to love and serve like he does. Jesus calls everyone to seek justice the way God does. And we read in the Bible that Jesus didn’t come to advocate and counsel a bunch of nice, good people who have no need for his perfect service. He came to save sinners who cannot lift a finger to save themselves (Matt. 9:12-13). He did so at infinite cost despite the recipients not deserving it. Borrowing from Clint Eastwood, “Deserve’s got nothing to do with it.” God’s grace does all the work.

    So the fact that some, and maybe most, of my clients have committed some wrong isn’t a barrier to them receiving my help; it’s the starting point for why they need it. …

    Applying Biblical Principles as a Public Defender

    • dj

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  12. And (apologies for the serial posts and links)

    “Why We Won’t Spend Eternity in Heaven”

    ~ … My dad will remain in heaven, his soul only, until the resurrection. Then, when Christ comes a second time, at the end of history, he’ll give my dad a new body and my dad will be everything God created him to be. He and I, together with the saints, will inherit the new earth. My dad and I will once again enjoy each other’s company, play sports, laugh, and build all sorts of things. I miss him, of course, but I can’t wait to join him. … ~

    https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/wont-spend-eternity-heaven/?utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9vSUj186S0vZ9SjCh3kTx-Ke92iixsu7VQqk4Y2qrnZDzrutbtTQH7b1Pr2_jZNyjOiQ5UX1u7FNuxFbNhR4AuhdhHOw&_hsmi=331385161&utm_content=331385161&utm_source=hs_email

    • dj

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  13. DJ – The part about the new bodies we will have and living on the New Earth are definitely biblical. But I am a little – well, not quite skeptical, but close – when Christians write about what we will be doing on the New Earth because the Bible seems to be quieter about all of that.

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  14. Kizzie I too long for those cozy days of wintry Christmas’. I see photos of Christmas past and get all those warm wrapped up feelings once again. Sweet moments lasting a lifetime.

    Snow is back in the forecast….with much more coming next week! We need moisture as we are on high fire alert with a rather big fire burning just up the pass from us. 2000 residents evacuated…🙁

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  16. True, Kizzie @5:10; we wish we had more detail about both heaven and the New Earth.

    A couple other graphs from the story:

    ~ Be Encouraged

    The implications of Scripture’s teaching on this subject are immense. We will not spend eternity floating on clouds. We’ll enjoy something far better: life in the new earth ensconced in God’s glory. We’ll finally see him face to face.

    Rather than saying we’ll “spend eternity in heaven,” it’s far more biblical to state we’ll “spend eternity on the new earth.” When I talk about death and the afterlife with my kids, I find they understand the concrete expression “new earth,” as the phrase communicates continuity and discontinuity. ~

    ____________

    But granted, it’s not known what that actually entails or looks like. Though I like to envision playing catch again with my dad (still not clear about his spiritual state, though, sadly) someday. And maybe even seeing a beloved dog or two … or three …

    Now for another debate over an old subject? 🙂 I’ve had my knuckles rapped before on that one!

    • dj

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  17. I like Billy’s take on that subject Dj….

    Billy Graham“God will prepare everything for our perfect happiness in heaven, and if it takes my dog being there, I believe he’ll be there.”

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  18. Oh I think I’ve read that before – and Sproul’s conclusion about “pets” being in heaven: we don’t know, we are not told.

    Some say only a soul can be in heaven and animals don’t have souls; interestingly (because Sproul was theologically very careful of course) said Scripture also doesn’t explicitly say that either …

    Anyway, we’ll all find out and it’ll be wonderful, of course.

    I suspect there will be NO politics in a new earth though!

    • dj

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  19. I realize some believers also would take issue with that (about animals and souls). So much we can’t know for certain on this side, but trusting God makes that an “ok” place to rest and wait to see …

    • dj

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  21. I like the coziness of the winter. I don’t think you need Christmas to enjoy that. I have no problem with shopping year-round for Christmas either.

    Now they are predicting an inch of snow for us on Halloween. We shall see.

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  24. We did put up some net lights on a cedar near the house and accidently left them on the first night. I wanted them up before the cold and wet weather came. I would prefer these lights instead of the Halloween stuff.

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