To fear the Lord is to hate evil;
I hate pride and arrogance,
evil behavior and perverse speech.

(Proverbs 8: 13)

Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men. 

(Proverbs 2:12)

Set me free from my prison, 

that I may praise your name.

(Psalm 142)

And he has raised up for his people a [strength],
the praise of all his faithful servants,
of Israel, the people close to his heart.

Praise the Lord.

(Psalm 148) [emphasis mine]

Almond Milk

Did you know you can make your own almond milk? It's really easy and fast once you have your almonds done soaking. 

Here's the recipe:

1 Cup Almonds (soaked 1-12 hours, rinsed)

4 Cups Water

Blend together in blender. Pour through sieve. Let drip for about 30 minutes. That's it. You have almond milk. Store in fridge for 3-6 days. 

The original recipe calls for sweetener and vanilla. I agree it does make it yummier, but I prefer the plain method.

Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: 

to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, 

to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 

Is it not to share your food with the hungry 

and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter- 

when you see the naked, to clothe them, 

and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

Then your light will break forth like the dawn,

and your healing will quickly appear;

then your righteousness will go before you,

and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;

you will cry for help, and he will say:

Here am I.

(Isaiah 58)

A picture for today

I found this photo on google images. Chickadees make me think of snow. Or maybe it is the other way around. I like chickadees. 

It snowed here yesterday, a few flurries this afternoon and it's colder. 

The first few days of "real winter". 

The wood stove has had a fire in it all day. 

Joel's been working on the bedroom downstairs. 

The kids played in the snow. 

The first snow of the season. 

Hudson didn't last too long, 

a little wary of the cold white stuff.

A quiet Saturday after a holiday.

Happy Winter to you!

Strength for today, Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Great is Thy faithfulness, oh God my Father;

There is no shadow of turning with Thee;

Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;

As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,

Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above

Join with all nature in manifold witness

to Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth

Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;

Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,

Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Great are the works of the Lord;

they are pondered by all who delight in them.

(Ps. 111)

From the Kadunce....

Our Provider

He provides food for those who fear him;

he remembers his covenant forever.

(Ps. 111)

When Kids Get A Hold of the Camera

(This picture was taken upside down. That just strikes me as really funny, I mean, the button would be on the bottom then...)

Toolbelt action!

A Public Letter

I don't usually post much about politics. But this is worth posting. And reading. And listening. And doing. The following is a public letter to the people of the United States of America written from a couple in Germany. (Copied and pasted from Here.)

"Our dear America – where do you go from here?"

Today, Obama has been re-elected; all the efforts of many Christian leaders, prayer movements, “prophets” and “concerned Americans” who have lobbied, written appeals, articles, books, letters-some have even done films to warn not to vote for him have come to nothing. Many of them have behaved as if the future of the Kingdom of God is at stake. Well, it is not.

Can we, as foreigner who dearly love you as a people, say a few words into this situation? Because it is evident to us that God has a clear plan with your nation. But many don't seem to see it, and therefore run the danger of fighting the wrong fight, wasting precious time and resources, and even endlessly call upon God to do what he just will not do.

The German weekly Der Spiegel, kind of a German Time magazine, has a cover picture of Uncle Sam in bed, titled, The American Patient: The Decline of a Great Nation. We think this is a prophetic picture. As your friends, we know, acknowledge and admire that America has had a great past. But how will your future look like?

God chastises whom he loves because he knows: pride will come before the fall, and humbleness and brokenness is the only condition he responds to. We personally sense we need to tell you: the destiny of your nation is in God’s hands, not yours. It is not at all about Obama or Romney, it is about God using all the nations in the world according to his global and unchanging plans. Did you ever allow the thought that God in his sovereignty is using Obama like a pawn on his chessboard to humble the US as a nation because he wants to show his grace to a nation gone completely selfsufficient?  A nation that is so full of independence, individualism, nationalism and trusting a greed-and-fear-based economy that there may be only one way open to heal it from its idolatry and re-align itself with the Kingdom of God: a crisis beyond anything that America has ever seen?

In 2008, God has been challenged by a man standing up in public, preaching to the cheers of a huge crowd: “Yes we can!” We watched it; we saw the tears of excitement in the eyes of the people; the statements were received as if coming from the Messiah himself, and the electoral rallies had all the flavor of a religious revival. "Yes, we can" is the exact opposite of the King of kings saying: "Without me, you can do nothing!"

If God is the one who "deposes kings and raises up others" (Dan 2:21), does it really matter what are the names of the current puppets set in place by God that advance both the New World Order and the Kingdom of God? Neither Herod, Pilate nor Cesar were truly important for the development of the Kingdom. That is exactly why Kingdom people do not play in the Second League, but the First, the one that matters. The one that puts the Kingdom first, and everything else-including their own nation-second.

The problem of the current commotion and insecurities arises when even the people that call themselves after God keep confusing the Kingdom of God with the United States of America. And when that happens, especially through Christians with a public voice, then we have truly lost all perspective of the coming Kingdom of Jesus Christ and the predictions he has made that will precede his coming.

America is being publicly humbled by God; and he is going to use Obama-and those after him-to further advance his agenda that will lead all nations to kneel before that one true King Jesus very soon. If any nation wants to become a tower that reaches up to high heaven, it will be humbled by a God who will not share his glory with people relying on their own strength.

America, where do you go from here? What does this mean for you? The future is going to be very, very rough. Your securities will vanish, the economy will go down, the education system will become even worse, the streets more dangerous, the churches even more divided, the youth even more disillusioned-unless there is a true movement that abandons all those idols mentioned above, and radically repents, makes a radical alignment with the King of the Kingdom of God and his constitution, live the Law of Christ in all areas of life, first and foremost in the areas of sex, money, power and how we “do church”. This is a defining moment for you as a nation. You could go down, as the German journalist of ‘Der Spiegel’ predicted. Or, America could be literally re-invented by Kingdom people who are ready to implode the prevailing myths about Americas greatness, and replace it by God’s greatness. The King has even greater things purposed and would fulfill those purpose IF those who call themselves after Jesus the King, would turn away from their self-made religion, self-made churches and religious factions, self-made visions of success, and their self-made, harmless God.

Can we lovingly but urgently call you back at this hour to begin and initiate a movement to reposition and repatriate yourselves into the eternal Kingdom, by submitting yourself not only in theory but also in practical deeds to Jesus the King, starting to obey the King and his liberating decrees in all the areas that count? You might even want to write a declaration of dependence on God and each other, because by idolizing anything else before and over God, you will become illegal aliens in the country that counts, where we all are called to have our home: the Kingdom, the one place where our true citizenship, nationality and allegiance lies (Phil 3:20). This is the only one country that will not be shaken, as it has an unchanging King.

If there is any way that we can help you in this great challenge and task – we want you to know we will.

Wolfgang and Mercy Simson, Germany
(wolfsimson@compuserve.com)

Another Goodbye

We'll miss you Little Fred. It was a fun five weeks we had you. We all learned alot. But now you are in a good home, a home where they can give you more attention than we could. We'll see you every now and then, you only live a block away.  Farewell our little bear.