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Jesus Revolution

JESUS REVOLUTION

One of the more popular movies this spring is actually a surprise to many, and that’s a movie called Jesus Revolution, which is based on the lives of three ministers who lived and preached during the late sixties-early seventies. It chronicles their response to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit during those times. The ministers are Chuck Smith (played by Kelsey Grammer), Lonnie Frisbee (played by Jonathan Roumie) and Greg Laurie (played by Joel Courtney) all located in Southern California....

Nineteenth Century American flag

WHERE DID THE DOMAIN NAME “WATCH-FIRE” COME FROM?

Where did the domain name watch-fire come from? The domain name watch-fire comes from the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” which was written by Julia Ward Howe on the eve of the Civil War. It is specifically taken from the verse: “I have seen him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling campsThey have builded him an altar in the evening dews and dampsI have read his righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lampsHis truth is marching on.” Watch...

Asleep at the Switch. The careless Christian

ASLEEP AT THE SWITCH

The point of this post is to illustrate that each of us plays an important role in advancing the Kingdom of God whether we realize it or not. God gives us our “marching orders” in His Word by providing us with “leadings” to call so and so, visit such and such a place, pray for this or that, etc. It is important that we respond immediately and obediently to these prompts, whether they make sense to us or not or...

The Last Roundup

THIS COULD BE THE LAST ROUNDUP PARDNER!

In Genesis 6:3, Scripture recalls “And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man . . .” There may be several possible interpretations to this passage, but there are two points that seem to favor the argument that it should be taken at face value and literally. First of all, the verses that follow in Genesis 6 speak of a judgment, where Noah builds his ark and then the doors of the ark are shut. At that point, it...

The First Thanksgiving

THE FIRST THANKSGIVING

This year we will observe the 400th anniversary of the first Thanksgiving held by the Pilgrims at Plymouth Bay Colony under the supervision of William Bradford. Nearby, Massachusetts Bay Colony would be settled nine years later by a religious group known as the Puritans under the command of John Winthrop. By 1640, there would be 10,000 settlers at the Massachusetts Bay Colony, whose growth rapidly surpassed that of the Plymouth Bay Colony. And, while we celebrate Thanksgiving in November, it...

Harvest time in the country

HARVEST TIME IN THE COUNTRY

Adozen deer pass swiftly and silently through the wood in the waning light. The mercury on the thermometer drops hesitantly as the harvest moon rises over the Blue Mountain. Frogs, Crickets and Cicadas join Katydids in the evening sonata, perhaps for the la fin du concert of the year. Later, the ruffle of feathers in the darkness will herald the arrival of the Horned Owl flying at the speed of night as it pursues its prey. Bears go through our...

Map of Fort Ticonderoga

FORT TICONDEROGA: THE GRAVEYARD OF EMPIRES.

THE GEOGRAPHY OF LAKE CHAMPLAIN/LAKE GEORGE In my Fort William Henry post, I described the French and Indian War between France and England in North America.  Fort Ticonderoga is a good point to open a discussion on the geography of the war.  The major waterways in this part of far eastern New York are the Hudson River, the Richelieu River, Lake George and Lake Champlain.  The Hudson River flows southward from near its source close to Lake Tear of the Clouds, north of Albany.  Overland, from the Hudson...

Tulips on display in Albany, NY

TULIPS PUT ALBANY, NY IN FESTIVE MOOD

For the second year in a row, the city of Albany, NY is holding their annual Tulip Festival virtually. Customary activities such as luncheons, Dutch street scrubbing, the coronation of a Tulip Queen and the Royal Tulip Ball will be replaced with virtual programming, though music throughout the month will be live at different venues. Festival goers are free to wander among the tulip displays in Washington Park, and small, guided tours will be held on an appointment basis.  The remaining  activities...

George Orwell 1984

WHO CONTROLS THE PAST CONTROLS THE FUTURE

Today, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell sent a letter representing the demands of 37 Senate Republicans that the administration pull their support from the 1619 Project, a controversial program promoted in 2019 that, in the words of the Daily Mail “takes slavery and puts it in the center of the American narrative” four centuries later. This is an example of what is sometimes termed a paradigm shift, or a change in fundamental assumptions.  Such as from the Genesis account of our beginnings to evolution....

Pentecost Sunday title

TONGUES OF FIRE

“On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently. As the sound of...