What is God’s command to man?
“Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth.”
God has given the Swiss such beautiful land and more wealth than almost any nation, but fly over their land and it’s empty.
“Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not grasp the hand of the poor and needy” (Ezekiel 16:49).
Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.
-Genesis 5:24
Walking with God, by William Cowper
Oh for a closer walk with God,
A calm and heavenly frame,
A light to shine upon the road
That leads me to the Lamb!
Where is the blessedness I knew
When first I saw the Lord?
Where is the soul-refreshing view
Of Jesus and his word?
What peaceful hours I once enjoy’d!
How sweet their mem’ry still!
But they have left an aching void
The world can never fill.
Return, O holy Dove! return,
Sweet messenger of rest;
I hate the sins that made thee mourn,
And drove thee from my breast.
The dearest idol I have known,
Whate’er that idol be,
Help me to tear it from thy throne,
And worship only thee.
So shall my walk be close with God,
Calm and serene my frame;
So purer light shall mark the road
That leads me to the Lamb.
(From Olney Hymns, a new and free production of Standard Ebooks)
https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/john-newton_william-cowper/olney-hymns
Thanks for posting that resource. Cowper also wrote the hymn “God Moves in A Mysterious Way”. I lead the hymn last Sunday set to the tune “Auld Lang Syne”
God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform.
He plants his footsteps in the sea
and rides upon the storm.
Deep in the dark and hidden mines,
With never-failing skill,
He fashions all his bright designs
And works his sov’reign will.
Refrain:
When tears are great and comforts few,
O God, we trust in you.
We hope in mercies ever new,
O Christ we trust in you.
Oh, fearful saints, new courage take:
The clouds that you now dread
Are big with mercy and will break
In blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust him for his grace.
Behind a frowning providence,
He hides a smiling face.
Refrain:
When tears are great and comforts few,
O God, we trust in you.
We hope in mercies ever new,
O Christ we trust in you.
God’s purposes will ripen fast,
unfolding every hour.
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err
and scan his work in vain.
God is his own interpreter,
and he will make it plain.
Refrain:
When tears are great and comforts few,
O God, we trust in you.
We hope in mercies ever new,
O Christ we trust in you.
Yes, I know. And yes, I’m sad. May God have mercy on our brother.
After years planting bare-root shrubs/trees including 50 of kind several times (red oak/redbud): you can lose third of them, but when bare-roots take, quickly outpace nursery transplants. After few years, much larger. My guess? Binding/messing with roots stunts growth.
Take heed, fathers and mothers. Don’t bind the roots of your sons and daughters doctrinally, ecclesiastically, or relationally. God intends them to stand on our shoulders, not snuggle into our laps, cosseted for life.
But back to bare-root. Here’s an example. Pic is of two maples, one planted by landscaper as 20+ foot specimen 12 or so years ago and other planted by us 8 years ago as bare-root 1 or 2 foot twig. Which is which?
My guess is that the right one was planted by you 8 years ago. It looks like it grew fast. The left one is more “settled” 
Christian? Live out loud. Name your sons & daughters after godly men & women of Scripture or church history. Naming confesses our faith. Also directs their character.
President Trump: “The only thing that matters when I’m talking about Iran, they can’t have a nuclear weapon. I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation, I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing — we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon, that’s all.”
My name is Timothy Bayly and I approve this message.
Entirely.
3 yrs ago, Sam and Russ discuss Sam’s former boss, Ravi Zacharias (Sam worked for Ravi as “staff apologist”): https://www.christianitytoday.com/podcasts/the-russell-moore-show/losing-our-religion-credibility-rzim-apologist-sam-allberry/
Death is coming. Have you repented? Are you prepared to stand before God the Father Almighty and hear His judgement?
If not, go to a Protestant church this Sunday and feed on the preaching of God’s Word.
If the preacher doesn’t speak to your conscience and call you to repent, find another church. Run from any church where you’re flattered.
Jesus warned us, “Unless you are repentant, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3)
Men talking Christian politics must stop and consider that most Christians have switched to neutered Bibles. National reform must be built on church reform and church reform must be built on restoring God’s words to God’s Word.
God the Father is not God the parent.
There’s an interesting comparison to be made here with Pentecostal and Baptist churches. Most of them nowadays are led by elderships rather than congregationally, but they are also ‘autonomous’, so don’t have anyone to keep them particularly accountable.
A case in point: I was once in a church (AoG) where the senior pastor and his 2-i-c had fallen out. The national leadership of the movement couldn’t really do anything to resolve the issue or enforce a solution, so the result was an impasse until the 2-i-c eventually resigned. In my next church (Anglican), different people, different polity - much the same thing happened. In that case, it was the Bishop who sorted things out - with a flash of purple lightning that saw the 2-i-c moved on (to his utter annoyance, it must be said).
Acts 15:36ff comes also to mind.
In 1940s Stalin realized he needed religious nationalism, so he co-opted Orthodox priests & patriarchs. They became KGB informants.
Communists didn’t reform Eastern Orthodox church. They bought it off.
Yup. I didn’t mention that part of Acts 15, did I? Smile
Helpful in this time when reformed church is awash with millenarians https://open.substack.com/pub/jasonanders/p/just-work-the-harvest?r=b70nr&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
Presbyterian elder explaining nasty conflict in his presbytery. Defending pastor at center by saying his church exploding in numbers, he added, “He’s got to be doing *something* right!”
Thinking it over later:
More likely a pastor losing many hundreds is doing something right. Influencers in pulpit who excel at ear scratching are what rebellious sheep demand today. But those who struggle to stay on straight & narrow path Jesus warns “there are few who find it” want a prophet who speaks the Word of God. They know without it they die.
Joel and Judy Linton: church planting in Taiwan through household ministry and marriage and children and language and…
Lifelong friend Duane Caylor just published “My Father’s Oaks”: Amazon.com: My Father’s Oaks eBook : Caylor, Duane K.: Kindle Store
A sample of his poetry:
Praying With Emerson
He spoke about the Oversoul within
all creatures as their animating spark,
the ignorance of which alone is sin,
by knowing which alone one may embark
upon the sea of self-sufficiency
which our transcendent ships must navigate
into that harbor of Divinity
where democratic gods associate.
We listened rapt while he invoked the force,
both immanent and everywhere displayed,
that motivates a libertarian course,
and then we bowed our heads and with him prayed,
each placing ancient faith upon the shelf
to call on God by talking to himself.
