Is it blasphemy?

In case you have not seen/heard the news about the "art" holograph in Australia of a portrait of Jesus morphing into Osama bin Laden, here it is.

Just a thought: How about if the same artist creates a holograph of Mohammed morphing into ... say... George W. Bush? See what reaction that would bring!

Well, just a thought.

Worship wars

This morning's Bible study brought me through 1 Corinthians 13. But before I say what jumped out at me in that chapter, I should back up a bit: Increasingly of late, I have felt burdened to pray for the church in North America. God seems to be responding to the prayers that arise from that burden--that is, responding to me. It's too soon to expect to see any effects in the North American church. But with that growing burden in my spirit, a number of things start coming to my attention. Granted, whatever captures our attention at a given point in time likely colors the other things we see and hear. Still, I think God is using the burden he has placed on my spirit to focus my attention with the other things that come my way.

So, 1 Corinthians 13: Among many other wonderful things Paul says there, he talks about when we were children, etc. (you know the verse). And what came to my focus was this phrase: "when I was a child...I reasoned as a child." So I paused for a moment to ask myself, "How does a child reason?" Immediately the response came: generally a child's basic point of reasoning is this: "I WANT." From the child's perspective, the fact that he/she wants something is reason enough to justify it--whether "it" be a purchase or an activity. "I want a horsey," "I want some candy," "I want that toy," "I want to go to Disneyland," or "I don't want to go to bed!" From the child's perspective, that fact that he/she wants something justifies obtaining the desire.

But why did Paul tell this to the Corinthian church? Because they were still acting like children; they still thought like children; and they still reasoned like children. And I asked myself: To what extent does the North American church still act like children? To what extent, in what ways do I still act like a child?

Then I went to my computer and had an email (a couple days old) that linked me to this article. I urge you to read it. It is a little bit long and gets a little bit bogged down in a couple places. But it was powerful for me. Read about Elizabeth, a Christian girl from SE Asia forced into prostitution, and how Psalm 27 became so meaningful to her. Or read about the pastor in India who saves his few coins over a period of time in order to buy a Christian book on discount.

Then--as I did--ask yourself about the way and spirit in which we worship and what is really important in our worship wars.

God loves you and so do I!

Oh yeah! PLEASE, please, let me know what you think.

Martyrs Monument

At the left side of my blog, you have already seen the banner for Persecution Blog. It reminded its readers about the Martyrs Monument now touring the country. If you follow that link I just put in, you can see some of the pictures of the monument and learn a little about it. But if you learn where it is appearing, I understand it is worth your while to go see it. (This may be heresy, but it may even be more worthwhile than going to see J.K. Rowling!!!)

I'll try to find out about its travel schedule, in case you want to check it out.

Basically, it honors many of the millions who gave their lives rather than deny their and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

On that same website you also order the newly released and updated Foxe: Voice of the Martyrs. This is an updated version of the original Foxe's Book of Martyrs. This includes martyrs from the early church but also extends into contemporary times to give the witnesses of recent sacrifices for our Lord.

I hope you will at least take a look at the pictures and read about the monument.

Then tell me what you think!

BW's dissertation

Yes, I am up at "0 dark-thirty" again! Well, I get on these jags once-in-a-while and it takes me a day or 2 to get back in sync. Last night's vigil, making sure the moon came back after being eaten by the shadow in the sky got me into this wierd schedule. Hopefully by tomorrow night (by which I mean tonight), I'll be able to get back to normal mode.

Okay, I'm writing this morning to say: We are almost ready to send bw's paper! And we sincerely want your prayers at this point. This is the "proposal" for her dissertaion. She sent her first proposal a few months ago. Her mentor had a lot of suggestions/instructions for changes. He basically told her to take this process more seriously. So she has done so. Virtually all summer (except for our brief trip to Crater Lake), she has spent dawn to after dusk working on this. I have spent the last few days editing and re-editing it. A few moments ago, I emailed my latest re-work back to her for final adjustments.

Soooooo, all of that to say: We are on target to get this off this week: Friday at the latest; hopefully sooner. She will send an e-version of it. But we also have to send a hard copy. So that will go in a secured system of getting it there by snail mail. Fortunately, this snail flies!

Anyway, we are asking for your sincere, diligent and faith-filled prayers for the following:

1. That the hard copy will get to Manila's de la Salle University safely and expeditiously;
2. That her mentor, Dr. Danny Dayag, will look favorably on her efforts and will approve her proposal;
3. That the expected shipment of newspapers we have requested will arrive soon, so that bw can start tabulating, etc.

Okay, I think that about covers it for now.

hasta la vista baby!

Interesting lesson

The link below will (should?) take you to a good lesson about God's forgiveness. Bw sent it to me in an email; I looked it up at the website; and now I share it with you. Click here to see it.

Thank you Shawn, for the helpful article on how to link this.

Enjoy reading and thanks for the help!

Lunar Eclipse

Good morning to my faithful readers! Some of you may not be surprised to know that I was awake and watching for the lunar eclipse this morning. It started around 1:40 or so here on the West Coast. And yes, I got up for that. Actually, I did not set an alarm to get myself up. But I had it so etched in my mind, that I woke up around that time. And since I was awake, well, I might as well step outside (with my trusty camera) and check it out. What may surprise you a little more is that bw joined me! She told me before we went to bed that if I got up to see it, she wanted me to wake her up too. Well, I didn't need to call her out of bed because when she heard me stirring around, she got up too and went outside with me.

So these are the first couple I took at around 2:00a.m.

I particularly like the one below because it clearly shows the shadow of the earth along with a tree branch to give a little "texture."
Then we went back to bed and pretty soon bw was making those wonderful sleeping noises! (No, she does not really snore; she just kind of purrs.) Meanwhile, I had already slept my mandatory 3 hours. So my mind would not let me get any more sleep. Finally I got up again around 2:45 and took this next shot.

I think this last one is kind of neat because the earth's shadow is almost complete. I went out again at 3:20, when "they" said the eclipse would be full. But conditions were not right for me to get a shot of that. The moon had gone behind the trees across the street from our house. Plus the eclipse was so complete that the camera would not have detected what it was supposed to photograph. So I didn't even try at that point. I just enjoyed the glimpse and wondered what less scientific societies thought (or think) about such events.

Hope you enjoyed the pics!

The Church

Where do I start? I've been praying for a while now that God would give me a fresh touch of his presence/activity/leading in my life. Last night, He caught me off guard. (How like him. Right?)

Bw & I drove into Portland in the afternoon--Ikea recently opened its doors there. We had arranged to meet my nephew & niece for dinner downtown in the evening. We had a very enjoyable dinner together and afterward took a brief walk to the waterfront to show them the Willamette River and tell a little bit about the flood of '96 (doesn't that make me sound like an old-timer?). We left them there at the river and started back home.

We have a regular practice of praying in the car as we drive home through the (spectacular) Columbia River Gorge--especially when it is dark, which it was by the time we started home. Whenever we pray--whether at home or in the car--we ask God that his Holy Spirit guide us in our prayers that we would pray about the things He is concerned about and that we would pray toward what He wants to accomplish.

Well, we had prayed along this way for a while. I don't remember all that we prayed about: family members, country leaders, missionaries. Then when it came my turn again, it seemed that God reminded me to pray for the church, specifically the church in the US.

Actually, the prayer began as mourning over the immorality and materialism that we see every time we go into the city. Granted, these are seen here in HR as well, but in less obvious, less "in-your-face" ways. But in Pdx it seems that increasingly people are trying to outdo each other with how revealing their clothes can be (for females) and how outrageous they can appear (for males). This comes on top of the materialism demonstrated at places like Ikea, et al.

Well, I began there with mourning for a society that seems hell-bent on bending to the breaking point all the boundaries and norms that God wants for people who claim his blessing. Somehow this just seemed to flow naturally into a prayer for the church in the US. I think the link was that many of these same people would think of themselves as "normal" Christians. But if that is "normal" then what does it mean to be Christian? Probably it's time to drop that term and claim something like "Christ-follower" instead. Anyhoooo...

I started praying for the church in the US. And the verse from Micah 6:8 came to me:

"He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God."

So I just started going through that verse. I prayed for the church in the US that we would learn to act justly. That we would learn that justice begins with recognizing and confessing that if God were to act justly toward us, we woud already all be dead and burning in Hell. That it is God's justice demonstrated on the cross that spares us that fate. Then I prayed for the church in the US that we would love mercy. That we would recognize gratefully the mercy extended to us in Christ. That in turn we would extend that mercy to others around us. Then I prayed for the church in the US (each time I specifically named "the church in the US") that we would learn to walk humbly with our God. That confessing his justice and mercy we would live with humble spirits. That we would abandon our pride in great incomes and big buildings and all of "our accomplishments". Instead, that we would admit that none of this came by our own doing but only by the generosity of our God and Savior.

Well, each time I said that phrase, "I pray for the church in the US," each time I said that, became more moved than the time before. By the time I got to the need for the church's humility, I had difficulty speaking because God's Spirit was confirming in my spirit that this was indeed his prayer. And he was simply voicing his prayer through my lips.

Well, as some people say: "From your lips to God's ear!"

Then this morning's Bible study took me to 1 Corinthians 5 & 6, where Paul talks about immorality in the church and lawsuits between believers. But that is for another post (if that).

What do you think?

Korean hostages

I sure hope this works! I've never embedded anything from another site before and I'm just hoping this works. Please let me know whether it does or not.

This is a video clip from Korean television news following the Korean hostages, serving in mercy work in Afghanistan and now being held by the Taliban.


Let me know if it works, please.

Eritrea

Check out the latest post at http://www.persecutionblog.com/ (or you can click on the banner to the left). It tells about the government there closing Roman Catholic churches, schools and orphanages, as well as confiscating their property and claiming it for the government. This even though that is one of the official registered and therefore legal churches. It also tells about a Protestant pastor "who disappeared 11 days ago and remains missing." In addition, at least 2,000 believers remain locked and tortured in prisons in Eritrea--because they will not deny Jesus Christ.

Please pray for the persecuted church around the world. For more info on what is happening to our believing family (of all stripes), go to http://www.persecution.com/.

God's best to you!

Bible Study, 1 Corinthians

Well, I have drug my heals about this for a couple days--actually this is the 3rd day. I started going through 1 Corinthians 3 days ago. And the last few times I have studied this book--or even discussed it with someone else--I come away with an overriding concern or thought:

More and more churches or even small home groups seem to pattern themselves after the Corinthian church. Now they don't call themselves the "Corinthian Church of [whatever]." So the imitation or intentionality is not as obvious as, for example, "The Berean Baptist Church," or the "Berean Sunday School Class," in which presumably the attendees take as their example a group who diligently studied the Word. Nevertheless, more and more churches seem to justify their practices because Paul talks about it in the Cornithian letters.

Well, I just have this to say about that:

At least in 1 Corinthians, everything Paul says is written in a spirit of correction. He does not name a single thing about which the Corinthians can pat themselves on the back. In fact, that is one of his issues with them: They have already done too much patting of themselves on the backs.

Even his opening greetings, in which he gives thanks to God for the Corinthian believers, is laced (it seems to me) with sarcasm or at least a hint of warning of the corrections to come. "...you have been enriched" and "you do not lack any spiritual gift" jump out at me. Add those phrases to the fact that in the opening 9 verses Paul mentions Jesus Christ 9 times in 9 verses. And (again it seems to me) that he makes a special point of using the phrase "the Lord Jesus Christ" to hammer home that their church and their faith and their religious practices are not about the Corinthians. It is all about "the Lord Jesus Christ."

Having given this brief "thanksgiving" (such as it is), he launches into the first of several points of correction: Boasting. I won't go into all the things about which they boasted; you can read that yourself. But clearly these people gave more attention to what they were doing, or to their own spiritual superiority than to what God was doing and His supremacy.

So the next time you're reading or studying 1 Corinthians, keep this in mind: Everything he says there is written in the spirit of correction. Their worship patterns were not something Paul commends: It brought (and brings) pride, boasting, licentiousness, permisiveness, and division.

What do you think?

Iraq persecution

The following notice was sent to me recently from Voice of the Martyrs, dealing with treatment of Christians in Iraq:

Christian Persecution in Iraq on the Rise - Christian Broadcasting Network
News Christians in Iraq are experiencing a rise in persecution from Islamic
extremists. According to a Christian Broadcasting Network News (CBNNews.com) report, Reverend Canon Andrew White, an Anglican minister from Baghdad, told a committee on religious freedom that Christians have been kidnapped, tortured and killed. Rev. White said in the last three to four months conditions in Iraq had deteriorated considerably. He added that he was given disturbing news at a congregational meeting this month. "Things are bad for everybody in Iraq. I said to them (church members), 'tell me what has happened over the past week.' And the
people went through what had happened, and I realized that 36 of my congregation
in that past week and been kidnapped. None of them have been returned," Reverend White said. Pray God protects and encourages Christians in Iraq. Ask God to send the Holy Spirit to refresh believers who face hardships everyday. Romans 8:31, Isaiah 54:17

It might be tempting to consider this just part of the civil disturbances associated with the war in that country. But I would suggest that when 36 members of one congregation have been kidnapped inside one week, that involves an intentional targeting.

I hope you will join me in prayer for our brothers and sisters in Christ who pay a high price for faithfulness to the Name.

Corruption in Congress

I'll see if this link works. This is an interesting article I came across by Robert Novak. He hits on both sides of the political aisle to reveal the sham attempt at cleaning up corruption in the US House of Representatives.

Tell me if this link works: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=21922

No, I am not surprised at such pranks. But I hope you are as upset about them as I am.

Bible Study, Ruth

Nothing greatly profound in my Bible study this morning. But I just want to mention how much I enjoy the story of Ruth and Boaz. There are a number of things in the story that, I suspect, many of us miss as we read it.

For one thing, we forget that Ruth is a foreigner: a Moabitess. The text mentions this repeatedly. But I often forget it. And she becomes the great-grandmother of King David. That means that the greatest king of Israel was not pure Hebrew/Israelite. Imagine a country that placed extreme importance on purity of ancestry. South Africa, before the abolition of apartheid, comes to mind. Then imagine a candidate in that country running for president. But said candidate is of mixed race. Never mind that he is only 1/8 black. The fact that he is not pure white would have automatically disqualified him for any national position. He could not have even voted, much less run for election. That is somewhat comparable to David's position when he started his campaign to become king of Israel.

Another thing from this story came out in the section I studied this morning: There is a significant age difference between Boaz and Ruth. Have you noticed this in chapter 3? When Ruth lies at Boaz's feet and he wakes up, he commends her that she did not run after younger men, whether rich or poor. Instead, she has offered her youth and beauty to this older man. I'm having difficulty placing my finger on what it is about that detail that touches me. But as an older man, I can somewhat relate.

Then I also notice the moral uprightness of both Ruth and Boaz. I've heard others comment that by her lying at his feet, she had already placed him in a compromising position. I don't accept that view. I see it as her simply offering herself to him. She was simply saying--in a culturally appropriate method--that she was available to him, if he was interested. He made it clear that he was indeed interested. But he had to follow correct, morally approved, practices. he did not touch her that night. But he took immediate steps the next day to clear the way so that he could take her as his wife.

I know that a lot of people like the story because of Ruth's statement in chapter 1, "Where you go I will go... and your God will be my God." But that is not a statement of romantic love. That is a decision to identify herself with the people of [the true] God. By contrast, when she lies at Boaz's feet, she places her reputation on the line to allow this godly man to take her into his life.

And as they say, the rest is history!

Thank you for reading.

Jehovah's Witnesses, 2

When I started on this topic previously, I intended to write about the announcement of Samson's birth. But I got going on my history with JWs and went on so long that I felt I'd better save Samson's narrative to a later point. Now I'm almost finished with the Book of Judges. So I need to deal with this account before it gets too far in the past.

The New World [Mis-]Translation (that used by the JWs) of Judges 13 consistently refers to the heavenly being who appeared to Samson's mother and subsequently his father Manoah as "Jehovah's angel." But as I understand it, the OT consistently uses different terms in this regard. When it refers to just any angel, that being is called "an angel of the LORD." But we find interesting occurrences when a different turn of the phrase is used. Sometimes we read, "The angel of the LORD." On these occasions, we see consistent differences. These are seen clearly in this account.

Perhaps the best place to direct a JW's attention in the chapter would be the passage that starts at verse 15. The following is copied directly from their on-line version of the New World [Mis-]Translation: "15 Ma·no´ah now said to Jehovah’s angel: 'Let us, please, detain you and fix up a kid of the goats before you.' 16 But Jehovah’s angel said to Ma·no´ah: 'If you detain me, I shall not feed myself on your bread; but if you will render up a burnt offering to Jehovah, you may offer it up.' For Ma·no´ah did not know that he was Jehovah’s angel." So Manoah prepared a burnt offering and grain offering for Jehovah. Then we read: "19 And Ma·no´ah proceeded to take the kid of the goats and the grain offering and to offer it upon the rock to Jehovah. And He was doing something in a wonderful way while Ma·no´ah and his wife were looking on. 20 So it came about that, as the flame ascended from off the altar heavenward, then Jehovah’s angel ascended in the flame of the altar while Ma·no´ah and his wife were looking on. At once they fell upon their faces to the earth."

Now I don't currently have a reference for the following, but I have noticed in other references to "regular" angels that when a human suggests either offering a sacrifice to the heavenly being or in any way starts to worship this creature, the angel immediately refuses the sacrifice and/or worship. Not so in this case. This Being clearly accepts the sacrifice, even ascending to heaven in the flame of the sacrifice.

Even JW's own mistranslation admits this statement from Manoah: "22 Consequently Ma·no´ah said to his wife: “We shall positively die, because it is God that we have seen.” Manoah recognized that the sequence of events pointed to the appearance of Jehovah God. He knew that no other being would have accepted this sacrifice. That is why he feared for his life.

Well, these distinctions come out much more clearly in the more accurate translations used by Christians. But if you want to engage the JWs, it may prove more effective to use their own mis-translation, since they would not accept as valid the translations we believers prefer.

P.S.: A similar pattern can be found in Judges 6, where "The Angel of the LORD" appears and commissions Gideon. In our translations, the terms "Angel of the LORD" and "the LORD" are used interchangeably. [If you're not already familiar with the use of LORD in all caps in the OT, it is used to refer specifically to Jehovah God.]

Well, may you be well-armed the next time JWs knock at your door. I hope you will greet them joyfully and then boldly and confidently open to them the truth from God's word!

Thank you for reading. What do you think?

New Vacation Pics

To all our fans out there: I have just uploaded our pics from our recent mini-vacation to Crater Lake National Park. You can go to: http://community.webshots.com/user/culbered; then click on "Oregon things to do and see"; then you can scroll through the pages until you find the ones that show the beautiful scenery around here (it's on page 3 of that album).

Oooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrrr, you can go to: http://travel.webshots.com/album/559410488lnKKSj?start=24. Then our beautiful pics start just a couple rows down and they continue on to succeding pages.

Enjoy!

Worship yesterday

We had the privilege of sharing the VOM vision with Gateway Presbyterian Church in The Dalles, Oregon, yesterday. They have 3 services each weekend: Saturday evening, plus 2 on Sunday morning. We were invited to the 2 Sunday services, where I spoke for 5 minutes and we had our resource table available. How I was able to squeeze a presentation that can easily take 20-30 minutes down into only 5 is a mystery. But it seemed to go very well. Apparently, the word had spread that I had a good presentation, because by the time it came my turn in the second service, I noticed several people had come from other parts of the building to stand in the back entrances to the sanctuary, just to hear what I shared. But that is not the focus of this post.

I have been praying that God would touch my soul afresh. I have become increasingly aware that it has been a long time since I really sensed God's presence with me. I have been walking in a dry, desert place for quite some time. I know God is with me. And my faith has not faltered. But once in a while (at the least) we just need to sense God's presence. And that is what I confessed to God and what I prayed for.

Well, their first service was a traditional Presbyterian service. Great organ music and good congregational singing. And I gave my 5 minute presentation (actually probably stretched it into 6 minutes). But the second service was more relaxed. And during the singing of praise choruses, God came to me afresh. He did not overpower me with his presence. But I sensed an assurance of his continued faithfulness through the choruses we sang. Now we have been in enough different fellowships recently, that I feel confident in saying it was not the choruses per se that did anything special--although they sang a good selection of them. But God chose to use the ones we sang as a conduit for revealing his presence with me once more.

I'm not satisfied with that however. I still pray that he will speak to me more and draw me into his presence more clearly and more fully--whatever that means.

So I'm just sharing this to give thanks and praise to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit--Three in One.

Jehovah's Witnesses

Since I was in gradeschool, I have enjoyed (yes, enjoyed!) any and every opportunity to discuss or debate with Jehovah's Witnesses. That may seem strange to you. I know that most people try to avoid them as much as possible. But in the 3rd grade I got into a discussion with a schoolmate who was JW. We kept talking about our different beliefs even after school. So he invited me home, saying that his father could answer my questions better than he could. So we went to his home, where his father and I continued the discussion with my friend listening in. His father and I kept up our conversation until finally the mother said dinner was ready and it was time for me to go home. I have always relished that memory and the picture of this undersized 8 year-old keeping pace with a grown-up with years of experience and training (read: "Indoctrination") in the JWs.

As a result, I keep one section of my thoughts alert to evidence from the Bible that contradicts their teachings. Of course, when I check out their "translation" (read: "mis-translation") of the Bible, I almost always see that they have changed key words or phrases to fit their predetermined theology. Still, I enjoy the process and any time they knock on my door, I gladly welcome them and invite them inside (they have yet to accept the invitation).

My favorite verse to point to them is John 8:58-59, "'I tell you the truth,' Jesus answered, 'before Abraham was born, I am!' At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds." Their mistranslation changes it to read: "Jesus said to them: 'Most truly I say to YOU, Before Abraham came into existence, I have been.' 59 Therefore they picked up stones to hurl [them] at him; but Jesus hid and went out of the temple." The key change being the switch from "I am" to "I have been." But I point out to them that the original clearly uses the simple present form of the verb. (Bw helps me here with her understanding of English grammar: Simple present means a state of being, viz., always in that state. In other words in this claim, Jesus is claiming that he is always in the state of being, which is to say he is the Eternal One.) In addition, this terminology uses a specific form that the Jewish translators of the OT had chosen to use when Jehovah spoke to Moses at Mt. Horeb. (The Greek is "ego eimi.") If Jesus had intended to say "I have been," he would have used a different tense of the verb instead of "eimi." And if he had simply intended to convey his existence before and since Abraham, he would have only said "eimi" and not used the pronoun "ego." But the Jewish translators of the OT, when they came to Moses' conversation at the burning bush (and subsequently), they used the phrase "ego eimi." When Moses asked, "Who should I tell the Hebrews has sent me," God told him to tell them "ego eimi" has sent him. Centuries later, Jesus chose this exact phrase to identify himself as the one who spoke to Moses from the bush.

{BTW: [Bw just read this and added this observation: the phrase "I have been" from the JW version is in the present perfect tense. This means--according to their version--that Jesus was claiming that there was a time when he came into being, there was a starting point for his being, and that he continues to exist even to the present.] This is consistent with their theology that God (they say [true]God; we say God the Father) existed eternally, but that the Son of God came into being before anything else was created.}

Then I point out to the (by-now-speechless) JWs that it becomes clear from the reaction of the Pharisees that they understood his words as a claim to be Jehovah, the Eternal One. That is why they picked up stones to stone him to death.

Well, you can imagine how quickly the JWs are ready to leave my door! Unfortunately, they don't come back to my home again (which is what many people want). Maybe that is why God keeps me moving from one home to another. LOL

I started this post with the intention of working through the story of the announcement of the birth of Samson. It is an incredible testimony to the pre-incarnation physical appearance of God the Son and the parents' recognition of him as God and his natural acceptance of burnt offering sacrifice only to be given to God. But I will have to explore that in a separate post. This one has gone on too long already.

What do you think?

Thank you for reading.

Home at Last

I forgot to mention the animals we saw yesterday. While driving through the mountains on State Route 66, we saw a total of 6 mule deer. Then when we were in Ashland near the Nature Park, we saw another 6. But on reflection I'm pretty sure the second group were elk, because the horns were different. Also this second group included at least 2 spikes and at least 2 forked horns (Easterners call those 4 pointers) and at least 1 three-horned (Easterners call those 6 pointers). So in addition to the Lithia Park, we enjoyed seeing these beautiful animals (and dodging the ones in the mountains!).

Okay, these pics are from when we left Grandma/Mom this morning. First we trimmed the hedge in the front of her house as well as the one infringing on the back fence. Then we dumped those cuttings. And then we were ready to leave. So these pics show Mom and Winky saying goodbye.

I think Winky is actually distracted here....

But if you look closely here, you can see that Winky is sad (to see us leave?). But if you look even closer, you can see that Mom is smiling or laughing (again to see us leave????).

We left Mom's at 10:00a.m. and arrived in HR at exactly 2:00p.m. And in between we did indeed have a couple (or 3?) stops. Glad to be home; thankful for a safe and enjoyable trip (1,287 miles in 6 days); and praiseful for the beautiful world God created!


Thanks for reading and for the feedback along the way.

Back in Newport

We left K Falls exactly at 8:00a.m. and drove to Ashland via Oregon state hwy 66. What an incredible highway. One of the windiest roads I have ever seen, much less driven. Plus on 3 separate occasions we climbed to over 4000 feet (twice over 4400). Then of course in between those summits, we had to drop elevation significantly. Finally in the last few miles we dropped all the way down to Ashland.

After a little looking and asking (never believe the lie that men won't ask directions), we found the park I wanted to sample: Lithia Park. It is in downtown Ashland with a lovely stream flowing through it, shade trees and picnic tables and other amenities. We did not walk very far. Basically, I had just wanted to see the stream because elsewhere on the internet I had seen pictures. So bw (above) made brave and climbed onto a rock that sat a little way into the water so I can photograph her.

Then she stayed right where she was in the first pic and took this pic of me standing on some more rocks in the same park. By then, Mom had worked the kinks out of her legs and we were all ready to head north and west to Newport.

After stops in Roseburg and Eugene (actually Vineta), we picked up Winky in Yachats and cousin Dick & Mae's. Then we arrived here at Mom's home about 6:00p.m. So other than sore (from sitting in the same position for so long) and tired from the exercise (that was new to our bodies), we are all well.

Thank you for your prayers and thanks you for reading!

Tomorrow, bw and I return to HR.

Klamath Falls evening

We went out for a brief stroll last evening. As you can see from the following pics, it grew dark while we were out. This first one was more or less a test to see how the pic would come out since it was actually darker than it appears here. If you look really, really, really close, you can see some white specks in the distance on the water. These are American white pelicans--probably at least 20 or more.

Still the pelicans are a long distance away. You can also see the evening lights reflecting across the water.

Next, you can see that one of the pelicans swam over closer to us. I was a bit more excited than usual, because while I've seen brown pelicans before, I've only seen pictures of the white variety.

Meanwhile, the city provides some fountains in the lake and at night these are lighted. This particular fountain has colored lights. And the pelican (from previous pic) swam into the reflection of the light (below).

Then it was back to our room and time for sleep. And by popular demand, I've included another pic of bw!

Today we are off to Ashland. We will forego any more bird searches. It's about a 6 hour drive to Newport. But we should have not trouble making that. Hope to report back from there later this evening.

Thanks for reading!

Crater Lake, Day 2

This morning we drove back up the mountain to see a little of the other parts of the park. The only walk we went on was a 1 mile stroll called Godfrey Glen Trail (do you know how that hurts me to spell it that way?). The trail goes along the rim of a canyon of sorts. This first pic shows a little of the canyon in the background.

You can see the canyon a little better here....
I think yesterday's post showed the Phantom Ship from the lake top view. Here you can see it from the West Rim looking down on the lake.
This next is called "The Pumice Castle." We saw it from the lake yesterday. But like the previous, this was taken from the West Rim Road.
When we got back to Klamath Falls, Mom wanted to do a little shopping for shoes. Then we tried a brief walk along the river front. We went a little while and passed a couple men who gave the impression of being homeless. Plus, it didn't look like we were getting anywhere nearer any good looks at a group of birds or waterfowl. So we turned back and found this pair (as well as a few others) of American white pelicans.
I'm thinking that tomorrow we might drive up the west shore of the Upper Klamath Lake (yesterday and today we only drove down & up & down the east side). We'll look for some marshes and/or blinds where we can see more birds. I realize this is not the optimal time of year to see birds in large numbers. But you take what you can get. Right?

Crater Lake 2

I'll try to get a few more pics on this morning before we head out. I worked a couple hours last night on the previous post. And just when I was ready to publish it, a glich happened in the wifi connection (again). So I went to bed. But fortunately, the blogger had automatically saved the draft and I was able to recover it this morning. Thus, the previous post dated this morning, but sounding as if it was written at night.

We were a bit frustrated with the lodge we stayed at in Chemult. So we made reservations for a Quality Inn in Klamath Falls, which is where we stayed last night and where we are currently. Mom and I were so worn out by our hike back up the hill from the lake that we didn't even go upstairs to the room before eating (next door) at the Chinese restaurant. Food was okay. But the service was fast and we were back to our room promptly.

Well, here are some picks from Mom & my adventure down to the lake, around & back up (bw stayed at the lodge and read for her disseration):

This was actually taken on our way back UP the hill. But it shows some of the trail; so I put it here at the beginning.

One of the first features they showed us was this below: "The Devil's Backbone," which was formed by a crack in the original volcanoes which allowed lava to rise and cool slowly making it much harder than the surrounding laval. So when the mountain imploded, these firmer walls remained.

This next one is one of many shots I took of the "Phantom Ship," an island formation that also resulted from a crack in the original volcanoes.

After it was all over, we made it to the top (below). The sign behind us says it should take about 30 minutes to get down (we did not time that one). And it should take 40 minutes getting back up. Well, it took us 46 minutes (yes, we timed it). So we were pretty proud of ourselves. Mom's heart acted a little fussy right at the start. But then it calmed down and we made it with several brief stops along the way. As usual, Mom got there before I did. But I was just a couple steps behind her. When we get home, I'll put the rest of the pics on webshots.

Crater Lake

Let's see if this works this time.

So we drove into Crater Lake National Park from the North entrance. 9 miles further on, we came to our first overlook of the lake. So of course we had to join the crowd and take a picture. If you have not been to Crater Lake, I will try to identify some of the notable sights.

The most easily recognized feature of Crater Lake is the island shown behind mom, called "Wizard Island," because it sort of kinda in an

odd kinda way resembles a little bit a wizards hat floating on the water (or so said the tour guide on the boat later in the day).

The weather was so perfect, it was hard to believe how blue the water was. Well, bw had been sooooooooooo brave as we drove along some scary roads. So I told her she could do whatever she wanted. And well, what she wanted was to take the next pic. So this is what came out (to the right). And I think she did a great job of framing the shot.

Well, Mom and I had purchased tickets to go on the boat tour, which meant hiking down a 1.1 mile trail, go on the 2 hour tour, and return by hiking UP (I emphasize UP) the 1.1 mile trail.

So, anticipating our hike, Mom opted out of a short trek bw & I took. So here is the pic bw took of me on a rock overlooking the lake.

Then the next pic is one I took looking down at the lake from the place where bw took my pic.

Again, you can see Wizard Island in the background and the amazingly blue water of this, the deepest lake in the US and the 7th deepest in the world.

Well, I think I'll save the rest till tomorrow morning. Bottom line: We made it back up to the top. But we are all absolutely worn out. Mom and bw are both asleep, with 1 of them snoring lightly.

Day one of our trip

I'm going to try this again. Tried it last night and the wifi where we are kept going off and on--mostly off. This morning seems to be working a little better. So I'll try it once more.

We drove to Newport on Sat & spent the night there. Sun morning we drove to Springfield for church (very good inspiring service & message). Then we met Joe & Gen for lunch (today is his bday). Then we proceeded through Willamette Pass to Chemult, OR, which is near Crater Lake.

So, these are a couple pics we (I) took at a view point en route. Hopefully, I/we'll have opportunity for more and better pics today. We will make our first foray into Crater Lake National Park. Then tonight we will land at a motel in Klammath Falls. I'll try to post more then.

But right now the natives are getting restless for breakfast. So I'll sign off for now.

Thank you for reading!

Teen rudeness

Some years ago, my mother and I were walking in a mall during the holiday season. Naturally, it was a crowded scene. After a while I noticed she kept stepping out of the way for groups of young people coming toward us. As the pattern continued, I commented to her that if she just kept walking in the direction she was already going, they would move for her. After all, she was the 'elderly' person and deserved the respect. A few weeks later, she relayed to me that she had tried that. She had been at another mall when the same pattern occurred. So she followed my advice and sure enough the teens would adjust their course at the last second, allowing her to walk unhindered through the crowds.

Well, last night bw and I faced a similar situation. We went for a walk in the late evening. We realized after we left our house that it was "first Friday." This is a time in our town when the downtown stores stay open late, street vendors and musicians come out, the main streets are closed and crowds of people just walk around and socialize. It has become so popular over the years that the number of pedestrians becomes quite sizable. It happened that our walk occurred just after the street barriers had been taken down. So now these crowds of people were restricted to the sidewalks. Bw and I have talked about these situations in the past. So by our agreement, when we approached a situation in which we could not walk side-by-side, she would step behind me. Still there were a few times last night when things got fairly crowded. These two events occurred:

The first involved a group of young ladies approaching us. Bw stepped behind me. But I would not budge. We had already formed our single file so that the 2 groups could pass without incident. But the second girl in the group approaching would not move over. So I kept my left shoulder firm and just walked straight ahead. After our shoulders bumped, I heard her behind me say, "Ouch!" as if I should not have done that to her. I ignored her cry and just kept walking. Admittedly, this was not the most Christlike thing I have ever done. But I'm tired of young people acting as if the rest of the world should make way for them--literally or figuratively. We are clearly the elders in these situations. Someone should have taught them some manners, like respecting people who are older, even if they are not infirm.

The second event occurred shortly afterward. We approached an area even more crowded than the first. This time only one line could squeeze through at a time. Bw again went behind me. But we approached the narrow spot at the same time a group of young men came from the opposite direction. Just before my shoulder hit the lead guy, I heard him say, "F___ out of my way." Well, I did not "F___" out of his way. And our shoulders hit again, though not as firmly as the first incident. Apparently, he decided at the last second that his shoulder was more valuable than his vanity or anger or whatever.

Then to cap it all off, as we headed down a side street to start our circuit back home, we merged with another group of young people coming from another direction. We ended up going the same way. But just as we were approaching this third group of young people, I heard one of the young men (obviously concluding a story he had been telling) say, "Their parents should teach their children some f_______ manners." Well, I almost laughed out loud at the irony. Another lady, maybe a little older than I, turned around and chuckled to herself at the rudeness of his speech in light of what I had said. But bw and I just merged into the foot traffic and headed back home.

Well, as crudely as this last fellow said it, he is right: Someone/parents should teach their children some manners.

What do you think?

Thank you for reading.

P.S.: Oh yeah, and don't tell me we were just as rude when we were that age, because generally speaking we were not.

The Transfiguration

With the Feast of the Transfiguration coming up on Monday, August 6, you may be interested in this slide show I received from Christianity Today on line:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/special/transfiguration/1.1.html

Shows different depictions of the Transfiguration.

The original article that introduces the slide show is here:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/augustweb-only/131-52.0.html

That's all for now.

The Hulk and us

We watched our recording of "The Hulk" last night. It is not really my kind of movie, but bw tends to like that genre. So we enjoyed it, while I got a few laughs out of it. But one scene in particular struck me with what may be a significant thought.

The second time Bruce turns into The Hulk, he escapes from the house imprisonment and ends up in the woods near Betty's house. She hears something and comes out at night to explore when her flashlight spans onto The Hulk. It seemed to me that his face was trying to express embarrassment and/or fear at his condition. Maybe it was just me. But there seems to be a similarity between them and us. He had become aware that there was a monster living inside him. And I thought I sensed that he was embarrassed that Betty would see the "real" Bruce. Along with that embarrassment, it seemed that he might be afraid that she would no longer accept or love him when she saw the monster hidden inside him. Still, throughout the movie the only place where he feels safe enough to relax is in her presence.

I kind of relate to that. There are hidden aspects of my life that I would be embarrassed for bw to discover. Things that, if she saw them, I fear she would no longer accept or love me. Still, the only place I really feel safe is in bw's presence. There I can let my monster(s) rest and I can be the better person I long to be.

Am I revealing to much of myself here? Well, be that as it may.

The other thing about that scene that struck me was a little confession he made. I think it came after he had fought off the monster-dogs' attack. Whenever, he admitted to Betty that at least a part of him likes it when he lets that monster out. Still, after his bouts of "monsterism," he seems to regret what he has done and who he was during those episodes. So I think he meant that while he was doing those things he found some pleasure or satisfaction in doing it.

Well, I wouldn't go so far as to say I have enjoyed my "monster" episodes. But while I was doing them, there was a degree of satisfaction. But it was mixed with shame and embarrassment and fear.

Can you relate?

Please don't condemn me for those hidden things. I suspect that a lot of people (everyone?) has been there. Isn't that part of the message in "Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde" or the movie "King Kong"?

Thank you for reading.

Bible study, Gideon

As I worked through the very familiar story of Gideon, something fresh hit me. I can't say I never saw this before. Perhaps I did. But if so, I had forgotten it. When we talk about the Gideon story, we make a big deal about God whittling down the number of fighting men. He started out with 32,000 men and ended up with 300. That against an army whose camels (excluding the men who did not have camels) were so numerous they could not be counted.

Actually, a couple things hit me here: First, and this has been noted many times: God said he could not defeat the Midianites and their allies with 32,000 men. Well, technically God could have done so. But he chose not to because that goes against a major operating principle he holds. Specifically, God only works a miracle when he will get the credit. When the odds against God are so great that the only way a positive outcome can be reached is with his help, then--and only then--will he act. This principle guides me when I pray for miracles. I ask questions like: "Have we humans exhausted our resources?" "Is there nothing else that can be done to solve, resolve or overcome the problem?" When it becomes clear that unless God acts nothing good will come, then I can pray in faith that God will act--if it is his will.

But the second thing that hit me (and this was the new or renewed thought) was this: Gideon's men did not actually attack the Midianite camp. Have you noticed that before? They simply stood on the hillside around the enemy and blew their trumpets and smashed their jars and held up their torches and shouted. Then, when the people had done what they could, God acted. He threw fear into the hearts of the Midianites, et al. The rest of the story involves the Israelites chasing and catching the enemy. But God had already acted and brought the miracle.

What do I need God to do in my life today? (I know the answer to that for myself. What about you?) Have I truly done all in my power? If so, am I looking for God to step in and do the impossible?

What do you think?

Butterflies

Not much going on of late. Just keeping the same routine: reading, writing, making VOM presentations on powerpoint.

With bw at home for the summer, I've been going out occasionally to do my reading. I could do it at home, but I tend to get distracted. So I drive to 1 of 3 nearby rest area/state parks. I read a while; then I walk in the woods a while; then I read some more.

So is it just that I've been in the woods more? Or is it really a change? I've been seeing more butterflies this year than in recent years. Mostly, I see them when I'm in the woods. But I'm also seeing them here around the house. It's curious, because I don't recall seeing so many of them in years past.

Just wondering....

Thanks for reading.