Category: Uncategorized

Things Haven’t Always Been This Way

Things Haven’t Always Been This Way

 

taken from a Walter Williams article

excerpt….”

Prior to the 1960s, many public high schools had shooting clubs. In New York City, shooting clubs were started at Boys, Curtis, Commercial, Manual Training and Stuyvesant high schools.

Students carried their rifles to school on the subway and turned them over to their homeroom or gym teacher. Rifles were retrieved after school for target practice. In some rural areas across the nation, there was a long tradition of high school students hunting before classes and storing their rifles in the trunks of their cars, parked on school grounds, during the school day.  Today, any school principal permitting rifles clubs or allowing rifles on school grounds would be fired, possibly imprisoned. Here’s my question: Have .30-30 caliber Winchesters and .22 caliber rifles changed to become more violent? If indeed rifles have become more violent, what can be done to pacify them? Will rifle psychiatric counseling help to stop these weapons from committing gun violence? You say: “Williams, that’s lunacy! Guns are inanimate objects and as such cannot act.” You’re right. Only people can act. That means that we ought to abandon the phrase “gun violence” because guns cannot act and hence cannot be violent.”

 

Luke 6:45 ESV
The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

The times we find ourselves in

Truth and reality seems to be concepts which are no longer held as something we can know

Politicians pronounce that people can murder their newborn children and call it women’s health and a choice,

Tresspass is now called undocumented entry,  illegal immigration is called undocumented immigration

Politicians promise free stuff that is paid for by the evil rich,  the deadly sins of envy and greed are used to stir up votes and bribe the followers to vote for them.  This used to be called a bad thing to be avoided and also in most cases stealing

Anyone can decide to ignore their biology and pretend to be something else and too many people call it good and right and if you cannot celebrate this….you are labeled as evil.

Strange and troubling times

The Man of Lawlessness
…6And you know what is now restraining him, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7Forthe mystery of lawlessness is already at work,but the one who now restrains it will continue until he is taken out of the way. 8And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of His mouth and annihilate by the majesty of His arrival.…

June 22 frozen in time

June 22 2002 1250 am CDT

This is a personal time fracture that marks the life I thought we had..

1249am – we had a family of three,  we called it our little family   John and Leisa and Joshua.

1251am – We were still a family but Joshua was moved to paradise with Jesus in the blink of an eye.

Spiritual Wisdom
…8None of the rulers of this age understood it. For if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9Rather, as it is written: “No eyehas seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those wholove Him.” 10But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.…

Each June 22,  leisa and I will remember,  THe Lord puts work before us to focus on so that most of the time it is past us before we realize exactly what time it is or sometime even what day it is.

June 22 2003,  we are busy building an prayer Labyrinth

Many of the June 22’s of the 17 years since June 2002,  we find ourselves working a Chrysalis weekend serving youth.  We cry a little and smile a lot.  We believe Joshua would be doing this if he were still here.

Father Day thoughts

Another year passes,  another Mother’s day in May and now Father’s day in June.

Just remembering and honoring those who have passed before

Frances Doggett Smith May 3 2002, Leisa and Paula’s mom. https://photos.app.goo.gl/v1pqXTNNZ3xyyEcg8

Robert E Hargrove Sept 6 2013  https://photos.app.goo.gl/mBW4Usqr51mcB1HH9

Truman (https://photos.app.goo.gl/Z6Uf6aJHjWZjaiZX7) and Mozelle Richbourg (https://photos.app.goo.gl/5zLAwSokTwEEtMv56)  in April 1983 and October 2004.  My maternal Grandparents

James G and Mellie M Hargrove (https://photos.app.goo.gl/LDtEWhsyakYSE67Z7) in 1964 and August 1981, my paternal Grandparents.

They marked my life and helped write my story.  Good Memories and Good people.  They each in their own way helped me reconnect with Jesus.

and finally… as a proud father – Joshua Blake Hargrove,  you left this world too soon.  I am grateful for the time God gave us with you.  I will see you in heaven.  https://photos.app.goo.gl/FzDtivUB9myKKFYF6

if your father or son is with you, hug them or call them, let them know you care and love them.

A Prayer Tip

A “Prayer Tip” from E. M. Bounds:

SilverballMuch time spent with God is the secret of all successful praying. 

  While many private prayers, in the nature of things, must be short; while public prayers, as a rule, ought to be short and condensed; while there is ample room for and value put on ejaculatory prayer — yet in our private communions with God time is a feature essential to its value. Much time spent with God is the secret of all successful praying.  Prayer which is felt as a mighty force is the mediate or immediate product of much time spent with God.  Our short prayers owe their point and efficiency to the long ones that have preceded them. 

     The short prevailing prayer cannot be prayed by one who has not prevailed with God in a mightier struggle of long continuance.  Jacob’s victory of faith could not have been gained without that all-night wrestling.  God’s acquaintance is not made by pop calls.  God does not bestow his gifts on the casual or hasty comers and goers.  Much time with God alone is the secret of knowing him and of influence with him.  He yields to the persistency of a faith that knows him.  He bestows his richest gifts upon those who declare their desire for and appreciation of those gifts by the constancy as well as earnestness of their importunity. 

The Grief Process is longer than I expected

June 22 230am – Leisa and I learned our lives would change forever.  We learned that our son Joshua was dead, killed in a head on automobile accident at 1250am.   That was 2002.  It was something neither Leisa nor I thought we could survive.  Somehow through God’s grace we survived and thrived,  it was not easy,  it was hard.  It was rough.  People are great, family, friends, Emmaus, Chrysalis communities gave us love and support.

God provided the means of grace,  the love directly from Him, and through other people.

One person was Jarod Eli Barclay.  Joshua’s cousin – same age, older by one day….more like a brother than a cousin.  about 2 to 3 days after the funeral…Eli gave Leisa and I a gift that never ends.  He told us that Joshua could not tell us bye or that he loved us.  He wrote and sang a song that spoke to us from Joshua’s perspective, in the song Joshua through Eli – says “I love you mom and I love you dad…”.  We can listen to it anytime we want to.  He had worked for almost 24 hours on creating the song.

The part of the story that only Leisa knew until Eli played the song for us – for two days Leisa had cried out to God in private pleading prayers – petitioning God to find some way to allow her to hear Joshua say I love you mom one more time.  God and the Holy Spirit moved Eli to do this for Leisa and added in extra features to include me and provide it in a recording that both of us can hear anytime we want to.

One of the unexpected things that happened as a result of God using people and the circumstances of Joshua’s death to move people along their journey of faith.  Leisa and I continued the Bible study Joshua started in early 2002.  We served as youth directors at the FUMC Buna for 3 years.  We entered into licensed and then ordained ministry.  We work Chrysalis events almost every year even though Joshua never attended a weekend.  We give talks at Emmaus and Chrysalis weekends where we each share the story of Joshua and how God walked with us every step of the grief process and continues to this day.  Friday night 1/18 Leisa is previewing her Emmaus talk and we listened to part of Eli’s song again.  It brings tears and hope…reminder of how much God loves us that He would move Eli to create the song in answer to a prayer.

God’s mercy and grace is indeed great!

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the Lord, My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust! For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.” (Psalm 91:1-4)

Joshua’s song from Eli to Leisa and I can be downloaded (mp3) here

Thank you God, for this day and for your rich mercy and love!  In Jesus name.  Amen.

What about Walls

Proverbs 25:28 English Standard Version (ESV)

28 A man without self-control
is like a city broken into and left without walls.

 

….the behavior of the Vatican. …. immigration policy to Vatican City is highly restrictive; so is security. Historically, the Vatican hasn’t been anti-wall…the giant wall surrounding Vatican City, originally erected in 852 C.E. in order to prevent another attack like the one by Muslim pirates who damaged St. Peter’s Cathedral in 846. Those walls were expanded under Pope Paul III (1534-1549), Pope Pius IV (1559-1565) and Pope Urban VIII (1623-1644). Paul III’s and Pius IV’s expansions were directed toward preventing another Muslim sack of Rome.    the Old Testament – the Tanach – is replete with references to the usefulness of walls. God allowing enemies to breach the walls of Jewish cities is seen as a brutal punishment in Deuteronomy 28:52; similarly, in Nehemiah 2:13, the prophet laments “the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down”; Isaiah, too, laments the “day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains”; the same holds for Psalms 80 and 89, as well as several chapters in Lamentations, as well as the warnings of Ezekiel.

 

In 2 Chronicles 14, we learn of the good king Asa, who did “what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord; he “built up the fortified cities of Judah, since the land was at peace…’Let us build up these towns,’ he said to Judah, ‘and put walls around them, with towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God; we sought him and he has given us rest on every side.’ So they built and prospered.”

In Psalms 51, David specifically prays that God “do good in Thy good pleasure unto Zion; build thou the walls of Jerusalem.” In Psalm 122, David prays, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; ‘May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.’” In Psalm 144, David prophesies that “There will be no breaching of walls, no going into captivity, no cry of distress in our streets.”

In Proverbs, Solomon writes, “He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, without walls.”

Isaiah repeatedly references walls: in chapter 26 (“In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; God makes salvation its walls and ramparts”); chapter 49 (“See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me”); chapter 54 (“I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of sparkling jewels, and all your walls of precious stones”); chapter 58 (“Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings”); chapter 60 (“Foreigners will rebuild your walls, and their kings will serve you” and “you will call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise”); chapter 62 (I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night”). Amos says the same: “In that day ‘I will restore David’s fallen shelter – I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins – an d will rebuild it as it used to be.’” So too says Micah: “The day for building walls will come, the day for extending your boundaries.”

God doesn’t seem particularly perturbed by the idea of walls in the Bible. They’re necessary for defense, and they’re often necessary to draw boundaries between people who live by the Living Word, and people who do not.

 

Obama Used Walls To Shut Out Veterans, Opposes Walls To Stop Illegal Aliens

During Obama’s infamous 2013 government shutdown, he apparently not only found walls to be highly effective, but he deployed them against our nation’s veterans, in order to deny them access from paying their respects to their brothers and sisters in arms at our nation’s war memorials.