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Grief

I suppose it was a form of grieving, but since my father passed away in 2022 , I haven't had much heart in continuing our family genealogy. I deleted my accounts at various family tree sites and even turned one over to a distant cousin (which I now regret). Then yesterday, for some reason only the Lord knows, I decided to look-up Great Grandmother Coatney Elizabeth Cole and see what would pop up.  I found an obituary for her and a death notice for her husband John Tidwell that had been posted at Find-a-Grave. So, I'm back on the trail with a mission to clear up some faulty family stories and present some facts.  Friends, don't try to rush grief - it's a process and we all go through it when losing someone close to us. Trust God. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dear Father in Heaven, I pray You will comfort those who have lost loved ones and whose hearts are heavy with grief. Thank You for giving us Your Word and Holy Spirit to draw strength from. In Lord Jesus Name I pray, amen...
Recent posts

Donald Trump and Evangelicals

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. - Genesis 1:27 KJV  This morning, I came across this meme from a video posted by Donald Trump's Truth Social account last night. Shocking, isn't it? How can it be that a grown man would do something so outrageous and foolish? Has he lost his mind to dementia or is it just his hate-filled heart exposing itself? There are so many ways I can point out the depravity of the man now serving as President of the United States, but perhaps I should sadly point out the hypocrisy of the Christians who supported and still support such a man. You would have to be totally out of touch with reality to not have known that Donald Trump lacks basic human decency. There were certainly many red flags about his character when he ran for the presidency in 2016 , but this term he has completely revealed the type of person he is: mean, petty, vindictive, corrupt, and due to his past  friendship w...

'A word fitly spoken'

 Christians should show love on social media 11 A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver. 12 As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear. 13 As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them that send him: for he refresheth the soul of his masters. (Proverbs 25: 11-13) This morning, I read the blog post Drunken Speech by Kyle Borg posted at Gentle Reformation . The post is directed toward Christian leaders, but it is relevant to all of us, in my opinion, especially now as we experience political upheaval in the United States, which sadly is affecting the Church. As Christians, we are ambassadors for Christ. But lately we’ve become cheerleaders for our favorite political team and thrown off all caution to the wind when we engage on social media. I have no problem with Christians expressing their beliefs and political opinions, but we must remember not to demean or trample on tho...

Down Syndrome Babies Are Precious To God

 And They Should Be Precious to Us, Too! For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. ~Psalm 139, verses 13-16 (ESV) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ What is Down Syndrome? Down syndrome is a condition in which a person has an extra chromosome. Chromosomes are small “packages” of genes in the body. They determine how a baby’s body forms and functions as it grows during pregnancy and after birth. Typically, a baby is born with 46 chromosomes. Babies with Down syndrome have an extra copy of one of these chromosomes, chromosome 21. A medical term for having an extra copy of a chro...

Reflecting On Political Priorities in 2024

  Christians understand that what has gone wrong with the world can’t be fixed with political activism or culture war victories. I have a lot of sympathy for the expression 'politics is downstream from culture.' That is mostly true. But a more complete truth is that culture is downstream from theology and anthropology and ontology. Politics and culture are both effects, not causes. Politics and culture influence each other, sometimes in helpful ways and sometimes in unhelpful ways. (Source:  The Political Illusion by Warren Cole Smith – MinistryWatch ) At the risk of being controversial in this highly polarized political age, I would like to share some wisdom I learned as a Christian political activist. I tried to stay above the political fray during my time as an organizer for Christian Coalition and as a pro-life activist in our community. While it was assumed that I would support Republican candidates, I did not mindlessly support them because the Democrats were big bad wol...

Abiding in Christ: Linda Kay Beckman (1936 - 2024)

It's bittersweet to learn that a much loved woman of God has left our world and is now in the presence of Christ. I rejoice for Linda that she is experiencing the great love and joy all Christians look forward to, but I am also a bit sad that while on this earth she wasn't appreciated by the world for the gift of God she truly was to us all. I became acquainted with Linda when she and other members of Repent America were arrested for sharing the Gospel at an "Outfest" in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They were known as the Philadelphia 11 and were on national news sites in the fall/winter of 2004 and throughout 2005.  I'm not certain how Linda and I connected, but we communicated via e-mail and her gracious manner endeared her to me. She soon became a role model and I thank God for her Christian witness.  Here is an article I wrote about the Philadelphia 11 in 2004: Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. (2 Timothy 3:12) Dear Fr...

Book Review: 'The Scottish Covenanters' by J.G. Vos

  By Angela Wittman - Posted at Amazon.com : June 14, 2024 ( 4.0 out of 5 stars ) Good Overall History of the Scottish Covenanters For those new to the history of the Scottish Covenanters and the principles they stood for, this book will be helpful. I appreciate the author defining the issues of that time period and the differences of thought among the Covenanters. Many other works skim over their differences, but this book delves into the prevailing circumstances among those who compromised and the ones who remained faithful and strong to the end. I am much more appreciative of the Covenanters and their heritage after reading it. Direct Link:  The Scottish Covenanters - Kindle edition by Vos, J.G.. Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.