Tree Devotionals (Contain Bible Verses, so enter at your own risk)

[Tom Dunlap]

An article that was in the BBC Travel forum for all love...odd where bits of relevant knowledge come to light

Australia's trail where life began

South Australia's 900km Mawson Trail journeys through sites so ancient, they've revealed the imprints of animals that lived 555 million years ago – likely the earliest human ancestor.

www.bbc.com

 

[Stumpsprouts]

I've asked many questions in this thread which have been answered with something along the lines of 'its written in the bible' without any sort of explanation other than the circular...its written in the bible.

If dinosaurs lived at the same time of Noah, YE era, where is the record of their remains showing up in the same strata? I just don't get it...

Tom, I think in your posts and investigation of YE you’re dancing around the idea of what it is to have faith. And as it was explained to me as a child, the point is to believe without irrefutable proof. Taking a leap of faith, as it were. Not sure where you’ll get without having the same systems of belief. I don’t share the Christian faith anymore but I do have faith in a higher power and the mystical realm and personally take stock in a number of things that probably aren’t true, but they add meaning to my life.

 

[JCB]

Which god?

Right! I worked with an Italian Catholic, a Russian Jew, and a Senegalese Muslim; I was the resident atheist (formerly Protestant). They all spoke about "god," and when I asked each directly if he/she believed in the other person's god, each stated that only his own god is the "real one." How does someone rationalize that his god is the only true god? And how does one refute the existence of another person's god when many of their gods stemmed from the same fabled personages?

I have always believed that religious sectarianism has caused much of the harm in the world. For example, my biggest disgust with anti-abortion folks is their total inability and unwillingness to put themselves in the position of the girl/woman, and to consider the long-term social and financial aspects of bringing the fetus to term. At the same time, they condemn poor people for having too many babies. It is hypocrisy of the highest order.

When I lived in Houston in the 90s, my teacher-friend’s middle-school girls, living in the poorest Third Ward (some in dirt-floor abodes), were being raped by family members at an obscene rate. No one has the right to force that child to keep the fetus, especially not based on religious beliefs. Instead, they should drag the “father” through the streets and pillory him in the town square, and route out the causative social ills.

If men were having the babies, they’d be getting abortions by the dozen; what of the Bible then? Tell me that some of these self-righteous anti-abortionists have not snuck their daughters and wives off somewhere to have abortions. Meanwhile, telling me that some god detests abortions based on some well-worn book excerpt will never satisfy me because it will never heal the dreadful destruction suffered by a raped woman, or repair the social ills and inequalities that lead to sexual abuse.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

I don’t share the Christian faith anymore but I do have faith in a higher power and the mystical realm and personally take stock in a number of things that probably aren’t true, but they add meaning to my life.

That's where I'm at too.

 

[rico]

How do you get a nun pregnant? Dress her up like an alter boy.

 

[rico]

the Devil made me do it.

 

[SeanRuel]

Not the best example JCB, those religions you mentioned pretty much have the same "god", the "god of abraham". They do have different ideas about The right way to avoid its punishment.

Semantic point but I couldn't help myself.

 

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

In an attempt to get back to the titular focus of this thread, here goes nothing:

#12

I’ve written about sowing and reaping on this site before, and some of this might be a repeat of something else floating around on here, but I love the principle of sowing and reaping. I can’t help but think about it this time of the year. I’ve been sowing lots of flower seeds in various beds in my yard and also reaping the blooms from all of the bulbs I planted last Fall (sidenote: feel free to share a pic of some of your favorite flowers currently blooming in your part of the country to brighten up the Buzz).

Sowing and reaping is a universally accepted principle from the natural world. You reap what you sow. If you sow zinnias, you get zinnias; not daisies. If you sow carrots, you don’t get watermelons.

Sometimes, we even apply this principle to our own lives. I see it in play all the time on this site, especially when new guys are trying to start businesses and ask for advice. “Just work hard, make proper cuts, clean up well, and finding work will be no issue.” How many times have you heard that?

But what about sowing and reaping as a spiritual law? What do you think?

Remember Job’s three friends? What miserable comforters they were. They kept telling Job that all the tragedy that had befallen him was a result of some sin he had committed. They got angry with him when he refused to admit to committing any sin of a magnitude that would warrant such retribution. Or, consider when Jesus encountered a man blind from birth in John 9. “His disciples asked Him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.’” And after saying these things, Jesus healed the man.

There was once a man visiting someone in prison. As he walked down the corridor, he saw an inmate mending some pants. The man asked the inmate, “What are you doing, sewing?” “No,” the man said, “reaping.” We have to be careful in our own lives and when looking at the lives of others not to confuse sowing with reaping. Job’s friends were wrong. Job was in the midst of the trial. He was sowing. He reaped at the end of the book when God restored all that he had lost! The blind man was not reaping from his or his parent’s sin. He sowed faith and was given sight!

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary” (Galatians 6:7-9).

No amount of good works can save you. There is only one thing in this life you can sow to reap eternal life: Faith in Jesus Christ.

I think the trouble with sowing and reaping is that we often think that we will be blessed now if we are obedient and follow Jesus. The truth of the matter is, Jesus promises us that if we love Him and follow him then we will be treated by the world the way he was treated. We will suffer affliction and be persecuted.

Unfortunately, I think in the U.S. too many think that if they follow Jesus that will make them wealthy and prosperous. It’s just not so. Those who follow Jesus faithfully tend to suffer the most.

The reward that you reap is not until your time in this world is over and you receive the spiritual blessing that Jesus promised.

 

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

In an attempt to get back to the titular focus of this thread, here goes nothing:

#12

I’ve written about sowing and reaping on this site before, and some of this might be a repeat of something else floating around on here, but I love the principle of sowing and reaping. I can’t help but think about it this time of the year. I’ve been sowing lots of flower seeds in various beds in my yard and also reaping the blooms from all of the bulbs I planted last Fall (sidenote: feel free to share a pic of some of your favorite flowers currently blooming in your part of the country to brighten up the Buzz).

Sowing and reaping is a universally accepted principle from the natural world. You reap what you sow. If you sow zinnias, you get zinnias; not daisies. If you sow carrots, you don’t get watermelons.

Sometimes, we even apply this principle to our own lives. I see it in play all the time on this site, especially when new guys are trying to start businesses and ask for advice. “Just work hard, make proper cuts, clean up well, and finding work will be no issue.” How many times have you heard that?

But what about sowing and reaping as a spiritual law? What do you think?

Remember Job’s three friends? What miserable comforters they were. They kept telling Job that all the tragedy that had befallen him was a result of some sin he had committed. They got angry with him when he refused to admit to committing any sin of a magnitude that would warrant such retribution. Or, consider when Jesus encountered a man blind from birth in John 9. “His disciples asked Him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.’” And after saying these things, Jesus healed the man.

There was once a man visiting someone in prison. As he walked down the corridor, he saw an inmate mending some pants. The man asked the inmate, “What are you doing, sewing?” “No,” the man said, “reaping.” We have to be careful in our own lives and when looking at the lives of others not to confuse sowing with reaping. Job’s friends were wrong. Job was in the midst of the trial. He was sowing. He reaped at the end of the book when God restored all that he had lost! The blind man was not reaping from his or his parent’s sin. He sowed faith and was given sight!

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary” (Galatians 6:7-9).

No amount of good works can save you. There is only one thing in this life you can sow to reap eternal life: Faith in Jesus Christ.

I’ve been studying Philippians for the past 3 months and one of the verses I’ve been meditating on is Philippians 1:29,

“For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him.”
‭‭
Paul says that it is a “privilege” to suffer for Christ. This is so backwards from what our culture tells us. May we be ready to suffer, for it is our privilege…

 

[CaPowell]

How do you get a nun pregnant? Dress her up like an alter boy.

Rico, I acknowledge that this joke has some truth in it. I find it just as repulsive as you do. There is no excuse for that kind of behavior.

 

[rico]

Rico, I acknowledge that this joke has some truth in it. I find it just as repulsive as you do. There is no excuse for that kind of behavior.

Didn’t god make man in his image?

 

[evo]

I dared enter, now lighting may strike me.

 

[SeanRuel]

You're safe from lighting, Zeus and Thor are OBVIOUSLY not real. These folks god just drowns people, burns them alive, or turns them into salt. No lighting smiting from el shaddai

 

[Willber]

Of course there will be questions. Have you been following the thread about the '⅓ face cut'?

I did look over it a bit. That was the thread that also went into the debate about depth of wedge cut reduces "barber chairing"?

Please setup links to what you're talking about. It's easier to make your point instead of going by vague memories.

Yes, sorry, it was vague, though not by intention. Here is a link, to a book by Gray, it does have references of specific findings, starting on page 33, of large human remains. https://archive.org/details/JonathanGrayLostWorldOfGiants2006_201906/page/n37/mode/2up

Here are some questions that inevitably arose a few years ago.

Piltdown Man - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I did read that Wiki article, interesting. I imagine this type of forgery happens on both sides of the debate.

PIctures were printed in Weekly World News...and everyone knows the trusted and stellar reputation that it has. LOL

Fake News In Biblical Archaeology

 In a world of fake news and internet hoaxes it’s important to carefully check your sources before you inadvertently spread misinformation. The world of archaeology is no exception to sensationali…

biblearchaeologyreport.com

Why are statements made that are so easy to debunk?

It was not surprising to see this guy discredit Ron Wyatt.
It's seems quite telling of this authors ridiculing narrative, to see his writing here,
"The reason they do not promote Ron Wyatt’s work has nothing to do with professional jealousy; it has everything to do his unsubstantiated, unscholarly, and, quite possibly, fraudulent claims."

Many people have discredited Wyatt, I don't think it was because of "professional jealousy". I got a sense when I first listened to Ron Wyatt speak, he seemed to be very humble, and was working on these excavations/findings not for personal recognition. I get a sense he was simply doing it to show this to the world, and to see how the world treated and ridiculed him, one is left to think it seems similar to how the world treated Jesus.

Many talk of consensus and peer review, but when there "peer review" and "consensus" are filtered by a "majority collectivism thought", it becomes counterintuitive.
I urge people who strongly believe in peer review, to see the film "Expelled" by Ben Stein

The picture of that skeletal structure of "Goliath" was clearly too large for it to be Goliath. It appears to be 50feet long, in the bottom left photo.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

I imagine this type of forgery happens on both sides of the debate.

So...'imagining' is solid enough criteria to be used for critical thinking? Where does imagination come into play in proving anything?

There is sooo much that I'd like to believe or understand. But characters like Wyatt sure aren't the ones that will convince me of anything. All of his stuff is a pile of rubbish. Show me something that he's found that has stood up to investigation.

 

[JCB]

Not the best example JCB, those religions you mentioned pretty much have the same "god", the "god of abraham". They do have different ideas about The right way to avoid its punishment.

Semantic point but I couldn't help myself.

Thanks, but actually that was my point: "And how does one refute the existence of another person's god when many of their gods stemmed from the same fabled personages?"

 

[surveyor]

Tom, this is long but I think worthwhile. It is a comparison of the evolutionary model of the fossil record contained in the strata, with what you would expect to find with a catastrophic flood model.

 

[CaPowell]

Didn’t god make man in his image?

I can only assume you said this to insinuate that God is sick/perverse. Is that right; did I interpret correctly?

Yes, God made man in His image. We have to be careful that we don't try to make God in our image, but examine who He has revealed Himself to be in His Word. What does it mean to be made in the image of God? It's not that we look like God, but that we are special and have souls. We are set apart from the animals. Adam was made perfect in the Garden, but sinned, and creation was marred. We are all sinners as a result. Does this mean God is unrighteous? No. It means man has free will and is sinful.

G.K. Chesterton said something along the lines of, "Man is separate from animals, not so much by degree, but by kind." This is self-evident. This is common sense. Animals are pretty much biological robots (sorry dog owners!). Seriously, look at bugs. Each insect seems to have a specific job/function/role in making the ecosystem work. Bees don't ask their children, "What do you want to do when you grow up?" Animals don't make art (the elephants at the zoo painting pictures that go for more than my annual salary don't count- humans have trained animals to do amazing things). Humans and animals are clearly different.

What does it mean that humanity is made in the image of God (imago dei)? | GotQuestions.org

What does it mean that humanity is made in the image of God (imago dei)? Why did God create us in His own image and likeness?

www.gotquestions.org

 

[rico]

I can only assume you said this to insinuate that God is sick/perverse. Is that right; did I interpret correctly?

Yes, God made man in His image. We have to be careful that we don't try to make God in our image, but examine who He has revealed Himself to be in His Word. What does it mean to be made in the image of God? It's not that we look like God, but that we are special and have souls. We are set apart from the animals. Adam was made perfect in the Garden, but sinned, and creation was marred. We are all sinners as a result. Does this mean God is unrighteous? No. It means man has free will and is sinful.

G.K. Chesterton said something along the lines of, "Man is separate from animals, not so much by degree, but by kind." This is self-evident. This is common sense. Animals are pretty much biological robots (sorry dog owners!). Seriously, look at bugs. Each insect seems to have a specific job/function/role in making the ecosystem work. Bees don't ask their children, "What do you want to do when you grow up?" Animals don't make art (the elephants at the zoo painting pictures that go for more than my annual salary don't count- humans have trained animals to do amazing things). Humans and animals are clearly different.

What does it mean that humanity is made in the image of God (imago dei)? | GotQuestions.org

What does it mean that humanity is made in the image of God (imago dei)? Why did God create us in His own image and likeness?

www.gotquestions.org

I was suggesting that your god/creator/designer is really bad at his job, and catastrophically so.. Akin to me putting a tree through a house on a daily basis.

The calisthenics that you folks have to go through to keep the fairy tale alive is truly mind blowing.

 

[CaPowell]

I think the trouble with sowing and reaping is that we often think that we will be blessed now if we are obedient and follow Jesus. The truth of the matter is, Jesus promises us that if we love Him and follow him then we will be treated by the world the way he was treated. We will suffer affliction and be persecuted.

Unfortunately, I think in the U.S. too many think that if they follow Jesus that will make them

The reward that you reap is not until your time in this world is over and you receive the spiritual blessing that Jesus promised.

Very good points. Makes me think of the Hebrews "Faith Hall of Fame" and also all of the Christians facing persecution over in China (and elsewhere for that matter). Others are dying for their faith; over here, we're afraid of being awkward.