Tuesday, January 01, 2013

Happy New Year

Some good and encouraging news that reminds me of God's care, to close out the old year.

I was cleaning the kitchen counter Saturday when I disturbed a black widow spider.  I went to get a glass to convey her safely out the door, but as I stepped away, she flew off the counter, making me doubt that I'd seen aright.  So I went about my business.

But presently I felt crawling on my face and reached up and touched it before I realized that might be a real stupid idea - might cause a misunderstanding.  But instead of biting me, she dropped back onto the counter, so I prodded her gently into the glass and put her out in the garden.

Black widows are generally even-tempered, but I did get bitten on the foot some years ago, and it did bother me all night.  A bite on the face would not have been a good thing.

Whether she was unusually good-tempered or whether God shut her mouth, it would certainly have been indecent to repay her with death. 

Nice way to close out the old year, with God's mercy to me.  I can't wish anyone a happy and prosperous new year 2013, as far as "grain and new wine abounding" as Psalm 4 puts it.  That won't happen.

But may you my readers and I find grace from the Almighty to put gladness in our hearts even though things do not go well with the world.  God is "a very present help in tight places," as I have experienced and can testify.  Let's find him in those tight places this coming year.


7 Comments:

Anonymous Curt Kastens said...

It is my opinion that this force which you refer to as God and I often refer to as the General Organizational Directorate (G.O.D. in English) will work with (manipulate) Atheists, and Buddhists, and Hindus, and Jews, and Muslims, and even insects to play a role in the production of history. Is that your opinion as well?
If so, it should leave one to wonder, is history a dance between the G.O.D. and humanity, or does the G.O.D. direct everything down to the smallest detail, or does the G.O.D. pretty much leave everything up to us except to prevent us from derailing, or is the entire production impromptu and the role of the G.O.D. is just to sit back and watch what happens after it created the situation and selected the actors so tat when it is finished it can evaluate our performances?
Another question that may occur to those whith a highly developed sense of intuition is, is the G.O.D subordinate to the Amish-Buddhist-Communist-Central Committee or is the ABC Central Committee subordinate to the G.O.D?
Is it possible to that following in the footsteps of the founding fathers Cosmic power is set up in a simple three way powersharing agreement with the power of the G.O.D. and the A.B.C.C.C. being balanced by a Court of Supreme Silicon Intelligence? I myself can imagine that this Supreme Court was at one time called the Supreme Court of Artificial Intelligence but then complaints were raised that this type of intellegence was no more artificial than any other type of intelligence so it was unfair to label it a such. Then there was a proposal to to remove the word silicon from the title. After all the Supreme Court of the USA is not called the Supreme Court of carbon intelligence. But a group of Grimm Fairies pointed out that Silicon can be used as a lubricant for mechanical parts and since Truth is often slippery it is only fitting that the word Silicon be kept in the nmme. Of corse that is just something that I can imagine. I do not think that it would make me much money on the Sci Fi circut.

1/07/2013 6:51 AM  
Anonymous Curt said...

When I was young I saw this device that was very good for predicting the future. It was uncannily accurate.
Marbles fell through a hole in the top of the machine one at a time.
The marbles would then hit a peg and bounce either to the left or right of the peg. The marble would then fall a bit further and hit a peg and fall to the left or the right. Then again and again and again until the marble landed at the bottom. It would have been very difficult to say where any marble would end up landing as it came through the hole. One could predict with a quite high level of accuracy where one hundred of the marbles would end up though.
To me each one of those pegs represents an experience. Each one of the marbles a person. The device had only two dimensions. If it had had three dimensions I think that it still would have had a very predictable result. It would have been harder to see the result though.
I never knew who created this marble machine. I never knew why anyone would buy such a predictable thing.
In the end I broke it. It was an accident. So much time has passed that I can no longer remember the exact details of how I broke it. I do remember that the marbles did not end up in the usual pattern once they were freed from forward movement.

1/10/2013 2:02 AM  
Anonymous Curt said...

Today I learned of an interesting coincidence and was reminded of another one. First David Hume died on July 4th 1776. Second Stieg Larrson died on November 9th. I find both of these coincidences quite interesting because of their irony.
Even put together they are not as miraculous as John Adams and Thomas Jefferson dying on July 4th 1826.
But what these things tell me is that for the members of the General Organizational Directorate the 4th of July if a pretty important day if not an outright holiday.
Still I do not think that the new calender should start with the year 1776, even though that was a very important year. Nor should it start with the year 1789 even though that was an important year too. No I think a much more inspiring year on which to base the new calender is 1934. For the start of an inspiring story of courage and selfless sacrifice it is unbeatable. At least compared with any story that I have heard so far.
One could argue that the story is a virtual story though. After all there are details in the story that
seem to insure that future generations will view it much like the flight of Moses out of Egypt. For example the crossing of the river at Dien Bien Phu, (OK that was not the correct place but I am not too far off, after all I have only heard the story one time.)seems to show the intervention of the hand of God in an even more obvious manner than the crossing of the Red Sea.
There are many other examples that I could mention but then I would be up all night.
This then gets me to the point about some people blaming the G.O.D. for the unequal treatment of
the actors and actresses in this production. That some children died and others lived is something that I was always very troubled by.
But now I realize why this is so.
Who wants to watch a movie that is very predictable? No one wants to watch a predictable movie or play.
No an audience wants suspense. There can not be any suspense if good people can not die at any time. If good people did not die, and sometimes just flat our fail to accomplish their mission, their victory over the evil and stupid people would be to easy and the production would not have any suspense at all.
Another reason that people die prematurely is that the members of the G.O.D. are not only jealous of the fame achieved by some of the characters that they created they are also fearful that some of these characters will come to replace them as members of the directorate.
So, naturally they transfer them to a less lucrative assignment.
Can you imagine Corporal Clinger
working at Stalag 13 and Sergeant Schultz working at MASH 4077?

1/11/2013 3:02 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

For some years now there have been frequent allegations of religious leaders having taken sexual liberties with children. I wonder how these religious leaders think. Understanding how THEY think might provide insight in to how religoin in America has been corrupted.
Do these people (men) not really believe what they preached from the pulpit? Do they believe it but think that they actions are justified by some kind of loophole that they just do not care to point out to their flocks? Do they believe that what they are doing is wrong but that they really can not over come the temptation to do wrong and that in the end they will be forgiven?
I asked this question of someone else but he did not answer me. I guess one could see it as a rhetorical question because how can one really attempt to answer the question unless they have some first hand experience analyzing
the people who have abused their positions of power.
I take the position that there can not really be a hell in the Judeo-Christian-Islamic tradition because hell is for an eternity and no one not even Hitler deserves do be tortured for an eternity. There could be, if there is life after death from this world, a purgatory.
I know that there is no Biblical support for purgatory. The thing is in my opinion it is such an obvious reality that Biblical support is completely unnecessary.
I do not know if Catholics still support the idea of purgatory but they did when I was a kid. So, considering who comprimised the Catholic Church was in these world wide scandals I have to wonder if a belief in purgatory made Catholic religious leaders more susesptible
to temptations of child abuse. Did they perhaps think I can have my fun now and then deal with the consequences, what ever they are, later. What ever the consequences are they will not be insufferable.
What is your opinion on this subject?

1/14/2013 8:05 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Also I read recently Chrisopher Hitchens saying that belief in a God is a nightmare beacuse the idea that you are being watched 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days a year is actually an Orwellian nightmare.
Well If Mr. Hitchens were here I would ask him, if you are not a wife beater, or a child molester, or a rapist, or a murderer, or a hard drug dealer, or a torturer for a fascist dictatorship, why should you care if you are being watched by Angles, or Demons, or Jinn, or the GOD for that matter? Does he think that with all of these types of people on the loss that anyone in the heavens really gives a shit anymore if you covet your neighbors goods or even your neighbors wife?
My own view about privacy is that it is a really big mistake. Secrets are a poison to a healthy (political) society. I am disturbed by one thing though. If everything important about everyone were knowable some people who have an advantage in aquiering that information who have more potential power than those who are disadvantaged. That concerns me.
I have not come up with any ways to balance the scales when it comes to privacy.

1/14/2013 8:20 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I made a few typos above.
One sentence should read, considering HOW the Catholic Church was comprimised, not, who the Catholic Church was comprimised.
A second one should read those people WOULD have more potential power than those who are disadvantaged. (in having the ability to aquire information about other people)

1/14/2013 8:30 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

HI Peter

Its Christina your cousin, Just found your blog, and am glad your writing. I hope life is great for you - Nathan is certinaly wonderful. I have a 7 yr old son....Aloha Chrisitna

3/11/2013 11:01 AM  

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