The Cedar Post

Count The Cost And Surrender

2007-05-18T11:56:00.000-05:00

The Cost of Being a Disciple

Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

"Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.'

"Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.

"Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.
"He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

- Luke 14

Do you think you can go up against God and win?

We all build our lives like a tower that we don't have the funds to finish. We will die and that will be the end of our tower.

Afterward, we will meet our maker, a demanding sort who is more powerful than we can possibly imagine. We don't want to face Him as an enemy. We need to send an envoy to seek peace now, while He is far off. He will want complete surrender of everything, but that is reasonable considering His power and position and our poverty and helplessness.

Kingdom Values

2007-05-08T13:15:00.000-05:00

Loyalty to kingdom values rejects all subservience to temporal things, whether that subservience be the type which accumulates endlessly, or the type stamped by a frenetic, faithless, and worried scurry for essentials. - D. A. Carson

The culture of western Christianity keeps us from risking anything for the Gospel. Comfort keeps us from being risk takers for the Gospel. See the big picture. The Holy Spirit is all the Comforter we need. We need to be willing to do whatever God wants.
-What are you willing to risk for Christ?
-When did you last leave your comfort zone for Christ?
-Will you be a risk taker?
- Thad Blount

Jesus left heaven and came to earth to be misunderstood, hated, lied about and killed violently. He did this for you and me out of love. There is no way to repay him for what he did. All we can give him back is all we have and all we are. The Bible says that he did it for the joy that he saw on the other side. It also says that we are his trophies. He wants to show us off as trophies of grace. He paid a high price for us and we become his treasured possession.

Skip Coryell

2007-05-04T19:47:00.000-05:00

My roommate in college wanted to be a writer. One time I was busy when Skip asked me to type up a paper for him. I had a little time so I did type it and realized that he was gifted at writing. Several years after I left college I happened to notice a photo on the front of a Sunday school paper that was taken at my college. I saw that the article was written by Skip and it was a story about how he broke his ankle playing soccer but it ended up in the chance to talk to a young man in his hospital room about the Lord.

Very recently I saw in a college magazine that Skip had authored some books and I got on his website. I also wrote him e-mails and it was great to see an old friend realize his dream and use his gift for the Lord.

Skip's Website

The Red Pill

I am reading Inside Skip's Brain and enjoying it very much.

Sample Skip's Brain

Skip is big on Second Amendment rights. I agree with much of what he says, but like Skip, I believe men are evil at heart and sin is the big problem and only the Lord Jesus can solve that problem for men.

One time I said something dumb while we were talking in our dorm room and Skip turned to me and said, "Carl, are you a dullard?" I will never forget that as he always had a great sense of humor and was fun and sincere. Skip was in the Marine Reserve and punched a hole in our dorm room closet door with an umbrella showing us the six basic maneuvers for rifle with fixed bayonet.

Listening to his voice on the podcast from the Iowa radio station on his website he sounds like he has matured over the years and his voice has changed. He sounds more articulate and speaks well. I can see that he makes a great guest on a radio talk show.

Dallas View Out My Hotel Window

2007-04-27T19:49:00.000-05:00

The area north of my hotel had interesting apartments and condos and had a real sense of community. It had shops and parks. It seemed like a nice place to live. I went jogging through the neighborhood.

Grace Bible Church, Dallas, Texas

2007-04-22T12:40:00.000-05:00

I enjoyed visiting Grace Bible Church in the Dallas area today. One thing the pastor taught about prayer and living our life in faith:

Not how you begin, but that you begin.
Not how you begin, but how you end.

The kind folks were very friendly and welcoming to me at the two services I attended.

They said we should pray with "naked honesty" before God. We have to be at the end of ourselves before we will pray with complete dependence on God. A mustard seed of faith can then go a long way with God's power.

Atlanta Airport Sunset

2007-04-07T08:14:00.000-05:00

Sometimes you get a nice calm moment in your travels when you know why God brought you there.

View At Salt Lake City Airport As You Deplane

2007-03-04T23:21:00.000-06:00

Mountain Just North of Downtown Salt Lake City

2007-03-04T23:06:00.000-06:00

There is a cliff that drops off just north of downtown Salt Lake City. The mountains dwarf the buildings downtown.

Aaron Shot This Photo Of Nelix The Dog

2007-02-27T18:26:00.000-06:00

Aaron turned 12 on Sunday and got a digital camera for his birthday. He shot his dog with it and here is the result.

February Bloom

2007-02-11T16:27:00.000-06:00

This picture was taken today, February 11. I saw a bush in Alabama blooming in January, so I guess there is something blooming every month of the year in Alabama. I didn't think that was possible, but now I have the visual evidence. This flower was in our front yard near the hedge we have by the fence.

The Gift Band - Music With A Message

2007-01-28T13:15:00.000-06:00

Chad's band has a website where you can hear a couple of tracks off their album. Chad is the drummer and he works for the same company I do. He manages the Kansas City branch.

The Gift Band

Family Photo (with snow)

2007-01-12T19:00:00.000-06:00

This is the first photo we got with the whole family in the shot. I guess the snow was just a bonus.

Kitty and Hallie

2007-01-01T09:46:00.000-06:00

This is an earlier photo that was very nice that I had on my homepage, but not on the blog yet.

More Photos Of Our Grand-daughter

2007-01-01T09:43:00.000-06:00

Here is a more recent photo of Chris and Hallie (and Bo the dog).

Don't Give Up Your Search

2006-12-30T09:15:00.000-06:00

I am now 48 years old and have given up many of my idealistic beliefs, but I will not give up on the Lord because of the verses above in the photo and in the blog header. God doesn't want us to give up. Faith requires that we keep going, knowing that the fight isn't over and God will have final say. Also, His goodness is a sure thing we can count on. He wants to take care of us and even our tough times are only there to make us stronger.

Who Moved The Music?

2006-12-29T07:41:00.000-06:00

I moved the YouTube videos to my music page since not everyone who visits this blog likes rock videos. Please visit my music page. It has a couple of extra things on it that are not on this blog, including the YouTube rock videos.

Sieder Music Page

Uncle Ernest

2006-12-28T12:44:00.000-06:00

Isaac (and Aaron - not in photo) were very happy to have their uncle visit for Christmas. He likes to play video games with them and they love that.

Gresham Band Concert

2006-12-20T18:01:00.000-06:00

Aaron performed with the 6th grade band at the Gresham Middle School Christmas Concert last night.

Thought For The Week

2006-12-15T22:46:00.000-06:00

After spending a week in Atlanta it is good to be home. After my last post on worry it seems like that was the temptation of the week. Everything is so uncertain in this world, but worry does not produce anything good. The real question isn't even if anything bad will come or not, but whether God will see you through it. Knowing that he is there makes all the difference. It is better to take a difficult path with God with you than to take any easy path without him.

Worry

2006-12-09T18:51:00.000-06:00

Worry is what we do when we take our eyes off of God and look at ourselves and our circumstances. I mentioned in an earlier post that I was studying the Sermon On The Mount and Jesus tells us not to worry. That is so wonderful that he does not want us to worry. He knows our needs and we don't do him justice by taking our eyes off of his power and glory and dwelling on our own insecurities.

This is easier said than done, but he would not ask us to do it if he did not empower us to get it done. I have had a big problem with worry for many years and I have found that the Bible, when applied correctly, is very freeing in it's power.

Have a wonderful holiday season and please remember why it is so special: because he came to live a perfect life and die for us.

Quotes On Bulletin Board At UA Mathematics Building

2006-11-12T06:05:00.000-06:00

Beware the realm of dragons for thou art crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

Two thirds of the people do not understand fractions and the other half don't really care.

There are 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who do not.

Father and Daughter

2006-11-11T19:06:00.000-06:00

We just got these pictures from Phoenix. Chris and Hallie and a dog named Bo.

Up The Tree

2006-11-05T15:10:00.000-06:00

Scott made it up the big tree in the front yard on Sunday afternoon.

Rough Neighborhood

2006-10-31T20:53:00.000-06:00

I encountered these rough characters on Holloween. The guys dressed up for the Fall Festival at McElwain Baptist Church here in Birmingham.

Happy Birthday

2006-10-25T20:59:00.000-05:00

Happy birthday to Hallie James Carroll, born today to proud parents, Chris and Kitty, and proud grandparents and uncles and great-grandparents.

7 lbs. 3 oz.
20" tall (long)

She has already brought a lot of joy to many people.

Brotherly Love

2006-10-25T20:53:00.000-05:00

Only brothers can have this much disrespect and it still comes off as love.

Seasonal Spook - Scott's Pumpkin Carving

2006-10-14T22:07:00.000-05:00

Scott used his artistic talent to create this pumpkin spook. It starts to feel like autumn when the temperature drops and you see these things in the yard along with some fallen leaves.

Postcard from 1918

2006-10-09T19:22:00.000-05:00

This is a postcard from my grandmother to her sister she sent in 1918. My grandfather probably developed this photo onto a postcard. He did his own developing in those days. My great-grandfather, Charles Nahrung, is the man on the right and the man on the left is my grandfather, Ernst Sieder. The woman standing in the center is my grandmother, Esther Nahrung Sieder. I believe my aunt is in the photo somewhere, but my father was not born until 1921.

Thanks to Lila Engelhardt for this image. Her husband, Kenneth,is the grandson of my grandmother's sister Minna "Minnie" Nahrung Engelhardt.

Note the address on the post card is name, city and state. There is no address and no zip code and it got there in those days.

If You Are On Your Back - Look Up

2006-10-01T20:33:00.000-05:00

Some things get missed in our normal routine, but sometimes God allows us to get put on our back so we can look up and see something we would have otherwise missed. In this case the boys were tired and stopped to rest on a hill. They spotted a spider web high up in the trees that they would not have noticed if they were just walking through.

You Too Can Be Unshackled

2006-09-29T21:17:00.000-05:00

Listen To Unshackled

This is the longest running radio show in the world.

Even more importantly it is documentation of the true stories of how people have been released from the very real chains that bind them.

The combination of the scriptures and a person's personal testimony of what the Lord has done in their life is very powerful in convincing others of the spiritual realities involved here.

You can listen to the archive programs here. This is powerful stuff.

Time Flies

2006-09-27T21:10:00.000-05:00

The hands on the watch go round and round and I know I am trying again to be the master of the obvious, but we cannot stop time and it only goes forward, not backward. When our time is up we return to dust, but Solomon says the spirit within us returns to God who gave it.

Prepare to meet your maker. I have to - you have to.

One time I was becoming serious and philosophical on another site and got a comment from a reader who said I had a "Yoda thing going on." I know it is possible to take yourself too seriously, but I am not taking myself seriously, I am taking life and death seriously. One of my favorite Bob Dylan quotes is when he says, "I live in another world, where life and death are memorized." That's how I feel. I have looked at all of this and it is serious business.

I know there is a time to laugh and have fun and I try to do that, but we have one entire lifetime to realize we need God and we must come to him during that one life we have.

Don't come to the end of your life without searching for God.

I Thought I Was Still Alive

2006-09-11T20:32:00.000-05:00

I found my tombstone while surfing the web. It's not every day you can find a tombstone with your name on it. As far as I know, I am not related to this Carl Sieder.

Sheboygan Falls, WI Cemetery

Fear Not - You Are Worth More Than Many Sparrows - Five Were Sold For Two Cents Back Then

2006-09-09T23:18:00.000-05:00

Not one of them falls to the earth without our Father knowing. All the hairs of your head are numbered. Read Luke chapter 12 where Jesus says to make his kingdom our top priority and all of our other needs will be supplied as well.

Luke Chapter 12 NIV;

Sermon Notes - The Stuff Of Legend

2006-09-04T08:19:00.000-05:00

Our pastor, Thad Blount, "went to meddlin'" in his sermon Sunday. My only thought after his sermon was over was "bulls-eye."

I have thought that we are living in the Laodicean Age. (The Laodicean church was rich and increased with goods and did not need anything, it thought, but Christ's assessment was that it was really pitiful, poor, blind and naked. It was also called lukewarm.) Francis Schaeffer called our times the Age of Personal Peace and Affluence. Whatever you want to call it, it is real and it is hurting the cause of Christ. I am not pointing my finger at anyone else. I see this in my own life.

My ideal for our generation is to take the gospel to the Islamic world, which means being ready to die for the gospel. If their suicide bombers are ready to kill others and themselves for their cause, shouldn't we be willing to die for our cause (which is to offer the Islamic world salvation through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ). Our cause is different from theirs, but more importantly, our God is stronger. A stonger God demands a stronger faith in Him.

We would carry the love of Christ to them instead of bombs. We will win that war.

THERE AIN'T NO LOVE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Warehouse Blues

2006-08-23T19:33:00.000-05:00

Something I don't completely understand is why people want to stay on in a warehouse job even though they know the job will be ending and they must find something else.

I would submit to you that one reason is that we have tried very hard to build a family feel into our work and we have really tried to care about each other.

We felt like we had grown the business to the size where it would continue on for years and we wanted people who would come and stay for a while to be part of the team.

I think that we will all feel like we were part of a successful team even though they're going to shut us down this fall. We know we did the best we could and we didn't fail at what we did. We grew the business and made money.

My true feeling is that they are taking a perfectly good horse out back of the barn and shooting it.

I won't let my emotions run away with this. I know God has a reason for this that I don't fully understand now. I will trust Him that all will work out for the best in the end.

Sunset Today

2006-08-19T20:04:00.000-05:00

This was taken today, August 19, in Irondale, Alabama. It is appropriate as I found out this week that the branch I opened in town eleven years ago is going to be closed down. It is the sunset on eleven years of hard work.

I have no illusions about work and that the results are in God's hands. We can't do anything that will last on our own. Only God and eternity will show the true value of things. Everything will be burned up eventually.

Store up treasure in heaven where moth and rust do not corrupt and thieves do not break in and steal.

Manipulation One

2006-08-19T19:54:00.000-05:00

I fully realize that if I claimed to have done this piece of strange art in a fit of drunken rage it would be an all time classic and I would have an instant reputation in the art world as a genius and a tortured soul.

I did, however, shoot this photo on the way home from church with my youngest son helping me. I then manipulated the image on the computer to come up with this. I originally called it Manna or "what is it?"

Ernest and Jake

2006-08-13T14:14:00.000-05:00

My brother, Ernest, had a very close relationship with our dog, Jake. Jake would obey him no matter what. He even sat perfectly still while my brother dumped snow on him. They picked on each other. One time Jake got my brother's cocount cream pie before my brother could lick the wrapper.

Mike and Jeff on Trowbridge Street - Allegan, MI

2006-08-13T14:08:00.000-05:00

We lived on bikes when we were teenagers. We rode everywhere. This is Mike and Jeff on Trowbridge Street in Allegan, Michigan. It was a five block ride from my house to downtown. It was several miles from our neighborhood to where Jeff lived, but even that didn't take too long to ride.

Speaking Of Laughter

2006-08-13T08:14:00.000-05:00

This is another Mike from my neighborhood. His back yard was near our back yard. He would laugh and it would make everyone else want to laugh, too.

My brother used to play with our dog, Jake, by putting on work gloves and telling him "attack!" One day Mike's dad was raking leaves in his back yard and our dog went over and kept trying to attack his work gloves while he was raking and he didn't understand why. He asked Mike, "What's wrong with Sieder's dog?"

Photo Booth Incident

2006-08-12T11:54:00.000-05:00

This famous incident took place at the Allegan County Fair in 1975. My good friend Mike went in the photo booth at the arcade tent and was reading the directions when the first flash went off. He then posed with his equally famous camouflaged hat. I was fortunate enough to be nearby when Mike came out of the booth with the pictures. My other friend, also named Mike, and I laughed until it hurt. All of the guys in our neighborhood loved to laugh and make each other laugh. I somehow ended up with this sequence of pictures and am happy to have them, but thought it might be time I shared them again.

Thanks for the fun guys.

New Bob Dylan Album: Modern Times

2006-08-08T21:09:00.000-05:00

Could it be the third installment in a trilogy beginning with Time Out Of Mind and Love and Theft? An August release date is scheduled.

Modern Times: the new Bob Dylan Album (Info)

Fishing in a Stream

2006-07-31T20:36:00.000-05:00

This fisherman was fishing in the Clinch River and had to abandon his efforts soon after this picture was taken due to the river rising rapidly from the dam upriver releasing quite a bit of water.

Flower near Clinch River

2006-07-30T13:45:00.000-05:00

This is another flower that appears to have just grown up on its own with no gardener except God. It was along the Clinch River in Tennessee.

Always In His Sight

2006-07-26T20:55:00.000-05:00

God keeps track of his children. Nothing can befall us that he does not allow for some reason and he knows how it will fit into his plan. I have had thoughts about floating out in the middle of the ocean and perishing all alone, but that could never happen.

What does it mean to be named Sieder?

2006-07-15T11:21:00.000-05:00

Ecclesiastes says that everything is meaningless and I always wondered how far you could take that thought. The photo above is of a Jewish boy killed in WWII named Josef Sieder. The link below tells about an Islamist terrorist with the name Mohammed Sieder who was killed in Hevron. I guess the Sieder name is on both sides of the Jewish / Islamic fighting. As far as I know, my ancestors were Christians from Germany and were not Jewish or Islamic.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=48063

My father was a U.S. Marine in WWII. There was a German U-Boat captain in WWII named Heinz Sieder (U-984) who was virtually the same age as my father who died in his U-Boat near the end of the war. I guess there were Sieders on both sides of the war.
http://uboat.net/men/sieder.htm

I was taught to be proud of my name and family heritage, but you can see that my last name is a mixed bag in history. "What counts is a new creation." Everything "under the sun" ends up being meaningless. It is only by letting God make a new creation in us that true meaning ever comes our way.

Psalm 37

2006-07-14T20:22:00.000-05:00

Words to live by and promises to give you encouragement - who could ask for more?

Some say that Biblical illiteracy is one of the most serious problems of our day. They are probably correct. Technology demands our attention, but we can still read or listen to Scriptures. There is nothing in the world like God's word to heal and give life.

Psalm 37 was written by a famous guy who killed a giant with a sling. I know I would like to know his take on life. Talk about "No Fear" - his confidence wasn't in himself, but the superiority of his God.

Sieder (Boiler)

2006-06-27T20:19:00.000-05:00

Like many things in life, they no longer have their original meaning. The name Sieder does have a meaning, even though I was told by a man from Switzerland who knew German that it had no meaning in German.

It turns out to be a trade from the middle ages. Sieders boiled things in pans to get salt out of them. Salt was very valuable to cure meats since there was no refrigeration. They were known as salzsieders. The only current trade that uses the term "sieder" in it is seifensieder, or soap maker. At one time there were zuckersiedermeisters who boiled milk to get sugar out of it as well.

50th Anniversary Photo

2006-06-18T09:25:00.000-05:00

Fifty years of marriage in an era where the average marriage lasts a little more than four years is something that has to be celebrated. This was taken in 2002 and this year they celebrated their 54th wedding anniversary. The fact that the Lord is so important to each of them has helped them. As I quoted in the article If God Created Love, Did He Make It For Everyone? God is the source of all love and all we can do is reflect Him.

They have indeed reflected God's love to me and it is much easier to envision God when you can see his reflection every day growing up.

Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church- for we are members of his body. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." This is a profound mystery-but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. Eph 5:22-33 NIV

My Dad

2006-06-18T09:11:00.000-05:00

This is my father at a pro football game in the eighties. He had no idea I was going to take this picture and I caught him off guard with a great smile. He is one of the most pleasant people I have ever known and along with my mom, made up a parenting team that my brother has said was such that we would never have wished to be brought up anywhere else.

Father's Day

2006-06-18T09:03:00.000-05:00

This is probably a common Father's Day scene around the world. Most dads would like to rest a little bit at least some time on Father's Day.

This photo is actually of me, but it reminds me of my father as it was taken at the time of my parent's 50th wedding anniversary a few years ago. My parents have now been married 54 years and my dad, at 85 years old, has trouble making it to church. He still goes most Sundays with my mom helping him.

Decision Making By Bottle Caps

2006-06-15T20:00:00.000-05:00

I could make important decisions in my life based on Sobe bottle cap messages. I don't want to make decisions that way and so I posted the outline from the book Decision Making By The Book on this blog and it gives much better reasons for making good decisions.

Good Advice

2006-06-11T22:58:00.000-05:00

This scene is from the Birmingham Zoo. The lifeguards look a little scary.

This is an old photo I scanned into the computer. It was taken near St. Petersburg Beach.

Biblical Decision Making Process

2006-06-10T07:03:00.000-05:00

1. Know the Scriptures and have a spiritual relationship with God
a. Make decisions in submission to God’s sovereign will.
b. Make decisions in submission to God’s moral will.
2. Make love and concern for the good of others the motive.
3. Focus on strengths and gifts.
a. Work on your weaknesses, but make decisions based on your strengths
b. Consider other people’s strengths and weaknesses as well
4. Consider the circumstances, but don’t be mastered by them.
5. Seek counsel in three areas:
a. Biblical counsel
b. Experienced counsel
c. Best available counsel
6. General principles
a. Avoid moods
b. Separate facts from problems
c. Commit to “go for it” if you make a directional decision
d. Set a time limit
7. Danger zones
a. Not knowing where you are going
b. Answering the wrong question
c. Be sure of what you don’t know
d. Avoiding disagreement
e. Using yesterday’s battle plans
f. Avoid group-think
g. Adjust your decision if more becomes known
h. List pros and cons – being systematic is a better method than pure intuition

from the book Decision Making By The Book by Haddon W. Robinson

Available from Discovery House Publishers

Good Stuff

2006-06-03T08:50:00.000-05:00

Check this stuff out if you ever get a chance:

1) The Alarm, especially the songs The Day the Ravens Left the Tower and How the Mighty Fall.
2) The Clash, Combat Rock - they have the feel of a modern day prophet in their social criticism and a razor-like sharpness in their look at what might happen to the human race. Their unfortunate conclusion after looking at all the problems is that we need drugs just to cope. I did like their line, "I'm not the only one of the caped crusader fan club, watching the sky for mankind's friend." We need a Savior and yes, the world really is that bad.
3) The Seventy Sevens (77's) - a Christian band with a great deal of talent who have been around a long time and should have made it big on secular radio on talent alone. The only problem is they are too diverse and can play too many styles of music well and were too difficult to categorize. They can really make you think.
4) Anything by Bob Dylan and T-Bone Burnett, but understand that they target the world at large with their message and cover adult subjects. Both have huge reputations in the music industry and their contribution to modern music cannot be overstated. They both want to make you think more than anything else. Both will point you toward God. Now if you only heard early Bob Dylan music you might not get that impression, but he has certainly pointed to God since the late seventies, fairly consistently.
5) Kansas combines classical music with rock to create what I like to call "enchanted forest music." Both Leftoverture and Point of Know Return are rock music classics, but they have many other well thought out, concept albums.
6) U2 is arguably the greatest rock band in the world. Many people complain that they don't understand U2, but they obviously connect with people on a very deep level. The Joshua Tree album has been called a proper response of a Christian to the world as it is, full of injustice and yet there is hope, just like a tree that flourishes in the desert.

I hope it becomes clear that God has enlisted some very significant artists to point people in his direction. There are also other artists who are just being honest with themselves who also point people in a different direction than they have been traveling in, even though they don't have the answer. I have found these artists to be worthwhile. There are many artists who are a waste of time.

Canadian Sunset

2006-05-18T20:49:00.000-05:00

This was one of the most peaceful settings I have ever been in. This is the Niagara River between Lake Erie and Niagara Falls. It was so calm and the entire world seemed to slow down and just enjoy the moment.

Proof Through The Night

2006-04-27T21:45:00.000-05:00

T-Bone Burnett won songwriter of the year in the critics poll in Rolling Stone Magazine in the eighties for his album, Proof Through The Night. Two of the most notable lyrics follow here:

PRESSURE

I was once obsessed with being cool being no one's fool
Breaking every rule winning every duel
I tried to hide behind my pride and so I lied
Even when I told the truth
And it's a lot of pressure
From behind

There are those who loom somewhere in doom and they presume
To tell you what to do - they would run your life for you
And at times they've made me so afraid that I was plagued
By doubt and grew confused
And it's a lot of pressure
From all sides

But I will hold on to this hope
That life is not some gruesome joke
That love is not some wretched lie
Oh! How I cry! Ay Ay Ay

I can't ask you to measure whether you can weather
This storm that beats the shore by some means of keeping score
Cause filled with dread I've heard it said "Only the dead
Have seen the end of war"
And it's a lot of pressure
From below

SHUT IT TIGHT

I find it hard sometimes to say the way that I feel
I do the very things I hate to do
I act like a child and I'm afraid of what is real
And so I try to cover up the truth

I stumble like a drunk along this crazy path I walk
I have a hundred thousand questions too
I'll go to any length to prove that nothing is my fault
Then later on I will deny the proof

I don't like to win but then again I hate to lose
And in between is something I can't stand
I don't care what you think and I hope that you approve
I am just an ordinary man

Sometimes I want to stop and crawl back into the womb
And sometimes I cannot tell wrong from right
But I ain't gonna quit until I'm laid in my tomb
And even then they better shut it tight

http://www.tboneburnett.com/

Buster the Cat

2006-04-22T21:40:00.000-05:00

Here is a photo of Buster the Cat on a better day for him.

Here by popular demand: Buster the Cat

2006-04-22T21:21:00.000-05:00

There is no point to this photo, spiritual or otherwise. It is just our neighborhood cat, Buster, who is normally a tough guy of a cat, kind of like a biker cat, but here he is humbled by a loving little boy who coaxed him into a rather silly position.

He used to be very jumpy like he was used to running for his life in the neighborhood and it took a while for him to trust us.

If God Created Love, Did He Make It For Everyone?

2006-04-22T07:18:00.000-05:00

If God created love, did he make it for everyone?
So many people feel unloved. The question above gets asked continually as it was by the rock group Cold on their recent album A Different Kind Of Pain. (http://www.coldonline.com/)
The answer that God gives to this is both reassuring and shocking:
God did not create love. G o d i s l o v e !
"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother. "
1 John 4:7-21 NIV
Nobody has love in himself except God and all those who are capable of love get that capability from God alone.
We have to be the recipient of God's love given through his Son in order to be able to love. You can't give something you haven't received, but perfect love drives out fear and once you know that love, you know that nothing can touch you or harm you. Read Romans chapter 8 to confirm this.
Did He make it for everyone? He didn't make it - He is it. Know Him, know love.

Springs of Living Water

2006-04-12T21:20:00.000-05:00

The perpetual motion machine is a myth.

The Fountain of Youth proved to be beyond the reach of DeSoto.

A spring that will never run dry? Maybe.

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice,

"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

On hearing his words, some of the people said, "Surely
this man is the Prophet." John 7:37-40 NIV

When they said he was "the Prophet," they meant the prophet who was to come one day that would be like Moses. As Moses hit the rock in the desert and streams of water came out, so this Prophet has abundant water to give to the people.

Alabama Wildflowers

2006-04-11T21:26:00.000-05:00

If this is how God clothes the plants in the field that are here today and gone tomorrow, how much more will he clothe you and take care of you?

Do not worry.

More Than A Map

2006-04-08T10:20:00.000-05:00

Do you know where this is?

This is Allegan County, Michigan.

This is where I grew up from age 13 to 21.

I rode my bicycle from Allegan to Fennville and back. I rode it from Allegan to Lake Michigan and my parents picked me up in the car. I rode with my brother, Ernest, around the loop from Allegan to Martin and then back through Plainwell and Otsego.

I went swimming in the lakes and hiked the trails. This isn't just a map to me.

What about you? When you read the Bible is it somewhere you have lived or does it seem like a foreign place to you? You have to spend time there (live there) to know it well and then it becomes more than a map to you.

What Counts

2006-04-08T08:23:00.000-05:00

A voice says, "Cry out."And I said, "What shall I cry?"

"All men are like grass,and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever."
Isaiah 40:6-8 NIV

We are not much different from a plant that is here today and gone tomorrow.

Is there anything that will last? Can we really do anything that will leave a legacy?

There may be no more important question than this.

We cannot leave any kind of legacy on our own. We just don't have the power or wisdom.

God does have something to say about this, however.

John 6:62-63
The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
NIV

1 Cor 7:19
Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God's commands is what counts.
NIV

Gal 5:6
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
NIV

Gal 6:15-16
Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation.
NIV

Circumcision represents something we do in our own strength, like some good work we think will make us good enough to please God on our own. God is not pleased with that attitude. He will change us on the inside if we let him and becoming a new creation through God's Spirit is often referred to as being circumcised in our hearts by God. He does the good work in us.

It takes something eternal from God (His Word) to create a new person in us who is spiritually alive in order to bring about eternal life in us. This truly counts forever.

The Wall

2006-03-31T21:36:00.000-06:00

Both Kansas and Pink Floyd had famous art-rock albums or songs about running into a very real wall. A wall can impede you on your journey; it can keep others away from you or keep you away from God.

This barrier is so real on one's spiritual journey that getting past it becomes a matter of life and death.

THE WALL

I'm woven in a fantasy I can't believe the things I see
The path that I have chose now has led me to a wall and with each passing day I feel a little more like something dear was lost
It rises now before me
The dark and silent barrier between
All I am and all that I would ever want to be
It's just a travesty
Towering, marking off the boundaries my spirit would erase
To pass beyond is what I seek I fear that I may be too weak
And those are few who've seen it through
To glimpse the other side
The promised land is waiting
Like a maiden that is soon to be a bride
The moment is a masterpiece
The weight of indecision in the air
Standing there
Symbol and the sum of all that's me
It's just a travesty
Towering, blocking out the light and blinding me
I wanna see
Gold and diamonds cast your spell
It's not for me I know it well
The riches that I seek are waiting on the other side
There's more that I can measure with the treasures of the love that I can find
And though it's always been with me I must tear down the wall and let it be
All I am and all that I was ever meant to be
In harmony
Shining True
And smiling back at all who wait to cross
There is no loss
- Kansas - The Wall

When I want your opinion I'll beat it out of you.

2006-03-31T21:14:00.000-06:00

Criticising others is often not taken well by those on the receiving end.

This gorilla lives at the Birmingham Zoo.

Most of us who walked by his display area kept relatively quiet as he seemed to have a perpetual look of being in a bad mood on his face.

Integrity

2006-03-31T20:34:00.000-06:00

It has been said that what you do when no one is watching shows your integrity. We know that God is always watching, but often others are as well. I have often been surprised how observant some people are. They notice things that I don't see. Being genuine is the only way to pass this type of test. You don't have to be perfect, but you need to truly be what you are supposed to be.

Selection of Values

2006-03-26T06:54:00.000-06:00

Selection of Values

But it does appear that a certain dullness of mind is almost an essential quality, if not for every public man, at least for everyone who is seriously interested in making money.
- Dostoyevsky

And indeed, once he has passed his examinations and served his time for thirty-five years, who in our country can fail to become a general eventually, and manage to pile up a tidy sum in the bank? This is how a Russian achieves almost effortlessly the reputation of being a capable and practical man. In fact, not to become a general is possible here only for an original man; in other words, a restless and searching man . . .
- Dostoyevsky

They seemed to have flung away all the golden grain of practical wisdom, which they had enjoyed so many opportunities of harvesting, and most carefully to have stored their memories with the husks. They spoke with far more interest and unction of their morning’s breakfast, or yesterday’s, today’s, or tomorrow’s dinner than of the shipwreck of forty or fifty years ago, and all the world’s wonders which they had witnessed with their youthful eyes. – Nathaniel Hawthorne

Foolish beyond measure is therefore the Christian who lives his life merely for the beautification of the dung hills of earth or hoped-for rewards from the condemned throngs of elegant, sinful men and women. How tragic is any life which merely polishes the brass on the sinking ship of earth and prepares not itself for the rulership of eternity. How pathetic is the naïve saint who chafes at the absence of earthly reward or human acclaim, which things are filthy rags compared to the honors and eternal rewards of heaven. Is it not time for the church to wake up to these facts? – Dave Breese

You can make a name for yourself; you can hear those tires squeal. You can be known as the most beautiful woman who ever crawled across cut glass to make a deal. – Bob Dylan

Of course it is possible to try not to get involved in man’s dilemma; but the only way not to get involved in the dilemma of man is by being young enough, well enough, having money enough, and being egotistic enough to care nothing about other human beings. – Francis Schaeffer

But the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands. – Isaiah 32:8

People, I know some of you take this class seriously. – Dr. Portfleet

I saw thousands who could have overcome the darkness. For the love of a lousy buck I watched them die. – Bob Dylan

Charlie don’t surf. – The Clash

Don’t follow leaders, watch parking meters. – Bob Dylan

Time can turn on you like a corkscrew. – T-Bone Burnett

Men at ease have contempt for misfortune as the fate of those whose feet are slipping. – Job

At a certain point you can only die. – Bruce Cockburn

What I got ain’t painful; it’s just bound to kill me dead. – Bob Dylan

Twenty-two thousand days, it’s all we’ve got; it’s not a lot, twenty-two thousand days. – The Moody Blues

Castles made of sand fall into the sea, eventually. – Jimi Hendrix

And the waves roll on the shore like a squadron of F-16’s. – Bruce Cockburn

They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. - Jeremiah

Some world-views are spacious, and some are merely spaced. – Rush

What we want and what we need has been confused. – REM

Well the deputy walks on hard nails and the preacher rides a mount, but nothing really matters much, it’s doom alone that counts. And the one-eyed undertaker, he blows a futile horn. – Bob Dylan

Do I understand your question, man, “Is it hopeless and forlorn?” – Bob Dylan

But, I live in another world, where life and death are memorized. Where the earth is strung with lover’s pearls, but all I see are dark eyes. – Bob Dylan

They say it's mostly vanity that writes the plays we act, they tell me that's what everybody knows. There's no such thing as sanity, and that's the sanest fact. And that's the way the story goes. - Mark Knopfler

Don't hate nothing at all except hatred. - Bob Dylan

Short Stretch of Tracks

2006-03-25T09:02:00.000-06:00

In the history of the world, our lives are about as long as this piece of track compared to the entire journey. It is impossible to see how this fits into the bigger picture without a larger map.

Only God can see the whole thing and only he can give us a proper perspective on the bigger picture. Some things we are unable to see and we must trust the map maker that the tracks go the right way.

We cannot see how what we do makes any difference, but one section of the track missing on the long run could be disasterous.

Round and Round

2006-03-25T08:20:00.000-06:00

"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."

What does man gain from all his
labor at which he toils under the sun?
Generations come and generations go,
but the earth remains forever.

The sun rises and the sun sets,
and hurries back to where it rises.
The wind blows to the south and turns to the north;
round and round it goes, ever
returning on its course.

All streams flow into the sea,
yet the sea is never full.
To the place the streams come from,
there they return again.

All things are wearisome,
more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of seeing,
nor the ear its fill of hearing.

What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.

Is there anything of which one
can say, "Look! This is something new"?
It was here already, long ago;
it was here before our time.

There is no remembrance of men of
old, and even those who are yet to come
will not be remembered by
those who follow.
Ecclesiastes 1:2-11 NIV

Georgia's Stone Mountain

2006-03-24T10:01:00.000-06:00

People want to make monuments to remember from generation to generation what makes up their history.

These are heros of the Confederacy: Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson.

Who are your heroes? Who they are says a lot about you and your values.

We all have people we look up to and emulate. This can be very good as long as we have a worthy role model. We are all let down by our heroes at one time or another and that is to be expected, given human nature. There is only one hero who will never disappoint you. The more you learn about him, the more you realize how "together" he was in every way. He was always in control, he did not have petty motivations, he showed consistent compassion and he is worthy of molding your life to conform to his model.

He was never bested in public debate over the important issues he confronted. He was attractive as a techer and leader and developed a large following. He spent a great deal of time alone with God in private, even though he had a busy schedule. He developed those around him to become great leaders. He put it all on the line for a good cause. And, most of all, he won big. He could not be defeated, no matter how great the odds against him.

Dallas Sky

2006-03-21T08:22:00.000-06:00

Having recently been in Dallas for our company's annual conference, I was impressed by the city and was awed again by how large the world is and how many people are in it.

Only a God who is infinite could care and have the capacity to know all of our problems and concerns. You can feel really alone in a big city.

How big is God?

He is so big that he cares about my concerns in spite of how large the world is and he is not overwhelmed by the volume of needs out there.

"Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll - are they not in your record?" - Psalm 56:8 NIV

"The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken. In that day they will say, 'Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation'" - Isaiah 25:8-9 NIV

Always Be Alert

2006-03-20T20:41:00.000-06:00

This meerkat at the Nashville Zoo is very alert. He has to be. We need to also be alert because we have an adversary who seeks to harm us on a regular basis.

"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings." - 1 Peter 5:8-9 NIV

Tannehill State Historical Park

2006-03-20T20:05:00.000-06:00

This is an old building at Tennehill State Historical Park just outside of Birmingham, Alabama

You can get the feel of being in the past from this photo.

Springville Road Community Church, where my family attends church, often has outings at this park.

The first time I went there with my son, Aaron, we saw numerous deer crossing a trail.

Practical Outline For Taking Up Your Cross Daily

2006-03-20T07:43:00.000-06:00

Five Ways to Kill Yourself

A short Bible study on destroying our old sin nature

Originally presented as a sermon: Five Ways to Kill Your Old Man
By Rev. Herman Sieder

1 John 2:15-17

Deal Completely With Sin
Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11)
Elijah (James 5:16-18)
If we confess our sins (1 John 1:8-10)
Jesus (Luke 14:31) Count the cost
Do not let sin fester.

Never Own Anything
Isaac (Genesis 26:19-24)
Elijah and the widow (1 Kings 17:7ff)
Jesus (Luke 12:32-34)
We are stewards of what God has given us.

Never Defend Yourself
Jesus (Mark 15:3-5) He did not open his mouth
Paul (2 Corinthians 10:1-12:21)
Jesus (Matthew 5:38-42) Go two miles
Hezekiah (Isaiah 37:36) 185,000 Assyrians
Let God defend you.

Do Not Speak Evil of Others
False teachers slander others (Jude 8-10)
Go personally first (Matthew 18:15-17)
Jesus (Mathew 7:1-6) You will be judged with the measure you use
Build others up.

Do Not Accept Glory
Herod (Acts 12:19b-23)
Gahazi (2 Kings 5:15ff, esp. v. 26)
Jesus (Luke 17:7) We are unworthy
Give God the glory.

Romans 8

The Problem Stated

2006-02-18T15:19:00.000-06:00

While Proverbs purports to show the rules of wisdom and godliness Ecclesiastes seems to present the exceptions to the rules. On a deeper level, however, Ecclesiastes deals with the world as it is. The rules presented in Proverbs are all true, but some of the justice will not be seen in this life, it will have to wait for eternity. Also, mankind is in real trouble in this world.

"Mankind’s problem is further aggravated by the contrast between the brevity of life and the apparent permanence of the earthly realm (cf. Ps. 90:4f., where man is as effective as a midnight watch, as energetic as sleep, as enduring as grass). Thus the inherent vanity of the earthly realm gives no hope of change. Goes…comes…remains represent Hebrew participles and imply continuity of action, ‘is continually going…coming…remaining’. For ever means that ‘under the sun’ there is no conceivable end to the problem of earthly futility."[1] (italics in the original)

"Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day to the last syllable of recorded time; and all our yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."[2]

It sometimes seems that this troubled earth will continue forever in this miserable state. The author of Ecclesiastes personally sorted through the activities man is able to do “under the sun” and came to some definite conclusions. One may wish to question why he should involve himself in some of these activities, but

"The morality of his project is not under consideration, for the secular man is being shown the failure of his life-style, on its own premises."[3] (italics in the original)

He found no meaning in anything he tried. The only way meaning can be derived is from God, who is outside of creation, giving us an external vantage point not under the sun. Ronald Mayers, a professor at Cornerstone University, once quoted G. E. Moore, “The ought cannot be derived from the is.”[4] (italics in original) Simply observing creation will never provide the information we need. Divine revelation transcending this realm is an absolute necessity, and so, God provided Holy Scripture.

During the questioning of our value systems in America in the 1960’s Bob Dylan was said to be a leading voice. He had two main characters he constantly sang about in his songs, and he admitted that he was actually both of those characters. He was the Joker, who questioned all reasoning (due to a lack of transcendent perspective), and he was the Thief, who wanted to prove to everyone that they really owned and could own nothing (due to death as the great eraser). This viewpoint is really very accurate when life is looked at without an eternal perspective. Later, Dylan began to take a much closer look at Christianity and the Bible as well as Judaism as he searched for a higher perspective on life. Solomon agrees with the generally insane nature of this world:

"This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of men, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead. Anyone who is among the living has hope –even a live dog is better off than a dead lion."[5]

Solomon uses the term “meaningless” over thirty times in Ecclesiastes. He begins with the statement:
"Meaningless! Meaningless! Says the teacher.
Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."[6]
Throw everything out and start over. His long list of meaningless activities includes: pleasure, toil, advancement, oppression, injustice, riches, long life, esteem, fine quality work, knowledge and even wisdom itself which ends in meaninglessness. All of these things are “under the sun” and said to be vain. The twin villains of death and decay erase everything.

Jesus understood this completely. He owned practically nothing and had no place to regularly put his head (no home). He did not concern Himself with daily provisions or a career. He must have spent time working (as a carpenter), which is required by scripture, even though He did not gain anything that lasts as a result of His labors. No furniture made by Him has survived. Ultimately, His work was to do the will of His Father. Effectively, He avoided everything that Solomon listed as meaningless.

Howard Hendricks has said that there are only two things you can take out of this world, God's word and people, so he devoted his life to building God's word into people.

[1]Eaton, Michael A., Ecclesiastes: An Introduction and Commentary, Downers Grove, Illinois, Inter-Varsity Press, 1983. , p. 58.
[2] MacBeth, William Shakespeare.
[3] Eaton, p. 68.
[4] Mayers, Ronald B., Religious Ministry in a Transcendentless Culture, Washington, D. C., University Press of America, 1980, p. 44.
[5] New International Version, Ecclesiastes 9:3-4.
[6] New International Version, Ecclesiastes 1:2.