In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
(Genesis 1:1 -- ESV)

"So what is the truth about the Crusades?  Scholars are still working some of that out.  But much can already be said with certainty.  For starters, the Crusades to the East were in every way defensive wars.  They were a direct response to Muslim aggression—an attempt to turn back or defend against Muslim

conquests of Christian lands."

(Thomas F. Madden)

 

See also . . . http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/mayweb-only/52.0.html

 

 

Now with the coming of our Savior Christ Jesus, he has revealed it.  Christ has destroyed death, and through the Good News he has brought eternal life into full view.
(2 Timothy 1:10 -- GW)

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
(Psalm 100:4 -- NIV)

If we say, “We have never sinned,” we turn God into a liar and his Word is not in us.
(1 John 1:10 -- GW)

You alone created my inner being.
You knitted me together inside my mother.
¹⁴ I will give thanks to you because I have been so amazingly and miraculously made.
        Your works are miraculous, and my soul is fully aware of this.
¹⁵ My bones were not hidden from you
    when I was being made in secret,
    when I was being skillfully woven in an underground workshop.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw me when I was still an unborn child.
    Every day of my life was recorded in your book
        before one of them had taken place.

(Psalm 139:13-16 -- GW)

My son, those who love to do wrong will try to trick you.  Don’t listen to them.
(Proverbs 1:10 -- ERV)

I was glad when they said to me, “Let’s go to the house of the Lord.”

(Psalm 122:1 -- GW)

God named the dry land earth.  The water which came together he named sea.  God saw that it was good.
(Genesis 1:10 -- GW)

1. Now the light has gone away;
Father, listen while I pray,
Asking Thee to watch and keep
And to send me quiet sleep.

2. Jesus, Savior, wash away
All that has been wrong today;
Help me every day to be
Good and gentle, more like Thee.

3. Let my near and dear ones be
Always near and dear to Thee.
Oh, bring me and all I love
To Thy happy home above.

4. Now my evening praise I give;
Thou didst die that I might live.
All my blessings come from The;
Oh, how good Thou art to me!

5. Thou, my best and kindest Friend,
Thou wilt love me to the end.
Let me love Thee more and more,
Always better than before.

(by Frances R. Havergal)

“My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways,” declares the Lord.

(Isaiah 55:8 -- GW)

This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

(Psalm 118:24 -- ESV)

He is the one who sends snow like wool and scatters frost like ashes.

(Psalm 147:16 -- GW)

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You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, ⁴⁰ yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

(John 5:39-40 -- ESV)

Whoever controls his mouth protects his own life.  Whoever has a big mouth comes to ruin.

(Proverbs 13:3 -- GW)

Whatever happens, give thanks, because it is God’s will in Christ Jesus that you do this.

(1 Thessalonians 5:18 -- GW)

John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
(Mark 1:4 -- ESV)


And Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."
(Acts 2:38 -- ESV)

 Jesus deserves more praise than Moses in the same way that the builder of a house is praised more than the house. ⁴ After all, every house has a builder, but the builder of everything is God.

(Hebrews 3:3-4 -- GW)

The chief priests gathered together with the leaders and agreed on a plan.  They gave the soldiers a large amount of money ¹³ and told them to say that Jesus’ disciples had come at night and had stolen his body while they were sleeping. ¹⁴ They added, “If the governor hears about it, we’ll take care of it, and you’ll have nothing to worry about.”

(Matthew 28:12-14 -- GW)

Everything has its own time, and there is a specific time for every activity under heaven:

² a time to be born and
a time to die,
a time to plant and
a time to pull out what was planted,
³ a time to kill and
a time to heal,
a time to tear down and
a time to build up,
⁴ a time to cry and
a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and
a time to dance,
⁵ a time to scatter stones and
a time to gather them,
a time to hug and
a time to stop hugging,
⁶ a time to start looking and
a time to stop looking,
a time to keep and
a time to throw away,
⁷ a time to tear apart and
a time to sew together,
a time to keep quiet and
a time to speak out,
⁸ a time to love and
a time to hate,
a time for war and
a time for peace.

 

(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 -- GW)

 

 

As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me.  Night is coming, when no one can work.

(John 9:4 -- NIV)

Happy Monday . . .

www.StevertS.com

We saw the Lutheran Hour float last Monday on the Hallmark Channel, and DVRd the NBC and ABC coverage.  Hallmark did a good job of reporting on the float and NBC did okay (except for Al Roker quoting the inscription on the bells, "Grace Above, Faith Above, and Scripture Above," instead of the actual inscriptions shown on the screen, "Grace Alone, Faith Alone, and Scripture Alone" from Martin Luther.  ABC chose not to show the float and instead went to a video of how the Netflix float was made.  Is not reporting the news the same as reporting fake news? 

He is the one who sends his promise throughout the earth.  His word travels with great speed. ¹⁶ He is the one who sends snow like wool and scatters frost like ashes.
(Psalm 147:15-16 -- GW)

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews?  For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

(Matthew 2:1-2 -- ESV)

God’s breath produces ice,
            and the seas freeze over.
¹¹         Yes, he loads the thick clouds with moisture
            and scatters his lightning from the clouds.

(Job 37:10-11 -- GW)

In spite of that, he commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of heaven.  ²⁴ He rained manna down on them to eat and gave them grain from heaven.  ²⁵ Humans ate the bread of the mighty ones, and God sent them plenty of food.


(Psalm 78:23-25 -- GW)

Then the kings of the earth, the important people, the generals, the rich, the powerful, and all the slaves and free people hid themselves in caves and among the rocks in the mountains. ¹⁶ They said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us, and hide us from the face of the one who sits on the throne and from the anger of the lamb, ¹⁷ because the frightening day of their anger has come, and who is able to endure it?”

(Revelation 6:15-17 -- GW)

So God created mankind in his own image,
    in the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

(Genesis 1:27 -- NIV)

6 Then, O Great God, in years to come, Whatever fate betide us,
Right onward through our journey home
Be Thou at hand to guide us:
Nor leave us till, at close of life,
Safe from all perils, toil, and strife, Heaven shall unfold and hide us.

(by James Hamilton)