Just a quick hello. My name is Ken and I really don't know what to say in these introductions. LOL. However I did want to thank you for this site and looking forward to interacting

Rich Nolan, president and CEO of the National Mining Association, said that through the latest rules, “the EPA is systematically dismantling the reliability of the U.S. electric grid.’' He accused Biden, Regan and other officials of “ignoring our energy reality and forcing the closure of well-operating coal plants that repeatedly come to the rescue during times of peak demand. The repercussions of this reckless plan will be felt across the country by all Americans.”

Instead of more power for our electric grid in order to handle EVs, Democrats are cutting back. That means your driving miles will have to be limited, and industry in the U.S. will also have to cut back on electricity.

I guess he means that it won't be tolerated anymore.



I guess he doesn't support free speech on college campuses anymore.

There's been several debate about whether same sex attraction is a sin or not. Some says that same sex attraction is just a temptation while other says it's a sin just like homosexuality, what do you think?

Hi everyone, I would greatly appreciate your prayers. I need a miracle, I am on some very strong medication and one of the side effects is thinning of the enamel on your teeth. So far I have had to get like 4 fillings and the last time I was at the dentist the dentist said I had 4 more cavities that needed to be drilled, I am scheduled to have 2 drilled on Mat 6 and then another 2 at a later date. I am currently in alot of pain in my mouth so I may have to try to get in sooner to have them drilled. If God does not intervene I am going to have a serious problem, they are going to have to drill out my whole mouth. Years ago this was happening as well but God showed up and miraculously healed my teeth and the pain was gone, the cavities were gone, I was fine for a good 15 years, however I am in need of a miracle again. Please pray for a miracle healing! Thank you!

Land and sea temperatures have warmed much more than models forecast in the last year, and as of these articles various new factors being considered appear not enough to account for that spike. Relatively speaking it's quite large.

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Nature
9 March 2024

Climate models can’t explain 2023’s huge heat anomaly — we could be in uncharted territory​

Taking into account all known factors, the planet warmed 0.2 °C more last year than climate scientists expected. More and better data are urgently needed.

For the past nine months, mean land and sea surface temperatures have overshot previous records each month by up to 0.2 °C — a huge margin at the planetary scale. A general warming trend is expected because of rising greenhouse-gas emissions, but this sudden heat spike greatly exceeds predictions made by statistical climate models that rely on past observations. Many reasons for this discrepancy have been proposed but, as yet, no combination of them has been able to reconcile our theories with what has happened.
...
So, what might have caused this heat spike? Atmospheric greenhouse-gas levels have continued to rise, but the extra load since 2022 can account for further warming of only about 0.02 °C. Other theories put forward by climate scientists include fallout from the January 2022 Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha‘apai volcanic eruption in Tonga, which had both cooling effects from aerosols and warming ones from stratospheric water vapour, and the ramping up of solar activity in the run-up to a predicted solar maximum. But these factors explain, at most, a few hundredths of a degree in warming (Schoeberl, M. R. et al. Geophys. Res. Lett. 50, e2023GL104634; 2023). Even after taking all plausible explanations into account, the divergence between expected and observed annual mean temperatures in 2023 remains about 0.2 °C — roughly the gap between the previous and current annual record.

There is one more factor that could be playing a part. In 2020, new regulations required the shipping industry to use cleaner fuels that reduce sulfur emissions. Sulfur compounds in the atmosphere are reflective and influence several properties of clouds, thereby having an overall cooling effect. Preliminary estimates of the impact of these rules show a negligible effect on global mean temperatures — a change of only a few hundredths of a degree. ...


-----------

Also, related is more information about another factor that could turn the wrong way, increasing warming. Normally the Earth absorbs about 1/2 of emitted CO2 each year, but that might change in a bad way:


"That one-half figure is an approximation. It varies from year to year depending on weather conditions and other environmental factors, resulting in the jagged lines you see in the chart above. For example, in a warm and dry year with many wildfires, the land may absorb less carbon dioxide than usual.

As the Earth warms further, climate scientists expect the land and the ocean to absorb a smaller share of carbon dioxide emissions, causing a larger share to end up in the air, said Doug McNeall, who studies these effects at Britain’s Met Office.

Xin Lan, the lead scientist responsible for NOAA’s global carbon dioxide measurements, referred to the natural absorption as a “carbon discount.”

“We pay attention to it because we don't know at which point that this discount is gone,” she said.

In addition to carbon dioxide, the levels of other potent greenhouse gases like methane and nitrous oxide are also on the rise, which further contribute to warming."

Luke 23:

12 The same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together: for before they were at enmity between themselves.

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Barnes explained:

What had been the cause of their quarrel is unknown. It is commonly supposed that it was Pilate's slaying the Galileans in Jerusalem, as related in Luke 13:1-2. The occasion of their reconciliation seems to have been the civility and respect which Pilate showed to Herod in this case.

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They were enemies before due to their different political agendas. However, they both agreed that Jesus should not be executed. Based on this common point against the Sanhedrin, they were on friendly terms.

After the resurrection, they worked with Jews and Gentiles in Jerusalem against the nascent church. Acts 4:

27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.

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The friendship between Pilate and Herod was based on political convenience.

Trying some new medication, would appreciate prayers for the Lord to use it to heal me, especially my face. Thank you.

In a Hurry? Skip to key parts of our conversation:

Why do people need to identify an enemy?(What you need to know about the other 80%)

Hate of Ourselves = Hate of Others (Look in James 4)

Did the pandemic re-wire us?

When conspiracy theories prove to be true

St. Maximillian Kolbe’s message when the world fell apart

A warning to preppers

So this all started in the Garden of Eden?

The Secret is in Romans 8

Aesop’s Fable teaches us how to help others

Video below.

"Notice that Biden’s comment in Tampa wasn’t about Protestants in general. He focused exclusively on evangelicals, and that is because to take a swipe at all Protestants would be to slam the mainline denominations; they are mostly in the pro-abortion camp. He chose a subset of Protestants who are known for their pro-life convictions."

Don't think for a minute they won't go after the rest of the Christians after Catholics and Evangelicals.

I posted this in anther thread and I thought this would be a good discussion.

hislegacy said:

Then October 14, 1985 changed my life forever. Because of a series of events, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. My life changed in an instant

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Xeno.of.athens said:

That is an interesting turn of phrase.

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What do you find interesting?

Have you not heard of someone accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior?

Romans 10:8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

At the moment of my Salvation I knew I was living in a relationship with God that I had never known before. Perhaps we can open a dialog on personal relationships with Christ. The focus of the thread is not what someone said, but what the individual has experienced.

For me personally, part of what I experienced was an incredible peace I had never known. I also experienced my first miracle that same night. A bleeding ulcer was completely healed in an instant. Yes, doctor confirmed.

In a more light hearted news Japan is getting a new set of bank notes. Looks great and can't wait to get some when I next visit.

I am reading in Colossians, chapter one. And the subject matter is Jesus Christ, faith in Jesus Christ, the gospel of our salvation, the grace of God, and truth. Included in these instructions are teachings on walking in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened by his power. And there is a reminder that God delivered us who are his from the domain of darkness (sin, Satan) and he has transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

And then we are reminded that Jesus Christ is God, the second person of our triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – and that he is our creator God who made us, and that he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church, which is comprised of all true followers of Jesus Christ who have died with him to sin, and who have been raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but as slaves to God and to his righteousness. For Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness (Romans 6:1-23).


And here I want to look at two specific words, the first of which is “redemption,” which has to do with God buying us back from our lives of slavery to sin and winning us back to him and to his righteousness and holiness. It involves us being rescued from what enslaved us so that we can now live for our Lord and honor him with our lives (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). It is about deliverance from our old lives of living in sin so that we can now live holy lives, pleasing to God.

The second word is “reconcile,” which means to change, exchange; properly, decisively change, as when two parties reconcile when changing to the same position; usually used in a redemptive sense of a sinner reconciling to the Lord; to change from enmity with God to friendship, fellowship, partnership with God. It is about exchanging the old life for the new life in Christ Jesus. Once we lived in sin and for self and not for God, but now we have changed, by faith, and we have died to our old lives of sin so that we can now walk in holiness and in righteousness, in obedience to our Lord.

Therefore, if we are of genuine faith in the Lord Jesus, we should no longer be hostile in mind against the Lord, and we should no longer be practicing evil deeds, especially deliberately and premeditatedly. But now we should be living holy lives, separate (unlike, different) from the world and we should be being conformed by God to the likeness of character of Jesus Christ. And we should be walking in obedience to our Lord and to his commands, and we should be those who are continuing in these walks of faith and obedience to God, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the truth of the gospel.

But there are many people who are not following that teaching, and there are many who are teaching the opposite of that, who are the self-indulgent, the sinful, and the wicked who are drifting and wandering and interfering with the presentations of the gospel message. They are scheming against the truth of the gospel, and against the Lord’s messengers who are bringing the truth of the gospel to the people, and who are warning the people against the lies and the liars who are telling them that all they have to do is profess faith in Jesus and heaven is now secured them for eternity.


So we who are following Jesus Christ with our lives, in truth, and in righteousness, need to be those who are proclaiming the truth of the gospel that Jesus taught and that his New Testament apostles taught, in context. And we need to be exposing the fruitless deeds of darkness for what they are. For there are so many liars and deceivers among us who are leading the people to follow after a false and fleshly gospel that is not of Christ, and which gives their adherents permission to keep living in sin while claiming Jesus as their Savior and heaven as their eternal destiny.

For far too many people are believing the lies and they are still headed to hell on the promise of heaven because they have not died with Christ to sin, but they are still living in sin, and they are not walking in obedience to the Lord and to his commands, for they don’t want to, and they are being taught that they don’t have to, but that salvation and heaven are still secured them. So we need to be the Lord’s messengers in getting out the truth to the people so that they can have genuine salvation and forgiveness of sins and so they will grow to maturity in Christ and have eternal life with God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

I Sing of His Mercy

An Original Work / April 10, 2014
Based off Psalm 32

Blessed are those whose sins are forgiven
By the blood of Jesus Christ.
Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does
Not count against them; freedom found.
When, in silence, I did not confess
My sin to You; had no strength.
Then I owned up to my sin and
You forgave and cleansed me within.

Therefore let the godly pray to You;
Draw near to You; grace they’ll find.
They will not be o’ertaken by afflictions,
But in Christ peace abounds.
Lord, You are my hiding place.
I find my refuge in You secure.
You protect me from all evil.
You give songs of vict’ry in You.

Lord, You teach me to walk in Your ways;
Counsel me in love, I know.
Help me to not be stubborn and
Unwilling to follow in Your truth.
Thank You for Your love and mercy.
I put my trust in You always.
I rejoice in my Lord and
I sing of Him throughout all my days.

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In Spain, thousands of workers each have an equal share in a corporation, a worker's co-op. Seems that cooperatives can exist, and even do well in 2024. Here is the article link: ‘In the US they think we’re communists!’ The 70,000 workers showing the world another way to earn a living


Short summary of the open-access article by The Guardian (<20% in length, for fair usage reasons):

In an article published on April 24, 2024 in The Guardian, Oliver Balch highlights the unique employment relationship between Marisa Fernández and her employer, Eroski, which is part of Mondragón Corporation - the largest industrial co-op in the world. When Fernández experienced personal loss with the death of her husband, Eroski supported her and later, during store renovations, she volunteered to work extra shifts alongside her colleagues. Fernández's experience is a reflection of the cooperative model that Mondragón Corporation embodies, where every worker co-owns and has a stake in the company, leading to a sense of ownership and dedication. The cooperative has grown since its creation in 1956 into a leading force in the Basque economy, with over 70,000 workers and various profitable subsidiaries. Mondragón's human-centric approach originated from a socially engaged form of Catholicism and has become a beacon for the cooperative model as a more humane and egalitarian way of doing business. Despite economic success, Mondragón prioritizes people over capital and looks after workers during tough times as well, as demonstrated by its response to the bankruptcy of Fagor Electrodomésticos in 2013.

Way to go, Mayor Pete.

But would like to be. See my introductory post, I guess?

I am a creationist and I consider all the creation theories to be valid. But I never realized how important GAP is to that belief. Let me explain. I use BibleHub for my bible and I look at all the different translations. If you go to Genesis chapter ONE first we have Creation in verse one and two. The first day is verse 3,4 &5. This would create a GAP that would make ALL the creation beliefs true. Day one could have been billions of years ago. Day one could have been 13,000 years ago. OR a day could have been 24 hours or the week before we read about Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.


For those who want to know more about GAP

1. Genesis 1:1-2 (NIV):
   

   “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”

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   • Here, we see God’s initial act of creation—bringing forth the heavens and the earth. The earth is described as “formless and empty,” suggesting a state of chaos or unformed matter.
2. The Gap Theory:
   • The “gap theory” (also known as the “ruin-reconstruction theory” or “pre-Adamic gap theory”) proposes that there is a significant gap of time between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2. During this gap, various events could have occurred, including the fall of Satan, a pre-Adamic civilization, or a cataclysmic event that left the earth in its chaotic state.
   • According to this view, the six days of creation described in Genesis 1:3-31 would then follow this initial gap period.
3. Interpreting the Days of Creation:
   • The days of creation in Genesis 1 are often a point of discussion. Some interpret them as literal 24-hour days, while others consider them as longer periods (such as epochs or ages).
   • Here’s a breakdown of the days:
     • Day 1: Light separated from darkness.
     • Day 2: The sky (vault) created.
     • Day 3: Dry land, seas, and vegetation.
     • Day 4: Sun, moon, and stars.
     • Day 5: Fish and birds.
     • Day 6: Land animals and humans.
     • Day 7: God rested.
4. The Gap Theory and Flexibility:
   • The gap theory allows for flexibility in interpreting the days. It accommodates both a young-earth view (where the days are literal) and an old-earth view (where the days represent longer periods).
   • According to this perspective, the “gap” between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2 could be vast, allowing for geological ages, cosmic events, or even the emergence of life before the six days of creation.
   • Some proponents of the gap theory suggest that the fossil record and geological layers represent evidence from this pre-Genesis period.

Play rare, bizarre music, or even sounds, that you doubt most people have heard.

(Now this isn't provocative at all?)



About 90,000 NATO troops have been training in Europe this spring for the Great Power war that most hope will never come: a clash between Russia and the West with potentially catastrophic consequences.
In Estonia, paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Liberty, N.C., jumped out of planes alongside soldiers from Colchester Garrison in Essex, Britain, for “forcible entry” operations. In Lithuania, German soldiers arrived as a brigade stationed outside Germany on a permanent basis for the first time since World War II.
And on the A4 autobahn in eastern Germany, a U.S. Army captain and his Macedonian counterpart rushed toward the Suwalki Gap — the place many war planners predict will be the flashpoint for a NATO war with Russia — hoping the overheated radiator on their Stryker armored combat vehicle wouldn’t kill the engine.

All are part of what is supposed to be a tremendous show of force by NATO, its largest since the start of the Cold War, that is meant to send a sharp message to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia that his ambitions must not venture beyond Ukraine.

But it is also a preview of what the opening beats of a modern Great Power conflict could look like. If NATO and Russia went to war, American and allied troops would initially rush to the Baltic countries Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — NATO’s “Eastern Flank”— to try to block penetration by a Russian force.
How that war would end, and how many people might die, is a different story. Tens of millions of people were killed in World War II. This time, the stakes have never been higher. Mr. Putin has brought up the potential for nuclear war several times since Russia invaded Ukraine more than two years ago.

The show of force is NATO’s largest-ever military exercise

National security officials are making plans for cyberwarfare, too, including how to defend U.S. and NATO interests against a possible cyberattack on public infrastructure.

But a European continental ground war has seemed far more possible since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago.

“This exercise changes the calculus for our adversaries — that’s the real power of this,” said Gen. Darryl A. Williams, the American general who leads NATO’s Allied Land Command. Mr. Putin, he said, “is watching this and saying, ‘Hmm, maybe I need to think twice here.’”

Russia’s war in Ukraine infuses almost every movement of the exercises, which began in January and will continue through May. It is why some of the American troops experimented with commercial drones that they could weaponize by fixing with explosives, to see how to counter such tactics, much as Russian troops have had to learn how to defend against Ukraine’s use of store-bought drones that have been MacGyvered with explosives.

It is also why the overheated Stryker carrying the two American and Macedonian captains looks almost exactly like all of the other Strykers, with the exception of its lighter machine gun.

Continued at link... it's pretty long, with photos

Nice Dog! I had one that looked almost like that several years ago....

Just wanted to see if anyone has advice on that subject for me. Marriage is something I really want to commit to with a Godly girl I can love and cherish. I do understand that its not all fun and games, I understand that there will be difficulties but I want to be ready to face them head on.

My strong feeling is that it's all superficial, but when it got personal and I found myself admitting that I'm not actually all that in any area - as a father I don't provide well and haven't been a good leader, as an employee I haven't always been attentive, as a brother I am straight-up inattentive and dragged my sisters into my drama with my parents (that's a whole thing, but both my parents and I are awful) - just I had the thought that I may be worth something as Jesus reckons it but in fact my whole pride thing was out of traction to work from.

But my main issue has usually been pride. I'm often sure I'm smarter than others in the room, or more articulate at least. I dress poorly because I used to dress well and didn't like the way people reacted to me - acting more aware that I was there - but paradoxically wish I was well-thought-of by those around me. I chalk it up to insecurity and immaturity.

My kids are getting old enough to model my behavior in terms of my Christian walk and I don't know what to show them anymore. I saw a miracle - two miracles - over my life, but somehow completely forgot about both for a period of several years. I remembered and felt revitalized, and forgot again, and remembered again.
I had a cavity. It's a small thing, I know, but it's a thing I had. And then between one dentist appointment and the next I didn't. And I touched someone who was too tired to drive and prayed for him, and he was awake.

I'm a mess, and haven't got a church home, and would love the anonymous help of people with really useful things to say. Hi.

I am sure that most of the 18 are shaking their heads and bemoaning that old proverb, "With friends like the unindicted conspirator (DJT), who needs enemies?"

The names of seven of the defendants, including Meadows, Giuliani and Epshteyn, are redacted, but the document makes clear who they are by describing their roles. Others include attorneys John Eastman, Jenna Ellis and Christina Bobb, as well as Trump 2020 campaign operative Mike Roman...Michigan prosecutors revealed Wednesday that Trump is an unindicted co-conspirator in their own investigation as well. And many of the newly charged defendants in Arizona, including Meadows, Giuliani, Eastman and Ellis, were charged in the Georgia case. Ellis pleaded guilty in Georgia and avoided jail time, while Meadows, Giuliani and Eastman have pleaded not guilty.

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I guess that Michigan and Arizona, seeing how busy Trump's court calendar will be with lengthy trials in NY, Washington, D.C., Georgia, and Florida, decided that they shouldn't indict him. After all, how many jail terms can a 77 year-old man survive?


Meadows, Giuliani, Eastman and others probably wished they had heeded their Sunday school teachers about avoiding bad companions...and Trump's unindicted status in Arizona and Michigan really hurt them. In D.C. and Georgia, they can plea bargain in turn for turning state's evidence. They can't do that here.