Studying the Big Ten

We are studying the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 6) for Wednesday night Bible Study at church. As familiar as the Commandments are, the details and the New Testament reinforcement and support is surprising. I have always known that the Commandments were given because God loves us and wants what is best for us; I had failed to realize that this was stated directly in the Bible context of the Commandments.
For example: Deuteronomy 6 1 “Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the judgments which the LORD your God has commanded me to teach you, that you might do them in the land where you are going over to possess it, 2 so that you and your son and your grandson might fear the LORD your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged.”
God did not give the Big Ten because He is a cosmic kill-joy, but because He wants to prolong our days. Get it? God wants us to “live long and prosper!” Obeying the Big Ten yields long life! This is a direct result of obedience! Moses also said that the Commands were given so that God might test us with them, so that we may learn to fear God through the commandments.
Exodus 20:20-21 Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you, and in order that the fear of Him may remain with you, so that you may not sin.” So the people stood at a distance, while Moses approached the thick cloud where God was.
!! If you want to know God, then learn to keep the instructions of God. Paul says, in the New Testament, “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith,” (Galatians 3:24); that the Law is our school-master, our tutor, our teacher, to teach us our need for Jesus, so that we may be blameless by faith in Jesus Christ!! The Greek for tutor reads: paidagwgo,j paidagogos: a teacher, a trainer of the young. We are children sitting at the feet of the Law, learning our need of Jesus, and of the love of God.
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

Valentine's Day 2006

Wow, have I been sick this past week!
Nothing deadly, or even serious, but I have all the symptoms of the flu: achy, stopped sinus’, sore throat, the usual. I think the rest would go away sooner if I could just breathe through my nose, but that ain’t happening.

Today is Valentine’s Day. Carol made me some cookies, and I got her a flower bouquet. Awh, so sweet! There are roses and lilies with baby’s breath, etc. (meaning that I don’t know what they are). Okay, so this is not a picture of her flowers, and there aren't hearts flowting up out of the real thing, but the sentiment is real.

I also sent, and received, an electronic card to/from the same. I guess that we are still in love after almost 35 years. Wow, have things changed with us individually and personally, but not romantically. Well, I guess that has changed too, we are more in love than we thought possible when we wed. She is my bride, and I can’t imagine being married to anyone else.

I thank God for her, and … well, you know.

My sister-in-law was the one who got me started on...

My sister-in-law was the one who got me started on this. My daughter also keeps a blog, in fact, hers is a chronicle of her daily life.

This past month, we had a very small fire in our new house. I evidently, and in fact did, leave a pillar candle burning when I left the house on Jan 4, 2006. The candle burned down and somehow involved the propane lighter we were using to light candles over the holidays. I really think that would have been all, except for the lighter. The counter top burned, and the house go smoke everywhere the doors to the rooms were open.

Everything got smoked, inside as well as outside of cabinets, bottoms as well as tops, all our clothes, blankets, quilts, towels, … everything. After many hours of cleaning, the smell is almost gone and we should begin repainting soon.

But we really are blessed, because there was no reason for the fire to go out, or burn more than the counter top; but go out it did. Not even the contents of the drawer under the burned-through countertop caught fire, much less anything else. We only had to throw away a few things, some v-blinds, and some old lace curtains the previous owners had left behind. But everything else had to be cleaned, and re-cleaned. We used more than a gallon of Simple Green cleaning things, and we are not finished cleaning. Praise God for his infinite mercy and grace!