Fri, Feb 22nd - 9:36AM

Quotes from a rusty old bullhorn

"If we take the generally accepted definition of bravery as a quality which knows no fear, I have never seen a brave man. All men are frightened. The more intelligent they are, the more they are frightened."

George S. Patton

George S. Patton

James H. Douglas

Lyle Melford Miller, Jr.  (yeah, that's mine -- thinking about politicians again...  Ugh!)

Psalm 84:10 (NIV)

Jesus Christ (from Matthew 10:34 -- NIV translation)

Romans 13:4 (NIV)

Jeremiah 5:1 (NIV)

Wed, Feb 20th - 8:53PM

Update...

My friend's daughter is doing better.  Should be out of the hospital soon.

Thank You,

Mel

Wed, Feb 20th - 9:55AM

Still we worry...

Oil pushes up to over $100 a barrel.  People get worried.  They need to lay blame, and not on themselves.  Answer:  Big Oil!

Now, there is something to be said about the policies and motivations of Oil Companies.  They are not generally the most careful and wise.  However, the noise about us being in Iraq to support the goals of Big Oil, well, lets just say that has a smack of stupid written all over it.  I didn't think Americans were that easy to mislead, but the polls seem to indicate otherwise.

Big Oil makes its biggest profits when supply is low.  Let any OPEC nation slow down production, and they wring their hands with glee.  Supply goes down.  Prices go up.  And Congress starts talking about investigating price gouging on the part of the Oil Companies. The culprit is not the War in Iraq.  Let us pull out, and make no mistake, internal turmoil will rise.  Oil Production will fall.  Prices will rise.  Black Market production siphoning off much needed funds to Terrorist Organizations will rise.  You can argue that we are 'making more terrorists' by being there, but I will say that is more a function of how we are there than the fact that we are there.  In other words, if our soldiers are seen as self sacrificing and helping them, we will not cause that much problems for ourselves.  If they are seen as oppressors, then we are in a world of hurt.  I will posit that the same ideals that support 'gays in the military' supports self serving individuality in the armed services and that is counter productive.  Gays in the military (and the associated idea of individuality being supreme over the goals of the military) are more to blame for terrorism than anything the politicians care to mention.  That is not politically correct, I know.  However, reflect that back onto what you think our Christian values should be.  We are not individuals at the expense of God's mission for us!

And when we pull out, well funded terrorists will be here soon after the rising oil prices make us miserable.  We are self serving, and we will get what we deserve!  I am certain God will see to that.

I did not mean to be so negative, but now that it is out, I will leave it.

Pressing on.  What can we do?  Pray.  Understand that all our wisdom is folly.  And yet, still try and obtain wisdom and apply it in line with what God would have us do.

Vanity, vanity all is vanity.  And the end of the matter is to serve God and Do His Will, for it is our whole purpose.  (and that purpose, it is for us, not God, so by being unselfish, we are being the most selfish and let God Bless Us for it...)

Practical matters:  The wisdom of OPEC.  They withhold production for two purposes.  One, it makes more profit.  They get more money now.  Two, they make money longer.  They know their oil will run out.  They forstall the end.  Wise?

Not so!  They make enemies.  They fuel the drive for alternatives.  (pun intended)  The end will still come, and they will remain reviled.

Big Oil wants to open up ANWR.  http://www.anwr.org/  They make it sound sooo good.  I am not buying into this.  But I am biased, coming as I do from Colorado, soon to be a major world wide oil exporter.

?!???!

http://www.americanfreepress.net/html/u_s__has_massive_oil.html

Now I cannot find it, now that I am looking for it, but studies used to say that when oil got to $100 a barrel, shale oil would become profitable.  Oops, OPEC!  Drive the price too high, and you loose now, not later!  I think I saw the number revised to $125 per barrel, accounting for the reduction in the value of the dollar and the progress of technology.

You and I have very little to do with this.  Just understand that we worry about things we cannot control, and slick politicians are using this fear (often twisting and lying for their own purpose -- the ends justify the means for some of them) to control us.  If we are controled by fear, we are controled by fear.  Does that make sense?  What does the Word of God say about this?  Ok, then -- will we do it?

That is not the only avenue:

Read these:

http://www.homestead.org/AltEnergy/MakingAlcoholFuel.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulosic_ethanol

http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_library/ethanol_manual/manual8-10.html

Most American cars made after 1995 I think, are mandated to tollerate (not the same as use) Alcohol Fuel.  Does someone want to look that up for me, please?  In Colorado, during the winter months, all fuel has up to 15% alcohol, unless it uses something else to oxegenate it.  I mix a little extra into my tank to try and drive this part of the economy a little more.  Businesses look at the data for what is being sold.  If the market is too small, they will not get into it.  I want them to jump in!

But it is growing, and I am making a choice to drive them by their business sense.  I have a friend who is working for a company that is hoping to make a viable ethanol fuel that will use any cellulose such as newspaper.  I am very excited about that, and Pray for their success!  Now you know I don't do something like that often.  I only pray for what I think is in line with God's will, and I have a hard time with thinking I understand it well enough to get that specific.  That is how I feel about this.  That does not make it so.  I still understand God may have something else in mind.

OK.  Enough chatter.  I have to get to work.

Blessings,

Mel

Mon, Feb 11th - 8:53AM

Good thing, bad thing...

You know, years ago I used to watch Hee Haw, a comedy show.  They used to do this routine where one guy would share something, and the other guy would respond because it seemed clearly to be a good thing or a bad thing.  Whichever it seemed to be, the first one would explain that it was the opposite.

We worry too much.  Now in the middle of all of this going on, I have a friend who just had his second child.  He is a Christian.  I don't say he professes, I say he is.  I am possibly wrong.

They had health issues with the first child.  This one was born with a lung infection and heart problems requiring surgery.  We passed around a card in our military work area.  (where I know him from) I gave a few bucks and wrote on the card:

Rom 8:28

Trust and Pray.

Mel

After that, I heard his daughters heart had stopped for 33 minutes just before the heart surgey.  The person who talked to him said he was calm.  They were probably doing something to mitigate that, but I really don't know.  I felt I was laying a heavy load.  The truth is, you must believe this.  And this may be very harsh.  I do not enjoy knowing he suffers.  And I do not know the reason.  This ties very much into what I am thinking when talking on my other blog about testing.  I see my testing in all of this as well.

I digress, but maybe you see what I am trying to say by me sharing this, and all the other wisdom I hope to pour out will be meaningless in light of this.  However, I will still share.

Wrtitten from my standpoint the routine would follow like this:

Person 1:

I hear they are finally zoning out the Marine Recruiting Station from around Berkeley City College, UC Berkeley, and Berkeley High School.

Person 2 (Mel):

That's a bad thing!

Person 1 (Another Christian):

No that is a good thing.  They are going to have to zone out those porn shops in the same neighborhood as well, since the young ones are begining to see the hypocrisy.

Person 2:

OK., that's a good thing!

Person 1:

No, that's a bad thing.  Those rascal judges are legislating from the bench again.  They are cutting down first amendment rights and violating protected status of the military and its members.

Person 2:

OK., that's a bad thing!

Person 1:

No that's a good thing.  The same logic that is used to get the Marines & Porn Shops out of this neighborhood can be used to get any other organization that is seen as unsavory to any local population out of their neighborhood, protected status notwihtstanding.  Planned Parenthood, The Gay and Lesbian League, The Skinheads, Gangs (not needing proof of anything bad they have done), and anyone else you want to get out of your city.

Person 2:

OK., that's a good thing!

Person 1:

No, thats a bad thing.  They'll use it to get rid of Greenpeace, and The Sierra Club, and maybe zone churches to the outer fringes.  No one's beliefs will be sacred.

Person 2:

OK., that's a bad thing!

Person 1:

No its a good thing.  For years now our Christian First Amendment Rights have been violated by a twisting and perversion of the same Law designed to protect them.  This just makes the truth more evident.

Person 2:

OK., that's a good thing!

Person 1:

No, that's still a bad thing...

And it could go on and on...

My point is this:  We should try to be wise and use our heads and logic.  However, we need to apply a higher authority, GOD'S, in order to have any hope to being truely wise.  This is my fault.  I can too easily get too full of myself.  It is one reason I say what I do about what I think Paul's Thorn could be.  We are full of ourselves and do not follow God, who has our best interests in mind all the time.

I got a little long winded here.  Another of my faults and at times a strength.  Thanks for hangin in there and readin' this.

In Christ,

Mel

Sat, Feb 9th - 9:24AM

http://www.codepinkalert.org/article.php?id=3622

Sophistic sycophants.

Hypocrites.

Bad news for the Gay and Lesbian community if anyone is smart enought to use their arguements in that context.  Wake up and smell what they are shoveling.

I can use their wisdom against them, and I do at times.  Ultimately, though, it comes down to this:  Wisdom from worldly understanding is nothing.  Wisdom in line with God's understanding, although still capable of being flawed by our lack of true understanding of what it is, is IT.

People are misguided by their own sense of importance.  Help them!

In Truth,

Mel

Fri, Feb 8th - 2:27PM

From Super Tuesday

1 Corinthians 3:18-20 (NIV)

 ¹⁸Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a "fool" so that he may become wise. ¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written: "He catches the wise in their craftiness"; ²⁰and again, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile."

Luke 12:22-28 (NIV)

 ²²Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. ²³Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. ²⁴Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ²⁵Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? ²⁶Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

 ²⁷"Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ²⁸If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!

Got more, but for now, you get this...

In Christ,

Mel