Pray For Tony Evans' Wife

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Please say a prayer for Tony Evans' wife, who is battling cancer.  This is my favorite preacher, and it makes me sad to know they're going through this.


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Updated: Alana L. 5P (conflations: natural vs moral)

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[I redid Point #5 and #6 in the Alana L. series on my other blog (and re-lettered the posts).  But instead of going back and changing the already-posted points on this blog, I'll just add the posts in their own little "series."]  Point #5 still :   P:  "Sovereign, sovereign, sovereign, sovereign."   Natural vs Moral On a slightly different track:  If you listen closely when Calvinists talk about God's "sovereign control" over things, they'll often emphasize His control over nature, even bringing up verses about it.  And since we agree that God caused/controlled something like a storm or famine or illness at some point in biblical history, Calvinists will then make us think that we must also agree that He causes/controls human decisions and moral evils too.  That if we accept one, we must accept the other. Vincent Cheung  ( The Problem of Evil ):  " God controls not only  natural events , but he also controls  all human aff...
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Updated: Alana L. 5M (conflations: cause vs. allow)

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[I redid Point #5 and #6 in the Alana L. series on my other blog (and re-lettered the posts).  But instead of going back and changing the already-posted points on this blog, I'll just add the posts in their own little "series."]    Point #5 still :   M:  "Sovereign, sovereign, sovereign, sovereign."     In  5K  and  5L  (links to my other blog), I looked at Calvinism's incorrect belief that "sovereign" necessarily means that God preplans/causes all things.  In these next few posts, I want to further examine their misunderstanding of "sovereign" related to their erroneous conflations of "cause" and "allow"... and "foreknow" and "foreplan"... and "natural evils" and "moral evils"... and their deceptive use of the word "authors."   [There will be some redundancy in here and some review of things I said in the previous parts.  I tried making it shorter and more concise, but...
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"Are Calvinists Saved?"

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(I added some new notes to the end of this post, August 23, 2020.) Here's a video from  Beyond the Fundamentals  that's well-worth watching:   Are Calvinists Saved? The most thought-provoking part (for me) was when he asks (paraphrased) "How do Calvinists know they're saved, that Jesus died for them?" You see, I would say that I trust in the truths of the Bible.  I trust that when God says He loves all people and wants all people to be saved, He means He loves  all  people and wants  all  people to be saved.  I trust that when He says Jesus died for all people and all sins, He means that Jesus died for  all  people and  all  sins.  I trust that when He says that we will find Him if we seek Him with all our hearts, He means that we can seek Him and find Him.  I trust that when He commands us to choose whom we will serve, He means that we have to choose whom we will serve.  I trust that when He ...
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"The Last Goodbye" - A song for us Hobbits

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(a post from my other blog , from March 28, 2022) There's a song at the end of  The Battle of the Five Armies  (from the Hobbit trilogy) that's become one of my favorite songs.  I feel this song, especially the line about "Many places I have been, many sorrows I have seen..."  That's kinda been my last several years: many sorrows I have seen.   Many trials.  Many heartbreaks.  (Everyone who lives long enough will have many of these.) Most recently, I had the awful experience of being on the witness stand for three hours, giving testimony against my mom.  And after nearly a week of trial, she was found guilty of ... well, of something really bad.  (She insists she didn't do it, but we think otherwise.  It's not exactly like the prosecution says, but close enough.)  And now she will spend her life in prison.   Many sorrows I have seen. I don't know if I'll ever see her again.  The last memory I have of her cou...
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Is God Drawing Lines in the Sand?

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(reposted from a few years ago, updated slightly) It’s amazing and disturbing how brazen our society is in attacking everything about God and everything He created:  marriage, monogamy, sex, family, sexuality, the scientific reality of gender, morality, modesty, the value of a person, the right to life, the existence of "right and wrong," the Bible, Jesus, and Absolute Truth.  Not to mention God Himself, His very existence. We are destroying everything associated with Him (except nature – we worship that), and then we call ourselves "progressive." But you know what I think about it all?   I think that God is letting it happen because He is drawing lines in the sand.  Through all these divisive issues and all the immorality, God is saying “Pick a side!  I am forcing you to decide which side you want to be on ... because I am coming back soon to take My people out of here.  So I need you all to decide:  Me or the world?  Which do ...
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"My Corona Blend": An Essential Oil Blend for Diffusers

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(Great, now I'll be singing "My Sharona" all day!) This is an essential oil blend I made to put in our diffusers at night while we are facing this coronavirus pandemic.  I picked oils that are known for their powerful anti-viral properties, that are good against colds/flu/fever/infectious diseases, that are good for lung/respiratory health, and that help stimulate the immune system.  (I call it "My Corona Blend" for my own reference, but I make no promises about its ability to defeat the Coronavirus.) The smell of oregano and thyme really come through in this.  It smells a bit strong, but pleasant, like a lemon thyme herb plant.  If you want a less oregano/thyme smell, add about half of both of those oils. (Check out safety recommendations for each essential oil to see if they are safe in a diffuser for your family, depending on the age of everyone in your house and whether they have compromised immune systems or not.  And then adjust accordingly, a...
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Scripture-Based Prayers For The Hardest Times (updated)

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As some of you may know, a close relative of mine is in jail right now awaiting trial for ... well ... for something serious.  She is maintaining her innocence, while the rest of us think there's more to the story than what she's saying.  There will be a trial coming up sometime in 2021, and I will have to testify against her.  I'm really not looking forward to that.   Anyway, I know I can't fix her situation for her.  I can't make it all better.  All I can do is offer whatever support I can, even though I have to testify against her eventually.  And even if I think she's not being totally honest with the authorities right now, I know that, deep down, she is a Christian.  A Christian who, I believe, is running from the Holy Spirit's conviction right now. One of the ways I decided to support and encourage her is to keep sending her Scripture-based things.  Quotes.  Bible verses.  Bible studies.  Articles.  Etc.  ...
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And Yet Again - 21 More Anti-Calvinism Memes

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I giggle making these.  Helps me blow off steam. Only if you're elected ... So you're a Calvinist? Except for you ... "I love being a Calvinist" First I'll tell them ... Said Jesus Never! We Calvinists say ... The bookcase Researching John Calvin Snap Out Of It The Pro-Calvinism Meme Absolutely Sure ... Calvinist Lunatic If you want people ... Another Predestination Sermon It's called "Calvinism" Lucky Dude "All" Means "Some" God "In Control" "Total depravity" (AKA "Total Inability" - a concept NOT found in the Bible anywhere!) It's be...
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"Ohio Sheriff Offers to Help Celebrities Leave The U.S. If Trump Wins, On One Condition ..."

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I love this! Ohio Sheriff Offers to Help Celebrities Leave the U.S. If Trump Wins - On One Condition: "You Can't Come Back"  (from cnsnews, but I took the link down because it doesn't lead to the article anymore) Thank you, Sheriff Rick Jones, for saying what a lot of us have wanted to say to those celebrities who threaten to leave the U.S. if Trump wins (and who threatened last election).   I applaud you, and I add my message to those celebrities (and anyone else) who think they have the right to demand that everything be their way or who threaten to move from the country if they don't get their way:  "Good ... leave!  We don't want your snotty, cry-baby whining here anyway!  We don't want your arrogant attitudes where you think you're better than all of us lowly, common folk.  We don't want you preaching to us about how we should think, how we should vote, what our values should be, etc., especially when you contribute to some of the most wr...
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