The Sign of God's Promise

To us it looks so beautiful,
God's sign in the sky,
To Him it appears
As a circle from on high.

He placed the rainbow
as a promise to His faithful few
To remind us He keeps His Word
And cares for His creation too.

Oh how the Father loves us,
His love is higher than all,
Yet We are told He take notice
When a sparrow falls.

So as we look to heaven
For Jesus to return
We see this sign of His Promise
That day for which we yearn.

My friend John Foster just took this picture moments ago. He sent it to me while we were talking on the phone. I saved and posted it while we still talking. I wanted to write about it. In fact I have been wanting to do a post on the rainbow for quite sometime now.

Did you know that a rainbow viewed from above is a circle? It appears as a ring from heaven. If you want to read more about that fact see the link below*.

God placed the first rainbow in the sky in Noah's Days. The record is in Genesis 9.
12 And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."

17 So God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth."

God is remembering His covenant with the earth and us its inhabitants. He sees it as we do. He sees the full circle. Wow! That is like life! That is life. He knows the beginning from the end while we see just a portion. Yet that portion is full of of His promises and is part of the bigger picture which God sees and has designed.

The rainbow is part of His grand plan. There is one in heaven surrounding God's throne. (Revelation 4.3) For me to see a rainbow is a foretaste of Glory Divine!

Keep looking to the sky!

* http://www.funtrivia.com/askft/Question18633.html

What Brings Joy To My Heart

Emma Day

Something very wonderful happens today. One of my granddaughters is coming to Poppa's house for a visit.

Emma will come this afternoon. It is always a hilarious time when she is with Grandma Lucy and I. She has the ability to make us laugh like no one else. We have already begun to talk about some of her famous one liners.

Emma brings me back to my childhood. I loved it when Nanny and Poppa would come all the way out from Queens to Long Island! It meant being with people I loved and whom I knew loved me. It meant eating special foods. My Nanny virtually lived in the kitchen! I don't ever remember seeing her without an apron. My Poppa loved his METS and we would watch them (and moan and groan) together. After all that was back in the 60's!

So this is an Emma Day. My work as a pastor will be suspended for a 24 hour period and I'll do things she enjoys (Don't kid yourself! I enjoy watching kid's movies, doing little fun projects and getting on the floor and playing with toys.)

Being a Poppa to Emma and Lilianna is just plain cool. It brings joy to my heart and soul like nothing else on earth. I have already purchased the Barnum's Animal Crackers, prepared for some fun things to do together, set aside her favorite movie, etc. But it is just having her here under the roof that makes this Colonial House a Wonderland Castle!

Sonrise

When your back is against the wall and you feel all is lost,
Remember the LORD knows your heart and sees your need.
When your hope is nearly gone and your strength is done
Look to heaven, trust in Jesus, God’s Only Begotten Son.

When your heart is torn apart by the trials you are in
Don’t lose faith, Don’t quit, Don’t stop calling on Him.
He knows just what you are going through right now
He will give you courage and faith to face it all somehow.

Remember Jacob thought all was over and his sons were gone
He lamented from His heart and almost gave up
Then God restored his family and his lost boys
He filled Israel with a song it was a song of joy!

How About You?!

Ever feel like the guy on the previous post. That commercial was popular some years ago because all of us could relate to the frenzy that guy worked in. Adrenaline rushes can become addictive. Like a drug our body can crave that secretion into the blood stream which God has designed for emergencies.

One time my Dad had taken me home from piano lessons. He dropped me off at the side stoop while he drove out Pontiac Tempest into the garage. We had a rabbit named Snowball. He stopped to pet her and heard this sound and saw that there was a fire under the hood. He came bolting into the kitchen. told my mom to call the Bellmore Fire Department and ran back outside and by himself pushed the car out of the garage, saving it and Snowball. Bellmore's Bravest showed up and saved the day. We talked about Dad becoming Superman for a minute. Adrenaline flowed into his blood giving him abnormal strength. Notice the word "abnormal". If adrenaline flows into the body regularly it not good.

Be Still and Know That I Am God He says to us in Psalm 46. There are good reasons for this.

Remember This One?

New Life In The Fall- Miracle on Pine Acres Boulevard

Autumn is a time for raking leaves and removing dead things from the ground. Outside the church are beautiful white Easter Lilies in bloom. If that isn't enough the man who takes care of the church yard has no idea where they came from. He did not plant them! With all our little flock has been through the past month this is a sign of God's blessings upon us of new life this fall. In the midst of fiery trials there is the promise of miracles and the Resurrection!

Thanks For Your Prayers!

Thanks for your prayers for my Dad. He is continuing to miraculously recover. The doctors gave up and the LORD stepped in. Continued progress reports are on my niece's blog: http://www.papa2all.blogspot.com/ Please leave a comment if you would like to. We are so thankful to the LORD.

A TRIBUTE TO BILLY GRAHAM

Since I was a young boy I remember Billy Graham preaching the gospel. It was a privilege to meet this servant of God back 17 years ago. What an example he has been and is for us younger ministers.

Stuart Hamblin

I know you will be blessed by this story and song of God's Grace!

God Is In Control

Lucy and I rode through the Catskill Mountains today on our way to be with my Dad and Mom. We received encouraging news this evening from one of the doctors. Dad looked good and responded when we arrived. He is resting comfortably. Thank You Jesus!

God is in control. He is the One Who causes the seasons to change and with each one brings wonder and beauty. The fall colors were brilliant today.

The LORD doesn't make mistakes and overrules ours many times.

As my days are continue to pass I am finding heaven to be closer. I am looking forward to being there forever with Jesus and all who love Him.

A Word For This Hour

It seems as if my Dad will be going to be with Jesus soon. He is not responding the way the doctors thought he would following the surgery.

I have a dear friend. He is retired College Administrator. He sent this to me this evening. I wanted to share it with all who come to the backyard. It was his notes from his Sunday School Class he teaches each week.

What the Bible Says about…Heaven
Tom Barnard

There’s good news and bad news today. The good news is that there is a Heaven; the bad news is that not everyone will go there when they die. The good news is that it is free to all who repent of their sins and believe in Jesus; the bad news is that only a relatively small percentage of people will choose to believe. The good news is that Heaven is a timeless experience; the bad news is that time is running out for people who put off the decision.

I found it interesting that “heaven” or “heavens” is mentioned hundreds of times in both the Old and the New Testaments (I stopped counting at 600). And when you include the synonyms for heaven in the list, it is enormous. Here are some of the “other” names for heaven that appear in the New Testament:

Paradise…New Jerusalem…Holy City…Dwelling Place of God…House of the Father…Kingdom of the Father…City of the Living God…Mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem…Everlasting Life… Place of Great Reward…the Second Heaven…and the Third Heaven.

On the other hand, the word translated “hell” in English is found infrequently in the Old Testament, and other than about a dozen times in the Gospels, the word “hell” is mentioned twice in the Letters of Paul and Peter (once each). Of course, there are synonyms for “hell” throughout Scripture. But clearly the Bible speaks in numerous places about a place of separation from God. Here are a few words that clearly indicate the intent of scripture in identifying a place where none of us wants to go:

Place of Eternal Fire…Gehenna…Hades…Second Death…Sheol…Tartarus…Lake of Fire and Brimstone…Place of Eternal Judgment…Place of Separation from God…Eternal Damnation…Outer Darkness (where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth)…Everlasting Destruction…Furnace of Fire…Everlasting Fire…Tormented in the flame.

Selecting one passage of Scripture around which to build a lesson on heaven was difficult, but I chose John 14 because of the beauty of the figurative language and our familiarity with the words.

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.” (John 14:1-4)

1. “Let not your heart be troubled.” Just two chapters back in the Gospel Jesus spoke about his death. He said, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain…Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour? But for this purpose I came to this hour…A little while longer the light is with you...While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light…Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’” (John 12:23-24; 27; 13:35-36) The disciples were confused. They expected great things were about to happen that would lead
to power and prestige for them and glory for Jesus. Peter asked, “Lord, where are you going?” (13:36)

Jesus did not want his disciples to be fearful about the future. He wanted them to look forward to future things. They were to be a significant part of God’s future plans. They were focused on death; he wanted them to be focused on life, both now and in the future.

2. “In My Father’s house are many mansions.” Jesus was speaking figuratively. He was speaking in physical terms about a place that is spiritual. In Revelation 21 John described the New Jerusalem. He spoke about walls of jasper that were adorned with precious stones, gates of pearl, and streets of gold. And John spoke of the immensity of the City—a city laid out in a square, 1400 miles in each direction, with walls that were 216 feet thick! Jesus spoke of a heavenly place in which there were many “mansions.” He wanted his followers to understand heaven was an actual place, but not a physical one. Incredible in size and dimension? Yes. Indescribable in beauty? Yes. But a place of great intimacy with God. Jesus was saying not to worry about the size of heaven; it is a place big enough for all of us.
“If God had made this world so fare, where sin and death abound,
How beautiful beyond compare, will paradise be found.”

3. “I go to prepare a place for you.” Jesus spoke of a place where others would be present, too. Will we recognize our loved ones in heaven? Yes. We will recognize and enjoy the company of loved ones who have gone on before us. Otherwise, why would Jesus even refer to such a place where we would not know anyone? In writing to the church of the first century, John said, “We are telling you about what we ourselves have actually seen and heard, so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” If this fellowship were not to continue in heaven after we die, why would the apostle say so much about fellowship here on earth? Why even talk about fellowship here on earth? Will there be marriage in heaven? No. There will be no necessity for marriage in heaven. Marriage is important on earth because of what it produces—children, siblings, family. In heaven there will be one family. The intimacy and closeness of our fellowship in heaven will be so grand, that comparing it with anything here on earth will be meaningless. As one preacher said, “We will know and love each other there even more significantly than we know and love each other here.”

The apostle Paul spoke about Jesus as the “first fruits of them that slept.” Following his resurrection, Christ was recognized by the disciples, but his resurrection “body” was not limited by space and time. He could pass through doors, prepare breakfast at the seaside, and travel great distances quickly. He was “visible” to his followers but not restricted in any other way. When the Risen Christ ascended into heaven in Acts, everyone—500 witnesses—all saw it happen.

Jesus said that he was leaving to “go to prepare a place” for his disciples. I do not know everything this means, but I believe that he was going so he could be preparing to gather our loved ones as part of a committee to welcome us to heaven.

4. “I will come again and receive you to Myself.” I have never stood beside a person when death arrived. But I have heard what it is like, particularly when the dying person is a Christian. Even though there is sadness present, there is a sense of joy and celebration as well. Some say that when a Christian dies, there is a sense of the presence of Christ in the room. Someone has called death “a journey into the altogether new.” Jesus promised that when we die, He will “come again and receive” us unto Himself. Jesus is coming again for us—if living, at the Rapture, if following death, in His presence.

5. “…that where I am, there you may be also.” For Christians who die who have no friends or loved ones waiting for them in heaven, they have Someone who is not only waiting for them but will be with them forever. Our song should be,
I have decided to follow Jesus; I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus; no turning back—no turning back.
Though no one join me, still I will follow; though no one join me, still I will follow;
Though no one join me, still I will follow; no turning back—no turning back.

Jesus promised to be with us here in life…to be with us when we die…to come for us as we depart for heaven…and to live with us there eternally. It doesn’t get any better than this!

And be sure of one thing: Jesus said He was coming back for us…and He absolutely keeps his word!

A Blog For My Dad

From my niece Kirstin...

Hey,
I had an excellent idea this morning. I'm making a get well blog for papa. Then we can show it to papa when he's well enough. Spread it around to everyone, tell them to leave comments and everything for papa. It's www.papa2all.blogspot.com. Thanks! Spread it as much as you can.

Kirstin

Great idea Kirstin. It looks good.

We would love to have check it out! Go ahead! And be sure to leave a comment.

Early Morning Mist

I went out this morning around 6am. It was dark. There was a mist falling here on Long Island's South Shore. The thought struck me, "This is good." In Genesis 1.31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

The creation is very good. I don't have to water today. The LORD is doing that for me right now. His faithfulness is great.

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.
Great is Thy faithfulness!

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!