Milky Way Revisited
Dark Energy Camera – Cerro Tololo, Chile
Those who are wise will shine as bright as the sky,
and those who lead many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever.
Daniel 12:3
Hi Men:
I pray this week you found time to be alone (solitude) with Christ…….. not only the Christ that spoke the Milky Way into existence, but the same Christ that lives “in” you. To hear from Him, you must willfully make the decision to have that quiet time. Did you? As mentioned last week, there was 14 hours of NFL Football over Saturday and Sunday. This Sunday there’s another 7 hours………….. just saying!
MILKY WAY – NEW STUFF
A good buddy in San Diego brought to my attention the latest release (January 18th) by NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory) funded by the NSF (National Science Foundation). These are state of the art ground-based observatories. NOIRLab is headquartered in Tucson, AZ. Ok, enough of that, what did they report? They released a Gargantuan Survey of the Milky Way with unprecedented detail containing 3.32 billion celestial objects. The largest dataset to date. It took two years, 21,400 exposures and 10 terabytes of data.
Click on the image below or click here to see a short 1.20 min video that explains this mind-boggling wonder. All the 21,400 exposures were taken by the Dark Energy Camera as shown. The Dark Energy Camera, built by the DOE, cost $40 million. What a deal compared to the $10 billion the JWST cost!
All the photos were taken at the Cerro Tololo Observatory in Chile. It has some of the clearest night skies on earth. If interested, here is a 45 sec drone video of the observatory (YouTube)
So what’s my point in explaining all this? If the non-believing scientists and astrophysicists are using words like “wonderous creation,” (you know what they mean: Big Bang) what should our response be? I say, drop to the ground and worship & obey the King of kings with fear & trembling.
By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God,
so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.
(Hebrews 11:3)
Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!
(Psalm 95:6)
THE CULTURE – “The Big Lie”
To briefly finish my thoughts from last week……. What are men willing to do to fight the “Soul Destroying” culture we now live in? Some may recall the “big lie” theory that is attributed to Joseph Goebbels, the propaganda minister for Hitler and the Nazi Party. He stressed the idea that by repeating a falsehood often enough and with enough conviction, people will begin to believe it as true. That is absolutely what’s going on today. How do we know? Just line up what’s being pumped out and compare it with the “PERFECT TRUTH”….. the Bible, the Word of God! If what the world is saying conflicts with the Bible, then the red flag should go up immediately. The only way we get through this life is looking at the world through the lens of the Bible. There is no other way because we are not capable of discerning what’s True and what’s False. Don’t kid yourself!
Psalm 11:3 lays out exactly what’s been occurring:
“If the foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?”
– – – – – – – – – – – –
OUCH!
Can you believe these (2) statements from Tozer were given over 60 years ago?
Now think about the mess we have today!
“The contemporary moral climate does not favor a faith as tough and fibrous as that taught by our Lord and His apostles… And the fault lies with our [Christian] leaders. They are too timid to tell the people all the truth. They are now asking men to give to God that which costs them nothing.”
“The church has lost her testimony! She no longer has anything to say to the world. Her once robust shout of assurance has faded away to an apologetic whisper. She who one time went out to declare now goes out to inquire. Her dogmatic declaration has become a respectful suggestion, a word of religious advice, given with all the understanding that it is after all only an opinion and not meant to sound bigoted. Pure Christianity, instead of being shaped by its culture, actually stands in sharp opposition to it.”
A.W. Tozer 1897 – 1963
In closing, one question…….. how is your daily reading of the Bible coming along?
Grateful slave to King Jesus,
Dan
(Gal 2:20)
Men:
The more we reject our love of the world (1 John 2:15) the more we will be alone……but not lonely. If you haven’t read, “The Saint Must Walk Alone” by A.W. Tozer, I highly recommend it (Attached PDF – Send to a Christian buddy). This ending comment by Tozer really gives me pause:
The weakness of so many modern Christians is that they feel too much at home in the world………. And this is the saddest thing that can be said about them. They are not lonely, but neither are they saints.
And…… so true is this comment from the devotional below:
“The world simply has no capacity to understand those motivated to be Jesus’ slaves……”
Alone and Not Lonely – Day 26 Red Book
The purpose of these devotionals is to help you think Biblically
Solomon said, “As a man thinks, so is he”
MIM CONFERENCES
Please pray for the Camp Hebron Men’s Conference
Halifax, PA
February 3-5
Pray for the speakers and the men attending….. thanks
R12.2 January 2023 Blog
Joseph the Earthly Father of Jesus
Men: A note from the men of the R12.2 Conference:
Dear Friends,
We trust your new year is off to a great start.
Christmas may appear to be deep in your rearview mirror as we near the end of January, but the Christmas Story is timeless and ever heartening to believers. In this month’s blog, which was written by a dear Brother in Christ, Allen Cheatham, we’ll explore what we can learn from Joseph as the earthly father of Jesus.
Allen has spoken several times at our R12.2 Men’s Leadership Conferences in Callaway Gardens. He is well versed in Scripture and blessed with a keen interest in discipling others. We hope you will be encouraged and equipped through reading and meditating on the attached.
Good reading and good life.
In His name,
Arthur, Bob, Chris, and Steve R12.2 Conferences
A quote from the blog:
“…obedience without struggle reveals little of your true submission to Christ. Only when you don’t want to do it (be obedient), but do it anyway, do you find your commitment (to God) confirmed.”
[See attached PDF – January 2023 Blog]
Self-Depreciation
Men:
When I read these Puritan Prayers from the Valley of Vision….. Whoa!
And we think we can decipher the truth from the culture w/o the Bible….. ha! “…. My greatest snare is myself”
O LORD,
My every sense, member, faculty, affection,
is a snare to me,
I can scarce open my eyes but I envy those
above me,
or despise those below.
I covet honour and riches of the mighty,
and am proud and unmerciful to the rags
of others;
If I behold beauty it is a bait to lust,
or see deformity, it stirs up loathing and disdain;
How soon do slanders, vain jests, and wanton
speeches creep into my heart!
Am I comely? what fuel for pride!
Am I deformed? what an occasion for repining!
Am I gifted? I lust after applause!
Am I unlearned? how I despise what I have not!
Am I in authority? how prone to abuse my trust,
make will my law, exclude others’ enjoyments,
serve my own interests and policy!
Am I inferior? how much I grudge others’
pre-eminence!
Am I rich? how exalted I become!
Thou knowest that all these are snares
by my corruptions,
and that my greatest snare is myself.
I bewail that my apprehensions are dull,
my thoughts mean,
my affections stupid,
my expressions low,
my life unbeseeming;
Yet what canst thou expect of dust but levity,
of corruption but defilement?
Keep me ever mindful of my natural state,
but let me not forget my heavenly title,
or the grace that can deal with every sin.
Now, check out the short YouTube below…… and see what Jesus has done
The Valley of Vision – Regeneration
Men:
Powerful! (YouTube 2+mins)
“……. Thou hast loved me, espoused me, received me, purchased, washed, favored, clothed, adorned me……
when I was worthless, vile, soiled, polluted……..”
Zion Boot Camp Recordings
Men:
As you know, the recording are on the website (see below). Start going through them as you have time. Here is one that Lee gave Saturday evening. I have also attached one of his slides on the “ Use of Mammon” (see attached JPG)
Click Here #4 From Luke 16:1-15
Here are the 2022 recordings that have been uploaded.
You can download any of the talks here.
FEAR OF THE LORD
By John Bunyan
“……… the fear of the Lord is His treasure…
given only to favorites and to those who are greatly beloved”