The Watchman
Zion National Park
“How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all;
the earth is full of your riches.”
Psalm 104:24`
Hi Men:
I pray you have been able to retain your peace in light of all that is happening around the world. We need the resolve to stay immersed in God’s Word and reflect often throughout the day who purchased us with His own blood. Our eyes need to be firmly fixed on our ultimate home where we long to hear those precious words from Jesus, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your lord.” (Matt 25:23)
PHOTO ABOVE
I was going to put one of the multitude of photos that we have all seen from the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. So many are heart-breaking…… and we not only need to pray for all the lives that have been devastated, but as Christians we are commanded to do good to all people, especially those who are in the household of faith (Gal 6:10).
Instead of using one of those images, I needed to “lighten the load” and put in something that lifted my spirits. That sandstone mountain is called The Watchman and you can actually see a similar view from a bridge, a very short walk from where our Zion conference and accommodations are at.
I did run across one photo taken by a NOAA satellite that caught my attention…..
It’s not the greatest image, but as you can see in the 1st Photo taken on Sept 25 that the power grid is unaffected, but the 2nd photo taken on Sept 28 you can see the swath from Hurricane Helene and the darkened area where millions lost power. It has been reported how devastating this hurricane was, primarily from the amount of water that was dumped. Here are a few statistics regarding the water:
- 40 trillion gallons of water fell in the Southeast (calculated by former NOAA chief scientist, Ryan Maue). Some scientists are saying it was more
- 40 TRILLION GALLONS – A MIND BOGGLING AMOUNT! Some comparisons:
- It’s more than twice the combined amount of water stored by two key Colorado River basin reservoirs: Lake Powell and Lake Mead.
- It would fill Lake Tahoe (and you know how deep that lake is)
- It would fill 60 million Olympic-size swimming pools
- It would be equivalent of 619 days of constant water flow over Niagara Falls
We will be hearing a lot more about the destructive force from wind and water in the days ahead. We also hear a lot about what caused this, including “Global Warming.” Let me share a verse about what real global warming will be:
“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.” (1 Peter 3:10)
A Word About Peace
Speaking about peace, let’s not forget what Jesus shared with his disciples, “In this world you WILL have trouble, but take heart; I have overcome the world. I have told you these things, so that IN ME you will have peace” (John 16:33).
Isn’t it interesting that our true peace comes from being IN Christ! Something to truly meditate on and pray about. Often I hear people desiring world peace and some Christian congregations pray for world peace. Then along comes Jesus and He spoils the fun:
“Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.” (Matthew 10:34-39)
Grateful slave to King Jesus,
Dan
(Gal 2:20)
“You, John the Baptist and Jesus all have the same purpose for
existence – TO SEEK AND SAVE THE LOST.”
A Man Sent from God – Day 279 Red Book
The purpose of these devotionals is to help you think Biblically
Solomon said, “As a man thinks, so is he”
1 – Matt 6:33
PLEASE REGISTER FOR ZION
Click on “Register Today” or Or Here
Please pray for the Southwest Men’s Retreat. It starts tonight (Oct 4)
Link To The Guys’ Thing (Tomales Bay, CA) Nov 8-10
WHAT IN THE WORLD HAS GOTTEN IN TO POPE FRANCIS?
Pope Francis made an outrageous statement at a junior college last month in Singapore, a country with at least five different faiths. He has created an outlandish and bizarre controversy. Pope Francis declared “all religions are a path to God.” Then he embellished his heretical assertion by stating, “There’s only one God, and each of us has a language to arrive at God. Some are Sikh, Muslim, Hindu, Christian, and they are different paths [to God].”
His comments fly in the face of what Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; NO ONE comes to the Father but through Me”
I can tell you first hand, having been intimately involved in India for 13 years, Hinduism is NOT a path to the God of the Bible!
If interested, Here is the official transcript from the Vatican.
⚠️ DANGER – YOU MAY WANT TO SKIP THIS ONE! ⚠️
Men:
A brother in the Cleveland area sent me the poem below. As I read it, a couple things came to mind:
- God is Sovereign & Man is Responsible – Both are true!
- Ezekiel 33:6 Gives us all great pause
Also read The Double Edge of Responsibility – Day 150 Blue Book
Your friends will never thank you for not sharing the gospel with them as they are zipping down to Hell
MY FRIEND
by D.J. Higgins
My friend, I stand in judgment now
And feel that you’re to blame somehow
While on this earth I walked with you day by day
And never did you point the way
You knew the Lord in truth and glory
But never did you tell the story
My knowledge then was very dim
You could have led me safe to Him
Though we lived together here on earth
You never told me of your second birth
And now I stand this day condemned
Because you failed to mention Him
You taught me many things, that’s true
I called you friend and trusted you
But now I learned, now it’s too late
You could have kept me from this fate
We walked by day and talked by night
And yet you showed me not the Light
You let me live, love and die
And all the while you knew I’d never live on high
Yes, I called you friend in life
And trusted you in joy and strife
Yet in coming to this end
I see you really weren’t my friend
THREE POUNDS OF WONDER
Men:
This latest video by the John 10:10 Project is superb. Make sure you watch it and pass in along to your friends.
Watch on YouTube (2.5 minutes)
Dust on the Bible
by Tim Challies
Hank Williams recorded an old song called “Dust on the Bible.” It’s a song of lament in which he has gone to a friend’s home and asked to see their Bible. When they bring it to him, he realizes it has obviously not been read for a very long time, for it is covered in dust.
To read more go to: Challies.com/articles/105126/
WILLING TO LOSE FOR CHRIST
Prisoners for Christ, Letting
“the Lord Shine Through”
In 2021, a group of Hmong water-buffalo traders brought an unexpected gift to Cai’s village in Vietnam — the gospel of Jesus Christ. Six families came to faith in Christ, including Cai’s. The new Christians weren’t quite sure what it meant to be a church, but they were eager to learn.
“We wanted to worship God, but we didn’t know how,” Cai said.
He said they began to meet together, often early in the morning or late at night to avoid the watchful eyes of government officials. The families of this fledgling church decided that the best way to gain more freedom to worship would be to register with one of Vietnam’s official denominations. They reasoned that being registered would put the local officials at ease, demonstrating that they were being good citizens.
It had the opposite effect.
When the registration paperwork was brought to the local government, it set off an angry backlash that resulted in these families losing their land, being ostracized from the community and being cut off from even basic community services like electricity.
Even worse, authorities arrested the three leaders, including Cai. As registered Christians, these brothers reasoned, they could have enlisted human rights organizations to fight for their rights and help them avoid prison. But at what cost? The fight, they knew, would permanently damage their Christian community. Instead, they chose the path of humility and meekness.
“We talked to each other, and we said that we could not win them over by arguing with them,” Cai said. “So we decided that we would accept the loss and go to prison so that the Lord will shine through us. We had no one to help us, humanly speaking, but God is with us. The Lord will help us during our time in the prison. We said that we will lose so that the Lord will win.”