“Before the first of the stars began to shine!” We were on God’s mind in eternity past, when the covenant was formed, and Jesus expressed his love for each of us (his elect) as he became party to it. Can we even begin to comprehend ages so vast, or love so deep?
Words and images are simply inadequate in describing concepts such as everlasting and eternity. Spurgeon’s imagery, however is beautifully stated and wonderful to ponder. The background image is from a NASA photograph of deep space, to give further perspective to the long ages of eternity.
But how can I know if I am one of God’s elect? Because of God’s love for his people, he will surely communicate his love and salvation to us. There are several ways He communicates. God has provided his Word to us, the Bible, to communicate the gospel message to us personally. Pastors and christian friends share God’s word with us, and finally God’s Holy Spirit actively works in our lives. We are not alone!
If you are unsure of God’s grace and salvation in your life, pray for His help, and look for His answer. Complete assurance of salvation may not come all at once, but it will grow over time.
Dear Lord, Grant me a deeper understanding of your eternal love. Speak to me through your Word, christian friends and by your Holy Spirit, that I may know your salvation and be counted among your elect. Amen.
I hope you have been blessed by this quote and the accompanying image taken from the Spurgeon Daily Quotes iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.
Will RogersIn 1932 Will Rogers predicted that it would take taxpayers 50 years to pay for all the massive appropriations of his day. How could he have been so wrong? It’s 75 years later now and we are still paying for massive social programs put into place during the Roosevelt years.
Not only that, but new programs and mandates have been put into place since then. We’re still fighting the “War on Poverty,” and it doesn’t appear that, after all the money invested, that we are winning.
Year after year, the programs grow bigger and bigger, the benefits grow more numerous, more participants qualify, and the scale of related fraudulent activity is staggering.
Nobody ever questions if the programs are successful in meeting their stated goals and reform is regularly voted down. The only measurement seems to be the amount of new money appropriated each year and the good intentions of the supporting sponsors.
Well, we’re the kids that are paying for the “great ideas” and good intentions of the 1930’s and it looks like our kids will be paying for the good intentions of the current administration. Seems like Will Rogers was right. The votes are getting more and more expensive.
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
Will Rogers
I love peaceful scenes like the one in the picture. A glassy lake, the ocean in the morning, fog settling over the mountaintops, a quiet evening at sunset are the times I remember.
With the busyness of life we enjoy the peaceful times that God gives us. As I have time to relax and enjoy a quiet moment I try to remember and be thankful to God for his blessings and provision.
In the peaceful times, and even in the hectic ones, may the words of my mouth and meditation of my heart be acceptable in God’s sight. I am so thankful he is my rock and my redeemer.
I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 19 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes ASV iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.
Will RogersI’ve driven by golf courses at various times and wondered why people were out there in the middle of the work day. After reading this Will Rogers’ quote, I think I understand. They’re vagrants!
Actually, I don’t think Will Rogers was patient enough to play such a slow moving game as golf. He would much rather be spinning his lasso, riding a horse, playing polo, flying somewhere, performing for a crowd, or playing with his kids.
If all the vagrants were chased off the golf course, Will would give them a hammer, nails, barbed wire and a shovel and take them out to fix fences on the back forty. Why waste time chasing a ball around when you could be working?
Another reason I believe Will Rogers didn’t like golf is because he couldn’t take his typewriter out on the golf course. At a ball game he could at least type out his daily and weekly newspaper columns between pitches.
Well, after all these years, golf isn’t dead. The next time you drive by a golf course, wave to the vagrants, be glad you’ve got work to do, and do it with energy and passion, just like Will Rogers did.
Image Information: Will Rogers was an expert with the lasso. This image shows him performing one of his rope tricks.
The image was taken directly from pictures at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
Will Rogers
Psalm 4 is a wonderful picture of the joy and peace that come from trust in God. But, how can this be in the fallen world in which we live?
We know, from other Psalms, that the Psalmist has been through great suffering and difficult trials. Yet this Psalm is amazingly upbeat. I think the joy mentioned here is much deeper than a few moments of superficial happiness that may come from wine or drink, or a brief time of pleasure. Such moments don’t fill our hearts with the joy and praise to God mentioned in this Psalm. It takes more than that to cause a person to sleep in peace.
Just like filling a cup with water takes time, so does filling our hearts with the joy and comfort that comes from knowing Christ as savior. Relationships take time to develop to a deeper level, and so does developing a relationship with the Lord. The deep joy will come in time, but you can enjoy as least some measure of it as you heart is filled day-by-day.
If you do not have a relationship with the Lord, you can pray for it right now. You can ask God for help today. If you do know the Lord, pray for a deeper relationship with Him.
Dear Lord, I want my heart filled with the joy that comes from knowing you. I want a peaceful sleep that comes from trusting you. I want to know that my sins are forgiven. Help me to look to you for salvation, and let the light of your face shine upon me. Amen.
Here are a few practical tips for deepening your relationship with the Lord. Read the Bible. It is how we get to know God. A good place to start is the Gospel of John. Seek out christian friends and a church where you can worship God in a community of other believers. May God bless you dear friend.
I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 4 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes NIV iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.
Even before my oldest daughter was born, I was thinking about her. So was my wife. After she was born, we spent a lot of time thinking about her, praying for her and caring for her. That’s a lot of thoughts!
If I could add up all those thoughts, I don’t think I could come close to the number represented by the grains of sand in the image on the left.
The Psalmist give us an idea of the vastness of God’s precious thoughts toward us. Before we were even born he was thinking of us. From the day we were born, and every day and night – his thoughts are on his children.
Dear Lord, help me to understand even a small part of your thoughts and care for me, especially in the work of Jesus – his life, his cross, his death and his resurrection!
I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 139 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes NASB iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.
EXTRA!
Below is an extra treat! The Sons of Korah have put Psalm 139 to music. Listen to a sample below and purchase your own copy at the iTunes store by clicking on the button.
All my information about quicksand comes from watching old western movies years ago, but if I remember, the more you struggle to get out, the faster you will sink.
Imagine the patience and fortitude it would take to remain completely still while waiting for a friend to fetch a rope or tree limb to pull you to safety. Any struggle whatsoever would send you deeper into the sand.
There is one thing you can do, however. You can call out to your friend and tell him your troubles. You can tell him your fears and urge him to quickly bring relief.
Suddenly, you feel the rope in your hand, and the steady pull to safety. The only feeling better than that is the placing of your feet back on solid ground. Next is the gasp of relief and a shout of thanks to your friend!
How many times have I struggled through a situation, and emerged bruised and battered. I might even say: “Boy that was a lucky break!”
But wait. Have I been patient? Have I cried out to the Lord for rescue? Have I praised him with a song of praise? Have I encouraged others to put their trust in the Lord as Psalm 40 admonishes us?
Dear Lord, I’ve failed to be patient and pray for help so many times. In your mercy, teach me to trust you more, that you might be glorified. Put a new song in my mouth, that I might sing your praises. Amen.
I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 40 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes ESV iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.
A group of students from Taylor University were in Egypt for the spring semester, but their stay was cut short by the recent unrest. One of the young ladies is a friend of our family, and we followed the situation closely. We prayed for her safety as Americans were evacuated from Cairo, and the group was finally able to flee to Turkey.
The unrest in Egypt made it dangerous for foreigners and religious groups to stay. Innocent people had been killed at their place of worship. In an instant, you could become an enemy of an angry crowd because of your race or religion. You could be harmless and helpless, as the fawn in the picture, but still become the object of hatred and violence.
I’m sure that Psalm 18 becomes relevant to these students, with the possibility that violence could erupt around them at any moment. They were rescued from violent men and saved from their enemies.
The Psalmists response is praise. Exuberant praise! “O Lord; I will sing praises to your name.” I’m sure these students and their parents are praising God for their deliverance from possible harm.
Our deliverance might not be quite so dramatic, but should our praise be any less? If God can deliver us from small things, then He can deliver us from any thing. We can especially praise God each day for delivering us from our sins through Jesus.
Dear Lord, I praise you for my deliverance and protection. I praise you especially for your great salvation through Jesus Christ your son. Amen.
I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 18 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes NIV iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.
Will RogersCongressmen used to carry home suitcases stuffed with cash, but today it’s all done electronically. So much money is flowing out of Washington, it like a dam burst and flooded the entire valley.
There’s a $700 billion wall of money roaring down the valley covering the countryside with cash. The original allocation was designed to rescue the banking industry. About 3 months after passage, almost $300 billion of TARP funds had been spent.
There’s a tiny little problem with the program – nobody actually knows how the program is being run and where the money is going. Of over 300 banks receiving funds only two were required to detail how the money was to be spent.
Another tiny little problem is that instead of banks lending the money (the original intent), banks are hoarding cash and tightening lending because of market uncertainty.
It turns out that to run a program that massive, you need to hire more accountants, financial analysts, managers and hog callers by numbers greater than all the head of cattle in Oklahoma.
Let’s summarize. We don’t know where most of the money went. The money we do know about isn’t being used for the purpose intended, and oh yes, there is concern about fraud.
Well I guess we just need to trust these great statesmen on the banking committee and at the treasury. They are smart people and I just know they are putting all that taxpayer money to good use. As a statesman, it’s all about good intentions.
Well, the dam has burst and there’s no money left in reserve. It’s all gone, but we sure have a bunch of statesmen, by Will Rogers definition.
Reference: Where’s all the TARP Money? Forbs.com
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
Will Rogers
Praising God is special. For who he is, for what He does, for good or bad, in any circumstance, we can praise God.
Praising God in the congregation with song is, to me, even more special. I don’t sing very good, but when the congregation sings together, I can lift my voice as well. There’s a majesty, loveliness and peace about it, just like the swan in the picture.
One day soon, we’ll stand with the multitude in heaven praising God. “I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven crying out, Hallelujah!” Rev 19:1
I hope you have been blessed by Psalm 135 and the accompanying image taken from the Psalm Daily Quotes NASB iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that need an encouraging word.
If ever a Will Rogers quote was relevant today, it is this one. When I send my hard-earned money off to Washington, I hope that they would spend it wisely. Is that too much to ask?
Apparently so! When I hear about the pork barrel spending and waste, it just burns my grits. We’re talking about huge amounts of money here folks. When a government accountant sneezes, a million dollars goes up in smoke. When a politician blinks, a billion dollars vanishes and when the president gives a speech, wealth disappears.
The President is a rich guy. His tax bill this past year was over $400,000. He talks about the rich people needing to pay their fair share, but if I sent that kind of money to the government, I would expect a “thanks,” and a little accountability.
Instead, my money is spent on failed programs, by the billions. We have a Federal Education department that hasn’t improved education by any measurable result. The War on Poverty has had more negative results than positive. Yet we hear how important these programs are, and that more money is needed to fix the problems they created in the first place.
Any belief that elected officials in this administration posses any special wisdom and common sense went out the window when the Vice President said: “Just becaust the Recovery Act was a monumental failure, does not mean that it is not working.”
My only hope is that candidates in the next election come up with something better to offer than empty promises. Is that too much to ask?
Image Info: Wiley Post is pictured with Will Rogers in this colorized image. Post was one of the most famous aviators of the 1930s, and set records for high-altitude and round-the-world flights. Rogers and Post were killed in a plane crash in Alaska in August of 1935.
The image was taken directly from pictures at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
We’re going to hear a whole bunch of lame ducks quacking real soon! The congressional pond will be alive with flapping and splashing.
Rogers’ definition of “lame duck Congress” is dead on! The bums that were thrown out for not doing their job get one last chance to do some damage. Let’s pray that they don’t “burn the house down!”
Image Information: This image is from a Will Rogers’ silent movie called An Unwilling Hero, released in 1921. Rogers plays Whistling Dick, a hobo who loves life and classical music. He loves just about everything except work.
The image was taken directly from movie stills at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
Will RogersIn 1930 Will Rogers comments that we might starve to death in a land of plenty. How can that happen? Today, I want to share Bushrod Johnston’s (The name has been changed to protect the innocent.) story with you, sort of a parable if you will. Here is “Bushy’s” story.
I’ve been farmin’ all my life, just like my Daddy, Granddad, Great-Granddad, and so on. I’ve done well – married a good woman, raised 12 chillins, worked hard and lived an honest life. We was livin’ just fine, right here in Muddy Boggy Creek, until the last decade or so.
It all started when this government feller drove up in one of those new-fangled electric cars. He was from the Hog Waller Inspection Group of the Dirt Division of the Dept. of Agriculture. After counting and weighing each hog, sow and piglet, He computed the location, size, depth, and mud density of the waller along with the air quality.
After keying in all the data into his computer, we waited for the results. After about an hour and four cups of coffee, the computer determined that the stink to air ratio along with the waller to hog factor were out of balance. The only way to fix the problem was to purchase a new electric tractor with special attachments, including a stink reducer and hog scanner. If we didn’t fix the problem immediately, the hogs would be confiscated under the hog relocation program.
Since he drove his electric car more than 20 miles, and we didn’t have a special outlet for charging, I towed him back to town with my tractor. A month later they took my hogs.
Next came the chicken beak inspectors, the Bovine Flatulent Methane Emissions Quality Group, the Federal Agency to Reduce Tractor Smoke (FARTS), and a host of others. We had to quit milking the cows because the Teats Inspector said that recent studies indicated that milking caused low self-esteem in 56.2% of cows and suicidal thoughts in 15.87% of depressed cows. Our harvest is gone to rot because the Vegetable Inspector said the tractor noise was disturbing the natural habitat of the Snail Darter.
We’ve been living off of Twinkies from the local store, because we can’t eat anything on the farm any more. Unfortunately, I hear that the First Lady has just appointed a Department of Calorie Abuse which will restrict the purchases of sugary treats.
We cooked up a batch of Snail Darters the other day, but don’t tell anybody.
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
Will Rogers
Will RogersIt was 10 degrees F (-12C) this morning and I had to do some work on my car. After a few minutes it was becoming more and more difficult to do even the simplest manipulation with my fingers. Not only that, it was painful.
Can you imagine how difficult it must be for crap shooters when it’s that cold. Will Rogers noticed that in February of 1934. Those poor crap shooters at the NYSE had to wait until they could warm up their hands and fingers before they could roll the dice and place their bets.
Image Information: This picture is from the entrance to Will Rogers’ Dog Iron Ranch in Oologah, OK. It is a working ranch and features Will Roger’ Oklahoma home and historical artifacts. It is maintained by the Will Rogers Memorial Museum which is just a few miles away in Claremore, OK.
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
Will Rogers
Will RogersI don’t know much about banking, bailouts and loans, but when I read that a country is repaying a loan to the U.S. it does seem mighty strange. It was strange in Will Rogers’ day too. We had loaned vast sums of money to European countries after WWI for rebuilding, and we never saw most of it again.
We’re still giving away money – taxpayer money. We learned that money went to bail out foreign banks recently by the billions. Will we ever see any of it again? Will it produce jobs here in the U.S.? Will it help the U.S. get out of debt?
Will Rogers was a guy that believed in common sense. We can only hope (and vote) for some common sense to return back to Washington.
Wait a minute! Did I just put “common sense” and “Washington” in the same sentence? Folks, we’ve got a lot of work to do!
Image Information: Will Rogers was a frequent flyer. When he discovered that air transportation was the fastest way to get places he was constantly in the air. He started in open cockpit airplanes and became a part of the birth of commercial aviation.
The image was taken directly from pictures at the Will Rogers Memorial Museum archive. I apologize for the quality of the image, but this is exactly what the 1920s photo looked like when I scanned it. In the hundreds of images contained in this iPhone application, I wanted to share as many different Will Rogers photos as possible from as wide a variety of times and situations – movies, cowboy, vaudeville, with famous people, and family scenes.
Will Rogers is a man worth remembering, and quoting. His wit, humor and insight into life will amaze and astonish you. His life will inspire you. Watch for new blog posts from my Will Rogers quotes collection.
I hope you have enjoyed this quote from Will Rogers and the accompanying image taken from the Will Rogers iPhone app. Please visit our blog, twitter, or Facebook page regularly and pass these posts on to friends that might enjoy a bit of wisdom from Will Rogers.
Will Rogers