Quote of the Day - 3/30/2014

Joy is really a road sign pointing us to God. Once we have found God...we no longer need to trouble ourselves so much about the quest for joy.

 –C. S. Lewis

Quote of the Day - 03/28/2014

“Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.”
- C.S. Lewis

Quote of the Day - 03/25/2014

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.

Henry David Thoreau

Quote of the Day - 03/20/2014

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Quote of the Day

“Could I climb to the highest place in Athens, I would lift my voice and proclaim, 'Fellow citizens, why do you turn and scrape every stone to gather wealth, and take so little care of your children to whom one day you must relinquish it all?'” 
- Socrates

Quote of the Day - 02/20/2014

”People can foresee the future only when it coincides with their own wishes, and the most grossly obvious facts can be ignored when they are unwelcome.” 

- George Orwell

Quote of the Day - 02/11/2014

"A person who is not inwardly prepared for the use of violence against him, is always weaker than the person committing the violence."

 - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago, 1974

Everything is Beautiful in its Time -- Swayback Hike 2/1/2014

11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.
Eccl 3:10-11 (NKJV)

Hike: Swayback Bridge Trail of Legends, Sat. 2/1/2014, 13:45-15:45CST
Distance: 5.5 miles  Rating: 4/5
Difficulty: Easy
Conditions:  Partly cloudy; calm; mid 60s.  Trails wet and muddy from recent winter storm but all areas passable.  Several vehicles at the trail head.  Encountered 4 other hikers, 6 trail runners, and several mountain bikers.

Thoughts/Observations:

An unusual afternoon hike for me.  I am a "morning person" and normally prefer to get on the trails as early as possible.  Zac had a K-Laser treatment this morning, so hiking had to wait until after lunch.

I was surprised at the number of other hikers (4) and trail runners (6) that I encountered -- most in a single day.  Perhaps these trails are getting more popular with hikers/runners too...

The ubiquitous passerines were flitting about the canopy and forest floor.  Bird song was a beautiful companion along the trail.  No deer or squirrels observed today. 

Seeing the forest highlighted with the western sun was a bit novel.  Winter-time in Dixie produces open forest vistas.  One can see into and through the forest to little coves and secret spots that are hidden other times of the year.  It is always a treat.

Thank YOU, LORD, for the beauty of YOUR Creation.

Looking Up to the Hills... (Psalms 121)

5 The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade at your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. 8 The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore.
Psalms 121:5-8 (NKJV)

GOD, did this for us yesterday!  The driving in Birmingham was unbelievably tense and difficult.  The National Weather Service missed the forecast by about 100 miles.  Snow and ice began building up quickly on all streets (major routes and secondary roads) and I-65 became a parking lot and bumper car ride.

Thankfully we made it to the Vestavia Hills exit without damage.  GOD again provided for us in the form of a room at the Days Inn.  (There were at least 75 people still waiting in line for a room after I got ours.)

Captain D's was still open as well as a gas station next door.  We had a warm, fish dinner for supper and plenty of snacks to get us through tomorrow.

Thank  YOU, LORD, for YOUR great care!

Verse of the Day

8 Let all the earth fear the Lord; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. 9 For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. 10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. 11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever, The plans of His heart to all generations. 12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.
Psalms 33:8-12 (NKJV)

I will lift up my eyes to the hills-- Chimney Rock & Kowliga Bay Loop - Sat., 1/18/2014

Hike:  Chimney Rock, Kowliga Bay Loop, Cherokee Ridge North Loop - Sat., 1/18/2014, 10:00-12:30CST
Distance: 5 miles  Rating: 4.5/5
Difficulty: Easy
Conditions: Bright blue, clear sky. Beautiful day. Wind light to moderate. Cold to cool (30s headed to upper 40s). Trails mostly dry.  Lots of hardwood leaves in some spots required careful stepping.
Thoughts/Observations:
Observed many passerines including at least 2 bluebirds!  Sparrows, titmouse, and cardinals were also busy about the forest floor and canopy.  Their choruses were most welcome.  No deer or squirrels seen on this outing.

Lake Martin was mostly calm and bright blue.  The deep fingers of sloughs had a polished OD Green color.  As normal for this time of year, the lake level was quite low, exposing wonderful rock and boulder formations.

One of my favorite Psalms came to mind as I hiked these "alpine" trails...

I will lift up my eyes to the hills-- From whence comes my help? 2 My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade at your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. 8 The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore. Psalms 121:1-8 (NKJV)

Duck & Cover

Interesting piece from WND... What worked in the 50s can still work today!...

Americans warned of imminent, deadly meteor strikes

Famous strategy recommended to survive

by Bob Unruh 

With NASA reporting a "potentially hazardous" asteroid nearly half-a-mile wide possibly heading toward earth, and some upstate New Yorkers claiming they experienced a loud boom and a bright light in the sky last night caused by a meteor, a doctors' organization is offering some timely advice:

Just as when the American populace first prepared for the possibility of a nuclear blast, a person's best option for surviving a meteor strike is the same "duck and cover" created during the 1940s and '50s when nuclear weaponry was still in its infancy.

The warning comes from Physicians for Civil Defense, which issued a statement recently during a meeting of the Emergency Management Agency of Utah.

"All Americans, starting with first responders and emergency managers, need to know this basic life-saving principle: 'Drop and cover if you see a sudden very bright light,'" said the statement from the organization's spokeswoman, Jane Orient, M.D.

"Such a light will be followed by a deadly shock wave within seconds. Those who drop and cover will probably survive. Those who do not are likely to be killed or suffer severe injury."

The organization's goal is to save lives of first responders in the event of disasters, "especially terrorist attacks using dirty bombs or nuclear weapons."

Members note that "in today's unprepared America, the only feasible plan that could save millions of lives on very short notice is the Nuclear War Survival Skills plan, using simple, government-developed and tested technology."

Those three-plan components include "Drop and Cover," "Shelter in Place," and "Radiologic Monitoring."

Visit the Homefront department in WND's Superstore, for items like fire-starters, emergency food supplies, a Lifestraw for water purification, disaster preparedness kits, even Faraday kits to protect electronics from the powerful impulse that accompanies some explosions.

The first features the 1951 video on how to drop and cover, protecting one's head, neck and face, from the impact of an energy blast from a bomb, or a meteor strike.

Featured is a question-and-answer session between Orient and civil defense expert Steve Jones, who said, "Like everyone else, I was taught to ridicule 'duck and cover.'"

But, he said, "If you examine the blast area of a nuclear device, there is a zone half a mile wide or a mile wide, depending on the size of the blast, where anyone standing would be killed, but persons who were lying down were almost guaranteed to live. Since lying down makes a difference between living and dying or receiving a serious injury, it is a very powerful lifesaving maneuver. It takes eight times the force to move a person if he is lying down rather than standing up. Of course the military taught this for years in combat situations. World War II vets came back and if they heard an explosion or saw a flash they hit the dirt. They were embarrassed because they would be walking down a city street and suddenly hit the ground."

On the issue of sheltering in place, the doctors' organization lists priorities: Food and water "IMMEDIATELY!"

The guide, specifically addressing the possibility of a bomb, also speaks of the material needed to protect from radiation.

The radiological monitoring step also is addressed for a bomb, and explains how to build more secure locations and monitor radiation that does invade.

On the issue of a meteor strike, Orient's statement noted that, "During the 2013 Chelyabinsk meteor explosion, a fourth-grade teacher in Chelyabinsk, Yulia Karbysheva, saved 44 children from potentially life-threatening window glass cuts by ordering them to hide under their desks when she saw the flash.

"Ms. Karbysheva, who remained standing, was seriously lacerated when the explosion's blast wave arrived and windows shattered. A tendon in her arm was severed, but not one of her students suffered a cut."

"Large meteor strikes are sufficiently probable that both the U.S. and Russia are working on ways to divert them. In 1908 a meteor strike flattened 800 square miles of Siberian forest," Orient said.

And stay calm, the doctors say.

"Mass bombing of London by Hitler in World War II created a panic that did more damage than the bombs in the early days," the site explains. "Once the public got used to the bombings the panic ended along with damage caused by it. Likewise the scientists that brought in the nuclear age understood that panic caused by a nuclear bomb would do more damage than the bomb itself."

While there was no reported damage, there was a bright flash that illuminated the skies over Providence, R.I., on Sunday evening.

The local ABC affiliate reported, "A mysterious light flashed through the sky Sunday night, maybe you saw it? Reports of a green and white, sparking light came pouring in across New England, but what exactly was that bright flash?

"Wrigley Bynum said his friends called him crazy, 'I had people telling me, oh, you're nuts!' He wasn't sure what he saw from his Charlestown deck flying through the sky. He goes on, 'I thought maybe it was an aircraft, a shooting star at first, it didn't burn out at first like a shooting star, so then thought maybe it was a plane or something going down but it didn't have flames just a long tail.'"

In that incident, Michael Umbricht of the Ladd Observatory at Brown University explained it was a lone meteor, the type called a fireball because of its brilliance, that came into the atmosphere.

Orient told WND that the message is critical, whether an explosion comes from a bomb, a meteor's shock wave, even an earthquake.

"We're very interested in saving lives," she said. "Nobody knows [this information]." It's been forgotten and the civil defense experts have retired, or died.

"This [defensive maneuver] could save the most number of lives. … If you see a flash there are just seconds."

© Copyright 1997-2013. All Rights Reserved. WND.com.

--

"...I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." -- JESUS, John 10:10b NKJV


myblog: http://pastorlarry.blogspot.com

Hike and a Fire Challenge!

Hike: Swayback Bridge Trails, Saturday, 1/11/2014, 11:00-14:00CST
Distance: 7 miles  Rating: 4.5/5
Difficulty: Easy to Moderate (due to distance and trail conditions)
Conditions: Soggy!  Lots of standing and RUNNING water due to recent Thunderstorms.  Trails slick and underwater in spots.  Temps low to upper 60s!!! (Yay!)  Wind: light to moderate.  Cloudy to sunny.
Thoughts/Observations:

Hard to believe that just a couple  of days ago it was 13 degF!  Now it's closer to 70.  Hiking felt good today.  Had to come out of long sleeve Henley due to temps.  This is winter in Dixie -- I love it.

There were trillions (probably not quite that many) of frogs around the swampy areas and believe me they were singing.  The only time they stopped was to hop in the water if I approached.  Passerines were busy throughout the forest floor and canopy.  Did not see any squirrels or whitetail on this trip.

My brother challenged me to start a fire in the soaked conditions today... I couldn't let the challenge go unanswered... so here's the proof Bro:

Get out and enjoy GOD's Creation.  Spend some quality time communing with your CREATOR.

Quote of the Day

"The laws that forbid the carrying of arms are laws of such a nature. They disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes.... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man."
- Thomas Jefferson (quoting 18th century criminologist Cesare Beccaria)

Swayback Bridge Trail of Legends - Sat., 1/4/2014

Hike: Portions of Red & Black Trails (in reverse), Swayback Bridge Trail of Legends, Wetumpka, AL, Saturday, 1/4/2014, 10:15-12:15CST
Distance: 5.0 miles  Rating: 4.5/5
Difficulty: Easy
Conditions: Mostly sunny. Warming up rapidly from low 20s to upper 40s this morning. Wind calm.  Trails still wet/muddy from recent rains.  Busted up in a spot or two with ice.  Five mountain bikers on the trail today.  Surprised by the greater than normal number of hikers -- a couple of family groups were out enjoying the trails!

Thoughts/Observations:

Many passerines flitting through the low forest canopy this morning.  A few were singing but I could not tell which ones.  Heron and ducks were present as usual.  Spooked one whitetail doe about 3/4 of the way into the hike.

Absolutely gorgeous day to be out enjoying GOD's great creation!

24 Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord.
Psalms 31:24 (NKJV)

Happy New Year 2014 -- Hiking Cherokee Ridge Alpine Trail

Hike: Cherokee Ridge Alpine Trail (N & S Loops), Kowliga, AL, 1/1/2014, 09:15-11:30 CST
Distance:  4.5 miles  Rating: 5/5
Difficulty: Moderate due to amount of uphill and rocky portions
Conditions: Cloudy.  Light drizzle last half-hour.  Low to mid 40s.  Wind calm.  Trails wet but not muddy.  A few slippery spots.  As normal for this time of year, Lake Martin was several feet below full pool.

Thoughts/Observations:

This hike was a fantastic way to start off the new year.  All the elements of a great hike were present: solitude, peace, worship-time, beautiful scenery, wildlife, a placid lake, and rain!  (Yes, I know I am a little strange, but I enjoy hiking in the rain.)

Observed gray squirrel, ducks, and heron.  Some small kinglets escorted me through the lake-side portion of my hike.  They just "flitted" from tree to tree all around me.  The hardwood leaves cushioned my foot-fall making for a mostly silent hike.  I am a little surprised I did not spook some white-tail deer.

The barrenness of the tree cover made the rock formations appear like fortresses along the hillside.  A small "wet season" waterfall graced the huge rock on the South Loop trail with a nice staccato tune.  The rock cathedral is still my favorite place though the pine trees are beginning to get tall enough to block out portions of the lake.

Thought about my hiking buddies from Crestview Outdoor Ministry Expeditions today!  Wish you guys could have been with me.

Excerpt from "With Every Act of Love" by Jason Gray on mind throughout my hike:

God put a million, million doors in the world
For His love to walk through
One of those doors is you
I said, God put a million, million doors in the world
For His love to walk through
One of those doors is you

Oh, we bring the kingdom come
Oh, with every act of love
Jesus, help us carry You
Alive in us, Your light shines through
With every act of love
We bring the kingdom

Happy New Year!

Hiking Mountain Creek - New Year's Eve 2013

 

Hike: Mountain Creek, Tuesday, 12/31/2013, 09:45-11:30CST

Distance: 4.5 miles  Rating:  4/5  

Difficulty: Easy

Conditions: Overcast.  Sun trying to peek through.  Wind light.  Temp: low to mid 40s.  Felt cooler than yesterday.  Trails wet and muddy in spots from recent rains.

Thoughts/Observations:

Quiet and peaceful today.  Observed one gray squirrel and several cardinals.  Forgot to add the SD card to my camera... so the only photo is from my cell phone.

Today was my first hike at Mountain Creek since early June.  The trails have been widened in spots (fire breaks I guess) and the new reconstruction of a Confederate enlisted men barracks is complete.  (It looks impressive.)

Verse for today:

The earth is the Lord's, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. 2 For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters.

Psalms 24:1-2 (NKJV)

Hiking Swayback - 12/30/2013 - "And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands"

31 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; And let them say among the nations, "The Lord reigns." 32 Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; Let the field rejoice, and all that is in it. 33 Then the trees of the woods shall rejoice before the Lord,
1 Chron 16:31-33 (NKJV)

12 "For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Isaiah 55:12 (NKJV)

When thru the woods
And forest glades I wander
And hear the birds
Sing sweetly in the trees
When I look down
From lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook
And feel the gentle breeze

Then sings my soul
My Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art
How great Thou art
Then sings my soul
My Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art
How great Thou art

Hike:  Portions of Black & Red Trails, Swayback Bridge Trail of Legends, Monday, 12/30/2013, 10:00-12:00 CST
Distance: 5 miles  Rating: 5/5
Difficulty: Easy
Conditions: Overcast (little to no sun showing through).  Mid to Upper 40s.  Calm.  Trails wet and muddy from recent rains.

Thoughts:
 
It has been a while, much too long, since I was out on the trail, hiking.  So much interference and conflict the last several months have taken their toll.  Except for a short hike in mid-November, this is the first time I have been on the trail since hiking with Diane and Robert in the Witchita National Wildlife Refuge back in September!  I knew I needed it -- I just did not realize how much.

13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord... Jer 29:13-14 (NKJV)

A few things I learned today on the trail... I think I already knew this (at least in my head).  Heart knowledge though is a little better...

(1) GOD answers prayers.  HE shows up!  HE will be found when we earnestly seek HIM.
(2) I have got to guard my time with HIM better in 2014 than I did in 2013.
(3) I need these quiet hikes in the woods with HIM as much as I need air, water, or food.
(4) When we face difficulties, conflicts, and disappointments, HE is the answer!

Happy New Year!

The Age-Old Quest for Power (Excerpt from WND)

Well said... well said, indeed!  (lwt)

THE INCARNATION

The age-old quest for power

Exclusive: Scott Morefield spotlights choices of Frodo, Geo. Washington, Jesus Christ

Published: 2 days ago

By Scott Morefield

J.R.R. Tolkien tells the tale of a ring so powerful that, should it fall into the wrong hands, the world would plunge into darkness. Lost underground for ages, it finally made its way into the hands of a noble young hobbit, Frodo Baggins, charged with delivering it to the only place where it could be destroyed, the fires of Mount Doom. His epic journey there and the help he received is a classic story for the ages. Before Gollum's greed eventually sealed his own and the ring's destruction, the ring of power, which had destroyed so many, even almost consumed brave Frodo in the end.

History tells of a man who rose to become president of a great young republic, yet, when offered the chance to continue his run of power, declined. George Washington, who once famously said, "I had rather be on my farm than be emperor of the world," retired quietly to his Virginia farm, sadly but all too correctly predicting that, "unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government."

Little did Washington know how right he would be, that, hard as he and his fellow founders tried to create a constitutional system of government full of the checks and balances meant to protect against the tyranny common in seemingly all other nations, thanks to the inevitable and all-too-human lust for power and control it would only take a couple of hundred years for their vision of a limited government of and by the people to fall apart.

Power is, indeed, a scary thing. From politicians, to business executives, to fast-food shift managers, most everyone wants more than they already have – until the thirst and lust for it becomes unquenchable, a black hole on the souls of those who allow it to consume them. Frodo, like so many others in fictional Middle Earth, succumbed. Washington avoided the siren's call, but he is one of the few in history. Most who obtain power, whether through revolution, war, heredity, riches, or elections, tenaciously hold onto it until death or military or electoral defeat. Few wield it nobly or responsibly.

Sadly, those who long for power over others gravitate to positions where they can obtain and exercise it, often in tyrannical ways. From the evil kings, generals and dictators of old to the Communism and Nazism of the past century, history is filled with mass murderers who committed their crimes under cover of State, often in the name of the public good. Sadly, there was no Frodo to carry their rings of power to Mount Doom.

But, there is hope. The Bible tells of someone who had more power than any of us could ever imagine, the power to create and destroy stars, planets and entire universes. And yet, He was willing to give up all that power to humble Himself, to become a lowly man like us.

Born of a common woman, placed in a stable's animal feed trough, worshiped by the lowest of the low summoned from their sheep-watching duties, the surroundings of the King of Kings was conspicuously absent any "kingly" trappings. He grew up a carpenter's son in a town, Nazareth, known for producing nothing of value (John 1:46). He was reviled and persecuted, eventually suffering the most humiliating and painful death mankind could dream to do to his fellow man.

Hanging on that cross, the blood dripping from his body, Jesus Christ, the Creator of the universe, the Lord of everything, the Prince of Peace could have called ten thousand angels to destroy those who stood and mocked him. At any time, he could have asked the Father for the power He willingly gave up, but He didn't. Instead, He rose again on the third day so those of us who believe on Him could one day be with Him for eternity.

On this Christmas Day, the day Christians celebrate our Savior's birth despite the tenacious efforts of a society determined to forget, in a world where mankind has completely abused the power we have been given, might the answer to our problems be to emulate, not banish, the One who willingly gave up all His power for a creation in dire need of a Savior?

"It is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favors." (George Washington­)

---

Scott Morefield's articles have appeared on WND, Natural News, Infowars, Liberty Crier and many other sites, including A Morefield Life, where he and his wife, Kim, share their marriage and parenting journey. They and their four small children aspire to liberty in the hills of east Tennessee.

© Copyright 1997-2013. All Rights Reserved. WND.com.

Fwd: The Geminid Meteor Shower is Underway

Space Weather News for Dec. 12, 2013
http://spaceweather.com

GEMINID METEOR SHOWER:  Earth is entering a stream of debris from "rock comet" 3200 Phaethon, source of the annual Geminid meteor shower.  Last night, NASA cameras recorded more than a dozen fireballs over the USA.  Geminid activity should remain relatively high for the next three or four nights, with a peak expected on Dec. 13-14.  Check http://spaceweather.com for more information and observing tips.

GEOMAGNETIC STORM:  On Dec. 7th, a solar wind stream hit Earth's magnetic field, sparking an unexpected geomagnetic storm and Northern Lights over several US states. Did you miss it?  Auroras alerts are available from http://spaceweathertext.com (text) and http://spaceweatherphone.com (voice).

You are subscribed to the Space Weather mailing list, a free service of Spaceweather.com: http://spaceweather.com/services/ .

To unsubscribe click here: http://www.spaceweather2.com/u?id=79T&n=T&l=spaceweather or send a blank email to leave-spaceweather-1663670J@www.spaceweather2.com

--

"...I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." -- JESUS, John 10:10b NKJV


myblog: http://pastorlarry.blogspot.com