Monthly Archives: January 2017

A Note from Hope

Ms. Betty’s Ear: A Note from Hope

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On Thursday nights, Dad goes to church for the men’s prayer meeting, and Mom has some of her friends over for Bible study.

I like it when her friends come over – they pray and talk about stuff in the Bible, and eat snacks (last night, one of the ladies brought vanilla wafers, which are yummy).  They let me have some of the snacks sometimes, but that’s not the main reason I like it.

And I get to come visit with them, but Scout has to stay in the crate- Mom says it’s because she’s still working on her manners and Mom doesn’t want her to accidentally scratch someone or jump on them. But that’s not the main reason I like it either.

I really like it when company comes because they love on me like Dad and Mom do- they pet me and baby-talk me (even though I’m not a baby). Sometimes when they sit on the sofa, I can get up and sit beside them. Ms. Betty has a cat, and I like smelling of her so I can get to know her cat. (I really like to kiss Ms. Betty’s ear because she giggles when I do.)

Dad says that everybody wants to be loved; everybody, even little dogs like me.  He says that’s what the folks who follow Jesus are supposed to do- we’re supposed to love them, even if they aren’t very lovable sometimes. We have to love them and show them Jesus, and tell them the truth about Him and about how to get to Heaven.

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John 14:5 Thomas said unto him, Lord, we know not where you go; and how can we know the way?

6 Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me.

7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also: and from henceforth you know him, and have seen him.

8 Philip said unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it will satisfy us.

9 Jesus said unto him, Have I been so long a time with you, and yet have you not known me, Philip? he that has seen me has seen the Father; and how say you then, Show us the Father?

Proverbs

Proverbs 12 : 15-16

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Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.
16 A fool’s wrath is presently known: but a prudent man covereth shame.
 
Here we see two aspects of a fool. Remember we have already seen a fool lacks understanding. This tells us they are self centered and they think the whole world revolves around them.They think to highly of themselves just like Lucifer did. In the next verse we see a fool looses his temper easily. They usually get mad before they even know what the problem is.
On the other hand we see again that if we listen to wise teachings of the word of God we ourselves will become wise. And with this wisdom we learn to control our anger and gain the ability of self control. We can even ignore an insult. We need to strive to gain as much wisdom and knowledge of the word of God that we can so we do not make foolish mistakes.
Proverbs

Proverbs 12 : 12-14

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Proverbs 12:12 The wicked desireth the net of evil men: but the root of the righteous yieldeth fruit.
13 The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble.
14 A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth: and the recompence of a man’s hands shall be rendered unto him.
 
We see in these first two verses the wicked are always after the things that others have gained with their schemes. Also the wicked are always getting caught in the lies they tell. On the other hand in theses verses we see the righteous produce fruit with the works they do that are pleasing to God and the just always tells the truth and therefore never has a problem to worry about. Then again in verse 14 we see that the righteous can be satisfied with the fruit they produce with the spreading of the gospel. Also the works we do with our hands will be blessed by God.
I Corinthians 1:21: “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”
Proverbs

Proverbs 12 :11

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Proverbs 12:11 He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding.
 
We see in verse 11 someone that works for a living will have what he needs and not go hungry. God blesses those who work for what have not only in material things but also in their spiritual lives. Then we those that we see every day that could care less if they ever did anything. They are always looking for shortcuts, they expend energy on worthless pursuits and fantasies which is as useless as outright laziness. People are always happier if they have something in their life to accomplish in working at a job. As long as we always give God the credit for the abilities we have to accomplish the things we do He will bless us that makes our lives even better. For those that do not include God in their lives are the ones that depend on everybody else for what they can get by any means possible. Until they decide to change their lifestyle they will never amount to anything.
Proverbs

Proverbs 12 : 10

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Proverbs 12:10 A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.
 
We have in this first verse a man who is kind to animals. Also we have one that is cruel to animals and some like this will be cruel to people to. God even showed mercy to animals when told man to rest them on the Sabbath and man was also to rest. God made man to rule over animals and if they are treated as they should be they will do what you need them to without hesitation. People who love God love people as well and are kind to the animals that depend on them. A wicked person is mean to animals that cannot help themselves because they do not love God and He is not a part of their lives. We see that people who are not close to God in any way is always struggling to to accomplish anything with a sense achievement and is never satisfied. But the righteous person may not always have all the material goods he wants be he finds satisfaction in his Lord And Savior.
Proverbs

Proverbs 12: 7-9

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Proverbs 12:7 The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand.
8 A man shall be commended according to his wisdom: but he that is of a perverse heart shall be despised.
9 He that is despised, and hath a servant, is better than he that honoureth himself, and lacketh bread.
 
In these scriptures we have 6 different kind s of people .
1.The wicked have no strength are overthrown because of their actions.
2. A righteous person who may face tribulation will stand firm because he has God to see him and his family through.
3. A person with the wisdom of God will be lifted up.
4. One who knows to do right but continues to do evil will be despised.
5.A person who is of low rank who can hire someone to work because of his honest gain is good.
6 The person who thinks and is always saying how much more he has and how much smarter he is the poorest person in the world.
We experience people like this almost every day some build us and some tear us down but we need to remember we have a God who will always be there if choose to follow Him.
Proverbs

Proverbs 12 : 4-6

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Proverbs 12:4 A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband: but she that maketh ashamed is as rottenness in his bones.
5 The thoughts of the righteous are right: but the counsels of the wicked are deceit.
6 The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.
 
A woman is to be a person who is upright not only for herself but if she has a family for them to. This will cause her husband and her family to be proud of her. Nothing is worse than an unfaithful wife. She brings torment and shame to her husband, her family, and herself. The next two verses show us that wicked people are deceivers and try to convince everyone to believe their lies so they will go tell others. They will also lie in wait after their deception to gain what they from who they can. On the other hand a righteous persons thoughts are always on God and he only speaks the truth. Also they speak words of life not death or destruction like the wicked. It takes staying focused on God to live the life He has for us A good way to stay focused is to be church today and see what God has for you today.
Proverbs

Proverbs 12:1-3

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Proverbs 12:1 Whoso loveth instruction loveth knowledge: but he that hateth reproof is brutish.
2 A good man obtaineth favour of the LORD: but a man of wicked devices will he condemn.
3 A man shall not be established by wickedness: but the root of the righteous shall not be moved.
 
Anyone who listens to instructions grows to to be a smart person and as we grow in the knowledge of God we realize our sin and repent. The greatest knowledge that we can have is to know God and his Word. If we are not eager to learn of God, we are like a beast without a conscience or to put it another way, he is as stupid as the brute cattle. A good man is always eager to please God and this pleases God. The man who does not seek God and wishes to do evil all the time God will condemn A righteous man is like a big oak tree planted planted by a river with deep roots, it is hard to be moved even though they are a lot storms we face in our lives. A person who continually refuses to try to do good and insist on being evil will never really ever accomplish anything.In Luke chapter 8 is the story of the seeds that on different kinds of soil. The seed that feel on good ground produced fruit and survived. The seed that feel on bad ground never could take hold so it died. What do we want to be today someone who is planted firm in God’s word or someone who just goes with whatever comes along?
Proverbs

Proverbs 11:30-31

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Proverbs 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
31 Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more the wicked and the sinner.
 
As this chapter closes we see that if we use the wisdom and knowledge God has given us we will bear fruit and our reward is the crown of life. The word tells us we are known by the fruit we bear. While we are still on this earth we do see some of rewards God has for us in the blessings we receive, yet our greatest reward is eternity in Heaven with our God. While on the other hand the wicked also see judgement while hear on this earth but there final judgement is being cast into hell with Satan and his demons. We will reap what we sow. The bottom line here is that God rewards the righteous, while for the sinner He has judgement and punishment. Again let us all strive to lead as many as we can to a life with Jesus being the guiding light in their lives.
A Note from Hope

Anybody have a boat? A Note from Hope

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Over the last few days, it’s been raining pretty hard – Dad said we got about 6 inches of rain. I’m not really sure what that means, but I think that’s why the ground is so squishy all the time when we go for walks. There was water everywhere!

None of us wanted to get off the porch- all the kittens and cats just sat on their perches and watched it rain. They finally went in the carport where Dad has a heater that will keep them warm. Mom made me and Scout walk around a little bit; she said we had to stretch our legs a little bit.  I think us running races up and down the hall were getting on her nerves.

Dad says that there’s a story in the Bible about a lot of rain. He says a man named Noah loved God and followed Him. Then one day God was sad about how bad people were behaving to he decided to send a lot of rain. He told Noah to build a big boat (it’s called an ark in the Bible) so Noah and his family could stay safe.

After the flood was over, God put a rainbow in the sky to remind all of us that He will never flood the world again.

I found some neat color sheets about Noah and the ark and the rainbow here – let me see what you color!