Today's Readings and Stuff -- Saturday, 19 October 2013

well, we have water, elctricity, and phone/cable/internet.   No gas yet, nor will there be until Monday, Lord willing.  So no fuel for the furnace, and the thermometer will be down into the 30's tonight.  However, we want to try to slep here tonight (and following nights as well.  This si to be our home, hopefully for the rest of our lives.  So we shall see.  We have, thanks to a family friend, the installation of lins to th dishwasher, and Dear Wife is running it hard.  The washing machine and dryer, ditto.  We'd hopd to have the water line in place to send water to the ice cube maker in the fridge.  Haven't had that function for about seven years, so it's not a horrible matter, and we have about a dozen ice cube trays if it comes to that.  We rarely use soda, and mostly drink water or iced tea that we brew ourselves in advance and pre-chill. it.  So, as I said, it's not a huge issue  Still unpacking boxes.  Will be nice to sleep in our own bed tonight.

The Old Testament passage for the day is chapters 1 and 2 in the book of Jeremiah.  Jeremeiah did not have an easy time or mission, most of his ministry was telling the powerful of the land of their sin and the Lord's impending judgment.  Which happened.  Did not make him popular.  Wouldn't today either, and the issues he preached against are mostly to be found in any small city and more than a few small towns as well.

Jeremiah 1

1	The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:
2	To whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.
3	It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.
4	Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
5	Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
6	Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
7	But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
8	Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.
9	Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
10	See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
11	Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.
12	Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.
13	And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.
14	Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.
15	For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah.
16	And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.
17	Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.
18	For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.
19	And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.

Jeremiah 2

1	Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
2	Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown.
3	Israel was holiness unto the LORD, and the firstfruits of his increase: all that devour him shall offend; evil shall come upon them, saith the LORD.
4	Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:
5	Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?
6	Neither said they, Where is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?
7	And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination.
8	The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.
9	Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children's children will I plead.
10	For pass over the isles of Chittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there be such a thing.
11	Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit.
12	Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.
13	For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.
14	Is Israel a servant? is he a homeborn slave? why is he spoiled?
15	The young lions roared upon him, and yelled, and they made his land waste: his cities are burned without inhabitant.
16	Also the children of Noph and Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head.
17	Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when he led thee by the way?
18	And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?
19	Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.
20	For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot.
21	Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?
22	For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord GOD.
23	How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;
24	A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her.
25	Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, There is no hope: no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.
26	As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets.
27	Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.
28	But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah.
29	Wherefore will ye plead with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith the LORD.
30	In vain have I smitten your children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your prophets, like a destroying lion.
31	O generation, see ye the word of the LORD. Have I been a wilderness unto Israel? a land of darkness? wherefore say my people, We are lords; we will come no more unto thee?
32	Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number.
33	Why trimmest thou thy way to seek love? therefore hast thou also taught the wicked ones thy ways.
34	Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret search, but upon all these.
35	Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.
36	Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? thou also shalt be ashamed of Egypt, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria.
37	Yea, thou shalt go forth from him, and thine hands upon thine head: for the LORD hath rejected thy confidences, and thou shalt not prosper in them.

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The New Testament reading for the day is chapter 2 in 2nd Thessalonians.

II Thessalonians 2

1	Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2	That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3	Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4	Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
5	Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
6	And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7	For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
8	And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
9	Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10	And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11	And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12	That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
13	But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
14	Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
15	Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
16	Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,
17	Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.

Today's Readings and Stuff -- 18 October, 2013

WE HAVE ELECTRICITY!!!

So, 3-1/2 weeks after promised, and more than two weeks after we arrived, we have electricity in our modest little dwelling.  No gas for the gas furnace yet, and no phone or cable or internet connection.  But actual electricity.  We now have a refrigerator that works, and a water heater (electric) that works, and laundry capability.  And electric lights.  Amazing how dependent we have become on such.  With the temperature in the 30's last night, and some of windows not too airtight, we chose to not sleep there last night, but intend to try to do so tonight.  Still waiting for the Mail to actually deliver something here, have had nothing yet though when we stopped at the post office Tuesday, they had a few things that had been held for us.  So there is progress.  We called the gas company yesterday urging a meter be installed today, got an answering machine and no call-backs, so it is not known if they'll appear today.  Phone and cable and internet people are promised for today, so we shall see.
And I have to crawl underneath today and deal with some insulation issues.  Progress nonetheless.

my regrets, for som reason this did not post.

the Old Testament reding for the day is chapters 65 and 66 is the book of Isaiah.

Isaiah 65

1	I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name.
2	I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts;
3	A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick;
4	Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine's flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
5	Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day.
6	Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom,
7	Your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith the LORD, which have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed me upon the hills: therefore will I measure their former work into their bosom.
8	Thus saith the LORD, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants' sakes, that I may not destroy them all.
9	And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains: and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there.
10	And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the valley of Achor a place for the herds to lie down in, for my people that have sought me.
11	But ye are they that forsake the LORD, that forget my holy mountain, that prepare a table for that troop, and that furnish the drink offering unto that number.
12	Therefore will I number you to the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spake, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not.
13	Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed:
14	Behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl for vexation of spirit.
15	And ye shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen: for the Lord GOD shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name:
16	That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from mine eyes.
17	For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
18	But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.
19	And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
20	There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.
21	And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
22	They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23	They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them.
24	And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
25	The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.

Isaiah 66

1	Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?
2	For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.
3	He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations.
4	I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.
5	Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name's sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.
6	A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the LORD that rendereth recompence to his enemies.
7	Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.
8	Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.
9	Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God.
10	Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her:
11	That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory.
12	For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees.
13	As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
14	And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.
15	For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
16	For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.
17	They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.
18	For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory.
19	And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.
20	And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the LORD out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD.
21	And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the LORD.
22	For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
23	And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.
24	And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

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The New Testament passage is chapter 1 of 2nd Thessalonians.

II Thessalonians 1

1	Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
2	Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3	We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth;
4	So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure:
5	Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:
6	Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;
7	And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8	In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9	Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
10	When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.
11	Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:
12	That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Old

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Thursday, 17 October 2013

running late and short shrift and all that stuff.  Waiting hopefully for the electric company to FINALLY show up and FINALLY install the meter on the pole so that we may FINALLY get the rest of the utilities turned on and FINALLY move off our niece's bunk bed and into our new digs next door.  Dear Wife is enjoying spending time with her namesake great-niece and all, and that is very nice.  But I need to get us moved in and some insulation work done that wasn't done before, and do all of that before the snow flies.  Which, being in NE Ohio ( a very very very long way from Lower Alabama) can't be that far off.  I recall as a child doing the trick-or-treat thing in the snow.  Didn't miss snow when we were living in the South, didn't like it when I lived up here before, and don't like the prospect of it now.  But it comes with the territory.

so, briefly (very, sorry)
The day's passages in the Old Testament is chapters 62, 63, and 64 from Isaiah

Isaiah 62

1	For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.
2	And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name.
3	Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.
4	Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.
5	For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.
6	I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,
7	And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.
8	The LORD hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured:
9	But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the LORD; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.
10	Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.
11	Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.
12	And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.

Isaiah 63

1	Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.
2	Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?
3	I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.
4	For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.
5	And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me.
6	And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.
7	I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the LORD, and the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses.
8	For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour.
9	In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.
10	But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.
11	Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him?
12	That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name?
13	That led them through the deep, as an horse in the wilderness, that they should not stumble?
14	As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit of the LORD caused him to rest: so didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name.
15	Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained?
16	Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O LORD, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.
17	O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants' sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.
18	The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary.
19	We are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy name.

Isaiah 64

1	Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence,
2	As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence!
3	When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence.
4	For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
5	Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved.
6	But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
7	And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.
8	But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.
9	Be not wroth very sore, O LORD, neither remember iniquity for ever: behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people.
10	Thy holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.
11	Our holy and our beautiful house, where our fathers praised thee, is burned up with fire: and all our pleasant things are laid waste.
12	Wilt thou refrain thyself for these things, O LORD? wilt thou hold thy peace, and afflict us very sore?

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while the day's New Testament reading is ist Thessalonians chapter 5.  Tomorrow, Lord willing, we will take up 2nd Thessalonians.

I Thessalonians 5

1	But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
2	For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
3	For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
4	But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
5	Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
6	Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
7	For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
8	But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
9	For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
10	Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
11	Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
12	And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you;
13	And to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. And be at peace among yourselves.
14	Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.
15	See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
16	Rejoice evermore.
17	Pray without ceasing.
18	In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
19	Quench not the Spirit.
20	Despise not prophesyings.
21	Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
22	Abstain from all appearance of evil.
23	And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
24	Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
25	Brethren, pray for us.
26	Greet all the brethren with an holy kiss.
27	I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren.
28	The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

Today's Readings and 'Stuff' -- Wednesday, 16 October, 2013

well, the mess with our relocation after my retirement continues.

We made a trek of around 900 miles north, based upon solemn vows that our modest (very) new digs would be move-in ready before the end of September.  Not quite.  Not even close.  We even delayed the move nearly a week based on progress reports.  We have spent ALL our money, nothing remains, and we are bunking on the full-size bottom mattress of a bunk bed at the home of Dear Wife's niece.  Grateful for that, but it's not quite what we had in mind at this point in our lives.  The water is on in our new residence.  But no electricity, no gas, no phone or cable or Internet links.  Dear Wife spent HOURS on the phone yesterday with AT&T, trying to make it cleat to some knotheads there that we NEED our cell phones ON, and the land line at our former residence, some 900 miles away, OFF.  One might think such a think is relatively straightforward and simple.  Evidently not so:  we've been without cell phones -- our only and normal links -- for over a week now, and they didn't go back on until around noon yesterday.  The electrical inspector finally arrived around 10 a.m. yesterday, blessed the installation, so now we await the Ohio Edison crew to actually get us some power.  Gas company came by too, but their policy is to enable the system only AFTER there is power.  Ditto for the other utilities.  We'd really like to sleep in our own beds, something we've not done in nearly three weeks.  I'm sure the Lord has something going in all of this, but right now it's hard to see.  Maybe by the weekend?  Perhaps today will be better. 

the Old Testament reading of the day is chapters 59, 60, 61 of Isaiah.  Some dire warnings here, as we find throughout the book.  But pay attention to chapter 61.  You may recognize it:  this is the passage that Jesus read from in the synagogue in Nazareth.  It was, in fact, the assigned reading of the day for them.  Interesting "coincidence" that He was there, on that very day, to deliver His message, "this day this is fulfilled in your hearing"  (Luke 4:16-30).  Odd coincidence?  Doubtful.

Isaiah 59

1	Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
2	But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
3	For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.
4	None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.
5	They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.
6	Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
7	Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths.
8	The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.
9	Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.
10	We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noon day as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.
11	We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us.
12	For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;
13	In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.
14	And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.
15	Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.
16	And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.
17	For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.
18	According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence.
19	So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.
20	And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD.
21	As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever.

Isaiah 60

1	Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.
2	For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.
3	And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
4	Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side.
5	Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.
6	The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.
7	All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory.
8	Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?
9	Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.
10	And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee.
11	Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.
12	For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.
13	The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.
14	The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee; The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
15	Whereas thou has been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.
16	Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.
17	For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.
18	Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.
19	The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.
20	Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.
21	Thy people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.
22	A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his time.

Isaiah 61

1	The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
2	To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
3	To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
4	And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.
5	And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.
6	But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.
7	For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.
8	For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
9	And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed.
10	I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.
11	For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

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The New Testament passage is chapter 4 in 1st Thessalonians.  Lots here in a short passage.  The end of the passage is part of what I had requested be used as part of the readings in the service when my father passed over a couple years ago.  Means much to me.

I Thessalonians 4

1	Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.
2	For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus.
3	For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication:
4	That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour;
5	Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God:
6	That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified.
7	For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.
8	He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.
9	But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.
10	And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more;
11	And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you;
12	That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.
13	But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
14	For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15	For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16	For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17	Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18	Wherefore comfort one another with these words.