Welcome to April, the month when life is showing up everywhere. Enjoy!
The Word for today
“Better to be criticized by a wise person than to be praised by a fool” (Ecclesiastes 7:5 NLT).
♦♦♦♦♦♦
The tree that wouldn’t give up
I was enjoying being outdoors with my grandson on a recent sunny day when we came upon a tree lying prone upon the ground, but the visible half was in full array. As we came closer to it, we could tell that it had been some time—months, perhaps even years—since a storm had shoved it to the ground. Most of its limbs had been broken away as it fell, and its trunk was partially buried in the soft earth. Although torn away at ground level as it fell, 
some parts of its inner strength held on. Enough of it stayed together to feed the sizeable trunk and remaining limbs.
The tree had taken a hard blow, but didn’t give up. The root kept pushing up sap and the branches and leaves kept receiving it. With only part of the trunk attached to the root system, it has clung to life lying flat on its back. Its two remaining branches were still full of life, aimed at the sky. The leaves, touching each other in the wind, seemed to whisper this message: “I may be down but I am not out. It will take more than a storm to finish me.”
Even if we are firmly planted, some strong wind may tear off a limb or even push us over. But if our grip on life is as firm as that tree, we may still be surviving when the angel puts the Rapture trumpet to his lips.
Sometimes we can see farther when we are on our backs than when we are standing up—
all the way to heaven where Jesus lives, which is our destination.
Job encouraged us: “For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease” (Job 14:7). Winds may blow, storms may beat upon us, but some are only tests to try the mettle of our character and the dimension of our commitment. Like that tree, if you are on your back reading this, keep your spiritual arms lifted toward Him and your leaves will be in full array for others to see and draw inspiration from. They will testify of your faith and determination in spite of the storm.
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Why…?
- …did Eusebius (c. A.D. 260-339), prominent bishop at Nicea in A.D. 325, stop quoting Matthew 28:19 as “in my name” and begin using the longer Trinitarian phrase after that? Following the Council, we are told he received Constantine’s request to have 50 new handwritten Bibles made and distributed to the major churches of the Empire. All of the extant manuscripts done after 325 had the longer baptismal formula to reflect the post-Apostolic era Trinitarian doctrine.
- …have hundreds of Bible scholars, textual critics, theologians of every stripe, and Bible
translations, expressed doubt that the words “of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” came from the mouth of Jesus? - …have many refused to consider or study the history of the Bible? Is it fear of finding an inconvenient truth or of losing faith in the pure word of God? Never fear truth; it is what makes us free. The more one learns about the history of the Bible the greater will be his faith in its inspiration!
- …didn’t world peace happen when we changed the packaging on pancake syrup and switched the names of certain sports teams? Have we learned anything from those decisions?
- …would kids buy porn when they can get it free in their own school libraries and drag queen shows in class?
- …send billions to Ukraine and nothing to the citizens of E. Palestine, Ohio?
- …send millions to Ukraine for their citizens’ pensions even when they have paid no U.S. social security, do not present drag queen shows in their schools, and (horrors) have no transgender generals or admirals in their military? https://www.verifythis.com/article/news/verify/world-
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Has Einstein’s prophecy come to pass?
“I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.” – Albert Einstein
Tech toys, smart phones and other mobile gadgets have not put people together—they are creating a tremendous disconnect. Husbands and wives converse less. Parents and 
children communicate rarely. “God created man upright, but he hath sought out many inventions” (Ecclesiastes 7:29). It is sad that we seem virtually enslaved to them, but those inventions have indeed made idiots out of lots of folks.
Now we are talking to inhuman forces such as someone or something known as AI—Artificial Intelligence. He hears, he answers questions, he issues directives. I decided to ask ol’ Art if he plans to be the Antichrist himself. He/it refused to answer that question. Made me wonder.
♦♦♦♦♦♦
The new unforgivable sin
New forms of racism that have invaded our nation will be America’s undoing if we continue embracing the concept. Virtually every university and large corporation has capitulated to the woke agenda, hiring extremists to enforce diversity, equity and inclusion rules on campus and in corporate HR departments. According to this view, if you are White and a part of a nation, some of whose early leaders did not live up to the standards of today’s woke culture, then you are stained with their sin, which cannot be undone or forgiven. “Whiteness” has become a sin worse than murder or theft or rape. It is worse because it is unforgivable since one cannot change his skin, or truly repent for it, or be baptized to wash away what it may represent to others.
Woke ideology holds that since the founders of our country were mostly white (Hey, they were from England, you know!) and some coming later would have slaves, common to the times, all white people today are guilty of their sins and must somehow be punished. That is inherently wrong and is an extreme racist theory. Weak denominational 
church leaders have caved to the demands of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion crowd, backed by BLM and LGBTQ+ organizations. Every religious group in the West, and particularly in America, is being pressured to embrace their agenda or be ostrasized…or worse.
On a related topic, Blacks in Africa and elsewhere had slaves and were the prime captors and sellers of slaves. Native Americans had slaves. Some Muslim nations still tolerate slavery. Some free Black people in this country had bought and sold other black people as slaves since 1654, and continued to do so right through the Civil War. (https://www.theroot.com/did-black-people-own-slaves-1790895436) Where is the condemnation of those practices? There must be a deeper goal at the root of this societal upheaval than skin color. Is it a bloodless coup? A revolution? Many Americans have slept through most of these changes as though they were merely a passing fad.
Calvin Robinson, a British clergyman, was recently denied ordination in the Anglican church because of his conservative views along these lines. You might find his comments interesting and helpful as you are trying to process what is happening to Christianity in the West. He explains why we should not affirm homosexual marriage, transgenderism, and similar divisive societal movements here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfgTPTS5Aa8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw3jl0Tckh8
God, if we ever needed Your help and direction, we need it now!
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Said by those who notice
- The problem with political jokes is they get elected. – Henry Cate, VII
- We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office. – Aesop
- When I was a boy I was told that anybody could become President; I’m beginning to believe it. – Clarence Darrow
- Politicians are people who, when they see light at the end of the tunnel, they go out
and buy some more tunnel. – John Quinton - If God wanted us to vote, he would have given us candidates. – Jay Leno
- Politics is the gentle art of getting votes from the poor and campaign funds from the rich, by promising to protect each from the other. – Oscar Ameringer
- I offer my opponents a bargain: if they will stop telling lies about us, I will stop telling the truth about them. – Adlai Stevenson
- A politician is a fellow who will lay down your life for his country. – Tex Guinan
- Instead of giving a politician the keys to the city, it might be better to change the locks. – Doug Larson
- My favorite is from President Harry Truman: If you want a real friend that you can trust in Washington, go buy a dog!
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Covid hangover
Fauci helped create the virus. His money (NIH & NIAID funds) went FIRST to US labs at the University of North Carolina and the University of Texas. Soon after, his grant money went to the new Wuhan lab along with “the bat lady” Shi Zhengli, who left UNC for 
Wuhan as did the dollars.
Fauci even said early in 2017 that Trump would very likely face a major pandemic during his presidency. There’s a reason Elon Musk said “prosecute Fauci!” Check it out:
Just keep watching…more to come.
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Signs of a poorly educated person
Speaks first, thinks later- Doesn’t form his own opinions
- Self-centered
- Easily influenced by others
- Makes no effort to be better
- Won’t admit the obvious
- Doesn’t learn from mistakes
- Talks more than listens
- Cannot focus or concentrate
- Oblivious to others’ feelings
- Blames others for personal challenges
- Expects different results from doing the same thing
- Views learning as a job
- Ignores history
- Intellectual development came from an IPhone
- For next month: Input from our readers on the topic: “Signs of a Highly Educated Person.” I will publish (anonymously) ten of the ones most mentioned. Contribute as many suggestions as you would like, not necessary in a particular order. Send to jrensey1@gmail.com. Thanks!
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Another way of putting it…
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Last Words
• As millions of others, we are saddened by the killing of both children and adults at Nashville’s Covenant Christian School. The hatred and division driven by extremists and false science must cease. Our prayers go out for the families involved and for those who are now in the throes of decision-making about the future of education in America.
• Also, a hearty shout out to all those over 50 who can still remember the license plate number of their first car but can’t remember the password they created last month. Here’s a fist bump.
• Leave some tracks. Others are coming behind you, seeking the way.
God bless!
JREnsey Blog 
Leave a Reply