A small patch of land that yielded a paltry crop of insignificant tiny vegetables.

The Philistines had gathered together into a troop that day, determined to take the field of beans… Lentiles.

A basketball in Michael Jordan’s hands is worth about $33 million.

A baseball in my hands is worth about $6.
A baseball in Mark McGuire’s hands is worth $19 million.

A tennis racket is useless in my hands.
A tennis racket in Venus Williams’ hands is a Wimbledon Championship.

A rod in my hands will keep away a wild animal.
A rod in Moses’ hands will part the mighty sea.

A sling shot in my hands is a kid’s toy.
A sling shot in David’s hand is a mighty weapon.

Two fish and five loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches.
Two fish and five loaves of bread in God’s hands will feed thousands.

Nails in my hands might produce a birdhouse.
Nails in Jesus Christ’s hands will produce salvation for the entire world.

As you see now it depends whose hands it’s in. So put your concerns, your worries, your fears, your hopes, your dreams, your families and your relationships in God’s Hands because … it depends on Whose Hands it’s in.

At one point she stopped to allow us to view the purging process. We were standing in an observation deck. Below us was darkness. Oppressive heat and the smell of fire rose toward us. Huge rectangular containers held the molten steel within the furnaces. As our eyes grew accustomed to the dimness, men in bulky, protective suits and welding helmets pulled the switches controlling furnace doors.  A warning sounded that was impossible to ignore. 

Once the doors were open, you could see black “spots” on the surface of the white hot metal. Using long handled ladles, they scraped off the black sludge as it rose to the surface. Sparks flew in the darkness like sparklers on the 4th of July when the black sludge was poured into nearby containers. Our guide explained that this purging process was repeated – until the steel was pure. 

As she led the class on to the next station, some of the boys began scuffling and fooling around. A little notepad belonging to one of them flew over the rail and down into the open furnace. I watched as it fell. To my amazement, there wasn’t even a flash of fire. One second, it was falling – the next second, it simply wasn’t there – it had been utterly consumed, unforgettable impression.
You see, God’s design and desire for His people has always been holiness. Anything less must (sooner or later) be judged and eradicated; consumed in the presence of a Holy God.

Written by Mary Walker

I remember hearing the news of this and being heart-broken… so shocked that what had been long-held understandings among us were being “let down”. What I saw from a distance was frightening to me, because I was among those who strongly felt the way they did before his message. I thought they were going “Charismatic”, whatever that was.

Posted: December 23, 2008
By Alyssa Farah

A New York man has won a battle with the New York Department of Transportation over a trailer he parked on his private property along a public highway that was targeted because of its Christian message.

Daniel Burritt installed a tractor-trailer for his company, Acts II Construction Inc., on private business property along U.S. Route 11 in 2007.

In May he got a letter from the New York State Department of Transportation stating that his trailer violated a state law and constituted a “public nuisance.” The NYDOT said a permit had to be obtained or the trailer would be forcibly removed and legal action would follow, even though the agency does not require permits for commercial messages being displayed.

Burritt’s legal counsel objected to the NYDOT’s requirement for a permit, saying it penalized him because of his faith.

(Story continues below)

“Christians shouldn’t be singled out and penalized for sharing their beliefs,” Alliance Defense Fund Legal Counsel Matt Bowman said. “We are pleased the court recognizes that displaying a religious message on private property has always been protected under the First Amendment.”

Bowman said the state violated the Constitution by treating religion in a less favorable manner than business, because it did not take into account that a central aspect of the Burritt’s construction business is evangelism.

ADF attorneys filed suit on behalf of Burritt in June and reached an agreement with the NYDOT to allow the trailer to stay until a decision could be reached. A state district court decision now has ordered the state to allow the sign to remain.

via Modern ‘David’ defeats New York ‘Goliath’.

Oh cleansing fir burn in me,
Purge my soul and set me free,
Remove each stain of sinfulness,
That I may in Thy presence rest

Cast far away my vain desires,
Refresh my soul in revival fires,
Come again thy wonders reveal,
Oh bless me now is my appeal

Prepare each heart to look above,
A world that’s lost and void of love,
Give us a burden, a vision too,
Oh how we long to be with You

What joy awaits the faithful ones,
The Master’s smile, the words, “well done,”
A crown of life, a race complete,
What bliss awaits at His dear feet.

Here’s what’s happening…
There’s an endangered desert tortoise that the government’s Bureau of Land Management is trying to save on a man’s personally owned property. So, they come in and round up all his cattle to take them away. Now, that’s not the part I’m focusing on…

Titus 1:15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted.