Around 700 BC a Jewish prophet named Isaiah made a prophecy.

“The Lord will give you a sign… a virgin shall give birth to a son and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14)

“Immanuel means God with us” (Matthew 1:23)

700 years later, the angel Gabriel was sent by God into a city of Galilee named Nazareth (Luke 1:26)

“A virgin was engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary” (Luke 1:27)

The angel said…”Fear not, for you have found favor with God” (Luke 1:30)

“You shall conceive and have a son, and you will call his name Jesus” (Luke 1:31)

“He shall be great, and shall be called Son of the Highest and God shall give him the throne of his father David” (Luke 1:32)

“And he shall rule over the house of Jacob forever; and his kingdom shall have no end” (Luke 1:33)

Went to Tampa, FL this weekend.  It was a very fast vacation.  But it was also a lot of fun.  My friend Kevin and I went to many different places and ate a lot.

I’ll post pictures of the places we went to.

-brian

It’s time for that year again, where No Shave November goes into effect.  I will be participating this year, having just finished trimming my mustache last night so that I will be able to avoid getting food in it.

What are the rules?

-Guys – No shaving of the face

-Girls – No shaving of the legs

-In the United States – Keep the hair growing at least until Thanksgiving. (This way you can look fresh and clean for family)

-You are allowed to trim at 15 days, however, this is strongly discouraged.

-Rest of the world – You are asked to participate until the end of the month, besides, it’ll help you stay warm.

Now start growing!

The V formation greatly boosts the efficiency and range of flying birds, particularly over long migratory routes. All the birds except the first fly in the upwash from the wingtip vortices of the bird ahead. The upwash assists each bird in supporting its own weight in flight, in the same way a glider can climb or maintain height indefinitely in rising air. In a V formation of 25 members, each bird can achieve a reduction of induced drag by up to 65% and as a result increase their range by 71%. The birds flying at the tips and at the front are rotated in a timely cyclical fashion to spread flight fatigue equally among the flock members. The formation also makes communication easier and allows the birds to maintain visual contact with each other.

When I was driving into work this morning, I saw the weirdest thing.  Birds flying in a straight line.

And then it hit me.

It’s windy out.

Not only is nature affecting us – with torn shingles, lawn furniture being blown, downed power lines, steeples toppled…. but it’s affecting the rest of God’s creation as well.

These birds are not flying at maximum efficiency because of the strong winds.

It will take longer for them to reach their destination.  They will become tired faster.  The flight south will be harder this year.

It made me wonder…. where is their destination?  How long will it take for them to reach it?  Will they reach it?

In some ways, those birds are a lot like us.  What is our destination?  What pitfalls or challenges will we face along the way?  Will we even reach it?

-brian

When I read this article, it was a good reminder of how the Bible speaks to us, even in this day and age.

For me, being childless – I do sometimes wonder where God is leading Haley and I – but I am enjoying the journey along the way.

If you’re wondering how the journey is progressing, feel free to check out our blog.

What about when you die?

Do you have to stand before God?

Apparently this is something that we should know.

John 5:28-29 Don’t be so surprised! Indeed, the time is coming when all the dead in their graves will hear the voice of God’s Son, and they will rise again. Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment.

So the question is how do we live?

John 11:25-26 Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”

John 14:6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

When should we believe?

2 Corinthians 6:2 For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.

If you’ve heard people talk about Jesus, and you still don’t understand, ask them about Jesus.  If you do understand what Jesus is all about, what are you waiting for?

Can hardly wait to swing down to Florida and spend some time with my friend Kevin.  It’s been a while since I’ve been down there and I try to visit him at least every two years.

This time he’s living in Tampa, so I will be visiting yet another area of Florida.  I’ve been to Ocala, Fort Myers and the Orland area so far.  We’ve also taken road trips around the state.

I’m taking the time to check out my ancestors.  Working on the Childers family tree.  Got Stephen (brother in law by marriage) interested in it and so he’s doing his tree as well.  Right now reaching out to family members to record facts that we best know how.  Looking forward to going to the Johnson house to look at Laura’s family tree book and record the Johnson side of the tree.  It will be a nice gift to give to our future kids….

Sarah and Christine – if you want to get a link to the family tree, let me know..

-brian