Notes from devotions today: sundry thoughts

when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD. Zech 9:1b

Zechariah 9:9  Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.  Zechariah 9:10  And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. Zechariah 9:16 And the LORD their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land. Hadrach Original Word: חַדְרָך Chariots in the fire references  7 Reference(s) Found. Joshua 11:6 And the LORD said unto Joshua, Be not afraid because of them: for to morrow about this time will I deliver them up all slain before Israel: thou shalt hough their horses, and burn their chariots with fire.  2 Kings 2:11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.  2 Kings 6:17 And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.  2 Kings 23:11  And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the LORD, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.  Psalm 46:9  He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire.  Isaiah 66:15 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.  Joel 2:5 Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.  15 Reference(s) Found. Daniel 1:7 Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego.  Daniel 2:49  Then Daniel requested of the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, over the affairs of the province of Babylon: but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.  Daniel 3:12  There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.  Daniel 3:13  Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king.  Daniel 3:14  Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up?  Daniel 3:16  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.  Daniel 3:19  Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore he spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated.  Daniel 3:20  And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.  Daniel 3:22  Therefore because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.  Daniel 3:23  And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.  Daniel 3:26  Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire.  Daniel 3:28  Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.  Daniel 3:29  Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort.  Daniel 3:30  Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the province of Babylon.  Zechariah 9:1  The burden of the word of the LORD in the land of Hadrach, and Damascus shall be the rest thereof: when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD. of finding Planned Parenthood was organized 10/16/1916, as per Wikipedia Daniel 1:16  Thus Melzar took away the portion of their meat, and the wine that they should drink; and gave them pulse.  Daniel 1:17  As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. 1948 Cheaper by the dozen 1950 Lion Witch Wardrobe In defense of the large family! Perhaps “100 years of deep winter? “ Zechariah 5:9 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven. Shelby William Storck 10/3/1916-4/5/1969

Sweet Land of Liberty?

My country tis of thee, Sweet Land of liberty, Of Thee I sing, Land where our father's died, Land of the Pilgrims pride, Oer every mountainside, Of thee I sing!

I sing this as a prayer to God.It was taught to me in my youth. We sang it daily, in the bygone days when prayer and patriotism were stoked in the schools. Perhaps it means what I sing, perhaps it was a song of glorification of our great land. I sing, "Lord, This country is of Thee! You made it. You put it in the minds of our forefathers to covenant together to govern themselves upon it. I see Your glory in that, Lord. Continue to bless that sentiment to the Glory of Your own power and to the committed deterioration of our own sins and sinful tendencies. Help us to exalt Thee and to abhor our wayward ways. Give us grace to create policy and activity that extends the life of our self-governing and not those that bring your judgment upon us!" Our Liberty is not unconditional. We are prisoners of our success at governing ourselves. God will bless it and He has, as far as I can see. Amen.

My Country, Tis of Thee

The joy of earning the privilege of participating in governing.  Governing and being governed are important aspects of the beauty of democracy.   I have prayed earnestly to see the evolution of our race from being the governed to full participants with right perspective in the governing process.   I rejoice when I see any woman grow to education and participation. But, Black women are especially a reason for rejoicing in my heart of hearts for their continued development.  Shirley Chisolm and Kay James and Condi Rice were special to my heart in watching the development.  There is something more personal and more intense about my love of Kamala Harris.  I love her spirit.  I love her no-nonsense style.  She seems to have everything.  She seems to exude authority and power.

I see in her, something that I love and abhor in myself, tooth and grit.  She attacks the problem and the investigations like a dog and that is a beautiful thing.

I am that kind of a dog.  Truth is something to be dug for.  It is a compelling passion and an intense fettish.  But there is a seasoning that must be reached for.  There is a balance between learning the importance of truth versus the importance of relationship.  People are always more important than things.  It is important that people know you have teeth, but they needn't see them in every interaction.  Adams Rib the movie, Spencer Tracey and Katherine Hepburn is a beautiful example of when white women grew and were learning this dynamic of relationship.  Am I speaking to a superior or an inferior?  This question usually doesn't enter our minds.  We are as much on trial in an investigation as our participant in governing.  Do you know how to speak to people who are far superior to you in knowledge and experience?  You sharpened your teeth on criminals.  They are humans first and now, perhaps the most dangerous of the people that we speak to are those who are above us.  Do we engage the training that our slave heritage has blessed us with?

Am I this man's daughter or mother?  He may perjure himself through your line of questioning.That is not the goal of our interrogation. Our respect of others as humans is important, from the criminal court to the Supreme Court.
Entreating an elder, as a father is completely lost to the African American Women in authority {our feministic culture precludes it}, for the most part.  Should you want to have a long term relationship with the truth and governing, you must learn to humble yourself.  You are not on the proving ground anymore.  You have won the right to govern.  Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God and He will let you show your teeth, very rarely.  Your whisper will be heard and hearkened.  I love you Kamala Harris and I wish you years and years of great success in the sphere of representing us in America. I love the sincere pursuit of truth that your words and presence represents.  God bless your growth process in your governing and representing.  Amen.

Lessons from Ethy's special day.

Ethan’s graduation day.

We enjoyed a special family trip to the park near RCCC.  A game of volleyball with my adult children was a festive and enjoyable time for our family.  We have 2 graduates and it is rare that we get the chance to play so happily with each other. It is summer though and perhaps this year will be different than other years. 

It makes me think back to baby Ethan in the stroller when we would go to the park and play together.  I attempted to give the skills that I had developed to my children and they all have gotten some of the skills under their belts.  I was happy that we could get a rally going and we have most wonderful memories of spending time at the parks of NY and studying skills that lend to internal peace as well as academics.  It was a wonderful experience and it was worth every part of my sanity that was lost, some days.  This is one of those days.

We walked off the court and over through a part in the trees that was reminiscent of a meadow in Hempstead Park.  We all could see a parallel between NEmo where they went through the part where the jellyfish were.  It was so great that we had that memory and that we could see that we enjoy some of the same similes and metaphors to communicate.  The beauty of education and the beauty of relationship wedded each other for just a brief moment of time.  These guys have been through a lot to see their mom collapse under the weight of education and conviction.  I am grateful for each hand that has helped pick me up from taking on this heavy ambitious quest on, with God’s grace.  I have fallen and fallen and I have been hobbling in education and relationship, ever since.  Days when you see your 2 baby boys walk down and finish a long course of study, it makes you glad and it makes you hopeful that God will turn things toward righteousness, in spite of us.  He is flooding us with new mercies everyday!