Hymn #519 - The Lutheran Hymnal - Beloved - It Is Well

"Beloved, 'It Is Well!'"
by George W. Doane, 1799-1859

Tune - Cambridge - linked here

1. Beloved, "It is well!"
God's ways are always right,
And perfect love is o'er them all
Though far above our sight.

2. Beloved, "It is well!"
Though deep and sore the smart,
The hand that wounds knows how to bind
And heal the broken heart.

3. Beloved, "It is well!"
Though sorrow clouds our way,
'Twill only make the joy more dear
That ushers in the day.

4. Beloved, "It is well!"
The path that Jesus trod,
Though rough and strait and dark it be,
Leads home to heaven and God.

Hymn #519
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Romans 11:33
Author: George W. Doane, 1833
Composer: Ralph Harrison, c. 1784
Tune: "Cambridge"

Why Do You Grow Roses?

 

 Heirloom

I found my Lowe's gift card with a few dollars left on it. A table at Lowe's had plenty of Shasta Daisies on sale, so I took a few, plus one pot of mums. Removal of the Hostas to the backyard meant I had some low spots in the Rose Garden. The rain was promised but had not come. Yesterday took care of that. Rain came down so fine that it hardly made a difference, then the serious clouds unleashed rain suited for another Ark.

Where were the new daisies and mums? They were soaking up God's own patented fertilizer, rain mixed with usable nitrogen. Sassy had her own bath towel by the door, so she could go to the ladies' room and come in to be dried off. Several times she decided she could wait a little longer.

Someone recently asked, "Why do you grow roses?" A look at the garden provides the answer. The little plot of land has produced flowers from Joe Pye, Allium, and Shasta Daisies, but they are not winners - too big, to stinky, too small - when compared to a vase full of roses. The best alternatives are from spring and fall bulbs, which bloom riotously but stay quiet the rest of the summer - Daffodils in the early spring, Gladiolas in the late spring.

 Bride's Dream

I enjoy having people point out the newest roses blooms. "Did you see that new one?" the ask, as if I garden for the weeds. Everyone gets a charge out of them. The staff of the diabetic specialist said, "We love seeing Christina's name on the schedule. It always means a vase of beautiful, fragrant roses, with a list of names." 

Some are already muttering, "He bought some roses already, almost November. Good luck with that." Yes, the least likely supplier had some overstock so I decided to gamble, or it is gambol? Rose clearance sales give me new names to remember and appreciate. 

I am guessing that these are from the wholesaler. I have received very mature (overgrown by nursery standards) roses from Weeks Roses. I can dig up some wild roses (always on my Must Do list) and replace them them with clearance roses. The wild one will bloom dark red in the early spring and then take a vacation - except for their delight in snagging skin and cloth.

 Falling in Love

One Facebook reader agreed with me - people need to be closer to God's Creation. One reason is Jesus Christ the Lord of Creation. He was and is the creating Word of Genesis 1. God the Father commanded and God the Son executed the commands, the Holy Spirit hovering over Creation and leaving us that witness. "All things were created by Him and nothing was created apart from Him." John 1:3 explains Genesis 1 in that fashion.

Given what the Word of God reveals, a husband should always view his wife as God's Creation, and the same with her - seeing her husband as coming from God Himself. There is no force more powerful than that, since children - the blessed fruit of marriage - are nurtured and trained by that union, where two become one.

The flower girl at the wedding was in the arms of her father, so she could carry out her duties and not be distracted. She took the petals in her hand and dropped them down the aisle. Then came that special moment, when she was eye-to-eye with me. She gave me an unmistakable and mischievous smile - and tossed her last handful of flowers straight at the groom, leaving him well decorated. Everyone saw the flowered groom and laughed. A few of us saw the flower girl's fun.

I was going to summarize the trip to Seattle, but that image is the week's epitome for me: a man and a woman united by the Word of God, friends, relatives, parents, grandparents, and great-grandma. The uncles only had to show up to delight their nieces, but they entertained the girls as well. That was another indelible picture.

You Are Not in Charge - Let Living Roots Grow in the Creation Garden

 

Procrastinating storms are typical here. Sunday was supposed to let loose on our dry landscape. When only a short mist appeared, hopes were raised about the Wednesday forecast of rain starting at 5 am. That has been delayed for several hours, but the payday already signaled its arrival yesterday. I could smell the first hints of a major storm, and the wind kicked up, cold rather than cool. A major storm always pushes a front of colder air before it, as if to warn all creatures to get fed and get warm.

Roses are still blooming because our water prices are especially low. We have many stunted plants (Bee Balm, Joe Pye) clipped low but putting out new leaves. That reminded me of the Carbon Cowboys' dictum - "Let plant roots grow as long as possible."

The argument is simple - roots cause 75% of the fertility of the soil. If we give credit to the Creating Word - the Son of God - and His superb engineering skills, the reasons are clear. Growing plants have thousands of miles of roots and root hairs to feed the diversity of plants. 

Some plants are bought from a nursery. Others begin as seed in the garden. Still others seem to make a surprise appearance; bird bombing provides a clue. Yesterday Comfrey made an appearance far from the original plant. Yarrow has various locations after one summer of blooms and seeds. 

 Armillaria mushrooms feed from wood sources. We have clusters of them. Ranger Bob thought Dog Vomit mushrooms were the real thing and blamed Sassy for a moment.

Every plant has its own system connecting to others via fungus strands. They provide water and nutrition for the plants while the plants provide carbon for fungus growth. Mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of particular fungi, such as "dog vomit" which appears on top of wood mulch.

 Dog Vomit fungus appears on wood mulch.

I used to think of plant nutrition as something we add to the lawn and garden, but Teaming with Microbes taught me that the ideal - the Divine Plan - is holding water and nutrition in the top 12 inches of soil. Every living creature and cell performs its assigned task and dies to feed and water the next creature and cell. Moving creatures aerate the soil and loosen it for more growth. Bacteria in earthworms need to be bussed to new locations, and bacteria in earthworms reduce the raw materials (dead leaves, etc) into worm manure (politely called castings) that gently feed roots, hold moisture, and add usable calcium to the garden.

Teaming with Microbes is essential for gardening.

John 1:3 allows for no exceptions, a rhetorical device used in the Scriptures (by no other name is anyone saved, Acts 4:12). 

KJV John 1:3 All things were made by Him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Rationalism is king in science and modern Biblical studies, but that philosophy is devoid when it comes to purpose. Random events, even over billions of years, cannot exhibit purpose. The soil scientists did not even know or appreciate the work of fungi until recently.

By Norma A. Boeckler

 Growing up on a farm - more people need that kind of education.

Started - The Second Edition of The Bible Book: The KJV Reborn for Those Who Love the Word of God Has Begun. The I AM Sermons in John's Gospel Are Next

 

I now have most of the books I ever wanted on the Greek New Testament. Those authors are fortunate - no one reads them. If the public read those efforts to bury the Majority (Byzantine) text of the New Testament, the scholars would be laughed out of academe.

But surprise! There are some good authors who understand and appreciate the Bible as God's Word, unique and inerrant. They also have the skills to examine claims and expose false assertations with little or no warrant (evidence) for their acceptance.

The revised version - how the irony abounds - will be clearer and have annotated lists of books, good and bad, on the Bible.

The I AM Sermons of Jesus Christ, 

Found Only in John's Gospel

After the second edition is finished, I will write a book on the I AM sermons in the Gospel of John. Some of my Old Testament students have been especially stunned and in awe of the Gospel of John/Old Testament connections.

We Few, We Happy Few, We Band of Maroons

 

Even the Movie Godspell Had the Sheep and Goats Figured Out

 

Facilitated by Jay Webber and Kincaid Smith, Pastor Randy DeJaynes (LCA) made himself Bishop of the Lutheran Confessional Sect until it blew up. Heiser was there, selling books. Like CFW Walther, he saw how easy it was to name oneself a bishop when the other one was in trouble.  DeJaynes can be googled for his past indictment.

False teachers send themselves, claiming God sent them.

Soon enough, Heiser enthroned himself and got his own fish hat.

 Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Rogers, Arkansas.

I was surprised that the Right Reverend Bishop Heiser, STM, came to this area (Bentonville-Rogers-Springdale) without making a pastoral visit to Christina, who had only a few days left to live. She passed into eternal life on Sunday, August 22nd.

Christina came to Malone, Texas, with me when I was invited by Heiser to speak there, may years ago. She also came with me when I did the installation of Rev. Clark Brown in Visalia, California. Heiser never explained why he did not attend or participate, in spite of Brown's friendship and co-signing of The Malone Statement. Brown had a contingent of  LCMS members in Visalia, but soon he was gone (no explanation) and the group went back to the LCMS.

Someone who makes himself bishop should keep in mind that the title only means "supervisor" in Greek. The early Church supervisors did not appoint themselves and covet the property and income of parish properties. ELDONUTs quoting the Book of Concord  on the bishop's office is rendered null and void by their promotion or tolerance of Justification without Faith - Objective Justification - for many years. Heiser has lied on video about when he really found out about OJ. It was in 2000, upon reading Thy Strong Word, not over a decade later. Besides, Heiser was a big fan of David Scaer, as are most of the brain-washed from Ft. Wayne.

 No wonder Scaer failed his first doctorate in Germany and had to come home to Concordia St. Louis to qualify for the ThD booby prize. John F. Johnson said the LCMS doctorate was useless outside of Missouri.

KJV Matthew 25

31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:

36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?

38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?

39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:

43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.

44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?

45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

 Giotto, Matthew 25:31ff

The Majority (Traditional, Byzantine) Text of the New Testament - The Vast Emptiness of Lutheran Biblical "Scholars"

 

A new line of jewelry is designed for women who love the KJV, featuring: Shunned, Avoided, Pitied, Misrepresented, Accused, and Disputed. An enemy at the factory produced Faithful until he was caught and the supply hidden away.

The all embracing argument against the Majority (or Traditional or Byzantine) text is simple but a deliberate stink bomb - "We have the earliest, best, and most scientific texts of the New Testament in Sinaiticus - Aleph, and Vaticanus - B. 

"A hit! A palpable hit! Not as deep as a well nor as wide as a barn-door, but twill do, twill do." (Shakespeare, Hamlet, paraphrased)

Facts -

Sinaiticus was "discovered" by Count Tischendorf, its revealing choked with ridiculous claims of being doomed for the trash or fire or both. But it looked brand new when first viewed by others, later partially darkened  by the acid of lemons, perhaps. A 1500 year old skin (parchment) does not look white and perfect. David Daniels considers Sinaiticus a forgery, offering a lot of evidence for that claim.

Vaticanus was also used by Tischendorf to claim glory for finding and revealing the "two earliest" witnesses of the New Testament. Considering the animosity of the Church of Rome in regards to the Bible, a solo codex very much different from Sinaiticus, could easily be a production of the papacy to undermine the Gospel. 

The Majority Text is witnessed in thousands of examples, about 95% of the total. Very important - the distinctive Majority Text was quoted verbatim by the earliest Christian writers, which means the KJV text was there at the beginning, carefully copied and preserved in many different ways, such as citations in the early Church Fathers.

The NIV, ESV, and New KJV are tainted by the eclectic touch, the supposed background text really being a hodge-podge of whatever the editors chose. So - "their brilliant new scientific and very early text of the New Testament" only exists in their darkened minds. They have sliced out many words, verses, and sections of the New Testament, claiming "oldest and best" but offering "fraud and make believe."

The New KJV, always changing, offers footnotes to the Nestle Aland, which is like saying in many places, "The world is round." footnote "But the newest scholars say - flat."

LutherQuest - An Ever-Flowing Fountain of Fun

 

 The Loehe congregations invited the Perryville sex cult to associate with them, so the Loehe group founded what became the Missouri Synod. CFW's behavior in doctrine, pastoral care, kidnapping, and grand theft should be studiously avoided - not imitated. But Cascione calls himself Cardinal.

"In short, we must preserve the Missouri Synod as it was founded by Dr. Walther. To help accomplish this our discussion group intends to generate an active."

GJ - Walther's syphilitic bishop, Martin Stephan, founded the Perryville cult, and it was Walther who signed the enthronement paper yet organized the riot to kick out the bishop. This history is well known and hidden in the bowels of the Concordia Historical Institute.

 Robert Preus quoted this claptrap from distant relative Edward Preuss. Cascione cited it to prove his deep understanding of Justification without Faith, World Absolution without the Means of Grace.

"Our goal is to halt the growing influence of the Church Growth Movement, contemporary worship, Leadership Training, Romanistic 19th-Century European Lutheran hierarchy, the Council of District Presidents, and Faith Inkubators. We want to return to the congregational polity as published in Walther's Church and Ministry.

In order to do this we must preserve:

• the 3 Ecumenical Creeds
• the Doctrine of Justification - GJ, by rejecting it
• Lutheran hymnbooks
• Luther's Small Catechism - GJ - OJ in the 400 page Small Catechism
• the Lutheran Agenda
• use of the name "Lutheran" on all LCMS Congregations - GJ - Why?
• the supremacy of the Voters' Assembly - GJ, as taught by Pope Walther and his Cardinal
• the congregation's right to call a pastor - GJ - And Cascione's right to meddle 
• the true Pastoral Office - GJ - Do not make us cry
• correct teaching of Law and Gospel - GJ - From denying the Chief Article?
• proper administration of the Sacraments" - GJ - Omitting the Means of Grace

Tucking the Creation Garden In for the Winter

 

The fall bulbs are tucked into bed for the winter in the Creation Garden. Once the air began to be chilly, knowing we have only a few days of autumn, I wanted the hardy bulbs in the soil rather than in the bag.

I dealt only with Daffodils, Grape Hyacinths, and Alliums this year. I had a few Crown Imperials to plant, which proves I do not learn from experience. Tulips do not thrive from our mild winters, and Crown Imperials are no better. Trying one more time is like the rush a gambler feels when imagining the future.

We had a fraction of an inch of rain last night, which is why I watered front and back on Saturday. The next promised rain is Wednesday. Creation Gardening Team Jackson wants a long, steady rain for this year's bulbs, last year's bulbs, and the roses. 

 Norma Boeckler's Blue Bird

Hardy bulbs get their generic name from their delight in building up during the autumn and winter - for spring. They are also called fall bulbs for when they are planted. The result of all that work is having no visible evidence we did anything. I farmed out a lot of the digging and tried a few plants to start their work.

I had four or five Basil plants (not seeds) and now have only one growing. I have a few examples of plants being half-way pulled from the ground, as if Sassy or a competitor interrupted the thievery. I plant to keep track and watch how the newbies are doing.

One pleasant surprise was seeing the Hummingbird Mint, barely alive, green up and look good in one isolated area - lots of sun, little competition. The mint family is loved by bees and hummingbirds, but not liked by four-footed, cute but greedy mammals.

Winterizing the Birds - A Hosta Takeover

I now have a tall bird-feeder standing high above the recently cleared backyard garden, where the bare areas are bordered by Daffodils and Humpback Whale Hostas. I ignored the feeder when squirrels helped themselves to everything, but now it is a good place to hang suet baskets.

For plenty of action on the suet I need cold weather and several weeks of feeder familiarity. Birds are highly suspicious of new feeding areas, so I figure they will do little nibbling until November. Then they are likely to attract Chickadees, Woodpeckers, Starlings, Grackles, and the ever-so-cautious Crows. Blue Jays like suet too, proof they help reduce the insect population. Suet-eaters are bug-eaters.

Back to Hostas - they are overgrown in the Rose Garden up front - too much sun and too little rain. I like the various colors almost as much as the rabbits do. They think the garden is for them, and they prance through the plants just to show how saucy they are. They ignore developed Hostas and eat new Hostas out of the ground, perhaps with help from squirrels, possums, and other freeloaders.

All Hostas are being moved into shade where their flowers will entice Hummingbirds in the backyard as much as the Rose Garden, where the Military Gardening Group watches bees and birds in this new version of Eden. I can even plant some Hostas in the wild area out back, since the mature ones can rise above the other growth and provide food sources and those inelegant but useful trumpet blooms for the Hummers.

Laugh all you want at my random style of planting. I do not foster a monoculture for a only a few creatures when I can have food for everything, beauty and entertainment for everyone.

 Doves and finches love seed.

Photographic Proof That LCMS and WELS Are Merging with ELCA.

 

Thy Word Is Truth - in the background

Matt the Fatt, LCMS, did not have a beard for this photo, or did he?

Time of Grace

So that's what they call it - grace.
What better place for a mattress room!

Kilcrease teaches at a Catholic girls' convent school.
His Christology is rejection of Justification by Faith.

 Martin Luther College

 Martin Luther College

  Martin Luther College

 WELS parish - pastor and lay leaders cross-dressed and posted the photos on the Net: Wayne Mueller's son, a Church and Changer.

  Martin Luther College

It takes $30,000 a year to make that rainbow connection,  Martin Luther College.

 The best-selling YouTube is still on the Net, thanks to their fans.  
Martin Luther College

 Stowe and Birner came out a few minutes after graduating from Martin Luther College, the WELS School of Ministry.

 This predatory Roman Catholic archbishop was invited to speak to the public at Wisconsin Lutheran College, WELS. At least ELCA admits to spooning with the Antichrist.

 What better way to make the Gospel real, relational, and relevant!