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Wednesday, September 26, 2012


Pumpkins and gourds at the Village Farm Market
Pumpkins and gourds at the Village Farm Market

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"Life's Tech Manual"


"You have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15).

Tom, a fellow chaplain, told me the story of an engineer he had met in a company who had gone from "riches to rags" due to a series of difficult events in his life. One morning Bob, the engineer, was so despondent that he was unable to go to work. The next day he went to work wondering if he would even have a job but the owner of the company expressed compassion and this led to the chaplain's involvement.

Bible readingTom began sharing biblical truths with Bob, who previously had no interest in spiritual things. He shared the plan of salvation but Bob wasn't yet ready to make that decision so Tom gave him a "tech manual" (i.e. a Bible and a rather clever way to connect with a secularized engineer).

Sometime later Bob left a voice mail indicating that he had asked Christ into his life. He thought the chaplain would be pleased to know this. And I can tell you for sure that Tom was very pleased!!!

Tech manualHave you ever thought of the Bible as a "tech manual"? In manufacturing the tech manual is prepared by the engineers who actually design the product and covers underlying design issues. The tech manual is much more detailed than the owner's manual, which deals mostly with function. The Bible is both a tech and owner's manual.

The word technical comes from a Greek word technitēs found in the New Testament. The most interesting occurrence
(to me anyway) is in Hebrews 11:10 regarding the city of faith "whose architect and builder is God." In fact you can see the word "tech" in architect. Of course an architect is at the very heart of any building program and the blueprints provide the detailed directions for construction.

In the daily text the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy of "the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus". We are all fearfully and wonderfully made but sin has caused us all to be broken. But God has provided a tech manual, the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make each one of us "wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus". This "data", by far, is the most important type of wisdom we need.

Have you accepted the directions in the tech manual of life which are "able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus?" Please do so today.

Every one of us live in a world of need and will confront people with need. Let us faithfully share of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and point people to life's tech manual!


Be encouraged today,


Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Praying manDaily prayer: Father, Your Word is a lamp to our feet and a light for our path. There is nothing You will ask of us that Your Word does not supply guidance, reassurance, and courage for us to follow. We thank You for the great examples of Biblical characters who model godliness for us. We thank You also for the rascals in Scripture who remind us of the negative consequences that follow those who walk in disobedience to Your manual. Help us to read it, follow it and share its truths with those whom You put in our path. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.



Note:
I hope to share a message soon probing a question I am studying regarding just how much mankind can ignore the tech manual and still go on. Just how much fault tolerance has the Master Designer built into His created order?



Rhubarb Harvest

Rhubarb harvest 2012
Driving through the country last week we saw a rhubarb patch owned by an Amish friend who rarely uses it. Brooksyne asked Linda if she could pick some, received permission and she sure did! We've enjoyed picking from her plenteous patch of rhubarb for about three years now.

Rhubarb harvest 2012
We keep a tarp in the back of our van for unplanned stops as we see fresh produce available.

Perhaps some of our readers may be interested in how Brooksyne uses the rhubarb:

Freshly cut rhubarb stalks
The long, colorful stalks without leaves on our dining room table. (Stephen helps remove the leaves so to this extent we can call it a cooperative effort.) Rhubarb is my favorite vegetable to process since it's easy to wash, chop, and has long storage life. (Once it's sweetened it's used in fruit like dishes.)

Chopped rhubarb
The stalks are washed and chopped into small pieces

Rhubarb
For rhubarb jam - sugar is poured on the rhubarb overnight so that by the next morning the sugar is dissolved.  Then the rhubarb and sugar are boiled about 20 minutes, strawberry jello is added and then the mix is poured into jars before putting them into a water bath.

Water bath in canning process
Now a dunk in the 10 minute boiling water bath to seal the jars.

Freshly canned strawberry/rhubarb jam
The finished product.

Stawberry-rhubarb jam on bisquits
How about some jam on a freshly baked buscuit?

Stawberry-rhubarb pie
Or how about a slice of strawberry-rhubarb pie?
This year I made ten quarts of strawberry pie filling - so tasty and handy! (The jam is redder than the pie filling, since I add strawberry jello to the jam.)

Interesting rhubarb trivia:  Rhubarb is usually considered to be a vegetable; however, in the United States, a New York court decided in 1947 that since it was used in the United States as a fruit, it was to be counted as a fruit for the purposes of regulations and duties. A side effect was a reduction in taxes paid!



Today's Suggested Music
and Supplemental Resources

"How Firm A Foundation"  Video  Sovereign Grace Music (congregational style)

"Speak O Lord"
 Video  Kristyn Getty

"Word Of God Speak"  Video  MercyMe

"Ancient Words"  Video  Michael W. Smith

"He Giveth More Grace"  Video  The Maranatha Singers

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a message to Stephen & Brooksyne



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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.

Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."

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