The
online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen
& Brooksyne Weber
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation.
A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation.
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Friday,
October
23,
2020
This Spotted
Lanternfly near my barn is "pretty but bad".
"Pretty
But Bad"
Note:
Message is posted later today due to technical
snafu!
Message summary: May God open
our eyes today to all that is pretty but bad and
give us a resolve to destroy the bugs before they
destroy us!
Listen
to this message on your audio player.
Listen
to this message on your audio player."Do
not desire her beauty in your heart, nor let her
capture you with her eyelids" (Proverbs 6:25).
"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to
your earthly nature" (Colossians 3:5). "Let us
throw off everything that hinders and the sin
that so easily entangles" (Hebrews 12:1).
The
last couple of days we took
care of five year old Sara Beth and her three year
old brother Stephen as their parents attended a
wedding for relatives in New York state. Early
this morning we returned them to the Old Windmill
Farm where there was a very happy reunion. They are very bright and inquisitive children
and sure added a lot
of energy to our home.
Wednesday
afternoon Brooksyne went on a two mile walk on our
favorite trail with the children and they saw a
new pest in our area, the Spotted Lanternfly. Sara
Beth correctly and succinctly observed, "They're
pretty but they're bad".
The
Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) is native
to China and was first detected in Pennsylvania in
September 2014, likely migrating off a container
ship. Spotted Lanternfly feeds on a wide range of
fruit, ornamental and woody trees. They are
invasive and can be spread long distances by
people who move infested material or items
containing egg masses. If allowed to spread
through the United States, this pest could
seriously impact the country’s grape, orchard, and
logging industries. Several weeks ago when we were
in New York, Jack, a forester friend, expressed concern
regarding the devastating effect the lanternfly
would have in the fertile regions around the
Finger lakes. (Incidentally the stinkbug also came in
through eastern PA over twenty years ago so we
wonder what's up with eastern, PA!)
The
first of ten suggested tips to get
rid of the Spotted Lanternfly is "Smush the
bugs. It is effective and the method that is
least harmful to the environment. If the flies are
on a hard surface, fly swatters and wiffle ball
bats work well. If you miss the first time, don’t
give up. Lanternflies jump well the first time,
but then lose energy. If you follow the bug, you
will likely get it on the second or third try."
Several
weeks ago we were at the farm when I saw a Spotted
Lanternfly. I asked Sara Beth if she knew what it
was. She did and without comment immediately
stepped on it barefoot, which is certainly an
effective way to smush a bug!
As
regular readers might suspect there's
a lesson that we hope will
be spiritually valuable. I
like to tell stories but the real value of our
ministry is in the exposition of Scripture and
spiritual application. Our daily text is in the
context of warnings against the harlot with a
timeless warning appropriate to all generations, "Do not desire her beauty in your
heart, nor let her capture you with her eyelids"
(Proverbs 6:25).
Now
for the record and by the grace of God I don't
have any experience with harlots (prostitutes) but
do observe they are often made up to be attractive
and are trained to attract men with flirting eyes.
Some things just don't change.
Let
us expand this to all that is pretty but bad and
to spiritual harlotry, that which turns our hearts
away from God. Sin often presents itself as
beautiful; that's part of the deceptiveness of
sin. Alcohol ads show attractive young people
having a good time, but I've never seen one based
upon a DUI traffic accident, a battered wife or
jail cells filled with those who murdered innocent
life while under the influence. Tobacco ads never
show someone with the last stages of lung cancer,
emaciated and struggling to breathe. The gambling
industry shows successful, affluent-looking young
people smiling with joy, not the actual ruin
gambling habits have brought to many lives.
May
God open our eyes today to all that is "pretty but
bad" and give us a resolve to smush the
destructive bugs!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, we pray that
You would set our affections on things,
both inanimate and human, that draw us closer to
the throne of God. May godly discernment guide
and enable us to smush deceptive traps set up by
our enemy, drawing our attention away from that
which does harm and setting our affections on
that which draws us to Christ in whose name we
pray. Amen.
Hotel
Hershey
We often
drive through the front entry of this beautiful motel
just to observe the beautiful flowers.
The
children really enjoyed this huge model train layout at
the AACA
Museum in Hershey.
After our
visit to Chocolate World and the AACA Museum and dinner
at the Red Robin yesterday a neighbor came over to drive
the children on a golf cart on our trail. Janae invited
Stephen and Ester to ride along while I walked with Jane
on the same trail (guess who got more exercise?).
Coming up
behind a JK Mechanical van this morning reminded us of a
story we wrote a few years ago (see here)
Stephen
and
Brooksyne
Weber
Casey
Jones
Restaurant,
August 2020
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To donate directly online here. This will open to a page that designates the offering to: WEBER,STEPHEN CHAP, Specialized Chaplaincy Ministry ID: 700001-237376
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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 make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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