Over the years working in construction I have met women construction workers. Some were treated like ladies, with all due respect others were treated the opposite.

I can quickly say it wasn’t the clothing, because in construction you have to wear certain clothing. It was how they acted; it dictated how the men would respond to them. At first all new female workers were treated mostly with respect, just a few little hints of wrong. Depending upon how the female would respond opened up for more of being treated like a lady, or not a lady. Some of those females just compromised a little at first to fit in, and soon they weren’t treated like a lady.

Our actions equal the words we speak, what we do, how we respond to what others say and do. 

Like that saying goes if it quacks like a duck and looks like a duck, odds are it is a duck, and it will be treated as such.

http://www.christianpost.com/news/election-map-shows-mostly-purple-not-red-and-blue-nation-85043/

“To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and then to discover that prisoner was you.”

As I was meditating upon forgiveness and its relationship to repentance these thoughts came to my mind.

Can you forgive one who has wronged you, even when they have not asked for forgiveness?

I have heard many state that one has to ask for forgiveness from God before they obtain it. If that is true and your able to forgive another when they have not asked, have you not made your self more able to forgive than God?

Perhaps the key is to understand that God accepts the payment Christ made. That our repentance is simply our way of accepting the debt has already been paid.

It’s not God who needs to forgive, but our needing to believe that the debt is paid.

The gift has already forever been placed in front of all of us, but picking it up is our choice.

Exo 33:20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.

1Jn 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Our neighbor’s house had many cockroaches, and the owner of the house took me into it after the neighbors had moved out. It was day time and we went in, it looked trashy but I didn’t see any cockroaches, and the owner said he would allow me to come back over come evening. That night he came back over to his house and invited me in. When we flipped on the lights in each room there were cockroaches every where, and as soon as the light would come on they would scurry to the darkness.

Here is my perspective of the final judgment of God upon all, based upon the actions of a cockroach.

Upon mans final judgment the brightness of God will appear, and those like him will embrace the light. Those unbelievers shall see the light and scurry into the darkness that is waiting for them, like the cockroach. We each shall be our own judge jury and executioner.

1Ti_6:16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.

1Jn_1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

2Co_6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

Luk 7:37 And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, 38 And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.

When Jesus was asked about the woman his reply was how she showed him great love. Her great love for him came because he had forgiven her a huge debt of sins. She felt his great love by him forgiving her, and in return was able to show that great love.

Luk_7:47 Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.

The word also tells us, we are forgiven as we forgive others, for how can we believe Christ died for us and deny that he died for another? If we deny forgiveness we cannot feel the great love that God shows us by our being forgiven. We control how much of God’s love we desire to feel, the more we feel the more we can show others.

Mat_6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

Mat_6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

Mar_11:26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

Several months ago a neighbor moved out of the house they rented, they were nice people but very dirty and they I believe sold drugs.

As I talked to the owner of the house after the neighbors moved out he told me how filthy they were, and that they had cockroaches. He was going to have an exterminator come and spray the house. I was told to spray my yard and my house prior, because once they sprayed the house next door the roaches would be moving. I couldn’t imagine roaches crossing the yard and coming to my house, but I was wrong. I found two roaches; we had never had a single roach in the 22 years we lived here. I quickly sprayed the yard and begun spraying our house, it seemed to take care of the problem, it has been a few months and still thank God no roaches.

Now here is something to think about:

Perhaps as the end grows closer true Christians will come forth, and as they over come problems in their lives the demons will flee from them. Once the demons flee from the true Christians they shall gather more intensely upon the remaining people. 

That would mean greater temptations would come forth, and people would become much more evil. Perhaps that is why we are warned to seek holiness in order to escape what is going to come upon the whole earth?

I got my raised garden beds all cleaned out and tilled and ready for next year. There were several lessons I had learnt through this year which will prosper my garden next year.

As I pulled up my plants I noticed how huge the rooting system was, the greater the rooting system the greater the plants produce. My soil is very sandy, and that allows the plant’s roots to grow quicker and easier. But the sandy soil doesn’t hold the moisture or the nutrients the plants need, so they must be continually fed and watered.

How we learn is based upon the same principle, a humble person is like sandy soil their roots grow quick. But they must continue being fed from the word and the living water to produce fruits.

Joh_15:4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. 5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Today I went turkey hunting, it was successful I came home with a 17lb turkey.

The wisdom I learnt from the hunting experience is this, it’s not always the way you expect it.

Setting in the woods calling this morning a turkey started responding, it was very close. As I did a turkey call it would answer very excited, it was a single turkey looking for another to be with. As I continued calling I could hear several turkeys in the background. But the one was very close so I slowly worked my way up against a tree and used my binoculars scanning the area. The turkey was so close, and yet I could not locate it. The calling lasted for perhaps ten to twenty minutes, I knew it was close perhaps in the thick brush. All of a sudden I heard a loud noise and discovered exactly where the turkey was, it was in a tree within shooting range, but the noise I heard was it flying off. That entire time I scanned the ground searching for the turkey, just to discover it was still in a tree.

As I thought about what I had experienced I knew that was a great lesson to learn, not to expect the obvious. Many times the enemy we loose to comes through the unexpected ways.

A little while later I located another turkey, and bagged it.

When I cleared out my old tomato plants I placed the left over green tomatoes in my basement and allowed them to ripen. They have all ripened so I made salsa today. Tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, sweet banana peppers, cilantro and onion garlic and chili powder.

There are certain rules I try to follow in dealing with my vehicle. When I go any where my auto is locked and nothing of any value or that could be mistaken for something of value is left in plain site. In that way I don’t tempt the weak into breaking into my truck. There are occasions we don’t want to admit to, but we cause the problem by tempting another into doing something wrong.

In Isaiah 39 we read about King Hezekiah and that he had recovered from a sickness, so the King of Babylon sent him a present. Hezekiah was glad that the king of Babylon sent him the present and showed those from Babylon all of his possessions.

Then came Isaiah saying Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.

Hezekiah proud of all he had obtained showed all that he had to the visitors from Babylon, which tempted the King of Babylon who eventually came to take it all away.

Our actions have an affect upon others, we can set high moral standards or we can cause another to be tempted in many different ways.