A FUTURE VIEW OF CARS

 

I have the view of the future. It’s a future that has been perfected and has become everything we would like it to be. It’s more of a listing of what I see things becoming. It’s extremely optimistic and hopeful. It’s wishful thinking at its best.

             For example let’s look at cars and roads for a start. Not only will there be self-driving cars, they will be absolutely safe with no accidents or breakdowns. If any maintenance is required the car will drive itself to the repair shop while the owner is having lunch or dinner. The cars will be very comfortable and roomy and the roads so smooth it will be like floating along the road. Between satellite controls and radar and sonar modules on the cars, no collisions will ever occur. No pedestrians or animals will ever be hit.

             The car choices will be based on color, size, and accessories. Some drivers will want great sound systems; others will want TV’s or computers. Beds and recliners will be options. If you want to travel across the country you can be very comfortable on the trip. With voice controls you can ask the car to stop at the next restaurant so you can grab a meal or you may decide to visit a friend or relative along the way or you can head to church to worship God – just speak up.

             Every road will be smooth, not just the interstates. No city potholes or manhole bumps. No broken pavement or asphalt will ever be seen, and the painted lines will never fade. There will be a nice wide berm on either side and four lanes will be mandatory. Plus smooth sidewalks will be on both sides of each street. Stop signs and traffic signals will not be needed because the cars will be able to navigate intersections seamlessly.

COMFORT FOR CHRISTIANS WHO ARE AILING OR AGED

For it is God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.

We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;  persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed -- always carrying about in our body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. And knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you.

Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life.

Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.

 From 2 Corinthians 4:6-18; 5:1-8 (NKJV)

26 LETTERS AND 88 NOTES

Oh, the music that has been made with this combination! The fabulous songs that have been written! It’s an amazing tribute to God’s creation of language and His gift to men of making instruments and using their voices to sing!

Webster’s has a listing of 470,000 word entries, and that’s just in English. And there have been an estimate of over 100 million songs written worldwide. And there’s room for many more, with new tunes being released continuously. Plus, there are songs that have been written by amateurs and never published. (This author has had a few.)

We could not possibly listen to every song that’s available, so as in every aspect of life we need to make choices. Which kinds of songs, which artists, which instruments, which genre? Some songs make us feel better, others make us want to dance and/or sing, some enable us to worship God through music.

Sadly, some songs are very negative and even harmful. It’s hard to imagine that these bad songs are attractive to any age group, but they are. This is a reminder of the evil and the rebellion in the hearts and minds of humans.

Back to the positive effects of music, here are a few quotes pertaining to its great value.

“Music is like a dream. One that I cannot hear.” – Beethoven 

“Music is the universal language of mankind.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.” – Plato 

“Music is the art of the prophets and the gift of God.” – Martin Luther 

The Bible speaks often of making music, especially in the Psalms, which has been called the Hymnbook of the Scriptures, as well as in the New Testament.

Psalm 95:1 (NKJV) "Oh come, let us sing to the LORD! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation."

Psalm 92:1-3 (NKJV) "It is good to give thanks to the LORD, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, And Your faithfulness every night, On an instrument of ten strings, On the lute, And on the harp, With harmonious sound."

Colossians 3:16 (NKJV) "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord."

Whether we simply listen to good music or sing along with our favorites, music has a healing, uplifting, joyous effect on our body and mind and soul.

MY FAVORITE INVENTIONS

We are blessed with so many inventions that are used today. From the beginning of creation God gave man the ability to conceptualize, design, build, and share useful and helpful gadgets and devices. And there will be many more in the future.

It’s hard to narrow it down to a few favorites, but here goes. The first that comes to mind is the battery. The enabled portability which batteries provide is both convenient and very helpful. Plus it’s life-saving in many situations.

How about the zipper? It fastens everything from clothes to luggage.

The computer is a necessity in this modern age. And today’s cell phone is actually a hand-held computer.

The automobile is a collection of inventions that have evolved over the years to provide us with comfortable and affordable transportation.

The photograph is a boon to our memories. From its birth in 1839, to the modern digital prints, men have been able to record images for posterity. (If only we could keep them all organized)

The television has improved both education and entertainment. It’s bigger than ever and clearer by far, but even the old black and whites were a learning tool.

Pens, pencils, and paper all enable us to communicate with loved ones. These tools are still essential for business and government correspondence.

I could go on, but the basis of all inventions begins with God’s gifts to us in His creation. He made the electromagnetic spectrum; He provided oil and gas; He created elements and minerals for our use, without which no invention would be possible.

In addition, God gave men the gifts and skills to build tools and equipment to manufacture all of the inventions we use today. As the Bible says, “We are fearfully and wonderfully made!” This is so we also can make wonderful things to benefit mankind.

THE REST OF THE PASSAGE

Paul Harvey had the famous “Rest of the Story” segment on radio for a number of years, in which he would share a well-known tale about something or someone and then enlighten his audience with unknown related facts. It was both informative and entertaining.

We sometimes do this with Bible verses. Someone may quote a verse of encouragement or help without the “rest of the passage” that help us understand the context of the scripture being quoted. A few examples follow here.

 "Eye has not seen.” “The Truth will make you free.” “If my people.” “I know the plans I have for you”; also translated “I know the thoughts I think toward you.”

2 Chronicles 7:13-14 (NKJV) “When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Sadly, it can take God’s loving actions in our lives before we humble ourselves and pray, but the promise is still there that He forgives and heals. It’s also sad that not everyone who experiences these events will turn to God.

John 8:30-32 (NKJV) “As He spoke these words, many believed in Him. Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

Where do we find this freeing truth? It’s found only in the Bible. Without God’s Word one doesn’t have the truth that will make them free.

1 Corinthians 2:9-12 (NKJV) “But as it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.’ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”

Some say we cannot know what wonderful things God has prepared for us, which is an Old Testament belief. But Paul clarifies that the Holy Spirit reveals this and so much more to his children.

Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NKJV) “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”

The purpose of God’s plans and thoughts toward us is for us to pray, and seek Him and search for Him with all our heart. Thus we will have peace and hope, and we’ll know the future He has for us, revealed by the Spirit.

It’s great that Bible verses are very encouraging and helpful and comforting, but be sure to include the rest of the passage.

CLIMATE CHANGE FREEZE

Some folks think the recent climate change problems are causing colder and snowier winters, as though they have never occurred in the past. The perceived change in winter weather is nothing compared to past low temperatures and blizzards.

According to the Canton Repository of December 25, 2022, in an article by Lisa Sullivan, a list of winter records indicates the severest weather on record.

The lowest temperature in the world was at Vostok Station, Antarctica in 1983, at minus 128.6 F. The lowest in the USA was in Alaska in 1971, at minus 80 F, and for the contiguous states, it was in Rogers Pass Montana in 1954 at minus 69.7 F. The lowest temperature in North America was in The Yukon in 1947 at minus 81.4 F.

The most deadly blizzard in history was in Iran, of all places, in 1972, with 26 feet of snow, killing 4,000 people. The worst blizzard in the USA was in the Northeast in 1888, when up to 58 inches of snow fell, killing 400 people, half of them in New York City. The worst winter in the USA was in 1880-1881, with the Dakotas being hit the hardest.

Of course, some places are always cold, like Eastern Siberia. The cities with the coldest average temperatures in the USA are Fairbanks AK, Duluth MN, Grand Forks ND, Williston ND, and Sault Ste. Marie MI.

So the cold has always been around, and will continue. The Creator positioned the earth on a slanted axis so the seasons occur on a regular schedule in both hemispheres. While the cold continues this winter, we can be assured that spring and summer are not far behind, with more comfortable temperatures on the way. Then, in the heat of July and August, we’ll be looking forward to some cold weather again.