Bit warm, again, will be the whole week.  There is some wind, which helps reduce its affect, but dries out the garden more.

Barbecued one of the steaks from Rose’s beef day before yesterday, she is learning well from her father and mother – well turned out – having another tonight.  (We have it cut for two, now there was a time where it would have been just right, now we always have leftovers, that is okay, but we can tell our meals are smaller now.)

Quite a few hummingbirds are visiting, going through a quart or more fluid a day.  I have seen lots of videos where there are several hummingbirds all waiting their time to share in the food.  Not here, they continually chase each other around and try to protect the feeders as their own domain – lots of unnecessary energy wasted as when they start after each other, another sneaks up to feed, none of them are going hungry.

John 14:1-3 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

² In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

I have always read this with the idea that Jesus was just comforting his disciples.  He wanted them to believe and understand that though He would be leaving this world, He would have a place for them in heaven.

However, I think there was a bit more to it.  One of the leading Sects of the Jewish religion were the Sadducees, they denied that there is a resurrection, a life after death.  They of course had their followers.

We don’t know which sect each person following Christ listened to and believed.  Undoubtedly there were men and women of that sect as well as the Pharisees who did believe in the resurrection.

Christ was reaffirming that there indeed was a resurrection and a life after death as a voice against what the Sadducees were teaching and thus reaching out to those that followed that sect.

If we believe that there is no life after death, as the atheist proclaim, then what is the point of following any rules, other than avoiding the pain of consequences?

The way to make those consequences even less is to declare that crimes are not really crimes, changing the legal system or at least crimes that were once considered major are made to be minor with fewer punishments – eventually those too, will be changed.

A good/bad example is the incarceration of mentally ill people.  They were often charged with crimes so they could be taken off the street and placed in secure facilities.

Modern medicine developed a better understanding of the reasons behind many of the problems the mentally ill faced and with it came medications that would help the patient control their problems and lead productive lives, or at least help them reduce the conflicts within their brains.

As a result most mental institutions were closed, while there were still places that those struggling with mental illness could go so they could be watched over and helped, these places are less confining and actually more ‘homey’ in their feel.

Then the problem arose as those with these problems didn’t like the way the medication made them feel.  While under the medication they might be more passive and less aggressive to the rest of the population, many lived in a fog like state, not quite comfortable. 

Since many feel better without the medication they refuse to take it, and unfortunately, many become more violent and conduct is often illegal.

Originally these patients could be forced to take this medication, not only as a benefit to them to keep them from becoming dangerous, but to the public in general to keep them safe and or free from the harassing acts of the unmedicated patient.  

Then the courts ruled that they could not be forced to take the medication against their will, so if they went off the drugs then it was their choice and there is nothing that could be done about it.

Most of these patients are well aware of what going off the medication will do to them, they know that they become violent, aggressive or some other form of anti-social behavior that imperils the life of other citizens.  So they know when they go off the potential of that happening is almost guaranteed.

Yet, when they go off their medication and commit crimes that most citizens would be arrest for, they are not held accountable because after all they are mentally ill and off their medications.

The illness is not their fault in most instances, but refusing to accept medication to remedy it and keep them from dangerous activity should not be just overlooked.  They made a choice, they decided to go off the medicine knowing what they were capable of doing.

Society has argued it is their choice to go off medication, but when they go off there is to be no repercussions.

As I said, good and bad example, but the process of humanitarianism has gone farther than is reasonable.  It is almost like giving most of these people a free ride while interfering with the lives and rights of others.

Because we do it with our laws, we think God will do it with HIS, He does not. 

The same with teachings of His Word, if it says He will do such and such in His Word, He will do it and anyone who twists it to their viewpoint in conflict with His Word will be held accountable.

It is just another example of how we need to read our Bible with the Holy Spirit guiding us.  How, when we read commentaries and see doctrines that we question them and make sure they are correctly interpret God’s Word.

Far too many times good Christians have been led astray by glib tongues and personalities of the preacher and do not bother to research those statements.

As no one can be saved for us, it is an individual relationship with Christ, so too are we responsible for the teachings we choose to believe and follow. 

We want to be sure we are following Christ and not someone else’s ideas.

Later, Art :-)