I have a friend who is a believer, but he complains about anything he doesn’t like. In fact, he scoffs at the idea of offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving, which, according to Psalm 50:23, honors God.

We have been reading through Exodus and Numbers and, in relation to my  complaining friend,  it struck me that

the biggest, most grievous sin of the Israelites was complaining and grumbling. God responded to this swiftly and firmly. Here are some examples

Num 11:1  Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the LORD, and when he heard them his anger was aroused. Then fire from the LORD burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp.

Num 11:10  Moses heard the people of every family wailing at the entrance to their tents. The LORD became exceedingly angry, and Moses was troubled.

Num 21:5,6 But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”

Num 21:6  Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died.

Exo 16:12  “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.'”

Exo 16:13  That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp.

Num 11:33  But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the LORD burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague.

Now, we all grumble at times, and often we don’t even notice it.  And we  don’t tend to view this as a serious sin. But  it is for it is the manifestation of the root sins of unbelief and rebellion. We refuse to believe that God is in control, that He gives us what is best, that He knows what He is doing. We think we know better!  These are serious sins, which bring negative outcomes.

To trust Him, to praise Him in the midst of difficulty, this honors Him and opens the way that we may see the salvation of the Lord (Psalm 50:23). So, when I am tempted to grumble or complain, I want to remember the Israelites in the desert and how their unbelief and rebellion disgraced God and brought such difficulty into their lives.

Lord, help us to immediately realize when we are complaining, to repent and offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving in all things that we may fulfill the purpose of our lives, honoring you.

Psalm 31:20 “In the shelter of your presence you hide them from the intrigues of men; in your dwelling you keep them safe from accusing tongues.”

[To others we may appear to be defenseless and totally vulnerable, but in your unseen presence we are sheltered and shielded by your power.

Our responsibility is to stay in your presence, in your refuge of truth, in your Word of wisdom: “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty” (Ps. 91:1).

This means that, in the midst of much pressure, we can trust you, praise you and respond to evil with what we know to be right: forgiving, returning good for hurt, resting in the truth that you are doing good in what appears to be bad.

Then, because you delight in us, in your mighty power you will protect us from true harm, work to guide and direct us and bring us out into a spacious place. To you be glory and honor, Lord for your goodness, power and love. Help me to dwell in them, rest in them and rejoice in them.]

Psalm 31:17b,18 “but let the wicked be put to shame and lie silent in the grave. Let their lying lips be silenced, for with pride and contempt they speak arrogantly against the righteous.”

[There are so many lies and false accusations uttered these days against followers of Jesus–even to the point of calling us terrorists! Doing good is denigrated; committing evil is exalted. I praise you, Lord, that in the midst of this, you are at work and will use the attacks of the enemy to advance your Kingdom.

And I thank you for your guidance on how to respond to these verbal attacks. Instead of feeling sorry for ourselves and being consumed with anger, frustration and discouragement, you call us to “delight in weaknesses, hardships, INSULTS, persecutions and difficulties, for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). We can, in humility, in your perspective, shrug off the shame people want to put on us, walking instead in the light of the honor you heap on us as your beloved children.

Praise you, Lord, that these situations are opportunities to give you glory through trust, praise and doing good to those who do evil to us. May we so walk in faith, bringing you great honor before all the unseen hosts.]

A very different type of post today, but an important one, bringing common sense and science together, a breath of fresh air!

From The Epoch Times

Climate Scientists Say We Should Embrace Higher CO2 Levels

While governments pour billions of dollars into lowering CO2 emissions, several climate experts say CO2 is essential and higher levels are not a problem.

(Illustration by The Epoch Times, Shutterstock)

By Katie Spence

January 03, 2024

The Earth has entered “uncharted territory,” and life is “under siege.” The public has failed to heed this message, and now, “time is up,” according to a recent report from Oxford Academics’ BioScience.

The authors of the report wrote that the catalyst behind the dire warnings is escalating concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2).

However, according to Patrick Moore, chairman and chief scientist of Ecosense Environmental and co-founder of the environmental organization Greenpeace, the climate change messaging isn’t based in fact.

“The whole thing is a total scam,” Mr. Moore said. “There is actually no scientific evidence that CO2 is responsible for climate change over the eons.”

Mr. Moore said that over the past few decades, the climate message has repeatedly changed; first, it was global cooling, then global warming, then climate change, and now, it’s disastrous weather.

“They’re saying all the tornadoes, all the hurricanes, all the floods, and all the heat waves are all caused by CO2. That is a lie. … We’re part of the cycle,” he said.

“We don’t need CO2. For us, it’s a waste product—we need oxygen. But plants are the ones who made the oxygen for us, and we’re making the CO2 back for them.”

He said the burning of fossil fuels—which emits CO2—is a good thing for plant life.

“We are replenishing the atmosphere with CO2 up to a level that is much more conducive to life and growth of plants, in particular.”

Weather-related deaths and climate disasters have in fact declined “precipitously” over the years, according to John Christy, a climatologist and professor of atmospheric science at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and the director of the Earth System Science Center.

In 1925, there was an average of 484,880 climate-related deaths worldwide, according to Human Progress. Since then, it’s steadily decreased, with the latest report, from 2020, showing there was an average of 14,893 climate-related deaths worldwide.

“CO2 is portrayed now as the cause of damaging extreme weather. Our research indicates these extremes are not becoming more intense or frequent,” Mr. Christy told The Epoch Times. “Thus, CO2 cannot be the cause of something not occurring.”

The U.N. is planning for countries to cut emissions to as close to zero as possible by 2050.

The plan is “collective suicide,” according to Malgosia Askanas, a senior research and development associate at Aurora Biophysics Research Institute.

Ms. Askanas said the concern over CO2 isn’t based on science.

“CO2 has been unfairly demonized because it is actually plant food in its atmospheric form, and it is the consequence of generating carbon-based energy, which unquestionably improves lives around the world,” he said.

He calls CO2 the “currency of life.”

“In past epochs, there were many times more CO2 levels in the atmosphere than today.”

—-You can read the full article here https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/climate-scientists-say-we-should-embrace-higher-co2-levels-5551562?utm_source=goodeveningnoe&src_src=goodeveningnoe&utm_campaign=gv-2024-01-02&src_cmp=gv-2024-01-02&utm_medium=email&est=bUCidbtN32Wrufq0w2fpSlGLw7FkGfxvvqR%2Fa92iqtXLi4H7ZN5eB9rTIJWUH1Y%3D

In  our daily reading we came to John 8 and verse 32: “You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free.”

As I thought about this, I realized that the Truth sets us free as a process. In my own life I can see important steps in this as He led me out into progressive freedom. Here are some of the steps in chronological order

Freedom to surrender to the Lord

Freedom from self and sin (an ongoing process)

Freedom from wrong thinking

Freedom from depression

Freedom from loneliness,

Freedom from holding on to things too tightly,

Freedom from fear of losing family

Freedom from not liking holidays

Freedom from fear of being home alone in the dark

Freedom from the desire to have a position, power, praise.

Freedom from doing things always the same,

Freedom to give thanks in all things.

Freedom to move into old age with thankfulness.

Freedom to let go, hold on, rise above.

. At times I’ve asked, “Why didn’t he give me this freedom earlier? Why did He wait til I was 50 before freeing me from my dislike of holidays? This is where trust comes in: He has his reasons.

Our part is to press on and respond to His showing us the next step in freedom and to move into it, often with repentance and a deeper surrender. This means following Hebrews 12:1-2, “Let us lay aside every weight and sin that so easily entangles us and run with endurance the race that is set before us (like our boy Nat in the crpsss-country picture here), looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.”.

In God’s Kingdom, he who finishes the race wins!