What I See Happening In a Trump Presidency, by Bill Bennett

      I just now found this on a website and thought it was important to post.  I totally agree with Mr. Bennett's analysis of why Donald Trump is hated by the establishment.  His brashness and courage to say those things we have all wanted to say is so refreshing.
      Nevertheless, it was very much of a struggle for me to decide who to vote for today in the IL primary.   I prayed for days and heard nothing.  This morning I felt peace about voting my conscience.  It seemed contrary to all that I believe in to vote for Donald Trump who has lived an immoral life, had several affairs, impregnated one of his girlfriends while married to a previous wife.  He has filed bankruptcy 4 times which cheats many creditors.  I have always believed integrity and character matters.  Trump also offers no solutions for problems--only states "I'll fix it, and you'll love it," forgetting that he won't be a king, but will be accountable to Congress and the Supreme Court.  
     After Ben Carson dropped out I pretty much lost interest in the other candidates.  Even though I have been very disappointed in Cruz saying Trump caused the riots against him I ended up voting for Cruz today because he seemed the lesser of the evils.  He is a Constitutionalist.  He stood against ethanol subsidies which he knew wouldn't be popular in Iowa, so hopefully that indicates he has a backbone. He is the husband of one wife.  And he was raised in a Pentecostal Church so surely knows the Scriptures.   Hopefully, Holy Spirit will bring them to his remembrance if he becomes President.
    I must say that I nearly changed my vote for Trump because others blamed him for the riots surrounding his meetings even though I had said I would never vote for him.  Why wasn't Cruz   strong enough to call it for what it was instead of taking a cheap shot at the forerunner?
     It was almost a tipping point for Trump but as I weighed the evidence, Cruz got my vote even though he has never been my favorite candidate.  I will continue to pray that the right person wins the Presidency.

I have always admired Bill Bennett, though, so here is his take on the Trump phenomena.

Bill Bennett's credentials, in case you are unfamiliar with him:

-PHD - Secretary of Education under Ronald Reagan
-Cultural studies at the distinguished and renown Heritage Foundation

William J. Bennett, Host of Bill Bennett's Morning in America Show, is one of America's most important, influential, and respected voices on cultural, political, and education issues. He has one of the strongest Christian world views of any writer in modern times.

What I See Happening In a Trump Presidency  By Bill Bennett

"They will kill him before they let him be president. It could be a Republican or a Democrat that instigates the shutting up of Trump.

Don’t be surprised if Trump has an accident. Some people are getting very nervous: Barack Obama, Valerie Jarrett, Eric Holder, Hillary Clinton and Jon Corzine, to name just a few.

It's about the unholy dynamics between big government, big business, and big media. They all benefit by the billions of dollars from this partnership, and it's in all of their interests to protect one another. It's one for all and all for one. It’s a heck of a filthy relationship that makes everyone filthy rich, everyone except the American people. We get ripped off. We’re the patsies. But for once, the powerful socialist cabal and the corrupt crony capitalists are scared. The over-the-top reaction to Trump by politicians of both parties, the media, and the biggest corporations of America has been so swift and insanely angry that it suggests they are all threatened and frightened.

Donald Trump can self-fund. No matter how much they say to the contrary, the media, business, and political elite understand that Trump is no joke. He could actually win and upset their nice cozy apple cart.

It's no coincidence that everyone has gotten together to destroy The Donald. It's because most of the other politicians are part of the a good old boys club. They talk big, but they won’t change a thing. They are all beholden to big-money donors. They are all owned by lobbyists, unions, lawyers, gigantic environmental organizations, and multinational corporations – like Big Pharmacy or Big Oil. Or they are owned lock, stock, and barrel by foreigners like George Soros owns Obama or foreign governments own Hillary and their Clinton Foundation donations.

These run-of-the-mill establishment politicians are all puppets owned by big money. But there's one man who isn't beholden to anyone. There's one man who doesn't need foreigners, or foreign governments, or George Soros, or the United Auto Workers, or the teacher's union, or the Service Employees International Union, or the Bar Association to fund his campaign.

Billionaire tycoon and maverick Donald Trump doesn’t need anyone’s help. That means he doesn’t care what the media says. He doesn’t care what the corporate elites think. That makes him very dangerous to the entrenched interests. That makes Trump a huge threat to those people. Trump can ruin everything for the bribed politicians and their spoiled slave masters.

Don’t you ever wonder why the GOP has never tried to impeach Obama? Don’t you wonder why John Boehner and Mitch McConnell talk a big game, but never actually try to stop Obama? Don’t you wonder why Congress holds the purse strings, yet has never tried to de-fund Obamacare or Obama’s clearly illegal executive action on amnesty for illegal aliens? Bizarre, right? It defies logic, right?

First, I'd guess many key Republicans are being bribed. Secondly, I believe many key Republicans are being blackmailed. Whether they are having affairs, or secretly gay, or stealing taxpayer money, the National Security Agency knows everything.

Ask former House Speaker Dennis Hastert about that. The government even knew he was withdrawing large sums of his own money from his own bank account. The NSA, the SEC, the IRS, and all the other three-letter government agencies are watching every Republican political leader. They surveil everything. Thirdly, many Republicans are petrified of being called racists, so they are scared to ever criticize Obama or call out his crimes, let alone demand his impeachment. Fourth , why rock the boat? After defeat or retirement, if you’re a good old boy, you’ve got a $5 million-per-year lobbying job waiting. The big-money interests have the system gamed. Win or lose, they win.

But Trump doesn’t play by any of these rules. Trump breaks up this nice, cozy relationship between big government, big media, and big business. All the rules are out the window if Trump wins the Presidency. The other politicians will protect Obama and his aides but not Trump. Remember: Trump is the guy who publicly questioned Obama's birth certificate. He questioned Obama's college records and how a mediocre student got into an Ivy League university. Now, he's doing something no Republican has the chutzpah to do. He's questioning our relationship with Mexico; he's questioning why the border is wide open; he's questioning why no wall has been built across the border; he's questioning if allowing millions of illegal aliens into America is in our best interests; he's questioning why so many illegal aliens commit violent crimes, yet are not deported; and he's questioning why our trade deals with Mexico, Russia and China are so bad.

Trump has the audacity to ask out loud why American workers always get the short end of the stick. Good question! I'm certain Trump will question what happened to the almost billion dollars given in a rigged no-bid contract to college friends of Michelle Obama at foreign companies to build the defective Obamacare website. By the way, that tab is now up to $5 billion. Trump will ask if Obamacare's architects can be charged with fraud for selling it by lying. Trump will investigate Obama's widespread IRS conspiracy, not to mention Obama's college records. Trump will prosecute Clinton and Obama for fraud committed to cover up Benghazi before the election. How about the fraud committed by employees of the Labor Department when they made up dramatic job numbers in the last jobs report before the 2012 election?

Obama, the multinational corporations and the media need to stop Trump. They recognize this could get out of control. If left unchecked, telling the raw truth and asking questions everyone else is afraid to ask, Trump could wake a sleeping giant. Trump's election would be a nightmare. Obama has committed many crimes. No one else but Trump would dare to prosecute. He will not hesitate. Once Trump gets in and gets a look at the cooked books and Obama's records, the game is over. The goose is cooked. Holder could wind up in prison. Jarrett could wind up in prison. Obama bundler Corzine could wind up in prison for losing $1.5 billion of customer money. Clinton could wind up in jail for deleting 32,000 emails or for accepting bribes from foreign governments while Secretary of State, or for misplacing $6 billion as the head of the State Department, or for lying about Benghazi. The entire upper level management of the IRS could wind up in prison.

Obamacare will be de-funded and dismantled. Obama himself could wind up ruined, his legacy in tatters. Trump will investigate. Trump will prosecute. Trump will go after everyone involved. That’s why the dogs of hell have been unleashed on Donald Trump.

Yes, it's become open season on Donald Trump. The left and the right are determined to attack his policies, harm his businesses, and, if possible, even keep him out of the coming debates. But they can't silence him. And they sure can't intimidate him. The more they try, the more the public will realize that he's the one telling the truth

Patriot Post Letter excerpt

From today's Patriot Post email newsletter:

Hans von Spakovsky: "In news that should shock and anger Americans, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that not only has she discussed internally the possibility of pursuing civil actions against so-called 'climate change deniers,' but she has 'referred it to the FBI to consider whether or not it meets the criteria for which we could take action.' ... The absurdity of this would be laughable if it were not so serious and so dangerous. The very idea that the FBI, the most powerful law enforcement agency in the United States, has had a referral from the attorney general of the United State to investigate whether those who disagree with the climate change theory meet the legal 'criteria for which' the Justice Department 'could take action' is evocative of Franz Kafka's chilling novel, 'The Trial.' As I have noted before, this is also reminiscent of the old Soviet Union, where Joseph Stalin persecuted those whom he thought had the 'wrong' scientific views on everything from linguistics to physics. Both Lynch and Whitehouse might want to read Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's book, 'In the First Circle,' in which he outlined the Soviet government's suppression of dissenting scientists and engineers. Or perhaps General Lynch should review the Inquisition's persecution of Galileo Galilei for disagreeing with the consensus of his time and advocating the Copernican theory of the universe. Level-headed, objective prosecutors should not be interested in investigating or prosecuting anyone over a scientific theory that is the subject of great debate."

Sun Exposure

     If you are one of those who won't go outside without sunscreen because you have read of the harmful effects of the sun on your skin, you might want to check out this article by Dr. Mercola.

"How Dermatologists Fuel Chronic Disease Rates With Their Flawed Sun Exposure Guidelines"

Can Our Colleges Be Saved by Victor David Hanson

      Mr. Hanson makes some very good points and has excellent suggestions on what to do about it in this article.

THE RIGHT OPINION

Can Our Colleges Be Saved?

Victor Davis Hanson · Mar. 10, 2016

   

The public is steadily losing confidence in undergraduate education, given that we hear constantly about how poorly educated are today’s graduates and how few well-paying jobs await them.

The cost of college is a national scandal. Collective student loan debt in America is about $1.2 trillion. Campus political correctness is now daily news.

How could higher education be held accountable and thereby be reformed?

Just as expensive new roofs are not supposed to leak, $100,000 educations should not leave students unprepared for the real world upon graduation. Rain and snow calibrate the effectiveness of a roofer’s work, but how does society know whether students' expensive investments in their professors and courses have led to any quantifiable knowledge?

SAT and ACT examinations originated in the 1920s and 1960s, respectively, as meritocratic ways to allow applicants from less prestigious high schools and from minority groups to be assessed on their aptitude for college — without the old-boy, establishment prejudices of class, gender and race. Would such blind exams also work in reverse as national college exit tests? Could bachelor’s degrees be predicated on certifying that graduates possess a minimum level of common knowledge?

Lawyers with degrees can only practice after passing bar exams. Doctors cannot practice medicine upon the completion of M.D. degrees unless they are board certified. Why can’t undergraduate degrees likewise be certified? One can certainly imagine the ensuring hysteria.

What would happen if some students from less prestigious state schools graduated from college with higher exit-test scores than the majority of Harvard and Yale graduates? What if students still did not test any higher in analytics and vocabulary after thousands of dollars and several years of lectures and classroom hours?

Would schools then cut back on “studies” courses, the number of administrators or lavish recreational facilities to help ensure that students first and foremost mastered a classical body of common knowledge? Would administrators be forced to acknowledge that their campuses had price-gouged students but imparted to them little in return?

Public corporations open their books to shareholders. Shouldn’t publicly supported colleges and tax-exempt private universities do the same for taxpayers and tuition-paying students? Shouldn’t the public know how much of their contributions are allotted for particular academic departments, sports programs and study centers?

Take out a car or home loan, and there are pages of federal regulations protecting the borrower. Why not give students the same truth-in-advertising protections with the liabilities they will incur?

Schools should inform all enrollees in advance of the prorated costs for a four-, five- or six-year education, including warnings about compounded interest on their debt.

Each school should publicize the percentage of its students who found employment in their particular area of studies — and after how long, and at what salary. Majoring in media studies is fine, but teenagers entering college should be warned that such jobs have become far more scarce than jobs in engineering or accounting.

The average pay associated with a particular major should be posted. Surely an 18-year-old student should have as much information about borrowing for an education as she does about going into far less debt for a car loan.

Shouldn’t campus diversity also be defined far more broadly?

Campuses need not just different races, ethnicities and religions to enrich their intellectual landscapes, but exposure to a wide variety of political and social views as well.

The country is divided 50/50 on most hot-button issues, not 95/5 as it is so often on campus. Life after college is about hearing and tolerating views one doesn’t agree with — not about shouting down dissenting viewpoints in adolescent fashion, or demanding to feel always reaffirmed rather than occasionally uncomfortable.

Why make campuses exempt from realities commonly found elsewhere?

Tech graduates will enter the workplace without guarantees of lifetime tenure at Google. There will be no “safe spaces” for supervisors at GM or Ford where others of a different race cannot enter. Employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs or NASA cannot expect their complaints and accusations to proceed by suspending the due process and free-speech rights of the accused.

No boss at Citibank will issue trigger warnings before ordering subordinates to work harder. Do not tell your supervisor at Comcast that his advice to pick up the pace was a microaggression. Try shouting down or otherwise disrupting a presenter of a new smart-phone product line whom you do not like and see what happens.

Saving the campus from itself is not about doing much that is new or different.

Instead, the challenge is simply forcing colleges that have gone rogue to grow up and to return to the rules and regulations that everyone else follows — and which they should have long ago abided by as well.

© 2016 TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.

You can read this article online at The Patriot Post and view comments here. 

Seniors Arise! by Patricia King

I like this word through Patricia King.

"Prophetic Word Through Patricia King: Seniors Arise!"by Patricia King, Maricopa, AZ

Prophetic Word for Seniors:

Are you 60 years of age or older? If so, this word is for you! I am launching Seniors on the Frontlines this July, and as I was seeking the heart of God for this event, I received this prophetic word for the Senior Generation. It is awesome!

I see a company of radical Believers in their 60's, 70's, 80's and beyond arising in these days. This generation will experience personal revival that will re-ignite their passion and their purpose. They are full of wisdom, zeal, and they carry dreams yet to be fulfilled. Their latter glory will be greater than the former.

I see them walking with the younger generations and empowering them with encouragement. 

They are gathering together and redefining the term "senior". They will be a sought after generation. They will be honored and respected by the younger generation. Many will rise into places of predominance and leadership. They will produce more fruit in their latter days with less effort. 

Financial increase and sudden provisional surprises will come to them. Favor will rest upon this generation and a wave of healing, health, and rejuvenation will visit them. Their "latter glory" will be greater than the former and they will be filled with joy that overflows!

Patricia King
Founder and Director of XPMEDIA.COM INC
Email: info@xpmedia.com
Website: www.xpministries.com

Emmet Fox on Miracles

Quotes from Emmet Fox's book Diagrams For Living,  Chapter 10, Miracles:

    A mere academic belief in God is of little use.  Millions of people say they believe in God, but they do not believe God is particularly interested in them.  If you take this attitude then you are not an Israelite in the Bible sense and you can expect no miracles.  But if you say, "I believe in the power of God...I believe He is interested in me and that I can contact that Power to comfort me, heal me, enlighten me, purify me,,, I believe God is working through me to solve this seemingly insoluble problem"---then your mind is in tune with the Infinite.  You are beginning to do some tall-minded thinking.  That means the time has come for you to remember the power of the miracle.  It means the time has come for a great thing to come into your life.
    Jesus said we could move mountains and so we can.  He did not mean material mountains.  That would only be a conjuring trick.  He meant mountains of difficulty and trouble, mountains of fear and frustration and doubt.  He said we could do it if we had sufficient faith in God.  There is no limit on the side of God, but we put a limit on our faith and understanding.  That is why some people can demonstrate [Fox's way of saying miracles happen in their lives] over some things and others cannot. In practice, the only limit on demonstration is, "How well is your mind tuned into God?  How tall are you thinking?"...

      Every grief or difficulty means the time has come to go a step higher.  A problem is not a barrier.  It is a challenge.  It is important to take the attitude that your spiritual promotion has presented itself in the guise of a problem or difficulty, and you are to take another step forward.  And this calls for effort.  If you want to go higher, you must climb the steps...

    Every miracle is produced by a realization of the omnipresence of God, by knowing there is no place where God is not...

     In every miracle there is a great element of faith that what is needed, God has already provided.  It is not a question of making something happen, but rather uncovering the good that already exists in the Mind of God...

     Tall-minded thinking does not grapple with the problem.  It is a quiet knowing that you are the instrument of Divine Power.  Such a mind can speak the Word and get a full-dress miracle if need be.

Didn't Display As I Had Planned

     I have no idea why my comment on yesterday's post displays in capital letters.  I have tried fixing it but even though it appears to be normal typing as I am creating the post, it displays as capitals when posted!  I have tried deleting the original words, copying them to a Pages document and then copying and pasting to the blog, and changing the font type.  Nothing seems to work.  Frustrating!  Sorry.

    P.S.  After I posted this, I looked at yesterday's blog and realized the title to Kathie Walter's article is also in caps--even though it displays as normal in the edit screen.  If I were knowledgeable about HTML code it would probably be an easy fix. One more challenge!

"Don't Be Distracted – You Have a Destiny to Fulfill" by Kathie Walters

       I believe the Lord is trying to get my attention.  My last post was on Martha & Mary and how I identify often with Martha in getting distracted.  Then today I got an email from a friend who said he will be staying overnight with us on his way to North Dakota where he is going to be with Kathie Walters at a conference.  So a few minutes after I received his email I was cleaning out my email box and saw there was an email from The Elijah List sent February 29 with a word from Kathie Walters--"Don't Be Distracted"!  How amazing!  It seems more than coincidence that I didn't see it, or read it until after the Lord had already got my attention with Martha & Mary.                                                             

I'm posting it here in case some of you have a tendency to get distracted, too.

"Don't Be Distracted – You Have a Destiny to Fulfill"

by Kathie Walters, Macon, GA

You Have a Destiny to Fulfill

"Bathsheba took a bath." That's what the Lord said to me on the way to a meeting at my friend's church in Cwmbran, Wales – Freedom Church.

I must say I was a bit surprised. I had about five minutes to find out what the Lord was saying about the word because Pastors Robert and Helen King were already into the worship when we went into the church.

Now King David was out there on his own roof taking a stroll around. Maybe thinking about things...maybe praying. And suddenly he caught sight of a beautiful lady, and even more mind boggling, she was not just strolling around, she was taking a bath right there.

But Bathsheba took David way out of the will of God. He SAW...and then followed his eyes...and he ditched his communion with God. It wasn't that God stopped talking, but David stopped listening. David enjoyed his adulterous relationship, and then Bathsheba got pregnant. What gets your attention gets you.

When David stopped listening, it was a bit like a snowball rolling downhill. It gathered momentum. One thing led to another. I mean, adultery, lies, and fierce manipulation when David tried to get out of his problem. First, he tried to trick Bathsheba's husband, Uriah, into sleeping with his wife, so he would assume the baby was his.

When Uriah proved to be too loyal to his soldiers, David arranged to have him put in the front of the battle while the other soldiers drew back. Pretty much like murder, I would say. Then Joab had to lie and, incidentally, when Bathsheba's husband Uriah, was killed, others who were with him were killed too.

David married Bathsheba, and the baby died. Very sad. But do you know that in spite of all this, God referred to David as "a man after My own heart"? That's pretty amazing, isn't it? Do you know why God said that? Because when God sent Nathan the prophet to confront him and challenge him and let him know what God thought about it, David didn't try and wriggle out of it and blame others, he said, "That's true." Then he repented and carried on with his life. He still had a destiny to fulfill.

Don't Be Distracted Even by What Seems Good – Keep Your Eyes on the Prize

When you mess up, don't run away from God – run to Him. He is the most amazing Deliverer. The Bible even says that. He can turn it around and even make it work for your good, if you believe. That's very awesome, is it not? He will never leave you in a mess, if you're honest about the mess. Stop blaming others and making excuses. "Thou art the man," the prophet said to David, and David said, "You got me."

God is a Redeemer – that means to "buy back." He can even redeem our messes. He is such an awesome God, full of mercy and grace.

Really, this word was to say this: "Avoid Bathsheba." There is a great move beginning to happen, and the enemy would LOVE to get you distracted by something that might even seem good for a while. Your enemy would like to lead you down the "garden path," if he can. And that's a path full of weeds; they only look like flowers from a distance.

There is so much anointing and adventure for you in the will of God. When you yield to the Lord, He puts His desires in your heart, so when you serve Him, it's delightful. Everything you want and need is in the will of God. He has the most amazing plan for you, so don't take second when you can have the prize.

God didn't make a spare you. There isn't another you in case the first you doesn't work properly. We are living stones being built into a temple for God to dwell in. The stones are not any old stones; each one is specially made and God-breathed. The temple will come forth as gold. God doesn't have throwaways, because He is the REDEEMER. "A new heart and a new Spirit I will put within them, and they will be My sons and daughters."

When you run a race and you want to win, you don't keep looking around to see what everyone else is doing. Don't be distracted; keep your eyes on the prize. You can't meet every need that you see and respond to everyone, but you can do what He tells you to do, and go where He tells you to go, and say what He tells you to say.

It's funny that we can forgive others easier than we can forgive ourselves. But you can't move on if you keep looking back. So, lift your eyes to the skies and get excited. When He sees you, He sees His very own darling and beloved child.

Blessings,

Kathie Walters
Good News Ministries
Email: kathiewalters@mindspring.com
Website: www.kathiewaltersministry.com

Martha and Mary

     Luke 10: 38-42.  "As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.  She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.  But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

      “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things,  but few things are needed—or indeed only one.  Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” NIV Translation

     This passage has always been somewhat of a stumbling block for me because I desire to be a Mary but when there are people to take care of I find myself being Martha too much of the time.  I sometimes have been resentful of others around who have not helped me. 
     I have always wanted to ask the Lord--"Then who is going to prepare your meals & take care of the details involved in hospitality if everyone is sitting around?"  Have you ever thought that about this passage? 
     Well, yesterday one particular word jumped out at me when I was reading it in the NIV Translation. "But Martha was distracted by all the preparations."  I realized if she was distracted that means there was a specific purpose she had set her mind to, but then her attention was drawn aside to other things.  Since we are told to "seek first the kingdom" (Matthew 6:33) it is pretty clear from what purpose she was distracted.  That's why Jesus said "Mary (who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said) has chosen what is better."
     Martha was about 'her' business while Mary was about 'the Lord's business.' If Martha had sat at the Lord's feet as she wanted would He not have helped her to see and do the things she needed to do in His time?  The things Martha was doing really weren't important to Him at the time.  How often I have desired to sit at the Lord's feet in contemplation but have been distracted by my idea of all the preparations that had to be made when it really wasn't God's timing for them to be done right then!  Instead He was wanting my full attention and devotion so He could teach me to rely upon Him for guidance about when to do whatever was needed.

    Help me, Jesus, to remember there is only one needful thing--to sit at your feet and pour out my love.  And thank you, also, Holy Spirit, for clearing up this passage for me.  I desire to seek you (and your direction) first so that all other things may be added in the right sequence and order.  Remind me, Lord.

Catching Up On Heritage Days Work

     My mother is in the hospital again--possibly getting out today--so I have had lots of time sitting.  Since I was behind on things I needed to do for Heritage Days it was a perfect opportunity to work.  The hospital has wifi and lots of electrical outlets so I took my computer and spent time catching up.

I worked on a new logo for Heritage Days:

Then with the new logo, I worked on compiling information to use when we invite people to sponsor events and horse classes during the Festival.  If any of you reading this are interested in helping us grow this Festival by sponsoring an event, please contact us.  We are a 501(c)3 non profit so all contributions are tax-deductible.  Here is a screen shot of the final draft:

After having these cards printed I addressed them to 300 draft horse people in surrounding states.

       Then I re-worked the food vendor brochure and the artist/artisan brochure.   We have renamed the vendor fair to Heritage Market.  Here are screen shots of the Heritage Market application brochure in case you are interested in coming.  You can also email us at mville62442@gmail.com to receive a pdf of the brochure if you would like to enter your creations in the Market.  They must be handmade by you.  We have also opened the Market to vintage and antique vendors.  (In case it is too confusing--the first screenshot is page 4 and page 1, the second shot is pages 2 & 3.)

      After I finished the brochure I added it to our website: martinsvilleheritagedays.com and made a few corrections to the website.

I feel so relieved to have all this finished!!  As you can see, sitting with Mom was a great opportunity to get much accomplished.  Now it's time to work on creating a poster, flyers and other promotional material.  It won't be long till I have it all done!  But then it won't be long till the Heritage Days Festival & Draft Horse, Mule, & Haflinger Show will take place--just three short months!

More Wisdom from Emmet Fox

      I am reading The Sermon On The Mount by Emmet Fox for the second time and finding even more treasure.  If the quotes I've posted on several different occasions in the past few days speak to you, I would highly recommend purchasing the book.  There is so much wisdom, insight and revelation contained in these pages!  I intend to read it several more times.

    " A tragic mistake that is often made by orthodox religious people is to assume that the Will of God for them is bound to be something very dull and uninviting, if not positively unpleasant.  Consciously or not they look upon God as a hard task-master, or a severe Puritanical parent.  Too often their prayers virtually amount to something like this:  "Please God, give me such and such a boon which I sorely need--but I don't suppose you will, because you won't think it is good for me."  Needless to say, a prayer of this sort is answered as all prayers are answered, according to the faith of the subject; that is to say, the boon is not granted.  The truth is that the Will of God for us always means greater freedom, greater self-expression, wider and newer and brighter experience; better health, greater prosperity, wider opportunity of service to others--life more abundant.
     If you are ill or in poverty, or obliged to do work that you dislike; if you are lonely, or if you have to mix with people who displease you; you may be certain that you are not expressing the Will of God, and a long as you are not expressing His Will, it is natural for you to experience inharmony; and it is equally true that when you do express His Will, harmony will come."  (p. 141-142)

Dr. Ben Carson

       I have heard many people say they love & admire Ben Carson but don't think he has a chance of winning the Republican nomination. I beg to disagree. If those who love him would start speaking hope for his candidacy and telling their friends and family they are voting for him because of his integrity and character instead of listening to the polls I believe he has a very good chance.
      That is what I plan to do. As long as his name is on the ballot I will continue to support him and will not give up unless he does. We need a person who loves America and is not doing this for personal gain.  We also need someone who is a role model for our children. For me, Donald Trump is not that man. There is nothing about him that I would like my children to model their lives after!
       I, with the rest of the frustrated citizens have been glad that he has been brash and outspoken about many things we are all angry about, but I am not supporting him as a candidate. He does not appear to me to be a man of substance or character. He says needlessly mean things to those who disagree with him. He has put forth no real plan for any 'fix' of America--just "it will be great" and "you will love it."  He has a past record of supporting very liberal candidates and seems to have huge ideas of grandeur.
      Ben Carson, on the other hand, has led an inspirational life. Have you seen the movie "Gifted Hands" which is the story of his life. I highly recommend it. It is a wonderful testimony of a man who overcame much adversity to become a world class neurosurgeon. I believe the same characteristics will cause him to be an excellent president, too.

Breitbart News

      If you don't already, you might want to check out Breitbart News.  Their reporting is more fair and balanced than any other source I've found.  They also have uncovered many stories the mainstream media has been forced to report.  If you have gotten most of your news from a newspaper or the mainstream media-even Fox News--I think you will find Breitbart a better source of news.

Atlas, The Next Generation

Many people call this amazing!  I suppose it is, but I think it is also very frightening.

A Fun Vacation!

      We have just returned from a fun week with stays in Orange Beach, Alabama, Gulf Breeze, Florida, and Montgomery, Alabama.  Since we had never been farther south than Montgomery in that area of the country we decided to take a driving trip in that area.  My sister & her husband recently bought a vacation house in Gulf Breeze and were going to be down there last week so it seemed a great time to see their new house. We also had a friend who had a condominium years ago on Orange Beach.  He always talked about how much he loved the area so we were curious to see it.  And then we have dear friends in Montgomery who we met through Tommy Tyson's Aqueduct Board.  Two other dear friends--also members from the Board live in Birmingham so they drove down to Montgomery and we had a wonderful reunion at Hutch & Jane's farm.
      It was a fun vacation.  We liked Orange Beach--maybe not as much as Longboat Key, Florida, but it was beautiful in its' own way.  We stayed in a nice little Bed & Breakfast--the Original Romar House--which was on the beach.

The Original Romar House in Orange Beach

Our room at the Romar House

Orange Beach

 The first day it was cold and windy so instead of freezing on the beach, we rented bicycles and went for a long ride through a nature preserve.  We even saw an alligator along the path.

The next day the director of the Bed & Breakfast suggested we might enjoy a car ferry ride to Dauphin Island.  When she mentioned it was a short drive from there to Bellingrath House & Gardens I was eager to go.

Getting ready to drive onto the ferry

The gardens were beautiful--even in winter--I can only imagine how beautiful they must be in the spring and summer!  

We also enjoyed the guided house tour where we learned the inspiring history of the house and gardens.

Instead of taking the ferry back to Orange Beach we decided to return around Mobile Bay.  Unfortunately, we didn't get there early enough or we could have toured the USS Alabama.  Maybe next time. 

The next day we drove to my sister & brother-in-law's.  They were in the process of planning the landscaping for the area directly in front of their new house so we helped them pick out plants, put them in the ground and mulch.

We also toured Ft. Pickens.

At Pensacola Beach we watched fishermen land this shark.  After taking pictures they released it.

Pensacola Beach was even more beautiful as the sun was setting.

We ended our vacation sitting on this beautiful porch reminiscing with friends of the great times we had at Aqueduct.

We got home Tuesday night.  This is what it looked like yesterday at our house.  Quite a change!