from http://www.eteamrevolution.net/devotions/been-chopping-too-hard
One man challenged another to an all-day wood chopping contest.
The challenger worked very hard, stopping only for a brief lunch break. The other man had a leisurely lunch and took several breaks during the day. At the end of the day, the challenger was surprised and annoyed to find that the other fellow had chopped substantially more wood than he had.
"I don't get it," he said. "Every time I checked, you were taking a rest, yet you chopped more wood than I did."
"But you didn't notice," said the winning woodsman, "that I was sharpening my ax when I sat down to rest."
(Source unknown)
Perhaps you have been swinging your axe a little too long, and you need a rest. Not just any rest, but one with a purpose. In order to accomplish this, you will need to do five things:
Get alone. I mean really alone. No cell phone, no pager, as remote as possible.
Bring a Bible. Focus on a few select passages of Scripture like the Psalms or the Gospels.
Pray. Not the standard ‘bless this food/help me I’ve got a test’ type prayer, but the ‘pouring out your heart’ before God type. Act like you’re talking to your best friend in the whole world, because you are.
Listen. When was the last time you just sat in silence and listened for God? My thought is, if Jesus needed to do it- you think we might need it too?
Worship. Praising God is a sure-fire way to get the blade razor-sharp, because it brings us to the place where we remember that God is God and we are not.
Saturday, July 02, 2005
The Discipline of Simplicity
from Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline
Richard Foster divides discipline into three parts:
Inward, Outward, and Corporate discipline.
He places simplicity under the category of the Outward Disciplines:
First, buy things for their usefulness rather than their status
Second, reject anything that is producing an addiction in you.
Third, develop a habit of giving things away.
Fourth, refuse to be propagandized by the custodians of modern gadgetry.
Fifth, learn to enjoy things without owning them.
Sixth, develop a deeper appreciation for the creation.
Seventh, look at a healthy skepticism at all "buy now, pay later" schemes.
Eighth, obey Jesus' instructions about plain, honest speech.
Ninth, reject anything that will breed the oppression of others.
Tenth, shun whatever would distract you from your main goal:
"Seek first the kingdom of God."
Richard Foster divides discipline into three parts:
Inward, Outward, and Corporate discipline.
He places simplicity under the category of the Outward Disciplines:
First, buy things for their usefulness rather than their status
Second, reject anything that is producing an addiction in you.
Third, develop a habit of giving things away.
Fourth, refuse to be propagandized by the custodians of modern gadgetry.
Fifth, learn to enjoy things without owning them.
Sixth, develop a deeper appreciation for the creation.
Seventh, look at a healthy skepticism at all "buy now, pay later" schemes.
Eighth, obey Jesus' instructions about plain, honest speech.
Ninth, reject anything that will breed the oppression of others.
Tenth, shun whatever would distract you from your main goal:
"Seek first the kingdom of God."
Kind People in a Bad Mood
from Scott H. Bowerman, Dancing With God:
The theologian Leonard Sweet underwent what he describes as a "deconversion" when he was nineteen. He writes,
"What ignited my deconversion was the church’s funereal spirit, its fussy, buttoned-upness. Christians’ stay-at-home-and-pickle-in-their-own-juices personalities, their vinegary countenances, drained me emotionally, incapacitated me intellectually, and shut me down spiritually. The best I could say was this: by and large, Christians were kind people in a bad mood."
The theologian Leonard Sweet underwent what he describes as a "deconversion" when he was nineteen. He writes,
"What ignited my deconversion was the church’s funereal spirit, its fussy, buttoned-upness. Christians’ stay-at-home-and-pickle-in-their-own-juices personalities, their vinegary countenances, drained me emotionally, incapacitated me intellectually, and shut me down spiritually. The best I could say was this: by and large, Christians were kind people in a bad mood."
Be Charitable Towards One Another’s Lunacies
In Mark Twain’s characteristic sarcastic wit he called for civility and charity between those who differ in their religious and political perspectives:
All My Adversaries Are Insane
"When I, a thoughtful and unbiased Presbyterian, examine the Koran, I know that beyond any question every Mohammedan is insane; not in all things, but in religious matters. When a thoughtful and unbiased Mohammedan examines the Westminster Catechism, he knows that beyond any question I am spiritually insane. I cannot prove to him that he is insane, because you never can prove anything to a lunatic-—for that is part of his insanity and the evidence of it. He cannot prove to me that I am insane, for my mind has the same defect that afflicts his.
"All Democrats are insane, but not one of them knows it; none but the Republicans and the Mugwumps know it. All the Republicans are insane, but only the Democrats and Mugwumps can perceive it. The rule is perfect: in all matters of opinion our adversaries are insane. When I look around me, I am often troubled to see how many people are mad...This should move us to be charitable towards one another’s lunacies."
-- Mark Twain, What Is Man?: and Other Philosophical Writings
(Works of Mark Twain, Vol 19)
Samuel Langhorne CLEMENS, 1835-1910
"I, like all other human beings, expose to the world only my trimmed and perfumed and carefully barbered public opinions and conceal carefully, cautiously, wisely, my private ones."
-- Mark Twain in Eruption
All My Adversaries Are Insane
"When I, a thoughtful and unbiased Presbyterian, examine the Koran, I know that beyond any question every Mohammedan is insane; not in all things, but in religious matters. When a thoughtful and unbiased Mohammedan examines the Westminster Catechism, he knows that beyond any question I am spiritually insane. I cannot prove to him that he is insane, because you never can prove anything to a lunatic-—for that is part of his insanity and the evidence of it. He cannot prove to me that I am insane, for my mind has the same defect that afflicts his.
"All Democrats are insane, but not one of them knows it; none but the Republicans and the Mugwumps know it. All the Republicans are insane, but only the Democrats and Mugwumps can perceive it. The rule is perfect: in all matters of opinion our adversaries are insane. When I look around me, I am often troubled to see how many people are mad...This should move us to be charitable towards one another’s lunacies."
-- Mark Twain, What Is Man?: and Other Philosophical Writings
(Works of Mark Twain, Vol 19)
Samuel Langhorne CLEMENS, 1835-1910
"I, like all other human beings, expose to the world only my trimmed and perfumed and carefully barbered public opinions and conceal carefully, cautiously, wisely, my private ones."
-- Mark Twain in Eruption
Friday, June 24, 2005
Is Your Best Good Enough?
"Before we begin, I have a confession to make. I don’t like Christian bumper stickers. And although I don’t really like them, I feel strangely compelled to read them. One I’ve seen recently said,
'This car is prayer-conditioned!'
Another one read, “God wants spiritual fruit- not religious nuts!”
One of the more interesting ones I’ve seen said,
'Read the Bible, It Will Scare the Hell Out of You!'
I've also noticed that these bumper stickers differ according to areas of the country. As some of you know my husband Derek and I will soon be moving south for the next season of our lives. And although Bill and Margaret Anne insist that the south is not as different as I may think, it was in the south that I saw the sticker,
'Dusty Bibles lead to Dirty Lives.'
You don’t see too many of those in the parking lot of Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church." . . .
"Friends, I want to share with you these words that Gene Bay gave to me at my ordination. He said, “My fear for you is not that you won’t do your best… My fear for you is that you will think your best is not good enough. And I am here to tell you this: it is."
The Rev. Tara Woodard-Lehman
Jesus Loves Mess, This I Know
preached at The Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church
Bryn Mawr, PA
June 5, 2005
'This car is prayer-conditioned!'
Another one read, “God wants spiritual fruit- not religious nuts!”
One of the more interesting ones I’ve seen said,
'Read the Bible, It Will Scare the Hell Out of You!'
I've also noticed that these bumper stickers differ according to areas of the country. As some of you know my husband Derek and I will soon be moving south for the next season of our lives. And although Bill and Margaret Anne insist that the south is not as different as I may think, it was in the south that I saw the sticker,
'Dusty Bibles lead to Dirty Lives.'
You don’t see too many of those in the parking lot of Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church." . . .
"Friends, I want to share with you these words that Gene Bay gave to me at my ordination. He said, “My fear for you is not that you won’t do your best… My fear for you is that you will think your best is not good enough. And I am here to tell you this: it is."
The Rev. Tara Woodard-Lehman
Jesus Loves Mess, This I Know
preached at The Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church
Bryn Mawr, PA
June 5, 2005
Tolerance
"Tolerance in the hands of the left is not an end; it is a means to an end. They use the language of tolerance to marginalize the only religion that is sufficiently influential to play a major, culture-forming role in any given country, and then when that's done, they impose a different order that is far less tolerant than the one they destroyed.
There is no society in the history of the world that fails to hold to a basic religious creed and makes no moral distinctions. Any political propagandist who claims to want to embrace a concept of absolute tolerance is either a deceiver or deceived.
Tolerance is a battering ram to break down one order so that a different order can be built on the rubble."
Jerry Bowyer, www.crosswalk.com, quoted in the Philadelphia Inquirer, June 22, 2005
There is no society in the history of the world that fails to hold to a basic religious creed and makes no moral distinctions. Any political propagandist who claims to want to embrace a concept of absolute tolerance is either a deceiver or deceived.
Tolerance is a battering ram to break down one order so that a different order can be built on the rubble."
Jerry Bowyer, www.crosswalk.com, quoted in the Philadelphia Inquirer, June 22, 2005
Negotiating
I'm Baptist. The difference between a Baptist and a terrorist, is that you can negotiate with a terrorist. (laughter)
Dr. Tony Campolo: June 12, 2005: God's Revolution and Your Responsibility (audio)
http://www.bmpc.org/Sermons/Sermon%20Directory.htm
Dr. Tony Campolo: June 12, 2005: God's Revolution and Your Responsibility (audio)
http://www.bmpc.org/Sermons/Sermon%20Directory.htm
Friday, June 17, 2005
Attributes of a "Beach Read"
"There is a category of books known as "Beach Reads," defined as being superficial yet engrossing. Typically, beach reads incorporate at least four of these five attributes:
a. Espionage and/or Illegal Drug Trade;
b. Sex;
c. Famous, Wealthy, (or at least Astonishingly Good-Looking) People;
d. Murder and mayhem;
e. Exotic Locale.
Nowadays, we've noticed, they also often include descriptions of food.
a. Espionage and/or Illegal Drug Trade;
b. Sex;
c. Famous, Wealthy, (or at least Astonishingly Good-Looking) People;
d. Murder and mayhem;
e. Exotic Locale.
Nowadays, we've noticed, they also often include descriptions of food.
Saturday, June 11, 2005
Breeding Resentment Instead of Fostering Public Sympathy
John Grogan, Philadelphia Inquirer, May 30, 2005:
regarding a mother who took fertility drugs, had six babies she and her husband "could not support," and asked "taxpayers to foot the bill for a Medicaid home nurse to help":
"When I interviewed the mother, she radiated a sense of entitlement and inflexibility, prompting other mothers across the region to scold in surround sound: You made your decision, now live with it.
Many used the same expression: 'Start taking responsibility for your own actions.'
That's all fine and good -- except that six innocent and defenseless children hang in the balance. . . .
[She] is asking [for help] -- admittedly in a clumsy, ham-fisted way that sounds self-serving and breeds resentment instead of compassion -- but asking nonetheless. . . .
Do we punish the . . . children because their parents are not more skilled at fostering public sympathy?
And if something terrible were to happen, what would we say then? Oh, I guess they really did need help. . . .
[Her] request to have Medicaid continue to provide a skilled home nurse for another year is ridiculous. The once-fragile chldren are now robust; they do not need a nurse. Besides, [she] is a registered nurse herself.
But the harried mother definitely needs a helper or two. Or three. . . ."
regarding a mother who took fertility drugs, had six babies she and her husband "could not support," and asked "taxpayers to foot the bill for a Medicaid home nurse to help":
"When I interviewed the mother, she radiated a sense of entitlement and inflexibility, prompting other mothers across the region to scold in surround sound: You made your decision, now live with it.
Many used the same expression: 'Start taking responsibility for your own actions.'
That's all fine and good -- except that six innocent and defenseless children hang in the balance. . . .
[She] is asking [for help] -- admittedly in a clumsy, ham-fisted way that sounds self-serving and breeds resentment instead of compassion -- but asking nonetheless. . . .
Do we punish the . . . children because their parents are not more skilled at fostering public sympathy?
And if something terrible were to happen, what would we say then? Oh, I guess they really did need help. . . .
[Her] request to have Medicaid continue to provide a skilled home nurse for another year is ridiculous. The once-fragile chldren are now robust; they do not need a nurse. Besides, [she] is a registered nurse herself.
But the harried mother definitely needs a helper or two. Or three. . . ."
Props in Your Little Life Play
Carolyn Hax, June 2, 2005:
"the obvious moral/emotional bankruptcy of treating people as props in your little life play"
"the obvious moral/emotional bankruptcy of treating people as props in your little life play"
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
"Go home and love someone."
Upon receiving the Nobel prize, Mother Teresa was asked:
"What can one ordinary person do to promote world peace?"
She replied: "Go home and love someone."
Love without measure, one day at a time, the one person who is before you at any one moment.
http://www.saintmarkpresby.org/pagepastmeditations.htm
"What can one ordinary person do to promote world peace?"
She replied: "Go home and love someone."
Love without measure, one day at a time, the one person who is before you at any one moment.
http://www.saintmarkpresby.org/pagepastmeditations.htm
Courage & Sleep
"Where shall I find courage?" asked Frodo, "for that is what I chiefly need now."
"Courage is found in unlikely places," said Gildor. "Be of good hope! and for now get some sleep."
From The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien
"Courage is found in unlikely places," said Gildor. "Be of good hope! and for now get some sleep."
From The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien
Saturday, June 04, 2005
Truth wounds, cynicism kills
Quotes from Warren Buffet Speaks by Janet Lowe
"Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken."
Warren Buffet
Frinedship: "I remember asking that question of a woman who had survived Auschwitz. She said her test was, 'would they hide me?'"
Warren Buffet
"Truth wounds, cynicism kills."
Barron's columnist Alan Abelson, p. 139
"The first step to recovery is to stop doing the wrong thing."
Warren Buffet, p. 144
"Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken."
Warren Buffet
Frinedship: "I remember asking that question of a woman who had survived Auschwitz. She said her test was, 'would they hide me?'"
Warren Buffet
"Truth wounds, cynicism kills."
Barron's columnist Alan Abelson, p. 139
"The first step to recovery is to stop doing the wrong thing."
Warren Buffet, p. 144
Thursday, May 12, 2005
Mother Theresa: not "a comfortable and insignificant mediocrity"
“The church of God needs saints today,” she once said. “This imposes a great responsibility on us sisters, to fight against our own ego and love of comfort that leads us to choose a comfortable and insignificant mediocrity.... We are called upon to be warriors in saris, for the church needs fighters today. Our war cry has to be ‘fight –- not flight.’”
~ Mother Theresa
~ Mother Theresa
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Occupation With Trivialities
Lenten Prayer
http://www.annunciation-church.org/Documents/APRIL_2005_MESSAGE.pdf
The "appropriate hymn" of piety which we are urged to repeat many times during our struggles of Lent, and moreover, while prostrating is the prayer of Saint Ephraim the Syrian:
"Lord and Master of my life, do not give me a spirit of
idleness,
curiosity,
lust of power and
occupation with trivialities.
Instead, give me, your servant, a spirit of
prudence,
humility,
patience and
love.
Yes, Lord, make me able to see my own faults
and not judge my brother,
for You are blessed in the ages of ages.
Amen."
http://www.annunciation-church.org/Documents/APRIL_2005_MESSAGE.pdf
The "appropriate hymn" of piety which we are urged to repeat many times during our struggles of Lent, and moreover, while prostrating is the prayer of Saint Ephraim the Syrian:
"Lord and Master of my life, do not give me a spirit of
idleness,
curiosity,
lust of power and
occupation with trivialities.
Instead, give me, your servant, a spirit of
prudence,
humility,
patience and
love.
Yes, Lord, make me able to see my own faults
and not judge my brother,
for You are blessed in the ages of ages.
Amen."
Having Not Promised That Day Away
Renee Zellweger:
Zellweger plans to take a break from acting after completing current projects The Cinderella Man, about Depression-era boxer Jim Braddock, and Janis Joplin biopic Piece of My Heart.
"A lot of projects I had been following for a long time seemed to have all surfaced at once," she told reporters.
"I have never felt that drive to keep going and going until I achieve something that I can feel comfortable with.
"Most of the experiences I have had over the last seven years have been while imitating someone else.
"I need to find out as a woman now what I would do each day, and what I would learn, having not promised that day away for professional objectives."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/3982089.stm
Monday, 8 November, 2004
Zellweger plans to take a break from acting after completing current projects The Cinderella Man, about Depression-era boxer Jim Braddock, and Janis Joplin biopic Piece of My Heart.
"A lot of projects I had been following for a long time seemed to have all surfaced at once," she told reporters.
"I have never felt that drive to keep going and going until I achieve something that I can feel comfortable with.
"Most of the experiences I have had over the last seven years have been while imitating someone else.
"I need to find out as a woman now what I would do each day, and what I would learn, having not promised that day away for professional objectives."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/3982089.stm
Monday, 8 November, 2004
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Chinese Fortune Cookie Messages, Spring 2005
These are my Chinese Fortune Cookie Messages from Spring, 2005. They were prophetic.
It's not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win
that makes a difference.
Your talents will be recognized and suitably rewarded.
Your lover will never wish to leave.
A golden egg of opportunity falls into your lap this month.
Good to begin well, better to end well.
Love is the glue that holds together everything in the world.
Nothing in the world is difficult if one sets his mind to it.
This is a good time to consider formally helping others.
A single kind word will keep one warm for years.
Everywhere you choose to go, friendly faces will greet you.
You are never selfish with your advice or your help.
Your ideals are well within your reach.
You are a perfectionist. Don't spoil it.
It's not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win
that makes a difference.
Your talents will be recognized and suitably rewarded.
Your lover will never wish to leave.
A golden egg of opportunity falls into your lap this month.
Good to begin well, better to end well.
Love is the glue that holds together everything in the world.
Nothing in the world is difficult if one sets his mind to it.
This is a good time to consider formally helping others.
A single kind word will keep one warm for years.
Everywhere you choose to go, friendly faces will greet you.
You are never selfish with your advice or your help.
Your ideals are well within your reach.
You are a perfectionist. Don't spoil it.
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
The Paradox of Grace and Truth
And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth.
~ John 1:14
So God is calling us to be and become joyfully evangelical and intentionally multi-cultural. Which means we are also being called to be purposely paradoxical. I have shared before with this group my delight in the dilemma that John gives us when he proclaims that Jesus, as the Word Become Flesh, is full of both Grace and Truth. This stands as one of the great paradoxes of our paradoxical God. Grace is utterly free and utterly welcoming. But Truth sets limits and demands accountability. And God calls us to live and breathe and honor this tension in our lives.
Jesus loves children and touches bleeding women and eats with sinners and weeps when he sees the broken-ness of Jerusalem. But he also turns over tables of materialism, rails at liars and hypocrites and calls us a brood of vipers when we fail to honor covenant God. forgives the prodigal unconditionally, but then separates the selfless sheep from the greedy goats at the moment of judgment. Yes, graceful truth and truthful grace is the great paradox of our faith - a faith that is both radically free and rigorously accountable.
~ Susan Andrews, November 2003
Moderator of the 215th General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (USA)
~ John 1:14
So God is calling us to be and become joyfully evangelical and intentionally multi-cultural. Which means we are also being called to be purposely paradoxical. I have shared before with this group my delight in the dilemma that John gives us when he proclaims that Jesus, as the Word Become Flesh, is full of both Grace and Truth. This stands as one of the great paradoxes of our paradoxical God. Grace is utterly free and utterly welcoming. But Truth sets limits and demands accountability. And God calls us to live and breathe and honor this tension in our lives.
Jesus loves children and touches bleeding women and eats with sinners and weeps when he sees the broken-ness of Jerusalem. But he also turns over tables of materialism, rails at liars and hypocrites and calls us a brood of vipers when we fail to honor covenant God. forgives the prodigal unconditionally, but then separates the selfless sheep from the greedy goats at the moment of judgment. Yes, graceful truth and truthful grace is the great paradox of our faith - a faith that is both radically free and rigorously accountable.
~ Susan Andrews, November 2003
Moderator of the 215th General Assembly, Presbyterian Church (USA)
In righteousness you shall be established
1 Sing, O barren one who did not bear; burst into song and shout, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate woman will be more than the children of her that is married, says the LORD.
2 Enlarge the site of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your cords and strengthen your stakes.
3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left, and your descendants will possess the nations and will settle the desolate towns.
4 Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; do not be discouraged, for you will not suffer disgrace; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the disgrace of your widowhood you will remember no more.
5 For your Maker is your husband, the LORD of hosts is his name; the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called.
6 For the LORD has called you like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, like the wife of a man's youth when she is cast off, says your God.
7 For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will gather you.
8 In overflowing wrath for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you, says the LORD, your Redeemer.
9 This is like the days of Noah to me: Just as I swore that the waters of Noah would never again go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you and will not rebuke you.
10 For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed, says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
11 O afflicted one, storm-tossed, and not comforted, I am about to set your stones in antimony, and lay your foundations with sapphires.
12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies, your gates of jewels, and all your wall of precious stones.
13 All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the prosperity of your children.
14 In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15 If anyone stirs up strife, it is not from me; whoever stirs up strife with you shall fall because of you.
16 See it is I who have created the smith who blows the fire of coals, and produces a weapon fit for its purpose; I have also created the ravager to destroy.
17 No weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, says the LORD.
Isaiah 54:1-17
Even to them I will give in My house and within My walls a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.
Isaiah 56:5
2 Enlarge the site of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out; do not hold back; lengthen your cords and strengthen your stakes.
3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left, and your descendants will possess the nations and will settle the desolate towns.
4 Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; do not be discouraged, for you will not suffer disgrace; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the disgrace of your widowhood you will remember no more.
5 For your Maker is your husband, the LORD of hosts is his name; the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called.
6 For the LORD has called you like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, like the wife of a man's youth when she is cast off, says your God.
7 For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will gather you.
8 In overflowing wrath for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you, says the LORD, your Redeemer.
9 This is like the days of Noah to me: Just as I swore that the waters of Noah would never again go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you and will not rebuke you.
10 For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed, says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
11 O afflicted one, storm-tossed, and not comforted, I am about to set your stones in antimony, and lay your foundations with sapphires.
12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies, your gates of jewels, and all your wall of precious stones.
13 All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the prosperity of your children.
14 In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15 If anyone stirs up strife, it is not from me; whoever stirs up strife with you shall fall because of you.
16 See it is I who have created the smith who blows the fire of coals, and produces a weapon fit for its purpose; I have also created the ravager to destroy.
17 No weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, says the LORD.
Isaiah 54:1-17
Even to them I will give in My house and within My walls a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.
Isaiah 56:5
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