God

The only answer to the problems we are having in our nation and around the world is found in 2 Chronicles 7:14, where God said, “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.” Randy and Carolyn Hawkins Danville

To the editor: In response to Cal Greer’s letter to the editor about the proposed Noah’s Ark theme park, I agree, no tax dollars should be given to this end. But as with any other business, tax incentives such as reduced taxes for a period of time should be given to stimulate the economy of the area that the park is to be built. This is not giving money to a religious group, it is just not taking it from them. This is constitutional and will not violate separation of church and state.

One morning last week I got a call from my oldest daughter telling me she had experienced a stressful morning. It seems her oldest daughter was in a hurry to get to school one morning, and she thought her stepdad was going way too slow to her liking, and she just knew she was  going to be late for school. On her behalf, the private school she goes to will not tolerate lateness. On his behalf, I am sure he was not going to let her be late. Anyway, an argument ensued between the two of them, and my daughter stepped in to be the mediator and hurry the situation up. Her little 3-year-old daughter had been taking in the chaos of the morning, and as my daughter slammed the door behind them on their departure from the house, Olivia burst into song, “It’s just the two of us, you and me.”   Of course, she was exactly what my daughter needed that morning to relieve the tenseness.

Monday's Advocate-Messenger published two cartoons, one using a verse from Proverbs to portray Vice President Joe Biden as a fool. Proverbs is a book of wisdom that should be read as a whole, perhaps a chapter a day. But as these cartoonists picked out one verse to describe a kind, tolerant, intelligent man as a fool, I feel it my duty to respond in a positive way. Therefore, your readers might like to read the following from Proverbs: 29:7...

Did you know the biggest lie ever told was when Satan, the Devil, deceived Eve into disobeying her creator? Bill Clinton will go down in history as one of the biggest liars in the world, after he told people like you and me he did not have sex with that woman. I kind of dread the last two months before an election. Democrats and Republicans start airing their political (lies) messages, condemning their opponents. Lying is becoming the norm since the breakdown of morality, starting at the White House and same sex marriage.

Have you ever heard God speak? No, and most of us, if not all, share that response. I have never heard anyone say that they actually heard the voice of God. We tend to feel urges, challenges, directional intent, etc., and those who do this often say that God “spoke” to them, but fail to clarify that such communication was not verbal. Christians, for the most part, do believe that God speaks to them. The most reasoned manner in which God speaks can be found in Scripture. It is in this venue that many seek Him and endeavor to find the “Word” that is contained within the verses.

Editor’s note: This is the third and final installment in a three-part series on the faith of young children. The children are participants in the Danville Salvation Army’s summer day camp program. Tavairra Caulder seems to enjoy learning. The 9-year-old Danville girl likes learning at home and at school. But she also is learning things other than the three “R’s” from her teachers and the importance of doing chores from her parents. Tavairra also is learning a lot about God. For instance, she has learned from a Bible verse that “Jesus is the light of the world.

Editor’s note: This is the second installment in a three-part series on the faith of little children. The children are participants in the Danville Salvation Army’s summer day camp program. To Devin Murphy, God is strength. “God is strong, stronger than anybody else in the world,” the 6-year-old Danville boy says. “He can pick up anybody.” Asked to develop that thought, Devin says God’s ability to pick up people isn’t just a physical talent.

A tree-carver, pastor and former cocaine-maker is making a symbol in south Nicholasville of the influence of God's hands on his life. Carlos Velasquez is carving the “hand of God” into a tree stump at the office of chiropractor Terry Thoroughman on South Main Street in Nicholasville. The work will show a little girl embracing a large hand as a representation of Isaiah 49:15-16 that illustrates how the love of God is like the love of a mother who does not forget her child. “For the child, the hands are something very meaningful for them,” Velasquez said through interpreter Jeannine Brabon.

Bernard Brummett, 82, of Brodhead, died Monday May 20, at the Golden Living Center in Stanford. Born Aug. 27, 1930, in Brodhead, Bernard was a son of the late Nathan and Sally Ann Bishop Brummett. He was a farmer, attended the West Brodhead Church of God, enjoyed Tumbler pigeons, Rat Terrier dogs and hunting. Survivors include brothers, Francis and Dale Brummett; sisters,  Edna Middleton and Mary Edith Coffey (Ronald Ray); and a host of nieces, nephews and friends. Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. today (May 23)

LODIMA C. CRACRAFT Lodima C. Cracraft, 95, widow of Adron Cracraft, passed away Friday, May 17, 2013, at Ridgeway Manor in Owingsville. Mrs. Cracraft was born in Montgomery County, on Aug. 26, 1917, to the late James Rufus and Martha Humpheries Beagle. She was a homemaker. Survivors include her two children, Patricia (Russell) Whitaker of Winchester and Marvin (Mary) Cracraft of Mount Olivet; five grandchildren, Terry Cracraft, Randy Cracraft, Lisa Cracraft, Sherry Ball and Belinda Watkins; 14 great-grandchildren; several great-great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews and cousins.

Benefit Gospel Singing at Goff's Corner First church of God 315 Kiddville Road, Winchester, KY 40391 Corner of Kiddville Road and Highway 15 Starts at 7 P.M.   Gospel Singing on Friday Night, the 17th of May for our preacher, Brother Gary Mathis and Barbara Mathis. His home and barn were broken into and had many valuable items stolen. Please come out and hear some great singing and have food afterwards. If you want to bring a dish, the church will suppy the meat.

Bigger, better, faster, stronger, more bedrooms, larger televisions - it's a race to see who has more. More money, more home, more cars, more, more, more. We never seem to have enough ... we just need more. It has to be the latest, the greatest, the fastest, and/or the prettiest. P90X is old school. Insanity is the new exercise craze. Whether it's iPhone 5, or we hear, “I have the new Samsung7,” when does it end? It doesn't. It's the road that leads to nowhere. Once you get on this fast-moving treadmill, it's extremely difficult to get off. Most of the time, folks break down and fall flat on their faces from fatigue and exhaustion.

Christian faith is often an amazing unfolding of events, circumstance and surprise. For some, it is never any of these things. As life unfolds, the happenstance of it is not identical in substance or effect. Those who embrace the “faith-necessity” requirement of membership find, when comparing notes, that there is little similarity in life's anecdotal compilation of events. We are different personalities and choose differing roads upon which we intend to ride into the future.  And, much to the surprise of those who often wonder which direction to travel, we become aware that God allows us to make the choices, good or bad, that often dictate the manner in which we choose to live.

In early January I suddenly began to feel very listless and had a great loss of energy and appetite. I just thought it was something I would shake off in time. It was not. Bad became worse. Worse got even worse. Finally, on April 3, 2013, I went to see my doctor at the VA hospital. I was given four blood transfusions. On April 5, after extensive lab work, I was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, or CLL. What a shock. I have been placed on a treatment with the drug Rituxan.

Arlene's spirit joined our Creator at 7:07 a.m. April 5. She would have said everything worked out just the way it was supposed to according to God's plan. Arlene leaves behind a legacy of love, faith, hope and laughter. Her love for God and her family were evident not only in her active participation in church but in her daily life, where she allowed God to lead her in every decision, including allowing love and faith to work together when Arlene met her husband, Steve, at church. Everyone who knew Arlene noted her brilliant mind, and that intelligence combined with her hope led to two successful careers.

Robert Sipes, 50, of Lexington, passed away April 1, 2013, after a long illness. He is survived by his wife Kellen of 29 years; his parents, Henry and Lois Sipes; brother, Jerry (Brenda) Sipes; sister, Charlotte (Teresa) Sipes; niece, Lindsey (Chris) Campbell; and great niece, Laura Kate. The funeral service will be 1 p.m. Saturday at Man O' War Church of God, 1501 Trent Blvd. with burial to follow in Bluegrass Memorial Gardens. Visitation will be 11 a.m. until service time at the church.

Kathy D. Hatton, 58, wife of Jerry Hatton, passed away at 12:28 a.m. Wednesday, April 3, 2013, at her home. A native of Clark County, Kathy was born on Aug. 14, 1954, to Lillie Dale Townsend Longley and the late Edgar Newton. Kathy was a homemaker and a member of Trinity Church of God. Additional survivors include two sons, Jerry (Amy) Hatton Jr. And Eric Hatton; two grandsons, Brandon and Braxton Hatton; two sisters, Irene (Larry) Robinson and Diane (Matt) Anderson; a brother, Chuck Newton; and several nieces and nephews.

There is an “after Easter” play on words that is  as the “Rising Son” and the “rising sun.”  That which rises in the east and sets in the west cannot be compared to He who rose once and never sets, but there is a comparison of the Son and his created sun.   We know Mary, after the devastating crucifixion of Jesus, came to the garden where His body had been interred. It was early and little light shone anywhere. She quite naturally expected the great stone that covered the entry to this tomb to be in place, but she had come, perhaps, with a need that had been instigated by His gracious forgiveness of her. She loved him, no doubt, as much as anyone could love Him as the result of His sensitive awareness that she was, in previous years, lacking in moral standards and conduct.