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Sanctification is not the work of a moment, an hour, a day, but of a lifetime. It is not gained by a happy flight of feeling, but is the result of constantly dying to sin, and constantly living for Christ. Wrongs cannot be righted nor reformations wrought in the character by feeble, intermittent efforts. It is only by long, persevering effort, sore discipline, and stern conflict, that we shall overcome. We know not one day how strong will be our conflict the next. So long as Satan reigns, we shall have self to subdue, besetting sins to overcome; so long as life shall last, there will be no stopping place, no point which we can reach and say, I have fully attained. Sanctification is the result of lifelong obedience. {AA 560.3}

Seeing some pretty strong chatter that Kim Jong has been overthrown. ​AM liking what I see,

Paul Petersen & Robert McIver, BIBLICAL & THEOLOGICAL STUDIES ON THE TRINITY. Avondale Academic Press, 2014, 234 pages. YOu may purchase this book from: http://atfpress.com/biblical-and-theological-studies-on-the-trinity.html for $34.95. Amazon also carries the book, but at a higher price.

Man Collects $21,000 In Change, Donates Every Penny To Help Cats The Huffington Post | By Alena Hall Email Posted: 10/02/2014 9:14 am EDT Updated: 10/02/2014 10:59 am EDT Never underestimate the true value of a handful of pocket change. Rick Snyder, a 69-year-old resident of Manatee County, Florida, refused to sit still after he retired. Instead, he tended to one of his passions outside of work: caring for the feral cats living throughout his community. "I've always liked animals. I've been taking care of feral cats for years and I started noticing a lot of change laying around," Snyder told the Bradenton Herald. "So I started picking it up and keeping track of it." Snyder caring for one of the stray cats in Manatee County Since having this idea more than 10 years ago, Snyder has managed to collect $21,495 in loose change weighing more than 1 metric ton, reported the Herald Tribune. Waking up around 4 a.m. each day, Snyder would walk through town, and gather coins from vacuums at local car washes and vending machines along his way to take care of the cats. He told the Bradenton Herald that he walks anywhere between 45 and 48 miles each week and collects an average of $5.60 in change each day. After beginning the collection process, Snyder set an initial goal of $10,000 for himself, according to BayNews9. Once he surpassed his second goal of $20,000, however, he decided to give it all away to the Gulf Shore Animal League, a nonprofit organization run entirely by volunteers that spends the majority of their time helping cats in Manatee County. Cheryl Wade, the president of the organization, told the Bradenton Herald that Synder's donation is the largest they have ever received from a single individual. Snyder with his spare change collection from the past decade "I’d like to thank the many who are too lazy to pick up a penny," Snyder told BayNews9. With the change, the league will be able to continue adopting cats, and funding their spay and neuter program. They will also offer care for kittens before they are ready for adoption. Snyder and volunteers from the league gathered Tuesday to move the coins from his 151 peanut jar collection system to plastic bags that could be delivered to the local bank. Snyder holding one of the many bags of spare change he donated to the Gulf Shore Animal League "One of the problems we have being retirees is we become too self-involved," Snyder told the Herald Tribune. "My advice is, we need to get involved in something else. Do something for someone else." While this initial donation has been deposited, Snyder continues to gather abandoned pocket change throughout Manatee County and prep his next contribution that will help his feline friends.

... and gives some homeless people a break....

More evidence: John 15:3 "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you." Again, "in Christ" you are cleansed from all sin. In Him you stand perfect through faith. Now what? 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing (nothing good). .... What is the function of good works? 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

If the sky fell down tomorrow.............

Antonin Scalia Says Constitution Permits Court To 'Favor Religion Over Non-Religion' Posted: 10/02/2014 5:34 pm EDT Updated: 10/03/2014 11:59 am EDT The separation of church and state doesn’t mean “the government cannot favor religion over non-religion,” Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia argued during a speech at Colorado Christian University on Wednesday, according to The Washington Times. Defending his strict adherence to the plain text of the Constitution, Scalia knocked secular qualms over the role of religion in the public sphere as “utterly absurd,” arguing that the Constitution is only obligated to protect freedom of religion -- not freedom from it. “I think the main fight is to dissuade Americans from what the secularists are trying to persuade them to be true: that the separation of church and state means that the government cannot favor religion over non-religion,” the Reagan-appointed jurist told the crowd of about 400 people. “We do Him [God] honor in our pledge of allegiance, in all our public ceremonies,” the conservative Catholic justice continued. “There’s nothing wrong with that. It is in the best of American traditions, and don’t let anybody tell you otherwise. I think we have to fight that tendency of the secularists to impose it on all of us through the Constitution.” Earlier this year, Scalia joined the Supreme Court’s majority opinion in Town of Greece v. Galloway, which held that the New York town could continue opening legislative sessions with sectarian prayers. Scalia has since used the case to press for the approval of public prayers in schools, legislatures and courtrooms. In June, Scalia criticized the Supreme Court for declining to review Elmbrook School District v. John Doe, a case in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit ruled that a public school district's decision to conduct graduation ceremonies in a church violated the Establishment Clause. In a dissent joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, Scalia argued that “at a minimum,” the Supreme Court should remand the case for reconsideration, noting that “the First Amendment explicitly favors religion.” On Wednesday, Scalia also criticized members of the Court who champion a more evolving, “living” view of the Constitution -- a judicial philosophy he has previouslysaid only an “idiot” could believe. “Our [the Supreme Court’s] latest take on the subject, which is quite different from previous takes, is that the state must be neutral, not only between religions, but between religion and nonreligion,” Scalia said on Wednesday, according to The Washington Times. “That’s just a lie. Where do you get the notion that this is all unconstitutional? You can only believe that if you believe in a morphing Constitution.” If Americans want a more secular political system that guarantees those distinctions, they can “enact that by statute,” Scalia said, “but to say that’s what the Constitution requires is utterly absurd.” In another public appearance on Wednesday at the University of Colorado Boulder Law School's annual John Paul Stevens lecture, Scalia compared his efforts to restore constitutional originalism to the challenges faced by "Lord of the Rings" protagonist Frodo Baggins. “It’s a long, uphill fight to get back to original orthodoxy. We have two ‘originalists’ on the Supreme Court,” Scalia said, referring to Thomas. “That’s something. But I feel like Frodo … We’ll get clobbered in the end, but it’s worth it.” H/T Washington Times ALSO ON HUFFPOST:

Joe, I would say that we have a responsibility as individuals. That responsibility is to become as much like Christ as is possible, which to me means becoming as close as possible to Him. Then we will rightly represent Him in all that we do, and when we do people will see the love of God in us and want to know why we are who we are. I don't think we as Christians have a right to stop someone from worshiping the devil through legislation, or through force of any kind. God doesn't do that, so what makes us think we would have a right to do that. We must respect a person's right to choose to worship whom they will as much as God does. He draws people to Him through love. He doesn't use force to make people worship HIm or stop people from worshiping the devil. Force is what the devil uses to control people, and we can know if he uses it, that God does not.

Well, whaddaya know? You and I agree on something, Tom. I think I better lie down before I faint. LOL.

here's my [unpopular] view of the Trinity: the whole trinity concept was in pagan religions long before it entered the realm of Christianity... it wouldn't surprise me to learn that it may have been incorporated into Christianity in an effort to make the newly converted-from-paganism feel more comfortable and be able to relate to the faith...

Greetings Greg and others, Out of curiosity, do all SDAs believe the Trinity? I thought that in the early days at least there was a range of opinion on this subject, but possibly down the track it became one of the set beliefs of the SDA Church. For my part I do not accept the Trinity as I believe there is One God the Father, and that our Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I attended a SDA seminar series on Daniel for a while and one evening they presented the Trinity instead. Most of the participants agreed that John 10:30 gave support to the Trinity. It took a few years for me to properly consider this verse, and reach an understanding to my satisfaction, and I believe that this particular verse and the context following teaches that Jesus is the Son of God. Kind regards Trevor

Pam, your 2 cents is actually worth 5 cents. Do not underestimate yourself. You are correct.