A daily, Bible-based message of hope and encouragement.
 A daily, Bible-based message of hope, encouragement and exhortation. The online Bible teaching ministry of Stephen & Brooksyne Weber. <Previous Message · Archive edition Friday, January 6, 2012  (Photo by Howard Blichfeldt) The gristmill in western Pennsylvania was one of the first rolling mills in the country, processing corn, oats, wheat and buckwheat for local customers.  Listen to this message on your audio player."We'll Have A New Body!" "Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed" (1 Corinthians 15:50-52). "For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven" (2 Corinthians 5:1,2). During the course of our chaplaincy visits yesterday Brooksyne visited with Jean, an employee, who inspects small parts. She's not just your average, everyday employee since she’s 83 years old and has worked at the same company for over 60 years!*  Following a holiday break employees excitedly converse with us about their family gatherings. Jean is intent on her work and usually rather quiet, but she enjoys talking about her extended family. A single woman, she comes from a large family who had gathered for Christmas where she had a conversation with her two ½ year old great, great nephew. After the New Years dinner Jean was slowly rising from her seat and noticed the child observing her carefully. She explained: "I move slowly because I get stiff; I’m old and have aches and pains. Do you ever get that problem?" The little boy responded, "No…. I'm new." I like the way Estienne put it, “If Youth but knew; if age but could.” Well, the fact is many of us identify with the aging and perishable aspect of our earthly bodies, similar to Jean. We may also recall when our bodies were young and vibrant. I recall when Brooksyne and I were dating and the day that I jumped over her car to impress her. (Editor’s Note: The photo on the right is not Stephen. Thankfully, he didn’t dent my orange Maverick that I’d received for High School Graduation when he was showing off his long jump.) Actually I did more than a few potentially foolish things when I was younger and even in my younger middle aged years such as jumping off a church roof in New England into a pile of snow, over and over on a bright fun-filled winter afternoon! "Beauty is fleeting" the Bible says, and so is youth. It’s a fleeting season in our lives that passes before we even realize the benefits of being young!Novelist Joseph Conrad described the temporariness of youth as "the feeling that will never come back any more --the feeling that I thought could last forever, outlast the sea, the earth, and all men; the deceitful feeling that lures us on to joys, to perils, to love, to vain effort --to death; the triumphant conviction of strength, the heat of life in the handful of dust, the glow in the heart that with every year grows dim, grows cold, grows small, and expires --and expires, too soon, too soon --before life itself."  Youth is temporary, but so is middle age and old age. The Apostle Paul is speaking of our temporary situation in the daily text: "Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands." That's a good verse to hide deep in our hearts. Elsewhere we read: "For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come" (Hebrews 13:14). The Apostle James describes this temporary situation quite graphically: "What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes" (James 4:14).It's interesting that in the daily text Paul speaks of the "earthly tent" which underscores the temporariness of our present life. However our future abode is described as "a building from God, an eternal house in heaven." The ongoing challenge for each of us is not driving the stakes too deeply in our present "tent". We must take care in not getting too settled nor should we ceaselessly strive for comfort on this side. That's particularly true for those of us who live in relative affluence, which can be such a seducing trap. One day we will be transported to our eternal home and we'll have a new body; one that won’t grow stiff or slow down due to the aging process commonly experienced on this side of heaven! Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber  Daily Prayer: Father, we look forward to the mysterious moment when we who follow Christ will be changed in the twinkling of an eye, when the trumpet sounds from heaven. Our perishable bodies will take on the imperishable and we will be forever young, no longer plagued with the moans and groans of this earthly body. Until Christ returns or until You call us home, we remain hopeful and vigilant in our spiritual pilgrimage, no matter the condition of this flesh and blood body. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.* We wrote a message about Jean in 2010 when she reached the sixty year employment milestone. We will be writing about Everett, another employee in this same company, who also reached the 60 year milestone this month. Everett is one of the most colorful and joy-filled workers we have ever encountered. This particular company has a lot of long-time workers and I try to identify the reason. By appearances it would not be the most interesting work; some of it is quite tedious and downright monotonous. But a feature we have noted is that the employees really do love and care about each other. A reader noted in regard to yesterday's message on "Devoted To Study": This message reminded me of a viewing my husband and I recently attended. The man was James Hess, a great man of God. He and his family were missionaries in Honduras many years. At the viewing the Bible was on display in which he had marked down every year he read through the bible. Starting in 1950 he had read through the Bible 55 times. Several years he had read the New Testament twice. We found this amazing! He was 85 years at the time of his death. Our friend Tommy Carpenter, who lost his wife and grandson this last October in an automobile accident, (see footnote here) shares the following perspective on the city to come: I’m Looking For a City “By faith Abraham when he was called to go out into a place which he should receive for an inheritance, obeyed: and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith, he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: for he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Hebrews 11:8-10). I’m looking for a city:
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources "I'll Have A New Body" Video Homecoming Singers "I Wouldn't Take Nothing For My Journey Now" Video The Happy Goodmans "The Light Of That City" Video Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir Today's gristmill photo was taken by our friend Howard Blichfeldt and was used with his permission. He comments: This is a beautiful location no matter what time of year you arrive. I have seen it in all seasons since the time my father brought me here as a child to fish or walk. One must be careful though as Slippery Rock Creek can be very dangerous water and the shoreline rocks are as slippery as black ice. That said, this is a place worth visiting more than once and winter is especially pristine. The water is pure and the blanket of snow makes everything look so unspoiled. The sounds of winter are plentiful here whether the occasional chatter of a red squirrel, the tapping of a lone woodpecker, the sound of rushing water or the absence of anyone else, I am always drawn into the peacefulness of the moment. Nature always finds a way of reminding me of its healing power, a force exceeded by no one but the One who provides it. Howard's photo site is here. |
 Weber family Christmas 2011 "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update (Revised 12/11)  Are our daily encouragement messages a blessing to you? Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. We ask you to consider making a donation to Daily Encouragement Net so that we can continue to prepare and provide this daily resource which is accessed by believers and seekers all over the world. Daily Encouragement Net relies solely on the generosity and financial support of its readers and podcast listeners. See here for more information on supporting this ministry. Gifts are tax deductible.SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent by us unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed or as an email subscription through feedburner.Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If you no longer desire to receive these messages you can remove your address from the list by merely using the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly or who may desire less frequent mailings. It is Friday's message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Daily Encouragement on Facebook and Twitter:  The daily message and prayer on Facebook. The daily message and prayer on Twitter.Reader Survey: Please take a few minutes to assist us in improving our ministry effectiveness by filling out this online reader survey. To take the survey click here. Please feel free to pass these messages on! Our other blogs: "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. All of these songs are also available for download on the site.  Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2012 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us  Endorsed chaplain "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net |
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