There’s few things worse in this world than someone who knows what he’s doing and doesn’t need any advice…especially when he’s a few years shy of twenty years.”
              –Lou Bradshaw  (Along the Way)

    “He will die because there is no instruction, and be lost because his great stupidity.”
              –Proverbs 5:23 (HCSB)
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I used to enjoy sitting around the table listening to my elders talk.  I dared not interrupt, except in rare moments, but it was my part to listen and learn.  This was true of parents, teachers, and especially my coaches.  I wanted to gain more knowledge (shame it didn’t apply to studies back then), I wanted to practice more and more.
    I remember one time as the baseball team took a train trip to Utah for games.  I played cards with the rest of the guys and came out the big winner.  My Dad happened to be on that trip and took me aside telling me that he didn’t think that my Grandma and Aunt would be very pleased knowing I had won money from cards, and that I should give it back.  Lesson learned, and I never gambled again.  When one stops to look at it, gambling is really stupid.  The definitions of gambling:  the act or practice of risking the loss of something important by taking a chance or acting recklessly.  A little game of cards, you may question, but it all starts somewhere.
    What it really boils down to is selfishness.  I want more; I don’t need to depend on the Lord, I’ll take my chances.  Gambling is not trusting the Lord with our lives, and that includes our finances.  It is not being a good steward; remember that money in your pocket actually belongs to the Lord.  
    But there are other ways of gambling.  Drinking, driving too fast, bizarre acts of recklessness.  I remember a person I knew years back.  He was ready to dive into the lake.  He looked at the water and was gambling that it was deep enough for him to dive.  It wasn’t and he became a quadriplegic for life.  Yet, there are those out there who know it all.  No need to try to tell them anything and when disaster hits, what happens?  Meltdown.  They need a safe place.
    What happens on the Day of Judgment?  Today is the day of salvation.  Today there is compassion and it is only intelligent to choose salvation today, for in that day there will be no compassion.  Grace now or there will be judgment later.
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I had to smile as I read this description from a book I am reading.  My we have come so far in our requirements for life.

         “…she picked up her bundle and followed upstairs–the first real stairs she had ever seen–and into a room on the floor of which was a rag carpet.  There was a bed in one corner with a white counterpane and a washstand with a bowl and pitcher, which, too, she had never seen before….  How clean it was!  There were some flowers in a glass vase on the mantel.  There were white curtains at the big window and a bed to herself–her own bed….”
                –John Fox (The Trail of the Lonesome Pine)

June would have been beside herself, maybe gone insane, with all the “stuff” we have now.  There are little red, green, and blue lights throughout the house, and a beep for this, a beep for that, and other sounds that I can’t describe.  We have beds that are self-heating.  I remember warming a brick to shove under the sheets in the winter, or at least a hot-water bottle.
    Perhaps all of our modern “necessities” have taken part of the wonder and simplicity of life away.  We look for the next gimmick and don’t even consider that we should be content with life.  The Lord is there, we have family and hopefully a few good friends.  
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              “When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder’s in the shock,
               And you hear the kyouck and gobble of the struttin’ turkey-cock,
               And the clackin’ of the guineys, and the cluckin’ of the hens,
               And the rooster’s hallylooyer as he tiptoes on the fence;
               O, it’s then the time a feller is a-feelin’ at his best,
               With the risin’ sun to greet him from a night of peaceful rest,
               As he leaves the house, bareheaded, and goes out to feed the stock,
               When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder’s in the shock.”
                           –James Whitcomb Riley

Thought this would be a good one to start the day since it was supposed to be our first freeze last night.  There was none on the ground this morning, but I did feel some on the windshield of the truck.  So, no frost on the punkin here.

Look…a man is free, but still he ain’t free.  I mean, nobody can tell him he’s got to work, but if he don’t he goes hungry.  It’s like that with a republic.  It’s free from other countries, but it ain’t ever free from responsibility.  It’s got to raise food or starve.  It’s got to make its clothes or go naked.  It’s goes to keep up an army or its enemies will run over it.  In other words, it’s got to take care of itself.  Nobody else is going to.”
               –Elmer Kelton  (After the Bugles)

    “Then you can tell them, ‘They remind us that the Jordan River stopped flowing when the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant went across.’ These stones will stand as a memorial among the people of Israel forever.'”
               –Joshua 4:7 (NLT)
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                                IN FLANDERS FIELDS

                      In Flanders fields the poppies blow
                      Between the crosses, row on row,
                      That mark our place, and in the sky,
                      The larks, still bravely singing, fly,
                      Scarce heard amid the guns below.

                      We are the dead; short days ago
                      We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
                      Loved and were loved, and now we lie
                      In Flanders fields.

                      Take up our quarrel with the foe!
                      To you from failing hands we throw
                      The torch; be yours to hold it high!
                      If ye break faith with us who die
                      We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
                      In Flanders fields.
                              –John McCrae
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I just have to post my traditional Veterans Day poem.  Yesterday, 100 years ago, the guns stopped, the bullets cease to fly, and blood was stopped from being spilt by the Armistice for World War I.  Supposedly the “war to end all wars,” it was actually the beginning of the end.  One day the swords will be beaten into plowshares, but not until the Lord rules during the Millennial.  
    The world was completely changed with that war.  The concept of “what’s the use” became the norm and it still being played today.  It was all the same, whether from the concept of F. Scott Fitzgerald of “party-hardy” we’re all going to die, so what’s the use.  To the doom and gloom of T.S. Eliot’s, The Wasteland.  Woe is me, we’re all going to die, so what’s the use?
    One phrase in this haunting poem always concerns me:  “If ye break faith…”  This day signifies that we remember the sacrifice of all veterans.  All gave time to serve this great country.  Let’s remember them!
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Family Veterans:
    Walter E. Baker — U.S. Army (World War II–Europe)
    Carl R. Adkisson — U.S. Army (World War II–Pacific)
    William Baker — U.S. Army (World War II)
    Howard Baker — U.S. Army (World War II)
    James Swank — U.S. Army (World War II)
    John Swank — U.S. Army (World War II)
    Ted Adkisson — U.S. Marine Corps (World War II) U.S. Air Force (Korea)
    James Adkisson — U.S. Air Force (Korea, Vietnam)
    Harold Jones — U.S. Navy (World War II, Korea)
    Bobby Jones — U.S. Navy (World War II)
    Kenlock Jones — U.S. Army (World War I)
    and your’s truly — U.S. Air Force (Vietnam)

And direct ancestors from the past:
    William Adkisson – Civil War – CSA
    James Adkisson – War of 1812
    Elias Butler – War of 1812
    William Butler – Revolutionary War
    Moses Winters – War of 1812
    Edward McDonald – Revolutinary War  
    James Rowland – Revolutinary War
    Robert Rowland – 1742 Augusta Co VA militia
    Solomon Walbridge – Revoluiontary War
    Henry Walbridge – Revolutionary War
    Mark Robinson Mahaffey – Civil War – USA
    Jacob Shoop – Revolutionary War
    Johannes Roger – Revolutionary War

As you can see, my wife and I have quite a military heritage.  So if you see a vet today — thank him.

You never stop learning.  Keep an open mind.  Be ready for anything, because when you least expect it, something will happen, you can bet on that.”
              –Bobby Cavazos  (The Cowbow From the Wild Horse Desert)

    “Therefore, get your minds ready for action, being self-disciplined, and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
              –1 Peter 1:13 (HCSB)
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Finally starting to get over this sickness.  I was sure feeling poorly.  That’s why no Echo on Monday and why it came out late a couple of other days.  Still have a cough, but feeling better.
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    I was just glancing at my first story about Miles Forrest.  He is not mentioned by name, but the first one about him was February 18, 2010.  Since then he has become a weekly regular.  I might miss a day or two, and nobody will say anything.  For example, this week, no one mentioned that I didn’t write an Echo on Monday.  However, if I miss a Tuesday writing about Miles I will definitely get some feedback.  Sorta makes ol’ Miles feel good.
    I remembered the old radio serials, and magazine serials where you had to wait until the next week to find out what happened and that is the way I’ve tried to set Miles up the past few years.
    “As he sipped the coffee, I heard an audible sigh indicating that he approved…”
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    Let me tell you something.  I am so sick of whining babies and their tantrums!  Banging on Carlson’s home, protesting…who knows what, and why, because they are spoiled brats.  They want free this and free that.  They need soap taken to their mouths because of the obscenities that spew forth.  Where is the world has common decency gone?
    And take the caravan that is moving toward the border.  Immigration is not wrong.  The whole point of the matter is simply a word–illegal.  Do things right!.  But remember, deconstructionism.  Right is only right in how it concerns them; nothing else matters, not you, not me.
    Let me tell you friend, there’s a great day coming!  
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Ponder This:  “He does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity.” (Psalm 84:11, HCSB)  Another version, the ESV, puts it this way, “No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.”  We can boast of our Father’s generosity only as we experience it personally.  “The Father’s generosity is not given to those who choose to sit on the couch watching television all day.  You must get up and walk with him, and when you do, the floodgate of heaven opens and all the resources that Christ won for us suddenly become available.”  (Carter Conlon)

Loneliness was necessary to gain consciousness of the soul.”
              –Zane Grey  (The Call of the Canyon)

    “After dismissing the crowds, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone.”
              –Matthew 14:23 (HCSB)
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There are strange things happening in the land.  Take a look at the following Scriptures and ponder them.

         “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord.”
                    –Amos 8:11 (KJV)

         “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools….  And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient….”
                    –Romans 1:22, 28 (KJV)

         “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie….”
                    –2 Thessalonian 2:11(KJV)                   

We are seeing the beginnings of this now coming to pass.  The Word of God is pushed aside and shunned.  Postmodernism has been very successful in undermining the truth.  Their purpose is deconstruction.  Deconstruct the government, the laws, morals, standards, values, even language.  The old saying, “it is what it is” is no longer valid, for it is not what it is, only what a person wants it to be.
    Here is a textbook definition of “postmodernism.”  
          “Postmodernism refers to an intellectual mood and an array of cultural expressions that call into question the ideals, principles, and values that lay at the heart of the modern mind-set.”
It really is hard to define, because that definition might be false – that is why it is referred to as a “mood” or “expression.”  One of its leaders, Richard Rorty says, “we should simply give up the search for truth and be content with interpretation.  Aim at continuing a conversation rather than at discovering truth.”  That’s where they have a hard time with Christians and the statement of Jesus, “I am the truth!”
    As stated, they have done a good job.  Look at the Millennials and those of Generation Z.  Almost postmodern to the core.  The belief of their leaders (i.e., Rorty, Derrida, Foucault) is to work on the younger generations and don’t worry about those of my generation, Boomers, as we are on the way to the grave and will soon no longer to be a threat.  Look at the words of this article by Angela Johnson.
           “People who are pansexual can be attracted to people who identify as male, female, androgynous, trangender, or intersex, taking it a step further than the traditional view of bisexuality.  Of course, sexuality varies from person to person, so these definitions are by no means set in stone–all that matters is what a person means when they claim that label.”  She goes on further to show a study by J. Walter Thompson Intelligence that 82% of Generation Z said “they did not care about a people’s sexual orientation, and 81% said they did not think gender defines a person as much as it used to.”
    Now go back and look at the Scriptures at the beginning.  Hmmmm.  By the way, Johnson said in her article that “Facebook alone offers nearly 60 gender options for users to choose from when assembling their profiles.”  I didn’t know that.  She asserts that “As we know, gender if fluid, and there are more genders out there than the typical binary we’re used to.”  Where, my mercy, will this take “us”?  Sorry friends, God created “male and female,” none other.
    Guard the truth!