“A Superior Court judge in California has acquitted two men of charges filed after they were caught by officers reading a Bible aloud near a line of people waiting to enter a state driver’s license office in Hemet, Calif. Attorneys for the defendants said the state was required under state law, Title 13, Section 1860 of the California Administrative Code to show that the defendants were engaged in a ‘demonstration or gathering.’ But Judge Timothy Freer concluded there was not enough evidence to reach that conclusion. ‘The prosecution failed to meet its burden of proof that our clients committed a crime when they read the Bible aloud in front [of] a line of people,’ said Robert Tyler, general counsel for Advocates for Faith & Freedom, which worked on the case. Nic Cocis, co-counsel for the defense, said: ‘These men were exercising their First Amendment right of free speech. They were simply sharing their faith on public property and the criminal charges should never have been filed.’... Cocis, who emigrated from Romania at the age of 13 when the nation still was controlled by a communist regime, said: ‘This case has particular importance to me because my family was persecuted for our Christian faith in communist Romania, and I will fight to protect the freedom of speech and to ensure that the same persecution doesn't occur in the United States.’”

(“Verdict in for Pastor,” WorldNetDaily, Aug. 14, 2013)

Psalm 22:la and Mark 15:34b
"My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

The first Good Friday was the day in which the hand of God was more evident on Earth than on any other day since the Great Flood. God's hand was especially evident to those who knew the Old Testament Scriptures, while even the Roman centurion could see it.

In Psalm 22, King David described the details of the Savior's crucifixion and gave the very words that the Savior would speak as well as the words that would be said by the bystanders. He wrote this a thousand years before it all took place! He described, in detail, what it felt like to be crucified, even though that torture had not yet been invented. He described Christ's pierced hands and feet, and even how the soldiers divided the Savior's clothes and cast lots for His robe.

Even though this detailed and accurate prediction was widely distributed in writing long before the event, many scientists, who so value prediction to prove theory, claim that Jesus' death was not extraordinary and possibly even a myth. But God's Hand in human history could not be more clear than it is here. That detailed description of Christ's death for your sin and mine a thousand years before it happened is so dramatic because it is God's greatest desire that you accept what He has done for you on the cross of Calvary.



Photo: Psalm 22 (Psalm 21 in Septuagint) in the St. Albans Psalter, 12th century. The first words of the Psalm in the Latin Vulgate are "Deus, Deus meus," abbreviated here as DS DS MS.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Secretary Kerry says Assad destroyed evidence;
San Francisco filling reservoirs as fire approaches;
Fort Hood jury hears from victims and families;
Afghan war veteran gets Medal of Honor.

Fort Hood trial sentencing;
Assad denies using chemical weapons in last week's attack;
Yosemite fire 7% contained;
Japan wins Little League World Series.

“With the stroke of a pen on Monday, California became the first state to enshrine rights for transgender students in state law--setting the stage, say pro-family leaders, for young girls to be molested in school locker rooms by boys who believe they are girls. Without comment, California Governor Jerry Brown yesterday signed into law a bill (AB 1266) strengthening the rights of transgender students (K-12) in the state’s public schools. It makes the Golden State the first state in the nation to allow participation in ‘sex-segregated programs, activities, and facilities’ in public schools based on a student's gender identity. Under the new law, public schools will be required to allow the students access to whichever restroom and locker room they want--and it would allow boys to take showers with girls just because they say they feel they are female. ... Brad Dacus of the Pacific Justice Institute is among those reacting strongly to Brown’s signing of the measure. ‘It's an outrageous and egregious violation of the privacy and decency for young women and young girls all throughout the state of California,’ the attorney tells OneNewsNow. ... All under the guise of providing special rights and protections for children with a gender-identity disorder, and, if a boy wants to molest a girl, he can follow her into a restroom and violate her. Dacus vows that his legal group intends to defend individuals--particularly young girls and young women--who now face the real possibility of having their privacy rights trampled. ‘No young person should be expected to have to shower with the opposite-sex, much less change in front of the opposite-sex,’ he exclaims. ‘This is an outrageous piece of legislation and an outrageous violation of the right to privacy.’ But Dacus will have to wait until someone is harmed to file suit because a person must prove that they have been damaged.”

(“Stage Set for Molestations,” OneNewsNow, Aug. 13, 2013)

Job 12:7, 9
"But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee... Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this?"

You are the pilot of a Boeing 767 airliner, bringing the great ship in for a landing. Approaching the airport, you extend the slat on the leading edge of each wing so that you have more lift as your speed slows. As the runway nears, you raise the nose of the plane to catch more air. In the final moments of landing, you bring the feathers, which act as air brakes, out of the wing to reduce your lift and settle easily onto the runway.

Yet, without any training, young birds do this very same thing every day. High-speed photography has revealed that birds follow each one of these sequences as they approach and land. First, as they prepare to land, they slow their speed and increase their lift by extending and lowering the front part of the wing. Then, to slow even more, they angle their body from a horizontal flying position to a more upright angle. Finally, they drop the feathers on the back of their wing – after which the plane's feathers are named – to settle nicely on a tree branch, with virtually no effort at all.

Yes, the principles of flight, refined by over 80 years of man's experience, were simply taught to the birds by our loving Creator. What a wonderful testimony birds offer to the work of our Creator!

Photo: Courtesy of João Trindade. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Syria agrees to UN probe;
Yosemite fire grows;
Girl off oxygen after 2 lung transplants;
New Panda cub is reportedly doing well.

“A California committee approved legislation that would revoke tax-exempt status from any nonprofit organizations that do not embrace homosexuality. It was approved on the same day Gov. Jerry Brown signed into a law Assembly Bill 1266, which forces schools to allow children to use the bathroom correlating to their own gender identity. Democratic Sen. Ricardo Lara, an open homosexual from Los Angeles and a member of the California Legislative LGBT Caucus, first introduced Senate Bill 323 in mid-February. According to the bill’s introduction, it would ‘provide that an organization that is a public charity youth organization that discriminates on the basis of gender identity, race, sexual orientation, nationality, religion, or religious affiliation is not exempt from [state taxes].’ The legislation lists about 25 youth organizations that would have to embrace these ‘gender identity’ and ‘sexual orientation’ guidelines to keep their tax-exempt status. Little League, Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), Future Farmers of America, Future Homemakers of America, 4-H Clubs, Boys’ Clubs, Girls’ Clubs and Future Business Leaders of America are all included. ... California Family Alliance’s Lori Arnold argues that the ‘Anti-Boy Scouts Bill’ is self-contradicting and unconstitutional. ‘The irony of the proposed law,’ she wrote in a release, ‘is that its blatant use of extortion--by holding nonprofit groups financially hostage--instills its own form of discrimination by trampling individual and organizational religious beliefs by labeling them “outdated practices,” practices that are protected by the First Amendment.’”

(“Failure to Embrace Homosexuality Could See Nonprofits Lose Tax-Exempt Status,” CharismaNews, Aug. 14, 2013)

Thousands gather for the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington;
Doctors Without Borders says it's counted 355 dead from a reported chemical weapons attack in Syria;
Fire threatens Yosemite.

“A high court in Scotland has charged a man with the equivalent of over $60,000 for criticizing a homosexual woman on Twitter. Earlier this month, the Court of Session in Edinburgh--known as the supreme civil court of Scotland--ruled that 54-year-old David Shuttleton should give Jaye Richards-Hill $62,000 as restitution for Tweets he posted last year. Richards-Hill is an open homosexual, described by some as one of Scotland’s ‘leading gay rights campaigners.’ Last summer, Shuttleton--an antiques-dealer--and Richards-Hill--an education technologist--exchanged heated messages on Twitter, with Shuttleton labeling Richards-Hill a ‘fraud’ whose homosexuality is ‘a danger to children.’ Eventually, Richards-Hill filed a lawsuit against Shuttleton, citing defamation of character charges. According to reports, the $62,000 fine was actually not decided by judges, but was instead a default punishment, since Shuttleton failed to file proper defense paperwork. He is vowing to appeal the decision, however. ... Shuttleton defended himself in a Daily Record interview, declaring that he was simply ‘an innocent Scotsman’ who is being attacked by ‘the homosexual machine.’ ‘It’s an absolute scandal that homosexuals have got such power in our community,’ he continued. ‘It’s an absolutely scandalous abuse of our laws. … We are talking about one of the most notorious and infamous extremist homosexual activist fanatics in the whole of Scotland here. She is an infamous, notorious Internet troll.’”

(“Scottish Court,” ChristianNewsNet, Aug. 17, 2013)

Soldier convicted of murder for Fort Hood rampage;
Wildfire grows in California;
Explosions rock Lebanon;
Ohio man brought back from the dead. 

Calif. Wildfire grows;
New oversight for NYPD;
More Ft. Hood deliberations;
Israeli airstrike in Lebanon.

A U.S. federal judge has ruled that a lawsuit against an evangelist for allegedly stirring up hatred against homosexuals in another country can go to trial. SMUG (Sexual Minorities Uganda) filed suit against Scott Lively (Abiding Truth Ministries) for allegedly stirring up hatred by teaching that homosexuality “is more destructive to society than abortion.” He taught this on trips to Uganda as well as on his web site. Last year SMUG accused Lively of “crimes against humanity of persecution,” using the Alien Tort Statute that allows foreigners to bring cases in U.S. courts when alleging violations of international law. “The lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex organization in its lawsuit alleges that Lively organized and carried out ‘strategies to dehumanize, demonize, silence, and further criminalize the LGBTI community’ in Uganda” (“Christian Evangelist’s Lawsuit Goes Forward,” The Christian Post, Aug. 16, 2013). “SMUG is seeking ‘compensatory, punitive, and exemplary damages,’ a declaration that Lively’s conduct ‘has been in violation of the law of nations,’ and a court order prohibiting Lively from ‘undertaking further actions, and from plotting and conspiring with others, to persecute’ the LGBTI organization and those whose interests it represents in Uganda” (Ibid.). A federal judge in Massachusetts ruled last week that Lively’s attorneys have not proven that he was not partly responsible for inciting persecution and that the case can go to trial. The Liberty Counsel, which is representing Lively, says, “The suit is a direct attempt to silence Rev. Lively and intimidate other pastors against teaching the Biblical position on homosexuality.”

(Friday Church News Notes, August 23, 2013, www.wayoflife.org [email protected], 866-295-4143)

Job 14:7, 9
"For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease. Yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant."

Is it silly to speak of plants anticipating a good watering or is it naive to think of a plant anticipating spring? Scientists are learning that although plants do not have a nervous system, they do use electrical signals to respond to their surroundings – and sometimes they respond just like human beings!

Most of us are familiar with the Venus flytrap, which responds very quickly when the trigger hairs are touched. Other plants are "sensitive" and close their leaflets when touched. One mimosa tree was so disturbed by its keeper that it shed all its leaves, seemingly, as one writer put it, having a nervous breakdown. Tomato plants will wilt to conserve water, but if they are overly disturbed, they will wilt even though they don't need to conserve water.

Scientists have found that cells within plants communicate with each other through electrical signals in a similar way to our nervous systems. Such responses are very unexpected in what evolutionists consider simple plants.

However, if we see the creation as the work of a caring Creator Who endowed all of His creation with its own form of emotional sense, then even these limited plant responses are not unreasonable reflections of their Creator. The fact that we can recognize emotional response will hopefully enable us to see the importance of His love.

Photo: Persian Silk Tree foliage and flowers (commonly known as a mimosa tree in the United States). Courtesy of Kurt Stüber. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Bradley Manning says he wants to be a woman;
In Syria, human rights group says government forces attacked Damascus suburbs;
Obama pushes new college rating system;
Ham sells for $350,000.

Mubarak will leave prison for house arrest;
France says force may be used against Assad;
Manning lawyer wants sentence reduced;
"Haiti on Ice" closer to reality.

Job 12:7a, 8, 9
"But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee... But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you … or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, and the fish of the sea will explain to you. Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this?"

One of the areas in which modern technology is advancing most rapidly is fiber optics. Crystal clear telephone messages are carried on cables of special fibers that conduct messages in digital form, using laser light. Offices and industries now use computer systems in which processors are linked with fiber optic cables in order to increase speed. But man has only discovered this technology – he has not invented it, for God used fiber optics in providing for the needs of certain plants.

Scientists have learned that sprouting oat, corn and mung bean plants use the principles of fiber optics so they can grow. When the tip of a young seedling first pokes its nose above ground, it gathers and sends light to the growth center – which may be half-an-inch, an inch or more below the ground. The conducted light then stimulates the growth center, providing energy for growth. Without this provision, the seedling could die, or at least growth retarded. Scientists have learned that the seedling stem is such an efficient optic fiber that it will even faithfully conduct a focused image of the light source.

We are learning that just about every technological breakthrough made by man was already used by the Creator when He made the creation. There is hardly a stronger argument than this in favor of belief in an intelligent Creator!



Photo: Courtesy of Charles K. Kao. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Manning gets 35 years for leaking documents;
US `deeply concerned' by Syrian activists `toxic gas' claim;
Police: Ga. school suspect had nearly 500 rounds;
Ark. girl fighting rare brain infection can speak.

Poisonous gas attack reported in Syria;
Egypt arrests more Islamic Brotherhood leaders;
3 Charged in Okla. Shooting;
Tropical storm approaches Taiwan.

The General Assembly of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) voted to welcome “open members of the homosexual and transgender community to worship and serve in the denomination’s churches the same way members of different races and ages do” (“Disciples of Christ Church Votes to Affirm,” Christian Post, July 19, 2013). Cherilyn Williams, a member of the denomination’s Marketing and Communications Team, says, “Our resolution is about welcoming everyone to the Lord’s Table in the way God welcomes each and every one of God’s children into God’s embrace regardless of creed, race, ability or any other wall that divides.” This is complete apostasy, a brazen rejection of God’s Word as the sole authority for faith and practice. The Gospel of Jesus Christ invites all men to come to God through Christ, but they must come as repentant sinners, acknowledging their own unrighteousness and receiving the righteousness that is only available through Christ’s atonement. Jesus said that men must be born again to enter the kingdom of heaven (John 3:3). The early churches provide the example that we are to follow. The membership of those churches included every type of sinner--idolaters, adulterers, thieves, drunkards, murderers, and homosexuals--but they had been converted by the saving power of the Gospel, and they lived their Christian lives by putting off the old man and putting on the new. Any homosexual or adulterer can be saved, but to pretend that they are fine in an unrepentant condition is a lie. The Disciples of Christ is a small and dying denomination, having declined in membership from nearly 2 million in the 1960s to its current 600,000 members (and active members would be much fewer). “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6:9-11).

(Friday Church News Notes, August 16, 2013, www.wayoflife.org [email protected], 866-295-4143)

Proverbs 18:24
"A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother."

Almost every creature seeks companionship with others. This universal, basic need gives us additional insight into the mind of the Creator.

Those who believe in evolution have always thought that only warm-blooded creatures valued companionship and love. So for generations, dinosaurs – which are supposed to be much further down the evolutionary scale of living things – were seen as hard-hearted, dull-witted, uncaring creatures that didn't even care whether their own young lived or died. Now, many instances of the desire for companionship – even among dinosaurs – is being uncovered.

Scientists are learning that dinosaurs often lived together in communities, building nests, caring for their young and traveling together, even when they had no need for protection. In some sites, huge dinosaur trackways show that various kinds of dinosaurs lived in groups, close to each other, and that the same kinds generally followed their own pathways. These discoveries at several sites and involving many different kinds of dinosaurs have convinced scientists that dinosaurs were very much like modern animals in their social habits. In other words, dinosaurs needed friends, too.

That almost all of His creatures value companionship tells us a little about our Creator. Scripture reveals more details about this aspect of the Creator when it tells us that He created man because of His great love. Do you know His love for you through Jesus Christ?

Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

US deciding whether to cut aid to Egypt;
Manning sentence due Wednesday;
Best-selling crime author Elmore Leonard dies at 87;
Miami Dolphins honored at White House

Psalm 19:1, 3
"The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard."

It was once thought that language was a relatively late development in the evolution of man. Language among the lower animals was dismissed as a fantasy. So when the Bible speaks of the whole creation praising God, these same people said that this was just a figurative expression. Now modern science has shown that many creatures do have a language of their own – language which, we point out, can also be used to praise the Creator.

The human ear can detect sounds between 20 and 20,000 vibrations per second. Many creatures that we once thought were silent are busy communicating in sounds well above this range of frequencies, and we just don't hear them. Scientists have cataloged many of the calls of Norway rats who communicate at 70,000 vibrations per second and conclude that they have the richest vocabulary of calls with specific meanings. Young rat pups screech a distress call that reaches the same volume as a jackhammer, yet we are not able to hear it.

There is an advantage for these small rodents having such a high-pitched language. Even though many predators, like cats, can easily hear these frequencies, the loudest call does not travel far enough to give away the location of the nest.

Language is a gift from our Creator; therefore, it is only fitting that the entire creation has language with which to praise Him!

Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Hosni Mubarak could be released soon;
Some Idaho residents allowed to return home;
Volcanic eruption in Japan;
Lost ring returns 70 years later.

Oscar Pistorius indicted on murder charges;
Two dozen Egyptian policemen killed in Sinai desert;
Idaho fire burns 160 square miles;
Same-sex weddings legal in New Zealand.