All About Years   

And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky ... 

and let them ... mark seasons and days and years..."

Genesis 1:14

How great is God - beyond our understanding!

The number of his years is past finding out.

Job 36:26

For a thousand years in your sight 

are like a day that has just gone by,

or like a watch in the night.

Psalm 90:4

My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, 

for they will prolong your life many years...

Proverbs 3:2

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends:

With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, 

and a thousand years are like a day.

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.

He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, 

but everyone to come to repentance.

2 Peter 3:8-9

Best Sports Memory     
     If Marvin Olasky can write about his best sports memory in WORLD magazine, we can do so here. Anyway, mine is better than his.

   First, some that did NOT make the cut. We attended the 1958 Rose Bowl game. The parade was better. We attended the 1964 NFL Championship  (essentially the Super Bowl) when the Browns upset the Colts, 27-0. Super! 

   A cold, rainy World Series game in Detroit was memorable for being cold and rainy. Several visits to The - Quiet please - Masters tournament in the 1990s got us within a chip shot of several men who own green jackets. Suited us to a tee. 

   Hall of Fame football and baseball players, and world-class golfers have their due. But we vote for some high school kids on November 20, 1948. 

                                        * * *
    Our family had traveled from Pennsylvania to Grandma's home in Ohio. Dad's high school team, ranked No. 2 in the state, hosted its rival, No. 1. 

   Problem: There were 22,000 fans, including other Ohio coaches, filing into the stadium...and we didn't have tickets.

   Dad knew one of the school administrators. It got close to kick-off. And closer. Finally, the man produced one ticket, on condition that I sit on Dad's lap. SOLD!

   Better yet, two people didn't show up. We had three seats for the two of us at the 35 yard line (section G in TIGERS). 

   The good guys hadn't whipped the bad guys in five years, so passion was MAX! Amid the cigar smoke, we watched the home team prevail 21-12. 

   For a 9 year old whose hometown may have counted 10,000 residents, a state championship in this setting was the whole world. Still have a memento. 

     Jimmy

   

Brain Power       
  
   My 79th birthday is an appropriate time to explain that older people do not decline mentally with age.

   Contrarily, our brains slow down because we have absorbed so much knowledge. Do you see any of my neurons looking amiss?                                                   -----> 

   Recalling names and facts becomes more difficult because there are so many more names and facts in the cranial cavity. As a computer slows down when the hard drive fills up, so too, humans take longer to access data when the brain is full.

   Truth be told, we can recall names and dates of presidents we knew before some of you were even born. We know who fought the Civil War and how many senators there are. Just give us a day or so to think it over. 

   You millennials think you're so cognizant. Well, cognition this:    

   Who doesn't have to go to school or work? 
   Who gets an allowance every month?  
   Who normally votes, so that Congress pays more attention to us? 
   Who doesn't have to remove their shoes in airport security? 

   Give up? 

       Jimmy 

Learning to Get Along      

   King Solomon said that God set eternity in the heart of men, and the Aetas in the Philippines seem to bear that out. Before the New Tribes Mission reached them in the 1960s, they already believed in a supreme being and lesser spirits. They were also animists, imagining spirits in rivers, mountains, the sea and such. 

   Since hunter-gatherers don't have kingdoms or other forms of government, how do they learn to share food, care for others and coordinate tasks? 

   Researchers discovered that those most favored among the people are the storytellers, not the best hunters. Fashion a story about a dispute between the sun and the moon, and how they resolved it - each appearing at different times - and you have a way of leadership. 

   If you want to see a real, live hunter-gatherer, you might start making plans. Mining, deforestation, logging and farming are taking a toll on the ways of the few thousand Aetas who remain. In fact, some already are wearing T-shirts, pants and sandals. 

   Here in civilization, we continue our diverse ways and disputes. We unite around Santa, at least for a few weeks. 

   But, No No No! Kids suffer disillusionment, when flying reindeer don't fly anymore, and Santa's workshop isn't as visible as Amazon online.

   The sun and moon story? That can last a lifetime. 

   Let's not feel overly superior to the Aetas. If the Philippines' electric grid goes down, as in Puerto Rico this year, these people will just keep on hunting and gathering.  

   By the way, this may be the last year Santa is based at the North Pole. We hear Mrs. Claus wants to move to Florida.

      Jimmy




   

Hunter-Gatherers    
History's Storytellers   
   

 

    

   Our civilization has its "story" - Santa Claus, which dates to the early 1800s. We also hunt - bargains - and gather - stuff - from Black Friday until December 24. Then, we become exchangers.  
  
   What if we could talk with early humans, the real hunter-gatherers, and learn how and if they were inclined to fib a little? After all, to survive, they were totally occupied hunting and gathering. 

   There are still real-deal, primitive people in South America. These tribes want no part of outsiders, and if you wander into their jungle, you might become somebody's dinner.

   But, yea! We can still find approachable hunter-gatherers, indigenous Austronesians (think South Pacific) scattered among the mountains of Luzon, The Philippines. They are called Agta, or Aeta (pronounced EYE'ta). 

   The Spanish knew them to be fierce warriors, with iron tools, and bows and arrows. They tried and failed to resettle them on reservations. Due to lack of organization, some Aetas were caught and sold into slavery in Borneo and China. 

   These nomadic Aetas mostly build temporary shelters of sticks and banana leaves. Their clothing is scanty.

   Ladies, you'll be pleased to know that most of the Aeta women hunt in groups, and are about twice as successful as men, according to scientists. When mixed groups hunt with their dogs, they do even better than men or women alone. 

                                 Tomorrow: Unique source of cooperative behavior
    Jimmy

  The King of Kings is Coming   

Joy to the World  - 18th century hymn

Joy to the World! the Lord is come;

Let earth receive her King.

Let every heart prepare Him room,

And heaven and nature sing.

No more let sins and sorrows grow,

Nor thorns infest the ground;

He comes to make His blessings flow

Far as the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace,

And makes the nations prove

The glories of His righteousness, 

And wonders of His love. 

Prophecy

Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things;

his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.

The Lord has made his salvation known

and revealed his righteousness to the nations.

He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to the house of Israel;

all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth; burst into jubilant song with music.

Psalm 98:1-4

NIV

   Christmas and Security   

Hopes and Fears Settled  - 19th century hymn  

O little town of Bethlehem,

How still we see thee lie! 

Above thy deep and dreamless sleep

The silent stars go by.

Yet in thy dark streets shineth

The everlasting light;

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are met in thee tonight. 

How silently, how silently

The wondrous gift is given! 

So God imparts to human hearts

The blessings of His heaven.

No ear my hear his coming, 

But in this world of sin,

Where meek souls will receive Him still

The dear Christ enters in.

Prophecy

"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, 

though you are small among the clans of Judah,

out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel,

whose origins are from of old, from ancient times."

Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time

when she who is in labor gives birth and the rest

of his brothers return to join the Israelites.

He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,

in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.

And they will live securely, for then his greatness

will reach to the ends of the earth.

And he will be their peace.

Micah 5:2-4

NIV

   Christmas and Justice   

Peace on Earth  - 19th century hymn  

It came upon the midnight clear,

That glorious song of old,

From angels bending near the earth

To touch their harps of gold:

"Peace on the earth, good will to men,

From heaven's all-gracious King!" 

The world in solemn stillness lay

To hear the angels sing. 

Prophecy

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,

Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.

He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom,

establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness 

from that time on and forever.

The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

Isaiah 9:6-7

NIV

     Christmas and New Life   

From Heaven Above  - by Martin Luther

From heaven above to earth I come

To bear good news to every one;

Glad tidings of great joy I bring,

Whereof I now will say and sing.

Were earth a thousands times as fair,

Beset with gold and jewels rare,

She yet were far too poor to be

A narrow cradle, Lord, to Thee.

Ah, dearest Jesus, Holy Child,

Make Thee a bed, soft undefiled,

Within my heart, that it may be

A quiet chamber kept for Thee.

Glory to God in highest heaven,

Who unto man His Son hath given,

While angels sing with pious mirth

A glad new year to all the earth.

Good News of Great Joy

The angel said to them, 

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy

that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David

a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared

with the angel, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest; and on earth peace 

to men on whom his favor rests." 

Luke 2:10-11; 13-14

NIV

   Christmas and Freedom   

Praise to Eternal Lord  - by Martin Luther

All praise to Thee, eternal Lord,

Clothed in flesh and blood;

Choosing a manger for Thy throne,

While worlds are Thine alone.

A little child, Thou art our guest,

That weary ones in Thee may rest;

Forlorn and lowly is Thy birth,

That we may rise to heaven from earth.

Thou comest in the darksome night,

To make us children of the light,

To make us in the realms divine,

Like Thine own angels, 'round Thee shine. 

Making Us Sons

When the time had fully come,

God sent his Son, born of a woman, 

born under law, to redeem those under law,

that we might receive the full rights of sons.

Galatians 4:4-5

NIV

   Thinking Christmas   

O Come, Emmanuel  - 12th century hymn 

O come, O come, Emmanuel, 

And ransom captive Israel,

That mourns in lonely exile here

Until the Son of God appear.

O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,

And order all things, far and nigh; 

To us the path of knowledge show,

And cause us in her ways to go.

O come, Desire of nations, bind

All peoples in one heart and mind;

Bid envy, strife, and quarrels cease;

Fill the whole world with heaven's peace.

Prophecy

Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:

Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,

because he has come and has redeemed his people.

He has raised up a horn of salvation for us

in the house of his servant David...

And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;

for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,

to give his people the knowledge of salvation 

through the forgiveness of their sins,

because of the tender mercy of our God, 

by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven...

Luke 1:67-69; 76-78

NIV

   Countdown to Christmas  

A Glorious Light  - 18th century hymn

The people in darkness sat,

A glorious light have seen;

The light has shined on them who long

In shades of death have been.

For unto us a child is born,

To us a child is given,

And on His shoulder ever rests

All power on earth and heaven.

His name shall be the Prince of Peace

Forevermore adored,

The Wonderful, the Counselor,

The great and mighty Lord.

Prophecy

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, 

Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.

Isaiah 9:6-7

New International Version

What Matters to Voters    

   Funny how the tables turn.

   Twenty years ago, some Americans wanted President Clinton impeached due to his behavior in the people's house, and complaints by various women over the years. He was impeached by the House, for lying, not behavior.

   His defenders, including political women, argued that his personal behavior was none of our business, so long as he did his job. (Would blackmail have been our concern?) 

   Did he do his job? In 1998, the Dow Jones industrial average rose by 16 percent. Unemployment fell to a 28-year low. Dems gained seats in Congress. (Presidents get credit or blame, regardless.) 

   With the post-Cold War economy humming, Clinton went out with a 66 percent approval rating.

   Today, the same party that poo-pooed Clinton's behavior is getting on President Trump about his womanizing past. Fifty-nine congressional women are calling for impeachment. Two thirds of the Senate is required for removal from office.  

   Trump's approval rating remains stuck at 37 percent, which is still twice as good as Congress overall. Despite his executive accomplishments and self promotions, he hasn't won people over. 

   Is he doing his job? Last quarter's annual growth rate was the highest in three years. The core inflation rate is 1.7 percent. 

   The 4.1 percent unemployment rate is down (about 800,000 workers) since January. The DJIA is up 24 percent since he took office, one of the best performances ever. (Presidents get credit or blame, regardless.) 

   And tax cuts should make the numbers even better.

   The Clinton team's old wisecrack - It's the economy, stupid - still applies.

   If the choice is between the economy or behavior, most people vote for their finances. No surprise.   

                                       Bret Stephens, NYT columnist 
      Jimmy

   Are Christians at War?   

Years ago a national conference of women

sought to have Onward Christian Soldiers removed from the hymnal.

We say, if saints aren't at war, remove chapter 6 of Ephesians 

from the Bible, along with portions of Revelation, etc. 

We say, the ladies unknowingly had surrendered to the stealth enemy.

Paul, whom God chose to bring light to the Gentiles,

wrote that the devil still schemes against believers.

He heads an army of "rulers, authorities, powers 

and spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

They are organized, and have nothing to lose.

To stand our ground, we wear the armor of "truth," 

"righteousness," the "gospel," "faith" and the hope of "salvation." 

"Prayer" is essential in this life-long conflict, a key to personal victory. 

For offense, there is the "Word of God." 

It is offensive to the enemy.

The Commander offers this "sword" as our weapon.
We have a choice - to use it, or surrender.

Even so, we overcome only by the power of the Holy Spirit 

and our resolve to believe Spirit-inspired Scripture (Romans 8:13). 

Combat soldiers suffer hardships and opposition. 

They persevere, following the orders of their superiors. 

Christians walk a similar path, if we're truly following the King of kings.

Onward!

$400,000 Helmets   
Or Whatever They're Called    
    
   "We've got to come up with a new word," said the Air Force Chief of Staff, referring to helmets worn by F-35 fighter pilots. 

   These headgear are information-packed display systems designed to give pilots a god-like view - on the helmet visor. With the press of a button, a pilot can choose video of the battle space, thermal imagery or night vision. 

   The "helmet" follows the pilot's gaze, moving the data feed from six cameras on the F-35 air frame. He or she can see ahead, behind and below the floor. 

   Information about air or ground targets - it's all there. The system even advises which weapon to use, and the plane doesn't have to point toward the target to destroy it. 

   Helmet liners are precisely made to fit each pilot's head. The helmets are so special in the alignment of optical sensors, pilots wear mock-ups until they join an active-duty squadron. Liners obviously can't be reused.

   About 3,100 F-35s in three variations are on order. These Lockheed-Martin aircraft are going to Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and sold to NATO and other allied countries.

   All isn't super about these supersonic jets, which can travel 1200 mph. They are way over budget, behind schedule, and designed and redesigned while in production, with an estimated $1.5 trillion program cost through 2070. 

   At 152 decibels, communities near F-35 bases are not thrilled. Carrier-based sailors may need better hearing protection. 

   We wonder if this program will justify the cost. If and when it does enter combat, this stealth fighter will destroy an enemy before the enemy knows it is there.

   Was it so long ago that Charles Lindbergh used a compass, a stopwatch and a clock to navigate across the Atlantic? 
                                                                               AIR & SPACE magazine and online sources   
       Jimmy

Enrico Fermi

The Last Man 
   Who Knew Everything    

   Italian-born American physicist Enrico Fermi made a breakthrough 75 years ago this month that changed the world. 


   In 1942 he proved that chain reactions occur and could be used to release the energy of the uranium atom. He also cleared the way for the production of plutonium. 

   Why did he do this?

   A new book, The Last Man Who Knew Everything, by David N. Schwartz, tells the story. In January 1939, news came that Germans had split the uranium atom. Physicists worried that a bomb could be next.

   That summer, German physicist Werner Heisenberg visited America. Fermi tried to persuade him to defect to the U.S. Heisenberg replied, "I owe my patriotic duty to my country." 

   Fermi was shaken, wrote Schwartz,
and he moved ahead with experiments. 

   We are thankful the Nazis never developed a nuclear bomb. But the U.S. did, and used two bombs to hasten the 1945 Japanese surrender - the least of two horrible military options - while freeing 
millions in Southeast Asia from Japanese occupation. 

   Alas, other nations have joined the nuclear club, and we may be facing another choice between two horrible options. Back to the book...

   Having won a Nobel Prize in physics in 1938, Fermi contributed to quantum physics, particle physics, condensed matter physics and astrophysics. Since physics has become specialized, Schwartz considers Fermi the last scientist who could see all of physics as an integrated whole. 

   His book relates that, unlike most scientists, Fermi had a sunny personality and sense of humor. He was loved by colleagues.

   Fermi died in 1954 without revealing how his role in nuclear weapons affected his inner life. Do you think he was upset at having his peacetime work interrupted?  

      Jimmy




   

Starting at the Ending           
   Conclusion      

   After all his efforts, Solomon, declared in verses 4:2-3, that the dead ... are happier than the living. But better than both is he who has not yet been, who has not yet seen the evil that is under the sun. 

   I say that a stillborn child is better off - (than the man who cannot enjoy his prosperity). Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man (vs. 6:3,5).  

   The day of death is better than the day of birth (v. 7:11). 

   He continues: Naked a man comes from his mother's womb, and as he comes so he goes (v. 5:15). You don't know how the body is formed in a mother's womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things (v. 11:5).

   In chapter 5, Solomon mentions the few days of life God has given (v. 18).

   How about a few hours? A much-loved child lived about nine months, plus another 22 hours after birth ...and the spirit returns to God who gave it (v. 12:7). 

   Through tears we confess, sorrow is better than laughter. 
   The child is healed forever. 
   The day of death is better than the day of birth, our feelings aside. 

   Earth's tears will be wiped away (Rev. 21:4). The boy never saw the sun. 
The Lord God now gives him light from above the sun (Rev. 22:5). 

   We know something else: More than 900 years after Solomon, there was a time to be born and a time to die for the Son of man ... a man of sorrows. And the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all. Thank you, Jesus.

Stand in awe of God (v. 5:7).     

Starting at the Ending     
   Part 1 of 2

Warning: This is not Sunday School

   Utterly meaningless. Everything is meaningless. 

   So said the author of Ecclesiastes (teachings to an assembly), believed to be King Solomon in 935 B.C. He asked God for wisdom, and God obliged.

   The king himself spent his royal life in search of meaning, and denied himself no pleasure in the pursuit of happiness. His conclusion: nothing gained absent a personal relationship with God is truly satisfying. Even man's wisdom and wealth can bring sorrow.

   We are as animals, he noted. All come from dust and to dust all return (v. 3:20). 

The same fate overtakes the wise man and the fool (v. 2:14). 

   There is a time to be born and a time to die; a time to weep and a time to laugh 

(vs. 3:2,4). 

   The world would scoff: Sorrow is better than laughter (v. 7:3). There are good times and bad times. God has made the one as well as the other (v. 7:14). 

   If our worldly days are meaningless, short, not remembered, uncertain, a chasing after the wind... how should we live? 

   Solomon wanted the assembly to know that life eludes our control. The reality of human death is before us. 

   God has set eternity in the hearts of men, and everything God does will endure forever (vs. 3:11,14).  

Tomorrow: The day of death - better than the day of birth???

   

Who Said It?    
       
Match the names below with the quotations.
A name may be used more than once. 

   Alexander     Aristotle      Buddha     Confucius
   Freud           Hitler          Jesus        Lenin
   Lincoln         Marx           Darwin      Muhammad
   Roosevelt     Socrates      Young       Washington

I am the light of the world ______ 
I am the bread of life ______
I and the Father are one ______
I have overcome the world ______

Whoever drinks from the water I give him will never thirst ______
Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life ______
Whoever believes in me ... streams of living water will flow from within ______

I have come that they may have life ______
I am the resurrection and the life ______
I did not come to judge the world, but to save it ______ 
I am the way and the truth and the life ______

Before Abraham was, I am ______ 
Trust in God; trust also in me ______
Unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God ______
When you have lifted up the Son of Man, you will know who I am ______

If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed ______
Because I live, you also will live ______
No one comes to the Father except through me ______
Love each other as I have loved you ______

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth ______
Peace be with you ______
Follow me! ______