Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Wednesday Bible Study: Peoples of the epistles part 7

Now we are down to the last two weeks of this series- the two books on Thessalonica. And to understand this particular church, we must go first to its founding:

Act 17:1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.
Act 17:2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,
Act 17:3 explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, "This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ."
Act 17:4 And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women.
Act 17:5 But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd.
Act 17:6 And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, "These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also,
Act 17:7 and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus."
Act 17:8 And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things.
Act 17:9 And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

A small number of Jews, and a greater number of Greeks, listened to Paul and were converted, but they were almost submerged in a sea of those who didn't, driven by jealousy, by the disruption of their positions and ways of life, and willing to compromise themselves with paid thugs and the government of pagans to win their point. Seems politics has never changed.

But it wasn't just the Judaizers who were against them:

1Th 2:14 For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews...

This was worrying Paul; despite what was happening to him in Athens, he was more concerned with the state of affairs in Thessalonica, since he had had to escape by night from the Jews there (Acts 17:10). But despite facing one of the most violent reactions thus far to his preaching, those who believed, inspired by the risks Paul took, held on the tighter to the faith... unlike last week's lesson in Laodicea, who relied on their plenty instead of God, and became lukewarm.

Satan's main assault here targeted two areas- sexual immorality (4:1-8), and fear of the future (4:13- 5:4). On the first, he gave them no new warning or teaching, but perhaps a new angle to look at it...

1Th 4:3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification, for you to abstain from fornication,
1Th 4:4 each one of you to know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor
1Th 4:5 (not in the passion of lust, even as the nations who do not know God),
1Th 4:6 not to go beyond and defraud his brother in this matter (because the Lord is the avenger concerning all these, as we also have forewarned you and testified).
1Th 4:7 For God has not called us to uncleanness, but in sanctification.

Both "go beyond" and "defraud" carry the idea of "overreaching"- that the various sexual sins committed around them were 'stepping into their brothers' territory', and for a church that had just been praised for brotherly love...

1Th 4:9 Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another...

...this would be a much greater sin.

On the second, it became a question of , "What happens to so-and-so who died?" Here is where Paul teaches us our ultimate confidence...

1Th 4:13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.
1Th 4:14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

Here, Paul would unwrap the mystery of the Rapture- that event that critics continue to falsely claim "Isn't in the Bible", and some modern churches choose not to stress in order to keep their flocks in a more worldly-minded frame.

1Th 4:15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
1Th 4:17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.
1Th 4:18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

And where did Paul learn this mystery?

Gal 1:11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel.
Gal 1:12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

Gal 1:15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace,
Gal 1:16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone;
Gal 1:17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.

Paul finishes this first letter off with a sort of "Ten Commandments", but these weren't the 'don'ts' of the Law, but the 'dos' of grace:

- Esteem your pastors

-Be patient with all

-Pursue good for all

-Rejoice in all things

-Pray without ceasing

-Give thanks in all things

-Don't quench the Spirit

-Put solid preaching ahead of flamboyant gifts

-Test all things, keeping the good

- Abstain from EVERY evil.

Next time, we'll see how they did.

Monday, January 3, 2022

My theme for 2022

Hope is on my mind for 2022. Not my theme, but on my mind.

I don't have hope that those who 'not only commit the sin, but approve of it in others' will dry up and blow away. That was erased soon after my first keystrokes of the new year.

I don't have hope that people I don't want to die will stop dying. That came soon after.

I don't have hope that any level of any government will suddenly think, "You know, I would feel better trying to serve the people well rather than gathering power for myself and my rich supporters." Scrolled past too much evidence without stopping to read.

I don't have any hope in my sports teams in the coming year. Even those who had success last year are currently watching players jumping off like they just hit an iceberg.

I don't have hope that the spend-side of the economy will slow down for the earn side. Frankly, I'm beginning to wonder if I shouldn't pray for someone to invent low-salt ramen before 2023.

My health? Did you see how I ate on my Christmas vacation?

No, but I do have hope in one thing, that's my theme. That theme is, "promise."

Someone pointed out today that the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, ended with a BUNCH of promises...

Mal 4:1 "For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.
Mal 4:2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.
Mal 4:3 And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the LORD of hosts.
Mal 4:4 "Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.
Mal 4:5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.
Mal 4:6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction."

Look at all the promises:

-the end of evildoers

- Jesus will heal those who fear His name, and bring rejoicing

- a day will come when our enemies will become roadkill

-fathers and children will be reunited in spirit

Now, look what follows in the start of the NT, aka Matthew:

Mat 1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Mat 1:2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Mat 1:3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,
Mat 1:4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon...

You get the point- a boring genealogy. But is that ALL it is? Heck no! It's a promise as well, a promise that started almost 4,000 years ago with Abram of Ur, and look where it ends up...

Mat 1:16 ...and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

It ends with Jesus- a promise still delivering 2,000 years later!

Think about it: If you put your life savings in the Bank of Ur 6,000 years ago, how much would you have now?
NOTHING! Whatever still existed would be in a drawer in the British Museum now.

On the other hand...

Mat 6:19 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
Mat 6:20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

I don't know how much I have laid up, or whether it is gold, jewels, or gift cards to the New Jerusalem Costco. But I know its safe. It's a promise. And believe me, I hope that I'm smart enough that, when I go to do my 'end of the year' post this coming December, that half of the pageviews are me re-reading this to remind myself.

Sunday, January 2, 2022

The Better Part, week #49

This week, a FB series....

The Better Part, Day #238 (part 1 of a series):

So this morning, I heard Pastor Colin Smith say (paraphrased), "If God has a problem WITH us, He has a solution FOR us, because He has a purpose IN us." I want to spend some time unpacking that.

First, to believe that, you have to accept that their is a God. And you can't escape the truth in that, even in atheism. Because with no god, you must logically accept evolution. Evolution teaches that the traits that evolve over millennia are kept because they have a needed purpose, a competitive advantage.

So man has evolved the unique ability to think in the abstract, to understand there is a Divine, something beyond himself. If this was a false concept, there would be no need to EVOLVE it. So even evolution would logically lead to there being a god or gods. And atheists, when they argue from "I can't believe there is a god because why would he blah blah blah" are crushing their own logic. If a being is a god, he would be, by definition, something greater than we, and thus not accountable to man's standards.

And now that logic establishes there IS a God, next step will be to ask, "WHAT is God?"

The Better Part, Day #239 (part 2 of a series):

I heard Pastor Colin Smith say (paraphrased), "If God has a problem WITH us, He has a solution FOR us, because He has a purpose IN us." I want to spend some time unpacking that.

So by logic we established that there is a god, and thus He/they must be greater than us. But is there one God, or many? If we look at the religions that had more than one god, we notice some things they had in common. In them, man was created, but given no real purpose other than being subservient. In them, the gods have traits just like men: lust, pride, greed, wrath- in other words, all the bad traits of the flesh that Paul points out. Without, or with very little, of the virtues, especially love.

Another thing to look at in these religions, these gods rarely got along. Not surprising in humans, but it should be surprising with gods. If they truly animated the universe, they would have had to work together to make even the simplest things of nature work. Zeus could have never called rain from the sky if the sea god Neptune were mad at him. And they would have had to have the four winds in agreement even then. And what if they were working for calm skies in Greece while Donar was causing storms to blow in from the Russian steps? So much for tolerance.

No, logic tells us that, in such a complicated universe, with so many "goldilocks zones" needed just to permit life, One God had to oversee it all.

And if One God made us, and balanced things so well to sustain us, He had to have a reason FOR us. And if we can't all agree with that, then that One God has to have a big problem with a lot of us. That's where we go next time.

The Better Part, Day #240 (part 3 of a series):

I heard Pastor Colin Smith say (paraphrased), "If God has a problem WITH us, He has a solution FOR us, because He has a purpose IN us." I want to spend some time unpacking that.

I started yesterday on the topic of God's problem with us, from the logical standpoint. We proved logically there is One God; and He wouldn't have gone through all the intricacies of Creation without a purpose for us. So, if we are born into many different religions, with vastly different ideas of the man-to-God relationship, then it's inevitable that, merely by accident of birth in many cases, a LOT of people have the wrong idea about Him.

On that same line, He had to have given us a free-enough will to choose, since so many different choices have been made. If not all believe the same way, then a LOT of people have chosen against His purpose for us.

Thus, we get to the point where logic tells us our mere existence proves that God HAS to have a solution for us. Next time, we examine those possible solutions.

The Better Part, Day #241 (part 4 of a series):

I heard Pastor Colin Smith say (paraphrased), "If God has a problem WITH us, He has a solution FOR us, because He has a purpose IN us." I want to spend some time unpacking that.

Not many of the religions man created trying to fill "the God-shaped hole" his own way even recognized the problem of logic caused by one Creator yet many different conceptions of Him. That began to change when Jesus Christ began His teachings. Right now, I would say there are four main ways man has approached the problem- not counting atheism, which we've already dismissed as illogical even by their own standards.

First, we have in Islam the false solution of "annihilate the unbeliever". Logic tells us that if a Creator wise enough to create this universe thought this was a solution, He surely could have done it Himself. Or, He would have strengthened his people to accomplish it within the framework of devotion to himself. Instead, the Muslim 'faith' has fought itself, aligned itself with chronically corrupt governments (think Ottoman Empire), or just flat went to the craven expedient of terrorism.

Next, we have the false solution of 'reincarnation', wherein the soul starts in a state of unbreakable poverty, and if they do this or that, when they die the soul returns in a new form somewhere up the ladder. Logic tells us if such a system worked, the number of poor unfortunates would be constantly lessening. In 2020, the poverty rate of increase in India went from a predicted 4.3% at the beginning of the year to an actual 9.7% at the end.

Then, you have ritual as the third false solution. If ritual fixed things, we would have to question why the Holocaust happened, or why 58% of Catholic women feel they are not obligated to follow their Bishops' rulings on abortion. In the end, all of these things involve man trying to 'fix' things with God.

But if God is the Creator, and so far above us, then it is logical that a man made 'fix' cannot fix the problem. The solution has to come from God. That is where we'll go next time.

The Better Part, Day #242 (part 5 of a series):

I heard Pastor Colin Smith say (paraphrased), "If God has a problem WITH us, He has a solution FOR us, because He has a purpose IN us." I want to spend some time unpacking that.

Now, how God decides to fix the problem with us depends upon what He intends to do with us in the end. If the intent was simple companionship, why would He not have put us in Heaven? If it was blind obedience (robotic), why then give us choices? Those two questions lead us to the two best answers. The first one tells us we are like vessels of Gold and silver, that need refining. The second tells us He desires us to CHOOSE to be those vessels.

So now, if we are vessels of precious metal, how does He fix us? Well first, we have to accept that we NEED fixing; second, we have to realize that WE can't do the fixing. A mere vessel might not have to go through that Q&A; but living vessels, granted choice, we do. And how do you fix such a vessel? Well, the Creator has to melt us down and reforge us- remake us.

We have come this far logically. And if we have to come to this point, then our next step is, which faith allows for a God that will do this? That answer is, only one. Remember, that it requires a God that wants MORE than subservience, but wants to LOVE us and wants us to love back. A God that doesn't demand we destroy our fellow vessels, but join them in being remade.

From here, you have to make your own choice. Work out your own salvation. May your New Year be blessed with that journey and its logical conclusion.

Friday, December 31, 2021

M10 show week #5

So here we are, New Year's Eve, and for the first time in centuries (of posts), this is what we call a LIVE M10 show- not put in the can the night before! And this week, we have the final 10 of the M10's top songs of the year- we have two new M10 songs this week- and, maybe, a neat year ending surprise!

Elvis: Great! I love surprises!

All right then, let me get at it by surprising you with the first half of the year's top ten!

10- Duran Duran (featuring Chai), More Joy! The first of two chart toppers for the vet rockers from the lp Future Past.

9- Midnight Train To Georgia, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit with Brittney Spencer. This girl has a knockout voice!

8- Black Pumas, Wichita Lineman. In a year of tremendous covers, it is amazing that there is still one more that beat these last two...

7- Duran Duran (featuring Tove Lo), Give It All Up. This was another one of those "knew it was a #1 on first play" deals for me.

6- Michael Sweet, Blown Away. The second of three #1s from Catspaw- and the first of the two on this list.

Hey, you changed the order, din't ya?

That's why you never know for sure where they'll end up till I type it in! Next up, intro the first debut this week!

Okay, so this guy's a fairly famous actor in the UK, and a solid musical act, too! His first time on the M10 starts at #10- here's Matt Berry...

**********************************************

Okay, so that was bizarre...

What do you expect from a dude whose label is called Acid Jazz? Now, let me knock out most of the rest of this week's top 10...

9- The Explorers Club drops from 6 with Hurts So Bad...

8- Tom Jones up a spot with Not Dark Yet...

7- The aforementioned Give It All Up, down 3...

6- Beach House with Once Twice Melody, down 1...

5- Jumping 5 is Eddie Vedder and The Haves....

And at #4 this week is the other debut- a cover of a top 10 from 1961 by one of my favorites, the Fleetwoods- Once again, the Explorer's Club...

*****************************************************************

Dude, yer gonna make me cry with that stuff...

Me too, bud, so why don't ya line up the next 4 of the year's top ten whilst I set up the surprise...

Okay, here goes...

5- Redspencer, Happy . Best time you'll ever have beatin' up a vacuum cleaner...

4- Michael Sweet, Challenge The Gods . Chris says it's his second favorite guitar solo of all time...

3- Overcoats (featuring Tennis), The Hardest Part . Chris also says, the top three haven't been in doubt since August.

2- illuminati hotties, u.v.v.p. This'n was almost the LAST M10 #1... between shuttin' down the Time Machine, and the line, "Here we stand... at the end of all things..."

Okay, so let me get the last couple of things wrapped up before I get to one last surprise... and no, not a beauty contest. Sorry, I thought about it, but I just ... have to shut that door. Anyway, the #1 song of the year should be no surprise. Two weeks longer at #1 than anyone ever; ten more 'standings points' than any other song, only song over 100 points... and longest #1 so far!

****************************************************

And back to this week's top ten, for a moment...

3- Geowulf's Open Me Up, down 1...

2- Manchester Orchestra and Lucius with Inaudible, up 2....

...and for that last surprise, I thought I'd go back and find the other #1's that greeted our old new years.

2015...

The Decemberists, The Wrong Year....

2016...

...Melody's Echo Chamber with I Follow You....

2017...

Shilpa Ray, Manhattanoid Creepazoids...

2018...

...Anna Burch, 2 Cool 2 Care..............

2019...

...Criminal Hygiene and Incompletely...................

2020...

...Saintseneca and Ladder To The Sun...

And this year's New Year greeter comes from the act that has the most 'last chart of the year' top tens with three....

...Beach House and ESP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That wraps it for this year, see you next year!

Wednesday, December 29, 2021

Wednesday Bible study: Peoples of the Epistles part six

While we learned many things about the Church at Colossae in this book, we have to go outside of it to learn something key about it- many of them would not long survive reading the letter.

In AD 60 or 61, and by my thinking, either before or not long after the letter arrived- Colossae was hit by a mammoth earthquake, which- like one not fifty years before- destroyed the place. And besides it, it had three other enemies stalking it. Well, four actually, if you count economics.

Colossae was in a valley that also contained two other cities, one of which you might know. Most directly affecting them was Hierapolis, Mentioned by Paul in chapter 4. Much of the economic good that had come from the valley being a trade route had shifted to the better-located Hierapolis by the earthquake of AD 60 or 61; but dominant in the valley was Laodicea, the "lukewarm" city of Revelation 6...

Rev 3:14 "And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: 'The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation.
Rev 3:15 "'I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot!
Rev 3:16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
Rev 3:17 For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.

What really makes this verse pop was that Nero in 61 sent his men to Laodicea to find out what they needed to rebuild; and they told them, "We're good, we are rich enough to handle it ourselves." Mind you, I found that, and many other things about the aftermath, from secular sources, such as the reports of the Roman historian Tacitus.

But back to Colossae. Did Paul warn them of the upcoming disaster? Not that I could see, except for one thing that I'll share a bit later. Paul was more concerned about 'defending the faith' against the three enemies arrayed to battle it.

The first of those he spends from 2:8 to 2:17 warning them about, and explaining how Christ had already defeated this foe for them; those lovely Judaizers...

Col 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ...

Col 2:15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
Col 2:16 Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.

The third of those foes, and yes, I'm skipping the middle, is similar to the first: The Gnostics, who were trying to build man-made religions out of logic...

Col 2:20 If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations--
Col 2:21 "Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch"
Col 2:22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)--according to human precepts and teachings?
Col 2:23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

But in between was another enemy, born of the first two, and I believe that its attack was why the Apostle closed the letter with this warning:

Col 4:16 And when this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea.
Col 4:17 And say to Archippus, "See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord."

Archippus, Paul's "fellow soldier" in Philemon, was the leader of the house church in Colossae in Philemon's household. And here is why I think it was prophetic.

First, let me expose that second enemy:

Col 2:18 Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind,
Col 2:19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.

This Church was battling a Gnostic heresy of Angel worship, and after the quake, they tried to "explain" what happened:

Tradition says (e.g. Bollandisti 1762) that pagans decided to destroy the sanctuary at Colossae, where the local priest, Archippus, the eye-witness of the apparition, lived. To this end, they diverted a watercourse toward the temple, attempting to submerge the area. Invoked by Archippus the Archangel appeared and, striking the rock with his staff, opened a wide ﬁssure in the earth and channelled a new path for the ﬂowing waters. The name of the new settlement was derived from thatﬁssure: Chonae (¼ funnel). This legend was strongly believed and the sanctuary at the site of the apparition became a famous destination for pilgrimages through centuries, until it was suppressedafter the collapse of the Byzantine Empire (thirteenth century).

-The AD 60 Denizli Basin Earthquake and the Apparition of the Archangel Michael at Colossae (Aegean Basin), by Luigi Piccardi, Italian National Research Council, January 2007

So basically, they took the natural antagonism of the city's pagans and the natural-occuring events of any large earthquake (ie water running backwards, lightnings and fires) and concocted a story that Archippus called it down- and Archippus would now have to be reminded over and over (note 4:17's "SAY to Archippus," indicating everyone in the church needed to do this) so that he didn't fall to pride and succumb to the Gnostic legend himself.

The city, regardless was going to need to rely on Christ in the aftermath. With its own decline, and Laodicea's selfish refusal of aid from Rome, Colossae became little more than a dying village. One source I saw suggested that, much like today, the area was plagued by scam artists from Egypt and elsewhere, who collected money "to rebuild temples" and weren't seen again. With all of this going against them, what did Paul give them to survive these disasters? Well, he gave them three sets of clothing...

First set:

Col 3:9 Do not lie to one another, for you have stripped off the old nature with its practices
Col 3:10 and have clothed yourselves with the new nature, which is being renewed in full knowledge, consistent with the image of the one who created it.
Col 3:11 In him there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, or free person. Instead, the Messiah is all and in all.

This set of clothing garbed them in the Word, not only helping them fight off the old sins of their old lives, but preventing divisions made by men like the Judaizers.

Second set:

Col 3:12 Therefore, as God's chosen ones, holy and loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.
Col 3:13 Be tolerant of one another and forgive each other if anyone has a complaint against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, you also should forgive.

This clothing wraps them in good deeds, especially towards each other. "If we don't hang together, we shall surely all hang separately..."- possibly Ben Franklin.

Third set:

Col 3:14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which ties everything together in unity.
Col 3:15 Let the peace of the Messiah also rule in your hearts, to which you were called in one body, and be thankful.
Col 3:16 Let the word of the Messiah inhabit you richly with wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, and singing to God with thankfulness in your hearts.
Col 3:17 And whatever you do, whether by speech or action, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Love unties Christ to the church, and the church to Christ, providing all the gifts they- and we- needed to get by.

Tuesday, December 28, 2021

Poking through the (e-mail) Trash

So another "too crappy to go for a walk " day, and as an entertainment, I thought I'd go through my current trashed e-mails list. The file is currently holding 77 e-mails, 57 of them never opened. Before you think I'm just a callous bastard that cares for no one, let's just see how many were actually needed.

4 of them are "Personalized spotcrime reports", IOW the crime that hit the police blotters within 5 miles of my house. Why I didn't open this morning's message I don't know, but I'll blame Misty and move on.

7 are for various things I agreed to get on the letter list of, and then decided I never felt like reading them. I used to unsubscribe to such things, but now days, spammers send you phishing mails to get you to unsubscribe from things you never subscribe to (I'm sure dozens of these will be in among my other lists), so now I just quietly ignore them.

12 are various charities that I have given to anytime in my life, asking for some more. (see also: 95% of my discarded snail mail). At least one of which from a charity I gave to once maybe 15 years ago opens by thanking me for being one of their most dedicated supporters, go figure.

The various political campaigns that I have NEVER given to thank me for my support as well. I have 2 of them today. Surprisingly today, I have no ads for "Let's Go Brandon" merchandise, which I got 3 per day leading up to Christmas.

PAUSE: Time for some more of those pesky M10 top 40 tunes! Today we'll be covering the teens, so you won't see any more till New Years Eve...

20- Geowulf, Open Me Up. This one wouldn't be in the top 40 by points yet this week, but it will be a "split the difference" across this year and next, so it gets put in based on estimated finish.

19- Old 97's, Champaign Illinois. One pulled from the recent past (2010) to be a #1 this year. Because time is not a factor on a musical Tardis.

18- Lily Hiatt, Brightest Star. An early-season #1.

17- Blackberry Smoke, Ain't The Same. Wartime PTSD rears its ugly head again.

16- Sass Jordan, The Key. My yearly Debbie the DogLady contribution.

And now, back to our previous program, already in progress...

16 of our trashed missives belong to blogging: Either my replies to comments, replies to my comments, or posts that get e-mailed to me because they aren't with Blogger and are therefore screwed out of sending blog posts by e-mail (like me). Odds are these have been read, or accessed through another medium. Another 7 belong to sites that send out daily or weekly things I look at, like "Best Classic Bands" or daily devotionals.

8 more belong to the "I want to sell you a gadget" category, including a special today on something I simply MUST have- a "better butter spreader".

Better than THIS? G'wan...

I have three solicitations from dating apps, which reminds me: It's been a couple of weeks since I got one from "your wife", offering her preferred male enhancement pill. Speaking of other such services, I count 6 of those, including Liberty Mutual, a search-for-a-maid site, and the daily love letter from Empire flooring. I haven't seen today's letters from Anderson windows, Gutter wizards, or all my other friends from businesses who don't know I live in an apartment yet.

Then we have our usual collection of "free gifts" (today from Comcast and Lowes); 4 more from services we're signed up for (one of which being the three-times-a-week notice from Disney + that the friend whose account Laurie "borrowed a couple of times" signed in); and one from a site I signed up for to do something on another site I actually give a crap about. This other site, I got bored and tried to sign back in. It rejected my auto load user name and password, apparently because on the sign in page, it says "using your e-mail is okay", but when you use it, it locks you out after a couple of tries and then informs you you can't use a @ in the user name (and thus, can't use your e-mail). I wrote them to inform them their system was balmy, and today I got the third message back (first 2 ignored), telling me, "This is a just a super quick notice that we will be closing your open support ticket and I will be eating it shortly." Munch away, muchacho.

15- Weezer, Grapes Of Wrath. If this was the Earworm list, it would be top 5.

14- Counting Crows, Bobby And The Rat Kings. Winner, song of Summer '21.

13- Driving To Texas, Tom Morello featuring Phantogram. Actually, Phantogram with the former Rage Against The Machine leader doing the guitar solo. But, it was his lp, so...

12- Molly Parden, Kitchen Table. Another strong contender for Earworm of '21.

And, 11- Tom Jones, Till. From 1971, and thank you!

Finally, we have the special "It's what I am, but I'm not" category- title lines claiming them to be one thing, when it's actually just an ad for something else. I have four of them, including the every day one that starts with "Animal Encyclopedia" but goes on to tell me about "Quiet dog breeds that rarely bark". This started up sometime after the every day ad for the "doggie bark collar that really works" stopped, so I bet if I ever opened one, that's what I would find. But my favorite- in fact, my inspiration for today's post:

Title line: "Devastating disasters"

Description: "7 places to retire that won't break the bank"...

POSTSCRIPT: In the time it took to type this up, we've added:

3 daily devotionals I will actually read

2 charity contribution requests

One infomercial from some conservative group

Unnecessary notifications from Spotify and Dlvr.it

An offer of a trip to Egypt

And an offer for a pet shop credit card.

Giving us a "looked at or actually read" percentage of 35.22% I wonder if Xfinity would give me 2/3 off my email bill?

Xfinity: "We offered you a free gift, and you trashed it!"

Monday, December 27, 2021

Boxing Day walk

Yeah, I know I'm not supposed to use that, being a Yank, but it's understood and a lot easier than "the day after Christmas"...

BTW: I'll also be sneaking in the next ten of the M10 top 40 of 2021 today...

Things are frosty...

...and bright!

Ducks on a romantic morning swim

And we decide to invade PFW!

But before we cross that bridge...

30- Crack The Sky, Blowing Up Detroit . Latest effort from a veteran band, and lovingly non-PC.

29- Gerry Rafferty, Slow Down. One of three hits, 2 #1s, from his (posthumous) new lp.

28- Weezer, Tell Me What You Want. First M10 #1 from a video game, to my knowledge...

27- Griffith James, Market and Black (featuring Tennis). One of 2 big hits for an act co-starring Tennis as performers/producers. The other is MUCH higher...

And now, what lies at the other end of the bridge?