For many, the Pandemic quarantine provided a break from the routine, a slowdown (but not for all). In the secular world, more people are retiring early since the Pandemic, and, although the worker shortage was perhaps brewing before the pandemic, the quarantine intensified it. More people are concerned about smelling the roses and less concerned about making a name for themselves.

The current series by Mark Snoeberger about this subject made me think that this would be a great poll question.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:2,

“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.”



What is your view as to what “sound the trumpet” means?

Poll Results

What is “sounding the trumpet” in Matthew 6:2

The gift of prophecy in the modern church is interpreted in many ways in our day. Sometimes, folks beleive is several different aspects of the gift.

So please choose what you believe is the predominant aspect of the gift in our day. Then comment with your nuances and qualifying statements, please.

Poll Results

What is your view of the current gift of Prophecy (main concept)?

Note to our overseas participants: “We” below is a first person plural referring to your truly, fellow Americans, and military allies.

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

We fought a war in Vietnam, pulled out, and left our allies there in the lurch, it seemed.

It seems like we entered Afghanistan uninvited to eliminate its use as a terrorist base, supported a non-Taliban government, and now are seeing slaughters and the return of leaders who will nurture terrorists.

Am I missing something?

With the Delta strain of COVID-19 going wild, it appears that we might have a “crisis among the unvaccinated.” But, because it is possible for vaccinated people to transmit the disease without showing symptoms or feeling ill, the CDC is already beginning to advise masks, even for the vaccinated (out of concern for the unvaccinated).

Although about half our people are vaccinated, with the Delta strain being more contagious that the version we previously experienced during the shut-down, we could, in theory, see our hospitals as busy as before.

IMO, every Bible version has its pros and cons.

This is your chance to express your level of contentment with the version you use. And, even if you are very content, you can list things you don’t like about your version. I guess this is a complaint forum for less than perfection!

While commenting, you can mention which version you use. Maybe a revision committee will see our gripes, or maybe you will find comfort in not being alone.

You are also free to share what you like about the version you use, and other versions you might prefer for personal use.

This question needs to be answered in a general sense. For example, during COVID, a lot of churches did not practice the Lord’s Supper at all, while others practiced online as viewers obtained their own elements.

Then there are special occasions. In addition to our Sunday schedule of every-other-month, we also celebrate the Lord’s Supper on Good Frdaiy. So I would choose the “every other month” option, even though the answer was not exact.

EXCEPTIONS ARE A GIVEN AND THEY ARE UNDERSTOOD. We are talking about “generally.”

I believe some of Jesus’ teachings about discipleship come from I Kings 19:19-21. The rabbis viewed the relationship of Elisha to Elijah as a role model for a disciple. Here are the verses:

19 Elijah left there and found Elisha son of Shaphat as he was plowing. Twelve teams of oxen were in front of him, and he was with the twelfth team. Elijah walked by him and threw his mantle over him. 20 Elisha left the oxen, ran to follow Elijah, and said, “Please let me kiss my father and mother, and then I will follow you.”

Ecclesiastes 7:27-28 in the ESV reads:

27 Behold, this is what I found, says the Preacher, while adding one thing to another to find the scheme of things— 28 which my soul has sought repeatedly, but I have not found. One man among a thousand I found, but a woman among all these I have not found.