I am saddened about the passing of Mr. Rogers. That man was a hero to people of all ages for his gentle nature. In his own way, he embodied the fruits of the spirit. I remember, from a few years ago, the day I realized that this gentle man was for real.

I was watching an episode of Candid Camera, a show that puts people in unusual situations and films their reactions. There was this one stunt at a hotel near a television conference of some sort. The only situation was that there was no television in the hotel room and the celebrities staying there were all wanting to watch a lot of T.V. for one reason or another.

One by one they brought in the hotel guests and they all were irate about the bare spot where a television would normally rest. The show had to do quite a bit of bleeping, due to the language used. It was a real eye-opener, as most of the viewers already had an opinion of these celebrities, based on their movies, television shows and interviews.

Then in walked Mr. Rogers. He noticed the absent television after it was pointed out to him and the man acting as the hotel manager went through his practiced apology, which had only earned him tongue lashings before.

"Oh, that's all right, I'd rather just read a good book anyway." He started to put his bags away and the actors didn't know what to do to get a response from him. They conceded to his kindness and let him know that it was all a joke and he would be led to his "real" room. One without hidden cameras, of course.

From that day forward, I have known that my love for this man was not in vain. Mr. Rogers was the real deal and his gentle nature and love for everyone was no act. He will be sorely missed by all who had ever visited his neighborhood.

Yours because His,

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But frustration wasn't in God's plan. For this, Moses would never enter the Promised Land that he was leading the Israelites to. He must have been heartbroken.

Day 2

It's not often you hear about a believer in God outside the main characters in a story, especially in the Old Testament, but Balaam was in the right place at the right time... at least in the beginning of the story. That conversation between him and his donkey was pretty funny, I must say. If a donkey looked up at me and spoke, I'd be pretty startled! I guess Balaam was too angry to be shocked at something so trivial. After this exchange, he rejoined Balak as God intended him to do.

Four times he spoke the will of God, for Israel to be a great nation. Once he spoke of the fates of the kings who were with him. Then he got up and left. I'm surprised the kings didn't attack him then and there!

Day 3

The Israelites began to worship false gods and God's wrath was stirring against them. Aaron's son was able to quell His wrath by killing an Israelite and the woman he was sinning with, but the death in the Israelites was still great. A second census was taken and the number of Israelite men age 20 and above had dropped by about two thousand. Take into account the fact that boys were growing into men all along and you'll see that more than that number had died for their actions.

Day 4

By this time Moses was getting old, and even though he would never set foot in the Promised Land, God told him that he would see it from afar before his passing. Moses asked God to appoint a leader to succeed him and Joshua was chosen. The rest of this passage is God telling Moses how the Israelites are to prepare their burnt offerings on a regular schedule. It seems that God is preparing for the passing of Moses more than Moses! If God is setting the affairs in order, though, I wouldn't be one to hinder him!

Day 5

For a final act, God has Moses send an army to attack the Midianites in vengeance. They kill every man that stands up to them, as they were told, but they decided to keep some plunder and bring back some of the women. If you recall the reading from day three, it was the seduction of women that caused so much trouble before. Because of this, any women who had been with a man before was executed. The rest were considered spoils of war. And what spoils! 12,000 men herded approximately 800,000 animals back to camp, and I had a hard enough time controlling three sheep at the county fair as a boy! (inside joke)

Day 6

Now why would these tribes want to be content with the lands they were in? Granted, they were good for livestock, but they were promised a land flowing with milk and honey! They had to be reminded of their duties to the Israelite nation and accept these terms before their request could be accepted. At least an agreement was reached before another forty years was added to the wanderings!

Read carefully the final verses of this day's reading! God commanded through Moses to drive out all of the inhabitants of Canaan (the promised land) and destroy all idols. If they would fail to do this, they would regret it for generations to come. Instructions don't get much more specific, do they?

Day 7

Final preparations for the land are made here. Boundaries are set even before the land is won, for with God before them, the Israelites couldn't lose. Laws are also made concerning murder, both intentional and unintentional. A court system is also made so the people can distinguish between the two. Can you imagine the excitement of these people? They had wandered the desert for more than 40 years and seen an entire generation pass on, and finally their wandering was nearly over!

Weekly Link http://www.virtualstapler.com/ Back to the absurd, useless sites! This is a web site about, of all things, staplers! They have poetry dedicated to this office supply, frequently asked questions about staplers, and more! Now that I think about it, how many frequently asked questions about a stapler could there be? I counted them, and there are only two, but they are extremely in-depth! Check it out, you'll be surprised! The animated stapler on the front page of the site is definitely worth the price of admission (free)!

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Thanks for sharing my goal of reading the Bible in its entirety this year!