Circle of Knowledge

Posted on 10 Nov 2022 by Kathie Whitestone Thompson

Good morning, Readers.
8:45 as I begin on this crisp November morning.

Matthew 18 is the subject passage of Scripture.

¹²“What’s your opinion? What will somebody do who has a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine on the hillsides and go off to find the stray?
¹³And if he happens to find it? Yes! I tell you he is happier over it than over the ninety-nine that never strayed!
¹⁴Thus your Father in heaven does not want even one of these little ones to be lost. source

Does it comfort you that the LORD goes looking for wandering sheep?
From what I have observed, I have wandering sheep in my circle of knowledge. Perhaps you do too.
I think two indicators will identify wandering sheep (this goes for wolves in sheep’s clothing too).

How long has it been since the sheep sat to read Scripture? I mean really read — like a whole chapter in one sitting?
When was the last time the sheep had a decision to make and the sheep made that decision based on what the Scripture revealed?

Have you observed that sheep wandering from The Fold of GOD do not often read Scripture and do not often live by faith? They do not decide what to say, what to do, where to go, etc., etc. based on what does the Bible say about this?
Is this you? Is this any person in your circle of knowledge?

We might also describe this as straying from their upbringing.
Or ignoring the knowledge of GOD they have known since childhood?
Or perhaps they are dabbling, soaking even, in the culture around them – patterning their choices like the people on their digital screens; feeding on those screens for hours a day. These are our wandering sheep, if not pagans altogether.

It’s frightening to me.
It is to you too, if you are not a wandering sheep, yourself.

But we can pray!
And we can take this Scripture for encouragement, for hope, and put our Trust in the GOD who spoke it.

¹⁴Thus your Father in heaven does not want even one of these little ones to be lost.

He has sent JESUS to find them. So we pray when they are found, they will say YES and return or for the first time come to the Fold of GOD.

So, in our circles of knowledge, identify as best you can those you suspect are wandering, present them in prayer to The Father, and believe He is going for them; into whatever high place or squaller they are now residing.

Luke 18:27 “And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”

Thank you for coming today.
Love, Kathie

Also known as Brittle Star

Posted on 7 Nov 2022 by Kathie Whitestone Thompson

As I said in an earlier post I’ve been editing here at The White Stone today. I did not mean to edit this long.

Well, sometimes edits do not go as one intended. One should not convert a published post to a draft — that necessitates a re-publish. So here we are. (For the third time )

Brittle Star (again) Sometime in 2013 I think

IDOK DEVOTION FOR FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010

Brittle Star

Our Guide at the Sea, Sand, and Stars, situated in Orange Beach, Alabama acquainted us with many creatures, including a Brittle Star. To certain second graders, it looked like a small octopus.

Truth be told, only one thing about my field trip with Issy made me sad – really, really sad. Hearing about fins and tails and shapes of sea creatures and how each one works so perfectly in harmony to enable them to swim, find food, and escape predators just did me good – I loved it! And I suspect you are not surprised that as I listened I thought of The Father. I thought about how smart He is. I thought how AWESOME He is. I thought how ingenious He is. I thought how fun He is! And then I grieved that those precious children with minds like sponges soaking up all that important information about fish and seahorses and Brittle Stars and planets with their precision orbits, with the earth’s axis titled just right – all of it, and not once were they told all this came to be because God made it! Not once were they inspired to see how Awesome He is, how smart He is, and how fun He is! It still makes me sad!

But back to the Brittle Star. When our Guide told us that the Brittle Star will break its own leg off and leave it behind (it can grow another one) in order to escape a predator, a spiritual application began to form on the screen of my mind. Wouldn’t it be great if we were as ‘smart’ as the Brittle Star? Wouldn’t it be smart of us to be willing to voluntarily cut off those ‘appendages’ that make us prey for the Evil One? This Scripture came to mind and even though it is primarily speaking to an unsaved soul, you will probably see why it came to mind.

Matthew 18:⁸ “If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire. source

And since I sat to write, this one came to mind too: Hebrews 12: ¹ Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, source

I’ll not probe with you the laying aside of every weight or the sin which so easily ensnares, but I will trust Holy Spirit to do His job in each of us to shed His Light on those ‘appendages’ that make us prey. I will encourage us to pick up a few books to read; books on Astronomy, mammals, reptiles, fish and other sea creatures, and botany – there are so many! And when we have read and marveled and communed with Father about how AWESOME He is, gather our children, and our grandchildren and use those books and information to allow Holy Spirit to WOW them and open their hearts to soak up the Truth their schools are not telling them!

It’s been a ‘fishy’ week, hasn’t it? Bluegill and now Brittle Star. Have some holy fun this weekend! We love you with holy hugs!

Father, Thank You. I so enjoyed the wealth of information we were given about Your Creatures. I so enjoyed seeing Your Handiwork up close and personal. No ONE, nothing compares to You. You truly are AWESOME. You are so huge I cannot get my mind around You but what I do comprehend thrills and delights me. I love You, Father. I am so glad You are You. Now, help us teach our young about You even more faithfully. Help us not be shy about learning ‘science’ because in true Science You are there in the very heart of it! LORD, train us, like You did Daniel, help us excel in matters of Science and Astronomy – all that stuff that shows us You are the Creator. Put some excitement in us that will inspire our children and our grandchildren; to wake them up to the fact that YOU ARE THE COOLEST! That No One is more cool, more hip … whatever words they use these days for people they admire. I want my grand-babies to ADMIRE You. To admire You above everyone and everything. Hey, I want that for me too. So help me show myself faithful to that desire and cut off those appendages that make me devil prey.

We’ve had some prayer request activity today and You have heard our prayers, we renew them now, knowing You have not forgotten and neither will You, and more than not forgetting You will do according to Your will for wayward souls we want to come home; for strife and un-forgiveness, for physical bodies that hurt, for eyes that don’t see, for ears that do not hear, for babies to grow up healthy and strong, for Mommas to rest and grandmothers to be okay; all this and more we bring to You and thank You so much that we can. And thank You so much that You hear and answer. We pray for all our IDOK Troops, for their peace and safety. We pray for Israel’s peace and safety. We pray for America’s repentance. We pray for political offices occupied by immoral folks to be vacated and filled with people of character and righteous principles. We pray for revival in America. And we pray for an army of prayer warriors to come together and pray until we see You pour out Your Spirit on Your Sons and Your Daughters. LORD, I am excited to see what You are going to do with this IDOK ministry and other ministries all across this land. LORD JESUS I just want You to be lifted up, exalted, loved, and praised because You are worthy. Thank You for loving us and for enabling us to love You back. Amen and amen.

Love, Kathie

A Fast Week

Posted on 29 Oct 2022 by Kathie Whitestone Thompson

It has been a fast week for us.

We have had storms here in Lower Alabama this evening; for our particular area, they seem to have passed. We are grateful.
Some miles from us, people are without electrical power – it’s an unpleasant occurrence. May it be restored soon for them. May the utility workers be protected as well.

You know life here is often uncomfortable, inconvenient, and sometimes just downright hard and/or tragic, but still there is just something in us that wants to stay. Perhaps it’s not so much here, as it is the people who are here that keep our feet so grounded. Even this very night I am thinking of families hoping and praying for people they love to recover. I pray that too. Tonight those prayers are for daddies in particular.
Whatever the age, Girls, want their daddies – Daughters in their teens or daughters with daughters of their own.
Families. We love them so dearly. So we, pray.

I hope before you lay your head to sleep tonight that you too will pray for families – your own and others you know who are hurting and needy.
That really includes all of us, doesn’t it?

Good night. Friends.

Love, Kathie

Praying for Broken Legs

Posted on 9 Oct 2022 by Kathie Whitestone Thompson

For more than 12 hours, with some sleep in between, I’ve been more than usually aware that all around me are messed up people (including myself).

People are wounded, injured, and broken.
Everyone I know is messed up in some manner – some with disease and sickness of the body; some emotionally; and everyone.
Yes, EVERY ONE is in need of spiritual transformation.
Some are further along in the process than others but NO ONE on earth is fully perfected. Not one of us FULLY REFLECTS JESUS.

And also disturbing to me are those who either do not know or do not care that their day-in and day-out walking around on this earth looks nothing like JESUS.

No. I’m not mad.
I’m sad.
I hurt for them.
I hurt to see so many unfixed people, living defeated lives. Lives filled with death-yielding sin.
Depression. Anger. Anxieties. Bitterness. Hatred. Corruption. Debaucheries. Fears. Animosity. Dissatisfaction. Coveting. Greed. Lusts of every sort. Sexual depravities. Confusion. Reprobate minds.
The list is endless.

AND worse, many of these are people who profess they are Christians!

So I pray.
I pray people will come to KNOW they are broken and living sin-filled lives. That they will discover there is ONE HEALER.

But you know what even GOD cannot heal a person who is not willing to be healed?
Now He can work with them to bring them to be willing.
I am praying for this too.

Have you seen that picture depicting JESUS with a lamb on His Shoulders?

Do you know why that lamb is there?
Well, the story goes that the lamb wandered off from the flock .jpeg1a and the Shepherd went looking for that lamb and when he found the lamb, he broke the lamb’s leg (and set it properly, of course) and then put the lamb on his shoulders, and he carried that lamb around until the lamb healed and learned to not wander away from Him.

(I’ve experienced this and I am eternally grateful – no, my broken leg was not my flesh and bone leg. It hurt much worse and much longer!!)

I am praying for some broken legs in the Body of Christ.

I am praying too for unbelievers that they will become noticeably aware that they are broken all over and be willing to allow JESUS to heal them.

How about you, are you praying for The Body of CHRIST?

Jesus Carrying Lost Sheep Home Painting by Melani Pyke

If not, are you in need of a broken leg?

²⁰Now may the God of peace—
    who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the great Shepherd of the sheep,
    and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—
²¹may he equip you with all you need
    for doing his will.
May he produce in you,
    through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
    All glory to him forever and ever! Amen. source Hebrews 13