RePENTance

I loved this post & haven't been able to get it out of my mind! Ironic because I typically despise the word "convicted". I have sometimes felt its misused and abused not a singled out attack on anyone specifically just my own (prob very misguided) thoughts!:) Just been a deep philosophicalesque question of mine if using convicted is a way of still leaving a veil up and therefore not fully correcting our actions. My thoughts are not rooted in study but I feel if it takes a divine intervention for me to realize everytime I've wronged another or sinned then I haven't learned a GD thing in life (bad expression to use in this context whoops!). As a "Christian" If I can't figure out my wrongdoings without a push from JC then why gosh it doesn't make ANY sense to hold anyone accountable for their wrongdoings who lacks divine intervention much less lacks a "filled soul"....just a thought to stir up conversation;)
And yet after aLL tHAT I end up feeling "convicted" of my animosity of the word, "convicted" after reading the devotional below!!:) WoW almost ridiculous play on words eh! 
~enJOY~

(The following taken from www.myutmost.org/repentance)

Godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation . . . —2 Corinthians 7:10

Conviction of sin is best described in the words:
My sins, my sins, my Savior,
How sad on Thee they fall.

Conviction of sin is one of the most uncommon things that ever happens to a person. It is the beginning of an understanding of God. Jesus Christ said that when the Holy Spirit came He would convict people of sin (see John 16:8). And when the Holy Spirit stirs a person's conscience and brings him into the presence of God, it is not that person's relationship with others that bothers him but his relationship with God— "Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in your sight . . ." (Psalm 51:4). The wonders of conviction of sin, forgiveness, and holiness are so interwoven that it is only the forgiven person who is truly holy. He proves he is forgiven by being the opposite of what he was previously, by the grace of God. Repentance always brings a person to the point of saying, "I have sinned." The surest sign that God is at work in his life is when he says that and means it. Anything less is simply sorrow for having made foolish mistakes— a reflex action caused by self-disgust.
The entrance into the kingdom of God is through the sharp, sudden pains of repentance colliding with man's respectable "goodness." Then the Holy Spirit, who produces these struggles, begins the formation of the Son of God in the person's life (see Galatians 4:19). This new life will reveal itself in conscious repentance followed by unconscious holiness, never the other way around. The foundation of Christianity is repentance. Strictly speaking, a person cannot repent when he chooses— repentance is a gift of God. The old Puritans used to pray for "the gift of tears." If you ever cease to understand the value of repentance, you allow yourself to remain in sin. Examine yourself to see if you have forgotten how to be truly repentant.

BeeF inforMatiON DAY --- Grant County, WA

~FREE Beef Information DAY~

 Grant County Beef Information Day, Wednesday December 15th 2010 show up with your BesT bOOts at the George Community Center in grand ol' George, Washington! Join in on the learnin' at 9:25 AM and stay until 2:45 PM. Get your fill of listenin' from local and regional speakers with expertise in cattle health, beef quality, and agriculture commodity transportation will be featured.

Individuals involved in any segment of beef cattle production are invited to attend, and participants need not be a member of the Grant County Cattlemen or resident of Grant County to attend. The program is organized by Washington State University Extension and the Grant County Cattlemen’s and Cattlewomen’s Associations.

Once you've had your fill of fReE coFFee & DONutS you'll be ready to saddle up for the mornin' session. Receive training & certification in the Western Beef Quality Assurance program and a presentation about improving heifer reproduction rates. After you've refueled with plenty of tasty beef  hit the trail hard for an afternoon learnin how to spruce up your operation's management plan with results that can be tasted! Just before you hit the open road, do you have what it takes to be legal on WA roads with your trucks, trailers, & farm equipment? The WSP CV Division will tell you how to keep your operation in the clear!

Tip your hat to the Grant County Cattlemen & Cattlewomen for cookin' up a FreE beef lunch! There is no registration fee to participate in the day’s activities, but ya better get your seat claimed before DEC 10th, 5:00 PM by callin' WSU Grant/Adams Extension 509-754-2011 Ext. 413.

(Read the entire NeWs ReLeAsE curtosy of the YWCA)

China & Washington...which is the "LittLe enGinE that cOULd"??

China Imports $6 Billion A Year From Washington State

"China's status as the United States' number one importer has heavy hitters like Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mayor Michael Bloomberg passing through Beijing jockeying for a piece of the China market, But there's one little welterweight that's making a big hit. Call Washington state the little engine that could. After a hard-fought campaign of cold calls and constant visits, China is eating Washington up, from its apples, to its salmon and its candy.
In the last decade, Washington state's exports to China increased over 300 percent. Last year, the state exported nearly $6 billion worth of products to China, second only to California."   (from ABC World News )

Well...not quite sure I like the sound of "little engine that could". Washington State is a heavy hitter in exports which means its often only viewed as a little engine by its own nation. I guess since I am now paying my bills through employment in the WA hay export industry I could be called bias in my opinion. However, I grew up in Yakima County...anyone ever heard of WA apples, what about hops..those things they make beer out of...over 75% of all US hops come from Yakima County alone. Oh yes and let's not forget that hay industry...the largest hay exporter in the world resides right in lil ol Kittitas County, not to mention numerous other hay exporters from the same county. Guess this "little engine" has a bit more steam than others were aware.

Like I say, folks are only ignorant if you allow them to be. ;)