A sermon on a miracle
From August: History in a year by the conservative voice
We need to be humble. Because if we aren't we miss the blessings He has given us. Because if we aren't, we don't hear His call. It isn't as if He is whispering softly, but when we are arrogant, we don't listen. There are physical limitations. He made the world and those limits should be there. Of course He will express his will by what is, sometimes.
The story begins in Poland in the 1920s. A Jewish family in a land that was healing after WW1, and that had miraculously survived Soviet Assault in the early '20s. A New World called, a land of opportunity and hope, and this family decided to migrate. Only they couldn't afford to migrate at once. Two sisters were particularly close, and one, Anja, was picked to go abroad and prepare the way. In Poland, the family raised money to send the next person. In the US, in Baltimore, Anja's life improved, and she married a good man. Meanwhile in Poland, the sister who remained also married a good man.
Anja worked very hard and prospered, but He had it so she did not have children. But the sister in Poland had children, and was greatly blessed. Except WW2 intervened. The two sisters had kept in touch by mail. But when WW2 came about, the plans to send more family to the US was interrupted and no mail got sent. Following the war, fellow villagers reported to Anja that her family in Poland had all been eliminated. No survivors. And now, a well off middle aged woman in Baltimore yearned for family, and had none. Many people in such circumstances crumble and blame Him. Anja may well have done so. But she also called out to Him. She wanted family to raise for Him. Children that would know his name and call her 'mother.' Family.
She discussed it with her husband, and they agreed to adopt a Jewish baby. Many of the few survivors that were children were available for adoption, and so, negotiating with an agency in New York City, She and her husband set off to see who was available. They wanted a very young child or baby that they could raise in the manner of their people. Only, when they got to the agency, all the babies had been adopted although there was an eight year old orphaned girl named Miriam.
They discussed it, but they weren't for lots of children and they wanted a baby. They went home in an empty car. A year later, they tried again. Lots of babies were available, they were told, and they made the long journey. Only there were no babies left when they arrived. Only the now nine year old Miriam, and Miriam was connected with her younger brother. The agency would not let them be separated. They adopted both. And made the journey home with a car that was not empty.
He hears prayer. He heard her call for family, and he gave her one. Physical realities of the known universe being what they are, He delivered. And had she not been humble, she may never have allowed Him to heal her wounds.
But it isn't humble to limit Him. He has made the world, and He can do whatever He pleases in his garden. When the family got home, the car doors opened and baggage was removed. The door was opened and inside, on display, were familiar pictures the couple had of their life together and loved ones. The little girl spotted them, and cried out. What was wrong, asked the adoptive mother. The girl asked why she had pictures of her 'babcia,' indicating the Sister's mother, and her own sister. 'babcia' means grandmother in Polish, and Anja was confused. Miriam went to her bags, and came back with a picture, the exact one that was shown on display. Because Miriam and her brother were actually nephew and niece to Anja .. true family. Blood from her blood.
He had answered her prayer, His way.
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowin' and blowin' up bushels of fun
Now the jingle hop has begun
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air
What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh
Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet
That's the jingle bell rock
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bell chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air
What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh
Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet
That's the jingle bell
That's the jingle bell
That's the jingle...
David Daniel Ball calls himself the Conservative Voice.
I'm a teacher with three decades experience teaching math to high school kids.I also work with first graders and kids in between first grade and high school. I know the legends of why Hypatia's dad is remembered through his contribution to Math theory. And I know the legend of why followers of Godel had thought he had disproved God's existence.
I'm not a preacher, but I am a Christian who has written over 28 books all of which include some reference to my faith. Twelve blog books on world history and current affairs, detailing world events , births and marriages on each day of the year, organised by month. Twelve books on the background to and history of Bible Quotes. One Bible quote per day for a year. An intro to a science fiction series I'm planning, post apocalyptic cyber punk. An autobiography with short story collections.
I'm known in Australia for my failure as a whistleblower over the negligence death of a school boy. ...
In Tanami’s red sands where spinifex grows,
Where waterholes gleam ‘neath the sun’s golden glare,
Lived Yaparla, sweet maid, with a heart pure as snow,
Her kindness a light in the desert so bare.
Her father, a wise man, kept songs for the land,
To guard the soak’s waters where life held its sway.
But drought gripped the earth with a merciless hand,
And he sought a new spring to ease their dismay.
Deep in a gorge where the rocks hid the sky,
He found a clear pool with fish dancing free.
But a voice shook the stones with a thunderous cry,
“Who steals my sweet water without leave of me?”
Out slid the Wanyarra, half-man, half a snake,
His scales flashed like opals, his eyes cold with pain.
“For your kin’s life,” he hissed, “one price I must take—
Send Yaparla to me, or your land drinks no rain.”
The father returned, his heart heavy with woe,
And told his dear daughter the serpent’s demand.
“I’ll go,” said Yaparla, her voice soft and low,
“For my people, my country, I’ll walk that red sand.”
She came to the gorge with her digging stick strong,
Singing songs of her kin ‘neath ...
AI adapted
To adapt the story of Bambi to the Dreamtime of Warlpiri culture in the Tanami Desert, we’ll reimagine the tale with respect for Warlpiri storytelling traditions, cosmology, and the desert environment. The Dreamtime (Jukurrpa) is a sacred framework where ancestral beings shape the land, law, and life, so Bambi’s journey will reflect Warlpiri values like kinship, connection to country, and survival in harmony with nature. I’ll keep the essence of Bambi—a young creature’s growth amid loss and discovery—while grounding it in the Tanami’s ecology and Warlpiri worldview. Since Bambi is a specific narrative, I’ll translate its core themes rather than reproduce the original text verbatim, ensuring cultural sensitivity. The story will be concise yet vivid, as requested.
Bambi in the Jukurrpa of the Tanami
In the Jukurrpa, when the Tanami Desert glowed under the first stars, the ancestral beings shaped the land. From the spinifex and red sand, they formed Jampijinpa, a young red ...
Created with Grok, Pictory, And Topmediai
Content from listening to podcasters Hunley and Groubert of America's Untold Stories. They tell it better than me
Folk Song: "The Ballad of Lee Harvey Oswald"
Verse 1
Oh, Lee Harvey Oswald, a man they did frame,
The deep state and CIA, they tarnished his name.
They said he went to Mexico, a lie they did spin,
While he fought for his service, his honor within.
Chorus
Sing for Lee Oswald, innocent and bold,
Framed by the shadows, a story untold.
With courage he stood, though the truth they denied,
A patriot’s heart in a nation that lied.
Verse 2
On that dark day in Dallas, they said he shot Tippit,
Left a wallet behind, but the tale didn’t fit.
Arrested with his own in hand, the proof was right there,
But the deep state kept spinnin’ their web of despair.
Chorus
Sing for Lee Oswald, innocent and bold,
Framed by the shadows, a story untold.
With courage he stood, though the truth they denied,
A patriot’s heart in a nation that lied.
Verse 3
They trained him in Russian, sent him off to the East,
A ...
