AI or not to AI that is the question

​AI or not AI that is the question 

Fading Beauty

(This is my original post. )

Walking through the parks one day on my way to see my eldest daughter, for some unknown reason (not known to myself) I didn't have my camera attached to my arm, it was in my back pack. I stopped to watch a peacock butterfly which landed on my thigh, of course the minute I tried to reach for the camera it was gone.

The thing I noticed was that it's colours were fading and its wings were torn and I felt for this poor butterfly but you know no matter how much our outward beauty may fade, no matter how much parts of us refuse to function as they should the Lord Jesus looks beyond the outside beauty deep into the heart, where if we know Christ there is a priceless, ageless beauty that the world can't take away and doesn't understand.

I was reminded of the wonderful words of a chorus we used to sing at chapel when I was a child.

Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me,

All His wondrous compassion and purity,

Oh, thou Spirit divine all my nature refine,

Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Romans 12:1-

This is the AI version 

The late afternoon sun dappled through the ancient oak trees as I ambled through the park, a familiar route on my way to visit my eldest daughter. Usually, my reflex was as instinctive as breathing – my hand would find the familiar weight of my camera slung over my shoulder, its lens ready to capture the fleeting moments of beauty nature so generously offered. But today, something was different. For reasons that eluded my conscious mind, the camera remained nestled in my backpack, a silent observer rather than an active participant.

As I paused by a patch of vibrant wildflowers, a flash of iridescent blue and eye-like markings caught my attention. A peacock butterfly, its wings a magnificent tapestry of nature’s art, alighted on my thigh. A thrill, a familiar artistic urge, shot through me. I reached for where my camera should have been, my fingers fumbling for a strap that wasn't there. And as inevitably as the sun dips below the horizon, the butterfly, sensing my movement, took flight, disappearing into the emerald embrace of the foliage.

But before it vanished, I saw it clearly. The once-vibrant blues seemed muted, like a fading memory. Its delicate wings, the very essence of its fleeting glory, were torn, ragged edges hinting at battles unseen. A pang of sorrow, a genuine empathy, resonated within me. This creature, designed for such exquisite display, was marred, its outward beauty compromised.

And then, it struck me. This poor, broken-winged butterfly was a mirror, reflecting a truth I often overlooked in my pursuit of external aesthetics. We, too, can be like that butterfly. Our outward appearances may falter, our bodies may betray us, parts of us may cease to function as they once did. We see the world’s emphasis on flawless beauty, on the flawless functionality of youth. And it’s easy to feel diminished, to feel like our worth fades with every wrinkle, every ache, every imperfection.

But the Lord Jesus, I was reminded, looks beyond such superficialities. He doesn't see the fading colours of our outward selves, nor does He dwell on the torn edges of our human frailty. He looks deep into the heart. And if we know Him, if we have opened our hearts to His love and sacrifice, there resides within us a beauty that is priceless, ageless, and utterly impervious to the ravages of time and circumstance. This is a beauty the world, with its shallow metrics, can never truly comprehend or diminish.

The image of the butterfly brought back a flood of memories, a simple yet profound chorus from my childhood days in chapel:

"Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me, All His wondrous compassion and purity, Oh, thou Spirit divine all my nature refine, Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me."

It was a prayer then, a yearning. And now, standing in the park with the ghost of that butterfly’s beauty on my skin, it felt like a profound truth. The apostle Paul’s words in Romans 12:1-2 echoed in my mind, a divine instruction alongside the silent sermon of the butterfly:

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

My camera, forgotten in my backpack, was a symbol of my tendency to capture the observable, the tangible beauty. But the butterfly, in its fallen state, had shown me a deeper truth – that true beauty isn't about being flawless, but about allowing the unchangeable beauty of Christ to shine through our imperfect vessels, a testament to a love that sees beyond the outward, and into the eternal heart. And that was a beauty worth more than any photograph.

Which do you prefer? 

Keep Praying

 ,

Tozer Quote

  We have become in our day the greatest bunch of sacrilegious jokesters in the world. I have seen pictures in the paper of people who thought is was a very humorous thing to show a little spotted dog with his paws crossed and his eyes shut, bowing his head as if in prayer. The Bible says, “Beware of dogs,” and I might add: “Beware of the fools who teach dogs to pray.” 

(The Tozer Pulpit, Book 1, p. 106)”

Tongue Twisters, Scripture Twisters

 At our Bible study one evening, where we meet over the internet, our sister in America asked us how the weather was, we were experiencing hot weather followed by thunder storms.      One of our group remembered a tongue twister.

Whether the weather be fine,

Or whether the weather be not,

Whether the weather be cold,

Or whether the weather be hot,

We’ll weather the weather 

whatever the weather,

Whether we like it or not!

Which led me to thinking about the amount of people in these days who twist the Scripture. The pulpits are full of pastors and teachers who twist the Word of God to fit their own lifestyle. The Word of God warns us of these things,  it even tells us why people tolerate and even embrace this, they have itching ears, they want to listen to what appeals to their flesh. 

2 Timothy 4:1-4

I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;

Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Whilst most tongue twisters are not harmful, they are designed to trip you up when you say them. Those who twist Scripture from the pulpit, or in books and videos, trip us up, and send us on a route that is not Scriptural, but it appeals to the carnal mind, the flesh. 

We should all be Bereans, and test what we hear, see, and read, with the Word of God for ourselves. The people of Berea, tested what Paul said with the Scripture (the Old Testament, the Jewish Scriptures) before they would believe what he said. 

Acts 17:10-12

And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.

These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.

Scripture twisters are dangerous, they take you down the broad path, rather than the narrow. We are all responsible to God for what we do in this life, there will be no excuses, you will not be able to say, “it wasn’t my fault, the preacher twisted the Scripture.” Because all you will hear from the Lord is, “Depart from Me, I never knew you”

Matthew 7:21-23

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

                                                              Proverbs 30:5-6

Are You Ready?

Christians are waiting in anticipation for the glorious day when Jesus shall come for His church. There is only one church, and that is the body of Christ, and He is the head. All God’s plans for the church, for the world, and for Isreal will be fulfilled. There are many promises made in Scripture that have already been fulfilled. As children of God we must be ready, there are somber warnings in God’s Word about not being ready. About people believing false teachings, false prophets, and false christs. Many people teaching and preaching deception, and taking hordes of people to hell with them. We must be a discerning people and check everything with Scripture. Make sure, professing Christian that you are ready and that you will not hear these awful words from Jesus.

Matthew 7:21-23

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord,

shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;

but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, 

have we not prophesied in thy name? 

and in thy name have cast out devils? 

and in thy name done many wonderful works?

And then will I profess unto them,

I never knew you:

Depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.

 

 

Be A Light

 Part of a miners equipment is a light that is attached to his helmet. He could not do his job without it because he wouldn’t be able to see in the darkness.

 Christians know that the world is in darkness. Before the Lord did a wonderful work of grace in our lives, we were in darkness, but there are many in these days who, though professing to be Christian, do not have the Light. They are still fumbling about, looking for the next experience, all froth and no substance. They are, as Jesus said to the Pharisees, the blind leading the blind. Matthew 15:14.                               Supposed men of God, spiritually blind and walking in spiritual darkness.

Matthew 14:8.                                                                                                                                             This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honour with me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

Men and women who are truly born again recognise that Jesus is the only source of light. 

He is the Word made flesh, He is our Redeemer. We cannot live in this dark world safely without His light.  Just as the miner needs his lamp, we need Gods Word to light our path. 

John 8:12                                                                                                                                                    Then spake Jesus again to them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. 

-We need to be daily in God’s Word. There is much counterfeit in these days, we need discernment, we need to test everything by the light of God’s Word. When we have this light then we can be a light to others, showing the way to the truth that sets people free, that takes them out of the darkness into the true Light. We cannot show others if we do not have it ourselves.

Little froglets

 It has been fascinating to watch over the past few months the development of the tadpoles in my pond. It’s not a “proper” pond but an old bath that I asked the workmen to leave when they put a shower in my council bungalow. A friend dug a hole at the top of the garden and put the old bath in, and then I waited for the rain.

It was a couple of years before there was much activity, and then two years ago a disease wiped them out, the frog spawn died, it was horrible. I emptied the pond and scrubbed it, and waited for the rain. This year has been the best for those lovely creatures, I even had a newt move in, that’s never happened before. I have a chair and go up and sit quietly and watch them, for the past few weeks tiny frogs have been leaving, but some haven’t matured yet, some still have tails and legs, some a tail and two legs, and some have remained the same. I am sure an expert would be able to tell me why.

I thought about this, how when some sinners turn to the Saviour and profess to be born again, they stay the same as the day it happened, there is no growth, no seeking after knowledge of God, and no fear of the Lord, they seem content not to know any more.

Others who desire to know more, develop at a different pace. Age is not a sign of Christian maturity, and neither is the length of time we are born again. 

Romans 15:1 We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 

We are all to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 3:18

As in the natural, so in the spiritual, we all learn and grow at different rates, but those who are growing faster, are to help those with less maturity and understanding. We are to build one another up, help one another, and accept each other’s growth. God is patient and faithful to each one of us. And one day, He will finish the work He began. Philippians 1:6 and we shall awake in His likeness. 

Who is Worthy

Who has the right and title to this world?

Who can rule it?

Who can establish justice and righteousness?

Do you think perhaps the Democrats can do it?

Do you think that the Republicans can do it?

Do you think any administration can do it?

Do you think the United Nations can do it?

I trust that you are not so deluded at this late time in the history of the world that you believe that man can solve his own problems.

The Word of God has made it very clear that he cannot.

Thru the Bible, Vol 58 The Prophecy (Revelation 1-5) by J. Vernon McGee

 

Revealing Light

     I have bought a film which you put on your windows, You spray your window with water and press it on and it stops anyone being able to see in from the street. Brilliant, there is just one draw back, if you put a light in the room, the windows are see through again. So I have to make sure that if I don’t want anyone looking through after dark, I must draw my curtains.

I thought about this, and how we put things in place so that people can’t really know the real us, we hide behind masks. We want people to see only what we want them to see. This may work for the people we come into contact with but it doesn’t work with regards to God. His light reveals all the things about us that we don’t want people to know. It even reveals things about us that we didn’t even know about ourselves. God knows everything about us, and when we come into contact with His Word, then the light of His Word shows us what we truly are. Sinners, wicked, lost, in darkness, in bondage, we are wretched and blind to the truth. But there is hope for every sinner, the Word of God shines in every corner of our hearts, minds and lives, exposing who we are, but it also gives us the answer to our wretchedness.

I close my curtains when the lights shining, I don’t want people to see. But God can see us for who we truly are, He knows our need, and He loved so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to take our punishment. God will one day punish sinners for their sin and rebellion against Him. And the only way out of this condemnation and judgement from God, is Jesus. God poured His anger on His Son, Jesus bore our sins on the cross. 

If you break the law, you will go before a judge, be found guilty and be punished. So it is with God’s law, and there is no one who has not broken God’s moral standard.

Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.

Romans 5:8 But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosever believe that in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Jesus said, you must be born again. In other words, you are dead spiritually and your spirit  needs to be born. So we are born from above, nothing here on earth can give us this new birth. We believe in Jesus and all He has done, we repent and receive forgiveness and new life. And we live in the light of God’s Word. So we grow in knowledge and grace, and we no longer put a film over our hearts, and lives, now people can see the real us, because we are living for Jesus, and letting the light of God’s Word, help us and guide us. 

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

We will always need the light of God’s Word. 

Knowing What is Best

I have a little rescue dog, called Shy. Who, a couple of nights ago was poorly with tummy trouble, she kept getting up and needing to go out. The following day she was not herself, but she knew what was best for her, she didn’t eat anything until she felt better. It wasn’t long before she was back to her old self.

It made me think about we Christians who, when we are spiritually sick, and know what is best for us, but don’t always do it. We try desperately hard to sort it out our way, we want to get back into fellowship with the Father and will try all sorts of things rather than repenting and trusting God to help us and build us up again. Scripture tells us that we are not to lean on our own understanding, our understanding is limited, it is often clouded with a world view, but when we repent and put our trust in God and His Word, we soon feel better, our fellowship with the Father and our Lord Jesus is restored, and we wonder why we ever tried our own way first.

We have to remember what is best for us, and that is putting ourselves in God's hands, studying His Word, and believing His Word, and acting on His Word, the reason this is best for us is because God knows better than we do what is best for us, and we can trust Him because He is faithful and just.

So, how do we know what is best for us, by giving everything over to God.

Don’t try a cover up

I recently saw a lady with brilliant white trainers on, while I was walking the dog.

I wondered how on earth she was going to keep them so white.

It took me back to when I was a teenager, you could buy a product

for whitening your tennis shoes.

You’d press the sponge on your shoe and it would cover all the marks, etc.

It didn’t actually clean them,

it just covered everything up, and made them look clean.

It made me think about man’s attitude to the faults and sins, we deceive ourselves if we think that by all these modern methods such as:

Mindfulness

Positive thinking

Self improvement

Conscience awareness

Counselling, etc. etc. we can ever cover up our secret faults and sins.

You can deceive others, you can deceive yourself but you can never deceive God. You may say “I don’t believe in God” but just because you don’t believe doesn’t mean He doesn’t exist. God’s existence doesn’t depend on man’s belief. I was recently in a conversation with a gentleman on Twitter, who said he had put his Bible down and accepted there was no God. How foolish would we consider the man who turned off the mains power to his electricity and said “electricity doesn’t exist.” 

God exists, and He created everything, including man, who disobeyed Him and so sin entered into the heart of man, and men have been born sinners since. We all have moral standards, some are higher than others, but all men are answerable to God’s standards. If someone breaks man’s laws they are punished, and whoever breaks God’s laws will be punished. So if all men and women are sinners, and are destined to judgment, condemnation, and eternal punishment by God, what can we do to put it right? Nothing. 

God sent His Son into our world, He was a human being as we are, but still God and so He was sinless. He took our place. Jesus, was punished for my sins and for your sins. This is God’s love toward man, as He doesn’t want anyone to perish, but to have everlasting life. Can we earn this? No, do we deserve this? No. It is all a free gift of God’s grace. We must come to God with a repentant heart, we must ask for His forgiveness through His Son, and we must believe in Jesus and turn away from our old life and God will give us a new heart.  There’s no cover up, God doesn’t try and whiten up the old wicked heart, the Bible tells us that God gives us a new heart and that we are then new creatures in Christ Jesus.

Don’t try and cover up your sins,

the thing I remember with that whitener was that it didn’t last long,

the marks and stains soon showed through again.

And no matter how much you try and cover up your sins,

they will soon show through again.

Harmony

Wrong key. During lockdown I have been posting video clips on TiKTok. I read the Bible and sing. Once a week my sister and I get together and record duets, These we put on various media platforms including TikTok. I like the fact that others can record a duet with you, we have had a few people sing with us on one particular song. ' 'The garden" Today as I was looking through my notifications I saw some one had 'dueted’ with us on a keyboard. But, 0, it did not sound good as he was playing in a different key. Pamela and I tend to lower the key when we sing, as we both now struggle to reach the high notes, I thought about this, how we adjust the key to our own personal preference, and how many people who claim to be “Christian" do the same with God’s Word. The religious leaders at the time of Jesus, would not believe Him, He warned them many times, but they would not listen, even though they had the scriptures, that they could check His words and actions with. 

John 8:47 He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

How many in these days are not singing from the same song sheet, and yet they want to be united with those who are. We are to be a discerning people, we are to study the scriptures and live our lives according to God's word, not man's false interpretation of it. If what we hear from the pulpit doesn't line up with God’s Word then we should walk away from that denomination. Pamela and I choose the key we want to sing in to suit our voices. You can't do that with Christianity. You can't choose the bits you like in the Bible and leave the rest. You can't decide on its meaning so it fits in with your sin lifestyle. You will be out of tune. You will not be in tune with God, you will be singing your own tune.

Grandma's gloves

My daughter had come to pick me up to go to their home for tea, as I stepped out of the door I remembered my gloves and went in to fetch them. This conjured up a memory I had of my grandma, who never went out of the house without her gloves on and her shoes polished. Even the odd shoes she went out into the garden in were polished!

It’s strange how simple things bring back memories, of course I remember other things about my grandma, but it made me wonder what people would remember about me. Would they remember me for the caps I wear, or for the handbags and shoes up-cycled in the garden with plants in, the bath that is now a home for frogs, and the up-cycled pine bed that is now a seat? 

Would they remember me for my sense of humour, my smile, or my cheerfulness? Will they think back and remember kindness, compassion and love?

I do hope people will remember my quirky ways but most of all I hope they remember my love for Jesus, my Saviour, I hope they look back and can see how God helped me in so many ways. I hope they remember that my life was lived for Jesus, I truly hope my life reflects that.

We are so fortunate as Christians in these days that we have so many ways in which we can share the gospel. I hope that above all things that it won’t be me remembered for me, but for how God was honoured and glorified in my life.

When my mother went to be with the Lord,

we found old tapes of mum and dad singing, and of dad sharing the wonderful truths from God’s Word. One of the songs I posted on YouTube has been watched three thousand times. How wonderful to know that even though my mother is no longer with us, God still uses the talents He gave her to encourage, and build up His children.

Worthy is the Lamb... Helen Bacon (mum)