A Little of This and a Little of That

“The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation to generation.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.” (Psa 33:11-12)

Journal,

I was an only son of my father. The Lord graced Betty and me with three children, two sons and a daughter.

Our oldest son, Nathan, has three daughters. Our daughter, Shana, has two sons and a daughter. None of these grandchildren are married.

However, our youngest son, Andre, has two daughters and a son. One daughter is married. And his one son just got married this past weekend. (Wonderful occasion.)

So far the direct Martin lineage from my family line, consists of three children, nine grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, with another on the way. What a thrill to see the tribe grow. I’ve always loved big families. My mom came from a family of twelve siblings.

With this in mind, I shared with our grandson Justin, and his beautiful wife, Dessa, to have many sons and daughters. (Not sure how welcome that advice was.)

Here’s a picture of the growing Martin tribe…

Center Justin and Dessa. Upper left: extended family. Beneath extended family: Justin’s dad, Andre, step-mom, Judy, Dessa, and Justin. Bottom left: Andre and sister, Shana. Next over: Justin and Uncle Nathan. Center bottom: me and Betty. Upper right: Justin’s mom, Laurie, and family. Below right: various wedding pictures. —  Photos by Gailie

What a blessed family we are.

OK, that was for the that. Now let’s talk about the this. (Or is it backwards?)

Memories of a Nation Blessed

While thinking about the upcoming election, I’ve been flooded with memories. I can easily recall every one of our presidents from WWII. I was too young to remember Franklin Roosevelt, but I well remember Harry Truman, and Dwight Eisenhower, John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, William (Bill) Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

If I were to name the presidents that I admired the most, these three would be at the top of the list: John Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and George W. Bush. The reason is because I saw in each of these Presidents, fiber and honor. They were astute in their determination to hold to American values.

But now I am somewhat saddened. This is what I shared on my Facebook page.

Facebook:

Memories are flooding – It was fifty years ago this month (1962) that the Cuban missile crisis took place. I served as a radioman aboard the USS Calvert, an attack troop transport. (Carried Marines.) Our flagship the USS Paul Revere was one of the ships that intercepted the Russian vessel bringing missiles to Cuba. It was a stand off for a nuclear war. I can still feel to this day the tension and fear from that memory, as we waited on full alert for the war to begin. The Russians turned back. What I can tell you is that President Kennedy meant exactly what he said to the Russians.

Thank God for a President who made no apology to the enemy.

I was raised in the old South where just about every one voted Democrat. Yet through the years there has been a steady shift where many if not most Southerners have moved more in line with the Republican ticket. (Regardless of their party registration.)

The reason for this has largely to do with conservative values. If you have a problem with that, take out a one dollar bill and look at the backside of George Washington’s picture. It says, ‘In God We Trust.’

Actually as an independent it has never been an issue of party, as much as it has been for the man who holds to our traditional Christian values, the very our nation was founded upon. (I always vote conservative, regardless.)

This is why I rank John Kennedy, a Democrat, Ronald Reagan, a Republican, and George Bush, a Republican, as the three that I esteem the most. Not one of these men would have apologized for this country.

Who Will Be Our Next President

An interesting thing is happening. I’ve kept up with how the polls are working for the Electoral College. (You know that the Electoral College determines who becomes president, not the popular vote.)

To become President you must have 270 electoral votes. On September 30th, the polls had Obama with 265 electoral votes. Romney had 191. The latest electoral polls show a major shift. Obama at 201 votes and Romney at 191. Several States that were leaning towards Obama, have become toss ups. (Obama has already forfeited 64 electoral votes. Of course none of this is static.)

Here is a map of the latest Electoral College poll data. (The map is a bit fuzzy but you can pretty much tell the States.)

The red states are fully for Romney or are leaning his direction. The blue states are fully for Obama, or are leaning in his direction.

The grey states are toss ups. These are the battle ground states

What makes this even more interesting is that well over a dozen states who were leaning Obama, have now become toss ups.

Everything at this point is pretty much a dead heat. For a closer look go to: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/

Gallup polls shows Romney, 49%, and Obama, 47% among likely voters.

 It’s All in the Hands of the Lord

Regardless of what we may think about who deserves to be our President, the decision will be made in heaven. Why would God be interested in who becomes President of this nation. It all has to do with His plan of redemption.

History belongs to the Lord. This planet has a schedule to keep.

In the book of Daniel, is a story of a king who became arrogant in himself. He said,

“Is this not Babylon the great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?”

Then something strange happened to Nebuchadnezzar –

“…a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is declared: sovereignty has been removed from you, and you will be driven away from mankind, and your dwelling place will be with the beasts of the field. You will be given grass to eat like cattle,

“…and seven periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes.'” (Dan 4:31-32)

Makes you wonder if a humble voice will heard during this election time.

My, how I miss the good old days.

Would like to hear a song about those days. Take time for The Judds, in, ‘Grandpa, Tell Me Bout the Good Old Days’.

In Christ always,

Buddy

Views: 18