Thought for Today

1782: Congress approves the Great Seal of the United States with bald eagle as symbol 1819: SS Savannah is first steamship to cross an ocean--Savannah to Cork, Ireland in 29 days 1837: Queen Victoria becomes queen, reigns until 1901 1840: Samuel Morse patents telegraph 1867: Andrew Johnson announces the Alaska purchase 1911: NAACP incorporated in NY 1949: Gussie Moran shocks Wimbledon by wearing a short dress to play tennis 1975: "Jaws" released 1980: "The Blues Brothers" premiers Born: Lillian Hellman, Errol Flynn, Doris Hart, Audie Murphy, Martin Landau, Len Dawson, Brian Wilson, Anne Murray, Lionel Richie, John Goodman, Nicole Kidman Died: Bugsy Siegel, Howard Johnson, Leroy Neiman, Jim Kiick Thought: Do you need some help this morning? Is there anything bothering you, causing distress or anxiety? Do you just need some help to make it through the day? Read Psalm 121 with me this morning. Who do you need to help you? Someone with wisdom, understanding, power, pati

  1865: Juneteenth--Slaves are freed in Texas 1910: First Father's Day--Spokane 1912: Tennessee State University opens 1926: DeFord Bailey is first African American to perform at the Grand Ole Opry 1952: "I've Got a Secret" premiers 1961: Supreme Court strikes down provision in Maryland Constitution that required office holders to believe in God 1970: Jim Bouton publishes "Ball Four" 1978: Garfield first appears 1987: Supreme Court rules schools teaching evolution do not have to teach creationism 2018: GE is dropped from the Dow Jones Index--last of the original stocks in the index Born: Blaise Pascal, Charles H. Spurgeon, Wallis Simpson, Moe Howard, Guy Lombardo, Lou Gehrig, Shirley Muldowney [drag racer], Salman Rushdie, Phylicia Rashad, Tasmanian Devil [1st appearance 1954], Paula Abdul, Zoe Saldana,  Died: Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, William Golding ["Lord of the Flies"], James Gandolfini Thought: This week I have been reading Psalm 119 again.

 1682: William Penn founds Philadelphia 1781: 18 people, including 3 African Americans, form the first Baptist church in Kentucky at Elizabethtown 1873: Susan B Anthony fined $100 for voting in presidential election 1928: Amelia Earhart is first woman to fly across the Atlantic 1940: Churchill gives speech, "This was their finest hour" 1960: Arnold Palmer overcomes a 7 stroke deficit in the final round to win the US Open 1968: Supreme Court bans discrimination in housing 1983: Sally Ride is the first woman in space Born: EG Marshall, Red Adair, Richard Boone, George Mikan, Lou Brock, Paul McCartney, Roger Ebert, Blake Shelton, Richard Madden [Game of Thrones] Died: Jeanne Mance [founded first hospital in North America], Roald Amundsen, Jack Buck Thought: Yesterday I was contemplating the attributes of God's word as revealed in Psalm 119, today I am thinking about what those attributes compel me to do in response. God has revealed His word in scripture and in the person of

  1856: First Republican Party Convention 1863: Traveler's Insurance founded 1894: First polio epidemic--Rutland VT 1947: Pan Am chartered 1950: First kidney transplant 1956: Jerry Falwell founds Thomas Road Baptist Church 1962: Jack Nicholas wins first major--US Open 1963: Supreme Court prohibits Bible reading in public schools 1994: Great Ford Bronco chase--OJ Simpson 2008: First day of legal same-sex marriage in California 2015: 9 people shot at Emanuel AME Church, Charleston Born: Igor Stravinsky, Ralph Bellamy, Crazy Legs Hirsch, Newt Gingrich, Barry Manilow, Greg Kinnear, Dan Jansen [Olympic Gold in 3 Olympics], Venus Williams,  Died: Kate Smith, Rodney King, Gloria Vanderbilt Thought: I have reached Psalm 119. This is a psalm of praise for God's word--ordinances, statutes, commandments, precepts, testimonies, law. When I think about laws, I think about restrictions on my freedom, things I cannot do or things I must do. Think about all the traffic ordinances, the zoning l

1215: King John signs the Magna Carta 1667: First documented blood transfusion--sheep's blood 1775: Washington named commander of Continental Army 1844: Goodyear patents vulcanization of rubber process  1877: Henry Flipper is first West Point Graduate 1907: Mary Mallon identified as typhoid Mary 1911: IBM incorporated 1916: Boy Scouts of America formed 1934: Great Smokey Mountains National Park dedicated 1967: "Dirty Dozen" released 1974: "All the President's Men" published 1983: Supreme Court strikes down state restrictions on abortion 2020: Supreme Court rules gay and transgender people may not be discriminated against in the workplace Born: Rachel Jackson, Waylon Jennings, Mike Holmgren, Wade Boggs, Helen Hunt Died: James K Polk, John Connally, Ella Fitzgerald,  Thought: Still in Psalm 118 this morning. Looking at 118:22-24. Verse 24 is a verse that I try and remember to recite every morning. The verse is written in the imperative tense. Each day I am rem

  1777: Continental Congress adopts the Stars and Stripes as our flag 1847: Bunsen Burner invented 1922: Warren G Harding is first President to use radio for a speech 1940: Auschwitz opens 1942: Anne Frank begins her diary 1946: Nat King Cole records the "Christmas Song" 1954: President Eisenhower signs order adding "under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance 2020: India reports 12,000 Covid cases per day Born: Harriet Beecher Stowe, Alois Alzheimer, Burl Ives, Pierre Salinger, Che Guevara, John MacArthur, Donald Trump, Pat Summit, Eric Heiden, Steffi Graf Died: Benedict Arnold, Pierre L'Enfant, Mary Cassatt, Alan Jay Lerner, Henry Mancini, Ruth Graham Thought: Still in Psalm 118 this morning. Reading one verse, 118:8. If you count all the verses in the Bible this is the center verse. The one in the middle. And perhaps it contains the truth that all the Bible hinges upon--"It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man." There used to be an o