Welcome to 7 If By Land & 7 If By Sea...!!!
Although I've given a thumbnail sketch of the purpose of this blog in the summary located under the title at the top of the page, I'd like to go into more detail in an introduction that allows me to use more words...Thus, what you're now reading.
The best way to do this, I believe, is to use a question and answer format--so, without further ado, here it is:
How did I come up with the name for this blog?
It was inspired by a part of Paul Revere's Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow giving instructions on what to be watching for in regards to arrival details of an imminent attack by British armed forces on Colonial America during the Revolutionary War.
"...One if by land, and two if by sea..."
described the number of lanterns that would be glowing from the steeple of the Old North Church and what they meant.
In the case of the title I chose, the number 7 is often used to represent Jesus. When it comes to the Land and Sea.......
that simply refers to how both are mentioned in very special ways in the stories of Jesus. You will find some examples at the bottom of this introduction.
Is this blog one that will give you, the reader, a daily devotion? or Is this a collection of personal experiences in my Christian walk? or Is this something else altogether?
Something else altogether might be the most accurate description, because I'm not going to guarantee that I'll be writing in here every day (access to the Internet plays a big role in this) OR that I'll only be writing in here once-a-day.
As you can see by the date shown on this entry, I actually launched this blog (but set on private) on August 10, 2015, and here it is a baker's dozen days later when I'm now getting this introduction page done so that I can take it public.
Behind the scenes, I had other things going on such as tending to other issues (and I confess to some of those so-called "issues" simply meaning doing things like socializing [both online and in real life]; satisfying my curiosity re: what celebrities and elected officials were up to; feeding my face; watching online movies of various kinds & videos of cute babies, puppies, kitties, etc.); having technical problems on several occasions when it came to accessing the Internet; and simply falling asleep some nights when I planned on staying up to write (not to mention doing the same thing during the day at times, too).
So, here it is:
August 23, 2015
and, even now, I'm not sure whether this page is going to be going public tonight, sometime tomorrow, or another time.
Anyway...back to answering the question...
This will be devotions (though not necessarily daily -- and, at times, MORE than once-per-day); my personal stories AND those of others; plus other little nuggets that, I believe, will leave you better for having come here to explore as well as me better from being led to share them!
Which Bible translations will I be using when I cite Scripture?
Unless I state otherwise, I'm going to provide two links with each scripture: one going to King James Version and the other one going to The Message.
These links will take you to a favorite online site of mine called Bible Gateway.
If you look over in the right-hand margin of this blog, you will also find a link to there as well. It will (as most links I create do) open in a new window so that you can go there without leaving here.
This is a great site, and you'll be able to find quite a few more translations there -- including ones in other languages besides English.
Will this blog only focus on the New Testament, since its focus is the Christian walk, and Jesus wasn't born during Old Testament times?
No, it will also contain posts about/related to B.C. along with the expected A.D.-related ones. Even though Jesus hadn't been born yet, much of what you find in the Old Testament figures into building up to the arrival of The Messiah/The Christ/Jesus and the mission that He was born to accomplish.
Besides, even though the man, Jesus, hadn't been born, He was still a reality all along--and not just A reality but THE Reality!!!
Finally, what are some examples of the land and/or sea theme implied by the title of this blog?
For starters, this simply means that the ministry of Jesus (and even before); where He spent time; the sermons & parables He shared; and even His crucifixion (and the time leading up to it), burial, resurrection, and what came after made use of both land (ground, earth, soil, etc.) and sea (water, other liquids, tears, etc.).
In other words, I just wanted to give this blog a catchy title to draw people in (and you're one of them, because you're here reading this now!) to read my ongoing sharing of what walking with Jesus means to me in hopes that you'll also want to start walking with Him if you already haven't or, if you already have, find at least something that will be helpful to your own spiritual growth.
I don't claim to have all of the answers, because I'm (as is the same with other Christians) a Christian-Under-Construction. I'm growing right along with you -- but more on that in the time to come...
Anyway, without further ado, here are some examples of land and/or sea being part of the Christian walk...
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Used to fishing from the sea, these would-be followers of Jesus are offered a new way of fishing while on land with a different kind of catch as the goal...
Matthew 4:18-22 KJV
Matthew 4:18-22 MSG
I did a look-up using a two-word key phrase often associated with faith and came up with some land activities (planting, ground moving, etc.) with a little air and water thrown in for good measure. Can you find them all?
King James Version
The Message
Because The Message had fewer search results (an UNDERSTATEMENT) than the King James Version, I'm going to do it by all of the Bible verses that came up in the latter that didn't come up in the former.
I'm also going to link to more of the text than what was provided in the search so that you can see it more in context...
Matthew 13:30-32
Mark 4:30-32
Luke 13:18-20
Luke 17:5-7
In the time to come, I'll be sharing even more bits of trivia where land and sea come into play in especially interesting ways.
For now, however, it's time to get this blog "out there"...
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I began construction on this blog either on or a little before August 10 (which is what the date stamp at the top says) and posted this blog-entry right on that date.
However, I kept it to a private setting until now.
The 143rd anniversary of my maternal grandpa's birthday has come and gone, and today is the 56th anniversary of his passing. It seems to be a fitting milestone day for grand-opening this blog.
As the late, great Jane Toner Scott always signed off her column, The Interim, in what was then called The Anderson Herald:
...that's all for now...
