Read And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. (Isa. 40:5) Reflect To say I’m bossy about Christmas is an understatement. As a kid, I insisted my sisters and I sleep in the same bedroom on Christmas Eve so we could all enter the living room together in the morning and share the first sight of presents piled under the tree. I made sure they both had a water bottle and a book to read if they woke up early, so they wouldn’t need to venture out and ruin the wonder. (As an adult, I’ve tried to convince them to ditch their husbands for a night so we can keep the tradition going. No luck so far.) Glory abounds at Christmas—in that sight of presents under the tree, in spectacular light displays, in the rousing harmonies of a congregation singing carols by candlelight. If we’re not careful, we become captivated by the wonder of all the secondary glories of Christmas and miss the main event. If we’re not careful, we become captivated by the wonder of all the secondary glories of Christmas and miss the main event. Isaiah knew what it meant to behold true glory. He was given a vision of God on his throne, and it almost killed him: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” (Isa. 6:5). Yet Isaiah wasn’t the only one who’d get to see the Lord. Through the prophet’s words, God comforted his people exiled in Babylon with an astonishing promise: “The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together” (40:5). At Christmastime, we celebrate the coming of this glory. Jesus took on humanity, and he entered our world in a grubby stable. Glory arrived. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Most who saw Jesus during his lifetime missed his glory. But now in the Bible, we see it—the glory of his miracles; his teaching; his sinlessness; his death, resurrection, and ascension. Do you see it? Or are your eyes fixed on something else this Christmas? Amid the festive spectacles, are you too distracted to look on and bask in your Savior’s glory? Do your eyes flit so quickly between your calendar, your to-do list, and your messy house that you don’t even notice Christ? Through Scripture, we behold Jesus now. As we look, the Spirit transforms us more and more into Jesus’s image so we share his glory (2 Cor. 3:18). Yet this isn’t enough. Charles Spurgeon wrote, “How partially we see Christ here. The best believer only gets half a glimpse of Christ.” Do your eyes flit so quickly between your calendar, your to-do list, and your messy house that you don’t even notice Christ? These partial glimpses make us long for Christ’s return, when we’ll finally see him face to face. Only then will Isaiah’s prophecy be fulfilled as God keeps his promise: “The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” On that day, we’ll delight together at the greatest spectacle any of us has ever seen. In anticipation of that glory, we can rejoice in what Scripture reveals of Jesus today. Let’s look and look until we see. Respond Who or what has most of your attention this Christmas? What habits or practices can you start in the coming weeks to fix your eyes on Christ’s glory? How might you stir your longing for his return amid the season’s busyness?

Panacea is a solution or remedy for disease and illness. Poison is the opposite of panacea BUT poisonous plants also contain healing properties! Medicine has come a very long way over the many centuries. Today I’d like to share with you some of the old medicines that can harm but they can also heal. Throwback Thursday’s: Panacea & Poison For centuries healers and medicine workers practiced and harnessed the healing powers of poisonous, toxins and venom as medicine. There are many different medicines that are derived from poisonous plants, consider the anti-venom and serums that are provided to those bitten by a snake or a spider, the venom is actually the poison. Poisonous Plants Used As Medicine Pacific Yew | The Yew tree is used to inhibit the progress of certain cancers. Opium, Mandrake, Henbane, and Hemlock All of these plants can be toxic in high doses but all of them have been used for topical numbers in the past. Deadly Nightshade (Belladonna) For centuries nightshade has been used to poison enemy troops during wars. This same plant that will kill will also heal. Doctors use Belladonna to alleviate motion sickness, treat IBS, and other inflammatory conditions. The plant is also used to control muscle spasms and Parkinson's disease. Topically Belladonna can be used as a pain reliever. Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) This beautiful plant can provide much healing but if a person were to eat it they would be terribly sorry because it can be deadly if it is eaten. Back in the 18th century, a physician from Britain made an infusion using foxglove and it was discovered it can treat drops, also known as, edema. In modern day medicine, they have found that deriving specific chemicals from the plant to make medication with can help people who suffer from congestive heart failure. So you see some of the same plants that can have a negative effect on our bodies can also have a very positive effect. Always study and know your plants before trying to treat yourself. Any of these plants can be very dangerous if used in the wrong manner. Always consult a medical professional before trying anything new. Emory University shows us how poison plants revolutionize medicine:  Medicine has come a very long way, especially for homesteaders. One of the most important things for us homesteaders is being completely self-sufficient. Taking a look back in history at some of the medicines the can be deadly that can also heal is a real eye opener. I do not suggest trying to make any medicines from these specific plants, I do however hope to inspire others to learn about how amazing medicine truly can be. What do you think about poisonous plants used as medicine? Let us know in the comments below. Here are the must know rules on picking edible & medicinal plants! Follow us on facebook, instagram, pinterest, and twitter!

The mummified remains of a sabre-toothed cat cub has been recovered in an exceptional state of preservation from the permafrost of Siberia. Radiocarbon dating found the cub lived and died 35,500 to 37,000 years ago. Paleontologist Alexey Lopatin found the cub while looking for mammoth tusks on the Badyarikha River in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) in 2020. The mummy consists of the head and top half of the body of a felid cub, complete with thick brown fur, toe pads, claws, muscles, skin, even whiskers preserved in the permafrost. The bottom half of the cub was not preserved, except for some incomplete pelvic bones articulated with the femur and shin bones found encased in the ice. The remains were CT scanned for detailed analysis of the bones. The scans were compared to ones from the body of three-week-old modern lion cub, with particular focus on the crania and teeth to determine its species. Measurements of the bones and examination of other anatomical features (eg, eye shape, nose and nostril proportion, fur lengths) found that the cub belonged to the species Homotherium latidens. The eruption stage of the incisors indicate the cub was also just a three-week-old kitten when he died in the frigid cold of the Arctic Circle. This is the first Homotherium mummy ever discovered. It is only the second example of H. latidens from Late Pleistocene Eurasia, and the first one found in Asia. The study of the mummy of the Homotherium latidens cub made it possible for the first time to observe its fur, the shape of its muzzle, the shape and position of the auricle, the morphology of the mouth opening and nasal planum. The shape of the front paw of this predator was studied, and the features of the distribution of its muscle mass were established, also for the first time. New information about the juvenile stages of development of the skull and limbs makes it possible to establish the peculiarities of the early postnatal ontogenesis of Homotherium. Also, the discovery of H. latidens mummy in Yakutia radically expands the understanding of distribution of the genus and confirms its presence in the Late Pleistocene of Asia. Thus, for the first time in the history of paleontological research, the external appearance of an extinct mammal that has no analogues in the modern fauna has been studied directly. Researchers will continue to study the sabre-toothed kitten. They will attempt to extract DNA from the remains, and the cub having been frozen for 35,000 years in ice bodes well for successful extraction. A follow-up paper will go into further detail on its anatomical features.

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