Sandy Silverthorne's Blog, page 2
December 17, 2020
Some fun Bible facts from the Old Testament you might not know
Several years ago, it occurred to me that kids were hearing Bible stories like David and Goliath and Jonah and the Whale right alongside Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, and Sleeping Beauty. Now the story of a young boy who defeats a giant with just a slingshot and a guy spending three days inside a great fish are pretty fantastic stories so I wanted to let young people know that these weren’t just fables or legends but they were real accounts that happened to real people. So, Betty Fletcher and I created The Awesome Book of Bible Facts with Harvest House Publishers.
Our goal was to keep the book fun and kid like and explain things that today’s children could understand. For example, we compared Goliath’s height with a basketball hoop (around ten feet) and Noah’s Ark with an aircraft carrier. We talked about how people fished back in Jesus’s day, the kinds of foods they ate, how they celebrated special days and even why you might give someone your sandal in order to validate a contract. Hopefully as kids (and adults!) read the book they’ll see that the stories in the Bible aren’t fairy tales, they were real, and they actually happened!
Although nobody knows for sure where exactly the Garden of Eden was located, the Bible mentions that it was where four rivers came together. Two of those rivers still exist today- The Tigris and the Euphrates. So, the garden was probably located somewhere in modern day southern Iraq.

Did you know that Noah was 600 years old when God asked him to build the ark? And that it had never rained on the earth before Noah’s time? So, when he told his neighbors God was going to send a flood on the earth, they thought he was crazy!Noah’s ark was about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high. A modern-day aircraft carrier is about 1000 feet long. And according to researchers, the ark held as much cargo as 330 railroad cars!

Most people assume that Noah, his family and all the animals were on the ark for 40 days and 40 nights but actually that’s not true. It rained for 40 days and nights, but Noah and Company were actually on the ark for a year and ten days!In the story of Joseph, we read about how he was the favorite son of his father Jacob. In fact, Jacob gave Joseph a “Coat of Many Colors”. This was the kind of coat worn by royalty, but the word also can mean a long-sleeved coat. People who worked hard in the fields always wore short sleeve coats for convenience. So, when Joseph strolled around in his long sleeve colorful coat it probably made his other eleven brothers furious.By the time Joseph got to Egypt the pyramids had been there 1000 years already!Did you know that the Hebrew word to describe the little basket that Moses was put into to save his life is the same word that’s used for the boat Noah built? The word means ark. It describes a boat that in both cases, was used to deliver someone.When God sent plagues to Egypt almost every one of them confronted an Egyptian god. For example, when God sent darkness over all the land, this was an affront to Ra, the sun god in Egypt. And when God sent hail, He showed the people that Isis their goddess of life, had no power. Not only were the plagues terrifying but they proved that there was only one God, the Living God.The journey from Egypt to the Promised Land would normally take about two weeks at that time (think about Joseph, he was taken from his family and ended up in Egypt a few weeks later), but because God took the children of Israel on a different route and they were disobedient to Him, they ended up spending 40 years in the desert!

When Gideon had his 300 men sneak up on the Midianites in the dark, he gave each one a trumpet (probably a ram’s horn). Since most armies had only one trumpet per company of soldiers, when the 300 blew their horns the Midianites must have thought they were being attacked by 300 companies! No wonder they panicked.Did you know that God is never specifically mentioned in the entire book of Esther? But He obviously was behind all the activities in the amazing story.When Jonah ran away from God (like that’s possible!) he ended up on a ship in the middle of the Mediterranean. A huge storm hit and the sailors “cast lots” to find out whose fault it was. Casting lots was simple. There were three flat stones painted black on one side and white on the other. When “cast” or tossed, if they came up all white the answer would be yes. If they were both black the answer would be no. If it was one white and one black it meant wait. Somehow on the ship the lots indicated that Jonah was the source of their problems. Nowadays believers in Jesus have His Holy Spirt to give us direction so we don’t need to cast lots anymore.

The ancient City of David from which David ruled Israel was actually smaller in size then the Louisiana Superdome! It’s now a section of modern day Jerusalem.

Here’s an interesting tidbit: The phrases Apple of my Eye, Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing, The Skin of Your Teeth, and A Drop in the Bucket all originated in the Bible.The longest book in the Bible is the book of Psalms with 150 chapters. The shortest book is Obadiah with just 21 verses.
Stay tuned and we’ll have some interesting facts from the New Testament coming soon!
December 16, 2020
Jokes

Max: Wow, are you all right?
Jax: Yeah, I was only on the 2nd rung.Did you hear about the missing barber? Police are combing the city.What kind of cars do kittens drive? Cat-illlacs.I named my dogs Rolex and Timex. They’re my watchdogs.What did the lawyer name his daughter? Sue.What do you get when you cross a rooster with a giraffe? An animal who wakes people who live on the top floor.Diner: Waiter, do you have frog legs?
Waiter: Yes.
Diner: Okay, hop over here and take my order.Diner: Waiter, this soup is awful. Who made it?
Waiter: We all had a hand in it.Assistant: Sir, the Invisible Man is out in the Reception Room.
Boss: Tell him I can’t see him.Why did Tyler tip toe past the medicine cabinet? He didn’t want to wake the sleeping pills.What happens to a frog who overparks? He gets toad.How does a mermaid call her friends? On her shell phone!Joe: What’s the difference between an elephant and a mailbox?
Bo: I don’t know.
Joe: Well I’m never sending you to mail a letter.What do you call a Polar Bear wearing earmuffs? Anything you want, he can’t her you!What do you call a belt made out of watches? A waist of time.Diner: Will the band play anything I ask them to?
Band Leader: Sure.
Diner: Then ask them to play chess.Al: What were you before you started working here?
Sal: Happy.Salesman: This computer will do half your work for you.
Customer: In that case, I’ll take two.What do you get when you cross a stream and a brook? Wet feet.Jon: My dad’s a magician, he saws people in half.
Ron: Do you have any siblings?
Jon: Three half-sisters and a half-brother.Why did the baby cookie cry? Because his father was a wafer so long.What do ducks watch on TV? Duckumentaries.What washes up on tiny beaches? Microwaves.Where do vegetables volunteer? The peas corps.What did the elevator say to the other elevator? I think I’m coming down with something.Did you hear about the two guys who stole a calendar? They each got six months.

Don: Wow, that was a good trade.What did the tie say to the hat? You go on a head, I’ll just hang around.I’d like to get a job cleaning mirrors. It’s really something I could see myself doing.What does a clock do when it gets hungry? It goes back four seconds.What do you get when you cross an electric blanket with a toaster? People who pop out of bed in the morning.Patient: Doctor, I’m convinced I’m a pair of curtains!
Psychiatrist: Well stop complaining and pull yourself together.When is a car not a car? When it turns into a driveway.I’m reading a book about antigravity. I can’t put it down.

Aiden: Really? Is she taking anything for it?What dog do you find at an embassy? A diplo-mutt.Why did the clock get kicked out of class? It tocked too much.What has 18 legs and goes crunch, crunch, crunch? A baseball team eating potato chips.Did you hear about the man who swallowed a dictionary? He didn’t breathe a word of it to anyone.Diner: I’d like the special and coffee with no cream.
New Waitress: I’m sorry we’re out of cream. Would you like it with no milk instead?

Candy: I’m trying to make up my mind.What do they call the time in history when nerds ruled the land? The Dork Ages.What kind of music do planets listen to? Nep-tunes.What happens when you touch a window? You feel the pane.What do cows use in their text messages? E-moo-jis.


Ryan: No but I’ve seen an apple turnover.What steals your stuff while you’re in the bathtub? A robber ducky.

Jack: Who, me?
Teacher: Correct.Peg: I can watch the sunrise from my bedroom.
Meg: So what? From my family room, I can watch the kitchen sink.Man: I swallowed a clock last week.
Doctor: Wow! Why didn’t you tell me sooner?
Man: I didn’t want to alarm anybody.Kid: Teacher would you punish me for something I didn’t do?
Teacher: Of course not.
Kid: Good, I didn’t do my homework.What kind of shoes do frogs wear? Open toad.Doctor: Have your eyes been checked lately?
Patient: No, they’ve always been brown.Mom: Eric, wake up! It’s twenty to nine!
Eric: Who’s favor?Josh is such a diligent student that last week he stayed up all night studying for a blood test.Where do cats go on vacation? Meow-mi Beach.What flies around the school at night? An alphabat.Teacher: Jimmy, if you worked nine hours a day and got one dollar an hour. What would you get?
Jimmy: A new job.Kyle: Mom, may I try out for the track team?
Mom: Run that by me again.Customer: Hey Bud, will my pizza be long?
Pizza Guy: No, it’ll be round just like all the others.What do you call an optometrist in the Aleutian Islands? An optical Aleutian.Where do TV’s go on vacation? To remote places.
How to Draw
Do you like to draw? I hope so. Whether you’re just starting out or you’re a real pro, here are a few tutorials to help you learn how to draw a couple of simple things. Things like a cartoon guy, a cat, a dog and even some faces you can practice on. If you do some drawings that you really like, why not share them with me? Just scan them, go to my contact page, and send them in. I can’t wait to see them!
Here’s an easy tutorial that will show you how to turn a simple stick figure into a cool looking cartoon guy!
Okay you’ve just learned how to draw a cartoon guy, so now it’s time to draw a cartoon girl. It’s easy and fun! Check it out.
Do you have a dog at home? Whether you do or not, here’s an easy way to draw a dog that’s really simple. Check it out.
Drawing a cat is easy. This short tutorial will take you through the process step by step.
This short tutorial will show you a lot of different facial expressions your cartoon people might have. Are they happy? Sad? Mad? Drawing faces is easy and fun. So, go ahead and try a few.
Some Fun New Testament Bible Facts
The Bible is divided into two parts- the Old Testament where we learn the history of God’s people the Israelites, and the New Testament, which is centered on Jesus, God’s Son. Here are just a few little-known facts about the New Testament:
How many Wise Men came and visited Israel’s newborn King? We always think there were three- in fact, we even sing about the Three Kings, but the Bible never tells us how many Wise Men there were. The only thing we know for sure is that there were more than one. I think we assume there were three because they brought three gifts to the Christ Child. Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh.Jesus was born in the small town of Bethlehem. Its name means City of Bread and was also the childhood home of King David. Later in Jesus’s ministry He referred to Himself as the Bread of Life.When the shepherds visited Mary and Joseph on the night that Jesus was born, they served an important purpose for Mary. They affirmed what the angel had told her nine months earlier that the child she’d just given birth to was indeed God’s Son.Since Luke, the writer of the Gospel of Luke was a physician he uses more medical terms than any of the other three gospels.One of the great things Jesus did while He was here was heal people. But it seems like He never healed people in the same way twice. Here are some of the different ways that Jesus healed:
Rubbed mud in a man’s eyes
Touched the man with leprosy
Lifted a woman by the hand
Honored the faith of the four guys who brought their paralyzed friend to Jesus
Called Lazarus out of the tomb
Spoke a word
Raised a widow’s sonJesus broke His own laws of nature by walking on water in order to reach His disciples in the middle of the Sea of Galilee.Jesus met some interesting people as He traveled through Israel. One was a short little tax collector named Zacchaeus. The Bible says he was rich which probably meant that he cheated his fellow Jews by adding to their tax bill. For example, if you owed $100 to Rome, good old Zacchaeus might charge you two or three hundred dollars and keep the difference for himself. No wonder he wasn’t very popular. When he encountered Jesus however his life changed, and he promised to give back the money he’d stolen.

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday the people shouted “Hosanna” which means “Save Now!” They were probably quoting from Psalm 118:25 and were hoping Jesus would deliver them from the Romans who occupied their land at the time. But Jesus knew the people needed to be saved from their sins, which was what He was about to do.Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on a donkey had been foretold by the prophet Zechariah more than 400 years earlier. Check it out in Zechariah 9:9.Jesus believed the Old Testament. And He told people they should believe everything the prophets had said. (Luke 24:25) Jesus and the other writers of the New Testament quote the Old Testament about 600 times.In New Testament times men would fish at night. They would go out in their boats with torches. The light from the torches would draw the fish up to the surface and they’d get caught in the net.Jesus came for two reasons- one, to show us what God was like and two, to take the punishment for all our sins (the bad stuff we do). He died on the cross and was separated from the Father so that we never have to be. That’s good news! BTW The word Gospel means “good news”.

The Roman Empire was known for many innovations in warfare, architecture and building aqueducts. But they also created a road system that stretched throughout their entire empire- from Rome all the way to the middle east. God’s missionaries used these advanced roads to help spread His Gospel throughout the whole known world.On most Roman roads there were milepost signs to show how far you’d travelled. But in those days a Roman soldier could command you to carry his load for one mile. Jesus said that if someone asks you to carry his load one mile, you should carry it two.
Bible Lesson: Wait in the Water
This is one of my favorite stories from the Old Testament. The people of God had been wandering in the wilderness for forty years and now they were finally ready to enter into the Promised Land- what we now call Israel. But there was one obstacle in their way- the Jordan River, which happened to be overflowing and deep at the time. There were no bridges, and you’d need like 300 ocean liners to get everybody across, so what did they do? Well Joshua told the priests to pick up the Ark of His Presence and walk before the people into the water. And what happened next was amazing! Slow in coming, but amazing! Check out this quick video to see what went on:
Here are some questions you can talk about after you watch the video lesson:
Why do you think it’s so hard to wait for things? What are some things in your life you’ve had to wait for? A trip? Your birthday? Christmas? Name some other times you needed to wait for something good to happen.What do you think the people were feeling when they saw the priests carrying the Ark into the Jordan River? What do you think the priests were feeling?Even though God stopped up the river at the exact moment the priests stepped into the water, it was twenty miles upstream in Adam! So, it took a long time for the people to see that God was answering their prayer. Sometimes when God is doing something important in our lives, we don’t see it right away. What should we do while we’re waiting?God opened up the Jordan River just like he’d done 40 years before at the Red Sea. If you aren’t familiar with that story, check it out in Exodus 14. God created the whole world so a sea or a river is no big deal to Him. He can do anything! Look at Luke 1:37.Why do you suppose God makes us wait for things?The truth of the matter is that God loves you more than you can imagine and sometimes He makes us wait because He wants us to know and trust Him more and more while we wait.
August 16, 2020
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August 15, 2020
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April 17, 2020
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