Northwoods Conservatives

21 hours ago

June 22, 2026, the 173rd day of 2026 Helpful Hands It is always so nice to have help with a project that has been hard to deal with steadily.... View More

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Nelani Nettrour

Yesterday, 12:01 am

June 21, 2026, the 172nd day of 2026 First Day of Summer Happy Fathers' Day! ... View MoreJune 21, 2026, the 172nd day of 2026 First Day of Summer Happy Fathers' Day! Today is the longest day we have of the year. It is the Summer Solstice. It is the beginning of Summer. It is also Fathers' Day, when we celebrate fathers. Both remind me of how fragile time is, how changing. Time passes in cycles and what seemed so solid can become fragile and then be gone. If we live long enough we will see this a lot. The father we thought so big and strong, starts fading and then one day, he is gone. And that place where the love of our father once dwelt, now feels vacant and empty. How did he come to fill so much space unobserved by his own family? Why is it onlu apparent to so many only after his passing? A young boy grows to be a father. What his fathers passed on to him, for good or ill, will affect his idea of fatherhood. It is more than any man is really ever prepared for. It comes upon him, and he has no idea how it will change him, until it does. He will do great. He will stumble. It is not like any other job he faced. Fatherhood is a new and uncertain existence. So much responsibility. So little real training. But God understands. Fatherhood is a precious position. God Himself is a Father, not only of His Only Begotten Son, Jesus, but of all of us who come to Him through Jesus. It is amazing and powerful to think about. Let us cherish our fathers and the fathers of our children, while there is still time. And if either or both have passed on, think on them fondly and with love. Today is also the official beginning of Summer. It is the longest day, but it is still only one day. There is only so much that can be fit into those extra moments. Today may be longer, but the rest of the days have been building up and now they will be shortening. Then it will be the darkest day and Winter will begin. Cycles. Movements. Whether we are ready. Whether we are prepared. Or not. We mark times and seasons by these transitions. God built the systems in for us. Change is normal, even in cycles. It is like the moon phases. The Full Moon is perfectly fulll for a very short time. It is either building up or going down. When it is the New Moon it is the darkest moon for a short time. And the cycle repeats. God built a rhythm into nature and into the cycles around us. Life is also a cycle. We go from the womb, where we grew up and hopefully reached the proper stage, then we were born into this world. Then we grow up outside the womb, living this totally different life from inside the womb--the forgotten place that held our beginnings. Cycles of movement. From life to life. Then from life to death. Then from death to life after death. All cycles are pointing us to something more, some path leading somewhere. That somewhere is eternity. And the path to eternal life is through Jesus Christ! Stay strong! Let all the movements of nature remind you of the One Who set all in motion, our Creator God, the Father. NAN

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Nelani Nettrour

June 20, 2026 5:01 pm

June 20, 2026, the 171st day of 2026 Farm Swap Growing I am so glad that Farm Swap is expanding with more vendors and more people coming. It is good for all of us for this to grow.... View More

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Nelani Nettrour

June 19, 2026 11:38 pm

June 19, 2026, the 170th day of 2026 Concert Time gets away from us, and suddenly the concert I was thinking about going to, was here.... View More

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Nelani Nettrour

June 19, 2026 9:55 am

June 18, 2026, the 169th day of 2026 There is So Much More Life is not just something that happened to us, it is something God gave us. And it was meant to be so much more than we make of it.... View MoreJune 18, 2026, the 169th day of 2026 There is So Much More Life is not just something that happened to us, it is something God gave us. And it was meant to be so much more than we make of it. But even within this broken world, there are wonders and miracles. There are moments of inspiration that come to us as a gift. All are meant to lead us to God. All are meant to show us that there is so much more! For everything is far less than it was made to be, including our lives. Sin broke this world, took away the utter splendor that it was, muted the Paradise. Dulled the colors, the fragrances, the tastes. Sin distorted the sounds and cut off the spirit of man from God. Still, God reached out. Even before the first sin, from the foundation of our world, God prepared a way. The Way! The connection may have broken, but He still sought out those who were righteous, who followed where He led them. Enoch, Noah, Shem and more. God continued to work through those who would follow His way of righteousness. Among those were Abram, whom God renamed Abraham. From Abraham He gave a son of promise, Isaac. From Isaac God chose a son, Jacob. God renamed Jacob, Israel. And from Israel He made Himself a people. From His people of Israel, God made Himself a line, Judah. From the line of Judah He chose Himself a King, David. And in the proper time, from the royal line of David, God chose Himself the virgin Mary, for the mother of His Only Begotten Son, Jesus, through the Holy Spirit. And through the royal line of David, God chose Himself Joseph, to be the earthly father of Jesus. Joseph and Mary did not consumate their marriage until the proper time after the birth of Jesus. Jesus, Who had been chosen from the foundation of the world to be its Redeemer. Jesus, God in the flesh, perfect in all ways, sinless. He taught, made disciples and cast out demons. Jesus did miracles that showed Himself to be the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God. Then He suffered and died for us and on the 3rd day rose from the dead, showing Himself victorious over death. Jesus restored that connection to God. And it opened the way to all who would come to Jesus in true repentance, turning from sin to Him and surrendering their all to Him as their Lord and Master, their King. Jesus paid the price for the sin of the world, but we have free will. That means it is our choice to accept that payment by accepting Jesus, or not. When we accept the gift of salvation through Jesus, we follow Him. Or we choose not to follow Jesus, and we forfeit the payment He made for us. Since Jesus is the only way to God, if we do not accept Him and follow Him, we are still lost in our sin. Jesus did His part. And He does more. We are called by Him. We are drawn to Him. We are invited by the Creator God into so much more. That life, Jesus does not merely call ut life, but life more abundantly, life that is more than life! "Then Jesus said to them again, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.'" John 10:7-10 Chosing Jesus over sin should be an easy choice. Choosing abundant life over merely living should be an easy choice. But sin nature would have us believe we are losing something when we do. Well, actually we are, we are losing the punishment that we deserve. Pride would keep us from admitting our sins, would keep us from repenting and turning away from sin. Pride would keep us a slave to our sin nature and call it our choice. But sin destroyed this world. Sin will not be allowed to destroy the next. So anyone who chooses sin over following Jesus, chooses to be shut our of His Kingdom. And that would be a fate far worse than any temporary problem we may have in this life, becuase we follow Jesus. For no matter how terrible a situation or how hard the struggle we find ourselves in, it cannot follow us into eternity when we are following Jesus. And eternity never ends. Stay strong! Jesus offers life that is more than life! NAN

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Nelani Nettrour

June 17, 2026 4:14 pm

June 17, 2026, the 168th day of 2026 Loving God When we love someone we want to please them. It is no longer all about ourselves alone, it becomes about them and bringing joy into their lives. Giv... View MoreJune 17, 2026, the 168th day of 2026 Loving God When we love someone we want to please them. It is no longer all about ourselves alone, it becomes about them and bringing joy into their lives. Giving them pleasure, brings us happiness as well. We understand that in our human relationships, but we complicate it when it comes to God. If we love God we want to please Him. We take joy in finding ways to please Him, more than pleasing ourselves. When we love someone we want to talk about them with our friends and family. We want them to meet this person we love. It is the same when we love God. We want to share the news of Him and introduce our friends and family ro Him. When we love someone we want to be in their presence. We want them in our lives. We are the most content when we are with them. It is our most joyful place. We feel at home there. It is the same when we love God. We want to be with Him. We bring Him into every aspect of our lives because we love Him and want Him there. We feek at home in His presence. When we love someone we compare notes on what led to us finding one another, the coincidences we shared that were not coincidences. We want to find the links we shared before we ever met. It is the same when we love God. We look back at the steps in our lives that led us to Him. And we discover paths that didn't seem connected to Him, were. When we love someone we want to know their history, what moves them, what hurts their heart, so we do not wound that love. It is the same with God. And He even gave us the Bible where we can learn of Him. Among other things He reveals are those who have been His friends, those who have loved Him and those we have betrayed Him or rejected His love. When we love someone we want to know how best to show our love, so it is recognized as love. We want to give the gifts that will make them feel that love. It is the same with God. He gave us commandments that we who love Him will keep, because it is what He asks of us. When we love someone words only matter if the actions follow the words. Merely telling someone we love them, while doings what displeases them, is a mockery of love and will not be taken seriously by another, or by God. "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” John 14:21 Stay strong! Love God! NAN

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