Northwoods Conservatives

April 13, 2026 6:01 pm

April 12, 2026, the 102nd day of 2026 First Thunderstorm of the Year We had our first Thunderstorm of the year overnight and into the morning. It poured and poured, lightning flashed and thunder ro... View More

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Nelani Nettrour

April 11, 2026 7:52 pm

April 11, 2026, the 101st day of 2026 Why Do We Doubt? Doubting is not really a mystery. There are reasons for it.... View MoreApril 11, 2026, the 101st day of 2026 Why Do We Doubt? Doubting is not really a mystery. There are reasons for it. Sometimes it is a help, giving us pause before we make a decision. It is not wise to take everything we hear as truth, or to place our trust in someone or something untested. Trust takes time. It takes discernment. But in the process of learning we may have been hurt because of misplaced trust. And if we have acted foolishly because of that trust, we may be less willing to trust even the trustworthy. There are reasons that we doubt some things and not others. Some things have been proven to us, and other things have not. Normally if we know all the facts and believe them, we do not doubt. If we know part of the facts, but still trust them, we will not usually doubt. If we know some of the facts, but don't really believe them, we will doubt. But what about when we know the source is trustworthy, why do we still doubt? What is holding us back? In believing in someone or something, there is a hope. And that hope is fragile. It may not want to believe too hard, for fear of that something not living up to expectations The more precious the belief, the more precious the hope. In the salvation story is such a hope, a hope that is almost too wonderful to believe, but also too wonderful to give up on. There is truth in it, a truth that will not be denied. Jesus accomplished it, and Jesus is the truth. When He speaks that truth is apparent to the heart of His creation. That such a love and such forgiveness is meant for us, not just for others, is something worth grasping onto, worth seeking out, worth believing in. To put down the burden of sin in repentance is a great relief, greater than we even imagine before we do it. To pick up eternal life, in surrendering our life to Jesus, is wonderful. It is a treasure. But if doubt overcomes our trust, before faith can spring forth, we will reject that treasure. We will reject what makes life really worth living. We trust in so many things less trustworthy. But the thing that matters most, is often abandoned because of doubt. That is the saddest of sad things. Stay strong! Don't let doubt keep you from finding eternal life. NAN

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Nelani Nettrour

April 10, 2026 10:19 pm

April 10, 2026, the 100th day of 2026 Spring's Slow Journey Every year is different. And every year there are changes in the way our seasons leave and come in.... View MoreApril 10, 2026, the 100th day of 2026 Spring's Slow Journey Every year is different. And every year there are changes in the way our seasons leave and come in. It is not something that most people keep a detailed accounting of. Even if we comment on it at the time, it is usually forgetten when it changes again. The ever changing aspect of Northwoods' weather is what stands out the most. It can be a joy and it can be a frustration. It all depends on how we perceive it and react to it. It is not always easy to come to terms with waiting, and planning around the unknown timing of things. But it is something we learn and relearn, almost every Spring season. And we pray. Since I write a daily post, I like to add some of the changes in the weather. Year by year that adds up to a lot of information, giving me a permanent record of at least some of the changes, slow, fast or as expected. It also gives others, who read my posts, something to compare their weather to. Spring has been slow going this year. It has not rushed in. It teases and backs off, peaks out and retreats. Today it was sunny and in the mid 40's, but our yard is still covered in snow. It is going down, but it has been taking its time. The temperature still drops enough below freezing most every night to turn the melted snow into ice. As the day goes on it melts again, but early morning walks on it are tricky. I know that at some point it will actually act like Spring. I just hope we get enough of it to transition nicely into Summer, not have cold, damp, chill and almost overnight hot and humid weather. There have been years like that, but it is better when we can enjoy the warming before summer heat. But we won't know until whatever happens, happens. There is a lot to do once the snow melts away before we get to mending things, transplanting and planting the gardens. The changes are so slow right now, but soon there will be grass and blooming flowers. Just not today. Stay strong. Slowly the changes are happening, but they will eventually become apparent. NAN

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Nelani Nettrour

April 9, 2026 2:38 pm

April 9, 2026, the 99th day of 2026 If We Only Knew There are things in our lives that we would have done differently if we had only known the whole story, the truth, not the deception.... View MoreApril 9, 2026, the 99th day of 2026 If We Only Knew There are things in our lives that we would have done differently if we had only known the whole story, the truth, not the deception. Life is filled with steps of growing and learning. Along the way it is easy to make mistakes when we don't havr all the facts. We may trust people we shouldn't have, because we were naive and trusted without verifying. We may have made bad business decisions, educational choices and/or our job path. But most of those things only affect our mortal life. What we need to really be concerned about is what affects our soul and our eternity. We can stand to lose in this lifetime, even when it is not because of anything we have done, and there was nothing we could do about it. We learn that we cannot control everything. It is a hard lesson to learn, but we need to learn it. At the same time we need to learn responsibility and that actions have consequences. Those are priceless lessons, especially if learned young. This knowledge will help prevent too many choices with horrible consequences. Without a grasp of responsibility and consequences, it is hard to come to repentance and surrender to Jesus as Lord and Master. If we do not realize that all sin leads to destruction, not just the ones we label "major sins". We need to take God's word on what He considers trespasses. We usually gloss over and call something we want to do, a "choice" when God calls it sin. We have free will. But our free will takes us directly to Hell upon death, if our free will isn't surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus, through repentance and giving ourselves wholy to Jesus. An unrepentant life has consequences far worse than any temporary pleasure we may get from going our own way. If we only knew what awaited us in Heaven, we would strive the more to secure our place there and to send our treasures there. And if we only knew the utter hopelessness of Hell, where no chance remains to change anything for the better, a place void of all goodness, a place of despair. God did all the hard work. He took on Human flesh and became the baby Jesus, Who after showing Himself to be God, took on the sins of the world, so we had the ability to choose eternal life in Him. To accept such a gift should be the easiest choice we could ever make, but our arrogance and pride often get in the way. Distractions get in our way. Our will and our sin nature rise up in rebellion against surrendering our life to Jesus, though daily we surrender our life and our will to sin. It makes no sense. Salvation may have been paid for us by Jesus, but if unccollected by us because we refuse our part in choosing, it does us no good. Don't let the words, "if I had only known" be your groan as you face the final judgment in the end and the books are opened and you are judged by what is written there, with no Jesus as your Advocate. You can know now. You can choose now. It is not a thing hidden from you, unless you choose to ignore it. Turning your back on such a great salvation is no one's fault but your own. No one can choose for you, but you. It is easy to be distracted. It is easy to think, "maybe later". But later is not promised to anyone. We do not know our time. We do not know when it is over. We do not know what will keep us from seeking Jesus, once we turn away. Stay strong! Seek Jesus and you shall find Him. But you will not find Him if you do not seek Him. Jesus did His part, what you do about it is in your hands. NAN

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Nelani Nettrour

April 8, 2026 11:53 pm

April 8, 2026, the 98th day of 2026 The Books That Were Not Written "And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself ... View MoreApril 8, 2026, the 98th day of 2026 The Books That Were Not Written "And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen." John 21:25 The extent of what we have not been told is revealed, books of the works of Jesus that have not been written. We are left to ponder. Will we discover these stories when we are in Heaven, when we can talk to the people touched by their encounter with Jesus? As an author I am really interested in individual stories. And thinking about how many individuals were touched by Jesus during His lifetime, after His death and when in rose from the dead, fascinates me. We may wonder. We may ponder. We may imagine. But we will not really know their stories until they share them in eternity. But that is okay, we have plenty of time to share our stories with one another there. When I read that verse, it makes me realize that we only get a small taste, a small sampling, of the life of Jesus. We get enough to lead us to salvation in Jesus, and that is the main point. "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name." John 20:30-31 The Bible tells us why He came and why He had to die. It is told so we understand that, even before Jesus came. And if we were never taught it, to go back and read it from the start, so we do understand. In Genesis, we find not only the Creation story, but how sin and death entered the world because of the choice made in the Garden of Eden, at the beginning. And right there, at a time when all seemed hopeless, the promise of the Saviour was given--a ray of hope in a world under sin's curse because of disobedience. So much of the Bible leads up to the coming of Jesus, both His first coming and His return. Many had lived and died while hoping to see His coming. They believed in Him and in what He would do. Then when Jesus came and that generation experienced His coming, many stayed in darkness because Jesus did not act as they expected Him to act, or do what they expected Him to do. The fault was theirs. It was not His. And though we were not there to experience that time, we get to read from the beginning to the ending of His lifetime and beyond, to what comes after. We have it in a place of easy access, the Bible. We may not get His whole Earthly story now. But we get enough. We have enough to know and to believe. And that is what matters for all of us. If we miss seeking and finding Jesus, we miss eternal life. Stay strong! The impact of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus is still being felt, and will be felt throughout all of eternity! NAN

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Nelani Nettrour

April 7, 2026 6:41 pm

April 7, 2026, the 97th day of 2026 Daily Help Sometimes we just need that extra help in a day, and God has no problem giving us that help.... View More

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