A Team Any Loser Can Join
In his book, "Putting Amazing Back Into Grace," M. Horton suggests, "God has chosen a team that any 'loser' can join: not an entirely unattainable qualificaiton for many of us."
The author continues, "Knowing that God has chosen us reminds us that we are loved though not lovely; chosen, even though we're not necessarily choice in the eys of the boss, the spouse, the parents, or the folks at church. We are accepted--not becasue we are acceptabe ourselves, but because 'he hath made us accepted in the beloved' (Eph. 1:6)."
Pruning Isn't Just Good For Plants
Urban T. Holmes III has written:
"Any good gardener knows that beautiful roses require careful pruning. Pieces of a living plant have to die. It cannot just grow wild."
Holmes adds,
"We cannot simply 'celebrate growth.' It is more than to be regretted, it is tragic that we seem to have lost the insight that growth in Christ requires careful pruning. Pieces of us by our intentional action need to die if we are to become the person that is in God's vision."
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful" (John 15:1-2).
One Man's Blood Is the Best Anti-venom for Snakes
The latest research (published on May 2, 2025, in the journal Cell Press) is showing great promise in the fight against the deadly effects of snake bites:
Scientists have developed what they believe is the most widely effective antivenom ever — and the secret ingredient came from one man’s blood.
In the course of their research, the team found a man, Tim Friede, who had been bitten hundreds of times by 16 species of deadly snakes — the poison lethal enough to kill a horse, according to the scientists — over an 18-year period.
It turns out Friede was intentionally subjecting himself to the snake bites (over 200 of them!) and venom (over 700 doses!) in order to self-immunize against the deadly effects. He would start with very small doses, so as not to produce a fatal response, then gradually increase the exposure so his body could adjust to the poison over time. The result was a sort of "hyper-immunity" which makes him virtually impervious to a wide range of venomous toxins.
Now, rich in anti-venom antibodies, components from his blood are being developed into a very broad based antitode to combat the toxic effects of snake bites in others who have been bitten.
Don't bellieve it? Here's a link to his YouTube channel with plently of "sssssss"cary videos.
This might be a reasonable and, frankly, successful approach when it comes to literal snake venom, but the principle hardly carries over to the spiritual realm where we have been told that our most sinister enemy is "that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray" (Revelation 12:9, NIV).
From the moment of the Fall of Man in the Garden of Eden, we've had a snake, errrrr a sin problem. But with the sin came the promise:
"And I will put enmity between you [Satan] and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he [Jesus] will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” (Genesis 3:15, NIV).
And that promise came through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross. "In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Hebrews 9:22, NIV).
Some erroneously think that they can withstand the toxitcity of a life lived in sin and rebellion, engaging in ever increasing exposure to the trappings of this world and all its influence. But in the spiritual realm, you never "adjust to the poison," and the continued exposure doesn't produce "hyper-immunity" ... it only produces death!
Indeed, though, there is ONE MAN who can provide the "hyper-immunity" required to both resist and triumph over the toxic influence of that great serpent, Satan. But that man is NOT Tim Friede; that Man is the Lord Jesus Christ!