Update on my visit to the Specialist
08.21.06 (7:34 am) [edit]
Update on visit to the Specialist at the Fremantle Clinic.
Share a lot with him,though he did ask a lot of questions on certain subjects I mentioned. And filled in some questionaires, tick the right box mainly. He has upped my Efexor to another 75mgs and to take them at night time for a week, then if not satisfactory split them up half in the morning and half at night, and see him in 6 weeks time. Will receive a letter from his therapist when to see her and have a chat, also he mentions group therapy that it would be good for me too. He also mentions the experiences I had in 1998 were of a cycotic nature(not sure how to spell it ok) But not putting me onto any cycotic drugs at this time. Depression,PTSD, anziety not sure about Disorder there yet.
Jennifer
God bless,
Jennifer
Jesus is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. 
Teens Cope with Unwanted Births Better than Abortion
08.10.06 (11:26 pm) [edit]
Teens Cope With Unwanted Births Better Than Abortion: New Study
National Study Finds Teens Who Abort Are More Likely to Experience Subsequent Mental Health Problems Compared to Those Who Give Birth to Unplanned Children
Springfield, IL (Aug. 10, 2006) -- Adolescent girls who abort unintended pregnancies are five times more likely to seek subsequent help for psychological and emotional problems compared to their peers who carry "unwanted pregnancies" to term, according to a new nationally representative study published in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence.
Dr. Priscilla Coleman, a research psychologist at Bowling Green State University, also found that adolescents who had abortions were also over three times more likely to report subsequent trouble sleeping, and nine times more likely to report subsequent marijuana use. The results were compiled after examining 17 other control variables, like prior mental health history and family factors, that might also influence subsequent mental health.
The data was drawn from a federally-funded longitudinal study of adolescents from throughout the U.S. who participated in two series of interviews in 1995 and 1996. About 76 percent of girls who had abortions and 80 percent of girls who gave birth were between the ages of 15 and 19 during the survey, with the remainder being younger.
Researcher Dr. David Reardon, who has contributed to more than a dozen studies examining psychological outcomes after abortion, said that Coleman's study was particularly important because it examines pregnancy "wantedness," in addition to a large number of other control variables.
"Over the last six years, numerous studies have conclusively linked higher rates of mental illness and behavioral problems associated with abortion compared to childbirth." said Reardon. "But abortion advocates have generally dismissed these findings, insisting that while women who abort may fare worse than women who give birth to planned children, they may fare better than the important subgroup of women who carry unintended pregnancies to term. Coleman's study addresses this argument and shows that the facts don't support abortion advocates' speculations."
According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, which tracks abortion statistics throughout the U.S., about a quarter of the abortions that take place each year are performed on girls younger than 20. Previous studies have found that younger abortion patients may be more likely to experience difficulties coping after abortion compared to older women, perhaps because they are more likely to be pressured into unwanted abortions or to undergo abortions later in the pregnancy, leading to more physical and emotional risk.
A 2004 survey of American and Russian women published in the Medical Science Monitor found that 64 percent of American women reported that they felt pressured into abortion. Coleman said that for teens, the pressure probably comes from the fact that they are more likely to be perceived as unready to be parents and that abortion is often seen by those around them as the best solution.
"When women feel forced into abortion by others or by life circumstances, negative post-abortion outcomes become more common," she wrote. "Adolescents are generally much less prepared to assume the responsibility of parenthood and are logically the recipients of pressure to abort."
Coleman pointed out that, while having a child as a teen may be problematic, "the risks of terminating seem to be even more pronounced." Other studies comparing outcomes for abortion versus delivery of unintended pregnancies have found higher rates of clinical depression, anxiety, and substance abuse among women who abort, while studies that did not look only at unplanned pregnancies also find that women who aborted are at increased risk for suicidal behavior, psychiatric problems, symptoms of post-traumatic stress, and sleep disorders, which are often linked to trauma.
While previous studies have often been criticized for methodological shortcomings, studies that have come out in the last several years have been designed to address those problems and have gone through vigorous scrutiny from peer-review panels before publication, she added.
"The scientific evidence is now strong and compelling," Coleman said. "Abortion poses more risks to women than giving birth."
Reardon, who directs the Springfield, IL-based Elliot Institute, also said that while there has been a long-standing assumption that such problems are related to mental health problems that existed before abortion, a large-scale study conducted in New Zealand last year found that this wasn't the case.
"The standard theory has been that women who have problems coping after abortion were probably already mentally unstable and therefore more likely to be even worse off if they continued the pregnancy," he said. "The researchers in New Zealand thought that their study would confirm this theory, so they specifically controlled for pre-existing mental health problems. What they found, however, was that women who were mentally stable before abortion were still more likely to experience mental health problems after abortion."
Although the pregnancy rate among American teens has dropped steadily in the past few decades, among developed countries the U.S. still has the highest rates of teen pregnancy and childbirth.
In her paper, Coleman highlighted a need for additional research on this issue. She pointed out that while "hundreds of thousands" of teens experience an unintended pregnancy each year, her study is one of only a few to examine the impact of abortion on women versus the impact of carrying to term, all of which have indicated worse outcomes associated with abortion.
Reardon echoed the call for more research, as well as the need for medical and mental health professionals to be attuned to the risks of abortion and present women and teens with accurate information about the physical and psychological effects of the procedure.
"The findings that are emerging show that abortion leads to negative outcomes for many women, regardless of whether the pregnancy was planned or wanted," Reardon said. "Indeed, not a single study has ever shown statistically significant benefits associated with abortion compared to birth. In terms of maximizing women's health and well-being, the scientific evidence overwhelmingly indicates that birth is preferable to abortion."
***
Source:
Priscilla K. Coleman, "Resolution of Unwanted Pregnancy During Adolescence Through Abortion Versus Childbirth: Individual and Family Predictors and Psychological Consequences," Journal of Youth and Adolescence (2006).
Additional Studies:
VM Rue et. al., "Induced abortion and traumatic stress: A preliminary comparison of American and Russian women," Medical Science Monitor 10(10): SR5-16 (2004).
David M. Fergusson, et. al., "Abortion in young women and subsequent mental health," Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 47(1): 16-24 (2006).
Â
Elliot Institute
PO Box 7348
Springfield
IL 62791
United States
www.afterabortion.info
Christians to be executed over gang violence
08.09.06 (10:51 pm) [edit]
Christians to be executed over gang violence.
Jakarta:
Three Christian men found guilty of inciting a bloody outbreak of fighting with Muslims in eastern Indonesia in 2000 are to be executed on Saturday prosecutors have told the men's families.
Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus da Silva and Marinus Riwu were found guilty in 2001 over months of violence on Sulawesi island between Muslim and Christian Gangs that left about 1000 people from both faiths dead.
Mr Tibo's son, Robertus, said prosecutors told him by letter on Tuesday that his father and the two other men would be killed by firing squad in the early hours of Saturday.
"I was shocked to read the letter saying that my father and his friends are scheduled to be executed this weekend," he said in the Sulawesi town of Tentena. "My father is convinced that he is innocent."
All three have said there were not guilty but their final appeal was turned down by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono last year.
A lawyer for the men told the Koran Tempo newspaper that he was trying to get them a last minute stay of execution based on new evidence.
Amnesty International said it was concerned that reports that the trial of the three men did not meet international standardness of fairness.
The case is sensitive because three Islamic militants are due to be executed this month for their role in the Bali bombings in 2002.
Several hard liner Muslim leaders in Sulawesi have called for the Christian trio to be executed.
What if we love each other?
08.01.06 (10:31 pm) [edit]
What If We Love Each Other?
By J. Budziszewski Dear Professor Theophilus:
I have a question that may sound a little bit hypocritical coming from a follower of Jesus, but I wanted to ask someone I could trust, who didn't know me, and who wouldn't release my name. I've really enjoyed the tips and articles here on the Boundless webzine, and my mother listens to Focus on the Family all the time on the radio, so I am really familiar with you guys.
I have been in Christian school for most of my life, I go to a wonderful church, and my family all love and serve the Lord. My girlfriend was responsible for getting me to join my current church; she is truly my gift from God.
This brings me to my point. My girlfriend and I have been together for nearly a year now, and we would get married if not for our remaining years in college. She can envision our future together, as can I, all ordained by God and blessed by our pastor.
Sexual intercourse tends to produce the same powerful feelings of "rightness" whether it's right or not.
|
We recently decided to engage in sexual intercourse. We both had questions about our decision to do this and we both decided to seek advice before deciding to have sex again. We are truly in love, and we connected spiritually before we even decided to have sex. After intercourse, we felt an even closer bond than ever before. Without a doubt, we are mentally, spiritually and emotionally married; our marriage is only missing a ring, a preacher and a church ceremony to make it official. If we make sure that we use protection, is it really that wrong for us to engage in making love? The Lord frowns on promiscuity, but we are not being promiscuous. The Lord values lifelong commitment and the two of us are as committed as a couple can be. I would like your opinion on this matter as we are both praying and seeking an answer.
Read the answer to this letter HERE
Abortion
07.31.06 (5:36 am) [edit]
LONDON - SPUC - July 28, 2006 - Nine women who had abortions have written about their experiences and the effect that it has had on their lives in a British newspaper. Writing in the Daily Mail, the women expressed a variety of reactions and most said that they felt some kind of regret and guilt. Elaine Jowsey, who had an abortion aged 17 because her boyfriend refused to support her and the child, said, "My decision to deny a child a future has in many ways been a personal life sentence for me... I'm still not over my abortion." Tina Mills-Baldock had an abortion when she found out that her unborn child had heart and kidney defects. She said, "There are no words to describe the mental anguish and terrible emptiness that swallows you in the days after an abortion...I don't think you ever get over an abortion completely. It's especially hard around the time of what would have been my son's birthday. A friend was pregnant at a similar time to me and when I see her little girl I imagine, if things had been different, having a child the same age." [For full story see
Daily Mail, 26 July]
The Dangers of the Ouija Board by Dan Corner
07.24.06 (12:48 am) [edit]
THE DANGERS OF THE OUIJA BOARD"...by Dan Corner's
| | | Permission to reproduce this article is hereby granted, but only in its entirety, including author's
name and ministry address at the end of the article, and without any alterations.
One of the chief tools used in divination is the Ouija Board. Though Parker Brothers (those who manufacture it) would suggest that this is merely a game used for entertainment purposes, this occultic tool leads to spiritual darkness. It is described as such:
A board and pointer used for divination and by some as a means to contact spirits or entities. The name comes from the French and German words for "yes," oui and ja (ja is mispronounced with a hard "j"). Critics of the Ouija, who include authorities in most denominations of Christianity, say it is dangerous and a tool of the Devil. Advocates say that it, like other forms of divination, is a legitimate means to discover insight, wisdom, and self-truths and to communicate with discarnate beings.
The board includes letters of the alphabet, numerals 0 through 9, the words "yes" and "no," and a heart-shaped pointer on three felt-tipped legs. One or two people place their fingertips on the pointer, which moves to answer questions. In most cases answers probably rise up from the subconsciousness of the users, even when "spirits" identify themselves and give messages. However, Ouija pointers have been known to fly off the board and spin out of control, as though being directed by unseen forces, and some users claim to be harassed by external agents contacted through the board.
Precursors to the Ouija date back to ancient times. In China before the birth of Confucius (c. 551 B.C.), similar instruments were used to communicate with the dead. In Greece during the time of Pythagoras (c. 540 B.C.) divination was done with a table that moved on wheels to point to signs, which were interpreted as revelations from the "unseen world." The rolling table was used through the nineteenth century. Other such devices were used by the ancient Romans as early as the third century A.D., and in the thirteenth century by the Mongols. Some Native Americans used "squdilatc boards" to find missing objects and persons, and obtain spiritual information. In 1853 the planchette came into use in Europe. It consisted of a triangular or heart-shaped platform on three legs, one of which was a pencil. The medium or user moved the device over paper to draw pictures and spell out messages.(1)
NOTE: The Ouija board, like other forms of divination, has been used in an attempt to contact the dead (necromancy), which is clearly condemned by the Bible:
Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you. You must be blameless before the LORD your God. The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so (Deut. 18:10-14).
All other forms of sorcery are clearly denounced in Scripture as well. Those that refuse to listen to God regarding this command are mentioned in the follow Scripture:
But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars-their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death (Rev. 21:8).
Their only hope is to find forgiveness by turning from this form of wickedness to the true and living God through Jesus Christ. See Acts 20:21.
Ouija Popularity Around WW I
The Ouija enjoyed enormous popularity during and after World War I, when many people were desperate to communicate with loved ones killed in the war and Spiritualism was in a revival. In 1966 Fuld sold his patent to Parker Brothers game company of Beverly, Massachusetts. Interest in the Ouija picked up again in the 1960s and 1970s, along with renewed interest in the occult and supernatural. Parker Brothers stresses that the Ouija is a game for entertainment purposes.(2)
Demon Possession and The Ouija Board
People know not what they do when they dabble in the occult, even innocently. By doing such they open themselves up to many spiritual dangers that normally would never occur, one of which is demon possession. Such has been linked to the Ouija board:
Some demonologists say the Ouija opens the door to possession by evil spirits ....(3)
Some evil spirits first contacted by the Ouija board has led to a deeper involvement and bondage in the occult.
Jane Roberts, Seth and Others
Some critics contend that such contact is inherently dangerous, and that any beings who communicate through such a device are likely to be demonic and attempt to possess the user .... The entity Seth, popularized by the writings of Jane Roberts in the 1960s and 1970s, initiated his communication with Roberts through a Ouija board. The communication then rapidly progressed to direct automatic writing with a pen and then into a trance mediumship in which Seth allegedly used Roberts' vocal cords to speak.
The Ouija also served as the initial means of communication with alleged spirits of the dead in 1913 for Pearl Curran (see WORTH, PATIENCE), and in 1919 for Stewart Edward White and his wife, Betty. The Whites spent 17 years studying Betty's mediumship with a group of discarnate beings who called themselves "the Invisibles." After initial contact was made through the Ouija, Betty began using automatic writing and then trance mediumship, in which the spirits allegedly used her own vocal cords.(4)
The Lie Will Continue to go Forth
Be assured, that for the many that are misinformed, the Ouija board will continue to be accepted as a mere game for entertainment purposes:
Ouija A device marketed as a game in which answers to questions are divined.(5)
The Ouija Board is Unsafe and Even Used in Seances!
While the Ouija board remains popular and is sold commercially as a "game," it has been attacked both by critics of the occult and those within the occult community who consider it unsafe. Some mediums claim to have started with the board and "discovered" their psychic abilities as a result of using it.(6)
Ouija board, in occultism, a device ostensibly used for obtaining messages from the spirit world, usually employed by a medium during a séance.(7)
So what is a seance? And why would an occultic medium be using a harmless game for entertainment purposes there?
seance A sitting organized for the purpose of receiving spirit communications or paranormal manifestations via the services of a medium .... A seance is immediate and powerful, playing upon the sitters' sensibilities with a drama that no other occult reading can match. But to the initiated, the seance can open the doorway to a mysterious other world.(8)
WARNING!
Have NOTHING to do with the occult or Spiritism in any form. Do NOT dabble with what God has expressly forbidden. If you already have, pray a sincere prayer to God asking Him to forgive you for your grievous sins. Also pray a prayer of renunciation, that is, renouncing this and all involvement in the occult. If you already own an Ouija board, remove it from your house and burn it publicly. This is how some first-century sorcerers treated their scrolls and thereby proved their repentance toward God:
A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas (Acts 19:19).
Please WARN as many as you can about the Ouija board. This dangerous occulic device not only can lead to demon possession, but even eternal damnation in the lake of fire. Remember what God says about those that practice the magic arts, even if under the guise of a harmless game for entertainment purposes:
Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you (Deut.18:12).
Anyone means anyone, even a person previously saved.
Endnotes
1. Rosemary Ellen Guiley, Harper's Encyclopedia of Mystical & Paranormal Experience (NY: Harper San Francisco, 1991), pp. 418, 419.
2. Ibid., p. 419.
3. Ibid.
4. Rosemary Ellen Guiley, The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits (New York, NY: Facts On File, Inc., 1992), p. 240.
5. Ibid., p. 239.
6. Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology, Edited by J. Gordon Melton (Detroit, MI: Gale Research, 1996), p. 966.
7. The New Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. 9, (Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 1997), p. 11.
8. Guiley, The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits, pp. 298, 299.
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My Brother, My Sister & Myself
07.22.06 (11:57 pm) [edit]
Hi, not sure as to how often I am going to get to the blog. Have a few health problems. Had a blood test done recently my 4th actually, and the Thyroxine is down this time, well and truly down which explains the tiredness etc. There is also a problem with a muscle in or near my groin, which is causing me some concern. My twin sister Jeanette had all the tests done and they all came back clear. It is in the emotional, mental, spiritual, and now through to the physical. Will be going soon, I am hoping to hear from the Fremantle Clinic for counselling and for change in medication if it is necessary. PSTD. The pain from this muscle is causing stress and the middle section of my back is inflamed, it is wasting away, dx in 1975, so it does flare up now and then.
Was playing with my old hockey stick and a tennis ball with Benji my dog, that was alright, it was hitting the dirt when I missed the ball. Yes, missed it twice and that too, could have jarred the back. Bought recently too a large ball , which is light to play with Benji and I had great fun with that. Poor thing hasn't had much fun since, that was Monday and have had to take it easy since then. Today was the first day I managed to play with the large ball with him.
My brother has problems with his low back, severe pain from crushed nerves, is not able to sit down for long, or stand around for long, even laying down he is in pain. Bob is on strong painkiller and on Muralax as well. He is hoping to have an operation at the end of the year. He does know Jesus and goes to church reguarly. Please keep us all in prayer for we are needing it right now anyone who reads this put us on your prayer list. Bob, Jeanette & Jennifer. Thank you.
Book On Byron's Family
07.18.06 (7:34 am) [edit]
Book on Byron's Family
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2006 22:26:03 -0230
As Byron was leaving Parliament Hill on Friday, he was accosted by an RCMP officer. He was very aggressive, called him an A Hole and an Idiot. He was trying to convince him hi s permits weren't valid, so Byron told him to arrest him or he'll be back tomorrow and he would see him then, he said he was going on vacation tomorrow, said he was an idiot and drove away. Byron will be back on Parliament Hill tomorrow same as usual as long as he can, the truth will be told about this corruption and cover-up. He said he was harassed again this morning by another RCMP officer. He has it on tape recording and is going to report it to the justice department.
The message below is on the book that was just published.
Audrey
Subject: Playing With The Devil
I have to share the good news, let all my friends and colleagues know, put an ad in the paper, shout it from the rooftops:
MY FOURTH BOOK IS OUT! WHOOHOOOO!
Playing With The Devil, a novel based on a true story about the abuse of 12 children in a Newfoundland family, is now available for sale at Saga Books:
Shortly, I am assuming it will also be available at Amazon.com as well, since my other books got listed there.
If you'd like to learn more about it, just go to:
ISBN # 1-894936-51-5
Cost: $15.95 U.S.
Here is the opening Prologue:
What you are about to read will likely horrify and stun you beyond words. While it is presented here as fiction, this story is actually based on true events that occurred within a family of 12 children in Grand Bank, Newfoundland in the 1960s.
You will find that this is written in a rather graphic nature, but there is no other way to relate the truth about what happened to these children in any other way. If you are sensitive or have a weak stomach, I would suggest that you put this book down right now. It is not for the faint of heart and was most difficult for me to write.
However, this story needs to be told. Canadians must know how politics and business played a huge role in the abuse of so many young souls, who today are very confused adults. Needless to say, this book is rated "R."
Please note that the names of the victims have been changed to protect their privacy. Unfortunately, the names of the guilty had to be withheld as well. May they some day pay for their horrendous and unforgivable deeds and for those who have left this world, may Gob exact His judgment.
Martha Jette, Editor & Author
Please take the time to visit my site!
Why Jesus is the only waty to union with God
07.17.06 (6:57 am) [edit]
WHY JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY TO UNION WITH GOD"
| | | "I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE"...John 14:6a
Why Jesus is the Only Way to Union with God
Almost everyone has heard that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except by Him. And no one can come to him, unless the Father draws them; but they must come to the Father through the example, teachings, and help of Christ, including the mystical missing cross. But make no mistake, he is not a license to continue in an unholy lifestyle; whatever label people claim, they must be holy to have any part of him. "Christians" who claim they can live an ungodly life on the technicality that they call Christ "Lord," or have been immersed in water, are a stumbling block to any thinking soul; and they besmirch his Holy Name. To be Lord, his Spirit or Love must control our thoughts, words, and actions; replacing the Spririt of flesh that controls our thoughts, words, and actions. (You tender hearted souls, who thought he was, but still wish him to be your Lord, will find encouragement on how your faith can still bring you to him and his Kingdom, below on this page.)
His teachings are the ultimate in the way to become holy and become one with God; i.e., he said:
So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsake not all that he has, he cannot be my disciple. Luke 14,v33
And whosoever does not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple. Luke 14,v27
He that finds his life shall lose it, and he that loses his life for my sake shall find it. Matthew 10,v39
Of all the guides and teachers in history, Christ stands far above in holiness and perfection. His death on the cross is the physical example that we must spiritually follow to find God, to have God dwell in us, to be with God, to have union with Christ and the Father, while on earth, and to live with Him now and forever.
Some may not know that Christ created the universe. Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. "For by him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together - so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself (God the Father) all things, whether things on earth or in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." Col.1,v14-20 Jesus was not a man of war like Mohammed and Krishna; nor was Jesus just another man like Buddha who became enlightened. He walked the earth as a man, but before and after his earthly life, he reigned in the heavens, King of the Angels, creator of all things, including the heavens and earth and all in it. Although he ruled the heavens, he stripped himself of his glory and godhood to humble himself, becoming human form to dwell in a tabernacle of flesh; so that he could reconcile man back to the Father through love; the ultimate gift, his life, for the errant children of his creation. But he seeks to reconcile as first fruits, only those followers who wish to become like him, in union with him - because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
John says: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men..The true light that gives light to every man coming into the world." John 1,v1-9. So the Light is Christ. The Light that many meditation-based religions seek.
So, since he created us, it stands to reason that he is the one to reconcile us back to himself and to the Father. But the Father is logical. He doesn't just make a rule unless it is necessary. I can accept the rule, but I always wondered why good people from other faiths were not able to be "saved." Somehow it just didn't seem fair when people from other faiths often exhibited far more peace, less materialism, and more wisdom than 'christians.'
Let me share with you what I have been told in my meditations:
First, remember Christ is the light that enlightens all men. Remember the Spirit of God has been poured out on all mankind. So, people from some other faiths can get very spiritual in meditation; like all men, they have the spirit within them chained down waiting for liberation from prison. They can become far more enlightened and more spiritual than "christians" of the various "christian" deficit sects. Often they reject materialism, they are more loving, more peaceful, they tend to be more giving, call for more holiness from their believers, and are more respectful of God. They find Jesus to be unacceptable because of the lifestyle of the typical "christian." As reported, when Gandhi was asked why he couldn't accept Jesus, he said, "I too will become a Christian, when I meet a Christian like Jesus."
The Light in all men, which is the only teacher anyone needs, will eventually reveal its' identity as Christ to some such individuals in their meditations. They then have the choice whether to accept him or not. Unfortunately they usually decline because of their loyalty to the teachings of their faith and because of the poor record of 'christians' around them and throughout history. They may live a very peaceful life where they don't judge good vs. evil, but they are stuck there. They cannot get to total union with God, unless they accept Christ - the only way to be carried over the chasm. Rejecting Christ, they have thrown the proverbial baby out with the dirty bath water. They have rejected Christ because of "churchianity." So if he reveals himself to you, this is not the Jesus of the deficit sects, who claim him as an excuse for an unholy lifestyle, but this is the Light, Christ. He said, I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. Christ has all power in heaven and earth.
Christ said to, "pray that you will have the strength to stand before the Son of Man." It refers to conviction. While sitting quietly waiting on the Lord, (meditation), which is necessary to attain purity, the Light shows you the evil that is in your heart. Your tendency is to deny it and to run from the light which shows you your condition. Christ is your excuse for the unholy thing you are, and your lifeline to stay or "stand," (not flee). You can't do it without him; it is too humiliating to accept without knowing that he died to be your savior and helper; he says PEACE, don't worry. He is your pass for being the way you are as you seek his help to change. So without the knowledge of a friend and savior, your meditations only go so far, because you draw back in fear of yourself compared to God.
So, if you are meditating, and you see something ugly about yourself, don't draw back; recognize it is the Light showing you your condition, and it is doing this to help you be rid of it and become a better person; and that Christ has died for you so that you need not panic and draw away, but remain to focus on the Light that shows you your condition; you too can claim his help by just believing in his name. And then, just when you don't expect it, strength will come; and whatever you have been shown, you will have strength to be different from then on.
See Meditations for details on the lost way to union with God.
With love and sorrow I must say that if you are a 'christian' and have not died to self on the missing cross, at judgment you too will flee. Without having mortified the deeds and habits of the flesh, you have no part of Him; and when you see yourself contrasted to what he wanted you to become, you will flee and feel betrayed by you ministers, teachers, priest, and pastors . For without holiness, none shall see God. Hebrews 12,v14 You were sold a false grace. You have been cheated from knowing that you could live in the Kingdom of Heaven within you, while on earth, which does not come with visible signs; instead they lied, telling you the world is going to be destroyed, and everyone is going to die but you and other "believers."
So that I am not the only purveyor of disappointment, remember Jesus said in Matthew 7,v22: "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? and in your name have cast out devils? and in your name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity." To be known by Him, you have to sit quietly so that he, the Light and the Word, can teach you about himself and search you heart to show you your condition; and then change you to become like Him.
But if you are tender, this fleeing does not have to happen to you. Your faith can still save you. Do not fear, you can experience the joy of real fellowship with Christ. I am not recruiting for any sect. I seek no followers; you have no need of any teacher but Christ. I do not want your money. Everything on this site is free. Nothing is for sale. I only want you to know the freedom from the distress of sin. I want you to know that you can be so filled with love, that you go through the rest of you life obsessed with loving others and loving God. You can be full of joy and peace. You can know the Father. You can become pure in heart and see God. You can have the Kingdom of God and the glorious Christ established in your heart. But, you must pick up you cross daily and crucify your flesh's affections and lusts, to be with Christ. Be of good courage and have faith, for the cross is light and easy. The cross simply is :
you sit quietly in meditation every day- a cross to your will
you obey his commands that you hear in meditation - a cross to your will
you admit and regret what the Light shows your condition to be - a cross to your will
If you've arrived at this site, still curious why Jesus is the only way, I have a challenge for you. Pick up a Bible (or click) and read the book of Matthew; it won't take long. If you've been seeking, it will ring beyond true. If you like it, read the book of John next. I believe you will find Christ's teachings so superior to anything you have read, that you will want to learn more; this happened to me.
The "christians" of today are not examples of his teachings. The different deficit sects fight over the interpretation of the recorded words of the saints, without seeking the same Spirit that spoke the words; as he told me, "they fight over the husks, without discovering the grain."
Instead look through the rest of this site, including Coming out of the World, Meditation, and Christian Freedom; and read the main attraction on this site, the Letters and Journal of George Fox, the original Quaker, who in the 17th century in England led hundreds of thousands to holiness and oneness with God; this people exhibited their moral ethnicity while they testified against all the "deficit sects" of christiandom as Godless. And they were reviled and persecuted for it; Just as Jesus predicted would happen to his true followers! Christ came so we could be one, with Him and the Father, on the earth in this life; so we could enjoy the Kingdom of Heaven here and now, after we go to him for his purification. He did not come to be a justification for continuing a Godless life on a technicality.
No, he wants us to come to him so he can show us our condition; and by us repenting and obeying his commands, he purifies us until he and the Father come to establish their Kingdom in our hearts and dwell in us as our Lord and God, all by grace:
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,
Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts,
we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ;
Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. Titus 2, v11-14
You might be asking, how could this be true? Everyone believes that there is nothing I have to do but believe in Jesus, and maybe get baptized in water. The answer is in the Bible; countless examples in the history of Israel where they forgot the requirements of righteousness and became comfortable in their flesh. In cycles, a prophet would arise, point out their universal error and then get persecuted or killed; then they got punished, they repented and lived correctly; they drifted back into a false religion. The same thing happened in the early church. After a few hundred years, the false doctrines became universal. Then 1200 years later, the Quakers arose to reestablish the true church of Christ; then the Quakers devolved into a deficit sect in the early 1800's. Read George Fox's Journal, and you will know for sure; just as they were surrounded by godless deficit sects, so are we today in an age of prevalent apostasy: false prophets, wolves in sheep's clothing, blind guides, minster's asking for your money, countless thousands of blind ministers taught by colleges instead of Christ, millions of blind followers in the ditch, and the missing cross. In response to a question, would many be saved? Christ said, "Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many will go in there: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads unto life, and few will find it." Paul said, "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling (quaking)." So salvation is not as easy as you have been led to believe. You have been unintentionally misled. Your blind guides were also misled by their blind teachers. It is easy to go with the herd; but beware, for Paul said, They that are in the flesh cannot please God.
Christ is eager to help you enter by the narrow gate and for you to receive his Kingdom; but you must go to him. You must go to Him for the purpose of loosing your fleshly life to gain your spiritual life; to attain purity through his grace and your faith in the power of the true gospel, the power of the cross, and the power of his name, Jesus Christ; all the power of God. Remember, all things work together for good for those who love God, to them who are called according his purpose. You have nothing to worry about. Even the things you did wrong in your life, worked to bring you to God, to be reunited with Him, to learn to love, to learn of God's love for you, to love God, to be loved by God, to become a son of love, to become love too. If you love Him, you will seek Him by going to him and getting quiet to hear his very soft voice. "Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46 v10 Be a part of restoring his Holy name within the world.
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Residents leave en masse
07.14.06 (1:24 am) [edit]
Residents leave Nahariya en masse in response to attack
Thu Jul 13, 2006 2:19 am (PST)
Last update - 11:34 13/07/2006
Residents leave Nahariya en masse in response to attack
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/738168.html" title="http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/738168.html" target="_blank"http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/...By Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondent
Nahariya residents began to leave the northern border city en masse Thursday
after a deadly Katyusha rocket attack killed a 40-year-old woman and wounded
29 others.
Dozens of families were seen packing their belongings in the city's Green
Naharyia neighborhood and making their way south to escape the reach of
Hezbollah's rockets.
Local resident Rivka Vekart described the incident in which her neighbor was
killed, saying she was thrown off her balcony from the rocket's impact.
"Am ambulance came and started to search for the woman outside her house but
didn't find her until she was found a floor beneath," Vekart said. "We don't
know what to do but one thing is for sure: We shall not leave. We weren't
scared in the past and they won't scare us now."
Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces ordered residents of communities up to 15
kilometers from the Lebanese border to take shelter in local bunkers.
Muslim Woman calls Violent Islam barbaric
07.13.06 (12:09 pm) [edit]
MUSLIM WOMAN CALLS VIOLENT ISLAM BARBARIC
Recently, Syrian-American psychiatrist Dr. Wafa Sultan was interviewed by Al Jazeera. Since then, her interview has been viewed on the internet more than a million times and is circulating around the globe via e-mail. She is also receiving death threats for it.
What Sultan said has shaken the Muslim world. She claims the world has not been seeing a clash of religions or cultures, but a battle between modernity and barbarism, a battle she believes the forces of violent Islam are destined to lose.
Islamic reformers have praised her for saying out loud, in Arabic and on the most widely seen television network in the Arab world, what few Muslims dare to say even in private. When subsequently interviewed by the New York Times (NYT) following her Al Jazeera interview, Sultan compared how differently Jews and Muslims have reacted to adversity. Regarding the Holocaust, she said, "The Jews have come from their tragedy and forced the world to respect them, with their knowledge, not with their terror; with their work, not with their crying and yelling."
She continued, "We have not seen a single Jew blow himself up in a German restaurant. We have not seen a single Jew destroy a church. We have not seen a single Jew protest by killing people. Only the Muslims defend their beliefs by burning down churches, killing people and destroying embassies. This path will not yield any results. The Muslims must ask themselves what they can do for humankind, before they demand that humankind respect them." Sultan is, she told the NYT, "working on a book that, if it is published, it's going to turn the Islamic world upside down. I have reached the point that doesn't allow any U-turn. I have no choice. I am questioning every single teaching of our holy book."
Now an American citizen, Sultan said her mother, who still lives in Syria, is afraid to contact her directly. But she is not afraid. "I have no fear," she told the NYT. "I believe in my message. It is like a million-mile journey, and I believe I walked the first and hardest 10 miles".
Source: Assist News Service
Aboginal Communities
07.12.06 (11:35 pm) [edit]
GANG WARS AND POLITICS ARE TEARING SOME ABORIGINAL COMMUNITIES APART
Editors comments: We again want to emphasis that the purpose of stories such as this one is not to sensationalise, nor denigrate our Aboriginal brothers and sisters. Our motives are simply to create an awareness of the difficult situation that exists in many (but certainly not all) Aboriginal communities so that appropriate prayer is encouraged to assist those seeking to deal with the problem "on the ground". To not report the gravity of the situation results in the level of prayer dropping off to virtually nothing and the problems being ignored as has been happening for many many years now. With the political will of Governments to address the issues involved heightened at present we believe we must raise the level of prayer correspondingly so that Godly and righteousness outcomes are achieved.
Gang violence has turned the remote indigenous community of Wadeye into a war zone. Scores of Aborigines have fled their homes and are living in squalid refugee-like camps as two rival gangs, the Evil Warriors and the Judas Priests, fight for control of the Northern Territory's largest black town.
Even the gang leaders have voiced concern. "Somebody's going to die," said one of the leaders of the Evil Warriors. "What can we do? That other mob attacks us with rocks, boulders, spears and anything else they can get hold of."
Wadeye, formerly the Catholic mission of Port Keats, has been plagued by warring gangs for years but recently the violence has started to increase.
Rioters in recent months have caused more than $450,000 worth of damage to houses and other property.
"Our cry is for help," said one woman. "Seeing what's happening, my eyes are never dry. I hear the screams at night . terrified women and children . It has never been like this before. Our kids are not safe." She blamed the problem on the lack of police and a lack of resources. "When there's trouble around here and I call the police to come and protect my mob they never come," she said. "Where are the resources that the politicians kept promising us?"
Almost half of Wadeye's 2500 people are under 15 and cannot speak English. Life expectancy is 20 years less than that of non-indigenous Australians and an acute housing shortage - set to worsen over the next 20 years - means an average of 20 people to a house. The camps, created in response to the recent bouts of violence, lend an air of Third World poverty to the town.
Wadeye's only doctor said the violence had put the town's 1300 children at risk. "Australia should be ashamed at what's happening in remote indigenous communities," h e said. "We as Australians need to stand up with these people to reclaim their town from the groups that are trying to destroy it." He said the Health Department had told him not to speak about a six year-old rape victim.
Three years ago Wadeye was chosen as a trial site for what politicians called a "bold experiment" to fix disadvantage in remote indigenous communities. They called it the Indigenous Communities Co-ordination Pilots program under the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) umbrella. Ministers, bureaucrats, MPs and the Prime Minister, John Howard, arrived in droves. The COAG trial however never improved the delivery of basic services as promised.
Locals said "The gang violence was a symptom of much deeper issues that elders had been trying to get governments to tackle for many years. The gangs to some extent are militia for various interest groups," they said, adding that unresolved issues, such as land tenure, was fuelling the violence.
The public was confused by the Territory's legal system. "There's no real enforcement of the Child Welfare Act, for example," they said. "We have the Government saying there are laws in place but the people here see that they are not enforced."
Wadeye's problems have also created tensions in the Northern Territory Government, with questions being asked about the Territory's discretionary spending of federal grants earmarked for remote communities. An internal Government paper suggests that federal money that is supposed to be spent in remote communities is being redirected to projects that mostly benefit non-indigenous people, such as a $160 million wharf convention complex in Darwin.
The average Territory child gets double the education funding than a child from Wadeye, a recent report found. The co-principal of Wadeye's school, said only about 100 of the community's 880 children of school age were turning up for classes. "We need outside help . not Band-Aid solutions, but real help," he said. "There is sheer frustration here. Everybody's scared."
Source: Compiled by the APN from edited media reports
What Comes After Hamas?
07.12.06 (1:08 am) [edit]
Jpost: What comes after Hamas? (Gershon Baskin)
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid =1150885912248&" title="http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid =1150885912248&" target="_blank"http://www.jpost.com/servlet/...;pagename=JPost%2FJPArtic le%2FShowFull
What comes after Hamas?
GERSHON BASKIN , THE JERUSALEM POST | Jul. 4, 2006 |
Most analysts of Israel's military campaign in Gaza mention the ultimate goal of bringing down the Hamas government, beyond, of course, releasing the kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit.
The arrests of more than 80 Hamas activists, parliamentarians and members of the Palestinian Authority government, together with pushing much of its Gaza leadership underground, is aimed at making the PA government non-existent and non-functional. Israel's media has even suggested that Fatah leaders support these moves to dismount the Hamas leadership. Israel has also announced that no one "involved in terrorism" has immunity and that even the Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh could be a legitimate target.
The reactions of the international community to the arrests have been muted. Attempts to condemn Israel in the Security Council failed; the US and most EU countries have expressed displeasure with Israel's Gaza moves, but little more than that. That is not to suggest that the same limited response would be given if Israel were to assassinate Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders.
While the Foreign Ministry claims there is no separation between the political and military wings of Hamas, IDF intelligence and the Shin Bet all speak of separate wings with separate commanders. They say Haniyeh has no influence over the military wing of Hamas. There are those who even question whether the Damascus-based Hamas political leader Khaled Mashaal has control over the military wing. Mashaal claims he does not.
The attack on Kerem Shalom was probably not ordered by Mashaal and the politburo in Damascus. Mashaal probably only learned about it after the fact and exploited it to make gains on the ground in Gaza. There is no doubt that the kidnapping of Shalit is popular among Palestinians who see it as the one hope of getting their prisoners - some 10,000 - released from Israeli prisons. They know that Israel gave in to Hizbullah and its leader Hassan Nasrallah and exchanged hundreds of prisoners for the bodies of three soldiers. So why not hope that a live soldier would yield an even better return?
ISRAEL IS trapped. If the IDF and the intelligence services cannot locate the hiding place of the kidnappers and if a military raid to secure Shalit's release cannot be undertaken, the option of negotiations becomes more than real. But if Israel does negotiate with the kidnappers, we are almost guaranteed there will be copycat kidnappings every week. So with this on the radar screens, Israel has set the course to bring down the Hamas government. It sounds good and it certainly would have the support of Washington, but what happens after the Hamas government is brought down?
Can PA President Mahmoud Abbas take over? Can he declare a state of emergency and then appoint a Fatah-led government? Would any Palestinian anywhere think that the new government had any real legitimacy? Could Israel step in and reoccupy the territories and take responsibility for governing them? Is Israel ready to take that responsibility? Is Israel ready to ask the international community to step in and take over governing responsibilities? Is the international community ready to do that?
The answer to all of these questions is no. If Israel does bring down the Hamas government, the most likely scenario will be one of total anarchy and chaos. No one will be able to rule and no one will be safe - not Palestinians and not Israelis.
The kidnapping of Gilad Shalit has placed the Hamas leadership, Abbas and Israel into the same trap. No one wants to be there and no one knows how to get out. While Israel would like to exploit the situation for military gains against other targets, such as the Kassam rockets, a military invasion of Gaza on a large scale is not likely to achieve that goal. Some right-wing leaders, such as Effi Eitam, have suggested the wholesale extermination of the Hamas leadership. Others, including the justifiably frustrated mayor of Sderot, Eli Moyal, have suggested making Beit Hanun and Beit Lahiya uninhabitable. While Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz would probably enjoy higher popularity ratings if they accepted those insane and morally anti-Jewish and bankrupt ideas, Israel would push itself further into the corner of doom with absolutely no way out.
THE POLITICAL tragedy of the current situation is that all of the leaders have so far come out losers: Olmert, Peretz, Abbas and even Haniyeh. Even Khaled Mashaal, who was at first boosted in popularity, mostly because Israelis gave him more credit than he deserves for the Kerem Shalom attack, is now on the losing side, because he doesn't really control what is happening in Gaza.
In the short run, what is most important is bringing Shalit home safely. In the long run, what is most important is leaving opportunities open for rebuilding stability and future negotiations. Without stability and the ability to return to negotiations, there can be no realignment and Israel will be further doomed to hold on to territories that it no longer wants to hold.
It is very interesting that there is no word in Hebrew for "de-escalation" - maybe that is one of the reasons why it is so difficult to design and implement. Both sides need a ladder to come down from their positions. The only rational course of action that can save lives - including the life of Gilad Shalit - is to find a way to reach a bilateral cease-fire that would include a prisoner release. The release of prisoners would be conditional on adherence to the cease-fire and not linked to the kidnapping. The killing of hundreds of Palestinians, even if they support Hamas, will not help Israel's strategic situation. If Hamas is brought to its knees, Israel will have to face Islamic Jihad and al-Qaida or worse. Killing Palestinians and humiliating them has never created Palestinian moderation. There is still a choice that can be made. There are no guarantees, but taking a risk on a cease-fire that will release Shalit seems a lot better price to pay than every other possible alternative.
The writer is co-CEO of the Israel/Palestine Center for Research and Information.
Gush Katif Expellees:
07.10.06 (1:40 am) [edit]
GUSH KATIF EXPELLEES; PROBLEMS REMAIN A Knesset committee has learned the gravity of the plight of the expelled families, via a report detailing their psychological, emotional and family problems.
The report, prepared by the Land of Israel Legal Forum, was submitted on Tuesday [July 4] to a Knesset committee that deals with the expelled families of Gush Katif and northern Shomron. It talks of sociological and emotional problems, the most extreme of which are: youths who cut their hands and veins, youths who required hospitalization in psychiatric wards, dozens of divorce proceedings, and a high percentage of cardiac incidents and other serious diseases.
The legal forum, which has been accompanying the expellees free-of-charge for over a year and a half, included its own recommendations for speedy and efficient handling of the issues.
One of the participants at the Knesset session was Rachel Yechieli, a volunteer social worker with the youth of Gush Katif. Born in Gush Katif herself, she lived in Moshav Katif when she was thrown out in the framework of the Disengagement.
She told Arutz-7's Hebrew newsmagazine: "Everyone sees and agrees that the emotional situation is very grave, and the bottom line is that no one was prepared in advance–not SELA nor anyone else. I meet with the youth and hear their problems–such as drugs which we never had before, but which have now increased many times over, very difficult psychological problems of my friends and acquaintances, and more and more."
Asked if it is truly important to go into such detail of the problems, Rachel said, "Of course it's important! This is the best proof that the government was not prepared in advance, and didn't know how to treat these problems. If the treatment would have been offered right away, and if they would have listened to us in advance, I believe that most of the problems would not have happened."
Rachel said that "lots of data were presented at the committee session, but no clear answers. Some groups are trying to help, including some municipal councils–but they have to lay out money and take a chance that they will receive budgetary allocations some time in the future. This is not the way things should be run in a normal country."
(By Arutz Sheva, July 5, 2006)
PRAYER FOCUS
Pray that the emotional suffering sustained by the settlers will be given a major priority by the Israel government and those who deal with trauma.
SCRIPTURE
"In my distress I called upon the LORD, Yes, I cried to my God; and from His temple He heard my voice, and my cry for help came into His ears” (2 Samuel 22:7).
God works for the Good
07.09.06 (12:23 am) [edit]
We know that God causes all things to work together for good for
Those who love God and are called according to his purpose."
–Romans 8:28
"I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you
Hope and a good future." –Jeremiah 29:11
I have heard the passage from Romans 8 many times, and often people
Misinterpret it. I have heard people use this verse to say that God
Caused their suffering for some reason. This is a wrong and
Fatalistic interpretation of what Paul the Apostle wrote. Let's
Read it carefully:
1. It does not say that God causes all things. God is the
Creator of all things, but we are given free will to make choices,
Both good and bad. Choices have consequences, and sometimes we
Suffer.
2. It does say that God causes all things to work together for
Good! This means that God can take to circumstances of your life
And use them together as opportunities for good, for growth, for
Healing, etc.
3. It does not say that the "good" is what you want. God has
Never promised to give you what you want, but only what you need.
4. It does say that the "good" is according to God's purpose
And plan for your life. God can use the good and the bad, the
Pleasure and the pain, the ease and the frustration, working them
Together to help lead you and grow you into the future God has
Planned for you.
Bringing It Home:
1. Has life brought you some difficult times? Are you having
Trouble seeing how any or all of your life can be working towards
Good? Run to God in prayer, seeking God's wisdom and guidance to
Help you get through your difficulties, so that you can be blessed
And emerge stronger on the other side.
2. We often need others to help us see bad times as
Opportunities for growth and change. Who can help you see this? Go
To them and ask them to help you seize the moment for God and thus
For good.
3. Commit the passage from Jeremiah to memory. Say it often to
Give yourself the assurance of God's goodness and his intention to
Bless you through good and bad circumstances.
Prayer:
Lord God, many times all I can see is the trouble and the pain in my
Life. Help me to see the good and help me to take my life as it is
Today and grow spiritually through everything I am experiencing.
Give me faith, patience in suffering, and hope. Amen.
love Joann
Children In Church
07.08.06 (12:40 am) [edit]
Children in Church
A little boy was attending his first wedding. After the service, his
cousin asked him, "How many women can a man marry"?
Sixteen," the boy responded.
His cousin was amazed that he had an answer so quickly.
How do you know that"?
Easy," the little boy said. "All you have to do is add it up, like the
Bishop said, 4 better, 4 worse, 4 richer, 4 poorer."
After a church service on Sunday morning, a young boy suddenly announced
to his mother, "Mom, I've decided to become a minister when I grow up."
That's okay with us, but what made you decide that"?
Well," said the little boy, "I have to go to church on Sunday anyway,
and I figure it will be more fun to stand and yell, than to sit and listen"
A six-year-old was overheard reciting the Lord's Prayer at a church
service, "And forgive us our trash passes, as we forgive those who passed
trash against us."
A boy was watching his father, a pastor, write a sermon.
"How do you know what to say"? he asked.
"Why, God tells me."
Oh, then why do you keep crossing things out"?
A little girl became restless as the preacher's sermon dragged on and on
Finally, she leaned over to her mother and whispered, "Mommy, if we give
him the money now, will he let us go"?
After the christening of his baby brother in church, little Johnny sobbed
all the way home in the back seat of the car. His father asked him three
times what was wrong.
Finally, the boy replied, "That priest said he wanted us brought up in a
Christian home, and I want to stay with you guys!"
Terri asked her Sunday School class to draw pictures of their favorite
Bible stories. She was puzzled by Kyle's picture, which showed four people
on an airplane, so she asked him which story it was meant to represent.
"The Flight to Egypt," was his reply.
Pointing at each figure, Ms. Terri said, "That must be Mary, Joseph, and
Baby Jesus. But, who is the fourth person"?
"Oh, that's Pontius the pilot."
The Sunday School teacher asks, "Now, Johnny, tell me frankly do you say prayers before eating"?
"No sir," little Johnny replies, "I don't have to. My Mom is a good cook"
Pastor Dave Charlton tells us, "After a worship service at First Baptist
Church in Newcastle, Kentucky, a mother with a fidgety seven-year old boy
told me how she finally got her son to sit still and be quiet. About
halfway through the sermon, she leaned over and whispered, "If you don't be
quiet, Pastor Charlton is going to lose his place and will have to start
his sermon all over again!"
It worked!
Background Briefing on Situation in West Papua
07.05.06 (8:47 am) [edit]
BACKGROUND BRIEFING ON SITUATION IN WEST PAPUA
Tears of the Oppressed recently&n bsp;hosted West Papuan Baptist Minister, Rev. Socrates Sofyan Yoman, in Australia. Along with the Executive Secretary of Uniting International Mission, Rev. John Barr, who has close links with the evangelical church in West Papua, and accompanied by Tears of the Oppressed's Director of advocacy, ElizabethScott, Rev. Yoman was able to share West Papuan concerns with a number of key Members of the Australian Parliament, the Department of Immigration and Department of Foreign Affairs.
In this interview, Rev. Yoman shares his views on the situation in West Papua.
Q: What do you see happening in West Papua today?
A: Indonesian policy developed in West Papua, but not for the West Papuans. This is our experience. When the government moves Javanese people in from outside Papua through transmigration, they take Papuan land and give it to them instead. Papuans are marginalized in our own land - landless, homeless, hopeless. This is all supported by military force, police and so on. This historical background has brought a reaction from Papuan people, in demonstrations, public protests, and the Congress. But we feel Jakarta is not listening to us.
Q: How do people in Papua feel now?
A: People do not feel free. They feel fear, they are intimidated and terrorized by the military and police. Intelligenceofficers are everywhere. Papuans have no freedom of _expression, no freedom of assembly. Local people are checked by the military and must get permission to do everything. People are arrested for no good reason. Torture is continuing in police custody. The military not only terrorize ordinary people, but also the leaders of the community. My car was damaged by police, and people sometimes come to my house and threaten me. They are trying to make me stop speakingand restrict me, because I analyse what they do and publicly criticize them. They try to distract me from my work. But I trust my Lord with my life, so I'm not going to be frightened.
Q: What are the churches doing in West Papua to help the situation?
A: We have already declared West Papua a Land of Peace. The Indonesians have asked, "What is peace?" Their understanding is very different. But the churches are working to build peace. We have educated the people in the church to understand their history, their present, and their future. We tell the West Papuan community that they have to become peacemakers, implementing Christian values in their lives and communities. We have also made a strong effort to get Papuans to lay down their arms. February 5 is Peace Day - it commemorates the day in 1855 that the gospel came to West Papua. The gospel brought peace to our tribes and made us a peaceful society. This is still the contribution of the churches today.
During Rev. Yoman's return journey to Papua, he was stopped at Jakarta airport. An immigration officer took his passport and ordered him into another room in order to solve "a problem". When Rev. Yoman asked, "What problem?" and no answer was forthcoming, Rev. Yoman refused, said they could keep his passport, and walked away. He was stopped again and after some discussion, his passport was returned. His bag, clothes and briefcase were then finely searched before he was allowed to proceed. Church and community leaders like Rev. Yoman are singled out and under constant surveillance in Papua, which puts a great strain on them and their families. Please pray for their mental and emotional health under these circumstances.
Source: Tears of the Oppressed
[ Top ]
SOCCER /DISGUSTED
06.30.06 (10:52 pm) [edit]
My Views on Soccer!
As far as I am concerned, give me Aussie Rules Football... anyday!!! & nbsp;
After the fiasco with the Socceroos in the World Series. Boy! Never was I so disgrusted! outraged! &nbs p; Over that Italian faking it, and it was fake.
I mean our umpires would pick that one up a mile away.
What's to do with kicking a ball up and down a field like that anyway with no body contact? Where are the real men? Oh sure, there maybe talent, but anyone can practice , and yes there are the Beckham's and oh yes before I forget, the other's too who are experts at the game and overpriced. Maybe price themselves out of the game(smile) eventually. That would be a laugh.
Those PENALTY KICKS are a con as far as I am concerned. The player's can't kick a goal even... so they had to find another way for them to do so... what a rip off...without so much of a competition... and so close to the goal even. Well Really! What next!
If our forwards can kick a goal from 50 feet out which I must add is rare but can be done, what's the problem with your players. You put the goalie in an impossible task in soccer with those penalty kicks.
DO AWAY WITH THE PENALTY KICK is my motto. PRONTO!
Modern Supermarket
06.26.06 (12:39 am) [edit]
Subject: modern supermarket
The new Supermarket near our house has an automatic
water mister to keep the
produce fresh. Just before it goes on, you hear the
sound of a thunderstorm
and the smell of fresh rain.
When you approach the milk cases, you hear cows
mooing and witness the scent
of fresh butter fat.
When you approach the egg case, you hear hens cackle
and the air is filled
with the pleasing aroma of eggs frying.
.....So far I have been too afraid to go down the
toilet paper aisle.
Man of Peace
06.25.06 (12:15 am) [edit]
Well today thought I would mention a book by a Palestinian called "Blood Brothers" by a Father Elias Chacour.
It is a book that has revolutioned my thinking of the Palestinian situation in Israel. Elias Chacour shares his life experiences in the land the Jews call Israel, but the Palestinian's still call the Holy Land. He shares the behind the scenes politics which started off the Israeli and Palestinian conflict. Also what does Bible prophecy has to say? Can bitter enemies ever be reconciled? Here is one man who believes so. Why? Because of the Man of Peace. Who is the Man of Peace? Jesus, the Christ/ Yeshua, the Messiah.
In James 3:18 it says "And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace".
I would like to ask my fellow Christian believer's are we showing the fruit of righteousness? ; I have read so many letters to the Editors of our newspapers here at times, where christian have written in their opinions regarding certain issues and of course the opposion have theirs because they are offended. I would like to ask my fellow christian's, is what they are writing or saying, honoring Christ or bringing dishonor to His name? I believe we do not think about what we write or say, I mean we mean well at the time, but is what we are really saying or writ ing honoring Jesus. Where is the fruit of righteousness in what we say or write? Is not The Word of God, a Living Word? It creates and gives life in the believer, but also can create death too. It says in Proverbs: 18:21. "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit there of." That comes from the Old Testament and still goes for today. What one writes or says will bring life or death, the consequences of what we say or do. So which do we choose? Spread life or death.
Proverbs 14:34 it also says, "Righteousness exalts a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people".
Update on my Activities
06.23.06 (7:17 am) [edit]
Hello there, what have I been up to? Nothing much, been listening to the soccer some, not that one has much choice here. But really am glad about the Socceroos. Yay!!
I am Aussie born, true blue aussie. Like Aussie Rules Football 
which is national also, our 2 teams from the west are not doing that well, groan....
would like to see them put a spoke in the Vic's pride for once, though. Now Cricket! International Cricket games that is, the one day matches are alright
, but the Test Series bore me
. Basketball, our team in the west is not doing that well nationally either. Groan.... wonder why?
Guess what? Washed my dog, wasn't that bad after all
. How we like to magnify or exagerate things, he was as good as gold for me. Then blow drying him afterwards, that wasn't as easy done, he didn't like the sound of the motor and kept running off
. Finally got him dry enough, his coat is now soft as silk and still is growing which reminds me he is in need of a trim.... Never ending ..... moneywith him, snuffy nose, infections etc, off to the Vet. for anti biotic's etc. T o have him shampood and conditioner as well as a trim, costs a small fortune. But ah! I wouldn't be without him now. I have trimmed him myself at times, just kept giving him a treat now and then to bribe him to stay put. Only way to do it. Have 2 cats too, and guess what? Have to 2 males, dog and cat animals vieing for my attention, jealous, 
horrible word. But back to the 2 males animals wish they were human sometimes.
Well thats it for now, byeeee.......
ISRAEL
06.21.06 (12:55 am) [edit]
Mon Jun 19, 2006 3:52 pm (PST)
Last update - 01:30 20/06/2006
Israel Air Force fires missile at metal workshop in Gaza Strip
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=727912&" title="http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=727912&" target="_blank"http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/...;
By Avi Issacharoff, Gideon Alon, Yuval Azoulay, and Mijal Grinberg, Haaretz
Correspondents and Agencies
An Israel Air Force aircraft fired missiles at a metal workshop in Gaza City
early Tuesday, residents and Israel Defense Forces sources said.
The IDF said the workshop was run by Hamas and used to make rockets and
other weapons. Residents said no one was hurt.
Palestinian militants have been pelting Israel with rockets fired from Gaza,
aiming many of them at the southern city of Sderot.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz said Monday that a sharpened military response to
Palestinian rocket fire would lead to intensified bombardments of Sderot.
"I will do everything possible in order to avoid an escalation because it
would lead to days of Qassam barrages," Peretz said during his meeting with
President Moshe Katsav in Sderot on Monday afternoon.
Peretz was joined by President Moshe Katsav for a meeting Monday afternoon in
Sderot with bereaved families and city officials, including Mayor Eli Moyal.
The "Red Dawn" Qassam early-warning system was tripped a short time before
their meeting.
"After our withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, all military operations are
legitimate," Katsav said.
"Ahead of my visit today, I spoke to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense
Minister Peretz, and IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz. All believe that we will
not accept continued rocket fire. The defense establishment has targets, and
we will hit them. We'll certainly do everything so as not to harm women and
children," Katsav said.
Katsav met with hunger strikers protesting Qassam rocket attacks on the
southern city Monday afternoon and called on them to halt their protest and
give the military time to deal with the Qassam attacks.
The nine-day old hunger strike was halted after leaders began fearing for the
health of the eight protesters.
Peretz said that Israel's message to the Palestinians vis a vis the Qassam
attacks has been absorbed but that a number of extremists organizations have
yet to respond to the demand to halt the fire.
Israel will take further action if the terror groups do not halt their rocket
attacks shortly, Peretz said.
Sderot, which has borne the brunt of the Qassam strikes, prepared to seal off
its entrances and exits for 24 hours starting Tuesday to protest the ongoing
Palestinian rocket attacks.
Peretz under fire from the right
Peretz on Monday came under fire from right-wing legislators at a Knesset
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee session, over his policy to combat
Qassam rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
MK Effi Eitam (National Religious Party-National Union) dubbed Peretz's policy
as "cowardly," adding that the Israel Defense Forces were not producing the
necessary deterrence.
According to Eitam, Hamas and Hezbollah realize it is possible for them to
launch Qassam rockets at Israel, without incurring an appropriate IDF
response.
Peretz reiterated at the meeting that if the Qassam attacks persist, he
intends to employ harsh measures to create a complete cessation of rocket fire
on Israel.
Earlier Monday, Moyal called on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and his government
to resign in the face of their failure to put an end to the Qassam attacks on
the southern town.
Speaking on Israel Radio, Moyal said that if the government is unable to
defend the town it must step down.
Justice Minister Haim Ramon, who spoke on Israel Radio after Moyal, said that
if rocket attacks were to continue, the IDF would step up the measures used
against those launching the Qassams.
Ramon said that the IDF has killed hundreds of militants engaged in firing the
rockets, but it will take more time before the attacks are halted altogether.
Sderot strike
Sderot's municipal council decided to completely bar anyone from entering or
leaving the town limits on Monday, including longtime resident Peretz.
Moyal postponed the strike, originally scheduled to begin Monday morning,
until after the Peretz-Katsav visit.
Sderot, which has been the target of sometimes daily Qassam attacks from Gaza,
was hit by another rocket Sunday evening. The Qassam landed near the town's
public library, and did not cause any casualties, according to the Itim news
agency.
Three other rockets fired from Gaza on Sunday evening landed in Palestinian
territory, Israel Radio reported.
Palestinians in Gaza fired two Qassam rockets at southern Israel in predawn
attacks Sunday, leaving parts of Sderot without electricity for several hours.
One of the rockets hit several electricity poles in the southern town,
temporarily disrupting the power supply to the Rabin neighborhood.
The second Qassam was fired at the western Negev and landed near the border
fence. No damage or casualties were recorded in this incident.
Two Sderot residents were evacuated to Soroka Hospital in Be'er Sheva Sunday,
after collapsing during a mass hunger strike in protest over the government's
inability to halt the rocket fire. The two are said to be receiving treatment
for dehydration.
Sderot's local council decided to end the school year on Monday, starting the
summer vacation earlier than planned. The council also decided to step up its
protests and camp out in front of the government offices in Jerusalem.
"None of the government ministers care for Sderot," Moyal said. "If the
government cannot provide the city residents with security, it should resign
or say [it cannot provide security] out rightly. The resident's are exhausted
and they cannot continue living like this without the government doing
something."
IDF Lieutenant colonel jailed declares his innocence
06.21.06 (12:50 am) [edit]
Mon Jun 19, 2006 2:33 pm (PST)
Tue., June 20, 2006 Haaretz
IDF lieutenant colonel jailed for 15 years for spying for Hezbollah and
drug dealing
By Yuval Azoulay and Amos Harel
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/728311.html" title="http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/728311.html" target="_blank"http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/...A military court in Tel Aviv sentenced Lieutenant Colonel Omar al-Hayeb
to 15 years in prison yesterday, after he was found guilty both of
spying for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and of drug trafficking.
The former tracker for the Israel Defense Forces' Northern Command
continued to assert his innocence after the verdict was handed down,
charging that he had been framed and was a victim of persecution because
he is an Arab.
"I didn't confess, I won't confess," al-Hayeb told reporters. "I didn't
do anything. The only reason they are coming after me is because I am an
Arab. I have been framed. I did not betray the state, but the state
betrayed me. I am innocent and I will prove it."
One of his attorneys, Amnon Zichroni, said that his client is likely to
appeal the sentence. "The sentence is too harsh," Zichroni said. "I
doubt very much that his personal circumstances were taken into account."
The head of the prosecuting team, Lieutenant Colonel Einat Ron, said
that "the trial was about the individual and not al-Hayeb's community or
ethnic group. Furthermore, his contribution to the state is known and
undoubted."
Ron also rejected al-Hayeb's claim that he was discriminated against in
contrast to Elhanan Tennenbaum, a reserve officer kidnapped by Hezbollah
under questionable circumstances and later released in a prisoner
exchange with the group.
"Elhanan Tennenbaum was not sentenced in a military court, and therefore
there is no room for any sort of comparison," she said.
Al-Hayeb, a resident of the Bedouin village of Beit Zarzir, was arrested
in 2002 as a result of a broader investigation into drug smuggling. The
six-month investigation also led to the arrest of 18 other IDF soldiers,
some of them members of the career army.
Al-Hayeb was convicted of contacts with Lebanese drug dealers, smuggling
drugs into Israel, spying, and contacts with enemy agents with intent to
pass on classified information. His initial meeting with Hezbollah
representatives took place at a Lebanese friend's request.
The tracker was on his way to a meeting on the Lebanese border when he
was arrested with classified documents in his possession, including
military maps and a list of IDF communications frequencies. Al-Hayeb
allegedly planned to hand these over to Hezbollah in exchange for money
or drugs that he could then sell.
As the highest-ranking Bedouin officer in the IDF, al-Hayeb was
frequently cited as an example of the possibilities for advancement for
Israeli Arabs serving in the military. He was seriously wounded by a
Hezbollah roadside bomb while serving in Lebanon in 1996, and surgeons
had to remove one of his eyes. The injuries left him partially paralyzed
and with shards of metal still lodged in his head.
A.A.A.D.D. Dignosis
06.17.06 (7:29 am) [edit]
Subject: A.A.A.D.D. Diagnosis
Recently, I was diagnosed with
A. A. A. D. D.
Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.
The name should be changed to B.A.A.D.D.
Birth Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.
For the many of us who have given birth and don't have the mind we used to.
This is how it manifests:
I decide to water my lawn.
As I turn on the hose in the driveway, I look over
at my car and decide my car needs washing.
As I start toward the garage, I notice that there
is mail on the porch table that I brought up from
the mail box earlier.
I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car.
I lay my car keys down on the table, put the junk mail
in the garbage can under the table, and notice that the
can is full.
So, I decide to put the bills back on the table and take
out the garbage first.
But then I think, since I'm going to be near the mailbox
when I take out the garbage anyway, I may as well pay
the bills first.
I take my check book off the table, and see that there
is only one check left.
My extra checks are in my desk in the study, so I go
inside the house to my desk where I find the can of Coke
that I had been drinking.
I'm goin! g to look for my checks, but first I need to push
the Coke aside so that I don't accidentally knock it over.
I see that the Coke is getting warm, and I decide I should
put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold.
As I head toward the kitchen with the Coke a vase of
flowers on the counter catches my eye - they need to be
watered.
I set the Coke down on the counter, and I discover my
reading glasses that I've been searching for all morning.
I decide I better put them back on my desk, but first
I'm going to water the flowers.
I set the glasses back d! own on the counter, fill a
container with water and suddenly I spot the TV remote.
Someone left it on the kitchen table.
I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV, I will
be looking for the remote, but I won't remember that it's
on the kitchen table, so I decide to put it back in the
living room where it belongs, ! but first I'll water the flowers.
I pour some water in the flowers, but quite a bit of it spills
on the floor.
So, I set the remote back down on the table, get some
towels and wipe up the spill.
Then I head down the hall trying to remember what I was
planning to do.
At the end of the day:
the lawn isn't watered,
the car isn't washed,
the bills aren't paid,
there is a warm can of Coke sitting on the counter,
the flowers don't have enough water,
there is still only one check in my check book,
I can't find the remote,
I can't find my glasses,
I don't remember what I did with the car keys,
and my neighbor called to tell me he turned off the hose
that was flooding the driveway.
Then when I try to figure out why nothing got done today,
I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day long,
and I'm really tired. I realize this is a serious problem,
and I'll try to get some help for it, but first I'll check my e-mail.
Do me a favor, will you? Forward this message to everyone
you know, because I don't remember to whom it has been sent.
Don't laugh -- if this isn't you yet, your day is coming!
GROWING OLDER IS MANDATORY.
GROWING UP IS OPTIONAL.
LAUGHING AT YOURSELF IS THERAPEUTIC
Bilateral Ceasefire
06.16.06 (11:28 pm) [edit]
Well, I had a really good week and this past week has been a bad week. Had to close my inbox at MSN, cos of hacker not too sure how but could have been through Share Messenger. Would advice anyone to stay away from the place period. The stress took its toll on me, not nice people there.
Bilateral ceasefire
The use of force has not proven itself effective. We must try other solutions, to save Israeli and Palestinian lives
Gershon Baskin
The current temporary calm in the shooting of qassams ordered by Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh is a convenient opportunity to re-evaluate Israel’s tactics in dealing with this acute problem. The reality of the heavy toll that the Palestinians have paid in the past week has hit home and the conclusions and lessons learned should point in the direction of the possibility of reaching a longer-term bilateral ceasefire.
Down the slope
Without reaching this kind of bilateral ceasefire, there are real chances that we are may continue to slide rapidly down the slippery slope to total security deterioration and instead of self deceiving attempts that we are defeating the Palestinians; it would be preferable if the Minister of Defense and the generals would find a way to prevent us from going over the edge. The leaders of Hamas, including Prime Minister Haniyeh, have expressed their readiness to reach a ceasefire, but unlike the tahdiya – the calm reached 16 months ago, which was one-sided and Israel continued its military campaigns against the Palestinians, this time it must be bilateral.
From Israel’s side there must be a commitment to stop all of the artillery fire on Gaza, to end all of the so-called “targeted killings”, and to stop the massive arrest campaigns in the West Bank, because all too often these end with people being killed. The Palestinians, Abbas and Haniyeh together, must agree to stop all of the Qassams and all other attacks against Israel, including those done by all of the factions – not only Hamas and Fateh. In the past the Islamic Jihad refused to be part of the tahdiya because it was one-sided while Israel continued its military actions against the Jihad. Through a bilateral ceasefire it becomes possible to demand from the Palestinians leadership that they reach an internal understandings with all of the factions and forces and that they will fully enforce those understandings.
