Stress management

Some days ago, one of my former pupils was 'complaining' about the stress brought on by his current exam diet.  I put together the following suggestions for him, and now publish them here for any others who may be feeling stressed out at any time.

1. Pray.  Now, I realise that some might not be up for that - and, of course, one needs to be in a relationship with the Lord if it's going to be anything more than 'talking to the ceiling'! But it's where I start.

2. Play some soothing music. Something from the 'popular' classics is usually best - but not a crashing symphony! There are, in fact, a number of CDs that are commercially available, usually with titles along the lines of "Tranquility", or "Serenity"!

3. Buy some Green tea, and make yourself a cuppa. I confess that it can be something of an 'acquired taste', but it does calm the mind a bit.

4. Do some physical exercise. Could be running on the spot; press-ups; touching alternate toes without bending your knees. Of course, for all I know, some may have a room full of apparatus - that would be even better: 30 mins on the treadmill at a decent rate!

and, for those who are specifically involved in examinations - at whatever academic level:

5. Have a study plan! It doesn't need to be colour-coded (I've known pupils in the past who spent so much time making their study plan look like a kaleidoscope, that they didn't do any studying!), but use it. Give more time to the subjects with which you have more difficulty.

The above is NOT a guarantee of anything. However, it's borne out of many years of sitting exams right up to post-graduate level and, of course, most of it should have some effect, even if the stress is not the result of examinations!

Abortion - buy it here!

One of today's major news items has been the permission for private clinics in the U.K., that advertise abortion, for profit, to advertise their services on British television and radio.

In my mailbox, the following arrived.  It's from the U.S. of A. but, in this instance, only the numbers involved make it any different from here in the U.K.

"Abortion has had a massive tearing effect on America during the past 39 years. Not only has this emotional issue polarized the nation, and not only has legalized abortion removed millions upon millions of faces from family photos, but it has ripped apart the hearts of those countless women who have regretted the choice they made.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, one third of all women in America will have had an abortion by age 45. Many never tell their families and bear this burden in silence, suffering through every Sanctity Of Life Sunday in churches, feeling too much shame to seek help for the grief and guilt they still feel. While abortion is allegedly about freedom of choice, a significant number of women are coerced into the decision by boyfriends or relatives. Many think that they can never be forgiven - they think that while God can forgive them for other sins, they cannot be forgiven for this one. Abortion is a double-tragedy; it destroys an unborn life, and it can seriously damage the lives of those left behind.

There are many things that people can do to help, to not only stop abortion in the future, but to also help these women (and men too) who have been damaged by abortion. The Elliot Institute, an organization dedicated to post-abortion healing, suggests the following steps that can be taken to foster abortion healing in our churches and communities.

-Pray for those who have suffered from an abortion. Pray for those men and women who give post-abortion counseling. Pray for organizations that help people to find healing after an abortion.
-Encourage your pastors and church leaders to foster abortion healing, from teaching about the harms that abortions have caused women, to the hope and forgiveness that can be found through Jesus Christ.
-Support a crisis pregnancy or post-abortion healing ministry – through finances, prayer, or by volunteering yourself.
-Donate books on post-abortion healing to your local library.
-Educate community and pro-life leaders about the need for helping post-abortive women. Keep up on research and provide them with the information they need to be informed on this issue.
-Write to your legislators and encourage them to not only promote pro-life policies, but pro-women policies that recognize the harm that abortion has on women.

Abortion is promoted as a freedom that strengthens women and gives them control of their lives. Instead, it has weighed many women down with emotional and spiritual chains that they would gladly trade away if they could. As a community that cherishes the life of the unborn, let's remember to care for the mothers as well. ...

... Few American lives have been untouched by abortion during the past 39 years.  We all know somebody who has had an abortion, or somebody that could have been aborted.  Some of us are that person ourselves.  The issue has come up in family after family, and we are no longer naive about the reality of the life inside the womb or of the true nature of the abortion business.  We have far fewer illusions about the reality of "choice."

Keep praying for the millions of young lives in jeopardy even today. And keep praying for their precious mothers, many of whom feel like they have no good options."

You might also want to view this piece by a young woman who, miraculously, survived abortion!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5YlJ9CZ9fI

An eye for an eye!

It was one of my former pupils who posted on her Facebook page that "If we all lived by 'an eye for an eye' the whole world would be blind.  It's a statement that I have heard many times before and, whilst apparently logical it is, in fact, displaying a misunderstanding of the original words as found in, inter alia, Exodus 21:23-25 - "If any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe."

Contrary to popular opinion, this is not a carte blanche for personal revenge, as the previous verse makes clear: "... he shall pay as the judges determine." (Ex 21:22; my emphasis).  If the matter was proved, then the judge declared the punishment - a punishment that must be proportional to the crime.

Of course, it was not a "Law of prescription", but a "Law of restriction "! In other words, in a culture in which violence just kept escalating (You punch me once; I punch you twice. You knock out one of my teeth; I knock out all of your teeth. You break my leg; my two big brothers break both of your legs - and your arms. etc.), the Children of Israel were instructed, by YHWH (the LORD) to go no further than "like for like". Quite a radical concept in their day!

Then, when we reach the New Testament, we discover that Jesus takes the concept even further by instructing His disciples (now, as well as then!) to "turn the other cheek" - i.e. not to retaliate at all!! That's why, again contrary to popular opinion, being a disciple of Jesus is not for wimps. It's a life that demands real courage - as those in the persecuted church in countries such as North Korea, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, China, etc., etc. know on a daily basis. (see some of the links on the right-hand-side of thie page).

PA Leader: All Muslims are Obligated to Kill Jews

A top Palestinian Authority religious leader claimed in a sermon at a major Fatah event that Muslims are obligated to kill the Jews.  The Mufti Muhammad Hussein presented the murder of Jews by Muslims as a religious Islamic goal while celebrating the 47th anniversary of the Palestinian Authority’s Fatah faction.

An appointee of Palestinian Authority Chairman and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas, the Mufti made the claim at an official Fatah event marking the founding of the largest faction in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), also led by Abbas, as well.

Citing what he said was the Hadith (the Islamic tradition attributed to Muslim prophet Muhammad), the Mufti claimed “The Hour [of Resurrection] will not come until you fight the Jews. The Jew will hide behind stone or trees. Then the stones or trees will call: ‘O Muslim, servant of Allah (God), there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.’ ”

Although a video of the speech was previously available on YouTube, it has been removed because it violated the site’s Terms of Service for violence.

A poll sponsored by the Israel Project found that 73 percent of Palestinian Arabs “believe” this Hadith, according to the findings of a July 2011 study by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner.  The moderator who introduced the Mufti also reiterated another “Islamic belief” — that the Jews are descendants of apes and pigs,” according to a broadcast on PA TV translated by the media watchdog agency Palestinian Media Watch (PMW).  “Our war with the descendants of the apes and pigs (ie: the Jews) is a war of religion and faith,” the moderator said.

The Mufti added to the moderator’s statement, saying that Islam’s goal is to kill the Jews. The same cleric preached in a sermon at Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque in 2010 that the Jews are “enemies of Allah.”

For Richer or Poorer

Last night, I posted this story on my Facebook page.

"The wives who lived within the walls of the Weinsberg Castle in Germany were well aware of the riches it held: gold, sliver, jewels, and wealth beyond belief.

Then the day came in 1141 A. D. when all their treasure was threatened. And enemy army had surrounded the castle and demanded the fortress, the fortune, and the lives of the men within. There was nothing to do but surrender.

Although the conquering commander had set a condition for the safe release of all the women and children, the wives of Weinsberg refused to leave without having one of their own conditions met, as well. They demanded that they be allowed to fill their arms with as many possessions as they could carry out with them. Knowing that the women couldn't possibly make a dent in the massive fortune, their request was honored.

When the castle gates opened, the army outside was brought to tears. Each woman had carried out her husband.

The wives of Weinsberg, indeed, were well aware of the riches the castle held."

There is, of course, a spiritual lesson in that story.  You and I are besieged by that old "... adversary the devil [who] prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." (I Peter 5:8).  However, at the Incarnation, Jesus - God the Son - entered our humanity because He saw us as precious.  Indeed, He values you, and me, so much that He went on to die one of the most cruel deaths that the twisted mind of mankind has ever invented - crucifixion.  The devil thought that he had won!  But on the first Easter Day, Jesus left the tomb in which His physical Body had been laid and, as the victorious Conqueror of death, and hell, and the grave, He carries in His arms all who place their trust in Him for full, and free, salvation.  Hallelujah!

Those wives in the story each saved the mortal life of one man.  Jesus gives eternal life to all who repent, and believe, and confess Him as Saviour and Lord.