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Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Timeless Truths (part 4) - A Mother's Advice

The Virgin Mary is one of the most famous and revered mothers in Christendom.

And as Mother's Day has been set aside to recognize mothers - without mothers none of us would be here - it seems fitting to offer tribute to this most famous of mothers, who to this day has given us the most excellent advice.

Mary was blessed among women in many ways (reference: Luke 1:42):

1. God chose this maid of humble birth as the vessel to bring the Son of God into the world. (reference: Luke 1:26-38 )

2. She was the only person on record to have witnessed both the birth of Jesus and His death. (reference: Luke 2:1-20 and John 19:25-27)

3. After the resurrection of Jesus, she was numbered among the faithful, praying in Jerusalem, waiting till Pentecost to witness the birth of the Church. (reference: Acts 1:14)

4. And Jesus' first miracle, turning water into wine, was done at her request at a wedding in Cana, which started his public ministry on earth. (reference: John 2:1-11)

And Johnny Cash sings about this miracle - as well as more miracles - in this clip below:

Mother Mary's advice?

At this wedding, the host had run out of wine. Mary brought the problem to Jesus for she knew He would do something about it.

And Mary's last recorded words in the New Testament offer most excellent advice, as she instructed the servants:

“Do whatever He tells you.”
John 2:5 (NIV)

And what does Jesus tell us to do?

Johnny Cash sings another song just on that - with the help of Billy Graham's preaching - addressing some of these things He tells us to do.

This Mother's Day,
though the tradition is to give gifts to our moms,
the Mother of Jesus gives us the gift
in the Timeless Truth of her excellent advice -
do what her Son says.

And Jesus said -
"If you love me, keep my commands."
John 14:15 (NIV)

That pretty much sums it up.

God bless all you mothers.
You keep the human race and civilization alive.

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Previous posts in series:

Timeless Truths (Part 1) - A Cup of Cold Water (2013)

Timeless Truths (part 2) - Love (2013)

Timeless Truths (part 3) - Hakuna Matata - No Worries? (2013)

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Photo from: wikipedia - The Madonna in Sorrow

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Pray4America (part 8) - Fear no evil

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

²He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

³He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

⁵Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Psalm 23 (KJV)

This psalm must be one of the most familiar and most quoted verses in the Bible.

To attest to its universality, below is a recitation of it, broadcast in the episode called "The 23rd Psalm" from the TV series, Lost. (reference: "Lost" The 23rd Psalm (TV episode 2006) - IMDb)

The words are comforting, especially during tragedy, trials, danger, dark days ...

And with the recent bombings of the Boston Marathon, this particular verse has precious meaning:

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil ...

At the finish line of the Boston Marathon was a scene of the shadow of death ... and fear ... and evil.

But there were also the heroes who feared no evil. And these heroes ran toward danger - not from it - to help those who were the victims of evil.

* Fear? *

Looking up the Hebrew word for fear - Yare' - used in this verse has interesting nuances that are lost in the translation. (Check out: Yare' - Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon - King James Version )

Fear not only means to be afraid, but it denotes a sense of reverence and awe, such as reverence for God. Therefore, this verse - fear no evil - can mean not being afraid in the face of evil as well as not reverencing or being fascinated by evil.

It seems in our 24/7 news cycle, evil has been given a world wide platform and megaphone. The clip above shows the strength of people responding to peril. But so often, news dwells on the negative, the sensational, the fascination with evil. And we are urged not to do this - give no reverence to evil.

Oliver Cromwell once said -
“I have learned that if you fear God,
you have no one else to fear.”
(reference: ttb.org - quotes)

* Do not revere evil, but revere God *

As showing reverence for God, this May 2, 2013 is

The National Day of Prayer.

(reference: 2013 NDP Theme | National Day of Prayer Task Force)

And may this latest act of terror turn our hearts to fear only God and fearing no man - especially a terrorist.

Please keep praying for America!

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Previous posts in this series:

Pray4America (part 1) - National Day of Prayer (2012)

Pray4America (part 2) - FDR's prayer on D-Day (2012)

Pray4America (part 3) - FDR's Flag Day prayer - June 14, 1942 (2012)

Pray4America (part 4) - It's a Wonderful Life, America (2012)

Pray4America (part 5) - United we stand? (2012)

Pray4America (part 6) - Christmas in Iran 1980 (2012)

Pray4American (part 7) - For such a time as this (2013)

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Photo from: Wikipedia - US Navy prayer

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Timeless Truths (part 3) - Hakuna Matata - No Worries?

My previous post - Death and Taxes - was a bit of downer. But death and taxes aren't exactly cheerful topics. But I promised a more upbeat post, and here it is.

For those of you who have watched the Disney version of The Lion King are aware of this catchy song - Hakuna Matata - (not worries) - as sung below.

Naive?

Maybe.

Then again, maybe not ...

Especially when I consider these words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount:

* Do Not Worry *

²⁵“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
²⁷Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

²⁸“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.
²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.
³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?
³¹So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 6 (NIV)

Scientific evidence concludes that to be happier - stay in the moment - as seen below in this clip from a TED talk:

Hakuna Matata?

The words of Jesus counsel us to stay in the present. And 21st century science has shown we are much happier when we do that. (Smart Jesus.)

Yesterday is history.
Tomorrow is a mystery.
Today is a gift.
That's why it's called the present.
Unknown

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Previous posts in series:

Timeless Truths (Part 1) - A Cup of Cold Water (2013)

Timeless Truths (part 2) - Love (2013)

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Photo from: Wikipedia - Motor Boat

Monday, April 8, 2013

America's Story (part 12) - Death and Taxes

"In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes."
Benjamin Franklin

No kidding!

And that anecdote is never so obvious as in April, and especially ....

* April 15th *

And that date - April 15th - is a dark day in American history in many ways.

A triple dark day!

And those dark days all started the night before - April 14th.

Let's start with ...

* Death *

The 19th century:

The dark days of the Civil War seemed over, as General Lee surrendered to General Grant at Appomattox on April 9, 1965. [reference: Surrender at Appomattox, 1865]

April 14, 1965 was to be a good day. In fact it was Good Friday. And President Lincoln was enjoying a night out at the theater when this happened:

Then came death, as President Lincoln passed away the following morning on April 15, 1865 - a victim of one of the most infamous assassinations in American history. [reference: President Lincoln dies — History.com This Day in History — 4/15/1865]

The 20th century:

The Titanic embarked on her maiden voyage - a luxurious trip from Southhampton, England across the Atlantic to New York City. Among the famous first class passengers - American multi-millionaire John Jacob Astor IV and the "unsinkable" Mrs. Margaret "Molly" Brown.

Before midnight on April 14, 1912, the Titanic hit an iceberg, and the wee hours of April 15, 1912, this happened.

So the unsinkable Titanic sank into the North Atlantic. Then came death as only 700 for the 1500 survived. [reference: RMS Titanic hits iceberg — History.com This Day in History — 4/14/1912]

Now for another dark side - the following year, 1913 came ...

* Taxes *

The 16th amendment passed, establishing the precedent of the government collecting taxes on income. Ostensibly this was only to "tax the rich" - one percent of the population of one percent of their income. [reference: Our Documents - 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Federal Income Tax (1913)]

We know how that turned out. Currently, taxable federal income is from 10 to almost 40 percent - hitting the middle class. [reference: Tax Brackets (Federal Income Tax Rates) 2000 through 2013]

As April 15th is the individual filing deadline [reference: File Your Taxes | USA.gov], many burn the midnight oil on April 14 to get their taxes done. April 14 and 15 are not good days.

The Beatles commented on some the inconsistency and unfairness of the tax system in the lyrics of their song - the Tax Man.

Taxes! Benjamin Franklin was right as its certainty. And even more so this year, Tax Freedom Day will come late - April 18, 2013. [reference: Tax Freedom Day® 2013 is April 18, Five Days Later Than Last Year | Tax Foundation] (Missed April 15 by a few days.)

Death and Taxes as well as Benjamin Franklin are part of America's Story

And next post, I promise, will not be such as a downer. But death and taxes are not exactly cheery topics - but we get through it and carry on.

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Other posts in this series:

America's Story (part 9) - A Tale of Two Revolutions (2012)

America's Story (part 10) - Sergeant York (2012)

America's Story (part 11) - Sacajawea (20120

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Photo from: everystockphoto.com - Death and Taxes

Monday, March 25, 2013

Culture 101 (part 8) - Snow White

Snow White

“Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.”

- C. S. Lewis (reference: goodreads)

When I was a child, my father took me to Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) at the local drive-in. And he enjoyed it more than I did, though I liked it, too, even to this day. Disney knew how to reach the kid and kid within the grownups.

And in recent times, fairy tales have made a come-back on television as well as the movies; Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998). Grimm (2011 - ). Once Upon a Time (2011 - ). Snow White and the Huntsman (2012). Mirror Mirror (2012). Only to name a few.

Fairy tales reflect a piece of our soul - the dreams, the fears, the hopes, the drama of being human. And Snow White deals with death - from the jealous queen sending the huntsman to slay an innocent princess to the maid tasting death with a bite of the poisoned apple.

In 1933, the Betty Boop cartoons did a spoof of Snow-White, which magnified the dark side of this fairy tale. In the clip below of this short, Cab Calloway sings St. James Infirmary Blues in the background of nightmarish images.

This short reflected the culture after the horrors of World War One and during the hopelessness of the Great Depression. Death and futility were prevalent. And these experiences are common to every member of the human family.

Solomon wrote about futility in this lament:

As no one has power over the wind to contain it,
so no one has power over the time of their death.
As no one is discharged in time of war,
so wickedness will not release those who practice it.
Ecclesiastes 8:8 (NIV)

Stuff fairy tales are made of.

Yet, there is another side in the Gospels. Death is sleep. It's only temporary. As this week is Holy Week, culminating in Easter, many Christians celebrate this victory of life over death.

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
1 Corinthians 15:20 (NIV)

The Disney version of Snow White reveals death as a sleep. Someday, her Prince would come and wake her from her sleep. And with the Prince, Snow White would live happily every after.

Fairy tale? Not! Death and resurrection are part of the Easter story. Death no longer has its sting. [reference: 1 Corinthians 15:55]

And the Prince - the Prince of Peace - will come and wake the dead, as He has promised:

Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.
Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.

John 5:24, 25 (NIV)

When that happens, the bodies of those who sleep in Christ will wake up and live happily ever after in His everlasting kingdom.

And Fairy Tales - such as Snow White - are part of our culture as they reveal a greater truth about who we are and our destiny.

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Previous posts on Easter:

Earth Shaking Easter - a wake up call (2010)

Easter - The Sign of the Prophet Jonah (2011)

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Previous posts in the Culture 101 series:

Culture 101 (part 1) - Reagan's Challenge (2012)

Culture 101 (part 2) - Easter Eucatastrophe (2012)

Culture 101 (part 3) - Paul Revere's Ride (2012)

Culture 101 (part 4) - Gold Diggers and the Great Depression (2012)

Culture 101 (part 5) - Blue Bloods and 9/11 (2012)

Culture 101 (part 6) - Gilligan's Island and Breast Cancer Awareness (2012)

Culture 101 (part 7) - Band of Brothers (2013)

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Photo from wikipedia: Snow White

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Science 101 (part 1) - Vernal Equinox

Ecliptic Path

When I was in kindergarten, my teacher sent instructions home to my parents so they could illustrate to me what happens as the world turns. This was my first introduction to Astronomy 101. We used the visual aids at hand - an orange, pencil, and candle. Crude, but effective.

My mother skewered an orange (the earth) with a sharp pencil (the axis of rotation) as juice squirted out at its poles. For a moment, things got a bit sticky. She lit candle and its light bathed the skin of this speared fruit while she rolled the pencil in her fingers to spin the orb about its axis.

Not only did this show me why we had day and night, but also why we got the seasons with the tilt of the axis. Little did I know that when I grew up, so many were ...

Not as smart as a kindergartner!

Not even teachers. On the local news, I recall a journalist asked a woman about what caused winter. She knew the answer to that as she proudly proclaimed she was school teacher. The earth was closer to the sun in winter. That's why.

Not.

Maybe it was in the southern hemisphere. Partial credit here? Actually the earth is closer to sun when it's winter in the northern hemisphere. (reference: Why Earth is Closest to Sun in Dead of Winter | Space.com) But that is not why we have the seasons.

I'm sure the woman was a good teacher, but she was not alone in here lack of knowledge of basic astronomy. Many smart and educated people don't know this.

During my work life in a technical field, my co-workers were diverse from all over the country as well as the world. One young man that I had shared a cubicle with had no clue what caused the seasons. Yet, he was eager to learn and I pointed to a website with some good graphics - much like the one below.

He got it and was appreciative. And I cut him some slack, as he was one of the Vietnamese boat people and had a challenging childhood. While I was watching Star Trek in my youth, he had lived under a repressive regime, the aftermath of the Vietnam War. But to his credit, he escaped to the United States and went on to college earning degree in engineering - and that took some gumption.

There is much we do not know. Some may not be important to us or be our passion. Yet with the ubiquitous internet, there is access to all kinds of information.

So I began another series dedicated to the basics of science -

* Science 101 *

And for the advent spring this March 20, 2013, the Vernal Equinox, the clip above pretty much explains it. (reference: March Equinox: March 20, 2013, 11:02 UTC) And the video so much better than reading the multitude of words I could write about it. I love YouTube!

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Some of my articles on physics:

Black Holes - What does it look like inside them?

The Scotsman who beat Einstein

Fractal Dimensions – Twilight Zone? No, Nature!

Mr. Spock and Dr. Einstein

Winter Driving - It's all about the friction

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Photo from wikipedia: Ecliptic Path

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Signs of the Times (part 3) - Layoffs

layoffs and food lines

Has the recovery happened yet?

To many,
and for too many
- no

Currently, unemployment in the United States is around 8% (latest 7.7%) and has stayed at that level for some time. That does not even factor in those who have given up looking for work or are underemployed. (reference: Unemployment Rate Down As Americans Give Up On Work - Forbes)

For the trends, check out: Unemployment in the U.S. - Google Public Data Explorer. And there is even a web site dedicated to layoffs:   Daily Job Cuts - Layoff News

Doesn't that lift your spirits? sarcasm-off

To his credit, Michael Hyatt offers some positive steps to cope during this recession: 7 Ways to Keep Your Spirit Up in a Down Economy | Michael Hyatt  and 10 Benefits of a Recession | Michael Hyatt.

Since I have had my share of layoffs during my working life, I have felt the gambit of emotions that go with losing a job, losing part of my identity, as well as experiencing the frustration and rejection while looking for work during a weak economy. I sympathize with those who have been laid off. I've been there. You are not alone.

And on this "cheery" topic, while perusing the web, a revival of a play got my attention -

Quartermaine's Terms
[reference: Quartermaine’s Terms, April 13th, Wyndham's - Telegraph]

What got my interest was that the main character, St. John Quatermaine, called Sinjin, had the same name of a fictional character I created in an eBook (see Anastasis). A review of Quatermaine's Terms piqued my curiosity - teasing that the play ended with an act of cruelty leaving Sinjin's future looking very bleak.

The writer didn't say what that cruel act was - but I just had to know. Since I was not about going to hop on a plane and fly "across the pond" to London to see the play before it closed in April, back to the internet I went.

Bingo!

I found the TV movie version from 1987 - "Screen Two" Quartermaine's Terms (TV episode 1987) - IMDb.

* Spoiler Alert *

The story was set in the 1960s at an English school to teach foreigners. The final act, the teachers gathered before the holidays where they heard news of a death and an announcement of a new principal. Then in the final minutes, with a veneer of politeness, Sinjin gets sacked - right before Christmas. (Even Ebeneezer Scrooge was not so cruel to Bob Cratchit at Christmas.)

In the final scene below, I could feel the loneliness and hopelessness of Sinjin as he struggles to conceal his crushed spirit. Undoubted, so many have been there (myself included) when losing a job and wondering about the future.

Layoffs are cruel as are many other kinds of loses in this life. Yet, people do carry on and overcome them. Perhaps that is why this song from the musical Carousel has endured. The words speak to the spirit as all human beings, at times, struggle during dark days and have the hope that -

We Never Walk Alone

Layoffs are one of the signs of the times.

For all those who lost jobs, wonder what is next, my thoughts and prayers are with you.

May ...

You Never Walk Alone.

As the good Lord promised -

When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; ...

Isaiah 43:2,3 (NIV)

Final thoughts:

Some wisdom from Max Lucado, when you feel like giving up: God Never Gives Up | Max Lucado

And another moving song by Sissel: Sissel - Bridge Over Troubled Water - YouTube

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Previous posts in this series:

Signs of the Times (part 1) - Camping in the Parks (2012)

Signs of the Times (part 2) - Layaway (2012)

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Photo from:
everystockphoto.com - food lines