"Having food and raiment let us be therewith content."
(1 Timothy 6:8)
Be Therewith Content
Dear Friends,
Greetings! Below is an excerpt by Pastor and author Rob Bell which we thought you might find of interest. We have called it, "Entitlement".
Entitlement
Rob Bell
In an empire of indifference, as it becomes harder and harder to understand the perspective of others, it becomes easier and easier to confuse blessing with entitlement.
Entitlement leads to immunity to the suffering of others, because "I got what I deserve" and so, apparently did they.
Moses warned about this as well in Deuteronomy 8, when he said, "You may say to yourself, 'My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.' But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth."
In an empire of entitlement, when the fundamental awareness is lost that this is all a gift, luxuries can begin to seem like necessities. Excess can become normal. And it can be very easy to lose perspective on just how much we have.
One leader of the American government announced that "...the American lifestyle is not up for negotiation." This can sound like a perfectly rational thing to say. It may even sound quite impressive to some, as in, "We won't let any push us around." Statements like this can even get a person elected. Because, after all, "we've worked hard and we deserve what we've earned."
But the problem is that for others in our world, this kind of statement is heard in an entirely different context.
Imagine hearing this as one of the three billion people on the planet who survive on two dollars a day.
In the same way that entitlement can cause us to lose perspective, it can also cause us to resist checks on consumption If a particular resource becomes scarce at home or in other parts of the world, it can be very difficult to cut back, because the powerful forces of entitlement convince us certain things are deserved.
("Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard." Proverbs 21:13)
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The Telegraph
Gina Rinehart criticised for 'jealous' poor remarks
Advice by the world’s wealthiest woman, Gina Rinehart, on how to become a millionaire has been slammed by an Australian MP, Bob Katter, who says she "left out the bit about daddy being a major cattle station owner”.
In May Gina Rinehart was declared the richest woman in the world Photo: Getty
By Jonathan Pearlman
31 Aug 2012
Mr Katter, an outspoken independent MP from north Queensland, joined a chorus of criticism across the country of Ms Rinehart’s claim that people jealous of the wealthy should "spend less time drinking or smoking and socialising”.
“[She] left out the bit about daddy being a major cattle station owner and the biggest mining magnate in Australia", Mr Katter said. “That "helps as well. She says here that the minimum average wage of $600 a week should be cut. This is coming from the world's richest woman.”
(The rich are the same the world over, a lack of concern for the poor. Ed.)
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davidhemp.com
The Angelic Domain: Created Before Genesis 1:1 or After?
Published July 25, 2012 | By Douglas
Many have suggested that God created the angels before the creation of the heavens and earth. Did He create them outside of time and space? The simple answer is no and here is why. Before anything was, before the blackness of space, before the void, there was the King, the Almighty, the Self-Existent, the One who was, and is and is to come. He existed in and of his own domain. God wasn't "anywhere" because there was no "where". There was only God. Nevertheless, He created from nothing a space, a domain outside of Himself that was not. This expanse, dimension, He called shamaim (or heavens). He filled this domain with substance, material called eretz (earth). We can think of the heavens like a water bottle filled with water (eretz). Imagine God by Himself, of Himself, bringing forth from Himself a dimension, a void, filled with only eretz also called 'tehom' the 'depth' which had not been before. However, on that first day, the earth was only in the process of being formed. This is why God paused and explained what He meant by 'water'. [1] He did not mean the ball of soil, dirt, land, that Adam stood on when his eyes opened and beheld God. Eretz - earth on the first day was in fact water. [2]
From that water God formed the light to fill the darkness which He also created (Isa 45:7). The first day was the beginning of differentiations. Before the creation there was no differentiation (outside of God Himself and His indescribable tri-unity). On that first day God created things that were not. He created a space outside of Himself; He created darkness which had never been (Isa 45:7) for God is light and there is no darkness in Him whatsoever (I John 1:5). Thus the absence of His glorious light in the newly created void was new and different which is why the King revealed by the prophet Isaiah 'I form the light and create darkness'. Until that moment darkness, (the absence of light) did not exist.
Therefore before day one (or Genesis 1:1) there was God and because He is light there was no such thing as darkness. When He created the void, space, it initially was devoid of God's light and did not even have created photons. When God said 'let there be light' is the moment when God created the particle-waves known as photons.
We can see, therefore, that before the creation of a domain and substance, there was no place even for the angels. Their creation is not clearly detailed like the creation of Adam, however we can piece together some clues from the book of Job: "Where were you when I laid the
foundations of the earth?...Who determined its measurements? ...Or who stretched the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" (Job 38:4-7). Job 38 has day two in mind because the line had been stretched out upon it. The line (was pointed out to me, by a brother whose name I forget), is where day and night meet on the earth as seen from space - there literally is a line passing over it. The angels were obviously there and were observers of what God was doing while not dependent on the earth (like man would be). This is the earliest evidence we have of the angels. We hear nothing of them before this.
The next thing we have to consider is that before the fall of man there was only one domain in which the spiritual (angels, God) would exist with the physical (Adam). The one domain was split in two because of the fall of man. We know this because there is currently a veil between the heavenly domain/realm and the earthly. We learn this from Isaiah 25:7 which states that the veil, which covers all nations, is going to be removed. "And He will destroy on this mountain the surface of the covering cast over all people, And the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces..." (Isa 25:7-8). Isaiah also says "oh that you would rend the heavens and come down." (Isa 64:1) We hear of the sky receding like a scroll in Isaiah 34 and Revelation 6. The prophets also saw the heavens open on occasion (Ezekiel 1, Revelation 4, 19). Stephen also saw the heavens open when he was being stoned (Acts 7).
We also know that Satan was in Eden, the garden of God, which was associated with the mountain of God (Ezekiel 28:12-18). That mountain is the same mountain that we read about in Isaiah 14, which Satan attempted to climb and sit upon the "mountain of the congregation." It is also the same that is spoken of in Hebrews "But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels." (Heb 12:22). The mountain of God is in fact the heavenly Jerusalem according to this verse and others.
Therefore, the mountain of God was created when He created everything else and also that abode was in a common domain/dimension before the fall. God walked in the cool of the evening in the Garden of Eden, which is the same place where Satan was - the mountain of God. Eden and the mountain of God are closely connected. This means that God's abode and man's were in the same domain and only split after the sentencing and casting out from the Garden with the way blocked to the tree of life. In other words, the casting out was not simply a spatial removal but a dimensional shift. The spiritual domain was divorced from the natural/physical at that point and those two will be recombined when the New Jerusalem comes down out of heaven and remains on the earth forever.
With all that in view we see that before the creation of the heavens and earth there was only God who existed in and of His own dimension. There was no other space out there, no black emptiness, no void - just God. There was only light for even darkness is something that He created (Isaiah 45:7). We also conclude that the traditional view of God dwelling "up there" and Adam being "down here" is not accurate. Nor is the belief that we will dwell "up there" in heaven for eternity. What we understand to be "heaven" in the Scriptures is in fact the Holy Mountain/Heavenly Jerusalem - which comes down to the earth in the age to come. So we conclude that only God existed before Genesis 1:1; the angels did not exist before then. The current separation of God's domain from man's is only a temporary condition which was not in place when God declared everything to be very good. As for the angels, they were therefore created after the heavens and earth of Genesis 1:1 (day two appears to be when they were created) and they were dwelling in the same domain as man until the separation of the two domains. God's original intent was to dwell with His creatures on the earth. Corruption (sin) and death impeded that intent for several thousand years. Nevertheless, God will bring His original intent to pass and will dwell with mankind forever from His holy mountain, which will be on the earth - a place in which God, angels, and man will all dwell together.
Many of the proofs are discussed in my course on the Messianic Age which you can listen to here.
[1] "The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) at the beginning of v. 2 gives background information for the following narrative, explaining the state of things when "God said..." (v. 3).... Some translate 1:2a "and the earth became," arguing that v. 1 describes the original creation of the earth, while v. 2 refers to a judgment that reduced it to a chaotic condition. Verses 3ff. then describe the re-creation of the earth. However, the disjunctive clause at the beginning of v. 2 cannot be translated as if it were relating the next event in a sequence. If v. 2 were sequential to v. 1, the author would have used the vav consecutive followed by a prefixed verbal form and the subject." NET Bible Notes on Genesis 1:2.
[2] "That is, what we now call "the earth." The creation of the earth as we know it is described in vv. 9-10. Prior to this the substance which became the earth (= dry land) lay dormant under the water."
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Starwater and Noctilucent Clouds
Friday, August 24th, 2012. Filed under: Alternative Knowledge Amazing Universe Earth Changes
by Zen Gardner
The idea that water is constantly being created and readily available throughout space is rocking the scientific world. The fundamental idea of an alive, dynamic constantly creating regenerative Universe has been known for ages, and is no doubt more of the empowering information sequestered by the covert knowledge lords.
After all, it's implications are profound.
The Universe is an alive, multi-dimensional wonder of inherent eternal life and infinite possibility. We are all inter-connected and empowered by this same dynamic force. That everything is plasma interacting in an electrically charged medium constantly creating water, stars, planets, comets and who knows what else is not exactly the finite, controllable model we've been indoctrinated with.
What Are Noctilucent Clouds?
Supposedly these were first noticed after the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883. Extremely high, wispy ripply clouds on the edge of the ozone layer started appearing near the poles. What's unusual is these have been increasing in size and moving towards earth's equator over the past years.
NASA claims these are caused by meteor dust in the upper atmosphere which acts as a nucleating agent for the formation of water crystals, as studies apparently showed a 3% dust to water ratio in clouds they've tested. They assert this dust factor is confirmed as the phenomenon was first observed after the massive Krakatoa explosion and all the particles that were blasted into the atmosphere. (See NASA's explanation HERE.)
NASA also says that methane is another cause for the water vapor forming. Methane release is a very real issue with the natural and man made disturbances in our habitat and something to keep an eye on. I've even conjectured that the massive chemtrail aerosol program could be leaking into the way upper atmosphere adding to the particulate matter.
The bigger questions are: where is this water that's forming into vapor coming from? And why is it increasing?
The Universe is Producing Water All the Time
In fact, water has been observed coming out of not just stars, but black holes. I thought nothing could escape the gravity of a black hole? Hmm.
Star Found Shooting Water "Bullets"
"Seven hundred and fifty light-years from Earth, a young, sunlike star has been found with jets that blast epic quantities of water into interstellar space, shooting out droplets that move faster than a speeding bullet.
The discovery suggests that protostars may be seeding the universe with water. These stellar embryos shoot jets of material from their north and south poles as their growth is fed by infalling dust that circles the bodies in vast disks.
"If we picture these jets as giant hoses and the water droplets as bullets, the amount shooting out equals a hundred million times the water flowing through the Amazon River every second," said Lars Kristensen, a postdoctoral astronomer at
"We are talking about velocities reaching 200,000 kilometers [124,000 miles] per hour, which is about 80 times faster than bullets flying out of a machine gun," said Kristensen, lead author of the new study detailing the discovery, which has been accepted for publication in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics." Source
Another Example - Quasar Water Cloud
Astronomers have discovered the largest and oldest mass of water ever detected in the universe -- a gigantic, 12-billion-year-old cloud harboring 140 trillion times more water than all of Earth's oceans combined.
The cloud of water vapor surrounds a supermassive black hole called a quasar located 12 billion light-years from Earth. The discovery shows that water has been prevalent in the universe for nearly its entire existence, researchers said.
(In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. Genesis 7:11?)
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Hackpen Hill (3), nr Broad Hinton. Wiltshire. Reported 26th August.
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CNN
'Digital pill' with chip inside gets FDA green light
By Erin Kim @CNNMoneyTech August 3, 2012: 12:39 PM ET
Proteus Digital Health's monitoring system includes a mobile app, pills with embedded chips, and a stick-on patch that tracks your body data.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Ever wonder if you remembered to take your pills this morning? A medical tech startup has a novel solution: Swallow a computer chip that will help you keep track.
Proteus Digital Health scored a big victory this week when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted approval for the company's "ingestible sensor" invention. The 1 square millimeter device -- roughly the size of a grain of sand -- can relay information about your insides to you, and if you choose, to your doctor or nurse.
The chip works by being imbedded into a pill. Ingest it at the same time that you take your medication and it will go to work inside you, recording the time you took your dose. It transmits that information through your skin to a stick-on patch, which in turn sends the data to a mobile phone application and any other devices you authorize.
The system's goal is to overcome our forgetful impulses, says Andrew Thompson, the CEO and cofounder of Proteus.
"People live busy and complex lives, and as a result often don't take their medicines correctly," Thompson says. "We wanted to develop a solution that would help make existing medicines more effective in real life."
The European Union approved Proteus' system device in 2010, according to the company. The Redwood City, Calif., company plans to bring its first product, called "Helius," to market later this year in the U.K. in partnership with the Lloydspharmacy chain.
Helius includes Proteus' mobile health app, a supply of its stick-on patches (they last seven days, then need replacing) and a stash of its sensor-equipped placebo chips. The company declined to comment on the system's planned price tag.
The first wave of Proteus products will rely on placebo pills taken at the same time as the patient's medication. The company hopes to eventually get its sensors built straight into common medications, Thompson says.
Proteus' spent four years working through the FDA approval process. Now that it's got a green light, it plans to begin working on a U.S. version of its Helius system.
Random Fact
HERE ARE 10 MIND BOGGLING FACTS ABOUT HUMAN BRAIN!!
1. Nerve impulses to and from the brain travel as fast as 170 miles per hour. Ever wonder how you can react so fast to things around you or why that stubbed toe hurts right away? It's due to the super-speedy movement of nerve impulses from your brain to the rest of your body and vice versa, bringing reactions at the speed of a high powered luxury sports car.
2. The brain operates on the same amount of power as 10-watt light bulb. The cartoon image of a light bulb over your head when a great thought occurs isn't too far off the mark. Your brain generates as much energy as a small light bulb even when you're sleeping.
3. The human brain cell can hold 5 times as much information as the Encyclopedia Britannica. Or any other encyclopedia for that matter. Scientists have yet to settle on a definitive amount, but the storage capacity of the brain in electronic terms is thought to be between 3 or even 1,000 terabytes. The National Archives of Britain, containing over 900 years of history, only takes up 70 terabytes, making your brain's memory power pretty darn impressive.
4. Your brain uses 20% of the oxygen that enters your bloodstream.The brain only makes up about 2% of our body mass, yet consumes more oxygen than any other organ in the body, making it extremely susceptible to damage related to oxygen deprivation. So breathe deep to keep your brain happy and swimming in oxygenated cells.
5. The brain is much more active at night than during the day.Logically, you would think that all the moving around, complicated calculations and tasks and general interaction we do on a daily basis during our working hours would take a lot more brain power than, say, lying in bed. Turns out, the opposite is true. When you turn off your brain turns on. Scientists don't yet know why this is but you can thank the hard work of your brain while you sleep for all those pleasant dreams.
6. Scientists say the higher your I.Q. the more you dream. While this may be true, don't take it as a sign you're mentally lacking if you can't recall your dreams. Most of us don't remember many of our dreams and the average length of most dreams is only 2-3 seconds - barely long enough to register.
7. Neurons continue to grow throughout human life. For years scientists and doctors thought that brain and neural tissue couldn't grow or regenerate. While it doesn't act in the same manner as tissues in many other parts of the body, neurons can and do grow throughout your life, adding a whole new dimension to the study of the brain and the illnesses that affect it.
8. Information travels at different speeds within different types of neurons. Not all neurons are the same. There are a few different types within the body and transmission along these different kinds can be as slow as 0.5 meters/sec or as fast as 120 meters/sec.
9. The brain itself cannot feel pain. While the brain might be the pain center when you cut your finger or burn yourself, the brain itself does not have pain receptors and cannot feel pain. That doesn't mean your head can't hurt. The brain is surrounded by loads of tissues, nerves and blood vessels that are plenty receptive to pain and can give you a pounding headache.
10. 80% of the brain is water. Your brain isn't the firm, gray mass you've seen on TV. Living brain tissue is a squishy, pink and jelly-like organ thanks to the loads of blood and high water content of the tissue. So the next time you're feeling dehydrated get a drink to keep your brain hydrated.
Until next week...keep on believing
Almondtree Productions
"I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well."
(Psalm 139:14)