I’m off to Scotland tomorrow, so things will be a little bit quiet around here for the next few days. I didn’t quite get as much planted as I would have liked this weekend, but next weekend will be fine. I think it’s a little early for the carrots anyway. I did get the spinach, bok choy and peas in. I’m hoping they’ll sprout while I’m away! It’ll be exciting to come back to more growing. (They’re outside already, which is also fun, particularly as I’m almost completely out of space inside.)
Inside, I planted the cherry tomatoes (so excited for these, mostly thanks to Sarah & Joey), some perennial flowers, the tobacco, and the okra. I’ve left them in Ross’ capable hands for the week, so hopefully some of them will be up and at ‘em when I get back.
I’m off to St Andrews, in case any of you are wondering – one of my top schools for my phd, and I’m hopefully going to have a chat with my prospective supervisor.
One little fun thing to post about: Ross, Nuggy and I were out for a walk yesterday, and Ross pointed this out to me:
It’s a tree that was cut down, but the branch of the tree grew right around the wires. I think it’s pretty neat.
An experiment for all our fair readers, though not one to be conducted at work: turn off all the ‘Safe Search’ options on your browser and do an image search for ‘Job’. At least on Google, this yields a fascinating slice of the mainstream culture – at least that part of it that is online – in the English-speaking world. I’ve done this a few times after stumbling upon it looking for a painting by Marc Chagall last year and the results, though always shifting, are always about the same.
Well over half the images involve employment or ‘jobs’ in some way:
The other half are split more or less equally between illustrations from the Hebrew Bible book of Job and various pornographic categories – ‘hand job’, ‘foot job’, ‘boob job’, ‘blow job’, and the like (in the interests of propriety – I am an American citizen, and America owes a good deal to Puritan morality even today when so many other element of Puritan culture has passed into the mists of memory – I will leave the illustration of this final category to your imagination, which is filthier than anything I could find anyway, I reckon):
An illustration from Job by WIlliam Blake
There is something about this juxtaposition of the religious, the economic, and the pornographic that seems to perfectly capture our present English-speaking culture, at least that part of the culture and manifests itself online.
It will be fascinating to do this on occasions over the coming months and even years to see if shifts in the larger culture alter the mix I found this morning (taken from the first two pages of a Google image search results), or alter the proportions in which these three things appear.
I have yet to get started on the fabric wall project or much of anything artsy since I moved a few weeks ago. I’ve been looking for jobs and unpacking and spending much needed time with friends instead. (If anyone in the Austin area is hiring, please let me know – I’m awesome, I promise.) But anyway, pretty soon I should have a few projects in the making. I did manage to finally get my art nook in working condition and cleaned up yesterday.
It’s a rainy and cold day in Austin, which is upsetting considering how beautiful the weather has been. This week has been SXSW, and the whole city is going a bit crazy. The cool thing about SXSW is that there are other unofficial free events going on that are really cool and/or a bit absurd. For instance, my boyfriend’s cousin runs this social club called the Austin Bacon Eaters (check them out on facebook). There was an event called the Bacon Takedown last week. It was basically a bacon cookoff, and the ABE entered. Our guys made a bacon avacado salad that was to die for. They won 3rd place in crowd’s choice and 4th place in the two judges’ choice. A few pics:
There were all kinds of great entries as well. Oddly there were a lot of desserts. I know what you’re thinking… “Bacon dessert? What kind of crazies are y’all?” Well, however crazy we all were, it was absolutely amazing.
Aside from the Bacon Takedown, we also went to a concert that was at a used old school video game store called Game Over. My friends band played, and they only play their cover versions of video game music (everything from Little Nemo to Megaman 3 and Mario. Of course.). Here’s a video clip of their performance: Descendants of Erdrick. I took the video with my new blackberry, so the quality isn’t the best. You still get the idea though.
We also attempted a few free shows downtown at Emos… that ended in total failure due to it being a metal show and people being jerks. Regardless, it’s been fun.
Oh, and on St. Patrick’s Day, I made these:
Hopefully, I’ll get this whole job thing straightened out soon, and I’ll be more in the blogging and artsy kind of mood. It’s been really frustrating with the job search because I’m qualified to do many things, and I’m not a moron. However, the economy isn’t that great. So we’ll see.
Pray about this stuff, and do not just easily dismiss it if it contradicts your line of thought, as you could be the one who is wrong just as easily as you could think me to be.
In this post, Id like to go over some places in scripture to show some differences of entities, that are different beings, deemed as either, Sons of God, Children of God, The Son of God, and names of the sort. Basically names that take the claim of literally being a creation directly by the hand of God, with no other factors involved, however, conception itself negates most accepted ideas of the terms used, which was obviously taken in a non-literal fashion. I believe however that those terms are literal and very much are specifically chosen through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God.
Ephesians 2:1 “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; “
Ephesians 2:2 “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: “
Ephesians 2:3 “Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. “
I’m not even going to touch on what Paul is saying here, but shortly stated, “prince of the power of the air” is Satan, and that spirit works in the children of disobedience to God, I think its quite clear to everybody who has ever owned a TV, that the lusts of the flesh mentioned here is pretty simply promoted.
Many religions want for people to believe we are all Children of God, as of now, that is totally wrong, there is more then just being alive as a prerequisite to be called a child of God. Jesus is recorded by John saying,
John 4:23 “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. “
John 4:24 “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. “
God is a Spirit, those that worship Him must worship him in Spirit and in truth, those who indulge in physical sin and what not, are children not of God, but children of the Devil. Only through the Grace of God can anyone be considered Children of God.
Men are not birthed as children of God, but the Children of Adam, each inherits sinful nature from Adam, as Paul put it in Ephesians 2:1-3 earlier posted. Jesus said this to the Jewish Leaders of that time, who claimed to be Sons of Abraham, rendering them Sons of God:
John 8:42 “Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. “
John 8:43 “Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word. “
John 8:44 “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. “
John 8:45 “And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. “
John 8:46 “Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? “
John 8:47 “He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God. “
Now if that weren’t clear enough, John also writes of this.
1st John 3:9 “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. “
1st John 3:10 “In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. “
Maybe these verses give the term, “being born again”, more credence then what most people think is just a cheesy pun. Like I stated before, John states here that “the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.”
Be that as it may, we were given a second shot, through The Son of God, which creates the possibility to become children of God, not through humanly works but the Grace of God.
John 1:10 “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. “
John 1:11 “He came unto his own, and his own received him not. “
John 1:12 “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:”
John 1:13 “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
Hebrews 1 states in what can be confusing, but reading it carefully you get an idea of this scenario that I’m about to shift to, for which this lays a foundation to understand.
Heb 1:1 “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, “
Heb 1:2 “Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; “
Heb 1:3 “Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; “
Heb 1:4 “Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. “
Heb 1:5 “For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? “
Heb 1:6 “And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. “
Heb 1:7 “And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. “
Heb 1:8 “But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. “
Heb 1:9 “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. “
Heb 1:10 ” And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: “
Heb 1:11 “They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; “
Heb 1:12 “And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. “
Heb 1:13 “But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?”
Heb 1:14 “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? “
I’m not going into this, but shortly, the point of me posting this is at the end of this chapter, the heirs of salvation, are those who accepted Jesus Christ as THEIR personal Lord and Savior. These angels mentioned are under Jesus and are sent forth to minister/care for those people, the People the Devil despises because they will eventually sit in Heaven, the very place he tried to steal from God.
Now we will get onto the point of this Pre-Text, to lay a foundation for the Sons of God mentioned in Genesis 6 and their identity. Satan knows he will not win, it is quite obvious, at this point it isn’t about winning or losing, it is about taking as many people down with him as he can, to institute the most “Hollow Victory” as possible for God.
Sons of God are angels, due to having been created directly by God, at the same time as Hebrews states is “innumerable”, maybe I will do a different post on Angels, but that’s not the topic at hand. Adam is also considered to be a Son of God, due to his nature of Creation. This is why Jesus is considered a “second Adam” in type, and I’m CERTAINLY not talking about reincarnation. Due to the notions God had to make to ensure the creation of the being, without the means of intimacy of man and woman, with the ability to conceive. These are all the only Literal, Sons of God options.
Genesis 6:1 “And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, “
Genesis 6:2 “That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. “
There is a position people hold with the sons of God mentioned here to be “sons of Seth and daughters of Cain” marrying to create strange deformations, it doesn’t happen now and it didn’t happen then, that’s my opinion, I.D.E. Thomas in the Omega Conspiracy states, if Moses had aimed to indicate these were the sons of Seth, it would have made a lot more sense for him to have simply written “sons of Seth” instead of “sons of God”, simple as that.
The words Sons of God in English, were translated from ben Elohim in Hebrew. Which Elohim is one of the common names given to God throughout the Bible, the term is also said by some to mean more then just God, but those of residence of a place or with properties that can qualify to designate God is being referred to, it is also argued, that there are places where Elohim is used in the bible to refer to an Angel. Either way, the ben just prior to Elohim basically means a literal offspring, and the term ben Elohim is never seen anywhere else in the bible that people want to make the claims that it is speaking of men, it is accepted everywhere else that it means Angels, quite clear of it to.
Daniel 3:24 “Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. “
Daniel 3:25 “He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”
This term for Son of God is the same in Genesis, but in singular format it seems, it can be argued that the one like the Son of God, joining the 3 in the furnace, isn’t Jesus, due to him having not been revealed to the Jews as the only begotten Son of God, so the position can make sense as this event didn’t seem to Glorify Jesus to the Idol worshippers, but protection by the One True God.
There is a similar case in Job.
Job 1:6 “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.”
Job 2:1 “Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD. “
Men don’t appear before God appointed on a day, other then the appointed Day of Judgment, this clearly refers to the Angels, God asks this of Job:
Job 38:4 “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.”
Job 38:5 “Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? “
Job 38:6 “Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;”
Job 38:7 “When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? “
No human beings were there when God laid the foundations of the earth, Job is representing mankind here as not being present during the time of creation, however, “the morning stars sang together, and the sons of God shouted for joy”, this is the Angels.
I will quote Steve Quayle in Genesis 6 Giants: Master Builders of Prehistoric and Ancient Civilizations Pg. 123 :
” The New Testament refers to the followers of Christ Jesus as “children of God” or the “sons of God.” However, these phrases are separate from those of Genesis and Job by several millennia and are written in Greek, rather than Hebrew. In effect, the passage of time, and the change of viewpoint brought about by the birth of the Messiah in human form, caused a flip-flop of positioning: Men became the sons of God, while angels took the role of mankind’s servants. In effect, the positions of these two creations of God are reversed from the Old Testament to the New.
Both Christian and Jewish scholars in the early centuries of the Church also maintained that the sons of God in Old Testament passages were, in fact, angels. For example, Jewish historian, W. F. Allbright, said of this passage:
“” The Israelites who heard of this section recited unquestionably thought of intercourse between angels and women.”"
“”By the same token, early church leaders including Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Athenagoras, Tertullian, Lactantius, Eusebius, and Ambrose all agreed with this conclusion. The Ante-Nicenes wrote that these angels made:”"
“”…impure love of virgins, and were subjugated by the flesh….Of those lovers of virgins therefore, were begotten those who are called giants. …the angels transgressed, and were captivated by love of women and begat children.”"
He cites from W. F . Allbright, From the Stone Age to Christianity, and I. D. E. Thomas, The Omega Conspiracy.
When one realizes these sons of God are angels, it is understood they came to the earth, and committed a great sin by mating with human women having an evil offspring described as Giants in the later passages in Genesis 6. Although it is said by many quoting Jesus in Matthew:
Matthew 22:30 “For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. “
These Angels were all created innumerable, all created together, and the act of marriage is unnecessary for a number of reasons, one is that Procreation is used for man to keep in existence, contrary to the creation of Angels, man was made as a pair, to populate, this is unnecessary for Angels as they are Spirit and do not die like man. Another reason is questionable but there is no biblical account of angelic women, only Sons of God, being literally that, male not female Angels, all Angels mentioned in the bible are male, if that is factual, seeing as God detest homosexuality, I’ll let your imaginations reason why God would have angels of God in heaven not marry, we will return to the earth as Revelation states, after the rapture, as we will only be in heaven through protection from Gods’ Wrath, when returning with Christ to rule and reign for the 1000 years in the New Holy City of Jerusalem, we are no longer in heaven, just as these angels leaving heaven were no long kept from this. When leaving heaven, these entities came down and performed sexual exploitations with a goal, this goal leads to the reason of the Flood.
Genesis 6:4 “There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. “
The word Giant here in English, is translated from Hebrew of the word, Nephiyl or Nephil, with the plural being Nephilim. Strongs Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, says – “a feller, that is, a bully or tyrant: – giant.”
Notice at the end of this verse, “the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.” These men of renown, were recorded through Human History, but taken as folk-lore/mythos, the reality is, these entities described through ancient Myths of Greece and Rome, and all around the world, were of careless writings (Unlike the Jews who took major precautions in terms of keeping true to transcripts and manuscript copying.), and word of mouth stories that have changed over time, the true history of this is recorded in the Bible, but where these Fallen Angels influenced and their Children of “renown” were worshiped and taken in by the now known as Pagans, these people saw supernatural feats, and took them as gods (little G’s), these beings also built many of the wonders of the world, including the Pyramids, holding true to the end of Genesis 6:4.
It was prophesied that Jesus would be born, I don’t want to get into that now, but maybe on another post, because this subject can cover a lot of ground.
Genesis 3:14 “And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: “
Genesis 3:15 “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. “
Satan knowing this enmity that bruises his head being a fatal blow, shall only suffer a non-lethal blow, being of the heel, this is a reference to the Crucifixion and Ressurrection. When God reveals things to His people, it is not only revealed to His people, but Satan as well, knowing the bible better then man, being there at the times of the events recorded, understanding all technologies man has yet to “unlock” or been “given”, due to him having been here at the creation of physics and the sort, knows that he must try to divert this event from taking place…
This leads to the Angels of Genesis 6 doing what they did, to create this “seed” Genesis 3:15 speaks of, this is a bloodline that Genesis 6:4 spoke of as Giants, or the Nephilim. The reason for this was if Satan could taint the direct descendants from Adam to this point, then there would be no pure lineage that the Savior could be born through, rendering his defeat, and mans Salvation void. In order for Man to have a savior, it needed to be Man, being the God-Man Jesus Christ, it couldn’t be Half-Man, Half-Angel Hybrid. Angels do not have this redeemer. This is an account of Satan seeing Human History written in advance through prophecy, and trying to divert his demise.
With all that being the Pre-texts to the happening of the Flood, it wasn’t placed there randomly, this is giving you the cause for “The Great Flood”.
Genesis 6:9 “These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. “
Noah was not somebody who was substantially different then most men who try to lead a Godly life-style, this passage says he was a “just man” but “perfect in his generations”, perfect meaning without blemish, just as the sacrifices had to be, but this doesn’t mean he was sinless, it shows he was without blemish, in his generations. In other words, his blood line leads directly to Adam just as it should be, without blemish of the Nephilim. It is clear Noah is not perfect, as he gets drunken Post-Flood and uncovered by his Sons, and the Hebrew there leaves a Homo-Sexual slur there, this doesn’t mean physical action took place, but that’s not the topic at hand, here is the reference for that.
Genesis 9:20 “And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: “
Genesis 9:21 “And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. “
Genesis 9:22 “And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. “
Genesis 9:23 “And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness. “
I would like to get into this deeper but this is getting rather lengthy, so I might make a part 2 out of this.
The world was at a point were Noah and his 7 relatives, were seemingly the only people who were spared through the “Great Deluge”, and used to repopulate the Earth, in the Post-Flood era.
However, just as Genesis 6:4 stated, not only were the Giants in that day, but also “after that”. This means the Nephilim, were not only active in the Antediluvian stage, but also Post Flood. The Fallen Angels who partook in this Human-Angel Hybridization are stated in Jude to have:
Jude 1:6 “And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. “
These Fallen Angels, were locked away into the place described by Peter:
2nd Peter 2:4 “For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; “
2nd Peter 2:5 “And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; “
2nd Peter 2:6 “And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; “
2nd Peter 2:7 “And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: “
I wonder why these Fallen Angels being cast down to “Hell”, were mentioned in accord with Noah…or maybe with Sodom and Gomorrha…or even Lot? Maybe I’ll do a seperate post on Sodom and Gomorrha and Lot later, in how they share a Fallen Angel connection. This is why what people call “The Old Testament style judgment of God” is never seen during the New Testament…being that the events are not even close to parallel, the judgment isn’t just sin alone, because that is definitely still here, we have to find what supernatural events took place beyond just regular sin people delve in on a daily basis, and seemingly have to repercussions, not that there isn’t any, just definitely no fire from the sky or anything of the sort.
The word Hell here is Tartaroo, or Tartarus, this is mentioned by Homer as well as being “as deep Hades is from the surface of the Earth, Tartarus is from Hades in equal.” Not that he would know, but the Mytho entities he talked of, were beings whom either themselves have to face it, or the Fallen Angel Parent of face this. Interestingly enough, the word Hell is a broad term for 3 seperate places, being Sheol, Tartarus, and Hades. Each serving different purposes, we aren’t getting into that either. However Tartarus is the place these Fallen Angels whom were disobedient in the time of Noah are now kept, since spirit cannot be drowned by flood waters, the flood was to wipe out the Genealogical progress Satan had gotten in contaminating the Human Race.
1st Peter 3:19 “By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; “
1st Peter 3:20 “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. “
Men are never spoken of in Scripture as “spirits”. Man has a spirit, but he is not “a spirit”, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones”. In this life man has “flesh and blood”, a “natural” (or psychical) body. At death this spirit “returns to God Who gave it” (Psalms 31:5. Ecclesiastes 12:7. Luke 23:46. Acts 7:59). In resurrection “God giveth it a body as it hath pleased Him” (1st Corinthians 15:38). This is no longer a “natural” (or psychical) body, but a “spiritual body” (1st Corinthians 15:44). Whereas, angels are spirits and are called so in. (Hebrews 1:17, 14)
These entities were not only “preached” too, but the Greek word is Kerusso, which means to Herald, especially a divine truth. As a victory is Heralded. I’m not going their either, but I’ll end this with a last statement, and maybe soon I will do a second part on this, maybe focusing on places I didn’t totally cover, or moving onto Post Flood as more of a focus, and then maybe what Revelation and other Prophetic Books tell us about these beings and what is to come.
There are giants all throughout scripture, but since the translations from the Hebrew Manuscript, is to be taken is that, a translation, of the Word of God, where the language barrier can weaken the message, the original Manuscript needs to be referenced to for a deeper understanding of scripture to get the full picture.
Deuteronomy is a bore to read, but if you do some word studies on the titles, such as the Raphaim, and people like that, you will find many of the titles given to the people in that times names translate as literally, the fearful ones, and the giants, both in the same word. The account for the Jews coming upon the land of Canaan, is where I plan to go on Part 2, but the land was covered in giants, in so much that the Jews said “they were grasshoppers in their sight”, this was a ploy Post-Flood, of Satan still avidly attempting to prevent the birth of The Messiah, in that if the Tribe of Judah (Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah), had never developed through this Promised Land, then Jesus could have never been born, these giants were to scare the Jews away, which almost worked, then maybe I will get into Goliath and other more well known entities, whom were either not known widely as giants, or had backgrounds that are easily missed.
Yesterday I had a very, very eventful day. (I’ll tell you what I did throughout the day to build anticipation) The day started out with a nice 3 mile run. It was beautiful outside and Hunter was definitely lovin’ it. After we got home, I did arms an abs. Really fun, really important to tell you all (sarcasm). — (It’s important to note that since you may not even know me - you, in turn, may not know my sense of humor. And therefore when you read my days events, you probably think I’m just plain weird. Here’s a hint – it’s not at all riddled with sarcasm. (again, that was sarcasm))
Anyyyways, I spent the afternoon cleaning, doing laundry… yadda yadda. Then I babysat… yeah yeah. AND FINALLY Alex came home. We spent some time together and played with the pup before we headed out. We stopped by our normal watering hole and enjoyed some St. Patrick’s Day festivities. It’s really so nice to have him home, but unfortunately it’s short-lived. He’ll be leaving again for two weeks on Sunday. Erg. (I didn’t have my camera last night.. so I don’t have any pictures to post.. sorry!)
So on to the important news. It’s breaking news really, so you are privileged to know! As we were getting in the truck to leave… my cell phone rang. The number wasn’t a person I had stored in my phone. (and for all you people waiting for a job offer/interview you know how important these calls are). So I answered. ANNNNNND it was the company I interviewed with last week. AND guess what?!?!? They want to offer me a position! Woo Woo! It’s still pending while the finish up my background investigation. Assuming that it all goes well — I’ll be starting on April 5th! Yeeeeah! (I don’t want to tell you the company just yet, I’m still afraid I’ll jinx it — but for a hint I’ll be working for an investment firm)
So that’s it. Of course I did other things yesterday, like eat. However, with the breaking news I’m giving you now – it just doesn’t seem right to spoil it with a ham and turkey sandwich.
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Even as junior as I am, recruiters know that the motivation of a candidate is important, and they are being trained to identify the job motivation during the interview and out the interview.
I acknowlege that it is a good way to choose suitable employee, but I also worry that people rely on it too much. Many executive search firms may not have these problem, because most of their candidates have lower motivation than a job-seeker in the market, since their candidates normaly don’t positively find a job. So these firms focus more on their background and capability.
As an in-house HR, I see some managers/supervisor regard candidate motivation as a very important part, but in another way. Normally people will find his/her next job when he/she still works in current company, and without doubt, they don’t want to disclose it (but maybe some will let his/her boss know for a certain purpose, eg promotion, salary increase ). On the other side, their potential next employer will require something that put them in a very awkward situation.
I have heard a manager’s negtive comment on a candidate, she thought the candidate showed her a very low motivation because the candidate can not follow her calendar for the interview. I was very embarrassed since I was the person to arrange the schedule, I knew the candidate had meetings with his current boss that day, and of course I explained on behalf of the candidate. To my surprise, the manager insisted that if a candidate has motivation to get the position, he should come at any time she planed.
I then imagined another situation, if a candidate showed strong passion and motivation, eg. saying he/she cancelled a meeting with his/her current boss for this interview, would the manager think he/she will be a good employee.
My understanding of candidate motivation should be within following area:
interest of working in the industry
passion about the job (NOT the position)
willingness to know company’s history and agree to the culture (this is very hard during the interview)
the compensation and benefit that a company can offer
I will prefer to think about candidate’s motiviation from above area, and I really think the motivation of getting a job can not be said as a positive motivation.
The jobs of the future are not quite the same as the jobs that everyone has come to know. Seasonal jobs and engineering jobs may not change much, but other areas, such as health care jobs, sales & marketing jobs, human resources jobs as well as banking and financing jobs are among some of the most affected by the changing world of work.
With the global economy in its present state, people are losing jobs and searching for new ways to make money. One of the first places that many people are turning to these days is the Internet. The Internet is an excellent resource for any job hunter.
The jobs of today are not all pen and paper, they are more and more Wi-Fi and touch screen. Everything these days is becoming digital, from a routine check up to filling your tank with fuel. If you expect to succeed in the job market of tomorrow, you had best study up on your computer and Internet skills. By taking the time to educate yourself on the world of technology, you are providing yourself with a backup plan. Meaning that if all else fails, you can always start your own business on the Internet and succeed as your own boss.
Hey everyone! I hope you are aware that the most exciting sports event is occurring this month. Unfortunately, the Cougs aren’t in it this year, but the NCAA tournament is starting this week. I am in a Yahoo! league with Chas, and I think my bracket is pretty sweet. It is fun and if you haven’t done it before I suggest giving it a shot. You can just go to any place like espn.com or cbs.com and download and print off a bracket. And most newspapers have them also. Besides that madness, Olivia is back on clinical rotations, and I am still grinding away at Rosauer’s in Moscow. Hope you all are doing well!
Day one. Ground Zero. I went to work today totally oblivious to the fact that tonight I would be filing for unemployment for the first time ever in my thirty some odd….err did i say thirty??? gosh it’s GOT to be twenty something???…anyways….something odd years anyway…..Me….ME…..the hardest worker you’ll ever meet, filing for unemployment?
Yep, and not for a performance issue either, there’s the kicker….there was no performance issue they could find…..hey word to the wise never tell your New Boss and your even Newer Boss’s Boss…”No”……whoda thunk?
So I thought…gee, what would any sophisticated single gal do??? Cry? Shop? (not well advised for the unemployed really…lack of income…??)….DRINK!! Ta DA! ok so three lovely Margarita’s from Chillis and still no, bummed and still unemployed. ok…..I can do this I say…..why not blog about life on the job less side?
In our economy I surely ain’t the only one out there, although probably the only one with such cute bags..tee hee…but I digress….
I decided, why not blog my adventures into job hunting land? The search for the new job? The job that fits the sophisticated gal I am???
come join me, the jobless gal on my search for life, liberty and the pursuit of paychecks! It’s sure to be a heck of a ride…
Wow jag är lycklig just nu. Men jag antar att alla skulle varit det om de skulle fått en kommentar från ett av sitt favorit band på sin video som man lagt upp på youtube där man sjunger en av deras låtar.
Woow lång mening, min svenska lärare skulle blivit pissed, men my point is, att de kommenterade och sa, jag citerar, “Tack!! Det låter fantastiskt bra!”
Tack vet jag inte riktigt varför de skrev men antar att det inte är så många som sjunger deras låtar på skolavslutningar… Men det andra…!!!!!!!
Visst, en massa folk har sagt att jag sjunger bra, vilket jag dock inte tycker jag gör i den videon, men att DE säger det betyder EVERYTHIIIIING!
Jag trodde jag kunde dö lycklig förra veckan efter konserten, men nu kan jag fanemej dö som en av de lyckligaste i världen. Men missförstå meej inte, jag vill inte dö. Jag vill bara poängtera att jag är grymt lycklig!
Jag har ju alltid hoppats att de skulle se videon men aldrig trott att de verkligen skulle göra det. Och nu känner jag att jag ska sluta tjata om det då ni troligtvis fattat att jag är lycklig nu…
Jag har nu även blivit vuxen. Like omg noooo. Inte mentalt kanske, som de flesta vet… Men jag har ett jobb! Ett riktigt jobb, inte bara typ tvätta hemma och få en tia, utan ett riktigt jobb på konsum. Nämligen att jag sitter in das kassa.
Väldigt väldigt kul och man får träffa en massa intressanta människor och folk man inte snackat med sen man inte visste vad internet va. Så det är väldigt exciting och ska bli intressant och se om jag överlever. Vem vet, alla pengar jag kommer ha kanske gör meej galen… Let’s hope nooot ^^
Well I’m out, ska fortsätta läsa en massa stories on the World Wide Web!
Btw, funderar på att börja skriva på engelska då typ hälften av inläggen redan är på engelska, men tell me what you think!
I took “spring break” quite seriously. I took a break from schoolwork (though unintentionally… my big plans to read ahead didn’t exactly pan out, thanks to rest and relaxation and the like). I took a break from blogging. I took a break from working out (but wait– I wasn’t really working out in the first place, so I guess that doesn’t count as a “break”).
And now I’m back to school, knowing I need to unpack (or read… or put together more cover letters… or just get some sleep!) but instead wasting time on Facebook. Realizing that yet another friend/acquaintance is now engaged.
The thought of being engaged right now really is nice, but that’s it. It’s just “nice.” It’s unbelievable to me that people my age, or in the case of today’s “newly engaged friend” a year younger, are ready to commit to one person for the rest of their lives. Which makes it sound like I want to flounder around, picking up random guys and hopping from date to date, which is not at all what I mean.
I’m in my first year of law school. I have no idea where I’ll end up, other than my general desire to move to California or Arizona. I can’t imagine actually being tied to a person– and that person’s career/job– at this point in life.
Perhaps I am more career-driven than most. I’ve always had my education, and consequently my career, as my priority. J.D. first, M.R.S. degree later. And I would not want to turn down an ideal job offer because the location or whatnot would conflict with my fiance/husband’s job. Friends have said that I feel this way because I haven’t found the right guy, they guy may change his job so mine will work, relationships are all about compromise, etc. These are all legitimate points, but I really detest the idea of compromising my career because “you must make sacrifices when in a relationship.” Granted, this may all change once I’m in love. But the idea of compromising my goals because of a man really works against everything I’ve been “taught.” Independence. Self-sufficiency. Other late twentieth century/early twenty-first century ideas that have essentially destroyed good old-fashioned dating, now that I think about it. But that’s for some other discussion.
And yes, I note the irony in this post, considering I am both jobless and single. Just thinking ahead.
AUTHOR’S NOTE; The following is work of fiction, however the circumstances could be very real. Everytime I post something I think, “This is on the Internet forever. Do I really want to do this?”. However not all people are so lucky or smart. If you have ever thought about uploading something about yourself then let this be a cautionary tale to remind you that the Internet is forever, much like herpes.
Ashley Aloft!
Ashley smoothed out her skirt and returned to sitting, one ankle draped over the other. The waiting room was silent except the tap-tap-tapping of the secretary’s keyboard while she typed. The faint stirring sounds of elevator music breaking the near quiet whenever the lift’s doors opened. There were five others in the room. Each of the prospective employees kept an empty seat between each other just for safety’s sake. One couldn’t be too careful. Ashley understood this all too well and for it she faced her current dilemma. She sighed deeply. The sensation of her AA medallion brushed against her skin beneath her blouse, a constantly reminder of her past life.
At twenty-nine she was trying to enter the job market at an age where most of her peers were already employed, married and had kids. But not Ashley, she bucked that trend. Her mind went back to all those blurry, scattered memories she had. When everyone else in her senior class was either working or going to college she had found a different position. Partying.
It started innocently enough, it always does,” she grumbled to herself. Underage drinking, smoking the occasional fattie and then waking up with a desert dry mouth and bubble guts.
But days flowed into months and then to years. Heavy drinking, waking up in strange places with nameless men and then to long stretches of memory loss started to be the norm. At twenty she was a bonefide alcoholic and an embarrassment to her single mother. Tattoos, piercings and even more guzzling followed.
And then It happened.
Waking up after a three day binge, just before her twenty-fifth birthday she found herself in a dark room. Staggering out of it she encountered another chamber of the dwelling filled with empty beer and whiskey bottles, snoring passed-out people only lit by a computer monitor. She remembered padding naked (waking up this way wasn’t unusual by this time) she saw the amateur video blog. The scene frozen on the screen made her entire body go cold. Her eyes had flicked to the hit counter which was showing an impossibly high number. Tears welled up in her eyes for the woman perched naked between two equally nude men was her. Her body was aloft, just hanging above a litter of empty beer bottles and hovering in place. Suddenly she became aware of the taste in her mouth, the dull pain between her legs and the sharp stabbing agony on the back of her neck. She pressed play and watched herself and her playmates go into action. The men thrust and laughed, she heard her own drunken voice gurgling and giggling. Her arms and legs dangling above the floor while she was used like some cheap whore. The video ended with her falling amid the bottles puking up booze, boys and barbeque potato chips. Her hands fled to her hair. The crusted strands giving her a nasty reality to the entire debacle.
Those bastards had the nerve to do this to me and then post it on the Internet! She snarled quietly to herself. I was just another drunk slut to be pinned in place by them, recorded and uploaded just for a laugh. To these frat boys I was just a used and abused life support system having soft orifices; they didn’t even consider me a human being at all. When it went viral they thought they were celebrities!
She had dressed quickly, her vision wavering from her hot tears. She remembered deleting the video but the hits had stopped at over sixty thousand. She ran out of the frat house she left the college students behind and quickly checked herself into a rehab facility. The viral video had been taken down hours after it had been posted but it was too late. Millions of people had seen it and after two years it still was quite memorable. People on the ‘net were clamoring for more of her antics. Apparently one of the Greeks sent it off to an amateur site. The drunken scrawl of her signature prevented further litigation.
It’s been four years but that night will haunt me forever. Nobody realizes when something is put on the Web it’s there forever!
She couldn’t go anywhere the first year without someone recognizing her from the video. She’d start to introduce herself—but only would get out her first name.
“I’m Ashley…,” she would begin.
“Aloft!” they would merrily exclaim.
Ashley Aloft—how wonderful, she mused sorrowfully. I wish life had a back button.
Clean and sober for the past forty-eight months she took day classes so she could still attend her AA meetings in the evening. Her mother had helped greatly. The sweet call of alcohol still haunted her, singing into her mind every second of her waking moments. It begged her to take just one drink, to feel the warm glow emulating from her stomach to spread to her whole body so she could be free. Freedom from this depressing existence so she could break the bonds of proper society and what was expected of her. To escape the chains of responsibility so she could do what she wanted, when she wanted and how she wanted. Nights spent thrashing wildly on a dance floor, dozens of hot bodies pressing against her. The sensation of being loved and denying the ugliness she saw in the mirror every morning. Only beer, wine or whiskey could soothe the false image she kept of herself.
Not anymore, she thought. I have seen the errors of my ways and come to grips with myself. I am not the boy-crazy drunk I used to be. I am my own person and I will not give up the dignity and respect I’ve found.
Brushing away a strand of her honey blonde hair as if to physically wipe away the dark gloomy cloud forming in her mind she deliberately sat up straight. A name was called, it wasn’t hers. Another young woman stood up and strolled into the Human Resources director’s office. Ashley checked her watch.
“Aren’t you…,” a man beside her said.
She stiffened up, preparing for the inevitable.
“… Jill Mason?” he finished.
“I’m sorry what did you say?” she inquired.
“For a second I thought I knew you—from back in high school. You’re name’s not Jill, is it?”
“No sorry.”
He went back to flipping through the pages of a golf magazine while she took deep breaths to calm herself. Every time somebody started to speak she feared, dreaded and prayed she wouldn’t hear “Ashley Aloft” or some other version of it. Even her own mind would chant it, punishing her for her stupidity. The door opened and the woman who had gone into it exited without a smile. Inwardly she smiled, the position still wasn’t filled.
“Ashley…,” the secretary said.
Aloft! Aloft! Her evil brain cheered sophomorically.
“…Neumann?” she ended the query.
“That’s me,” she answered.
“Mr. Davis will see you next.”
“Thank you.”
Standing up she tucked her portfolio under her arm and headed towards the door. In the threshold a young man, about her age was smiling at her. She returned the grin but, as always wondered if her unwanted fame was the reason for his smirk.
“I’m Mr. Davis,” he said, “but you can call me Bill.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Bill,” she replied. “My name is Ashley…”
Aloft! Aloft! Ashley Aloft! Her mind echoed.
“… Neumann,” she finished.
“Come inside please,” he said with a gesture of his arm.
Walking into the office she took a seat in front of his large desk and admired the view of the New York City skylight in the window behind his chair. Lazy clouds drifted past the tops of the skyscrapers and it made her smile.
“I see you graduated NYU with a major in advertising,” he began taking a seat. “Your grades are exemplary and your attendance without a single missed day. I have even received your AA counselor’s recommendation which speaks highly of you. Before you worry about that let me tell you it won’t count against you. The fact you recognized your problem and did something about it only makes me admire your willpower and fortitude.”
“Thank you Bill, I appreciate that,” she stated.
“We’re looking for someone to take over the advertising campaign for a small market fashion designer here in New York. The job is temporary but if it is done to our satisfaction it could easily be translated into a full-time position.”
“I look forward to the challenge if you’ll give me the opportunity.”
He nodded at her reply and began the interview.
****
The call came two days later. Her mother handed her the phone, both of their hands trembling with anticipation and anxiety. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath and spoke into the device.
“Hello,” she said.
“Ms. Neumann this is Miss Rendell from the Aspire Advertising Agency,” the woman said.
She recognized the voice of the secretary immediately, her eyes flew open.
“How are you today Ms. Rendell?”
“Quite fine, thank you. I wanted to let you know about the end result of the interview.”
She braced herself and prepared for the answer.
“Mr. Davis was very impressed with your work—so much he forwarded your resume to the client in upstate New York,” the woman went on.
Inwardly she began to do the happy dance in her mind.
“I’m glad Mr. Davis was impressed,” she said confidently.
“We just got the reply back via email and he wanted me to give you a call.”
She held her breath, not speaking out of fear her voice would crack like some adolescent boy just going through puberty.
“I’m sorry to say you won’t be hired for this position here at Aspire,” she finished apologetically.
“That’s alright I understand.”
“However Mr. Davis would like to speak with you on another matter. We haven’t posted this job yet but he felt you would be perfect for it due to your background and education.”
Her heart leapt within the confines of her rib cage and threatened to rise up her throat to choke her from its elation. Crossing her fingers she said, “What would the job entail if I may ask?”
“We do represent another firm,” Ms. Rendell stated, “who feel you would tailor a campaign for them suited to their clientele and industry. We don’t normally make mention of our association with them due to a feminine activist movement who have been harassing them of late. Would you be interested in a full-time position working with Vibrant Studios? It’s one of the larger pornography retailers in California and they’ve just opened up a studio here in New York. You see the other client recognized you from something he saw on the internet years ago and felt you wouldn’t be right for the job. Too controversial, he said.”
Ashley Aloft! Ashley Aloft! Her brain shouted sarcastically.
The secretary went onward, “However Vibrant Studios seemed pleased with your resume and it didn’t mind a bit about what the other client recalled of you. In fact they felt it made you over qualified for the job. Vibrant’s position would pay quite handsomely—eighty thousand a year to start. What do you think, should I set up a meeting with Mr. Brashear from Vibrant and Mr. Davis?”
She opened her mouth to speak but found she couldn’t. She needed the money. Her student loans had begun to arrive in the mail and she couldn’t afford the payments on the wages she made at her part-time job.
One mistake and I’ll never live it down! She sobbed to herself. I’ve worked so hard to overcome my drinking and stupidity—all for nothing! I’m still the drunken whore pinned between two naked men on the Internet!
Trembling she shut her eyes and tried to see a way out of this. Her past, undyingly had come back to haunt her. Ashley’s eyes began to well up with hot tears as she agreed to the position.
Tim Campbell former apprentice winner and now CEO of Bright Ideas Trust will be at the Islington Enterprise Fair to talk about what he is doing now to help people become star entrepreneurs.
After winning the first series of Sir Alan Sugar’s ‘The Apprentice’ Tim worked for Amstrad as Product Director for two years and has since started his own social enterprise, ‘Bright Ideas Trust’. Tim’s company provide support and funding for young entrepreneurs with promising business prospects. When compared with his job with Sir Alan, Tim says, “starting up my own business, Bright Ideas Trust, gave me a massive reality check, there is a massive chasm [between the two jobs] and a completely different skill set”.
Running Bright Ideas Trust has given Tim a clear view of exactly what is required to be successful, “you must have everything clearly laid out beforehand, surround yourself with information and focus on quality”. Although admitting running your own company “is not for everyone” Tim believes that “although there is a lot of hard work and pressure, having your own enterprise is the most exciting experience possible”.
Running a company that centres on helping young entrepreneurs to become successful Tim believes “the government could do more; I think they could use the tax system to generate more private sector funding for young entrepreneurs ”. He also believes that if young people knew more about the help and support available then they would be more likely to become an entrepreneur.
“You don’t need to pass an exam or gain a qualification to start a business. All you need is a little know-how, access to some resources and the confidence to give it a go”
It is for this reason Tim is in complete support of the Islington Enterprise Fair, “the way to be successful in business is to surround yourself with information about it, something which the fair will offer”, he advises the people and businesses of Islington to “ get down there”.
I was going to exercise today. I even put my exercise clothes on and everything. But my son fell down and bit his tongue and it started bleeding. So I was too stressed out to exercise. Plus it was already like 7:30pm. So I bummed out.
Anyways breakfast was a cup of coffee. I keep questioning myself, “Should I keep drinking coffee?” I mean technically it’s not healthy for you to drink… But it tastes so good so I’m gonna keep giving in to my taste buds. If I don’t lose any weight this time I might consider dropping the coffee. I’ve already started reducing my intake. Yesterday and today I only had 1 glass of coffee. So I’m doing better.
Lunch was breaded chicken patty covered with cheese and a salad. It was so good! I need to stay away from the bread though. I also snacked a couple Honey Nut Clusters (they are so good) maybe about 1/4 cup.
Dinner was hamburger patties with asparagus on the side and a salad. I love this meal! It was delish.
Note to readers: I love getting comments! It’s so encouraging.
Gampang banget…! Tinta di kertas ‘cetok’ presensi kerja satu minggu terakhir
2. Naik tiga – Naik satu – Turun empat – Naik empat – Turun dua – Naik satu – … – Turun tiga – Naik tiga – Turun tiga
Sssh! Cuape, ya, bok’!
Itu gw di suatu pagi yang indah. Ngantor di lantai tiga.
Lalu naek ke lantai empat untuk ngurus dokumen yang-bukan-kerjaan-gw. Turun ampe resepsionis cari barangnya.
Oh! Ternyata barangnya sudah dibawa sampai ke lantai empat. Lalu gw turun sampe lantai 2 (yang ini ga jelas mo ngapain), taruh barang gw disitu.
Cab, cis, cus, gw naek lagi dunk, masa ngobrol mulu? Kerja deh di meja gw yang berantakan di tengah-tengah lantai tiga.
Krriiiing, customer sudah sampai, turun deh gw ala catwoman (okay, yg ini lebay) sambil bawa dus dan dokumen-dokumennya. Prikitiuw!!
Orangnya lama periksa tu barang-barang. Satu jam gw yang berharga habis deh… Lalu akhirnya pulang kembali ke meja tercintah.
What? Ternyata ga lama berselang itu, jam sudah menunjukkan jam istirahat. Jam dua belaaaas. Istirahat, yuks? Mall-ing dulu.
Jadi jawaban dari nomor dua itu adalah kegiatan gw di satu pagi yang indah dengan batasan waktu hingga jam dua belas. Jangan tanya dari mana dapet betis kaya begini, ya?
As Job had grace, God has been flooding me with grace and it seems a very special peace, and carrying about our futures.
Job 1:21 And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.
Job 1:22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
Job 1:21 Naked came I out of my mother’s womb – I had no earthly possessions when I came into the world; I cannot have less going out of it. What I have the Lord gave: as it was his free gift, he has a right to resume it when he pleases; and I owe him gratitude for the time he has permitted me to enjoy this gift. Naked shall I return thither – Whither? Not to his mother’s womb surely; nor does he call the earth his mother in this place. In the first clause of the verse he speaks without a metaphor, and in the latter he speaks in reference to the ground on which he was about to fall. As I came out of my mother’s womb destitute of the earthly possessions, so shall I return. There; i.e., to the earth on which he was now falling. That mother earth was a common expression in different nations, I allow; but I believe no such metaphor was now in the mind of Job. The Lord gave – The Chaldee has, “The Word of the Lord, gave; and the Word of the Lord and the house of his judgment, have taken away!” Word is used here personally, as in many other places of all the Targums.
Blessed be the name of the Lord – The following is a fine paraphrase on the sentiment in this verse: -
“Good when he gives, supremely good;
Nor less when he denies;
Afflictions from his sovereign hand,
Are blessings in disguise.”
Seeing I have lost my temporal goods, and all my domestic comforts, may God alone be all my portion! The Vulgate, Septuagint, and Coverdale, add, The Lord hath done as he pleased.
Job 1:22
In all this Job sinned not – He did not give way to any action, passion, or expression, offensive to his Maker. He did not charge God with acting unkindly towards him, but felt as perfectly satisfied with the privation which the hand of God had occasioned, as he was with the affluence and health which that hand had bestowed. This is the transaction that gave the strong and vivid colouring to the character of Job; in this, and in this alone, he was a pattern of patience and resignation. In this Satan was utterly disappointed; he found a man who loved his God more than his earthly portion. This was a rare case, even in the experience of the devil. He had seen multitudes who bartered their God for money, and their hopes of blessedness in the world to come for secular possessions in the present. He had been so often successful in this kind of temptation, that he made no doubt he should succeed again. He saw many who, when riches increased, set their hearts on them, and forgot God. He saw many also who, when deprived of earthly comforts, blasphemed their Maker. He therefore inferred that Job, in similar circumstances, would act like the others; he was disappointed. Reader, has he, by riches or poverty, succeeded with thee? Art thou pious when affluent, and patient and contented when in poverty? Clark’sCommentary edited
As Job had grace, God has been flooding me with grace and it seems a very special peace, and carrying about our futures.
Job 1:21 And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.
Job 1:22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
Job 1:21 Naked came I out of my mother’s womb – I had no earthly possessions when I came into the world; I cannot have less going out of it. What I have the Lord gave: as it was his free gift, he has a right to resume it when he pleases; and I owe him gratitude for the time he has permitted me to enjoy this gift. Naked shall I return thither – Whither? Not to his mother’s womb surely; nor does he call the earth his mother in this place. In the first clause of the verse he speaks without a metaphor, and in the latter he speaks in reference to the ground on which he was about to fall. As I came out of my mother’s womb destitute of the earthly possessions, so shall I return. There; i.e., to the earth on which he was now falling. That mother earth was a common expression in different nations, I allow; but I believe no such metaphor was now in the mind of Job. The Lord gave – The Chaldee has, “The Word of the Lord, gave; and the Word of the Lord and the house of his judgment, have taken away!” Word is used here personally, as in many other places of all the Targums.
Blessed be the name of the Lord – The following is a fine paraphrase on the sentiment in this verse: -
“Good when he gives, supremely good;
Nor less when he denies;
Afflictions from his sovereign hand,
Are blessings in disguise.”
Seeing I have lost my temporal goods, and all my domestic comforts, may God alone be all my portion! The Vulgate, Septuagint, and Coverdale, add, The Lord hath done as he pleased.
Job 1:22
In all this Job sinned not – He did not give way to any action, passion, or expression, offensive to his Maker. He did not charge God with acting unkindly towards him, but felt as perfectly satisfied with the privation which the hand of God had occasioned, as he was with the affluence and health which that hand had bestowed. This is the transaction that gave the strong and vivid colouring to the character of Job; in this, and in this alone, he was a pattern of patience and resignation. In this Satan was utterly disappointed; he found a man who loved his God more than his earthly portion. This was a rare case, even in the experience of the devil. He had seen multitudes who bartered their God for money, and their hopes of blessedness in the world to come for secular possessions in the present. He had been so often successful in this kind of temptation, that he made no doubt he should succeed again. He saw many who, when riches increased, set their hearts on them, and forgot God. He saw many also who, when deprived of earthly comforts, blasphemed their Maker. He therefore inferred that Job, in similar circumstances, would act like the others; he was disappointed. Reader, has he, by riches or poverty, succeeded with thee? Art thou pious when affluent, and patient and contented when in poverty? Clark’sCommentary edited
A few weeks ago, I decided to grab my Kindle and a cup of tea and just spend an hour alone during my lunch.
About half way through my break, a student walked by and sort of hovered over my table for a bit. I was engrossed in what I was reading and genuinely didn’t notice him at first. When I finally acknowledged him, I was honestly a little miffed. In my mind, if someone is sitting alone reading, it generally means they want to continue doing so without interruption.
I looked up.
“Hi!” he chirped, “reading anything good?”
He didn’t look familiar, and I couldn’t figure out why he’d cornered me like this. What had I ever done to him? Did I cut him off in traffic? Was he here to yell at me for not properly filing a request he’d submitted? I looked down at the title of the book I was reading. A Game of Thrones. Oh geez. He’s going to think I geek out over chain mail and tooled leather. Which, I do. But that’s not the point.
“Um, its, uh… The Unbearable Lightness of Being. By, ehhhmmmm….”
“Kundera!”
“Yyyyyyyeah-es, yes. Kundera.” Oh crap. What have I done? I’ve never read The Unbearable Lightness of Being. I don’t even know what it’s about. I just know there’s a floating bowler cap on the cover. But the Kindle doesn’t have book covers…. so he would never know unless… unless he’s read it and starts asking me for details about how I like it, etc, WHAT HAVE I DONE? I should just come clean and let him know that I’m a Renaissance Faire loving, motet-singing, damask silk wearing freak of-
“I’ve never read that. Is it any good?”
“It’s deep. Real deep.”
“Hm. Cool.” Awkward. Silence. “SO, do you like your Kindle? I’ve been thinking about getting one.”
“Oh yeah, for sure, it’s fantastic!” This, at least, was not a lie. I’ve had a small love affair with the contraption since the moment I realized I could read 86 books at a time and only carry the equivalent of a light paperback around with me. And, with the additional new discovery about being able to lie about what I’m reading, it just gained major points. “My parents were really generous for my birthday last year and got it for me. It’s… it’s kind of wonderful.” I gazed at it lovingly and hoped he would take that as a sign that we wanted to be alone.
When the guy finally got the hint, my break was nearly over. But something truly valuable was realized as a result: I can lie! And the Kindle is there for me! We are Bonnie and Clyde. We are Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid! WE ARE SONNY AND CHER!
And now? Now I realize how lame my life is; I think that lying about what I’m reading is a daring and dangerous feat.
I finally washed my car today. Considering it is white in colour, I should have done it sooner and I should be doing it more often. I’ll try and make it a weekly thing (yeah right, not bloody likely). Feels good to see ol’ JB (that’s its name, due to the number plate more than anything else LOL) sparkling and clean. I was starting to get paranoid that someone would write “wash me” in the dust on my windscreen – yes, it was that dirty.
On another note, after my text to Mamat Gila yesterday, there was NO more contact from him – yay, a win for me!
I also started realising what it is I really want to do with my life. I want to travel the world. Yes, this isn’t anything new. But the real epiphany came to me when I decided I could travel the world teaching English. A good friend of mine told me she knows loads of people travelling with NGOs in a sort of ‘Teachers without Borders’ programme, and that I could do that too. So what I’ll do is, I’ll get my CELTA certificate, and then see what I can do with it – anything, anywhere, teaching people English. I could start by going to Germany/Europe, and then the rest of the world. I am really excited about this direction, because I love seeing the world and meeting people and learning new things… and it would be just awesome if I could do that for a living.
So yeah. My initial plan. I have so much confidence in myself and my ability to adapt to my surroundings, I think this would be perfect for me. And I could write my book* while travelling
* I’ve always wanted to be a published author and travelling will give me material, experience and ideas for a book. I feel it’s the only way to live my dream
Sevilla es con diferencia una de las ciudades que peor está llevando la crisis y por eso encontrar empleo está verdaderamente jodido. Desde finales de enero de este año hasta el pasado dos de marzo, he estado sin empleo. Para alguien en mi situación (joven, universitario, independizado, etc.) encontrarme sin empleo es una situación preocupante (supongo que para el resto del mundo debe ser igual). Por eso, para mis compañeros que están buscando un trabajo (o incluso para mí el día de mañana) voy a exponeros qué he hecho para conseguir un empleo con el que sobrevivir hasta que pase esta incesante lluvia de mierda que cubre la ciudad.
En primer lugar, hay que levantarse y llevar unos horarios de persona normal. Esto a simple vista puede parecer una obviedad, pero es tristemente común entre los informáticos estar despiertos hasta altas horas de la noche (y levantarse tarde por las mañanas (> 12.00)). Una vez que uno se levanta y desayuna con tranquilidad, llega el momento de la automotivación. Aunque sin llegar a hacer lo de siguiente la escena, a mí me sirve repetir varias veces en alto “Hoy voy a encontrar trabajo”.
Lo siguiente que deberíamos hacer es prestar atención a los consejos del amigo Leopoldo Abadía. Entre ellos, destaco lo siguiente:
Y, a veces, eso será aceptar un trabajo que creemos que es de menos categoría, aceptar que nos paguen menos, …
Una vez mentalizados de que vamos a encontrar trabajo aunque nos paguen menos, prosigue ir a buscarlo. Doy por supuesto que tenemos nuestro currículum vitae actualizado y que tenemos una red de colegas que sigan teniendo empleo.
Para empezar, podemos enviar un email a nuestros colegas e informarles de nuestra cruzada por un empleo. Evita hacer mass-mailing (spam). Sólo envíales este correo a aquellos con los que exista cierto grado de confianza y que no se vayan a molestar por el favor que les pides.
También viene bien recuperar el contacto con viejas amistades profesionales y llegado el momento comentarles que estás buscando empleo. Nunca se sabe que Pepito, ese que era tan mal programador, ahora es un crack y te puede echar un cable para que entres en su empresa.
Otra de las cosas que sugiero es añadir a gente profesional de Sevilla y alrededores en twitter y aumentar nuestra red de contactos. Así, podemos comentar en nuestros twitts que estamos buscando empleo. Mucha gente se ofrece amablemente a depositar tu CV en sus empresas.
Finalmente, si la cosa sigue sin marchar, es recomendable buscar empleo en sitios como Fidetia, LinkedIn ó InfoJobs. También puedes hacer trámites con tu DNIe en redtrabaj@.
Pero lo más importante ante todo, es no parar de buscar empleo. Deberías dedicar unas 5 horas diarias a buscar empleo. Haciendo esto, es muy posible que aparezca algo.
We’ve all heard that phrase – 24/7 – until we’re sick to our stomachs. It’s become nothing more than a marketing phrase that means, “You have my full attention, my full dedication, my full cooperation and my full commitment, every waking moment of every hour.”
Basically, it’s a promise no one can keep. In other words, it’s bullshit.
Until now.
When I mentioned in my blog that I had recently lost my job, one of my regular woman readers suggested, facetiously, that I find a wealthy woman to take care of me. My first reaction was to laugh until I thought, “Hey, maybe she’s on to something here!”
So, I’m going to take her advice and put the following on my next dating profile. Ready?
To any woman that will have me, and can afford me, I can tell you honestly, that I am now available to you 24/7. Like Henry Fonda said during his role as Tom Joad in The Grapes of Wrath, “I’ll be there.”
Want someone to do your laundry?
I’ll be there.
Tired of paying a King’s ransom to have someone walk Fido walked around the block twice a day?
I’ll be there.
Want that dimmer switch, that hasn’t worked for years, to dim once again?
I’ll be there.
Tired of declining party invitations, or not taking that special vacation, because you hate to go on your own?
I’ll be there.
Looking for a little afternoon delight? Or some “delight” after anything at all?
I’ll definitely be there, 24/7.
The way I figure it, if many of the Fortune 500 companies can promise you their undivided attention, 24/7, why can’t I? And it seems to me that if the women on the dating sites are willing to sell their soul to any man whose waistline or ego are the only two things bigger than his financial portfolio, then why can’t I?
The fact is ladies, this is a chance of a lifetime. Before I move on to the next step in my career. Before I put myself back on the dating sites and get snapped up by someone who is infatuated with my charm, my communications skills, my passion and total honesty. Before any of that happens, I’m available 24/7 to someone who wants to take advantage of me…I mean take advantage of this situation.
“But doesn’t that mean that you are no better than a bad marketing slogan, or a woman who sells her soul for money?” you gasp in total surprise, and with mock disdain in your voice.
Of course not. I’m better than that. I plan to continue working, harder than ever before, but only on my writing, which will of course be inspired by you. I will continue to be my charming, thoughtful, passionate, honest self and you will be the beneficiary. I will continue to be humble, lean and hungry, but only for you.
Personally, I think this woman friend of mine stumbled on to something that really could work. And unless, you, my faithful readers, tell me otherwise, I’m seriously thinking that my next online dating profile will contain the words above, with the headline …
“Therefore men fear Him; He does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit.“ – Job 37:24 ESV
OK, I’ve officially had enough of Elihu. He is a highly eloquent, but loquacious young man who just doesn’t know when to shut up. While he has a lot of wonderful things to say about God in these two chapters, he still will not relent in his attacks on Job. He accuses Job of wickedness and assures him that he is suffering at the hand of God for his sinful actions. He tells Job to repent of his sins and all will go well with him. “If they listen and obey God, then they will be blessed with prosperity throughout their lives. All their years will be pleasant” (Job 36:11 NLT). Elihu’s is a simple and simplistic view of God. He keeps talking about the majesty and incomprehensibility of God, yet he seems to have God boxed in and figured out. He alone knows the ways of God. He even brags that he speaks on behalf of God. “Be patient with me a little longer and I will instruct you, for I still have words to speak on God’s behalf” (Job 36:2 NET). He even brags that his wisdom is perfect and complete. “For in truth, my words are not false; it is one completein knowledge who is with you” (Job 36:4 NET). But the wisest and most accurate thing Elihu says is found in the last thing he says. “Therefore men fear Him; He does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit” (Job 37:24 ESV).
If only Elihu would listen to his own counsel. Here is a young man who is wise in his own conceit. Not only does he have Job figured out, he has a handle on God as well. For all his spouting about God’s majesty and power, his god is really a small, petty, vengeful and reactionary god. But his god is not the God of the Bible. He doesn’t know or understand the ways of God. None of us do. Just about the time we think we have Him figured out, He surprises us. We will never know His ways. We can never predict His actions. But we can rest assured in His character. He is a loving God. He is a holy God. He is a righteous God. He is a God of judgment. But He is also a God of mercy. Where we get into trouble is when we start trying to determine what He is doing in the world or in the lives of those we know. We can jump to wrong conclusions and assume things like the earthquakes in Haiti or Chile were to punish them for their sins. We don’t know that. We can’t assume that. We cannot claim that. Because we do NOT know. Rather than try to figure out the why, we need to ask God what and how. What does He want us to do about it? How does He want us to react to it? We know God has a purpose. We know He has a plan. Our job is not to try and figure out the cause of what has happened, but to reach out in love and compassion to those who are caught in the midst of it.
I have no problem with Job’s friends pointing out that Job MIGHT have sinned and that his suffering is a result of that sin. But once Job denied it, they needed to move on and help Job seek God in the midst of it all. They needed to point Job back to God and keep him focused on the mercy and love of God. We need to do the same with those in our lives. We need to do the same with ourselves as we go through difficult times. Instead of looking for the reason behind what we are going through, we need to look for the God who is ultimately in charge of all that goes on in the world. We need to ask Him to examine our hearts, expose anything that needs exposing, but more importantly, open our eyes so that we might better see Him.
Father, help us to look for you in any and all circumstances. Not as our judge or executioner, but as a loving Father who has nothing but our best interest at heart. Help us to focus on You and not the circumstance. Help us to see You instead of searching for explanations. May we learn to be true friends and godly counselors to those you bring in our paths. Amen.
Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men kenm@christchapelbc.org
Today we were not assigned any work in office……our boss wants us to take a respite as we had toiled last month without one……..But guess what!!!! We are supposed to utilize this time by reading for the certificate (Yeah! We are supposed to write an exam that too before March, 2010 end ). Ridiculous!! I am feeling like back to college sans fun. I am not averse to studying but reading that too for tech certificate…..yaaak…….. My day is full of ennui…….I am feeling drowsy……unfortunately there is no dormitory in our office…..…tried many ways to kill time and boredom but to no avail……..However, I look forward to this evening as I have been apprised of my sister’s arrival……. I might have lots of fun with her……chatting, cooking, eating, going on shopping spree, chit-chat, watching movies………loads of loads of fun…….may be my day is bored but who knows I might end up enjoying my evening like heaven……….see!! that’s why always be positive………
If you have been following the M’Cheyne Bible reading plan in 2010 you will be part way through the book of Exodus, Job, Luke and 2 Corinthians. Reading Job for the first time can be difficult as the speech moves between Job and his “friends”. This is one of those books in the Bible where you will benefit more if you read it in entirety in one sitting. This will allow you to place the conversations in their context. Depending on your reading and retention ability it may be quite a foreboding task to tackle 42 chapters in one hit. However for the average reader who is probably versed in the likes of Rowling, Clancy, Meyer, Gabaldon, Patterson, and others, Job barely compares in quantity.
The book opens with an introduction to a man named Job (pronounced “joh-b” not “job” as in what you do for a living). He is identified firstly as a righteous man (1:1) and then as a rich man (1:2). He was a man of prayer who cared deeply for his family and was concerned for their spiritual and temporal welfare (1:4-5). The scene switches to an encounter between God and Satan. They discuss Job and God permits Satan to harass him (1:12). Job loses his family, his fortune, but not his faith as he looks to God in worship and blesses his name (1:20-21). Another interchange between God and Satan ensues and this time God permits Satan to afflict him personally, but is not permitted to kill him (2:6). Job receives a plague of boils as a result. Following this Job is visited by three “friends” who decided together “to go and sympathize with him and comfort him” (2:11). The next twenty-nine chapters relate an interchange between Job and the friends. What this amounts to is a series of accusations by the friends that Job is guilty of some heinous sin and Job’s response or defense that he has “maintained his integrity” (2:3, 9, 27:5, 31:6). This is followed in chapters 32-37 by an outburst by a fourth, younger friend. Were the book to end there you might assume that the four “friends” had made a good case against Job. However in chapter 38, God himself joins the conversation and sets everyone straight.
Taken in isolation, the content of chapters 3-31 seem to provide sound and pithy counsel. Although the counsel sounds biblical and orthodox, it is given independently of God and without reference to the limitation of understanding the “friends” have concerning God’s sovereignty. Chief amongst their mistakes is trying to figure out “why” these calamities had befallen Job. Surely there must be some secret sin he is harboring, he has blasphemed or done some other evil to warrant his affliction. Why else would God allow this to occur? Job also, at first, seems preoccupied with the “why”. His response to the accusations is introspection and review and he concludes that he is not in the wrong, that God is acting unfairly (27:2) for not explaining (30:20, 31:35) “why” he was suffering.
However when God speaks, he reveals something of himself and his majesty, might and power and then demands Job answer him why he thinks he is a qualified judge.
“Would you discredit my justice? Would you condemn me to justify yourself?” 40:8 (NIV)
When God finishes his cross examination of Job, Job realises his response ought to have been “How” not “Why”. How do I respond you Lord, no matter what the circumstances are that you bring me into? Job answers the question himself in 42:6 when he repents and worships. God then appoints Job as an intercessor or mediator for his three friends. Once their understanding is corrected they are able to genuinely comfort and console him (42:11) along with the remainder of Job’s extended family.
What do we make of this book? Hopefully we realise that regardless of our circumstances, wisdom, insight, understanding, length of time we have been a Christian, amount of Bible College or Seminary we have attended or any other attainment we’ve achieved, we don’t know the full story of what is happening behind the scenes and we don’t have to. The response to any condition we find ourselves, poverty or riches, health or sickness is not pondering “why”, rather asking “how”. Job started out on the right track.
At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said:
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
and naked I will depart.
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;
may the name of the Lord be praised.”
In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing. (1:20-22 NIV)
It wasn’t until some well meaning, albeit, self-righteous friends threw in their graceless reasoning that Job became confused and turned his “worship” into a “why”. Which brings out another application from this book. When others around us are suffering, our response should be comfort and consolation not presumption and judgement. Likewise in reverse for those that might be experiencing an “up” moment – don’t assume this makes them more spiritual or blessed than you are. In both cases, neither the suffering nor the surplus is conclusive proof of the state of their heart and what purposes God is working in their lives (Philippians 4:12-13). In either case we are called to encourage, comfort and strengthen our brothers and sisters. All too frequently if someone has a bit of a rough time and shows no sign of improvement we are tempted to write them off as deserving their plight. Indeed, we ALL deserve damnation (Romans 3:23, 6:23a). Isn’t it a tad arrogant to think yourself above reproach if you’re in a slightly better state than someone else? How sad that the saying, “There, but for the grace of God go I” has become a trite cliche and we have become callous to the opportunities to show mercy and kindness to others.
However the most valuable understanding of any book of the Bible comes from asking how it speaks of, or illuminates the person and gospel of Jesus. Just as God allowed Satan to afflict Job, so too he allowed the outpouring of his wrath against sin to be poured out upon Jesus. Jesus is the suffering servant, the one who, unlike Job, willingly laid down his life for our sake. (John 10:11, 17-18) Jesus had God’s perspective on his suffering and was able to approach the cross with joy (Hebrews 12:2) knowing the reward of the righteous awaited him as he provided for our redemption. Through his suffering Job came to a point of personal repentance and worship. Through suffering for our sins, Jesus enables us to repent and worship.
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16 NIV)
As you read and “consider Job”, make sure you also “Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:3 NIV)
“It is not only the old who are wise, not only the aged who understand what is right. Therefore I say: Listen to me; I too will tell you what I know.“ – Job 32:9-10 NIV
Someone once asked the question, “Why does youth have to be wasted on the young?” This somewhat sarcastic and tongue-in-cheek statement, made by an obviously older person, reflects an understanding about the abundance of energy and vitality that come with youth, but the wisdom that often seems to be lacking. In today’s reading in chapters 32 and 33 of Job, we get an up-close-and-personal glimpse into just what this looks like in the life of Elihu. This young man, full of vitality and energy, has been biding his time and biting his tongue, waiting for a chance to speak his mind. And once he opens his mouth, what comes out is not exactly flattering. Like Job’s three other friends, Elihu is well-intentioned but poorly informed. He is so ready to share his wisdom with Job, he is about to explode. “I am like a wine cask without a vent. My words are ready to burst out! I must speak to find relief, so let me give my answers: (Job 32:19-20 NLT). Elihu is like a volcano ready to explode. That should have been his first sign to take a deep breath and keep his words to himself. It reminds me of the warning of James: “My dear brothers and sisters, be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19 NLT). The Proverbs have a lot to say about choosing our words carefully and using them sparingly: “When words abound, transgression is inevitable, but the one who restrains his words is wise” (Proverbs 10:19 NET). “The truly wise person restrains his words, and the one who stays calm is discerning” (Proverbs 17:27 NET).
Elihu seems to have had a problem with restraint. He also suffered from a bad case of ego. I am amazed at how often he speaks of himself. His use of the personal pronoun has got to be an Olympic record. I lost track after 40. Elihu comes across as an arrogant and prideful young man who appears short on discernment. He has a lot of the characteristics of the fool described in the Proverbs:
The wise person accepts instructions, but the one who speaks foolishness will come to ruin. – Proverbs 10:8 NET
Those who are wise store up knowledge, but foolish speech leads to imminent destruction. – Proverbs 10:14 NET
The teaching of the righteous feeds many, but fools diefor lack of wisdom. – Proverbs 10:21 NET
Elihu seems to think that because he was made by God, he was qualified to speak for God. “I speak with all sincerity; I speak the truth. For the Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life” (Job 33:3-4 NLT). That is a dangerous assumption for anyone to make. I can speak sincerely, but be sincerely wrong. I can speak what I think is the truth, but be flatly false in both my conclusions and my words.
Elihu’s pride are painfully apparent in the closing verses of chapter 33: “Pay attention, O Job, listen to me; Keep silent, and let me speak. Then if you have anything to say, answer me; Speak, for I desire to justify you. If not, listen to me; Keep silent, and I will teach you wisdom” (Job 33:31-33 NASB). WOW! The boldness of Elihu is amazing. I get embarrassed for him just reading his words. They come across as so pompous and arrogant it’s almost unbelievable. But then I have to think how many times I have probably come across the same way. Even in my “advanced” years. Elihu was right in one respect, wisdom doesn’t necessarily come with age. It comes from God. And it begins with a fear of God. “Fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge. Only fools despise wisdom and discipline” (Proverbs 1:7 NLT). As I grow in my knowledge of God, I will grow in wisdom and discernment. I will increase in knowledge as well as discretion. I will seek to be wise, but not just in my own eyes. I will seek to be righteous, not just right. I will learn what it means to speak words of comfort, not just correction. I will have the heart of God, not just the words of God.
Father, before I attempt to speak for You, let me get to know You better. Help me bridle my tongue and limit my speech unless I know I have heard from You. Don’t let me assume I have the answers just because I have Your Spirit living within me. I know how easy it is to let my pride take precedence. I can speak my own words and fool myself into believing they are from You. And I end up doing more harm than good. So keep a watch over my mouth. Help me be quick to listen and slow to speak. And when I do speak, may I speak for you but because of You. Amen.
Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men kenm@christchapelbc.org
). Ridiculous!! I am feeling like back to college sans fun. I am not averse to studying but reading that too for tech certificate…..yaaak……..