The News:
The Brazilian Nelson Piquet, former three-time world champion of Formula One, began this Monday to take a road course of education, after that got suspended his driving license for accumulating too many traffic infractions… The local press indicated that Piquet, one of the three Brazilians that have achieved the Formula One world championship, lost his license after receiving a huge quantity of infractions by excess of velocity and wrong parking… It was also suspended the driving license of his wife Viviane, who joined with Piquet in the road course of education… The Piquet marriage, whose son Nelson of 21 years is a test pilot with the team Renault of Formula One, should attend 30 hours of classes during eight days and to pass an exam before recovering their licenses… Piquet is one of the most renowned pilots arisen in Brazil and champion of the maximum car racing category in 1981, 1983 and 1987. (reforma.com)
Comment:
I Suppose that many of us dream of driving one of those F1 cars at maximum speed, of course before realizing that in the real world, a soda truck deliveryman will block our road and that if we try to pass, the mother of our neighbor will appear at the steering wheel conducting on the high speed lane at 30 mph.
In the races, if new tires are required, the pilot approaches the pit zone where a team of technicians will change the four tires in 20 seconds flat. In the real world, what happens if we require to change only one of the tires? We park, we open the vault, we remove all the junk that blocks us (including a bowling ball, an ice box still with remainders of food, etc.) and we put them aside. We seek the elevator and realize that the lever bar is missing. It’s useless to discuss with the spouse who took it to crack pecans without returning it to its place. While we think about a substitute, we remove the spare tire and realize that is almost flat… In short, everybody has his own story, but the twenty seconds convert into an hour, if we have enough creativity to solve all the problems. Not considering that we will forget the bowling ball on the side of the road.
Of course that it’s enticing to live in that special world where the driver is king, but the true thing is that we live in cities designed for a lot less cars of the ones that really circulate and that we must accept the rules, which if followed by all, would permit a fluid circulation and an easier location of parking spaces.
Neither the three championships of Piquet give him the right to skip the rules, neither should do political positions, personal influences, or famous names. We all must obey the traffic regulations.
What the Bible Says:
Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work. (Titus 3:1)
When the Bible was written, cars didn’t exist (if they did, I suspect that Paul would have written at least two more Letters), but the mandate is simple: to respect the authorities. Please, don’t be one of those who are transformed upon holding a steering wheel, remember that the grace of Jesus is capable to reach still those drivers that suddenly turn left in places where is prohibited. Pray for them.
viernes, 3 de agosto de 2007
jueves, 12 de julio de 2007
domingo, 24 de junio de 2007
Supermán Outfit Sold in 16 Thousand Dollars
The News
The auction overcame the expectations… The suit that deceased actor Christopher Reeve dressed in the first movie of Superman, almost 30 years ago, was sold by 8,400 sterling pounds (12,500 Euros or 16,750 dollars) in an auction, in London… The famous tight blue suit of Reeve, with the S on the chest, the yellow belt, and the red boots, which he used in the movie of 1978, overcame the bidding expectations… (reforma.com)
Comment
I wonder how much will cost in a few years the Spider Man suit and also if the suit of Batman, after the corresponding 30 years, will overcome the price of Superman’s. Being already in the area of irrelevant questions, would the glasses of Clark Kent be included in the 16 thousand dollars price? Or are those going to sell apart together with the suit of the supposed journalist? I seem to remember (although I was not a faithful fan of this hero) that he was keeping the suit and the glasses of his secret identity in a pocket of the cape. I can understand that the cape had space for them, but always I questioned if the shoes would also fit since they had to be of a quite big size to contain Superman’s feet along with the boots. Or did lockers exist inside the telephone booths of Metropolis?
It is difficult to me to understand these eccentricities of the world. How can produce satisfaction the possession of a relic as that one? I cannot presume that I am an intelligent buyer; more than once I have given things that really I didn’t use and that I bought without needing, but certainly there weren’t things as expensive as a car. Anyhow, this is a good opportunity to reflect: can we live with fewer things in our houses so we can give the saved money to the poor?
Do you remember what Jesus said to the rich young man? “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” If He was saying that to us today, what would be the first thing in what we would think? I don’t know about you, but I have to confess that the first thing that would come to my mind would be my computer, my car and my pen collection. As if I could face the Lord and ask: “Can I keep my laptop?” No matter which objects came to your mind, it is a wrong attitude. The first thing that we should think about should be the great opportunity showing up to follow Jesus. Any object is disposable compared to that.
What the Bible Says
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Mateo 6:19-21)
Our treasure cannot be a suit with one "S", or a house, or a painting, c’mon, not even a Bible signed by Jesus (by the way, if somebody offer you one, don’t buy it, trust me when I tell you that it would be false). To do treasures in heaven let's begin to act as the Lord and let's ponder if we are ready to do what He is asking us to do in order to follow Him
The auction overcame the expectations… The suit that deceased actor Christopher Reeve dressed in the first movie of Superman, almost 30 years ago, was sold by 8,400 sterling pounds (12,500 Euros or 16,750 dollars) in an auction, in London… The famous tight blue suit of Reeve, with the S on the chest, the yellow belt, and the red boots, which he used in the movie of 1978, overcame the bidding expectations… (reforma.com)
Comment
I wonder how much will cost in a few years the Spider Man suit and also if the suit of Batman, after the corresponding 30 years, will overcome the price of Superman’s. Being already in the area of irrelevant questions, would the glasses of Clark Kent be included in the 16 thousand dollars price? Or are those going to sell apart together with the suit of the supposed journalist? I seem to remember (although I was not a faithful fan of this hero) that he was keeping the suit and the glasses of his secret identity in a pocket of the cape. I can understand that the cape had space for them, but always I questioned if the shoes would also fit since they had to be of a quite big size to contain Superman’s feet along with the boots. Or did lockers exist inside the telephone booths of Metropolis?
It is difficult to me to understand these eccentricities of the world. How can produce satisfaction the possession of a relic as that one? I cannot presume that I am an intelligent buyer; more than once I have given things that really I didn’t use and that I bought without needing, but certainly there weren’t things as expensive as a car. Anyhow, this is a good opportunity to reflect: can we live with fewer things in our houses so we can give the saved money to the poor?
Do you remember what Jesus said to the rich young man? “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” If He was saying that to us today, what would be the first thing in what we would think? I don’t know about you, but I have to confess that the first thing that would come to my mind would be my computer, my car and my pen collection. As if I could face the Lord and ask: “Can I keep my laptop?” No matter which objects came to your mind, it is a wrong attitude. The first thing that we should think about should be the great opportunity showing up to follow Jesus. Any object is disposable compared to that.
What the Bible Says
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Mateo 6:19-21)
Our treasure cannot be a suit with one "S", or a house, or a painting, c’mon, not even a Bible signed by Jesus (by the way, if somebody offer you one, don’t buy it, trust me when I tell you that it would be false). To do treasures in heaven let's begin to act as the Lord and let's ponder if we are ready to do what He is asking us to do in order to follow Him
viernes, 8 de junio de 2007
Returns Wallet with 2,700 Dollars
The News:
A homeless person found… a wallet with 2,700 dollars, checks and several credit cards in a square of the Argentine province of Salta and returned it to his owner… 42-year-old Ricardo Ismael Medina, a man who survives selling cardboards and plastic that finds in the streets, found the 'treasure' under a bench in a square… “The truth is that I did not hesitate a moment to return it because it was something that wasn’t mine and if my friends had found out that I keep something not mine, they would turn around their faces”, said to the press Medina, who lives in an improvised house to the side of a monument, along with a group of dogs and eleven cats… On having discovered that inside the wallet there were one thousand and 100 dollars and 5 thousand Argentine pesos (approximately one thousand 600 dollars), he went to a nearby police office to denounce the find, and soon there was located the lucky owner of the wallet, who granted to Medina a reward of 300 Argentine pesos (96.7 dollars). (reforma.com)
Comment:
Is still there someone who doubts that honest people exist? Ricardo Ismael not only is honest, but a real hero. Can you imagine the happiness of the owner when he recovered his wallet? It is not mentioned why he was carrying so much money, but unless he belongs to the Forbes richest men’s list, nobody can spare 2,700 dollars.
Many people, perhaps the majority, still believes that money brings happiness, or at least, facilitate it. False! Generally the people get entangled in vicious circles to obtain more money that will increase needs that will require more money, and so on, until everything ends in ruins, destruction, or bitterness. And please note that I said “generally.” There is no law that prohibits rich people to be happy; it’s only that they achieve it “no matter” the money.
Generally the people with a lot of money worry more about taking care of their patrimony, often they have to hire bodyguards for personal protection and that of their relatives, social commitments remove them from family life and the spouse and children suffer for it, they lose contact with the human side of their employees and normally sacrifice compassion in exchange for efficiency, they lose notion of the social reality and poverty of the world, etc., not for nothing Jesus said: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:25).
The man in the news remained more satisfied with 97 reward dollars that if he had kept the wallet, which would produce in him nervousness, he would had to lie to his friends, hide from them and perhaps lose his friendship. Without doubt he chose his friends instead of a bunch of dollars. Wouldn’t you have done the same? Shouldn’t you do the same, in case of facing a similar dilemma?
Did you ever give money to a friend and he never returned it to you? And did the friendship cool down later? Mhh! I suppose that I am going in the wrong direction… I am guessing here, but I would be ready to bet that our hero Ricardo Ismael shared the 97 dollars of the reward with his dogs and cats and felt happy when they waged the tail and purred.
What the Bible Says:
And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows (1 Timothy 6:8-10).
How can we be vaccinated against the love of money? Paul offers us some advice: (1) let’s be satisfied with what we possess. Although we can plan to change our car, that shouldn’t make us take decisions that overwhelm us. (2) Let’s be careful of the methods about which we are thinking to make more money. (3) Let’s love the people more that the money and (4) let’s look for God more.
And a fifth advice, not from Paul, but indirect from Ricardo Ismael: let's adopt dogs and cats.
A homeless person found… a wallet with 2,700 dollars, checks and several credit cards in a square of the Argentine province of Salta and returned it to his owner… 42-year-old Ricardo Ismael Medina, a man who survives selling cardboards and plastic that finds in the streets, found the 'treasure' under a bench in a square… “The truth is that I did not hesitate a moment to return it because it was something that wasn’t mine and if my friends had found out that I keep something not mine, they would turn around their faces”, said to the press Medina, who lives in an improvised house to the side of a monument, along with a group of dogs and eleven cats… On having discovered that inside the wallet there were one thousand and 100 dollars and 5 thousand Argentine pesos (approximately one thousand 600 dollars), he went to a nearby police office to denounce the find, and soon there was located the lucky owner of the wallet, who granted to Medina a reward of 300 Argentine pesos (96.7 dollars). (reforma.com)
Comment:
Is still there someone who doubts that honest people exist? Ricardo Ismael not only is honest, but a real hero. Can you imagine the happiness of the owner when he recovered his wallet? It is not mentioned why he was carrying so much money, but unless he belongs to the Forbes richest men’s list, nobody can spare 2,700 dollars.
Many people, perhaps the majority, still believes that money brings happiness, or at least, facilitate it. False! Generally the people get entangled in vicious circles to obtain more money that will increase needs that will require more money, and so on, until everything ends in ruins, destruction, or bitterness. And please note that I said “generally.” There is no law that prohibits rich people to be happy; it’s only that they achieve it “no matter” the money.
Generally the people with a lot of money worry more about taking care of their patrimony, often they have to hire bodyguards for personal protection and that of their relatives, social commitments remove them from family life and the spouse and children suffer for it, they lose contact with the human side of their employees and normally sacrifice compassion in exchange for efficiency, they lose notion of the social reality and poverty of the world, etc., not for nothing Jesus said: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:25).
The man in the news remained more satisfied with 97 reward dollars that if he had kept the wallet, which would produce in him nervousness, he would had to lie to his friends, hide from them and perhaps lose his friendship. Without doubt he chose his friends instead of a bunch of dollars. Wouldn’t you have done the same? Shouldn’t you do the same, in case of facing a similar dilemma?
Did you ever give money to a friend and he never returned it to you? And did the friendship cool down later? Mhh! I suppose that I am going in the wrong direction… I am guessing here, but I would be ready to bet that our hero Ricardo Ismael shared the 97 dollars of the reward with his dogs and cats and felt happy when they waged the tail and purred.
What the Bible Says:
And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows (1 Timothy 6:8-10).
How can we be vaccinated against the love of money? Paul offers us some advice: (1) let’s be satisfied with what we possess. Although we can plan to change our car, that shouldn’t make us take decisions that overwhelm us. (2) Let’s be careful of the methods about which we are thinking to make more money. (3) Let’s love the people more that the money and (4) let’s look for God more.
And a fifth advice, not from Paul, but indirect from Ricardo Ismael: let's adopt dogs and cats.
martes, 5 de junio de 2007
Babies Identify Languages
The News:
The babies between four and six months are capable of distinguishing visually between two languages just by observing the facial gestures of a speaker. After six months of age, only the babies who live in an environment in which the family speaks two languages support this skill, because they are forced to be more attentive … What is the importance of the visual perception in the baby and his comprehension of the world to which he has just arrived? It is known that they are capable of distinguishing faces and that they can appreciate in them the annoyance or the happiness. Now, a new investigation shows that, in spite of just looking at the gestures of the face of his speaker, a baby can distinguish if one speaks to him in a language or in other. According to Núria Sebastián, researcher …, this skill "is part of the set of capacities that the child has" … The results demonstrate that experience modifies the brain. (It appeared in El País)
Comment
Let’s start with some irrelevant questions: Could there be trilingual babies? Perhaps not, because the thing about to be bilingual comes from having parents that speak different languages, although I wonder… if one of them is bilingual and the other speaks a third language… Does some languages cost them more than others? For westerners, the Mandarin and the Japanese are quite difficult to learn. I suppose that it does not matter to babies. What would happen if a baby has a Mexican father and a Spanish mother? Would it count as bilingual? After all, accents and meanings, even if we are talking of a single language, vary among regions.
What is true is that if someone still doubted that babies are a marvel and a blessing for their parents, should be ashamed. Few things equal in tenderness, beauty and inspiration, to the laugh of a baby. And if the baby is the own one, the effect is magnified. Certainly there are moments of discomfort (night crying, change of diapers, etc.), but what father / mother does not overcome them with love?
Now, the babies come with the book empty and although they have an unknown kind of connection with their mother, they are going to be discovering their environment little by little. As the article mentions: they will be attentive. It is up to us, adults "wise persons," to produce for them an agreeable, positive, full of love world. Will we be able to do it?
The babies catch everything according to the study, even different languages. Then let’s be careful with the example that we offer them, let’s pay attention to the attitudes that we use in their closeness and of course, let’s observe the tone that we use, not when we speak to them (since I suspect that the majority of us play the innocent, smile at the point of hurting those muscles that we use very little and say foolish things as "beautiful little angel, how is my cherub doing? Cuchi-cu, baby!"), but when we speak to other members of the family. It happens sometimes that we speak to the babies in the tone of a fairy tale and we shout to our spouse and elder sons in a language and tone proper of a cheap bar. It’s wrong!
At the end, example, attitude, and tone, are types of languages for family communication. And as well as our babies identify the Korean, the Russian, or the Dutch, from the English, they are capable of identifying and of answering to the most sophisticated languages of love, anxiety, annoyance, or … hate.
What the Bible Says
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. (Psalm 127:3-4)
Do not give toys to your baby, give away words of affection, fondness and love to all members of the family in the environment near to the baby. Remember that loving your baby, is not about of just covering him with kisses and to speak to him in "babysh."
The babies between four and six months are capable of distinguishing visually between two languages just by observing the facial gestures of a speaker. After six months of age, only the babies who live in an environment in which the family speaks two languages support this skill, because they are forced to be more attentive … What is the importance of the visual perception in the baby and his comprehension of the world to which he has just arrived? It is known that they are capable of distinguishing faces and that they can appreciate in them the annoyance or the happiness. Now, a new investigation shows that, in spite of just looking at the gestures of the face of his speaker, a baby can distinguish if one speaks to him in a language or in other. According to Núria Sebastián, researcher …, this skill "is part of the set of capacities that the child has" … The results demonstrate that experience modifies the brain. (It appeared in El País)
Comment
Let’s start with some irrelevant questions: Could there be trilingual babies? Perhaps not, because the thing about to be bilingual comes from having parents that speak different languages, although I wonder… if one of them is bilingual and the other speaks a third language… Does some languages cost them more than others? For westerners, the Mandarin and the Japanese are quite difficult to learn. I suppose that it does not matter to babies. What would happen if a baby has a Mexican father and a Spanish mother? Would it count as bilingual? After all, accents and meanings, even if we are talking of a single language, vary among regions.
What is true is that if someone still doubted that babies are a marvel and a blessing for their parents, should be ashamed. Few things equal in tenderness, beauty and inspiration, to the laugh of a baby. And if the baby is the own one, the effect is magnified. Certainly there are moments of discomfort (night crying, change of diapers, etc.), but what father / mother does not overcome them with love?
Now, the babies come with the book empty and although they have an unknown kind of connection with their mother, they are going to be discovering their environment little by little. As the article mentions: they will be attentive. It is up to us, adults "wise persons," to produce for them an agreeable, positive, full of love world. Will we be able to do it?
The babies catch everything according to the study, even different languages. Then let’s be careful with the example that we offer them, let’s pay attention to the attitudes that we use in their closeness and of course, let’s observe the tone that we use, not when we speak to them (since I suspect that the majority of us play the innocent, smile at the point of hurting those muscles that we use very little and say foolish things as "beautiful little angel, how is my cherub doing? Cuchi-cu, baby!"), but when we speak to other members of the family. It happens sometimes that we speak to the babies in the tone of a fairy tale and we shout to our spouse and elder sons in a language and tone proper of a cheap bar. It’s wrong!
At the end, example, attitude, and tone, are types of languages for family communication. And as well as our babies identify the Korean, the Russian, or the Dutch, from the English, they are capable of identifying and of answering to the most sophisticated languages of love, anxiety, annoyance, or … hate.
What the Bible Says
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. (Psalm 127:3-4)
Do not give toys to your baby, give away words of affection, fondness and love to all members of the family in the environment near to the baby. Remember that loving your baby, is not about of just covering him with kisses and to speak to him in "babysh."
martes, 22 de mayo de 2007
Faith
The faith is a concept often attacked by intellectuals and overestimated by religious persons around the world. It is therefore convenient to try to understand more about it and to avoid, when we use it, that our faith is recounted like "blind faith."
According to the dictionary, faith is the reliable confidence in the truth, the validity or seriousness of a person, idea or thing. According to the Bible: It is, then, the faith the certainty of what is waited, the conviction of what is not seen (Hebrews 11:1).
In many situations we have no control, we cannot have control, of the future events, nevertheless we have to take decisions and act as if we knew what is going to happen. The majority of the people who flies in a plane do not know if each one of the elements that allow its correct functioning is in perfect condition, nevertheless they trusts, have faith, that the mechanical team of the air company realized correctly its maintenance task and acts consequently: doing plans on what it is going to do after a normal landing. Without faith, we would paralyze ourselves.
Now then, the faith is not a superstitious hope, the faith is a confidence derived from the truth, or at least, of our understanding of the truths that govern life, in the past, present, and future. In this sense, the faith is individual. Nobody can provide faith to other person, or transfer bottled faith.
Granted, truth is an evasive concept, especially when it is discussed what will happen in the future. As such, it is important to distinguish faith from presumption and from obstinacy. Let's suppose that the weather has been nice (sunny and without wind), but that the weather forecast speaks about a sudden change for the next day to rains and strong winds. Presumption would be to make plans for the next day based on how there has been the weather (sunny, without wind) in the previous days. If instead, we do plan for next day based on how we wish the climate to be, it would be obstinacy. In fact, if we like the snowfalls, we might acquire appropriate clothes, sleds, antifreezes, etc., without considering that it hasn’t snowed for years: obstinacy. On the other hand, faith is to trust that the meteorologists know what they are predicting based on the big number of accurate predictions in the past and to prepare wisely for the rains.
Faith is also to see what nobody else sees and to act consequently. All persons are different and each one visualizes the future in a particular way. Let's take as an example Samuel Morse, the inventor of the telegraph. He was an artist, not an inventor or neither a scientist, not even an engineer, but when he listened by chance to a conversation about electricity and electromagnetism, barely in development by then (this happened at the beginning of the XIXth century), he visualized a way of distance communication based on the above mentioned concepts. And even more, confident that it would work, he left his painter's career and dedicated his life to develop his idea. He endured many rejections and 12 years pass by before the American Congress accepted to tend a telegraph line between Washington and Baltimore. The result: a way of communication that improved the world. This "vision" beyond the senses, is faith.
The faith is not "a blind jump in the darkness" as Soren Kierkegaard said at the beginning of the XIXth century and whose phrase was simplified later to "faith is blind." The real faith is based on something sure. There are those who say that faith in God is blind, but actually there is so many evidence that points out to the existence of a Creator, that the real blindness would be to have no faith in God. As well as the reason endorses the faith in God, it must endorse any person, work or idea in which we place our faith. It was the scientist Blaise Pascal who said: "The faith says to us with accuracy what the senses do not say, but it doesn’t contradict what the senses see; it is above them, not against them."
It is because the faith that we can trust the future. A study on stress and anxiety carried out by the University of Pennsylvania revealed that 15 per cent of the Americans spend more than half of their time (not counting sleep hours) worrying, either for health, finances, family issues, job security, violence, or relationships. Although a small dose of stress is healthy, we must counter the excess with a good endowment of faith.
Finally, faith must be reflected in our character. The confidence in God, in our family, in our coworkers, will allow us to concentrate on our own responsibilities without worrying excessively on issues out of our control, even if at one particular moment the results are adverse. We must always remember that a good character, with his dose of faith included, produces fruits in due time. And of course we must never forget the source of faith: So faith is by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17).
According to the dictionary, faith is the reliable confidence in the truth, the validity or seriousness of a person, idea or thing. According to the Bible: It is, then, the faith the certainty of what is waited, the conviction of what is not seen (Hebrews 11:1).
In many situations we have no control, we cannot have control, of the future events, nevertheless we have to take decisions and act as if we knew what is going to happen. The majority of the people who flies in a plane do not know if each one of the elements that allow its correct functioning is in perfect condition, nevertheless they trusts, have faith, that the mechanical team of the air company realized correctly its maintenance task and acts consequently: doing plans on what it is going to do after a normal landing. Without faith, we would paralyze ourselves.
Now then, the faith is not a superstitious hope, the faith is a confidence derived from the truth, or at least, of our understanding of the truths that govern life, in the past, present, and future. In this sense, the faith is individual. Nobody can provide faith to other person, or transfer bottled faith.
Granted, truth is an evasive concept, especially when it is discussed what will happen in the future. As such, it is important to distinguish faith from presumption and from obstinacy. Let's suppose that the weather has been nice (sunny and without wind), but that the weather forecast speaks about a sudden change for the next day to rains and strong winds. Presumption would be to make plans for the next day based on how there has been the weather (sunny, without wind) in the previous days. If instead, we do plan for next day based on how we wish the climate to be, it would be obstinacy. In fact, if we like the snowfalls, we might acquire appropriate clothes, sleds, antifreezes, etc., without considering that it hasn’t snowed for years: obstinacy. On the other hand, faith is to trust that the meteorologists know what they are predicting based on the big number of accurate predictions in the past and to prepare wisely for the rains.
Faith is also to see what nobody else sees and to act consequently. All persons are different and each one visualizes the future in a particular way. Let's take as an example Samuel Morse, the inventor of the telegraph. He was an artist, not an inventor or neither a scientist, not even an engineer, but when he listened by chance to a conversation about electricity and electromagnetism, barely in development by then (this happened at the beginning of the XIXth century), he visualized a way of distance communication based on the above mentioned concepts. And even more, confident that it would work, he left his painter's career and dedicated his life to develop his idea. He endured many rejections and 12 years pass by before the American Congress accepted to tend a telegraph line between Washington and Baltimore. The result: a way of communication that improved the world. This "vision" beyond the senses, is faith.
The faith is not "a blind jump in the darkness" as Soren Kierkegaard said at the beginning of the XIXth century and whose phrase was simplified later to "faith is blind." The real faith is based on something sure. There are those who say that faith in God is blind, but actually there is so many evidence that points out to the existence of a Creator, that the real blindness would be to have no faith in God. As well as the reason endorses the faith in God, it must endorse any person, work or idea in which we place our faith. It was the scientist Blaise Pascal who said: "The faith says to us with accuracy what the senses do not say, but it doesn’t contradict what the senses see; it is above them, not against them."
It is because the faith that we can trust the future. A study on stress and anxiety carried out by the University of Pennsylvania revealed that 15 per cent of the Americans spend more than half of their time (not counting sleep hours) worrying, either for health, finances, family issues, job security, violence, or relationships. Although a small dose of stress is healthy, we must counter the excess with a good endowment of faith.
Finally, faith must be reflected in our character. The confidence in God, in our family, in our coworkers, will allow us to concentrate on our own responsibilities without worrying excessively on issues out of our control, even if at one particular moment the results are adverse. We must always remember that a good character, with his dose of faith included, produces fruits in due time. And of course we must never forget the source of faith: So faith is by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17).
miércoles, 16 de mayo de 2007
Man Spent Seven Years Dead in Bed
The News:
The decomposed body of a German man was found in his bed almost seven years after his death, said the Police of the German city of Essen… The Police said in a statement that the man was 59 years old and he was unemployed at the moment of his death… Probably he died of natural causes November 30, 2000… Near the bed of the deceased, the Police found cigarettes, an open TV guide and some German coins, that stopped circulating in 2002 after the introduction of the Euro… The apartment of the man was in a building with offices and residences, many of which are now uninhabited… "Nobody miss him. Nobody denounced his disappearance", the Police said (taken from reforma.com)
Comment:
Death is natural, what is not natural is to spend 7 years unnoticed. Even the most far away relatives take less time in trying to establish contact, but let’s assume that they had an argument and distance themselves. Didn’t a single neighbor try to complain about the bad smell (that I suppose spread when the body was decomposing)? Nobody went to ask him for a cup of sugar or to invite him to the typical meeting of neighbors? Didn’t he meet any friends to play golf with, dominoes, cards or Nintendo? And more surprising: Nobody went to cash some debt, services, taxes, interests or quotas And doubly surprising: Nobody went and tried to sell him long distance services, magazine subscriptions, scouts cookies, or discount coupons.
Death is natural, what is not natural is to smoke. The natural thing is to eat and to enjoy that delicious German food.
(Editor: The Germans drink a lot of beer and this Blog is against the alcohol)
(Author: But surely they also have other beverages, so instead of criticize, investigates a typical German beverage without alcohol and complete the previous paragraph)
(Editor: Why bother? Coke is universal)
(Author: Don’t be lazy! Investigate and complete the paragraph)
(Editor: "The natural thing is to drink water". There! Should I add it?)
Death is natural, what is not natural is to live watching television. Not because many people do it, makes it natural. The natural thing is to take a walk at the park, to greet the neighbors, to visit the friends, to communicate with relatives, to play chess, to pay taxes… (Well, please erase the last one before the editor sneaks in, at any rate, being unemployed and 59 years old, perhaps he received instead of paying). Anyway he should have contact with some social worker, his dentist or simply his doctor.
"Nobody miss him…" the sad thing is not so much his isolation but the form in which he spent the little time that we have in this life: smoking and watching television. Is there an alternative? Of course: to change the TV guide for a Bible and to switch the time in front of the screen for time in the congregation praising God. First, it would prepare him for eternal life and second, it would provide him with a new family in probable replacement of the carnal one that give up on him.
What the Bible Says
A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24).
We do not know the reason why the man of the news remained alone, but if we follow the Solomon’s advice to be friendly, that will not occur to us.
The decomposed body of a German man was found in his bed almost seven years after his death, said the Police of the German city of Essen… The Police said in a statement that the man was 59 years old and he was unemployed at the moment of his death… Probably he died of natural causes November 30, 2000… Near the bed of the deceased, the Police found cigarettes, an open TV guide and some German coins, that stopped circulating in 2002 after the introduction of the Euro… The apartment of the man was in a building with offices and residences, many of which are now uninhabited… "Nobody miss him. Nobody denounced his disappearance", the Police said (taken from reforma.com)
Comment:
Death is natural, what is not natural is to spend 7 years unnoticed. Even the most far away relatives take less time in trying to establish contact, but let’s assume that they had an argument and distance themselves. Didn’t a single neighbor try to complain about the bad smell (that I suppose spread when the body was decomposing)? Nobody went to ask him for a cup of sugar or to invite him to the typical meeting of neighbors? Didn’t he meet any friends to play golf with, dominoes, cards or Nintendo? And more surprising: Nobody went to cash some debt, services, taxes, interests or quotas And doubly surprising: Nobody went and tried to sell him long distance services, magazine subscriptions, scouts cookies, or discount coupons.
Death is natural, what is not natural is to smoke. The natural thing is to eat and to enjoy that delicious German food.
(Editor: The Germans drink a lot of beer and this Blog is against the alcohol)
(Author: But surely they also have other beverages, so instead of criticize, investigates a typical German beverage without alcohol and complete the previous paragraph)
(Editor: Why bother? Coke is universal)
(Author: Don’t be lazy! Investigate and complete the paragraph)
(Editor: "The natural thing is to drink water". There! Should I add it?)
Death is natural, what is not natural is to live watching television. Not because many people do it, makes it natural. The natural thing is to take a walk at the park, to greet the neighbors, to visit the friends, to communicate with relatives, to play chess, to pay taxes… (Well, please erase the last one before the editor sneaks in, at any rate, being unemployed and 59 years old, perhaps he received instead of paying). Anyway he should have contact with some social worker, his dentist or simply his doctor.
"Nobody miss him…" the sad thing is not so much his isolation but the form in which he spent the little time that we have in this life: smoking and watching television. Is there an alternative? Of course: to change the TV guide for a Bible and to switch the time in front of the screen for time in the congregation praising God. First, it would prepare him for eternal life and second, it would provide him with a new family in probable replacement of the carnal one that give up on him.
What the Bible Says
A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24).
We do not know the reason why the man of the news remained alone, but if we follow the Solomon’s advice to be friendly, that will not occur to us.
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