I found a stray parrot in the garden this morning.
All he says is, "Good morning, you old fart."
Is he yours?
4 December 2014
2 November 2014
13 October 2014
After the week-end..
After the week-end, I don't know about you, but I feel lethargic it's just as well that I have the afternoon off!
It could be because we had a fantastic Saturday evening with our friends, Leslie and John, celebrating their fourtieth wedding anniversary with a wonderful diner and an exciting barn dance! Exactly, how cool was that! I just thought that it was the best idea ever and I know that everybody else thought the same! I confess that my dance moves were slightly hesitant but no one cared, it was so much fun. The company was terrific, the music, singers and guitarists were outstanding. We were thinking that this event was soooo good that we should organise every two months!.
Sunday was great too, there was a breakfast at Weston church and a great service at Hixon church. Later on, my hubby Steven cooked a superb bbq with a salad made of home grown betroots. After I joined more friends at an evening service in Beacon church in Stafford. I hope you too had a blessed week-end.
Have you heard of this charity: hands at work.
Photos to come soon!
8 September 2014
Love and respect...simple or difficult?
Every Human Being on the planet yearns for respect, but especially men. For a man, respect is the lifeblood of our emotional stability, the air our heart breathes, the milk in our Wheaties, the gas in our combustible engines. In other words, it’s what makes us go.
Respect is sometimes demanded, enforced, and argued about. Gangs and countries have gone to war and men have died for lack of it, but when freely given, means the most to us. For a wife, respect is given as an order from the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 5:33…”let the wife see that she respects her husband.” In other words, it’s not enough to love him, to coddle him, to baby him, although those things are kind of nice sometimes (I’m not going to lie!), but it’s most important that she respects him.
Dr. Emerson Eggerichs wrote in Love & Respect, that respect is like the air a man breathes and being disrespected is like pinching off a man’s oxygen hose so that he slowly dies a suffocating death. However, it says the same about love to a woman. A wife being commanded through scripture to respect her husband can be a difficult pill to swallow if the husband is mean, irritable, critical and unloving.
Here are the three P’s of loving our wives well so that she can respect us easily and without feeling like a traitor to her own heart.
1) Praise Her.
Too often, we as men think something and fail to say it. We dig into a home cooked meal, walk past a manicured garden, put on clean clothes, cash a second paycheck, all the while thinking this is nice, but never saying it. “Honey, thank you for working to help provide for this family”, “Honey, thank you for doing that yard work, the yard looks great”, “Honey, This meal is fantastic, Thank you.” Or how about “Girl! You are looking so fine, YOU make that dress look good!” Praise your wife………daily. Praising her often is loving her well!
2) Promote Her.
Praising her is speaking well of her….to her. Promoting her is speaking well of her to others. The first people you should be speaking well of her to, is your family. Your children should hear you speak lovingly and adoringly about your wife often. Your sons will learn how to treat their wife from you. I know, scary thought, but true. Your daughters will learn how to be treated from you. Start early and Praise her often. Proverbs 31 says that “her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her”. If you want a Proverbs 31 Virtuous wife, treat her like one. A man who promotes his wife in public earns respect. A man who discredits his wife in public earns contempt.
3) Protect Her.
We are Human. There are going to be times when your wife sins or falls short. Cover her. Don’t blab about her failure and don’t grind her failures in her face. Cover her. 1st Peter 4:8 says this “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” To love your wife well means to cover her, just as your Pastor is your spiritual covering of the local church, Jesus is our spiritual covering before the Father over the complete church, you husband, are the covering of your family.
As men, we sometimes feel that our wives will respect us for the things we respect other men for, accomplishments, money, occupation, the toys we own or cars we drive. The truth is, our wives respect us for how we treat them, so praise her, promote her and protect her and she in turn will respect you. As always, may you love your wives well and be mighty men of valor who always chase after the heart of God. Amen.
Stephen Miller is a Family Life Pastor at Crystal River Church of God, an ordained minister in the Church of God, the Men’s Ministry leader of Warriors with a Covenant and a Married Life Small group marriage ministry leader. Steve and his wife Jessica present regularly for the Marriage Restored Conference. You can read more of his work at Marriage Encounter and read his book “Fight for Her! A Marriage in Crisis and God’s Intervention.”
2 August 2014
Opinionated Vicar: Don't Read This, Read...
Opinionated Vicar: Don't Read This, Read...: this http://frrme.org/canon-andrews-blog/ and keep praying for Iraq, especially the Christian population there.
20 July 2014
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest
Jesus invites you to trust Him and He will refresh you. Are you going to accept his loving invitation?
Matthew 11:28-30English Standard Version (ESV)
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Urdu bible28 اے محنت مشقت کر نے والو! اور وزنی بوجھ اٹھا نے والو تم سب میرے پاس آ جا ؤ۔ میں تمہیں آرام پہنچا ؤں گا۔ 29 میرے جوئے کے کندھے دیتے ہو ئے مجھ سے باتیں سیکھو۔ میں شریف اور خاکسارہوں۔ اور تم اپنی جانوں کے لئے تشفی پا ؤگے۔30 ہاں! جو کام میں تم سے قبول کر نے کے لئے کہتا ہوں آسان ہے۔ تمہیں اٹھا نے کے لئے جو بوجھ دے رہا ہوں وہ وزنی نہیں ہے۔”
8 June 2014
Noah's ark
I then was cheeky and asked my friend Geraldine to draw a template for a Noah's ark which she very kindly did. Today, at Sunday school, Emily, Maisy, Keira and Zak helped out on the project. Done! A big thanks to everybody including the websites where I found the craft activity. Click here.
20 May 2014
19 May 2014
Bring back our girls, praying..
“No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength…But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love.” -Psalm 33:16-19
Heavenly Father, we thank you for all the blessings and love you pour out on Nigeria and its neighbouring countries.
Launched in 2002, Boko Haram - which in the local Hausa language means "Western education is forbidden", a reference to the initial focus of its Islamist agenda - became a force to be reckoned with in 2009 when it raided police stations and government buildings in Maiduguri, and other northern cities.
Hundreds of people were killed in the ensuing clashes between the security forces and its members.
Soldiers raided Boko Haram's headquarters, an Islamic centre in Maiduguri where children from poor families, including those from neighbouring Chad and Niger, enrolled for religious studies, only to be recruited as fighters.
When the security forces seized control of the centre, they captured its leader, Mohammed Yusuf, who then died in police custody.
The military declared victory over Boko Haram, only to find the group reorganising itself under the leadership of Abubakar Shekau, who took it on a more militant path in the campaign to establish a puritanical Islamic state across Nigeria.
This is how the extremist group Boko Haram started their fight. Using children warriors according to the BBC article. For more videos that explain how it started, click here.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for all the blessings and love you pour out on Nigeria and its neighbouring countries.
We ask you to reveal yourself to each member of Boko Haram, may you speak to them Lord, so that they turn from their evil acts, and let the children go.
Jesus, you are the living God, you have the victory and you are King of our hearts.
We know that you pray for us and your unfailing love is immense.
Help our Nigerian sisters and their families, comfort them and strengthen them, help them escape their kidnappers and find a safe place, help them to find shelter, surround them with your love oh Lord.
Guide all those who are looking for our sisters, may they find them quickly.
We praise you Oh Lord, you are the God of miracles, nothing is impossible for you.
You love us, and you keep your promises. We ask in the mighty name of Jesus, our Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.
18 May 2014
Praying for our children!
Not long ago, I was reading about the armor of God. Tonight, I' m reading a truly inspiring book by Janet Thompson,
Praying for your prodigal daughter.
Here is what she says:
I stand and fasten the belt of truth around my waist and
I put on the breastplate of righteousness..
as shoes for the feet, I put on the readiness to proclaim the gospel of peace, ..
I take up the shield of faith to guard my heart against all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
I take the helmet of salvation
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6: 10-18
Do you have any worries about your children or grand-children (I don't have any grand-children..yet!)
Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you, he will never let the righteous fall. Psalm 55:22.
Rely fully on the Lord who is in charge!
Praying for your prodigal daughter.
Here is what she says:
I stand and fasten the belt of truth around my waist and
I put on the breastplate of righteousness..
as shoes for the feet, I put on the readiness to proclaim the gospel of peace, ..
I take up the shield of faith to guard my heart against all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
I take the helmet of salvation
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6: 10-18
Do you have any worries about your children or grand-children (I don't have any grand-children..yet!)
Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you, he will never let the righteous fall. Psalm 55:22.
Rely fully on the Lord who is in charge!
26 April 2014
Pass the butter please...
Pass The Butter ... Please. I thought that I'd share this comparison between butter and margarine. Let me know which one do you use?
Margarine was originally manufactured to fatten turkeys. When it killed the turkeys, the people who had put all the money into the research wanted a payback so they put their heads together to figure out what to do with this product to get their money back.
It was a white substance with no food appeal so they added the yellow colouring and sold it to people to use in place of butter. How do you like it? They have come out with some clever new flavourings....
DO YOU KNOW.. The difference between margarine and butter?
Read on to the end...gets very interesting!
Both have the same amount of calories.
Butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams; compared to 5 grams for margarine.
Eating margarine can increase heart disease in women by 53% over eating the same amount of butter, according to a recent Harvard Medical Study.
Eating butter increases the absorption of many other nutrients in other foods.
Butter has many nutritional benefits where margarine has a few and only because they are added!
Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavours of other foods.
Butter has been around for centuries where margarine has been around for less than 100 years .
And now, for Margarine..
Very High in Trans fatty acids.
Triples risk of coronary heart disease ...
Increases total cholesterol and LDL (this is the bad cholesterol) and lowers HDL cholesterol, (the good cholesterol)
Increases the risk of cancers up to five times..
Lowers quality of breast milk
Decreases immune response.
Decreases insulin response.
And here's the most disturbing fact... HERE IS THE PART THAT IS VERY INTERESTING!
Margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC... and shares 27 ingredients with PAINT.
These facts alone were enough to have me avoiding margarine for life and anything else that is hydrogenated (this means hydrogen is added, changing the molecular structure of the substance).
Open a tub of margarine and leave it open in your garage or shaded area. Within a couple of days you will notice a couple of things:
* no flies, not even those pesky fruit flies will go near it (that should tell you something)
* it does not rot or smell differently because it has no nutritional value ; nothing will grow on it. Even those teeny weeny microorganisms will not a find a home to grow.
Why? Because it is nearly plastic . Would you melt your Tupperware and spread that on your toast?
3 April 2014
End of the world cartoon
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| by Ray Fowler |
Hope you are having a fruitful and blessed week.
To see more of those cartoons, click here
31 March 2014
The heart of a family man...
Good evening my friends,
I'd like to share this post with you.
Tip of the Tongue Theology: The heart of a family man...: Before entering the covenant with my wife, I anticipated the sacrifice I would have to make but I had no way of kno...
I'd like to share this post with you.
Tip of the Tongue Theology: The heart of a family man...: Before entering the covenant with my wife, I anticipated the sacrifice I would have to make but I had no way of kno...
30 March 2014
Mothers' day celebrations
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| Praise songs in the village |
14 March 2014
The York Lent course
Hi everybody. I haven't been able to blog much as work has been intense and taking much of my free time. I still don't understand why the media sometimes criticize teachers! We were talking about that the other day, the truth is that the job is never finished.
Planning, Marking, Meetings, Parents'evenings, Reading..Still I absolutely love it ..
Hope that you are having a lovely evening.
Last night, we met up for our first evening of the York Lent course called Build on the rock. We all enjoyed it as we explored questions of faith, doubt - and we talked about Jesus, our Saviour, Redeemer, son of God, God and friend. I must say that the material is excellent and leads to great discussions, questions and answers in an easy way.
If you are considering doing this course, I will heartily recommend it.
What are you up to this week-end? Blessings.4 March 2014
Cutting down on red meat?
Do you like your meat or do you prefer vegetables? In our family, it's a bit of both. My hubby and my step-daughter love red meat, I do too but can do without, as I am happy with a plate of couscous or lentils, Imo has just become a vegan after being a vegetarian since she was 13! What about you? What's your diet like? I must say that I will avoid talking about deserts!..
Is this new research I found in the daily telegraph a publicity stunt?
The researchers define a “high-protein” diet as deriving at least 20 per cent of daily calories from protein. They recommend consuming about 0.8g (0.03oz) of protein per kilogram of body weight every day in middle age. It means a person weighing nine stone should eat about 45-50g (1.6-1.7oz) of protein a day. A 300g (10.5oz) steak contains 77g (2.7oz) of protein.
As well as red meat, dairy products high in protein are also dangerous, the researchers said. A 200ml (7fl oz) glass of milk represents 12 per cent of the recommended daily allowance, while a 40g (1.4oz) slice of cheese contains 20 per cent.
Chicken, fish, pulses, vegetables, nuts and grain are healthier sources of protein. However, a chicken breast or salmon fillet still accounts for about 40 per cent of recommended daily protein intake.
“The research shows that a low-protein diet in middle age is useful for preventing cancer and overall mortality,” said Dr Eileen Crimmins, a co-author of the study.
“However, we also propose that at older ages, it may be important to avoid a low-protein diet to allow the maintenance of healthy weight and protection from frailty.”
British experts agreed that cutting down on red meat had been proven to lower the risk of cancer but said a balanced diet was still the best option.
Dr Gunter Kuhnle, a food nutrition scientist at the University of Reading, said: “While this study raises some interesting perspectives on links between protein intake and mortality… It is wrong, and potentially even dangerous, to compare the effects of smoking with the effect of meat and cheese.”
He claimed that sending out such statements “can damage the effectiveness of important public health messages”, adding: “The smoker thinks: 'why bother quitting smoking if my cheese and ham sandwich is just as bad for me?’ ”
Prof Naveed Saattar, an expert in metabolic medicine at Glasgow University, said the low-protein effect in older people could be due to “survival bias”, where those who have lived longer are already generally healthier.
Protein controls the growth hormone IGF-I, which helps bodies grow but has been linked to cancer susceptibility. Prof Tim Key, a Cancer Research UK epidemiologist, said: “Further research is needed to establish whether there is any link between eating a high protein diet and an increased risk of middle aged people dying from cancer.”
The researchers define a “high-protein” diet as deriving at least 20 per cent of daily calories from protein. They recommend consuming about 0.8g (0.03oz) of protein per kilogram of body weight every day in middle age. It means a person weighing nine stone should eat about 45-50g (1.6-1.7oz) of protein a day. A 300g (10.5oz) steak contains 77g (2.7oz) of protein.
As well as red meat, dairy products high in protein are also dangerous, the researchers said. A 200ml (7fl oz) glass of milk represents 12 per cent of the recommended daily allowance, while a 40g (1.4oz) slice of cheese contains 20 per cent.
Chicken, fish, pulses, vegetables, nuts and grain are healthier sources of protein. However, a chicken breast or salmon fillet still accounts for about 40 per cent of recommended daily protein intake.
“The research shows that a low-protein diet in middle age is useful for preventing cancer and overall mortality,” said Dr Eileen Crimmins, a co-author of the study.
“However, we also propose that at older ages, it may be important to avoid a low-protein diet to allow the maintenance of healthy weight and protection from frailty.”
British experts agreed that cutting down on red meat had been proven to lower the risk of cancer but said a balanced diet was still the best option.
Dr Gunter Kuhnle, a food nutrition scientist at the University of Reading, said: “While this study raises some interesting perspectives on links between protein intake and mortality… It is wrong, and potentially even dangerous, to compare the effects of smoking with the effect of meat and cheese.”
He claimed that sending out such statements “can damage the effectiveness of important public health messages”, adding: “The smoker thinks: 'why bother quitting smoking if my cheese and ham sandwich is just as bad for me?’ ”
Prof Naveed Saattar, an expert in metabolic medicine at Glasgow University, said the low-protein effect in older people could be due to “survival bias”, where those who have lived longer are already generally healthier.
Protein controls the growth hormone IGF-I, which helps bodies grow but has been linked to cancer susceptibility. Prof Tim Key, a Cancer Research UK epidemiologist, said: “Further research is needed to establish whether there is any link between eating a high protein diet and an increased risk of middle aged people dying from cancer.”
22 February 2014
Courageous
Last night we watched a dvd, Courageous. The film 's come out some time ago so you may have seen it at the cinema. If not, here is a summary.
Four men, one calling: To serve and protect. As law enforcement officers, Adam Mitchell, Nathan Hayes, David Thomson, and Shane Fuller are confident and focused. Yet at the end of the day, they face a challenge that none of them are truly prepared to tackle: fatherhood.
When tragedy hits home, these men are left wrestling with their hopes, their fears, their faith, and their fathering. Can a newfound urgency help these dads draw closer to God ... and to their children?
Filled with action-packed police drama, COURAGEOUS is the fourth film from Sherwood Pictures, the moviemaking ministry of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia. Riveted moviegoers will once again find themselves laughing, crying, and cheering as they are challenged and inspired by everyday heroes who long to be the kinds of dads that make a lifelong impact on their children.
Protecting the streets is second nature to these men. Raising their children in a God-honoring way? That's courageous.
I ordered the dvd on amazon a few months ago but never found time to watch it!.I really enjoyed watching this film, brilliant cast, excellent acting and above all inspiring.
Have a blessed week-end.
Have a blessed week-end.
17 February 2014
Save the Storks
On March 13, in Dallas, TX, an organization you’ve probably never heard of is going to revolutionize the pro-life movement.
It starts with a kid from Philly, a bus in New York, and an idea that brought him quite by accident to the city where Roe v. Wade started — the city where he hopes abortion will finally meet its match.
David Pomerantz, 23 (right), does not look like a pro-lifer or a practicing Christian. He looks like a vegan hipster with emo hair. As a matter of fact, he sort of is a vegan hipster with emo hair. If you visit his loft apartment in an industrial section of downtown Dallas, he will offer you fermented tea with organic honey. You can lounge in a beanbag chair and talk about art while he surfs his Macbook and plays indie music and talks about Jesus.
A polite, friendly young man with a laconic kid-from-nowhere accent and a direct blue gaze, David Pomerantz — “Dave” to his friends — does not jibe with the stereotypical image of the angry activist holding signs outside a clinic. And he doesn’t mind, because that’s not the kind of pro-life activist Dave is.
He hails from Philadelphia, but he was attending Word of Life, a two-year Bible institute in New York, when he met Chris Slattery and Julie Beyel of EMC (Expectant Mother Care), a Manhattan pregnancy resource center. He was astonished to find that EMC had formulated a “new model” for approaching women outside abortion clinics.
EMC had a bus equipped with a sonogram machine. By approaching women outside the clinic with the offer of free help, with no mention of a pro-life ideology, they were able to see a staggering success rate. In fact, by their estimate, about 70% of women who got on the bus for a sonogram decided not to abort. In one day, they saw nine women decide on life for their children.
They did some simple math, and realized that if this success continued, 15 to 25 women a week, or about 800 a year, would choose life.
Excited by the possibilities inherent in this new approach, Dave contacted his friend and mentor Joe Baker, who flew in from Philly to see the results firsthand. Equally impressed, the two began to ferment the idea that would become Save the Storks.
Dave was already planning on attending Southwestern Theological Seminary in Dallas, so he headed down south. With Joe Baker developing the art and marketing, and the generous help of Dallas-based organization Get Involved for Life and other private donors to bring to life a sleeker, smaller, more mobile ultrasound vehicle, they were off and running.
Save the Storks was born. Or, if you prefer, flown in through the window.
“We don’t want to intimidate anyone. We don’t want to force anyone. We just want to serve.” Dave is the Local Director for Save the Storks. Today, along with Daryl Harshbarger, Head Female Client Advocate, and Julie Beyel in town from New York, we are having pizza (some of it vegan) in Southeast Dallas. Dave is explaining to me why Save the Storks is a new kind of pro-life action.
“No one is offended by our activism,” he says. “We’re delivering a loving message in a strong way.”
Here’s what happens: a woman is walking up to an abortion clinic. She is approached by Dave or Daryl or another member of Save the Storks.
“Hi, how are you? Would you like a free ultrasound?”
This is the approach. There is no dangling rosary, no graphic pamphlet, no doom-and-gloom. Just an offer of free help from a non-threatening, friendly, smiling young person.
And then there is the Stork bus.
The stork was chosen as the mascot because of its comforting, unoffensive, nostalgic connection to motherhood and pregnancy. We can all remember old cartoons where a smiling stork would fly in a window and lay a swaddled baby in a crib.
What Dave and the others weren’t aware of until later is the text of Job 39:13-17.
The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, but are her feathers and plumage like the stork’s?
She abandons her eggs on the ground and lets them be warmed in the sand.
She forgets that a foot may crush them or that some wild animal may trample them.
She treats her young harshly, as if they were not her own, with no fear that her labor may have been in vain.
For God has deprived her of wisdom; He has not endowed her with understanding.
This is the kind of thing that makes you whistle the Twilight Zone theme music.
The Stork bus, however, is free of all Old Testament references. It is a bright, lovely blue on the outside, and the inside is clean and free of clutter, with a welcoming but no-nonsense clinical feel. There is a little couch for the mother to sit on and speak to a counselor, and a padded bench where she can lie comfortably.
The ultrasound machine pulls out from underneath the bench. It is operated only by a licensed sonographer whose work is frequently reviewed by an OB/Gyn. In the back there is a small private toilet for pregnancy testing. It isn’t the slightest bit cramped or unpleasant; these mothers get only the best. The completed bus with the ultrasound machine was paid for by private donations to the tune of about $140,000.
The Stork bus is by no means the first mobile ultrasound vehicle — it was Chris Slattery’s mobile sonogram bus that inspired Dave and Joe in the first place — but it may be the smallest, lightest, and most practical. It doesn’t require a permit or special permission to park. It will fit in a parking space or even at a meter.
It is an abortion clinic’s worst nightmare.
So now this woman, who was going to go into an abortion clinic, is able to have a pregnancy test and a sonogram without ever reaching its doors.
But what happens now? She’s heard, “Yes, you’re pregnant! You’re this far along! There’s your baby! Here’s his heartbeat!”
So what does she hear next? “Good luck with that?”
Nope. Save the Storks is directly connected to Get Involved for Life and the two pregnancy centers it operates in Dallas, one uptown and one downtown. Also, needless to say, any expectant mother will be welcomed by whatever pregnancy center is closest to the bus at the time. The Stork team is prepared to call a cab for the mother if she needs a ride.
In other words, unlike the abortion clinic, the Storks and the pregnancy centers are in it for the long haul. They are going to get her what she needs to take care of herself and her baby, body and soul.
“The heart of this ministry is the Gospel,” says Dave, after asking for more vegan marinara sauce. “There are two causes every Christian should take up: orphans and widows. This encompasses both.”
It is part of Save the Storks’ mission that every woman who steps on the bus hears the Gospel message. While this may seem off-putting to some, to the Storks it is an essential aspect of caring for the mother that goes along with the physical support and counseling she will receive through the pregnancy center.
“She is just as important as that child,” says Dave. “We aim to improve her quality of life… The major issue here is the devaluation of life, and the answer to every injustice on earth is the church of Jesus Christ.”
“Our ministry is designed to meet all the needs of the woman,” says Daryl. At the pregnancy center, every mother will receive whatever her personal situation calls for, be it help with affordable medical care, legal aid to escape from an abusive boyfriend, life skills counseling, mental health counseling, spiritual guidance, and more.
Which of course begs the question: if the Storks’ mission is in fact successful and Dallas pregnancy centers see 800 or so more mothers every year, how will they handle the added demand for resources?
The answer is simply: us.
“The churches need to stand up and start giving to their local pregnancy centers,” says Dave.
Without the generous help of good-hearted people giving what they can, pregnancy centers can’t work, and by extension neither can the Storks.
Abortion clinic workers and management are used to seeing protesters outside their clinic. What they are not used to is a name brand.
The Save the Storks bus is slick, recognizable, welcoming, and — horror of horrors — it sits in between a mother and the abortion clinic doors. With a simple offer of no-strings-attached help — “Would you like a free ultrasound?” — and a bright, comforting image, it appeals to the desperate woman before she reaches the clinic.She is not confronted. She is offered help. And while I firmly believe that virtually all sidewalk counselors and activists outside clinic are there for no other reason than to help women, the Storks are able to present help first. That is the key. The average clinic sidewalk approach is, of necessity, “Please don’t kill your baby. Here’s why. And here’s help.” Because they have their awesome bus, Save the Storks are able to say, “Here’s help. Now please don’t kill your baby. Here’s why.”
Because they don’t have to lead with agenda, there are no warning bells for a desperate and defensive mother. There is only a friendly face.
This new model will absolutely revolutionize the front lines of pro-life activism.
What is the battle cry of the pro-abortion movement? “Choice!” It is their mantra. What do you constantly hear from abortion advocates? “These desperate women feel like they are out of options.”
Right here, on four wheels, parked in front of the clinic, is another choice — one they might not even know they have. Inside that bus is an image of their baby waiting to be seen. Connected to that bus is a support system — in short, options.
Dave and the team have high hopes, and they should. The approach is breathtakingly simple and, if early tests are any indication, profoundly effective.
As mentioned, the Storks take to the streets of Dallas on March 13. Meanwhile their website is up and running at SaveTheStorks.com with the purpose of raising money to take the program national. A Save the Storks bus is not cheap, and it takes people to run it. While Dave and his team get things off the ground in Dallas, Joe is in charge of building a national movement.
The thought of a Stork bus in every major city in America should bring a smile to your face. Every one of these buses represents hundreds of lives saved every year.
I have met Dave and the gang. I have been on board the Stork bus. And I have never been more excited about a pro-life idea than I am about this one.
You probably are having the same reaction I did. You are probably thinking: “What can I do to help?”
First: spread the word. Use Facebook, Twitter, Twitbook, whatever, to share with people how awesome this is. Second: go to SaveTheStorks.com now and volunteer. They need all kinds of stuff — bloggers, artists, counselors, you name it — all across the country to be part of their national team of Save the Storks volunteers. Whatever your talent is, Save the Storks can probably use it to help get Stork programs off and running across the country. You — yes, you! — can be a part of this movement from the ground up.
Third: donate if you can. Save your Starbucks money for a few days and buy a ridiculously cool Save the Storks T-shirt. Wear it and tell people about it. (I promise they’ll be curious.)
In just a few days, Dave, Daryl, and their remarkable bus hit the streets of Dallas, the city where abortion rights were born. As a native Dallasite, I hope what started here is ended here. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Save the Storks becomes a major factor in helping Dallas — and the country — see an end to abortion.
It starts with a kid from Philly, a bus in New York, and an idea that brought him quite by accident to the city where Roe v. Wade started — the city where he hopes abortion will finally meet its match.
David Pomerantz, 23 (right), does not look like a pro-lifer or a practicing Christian. He looks like a vegan hipster with emo hair. As a matter of fact, he sort of is a vegan hipster with emo hair. If you visit his loft apartment in an industrial section of downtown Dallas, he will offer you fermented tea with organic honey. You can lounge in a beanbag chair and talk about art while he surfs his Macbook and plays indie music and talks about Jesus.
A polite, friendly young man with a laconic kid-from-nowhere accent and a direct blue gaze, David Pomerantz — “Dave” to his friends — does not jibe with the stereotypical image of the angry activist holding signs outside a clinic. And he doesn’t mind, because that’s not the kind of pro-life activist Dave is.
He hails from Philadelphia, but he was attending Word of Life, a two-year Bible institute in New York, when he met Chris Slattery and Julie Beyel of EMC (Expectant Mother Care), a Manhattan pregnancy resource center. He was astonished to find that EMC had formulated a “new model” for approaching women outside abortion clinics.
EMC had a bus equipped with a sonogram machine. By approaching women outside the clinic with the offer of free help, with no mention of a pro-life ideology, they were able to see a staggering success rate. In fact, by their estimate, about 70% of women who got on the bus for a sonogram decided not to abort. In one day, they saw nine women decide on life for their children.
They did some simple math, and realized that if this success continued, 15 to 25 women a week, or about 800 a year, would choose life.
Excited by the possibilities inherent in this new approach, Dave contacted his friend and mentor Joe Baker, who flew in from Philly to see the results firsthand. Equally impressed, the two began to ferment the idea that would become Save the Storks.
Dave was already planning on attending Southwestern Theological Seminary in Dallas, so he headed down south. With Joe Baker developing the art and marketing, and the generous help of Dallas-based organization Get Involved for Life and other private donors to bring to life a sleeker, smaller, more mobile ultrasound vehicle, they were off and running.
Save the Storks was born. Or, if you prefer, flown in through the window.
“We don’t want to intimidate anyone. We don’t want to force anyone. We just want to serve.” Dave is the Local Director for Save the Storks. Today, along with Daryl Harshbarger, Head Female Client Advocate, and Julie Beyel in town from New York, we are having pizza (some of it vegan) in Southeast Dallas. Dave is explaining to me why Save the Storks is a new kind of pro-life action.
“No one is offended by our activism,” he says. “We’re delivering a loving message in a strong way.”
Here’s what happens: a woman is walking up to an abortion clinic. She is approached by Dave or Daryl or another member of Save the Storks.
“Hi, how are you? Would you like a free ultrasound?”
This is the approach. There is no dangling rosary, no graphic pamphlet, no doom-and-gloom. Just an offer of free help from a non-threatening, friendly, smiling young person.
And then there is the Stork bus.
The stork was chosen as the mascot because of its comforting, unoffensive, nostalgic connection to motherhood and pregnancy. We can all remember old cartoons where a smiling stork would fly in a window and lay a swaddled baby in a crib.
What Dave and the others weren’t aware of until later is the text of Job 39:13-17.
The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, but are her feathers and plumage like the stork’s?
She abandons her eggs on the ground and lets them be warmed in the sand.
She forgets that a foot may crush them or that some wild animal may trample them.
She treats her young harshly, as if they were not her own, with no fear that her labor may have been in vain.
For God has deprived her of wisdom; He has not endowed her with understanding.
This is the kind of thing that makes you whistle the Twilight Zone theme music.
The Stork bus, however, is free of all Old Testament references. It is a bright, lovely blue on the outside, and the inside is clean and free of clutter, with a welcoming but no-nonsense clinical feel. There is a little couch for the mother to sit on and speak to a counselor, and a padded bench where she can lie comfortably.
The ultrasound machine pulls out from underneath the bench. It is operated only by a licensed sonographer whose work is frequently reviewed by an OB/Gyn. In the back there is a small private toilet for pregnancy testing. It isn’t the slightest bit cramped or unpleasant; these mothers get only the best. The completed bus with the ultrasound machine was paid for by private donations to the tune of about $140,000.
The Stork bus is by no means the first mobile ultrasound vehicle — it was Chris Slattery’s mobile sonogram bus that inspired Dave and Joe in the first place — but it may be the smallest, lightest, and most practical. It doesn’t require a permit or special permission to park. It will fit in a parking space or even at a meter.
It is an abortion clinic’s worst nightmare.
So now this woman, who was going to go into an abortion clinic, is able to have a pregnancy test and a sonogram without ever reaching its doors.
But what happens now? She’s heard, “Yes, you’re pregnant! You’re this far along! There’s your baby! Here’s his heartbeat!”
So what does she hear next? “Good luck with that?”
Nope. Save the Storks is directly connected to Get Involved for Life and the two pregnancy centers it operates in Dallas, one uptown and one downtown. Also, needless to say, any expectant mother will be welcomed by whatever pregnancy center is closest to the bus at the time. The Stork team is prepared to call a cab for the mother if she needs a ride.
In other words, unlike the abortion clinic, the Storks and the pregnancy centers are in it for the long haul. They are going to get her what she needs to take care of herself and her baby, body and soul.
“The heart of this ministry is the Gospel,” says Dave, after asking for more vegan marinara sauce. “There are two causes every Christian should take up: orphans and widows. This encompasses both.”
It is part of Save the Storks’ mission that every woman who steps on the bus hears the Gospel message. While this may seem off-putting to some, to the Storks it is an essential aspect of caring for the mother that goes along with the physical support and counseling she will receive through the pregnancy center.
“She is just as important as that child,” says Dave. “We aim to improve her quality of life… The major issue here is the devaluation of life, and the answer to every injustice on earth is the church of Jesus Christ.”
“Our ministry is designed to meet all the needs of the woman,” says Daryl. At the pregnancy center, every mother will receive whatever her personal situation calls for, be it help with affordable medical care, legal aid to escape from an abusive boyfriend, life skills counseling, mental health counseling, spiritual guidance, and more.
Which of course begs the question: if the Storks’ mission is in fact successful and Dallas pregnancy centers see 800 or so more mothers every year, how will they handle the added demand for resources?
The answer is simply: us.
“The churches need to stand up and start giving to their local pregnancy centers,” says Dave.
Without the generous help of good-hearted people giving what they can, pregnancy centers can’t work, and by extension neither can the Storks.
Abortion clinic workers and management are used to seeing protesters outside their clinic. What they are not used to is a name brand.
The Save the Storks bus is slick, recognizable, welcoming, and — horror of horrors — it sits in between a mother and the abortion clinic doors. With a simple offer of no-strings-attached help — “Would you like a free ultrasound?” — and a bright, comforting image, it appeals to the desperate woman before she reaches the clinic.She is not confronted. She is offered help. And while I firmly believe that virtually all sidewalk counselors and activists outside clinic are there for no other reason than to help women, the Storks are able to present help first. That is the key. The average clinic sidewalk approach is, of necessity, “Please don’t kill your baby. Here’s why. And here’s help.” Because they have their awesome bus, Save the Storks are able to say, “Here’s help. Now please don’t kill your baby. Here’s why.”
Because they don’t have to lead with agenda, there are no warning bells for a desperate and defensive mother. There is only a friendly face.
This new model will absolutely revolutionize the front lines of pro-life activism.
What is the battle cry of the pro-abortion movement? “Choice!” It is their mantra. What do you constantly hear from abortion advocates? “These desperate women feel like they are out of options.”
Right here, on four wheels, parked in front of the clinic, is another choice — one they might not even know they have. Inside that bus is an image of their baby waiting to be seen. Connected to that bus is a support system — in short, options.
Dave and the team have high hopes, and they should. The approach is breathtakingly simple and, if early tests are any indication, profoundly effective.
As mentioned, the Storks take to the streets of Dallas on March 13. Meanwhile their website is up and running at SaveTheStorks.com with the purpose of raising money to take the program national. A Save the Storks bus is not cheap, and it takes people to run it. While Dave and his team get things off the ground in Dallas, Joe is in charge of building a national movement.
The thought of a Stork bus in every major city in America should bring a smile to your face. Every one of these buses represents hundreds of lives saved every year.
I have met Dave and the gang. I have been on board the Stork bus. And I have never been more excited about a pro-life idea than I am about this one.
You probably are having the same reaction I did. You are probably thinking: “What can I do to help?”
First: spread the word. Use Facebook, Twitter, Twitbook, whatever, to share with people how awesome this is. Second: go to SaveTheStorks.com now and volunteer. They need all kinds of stuff — bloggers, artists, counselors, you name it — all across the country to be part of their national team of Save the Storks volunteers. Whatever your talent is, Save the Storks can probably use it to help get Stork programs off and running across the country. You — yes, you! — can be a part of this movement from the ground up.
Third: donate if you can. Save your Starbucks money for a few days and buy a ridiculously cool Save the Storks T-shirt. Wear it and tell people about it. (I promise they’ll be curious.)
In just a few days, Dave, Daryl, and their remarkable bus hit the streets of Dallas, the city where abortion rights were born. As a native Dallasite, I hope what started here is ended here. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Save the Storks becomes a major factor in helping Dallas — and the country — see an end to abortion.
15 February 2014
Jonah...
Last Tuesday. The focus of our last session of Pathways to ministry was called 'An Introduction to Critical Incident Analysis', i.e. reflecting on an event in our life to find out what God was or is showing us. This was a really interesting session.
Thursday, I started to think about Jonah.
I remember the first time I read the story of Jonah, I thought that he was just mean not to tell the Ninevites to be saved by the Lord. Mean or arrogant? Did he decide it was not worth to tell the Ninevites because they were so sinful! One must think outside the box, forget about the 'fish swallowing Jonah' and think that it is impossible, Jesus says :
With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. Matthew 19:26
Tonight, I did more research on this story.
One theme appears : Jonah is disobedient and he suffers consequences until he obeys, that is, tell the Ninevites about the Lord and their salvation. You may ask what's that got to do with us. A lot. I started to make a list of the things I ought to do and I say 'later'... :(
Second theme. Who is He to chose who to bring the good news of salvation. Only the Lord is sovereign and decides. He is not subject to others’ decisions. His purposes for choosing some and rejecting others are hidden in the secret counsels of His own will. Moreover, everything that exists in the universe exists because God allowed it, decreed it, and called it into existence. “Our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases” (Ps. 115:3). “Whatever the Lord pleases, He does, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps” (Ps. 135:6). He “works all things after the counsel of His will” (Eph. 1:11).
Third theme: Back in Deuteronomy, the Lord promised that if Israel was unfaithful, he would provoke them to jealousy by leaving them and giving his covenant blessing to another people (Deut.32:21). This is exactly the context of Jonah, who was a prophet in Samaria (Northern Israel) under Jeroboam II (2Ki.14:23-25). Jeroboam was no saint, rather he was an apostate king, and the people followed him into sin.
So when the "Word of the LORD" comes to Jonah and tells him to go to Ninevah. Jonah knows that this is the beginning of the fulfillment of that Deut.32:21 prophecy. A fulfillment that would find its fullest expression in the New Testament (Acts 13:45,17:5,Rom.10:19, 1Thess.2:14-15). It's not a hatred of the Ninevites that drives him in the opposite direction, but a grieving realisation that God is beginning to close the Old Covenant - something he doesn't want to face up to.
Israel have ceased being the Head and would soon be the tail of the nations (Deut.28:44).
Any thoughts on Jonah, drop us a line. Have a blessed week-end. N.
8 February 2014
Meeting up!
During the summer holidays, I had the pleasure to meet up again with one of my blogger friends who live in the south of France. She told me that some other bloggers had actually arranged to meet at a convenient place so that everyone could get there. Of course it depends on which part of the country you are.
From virtual friends to visual! I don't want to use the word 'real' because the virtual is also real!
So, have you given any thought about meeting up? Have a blessed Sunday!
Humour!
There is the story of a pastor who got up one Sunday and announced to his congregation:
"I have good news and bad news. The good news is, we have enough money to pay for our new building program. The bad news is, it's still out there in your pockets."
A father was approached by his small son who told him proudly,
"I know what the bible means!"
His father smiled and replied,
"What do you mean, you 'know' what the bible means?"
The son replied,
"I do know!"
"Okay," said his father, "what does the bible mean?"
"That's easy, Daddy,"
the young boy replied excitedly,
"It stands for 'Basic Information Before Leaving Earth.'"
12 January 2014
Best appetizers pour l'apéritif
In my opinion, as Imo would say, here are the 5 best appetizers, but then I am not keen on salt or chilies so you may disagree! So, light chips, vol au vent, prawns on skewers (best if you prepare them yourself!),
If you wish to have the recipe for the cheese twists, let me know. I will ask my friend Julie. Hers taste yummy.
Don't these look fantastic, click here for the recipe! Do you favour one special appetizer? Let us know and even better, give us the recipe. Have a great party!
If you wish to have the recipe for the cheese twists, let me know. I will ask my friend Julie. Hers taste yummy.Don't these look fantastic, click here for the recipe! Do you favour one special appetizer? Let us know and even better, give us the recipe. Have a great party!
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