The Cross in Our Bodies

  I got this from my cousin Kirk.  I decided to Google it... sure enough, it's a fact.  Here's a PDF that you will find substantiation on.  Very interesting stuff.

This is a pretty neat story.  It contains something very interesting that few of us know. Its brief, so please read. (FROM A DOCTOR) 

A couple of days ago I was running (I use that term very loosely) on my treadmill, watching a DVD sermon by Louie Giglio... And I was BLOWN AWAY!  I want to share what I learned....

He (Louie) was talking about how inconceivably BIG our God is. How He spoke the universe into being. How He breathes stars out of His mouth that are huge raging balls of fire... etc. etc. Then He went on to speak of how this star-breathing, universe creating God ALSO knitted our human bodies together with amazing detail and wonder. At this point I am LOVING it (fascinating from a medical standpoint...) And I was remembering how I was constantly amazed during medical school as I learned more and more about God's handiwork. I remember so many times thinking.'How can ANYONE deny that a Creator did all of this??? 
Louie went on to talk about how we can trust that the God who created all this, also has the power to hold it all together when things seem to be falling apart...how our loving Creator is also our sustainer.
And then I lost my breath. And it wasn't because I was running my treadmill, either!!!

It was because he started talking about laminin (which I thought I knew everything about....). Here is how Wikipedia describes them: 'Laminins are a family of proteins that are an integral part of the structural scaffolding of basement membranes in almost every animal tissue' You see.... Laminins are what hold us together... LITERALLY. They are cell adhesion molecules. They are what holds one cell of our bodies to the next cell. Without them, we would literally fall apart. And I knew all this already. But what I didn't know is what they LOOKED LIKE, but I do now. I have thought about it a thousand times since I first saw what it looks like. Below is a picture of what the structure of laminin looks like... AND THIS IS NOT a 'Christian' portrayal of it.... If you look up laminin in any scientific/medical piece of literature, this is what you will see.... 

 

Now tell me that our God is not amazing.  The glue that holds us together.... ALL of us..... Is in the shape of the cross.  Immediately Colossians 1:15-17 comes to mind.  He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  All things were created by him and for him.  He is before all things, and in him All things HOLD TOGETHER.'                                         Colossians 1:15-17
Thousands of years before the world knew anything about laminin, Paul penned those words.  And now we see that from a very LITERAL standpoint, we are held together... One cell to another.... By the cross.

You would never in a quadrillion years convince me that this is anything other than the mark of a Creator who knew EXACTLY what laminin 'glue' would look like long before Adam breathed his first breath!!     

This is what I found when I googled laminin....

ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!!!!!!

          

Loony - TUNE in the Online World - a look at social media

Nearly all of the people I regularly interact with on social media are wonderful caring bright transparent people many of whom I have had the chance to meet in person and they have been all they appeared to be. Nice to put a face with a post.   It was worth the work.

HOWEVER... there are a few, Not many, that test my tolerance.

They come in 3 broad categories.

1. Self Promoters. The only posts I see from them are, "I'm the greatest come to my meeting buy my book join my call attend my conference". Usually these people carry the moniker Dr Chief Apostle Pastor something. Hey Jack, buy an ad, don't flood my page with junk mail (I hear the call of the north when I read some of these).

2. Auto Contrarians. The you say it's black, I say it's white folks. IF I post something, even innocently, confrontation is their portion. Love missing. It's OK, I'm a big boy, but if you want to argue about the color of the sky, I'm out. These people are often also the grammar/spelling police. Picking nits. (Now that distant call on the lake is clearer).

3. Worldviews from Hell. I mean that. I don't have many of these but the few that I do are full on loons (beaks, feathers and webbed feet). Most of the time the Hell's worldview folks distance themselves from me. I call them Hell's worldview because how they see the world is not anywhere near Heaven's perspective. These are the liberals, pro abortion, pro gay marriage, anti christian..... loons. They might be nice people but above the neck and in the heart there is serious looniness. They live in an alternative universe. Bizzaroworld. I try not to engage them if possible.

When someone is that loony or contentious,.... DELETE. I guess I want to be gracious... but I'm not God... there is an end to my grace.... and if that end comes... goodbye. Please don't be a loon. I want to keep you as a friend.  Even if we never meet face to face... we will in heaven, (unless you are in that last category). 

Redlins since 1278AD

Most of my relatives do not know that the linage is out of Estonia. I met with a genealogy buff in Berlin who had done the work. 

That's where it all began, in the ancient city of Tallin.  First records are from 1278.  The German crusaders invaded and forced people to keep records, births, deaths and taxes. The later wars drove the Redlins out and they moved to Pommerania in the 1500s.  Then in the early 1800s moved to Northern Germany.. and many now living in the USA. 

When you have these records of nations rising and falling, the long view allows one to see how the USA's teetering on the edge is not impossible. One's world view must be kingdom... not national. Yet, I grieve for our once great nations as Italians must grieve for Rome..

Here is a little history lesson on Estonia and why this matters: 
 
It was the early influence of Germanic order that caused the keeping of records we have today. Things really changed in Estonia during the 13th century. Estonia's struggles for independence during the twentieth century were in large part a reaction to nearly 700 years of foreign rule. Before 1200 the Estonians lived largely as free peasants loosely organized into parishes (kihelkonnad ), which in turn were grouped into counties (maakonnad ). 

In the early 1200s, the Estonians and the Latvians came under assault from German crusaders seeking to impose Christianity on them. Although the Estonians' resistance to the Teutonic Knights lasted some twenty years, the lack of a centralized political organization as well as inferior weaponry eventually brought down the Estonians in 1227. The Germans, moving from the south, were abetted by Danish forces that invaded from the north and captured Tallinn. 

Together with present-day Latvia, the region became known as Livonia; the Germans and Danes settled down as nobility, and the Estonians were progressively subordinated as serfs. During 1343-45 an Estonian peasant uprising against the German and Danish nobility prompted the Danes to relinquish their control of northern Estonia to the Germans. After this resistance was crushed, the area remained generally peaceful for two centuries.

Get em spayed

Right to Refuse Service... and Arizona

There is a confusion.  Refusal of services and refusals of the ACA on moral grounds are two different issues.

The law being considered in Arizona would allow people for reasons of conviction (some being religious) not to do business with people or groups that they choose not to.

This is not about race, creed or color.  I'm with that all the way.

This is about someone who is cross currant with what you stand for as an individual.  If I owned a nice formal book store and a person came in with a F... YOU tee shirt on, I would ask him to leave.  It is cross currant. 

If I were a Pastor of a church and someone presented themselves at the altar for communion and was wearing a tee shirt with a graphic set of male genitals prominently displayed, I would not serve them.

If a group of swingers, now euphemistically called polyamorous groups, came to my banquet hall and I am a culturally moral person and asked to rent it to hold an orgy, do I have the right to refuse?  Worse if I am that Pastor and they want to rent my basement for such...Where is the line?

What if I owned a bakery, and someone came in to order an obscene cake made, one with the illustration of a sodomy sex act.  Not illegal among consenting adults, but I don't want that on my shelf.

Of course as someone said, there was always the Soup Nazi..no soup for you. That was funny, but it was based on if he did or did not like you... in Seinfeld.

I have people I don't do business with who I don't like.  Tree Nazi I guess.  They are unpleasant and hard to get along with, so they go away.  I have that right.  I can say no.  I am not forced to make any transaction in life with anyone who I don't want to.  That seems to be the free in free enterprise.  I have customers who's lifestyle I may disagree with, one very prominent in Chicago where she and her wife had a child and I got a birth announcement in the mail.  Yet we get along great.  She always recognizes me.  She doesn't come to me with entitlement, but with honor.

I think based on these thoughts there are times when someone may attempt to cause you to do something that goes against your grain and you decide not to because you don't want to endorse such.  I have a customer in WI (Milwaukee area) who is a drug dealer and a pimp.  He uses a garden center as a front.  It works well for him.  I won't report him, but Mike calls me every year and tries to buy from me.  I don't have any "Soup" for him. I won't reinforce his behavior.

There is such a place and we can't be asked to abandon our held beliefs, religious or not. 

This is different by a wide margin than the person who is a Christian and who's convictions does not allow him to pay for abortion inducing drugs for his employees as is required by the ACA.  It's akin to the Chariots of Fire movie - not running on Sunday, or Hank Greenburg sitting out a game on Yom Kippur.  Decisions of convictions are critical to carve out a just society.  Rosa Parks wouldn't move to the back of the bus.  Conviction.  So if I own a business and choose to not buy into supplying abortion to my employees, I have that right, but before you put me out of business I also have a right and a responsibility to fight the fight... see Brown v Board of Education. 

That's my position on the matter.  Sometimes you have to take a stand...I hope the Governor will but i have doubts

I wrote a book

The little book I have just released lines up perfectly with this word from another prophet.  Embrace the purging to come... it's victory in the making.

Dead Bankers piling up

... nine so far.. and counting. Nothing to see here, move right along, all coincidence. That train to Buchenwald with people in it means nothing at all.

1 – William Broeksmit, 58-year-old former senior executive at Deutsche Bank AG, was found dead in his home after an apparent suicide in South Kensington in central London, on January 26th.

2- Karl Slym, 51 year old Tata Motors managing director Karl Slym, was found dead on the fourth floor of the Shangri-La hotel in Bangkok on January 27th.

3 – Gabriel Magee, a 39-year-old JP Morgan employee, died after falling from the roof of the JP Morgan European headquarters in London on January 27th.

4 – Mike Dueker, 50-year-old chief economist of a US investment bank was found dead close to the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in Washington State.

5 – Richard Talley, the 57 year old founder of American Title Services in Centennial, Colorado, was found dead earlier this month after apparently shooting himself with a nail gun.

6 -Tim Dickenson, a U.K.-based communications director at Swiss Re AG, also died last month, however the circumstances surrounding his death are still unknown.

7 – Ryan Henry Crane, a 37 year old executive at JP Morgan died in an alleged suicide just a few weeks ago. No details have been released about his death aside from this small obituary announcement at the Stamford Daily Voice.

8 - Li Junjie, 33-year-old banker in Hong Kong jumped from the JP Morgan HQ in Hong Kong this week.

9 - Former National Bank of Commerce CEO James Stuart Jr. was found dead in Scottsdale, Ariz., the morning of Feb. 19.

Twenty Things to do in the face of what could come

From this Blog

1.  Reduce housing costs.  This may mean taking in borders or sharing your home with extended family members.  Are you renting a large home or large apartment?  Take it down a notch.
2.  Manage food costs.  Stock up when you see a great sale.  Double up and by two instead of one, or three instead of two, and so on.
3.  Create a mini-store in your own home and shop from your own supplies.  Your pantry will become your friend when money or supplies are short.  Don’t forget sundry items and personal items as well as food when it comes to stocking your home based mini-market.
4.  Only purchase foods that you will eat.  This is related to #3 above.  Don’t purchase canned Spam if you will not eat it.  That is just silly.
5.  Limit eating out.  If you want celebrate a special evening, go for a desert and coffee date instead of dinner.  With a little planning, you won’t suffer the “nothing in the house to eat” syndrome.
6.  Reduce the number of vehicles you own.  Do you really need a fleet with the associated costs of insurance and maintenance?  Instead of an expensive vehicle, get yourself a scooter or motorcycle as a second vehicle and be smug at getting 60 mpg.  Better yet, walk or bike instead of driving your car.
7.  Purchase used goods.  You can find some steals on Craigslist or Ebay.  Or, if that is not your thing, go to garage sales and thrift shops.  I am not suggesting that you purchase everything used, but think about your purchases and when practical, buy used and pocket the change.
8.  Become self-entertaining.  Read (use the library for heaven’s sake), watch videos (same thing, use the library as a great source of DVDs), find some puzzles you enjoy, hike, bike, dance.  There are many things you can do to entertain yourself while spending very little money.
9.  Reduce communications costs.  Now tell me, do you really need 100 cable channels?  And what about that smartphone that is costing $150 a month.  Scale back as test – you can always add the extra services – and costs – back later if you simply have-to-have them. (Preaching here; I know this is a recurrent theme on this website.)
10. Earn extra income.  Sell your unused stuff on Ebay.  Get a part time job if you have a skill.  Flip burgers.  Become a sales clerk or a barista.  Do yard cleanup.  Anything to bring in a few extra bucks.
11. Barter your time for goods or services.  Walk dogs, water plants, help out with someone’s garden.  Be creative.
12. Grow food. This does not take up a lot of space (as I have recently learned).  Practice Square Foot Gardening and you will be amazed at how much you can grow in a tiny area.
13. Use what you have.  Become Ms. and Mr. Fix-it and make repairs instead of buying new.  Find new uses for old things.  See 12 Tips to Use It Up, Wear It Out and Make It Do.
14. Avoid debt.  If cash is short this week, wait until next week.  Live within your means even it means that you will eat beans and rice for a few days.  Put a moratorium on clothing purchases for one season.
15. Secure the homestead.  Firearms, weapons, pepper spray or even a baseball bat.  The choice is yours.  Don’t brag about what you have and do everything you can to make sure you and your supplies are safe.
16. Have an escape plan.  I am a big believer in the concept of shelter in place but if you need to evacuate, be ready.  Have a plan so all family members know how to communicate with each other and where to meet.  Learn about escape routes in your area and practice getting out of dodge.
17. Stay healthy.  Eat good food and not a lot of junk.  Get physical exercise and try to maintain a decent weight.  (I recently read that a good rule-of-thumb guideline is to take you height and divide it by two.  Your waistline should be no larger than the resulting number.)  Overweight? Try the Dukan Diet to quick start your long term weight loss plan.
18.  Be a nice person.  Treat those that are less fortunate with respect and be mindful that hard times may affect their behavior.  Be friendly and neighborly and do not shun them because they are down and out.  Remember, under different circumstances, it could be you that has fallen upon bad fortune.
19. Recognize that frugal is not a dirty word.  It is a smart word.  Frugal is not being cheap, it is being sensible.  Being frugal now will allow you to get the most mileage out of your funds with something left over for a rainy day – or for the day when an economic meltdown occurs.
20. Prepare your mindset.  If you plan for the worse and it never happens, be joyful.  On the other hand, if you plan for the worse and you are prepared, you will reduce the possibility of panic in the short term and depression in the long term.

A minimum wage economy is bad for everyone

I despise the despots who use minimum wage as a political football.  It is targeted at the least informed and most vulnerable to the impact an increasing floor will cause. 

I don't want an economy that depends on laws and rules to try to impact economic justice.

Let me tell you what real justice is.  Older men and women mentoring very low paid teenage workers (13-18 years) to equip them to work and succeed in a vibrant economy.  In many European companies, young apprentices (unpaid interns) working in industry doing the things that will lead them to lifetime ability and skill. 

What we have now is a dependence on education which does not develop skill, and regulation (Minimum Wage) to cause business to pay poorly prepared people to work which results in them trapped in businesses at low wages.

Cut loose the economy.  Cut loose workers. Get young people in the workplace.  Let them learn to work.  Let them try things.  Give companies the chance to find good workers they can.

We have a government that seems to want to be command and control and is neither. 

We have a minimum wage economy and that stinks for the workers, the companies and the economy.

I don't believe a minimum wage economy is in our best interest.

WARNING SIGNALS - POSSIBLE NEED FOR DELIVERANCE - By Natalie Davis

Characteristics noted below merit a closer look when they are pronounced, persistent or recurrent over a period of time, or progressive - tending to become more, rather than less, extreme. The following thumbnail descriptions of behavior can be a call for help:

1. Confused or disordered thinking: loss of touch with reality - delusions (persistence of erroneous convictions in the face of contrary evidence) - hallucinations; disconnected speech.

2. Obsessions: absorption with a subject or idea to the exclusion of others - compulsions - uncontrollable urges.

3. Inability to cope: with minor problems - with daily routine.

4. Difficulty in making and/or keeping friends: poor social skills - isolation, withdrawal from society - loner life -style.

5. A pattern of failure across the board: at school - at work - in sports - in personal relationships.

6. Prolonged or severe depression: suicide threats and/or attempts.

7. Immaturity: infantile behavior (such as bed-wetting) - over dependence on the mother (excessive clinging as a child and continuing dependence in teens and twenties) - failure to keep pace with peer group.

8. A series of physical ailments which do not run a typical course and/or fail to respond to treatment.

9. Neglect of personal hygiene (disheveled and unsanitary surroundings) or exaggerated concern for order and for cleanliness.

10. Difficulty adjusting to new people and places.

11.Undue anxiety and worry: phobias - feelings of being persecuted.

12. Too much or too little sleep.

13. Excessive self-centeredness: indifference to other people's feelings, doings, ideas - lack of sympathy with another's pain or need.

14. Substantial rapid weight - gain or loss.

15.Muted, flat emotions (absence of angry / delighted / sorrowing reactions to stimuli) or inappropriate emotions (sharp, inexplicable mood swings - silliness at serious moments, unpredictable tears).

16.Negative self-image and outlook: inferiority complex - feelings of worthlessness.

17.Frequent random changes of plans: inability to stick with a job, a school program, a living arrangement - failure to keep appointments, abide by decisions.

18.Extreme aggressiveness (combativeness, hostility - violence, rage) or exaggerated docility (lack of normal competitiveness and self-assertion - refusal to confront, avoidance of argument).

19. Risk-taking.

20.Lack of zest and enthusiasm: listlessness, sadness, mood habitually down - limited or missing sense of humor.

Voting against one's self interest is a disease in some communities.

Every time the minimum wage is increased more and more young workers are priced out of the labor market. The data is in, the last few times the minimum wage has been increased, people under 22 were frozen out. They gained no work skills. They had no ability to move up, become better paid, become management because they never had a chance in the first place. YET overwhelmingly those who are stuck voting for these policies are the impacted the worst.

Are minimum wage increases good for black workers?

dailycaller.com

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) already found the minimum wage increase President Barack Obama touted to Democratic governors Friday is likely to reduce employment. Could it also have a...

Here are the top-five states in the well-being index.

First was North Dakota, followed by South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Montana. I'm not shocked.

The Happiest US State May Shock You

www.eastidahonews.com

Photodisc/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- North Dakota is booming with oil and its residents are brimming with happiness.The Midwest state is so content that it even dethroned Hawaii, which fell to eighth, as the...

A wise man articulated this. I think it is true

 

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Writing Good

 

Hamlet and amazed

I was going to go to bed. It was after 10. Then flipping thru the channels this came on TCM. I thought. OK. I'll watch a little bit of it. You know I'm a Shakespeare buff. You know what happened. Yup... 12:30 AM I stumble off to bed. I couldn't turn away. I don't think I had ever seen this one. I've seen hamlet a dozen times on the stage or in film. This impressed me by interpretation. And I am constantly stunned by the brilliance of Shakespeare's writing. The beauty of the language. That's why the KJV of the Bible is so rich. Same kind of language. I was blessed to find it on line....free. IF you want to see brilliance.. this is that.

Watch Hamlet (1948) Online for Free - Viooz

viooz.co

Watch Hamlet online for free on Flash host, a 1948 movie streaming,

I pray this is so

A Tsunami of Muslims Converting to Christianity in Islamic Countries

peterp1.wordpress.com

By Peter Paton There has in recent times been a Colossal Tsunami of Christian converts in Islamic countries, notably Iran, Pakistan,...

Here is a truth I wish every wife would get.

 IF your respect is subjective you don't have a husband, you have a dog, good dog, bad dog and if you treat him as a dog, he will reciprocate.

Your husband doesn't have to earn your respect

themattwalshblog.com

I can't tell you where I was or who was there or when it happened. I don't want to add to this guy's humiliation, so I am keeping this vague and generic. I can simply tell you that, some time ago, .