Psalms 37 - Trust in the Lord

Do you ever find yourself feeling jealous of others who use dishonest practises to achieve success? Maybe it was a coworker, a neighbour, a friend, or even a relative. Have you ever sometimes felt cheated in the workplace because you do all the work while others get away with doing nothing? In  Psalms 37 it talks about not allowing yourself to fret or to be envious of those who do cunning and deceitful practises in order to suceed in life. The truth is we live in a very competitive society, where doing right is often regarded as being weak. Where people take advantage of so called weaker people to advance to the next level. But the bible has another approach. In Psalms 37, God warns us not to become envious of the wealth and success of those around us who gain it unrighteously. Not to fret or worry about not advancing in our careers as others. And definitely dont use dishonest tactics in order to achieve success. Why? For the Lord assures us that, they will be punished. They might be able to fool others, but they can never fool God. Instead Psalms 37, advice us to put our complete trust in God and he will not only provide everything you need but he will also protect you from those who do evil. Dont worry about those who do evil for God will punish them in his own time. For God is a God of justice. Therefore, they will get what they sow. As believers in Christ, God ask us that inspite of our circumstance to live justly and fairly, to live right, act righteously, and speak the truth in all aspects of our life and he will reward us in time. 

Trust the LORD

¹Don't be annoyed by anyone

who does wrong,

and don't envy them.

²They will soon disappear

like grass without rain.

³Trust the LORD and live right!

The land will be yours,

and you will be safe.

⁴Do what the LORD wants,

and he will give you

your heart's desire.

⁵Let the LORD lead you

and trust him to help.

⁶Then it will be as clear

as the noonday sun

that you were right.

⁷Be patient and trust the LORD.

Don't let it bother you

when all goes well for those

who do sinful things.

⁸Don't be angry or furious.

Anger can lead to sin.

⁹All sinners will disappear,

but if you trust the LORD,

the land will be yours.

¹⁰Sinners will soon disappear,

never to be found,

¹¹but the poor will take the land

and enjoy a big harvest.

¹²Merciless people make plots

against good people

and snarl like animals,

¹³but the Lord laughs and knows

their time is coming soon.

¹⁴The wicked kill with swords

and shoot arrows to murder

the poor and the needy

and all who do right.

¹⁵But they will be killed

by their own swords,

and their arrows

will be broken.

¹⁶It is better to live right

and be poor

than to be sinful and rich.

¹⁷The wicked will lose all

of their power,

but the LORD gives strength

to everyone who is good.

¹⁸Those who obey the LORD

are daily in his care,

and what he has given them

will be theirs for ever.

¹⁹They won't be in trouble

when times are bad,

and they will have plenty

when food is scarce.

²⁰Wicked people are enemies

of the LORD

and will vanish like smoke

from a field on fire.

²¹An evil person borrows

and never pays back;

a good person is generous

and never stops giving.

²²Everyone the LORD blesses

will receive the land;

everyone the LORD curses

will be destroyed.

²³If you do what the LORD wants,

he will make certain

each step you take is sure.

²⁴The LORD will hold your hand,

and if you stumble,

you still won't fall.

²⁵As long as I can remember,

good people have never

been left helpless,

and their children have never

gone begging for food.

²⁶They gladly give and lend,

and their children

turn out good.

²⁷If you stop sinning

and start doing right,

you will keep living

and be secure for ever.

²⁸The LORD loves justice,

and he won't ever desert

his faithful people.

He always protects them,

but destroys the children

of the wicked.

²⁹God's people will own the land

and live here for ever.

³⁰Words of wisdom come

when good people speak

for justice.

³¹They remember God's teachings,

and they never take

a wrong step.

³²The wicked try to trap

and kill good people,

³³but the LORD is on their side,

and he will defend them

when they are on trial.

³⁴Trust the LORD and follow him.

He will give you the land,

and you will see

the wicked destroyed.

³⁵I have seen brutal people

abuse others and grow strong

like trees in rich soil.

³⁶Suddenly they disappeared!

I looked, but they were gone

and no longer there.

³⁷Think of the bright future

waiting for all the families

of honest and innocent

and peace-loving people.

³⁸But not a trace will be left

of the wicked

or their families.

³⁹The LORD protects his people,

and they can come to him

in times of trouble.

⁴⁰The LORD helps them

and saves them from the wicked

because they run to him.

Sunlight - Newstart

When we think “sunshine” we often think of a luxury SUN-cruise on the Caribbean, with stops at enchanting island retreats like Jamaica or Barbados, or we think CANCER. Why these extremes? In reality, most people can get plenty of sunshine in their own backyards! Ten or 15 minutes in noontime summer sun leads to the production of 10,000 IU (International Units) of Vitamin D, which has proven to decrease the risk for many cancers.

The myth is busted! Sunshine protects against a very deadly form of skin cancer called melanoma. A new study published in the March 2011 European Journal of Cancer discovered that those people who spent four to five hours in the sun each day over weekends were less likely to develop melanoma than those who did not. This is exciting for those who love the sun. (A word of caution here: those who burn easily were at higher risk regardless of the amount of time spent in the sun. So avoid sunburn.) Another piece of good news for sun lovers is that women with high sun exposure had half the risk of developing advanced breast cancer. Also, reduced risk of other cancers by sunshine include prostate, colon, lung, ovary, bladder, uterus, esophagus, stomach, pancreas, kidney, multiple myeloma, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Sunlight Increases Immunity

Immunity is increased by exposure to sunlight and your body’s resistance to infection is strengthened. White blood cells are increased. Antibodies are increased too. These effects can last up to three weeks. Even 10 minutes of sun twice a week can greatly reduce the incidence of colds.

Sunlight Strengthens Bones

Bones are strengthened by sunlight. It allows the body to make Vitamin D, which helps calcium absorption from the intestines and calcium deposit in building healthy bones. Sunlight prevents rickets and helps prevent and reverse osteoporosis. There is also a connection with lowered incidence of dental cavities.

Sunlight Promotes Sense of Well-being

Sense of well-being is promoted by sunlight and the mood is elevated. Daily exposure to natural sunlight will boost melatonin output, which also improves sleep. For most people, sunlight is an important therapy, especially if combined with exercise, in preventing and treating acute and chronic depression. Sunlight helps produce serotonin to lift the mood.

Other Benefits of Sunlight

Other benefits of sunshine include alleviating pain from swollen arthritic joints and even relieving some symptoms of pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS). It also helps ward off heart disease, hypertension, and autoimmune diseases like Crohn’s, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Juvenile Diabetes, MS, as well as obesity.

Remember – it’s not all that bad. Enjoy the sun moderately and it will increase your vitality and good health.

Exercise - Newstart

We are a sedentary nation of couch potatoes addicted to computer games, TV, and spectator sports. We need exercise! Children who once were off the charts in exercise demand, now sit; and way too much – 17 percent are overweight or obese, largely due to sitting. This makes them prone to adult type 2 diabetes, with its dire complications.

Pregnancy: Moms to-be, you need to get out and get going! Research shows that moderate exercise increases placental blood flow and decreases risks of pregnancy. When you exercise, so does your baby. It decreases baby’s resting heart rate and birth weight – important conditioning parameters.

Exercise may help:

• Control weight – the metabolic rate increases, burning more calories even at rest!
• Increase lung capacity and recharge oxygen supply
• Improve blood pressure, circulation, and strengthen your heart
• Lower cholesterol and improve blood flow in the arteries – it can even help reverse arteriosclerosis!
• Relieve stress, tension, depression, and improve sleep naturally – without a pill!
• Promote the body’s ability to get rid of toxic wastes.
• Improve metabolism – stabilizes blood sugar.
• Strengthen the bones and counteract osteoporosis
• Increase physical strength and tone of muscles by improving oxygen utilization.
• Improve posture and decrease back problems
• Prevent the big C word – CANCER

What kind of activity is best?

Walking is the ideal exercise. Other good activities include swimming, cycling, gardening, and yard work. One of the special benefits of exercising outside is that you can combine at least three of the health principles: sunlight, fresh air, and exercise.

A daily program of at least thirty to forty minutes is best for maximum benefit. The important thing is that you enjoy what you do and do it regularly.

Exercise Precautions

1. Start slowly and progress gradually.
2. It is better to exercise before a meal than right after a meal.
3. Allow time to warm up and cool down.
4. Discontinue your exercise and see your physician should you have any of the following symptoms:
   1. Pain in the chest, teeth, jaw, neck, arms, bones, or joints.
   2. Difficulty in breathing, light-headedness, or fainting
   3. Irregular heart rate during exercise or recovery period
   4. Excess fatigue
   5. Recurrent nausea or vomiting occurring after exercise

A balanced and well-planned exercise program is one of the wisest investments you can make. Choose an activity that you enjoy and stick to it. Have fun and feel better every day!

Fresh air - Newstart

Illness

You feel like someone’s choking you! Your chest feels tight—you may cough or wheeze—and you just can’t seem to catch your breath! You feel panicky! What do you do? You run for the freshest most oxygenated air around. Perhaps you grab an inhaler, maybe even take a whiff from an oxygen bottle, and you hope for miraculous relief. This scenario is not uncommon. About 20 million Americans suffer from asthma. In severe cases, asthma attacks can be deadly. They kill 5,000 people every year in the United States! Ask anyone with this condition how important air is. The culprit? Air pollution from cars, factories and power plants. More than 159 million Americans—over half the nation’s population—live in areas with bad air. A research study published in 2002 estimated that 30 percent of childhood asthma is due to environmental exposures, costing the nation $2 billion per year. And studies also suggest that air pollution may contribute to the development of asthma in previously healthy people. For children with asthma, hospitalizations occur up to 26 percent more frequent on high air pollution days compared to normal days. Air pollution has also been implicated in causing pneumonia, heart attacks, heart arrhythmias, cancer, and other diseases. So my advice is to move out of the cities and enjoy the air the way God created it – fresh, crisp, clean, and with the scent of evergreen trees and flowers. Trees, water, and wind help keep air fresh.

Indoor Air Pollution

The yellow-brown pall of smog hanging over a city is not the only breathing threat to humanity. Consider indoor air pollution, which can be a source of colds, flu, sore throats, headaches, asthma, and other respiratory problems. Formaldehyde is found in building materials, smoking, household products, and the use of gas stoves or kerosene space heaters. Formaldehyde may be used to add permanent-press qualities to clothing and draperies, as a component of glues and adhesives, as a preservative in some paints and coating products, and in pressed wood products like particleboard. While we may not get rid of it, it is important to open windows and keep the air circulating to cut down on high concentrations. Some people may find great relief in removing products with chemical adhesives. Other indoor pollutants include: pesticides, paints, varnishes, hobby products, tobacco smoke, and cleaning products; bacteria, mold, mildew, viruses, animal dander, dust mites, cockroaches, and pollen.

Fresh Air’s Importance to the Sick

An incredible story! During the 1919 flu epidemic, the hospital in Eureka, California, was overflowing with patients. The head doctor called the army, which gave them tents, cots, and blankets. The overflow patients were moved into the tents in which there was no heat, except hot water bottles that were used to keep the feet warm. It was found that no patients in the tents, with the fresh air they were getting, were dying. However, numbers of patients in the hospital were dying. When this was realized, the heat in the hospital was turned down and the windows were raised. The patients had to put on heavy underwear, but their death rate went down (Gunter B. Paulien PhD. The Divine Philosophy and Science of Health and Healing, p. 88).

Water -Newstart

“Anything but water, please!” We really don’t say it, but when we go to the drive-up window or sit down to order a meal, that is exactly what most Americans in essence say: coffee please, or Mountain Dew, Coke, a milk shake, a glass of wine, but rarely plain water! Hot days? We automatically reach for a soda. Your brain is about 80% water. Water keeps you thinking clearly. “Anything but water” is a bad tradition that puts an overwhelming osmotic load into the blood stream, making it sticky and flow poorly. Only water can create the proper environment for your blood to flow smoothly, help regulate your blood pressure, and promote vascular health. In one study, men who drank five or more glasses of water daily had a 54% less risk of a heart attack than those who drank two or less daily, or who used other beverages.

Weight Loss

People who drank two eight-ounce glasses of water 20 to 30 minutes before meals ate an average of 75 fewer calories at that meal. In another study two eight-ounce glasses of water before meals resulted in a 44% greater weight loss over 12 weeks than in a non-water control group. That is staggering! Reach for water, not coffee, or soda. That is a proven way to curb appetite and lose weight.

Caffeine

Avoid it entirely! Caffeine is a diuretic. Coffee and most soda pop contain a whopping amount of caffeine geared to dehydrate you. It can raise the blood pressure, blood sugar, and blood fats. It stimulates the nervous system and can cause irritability, anxiety, tremors, chronic fatigue, and insomnia. After time, the pick-me-up is only preventing a major let-down, produced by the habit itself. Eventually you hit bottom.

What happens if I don’t drink enough water?

The kidneys have to work much harder to excrete toxins, and may be damaged. Each cell in the body needs water to function well, so inadequate water intake can cause disease. Chronic lack of water is linked to bladder cancer. Fatigue and headaches are a common result of drinking too little water. In the summer months, increase intake and stay ahead of thirst. When you are thirsty you are already dehydrated. Water keeps the body cool. It brings the heat from the inner organs to the surface of the skin in the form of sweat, and also acts as an evaporative cooler. Drink eight cups per day. Also, enjoy hot and cold contrast showers. The cold stimulates the immune system, and hot baths open the pores and eliminates toxins.

Remember, water is of vital importance – use it abundantly for good health and vitality.

Rest - Newstart

Today, as never before, “the pressure is on:” Pressure to beat out the other guy for the top spot. Pressure to get the highest grade in school, to advance to the next level. Pressure just to make ends meet in a teetering economy. Seems like no time to sleep, no time to meditate and rest! It is thought that working late into the night will accomplish much! So people pop pills, drink coffee, or use other energy boosting techniques to stay up late into the night, and into the wee hours of the morning in the hopes of getting the grade or finishing a task. Wait! Can we unravel the delicate fabric of life and really think we will win in the end?

A study was done where 44 college students put in an “all nighter” and then took a test in critical thinking. They performed worse on the test than an “eight-hour control group” but were more confident they had done better, and were more focused. Conclusion: College students are not aware of the extent to which sleep deprivation negatively affects their ability to complete cognitive tasks (Pilcher and Waters, 1997).

Mark Mahowald, a professor of neurology at the University of Minnesota Medical School says that any amount of sleep deprivation will diminish mental performance. “One complete night of sleep deprivation is as impairing in simulated driving tests as a legally intoxicating blood-alcohol level.” If missing a night of sleep can do that to your driving ability think what it would do to your performance to get ahead! The prestigious Lancetmedical journal made this observation: Chronic sleep loss may not only increase the severity but also hasten the onset of age related diseases such as “diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and memory loss” (_Lancet_, October 23, 1999).

What about sleeping medications to induce sleep if you cannot get to sleep? During normal sleep, one has alternating periods of light and deep sleep. Dreaming seems to be a natural outlet, and takes place during the light sleep or REM sleep. Sleep medications often suppress this stage of sleep, and on awaking you may not feel as refreshed in spite of apparently sound sleep. If continued over time, sleep medications will contribute to chronic fatigue and may lessen mental performance!

To get a good night’s sleep, make sure you have a totally dark room. Don’t leave bright lights, computer screens, or TV sets on. Use a night-light if you have to get out of bed for the bathroom – a dim red or blue light is best.

The Best Sleep Inducers are Natural Means

• Engage in active exercise daily to best counteract mental and emotional fatigue.
• Find an outdoor activity you like and can do every day – sunshine, exercise, and fresh air promote sleep. Skip TV viewing.
• Avoid caffeine, even during the day. It commonly causes insomnia.
• Maintain a regular schedule for going to bed and getting up.
• An empty stomach promotes better sleep. Make evening meals light.
• Don’t rehearse the day’s problems at bedtime. Count your blessings and fill your mind with gratitude and thanksgiving. Take a warm bath.
• Seek a relationship with God who can bear your anxieties and refresh your spirit.
• Science has shown that the Judeo-Christian “one day of rest per week” enhances work performance on the other six. Try a Sabbath rest!

Taken from newstartclub.com

Breakfast at Dan's

Almost every day starts with a long walk.  Friday morning, I found myself exploring the lesser traveled neighborhoods of Grand Rapids, and about three miles out, I bought a bottle of water and sat on the sidewalk in front of the convenience store for a few minutes to drink it.  The moment I sat, he spotted me and started across the parking lot.

“Hey, brother … you mind if I join you?”

“Be my guest,” I said, gesturing to the sidewalk beside me.  

He sat down and opened the dirty plastic bag he’d been carrying.  He pulled out a beer.  It was 7:30 in the morning. 

He was obviously homeless, and I was waiting for the ask.  Why else would he approach me?  I never carry a wallet when I’m exercising; I had about thirty-five cents left over in my pocket.

The ask never came.  

“The cops don’t show up here as much as they used to,” he informed me.  

“Oh?”

“No.  They moved their substation a little further down the road.  Now we call this place the Easy-to-Rob.”  He laughed and looked at me knowingly.  The store was actually called Quik-N-Easy.

“It used to be a Seven Eleven,” he said.  “But now it’s not.  We call it Easy-to-Rob because it gets robbed so often.”

He took a sip of his beer.  His leathery hands had sores on them.  I wondered how long he’d been on the streets.  

“Oh,” I said.  “I hadn’t heard that.  I’m not from around here.”

“You’re not?  Where are you from?”

“Well, that’s hard to tell, because I’ve been a lot of places.  I guess I’m from Maryland, but I’m on my way to Colorado.”  

“Oh!  You’re doing one of these, are you?”  He stuck out his thumb as if hitchhiking.  That’s when I suddenly understood why he hadn’t asked for money.  He saw me sitting on the sidewalk, wearing a ratty ball cap and t-shirt, and he figured I was eking out a living on the streets, just like him.  He didn’t want money; he just wanted company.  

“No, I’ve got transportation,” I told him, not wanting to spoil the moment by telling him I’d be flying.  

“Ah,” he said.  Another swig of morning beer.  “I’m originally from Canada,” he said.

“No kidding!  Me too.”  

He looked at me, surprised.  “I’m from B.C.,” I told him.  

“I’m from Ontario, from Windsor,” he volunteered.  “There are a lot of great strip clubs there.”  He smiled broadly, assuming I’d be impressed with his gritty worldliness.  It wasn’t an attempt to be crude; he was using guy talk, trying to find some sort of common ground.  Judging by his appearance, I doubted that anybody had let him into a strip club in a very long time.  

I smiled back.  “I’m not really into that stuff.  I’m a married man.”

“Ahh!  You gave up all your freedoms, did you?”  

“Quite happily,” I said. “I’ve been married more than twenty years.”

He whistled and looked me over.  “How old are you?” he asked.

“I’ll be 45 in a couple of months.”

He paused and looked me over once more.  “You’re almost the same age as me!” he said, in disbelief.  “I’m forty-six!”  

It was my turn to be surprised.  He easily looked twenty years my senior, maybe more.  The thought crossed my mind: at some point, we looked about the same age.  Maybe when we were ten, but at some point, neither one of us would have been surprised at the other’s age.

We sat and looked at each other for a few moments, both of us obviously contemplating the visible results of the lives we were leading.  His hard living had aged him dramatically, and he was perhaps realizing it for the first time: other forty-somethings don’t look like him.  

But he wasn’t the only one staring in the mirror this morning. I suddenly saw how jaded life can make a man.  In my world, everybody is on the take.   When somebody approaches me, more often than not, they want something.  It’s been my life for decades:  People want a book endorsement, or they want to appear on a broadcast, or they want me to come and speak at their event, or … something.  Very few people want to just hang out.  Almost nobody wants mere friendship.  You erect barriers after a while.   But this guy?  He just wanted to share a bit of sidewalk with me.   He had no idea who I am, or what I do, or what kind of life I lead.  He just saw another guy sitting on the sidewalk and he wanted some company.  

We sat and talked for a while. He’d managed to procure an Egg McMuffin for breakfast.  He’d been in Michigan for years now. He could cross the US/Canadian border with ease because he has his status card and can cross on the reservation.  As we talked, an amazing thing happened.  We built a one-morning friendship that was deeper than some I’ve had for years.  I had thought he was going to ask me for something; instead, he gave me the one only thing he still owns in this world: himself.  Unreservedly.  With no expectation of a pay-out.

I’ve worked in all sorts of destitute places.  I’ve traveled third-world nations, bringing badly-needed humanitarian aid. I frequent bad neighborhoods on my morning walks.   But I’m usually the white knight, riding in to save the day – or the preacher, coming with answers – or the working man with change to spare.  It’s not every day that I am admitted to the privilege of being considered an equal on a homeless man’s sidewalk.  

I made the visit last as long as possible.  

And then it was time to go.  I had appointments to keep, and miles of walking to reach them.  “Thanks for sharing the morning with me,” I said, holding out my hand.  I only wished I’d had something to give him for all he’d just given me.  But I told myself that maybe it would have ruined everything if I’d actually had twenty bucks to give him—it would have roughly moved us onto different social strata again.  He took my hand in his street-weathered, sore-covered hand and shook it vigorously.  

“What was your name?” I asked.  

“Dan,” he said.

“I’m Shawn,” I replied, “thanks for hanging out with me this morning.  You just made my whole day better.”

No wonder Jesus loved hanging out with the sidewalk crowd.       

 From Shawn Boonstra Voice of Prophecy blog

Peace

"Peace is not evidence we have made a godly decision".

If ever there was a man who lived in direct disobedience to God, it was the prophet Jonah. God directed him to preach to the citizens of Nineveh, but he boarded a ship and sailed away from God rather than to do what God had commanded him to do.
During his flight a violent storm arose that terrified the pagan sailors, but Jonah was below deck in the boat fast asleep. Peace is not evidence we have made a godly decision!

Quit fishing in the aquarium

Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net hat was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and all collected all the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad one away. Matt. 13:47,48, NIV.

It can be dangerous to fish in the deep. Some mean storms roils up out there that can threaten your little skiff; raging waters that a sterile, tranquil, oxygenated aquarium never experiences. But such is the price of real fishing! And besides, what was that song we sang so loudly so long ago: “I will make you fishers of men…if you follow Me.”

It is because we want to be about our Fisherman Father’s business and follow Him that Jesus told us the fish story we see in today’s text. It’s not very long, this parable about fishers dropping their dragnet into the sea and hauling in every imaginable kind of fish in their catch. But it’s just long enough to remind us that a boat load of deep-water fish can be messy, slimy and stinky. Because the fish you catch out in the deep may not be at all like the fish we find in the aquarium of the church. You know, CLEAN fish (with fins and scales, á la Leviticus 11)- sweet little shore-hugging minnows like you and me. Let’s be honest If you take Jesus’ admonition seriously and throw your net out into the deep waters, you could end up with fish that are unclean. Because when you’re out “finding Nemo,” you may net more than a clown fish. Unclean, unkept fish with alcohol on the breath or at least in the back seat of their car-drunk as a fish.
You’ll catch fish with sexual dysfunctions, deviances, and even transmittable diseases. Some will be like the catch Jesus made at a well in Samaria and be on their fourth or fifth marriage. Other fish from the deep will be covered with glittering lures or alluring tattoos.

“Oh, don’t worry-as soon as we get ‘em into our aquarium, we’ll skin’em and scale ‘em and clean ‘em up just like us. And if we don’t like ‘em, we’ll loss ‘em out!” Jesus was afraid of that, which is why His parable punch line declares that the cleaning, sorting, and judging is done by the angels “at the end of the age” (verse 49). The angels will do the sorting-it is our mission to do the fishing. Why? Because fish are our Father’s business-clean and unclean. We do the deep-sea fishing-He does the in-house cleaning. If we get that straight, I have a feeling we’ll spend less time critiquing the fish in the aquarium and more time on the high seas fishing for the lost.