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6.25.2010

No Sport - Sport

For the many New Zealand soccer fans that sat up to watch at 2 am this morning; the final game in the opening round of the World Cup, must have been a disenchanting disappointment.

When New Zealand qualified to play in the World Cup, the soccer fans were jubilant. Just to be there was a major achievement for a country with no professional league and few opportunities to play international games.

New Zealand fans were/are behind their team 100%. They were ecstatic that 73rd ranked New Zealand managed a draw against 33rd ranked Slovakia. Everyone was thrilled this was something they had not dared to dream.

Then came the game against the defending World Champions Italy. New Zealand fans expected to be beaten by the No 1 's in the world. So once again the fans were ecstatic that the team achieved yet another draw  against Italy, giving them a very real chance to enter the next round.

Now, however something ugly was lurking in the background. To achieve a draw the number one team Italy had stooped to ' hollywoods'. Faking fouls and make believing injuries. This left a nasty taste in the mouth of New Zealanders. In fact one could say that if Italy had not gotten away with their drama queen tactics, New Zealand may very well have beaten them. Those who watched on TV clearly saw the play acting that the referee apparently did not see.

New Zealand Captain Ryan Nelsen spoke out to the press about FIFA's referee and the Italian tactics, which he said spoiled the game.What else would a country that likes to enjoy wins by 'merit' and not at 'any cost' feel.

How can any nation or player feel any pride or satisfaction in winning by underhanded tactics? Sadly this is what happens when sport becomes not just a game but a business, with big money involved. The comments of a tiny nation with no professional league are not necessarily appreciated.

Then by some strange coincidence captain Ryan Nelsen comes down with 'food poisoning'. Almost 15yrs to the day since the entire NZ All Blacks came down with food poisoning in South Africa prior to to the World Cup final against the Springboks, the Springboks(South Africa) won .That World Cup in 1995 was the last major event of the rugby unions "amateur" era, two months later the sport became professional and money started to rule the game.

Is it a coincidence that Ryan Nelsen came down with food poisoning? The New Zealand captain being one of the few in the team with any experience, the much needed motivator and anchor man of the team. Or does it scream of foul play off the pitch as well as on it? Could it be that FIFA or someone else did not want a rank amateur team with not much money entering the next round? Or was it sending a message to New Zealand not to dare criticize FIFA?    I 'll leave you to think about that.

One thing is for sure the New Zealand team looked unhappy right from the start of their game against Paraguay. It left a body wondering right through the game what had happened in the background to make them appear so. Still, food poisoning or not - New Zealand held Paraguay to a scoreless draw. They leave the World Cup undefeated. A tremendous effort from a tiny nation with no professional league.

A gutsy nation still prepared to play fair. Keep it up New Zealand - stay that way - the whole world has witnessed what Italy did. The whole world questions the food poisoning 'coincidence". The whole world knows that while New Zealand has been eliminated from the World Cup, New Zealand has the moral victory. They return home WINNERS to a country that still has some values. A country that will greet them as the winners they are.

Our creator Yahuah is not too interested in sport that distracts mankind from the more important issues.
But HE is interested in fair play -' love thy neighbour as thyself '.

While the whole world backs sport that is NO SPORT nothing will ever change. So let's all get behind Ryan Nelsen and the New Zealand team and say enough is enough. Ryan is right, it spoils the game!!

6.24.2010

I'm Back

It is a long time since I posted anything on this blog!! Why??

Let's just say that life throws many curved balls. Sometimes it just is not possible to do all the things we need to do never mind those things we want to do.


Still I'm back and here is plenty to talk about. What with oil spills, food shortages, financial problems etc.

Yahushua told us that famines, earthquakes and wars would be the beginning of woes. Revelation talks about 'seals and woes' so just where do these things fit in all the many troubles the earth and people in it are facing right now. That's what we will be looking at in the coming weeks. 


Back again soon!!!


2.08.2009

Is Low Self Esteem Really the Problem?

In today's world with it's rising crime, violence, drug abuse and general moral decay; we often here it tooted that low self esteem is the problem.
Is that so? Really? huhsign.gif

Could there be some subtle but unbalanced interpretation of the word esteem at play here?

The Concise Oxford Dictionary (1964) defines esteem as:- v.t.& n. 1.think highly of; consider,as I shall~it (as) a favour. 2.n. Favourable opinion, regard. respect.

From this definition we see that there comes the word respect. While there are times when esteem and respect could be considered synonymous, this is not necessarily the case.

Let us consider for instance the young person who thinks so highly (esteem) of himself and his driving ability that he hoons through city streets at a great rate of knots endangering both himself and others.

On the one hand he has great self esteem, he is king of the road, his peers no doubt applaud his antics thereby increasing his esteem.

On the other hand he has no respect for his own safety. No respect for the feelings of his family should he maim or kill himself or others. He certainly has no respect for the right of other drivers to be able to use the roads safely. His self esteem is so great he considers it the responsibility of others to get out of his way. He is completely lawless.

He has a great measure of self esteem but no self respect.

Esteem was not something that we were supposed to bestow on ourselves, but rather on others.

Philippians 2:3 doing nothing according to party spirit or self-glory, but in humility, esteeming one another as
surpassing themselves;

We are told in the above quote from the New Testament, that we are to have humility not high self esteem. Does this mean we are not to have self respect.

nowaysign.gif

Let me give one more example of high self esteem coupled with a marked lack of self respect.

Three young women (18-20 yrs) were walking up the main street of a CBD. One of these was proudly telling the others how at 14 yrs old she had slept with a 25yr old. Her immediate audience was oohing, a
h'ing and wowing. This obviously gave the young woman in question great stature in their warped thinking.

Her self esteem was being fed but where was the self respect?

The conversation showed, no respect for the law - it is illegal for girls to have sex under 16yrs old. No respect for her parents, who may well have been both ashamed and embarrassed by this public declaration of their daughters sexual exploits.No respect for herself in throwing herself at a 25 yr old and others and allowing them to treat her as an object of their pleasure. No respect for her body that she had risked subjecting to disease.

NO RESPECT but her SELF ESTEEM among her peers was fed to the MAX.

I ask this question. If a person has no self respect how can they possibly have respect and consideration for others?

Consider the taggers some of them are very talented artists, they gain much esteem from their peers by spray painting other peoples property.

The victim however might not be so amused to find his wall fence or shop having been used as a canvas. There is no respect in this for the rights of others. If these talented young people had self respect, they would use their talent in a respectful way.Their talent would be admired by many and their self esteem would be fed by others in a positive manner.

Scripture gives the following instruction.

Matthew 7:12 All things therefore whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, even so do ye also unto them: for this is the law and the prophets

But is respect for others what we teach our children?

Schools now pander to the self esteem of the individual child. There are no winners, there are no losers, it's all a level playing field. Regardless of age or experience the opinion of the individual is pandered to. No one (including teachers) is allowed more respect than anyone else in any circumstance. Little Johnny must have his way or his self esteem will suffer. What utter nonsense!!!

Teach little Johnny to have respect for himself and he will develop a respect for life and respect for others, that does not depend on his self esteem being pandered to. If little Johnny loves and cares for himself, he will be able to love and care for others. Little Johnny will find it very difficult to have respect for others unless he first learns respect for himself.

He needs to understand the difference between self respect and self esteem.

Essentially the words, esteem and respect are only synonymous when we apply them to others. Applied to ourselves they can be very different things. Let us learn this subtle, yet very important difference between self-esteem and self-respect.

The time is now! To stop the focus on self esteem and start to focus on teaching our children self respect. Start a re-education programme NOW! Before it's too late and we are drowned in a cesspool of self indulgence.

Gal 5:14 For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Lev. 19:18

2.03.2009

The Never Ending Cry!

Are you old enough to remember the days, when shops closed for the weekend. Pubs closed at 10pm (or even back to the "6 o'clock swill" [nz idiom]). Days when the good night kiwi came up on TV and told us all to go to bed, as TVNZ was closing down for the night.

Days when there was no internet, no cell phones or texting. It took six weeks to get communication back and forth from England. Those days when weekends were family time, sunday drives and picnics at the beach were still a multi-generational affair.

When a good many Christian people went to church on Sunday (they might have had the wrong day but sincerely went to worship their Creator albeit by the wrong name) to ask forgiveness for the weeks sins.

The days when seldom was heard today's never ending cry of "I'm bored"; "it's boring" or "that's boring".

Now churches are empty on Sunday and the shopping malls are full. Seven day a week shopping even on a public holiday.

What's that you say, public holiday? No such thing anymore.

Shopaholics madly rush to the never ending sales. Youngsters happy feeding countless dollars into games arcade machines. Teenagers hanging out, texting furiously all the while they engage in countless mindless activities.

With computers, internet, cellphones, electronic games, 24/7 access to TV, nightclubs open all hours, back to back movies, extreme sports, instant messaging, ipods,etc,etc. They complain they are "bored" and with boredom comes irritability.

Why? What is happening? Does it make sense that with all the extra gadgets and activities they have, that they should be more bored than previous generations?

If it's not fast, loud, aggresive, brightly coloured or so frightening it gives them an adrenal rush, then it seems "it" is boring. Whatever "it" is.

Even very young children are becoming angry, moody and very impatient. Often playing out the characters of "children's" fast moving, loud, aggresive cartoons.

The under 25's seem increasingly unable to focus on anything that takes, time, patience, creativity and perseverance. Could it be that constant searing of the brain with electronic pixels, noise, and aggresive content is the cause of the problem?

Have electronic games, TV programmes and Internet activities, bombarding the brain with innumerable pixels per second; created an inability to focus on anything that takes more than 30seconds to pass through their vision?

With this over stimulation of the cerebral cortex; is it possible that the youth of our nations are suffering a paradoxical atrophy of the mind? Which in turn is causing them an inablity to focus. Rendering them emotionally unstable, in a constant state of anxiety and tension.


Gal 5:22 - 23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustworthiness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no Torah.

Let us all endeavour to reduce the time we spend being bombarded by electronics.

Let us all encourage the independant youth to, reduce the time they spend plugged-in and to avoid the violent games and programmes. Helping them to get back to physical activities that will be healthy and productive.

Further more, let us all decide to never allow the youngest members to develop the habit in the first place.

It is time to redeem the time, we see what it has done to todays teenagers -let it not be so with tomorrow's. Unplug them NOW!


2.02.2009

Rest For The Earth.

We hear a lot about 'saving the planet'. Use less water, plant trees,
reduce carbon emmisions, reduce waste etc,etc.

Will these things be enough? Do we let the earth rest? Should we let the earth rest?

If we follow our Creator's Scriptures (The Bible) the handbook for life; we will
find that we should indeed let the earth rest.

Lev 25:3 'Six years you sow your field, and six years you prune
your vineyard, and gather in its fruit
,
Lev 25:4 but in the seventh year the land is to have a Sabbath of rest,
a Sabbath to יהוה
. Do not sow your field and do not prune your vineyard.

Have we, ever so clever human beings, followed this instruction?
A few individuals here and there may have; but 'no', largely we have
done the opposite.

We have tried to produce bigger crops and gain greater profit.

We have poured upon the earth fertiliser, herbicides, pestacides and countless
other chemicals. All in order that we may keep the earth producing endlessly,
with minimum effort for maximum profit.

As occupiers of the earth we have suffocated the land with endless layers of tarmac
and concrete. Pillaged land and sea for everthing from coal and gold to oil.
All for our convenience.

Consider the countless gallons of blood that have been shed.

Wars, terrorism, murders and assaults. How many gallons of blood has the earth
had to absorb? I don't know, too many?

Is it any wonder then that we have a planet crying out for rest and peace?
That we have a planet whose ecology is in such turmoil and disorder?

There is dispute over which year is Yahuah's Land Sabbath.
Still could we not at least show willing; some believe that Yahuah's land
Sabbath starts at the month of Abib this year.

Let us all decide to make 2009 the year we let the land have her rest.

Is it important to our Creator that the land Sabbath is observed?

It sure is. So is peace on earth. Let's take a look at what will happen
in the end.

Rev 11:18 "And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath has come,
and the time of the dead to be judged, and to give the reward to Your
servants the prophets and to the set-apart ones, and to those who
fear Your Name, small and great
,

and to destroy those who destroy the earth."

Let's not be among those destroyed for destroying the earth.

Let us all be blessed by allowing the earth to have her Sabbath,
her rest. It is long overdue.





1.27.2009

Daily Walking With Yahuah- Terminology and Names

Walking With Yahuah is a new blog I decided to create to talk about
the the daily ups and downs of walking with Yahuah in a world that
does the opposite in many many ways. First I need to explain the Names
and terminology that I will be using so that you all know who is being referred to.

For those who don't know Yahuah is the Name of our creator that
was replaced by "the Lord" more than 6000 times in the King James Bible.
Yahuah will be used throughout my posts.

The Name of the son commonly but erroneously called Jesus Christ is
Yahushua Ha Mashiyach (Yahushua the Annointed) this Name will also
be used throughout my posts.

This is the only time you will see the word God I will use the Hebrew
term Elohiym or El as the other word is derived from the name of someone else.
The Same applies to Lord I will use, Adonai, Sovereign or Master.

Well that just about covers the essentials. Next post soon.