Author Archives: WhittleThinker

Jesus says to judge not (Matthew 7: 1-6)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus says not to judge others or God will judge you the same way. He asks why you point out the speck in your brother’s eye and miss the log in your own. “You hypocrite!” He further says not give what is holy to dogs, they will only turn on you, and not to throw pearls to pigs, they will only trample them.

My Thoughts:

Parables: Not judging others is a pretty clear message from Jesus, but many others are less direct and in parable form, like the part about the dogs and pigs. This could mean many things, like if you try to speak the word of God to people who do not believe, they will only attack you and speak against your pearls of wisdom.

Artist scapegoat for stolen piece returned to France

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The good news is the U.S. returned a piece of art stolen three decades ago to France. The artwork was a monotype by impressionist Camille Pissarro. The bad news is that artist Sharyl Davis who unknowingly bought the stolen piece is out $100,000 in legal fees, plus the value of the painting around $60,000 to $80,000 while the thief is living on a boat in the south of France.  This “scapegoat” story somewhat goes along with the Leviticus 16 story.    You would think that someone (French or U.S. government) would help Ms. Davis, but unfortunately financial victims rarely get any compensation. Read the U.S. returns stolen Pissarro artwork to France story at Reuters.

Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16)

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Bible Summary:

After Aaron’s sons die from offering unholy fire, God tells Moses how Aaron is to purify the people of Israel from their sins once each year. Aaron must take a bath, put on his priestly outfit, and bring two goats provided by the community for the offerings. He is also to sacrifice a bull for his family’s sins.

Aaron is to randomly choose between two labeled stones to decide which goat to sacrifice to God and which to send out to the desert to take away the people’s sins, ritually transferred to the “scapegoat”, with it.

My Thoughts:

Yom Kippur: This Day of Atonement is also known as Yom Kippur, the holiest day celebrated by the Jews each year. Learn more about Yom Kippur at Wikipedia.

Scapegoat: It is amazing how many phrases and ideas like “scapegoat” originated from the Bible. Scapegoats are innocent people set up to take the blame for someone else’s misdeeds, just like the innocent goat was set up to take away the sins of the people of Israel.

Fifth of the world telecommutes

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About one fifth of workers around the world telecommute – working at least part-time away from the office. Telecommuting varies by country with half the people working from home in India to less than 10 percent in Germany, France, Italy and Canada. Telecommuting gives workers flexibility but has its challenges, as I can attest to, like balancing family versus work time. Read the full About one in five workers worldwide telecommute: poll story at Reuters.

Jesus says to live for today (Matthew 6: 24-34)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus tells the crowd during the Sermon on the Mount, “No one can be a slave of two masters; he will hate one and love the other; he will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” He says not to worry about food, drink or clothes. Life is more than that. God feeds the birds and clothes wild grass – “that is here today and gone tomorrow” – and wild flowers with beautiful colors. You of little faith should not worry about tomorrow, but be concerned with what God requires of you, and then He will provide all you need.

My Thoughts:

Serving two masters: You cannot serve God and money. Hmm? I have heard people use this phrase to admonish the rich for accumulating wealth and not sharing through charity, but Jesus did not target the rich in this part of the story. His message was very basic – down to food and clothing – that refers to every man, woman and child.

Worry and Stress: The real message is about worry and stress, which doctors today are confirming can shorten your life. Jesus tells everyone not to worry about tomorrow that God will provide enough of your basic needs as long as you serve Him.

Life is short: Jesus essentially said to live for today since life is short – “here today and gone tomorrow.” You really only have today, this moment. All the guilt or concern over what you did or failed to do, or wrongs that happened to you in the past are just that, in the past. There is nothing you can do to change what happened then. And, the future is but a dream. Planning is good so you have a road map where you would like to go – your hopes and dreams – but they are only accomplished by living and acting upon them today. So, start those dreams today, even by taking just small steps in that direction. God is looking for you to answer his call – start now.

God gives rules about health issues (Leviticus 13, 14, 15)

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Bible Summary:

God gives Aaron and Moses rules about managing skin diseases. Anyone with a sore on the skin, boil, burn, spots, or are balding must visit the priest. The priest either isolates the person for a week for reexamination or deems the person unclean, and sends them to live outside the camp, uncombed and in torn clothes. Once the skin heals, the priest examines the person, deems them clean, and then conducts ritual offerings. The healed person washes their clothes, shaves their head, and then moves back into camp, though lives outside their tent for a week before being deemed completely clean.

God also provides rules about managing mildew. The people of Israel tell a priest if they find mildew on their clothes or in their house. Clothes are held and reexamined in seven days. If the mold spreads, they must burn the clothes. They must lock up a house with mildew for a week. If the mold spreads, they must replace the stones. If the mold persists they must tear down the house.

God also gives rules about men with discharge or semen and women during their periods.

My Thoughts:

Roles of the Priests: Priests were spiritual leaders, judges and even doctors in the time of Moses, examining patients and prescribing treatment.  They also ruled on heath care issues, like mildew management.

Quarantine: The priests quarantined diseased people outside the main community to stop the spread of the disease. Affected people were not exiled, but allowed to reenter the community once they become clean, unless the disease persisted like leprosy.

Do not hide your disease: I am sure afflicted people felt like outcasts back then and were very relieved when the symptoms cleared. Many cancer patients today distress over what people think about their baldness from chemotherapy and hide behind a wig. I understand no one wants pitied, but displaying your disease has two benefits: it shows you are fighting it head on and it let others know so they can pray for you. So, do not hide your disease, wear it like a medal so everyone can see how strong you are in the fight. This may seem easier for men, but I have seen many women, beautiful women, adorned with beautiful scarves. No matter what you decide, my prayers are with you!

Lifelong brain exercises may reduce Alzheimer’s

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Researchers found that exercising the brain with games, reading, and writing can reduce the chance of protein deposits that cause Alzheimer’s, but you must start at a young age and continue your whole life. So, stop “vegging” in front of the TV and read some good books.  Learn more in the Keeping brain sharp may ward off Alzheimer’s protein story at Reuters.

Jesus says to focus on riches in heaven (Matthew 6: 19-23)

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Bible Summary:

Jesus tells the crowd at the Sermon on the Mount to store up riches in heaven instead of the ones on earth that can be destroyed or stolen. He says, “Your heart will always be where your riches are” and your eyes are a lamp of your body, so see light and your body will not be in darkness.

My Thoughts:

You receive what you focus on: Focus on money and you will receive money, but maybe at a high price – sacrifice of your family, your honor, and your soul. Storing up riches in heaven means casting aside the concern for money and focusing instead on making life better for as many other people as possible.

Enough: So, know when you have enough – food, shelter, clothes, and other possessions – to live in this world, and then focus all of your time on doing good. It will make all the difference in your life.

Global warming? Nine warmest years since 2000

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According to NASA, global temperatures are rising and we have experienced nine of the highest average temperatures since 2000.  See Full 2011 was ninth-warmest year since 1880: NASA story at Reuters.

I am all for the environment, but I studied a little math and know when someone is putting a spin on the numbers.  Compare these charts:
Global Temperature Change - Celsius - 1880-2011  Global Temperature - Celsius - 1880-2011  Global Temperature 1880-2011

The first chart is the change in temperature that NASA and other global warming groups show to prove the world is “dramatically” getting warmer, but on close look it says the globe has warmed by about 1 degree Celsius from 1880 to 2011.

The other two charts show the total temperature trend in Celsius and Fahrenheit.  The world is getting a little warmer, but these charts do not look very “dramatic”.  You decide.

Data Source: NASA Global Land-Ocean Temperature Index for the change data, though I had to use the 20th Century average temperature to estimate the total temperatures, since the actual numbers are not available.