Saturday, June 26, 2021

Australia/China Trade Dispute. Antisemitism. What Causes Cancer to Metastasize?

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Australia/China Trade Dispute Turns Into a Diplomatic Brawl

“Increasing provocations, tariffs and economic muscle-flexing have relations between Australia and China in a deep freeze. How did it happen? Where will it lead?

Australia/China Trade Dispute Turns Into a Diplomatic Brawl

“Relations between Australia and its biggest trading partner, China, have rapidly deteriorated as Canberra has recently taken a more muscular approach to Beijing’s increasingly assertive foreign policies.

On Anzac Day, when Australia and New Zealand honor their war dead, Peter Dutton, Australia’s newly appointed defense minister, told the Sydney Morning Herald that Australia was “already under attack” in the cyber domain and warned that Chinese bullying of Taiwan could lead to a regionwide conflict. Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo shockingly added that free nations were hearing the “drums of war” beating again.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a dramatic increase in military spending just before several newspapers published a confidential briefing by a former top general in the Australian Defence Force. He warned that Australia must prepare for the “high likelihood” of actual conflict because China was already engaged in gray zone warfare—aggressive state behavior that is often covert or deniable, and that falls short of acts of war, but includes political interference, cyber intrusions and economic coercion.

Is war conceivable?

The idea of Australia on its own fighting a war against China appears preposterous. Australia is a nation of a mere 25 million people. With no nuclear weapons and a small navy, it would face a nuclear-armed China of 1.4 billion people, with a military budget estimated to be 10 times larger than Australia’s. China has a shipbuilding program that outpaces any other country in history and a navy recently transformed into one of the world’s premier blue-water navies.

Yet Australian attitudes have nonetheless been hardened by Beijing’s heavy-handed approach.”     CONTINUE READING     From: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/prophecy/prophecy-in-the-news/australia-china-trade-dispute/?

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Antisemitism

“Antisemitism is on the rise in the U.S. and around the world. At the heart of antisemitism is hatred of God and His ways. Those that choose to obey Him may suffer the same persecution that we are seeing today.

Transcript of YouTube: https://youtu.be/ZNyAie3VkC8

[Darris McNeely] “There's been a ceasefire called in the recent war in the Middle East and with the State of Israel against the terrorist group, Hamas and the rockets that they were firing out of Gaza raining down on Jerusalem. And the State of Israel, we hope that it will hold but the prospect of enduring peace is very slim. No doubt in time, it will all start up over again.

In the aftermath of that, however, I've been watching a number of articles that have described another phenomenon that has raised its ugly vile head, as a result of this latest conflict in Israel with Hamas and the Israelis, is what we call antisemitism. The hatred of Jews. An evil long problem, Christian pogroms going back hundreds of years in Europe created all kinds of problems for the Jewish populations of those countries. We're all familiar with the Holocaust of World War II and the Nazi effort to exterminate more than 6 million Jews and to eliminate what they consider to be a problem.

Antisemitism and this Jewish hatred and hatred of things Jewish has not disappeared, unfortunately, from the world seen in this most recent outbreak of violence many have seen has caused this to come to the fore even more. There was an article that I was reading in The Wall Street Journal that brought out a statistical fact on antisemitism that should shock us. And I quote from this article, that "Contemporary hatred of Jews is still on the rise. The Federal Bureau of Investigations Hate Crime data shows that since 1996 and 2019, hate crimes against blacks have gone down significantly." And that's a good thing. But in the corresponding time, hate crimes against Jews, antisemitism, has not gone down. In fact, it's scarcely changed. And, of course, most recent events show that it has come up. Jews dining in a restaurant in Los Angeles were physically attacked by crowds shouting antisemitic slogans. In London, parades going through the streets of people who were against the Jews and shouting antisemitic slogans as well took place, and in other parts of Europe.

It's been shocking. What do we learn from this? What is it that you need to understand? You may not be a Jew, ethnically, but if you keep God's Sabbath, if you keep God's holy days, if you keep the Passover, you will be considered Jewish by some standards, by some people who may have a particular problem or animus. To obey God, Biblically, puts us in the entire line of the Jewish people who have kept their identity, who understand that they are descended from the tribe of Judah, part of Ancient Israel, their father is Abraham. And they understand their heritage, their lineage, their descent.

A Christian who keeps God's Sabbath, who keeps God's laws today can be lumped into those who are Jewish. I've had that happen to me years ago and been thought that I was Jewish because I kept the Feast of Tabernacles, the Holy Day, mentioned, of course, in the New Testament, the Old Testament there. What do we learn from this? That persecution, hatred of God really is at the heart of antisemitism.

Years ago, I read an article, actually a book called "The Gift of the Jews" by the author, Tim Cahill. And he actually got to the heart of the problem as to what is antisemitism. He said, it's really a hatred of God because the Jews have kept their identity, and they keep Torah, they keep the law. And he boiled it down to what he called the hated 10 because man doesn't wanna keep a law of God. And that is, as he said, the core problem with antisemitism. It's what the Apostle Paul said in Romans 1, that they did not want to keep God in their knowledge. And there's a hatred built into the human nature, it seems, for God. And so, you keep God's law, you keep God's commandments, you should understand what antisemitism is.

There's a Scripture in Revelation 12 (Revelation 12:17), that I always take people to illustrate this. It describes a time in the age prior to just before the return of Jesus Christ, when Satan the devil is enraged because his purposes are being foiled. And he goes out knowing that he has a short time to wreak one final persecution upon believers on the Earth. And it says in verse 17, "The dragon was enraged with a woman and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring." The woman is the church, the church of God, the offspring are its members of that church. The dragon makes war with them. And they're identified as those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Those who keep the commandments of God, the 10 commandments, the law of God, who understand how that fits with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is exactly what God's Church does.

Antisemitism is something that any believer in God who obeys the Word of God and the Bible, those of the Church of God should be aware of, should understand, as it rears its head and take note, guard yourself, certainly recognize God is in control and God is in charge. But there will be a consequence for obeying God.

Antisemitism is a problem. It's an evil and it has impacted the Jewish people. And it will impact ultimately, as the Scripture shows, by the time of the end, many beyond even the ethnicity of the Jewish group. And so, Christians who keep God's Word, the commandments, and the testimony of Jesus Christ should take note, watch, and be aware.” From: https://www.ucg.org/beyond-today/beyond-today-daily/antisemitism

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How Quickly We Forget

“There is something wrong with the human mind that we can witness God’s miracles one day and doubt him the next. Our faulty memory fills in the gaps with naturalistic explanations, with gloss and fuzz so that tragedy looms large, but promises fulfilled and prayers answered fade into obscurity.

With the pillar of fire and cloud right there in the camp, the manna appearing every morning, the plague graves still fresh, the Israelites still doubted God’s power to bring them into the Promised Land. When they heard God’s judgment of their lapse (an entire generation to die in the wilderness), they compounded their lack of faith with disobedience (attacking when God said to retreat). The end of fear–as it always is–was death.

Every one of us lives this same pattern of fear and forgetfulness. It is inherent in the fallen human condition. As a partial remedy, God gave us reminders of his actions, promises, and commands: the feast days, sacrifices, tzitziyot, (a Hebrew word that means “tassels”), etc. When we wonder what could be the point of those things today, we have only to look in the mirror.”  From:

http://www.americantorah.com/2010/06/10/how-quickly-we-forget/

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What Causes Cancer to Metastasize?

“Palmitic acid, a saturated fat concentrated in meat and dairy, can boost the metastatic potential of cancer cells through the fat receptor CD36.”  WATCH VIDEO  Transcript:

Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.

Intro: This is the first in a three-part series on cancer metastasis. In this series, I’ll look at what dietary components contribute to the spread of cancer, and what dietary interventions—and even specific foods—can lessen the risk of spread, therefore increasing the chances of survival. Let’s go find out.

“Metastasis formation is the leading cause of death in cancer patients. That’s how most people die of cancer. It’s not the primary tumor, but the cancer spreading through the body. “[It’s] estimated that metastasis is responsible for [90 percent] of cancer deaths”, with little progress made in stopping the spread despite our modern medical armamentarium. In fact, we can sometimes make it worse: Therapy-Induced Metastasis. All the typical cancer treatments, radiation, chemotherapy, surgery—even just poking the tumors with fine needle biopsies—have the potential to contribute to the problem.

I mean, you can imagine how cutting around a tumor, severing the blood vessels, might lead to the migration of residual tumor cells. But why chemotherapy? How might chemo exacerbate metastases? Despite reducing the size of primary tumors, chemotherapy can change the surrounding tissues, resulting in an increased escape of cancer cells into the blood stream. Sometimes chemo/surgery/radiation are entirely justified, but sometimes these treatments can make things worse. If only we had a way to treat the cause of the cancer spreading.

The development of anti-metastatic therapies has been hampered by the fact that we haven’t been able to identity the cells that initiate metastasis.  But then, this landmark study was published. Researchers found a subpopulation of human cancer cells “unique in their ability to initiate metastasis”, all expressing high levels of a fat receptor known as CD36, dubbed “the fat controller.” It turns out palmitic acid or a high-fat diet specifically boosts the metastatic potential of these cancer cells. Where do you find palmitic acid? Although originally discovered in palm oil, it’s most concentrated in meat and dairy.

“Emerging evidence shows that palmitic acid . . . serves as a signaling molecule regulating the progression and development of many diseases at the molecular level”––and that’s the saturated fat that is recognized by the CD36 receptor on the cancer cells. And we know that’s to blame, because if you block the CD36 receptor, you block the metastases.

Now this was for a human cancer; however, it was a human cancer implanted into mice, but clinically (meaning in cancer patients), the presence of these CD36-studded metastasis-initiating cells does indeed correlate with a poor prognosis. For example, CD36 appears to drive the progression of brain tumors. If you look at the survival curves, those with tumors with less CD36 expression lived significantly longer. The same with breast cancer mortality. No surprise, since “CD36 [appears to play] a critical role in [the] proliferation, migration, and…growth of…breast cancer cells.” Inhibit CD36, and you can inhibit “the migration and invasion of the breast cancer cells.” Cancer cell migration and invasion before and after CD36 inhibition.

And not just in “human melanoma- and breast cancer-derived tumors.” Now we suspect that “…CD36…drives ovarian cancer progression and metastasis” too, since we can inhibit ovarian cancer cell invasion and migration and block both lymph node and blood-borne metastasis by blocking CD36. We see the same kind of effect with prostate cancer. Suppress the uptake of fat by prostate cancer cells, and you can suppress the tumor. This was all studied with receptor-blocking drugs and antibodies in a laboratory setting, though. If these metastasis-initiating cancer cells particularly rely on dietary fat to promote the spread of cancer, why not just block the dietary fat in the first place?

Cancer cells love fat and cholesterol. The reason why fat metabolism may fuel cancer’s spread is because there is so much energy stored in fat. “Hence, … metastatic cells might take advantage of this feature to obtain the high amount of energy that is likely to be required for them to anchor and [set up shop throughout the body].”

“The time when sugar was considered as the major, if not only, fuel to support cancer cell proliferation is over.” There appears to be “a fatter way to metastasize”. No wonder “…high-fat [diets may] …play a crucial role in increasing the risk of different cancer types, …[including] several advanced cancers.” Okay, if dietary fat may be “greasing the wheels of the cancer machine,” might there be speciļ¬c dietary regimens we could use to starve cancers of dietary fat? You don’t know until you put it to the test, which we’ll cover next.”  From: https://nutritionfacts.org/video/what-causes-cancer-to-metastasize/?

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Monday, June 21, 2021

Knowing God as a Loving Father. A World Without Evil. Seeing Red No. 3: Coloring to Dye For.

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Knowing God as a Loving Father

“Why is God called a Father? Whose Father is He? How is God a Father to us? What does God’s role as a Father teach us about His character and purpose for us?

Knowing God as a Loving Father 

The book of Revelation chapter 4 gives us a fascinating glimpse of God’s throne. In verse 8 impressive angelic beings address God on His throne as “Lord God Almighty.” Two verses later 24 elders fall to the ground, remove their crowns and cast them before the throne. They do so to worship, honor and recognize the Almighty God as the One who created all things and rules with authority over all.

The Bible reveals God to be all-powerful—a being of great, unmatched strength. Here are some Bible verses on God’s unlimited power:

  • “God has spoken once, twice I have heard this: that power belongs to God” (Psalm 62:11).
  • Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite” (Psalm 147:5).
  • Our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29).

Even though God is shown to be the omnipotent Creator and ruling authority who must be revered, He also describes Himself as a loving Father. That title teaches several truths that give us clarity and insight into God’s character and plan for mankind.

What does it mean to be a father?

The word father describes one who gives life or who creates, originates, exemplifies or founds something. For example, James Naismith is considered the “father” of basketball because he created the game over 100 years ago. Abraham is called the father of the faithful since his faith exemplifies what all need to strive for (Romans 4:16).

We each have a physical father who gave us life. In most cultures it is customary to carry the surname of our father, and most naturally call him “Dad,” “Father,” “Papa” or the like.

However, being a father does not always mean something positive. Jesus told some of the hypocritical people of His day, “You are of your father the devil” (John 8:44). He did not mean Satan had given them physical life, but that they were following his example of spiritual wickedness. Satan is the father of lies and murder, inspiring others to do the same.

Sadly, many people have had very negative experiences with their physical fathers—sometimes due to abuse, neglect, absence or other factors.

God the Father, on the other hand, is the source of truth and love (John 17:17; 1 John 4:16).

God the Father is the source of all life

Ephesians 3:14-15 states, “For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named.”

These two verses show that God’s family (or household) is in both heaven and on earth. In heaven, the family has two members: the Father and the Son (Jesus Christ). On earth, the family includes God’s begotten sons and daughters—those who have His Spirit (Romans 8:14; Galatians 3:26; 4:6).

In a more general sense, God is also Father over all life in heaven (the angels) and on earth (all people) because He is the source of all life (Job 1:6; 38:7; 1 Timothy 6:13).

The Bible reveals that the Father is the supreme authority and source of all life, but did the actual work of creation through the Word, the One who later became Jesus Christ (John 1:1-3, 14). The Bible says that God created “all things” through Jesus (Colossians 1:15-18). In a sense, we could say God the Father directed the creation, while the Word carried out the creation.

The apostle Paul described it this way: “God [the Father] who created all things through Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 3:9).

“The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”
Continued at: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/god/who-is-god/god-as-a-father/?

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A WORLD WITHOUT EVIL

“Our world is in pain.

There’s no denying it. The proof is everywhere—and now we know why. We started this Journey by asking why a loving, all-powerful God would choose to allow evil to exist, and along the way we discovered that suffering exists because people do evil things.

When we sin—when we step outside the boundaries God established for our good—the result is evil. Suffering. Pain. It doesn’t always happen immediately, and it isn’t always obvious, but it will happen. Sin produces suffering, and the law of God stands as the sole dividing line between “life and good, death and evil” (Deuteronomy 30:15).

Multiply that by the number of people who are either ignorant of or uninterested in the law of God, then multiply that by the entire span of human history, and we’ll start to paint a picture of why the world is the way it is.

But the world isn’t going to stay the way that it is. Far from it—God might be presently allowing evil, but that doesn’t mean He isn’t actively working out a plan to end it. Ending evil right now, in this moment, would require God to either a) remove our free will or b) eradicate the human race altogether.

Thankfully for us, God has a far more elegant plan in motion.

The Bible is filled with glimpses of God’s plan for the future of the world—and what we’re shown in that plan isn’t a world in pain. Micah 4:2-4 says:

Many nations shall come and say,
“Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
To the house of the God of Jacob;
He will teach us His ways,
And we shall walk in His paths.”
For out of Zion the law shall go forth,
And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between many peoples,
And rebuke strong nations afar off;
They shall beat their swords into plowshares,
And their spears into pruning hooks;
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
Neither shall they learn war anymore.

But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree,
And no one shall make them afraid;
For the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.

That’s not the world we live in today. Isaiah 11:6-9 expands on that theme, adding:

The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
The leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
The calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze;
Their young ones shall lie down together;
And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole,
And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den.
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea.

What we’re seeing in these verses is a world where even the nature of animals is different—where formerly ravenous wolves live peacefully with sheep, lions rest with cows and a little child can play fearlessly near a den of snakes. Today, these scenes are unthinkable—but God promises that one day, they’ll be commonplace.

What really stands out in both of these prophecies, though, is what’s happening behind the scenes. Micah talks about people eager to come to God and walk in His way of life. Isaiah mentions a worldwide knowledge of God and His law. The world we’re seeing is different because the people living in it are different. They’re seeking God. They’re obeying His laws.

The book of Revelation goes one step further into the future and paints us this picture: “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:3-4).

That’s different. That’s something new. That’s a world without pain, without sorrow, without death. What we’re seeing in this prophecy is a world without evil—a world without sin.

So how do we get from this world to that one?

That’s the real question, isn’t it? All this time, we’ve been asking why God allows evil to exist, but what we really want to know is how He plans to end it—because He does plan to end it. In fact, that plan is already in motion. It’s been in motion for over 6,000 years—a plan designed to offer hope to every man, woman and child who has ever lived.

We know now that God has a reason for allowing evil, and we know that He has a plan to ultimately end it. We also know that His plan is going to have to address a number of significant hurdles. Here are a few:

  • All human beings have sinned (Romans 3:23).
  • Sins costs us our lives (Romans 6:23).
  • Sin bars us from the family of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
  • A supernatural enemy is deceiving the human race and actively promoting sin (Revelation 12:9).
  • Billions and billions have died without truly knowing God or understanding His Word (1 Corinthians 2:14).

And yet, despite all that, we’re told that God is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9), and that He intends to bring “many sons to glory” (Hebrews 2:10).

How? How is that possible? The entire human population has disqualified itself from joining the family of God, and literal billions have perished without coming to repentance. The whole thing seems pretty hopeless.

But it’s not hopeless. In the next Journey, we’re going to spend seven days exploring the plan of God, and as we do, we’re going to see that God doesn’t just acknowledge the hurdles to His plan—He systematically knocks them down, clearing a path heading directly toward the incredible future that Micah and Isaiah wrote about.

The plan of God is a plan of hope. Are you ready to discover where you belong in it?”

From: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/learning-center/journeys/journey-2-the-problem-of-evil/7/?

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Seeing Red No. 3: Coloring to Dye For

Transcript of: https://nutritionfacts.org/video/seeing-red-no-3-coloring-to-dye-for/

Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.

“Fifteen million pounds of food dyes are sold every year in the U.S. Why? “Foods are artificially colored to make unattractive mixtures of basic ingredients and food additives acceptable to consumers.”

See, food colorings are added to countless processed food products to “conceal the absence of fruits, vegetables, or other ingredients, and make the food ‘appear better or of greater value than it [actually] is.’” Otherwise, cherry popsicles might actually look like they have no cherries in them!

I’ve talked about the role of food dyes in causing ADH symptoms in kids. But, what about their role in cancer?

Due to cancer concerns, Red dye #1 was banned in 1961. Red #2 was banned in 1976, and then Red #4 was banned. What about Red #3, used today in everything from sausage to maraschino cherries? It was recently found to cause DNA damage in human liver cells in vitro, comparable to the damage caused by a chemotherapy drug whose whole purpose is to break down DNA.

But, Red #3 was found to influence children’s behavior more than thirty years ago, and interfere with thyroid function over forty years ago. Why is it still legal?

This is an article from the New York Times about Red #3 published way back in 1985. Already by then, the FDA had postponed action on banning the dye 26 times, even with the Acting Commissioner of the FDA saying Red #3 was “of greatest public health concern,” imploring his agency to “not knowingly allow continued exposure” (at high levels in the case of Red #3) of the public to…color additive[s] that [have] clearly been shown to induce cancer… The credibility of the [Department of Health and Human Services] would suffer if decisions are not made soon on each of these color additives.” That was written thirty years ago.

At the end of the day, industry pressure won out. “FDA scientists and FDA commissioners…have recommended that the additives be banned… But there has been tremendous pressure…to delay the recommendations from being implemented.”

In 1990, concerned about cancer risk, the FDA banned the use of Red #3 in anything going on our skin, but it remained legal to continue to put it in anything going into our mouths. Now, the FDA said at the time that they planned on stopping that too, and ending all “remaining uses” of Red #3, lamenting that “The cherries in 21st-century fruit cocktail could well be light brown.” That was 1990.

Over 20 years later, it’s still in our food supply. After all, the agency estimated that “the lifetime risk of thyroid tumors in humans [from Red #3 in food] was at most 1 in 100,000.”

“Based on today’s population, that would indicate that Red #3 is causing cancer in about 3000 people.”

DOCTOR'S NOTE

This whole fiasco will become clearer once you see my video Who Determines if Food Additives Are Safe?

I’ve touched on food coloring additives before:

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Sunday, June 13, 2021

"We're Mortgaging Our Children's Future!" The Meek’s Inheritance. Mexico Joins Other Countries In Banning Glyphosates While The U.S. Still Allows Their Use.

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Our Children's Future

“Last week I wrote to you with thoughts about my grandchildren and what family means. I have one additional thought to share about future generations—not only mine, but yours. This thought is driven by reading this week about the trillions of dollars being spent by the American government on vast social and infrastructure programs.

We hear of 9 trillion dollars being asked for government spending. This, on top of many trillions of dollars of government spending from 2020, are all meant to alleviate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Much of those vast sums are yet to be spent while more is being requested.

The question many ask is, “Who is going to pay for this?” The answer is multi-dimensional. Increased taxes on the wealthy or corporations may be one solution. Another option is to sell more government-backed bonds on the world financial markets, expecting other nations to loan their money in expectation of a return. China and Saudi Arabia have been two nations, among many others in recent years, who buy American debt. All this has been going on for many years as the United States foreign debt has steadily increased, allowing Americans to enjoy a very high standard of living.

Confidence and trust support this economic house of cards—and the fact that the U.S. dollar is the standard currency of exchange on world markets. This allows you and I to shop at Costco and buy cheap goods from world markets. We can also enjoy a lower cost of fuel, at least for now, for our gas-guzzling vehicles. The American standard of living is very good and very cheap compared to much of the world.

All this puts the future at risk as we continue to borrow trillions of dollars and spend it on projects that do not always return value for the investment. Some one must pay for this. If we, the present generation, do not, then our children and our grandchildren will have to bear that burden. Likely, we will not repay the debt and we will pass it on to the future. We are saying to our children, “Good luck and thank you for doing this for us.” I look at my grandchildren and wonder how all this present spending will impact their lives. I ask myself whether they will have the same standard of living I have enjoyed.

You should ask the same questions. History gives no guarantee that this spending spree can continue without reaping the consequences of inflation, depression and even economic collapse. Given the way modern economies work, America—meaning our grandchildren—is headed for an unprecedented state of economic servitude. It is inescapable given present trends.

In our next issue of Beyond Today magazine, going to press this week, you will read an article explaining in more detail this economic situation. It will show from a biblical perspective how all this is a form of stealing. The article makes the point that government debt has grown so enormous that we are stealing from future generations, leaving it to our children and children’s children to pay back the debt from such profligate spending.

This is the concluding thought from my week with my grandchildren. It is a realistic note from an otherwise enjoyable occasion. We are living in a time of great upheaval and change. Our mission with Beyond Today is to explain the present and offer hope for the future. Our future hope is God’s coming Kingdom. Our present help is His grace through understanding.  We will point you to God’s Word for that help.”

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"We're Mortgaging Our Children's Future!"

“Sadly, in our world today, it seems our children are destined to endure pain because of the selfishness and greed of the generation preceding theirs.

"We're mortgaging our children's future!" "We're passing down a mountain of debt to our children and grandchildren!" These sentiments are among the angry shouts of people who are furious with what they denounce as reckless spending by government officials. This is not only happening in the United States. Many other nations are feeling the crush of enormous debt being heaped on them and the generations to come after them by governments bent on trying to spend their way out of the recession.

In America, all anyone needs to do to verify our runaway debt is to take a few minutes to look at the display of the U.S. National Debt Clock.

As of this writing, the current U.S. national debt stands at $12,136,000,000, or $39,380 for every man, woman and child in the United States.

Brian M. Riedl of the Institute for Economic Policy Studies at the Heritage Foundation, wrote: "The new budget spending estimates are alarming and absolutely unsustainable—and are the true cause of these appalling levels of deficit and debt. President Obama has proposed massive tax increases that still cannot keep up with the historic spending increases he has proposed. The result will be highest level of spending—and debt—in American history" ("New Budget Estimates Show Unsustainable Spending and Debt," Aug. 25, 2009).

What does this mean for our children? If we cannot pay this debt, it will not simply go away. It will just be pushed into future years, with billions of dollars in interest piled on top of an already mountainous debt. If we can't afford it now, how will they afford it later? How will they be able to maintain the standard of living their parents and grandparents enjoyed? The simple answer is: They won't. Our children will suffer the consequences of the reckless, out-of-control spending of their parents' generation.

The apostle Paul matter-of-factly states the commonsense wisdom that has been the norm throughout history: "For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children" (2 Corinthians 12:14).

But, sadly, in our world today, it seems our children are destined to endure pain because of the selfishness and greed of the generation preceding theirs. Our generation has had no hesitation in passing along to our children a financial nightmare that will take great personal sacrifices to repair—if it can be repaired.

Responsible parents should be willing to prevent the suffering of their children and make those personal sacrifices today. Apparently, many are not. How about you? Are you concerned about the consequences of our growing debt? What can you do for your children and grandchildren?

You can help your children and grandchildren by reducing or eliminating your personal debt and managing your finances wisely. Begin by taking a look at your responsibilities as described in the chapter "Financial Security and Peace of Mind" from the free booklet Making Life Work. This article is based on biblical wisdom that is the only real source of financial peace of mind and the hope that we and our children need.”  From: https://www.ucg.org/beyond-today/blogs/were-mortgaging-our-childrens-future

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The Meek’s Inheritance

Psalm 37:11

“But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

God shows a special love for those who are truly meek. He plans to give them the earth and all its abundance, along with peace, because He will be sure that they will not let His blessings go to their heads. They will humbly and thankfully strive to serve the great Creator God always.

Jesus reinforced this concept by repeating it in the Beatitudes in His Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:5; see “Blessed Are the Meek”). For more about the Beatitudes, see “Beatitudes: Keys to Real Happiness.”” From: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/blog/the-meeks-inheritance/?

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Mexico Joins Other Countries In Banning While The U.S. Still Allows Their Use

“Chemical compounds found in Monsanto’s weed killer Roundup, known as glyphosates have been linked to serious human health issues and population decline in key pollinators. Though these chemicals are still approved for use in the United States, Mexico has decided to ban them completely by 2024.

“Given the scientific evidence of glyphosate toxicity, demonstrating the impacts on human health and the environment, the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) has taken important steps to gradually reduce the use of this chemical until it achieves a total ban in 2024,” said Dr. Adelita San Vicente Tello, Director General of the Primary Sector and Renewable Natural Resources at SEMARNAT.

As Sustainable Pulse reports, San Vicente Tello announced the initiative following an event organized by the National Autonomous University of Mexico’s (UNAM) Academic Observatory of Society, Environment and Institutions. During the event, leaders were challenged to consider the impact glyphosate will have on the health of the environment and citizens of Mexico”.    From: https://blog.therainforestsite.greatergood.com/glyphosates-mexico/

Saturday, June 5, 2021

I Don’t Want to Be a Burden. Praying People. Top 10 Most HARMFUL Foods People Keep EATING.

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I Don’t Want to Be a Burden

I Do Not Want to Be a Burden“Many desire to help friends and relatives who are growing older. But sometimes those who have helped so many others are not so welcoming of help themselves.

Growing old is nothing new—it happens to everyone. Accepting help as a person ages is not new either, but neither is it always simple or easy. And yet life often comes full circle with age. After a lifetime of serving, giving to and helping others, it can be a bitter pill to need help ourselves.

The circle of help

The cycle generally goes like this:

Requiring and receiving help: From the moment of birth, a child requires help with virtually everything. Whether it is eating, dressing or being comforted, children are powerless to do much of anything for themselves. Babies happily (for the most part) receive and enjoy all the help, love and attention that comes their way.

Helping others who require help: During the preteen to young adult years, children are taught to help with household chores. They also generally have their introduction to helping other people, often older people like Grandma and Granddad. Whether help is required or not, grandparents enjoy watching these young ones bring them books or drinks, or push their shopping cart.

As children enter adulthood, they’re given many additional opportunities to help people. These include helping friends, neighbors and coworkers, but especially family. Children, parents, grandparents and extended family members may all need help at times. Many adults spend decades helping and giving care as they can.

Requiring and accepting help: However, time marches relentlessly onward, and with age often comes the need to receive help. The need for help may come on gradually or it may come suddenly due to illness or accident. Chores once done with ease may now be too much to handle.

It is not always easy for one who is used to independence to ask for or accept help. Why? And what can be done to foster an environment where genuine help is gracefully accepted and appreciated?

The challenge to put things aside

After many years of a vibrant and active life full of mobility and lending assistance to others, an aging person can find it difficult to suddenly be on the receiving end of help. It was so natural to give help, so why is it hard to accept it?

Aging and needing help may mean a loss of privacy and adjusting to new routines. As a result, a person may feel frightened, frustrated, vulnerable or angry that he or she needs help. After being a help giver for so many years, one who now needs help may feel guilty and worried about becoming a burden to family and friends.

The loss of independence often plays a major role in the reluctance to accept help. People who spend the majority of their lives coming and going as they please never consider that one day they may be unable to do many formerly simple chores without assistance.

One author explains the situation this way: “Our parents spent their entire lives being independent and making their own decisions, as well as a number of decisions for us throughout our lives. It has got to be hard to accept help and even hard to ask for it. I know it is for me, why wouldn’t it be for them?” (“Why Elderly Parents May Not Accept Their Children’s Help”).

The potential loss of independence is real, but it should not prevent a person from accepting help. Most people do not want to be pitied, but we must be careful not to confuse a sincere offer to help with pity.

Another reason older people may refuse to accept help is simple human pride. And with pride comes the potential for hurt feelings. One of the proverbs reads, “When pride comes, then comes shame; but with the humble is wisdom” (Proverbs 11:2).

So how do we get over feelings of being a burden to others? And how do we deal with the natural feelings of hurt pride?

Becoming a cheerful receiver

There are amazing benefits that come to those who serve others. Helping people is voluntarily giving part of your life to others in order to make their lives a little easier or more productive. But most people who have been cheerful helpers will see the day when they must become cheerful receivers of assistance from others who care deeply for them.

The apostle Paul describes the blessings that come to those who reach beyond themselves in an effort to help others. The love and service given are noticed and repaid. He told the brethren in Corinth, “But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6).

When the time comes, help will most often come from those who were helped in their younger years—children and grandchildren. It should be easier to accept help from relatives you know, love and trust.

But how does one become a cheerful receiver?

Accepting help with a healthy attitude

It begins with humility. The apostle Peter is a great example of a person who learned to grow in humility. On the night of Jesus’ final Passover with the disciples, He washed the feet of each of His disciples to set an example of humble service. Peter, thinking this was not right, initially refused to allow the Messiah to wash his feet. Only after a gentle rebuke from Jesus did he humbly submit to the will of Christ (John 13:5-9). He learned a powerful lesson about serving others as Christ was doing and also about accepting help!

As Peter grew older, he took this valuable lesson and passed it on to others. He knew from hard experience what happens when we allow our pride or our own human reasoning to get in the way. Apparently having learned to both give and receive help, Peter was inspired to write, “Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for ‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble’” (1 Peter 5:5-7).

Those who humbly and joyfully accept help as needed have an opportunity to share with the next generation the help they have received all their lives from a loving God. The concept of being “submissive to one another” leaves a bad taste in the mouths of some. But one aspect of submitting to one another is accepting help as we age—learning to humbly receive help from those who are also submitting in meeting the needs of aging friends and family.

What those who are older can share

God has promised to never leave or forsake those who obey His commands—no matter how old they are. The psalmist was inspired to write, “Now also when I am old and gray-headed, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come” (Psalm 71:18).

Those who humbly and joyfully accept help as needed have an opportunity to share with the next generation the help they have received all their lives from a loving God.

Helpers of their joy

Submission, humility and wisdom are key factors in growing old gracefully.

Addressing the congregation in Corinth, the apostle Paul said, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16). That inner self is the heart and character of the man.

Simply growing older should not have a negative effect on our core values and character. There are tremendous benefits to cheerfully accepting help when we are “feeling our age.”

1. It provides opportunities for young to learn from old. Yes, there are grumpy and grouchy old people, but there are also happy and considerate elderly people as well.

Paul told his young friend Titus that the older members of the Church still had a responsibility when it came to helping the younger people in the congregation mature. “But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things—that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed” (Titus 2:1-5).

By remaining active in the congregation, the older members have the opportunity to mentor the young adults by modeling for them examples that reflect the sound doctrine established by Jesus Christ and the Church. It takes work to reflect God’s nature, but Paul wanted the older members to help teach these things to the young.

2. It allows others the opportunity to learn how to provide help. Though age will eventually cause one to retire from a job or lose the ability to perform certain types of physical labor, accepting help provides opportunities for others to become effective helpers. If the elderly have been setting a godly example, in time there should be a response from those who’ve watched.

James was inspired to write, “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (James 1:27). The next generation will see the needs of those who are aging and will work to make life a little easier by offering to help physically, financially and even emotionally. Knowing when to accept help allows the next generation to practice pure religion.

3. It helps build relationships between people of all generations. There is a tendency for people to associate primarily with their own age group. Accepting help as you age opens up avenues for people of all ages to help, and it can provide opportunities to create new and lasting relationships, bridging the “generation gap.”

Asking God for help as we age

Vast multitudes followed Jesus Christ when He walked upon the earth, and many sought and gladly accepted His help. The psalmist, realizing that he would require help from God in his later years, made a request: “Do not cast me off in the time of old age; do not forsake me when my strength fails” (Psalm 71:9). Asking for (and accepting) help from God is always the right thing to do, and we should do it daily.

We should also realize that God often uses people to answer those prayers—people who desire to lend a helping hand to serve those who are aging.

God describes those who live their lives in a close relationship with Him this way: “Those who are planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing, to declare that the LORD is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him” (Psalm 92:13-15). While God expects those who are older to continue to bear spiritual fruit, this fruit is now more likely to be teaching and encouragement than hard, physical labor.

Growing old is part of God’s design for human beings. But as the years go by and life comes full circle for you, consider your need and responsibility to accept help. There are probably many people who are willing and able to assist when and where they are needed. Having the humility to accept help at the right time is part of how we learn to grow old gracefully.

Find more biblical help in the article “Growing Old Gracefully.”  From:  https://lifehopeandtruth.com/relationships/aging/i-dont-want-to-be-a-burden/

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Praying People

“We have a duty to preach the gospel; we need to pray for our leaders so that we have the ability to carry out this commission.

Transcript of YouTube: https://youtu.be/4sQEj3S0obQ

[Steve Myers] “As God's people, we are to be a praying people. There's a section in 1 Timothy 2 that zeroes in on that very thing. 1 Timothy 2 begins with prayer and the importance for all of us to be praying. It says that we should give prayers, supplications, intercessions, and giving of thanks for all men. In fact, it focuses in on something interesting. It then says, in verse 2, that we should pray for kings and all who are in authority. Now, that might take you back just a little bit, but why should I be praying for a king or a president or somebody that's in charge? What would be the point of doing that? Well, the Apostle Paul explains that and he says, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all goodness and reverence.

So part of it is praying for ourselves, that we can have peace, we can meet, and we can worship God. But then he also says something I think that expands that idea, that it's not just for that. But then he says, in verse 4, that God desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.

So, why pray for leaders? Why pray for kings or presidents? Why pray for those that are in authority? Well, its impact on us so that we can have Godly lives, we can have peace, but also so that the Gospel can go out. We can preach the Good News so that God may call people and that Word will go out, not only as a message that people can come to but also as a warning, that we warn this world that ultimately God is in charge.

And so, let's pray. Let's pray for those who are in authority, that we may lead Godly lives, that it may be peaceable as we worship God, but also that His word, that the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and of Jesus Christ will go out in His power, His authority.”  From: https://www.ucg.org/beyond-today/beyond-today-daily/praying-people

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Top 10 Most HARMFUL Foods People Keep EATING

“Have you noticed when you are trying to eat healthy that everything has extra ingredients in it?  Make sure you don't eat one of these Top 10 Most Harmful Foods People Keep Eating. There are so many food products that, while they may taste delicious, are harmful to your health.”

See YouTube:  https://youtu.be/Hr1lW83qHCs   By  Dr. Sten Ekberg

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