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Haiti's Energy Market
November 25, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Haiti: Energy Market Overview
Haiti is located in the central Caribbean and occupies the western part of the island of Hispaniola together with its direct neighbor the Dominican Republic. It has a population of 9.7 million people and 60 percent of the population live in rural areas. Nonetheless there is substantial pressure on urban areas as the population there has more than tripled over the past 30 years to almost 4 million inhabitants. The country's service sector contributes about 45 percent to the national GDP. Agriculture, mining and construction contribute 35 percent to the GDP and the industrial sector accounts for 10 percent. The general lack of high value export products results in a substantial negative balance of trade. Imports exceed exports by a factor of three. (Ministry for Public Works Transportation and Communications, 2007)
Per capita energy consumption in Haiti is by far the lowest in all of the Caribbean with less than 100 kWh annually. Overall energy supply is dominated by fuel wood and charcoal which account for 75 percent of final energy consumption. Fossil fuels provide about 20 percent of final consumption of electricity accounting for the remaining 4 percent. The majority of energy, 65 percent, is consumed residentially, followed by industry with 19 percent, transportation with 12 percent and services with 4 percent. Less than 30 percent of households are connected to the national electricity grid, of which only 12.5 are connected through metered and legal connections. Despite the relatively small energy sector, fossil fuel imports account for between 35 and 50 percent of overall imports. (Ministry for Public Works Transportation and Communications, 2007; Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership, 2013)
The state-owned vertically integrated utility Electricité d'Haiti (EDH) has a monopoly on the production, transmission and distribution of electricity. It has a total generation capacity of 216 MW of which roughly one third (61.75 MW) come from hydropower and two thirds come from thermal generation. The majority of generation capacity (172 MW) is concentrated in the metropolitan region around the capital Port-au-Prince where two thermal plants and one hydropower plant provide electricity. The remaining 44 MW capacity are distributed throughout the country where small power plants with between 300kW and 9.8MW capacity generate electricity. Haiti's annual per capita consumption of electricity is the lowest in the Caribbean with 36 kWh. In comparison, the Caribbean average is 1,251 kWh. (IRENA, 2012; Ministry for Public Works Transportation and Communications, 2007; World Bank, 2010)
In addition to EDH a limited number of Independent Power Producers (IPP) have been providing electricity since 1996 when the first IPP contract was signed with EDH. In total IPP provide 94 MW capacity, of which 70 MW are based in the capital region and 24 MW are located in the rest of the country. (Ministry for Public Works Transportation and Communications, 2007)
Haiti: Energy and Electricity Sector Regulatory Framework
The Ministry of Public Works, Transportation and Communications (MTPTC) is the lead government agency responsible for the regulation of the energy and electricity sector in Haiti. Operating under supervision of MTPTC is the Bureau of Mines and Energy (BME), which was created as an independent agency in 1986. It is responsible for the exploration and promotion of mineral and energy resources and the technical aspects of the sector. It has close ties to EDH, e.g. the Minister of MTPTC also functions as the president of the Executive Board of EDH. The Ministry of Environment is tasked with the furthering of sustainable and renewable energy and questions relating to environmental protection in the energy sector. The overall institutional framework is weak and there exists a general lack of transparency. (Ministry for Public Works Transportation and Communications, 2007; Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership, 2013)
Electricité d'Haiti (EDH) was established on August 9, 1971 as a state-owned, vertically integrated utility which holds a monopoly on the generation, transmission, distribution and sale of electricity. EDH underlies the control and direction of the MTPTC and reports its activities to the Ministry . Production of electricity by IPP began in 1996 when Interselect SA signed a contract with EDH. Since then EDH has signed a number of power purchase agreements with a number of operators, e.g. Haytian Tractor, Alstom and Sogener. (Ministry for Public Works Transportation and Communications, 2007; World Bank, 2010)
IRENA. (2012). Renewable Energy Country Profiles: Haiti. Retrieved from http://www.irena.org/DocumentDownloads/Publications/_CaribbeanComplete.pdf
Ministry for Public Works Transportation and Communications. (2007). Haiti Energy Sector Development Plan.
Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership. (2013). Haiti Regulatory Framework. Retrieved from http://www.reegle.info/policy-and-regulatory-overviews/HT
World Bank. (2010). Caribbean Regional Electricity Generation , Interconnection, and Fuels Supply Strategy Final Report.
Filed Under: Haiti, Social Systems Tagged With: caribbean, crude oil, electricity, energy, energy market, fossil fuels, government, haiti, import, oil
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We provide unique and timely insights on the Caribbean and its political, social, and economic development. At the IDB, we strive to improve lives in the Caribbean by creating vibrant and resilient economies where people are safe, productive and happy.
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John Kerry says the US will Accept 85K Muslim Refugees in 2016 and 100K in 2017!
Secretary of State John Kerry just dropped a bombshell on every American and the hopeful legal immigrant community as well.
On Sunday Kerry was in Berlin meeting with the German Foreign Minister to talk over the ongoing refugee crisis currently boiling over in Europe. It was during this visit that Kerry announced to the world press that the United States would be moving to take in a huge number of Syrian refugees over the next two years.
Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton said Sunday on CBS News' "Face the Nation" that as many as 65,000 Syrian refugees should be taken in.
"We're facing the worst refugee crisis since the end of World War II, and I think the United States has to do more," the former secretary of State said on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday.


As a faithful follower of Dave Ramsey for almost a decade, my family has paid off tens of thousands in debt and built a sizeable emergency fund and if we can do it, so can you!
Wondering if Dave Ramsey's Envelope System is right for you?
If you're reading this post, I'll assume you've heard of Dave Ramsey's envelope system or the cash envelope system. I'll also assume you aren't quite where you want to be financially.
Dave Ramsey's envelope system uses a series of envelopes labeled by category (groceries, auto, clothing, restaurants, etc) and every payday you take out your budgeted amount of cash and divide into the envelopes. You only spend what you have and if it runs out you don't spend more in that category until next payday.
Let's face it, debt and money challenges are stressful! They can disintegrate marriages and take their toll on our health and our relationships with family and friends.
They can lead to things like bankruptcy and foreclosure and other devastating events.
If any of that sounds familiar then you've come to the right place!
You've probably heard of Dave Ramsey, the man who literally saved my family's financial future. But let's investigate Dave Ramsey's envelope system and his overall plan in great detail.
Most importantly, let's figure out why the cash envelope system works and how it can help your situation!
Pictured below are my family with Dave on a recent visit to his studios outside of Nashville.
Dave Ramsey is the host of the long-running Dave Ramsey show heard on radios nationwide as well as in podcast form. He's a frequent guest on all the major network news channels. And he's also a New York Times bestselling author.
In short, he's a big deal in the world of personal finance and if you and your family are not quite where you want to be financially, you need to get to know him.
Dave got his start famously at a card table in his living room after having become a millionaire and then filing bankruptcy. Thus he's in a perfect position to give financial advice and tell it like it is; the good, the bad and the ugly.
Dave Ramsey's envelope system is one of the real keys to making your budget work. In fact, it was the turning point in my family's journey out of financial chaos.
Essentially once you are on a written household budget, you decide on a set amount of spending money. This is money for gas, food, entertainment, and pocket money.
Rather than just continue to charge these things on a credit or debit card like most of us have done, we pay cash.
To make it easier, each paycheck you take out that set amount of money and divide it into individual envelopes. Each spending category gets its own envelope.
Once an envelope is empty, you have no more money to spend in that category until next paycheck.
Sometimes when you spend all your cash prematurely it can be a harsh reality.
It's easy in those moments to simply borrow from another envelope. It is also easy to think you can just charge it on your debit card and hope your spouse doesn't notice.
In those moments, it's critical to stay focused and disciplined.
Stay focused on the long-term goals and the big picture. And next pay period, I'll bet you'll evaluate your spending choices more carefully!
Do understand that for things like rent or mortgage, utilities, and other recurring bills, I simply pay those online using my credit union's online payment systems.
There's no point in paying cash for set recurring expenses that aren't discretionary. Thus for Dave Ramsey's envelope system, we're talking about your personal spending.
There you have Dave Ramsey's envelope system. But listen to Dave explain it himself!
Does the envelope system work?
You see, psychologically, when we just reach for plastic to pay, we lose a true sense of the value of the item. We skip the evaluation process in deciding if we really need that thing. We also typically lose track of how much we've spent so far that month.
Many of us have heard that we tend to spend between 12-18% more when we use credit or debit cards instead of cash.
But a recent study by Avni Shah, assistant professor of marketing at U of T Scarborough, found that "You feel something when you physically part with your money, and there are different levels of pain depending on the type of payment".
In other words, when you reach for plastic, you're less apt to really care about that purchase or really feel the true value of the item.
Shah went on to say "There are shorter product life cycles (when paying with plastic) and if consumers are feeling less connected to the products they're already buying, just add easier access to credit and higher consumer debt levels and it's a toxic combination".
Between overdraft "protection" (protection for whom?) and revolving credit, it's all too easy to just keep spending like you're in Congress!
Thus the cash envelope system keeps us in check. It holds us accountable. We're more apt to scrutinize just how bad we want that Starbucks coffee each morning. And by simply looking in our wallet, we know exactly how much we have left to spend.
You don't have to get fancy with your envelopes, but Dave does have a very nice Starter Envelope System available on Amazon Prime for less than $20 bucks, so check that out if you need help!
What are the categories for the envelope system?
Bear in mind that what your family spends money on may be different from min.
For example, I cut my own hair and my wife goes only a couple times a year and has a friend who is a stylist. Therefore, our hair-cutting expenses are low compared to many.
Beyond that, my wife and I have one called Family Fun which is what we use for spending (usually on weekends) for anything from a present for birthday parties my daughters get invited to, to going to the zoo or children's museum, etc.
How do you do the envelope system?
Start with your monthly budget and determine how much cash you need for your different envelope categories.
How much that is will depend a great deal on both your income and if you're trying to get out of debt (more on that below when we get into Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps).
You take that money out of the bank each payday and divide it up among your envelopes, transferring from the envelopes to your wallet as needed.
That's how we do the cash envelope system, but in the early days of following Dave Ramsey's program when we were deep in debt, we operated on far less; probably less than half that.
But the beauty of the baby steps journey is that as you get your finances more in line, you are able to let off the intensity a little and enjoy the journey.
After all, if we can't enjoy at least most of the journey, why are we doing it?
One thing that helped us tremendously is finding small ways to quickly and easily generate extra income. If you have just a little bit of extra time you owe it to yourself to check out my 53 ways to Earn Extra Money on the side each week!
Can I borrow from one envelope for another?
The short answer is it's your money; you can do anything you like.
That being said, what we're trying to do with the envelope system is to learn to be intentional with our money, make better choices, and to be more disciplined.
If we budget in $60 for my weekly personal spending and I go out with my buddies one night and spend it all only 2 days into the week, I could "borrow" money from one of the other envelopes.
But what happens when that other envelope then runs out early?
In short, borrowing money is borrowing money. Just because you're borrowing it from yourself and not paying interest doesn't mean it's not technically a form of debt.
So avoid the urge to borrow from one envelope to another, be disciplined and intentional with your spending choices, change how the envelopes are allocated if you notice a consistent shortfall, and then, you're much more likely to find your way to financial success.
How does online shopping factor into the envelope system?
More and more people these days shop on Amazon and other online retailers and that's not likely to do anything but increase.
So in this case, we won't set aside cash for online spending, but we will budget it into our monthly budget as a set expense, and we will have a set amount for that spending each month.
Thus, you'll want to know that amount, have it in your budget before you decide how much to take out for your cash envelopes.
The beauty of cash envelopes is that it's incredibly easy to see how much is left.
Thus, with online shopping, the budget nerd in your family will need to keep close tabs on that and update the budget with every purchase to make sure you don't go over.
Then, just have the discipline to stop spending when you hit your monthly allowance.
Make no mistake, you WILL do better using cash.
As I mentioned above, being able to see how much cash you have left causes us to scrutinize our purchases much more thoroughly.
Do we hit up that expensive buffet or just swing by In-N-Out Burger?
But I also recognize that in today's "modern" world, many people don't carry cash. Or maybe you live in a big urban city where carrying a lot of cash just isn't safe.
So to do the envelope system without cash, you'll want to follow the same system, but have each envelope category on your monthly budget. You could even go so far as to open a 2nd checking account and each payday, transfer money from your primary checking into the envelope spending account and use the debit card for that account for all your "cash" spending.
But even with just 1 checking account, you'll want to set a budget for spending in each category (by week, month, or 2-week increment depending on how you have your budget set up).
The only downside is you'll want to be monitoring charges on your bank's website and updating your budget more frequently. That is especially true if 2 spouses are each charging instead of paying cash.
Trust me. My wife and I did the cashless system at first and it was easy to lose track of spending and we did not get the same traction in paying off debt that we did when we switched to Dave Ramsey's envelope system.
But with discipline and focus, you can do it, and any system of being intentional with your money is better than none.
What should I do with leftover cash at the end of the month?
I don't know about your house, but finding ways to spend money has never been a problem for my family.
Thus, we don't have this problem.
I would start by simply leaving it in the envelopes and then just know you have a little surplus for the next pay period. If you consistently have money left over that is a clear indicator that this category doesn't need as much as you originally allocated.
If you have any debt, I would most certainly use the excess to pay off debt and just reduce how much that envelope gets moving forward.
No debt? That's great! But I bet your retirement accounts or kid's college accounts could use a boost. If nothing else, do you save each month for Christmas Spending? If not, start that today, and extra cash from your envelopes is a great way to kick that off.
What envelopes does my family use?
We've played around with getting more categories and more detailed, but for us, simpler was better. In short, do what works for your family and what will keep you on track the most.
Neither my wife or I spend a lot on a regular basis on clothing or shoes. Thus we don't have envelopes for that.
When it is time for those expenses, we talk about it and budget it in for the next month. You or your spouse's spending habits might be very different!
My wife and I have been on his plan now for almost 10 years, but we weren't following Dave Ramsey's envelope system at first.
We thought we were smarter than Dave.
While we did get rid of our credit cards, we continued to charge our set spending amounts for food, gas & family spending on a debit card.
Somehow we just weren't gaining the traction we needed. Finally, we decided to give Dave Ramsey's envelope system a try and that's when the ball really started rolling for us.
We got out from a home we couldn't afford and paid off over $60,000 in debt and have never looked back!
Dave Ramsey's complete plan is contained in his best selling book, The Total Money Makeover. It's no coincidence he's sold millions of copies. I've scoured the pages of my copy over the years.
Even though I've spent hundreds of hours reading his posts and listening to his show, I still glean lots of great tips from this book; even today.
While there's a great deal of free content on my site and others about how to get out of debt and build your financial future, I strongly urge you to get a copy of his book for yourself!
What are the Dave Ramsey 7 Baby Steps?
As with any task or goal that seems so large, it can't be done, just break it down into baby steps!
Dave Ramsey rightly realizes that a financial mess isn't technical, it's emotional. Thus the process of cleaning up a mess is incredibly intimidating. He breaks down the journey out of debt and into financial success into a series of small, very achievable, baby steps.
When something is daunting, intimidating or just flat out challenging, we're more apt to give up or procrastinate. We tell ourselves we "I can't do it". "It's not realistic". In truth, we're just scared.
Fear can be a powerful motivator when used correctly.
But you can't let it control or limit your own actions. If you struggle with the paralyzing effects of fear, take a moment and check out one of my most shared posts about the benefits of Facing Your Fears.
Not on a written household budget yet?
Being on a written budget each month that you and your spouse agree to in advance is critical for your financial success. It will be almost impossible to live your dreams and truly get ahead.
Dave Ramsey's envelope system may be the key to dialing things in, but the budget is your blueprint.
If you aren't sure How to Make a Budget, I have a previous post that walks you through those very steps and I highly recommend you take a moment and review that critical process.
OK, so you're ready to budget but have no idea where to start or what tool to use?
I have a copy of my Budgeting Spreadsheet available at no charge – a key step in ensuring you have enough money each month to save for retirement!
Want an easy and cheap way to cut your bills?
I just signed up with BillXpertz. They negotiate with the bill companies of your choice. If they can lower your payments, they take a small percentage of the savings. If they can't reduce your bills, it costs you nothing.
Talk about easy money! Check out BillXperts and see if they can't save you money too. Some folks have saved thousands!
Do you have questions about Dave Ramsey's envelope system?
In this post, we took an in-depth look at famed personal finance expert Dave Ramsey and the cash envelope system he famously advocates for.
We explored why paying cash helps save you money, the best ways to get out of debt and cut spending, as well as all of Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps.
Specifically, though, we looked at Dave Ramsey's Envelope System and how you can easily implement it into your family. This 1 small move was at the heart of my family's journey to financial success and I know it can help you too!
The app Trim automatically looks at your monthly bills & spending and then cross-checks that with savings programs almost all vendors have. It's a great way to put a few extra bucks in those envelopes each month!
What's the biggest financial challenge you're facing right now?
If you like this post, please follow my Budgeting board on Pinterest for more great tips from myself and top financial experts!
While I have years of successful financial & budgeting experience and run several million dollar businesses and handled the accounting, P&L and been responsible for the financial assets of them, I am not an accountant or CPA. Like all my posts, my posts are my opinons based on my own experience, observations, research and mistakes. While I believe all my personal finance posts to be thorough, accurate and well-researched, if you need financial advice, you should seek out a qualified professional in your area.
Mr. Campbell, good article sir. Want to warn folks before jumping on these cost savings companies that some operate where they will ask you to pre-pay the savings up front before you see those savings. Some folks have an issue in paying that down. I called one such company to find them doing that so I declined further service.
Thanks for taking the time to comment. If you mean companies like Shrink-a-bill or bill-expertz I recall when I used them that they told me exactly how much I was going to save before I paid anything. If that's not your experience I'd love to hear about it. If it's other companies you're referring to, especially if I have ever mentioned them, I'd love to know who specifically as my goal is always to save people money and help them manage it better.
I am trying the cash only right now and I have to say I spend less than using my cc (and paying it in full every month).
The other perk; talking to people!
While paying for gas with cash could be seen as an inconvenience, I thought it was nice to talk with the cashier rather than punch numbers into a keypad. Great write up on the envelope system!
Thanks for commenting. I've been doing the cash system for a long time but I don't ever stopped to think about how it increases personal interaction.
Thanks for sharing that! Great tip!


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Bankruptcy Checklist
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Prior to helping people through their financial issues, I had to deal with my own, and actually filed bankruptcy myself. I understand what its like to stress about barely getting by making minimum payments, harassing phone calls from creditors, and even getting sued. I can also testify to the fact that there is life after bankruptcy, and that going through this process, while difficult, can truly enable you to move forward and live a better life.
I have personally helped over 1000 people file for Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy in the Middle District of Florida and have the experience thoroughly review, plan and advise of you of your options.
My firm is primarily a virtual one, meaning that I don't have a traditional office space. This allows me to keep costs low for myself, which in turn allows me to relay those costs savings to you. It also means that I don't have traditional hours, so you don't need to take off work to have your legal issues dealt with. You will also have complete access to me - no paralegal or staff acting as a gatekeeper - the phone number listed goes directly to me and no one else. Most of our communication will be digital - either via email, text, phone, or video conferencing. However, for those looking for a sit down meeting, I typically hold office hours every Friday, usually rotating between Tampa and St. Petersburg locations.
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Mailing Address: 204 37th Ave. N #131, St. Petersburg, FL 33704
Office Meetings by Appointment Only
robert@deleon-law.com

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UNITED NATIONS INTERNATIONAL DESIGN COMPETITION AWARDED TO NOTED ARCHITECT RODNEY LEON TO HONOR VICTIMS OF SLAVERY AND THE TRANSATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE
The Winning "Ark of Return" Permanent Memorial Announced By Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon During Special Ceremony At The United Nations on September 23, 2013
Memorial designer Rodney Leon (standing, third from left) along side judges next to model of the "Ark of Return," the winning design for the United Nations Permanent Memorial in Honor of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. (Photo: DPI / the U.N.)
CaribPR Wire, NEW YORK, NY (September 24, 2013) – Rodney Leon Architects announced its winning design of the International Competition for the Permanent Memorial at the United Nations as a significant symbol to remember and honor the victims of slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. The United Nations' theme for the competition, "Acknowledge the Tragedy, Consider the Legacy, Lest We Forget," formed the inspiration for Rodney Leon's winning design entitled The Ark of Return. Leon's winning design expresses the cross-cultural and global impact of the slave trade, while honoring those who have died and those who have shared their struggle.
The international competition garnered 310 entrants from 83 countries. A panel of internationally acclaimed design professionals, artists, and other relevant stakeholders served as jurors. Haitian-American Leon was unanimously chosen from among seven finalists representing countries including China, Columbia, Finland, France, Italy, Portugal and the United States. The competition was launched two years ago by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), with support from the UN Department of Public Information's Remember Slavery Programme, and Member States from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the African Union. Jamaica serves as Chairman of the Permanent Memorial Committee.
A special Unveiling Ceremony was held at United Nations Headquarters in New York on September 23, 2013 to recognize the competition's finalists and officially announce Leon's winning design. Notable presenters and guests included: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon; Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, Peter Launsky-Tieffenthal; Mr. John W. Ashe, President of the 68th session of the General Assembly; Portia Simpson Miller, Prime Minister of Jamaica; Arnold Nicholson, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Jamaica; Pierre Richard Casimir, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Religion of Haiti; UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova; and Mr. Courtenay Rattray, Chair, Permanent Memorial Committee.
Commenting on winning this groundbreaking competition, Leon noted, "It's a privilege to have been chosen by the International Design Competition Panel of Judges to honor victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade. I designed The Ark of Return memorial as a sacred space to psychologically and spiritually transport visitors to the United Nations to a place where acknowledgement, education, reflection and healing can take place."
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the memorial "will serve as a reminder of the bravery of those slaves, abolitionists and unsung heroes who managed to rise up against an oppressive system, fight for their freedom and end the practice."
The memorial's exterior form is constructed in a fashion to reflect the image of a vessel or ship in acknowledgement of the millions of African people transported on slave ships to different parts of the world during the "Middle Passage." Images of maps depicting the "Triangular Slave Trade" influenced the use of the triangle as a primary element in designing the memorial's shape. The memorial is conceptually also organized in three parts and visitors are meant to pass through The Ark of Return to intimately experience three primary elements on the interior space.
Veteran Counsels for DEA and DOJ Join Diaz Reus
Native New Yorker Rodney Leon, the founder and principal of Manhattan-based Rodney Leon Architects PLLC, has an architectural background as a designer on a diversity of projects including memorials, housing, churches and cultural institutions in the U.S. and abroad. Leon received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from Pratt Institute School of Architecture and his Masters of Architecture from Yale University. As a graduate student, he served as a teaching assistant for the eminent African art historian professor Robert Farris Thompson and after graduation spent time living and working in the Ivory Coast, West Africa. Among Leon's various honors and accolades, in 2005 he was awarded the prestigious commission for design and construction of the African Burial Ground Memorial in New York City, which is the only National Monument in the United States dedicated to the contributions of people of African descent.
As a first generation Haitian-American, Leon is also an active supporter of philanthropic causes benefiting Haiti. He is a founding Board Director of The Haitian Roundtable and serves as a lecturer, media expert and presenter on the subject of Haiti's reconstruction since the January 2010 earthquake.
For more information regarding the Permanent Memorial at the United Nations to honor victims of slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, please visit www.unslaverymemorial.org. For more information regarding the award-winning work of Rodney Leon Architects, please visit www.rodneyleon.com


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Gary, Martin Witherspoon (1831-1881), lawyer, politician, and Confederate general
Orville Vernon Burton
Gary, Martin Witherspoon (25 March 1831–09 April 1881), lawyer, politician, and Confederate general, was born in Cokesbury, South Carolina, the son of Thomas Reeder Gary, a physician, and Mary Anne Porter. Thomas Gary was a wealthy, upcountry slave owner. In addition to practicing medicine, he farmed and represented Abbeville District for two terms in the state legislature. Martin Gary was a pupil at the Cokesbury Methodist Conference school. He attended South Carolina College but was expelled along with others in his junior class for rebelling against an unpopular teacher. He graduated from Harvard with honors in June 1854. In November of that year he went to Edgefield, South Carolina, to study law with Chancellor James P. Carroll and was admitted to the bar in May 1855. Until his death, Gary maintained a highly successful criminal law practice in Edgefield. Reared a Methodist, he joined the Trinity Episcopal Church in Edgefield and became a vestryman....
Johnston, Peter (1763-1831), jurist, legislator, and soldier
Robert M. Ireland
Johnston, Peter (06 January 1763–08 December 1831), jurist, legislator, and soldier, was born at Osborne's Landing on the James River, Virginia, the son of Peter Johnston, a merchant and farmer, and Martha Rogers. At two years of age Johnston moved with his parents to a large farm in Prince Edward County, Virginia, where he was educated by tutors before enrolling in Hampden-Sydney College (established on land donated by Johnston's father). In late 1779, in a decision that displeased his Loyalist father, Johnston quit college to join the cavalry legion of Lieutenant Colonel ...
Kershaw, Joseph Brevard (1822-1894), lawyer, soldier, and politician
Rod Paschall
Kershaw, Joseph Brevard (05 January 1822–13 April 1894), lawyer, soldier, and politician, was born in Camden, South Carolina, the son of John Kershaw, a judge, and Harriette Du Bose. The Kershaws were a distinguished South Carolina family. Joseph was named for his paternal grandfather, who had immigrated to America from England in 1748 and was prominent in the American Revolution. Joseph's father was mayor of Camden for several years and served one term in the U.S. Congress. Joseph studied for a career in law in the offices of the distinguished South Carolina lawyer John M. De Saussure and passed the South Carolina bar at age twenty-one. In 1844 he married Lucretia Douglas; the couple had one son and four daughters. After practicing for several years, beginning in June 1844, he participated in the Mexican War as a volunteer, serving as a lieutenant in South Carolina's Palmetto Regiment. In Mexico, he saw action in several battles but became ill and was evacuated back to the United States in June 1847. Kershaw was elected to the South Carolina state legislature in 1852 and 1854, and he was a member of the state's 1860 secession convention that met in Charleston, South Carolina....


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Big question, who are you serving? Are they ready to be served? I am amazed at every revelation, on how far what ever we have ever built has led us to. How much energy we have spent supporting a system that has never served us nor had ever had any intention to do so.
The thought that, one cannot force anyone to comprehend a message they are not ready to receive, keep popping up in my head, evoking thoughts of fear, but the complementing idea of the fact that one must still never underestimate the power of planting a seed keeps me going. I just had to give as much energy to my dreams, my vision in action as I do to my fears.
We talk poverty, economic crisis, global warming, the list is endless, blanketed by a wild fire of social ills. One sits and ask oneself, how did we get here, when we all claim smartness, when we all scholars of note, when we all specialists, produced by a made up 'system', which is a concoction of religion, education, and politics with a cherry on top of something called 'marriage' to sweeten it. All of these, their fiber extracted from the body of knowledge. Was this system designed to educate us, guide us or was it a tool to lead us to another human disaster? Who is benefitting of this? At what cost?


text:
Around the Heart
Gone From the School, Not From the Heart
Humans of Sacred Heart
King Street Chronicle
This week's Human of Sacred Heart...Mrs. Rebecca Beaton
Happy New Year and Welcome Back from the King Street Chronicle
Shopping for love in The Last Christmas
Readers beware, this article contains spoilers to the movie, The Last Christmas. Please take caution while reading. Thank you.
Jacey Heffernan, Sports & Health Editor, Co-Features Editor, and Co-Livestream Manager |December 3, 2019
The Last Christmas debuted November 8, starring Ms. Emilia Clark and Mr. Henry Golding.
Caroline Baranello '20
The Last Christmas debuted November 8, which Mr. Paul Reig directed, starring Ms. Emilia Clarke and Mr. Henry Golding. The love story illustrates the two main characters, Kate and Tom, as they journey through London, England and work through the obstacles they encounter. The romantic comedy movie incorporated elements of Christmas through a Christmas shop, Yuletide, where Kate works under her boss, Santa, played by Ms. Michelle Yeoh.
Kate and Tom exploring the city of London at the beginning of the film. Courtesy of comingsoon.net
The protagonist, Kate, works at Yuletide dressed in an elf costume. Kate's worrisome mother constantly warns her about her past illness, a heart defect. A handsome man, Tom, catches Kate's attention and the two suddenly start exploring the city of London. After spending days together, the two slowly fall in love, guiding the viewers to think everything is well until the story takes an unpleasant turn.
Santa, Kate's boss and friend, is somehow able to see and recognize Tom at the end of the film. In reality, the movie explains that Tom is in Kate's imagination because she lives with his heart inside her.
Toward the end of the film, when Tom is no longer in Kate's sight, she searches for him throughout London. Kate meets a stranger who informs her that Tom was in a bike crash many years ago and passed away.
Santa and Kate working together at the Yuletide Christmas shop. Courtesy of portlandmercury.com
Due to Kate's heart condition diagnosis, she received a donor heart from Tom during a transplant surgery. Based on the lyrics from the song, "Last Christmas" by Wham! the film begins with the words, "Last Christmas, I gave you my heart," correlating the lyrics with the plot of the movie. It is only at the end of the movie when the viewer recognizes that Tom's heart is Kate's heart. Kate's imagination during the film leads the viewers to believe that Tom's physical body is still alive.
The film has a well-organized plot and the actors performed well. However, the falsely interpreted Christmas movie was truly just another romance film. The Last Christmas failed to incorporate the elements of holiday joy and Christmas spirit.
Featured Image by Caroline Baranello '20
Jacey Heffernan, Sports & Health Editor/Co-Features Editor/Co-Livestream Manager
Jacey enjoyed her time as a staff writer last year for the King Street Chronicle and is thrilled to return with leadership roles for the 2019-2020 school...
Art of the Week – "Georgetown Sunset" – Ms. Daisy Steinthal '19
The 2020 Golden Globes invites comedy but rejects progress
Art of the Week – "Sunbathing" – Kara Hodge '20
Art of the Week – "Christmas Whiteboard" – Mae Harkins '20
Guide to Greenwich – Stocking Stuffers
Art of the Week – "Snowfall" – Sarah Mickley '21
Art of the Week – "Nature Abstraction" – Fran Iraola '21
One for all and all for the Three Musketeers
Art of the Week – "Another Sacred Sunrise" – Mrs. Christine Gerrity
Fall Play Preview 2019
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Non-settling manufacturers must file a report with the Texas Office of Attorney General detailing certain information required by law. The report forms and a detailed description of the requirement can be found on the Attorney General's website.
Every January, the Comptroller will set new fee rates by increasing the previous year's rate by the greater of 3 percent or the rate of inflation as calculated using the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). The new computed rates will take effect on February 1 of each year and are valid for 12 consecutive months.
NSM or SPM (with credit amendment) – 3.28364 cents per cigarette stick or 0.09 ounces of cigarette tobacco product..
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text:
Christian No More, America's Last Days of Probation
Ron Kelly
Senior Pastor, Village SDA Church, Berrien Springs, Michigan
Village SDA Church
www.villagesda.org
Jesus On Prophecy
Copyright ©2019 AudioVerse.
Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US) license.
medieval church
daniel chapter
1st beast
revelation chapter
religious leader
2nd beast
electorate finds
america ceases
religious power
unwieldy multitude
serve god
external law
beast coming
pray lord
represents greece
dead spirits
beast equals
deadly wound
barbarian conquerors
great beast
year anniversary
city set
Thank you Lord for our gathering again here tonight we thank you for the privilege of freedom for this great country that has liberated so many to be able to choose who and how and when they would worship and I'm asking the Lord tonight that we would prize that privilege perhaps like we never have before before this night is over so now Lord I pray bless our leaders strengthen those that govern from the local township to the president of the United States give them courage and grace and wisdom and may they walk in the light in Jesus' name I pray Amen. Seeding we're going to cover a fair amount of ground hopefully not too quickly I've been tired of my message Christian no more America's last days of probation now before I start you so I carried up a slew of books obviously Solomon said and John testified as well in the New Testament that the making of books there is no end this one says coming apart. This one says the road to character this one says the death of character. And this one is America in retreat I have another old one here called the peril of the Republic which was a very interesting book written about 100 years ago by a admin is historian examining the roots of American governance against some of its imperialistic acts in the early 20th century. Tonight I do want to say with you there is some so Bridey about what I'm going to share but I want you to remember something the work of a prophet is that edify and exhort and to comfort and here's the one thing I don't want you to do don't hang your hook don't don't hold on for the American dream hold on for The Heavenly One a man now listen this is not your home the problem is America's been very very good to all of us. And we have lived beyond the reach of so many of the world's traumas and it's because of our laws our Constitution and it's because of the character and culture of our nation which is exactly what's under siege today and we have experienced so much opportunity and liberty that it's turned into license and we are experiencing a rotting of society and civilization and soul and this is precisely what it has been the churches job to do and preserve Unfortunately the church in the last 40 years has co-opted a business model where the pastors relate to you like your customers and of course we know in America customers are king but the church was never meant to be co-opted in a business model the church was to be a family God's family and pastors were to be spiritual leaders along with moms and dads and homes were to be little churches but instead they've turned into theatres and sometimes dens of evil and instead of challenging people to do what's right we've embraced the idea of making people feel good no matter what they're doing and in the end it isn't going to be good so tonight I'm appealing to you to be salt. Be the kind of people that change your workplace change your home make our communities great places and by the way I very much appreciate my my community here in southwest Michigan and I've Bally's so much my church family and those of you that have gathered here tonight we can make a difference but you do pay a price for freedom and I want you to understand that for a long time now I don't think much of a price has been paid by the majority so tonight a few sober but indeed truthful journeys through the prophetic message is Christian no more the Bible says righteousness exalted the nation but sin is a reproach to any people I need to know as I start tonight. That people and nations have moments of probation when they wander away from their charter from the mandate from the reason for their existence God holds groups of people accountable just as he holds individuals and there is a recording angel that examines the journey of the families of the year in Revelation Chapter 13 last night we saw that worst it was a very big deal as a matter of fact reparation 13 describes 2 beast I didn't tell you who the 1st beast was tonight I'm going to explain to you who the 2nd beast was now this is slightly out of order of how one might normally do this but before it's all said and done I think we can make good sense of the 2nd beast in Revelation 13 this is an artist's rendition of The 1st a 7 headed 10 horned beast Now if you've been noticing on our Jesus on probably see logo there's a picture of Jesus holding the light and you have these symbols around him these are symbols that represent nations and kingdoms this is a prophetic. Understanding that comes as the Bible explains itself John writing on Revelation 13 says I stood on the sand of the sea and I saw a beast coming up out of the Sea Now we saw last night that in the previous night that meddles in the dream represented kings and kingdoms I'm going to show you tonight that animals Now this shouldn't be new to us almost every sports team has some kind of mascot that represents it and countries do too in the United States if I were to flash a picture of an eagle up there holding the arrows you would know that represents the United States there's nothing new about this it shouldn't surprise us this be said 7 heads and 10 horns and on his horns 10 crowns. And on his head's blasphemous name that gives us an understanding that this is not some far off religious power this is a Christian or at least a religion related to Jehovah because blasphemy in the Bible relates to taking on the progressives and the attributes of God The Beast that he saw was an interesting conglomeration it was a leopard in some places on the feet actually it was a leopard and on the feet it looked like a bear. And his mouth was like the mouth of a lion and the dragon gave him his throne and his great authority now the question is do these beasts appear anywhere else and the answer is yes in day in chapter 7 now Daniel Chapter 7 will be the next major story or exposé of prophetic history after to Daniel Chapter 2 The medals and the dream but Daniel is going to cover the same ground but this time he's going to use different symbols and in the Book of Daniel the farther you go into the book the more the details get on the time of the end because when you read Daniel Chapter 12 Daniel tells us that the book is about the time of the end now Daniel is different than Revelation the Book of Daniel is Daniel's told seal up the book Revelation is not to be sealed but Daniel was not understood and has only had a progressive understanding through the years and Jesus understood that the abomination of desolation was something Daniel had predicted as one of his prophets but in Daniel Chapter 7 we're going to cover the same ground of. Progression of kingdoms as we did in Daniel chapter 2 but it's going to be these these animals and these animals are what are going to show up again a Revelation 13 only it's a conglomeration of all these animals in Revelation 13 so Daniel spoke saying I saw my vision by night the 4 winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea and for a great beast came up from the sea each different from the other so here we go. Those those great beast which are for our 4 kings Now I'm skipping a little farther into the chapter and I'm about to go back so he's telling us at the end of the chapter that these beasts represent Kings which arise out of the earth and when he goes to explain it it's not just the person but it's the kingdom thus he said the 4th be shall be the 4th kingdom on Earth so the Bible isn't making this very simple you don't have to go to the newspaper as a matter of fact don't go to the tabloid magazines don't go to the internet understand the Bible go to the rest of the Bible it explains itself God set it up this way inspired explanations for inspired mysteries a beast equals a political power in the prophecies Now when you're reading in the regular historical narratives a beast doesn't equal a kingdom a beast is a beast when you read about Balan's donkey that wouldn't obey him and talk to him that doesn't represent a king or a kingdom it's just a story it's a historical story but in the prophetic literature a beast equals a kingdom and waters equal something the waters which you saw are peoples multitudes nations in tongues Jesus explains this to the prophet John in the Book of Revelation so these beasts are coming up out of the peoples of the world and what were they for kingdoms Dan Chapter 2 covers these 4 kingdoms and I won't spend a lot of time here but we saw Babyland me to Persia Greece Rome and divided Europe but when we come down to the beast the main chapter 7 we're going to see a lion that represents Babylon and a bear that represents Persia and it and a leopard that represents Greece and the Rome is represented by the dragon So the 1st was like a lion he had eagle's wings I watched until they were plucked off and was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on 2 feet like a man and a man's heart was given to it interestingly enough there can be no doubt you can go to the Pergamon Museum in Berlin I've been there a few times. You can go to. And you can go to the is target which was the palace it was the impressive gate if you were to enter Babylon and they have all these glazed blue bricks and all over them are window Lions This is a very easy symbol to find historically associated with the kingdom of Babylon and suddenly another beast the 2nd like a bear it was raised up on one side and had 3 ribs in its mouth between his teeth and they said thus to it arise devour and eat much flesh we should be expecting indeed that the kingdom that would follow Babylon in tempter 7 is the same kingdom that would follow Bablon in Chapter 2 me to Persia conquered from the east and then it went on to conquer the rest of the known world after this I looked and there was another like a leopard which had on his back 4 wings of a bird when you see wings on something it's a reference to Bickley to swiftness the Beast also had 4 heads and dominion was given to it now there is a reason for the 4 heads this animal represents Greece and when we look at the conquest of Alexander the Great indeed it was a very swift and unexpected victory to victory that he experienced why the 4 heads because when he died suddenly at the age of 32 or 33 from alcohol poisoning seemed he could not control his appetite. He was his kingdom was divided 4 ways by his 4 generals now after this I saw in the night vision of Behold the 4 these dreadful and terrible exceedingly strong what these followed Greece in Daniel Chapter 2 what what kingdom. Rome and that's what we're going to see here they had huge iron teeth that was devouring breaking in pieces and trampling the residue with its feet it shouldn't surprise us it is somewhat unique and different from all the other beasts and it had 10 horns we know that Rome in the end was divided 10 ways there is a element that enters into problems the called the Little Horn and we see a co-opting of civil power and religious power when the civil government of Rome implodes there comes out of it a religious entity that will rule the world and those 10 horns representing 10 conquered kingdoms of Western Europe and we see again the progression now tonight I want to talk about the 2nd piece of Revelation Chapter 13 it is a unique beast and it has unique habits. I saw another beast coming up out of the earth this beast was different than what he was used to seeing before it had 2 forms and a lamb like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon so there's kind of a riddle about this animal it appears as something that John may have never seen before it has 2 horns but there is something conspicuously missing with this animal the thing we 1st need to notice is where does this power arise it comes up out of the earth now we learned just moments ago that the sea represents peoples in this case the Earth being the opposite of that geologically speaking represents a place where there is not nearly the density of population as you found in the old world where most of these kingdoms had had their focus before so it's coming up out of a not so part populated component of the globe and it's a strange thing that North America should find itself so largely undiscovered and not that there weren't peoples here indeed and for some of those for many of the dynamics in relating to the Native Americans that are you lived here we can sense a great sense of regret for some of the way they were treated but largely speaking this was a unpopulated nation when does this power of arise now this becomes a little bit this becomes a little bit where the 2 topics are tied together in such a way that I need you to kind of take my word on this until I get to a farther into the seminar but when we see them a divil church the Bible prophesies that for 1260 years the medieval church would rule this kingdom after Rome's implosion. But there would come an end of that rule it's actually prophesied the timeline has a starting point and an ending point it ends late in the 1700s which is about the time we see America coming on the scene the 1st beast receives a deadly wound and is led into captivity and about the same time that the medieval Church is losing its grip on learning and society and civilization we see America rising in this sparsely populated place and how does this power arrive it was coming up out of the earth he had 2 horns like a layer on now notice on these horns there are no crowns when we saw the 7 headed beast with 10 horns we see crowns this dynamic represents a ruling power when you read about horns in the Old Testament and it often is a symbol representing a intensification and a coming together of power and authority but these ones don't have crowns on them this will be a different kind of country it's going to rule without the kind of dictatorship that most countries experience throughout their history and indeed our country is described in the Book of Revelation it comes on the scene very late in the history of man and it represents a completely different type of governance and people have freedoms here that they never had and any time prior to the experience of the United States of America now with little exceptions here and there and certainly in the nation of Israel there was freedom to choose to serve or not serve God God said to see this day whether you will serve me so coming up out of the earth you had 2 horns and he does something unique for a period of his existence he speaks like a lamb he is indeed the one who is willing to sacrifice and serve he is the epitome of goodness but eventually he speaks differently he speaks. The 1st base of Revelation Chapter 13 and unfortunately friends this is where we see the world with its emphasis on nationalism and tribalism the degradation of society the rot of culture we are headed towards a period of time in which authoritarianism will be introduced to reestablish civility on the face of the planet how does a nation speak speaks to its laws our laws provide freedoms if I want to stand up here tonight and talk freely about my religious convictions I can do that if you want to come to this church tonight you have the freedom to do that in some places no such freedom exists if we want to sing our lungs out there where they can hear us driving down and 139 we can do that in some countries they don't dare sing because it would give away the fact that they're worshipping God and the state religion is not Christianity and they could lose their life for it he exercised all the authority of the 1st beast in his presence and he causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the 1st beast whose Deadly Wound was healed what I need to explain to you tonight which I will establish in fact as we go through the series is that the medieval church ruled with both religious and civil authority that authority was taken away from it when the Polian jailed the leader of the medieval church and for the last 200 years in the lightman theory and rational thought has ruled in the leading governments of the world but that won't which limited the effect of the medieval churches power to exercise authority over our conscience that wound the Bible describes is being and will be healed and when it is healed this nation will speak like that phase of history and our freedoms will not be enshrined in law the law will be reversed and the great principles that have guided this nation for so long and made. That a beautiful light and city set on a hill will be rescinded it goes so far as to say that he will perform signs so that even he makes fire to come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men and last night explained on Mount Carmel fire coming down was evidence of God's presence in the midst of this showdown between Alijah in the false prophets and of course the original sacrifices in the Bible were ignited by God's presence he came down and he let the sacrifice and once that sacrifice was lit they were careful to protect that fire and take it with them wherever they went he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast in other words when there is this radical return to religion we will see a manifestation of spiritual power there were overwhelmed the senses of the Western world you know there are places in this world where they know the demons exist there are places in this world where they know their spiritual battles going on but in America we've pretty much relegated that either to the occult and spiritualism and seances or it's all make believe but the truth of the matter is is that there will be angels evil and good vying for the allegiance of man as Earth comes in for the final showdown between light and darkness truth and error and that showdown ought to be understood because there is a preparation that we can make for it what is the image to the beast it is a an image is a likeness so what we will see is there will be a reoccurrence of this phenomena church and state will reunite to enforce religious practices now you say that is bizarre just could never happen in America I can remember 25 years ago when I explain this to my father. And he said to himself and he said to me in effect because I don't remember the actual words I don't see how that could ever happen but I want to tell you today before I'm done you're going to see how not only it could happen but I'm going to show you how the introductory reinstitution of credibility for some of these questionable systems systems that have compelled men's consciences I'm going to show you how the world is not only trendy but will someday soon clamor. For the kind of stability that religious direction can bring you see the churches of America and the Western world and the rest of the world should be calibrating the conscience of society but instead they have found it easier to stay in business and to take care of padding their pockets by treating you the way you want to be treated not the way a father would treat his children or a mother or Erin child spirits or the Klein natural disaster social chaos and economic divide call t's are going to lead up to this church and state union it's not going to be a hostile takeover the world is going to look for those happy days again we sing about it but we're going to we're watching it slip through our fingers how many children can grow up without responsible parents how many places can you go where you worry whether or not the person driving the opposite way on the highway is hazed by this substance or by that we're headed towards a point time in which the world is going to clamor for a sense of self control and the best place for self to curb control to come from are the convictions of God The problem is when they were reinforced by the state they're no longer convictions of person their convictions of law and that's not enough to change a culture that's not enough to really change a nation he performs these great signs even making fire come down in the sight of men and the result is deception remember friends if they say he's in the desert don't go look when somebody starts describing to you some amazing miracle make sure that the fruits of this individual's life go along with the Bible because evil miracles performed by evil angels demons masquerading as angels of light the Bible says we'll have that power it's restrained right now but it's going to come out in the open in the world is going to be focused on spiritual agendas it's by the signs their spirits of demons performing signs which go out to the kings of the earth we are ripening ourselves for deception by our emphasis on only believing if we see it. To gather the whole of them to the Great Day of God Almighty so how can you tell the difference between a true and false Revival How are you going to know if that miracle is emanating if it's originating from God or from the evil one well the scriptures are clear on this not everyone who says to me Lord Lord shall enter the kingdom of heaven but he who does the will of My Father in heaven now listen you should you should recognise some similarities between something I said over the last few nights and something I've said right now in John Chapter 7 verse 17 it says If any man wills to do my will he shall know the doctrine whether I speak for God or whether I'm speaking for myself. Now I've got you on a track in Matthew chapter 7 not John 7 that was John $717.00 now I've got a sonnet track at the end of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount and he's talking about the same thing if we're obedient to the principles in the precepts of the Word of God He says at the end of his sermon many will say to me in that day Lord we have we not prophesied in your name had we not cast out demons in your name and done many wonders in your name and then I will declare to them Depart from Me I never knew you you workers of lawlessness it appears that the devil is ready and willing to cooperate with those who come in the name of religion who want to have a spiritual high and don't even know along the way that they have been hijacked by a different spirit in the Holy One. But obedience to the Word of God a submissive spirit of humility to the presence of the inspired Word is an important thing evidence is found in obedience and tonight friends it's not just that obedience prepares oneself for the true there are 10 things about this 2nd beast in Revelation Chapter 13 it's important to know he comes up out of the earth he has 2 horns with no crowns he's lamblike for a time he speaks eventually as a dragon and he has all the authority of previous chapters of verse history where church and state are combined worship is the issue he performs signs and wonders he eclipses even the word of God In other words his authority becomes above the word of God and he directs than an image to the be should be made now I'll talk about that later in the series and eventually he becomes a persecuting power which is exactly what every nation has done that combines religion and civil governance Now I want to give you just a brief lesson in American history so nobody comes away without realizing the needle is moving. They said in England 300 years ago Harry them out or hang them they were hunted and persecuted imprisoned they could discern in the future no promise of better days and many yielded to the conviction that for such as would serve God according to the dictates of their conscience England was ceasing forever to be a habitable place what am I doing I'm reminding you of how America got going why people would risk. Several month long journey across an ocean at the end of a summer into a late fall and arrive in an early winter almost indeed they paid for their religious liberty sometimes with their life and when God had seemed pointing them across the sea to a land where they might find for themselves a state and lead to their children a precious heritage of religious liberty they said let's go and so crossing the ocean many of them sick and dying on the way more that would die afterwards they found themselves in this land where nobody told them how they would worship friends this is a unique phenomena in the history of man when never can as are finds out that the image has gold silver brass and iron the next chapter in the Book of Daniel has an image of the probably the very exact same dimensions it's all gold and you've got to worship it the truth of the matter is is that Shadrack me shakin to Bendigo with all due proper respect to the king said we serve a higher power and we would rather die than lose the liberty of conscience in the freedom of soul that you want from us King and became as Or they were thrown in a fiery furnace and Jesus walked in the fire with them in French you need to know something the stories in the Bible are going to be superceded in significance and power and glory for a witness to a lost world before Jesus comes again and I don't know who might be listening here to me tonight who will find themselves like a modern day Shadrack me shack in a bad. Indigo standing true for God unafraid or in a lion's den like the old man Daniel but they will find a God who can deliver they will know their god is real and liberty is more dear to them than life itself liberty of conscience very few even of the foremost thinkers and moralist of the 17th century had any just conception of the grand principle the outgrowth of the New Testament which acknowledge God as the sole judge of human faith but there was one who did his name was Roger Williams And if you're not familiar with this story spend less time on the internet learning about insignificant things and watch a good video too on Roger Williams he suffered even in America to establish this but you need to know we are here today experiencing religious liberty because of his suffering every man should have liberty to worship God according to the light of his own conscience and it finally codify to self into our original documents no law respecting the establishment religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof what happened in Rome which was a republic in the Roman Republic given tells in the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire under a democratic government the citizens exercise the powers of sovereignty that's right you should vote you should understand that your engagement in civic society is important to the culture and those powers will 1st be abused in other words when the electorate finds the electorate finds out they can get what they want by voting certain ways and the leaders all figure out to give the people what they want without ever any leadership. Or iron sharpening to iron eventually you end up in a demise of the republic or a democratic society so those powers will 1st be abused and afterwards lost if they are committed to an unwieldy multitude what would constitute an unwieldy multitude it would be a group of people whose collective soul and societal conscience was not kept true about duty and valor and courage and honesty and all those things that allowed people to govern themselves when you lose those things you can no longer govern yourself you must be governed by external law and while external law does matter it does never replace the value of a soul who under the power of the Holy Spirit can say no to itself given will go on to say of all the barbarian conquerors had been annihilated in the same hour remember Rome fell it imploded they came and they just started eating away at it from the outside it lost its all it lost its vigor it lost its courage it lost its strength but of all the barbarian conquerors had been destroyed in the same hour their total destruction would not have restored the Empire of the West this is not a religious man. This is probably the most famous historian of the fall of Rome and if Brome still survives she survives the loss of freedom of virtue and Yvonne to Tocqueville Alex to Tocqueville was smitten with the American experiment he came here to America and he studied our governance our people he once made it least some have suggested he made it now I put this up so that you know many of the historians say it was a fraud but whether it was a fraud or not many presidents and leaders have quoted in tonight I'm going to share it with you because it's at least a part of the legend and lore of America and it's true even if he didn't say it he said America is great because America is good and when America ceases to be good it will cease to be great. Now I want you to think about this if you were living in Germany no offense to anyone else around the world but if you were living in Germany in 1985 you were desperate that the Americans would liberate you not the Russians. Because the Americans didn't rape and pillage. They brought candy for the kids they had compassion they didn't come with a load of resentment from smoldering centuries of war ends evil surmising the Americans arrived in Europe sacrificing for the sake of freedom I have stood on the grounds of the cemetery in Normandy and I've stood in the Cuba where it shows America sending its live soldiers to France and the mothers of France sending back the dead spirits not that I believe in dead spirits but send him back the dead spirits of the sacrificed sons of America I want to tell you I'm awfully proud to be an American and I respect whatever citizenry you hold but tonight you're in a country that represents the the dignity of the human conscience and the freedom of the human soul because they recognize Nature's God and the laws that gave inalienable rights to human beings because they were made in the image of God but they chose not to force you to any form of religion Manifest Destiny has been a phrase and a concept associated with America especially the exhibits Panshin West it was the idea that America was to fill the world with good it was take the message of its governance and its god. To the rest of the world and when you stand at the base of some of these trees in our national parks when you go to its monuments and you realize what an amazing journey the Americans have had and the sacrifices they've made to make this world more safe and more secure you have to be very very proud but there have been moments when perhaps the pride is not there you see friends our liberties have turned into licentiousness and we have lost so much of what is made is good we don't really tell the truth this is from Harper's Weekly which was the equivalent of time in its day I want you to see America was a Protestant nation that was concerned that Roman ism would find its way back into the culture and the society and the laws and this was not a cartoon that was hidden away in some you know back storage room and some slightly. Limited circulation periodical if you notice the artwork it it has a serious concern a fatherly protection lest the old world with its combination of church and state should find its way in to destroy the future of the children but I want you to understand for the last 50 years there has been a fairly steady push towards a different form of society and governance John Stott advisor to the World Council of Churches said the visible unity of all professing Christians should be our goal I want you to know there are hundreds gave thousands of different Protestant denominations why because they have the freedom to leave what they want to believe about the Bible and yes religion has found its way into many conflicts does it change the fact that you still have a right. To your own conscience your own understanding of God but you don't have to pray if you don't want to and if you can you can pray to anyone you want to as a Bible believing Christian I might disagree with you about who you're praying to and what you believe but I don't disagree with the fact that you have a right evangelical should join others in the Church of England and working towards full communion with the Catholic Church this was coming from the leader of the Church of England we found a holy alliance in the 1980 s. to bring down communism. After that we find an ambassadorship to the Vatican see Never before in the history of America we go beyond that and we find Protestant leaders saying things like this in the regulation of belief or church activities it does not mean that our beliefs cannot be legislated wipe the phrase This is what I want you to notice wipe the phrase of separation of church and state out of your vocabulary wouldn't our founding fathers die to hear this said the problem is it's being said because religion has been so far removed from the practical side of American lives that we have an implosion of character collectively the wall of separation of church and state is a metaphor based on bad history this is a former chief justice of the United States Supreme Court if frankly it should be frankly in explicitly a man and this is not someone who was not tremendously respected but I want to tell you friends there is continued pressure on just a few years ago as we were celebrating the 500 year anniversary of the Protestant resolute reformation we find all kinds of churches pressing together some apologizing for the reformation some embarrassed about the work of Martin Luther as if somehow he was responsible for the great schism and it was a big mistake and if we go just a bit farther we find the pope addressing the United States Congress in an act that was absolutely unprecedented but of course both men sitting behind him were active Catholics nothing wrong with that but once we start putting religious leaders in these positions in these posts these pulpits as it were which are really legislative desk once we start doing that we are seeing privilege in Parag you have go to some who are religious that is not provided to others and when we know that the Bible says the 1st beast. Well find itself wounded for a moment in time church and state will no longer rule the day and during that period of time religious liberty will burst forth in this new nation when we see this kind of thing happening the admonition of Revelation 13 that the wound will be healed is evidence right before our very eyes when the leading churches of the United States uniting upon such points of doctrine as are held by them in common then Protestant America will have formed an image to the Roman hierarchy and infliction of civil penalties upon dissenters will inevitably result you say Ron you're going pretty far out on a limb you betcha I'm going out on a limb but I'm not quite done I want to point something out to you in the last 2 days some pretty stupendous political things are going on this I took just off a report from a from an m s from an n.b.c. news feed from London and it was yesterday's news of this morning's I'm not sure I didn't have time to check and see Actually it says on there it's the 24th so it's yesterday's news I just want you to notice that across the bottom it says the u.k. Supreme Court says Johnson suspension of Parliament was unlawful What was that about well the newly elected prime minister who some are predicting maybe the shortest serving prime minister in the history of the nation is accused of lying to the queen. In order to suspend parliament and it is surmised that his goal was to go around this body in order to achieve his brags that deal now whether or not those things are all true what you need to understand is that what the pundits are saying across a variety of outlets is that this is the greatest political crisis to face Great Britain some have said in the last century I heard one today say since 190445 and of course we know what was going on in the middle 1940 s. the truth of the matter is this nation is stuck it can't get out it's not really in what am I talking about the European Union those feet partly strong and partly weak that iron mingled with clay it appears that they're stuck in the middle of limbo land and he's guilty according to a leaven to a 0 vote by the Supreme Court of Great Britain why do I bring this up to you I'll tell you in just a minute and how about the news for our own president I'm not here to be political I'm not here to save guilty but I am here to say is while the Democrats have waited for months deciding whether or not they should make a run at it Pietschmann this last little bit of the whistle blowing news has moved them now listen whistleblowing isn't unique phenomena it certainly has a glass ceiling on the upward mobility of your future career and but you need to know in American government there is a proper and legal way to go about it and there's an improper way what you should know at least about this event is that a proper channel was followed and they went to the inspector general and after they expect or general examines it eventually it makes its way to Congress and the question at hand of course if you listen to any little bit of news is whether or not there was a quid pro quo in other words a deal you do this for me I'll do that for you was there actually a request to look for dirt on a 2020 percent presidential candidate I don't know if they did. That or not I'm not impugning him as guilty but I am here to make a point about both of these men I wish it was as simple as this modern headline says Trump and Johnson together on the world stage I travels back home I wish it was as simple as just troubles back home like they could go back home and push a few buttons or move you levers and it could be fixed. For the 1st time in my lifetime. The 2 leaders of the most prominent democracies in the world I didn't say the biggest democracies but the most prominent and allies it that both have political leaders whose credibility is highly compromised and their political ability to lead might be at its lowest moment and you say well so that's the ebb and flow of politics while I want to contrast it against this just the other day. The pope was making an appeal he references to his in cyclical legato c. And by the way if you haven't watched the news feed from Doug bachelor I encourage you to get online and do it but this is the encyclical in which one of the things addressed is global warming and the need to reestablish a sense of order and peace and civility in the world it's in this in cyclical which was at its 5 year anniversary just a few days ago that there is also a reference to the reestablishment of a day of rest a Sunday day of rest that would be good for the environment and of course good for families and if you're not aware of it we have ourselves in a world today where even modern industrialized nations have been reinstituting Sunday laws Germany being the most preeminent pole in being probably one of the last to do it and these are not all developments they are relatively new and I want you to notice the words All I did was watch the video and take some screen shots but I want you to see the words he's emphasizing I would like these 3 words. Key words honesty courage and responsibility he emphasizes those probably at least 3 times in about a 3 to 5 minute speech the current situation of environmental degradation is linked to the human ethical and social degradation I want you to start thinking about how much those words encompass I want you to stop and say maybe we're not in an age where it's business as usual we are facing a challenge of civilization he's talking to a global audience and we need to act in favor of the common good and now I want to tell you something aside from the infighting in the Catholic Church and there is whenever you have an organization of any size there are some who feel that he's totally letting the standards of the Catholic Church down but you need to understand something amongst the masses he still retains a credibility that some of the political world leaders are watching flow through their hands like water. And when he talks about courage and responsibility and honesty he's touching on the issues of influence and credibility. This very same religious leader has established a date of May 14th 2020 in which he is going around and potentially including the political leaders of the world but on May 14th 2020 he's calling the leaders he's going to wreck Lee to the people he's calling the the sportsman and the businessman and all these people he's calling them to Rome for a real education a summit on re educating ourselves to the needs of the civilized world on. Listen friends we are living in unprecedented times we have democracies with we might say Ham strong political leaders stuck not sure which way to go are they going to jail or they going on to future terms and reelections I don't know I'm not saying it's an implosion at the moment but I am saying this to you in the last 50 years I'm not sure and especially the last 30 or 40 years I've been old enough to observe I don't believe we've ever been in a moment where the 2 leading democracies of the world find themselves politically as compromised as ours right now gridlock you know what the White House spokesman is saying about this latest accusation and this potential impeachment it pretty much kills all bipartisan functioning for the rest of this term I don't know if it's a threat it's probably a reality but I'm saying to you we run into gridlock and we might be in a unique moment where somebody is going to start rising above the lack of ethical values as a leader and it might be time for us to realize it's not business as usual the climate crisis is not just an environmental issue it's a challenge of civilization in favor of the common good our dialogue has changed it's no longer climate change it's climate crisis it's climate chaos Don't miss the verbiage it makes a huge difference what's going on in this civilized world what some believe is marching towards an implosion of its own excess is a call to others to say we need to stop and regulate the human experience how we're going to do that you may never have seen this either would be worth you going to have a look at I watched it this morning thanks to Pastor Michael there's probably 15 religious leaders all of different faiths. And the only real message they have this we need to embrace the common good and like each other and be nice to each other and make friends the ecumenical movement which is a large turns that means denying our differences engaging our commonality in the act you meant to call movement the religious ecumenical movement is fueled you might say it's on steroids and if you were to give the earth a common crisis if we were to find ourselves without the joys of 3.7 percent unemployment if we were to find ourselves in a different world we would see that indeed there would be an even greater call to come together global issues are what we are facing now I'm going to end with this in the 880 s. there was a book put out by the I don't know probably the review in Herald called bible readings for the home circle and in the book there are 3 card tunes and as you can see this is a chess game in the background is a good angel on the left to Satan on the right is a Christian it's the game in progress now I want to show you what happens if the Christian wins the devil disappears he's gone the angels happy but I want to show you what happens if the Christian loses it looks to me like Jesus in the background when you see life is not a Game Life is a precious privilege and I want to remind you that we hold these rights to be inalienable we were made in the image of God It's Nature's God and thus it's the laws of Nature's God which must shape our homes our schools and our societies but it is the collective but individual choices of America that have made us great when America ceases to be good. I think we're seeing that she ceases to be great yes we want God to bless America I certainly do and yes we should pray for our leaders again my speech is not political for the left or the right tonight do not misconstrue my words my speech is to remind you whether you lean this way or that way democracy is on the rocks because people don't tell the truth because they don't keep their word because they are selfish and uncontrolled because people take bribes and because people hide in our deceptive about things that should be out in the open and aboveboard. People don't keep their promises one of the reason America's work so well is that it used to be you could shake hands and that was good enough now 10 reams of legal paper might not be enough to get the deal done and give assurance to the person on the other side friends America is not our home. Not impermanence it is a great and glorious land which I could hope will rise again to its greatness by the internal character that collectively has made us a beautiful and redeeming people. Jesus is going to provide a bridge from this world to the next that spiritual Jordan we have to cross We're going to cross it with Jesus there is nothing to be afraid of not for a moment he put bread on the ground every day for 40 years for the Israelites he made water come out of dry dusty Flint and granite he made a way through the Red Sea He kept Daniel safe from the jaws of the Lion 10 Plagues fell on the nation of Egypt only the 1st few fell in Goshen so that the Israelites could know something was going on the last 7 did not touch them and God is going to do more for his remnant in the end that he did in the symbol form in earthly history and tonight the only thing that should matter to us is that we discover that we can be safe in the hands of Jesus that we can be led to the Rockets higher than I Jesus knows where we are every moment of the day and not a sparrow falls and not a hair from our head certainly not a heartbeat is missed or a breath lost unless Jesus decrees it to be so and tonight my caution to us if you have made this world and this country or some other that espouses its value system the ambition of your hopes. Cast them farther down throw your anchor across that Jordan landed on the other side say in that heavenly land that New Jerusalem America has been like Jerusalem it has been a city set on a hill under its freedoms and with its economic might the glory of the Gospel is gone all around the world there is still places for it to go we should work while it's day for the night will come in which no one can work but friends pray for your leaders be active in making this country strong and beautiful but do not hang your hopes on living the American dream for eventually and we can see the signs of vengefully the dream will become a nightmare. But not for those who have looked to a better country tonight friends I'm inviting you Jesus has paid the price he's leading the way there is nothing to be afraid of and while this nation's glorious achievements will come to an end that's where Jesus will step in and take us to a better place tonight I'm appealing to you when you lead tonight for those of you that do not have this book it's called the great controversy it was written over 100 years ago it documents the slow demise of democracy there's a chapter in here in titled America in prophecy if you have this book already get it off the shelf and start reading it spends less time on Facebook do a bit less on the sports field don't follow the stats of this person or that person turn off your television little bit less time on the i Phone get this book back out and read it it's an amazing read if you already have the book. Great if you don't have about 70 copies that are sitting on tables when you leave this room and if you don't care to pick up the book but you'd like to read the chapter I've referenced to go to our village church web page and it's posted there in a p.d.f. format read it friends pray before you do don't take my word let the Holy Spirit convict be willing to obey and follow Jesus and let Jesus be your teacher I'm just a prompter and May God guide you as you take advantage of your God given freedom to figure out what truth is yourself Remember Jesus said I am the Way the Truth and a lie and Jesus has said that he will never leave us or for sake of said he's going to take us all the way through Let's pray Lord thank you that we are not left wondering what's going on save us from worry about what's going on and may we set our hard on you and our minds on our heavenly inheritance Thank you lord there's a real heaven with your home there in a room for us in it and I'm praying now Lord thank you that you've engraved this on the palms of your hands now Lord I pray what time we feel afraid May we trust in you and I pray Lord May your perfect love casts out any fear thank you for what we've had we look for something better in Jesus name I pray Amen this media was brought to you by audio a website dedicated to spreading God's word through free sermon audio and much more if you would like to know more about audio version would like to listen to more sermon leave w w w audio or.
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Other sermons in this series
Beyond the Reach of Evil, Eternal Celebration
Ron Kelly 28:58 Audio
Is there a Prophet in the House
Earth's Final Mega-trend
The Cornerstone of Bible Prophecy
Satan on Prophecy vs. Jesus on Prophecy
Ron Kelly 1:00:09 Audio
Prophecy, Spiritual Abuse, and the Divine Right of Man
The End of Secrets, Watching and Waiting
Bible Prophecy and the Last Conspiracy
Hallelujah, Here Comes the Judge
Hour of Judgment Part 1
Prophecy and the Eternal Gospel
Babylon the Fall and the Call
Blood on the Hands of the Remnant


It's been a busy month this June, one which saw me work on a higher than average number of science/technology stories for Graphic News – in particular the top three were done in the previous week alone. I love doing graphics like these.
First published June 27, 2014. Original can be found here.
First published June 26, 2014. Original can be found here.
First published June 19, 2014. Original can be found here.
First published June 17, 2014. Original can be found here.
First published June 5, 2014. Original can be found here.
Also, an interactive HTML5 version can be viewed here.
These infographics were produced at Graphic News, a small specialist, London-based, creative media company with subscribers in over 75 countries.