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Grammy award-winning guitarist, songwriter, and bandleader Ben Harper enjoyed cult status on the jam band scene in the 1990s largely due to the success of his debut album, Welcome to the Cruel World, and its follow-up, Fight for Your Mind, before gaining wider attention near the decade's end. During the 21st century, he transcended the genre to become a wildly diverse performer, collaborator, and sideman who has worked with artists ranging from the Blind Boys of Alabama to John Mayer. Harper drew his influences from classic singer/songwriters, blues revivalists, guitar slingers, and jam bands like Blues Traveler and Phish, which meant he was embraced by critics and college kids alike. Despite finding commercial success with the radio single "Steal My Kisses" in 2000, Harper continued to explore different (and often challenging) musical textures during the early 21st century, releasing a pair of acclaimed albums with blues legend Charlie Musselwhite, recording the 2020 solo instrumental set Winter Is for Lovers, and tackling provocative social issues on the soulful 2022 record Bloodline Maintenance. A native of California, Harper grew up listening to blues, folk, soul, R&B, and reggae. He started playing guitar as a child and began to perform regularly as a preteen. During his adolescence, he focused heavily on the acoustic slide guitar, which eventually became his signature instrument. Harper scored a deal with Virgin Records in 1992 after maintaining a steady schedule of shows in the L.A. area; two years later, he released his debut album, Welcome to the Cruel World, to positive reviews. Released in 1995, the politically heavy Fight for Your Mind made for a strong sophomore effort, an obvious growth in musical experimentation and individual declamation. It was also the songwriter's first record to later reach gold status. Harper's third album, 1997's The Will to Live, pushed his blues-oriented alternative folk into the middle mainstream, becoming a mainstay at college radio and making inroads at adult alternative radio. Recorded over two years of touring in support of Fight for Your Mind, The Will to Live also introduced the Innocent Criminals, Harper's longstanding backup band. The Innocent Criminals -- bassist Juan Nelson, drummer Dean Butterworth, and percussionist David Leach -- helped solidify Harper's musical rhythms and emotional diversity over the years to come. Harper's career gained momentum during 1998 and 1999. One of his most successful albums to date, 1999's Burn to Shine, blended his fondness of '20s jazz compositions with urban beatboxing, resulting in a clever and passionate collection of songs. "Steal My Kisses" and "Suzie Blue" were radio favorites, landing him two headlining world tours and an opening spot on the Dave Matthews Band's annual summer trek in 2000. The following spring, Harper issued Live from Mars, a double disc of live electric and acoustic material spanning the previous year's tour and including covers of material by Led Zeppelin, the Verve, and Marvin Gaye. Harper dove into worldbeat on his fifth studio effort, Diamonds on the Inside, which appeared in March 2003. He toured through Europe the following year with the Blind Boys of Alabama, and the two acts entered Capitol Records' basement studios after the tour's commencement to lay down ten tracks together. The resulting collaborative album (issued under the names of both Harper and the Blind Boys of Alabama), There Will Be a Light, was released in September 2004, followed by the concert CD/DVD package Live at the Apollo in 2005. Eager to release more material, Harper reconvened the Innocent Criminals and issued the double album Both Sides of the Gun in March 2006. The album reached number seven on the Billboard album charts and rose to number one in Australia. While touring in support of the record, Harper and company began playing a new slew of songs during their evening soundchecks, eventually decamping to Paris and recording the new material within one week. This resulted in two records -- Lifeline and Live at Twist and Shout Records -- both of which were issued in 2007. For his 2009 album White Lies for Dark Times, Harper recorded with the band Relentless7, whose members had previously worked with Harper on the track "Serve Your Soul" from Both Sides of the Gun. Harper & the Relentless7 recorded Live from the Montreal International Jazz Festival in July 2009 and released the album early the following year. Afterwards, Harper began working on his first solo album in years, using Jackson Browne's basement as a recording studio and collaborating with Ringo Starr on two tracks. The album's first single, "Rock n' Roll Is Free," was released during the early spring of 2011, followed two months later by the full-length Give Till It's Gone, and in 2012 by the career retrospective By My Side. Harper then moved over to Stax and teamed up with blues legend Charlie Musselwhite for 2013's Get Up! It won the 2014 Grammy for Best Blues Album. Harper went back to his roots on his next offering. He joined his mother, Ellen Harper -- a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist in her own right, and the director of The Folk Music Center and Museum in Claremont, California (which his grandparents founded) -- for the recording Childhood Home. Ellen wrote four tunes on the set and Ben wrote six; they performed together throughout. The album was issued by Concord in May 2014. Next, Harper reunited with his band the Innocent Criminals for 2016's Call It What It Is, the group's first studio album since 2007's Lifeline. Harper and Musselwhite announced a second collaborative album in January 2018 by issuing the title track single to No Mercy in This Land. A second single, "The Bottle Wins Again," was released in March followed by the album on at the end of that month. The next year saw Harper write and produce gospel legend Mavis Staples' 14th studio LP, the acclaimed We Get By, and in 2020 he released Winter Is for Lovers, an all-instrumental lap steel album. He returned in July 2022 with Bloodline Maintenance, a record rooted in soul that addresses the trauma and tradition passed through generations.
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64 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
Bloodline Maintenance
Alternative & Indie - Released by Chrysalis Records on Jul 22, 2022
The very title of Bloodline Maintenance underscores Ben Harper's mission on his 2022 album: he's focusing on how trauma and tradition are passed down ...
Welcome To The Cruel World
Rock - Released by Virgin Catalog (V81) on Feb 1, 1994
The full range of Ben Harper's influences would not come to bear until later albums, but his debut, Welcome to the Cruel World, lays a strong foundati ...
Get Up! (Deluxe Edition)
Blues - Released by Craft Recordings on Jan 28, 2013
This musical hookup between these two experienced roots artists who have more in common than it seems at first glance, is a natural evolution for both ...
Fight For Your Mind
Rock - Released by Virgin Catalog (V81) on Jul 1, 1995
Winter Is For Lovers
Rock - Released by Anti - Epitaph on Oct 23, 2020
Being in a job for 28 years changes a man. It often pushes you to return to simpler, calmer things. In Ben Harper's case, it's been ten years since he ...
No Mercy In This Land (Deluxe Edition)
Blues - Released by Anti - Epitaph on Mar 30, 2018
Two years after the delightful Call It What It Is, Ben Harper abandons his Innocent Criminals once again to team up with his old accomplice Charlie Mu ...
The Will To Live
Rock - Released by Virgin Catalog (V81) on Jan 1, 1997
On his third album, Will to Live, Ben Harper strengthens his populist folk with a grittier groove, which even borders on funk, that makes his music mo ...
Diamonds On The Inside
Ben Harper is a musical preacher of sorts, never one to be shy in speaking his mind about social conformity. If his first two albums -- Welcome to the ...
Both Sides Of The Gun
Rock - Released by Virgin Records on Jan 1, 2006
After seven albums and 12 years in the game, it can stop being said that Ben Harper is hard to categorize, because at this point, the fact that he alw ...
By My Side (Retrospective)
The problem with many retrospectives is that they usually place an artist's best-known and/or best-selling songs in a sequence that can defy context. ...
There Will Be A Light
Ben Harper, The Blind Boys Of Alabama
Ben Harper's history with the Blind Boys of Alabama has been an evolving one that has moved from being a guest on their Higher Ground offering and tou ...
Boxed Set Collection
Alternative & Indie - Released by Virgin Records on Jan 1, 2000
We Need To Talk About It
Alternative & Indie - Released by Chrysalis Records on Jun 15, 2022
Gospel Truth (Live Los Angeles 1995)
Blues - Released by Second Line on Jan 29, 2021
Live At The Apollo (Live)
Lifeline Tour Edition
Ben Harper, Innocent Criminals
Rock - Released by Virgin Records on Aug 28, 2007
Burn To Shine
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Virgin Records
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Virgin Catalog (V81)
Prestige Folklore
Chrysalis Records
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Caroline Records
Craft Recordings
Red Bull Media House GmbH
Second Line
Universal Music Group International
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Simply say 'SCHMARAGDEH' – shortening the EH slightly. See? Easy. Smaragd – means 'emerald'. The German language also has a delicious word for jewelry: 'schmuck'.
The German for bogey… I have no idea.
What's more, there's an adjective too – smaragdine, "of or relating to emeralds" or "having the colour of emeralds". So that's me told. Though it's an even stupider-looking word in English.
I rather like the word "Smaragd" – having lived in Vienna for a couple of years, I find it reminds me of the local, sing-songey Germanic dialect which is much less harsh and gutteral than its northern equivalents.
The word means emerald and refers to the colour of the green lizard native to the Wachau.


Make a statement at your next special event in the Ezmerelda Dress in Black! This elegant beauty boasts the one shoulder look with a ruffle neckline and slimming silhouette - a look that every woman can pull off! Simply pair yours with a dramatic bold lip and slinky heels for a winning combination every time!


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Briefcase Found in Saipan
Theories Researched
Earhart Lockheed Electra
Lost Flight Group (LFG)
Gelb, Devine & Wallack
Carol Linn Dow Writer
Earhart FAQ's
George Putnam Psychics
View from Atchison
View from Nikumaroro
Earhart as Irene Bolam
Feature Film Project
The Lost Flight of Amelia Earhart
ONE OF THE GREATEST MYSTERIES OF ALL TIME!
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Evidence Discovered In the Marshall Islands
Now ... original footage of the Dick Spink expedition to support the theory of Amelia Earhart's crash in the Marshall Islands....
Richard (Dick) Spink made a trip to the Marshall Islands under the auspices of the government of the Marshall Islands to film interviews with the Marshallese and discovered new evidence that Amelia Earhart crashed in the Marshall Islands .... According to Dick Spink, "It was the old fisherman who told me exactly where to look for evidence of the crash .... There, in the tropical islands, I found parts off Amelia Earhart's airplane." Following this trip, Dick Spink made three more trips to Mili Atoll to collect and film more evidence of the crash.
See the one-hour report of Dick Spink's Marshall Islands expedition ... including the interviews, artifacts found and expert analysis of this important evidence towards solving the Amelia Earhart Mystery ... Special website price only $19.95 including FREE shipping and handling.
DVD with FREE shipping
New findings on the Lost Flight
of Amelia Earhart ...
Ten years of research studying the loss of Amelia Earhart brings a story in novel form that has all the trappings of a book classic and in the future as a feature film, a film classic. It is truly amazing that Navy Intelligence and U.S. and Japanese interests have been able to keep the secrets and the evidence of the Earhart loss suppressed for over 80 years, but it has happened. No she did not crash and sink at sea, no she did not crash at Gardner Island (Nikumaroro), and no she did not come back to America in disguise as Irene Bolam.
"Lost Flight" will take you there... to a very small island in the Pacific... to a lost airplane floundering over open waters... to a story that has never been told on the silver screen or in book form. For those who want the story behind the story with supporting details and evidence that only a published work can provide, this book is a definitive must read on the life and loss of Amelia Earhart.
~~~ AN EXCITING NOVEL BASED ON RECENT HISTORICAL EVIDENCE
You can buy "Lost Flight" eBooks for $7.99 on
Kindle Reader, Barnes & Noble's Nook, Apple iBookstore,
The Blio, The Kobo, Sony e-Reader and more …
Please contact PrairieBooks@aol.com for a complete list of eBook retailers.
In the book you will see the documentation behind the "Lost Flight" including the e-mails and the testimony of experts such as the late Navy Captain Almon Gray and Pan American Airways radio operator Paul Rafford, two radio experts who set the record straight on the Earhart loss. You'll read several of the letters that were written by CBS radio reporter Fred Goerner who was, we believe, the best of the Earhart researchers. In fact, there is a long list of researchers involved with this mystery, and they all have their individual stories to tell. "Lost Flight" goes further than the typical Amelia Earhart book and refutes the "crashed and sank" theories, the Irene Bolam stories, as well as those theories that Earhart flew south to the Phoenix Islands and perished on a deserted Pacific Island. Printed book avalable in soft cover, 352 pages, illustrated, 5.5 x 8.5 inches. $19.95 plus shipping & handling.
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ISBN # 978-0-9646007-3-7
Spy missions? Impossible, the airplane flew a direct route with no detours.
Roosevelt ordered a search of the Marshall Islands ... true, but the search failed to turn up information and was stopped by
the Japanese.
Did Earhart die on a deserted island in the Pacific? Extensive research has yet to result in any proven Earhart artifacts in the area.
Earhart flew the airplane all the way back to the island of Bougainville and crashed in the jungles ... impossible the airplane would have had to carry an additional 6,000 pounds of fuel.
Earhart flew south to Gardner Island and perished on the sea shore ... the pet story of one major group and no evidence to support any of it except miscellaneous scraps and airplane parts from World War II that have never gained acceptance. In 1937 the Battleship Colorado conducted a major search of the Phoenix Island group with three airplanes launched from its catapults. The search of Gardner Island proved to be the most extensive of the group resulting in no signs of possible inhabitants at that time, although there were visible signs of previous inhabitants on the island at some time.
What is happening on the Island of Saipan today? A historian, Genevieve Cabrera and her husband are pioneering an effort to excavate Garapan Prison in the search for artifacts. Is it true Admiral Chester Nimitz passed information to Fred Goerner that Amelia Earhart had been captured by the Japanese and was executed as a spy ... this is a true statement. Goerner and Nimitz were good friends; however, Goerner vacillated in his later days on where Earhart went down, but he never gave up the idea Earhart and Noonan had been taken to Saipan and were either executed by the Japanese, or, in prison, she died of dysentery.
Fred Noonan was either executed or died a prisoner of the forthcoming war in the Pacific.
Earhart crashed at sea? The post loss transmissions disprove this concept.
AMELIA & FRED
The typical manner of disposing of the Amelia Earhart affair
is that she "crashed and sank" in the Central Pacific.
However, evidence coming forth challenges that belief. In recent days researchers from around the world have given credence to the notion that the post loss transmissions received from a radio operator at Nauru Island is valid and substantiates claims that Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, did not crash at sea.
Enroute to Howland Island from Lae, New Guinea, on the last leg of her round-the-world flight, Earhart's voice was evidently heard by a radio operator at Nauru Island, a half way point in the path of the flight. Radio Nauru had been covering Amelia's requencies- 3105 and 6210 Kilocycles (KC)- whenever the station was operating. One of Radio Nauru's native radio operators heard and recognized her voice three times on 6210 KC, at 8:31, 8:43, and 8:54 p.m. of the second day (Howland Time). Nauru informed Radio Bolinas near San Francisco of these receptions with the following message:
SPEECH NOT INTERPRETED OWING TO BAD MODULATION OR
SPEAKER SHOUTING INTO MICROPHONE BUT VOICE SIMILAR
TO THAT EMITTED IN FLIGHT LAST NIGHT WITH EXCEPTION OF
NO HUM OF PLANE IN BACKGROUND.
Following the Earhart loss Radio Bolinas forwarded this message to coast Guard Headquarters in San Francisco, who immediately radioed it to the Cutter Itasca. The Commander of the Itasca included it, without comment, in his official report. There is no reason to doubt that these three broadcasts were authentic and for very good reasons. For one, the radio operator was a professional. He recognized Amelia's voice from the night before, and it was not widely recognized at the time of the receptions that Earhart's Lockheed Electra was in trouble or that it had crashed. The significance of the receptions has lead certain researchers to believe that Earhart's Electra did not crash at sea. The radio system would not operate if it was wet or in the water, particularly salt water. The fact that there was no "hum" of the engines in the background further supports this view since the generator necessary for radio communications was located in the right side radial engine. Thusly, the broadcasts were the last dying moments of the airplane's battery system. The airplane, of necessity, was on dry land, but where on dry land is an unknown, even to this day.
There are theories that abound to the exent that Earhart crashed immediately after radio communications were lost at Howland Island. But the better truth is that radio communications at Howland Island lapsed when Earhart switched frequencies from 3105 KC (night time setting) to 6210 KC (day time setting) . These two frequencies are called harmonic frequencies (one is the double of the other) , and they have the tendency to bleed into each another in the early hours of the morning. Switching to 6210 KC may have doomed the Earhart flight. In the warmimg of the atmosphere in the hot tropical sun, 6210 KC fades into higher frequencies and is not stable. With a flip of the switch Earhart may have set off a spate of rumors of what actually happened at Howland. All of these factors plus the post loss message received by the radio operator at Nauru Island seem to negate the possible success of the Nauticos - Elgen Long deep sea searches. Another factor compounding the Howland Island-lost-at-sea approach is the fact that the winds at Howland were calm when Earhart was reported missing. In fact, the winds were so calm the smoke from the stacks of the Cutter Itasca did not climb into the air. Instead, it settled down on the surface of the ocean and went nowhere ... a very unusual circumstance. A calm wind and a ditching at sea probably would have meant the Lockheed Electra and its passengers could have survived. In addition, the huge empty fuel tanks on board would have caused the airplane to float giving the two missing aviators ample time to climb in a life raft and paddle away. Nothing resembling an aircraft crash was ever found in the Howland area. There were no missing bodies, no floating aircraft parts, no oil, no debris field of any kind. At the time of the loss there was an extensive Naval search consisting of the Battleship Colorado, the Aircraft Carrier Lexington, and three Destroyers, the Lamson, the Cushing, and the Drayton. It was the largest and most extensive search for a downed airplane at sea in the history of aviation.
If Earhart did not go down at Howland Island
what did happen?
This woman, Josephine Blanco Akiyama, started an uproar in the aviation world when she claimed she saw two American flyers, a man and a woman on the island of Saipan in the year 1937. The descriptions fit Amelia Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan who, in the same year, had been lost under mysterious circumstances. Fred Goerner, a radio reporter for CBS news in San Francisco, picked up the story and tracked it down.
"One day in 1937 Josephine Akiyama had been riding her bicycle down the beach road on Saipan taking lunch to her brother-in-law, Jose Matsumoto, who worked for the Japanese at their secret seaplane base at Tanapag Harbor on the Western shore of the Island. As she neared the gate of the facility, she saw a large, two motored plane fly overhead and disappear in the vicinity of the harbor. A little while later when she reached the beach area, she found a large group of people gathered around the two white persons.
"At first she thought they were both men, but someone told her one was a woman. They were both thin and looked very tired," said Mrs. Akiyama. "The woman had short cut hair like a man, and she was dressed like a man. I think I remember the man had his head hurt in some way. I remembered the year because 1937 was the year I graduated from Japanese school. I was eleven years old."
"I asked her why she was sure they were American flyers. She answered, "That's what the people said and later the Japanese guards said it." The guards, according to Mrs. Akiyama, had taken the pair away, and later there was a rumor they had been executed by the Japanese. Her memory of the plane was hazy. She could remember seeing it in the water by the shoreline, but she could not recall if it was damaged or what happened to it after that day."
Fred Goerner's book, "The Search for Amelia Earhart"
pioneered a multitude of Amelia Earhart books. Elgen Long's book, "Amelia Earhat The Mystery Solved", caused a lot of attention, but the facts that were presented have not gained acceptance by several parties in the professional aviation community. Television specials have been done on the subject of Amelia Earhart crashing into the sea, and we are very respectful of the Nauticos - Elgen Long contribution to aviation history with their search. However, a crash into the sea dodges the real fact that Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, did not crash into the sea and may indeed have been captured by the Japanese and executed as spies. There has never been any recovery of airplane parts or human remains of the Earhart flight. Over 70 years from the date of the disappearance, the probability of finding any meaningful evidence is nearly non-existent ... certainly not in 18,000 feet of ocean where the point of impact is a great unknown ... assuming the ocean was the point of impact. With the recognition of the post loss transmissions as being authentic (particularly the Nauru Island intercept) the "crashed and sank" theories of the Earhart disappearance have, more recently, begun to fall by the wayside. In the case of the Earhart flight, the known testimony and sightings point to Saipan and the Marshall Islands. If Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan went
down at sea, no one ever saw it or witnessed what happened. Tom Devine is an ex-Army Sergeant Postal Worker from World War II who claims that he saw the Earhart plane. The discovery took place in an airplane hangar on the island of Saipan during World War II. Several others have made that claim including Earskin J. Nabers, the Marine code clerk who received and decoded the messages about the discovery of the plane, the plans to fly it and the plans to destroy it. Both Nabers and Devine claim they saw it destroyed. Arthur Nash, a captain in the Army Air Corps, said he saw "Amelia Earhart's airplane" outside a hanger very early on in the Saipan invasion.
Picture Courtesy of Eric Johnson
Today, on the island of Saipan, Garapan, the Old Japanese jail is a tourist attraction. There are still natives there on the island who tell the old stories of seeing the white lady with the short haircut who was captured by the Japanese along with her navigator, Fred Noonan. The stories that they tell are that the two flyers were imprisoned by the Japanese at Garapan, and there they both died. Some of the stories are conflicting. For instance, you will hear stories that they were both beheaded by an executioner or that Fred Noonan tired of the food and threw it at the prison guards. In return, he was executed. There are stories that after Noonan was executed, Earhart died of dysentery. There are also stories that they were both executed by the firing squad. The remains have never been found. The missing airplane nor any piece of it has ever been found, and slowly, very slowly the only thing that is left is a legend ... a legend of the lost flight of Amelia Earhart.
The prison in which Earhart was believed to have perished was infamous among the Saipanese as being a place of death. In the days of World War II anyone believed to be a spy was quickly executed. No trial. No one escaped.
On the Island of Saipan today, there is a historian, Genevieve Cabrera, who has been fascinated since childhood by the Amelia Earhart enigma. She believes that the Japanese captured her and secretly brought Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan to Saipan to interrogate them. The Japanese, according to Cabrera, could not take the risk of drawing international attention to the disappearance of such a famous aviator. It would be logical to assume that they would have taken her to Japanese Headquarters. A pair of white strangers was a rare sight in 1937 Saipan. In the days before the attack at Pearl Harbor, the Japanese thought all Americans were spies.
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Articles | Bible Q&A | Bible Studies | Booklets | Sermons
feast: A People Being Prepared to Pass the Rope
Mark Schindler
Given 29-Sep-10; Sermon #FT10-14; 41 minutes
Description: (show)
Mark Schindler, reflecting upon the establishment of the Citadel in South Carolina, suggests that it has tried to train ethical and moral leaders. President Ronald Reagan praised one of its graduates, a passenger who had rescued many passengers from the icy waters of the Potomac River, only to lose his own life. We are, in one sense, students in a spiritual academy, something like the Citadel, learning to be leaders, learning to pass the rope to our fellow passengers. We need to learn duty, sacrifice, and honor. The Lord of Hosts will bring all of us through to completion and perfection, making the latter temple (His spiritual church) much more resplendent than the former temple. Jesus Christ has personally laid its foundation. God's hand has made the impossible possible. We need to be careful how we do the small things, the insignificant things charged to us to perform. If we do these small things in both spirit and letter (in the covenant agreement) with diligence, we will have the capability of performing the more demanding things we will experience as kings and priests in God's kingdom. As we make the right choices, God will become sure of our judgment as we continue making decisions based on His word, trusting us as His offspring. God is totally in charge of making the impossible possible.
Topics: (show)
Apple of God's Eye Arland D. Williams, Jr. - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Arland D. Williams Citadel Church of god in the Wilderness The Citadel - The Military College of South Carolina Day of small things Discipline Flying scroll Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi Haggai 1:2-5,7-9; 2:4-6 Leviticus 1: Lord of Hosts Malachi 3:7 4:1-4 Nothing to Fear but fear itself Pass the rope Revelation 2:3 Ronald Wilson Reagan: Commencement address 1993 | The Citadel ... II Peter 4:17 Seven angels Seven candlesticks Seven eyes of the Lord Zechariah 1:3-16; 2:8 ; 4:5-10 ; 5:1-4; 7:; 8:2-9 Zerubbabel Zion
Meet the Minor Prophets (Part Three)
What Does It Take to Be a Hero?
The Citadel is a landmark college in Charleston, South Carolina; and although it is not a Military Academy, in the strictest sense of the word as West Point or Annapolis, each year at least one third of its graduates become commissioned officers in the United States Military. It was established in 1842, and the heart of its mission statement reads:
Throughout its history, The Citadel's primary purpose has been to educate undergraduates as members of the South Carolina Corps of Cadets and to prepare them for post-graduate positions of leadership through academic programs of recognized excellence supported by the best features of a structured military environment. The cadet lifestyle provides a disciplined environment that supports the growth and development of character, physical fitness, and moral and ethical principles.
Through its long and storied history the Citadel's primary focus has been to produce educated, moral, and ethical leaders.
To mark its 150th anniversary former President Ronald Reagan gave the commencement address to the class of 1993. I would like to quote a fairly lengthy part of that address today because it has very important principles that we—who are gathered here today, preparing for our roles as servant leaders under Jesus Christ—should take to heart. President Reagan said:
The Citadel's roll of honor today stretches unblemished from the Ardennes to the 38th Parallel, from Grenada to the Persian Gulf with name after name of those who have served our country bravely in time of war—names like General Charles Summerall, General Mark Clark, and your current president, General Bud Watts. Yes, countless soldiers have distinguished themselves on fields of valor and are part of the century-and-a-half tradition of duty and honor we celebrate today.
But for me, there is one name that will always come to mind whenever I think of The Citadel and the Corps of Cadets. It is a name that appears in no military histories; its owner won no glory on the field of battle.
No, his moment of truth came not in combat, but on a snow-driven, peacetime day in the nation's capital in January of 1982. That is the day that the civilian airliner, on which he was a passenger, crashed into a Washington bridge, and then plunged into the rough waters of the icy Potomac. He survived the impact of the crash and found himself with a small group of other survivors struggling to stay afloat in the near-frozen river. And then, suddenly, there was hope—a park police helicopter appeared overhead, trailing a lifeline to the outstretched hands below, a lifeline that could carry but a few of the victims to the safety of the shore. News cameramen, watching helplessly, recorded the scene as the man in the water repeatedly handed the rope to the others, refusing to save himself until the first one, then two, then three and four, and finally five of his fellow passengers had been rescued.
But when the helicopter returned for one final trip, the trip that would rescue the man who had passed the rope, it was too late. He had slipped at last beneath the waves with the sinking wreckage—the only one of 79 fatalities in the disaster who lost his life after the accident itself.
For months thereafter, we knew him only as the "unknown hero." And then an exhaustive Coast Guard investigation conclusively established his identity. Many of you here today know his name as well as I do, for his portrait now hangs with honor—as it indeed should—on this very campus; the campus where he once walked, as you have, through the Summerall Gate and along the Avenue of Remembrance. He was a young first classman with a crisp uniform and a confident stride on a bright spring morning, full of hopes and plans for the future. He never dreamed that his life's supreme challenge would come in its final moments, some 25 years later, adrift in the bone-chilling waters of an ice-strewn river and surrounded by others who desperately needed help.
But when the challenge came, he was ready. His name was Arland D. Williams, Jr., The Citadel Class of 1957. He brought honor to his alma mater, and honor to his nation. I was never more proud as president than on that day in June 1983 when his parents and his children joined me in the Oval Office—for then I was able, on behalf of the nation, to pay posthumous honor to him. Greater love, as the Bible tells us, hath no man than to lay down his life for a friend.
I have spoken of Arland Williams in part to honor him anew in your presence, here at this special institution that helped mold his character. It is the same institution that has now put its final imprint on you, the graduating seniors of its 150th year. But I have also retold his story because I believe it has something important to teach to you as graduates about the challenges that life inevitably seems to present—and about what it is that prepares us to meet them.
Sometimes, you see, life gives us what we think is fair warning of the choices that will shape our future. On such occasions, we are able to look far along the path, up ahead to that distant point in the woods where the poets' "two roads" diverge. And then, if we are wise, we will take time to think and reflect before choosing which road to take before the junction is reached.
But such occasions, in fact, are rather rare—far rarer, I suspect, than the confident eyes of one's early twenties can quite perceive. Far more often than we can comfortably admit, the most crucial of life's moments come like the scriptural "thief in the night." Suddenly and without notice, the crisis is up on us and the moment of choice is at hand—a moment fraught with import for ourselves, and for all who are depending on the choice we make. We find ourselves, if you will, plunged without warning into the icy water, where the currents of moral consequence run swift and deep, and where our fellow man - and yes, I believe our Maker—are waiting to see whether we will pass the rope.
These are moments when instinct and character take command, as they took command for Arland Williams on the day our Lord would call him home. For there is no time, at such moments, for anything but fortitude and integrity. Debate and reflection and a leisurely weighing of the alternatives are luxuries we do not have. The only question is what kind of responsibility will come to the fore.
And now we come to the heart of the matter, to the core lesson taught by the heroism of Arland Williams on January 13, 1982. For you see, the character that takes command in moments of crucial choices has already been determined.
It has been determined by a thousand other choices made earlier in seemingly unimportant moments. It has been determined by all the little choices of years past—by all those times when the voice of conscience was at war with the voice of temptation—whispering the lie that it really doesn't matter. It has been determined by all the day-to-day decisions made when life seemed easy and crises seemed far away—the decisions that, piece by piece, bit by bit, developed habits of discipline or of laziness, habits of self-sacrifice or of self-indulgence, habits of duty and honor and integrity—or dishonor and shame.
Because when life does get tough, and the crisis is undeniably at hand—when we must, in an instant look inward for strength of character to see us through—we will find nothing inside ourselves that we have not already put there.
I would like to add one more thought that President Reagan expressed toward the end of this speech regarding the responsibility of those gathered there, but should ring more loudly for us.
He said, "When I was about your age, President Roosevelt said we had 'nothing to fear but fear itself.' Today, in much different times, our prosperous nation has little to fear but complacency itself."
Zechariah 4:9-10 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; His hands shall also finish it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you. For who has despised the day of small things? For these seven rejoice to see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. They are the eyes of the LORD, Which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth.
Here we are in the midst of the book of Zechariah; in the midst of God's final direction, correction, and encouragement, preceding the first coming of Jesus Christ, through the prophets Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi. But in reality this is more importantly to those upon whom the end of the age is come! Remember, brethren, these things were written for our admonition! And I believe, especially these three books. We are given a very stern and yet wonderfully encouraging warning. Be careful not to become complacent and think that what we do now, in every tiny aspect of our lives, does not make a difference in our part in God's plan and purpose.
Everyone whom God has chosen and given understanding must absolutely come to grips with the idea that there is nothing that is done within the Body of Christ, as a group or individually, that is insignificant in God's developmental plan to suit His purpose. God is carefully watching what we are doing, and He is redirecting our steps so that we will learn to "Pass the Rope!"
These three books that close off the history of the "Church in the Wilderness" speak not merely to those who were given charge to rebuild the second temple, but more importantly, they are authoritative proclamations by God to those within the Body of Christ! They are judgment messages of correction, direction, and the sure hope that is ahead of all those who know God has started a good work in us so that He can bring it to perfection at the return of Jesus Christ, as we are told in Philippians 1:6.
They are God's expression of His love and earnest desire to bless those He has set apart from the rest of the world at this time, if we ambitiously work at the little things He has set before us, in order to prepare us to "Pass the Rope."
Malachi 1:2 "I have loved you," says the LORD. "Yet you say, 'In what way have You loved us?' Was not Esau Jacob's brother?'" Says the LORD. "Yet Jacob I have loved;"
Malachi 4:1-4 "For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, and all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up," Says the LORD of hosts, "That will leave them neither root nor branch. But to you who fear My name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings; and you shall go out and grow fat like stall-fed calves. You shall trample the wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day that I do this," says the LORD of hosts. "Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments."
As we look at these prophets we see the tie that God makes between the individual effort in that temple work, service, and careful obedience as it was then, and our individual temple work, service, and careful obedience that He expects from us now. Each of these books, as we all know, were not just about the period in which they were written but about the coming of the promised Messiah, His death, resurrection, second coming, Millennial Rule, and the Last Great Day!
In all three books together, God paints a magnificent, hope-filled picture of the building, redemption, and reconciliation that He is working out all the way through the Day of Judgment. Through all three of these books, He is making sure that we know how much He loves us and that He is the One who makes it all happen! He is the One who is directing us to develop the habits of sacrifice, duty, integrity, and honor because He loves us and demands that we maintain the individual holiness that He gives to us.
Haggai 2:4, 11-14 "Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel," says the LORD; "and be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; and be strong, all you people of the land," says the LORD, "and work; for I am with you," says the LORD of hosts. Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Now, ask the priests concerning the law, saying, 'If one carries holy meat in the fold of his garment, and with the edge he touches bread or stew, wine or oil, or any food, will it become holy?:'" Then the priests answered and said, "No." And Haggai said, "If one who is unclean because of a dead body touches any of these, will it be unclean?" So the priests answered and said, "It shall be unclean." Then Haggai answered and said, "So is this people, and so is this nation before Me, says the LORD, and so is every work of their hands; and what they offer there is unclean."
God tells us, His priesthood in training, to be strong and work while knowing that He is with us every step of the way, to maintain and develop His holiness within us; a holiness that He has already made available to us. Verse 12 is a reference back to Leviticus 6:18, where the priests were set apart as a possession of God by the very act of sharing in the eating of the sacrifice offered.
Throughout the Bible, the term "Lord of Hosts" is used to absolutely show God is in charge in bringing His work to its end. The term is used 245 times in the whole Bible. Of those 245 times it is used 91 times in these three short books alone. He leaves no doubt, through His prophets to His people, that He is the one who will bring His plan and purpose to completion.
As just a small sampling I would like you to turn to just a few of those scriptures.
Haggai 1:2-5, 7, 9, 11, 13-14 Thus speaks the LORD of hosts, saying: "This people says, 'The time has not come, the time that the LORD'S house should be built.'" Then the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet, saying, "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?" Now therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: "Consider your ways!" Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Consider your ways! You looked for much, but indeed it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why?" says the LORD of hosts. "Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house. For I called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands." Then Haggai, the LORD'S messenger, spoke the LORD'S message to the people, saying, "I am with you, says the LORD." So the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of the LORD of hosts, their God,
Haggai 2:6-9 For thus says the LORD of hosts: "Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory," says the LORD of hosts. "The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine," says the LORD of hosts. "The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former," says the LORD of hosts. "And in this place I will give peace," says the LORD of hosts.
Zechariah 1:3-6, 14-17 Therefore say to them, "Thus says the LORD of hosts: 'Return to Me,' says the LORD of hosts, 'and I will return to you,' says the LORD of hosts. Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets preached, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds."' 'But they did not hear nor heed Me,' says the LORD. 'Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever? Yet surely My words and My statutes, Which I commanded My servants the prophets, Did they not overtake your fathers?' So they returned and said: "Just as the LORD of hosts determined to do to us, According to our ways and according to our deeds, So He has dealt with us."' So the angel who spoke with me said to me, 'Proclaim, saying, "Thus says the LORD of hosts: 'I am zealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with great zeal. I am exceedingly angry with the nations at ease; For I was a little angry, And they helped—but with evil intent.'" Therefore thus says the LORD: "I am returning to Jerusalem with mercy; My house shall be built in it," says the LORD of hosts, "And a surveyor's line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem." "Again proclaim, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts: "My cities shall again spread out through prosperity; The LORD will again comfort Zion, And will again choose Jerusalem.""
Zechariah 2:8-9 For thus says the LORD of hosts: "He sent Me after glory, to the nations which plunder you; for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye." For surely I will shake My hand against them, and they shall become spoil for their servants. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me.
Zechariah 4:5-10 Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, "Do you not know what these are?" And I said, "No, my lord." So he answered and said to me: "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the LORD of hosts. 'Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone With shouts of "Grace, grace to it!" Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 'The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; His hands shall also finish it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you. For who has despised the day of small things? For these seven rejoice to see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. They are the eyes of the LORD, Which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth.'"
I could go on to many other scriptures within these three books, where God shows it is His hand as Lord of Hosts, that is making the impossible possible for us, but I think you get the point. We are not the ones who are single handedly determining that special character being built within us that takes command in the moments of the crucial choices that we will be making for eternity. All of our growth is under God's direct supervision.
But what are these "small things" that God expects us to do on our part, day in and day out, to prepare us to make the right choice to pass the rope?
In the space of twenty chapters, God is giving us a very graphic example of how impatient and short sighted our human nature really is and that without the constant focus on the big picture, and a determined effort to complete all the "so called" little things, we will never change to be the rope-passers that all of God's creation is counting on!
Haggai came on the scene some twenty years after the first enthusiastic returnees from the Babylonian captivity. They had started to rebuild the temple; but under pressure from the world around them, they had lost their common desire to do the work of God. Moving into a self-preservation mode in the face of trials, they neglected the work and slowly became selfish, apathetic, and disillusioned! As we see in chapter 1:2, they were into the "My Lord delayeth His coming" mode.
Zechariah came on the scene a couple of months after Haggai, and although he and Haggai were prophesying at the same time, this lasted only a couple of months, and then Zechariah continued on alone for about two years. Haggai had gotten the people started on rebuilding again, and then Zechariah focused the people on spiritual renewal. He was to prepare the people for proper worship in the Temple once the project was completed.
Some time later, after the temple was rebuilt and a number of years down the road, Malachi came along to prophecy to a people that were so lacking in a proper fear and love for God, that they had become haphazard in their response to the word of God! The people graphically showed this to God, who was carefully watching them, as they went about their lives carelessly doing the so called little things in priestly service, family relationships, and relationships within the community of those He had set apart to be holy as He is holy!
In their weariness and impatience, they had not only grown apathetic but contemptuous of the little things that were their duty and service before the Great God who had chosen them from all the nations on the earth! Just as He has chosen you, sitting here today, from all the nations of the earth.
They had settled into a "God will have to accept me as I am" attitude! Because of this attitude, they had lost a great deal of any understanding that they may have had about a right covenant relationship with God and each other! They treated the little things of God's Holy word as common and instead of availing themselves of the holiness God had given them, they were pushing away a God who repeatedly says throughout these books, "I have loved you, and set you apart from all those around you."
So here in these three books God gives His end-time church and His chosen people our marching orders towards the perfection of His holiness and reinforces what those things are that we are to do. Those choices tell Him a great deal about our future ability to make the choice to "pass the rope."
Haggai 1:4-8 "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?" Now therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: "Consider your ways!" You have sown much, and bring in little; You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; And he who earns wages, Earns wages to put into a bag with holes." Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Consider your ways!" Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified," says the LORD.
Haggai 2:4-5, 12-14 'Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel,' says the LORD; 'and be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; and be strong, all you people of the land,' says the LORD, 'and work; for I am with you,' says the LORD of hosts. 'According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!'
Are we strong in doing all of the "little things" of the covenant agreement that we made with God at baptism?
Are we strong in doing all the little things of the covenant agreement we made with God at baptism, under the direction of, and by the power of, His holy spirit? Are we really trying to avoid the unclean things of this world while working to maintain our individual part of the holiness that God has shared with us?
In Zechariah 5, God brings this again right down to the individual:
Zechariah 5:1-4 Then I turned and raised my eyes, and saw there a flying scroll. And he said to me, "What do you see?" So I answered, "I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits and its width ten cubits." Then he said to me, "This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole earth: 'Every thief shall be expelled,' according to this side of the scroll; and, 'Every perjurer shall be expelled,' according to that side of it." "I will send out the curse," says the LORD of hosts; "It shall enter the house of the thief and the house of the one who swears falsely by My name. It shall remain in the midst of his house and consume it, with its timber and stones."
Here is this giant scroll, which is the document of covenant—our part of the covenant agreement we made with God—written on both sides and moving swiftly across the sky over the whole world for everyone to see and bringing judgment down into the individual homes of the covenant breakers. This should bring a shudder unto us all who know what God tells us, through the Apostle Peter, in I Peter 4:17, about His judgment now being on those within the house of God! He is bringing this down to the individual, right down to each and every one of us, and our part in keeping the covenant, the statues, and the laws.
How seriously do we take our responsibility to live as God lives and make the choices that He would make, by living according to His law of love as codified in His commandments? Because this is what He is showing He expects from His end time church!
Brethren, do we really understand that keeping the letter and the spirit of the Law, under the direction of God's Holy Spirit, in even the smallest of things, is the gift from God that is the key to developing our individual character that takes command in the moments of the crucial choices we will be making for eternity?
Do we understand that the only way we will be able to fit into the place that God has prepared for us within His family is by using this key that He has given us to make all those seemingly unimportant decisions, when the voice of conscience is at war with the voice of temptation whispering the lie that it really does not matter?
Brethren, we need to fully appreciate that this is God's gift to His people so that the decisions can be made now, piece by piece, bit by bit, in order for God to develop within us habits of discipline, not laziness; self-sacrifice, not self-indulgence; habits of duty, honor, and integrity, not dishonor and shame for the family name.
Zechariah 7:5-10 "Say to all the people of the land, and to the priests: 'When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months during those seventy years, did you really fast for Me—for Me? 'When you eat and when you drink, do you not eat and drink for yourselves? 'Should you not have obeyed the words which the LORD proclaimed through the former prophets when Jerusalem and the cities around it were inhabited and prosperous, and the South and the Lowland were inhabited?'" Then the word of the LORD came to Zechariah, saying, "Thus says the LORD of hosts: 'Execute true justice, Show mercy and compassion everyone to his brother. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or the poor. Let none of you plan evil in his heart against his brother.' "But they refused to heed, shrugged their shoulders, and stopped their ears so that they could not hear.
Are we taking full advantage of the time that God has created for us, to prepare us to make the right choices in the smallest areas where we are to execute true judgment? "Show mercy and compassion, every man to his brother." These are the little things that God is using as part of our character development for the times to pass the rope.
Malachi 3:7-12, 16-18 Yet from the days of your fathers You have gone away from My ordinances and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you," Says the LORD of hosts. "But you said, 'In what way shall we return?' "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this," says the LORD of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it. "And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field," says the LORD of hosts; "And all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land," says the LORD of hosts. Then those who feared the LORD spoke to one another, and the LORD listened and heard them; so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the LORD and who meditate on His name. "They shall be Mine," says the LORD of hosts, "On the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him." Then you shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.
As we learn to make the right choices, according to His word, and share our lives with one another, God becomes just as sure of us as He was of Abraham. He knows that we can be His children, to rightly discern for eternity between righteousness and wickedness, trusting His way always, and knowing how to think and act like the God family should in every situation.
Even though we will not go back there now for lack of time, Zechariah 4 is a chapter remarkably similar to the first chapter of the Book of Revelation. In Revelation 1:20, God identifies the seven churches as the seven candlesticks, and the seven stars as the angels of those churches. In Zechariah 4:10, we may possibly see God alluding to the presence of the angels to the seven churches, who had been God's eyes reporting back and forth to God of the small things that God's people were doing throughout His plan for them, and now rejoicing as Jesus Christ was setting those people in place according to what He knew of each and every one of us.
Zechariah 4:10 (Amplified version) Who [with reason] despises the day of small things? For these seven shall rejoice when they see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel. [These seven] are the eyes of the Lord which run to and fro throughout the whole earth.
Brethren, what does God know about us individually within the church? He knows everything! What does He say to each of us individually in Revelation 2 and 3?
To paraphrase Revelation 2 and 3: "Jesus Christ, who stands in the middle of all the Churches of God, says unto each individual under the watchful eyes of the angels of the church of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, 'I know your work, your labor, your patience, your tribulation, your poverty, your faithfulness in the face of false teachers, blasphemy, and martyrdom. I know your works, your charity, your service, your patience, your faithfulness to the doctrines of the holy word of God.' 'I know your works and whether or not you are strengthening the things that remain, and whether or not you are taking advantage of the opportunities I give you to keep My word and not deny My name. I know your works and if you are lukewarm, I will spew you out of my mouth.' 'Be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man will hear My voice, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.' 'To Him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne.'"
Brethren, it is our responsibility and duty to use all the so-called "small things" that we are called to do, to develop the same mind in us that was also in Jesus Christ. The same Jesus Christ who has passed the rope billions of times in order that we may be saved.
In closing I would like to leave you with one more thing of what our Great God says to us from the book of Zechariah, and I will be reading this from the New Living Translation.
Zechariah 8:2-9 This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says: "My love for Mount Zion is passionate and strong; I am consumed with passion for Jerusalem. And now the Lord says: I am returning to Mount Zion, and I will live in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the Faithful City: the mountain of the Lord of Heaven's Armies will be called the HOLY Mountain. This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says: Once again old men and women will walk Jerusalem's streets with their canes and will sit together in the city squares. And the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls at play. This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says, All of this may seem impossible to you now, a small remnant of God's People. But is it impossible for me, says the Lord of Heaven's Armies? This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says, Be strong and finish the task!
Brethren, make the right decisions according to God's word, and learn to "Pass the Rope!"


This is a dance-theatre piece that subsumes the narrative of Romeo and Juliet into the urban street culture of Johannesburg. The production premiered in 2015 and enjoyed an international tour in Germany. Its ongoing success this year means it will likely tour again in the coming months.


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UK study investigates microplastic pollution from roads
Highways England is looking at whether microplastics are washed off roads and into the environment.
The government-run organisation in charge of England's motorways has launched a study into microplastics washed off the country's road network. Highways England is looking into the environmental impacts of surface water that runs off roads, with emphasis on how that affects the level of microplastics in the environment.
In essence, the research will assess whether there is a "microplastic waste issue" from the water that runs off roads in wet weather. It's hoped the organisation will be able to use the research to better understand the issue, then identify further studies that could shed light on ways to address the problem.
Microplastics are often found on roads as tyres, brakes and road markings degrade during normal use. As these items gradually wear away, small particles are left on the road surface, where they may be washed away into the ground surrounding the roadside.
This new study has been kick-started by initial research identifying the evidence that exists and looking into what further research should be undertaken. Academic "desk top" findings have also secured funding so the issue can be more closely investigated with "on-road" investigations.
Although Highways England says it already has "clear assessment and design standards" for maintaining and improving drainage systems on its network, it hopes the studies will guide improvements in future. The organisation says it is committed to "minimising the environmental impact of its network and in particular the vehicles using it".
Alice Horton, from the National Oceanography Centre, said the research could help limit the impact of roads on the environment.
"This research is a key step in understanding the contribution of the strategic road network to microplastic pollution within the terrestrial and aquatic environment," she said. "This study has identified the critical knowledge gaps that should be addressed going forwards to enable us to understand the extent and implications of microplastic runoff from roads, and measures that should be put in place to limit this environmental contamination.
More on pollution from the UK's road network:
High-tech school crossing lollipop highlights air pollution levels
Meanwhile Michael Whitehead, principal advisor for water at Highways England, said the research would help the organisation's "future decision making", including potential measures to limit microplastic pollution.
"Highways England takes environmental issues seriously and recognises the global concern around microplastic pollution," he said. "We have undertaken this research together with the Environment Agency and other industry experts to better understand the potential contribution that road transport has on microplastics. The outcome of further research will be the evidence base to inform future decision making, enabling us to take positive action to manage identified risks, inform policy and identify further areas of research.
Pollution highways of england


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A request is made for assistance towards a home for the aged to be opened in Horana in April. Among the items needed are beds, Mattresses, pillows, cooking utensils and toilet facilities.
Contact : Piyawathie Opanayake, No 285, 25 Lane, Dickhenapura, Horana.


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Amy Ray Embraces Country and Draws From Her Punk-ish Past for Her New Solo Album
Posted By Matt Wardlaw on Thu, Nov 15, 2018 at 1:32 PM
Carrie Schrader
For more than 30 years, the Indigo Girls have been examining differences. "What separates me from you," asks singer-guitarist Amy Ray in "Tried to Be True," a track from the group's 1989 self-titled major label debut. The pair have been longtime advocates, using their songwriting as a platform to explore a variety of topics and shine a light on different perspectives and important commentary.
Holler, the recently released solo album from Ray, finds the veteran artist continuing to dissect the world around her. "Sure Feels Good Anyway," which leads off the record, grapples with the divide that sometimes exists right outside of the front door for Ray in her hometown of Dahlonega, GA.
"I have a certain sympathy with the people who are good people, but they still have a Confederate flag on their house. …My neighbors may have been racist and homophobic at one time, but I believe that people can change," Ray says via phone. She performs at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 27, at E.J. Thomas Hall in Akron. "I also appreciate the fact that when I'm stuck in my driveway and don't have enough horsepower to clear all the trees that have come down in an ice storm, those people come and help me."
She says one lesson she's learned is that you truly can't judge a book by its cover.
"[I've learned to] not have everything based on politics and all of that," she says. "Even though it's hard not to personalize that, because when the battles become about things like whether you're gay or not or what your race is or what your socioeconomic level is, you feel like you do personalize it, because they're basing it on that. But those kind of family value politics — that's just this thing that we're all fooled by it. I know that a lot of these people are good people, and I know that when it comes down to it, one on one, they may vote in ways that are against me, but they can't be mean to me one on one. Like, when I'm playing a benefit at their church for homeless people, they're not going to be mean to me. [Laughs] And maybe one day, they're going to even embrace it."
Ray continues to take advantage of her platform to hopefully do some good, recognizing the many challenges that still exist.
"It would be harder if I was Hispanic or black or even Asian in my community, it would be a lot harder," she says. "Racism is sort of the last thing to fall, so that's the thing that I'm most dedicated to work on is, really issues around race because I feel like that's the last thing standing that we're going to have to [change]. I think we can get to a place with queer issues where we are in a more tolerant arena, and I think even with some feminist issues, but I think when it comes to race, that's the hardest thing."
Though there are areas topically on Holler that are serious in tone in terms of the subject matter, on the whole, the album itself captures the joy that Ray experienced working on the songs with her band, with which she spent the past four years touring after the release of Goodnight Tender, her 2014 solo album which found her dipping a foot into the waters of country and Americana. Holler continues that excursion, while also wrapping in some of her previous punk-ish solo roots. Ray and the members of her solo band spent 10 days tracking the material for the album in Asheville, NC, playing live, straight to tape.
The fact that the resulting album has the sound of a band playing like they might have been at a gig just running through the songs is no accident — Ray and the band had the opportunity to road test a number of the songs in front of select audiences prior to recording them, which she says offered up valuable perspective.
"It helps me tweak the song. I can tell if something doesn't work. It's not all just reaction; it's just that there's something about when you stand in front of people to play something, you hear it differently," she explains. "There might be things that I thought might be not right, but it verifies it to play it in front of people. So I can go back to the drawing board and be like, 'This doesn't work, or this chorus is too long, or the song's too long, or I need to cut this, or the arrangement's wrong, and we need to have the drums enter here instead of there.' Things like that. There's a lot of information just out of one time doing that that you can get. I mean, a lot. So for me, I always try to do something like that."
"Tonight, I'm Paying the Rent" documents the spirit of being a working musician, just out playing that regular gig, with harmonies from the Wood Brothers adding to the loose good time feel of the song. "They can make a party out of anything," Ray laughs. Meanwhile, "Last Taxi Fare" has a gloriously old-school late-night country vibe to it and came out of a real experience that she had in Sheboygan, WI.
"I was at this bowling alley, and I was just over it, and everybody was drunk, and I was just having trouble with drinkers in my life generally. It's kind of an Al-Anon song," she chuckles. "I needed to leave, and I couldn't find a cab. I found one, and then the guy was like, 'Can I go pick somebody else up?' It literally was a drunk person to sit in the back seat with me for 20 minutes, and he tried to talk to me the whole time."
Ray points to the end of the song, which captures the message that she got from the experience.
"It was just a vision of me, when I was sitting there — it was what I was I thinking about to get myself…..I was just like, 'You know, this is meant to be and I'm supposed to learn something from this," she says now. "What if this guy was the [driver's] father or something? And he's just helping him out. I tried to go through those scenarios. I ended up writing a song where that was the story because it helped me get over it and be a better human being that night and not be a jerk, basically. [Laughs] Because I felt like everything that happens, that kind of stuff, where you're put in these compromising situations, you know that's where you really learn your life skills and how to be a better person."
A variety of special guests who lent their vocal talents on the album, including Vince Gill and Brandi Carlile, who helped Ray form a dream "vocal trio" for "Last Taxi Fare." The songs on Holler were further elevated with some additional instrumentation.
"We brought in a horn section and a string section from Asheville and had arrangements that were worked on by a couple of members of the band who did arrangements for the record. That was fun too, because we had the songs down, so we could just sit there and listen to what the horns and strings were playing," she says. "It was a little treat, like, what are they going to do? How's it going to sound and how's it going to feel on the song? It was a good surprise for us to hear that kind of thing, because we haven't worked with that before, so it made it fun for everybody and everybody wanted to be there. You know, people were done with their gigs, but they didn't want to go home. They just wanted to hear what was happening!"
The Holler tour will find Ray and her band playing the entire album through the course of the set. They'll also play other material. Listening to the songs on the record, it's not hard to hear that they're easily road-ready.
"This one we can do, which is good. I always like that when that happens. Sometimes, with Indigo Girls, I mean, we can play them all live, but if we record with a band on the record, we don't feel as strong about doing it solo because it doesn't work as well," she says. "But I just have the band all of the time with me when I do solo stuff, so it works that way."
She wears a lot of hats with her solo touring and says that she wouldn't have it any other way. "We tour in a van; we don't have any crew; it's just us. I'm sort of the tour manager, den mother person," Ray laughs. "I drive a lot of the time, and they share the driving with me too. We're just a tight operation. I book all of the hotels and do all of the advancing and then we go and do it all and that's just it. It's easy. Everybody else is playing in different bands and has other jobs, so we just figure out a time when we can all go, and we do it."
Ray terms the whole experience as being something that's so much fun, even though she says that carrying a full band on her solo tours makes the dates ones that are not "economically viable." But she also sees a positive evolution happening with the commitment that she's made.
"I sort of decided that was less important to me, obviously, than just going out and representing the record the way I want to represent it. I don't want to go out and play a bunch of stuff solo by myself, just so I don't lose money or something," she says. "I don't want to do that. I made a conscious choice, to have this be my labor of love. If it one day gets to a place, which it almost is at, where I can break even on tours, I'll be really happy and everybody will be well-paid and I'll be able to feel like I can get to the next level then, which is to actually pay some bills from touring, but it's the least important part of it to me."
Amy Ray and Her Band, 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 27, E.J. Thomas Hall, 198 Hill St., Akron, 330-972-7596. Tickets: $33, uakron.edu.
Tags: Amy Ray, Holler, EJ Thomas Hall, Image
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CAMBRIDGE, MA—Genzyme Corp. (Nasdaq: GENZ) announced today that the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) has accepted its marketing authorization application for Myozyme® (alglucosidase alfa), an investigational enzyme replacement therapy for Pompe disease. If approved, Myozyme would become the first treatment available to patients with Pompe disease, a debilitating and often fatal muscle disorder resulting from an inherited enzyme deficiency.
The EMEA's Committee for Human Medicinal Products is expected to issue an opinion on the Myozyme application within one year, and a decision by the European Commission is anticipated early in 2006.
Myozyme has received orphan medicinal product designation, which applies to treatments for diseases that affect fewer than 5 in 10,000 people in the European Union. Approved orphan medicinal products are granted market exclusivity for 10 years.
Genzyme is seeking approval for Myozyme's use as a long-term enzyme replacement therapy for all patients with a confirmed diagnosis of Pompe disease, defined as alpha-glucosidase deficiency. Genzyme's marketing application for Myozyme contains results from several clinical trials, including interim data from the ongoing study AGLU-01702, which is evaluating the use of Myozyme in severely affected children between 6 months and 3 years of age. One-year results from AGLU-01702 will become available during the application-review process, as will interim data from the ongoing study AGLU-01602, which is fully enrolled and includes children younger than 6 months of age with the classical infantile-onset form of Pompe disease.
Nearly 100 Pompe patients are currently receiving Myozyme in clinical studies, through Genzyme's expanded access program, or through pre-approval access mechanisms sponsored by governments in several European countries.
Genzyme anticipates submitting a marketing application for Myozyme in the United States in the middle of 2005. Applications in Japan and other countries will follow the U.S. submission. The company continues to make a significant investment in the development of Myozyme, which is its largest research and development project. Genzyme is currently conducting an observational study for patients with the late-onset form of Pompe disease and plans to initiate a placebo-controlled treatment study for late-onset patients next year. The company has also established a registry designed to improve knowledge about Pompe disease by documenting the natural course of the disease, disease management approaches and clinical outcomes. All patients are eligible to participate in the registry through their treating physicians. Genzyme is also engaged in a substantial expansion of manufacturing capacity for Myozyme at its facilities in both the United States and Europe.
Pompe disease is an inherited muscle disease that affects fewer than 10,000 people worldwide. The disease is caused by a deficiency of an enzyme known as acid alpha-glucosidase. This deficiency leads to the excessive accumulation of glycogen in the body, particularly in the muscles. Pompe disease manifests as a broad spectrum of clinical symptoms with varying rates of disease progression. Infantile-onset patients present in the first months of life with an enlarged heart and skeletal and respiratory muscle weakness, and most die from cardiac or respiratory complications by one year of age. Late-onset patients may present with muscle or respiratory weakness anytime during childhood or adulthood, and disease progression is less rapid. Late-onset patients often require mechanical ventilation for breathing assistance and mobility aids such as canes, walkers or wheelchairs. Late-onset patients will experience a shortened lifespan due to progressive respiratory failure. Pompe disease belongs to a family of approximately 40 rare inherited diseases known as lysosomal storage disorders.
Genzyme Corporation is a global biotechnology company dedicated to making a major positive impact on the lives of people with serious diseases. The company's broad product portfolio is focused on rare genetic disorders, renal disease, osteoarthritis and immune-mediated diseases, and includes an industry-leading array of diagnostic products and services, and sophisticated biomaterials. Genzyme's commitment to innovation continues today with research into novel approaches to cancer, heart disease, and other areas of unmet medical need. Approximately 7,000 Genzyme employees in offices around the globe serve patients in more than 80 countries.
This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements about: the potential receipt of marketing approval for Myozyme in Europe; regulatory plans and expected timelines, including without limitation the expected timing of an opinion from the Committee for Human Medicinal Products and a decision from the European Commission; the expected timing of regulatory submissions in the United States, Japan and other countries; clinical trial plans; and estimates concerning the Pompe patient population. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others: the actual timing and content of submissions to and decisions made by the Committee for Human Medicinal Products, the European Commission and other regulatory authorities regarding marketing authorization applications for Myozyme and the labeling for Myozyme; the actual timing and results of clinical trials of Myozyme; the ability to manufacture sufficient quantities of product for development and commercialization activities and to do so in a timely and cost efficient manner; the accuracy of the company's information about the Pompe patient population; and the risks and uncertainties described in reports filed by Genzyme with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Please see the disclosure under the heading "Factors Affecting Future Operating Results" in the Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations section of Genzyme's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2004 for a more complete discussion of these and other risks. Genzyme cautions investors not to place substantial reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. These statements speak only as of the date of this press release, and Genzyme undertakes no obligation to update or revise the statements.


Douglas A. Faretra, of Grafton, passed away on Jan. 3, 2019, at the age of 75 years. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019, at 1 p.m. at St. John Lutheran Church (1193 Lakefield Road), Grafton. A visitation will be held prior to the service on Saturday, at the church from 11 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials to St. John Lutheran Church, The American Cancer Society or of your choice are appreciated. Please visit www.muellerfuneralhome.com to send online condolences to the Faretra family.
Douglas was born on April 24, 1943, in Concord, N.H., to the late Roger and the late Pauline (nee Lochiatto) Faretra. He was a Sales Manager at Sprague Electric, Vishay and Heiser Lincoln Mercury. Douglas was an active member of St. John Lutheran Church, and was a volunteer ambassador at the Aurora Medical Center in Grafton.
Douglas is survived by his wife, Monica (nee Schulze); children: Alexandria (Tate), Greg and the late Michael Jefferies; grandchildren: Quin, Makaela, Arianna, Jasmine and Skylar; siblings: Donald, Joan Robertson, Roberta, Madeline White and Roger. He is further survived by nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.


text:
Schedules for the 2020-21 school year
chris.crucetti | September 19, 2019
Dear North Colonie Families,
We hope everyone's school year is off to a great start. We are so excited about the opportunities a new school year brings and look forward to seeing the students grow throughout the year. As we begin looking ahead to next year and prepare for the opening of Shaker Middle School in the fall of 2020, we are busy planning for all of the changes that will come along with this transition, including a schedule change at all levels.
The idea of a separate middle school bus run was discussed throughout the planning process for the district's capital project. As part of the required State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR), the district commissioned a traffic engineer to conduct a traffic impact study of the traffic flow in and around the Shaker Junior and Senior High School campuses to ensure that a larger middle school would not negatively impact the traffic at arrival and dismissal times. The recommendation to add a separate middle school bus run was approved by the Board of Education and incorporated into the district's SEQR application which was subsequently approved by the state. The addition of a middle school bus run will allow for two different arrival and dismissal times for our secondary schools, helping to alleviate school-related traffic in the area of the middle school and high school. Over the past several months, administrators have worked with our transportation department to review a variety of schedule options to determine the most efficient and cost-effective way to add a separate middle school bus run.
The addition of a middle school bus run will impact the start and end times at all levels. It's important to note that while the start and end times change, the amount of instructional time at all levels will remain the same. While the elementary and high school will see a slight shift in their start and end times, the middle school will see a more significant shift in its schedule. Since we realize the new schedules may be an adjustment, we wanted to let families know as soon as possible, so that you can start to plan for the next school year.
Beginning September 2020, the middle school student day will be 9 a.m.-3:39 p.m.
Buses will arrive at the middle school between 8:40-8:50 a.m. and will depart school at 3:48 p.m.
We recognize that this later start time may impact family schedules. Accordingly, starting next year at the middle school, the Colonie Youth Center will be providing a before school program for students in grades 6-8, where students can be dropped off before school. Colonie Youth Center is currently finalizing the details of this program. We will provide more information on this optional service later this year.
Beginning September 2020, the high school student day will be 7:32 a.m.-2:04 p.m. Buses will arrive at the high school between 6:50-7:05 a.m. and depart school at 2:12 p.m.
Early Elementary Schools (Blue Creek, Boght Hills, Southgate)
Beginning September 2020, the early elementary school student day will be 8:10 a.m.-2:25 p.m. Buses for our early elementary schools will arrive to schools between 7:50-8 a.m. and depart schools between 2:35-2:45 p.m.
Late Elementary Schools (Forts Ferry, Latham Ridge, Loudonville)
Beginning September 2020, the late elementary school student day will be 8:45 a.m.-3 p.m.
Buses for our late elementary schools will arrive to schools between 8:25-8:35 a.m. and depart schools between 3:10-3:20 p.m.
Late Buses
The district will still be providing late buses for middle and high school students who stay after school as well as for elementary students who participate in homework club. Specific times for when the late buses run will be communicated later this year.
We understand you may have questions and we will do our best throughout the year to provide as many answers as possible. Specific information regarding athletics and extracurricular activities, bell schedules at the middle school and high school, bus pick-up times, and parent pick-up and drop-off times will be addressed later this year. We wanted to share this initial schedule first to allow families ample time to plan for the start of next school year. You can also read the answers to more frequently asked questions regarding the transition to Shaker Middle School on the district website.
There are many exciting things being planned for the first year of the new middle school. Information will be distributed and parent meetings will be held later this school year to share the exciting opportunities that our students will have when they enter Shaker Middle School.
While there are many changes happening, we appreciate your understanding as we work together to create a smooth transition for all students. We are so excited to welcome a sixth grade class to the middle school next year! If you have any questions, please submit them here and we will respond monthly on the FAQ website.
D. Joseph Corr
Category: Archive, Blue Creek, Boght Hills, District News, Forts Ferry, Latham Ridge, Loudonville, SHS, SJHS, Southgate
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It presents a soil type in which gravel is predominant. With an extension of 1,170 ha divided by the Tinto river, for which reason the right bank belongs to the beginning of the Huelva mountain range. The climate is Mediterranean with maximum temperatures of 40ºC and minimums around -2ºC. The Tinto river is being studied scientifically for the importance of its particular ecosystem. Its reddish colour is due to the minerals of copper and zinc that it contains coming from the Riotinto mines from the times of the Phoenicians.


By March 15, Embassy Office Parks REIT garnered Rs 1,743 crore from anchor investors that mostly include foreign investors along with a few Indian ones.
Ace investor and Avenue Supermarts' owner Radhakishan Damani and his brother are among Indian investors, who invested Rs 160 crore against 53.36 lakh shares in Blackstone-backed company, through their five trusts.
Another Indian investor is Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance Company that bought 6.96 lakh shares worth Rs 20.88 crore in the company.
All others are foreign investors including big names like Fidelity Funds, Morgan Stanley, TT Emerging Markets Fund, DB International, National Westminster Bank, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Japan Trustee Services Bank, etc.
"Under anchor investors (AIs) portion in the public issue of Embassy Office Parks REIT, 5,81,05,600 units have been subscribed at Rs 300 per unit," Embassy REIT said in its filing to the BSE.
Embassy Office Parks, which is a joint venture between the Bengaluru-based property developer and private equity firm Blackstone, has placed 33 million square feet of office and hospitality assets under its proposed REIT, which comprises seven business parks and four city-centric buildings spread across Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune and Noida.
The initial public offering (IPO) of Embassy Office Parks REIT, the first ever by a Real Estate Investment Trust in India (REIT), will open on March 18 in the price band Rs 299-300, the company said in a statement.
Embassy REIT is issuing units aggregating up to Rs 4,750 crore and will constitute at least 10 percent of the issued and paid-up units on a post-issue basis.
The issue, made through the book-building process, will close on March 20, the statement said. The units are proposed to be listed on the National Stock Exchange and BSE. The minimum bid size is 800 units and in multiples of 400 units thereafter.
Proceeds from the same will be used for: i) Partial or full repayment of bank/ financial institution debt, ii) Payment for acquisition of the Embassy One Assets currently held by Embassy One Developers Pvt, and iii) For general purposes.
The book running lead managers to the issue are: Axis Capital, Credit Suisse Securities (India), Deutsche Equities India, Goldman Sachs (India) Securities, HSBC Securities and Capital Markets (India), IIFL Holdings, JM Financial and Nomura Financial Advisory & Securities (India).