Nuclear warfare is not necessary to cause a breakdown of our society. You take a large city like Los Angeles, New York, Chicago — their water supply comes from hundreds of miles away and any interruption of that, or food, or power for any period of time you're going to have riots in the streets.
Our society is so fragile, so dependent on the interworking of things to provide us with the goods and services that you don't need nuclear warfare to fragment us anymore than the Romans needed it to cause their eventual downfall.
How much preparation individuals are willing to do is usually in direct correlation to their belief that something catastrophic could happen, making life as we know it a much more difficult task.
It is a proven fact throughout history that when disruptions of any kind occur, those who made even the smallest preparations typically fare much better than those who gave no thought at all in this regard.
Today I want to share with you a list I have compiled of the things that could potentially happen — and that threaten our way of life in a small or large degree.
An item that is not on the list — but could be equally devastating to individual families — is the loss of a job.
Losing a job can be a catastrophic event if one is not properly prepared. Most families find themselves living paycheck to paycheck with little in the way of savings and almost nothing in the way of preparations.
For years, I had brought up the issue of preparedness to a close friend of mine.
When I first started talking about it, my friend and his wife basically blew me off… but I kept bringing the topic up.
About a year after making their food preparations, the breadwinner of the family lost his job and ended up working a series of almost minimum wage jobs trying to make ends meet.
He kept applying for better-paying jobs in his field of expertise — but no matter how qualified he was nobody was interested in hiring someone at his previous salary level or his age (late fifties).
In a recent conversation with this friend, he told me that without their food storage, things would have been immeasurably more difficult. He thanked me for being a good friend and pushing the issue when he and his wife weren't listening.
The family is now living a greatly reduced lifestyle, but keeping their heads above water and continuing with their preparations.
I share this story because on an individual basis, there is a host of things that can happen in which being prepared could make a huge difference.
We often, as a people in general, terms take things for granted and think 'this' or 'that' will never happen to us. In addition to a major job loss due to a myriad of reasons, you could lose your health or the ability to do your job.
Unfortunately, things of this nature are happening to more and more people every day. In fact, I'm certain all of us have been affected to some degree by similar stories of friends and relatives.
When you look at the list above, any rational person could easily see one or more of these scenarios occur within their lifetime.
Never has the planet had as many people as it does now. With increased population numbers, there is increased pressure for resources.
This is a key point on why you want to stay invested in commodities of all kinds.
More countries seek nuclear devices than ever before and recent advancements in technology make this much easier than any time before in history.
Biological and chemical weapons are also much easier to manufacture — and are being stored by an increasing number of very scary countries.
Oil markets are tighter than ever as demand from countries like China and India increases, but new supply cannot keep up with the increasing demand.
The financial debacle of the world economies needs no introduction to my readers. In short, bad times — really bad times — for any number of reasons could and probably will be coming to a location near you.
This is happening right now — and it's only going to spread.
When the political and economic systems of entire nations collapse the consequences are devastating.
Earlier this year pharmacies and hospitals in Greece were unable to provide life saving medicines due to a shortages caused by a freeze in the flow of credit from manufacturers to distributors to patients. A collapse in the country's economy has forced many Greeks to turn to black market barter economies and has left millions financially devastated, with no hope of finding an income stream for the foreseeable future.
The credit system of the entire country is in shambles. So much so that reports are emerging about food shortages and hunger within the Greek prison system, suggesting that serious problems in the food delivery chain have begun to materialize.
As Nigel Farage warned recently, we are beginning to see the rise of extreme political parties as a consequence of the total and utter desperation of the populace.
You may have thought the financial collapse of 2008 was bad. That was just a warm-up.
The main event is staring us in the face, and the whole of Europe has front-row seats.
I personally witnessed what can happen within a very short period of time when food is no longer available to the public.
I was in my early twenties, living in Paris, France.
Those with no food quickly crossed the line of sanity and started desperately looking to take food from those who had it by any means necessary.
These events were never properly covered by the news media (what a surprise!), but I saw firsthand how uncivilized a so-called "modern country" can become within a matter of days because of a lack of food.
If I had not witnessed this myself, I probably would not believe this could happen so easily.
And even as a strong young man, I found myself quite frightened at times before the trucks started rolling again.
That particular truckers' strike lasted three weeks — but it left me with a lasting impression.
The following are Items to Consider that I feel are prudent as you make your own preparations based on the problems that could potentially threaten our way of life.
Each of the items below could fill a book… but my intent is to at least get you thinking about the most important things related to being prepared.
Many have already decided where they will go if and when any such disaster occurs. One of the questions I get more than any other regarding this topic is: Should I stay in the United States or leave to another country?
Personally, I know many who have already left the United States — and they have never looked back. I have been invited to their retreats in Costa Rica, Panama, Argentina, and the Caribbean Islands, and they seem very happy with their decision to leave.
This is a huge decision. My hope is that the following discussion may be of some help when thinking about this topic.
One of the realizations you see firsthand as you travel extensively worldwide is the extreme wealth, extreme poverty, and extreme corruption that exists in all of its world flavors.
The fact is corruption and the growing global police state is EVERYWHERE!
So while we certainly see much to complain about in the United States, which is definitely going the wrong way fast, from what I have seen in most other places on the planet, the U.S. is still less corrupt than most. There are bad apples everywhere throughout politics, local police, FBI agents, and most certainly the court system — but for every bad apple, there are probably three times as many honorable people who are truly just trying to do their jobs.
Leaving the country is a decision you must make before the event takes place due to the sheer amount of time and effort it takes to accomplish such a task.
You must also think about being away from family and friends who don't share your enthusiasm to leave the country and what affect that could have on everyone over time.
For most, I think it's probably best to just hunker down in your own country (U.S. or Canada) and prepare as much as you can. If you can afford a retreat cabin somewhere far away from the big cities, that would probably be best — but again, you still need to get there once the event occurs.
Studies have clearly shown that once a SHTF (Sh*t Hits The Fan) event occurs, you have two to three days to get to where you ultimately want to hunker down. After that, travel becomes extremely dangerous and it is unlikely you will reach your final destination.
Highways will become kill zones targeted by the bad guys. To a gang of armed looters who forgot to prepare or plan ahead before the event, there is not a better target than an RV loaded down with stored food, ammo, and gold.
Don't be foolish and attempt travel once things have gone south: If you need to get somewhere, plan to leave the moment the event happens and arrive where you want to be within 72 hours.
This may require several false starts (meaning the situation looked bad at first, but didn't materialize, and you need to return home) on your part as events start to unfold. But it's better to be safe than sorry if you are planning to get somewhere when an event happens.
Military strategists know from historical accounts of what happens when governments fail or when SHTF events affect a country: The rule of thumb is that roads are to be avoided at all costs.
First, you need to stock up and find a way to defend it. Like-minded friends and neighbors can be a huge support network — as long as they have prepared as well.
There is a great book (it's not well-edited, but has solid content) on how to live in your home and defend it called Holding Your Ground: Preparing for Defense if it All Falls Apart by Joe Nobody, which in itself is a lesson in laying low.
Ultimately, everyone must decide for themselves based on finances, family concerns, and individual preferences what he can or cannot do in his preparations.
Hopefully, this discussion will help you make the best choices for what is in your best interest.
2. Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.
History shows time and again that those who prepare always fare better than those who did not. Having a plan and being determined to act on that plan will always be the best way to handle any contingencies, should they occur.
After disaster strikes, your mind is going to be racing around like a car on a race track. Pre-planning and having a written set of measures to take will make someone's life go much smoother when the SHTF.
Your own personal plan is ONLY what best fits what you are going to do during and after a disaster.
People should also have back-up plans — Plans B and C, at least — because nothing ever seems to go as planned. Haphazard approaches to the aftermaths of catastrophes are kind of like a chicken running around without its head.
3. Prepare 72-hour "bug-out" bags.
This is an easy, cost-effective preparation that makes a ton of sense — no matter what happens. Even a small preparation like this can have an enormous impact on how you survive the first few days after any type of catastrophic event.
This could be a backpack or bag of some sort for each family member that contains all the items that individual may need during the first 72 hours after a disaster strikes.
Items to include in such a bag would be toiletries, important papers (see below), change of underwear and clothes, some bottled water, snacks, a few bags of freeze-dried food that only require two cups of hot water to reconstitute within self-contained bag, water purification device, metal cup and small pot for boiling water, backpacker mini-cook stove with fuel, sleeping bag, towel, ability to make fire, flashlight with extra batteries, glow sticks, ground cloth, tarp, rain gear, plastic forks, knives, spoons, parachute cord, personal cleaning wipes, a first aid kit and medication, good sharp knife and a multi-tool, fishing line, small fishing hooks, compass, cash, physical gold and silver, map of areas you may need, and any other items that would make sense for you.
Special items required by the elderly, babies, and pets need to be considered as well.
Important paperwork you should bring with you includes: birth certificates, insurance policies, passports, medical records, pet medical records, bank account information, deeds and titles to cars, homes etc., computer backup.
Gather these and put them in a suitable container and wrap in plastic against the elements.
Having such preparations after a tornado, hurricane, or any calamity would allow you to grab and go because it's already prepared.
Each member of my family has such a bag. I keep each one of them in the basement of our house in a heavy-duty large trash bag for protection against the elements.
4. Understand what "just in time inventory" is — and how this can affect you.
When we wake up each morning, we just expect that all of these things will work today the same way they worked yesterday.
What very few people have considered is the complexity involved in the underlying infrastructure that allows goods, services, and commerce in America to flow. Fewer still have ever spent the time to contemplate the fragility of these systems or the consequences on food, water, health care, the financial system, and the economy if they are interrupted.
The truth is our "just in time" inventory and delivery systems leave us incredibly vulnerable to a nationwide disaster.
You see, it is very expensive to hold and store inventory, so most manufacturers and retailers rely on a continual flow of deliveries that are scheduled to arrive "just in time," which significantly reduces their operating expenses.
This is considered to be good business practice for manufacturers and retailers, but it also means that if there was a major nationwide transportation disruption, our economic system would grind to a halt almost immediately.
Once store shelves are picked clean, they would not be able to be replenished until trucks could get back on the road. In the event of a major nationwide disaster, that could be quite awhile.
A report prepared for legislators and business leaders by the American Trucking Associations highlights just how critical our "just in time" inventory and delivery systems are, and assesses the impact on the general population in the event of an emergency or incident of national significance that disrupts the truck transportation systems responsible for carrying some ten billion tons of commodities and supplies across the United States each year.
All of our "just in time" delivery systems are built upon the unhindered transfer of money and credit, but when credit flow becomes restricted or money becomes worthless, no one will be able to pay for their goods. Likewise, no one will trust the credit worthiness of anyone else.
This is exactly the scenario playing out in Greece right now and the consequences on the health care industry in that country have left many without life saving drugs. When there's no money, no one will be transporting anything.
The effects of a transportation shutdown for any reason would be immediate (in some cases, within hours) and absolutely catastrophic.
A day after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, panicked government officials stopped all transportation flow into the region, forcing hundreds of trucks loaded with emergency supplies like food and water to wait for permission before they could enter the area.
As a result, thousands of residents of the city were left without items essential for survival. It took days before truck routes were re-opened and supplies were allowed to flow.
Government officials acting on limited information, lack of knowledge, and personal politics were responsible for restricting the flow of goods into New Orleans, potentially killing hundreds of people in the process.
What this incident demonstrated is that when the trucks in America stop, all commerce and delivery stops with it.
5. Educate yourself on and take measures to store food.
Most store-bought items have very short shelf lives and don't work well for long-term food storage. Canned goods can work, but these must be stored in a cool, dry environment well below room temperature for increased shelf life (but not freezing). Costco and Sam's Club are best for these types of purchases.
Better yet is to store staples such as wheat, rice, beans, sugar, oats, etc. — which, if stored properly, can last up to 30 years.
I look at my food storage as an investment, and I want it to have a long life. There are various methods of storing these staples, and each person should consider what method would work best for their circumstances.
One company that has many of the products I ended up buying is Grandma's Country Foods located in Salt Lake City. They have a wide assortment of items related to preparedness and their pricing is excellent. The product they are most famous for is their powdered milk. I have tried at least a dozen different powdered milk products, and this is the only one my kids and I can actually drink.
Some other items that I have tried from Grandma's Country Foods that I really like are their canned real butter (long shelf life) and dehydrated foods, which taste better than others I've bought.
6. Obtain water and purify it.
The Lifesaver water bottle uses the latest technology to provide clean, pure drinking water. I have spent a lot of time searching the best way to purifying water, and in my opinion, there's nothing better.
Also under the water category, it is wise to consider some form of water storage — whether it's five-gallon containers, 55-gallon plastic drums, or some other form of storage, all of which can be obtained from many different sources.
The bottom line in water preparedness is to always have a safe source(s) of clean drinking water and a way to store it.
To most this may sound absurd, since you can get clean drinking water from the tap in your home, but in times of emergency and/or civil unrest, the water may be shut off — or you may be displaced from your home and will need a way to access clean water.
This leads to the discussion of having a stocked-up safe haven place with two sources of water that is far away from a major city in case of a SHTF event.
This is one of the most rehashed subjects of survival, but probably the most important one.
Most people just assume the taps will continue to flow and water will be there.
People need to know that unless water is from a spring, it will likely need to be purified — and this means some reliable filters or boiling (which requires heat from a fire along with pots to boil it in).
Aside from drinking, water is also needed to rehydrate food, make milk from powder, and of course, for personal hygiene.
How much water will be needed and used is something that is often vastly underestimated.
7. Know how to protect yourself.This almost certainly means owning a firearm and knowing how to use it to protect yourself or others.
Many TV survival documentaries show people who feel they can defend themselves with knives or clubs, but in reality, they are going to lose 98% of the time against someone else with a firearm. Someone that has been specifically trained on how to use firearms in a defensive manner will almost always win the day in a gun battle.
Some people think they cannot use a firearm against another person, but this feeling changes abruptly when they see one of their family members at risk. Some people still cannot use a firearm in any circumstance, and these people should consider some form of self-defense such as the non-lethal devices (stun batons, pepper sprays, TASERS, even baseball bats).
People can feel that everyone will come together and rebuild society, and many good people will — but there are plenty of bad people in this world. And it may come down to you or them.
Everyone needs to practice over and over with any self-defense armament they have so there is no hesitation when it comes to saving one's life from someone that is willing to take yours or your loved ones'.
For a handgun, I recommend a 45-caliber for men and a 9MM for women. Most women find the kick of a 45-caliber handgun too much to handle when shooting and are more comfortable with a 9 MM. Colt, Smith and Wesson, H&K, Sig Sauer are some of the best name brands in handguns to consider if you don't already own a handgun and need to purchase one.
A 45-caliber handgun has more stopping power than a 9 MM, but any well-placed shot with any type of gun can mean game over for an intruder or attacker with malintent.
Some other types of guns to consider are a good defensive shotgun (12 gauge) with large-size buckshot and a long-range rifle with a quality scope.
If you are not familiar with guns, it is best to find a friend who is who can help you through the process of buying handguns, shotguns, or rifles.
Once you have the guns you want, it then becomes necessary to know how to safely use those guns without hesitation if needed. If you are not familiar with the handling of guns I highly recommend you find someone that can properly train you in a safe environment.
I have sent my entire family to what I consider the best gun training that exists on planet earth for civilians. The name of the place is called Front Sight and is located an hour outside of Las Vegas, Nevada.
If that is too far to travel, there are plenty of other training facilities around the country you can find with a local search on the Internet.
From what I understand, it is illegal to own handguns in Canada — but not hunting rifles.
I recommend getting familiar with the process of obtaining any kind of weapons the Canadian government will allow citizens to own for hunting purposes or self-defense.
Unfortunately, the "bad guys" always have illegal guns — even in Canada. So it is in your best interest to go through whatever permitting or paperwork hassles necessary to obtain legal weapons of any kind in your own country.
A few years ago, I remember people waiting in long food lines after the San Fernando earthquake hit California. Many of the people in the damage zone spent hours in breakfast lines, then long lines for lunch, then a repeat for dinner.
They had to spend many hours a day in food lines because either they had no food reserves or had no means of cooking their stored food.
A little preparation can go a long way in preparing for emergencies. Had these good people stored a little food, fuel, and invested in a good quality Dutch oven, they would be set for cooking in their backyard instead of relying on Federal troops to supply their family's nutrition.
Good quality Dutch ovens are fun to use, the food always tastes great, and they're invaluable in emergencies. They require charcoal to prepare your food.
Another option is a Volcano cook stove, which also uses charcoal — but saves two-thirds of the amount normally needed when cooking with Dutch ovens. Charcoal is safe and easy to store, eliminating the need to store dangerous liquid fuels for emergency cooking.
Most good Dutch oven cooks choose Kingsford brand charcoal because of the consistency of the product. If it takes 15 briquettes to cook a chicken once, it will likely take 15 the next time.
9. Understand the psychology of desperate people. This is a difficult one.
After a SHTF (Sh*t Hits The Fan) event, people will not behave normally. That neighbor who was in control during many minor emergencies may be the one pounding on your door with whacked-out eyes demanding what you have because they did not prepare for anything. Someone in your own survival group may just blank out in a zombie-like stare.
Unexpected times bring out the best and worst in people — and you need to prepare for this possibility.
You yourself could lose it. Again, preparing for this will help should it occur. You always hope that disasters will bring out the best in your fellow human beings, but often this is not the case.
10. Maintain proper hygiene. This is one of the top priorities within the armed forces because disease and sickness can and do take down the toughest of soldiers.
After a SHTF event the water to the faucets, as well the hot water heater, may not work. Bathing on at least a semi-regular basis is necessary to avoid all sorts of bacteria from building up on the skin and causing a variety of concerning ailments that will then have to be treated.
People should plan on how they will keep themselves clean — think sponge baths or using personal wipes as an option.
11. How to dispose of waste and proper sanitation. In third world countries and the pre-flush toilet era, one of the leading causes of illness and death was (and still is) improperly discarded waste. If the toilets won't flush because there is no water to make them work, human waste is going to be a huge whopping problem for people trying to survive. Even improperly burying human excrement can lead to disease. Portable toilets, toilet paper, and disinfectant (bleach, for one) should be one of the top items in any survival kit.
Disposal of other trash is an issue that can bring hungry dangerous animals around drawn to the stench. Burning of trash is one method; plastic trash bags and the means to find some place to dump them is another alternative.
There are many repellents in nature that can help: citronella, even the smell of garlic will repel most vermin. Stocking up on insect and other commercial repellents is always an excellent idea. It only takes one bite to make a person deathly sick.
13. Understand radiation fallout and how to protect yourself. This is one of the least understood of the survival precautions taken. There are hundreds of nuclear power plants that could fail after the world as we know it goes down the tube. There are still tens of thousands of nuclear weapons available for war should countries decide to use them. Fallout is something that you might not even see… and until you are sick, you might not even know you have been contaminated. The purchase of a radiation detector that is protected against EMP is a wise idea. Understanding about radiation accumulation dosage (rad) and how to shield oneself from exposure is paramount.
14. Learn first aid. Treating yourself and/or others will probably be the only thing someone can do, as medical professionals are going to be few and far between. Many places offer free classes on first aid because they want people in the community to be prepared. A good first aid book along with a first aid kit is something every household should have before, during, and after a disaster.
Primitive conditions should be expected when anyone is helping someone after a catastrophe. A stockpile of antibiotics is always a good idea. Even acquiring the skill of making your own antibiotics can save lives as infection is something that will become an epidemic, especially with minor cuts and abrasions.
My family has gone as far as being trained to stitch up wounds. We decided as a family that we would learn this skill in case anyone we knew was in need. We have purchased the sterile suture kits and could stitch small to medium size wounds as good as any doctor at this point. We have been trained by medical professionals on a whole assortment of skills — from putting an IV in someone's arm to treating major trauma. This also requires having the right supplies and equipment.
From my viewpoint, this is a skill set that is valuable in any circumstance — but particularly in SHTF events when medical personnel may not be available in a convenient time frame.
Many survivalists and "preppers" make the critical mistake of only being concerned about calories to keep them going. Certain vitamins (A, B1-B12, C, D, E, K), minerals (Calcium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Magnesium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Zinc) and trace minerals are necessary to keep a body going.
Vitamin and mineral supplements should be stocked with food if someone is unsure about what they are getting. Trace mineral drops are a liquid that can solve this problem, and are a good addition to any emergency supply.
16. How to start and maintain a fire. This is for everyone. Having a fire and keeping it going when you need it has been the essence of survival for thousands of years.
Making sure the fire does not cause damage to your home or shelter is something not everyone thinks about. Burning of toxic wood or other material is something to remember as well.
While most everyone thinks that using a fire is rudimentary, there is much more to it. As a matter of fact, a church group recently tested some of their members and gave them matches to start a file. Most of the people had trouble starting a basic fire even though they had matches. This is a skill that you must acquire that allows you to consistently start a fire anywhere at any time. You should also learn to start a fire without matches. There are several books listed at the end of this report that can show you how this is done.
17. Learn how to grow food and/or find it. People's supplies will only last so long, and eventually self-sufficiency will mean acquiring your own food — by either growing it or hunting for it.
Many people are into seed storing, and in many cases, growing your own food will feed the family. However, growing food has many drawbacks that people need to look at. Water is an issue in dry areas as irrigation is very man- or animal-power intensive.
One of the gravest things to contemplate is actually guarding your yield, as two-legged problems could be a bigger issue to your crops than some beetle infestation. Hungry people will see food growing and take it, 24 hours a day. No one can grow enough food to feed all those seeking food.
From a practical sense, it might be a better idea for some to go the hunter-gathering route. There are many good survival shows on television today that are very informative on surviving off the land.
Learning these skill sets can make a huge difference in any survival situation.
This should allow you to concentrate on these other items while most other people are trying to secure what you already have.
Once a SHTF event occurs, you may want to quickly go to the grocery store to secure these last-minute items before the shelves are empty. These are typically items that don't store well for the long-term, but would be critical to own once a breakdown occurs.
These are just some suggestions that people need to address now — before trying to survive the aftermath of a horrible event.
People who prepare have to realize that when civilization stops functioning, so too does everything that most of us depend on.
There may never be a safety net there for us WHEN our stocked-up survival supplies run dry.
Much of survival is having supplies — as well as backups for when food, water, and other necessities cannot be found. The other part is being ready for everything our new situation could throw our way. For this, we all need to learn survival skills.
When someone thinks about their personal needs, an individual can probably add many more survival skills to the items we have talked about above. You want to become quite proficient in these skills before the SHTF so you and your family have a better chance of surviving.
I hope this discussion on being prepared has been of some value to you, no matter how you feel about the potential for problems in our future.
For me, it has become a way of life — as my beliefs are very strong that a catastrophic financial derivative event is looming in our near future.
When you start to see bank runs and long lines at the banks as we are seeing in multiple countries in Europe right now, this is a sign the endgame is near.
A recent article by a major fund manager from London who previously sold derivatives to Europe while working for Goldman Suks stated his opinion that the endgame for the derivatives is end of this year or early next year.
The time to prepare was yesterday, but you still have time to get whatever preparations you can in place while prices remain reasonable and availability exists. This can all change quite suddenly, however, as I hope I have amply demonstrated this week in my articles.
If you are looking for more ways to prepare yourself for disaster, then we highly recommend you view the latest presentation from some of the experts here at Wealth Daily. The presentation goes in depth about the potential collapse of the dollar, how to prepare, and how to come out on top.


i almost always have egg whites left over when i make ice cream. and since i'm not a fan of meringue and a girl can only eat so many scrambled egg whites, i've been on a mission this summer to find uses for whites. and these amaretti are perfect light clouds of almond goodness. yes, i was slightly afraid they would be more like meringues, but good news (for me, anyway) is that the almonds add just enough texture. and the crackly tops are the best part. be sure to eat a few right after they come out of the oven, when the bottom is perfectly chewy and hasn't had a time to cool and get crunchy. perfect.
what else can i do with my whites? yes, i know i can freeze them. every time i do, i forget they're in the freezer, only to find them a few months later when i'm cleaning out the freezer. not a pretty sight, and completely ruined.
preheat your oven to 300F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. don't skip this as the cookies will stick like glue to your baking sheets. position the racks in the upper and bottom thirds of your oven.
pulse the almonds, flour, and confectioners sugar in a food processor until the almonds are finely ground, about ten times.
in a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. while whisking, add the sugar a tablespoon at a time, until combined. continue whisking until shiny, stiff peaks are formed.
using a spatula, fold one third of the almond mixture into the eggs, being careful not to deflate the whites. repeat with the other two thirds of the almond mixture. fold in the almond extract last.
use a pastry bag to pipe mounds of batter onto the baking sheets in whatever size you like, spacing them about three quarters of an inch apart. if you don't have a pastry bag, transfer the mixture to a quart size zip top bag. zip the top and snip one corner to pipe the batter onto the baking sheets.
bake the cookies for ten minutes, rotate and move to the other rack, and bake an additional ten minutes or until lightly browned. turn off the oven and leave the cookies in for another twenty minutes.


text:
Nerdette
Barbara Kingsolver Calls Her New Novel 'My Love Letter To Millennials'
Greta Johnsen
Photo by Steven Hopp/Courtesy of Barbara Kingsolver
"I wrote this book as kind of my love letter to millennials," Kingsolver said of her new novel, 'Unsheltered,' on Nerdette podcast.
Barbara Kingsolver says she always starts her novels with a big question.
"And my question this time is: What in the heck?" she said on the latest Nerdette podcast.
Kingsolver's new work of fiction is titled Unsheltered. It's set both in the run up to the 2016 presidential election and in the aftermath of the American Civil War.
"When I look around, every kind of shelter that most of us have come to depend on seems to be failing," she said. "I thought that would be interesting to contrast the behavior of the people of this moment with what they did at some earlier time when, likewise, it seemed to be the end of the world as they knew it."
Kingsolver is the author of several award-winning books, including The Poisonwood Bible, The Lacuna, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, which won her a James Beard Award.
She tells Nerdette's Greta Johnsen about repeating mistakes from the past, why she's optimistic for the future, and what it's like to narrate the sex scenes when she records her own audiobooks.
Why she set her novel in both 2015 and 1871
Kingsolver: It's really impossible to understand a crisis completely when you're in the middle of it. The fish doesn't know about the water. And people don't really like it if you say, "Well, look how dumb we are." Nobody wants to hear that.
However, if you look at the past, people are always all too happy to say, "Look at how dumb they were." And if I could look at a moment in the past that's particularly relevant to the times we're in, well then I could just let people put two and two together.
'A love letter to millennials'
Kingsolver: I really believe, with all my heart, that the people who are mostly in charge of this country right now, having formed their vision of the world in the 1950s and '60s mostly — when it was a whole different world, when it seemed that there was always going to be plenty of everything — they're clueless. They really don't — they really can't, it's not even their fault — they can't know how to get us out of the fix we're in. Today's problems can't be fixed by yesterday's people. They're going to be fixed by tomorrow's people.
What it's like recording her own audiobooks
Kingsolver: The sex scenes. That's kind of like — the director and the engineer are staring at you. And you just, like, try to go into character.
Greta Johnsen: That's funny because I blushed even in my kitchen. Like, "Wow! Barbara!"
Kingsolver: I had to read that! With men watching me! You just try to get through it all in one take.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. Click the "play" button to listen to the entire conversation, which was produced and adapted for the web by Justin Bull.
#Barbara Kingsolver
Salt, Fat, Acid, Ask For What You Want
'Gender Is Irrelevant': Jodie Whittaker On The New 'Doctor Who'
Why Someone Might Want To Turn Men Into Pigs
One Woman's Quest To Fight Pay Disparity

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: What is the surface $25x^2 + 75y^2 + z^2 = 0$?
Find the intersection curves of the surfaces $$25x^2 + 25y^2 - z^2 = 25$$ and  $$25x^2 + 75y^2 +z^2 = 0\,.$$

I am fairly certain the first surface is a hyperboloid of one sheet, but I cannot figure out what type of surface the second equation represents. It seems to me that it's just a point, but within the context of the question that seems wrong.

A: $x^2\ge0~\forall~ x\in\mathbb R\Rightarrow 25x^2+75y^2+z^2\ge0\ \forall~ x,y,z\in\mathbb R$. Since $25x^2+75y^2+z^2=0$, it means $(x,y,z)\equiv(0,0,0)$ which the hyperboloid doesn't have on it.
Either there is a typo in your question(probably it is $z$, not $z^2$), or the intersection is in the complex plane.

A: It is a point, if we are assuming that the domain of the polynomial  function $25 x^2 + 75 y^2 + z^2$ is $\Bbb R^3$. However, this can change if $x,y,z$ are assuming values in some other ring or field.

A: No real intersections because sum of three positive terms is zero, is a null ellipsoid. Instead of $0,$ the RHS may be >0, like 50,75 etc.  The post may close if you do not make a change.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Weekend Listomania (Special Some Girls Week Finale Edition)
Well, it's Friday and you know what that means. Yes, my Oriental Taco Belle of the Ball Fah Lo Suee and I are off to beautiful London, England where we'll be participating in the very first protest of the Occupy Joanna Lumley's Knickers! movement. Hopefully, Joanna will be home at the time.
That being the case, and because things are doubtless going to be traditionally quiet around here for a bit, here's a hopefully fun and definitely relevant little project for us all to contemplate:
Best or Worst Rolling Stones Track -- Cover Version or Original Song -- That was NEVER Released as a Single!
No arbitrary rules whatsoever, you're welcome very much.
And my totally top of my head Top Five is/are:
5. She Said Yeah (from December's Children)
An r&b cover (originally recorded by Larry Williams as the b-side of "Dizzy Miss Lizzie") rendered at a breathless 1:40 in length. And with Keith's fabulous speed-of-light guitar solo.
4. New Faces (from Voodoo Lounge)
An embarrassingly self-conscious attempt to invoke a "Lady Jane" vibe, and one of the more cringe-worthy songs from perhaps the Stones most best forgotten album.
3. Downtown Suzie (from Metamorphosis)
Bill Wyman, it should be noted, is the only Rolling Stone who ever had a single ("In Another Land") released under his own name during the band's 60s heyday. In any case, this quasi-music hall charmer -- which first showed up on a mid-70s outtakes collection -- proves he should have written more.
2. Miss Amanda Jones (from Between the Buttons)
Said it before and I'll say it again -- one of their best ever guitar rockers, and still fresh as paint. And twice as infectious.
And the Numero Uno wasn't-ever-a-45-(what's a 45?) of them all simply has to be...
1. Dancing With Mr. D (from Goat's Head Soup)
This one actually makes my best and worst simultaneously. On the one hand, as Lester Bangs famously said at the time, it's about exactly what you hope it isn't about. On the other, that fricking riff is to die for.
Alrighty then -- what would your choices be?
Posted by steve simels at 12:03 AM
The one that come first to mind Google says Mick released as a single (but only in England), but the Stones didn't, so I'm saying it fits the category
Memo From Turner. Mick's single from the soundtrack from Performance is great. The Stones version, not so much.
I'm a little afraid to contribute. This is the kind of category of which people know so much more than me. Was "It's Not Easy" pulled from Aftermath? ("Stupid Girl" was a B-side, right?) Or "Flight 505"?
Was "Down the Road Apiece" a single? It's a great showcase for Brian's rhythm-playing. They actually give him a solo.
I've always loved "Can't You Hear Me Knockin'."
Worst? Well, I stopped listening when they stopped being worth listening to, so for all I know there are stacks and stacks of half-assed tracks out there. But while I'm fixated on Aftermath let's nominate "Going Home," the anti-"Midnight Rambler."
I don't think "You Got Me Rocking" from Voodoo Lounge was a single, so that is my choice for worst.
And it's all because of Mick.
"I'm just uh bootcha- cutta up mee."
Just the most horrible delivery of some of the most horrible lyrics...
Love it...
She Said Yeah - Amazing song. It still tickles me to think that the Stones covered a Sonny Bono song.
New Faces - Amen, funk-soul-bruvver. Voodoo Lounge is a very maddening album. There are more than a few "Dancing with Mr. D" moments on it: great sounds from the band, but cringe-worthy lyrics. Listen to "I Go Wild" and "You Got Me Rocking". Great guitar sounds, great drums. Infantile lyrics.
My choice? Hands down - Connection.
Memo From Turner. Both versions. One of the best ever.
Just to be clear...I meant to say that Connection was ny choice for BEST track never released as a single.
you may continue...
RichD
buzzbabyjesus said...
If it's before "Satanic Majesties", and not on "Hot Rocks", then I probably don't know it.
Anything after "Exile On Main Street" that wasn't a hit, I've never heard, except the Stones albums I regret buying:
"Undercover", and "A Bigger Bang".
That said, I'm going to stick with songs I love, instead of my usual poke in the ribs.
Not in any particular order:
"Soul Survivor"
"2,000 Man" (great Kinks imitation)
"Moonlight Mile"
"Dear Doctor"
"Let It Bleed"
Incredibly difficult to pick five.
"Monkey Man"
"Rip This Joint"
"Can't You Hear Me Knockin"
"Jigsaw Puzzle"
"It's All Over Now"
"It's All Over Now" was a single.
Two bests that are not only faves but so obviously hits I can't figure out why they weren't released as singles:
"Connection" and "Under My Thumb."
The latter might has well been a single, given all the airplay it received on AM radio in my hometown.
big bad wolf said...
best---loving cup
worst, oh hell, i'm going to cheat and say too much blood, which was released but was so bad it never should have been.
Wendy's absolutely right.
I apologize for my lazy research.
Instead I nominate:
"Stop Breaking Down"
Maude Lange said...
Best:
Monkey Man
Parachute Woman
Stray Cat Blues
Mercy Mercy
Worst:
Anything released after Exile
"Worst:
Anything released after Exile"
Oh come on! Let's not be that person.
Best: Either "Monkey Man" or "Can't You Hear Me Knocking" or "Rocks Off"
(I'm assuming "Rocks Off" wasn't a single -- it should have been if it wasn't)
Worst -- well, if it was worst, I wouldn't remember it to even nominate it, would I?
"Think."
Absolutely positively, and insanely fun to play live in a band, as I am fortunate to know from first hand.
I'm afraid I'm that person. Granted, there are some good post-Exile songs - Angie, Start Me Up, She's So Cold, Emotional Rescue, Mixed Emotions, Miss You even - but they were all released as singles.
Okay, maybe Star Star, but that was never gonna be a single.
@Maude
"Hand Of Fate"
"Memory Motel"
"Fingerprint File"
"Luxury"
"All About You"
"Silver Train"
"Heartbreaker"
"It's Only Rock n Roll"
"Worried About You"
"Almost Hear You Sigh"
"Slipping Away"
"Thru & Thru."
(not too bad, for starters...)
I'll give you It's Only Rock & Roll, but that was a single. And Silver Train was the b-side of Angie. And I think was originally from a pre-Exile session.
If I were in a charitable mood (I guess I am - after all it's Friday) I'd include Back of My Hand, though it's not really single material.
The others: Matter of personal taste & all that.
I'm that person too, however I'll admit to liking these:
"It's Only Rock n Roll".
"Some Girls" being a slight improvement over "Black And Blue" gave false hope which made everything after that even worse.
Being a Stones fan became almost as painful as liking Lou Reed.
vanwoert said...
I also love "Fingerprint File" as the non-single and although I have a soft spot for Goats Head Soup, judging by the overall feel of the album maybe the "D" Mick was dancing with was in fact Demerol.
I'm insanely fond of "Luxury," if truth also be told. Including the longer version on the reissue.
I'm going to have to check out some of these songs. I heard "Think" for the first time today.
I still think Aftermath is the best album they ever made.
"Aftermath" brings up a subject that came up continually while I was on YouTube checking out unfamiliar territory:
It appears to be his last fully engaged contribution, and one of the reasons the album is so good.
The Phantom Creep said...
Brian played the amazing Mellotron stuff on "We Love You" and all sorts of cool weirdness on "Satanic Majesties." He also played the slide on "No Expectations" from BEGGARS BANQUET. He was good pretty much till the end, is what I'm saying.
Interestingly, Keith has almost nothing to say about Brian in his autobiography, and almost none of it good. Of course, he also has almost nothing to say about Bill Wyman, which is weird.
He was good pretty much till the end, is what I'm saying.
I guess the perception I expressed was largely due to his increased marginalization by Mick and Keith.
What a pair!
"No Expectations" would have made my list except it was on a single.
It's gorgeous, and one of my all- time favorite songs by anybody.
Libby Spencer said...
Feels like forever since I've been here, and as always late, and a little shy about joining in cause I'm always sure my picks are too lame for this crowd. Also you're way smarter. But as a life long Stones fan, love this list so I'll play.
No idea if any of these were singles but ones I liked and don't think were mentioned:
I'm a King Bee
2120 South Michigan Avenue
The Under Assistant West Coast Promo Man
Spider and the Fly
"Promo Man" was a b-side, if memory serves. I think of "Satisfaction," actually.
Well, you see that's why I don't play. Questions are too hard for a amateur like me.
Thanks for not mocking my choices anyway... ;)
Only because I have "The Rolling Stones Singles Collection* The London Years" can I tell you that Spider and the Fly was the UK b-side of Satisfaction.
Ah. I regret the error.
John Fowler said...
OK, I will confess to not being a fully-informed Stones person. But, for best, I'm surprised that "You Got the Silver" hasn't been mentioned. Love Keith's vocals here. Maybe it was a single???
#32 said...
Let it Loose
We Had It All
(My personal ode to the late-great Dobie Gray. Keith Richards covers this obscure, heart-breaking ballad from Dobie's sinfully overlooked "Drift Away" album. RIP. This is a bootleg recording from some Tattoo You sessions in the late 70's)
Backstreet Girl
Hang Fire
A Happy New Year's Theater of the Mind!!!
Power Pop: On the Radio
From the Crypt!
Days of Future Passed
Great Lost Christmas Records of the '80s (An Occas...
Wednesday "I Hate the Holidays" Total Self-Indulgence
Instrumental Backing Tracks of the Gods: Yet Anoth...
Instrumental Backing Tracks of the Gods: "Lies and...
It's the Most Wonderful Day Blah Blah Blah
Christmas Comes But Once a Year (For at Least a W...
"Thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves an...
Wails From the Crypt (An Occasional Series)
Great Lost Singles of the '90s (An Occasional Series)
The Secrets of the Universe (An Occasional Series)
Weekend Listomania (Special Familiarity Breeds Con...
An Early (and Totally Drummer-Driven) Clue to the ...
Literary Notes From the Hood
"All they do is give awards in this town...Best Fa...
Annals of Career Suicide (An Occasional Series)
Your Weekend Moment of Zen
I Got Nothing...
Instrumental Backing Tracks of the Gods (An Occasi...
It Came From Nashville!!!
Video Gave the Radio Star a Wedgie
The Way They Weren't
Weekend Listomania (Special Some Girls Week Finale...
Some Girls Week: A Quite Remarkably Out of Tune Ea...


Under the Tier 2 Points Based Systems, employers in the UK are required to have a Sponsorship Licence in order to employ workers who are non-EEA nationals. The Sponsorship Licence is issued by the Home Office and it is generally valid for four years following which the Sponsorship Licence must be renewed if the company intends to continue employing non-EEA nationals.
How do I renew my Sponsorship Licence?
To obtain an extension for the Sponsorship Licence, employers must submit a Sponsorship Licence renewal application to the Sponsor Management System which is an online system. Companies are permitted to submit an application at least three months prior to the expiry of the licence. As the process is done online, companies are required to select a Level 1 User to settle the compulsory fee, complete the sponsor declaration following which the nominated user can request the renewal.
The Home Office are constantly updating the requirements that sponsors must meet along with an extensive list of duties that all sponsors must comply with. It is therefore the responsibility of sponsors/companies to ensure that they are complying with any updated requirements.
It is important to note that the Sponsorship Licence is not renewed automatically once the application is submitted online. The Sponsorship Licence is extended temporarily whilst the Home Office conduct their relevant checks. These checks may require further documents from the Sponsor which must all be provided to the Home Office within five working days. Failing to provide the requested documents within the deadline could have serious consequences for a business and their Employees and as such it is imperative that sponsors have prompt guidance and advice when collating the requested information.
As part of the checks undertaken by the Home Office, the Home Office can visit a sponsor/business to ensure that they are complying with their requirements and duties as a sponsor. During this visit, the Home Office can request to see any documents deemed relevant and as such it is extremely important that sponsors follow the requirements in relation to record keeping and compliance checks at all times as these visits can be unannounced.
The renewal process will take a while as the Home Office will need to conduct thorough checks on all applications in addition to also visiting sponsors as mentioned above. It is helpful to have solicitors dealing with the matter as we can remain in constant contact with the Home Office and provide clients with updates regularly.
Our team of specialist Immigration Solicitors possess in-depth knowledge and understanding on how Business Immigration operates in the UK. We are therefore best equipped in ensuring that your application for the renewal of a Sponsorship Licence is successful without causing disruption to your daily business activities. We have dealt with many large companies in the UK and have been successful at obtaining, not only the initial Licence, but also all renewals.


text:
Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology
Post-Sophomore Year Pathology Fellowship
Observerships
Post-Residency Fellowship Positions
Blood Banking & Transfusion Medicine
Gastrointestinal Pathology
Gynecologic & Breast Pathology
Laboratory Genetics & Genomics
Molecular Genetics Pathology
Online Pathology Course for Non-MDs
Leadership & Faculty
Advanced Research and Diagnostics Laboratory
About ARDL
Molecular Pathology & Genomics
The Mono Project
Liver Tissue Cell Distribution System
LMP Newsletter
Community Pathology Newsletter
E.T. Bell Symposium
MPG Division Symposium
Selected ARDL Trial Studies for FY16 - FY23
EDIC
(4/30/17): Diabetes epidemology, intervention, complications
EDIC hearing study (8/31/16): Ancillary to EDIC, hearing measures
EDIC c-peptide study (8/31/16): Ancillary to EDIC, c pep insulin precursor measures
Michael Steffes, MD., PhD., Principal Investigator
NHANES
NHANES Central Biochemistry Laboratory (9/2021): National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
Anthony Killeen, MD., PhD., Principal Investigator
NHANES Lipids (4/14/19): National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
John Eckfeldt, MD., PhD., Principal Investigator
MESA Kidney (8/31/16): Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis
MESA 2 Central Lab (8/14/15): Multi ethnic atherosclerosis
MESA 2 Lipids (8/14/15): Multi ethnic atherosclerosis
Michael Tsai, PhD., Principal Investigator
Sprint (9/30/18)-Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial: Blood pressure intervention trial
ARIC (12/31/2020)-- Diabetes and Prediabetes in Older Adults in ARIC (Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities)
HCHS / SOL
HCHS Visit 2 (Hispanic Community Health Study) (5/31/2019): Hispanic acculturation and disease development / SOL Youth (11/30/15): Study of Latino children's overall health
Bharat Thyagarajan, MD., PhD., MPH, Principal Investigator
HRS (12/31/17): Health in retirement age population
GRADE (7/31/17): Glycemic reduction in diabetes effectiveness / GRADE - EDS substudy (3/31/20): Ancillary to GRADE
PERL (6/30/18): Project with Joslin Diabetes
Amy Karger, MD., PhD., Principal Investigator
ASSESS (6/30/19): Long term outcomes in acute kidney injury / ASSESS-AKI ancillary (Liu) (6/30/18): Ancillary to ASSESS
CKiD Study
CKiD Study (2018-2023): An NIH-funded, multicenter, prospective cohort study of children aged 6 months to 16 years with mild to moderate impaired kidney function
Jesse Seegmiller, PhD., Principal Investigator
Mayo Memorial Building
Email: um-lmp@umn.edu


Hot, windy conditions and a relentlessly hilly course greeted a troop of Nene Valley Harriers who travelled to Offord, near St Neots, to take on the Hurden 9m and 18m races on Sunday March 16.
Hot, windy conditions and a relentlessly hilly course greeted a troop of Nene Valley Harriers who travelled to Offord, near St Neots, to take on the Hurden 9m and 18m races on Sunday March 16. The Nice-Tri 18m event is popular with athletes preparing for spring marathons, while the 9m still offers a significant challenge with endless hills and strong head winds on the day.
Lance Hemmings just missed out on a top ten position in the 18m race, finishing 11th in 2:00:03. Stamford Striders' Jim Morris pipped him to the post of top V45 with an impressive time of 1:53:30, placing him 4th overall.
Hemmings' London marathon training partner, Olly Slater, just beat fellow Harrier Barry Warne, when they crossed the line in 15th and 16th in 2:07:51 and 2:08:14 respectively. Warne, who is also running the marathon on April 13, picked up the first V50 prize. Chris Mooney also placed highly in the double-lapped race, finishing 38th in 2:17.
Ruth Jones completed a successful weekend of racing when she followed up her first lady position at the Cambridge parkrun on Saturday with a win in the 9m event the following day. Jones finished 9th overall in 62:51, exactly a minute and a half ahead of former team mate Yvonne Scarrott, who also finished first V45 and second female overall for Harborough AC.
L to R: NVH athletes Chris Mooney, Barry Warne & Ruth Jones. Pic from Paul Homewood.


text:
Government Corruption
DOJ Inspector General Horowitz Reports Expose More Deep State FBI FISA Abuses in 100% of Applications Reviewed and New Outrageous FBI Conduct
Horowitz Reports Expose FISA Abuses in 100% of Applications Reviewed
By Benjamin P. Sisney15873876000001587387600000
The Department of Justice Inspector General (IG) Michael Horowitz has released another staggering report in his investigation of FBI Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant process abuses.
And once-redacted footnotes from his previous 2019 report, which have now been declassified, expose even more outrageous FBI conduct.
Now, additional information has been released indicating Russian disinformation infected Christopher Steele's infamous "dossier." We now know the FBI relied upon it to mislead the FISA Court – and that disinformation "may have been widespread" within the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane team. The new information shows that the FBI had evidence back in 2017 of Russian operatives feeding disinformation to Steele.
According to Senators Chuck Grassley and Ron Johnson, in a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray: "Because these facts show the intention, means, and ability to plant Russian disinformation in Steele's reporting, they suggest that the prevalence of such disinformation in the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane investigation may have been widespread."
These Senators have asked Director Wray to hand over intelligence documents reviewed by the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane team so they can get to the bottom of how widespread the infection actually was.
Senator Lindsey Graham also recently released enlightening information: less-redacted versions of the FBI's four applications for surveillance orders against Carter Page. The applications show the FBI relied heavily on information from Steele to obtain authorization to spy on Page using invasive tactics like eavesdropping and physical property searches.
New information now being made available to the public just keeps exposing more and more violations and misconduct that plagued James Comey's FBI.
The process of accountability is well underway.
At the end of 2019, after being tasked by Attorney General Bill Barr with investigating suspected FISA abuses by the Deep State FBI, Inspector General Horowitz released a report summarizing his investigation into the FBI's spying on Trump campaign staffer Carter Page. His review revealed "at least 17 significant errors or omissions in the Carter Page FISA applications and many errors in the Woods Procedures" during its Crossfire Hurricane investigation.
That information prompted the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) to ban anyone within the FBI or DOJ that had involvement in the mishandling of the Carter Page FISA warrant from "participat[ing] in drafting, verifying, reviewing, or submitting" any FISA warrants.
As we've reported, FBI agents used a salacious, unconfirmed report to obtain FISA warrants to spy on Page – a U.S. citizen:
This spying campaign as the Department of Justice's Office of the Inspector General's report shows was riddled by a parade of constitutional errors including significant factual inaccuracies and omissions regarding whether there was probable cause to believe that Carter Page, a minor campaign official, was an agent of the Russian government. In fact, quite the opposite was true. Mr. Page had actively assisted the United States government in the past but this crucial fact was not disclosed to the FISC. In addition, the federal government omitted statements that Mr. Page had made to a confidential human source contradicting the FBI's theory of the case. Taken together, this gives rise to overwhelming evidence that Mr. Page's Fourth Amendment rights were violated as part of Cross Fire Hurricane, which led to the special counsel Russia collusion investigation and the most recent effort by House Democrats to cripple the Trump Administration.
It now appears those 17 errors that IG Horowitz reported were just the tip of the corruption iceberg. After releasing his initial report in December, the Inspector General announced that further investigation would be necessary to see if these four reports were indicative of a bigger issue within the FBI.
As IG Horowitz explained at the time:
"The concern is that this is such a high-profile, important case. If it happened here, is this indicative of a wider problem — and we will only know that when we complete our audit — or is it isolated to this event?"
It now appears his concerns were well founded.
According to a report released by the Inspector General's office, of twenty-nine FBI FISA applications reviewed by the Inspector General's team, errors or omissions have been found in ALL twenty-nine.
The Justice Department inspector general said it does "not have confidence" in the FBI's FISA application process following an audit that found the Bureau was not sufficiently transparent with the court in 29 applications from 2014 to 2019, all of which included "apparent errors or inadequately supported facts."
There were problems with 100% of the applications reviewed. This cannot be shrugged off as human error or coincidence.
The Inspector General's office released a new FISA investigation report listing specific violations of established FBI policies regarding its FISA warrant process:
As a result of our audit work to date and as described below, we do not have confidence that the FBI has executed its Woods Procedures in compliance with FBI policy. Specifically, the Woods Procedures mandate compiling supporting documentation for each fact in the FISA application. Adherence to the Woods Procedures should result in such documentation as a means toward achievement of the FBI's policy that FISA applications be "scrupulously accurate."
Our lack of confidence that the Woods Procedures are working as intended stems primarily from the fact that: (1) we could not review original Woods Files for 4 of the 29 selected FISA applications because the FBI has not been able to locate them and, in 3 of these instances, did not know if they ever existed; (2) our testing of FISA applications to the associated Woods Files identified apparent errors or inadequately supported facts in all of the 25 applications we reviewed, and interviews to date with available agents or supervisors in field offices generally have confirmed the issues we identified; (3) existing FBI and NSD oversight mechanisms have also identified deficiencies in documentary support and application accuracy that are similar to those that we have observed to date; and (4) FBI and NSD officials we interviewed indicated to us that there were no efforts by the FBI to use existing FBI and NSD oversight mechanisms to perform comprehensive, strategic assessments of the efficacy of the Woods Procedures or FISA accuracy, to include identifying the need for enhancements to training and improvements in the process, or increased accountability measures.
This alarming new information has prompted Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham to call on Inspector Horowitz to give further testimony before a Senate Committee:
"I have just been briefed on Inspector General Horowitz's audit of FISA applications involving American citizens. This random audit shows discrepancies regarding verification of the information under the Woods Procedures," Graham said in a press release. "I intend to have Inspector General Horowitz come to the Committee to explain his findings and receive his recommendations about how to change the program."
This is just further evidence of the systematic abuse and corruption lurking inside the Deep State FBI that the ACLJ has been sounding the alarm about for years. Deep State actors willfully subverted the law in order to spy on American citizens.
The ACLJ been fully engaged in multiple federal court cases – uncovering numerous abuses and political bias at the top levels of the FBI, DOJ, and other senior officials from the Obama Administration. We are actively continuing to pursue our Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits against the FBI and the intelligence community to expose and defeat the Deep State corruption in this area.
It is high time these Deep State operatives be rooted out and held accountable for their corrupt actions. They have placed the security of our constitutional republic at grave risk for their own personal biases.
This can never be allowed to happen again.
Investigate Deep State Spying on Political Enemies
Government Corruption Signatures
As we aggressively fight to defeat the Deep State in court, we need YOU. Donate to defeat the Deep State today.
BREAKING: More Strzok Texts Revealed (Sekulow Recap)
There are even more text messages that have been declassified from Peter Strzok. Today on Sekulow , we discussed the newly declassified text messages which show that the FBI and Peter Strzok were investigating President Trump before Crossfire Hurricane was even opened. This bogus Crossfire...
ACLJ Files 4 FOIA Requests on Rep. Swalwell's Connection with Spy
A politician has a connection with a foreign female spy. It sounds like a political thriller. But it's not fiction. Rep. Eric Swalwell may have placed our national security at risk . The ACLJ has just taken direct action to shine a spotlight on Rep. Swalwell's connection with a Chinese Communist...
House Members DEMAND Removal of Swalwell From House Intel Committee
Members of Congress demand that Congressman Eric Swalwell be removed from the Intelligence Committee. Today on Sekulow , we discussed how members of the House of Representatives have sent House Speaker Nancy Pelosi a letter demanding Congressman Eric Swalwell's removal from the House Intelligence...
DNI Ratcliffe Says Hunter Biden Emails Not Russian Disinformation
Director of National Intelligence (DNI) John Ratcliffe debunked Congressman Adam Schiff's theory that the Hunter Biden Emails are part of some Russian disinformation campaign. On today's Jay Sekulow Live , we discussed DNI Ratcliffe firing back against claims that the Hunter Biden emails and laptop...


text:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<resources>
    <!-- From: file:/Users/georgest/Projects/react-native-select-list/example/android/app/build/intermediates/exploded-aar/com.android.support/appcompat-v7/23.0.1/res/values-w480dp/values-w480dp.xml -->
    <eat-comment/>
    <bool name="abc_action_bar_embed_tabs_pre_jb">true</bool>
    <bool name="abc_config_allowActionMenuItemTextWithIcon">true</bool>
</resources>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
New children's minister appointed in Boris Johnson reshuffle
Kemi Badenoch succeeds Nadim Zahawi in Department for Education post responsible for children's social care
By Alex Turner on July 28, 2019 in Children
Kemi Badenoch, the children's minister (credit: Chris McAndrew / Wikimedia Commons)
Kemi Badenoch, the MP for Saffron Walden, has succeeded Nadhim Zahawi as children's minister.
The appointment was made public on Saturday, 24 hours after Zahawi, who had been in post 18 months, was reshuffled to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) by new prime minister Boris Johnson.
When Zahawi arrived in January 2018, the minister for children and families role was downgraded from minister of state to junior minister level, and it will retain this status under Badenoch.
A staunch backer of leaving the EU, Badenoch, 39, was elected to Parliament in 2017 having previously served for the Conservatives in the London Assembly.
She was born in London to Nigerian parents before spending much of her childhood in Lagos, and has spoken in Parliament about her experiences of poverty, including living without electricity or functioning water supply, and doing her homework by candlelight.
After returning to the UK at 16 Badenoch studied systems engineering at Sussex University, later also gaining a law degree, and has worked in the IT and banking sectors, including for RBS and Coutts.
What's in Badenoch's in-tray?
The ongoing impact of budget cuts on children's social care will be one of many items occupying Badenoch's in-tray.
At the start of the year, a report by the National Audit Office said the DfE did "not fully understand what is causing increases in demand and activity" in terms of numbers of children in care and subject to child protection measures.
A select committee recently called on the government to increase core children's services funding by £3.1bn by 2025, in line with Local Government Association assessments of what is needed to maintain services.
Another of the cross-party groups is currently examining whether social workers are able to do their jobs given the work pressures they face.
Beyond that there is the ongoing social work reform agenda to manage, with the National Assessment and Accreditation System (NAAS) due to be rolled out nationally in spring 2020. As of the end of May, just 300 social workers had taken the assessment against a government target of at least 1,200 by the end of the year.
March 2020 is also when What Works for Children's Social Care – which is supervising key initiatives on the DfE's behalf – is due to be operating independently, while the new regulator, Social Work England, is set to take over in December.
This year's Community Care Live 2019 boasts over 30 free learning sessions to equip you to face the key challenges in social work practice today. You can also sign up to any of our eight legal learning sessions to help ensure you have the legal literacy your role requires. Register now to ensure you don't miss out.
New leaders praised for driving improvement but staff instability remains at 'inadequate' council MPs to investigate workforce pressures faced by children's social workers Stable leadership, a clear practice model and empowered staff: how one council went from 'good' to 'outstanding' The challenges of tackling county lines in a rural area
DfE issues new tender to run social worker accreditation scheme as total spend reaches £18.4 million
Clinical Therapists – Grade 15 £45,585- £47,511
5 Responses to New children's minister appointed in Boris Johnson reshuffle
Mildly Sceptical July 29, 2019 at 2:56 pm #
'At the start of the year, a report by the National Audit Office said the DfE did "not fully understand what is causing increases in demand and activity" in terms of numbers of children in care and subject to child protection measures.'
Is it just me, or would this be indicative of our government generally: "Department of {insert here] did not fully understand"?
Lovely to see our new Prime Minister promise all sorts of spending on all sorts of things, but since this remains the party in government that have driven public spending down and down over the last decade forcing all public services to their knees and a significant proportion of the population into poverty, I won't hold my breath that they'll be resolving funding issues in children's social care any time soon.
Maurice Baren August 2, 2019 at 9:16 am #
Sad to se that the Govt downgraded Childrens services from Minister of Ste to Junior Minister, and that Boris Johnson has continued to put care of children at a junior level – doesnt that in itself say something about the priorities of this government
Anne July 29, 2019 at 9:21 pm #
Very concerning the lead minister is an engineer. We need minister for children and education to have professional skills training and experience with children. Disappointed at the stream of individuals taking on roles with responsibility they have no understanding of. Having a hard childhood may give some insight but more is needed to develop agencies and systems and effective services.
Olukemi August 13, 2019 at 3:49 pm #
Kemi has been considerably consistent with ideas that aligned with the PM
Onegoodhead August 13, 2019 at 3:53 pm #
Kemi has been keen on BREXIT, isn't quite surprising for Jonson to have her on ship, Anne, I guess the PM just wants a team for 31st October Brexit deadline


text:
Q: Dimensions to [$Detailed Cust_ Ledg_ Entry] in Dynamics Nav Is there any table with dimensions to the table [CompanyName$Detailed Cust_ Ledg_ Entry] in Dynamics-Nav. If so what is the table name or number and what the keys are to join tables. I would like to get [Service Type] to each transaction.
I use SQL Server to get the data.

A: In standard NAV, there are no separate dimension sets for Detailed Cust. Ledger Entries. Depending on the type of the entry, you can get dimensions from:

*

*Initial Cust. Ledger Entry: "Cust. Ledger Entry No." = "Customer Ledger Entry"."Entry No."

*Applied Cust. Ledger Entry: "Applied Cust. Ledger Entry No." = "Customer Ledger Entry"."Entry No."

If the dimension you are looking for is a global one, there are two fields "Initial Entry Global Dim. 1", "Initial Entry Global Dim. 2" right in the table, which, as it goes from their names, contain values of first two dimensions of initial customer ledger entry.
If you have NAV <= 2009, dimensions are stored in "Ledger Entry Dimension" table:
[Ledger Entry Dimension].[Table ID] = 21 AND
[Ledger Entry Dimension].[Entry No_] = [Detailed Cust_ Ledger Entry].[Cust_ Ledger Entry No_]

If you have NAV >= 2013, dimensions are stored in "Dimension Set Entry" table:
[Dimension Set Entry].[Dimension Set ID] = [Cust_ Ledger Entry].[Dimension Set ID],
[Cust_ Ledger Entry].[Entry No_] = [Detailed Cust_ Ledger Entry].[Cust_ Ledger Entry No_]


text:
The death of Elizabeth II.. cannon shots, mourning and anticipation of King Charles' first speech today
Britain's King Charles III is expected to address his citizens later today, Friday, a day after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, at the age of 96, and Buckingham Palace announced a 7-day "royal" mourning period.
Britain's King Charles III is expected to address his citizens later today, Friday, a day after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, at the age of 96, and Buckingham Palace announced a 7-day period of "royal" mourning.
Upon his return to London with his wife Camilla, the new king will address the British for the first time on television, in a pre-recorded message that will be broadcast in the evening at five o'clock GMT.
The new king will meet Prime Minister Liz Terrace, whose official appointment by Elizabeth II on Tuesday was the last constitutional mission the Queen has undertaken in her life devoted to the end of her role.
The new British king shook hands with members of the public outside Buckingham Palace today, after he got out of his car.
Television footage showed Charles and his wife Camilla getting off the royal car to cheers from a crowd gathered outside the palace.
King Charles III and his wife Camilla on their way to Buckingham Palace today (Getty)
Then the king proceeded to shake hands with dozens and look at the flowers that people put in front of the palace in honor of his mother for at least 10 minutes.
Several members of the audience sang "God save the King", and one said, "We love you, Charles."
Charles has become more present in recent months and has represented his mother - along with his eldest son William - due to what the palace described as the Queen's mobility problems.
And he spoke for the first time yesterday evening, Thursday, in a statement, expressing the "great sadness of the family" after the death of "Her Majesty, dear and beloved mother."
"I know her loss will be deeply felt across the country, kingdoms, Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world," he said.
Buckingham Palace has declared a 7-day royal mourning period (Getty Images)
artillery and bells
During the day, 96 artillery rounds are fired in many places in the country, and the bells of St Paul's Church, Westminster Abbey and Windsor Castle ring.
The honoring ceremonies also began at the other end of the world, in Australia and New Zealand, two of the countries of the Commonwealth of which Charles III became president.
Buckingham Palace has declared a seven-day period of "royal" mourning, starting on the day of the Queen's funeral, which has yet to be determined.
And the "royal mourning" differs from the national mourning - which begins today, Friday - and is committed by members of the royal family and employees of the monarchy, as well as the guards participating in the ceremonies.
Step to King Charles 5 months
The Windsors are having a Christmas unlike any other this year
The Bank of England unveils the first banknotes bearing the image of King Charles III
King Charles III hails solidarity in first Christmas speech
Charles' Christmas speech: "Christmas is a particularly poignant time for all of us who have lost someone"
Charles III's Christmas speech: In a dark street an eternal light
Christmas speech: In a dark street an eternal light
Three days of festivities planned for the coronation of Charles III
The course of the demonstration of January 31 in Paris
This is how the municipal party in Norrköping is changing
At the age of 23, a celebration of Mariam Al-Turki, the third Kuwaiti woman to obtain a "pilot's license"
Pension reforms: in committee, a sometimes stormy first day of examination of the text
Rospotrebnadzor reported an increase in the number of infected COVID-19 in Russia
Karlsruhe: Urgent application against repeat elections in Berlin rejected
Pushilin announced the degeneration of European politics
A history textbook with a section on SVO will be widely used in schools from 2024/2025
Fire at the oil refinery in Nynäshamn
Pakistan's economy on brink of collapse ahead of IMF visit
Create new achievements with hard work General Secretary @Struggle
Mrs. Kim Gun-hee "After a tour, the overwhelming question of overseas leaders is Korean culture"
The Pope: his history, his role, his power
Unified local elections `` Consider increasing polling stations and carefully move up the end time '' Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
In Yekaterinburg, a girl injured in a kindergarten died in a hospital
Ajman Resources: Comprehensiveness of the health insurance system for the husbands and children of female employees


"In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage–with great patience and careful instruction" (2 Timothy 4:1-2).
I spent last evening on the Pamlico River, sharing my heart with a group of women about Moses' "walkabout" of faith. It was a night of pleasure for me—a time of fellowship with friends, both old and new, all the while in the company of our Father who spoke to us through his Word.
I don't think I'll ever get over the fact that God has allowed me any type of platform for sharing his truth. Like the apostle Paul, I bring little eloquence and even less knowledge than him to the table. Like Paul, I feel unworthy of the calling; still and yet, God bestows the privilege upon me—upon us all as partakers in the kingdom that is now and is to come.
Today I called my dad to talk about my experience; we talked about preaching—about his experience behind the pulpit, his nerves regarding the pulpit, and his preparation for the pulpit. He told me something important as it pertains to the "handling" of God's Word. He's been a professor of preaching for nearly forty years. I think, perhaps, he holds some wisdom in the matter.
A sermon well-preached is a story well-lived. My dad's been preaching that story for fifty years now … living it a bit longer. This past Sunday marked his golden anniversary in the pulpit. It is my privilege to share with you a few words he shared with his readers regarding this treasured milestone.
A seasoned minister, upon hearing that I was going into pastoral work, asked me this question, "Chuck, when you get up to preach, where will you be standing?" My first thought was "What a strange question." Was there no better question to ask than that—the geography of where sermons will be preached?
That was a stopper! Karl Barth, noted theologian said to the preaching students in his class, "Upon what grounds do you assume the role of mediator between heaven and earth? You will be standing between God's grace and human need." I have to admit, this business of 'standing' in that location has haunted me every step of the way. On the other hand, I have discovered inexorable delight and joy, knowing full well that I would have been missing 'the mark' had I done otherwise. My only boast was that I stood on "a Rock that was higher than I." That made the difference!
My ministry has been 'bookended' by Longtown Wesleyan Church and ACTS United Methodist. The in-between years, all fifty of them, have fled swiftly by, like a weaver's shuttle. And on this Golden Anniversary I can say without exaggeration or embarrassment, that it has been a 'good stand'. And for the rest of the trip, I have several more corners to turn until I get home.
I suppose the "fruit" of my father's "good stand" is the living witness of the countless lives he's touched along the way. He's touched mine. He's taught me what it is to stand between heaven and hell as a mouthpiece for the truth of Jesus Christ. I stood there last evening, and by God's grace and only his grace, I'll stand there again.
So for you, dad, here are a few words of living witness to let you know just how wide and long and high and deep your reach has extended for the kingdom of God. It reached to the Pamlico River last night; I imagine there are several more corners it will turn before we all get home. This I do know … we'll get there together. I love you.
I recently returned from a 10-day mission trip to the South American nation of Bolivia. Twelve of us went through an organization named Curamericas and were led by a bilingual 22-year-old volunteer named Andrew Herrera. A majority of our time in Bolivia was spent in the village of Tacachia, nestled cozily in the Andes Mountains about 35 miles from the capital city of La Paz. We worked at the Kory Wawanaca Children's Home, an orphanage with 18 children and several staff members. I had the unique privilege of having this be a "return" trip to Bolivia, as I went last year with a group from our church.
Our team of twelve set out on a Tuesday at 3 p.m. with plans calling for us to arrive in La Paz the next day at 6:00 a.m. It seems that nothing ever goes according to plan, though. We missed a connection flight in Miami and then had to change our plans on the fly in Miami. As an occasionally hotheaded 20-year-old, I grew frustrated and impatient very quickly, and worried a lot about our new travel plans. Long story short, we did some South American globetrotting the next day and went through Venezuela, Peru, and finally reached La Paz at 12:45 a.m. on Thursday morning after 35 straight hours of travel (that's the southern tip of the U.S., the northern tip of South America, the western tip of South America, and the highest capital city in the world for those of you keeping track…not too bad, eh?).
Already God had taught me a basic lesson in Christian living: I had to trust Him, and realize that everything was in His hands.
Moses said to the Lord, "You have been telling me, 'Lead these people,' but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, 'I know you by name and you have found favor with me.' If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.
There were two definitive moments when I witnessed the glory of God in Tacachia—two "passing-by" moments. Sure, the entire experience was glorious, but two were the kind of glory that I'm sure Moses witnessed there on Sinai with the Lord. These two have seared themselves into my memory and will not soon be forgotten.
The first came during a Sunday lunch at the orphanage. 10-year-old Roy, who was an avid chess player, had brought his set out and was looking for an American to play against. He had already done battle with Frank Ferrell, an adult on our team, earlier in the week; Frank had been victorious, but not without some difficulty. By the grace of God, I knew enough Spanish to help set up the first contest between the two; neither was very knowledgeable of the other's language.
And as he walked away, the grin that exploded across Roy's face was, without a doubt, the most vivid and radiant smile I have ever seen.
The second "passing-by" moment came at our departure from the orphanage, a morning that was one of the most difficult mornings I have ever experienced. My week of getting to know the 18 kids at the orphanage was over; I bonded with all of them, but to a higher degree with some. I enjoyed a special bond with 13-year-old Miguel, in part because I saw so much of myself in him. He, like me, was the oldest of four siblings, had an avid interest in athletics, and a penchant for sarcasm at times. We talked one night about how much I enjoyed being at the orphanage and getting to know Miguel and his family. The most enduring image I will take from Tacachia, and the one that tells me that God worked through us in this trip occurred during our tearful goodbyes (there were some tears, and some floods).
My last goodbyes were Miguel and Roy, who were standing around the monkeybars. I told them I really enjoyed meeting them and would miss them. Roy asked if I was going to return with such a pleading look on his face, and I said I hoped that I would. Miguel was silent as his and Roy's eyes began to fill with tears. I looked in Miguel's eyes and said, "Somos hermanos. Dios te bendiga" (We are brothers. God bless you.). We got in the cars and pulled out, but not without me taking one last glance at Miguel and Roy, still standing next to the monkeybars with their heads down; spasms of heartache at telling these kids goodbye have bothered me ever since.
Only the presence of God can bring out those two images. Only the presence of God can help one overcome language and altitude and attitude barriers to serve Him. Only with the presence of God can we, like Moses, witness the glory of God.
I truly feel at home in Tacachia, and hope to return there again next year to further strengthen the bonds I've formed this year, as well as to cultivate new ones. This trip, as is most often the case, stands as proof that yes, God worked THROUGH me. But he worked so much more IN me, and for that I am eternally grateful.
But it's getting oh so hard to spend these days without my heart.
Could ever wanna be for the rest of my life.
So may you, blog readers, go with the presence of God, may you witness His glory, and may you take Him with you wherever you go.
"'I am the way… '" (John 14:6).
We are prone to them, are we not? To our looking down the road, planning our down the road, worrying about our down the road, all the while missing out on the present moments given to us by a gracious God who offers them for our reverent celebration.
We forego the pleasure and peace of a current moment because we allow the heaviness of a down the road future to claim our thoughts, and therefore, shackle our capacity to live in the simplicity of a single pause.
This one. Not in the ones to come somewhere, sometime down the road, but the moment we hold in our hands right now. Do we have enough faith for this kind of living? A faith that is content to live gradually rather than having to see the end before it arrives? How different would our journeys walk if we could take hold of this one truth and embed it into our way of "doing" life?
Not that we don't plan and prepare with our futures in mind, but rather that we engage each new step with the understanding that our Jesus is our down the road Companion. He goes before us, he comes behind us. He walks beside us. He lives within us. We cannot help but be surrounded by his matchless and unfathomable grace as we go.
We can refuse it. We can close our eyes to his abiding and ever-present comfort and go it alone, trusting in our own feeble attempts at having life make sense. But in doing so, we miss the momentary peace that enables us to live worry-free and in complete trust of a future we cannot see.
I know. My heart writes from a place of understanding. My down the road's have been all-consuming as of late, denying me the privilege of a moment by moment, peaceful rest.
I can live in a moment, friends. I'm not sure I can handle the holy "rest of them" in a single breath, but I have a down the road Jesus who can. He stands before me this day and asks for my trust. For my complete gaze on his willing sacrifice that enables me to live in a moment and then to move on to the next.
When I place the cross before me, it blocks my vision from the unfolding of events that lie ahead of me. It covers them all and shadows me with a sacred perspective that shouts victory and triumph at every turn.
PS: One of the pleasures of "momentary" living is embracing the pauses that come to us as we journey down the road. I had one such pleasure last evening in meeting "face to face" another blogging friend, Katie G from Tennessee. I invite you to partake of our moments together via this youtube link. In addition, please keep Katie and her husband, Luke, in your prayers as they are expecting their first child and have some concerns along those lines.
Nicholas squirmed for a gracious response.
Even as he spoke it, I felt the painful cut that seared his heart with more clarified precision than that of a sharpened knife. The words weren't intended to hurt, but they did. They reminded my son of everything he's been trying to process since returning home from Bolivia.
If home is where the heart is, then my son's home (at least for the "right now") resides somewhere in the remote mountainous village of Tacachia, Bolivia. He spent the better part of a week walking its soil and tending to its harvest–a harvest that exceeded the fruit of the land to include the fruit of relationships.
The Kory Wawanaka Children's Home (an orphanage sustained through the Methodist Church of Bolivia) houses nineteen orphaned children, ranging in ages from three to thirteen. When Nick first visited their community last year, the orphanage had four residents. Newly licensed for operation, the home has experienced strong growth in every way during the past twelve months.
It was especially meaningful for Nick to witness the growth of the past year. The "pulse" behind the work there is strong and evident, stirring his heart for further involvement.
My heart can barely get around these past "two times." Still and yet, I listened to him pour his heart out over cheeseburgers and fries during a mother and son outing. I knew it was coming, this unwrapping of his feelings. Even as his emotions welled with the "telling", mine welled with the listening.
God is moving Nick's heart in a new direction. The shaping that's taking place is what I've prayed for his entire life. In fact, I've prayed that prayer for all of my children over the years.
That they would, each one, know early on in their lives what God would have for them. That they would walk in their calling in their twenties rather than waiting until their forties to figure it all out. That they wouldn't spend their days wondering about what they were supposed to be doing but rather would spend them knowing that whatever they were doing, they were doing so with an eternal purpose in mind. A kingdom purpose.
That they would find God, sense God, believe God, and know God in the everyday and mundane of a life that doesn't always make sense but that is content to walk hand in hand with One who possesses perfect sense and understanding for the road ahead.
That they would listen to the promptings of God's Spirit within and not brush it off as a momentary whim or selfish fancy. That they would, in fact, trust in the truth they've been given as children of the Most High God. A truth that tells them God is living and active and moving on their behalf and that because of this "constant working" they shouldn't be surprised when he shows up on the scene of their lives, prompting them to keep in step with his leading.
God is faithfully answering those prayers for Nick. I heard it in his words and saw it in his eyes as we shared a table and bared our hearts to one another. And while Nick has always imagined his life to be headed in a certain direction, God is asking him to imagine bigger. To dream better; to see beyond his raw capabilities and to, instead, take hold of his sacredly bestowed giftings.
That kind of living, friends, is where it's at. God has planted his own seeds of promise within our lives. When we begin to see those seeds harvest toward kingdom gain, then our hearts, like my son's, welcome the growth of a new soil. In fact, our souls can't help but cry out for it. For the untilled lands of an untouched country that is completely and "holy" surrendered to the idea of God's unlimited possibilities.
As we connect with that kind of "heart-stirring"—when we begin to see our lives framed within the context of a greater good rather than within the parameters we've so carefully and comfortably created for ourselves—then we walk our part in the Great Commission. We walk our callings; no matter the location; no matter our age; no matter if we have the credentials or the education to go alongside.
We simply and profoundly walk our faith with all the confidence of heaven as our guide. We don't worry about the particulars. The details belong to God. But the steps?
No tears; no pain; no more wondering about our callings. Just rest for our hearts in the place where they were always intended to land.
Thank you, Father, for meeting us in this day. For showing up on foreign soil to till our hearts for kingdom purpose. For allowing us the "wrestling" of some things that further shape our understanding about how you intend for our lives to live. Give us the courage to "work the thing out" before you, with you, depending on you so that because of you, we come to a greater place of obedience to you. Use our pain to teach us Father, even when it hurts and our preferences call out for its burial. Meet us in those deep places; stir us all the more, and keep us to the pilgrimage of a final grace that will walk us home and welcome us fully. Amen.
PS: I'm in the mountains this week; the picture above stands as my witness. Nick has promised me a post regarding his own thoughts about his trip. I hope to have it by week's end, along with some pictures. Shalom.


text:
Chelsea Ladies
Loan Watch
Opposition Views
Chelsea Chants
Getting to Stamford Bridge
Making the most of your day at Stamford Bridge
Best places in London to watch a Chelsea match
Talk Chelsea
Poll Results: These Chelsea fans select their preferred backup striker and...
Tammy Abraham has been a regular starter for Chelsea this season and he's also been a regular goalscorer, notching up 11 goals for The...
Premier League top four: Are Chelsea serious contenders and who is...
Frank Lampard suffered a stuttering start to life as Chelsea manager. The Blues stumbled out of the blocks this season and a less than...
Man City v Chelsea Preview – Team news, possible XI and...
The cracks in the almost flawless Man City side of the previous season are beginning to show. Sides have been able to identify Pep...
Chelsea have not scored in 5 of last 6 games against...
The Premier League doesn't like not being the centre of attention, so it was no surprise to see the eyes of the world returning...
Likely Giroud departure means it's make or break time for Batshuayi...
Michy Batshuayi's Chelsea career has been nothing short of stuttering since arriving from Marseille in 2016. The 26-year old has failed to nail down a...
Is time running out on Azpilicueta's Chelsea career?
If ever a list featuring all of Chelsea's all-time greats is made, then defender César Azpilicueta's name will certainly feature in the top five....
5 Crucial matches Chelsea will Play before the end of 2019
Chelsea picked up the pace after the not-so-great start of the season. The club won its last six matches in the Premier League and...
Chelsea fancied to stay in the running for a top four...
Chelsea head into one of the busiest periods of the season aiming to maintain their place amongst the leading teams in the Premier League. Eight...
Why Frank Lampard is the perfect Manager to get the best...
Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi has recently come back from a long term achilles injury that came along when he was just starting to show...
The Frank Lampard philosophy that means he could need to sign...
Chelsea manager Frank Lampard could find himself fairly busy during this January's transfer window, in a situation that could unfold over the next couple...
Subscribe to our mailing list and get the best Chelsea FC content direct to your inbox once a day.
If Willian won't take a 1-year deal, then so be it
Chelsea still have time to make January signing that could change their season with important run coming up
How Chelsea can take the next step to convert shots to goals
Chelsea making big gamble letting striker go as creative woes continue
Frank Lampard's mystifying midfield decision costs Chelsea as Kovacic sits out
TalkChelsea is strictly for informational and entertainment purposes. Our website is no way connected or affiliated with Chelsea Football Club or any other related fan sites. The views and opinions expressed here are in no way representative of Chelsea Football Club. All images on this website are the property of their respective owners.
© 2020 Talk Chelsea | Design by James Porter | Hosting by RackSRV


Published 04/23/2019 08:44:24 am at 04/23/2019 08:44:24 am in My Metal Roswell Nm.
my metal roswell nm 1999 travalong steel livestock trailer my metal wholesale supply metal supplier clovis new mexico see more of my metal wholesale supply on facebook.
my metal roswell nm foodbusinesscontinuityinfo my metal roswell nm st scrap metal prices in roswell nm metal roofing roswell nm, vintage style area roswell metal warning sign alienufoscifi space alien roswell nm area ufo style baseball embroidered hat cap j galt, my metal roswell nm foodbusinesscontinuityinfo my metal roswell nm shops sheet metal roswell nm metal building supply roswell nm, my metal roswell roswell new mexico local business facebook image may contain house and outdoor, my metal wholesale supply metal supplier clovis new mexico see more of my metal wholesale supply on facebook, gift shop international ufo museum research center green alien frosted shot glass, spring river luxury apartment homes roswell nm apartment finder , international ufo museum research center photos photo of international ufo museum research center roswell nm united states, mymetal metal fence metal fence , kawasaki z pro base roswell nm cycletradercom harleydavidson dyna glide street bob in roswell nm, w summit st roswell nm townhouse for rent in roswell building photo w summit st.