Thursday, June 21, 2012

Weeds are not your friend

Organic Food production is so romantic.

Everything is natural, the birds are chirping, the bees are pollinating. The ground is fertile.
The bacteria in the ground, work symbiotically to break down organic material to bring the nutrients to the plant. It is a glorious eco-system.

Except one thing: WEEDS. Weeds will use up all the nutrients and water, so the good plants will become unproductive.

Some of us, get the honourable role to go out to the field and pull out the weeds. Even that sounds fun.

Small weeds are not a problem, but big weeds, well that's a different story.

Big weeds require lots of pulling, lots of work, and lots of sweat. Some weeds I can't even pull out, so I use a knife to cut them off. Some come out with tons of dirt around the roots, and will re-grow where I throw them. Sometimes the top of the weeds break off and the roots will re-grow, which is not nice either.

I soon learned that the key is to make sure that I pull them out enough to EXPOSE the roots.
If I can expose the roots, they will dry out and the weed will die rather easily.

As I was pulling these weeds, I got to thinking. Jesus, many times, used agriculture in his parables.
He used a natural situation to show a deeper truth.

He used the example of weeds. He said that weeds were similar to things in our lives that suck the life out of us. Weeds are like things that sap the nutrients, strength, fruitfulness, that we could have, and make our lives unproductive and frustrating.

Therefore, it is obvious that I need to deal with the weeds in my life. If I follow the parable logically, I need to EXPOSE the areas of my life are holding me back. Areas such as insecurity, fear, anger, unbelief, lack of love, and complacency.

How can I expose those things?

I have found that God wants to help me expose those things. When I spend time with Him, he will highlight an area of my life that, if it were to change, I would become more fruitful and productive.

I have found a few friends, whom I trust, that I can share those things with. The areas that God has highlighted for me to EXPOSE, I am able to share with them. I feel safe that they will encourage me to replace those negative things with good things.

I know if you commit to that same process, you will become more fruitful, confident, peaceful, and productive also!

Weeds are not your friend.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Do We Care?

A new study released last Monday from St Michael’s hospital in Toronto, provides a first look at whether women from certain ethnic communities are practising sex-selective "feticide" in Ontario — and found “concerning trends” to suggest female feticide is happening. Researchers caution, however, that the study is inconclusive more investigation needs to be done.

The St. Michael’s Hospital study analyzed 766,688 births in Ontario and found mothers born in India and South Korea were “significantly” more likely to have boys for their second child.

"Feticide" is the word to describe what may actually be happening in these cases. Parents are selectively killing female babies. That seems unbelievable to most, to not value those female babies. But it looks like its happening, and it is wrong. Its feticide.

Let's just think this thing through a bit. "Thinking things through" brings perspective.

If there are 500 babies born and 450 of them are male, we call it "feticide" understanding the term describes what is happening when people selectively kill female babies before they are born.

We use the word "feticide", likely because we feel that those female babies are valuable. There is a sense of injustice when we feel someone (born or not yet born) has inherent value, and they are oppressed or killed.

A female unborn baby is valuable? Yes.
Every female unborn baby is valuable? Yes.
Are all babies are valuable? Yes.
Is every unborn baby valuable? Yes.

Does modern society embrace that EVERY baby is valuable and should be protected, whether he or she is born or not?

If we look at abortion statistics, we cannot come to that conclusion. Abortion is a medical procedure that is big, money-making business. Its just business. Its about the money.

A fetus is not cancer. Its not normal to cut them off from their life source and kill them. It is not a a "growth mass in the uterus". A fetus is a baby. Female babies. Male babies. They are people. They are valuable and worth to be protected.

I believe we are on the edge of a NEW THOUGHT process where we know it is right to VALUE every baby.

I believe that mothers and fathers know IT IS RIGHT protect their children. Mothers and fathers are re-discovering that their parental instinct to protect their children is more important than big business, or the selfish attitude that considers a fetus to be an inconvenience. It's not in our minds to hurt, oppress or kill our children, period.

We are on the verge of a paradigm shift where people are becoming caring mothers and fathers again. We care for our children. We protect our children. Female or Male. Born or not yet born.

The mindset is changing.

We care again.

Link: the "The Star" article on this topic.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Things are getting better & better all the time.

I have a theory.

I think things are better than they were 100 years ago.  I think things are better than they were 50 years ago.  Actually, I think things are even better than 10 years ago.

In the 1990's, my family found a relative in England.  In 1929, he was one of 3 bothers split up from their parents when they were under 10 years old.  Their father was killed in the war.  They were put into an orphanage, 2 of them ran away, boarded a boat and came to Canada.  One remained in the UK.

When they were split up, there was no telephone, no internet, no television.  There were hardly any planes crossing the Atlantic.  Mail traveled mainly by boat, a month to cross.

These days, I can fly to the UK within 7 hours, insert my UK SIM card into my iPhone, gather my email from my clients (literally located all over the world), and call my wife to tell her I landed safely.

I grab my AVIS car rental, from the express lane, and head off to my hotel, which I booked with a couple clicks on my computer terminal a few days prior.

I can visit with clients in the UK, while continuing to receive and answer my email to our international and domestic clients, who hardly even know that I have left the office.

I can follow my Twitter and Facebook feed, so I miss nothing that is going on with my friends.

I can monitor a shipment that we have for Brazil, with my handy track/trace feature on my freight forwarders website.  If there's any problems with that shipment, I will know right away, and have the tools at my disposal to rectify them.

I can send a text to my son and daughter, so they know I'm thinking about them and encourage them to tackle the challenges in their lives, with confidence.

I have Skype on my phone, so I can video phone my wife, so I can see her pretty smile.  I can even talk to the dog, but he is pretty new to Skype because he is less than 1 year old.

If my wife needs some money, I can send her some using my handy bank APP on my iPhone.

I think that there are more choices & great opportunities for people today, than there have ever been.

When those opportunities are guided by wisdom, integrity and character, there is no limit to what can be accomplished individually, or as a group of people.

I get the feeling that things are getting better and better.

What do you think?