And you're in Christ Jesus, you are in the Lamb's book of life and that is some great hope and great news that we have today and every day. We're so glad you're joining us for hope today. I'm here with Amy Schaefer and Corey Langford and we are just really excited for what we're going to be talking about stories, tell us about our incredible guests that's coming up, Corey. Oh my goodness. The guest that we have today is going to be so exciting that we have Jonathan Evans. He is the chaplain for the Dallas Cowboys and so many other things that he's going to tell us about. We are so excited to talk about this. His book is amazing. I've always have been reading it with me. It's been wonderful and I cannot wait to get into this. This is so exciting. You know, we have a responsibility to tell stories, to tell the stories of faith, to tell the stories of the Bible. It's not okay that just we get it in our generation and it's one and done. He is the God of generations, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And there is no greater power, Sydney, than that of telling a story. It's incredible.  I think TD Jakes once said is that he would be a story maker. He would be a filmmaker because he is all in the business of writing our stories. And you know, one thing that we can be so excited about is that I love that it says before any day was written, it came, or before any day came to be, it was written for me and that's in Psalms and I love that scripture so much because we know that God, our Father, is writing our stories, writing our book. And we're just believing even for you today that you're in a new chapter, you're in a new season, so you need to celebrate all that God is doing. So I just, I love this conversation stories. Stories are my favorite things in the whole wide world is to tell stories. And it's really exciting too because, you know, God will speak to you in a very unique way about how he wants you to deliver the gospel.  I was always a writer as a young man and I always felt kind of weird sharing the gospel the way that I wanted to share it. But God is giving people unique ideas, unique visions of how to present the gospel. And in this interview today, we're going to talk to Jonathan about his unique way of delivering the parables of Jesus in such a wonderful way that impacts children, specifically my children as well. And I'm excited that they're excited about it. I know two words we always say in the house is story time. And you understand about that pretty soon. So listen, our next guest is a mentor, author, speaker and former NFL fullback who treasures his relationship with Christ along with the opportunity to use his life to glorify God. Jonathan Evans currently serves as the chaplain for the Dallas Cowboys and co-chaplain for the Dallas Mavericks. He's also a gifted writer who has recently released a new book called Stories from the Storyteller, which features modern retellings of the parables of Jesus teaching young people important biblical truths through fun family adventures. Hey, check out this awesome trailer that goes along with this series. Hey, parents, are you looking for something safe, healthy, biblical and entertaining for your kids to watch? Better yet, are you looking for a kids show that will literally help them learn what Jesus talks? Then look no further than stories from the storyteller. Awesome. This is great. Join the Evans family as Jonathan leverages the ministry of Jesus to teach life lessons to his five children through everyday activities and family adventures, seemingly normal activities, such as a fun family cooking competition, camping in the great outdoors, a trip to a theme park or a hands-on homeschool activity turned into hysterical adventures and epic teachable moments. Y'all feeling my rhymes? Nice moves, guys. Jonathan and Kanika follow up the Days of Ends with a bedtime Bible lesson that connects their experience to the teachings of Jesus in a way their children will never forget. We are safe. We are secure. We are strong. We are wise when we build our lives on the rock of God's word. That's cool. Whenever the kids realize they are about to hear the stories from the storyteller, they'll be begging for bedtime. And that means storytime. Shall we first please? That was a long ride home. Buckle up and get ready for some great laughs and some epic adventures. Your family is going to love this new series. Did you save the Ted? I thought you did. The book and series looked amazing. Jonathan, it is so good to have you here with us on hope today. And I'm glad to be here, Corey. Thank you so much for having me. Absolutely. Listen, I'm excited. You can see how I'm smiling. And the reason I'm smiling so big about this particular book is because I got the opportunity to read it to my kids. And I have a one year old daughter and a two year old son. And just being able to read this to them and just the excitement. We love telling stories at night, but reading this to them. And one of the wonderful things I love about it is at the end, that QR code at the end of every chapter takes us to a phenomenal cartoon. I think it's absolutely amazing. Listen, thank you. This is wonderful. I want you to just talk about the book and talk about your experience, your story. Just go ahead and flow into that. Yeah, well, you know what? I started, you know, as you mentioned on the chaplain for the Cowboys, and I did a series for them called Stories from the Storyteller. And I just went through the parables of Jesus Christ for that season. And I remember thinking about it and the Spirit just kind of dropped on me. And this is really a children's series that he gave me that I did as a series for the Dallas Cowboys. And so I started thinking about how I can really in, you know, 2021, 2022, 2023, this kind of this era that we live in, how can I really impact kids in a way that they are impacted most? And I said, well, my kids are always begging to watch TV or all parents know these screens that they have. And I said, well, I can I can give them a book, but I can also give them a cartoon to where they would be able to read the stories of Jesus Christ based on modern illustrations of real life things that have happened in my family. And they can actually at the end of their reading, you know, watch a cartoon that goes along with what they just read. And so they're getting two things. They're getting the the the learning from the reading, but they're also getting the learning from from what they love to do. Watch the cartoons. You know, we used to have to wait till Saturday morning to watch cartoons. They can watch it all day long anytime they want. And so it was just bringing together these these worlds where, you know, when we were growing up, you know, our parents would take us in at night, maybe read us a story or tell us a story. I was like, well, let me use this tool as an opportunity for parents to connect with their kids for kids to be excited with what their parents are bringing to them, but also so that they can connect around the faith and the word of Jesus Christ. And so it was just an opportunity to burn all of these worlds together. And for me, I wanted to have the opportunity to do ministry with my family. You know, my kids always watch me do ministry. They watch me do speak from the stage or they'll come to a cowboy's chapel with me and they will sit there and watch. But this was also an opportunity for them to be a part of the ministry that they always watch. And so my kids, that all of the voiceovers and the cartoons, you know, they were a lot of the illustrations and the ideas. You know, they had to get up early and ride with their dad and their mom to go do certain things that relates to the cartoons to build it. And now they're watching other young people be impacted by it. And so it's good for me to have them as a part of the ministry so that they can learn that what they do can also be of impact to. And so it's just been a great thing that God has dropped on my heart and in a creative way to present the stories of Jesus Christ and the gospel of Jesus Christ for young kids so that they can connect with it. Remember it and eventually be able to teach it to their friends themselves. Wow, listen, that is so incredible that you started out teaching it to grow men and then God speaks to your heart and says, you know what, this is parables for children. And I love what you said specifically about they've watched you do ministry, but then you created something that interwoven them into the family system and ministry amongst each other. Because when I hear the voices of the kids, I get so excited because me being a studio person and doing audio recordings of things, I know that that's a lot of work. So what started speaking to you? What started prompting you to make that shift to say, I need to create this book?  Number one, because he can't cook and number two, because he can't cook. So she would get a meal together and have us sit around the table for dinner on Monday through Thursday. We would go out to eat sometimes on Friday and he would use dinner time not just for eating, but for leading. And that's when he would tell us stories. That's when he would pull out the Bible and tell us the stories of Jesus Christ. That's when he would in my mind would ask us questions, get into our business and and really peer into our souls. And we all four of my siblings, my three of my siblings, his four of us, remember that and then from the table to the teaching. Now over the years, as we were growing up, he would get us more involved in the church, more involved in his ministry. Him and my mom's ministry. So we began to get involved in the things that we were learning around the table during what we would call story time. And so taking that model that him and my mom gave us, knowing that me and all of my siblings are in ministry, but it's because they didn't just talk about it. They lived it and they included us in the ministry that they had. And so I wanted to take that blueprint onto my family. We sit around the table, we tell stories, we play board games when we're sitting around the table, we turn all the technology off so that me and my wife can focus with our kids and have that time. We we pass the Bible around and have everybody read a verse and tell them and tell me what what they think it means. And so we have that time with them. But then I wanted to take them from the table to the teaching. How can they now teach others what they learn in a way that's connected to their generation? And so I wanted them to be a part of it, just like my parents made me a part of it, because it goes a long way when you hear it.  And so I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't diluting my kids by having them hear it and listen to it, but never participate in it. And so taking that blueprint from one generation to their generation is how it is how it works. And so that's what God gave me. And that's what we did. Wow, you you just said a lot, you just said a lot because I don't think a lot of ministers or ministries or people that's in ministry with families understand the significance of making sure that there's that time with your family and with God together and not just, hey, we're going to Bible study at the church and we're doing all this at the church.  It has created a legacy for you to teach for your children and they will never forget the impact of what is happening right now. That is amazing. That I just I believe that there's a special blessing on managing the ministry within the household. How do you feel like that has impacted you with doing ministry inward before doing it outward? Well, I think that's the most important thing.  Even when he says, go, you therefore make disciples. That's Christ likeness. So the the the the the plan of God doesn't change throughout all the scripture. He gets to Revelations 22 and you have perfect people in a perfect place with a perfect God. And so that means that at that time, everyone is just like him. It goes back to his original intent before sin. And so what our job is as parents is not for us to have not for us to have a lookalikes, but for him to have a lookalikes through us. That just happened to look like us as a as a secondary benefit. And so and so I take that seriously. And one thing I want to encourage is the environment that I set up in the things that I do, even though they're extremely important, aren't that aren't necessarily the determiner. They're helpful, but they're not the determiner of of of how my kids turn out. There's a lot of parents who say, well, I did all that.  Well, it's important to understand that, you know, God is a perfect God. He's a perfect father. He gave Adam and Eve a perfect environment and they still messed it up. And so we can't be better than God. The kids still make their own decisions. But what we can do is do what God tells us to do and be fruitful the most like what we can do is pray and realize that we're stewards and not owners and give our kids over to God while putting them in the best opportunity and best environment, just like he did for Adam and Eve, based on his word. And then they have to learn just like all of us did. And I did how to carry that relationship with them for themselves. And so I want to encourage all of the parents to continue to do the best that you can pray because ultimately God walking with them, showing them and giving them the experiences of his redemption, his forgiveness, his delivery is how they'll turn to him coupled with your participation as a parent. So we have to participate and be full land on what God has called us to do from the very beginning.  And can you just share a story of how it's impacted your children, how you've just seen God move in the midst of them as well? Well, you know, I share the story of my oldest because she's my first and that Kelsey, you know, and that's when I was in the phase of, OK, I need to do this, I need to do that, very regimented, because I had an inkling or I thought that if I can make things a certain way, then that should kind of determine outcomes. And it doesn't really work like that. And I learned that not only with God teaching me that, but teaching me that practically through my first child, Kelsey is a great girl. We have great times with her. She's my artist. She loves to sing, color, dance, draw anything but go to school. So we're working on that. But, you know, there are some things that we're working on, you know, when it comes to most parents, when it comes to technology, when it comes to apps, when it comes to music, now that she's 14 years old, she's my oldest, when it comes to, you know, culture. And so we're stewarding her heart around culture and around all of these different things. And she doesn't understand why she has to have time limits on her phone and all, you know, all of these different things that we're stewarding. But it's not just us, you know, we take her to great Christian camps like Pine Cove and our youth group and all of these different things to continue to steward. But one thing I learned is it's not it's not first and foremost for me to get frustrated or to react based on decisions that she makes. It's for me to continue to sit with the fruits of the spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self control so that she sees in me what I'm saying to her. A lot of times we get so frustrated with culture that our kids get wrapped in or the technology or the apps that they don't see in us what we're asking of them. And that contradicts itself and just creates a more hostile environment in the home. And so what I try to do is show those fruits of the spirit. Well, as of recently, she has really, me and my wife kind of, you know, looked at each other like, whoa, this is this is impressive. Like she is really submitting herself to the process and beginning to enjoy not being like everybody else, not having to go where everybody else goes, not having to listen to what everybody listens to and kind of herself choosing to come under that authority. But that was a long process of me teaching myself and also teaching her through through actions. And my wife teaching her what's best for the future of her life. And God always knows best, not anyone else. And so that's not the specifics of it, but everybody gets that and understands, especially if you have teenagers. But it's just a process of seeing that those roots become fruit. And I'm really enjoying that with my oldest daughter right now. Jonathan, I have a 15 year old. And so I so, you know, I'm in that exact same spot with you. You know, we are here in Steeler Nation and we love to tell the stories of the old, especially, you know, when we played the Dallas Cowboys, we love to tell that story.  But what is your favorite story from the storyteller and why? Oh, that's a good question. It's a hard question, probably the hardest question in the day because there's so many of them, because most of the stories, I mean, people wouldn't know unless I said it, but most of the stories are illustrations of things that happen in our family.  And so this is a lot of stories that are funny, that kids can get involved in. But I guess one of my favorites would be one of the stories at the beginning is the story of the talents, you know, we go to an amusement park and Camden and Kyler want their tokens all up front to go play in the arcade. And I tried to get them to space it out, to wait, to hold on, to slow down, but they were adamant. So as a part of teaching them, I said, OK, I'll let you have them. I knew what they were going to do. They didn't think they were going to do it, but I knew they were going to do it. They wouldn't spend all their tokens in 10 minutes. And they threw those things out and then came to me for more. And I just laughed at them. I said, I told you to wait, to walk with me and space it out. But you wanted your inheritance up front. And so actually, this is the prodigal son. And let me go back to the prodigal son. It's not the talents. It's the prodigal son. So that would be my favorite one is that they took the inheritance up front. They squandered it all. But at the end, I forgave them and still gave them a party. And so that is literally what happened. And so it connects with that biblical story of the prodigal son and Luke 15. And so it's a fun thing to watch. And not only are there QR codes at the end of the piece chapter, that just gives you a snippet of the cartoon. The full cartoons are on right now, media that are much longer than what you get in the book. And they're also on YouTube for now, but we're about to come out with an act very soon. So keep checking in on that. That's the stories from the storyteller app where all of the cartoons will just live there and they can watch it whenever they want. Wow. Listen, that is so incredible. I'm giddy like a little kid right now. I really am because as I'm reading it, you know how, you know, when you're doing things with your kids, you're looking at them to see how the response is. And just to see the smile on my son's face and the excitement. And then when we watch the cartoon afterwards, it's like, oh, we get we get a treat. Afterward, we get to watch TV, you know, it's so, so exciting. And I know that God's hand is just continually on you. We've been going through the different stories. We've been camping in the stories. One of my favorites was the candy situation with your daughter, Kelsey, with the little. Now, was that true? Did that really happen? Yeah. Well, this one, this one was kind of like when you do in the movies, it's a true story, but they kind of add a little bit to it. She didn't literally put a vacuum in her sleep. But what she does do is she does she will go ahead so that she can get the most candy and put it in and then leave scraps for the other kids around that season. And so I'm we're able to take that and do something with it is great. Well, well, listen, Jonathan, what I want you to do at this moment is I just feel that the hand of God is just really on you. And I want you to pray for families, I want you to pray for parents right now who may be struggling right now to figure out a way to reach their kids impactfully. So so just go ahead and take a moment to just let God speak through you and pray for everyone who's watching. Absolutely. Family father, we love you. And I give you the praise and glory for who you are. We pray for these parents, Lord. There may they have some that are like the prodigal son, Lord, that have gone astray and we pray for your hand in their life. We pray for your hand in their their their teaching. We pray for their hand in your hand in their time that they spend with their kids, but also for the kids that they're unsure about that that have gone a different direction and made different choices. Lord, we pray, Lord, that they would continue to sit in you and realize that if they cast their cares upon you, you will sustain them. That the Bible says, come to me, all you who are even heavy laden and I will give you rest or trust in the Lord with all of your heart because he the one who makes your path straight. So you're saying cast, come and trust. That's our responsibility. But you're also saying you'll take responsibility after that. So Lord, we pray, Lord, that your hand will be on those children who the parents are struggling with, but also on the ones who didn't go astray, like the big brother, the prodigal son, who stayed at the home, that they would have the right attitude when redemption comes. So we pray, Lord, for the family unit and we know, Lord, that as goes the family, as goes the culture, so we pray for marriages. The best way to raise your children is to work on your marriage. And so we pray for the marriage to household, the husband and the wife and the children right now that your restore was broken, that you will bring to health with sick and that you will redeem was lost. We love you and honor your Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Thank you so much, Jonathan, for being with us today. It has been an honor to have you today on Hope Today. Thank you so much. Thank you. Absolutely. Hey, stay with us because when we return in 60 seconds, we're going to look at a scripture that applies to how we as Christians should live out our faith. We'll be right back. Remember your childhood joy and excitement when being invited to a party? You felt valued, included, wanted and ready to have a good time. Bestselling author Bob Goff believes that every day of life can be lived with the same childlike enthusiasm and sense of humor. Inside Love Does, you'll learn that love is a verb, not just a feeling. His insights and joyful reflections will help you discover what it means to live fully alive, even as you serve others. Prepare to encounter remarkable stories from Bob Goff's life as he shares how living and loving to the fullest is the best way to make Jesus known in this world. Request your copy of Love Does when you give your best gift this month. Your gift today will help Cornerstone Television show the life changing love of Jesus through Christ-centered TV programs. Call us at<PHONE_NUMBER> or give at ctvn.org slash donate. I just love that interview and the book by Jonathan Evans. His entire family has really shifted the church and the kingdom. And we're just so grateful to have him on today when he just prayed. He said, as goes the family, so goes the culture. And that's where we're at. We're the believers. We are the Christians. We impart these truths to our children. We tell our children these stories of old. They get it, and then they move the kingdom forward to. He also recommended this scripture for you today. Let's look at it right now. In Galatians 2 20, it says, I have been crucified with Christ. And it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me. This is, guys, one of the basic foundational scriptures and belief for us as believers that Jesus came, Jesus died for sinners like us. And so now today it's no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. So maybe today you've never made a decision to ask Jesus into your heart and into your life. Maybe you've never surrendered your life to him.  I'm guilty. I'm not worthy.  He loves you. Just stop it and just believe like a child, Sidney.  I've got to come to this gospel simply. Yes, I truly have. And I even just think of like, especially during the pandemic, I know, going back a couple of years, but I think for all of us just having those moments when you see that the world is shaking, that things are stopping. And even when it comes to personal pandemics in our own lives, where we don't know what things are going to look like, we don't know how things are going to go. But there has been so many moments when I just crawl into the face of the father, when I just lay myself down and I give it all to Abba God and I know that I am a daughter. I know that I'm the daughter of the most high God. And that's what he simply wants for all of us is to understand that we've been adopted, that we have been grafted in, that he loves us with an everlasting love. I recently read somewhere in Psalms that talks about his love is like higher than the highest heavens. And we don't even know how big and how wide that is. But isn't that amazing? His love for us is immeasurable. So receive that today and know when Christ is in you, he is the hope of glory and helps you to walk out things in this life. Corey, quick last thoughts. Listen, I love what Jonathan had said. He said, we are called to be stewards, not owners. And I think that takes off the anxiety of thinking that it's all about us and it's all about what we have to do. But we are stewarding our children back to God. We are stewarding these opportunities that God has given. We are stewarding the air that we breathe to make sure that that air is giving God praise and giving him worship and reverence. So today, take a moment to say, God, this is yours. The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. And we give it to you. We love you. And we thank you for the opportunity to be alive. That's something that I want you all to do today. Thank you for joining us here on Hope Today. I hope you have a fantastic day and wonderful week. Take care. On tomorrow's Hope Today, uplifting and inspiring others to conquer darkness with God's love, Grammy award-winning artist, Victory, discusses her new album, Glory Hour, and how God's light continues to shine even in the darkest of times. Don't miss tomorrow's Hope Today. Cornerstone Television wishes to thank all our faithful viewers, whose consistent prayers and financial support have made this program possible.


Hey guys, I'm here with Marcus Oakey from the 21 convention awesome speech. Thanks, ma'am Can you give the viewers a quick synopsis of what you covered? Sure My talk was about conversation hacking which is the ability to really look for simple shortcuts to instant influence a lot of persuasion techniques and tactics are locked up in books and That's great. And there's lots of information out there, but I'm really interested in practical persuasion skills So my speech covered little bite-sized pieces We can use to throw into conversations to influence the outcome of the conversation for example If you're ever confronted with a problem, you might say how do we fix this? And what that does it forces the other people in the party to solve your problem for you. I Remember you saying that that's awesome. I also love the flight attendant example Yeah, absolutely little tricks you can and little ways really to spice up the fun you're having in everyday life Yeah, so for example if you're checking into a hotel and you can say hey I'm just a hotel inspector checking in today Or if you're booking on to a flight walk up to the attendant and say if you can guess my seat number I'll give you a dollar that's sure to cause a stir and certainly get you more attention when you're on the flight Cool Can you let us know why you came to speak? What is it about the 21 convention that brought here? Well, I really love the whole attitude of the 21 convention It's very holistic lots of people come in from all different areas and really I think the message is How to upgrade your your skills in life? That's certainly something I like to focus on and just upgrading conversation skills for example And we've got lots of other speakers talking on various other aspects. So for me it's always for upgrades decently Well, thanks for so much for coming. Thanks for having us. Cheers. Yeah


Okay, I think we can begin with whoever's signed in for now. Good morning everyone. Welcome to week two of your classes in your second year here, or third year here, sorry. I'm also teaching the second year so it's a little bit confusing sometimes. But yeah, welcome to your third year for those of you who are doing the whole program and for those of you who are taking specific classes, welcome.  Is there someone online who would be willing to open us in prayer? Okay, let's pray. Heavenly loving Father, once in a while we thank you so much for this beautiful morning. Thank you for bringing us together Lord as a team, the Lord we are from different parts, India and from abroad Lord I pray that you bless us, speak to us Lord this morning and let your word always order a new heart man and soul master. I especially pray for your pastor Lord as he is a teaching Lord. Let you speak to her master and anoint her Lord so that Lord whatever she is going to speak it will not from her words but Lord it will through your spirit master. I thank you and I will ask in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Thank you, Subhashis. That's very in line with what we're going to read in Corinthians today to be led by the spirit in what you're saying. So thank you. Okay, just to figure out there's something my speakers would be are not set up correctly I think. Okay, I think that should correct it. Okay, so I was just sharing with Jeffina who's here in person with us that I realized that being an online student can be a little difficult to fully stay engaged with what is happening and yeah because it's difficult to like watch a monitor and to keep listening and paying attention. I'm not sure what your experience has been so far but I really want to make it easier for you to stay focused and to stay engaged throughout the class. So I would really like it if like when there's a Bible reading or if I'm asking a question if you're able to respond that you're that you unmute and respond. If you are unable to unmute because different it depends on where you are. Yeah, your surroundings at the time. So I'm just going to ask if you are willing to read or you're okay to unmute and talk during the class. Can we just put a thumbs up next just so that I can see that or I don't know if there's a thumbs up option or is raise hand the only option. Yeah, I guess raise hand is so you can just raise your hand and keep it that way throughout the class. So I'll know that you are okay to unmute and then I may call on one of you to read the passage or something like that. If you aren't able to read then feel free to just leave that off and I'll know that you are unable to unmute. Is that clear? Yes, you can also type in chat and say yes or let me know if you're unable to read. Yeah, so anyone who's okay to unmute at any point and you're able to speak during the class, please just choose that raise hand option. You can click on it now and keep it throughout the class. Click on the raise hand option that's on the bottom. Okay, so I think Brother Lukleka is available to read. Okay, thank you. Okay, so whoever, so Sister Rosalene said that you're available at some point. So whenever you're available just keep your hand raised and if at some point you're not available just remove that raise hand thing. So I'll just look at who's hand is raised so that I know they can read at this point and if at any point in between you're not able to read just remove that. You can click on the raise hand option again and then it'll go off. Right. Okay, thank you. So, Jeffy, now you're available. Okay, so is anyone, we'll just do a small recap of what we covered last week in class. So we looked a little bit at the background and a little bit at the culture that surrounded the letter that was written to the Corinthians. Anyone remember anything we talked about with regard to the city of Corinth? Yeah, just feel free to unmute and share. I think they did. We just saw how the Corinthians are known as prostitutes and the connection between the Athens and the Corinth and how it's a coastal area. And the Corinth was like the market-based monastery over there, how the Corinth was a coastal area. And the Corinthian religions also we looked at the upper lowest and the lower part and I think Aphrodite was in the higher part. And we also looked at how the temple prostitution was built and that's how the prostitution also entered into the church. Okay, so Paul was almost doing a market-based ministry so there were no classic people who were avoided with this. Some of the Corinthians were really nondontical or it's called as I said, like that. So, Paul was, I believe, the most important in that. And we also saw that he spent 18 months in Corinth and then there's one of his second mission in Germany. And we also saw how the upper lowest came after. And there's also one letter that is not in the Bible that we know. Okay, I think that's one of the introductions. Okay, so I think Jeffina covered the main points that we talked about. Thank you. So we looked at the religious aspect, the economical aspect, the geographical aspect of where Corinth was. And we looked at also some other things about where Paul was in his missionary work when he wrote this letter. And yes, that this was not the first letter he wrote. He did a letter before this and this was his second letter to the Corinthians. But this is the first letter we have in the arch by the way. So chapter one, we did up to verse 19. Does anyone want to just give us a quick summary of what we did in those first 19 verses? Just maybe in two or three sentences. What were some of the main points we looked at? Okay, so generally would you like to give us a quick summary of the first 19 verses? Feel free to look at your to have your passage open and then you can check from there. Excuse me, ma'am, I cannot hear you properly. Okay. Is everyone else able to hear me okay? Anyone else having problems with just you can even post it on chat and let me know. If you're unable to hear me, if there's something wrong on my side that I need to correct. Okay. Pupash said you can hear. Okay. Brother Lupega said you can hear me. Okay, okay. Generally it may be your connection, your internet connection. So, yeah, if there's something that you can do to help get a better connection, then that may help. Because I think everyone else is able to hear me. So I was just asking if anyone would be willing to do a quick summary of the first 19 verses. In first Corinthians, what we covered last week. Okay. So, Jeffy, that's a cheer. Go ahead. Yeah. So, in the first Corinthians, we did a study of verse 5 verses from verse 1 to 19. I think that's talking a little bit about the greetings, the salutations of 19 to the place. And from verse 4 to 9, we recognize that God has been for us, especially the special grace that we have given to each one of us. And I don't know, we also studied about standing as a spotless being. I didn't like the verse. And then since 17 we saw how we are actually called to be united in Christ. And we also see in Corinthians background that they were actually divided according to their knowledge and religion. So Paul was actually talking about being united. And in verse 19 and 20, I think it was honest with Isaiah 29 verse 30. Okay. Thank you. Yeah. So I think it's just helpful to go back so that we remember what we were talking about. So even as we go into today's content, we're able to connect back to what had happened earlier in the letter. So some of the main things were the unity because there was division in the church based on which preacher they preferred, right? So some said they followed Cephas and some said they followed Christ. So Paul is calling them to unity. And we see a lot of this division was more based on their preference in the kind of in the way the person preached or in what appeal to their own sense of wisdom. So that was their main criteria for recording one leader over another. So let's go to verse 19. I think that we were somewhere, I think we finished 19 and 20, but we'll read that and then we'll continue from there on. So I'll just read 19 and 20. It said, it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, the intelligence of the intelligent, I will frustrate. Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? And so this actually does a good job of just summarizing that whole issue of division was over what they considered wisdom or what they appreciated as wisdom. And Paul is saying, we don't depend on human wisdom, but we go to the cross and that is where our hope is. And so he's calling them to put their faith in Christ and in the message of the cross, rather than in the leaders who God had sent to them to preach the gospel. So from there, we continue into verse 21. It says, for since in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. So we see here that Paul is saying God's wisdom is not to follow the wisdom of the world. He chose something that he knew people would consider as foolishness. So that people would have to choose to believe. They would have to come to him by faith, not based on what was impressive or what seemed completely logical or understandable or what was presented to them in a very attractive way. It was not those things that were going to draw them to Jesus. What was going to draw them to Jesus was the message of the cross. And if they put their faith in Christ, that would be what saved them. And so it's intentional on God's part to choose something that he knew would be difficult for people to accept.  And so it did require dependence on the Holy Spirit. It was the Holy Spirit who would have to give them understanding. It was the Holy Spirit who would give them the ability to respond in faith if their hearts were willing to do it. Let's go on to verse 22 and 24, 22 to 24. Can I have someone read that case? Verse 22, for Jews request a sign and Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified to the Jews or stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called both Jews and Greeks Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Thank you so much. So we see here that Jews, this version, so the NKJV says Jews request a sign. If we look at some other translations, it's Jews demand a sign. So it's not a kind request like please show us a sign. It's more like if you don't show us a sign, we're not going to pick. So that's the attitude with which they were coming to Jesus. And we see that even in Jesus' ministry, when he was going around and sharing, calling people to the kingdom of God. Although he was doing so many miracles, he was so often asked to show them a sign when he was already doing miracles. So it shows that they were not coming with the heart of like really wanting to see the power of Jesus. They were asking for some kind of sign that would satisfy their own hearts. But would they respond to that sign in faith? It seems doubtful because Jesus was already doing so many miracles and they were not responding to that. So a Jews demand a sign and the Greeks valued wisdom, which is what Paul is talking about throughout this. But we do not cater to what people are demanding of us. We will just reach the single message, which is Christ crucified, right? And that is the message that is foolishness to the Greeks because you're following a leader who seems like he was defeated and seems like he was put to shame.  And so looking at Jesus on the cross seemed counter everything that they had expected. And so that was a stumbling block to them. So the message that we preach about Jesus Christ crucified will not change based on our audience. We will preach the same message because that is where our salvation is. That is where power is. That is where God's wisdom is revealed. And God's wisdom is not the wisdom of this world. God's power is not the power of this world. And we see in verse 24, but those who are called for Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. So we see the use of the word called here. Now if you look in 1 Corinthians that word is used a lot in chapter one. We see it in verse one where Paul is saying that he's been appointed by God to be an apostle. We see it in verse two. Here it's used more as the church is saved with the purpose that they would live a life that is holy. We see it in verse nine where believers are called into fellowship within the Trinity. So we are invited into fellowship with the Trinity. We see it in verse 24 that those who believe are the people who are called. Where their spiritual eyes will be open to the power and wisdom of the cross. But those who depend on what they can see physically will not accept the gospel. So those who are trying to pursue God with their physical sight and with their own wisdom will not be able to receive the gospel. But those who are open to what the Holy Spirit wants to reveal to them, those who are seeking something that is beyond their own understanding. Those are the people who will come to faith. And in verse 26 we see that those chosen by God will be saved not because of their merit but because of his grace. So when we use that word called it's not that God called some and he doesn't call others. The call is described goes out to everyone. The gospel goes out to everyone. But there are a few who will receive it in faith and there are few who will reject it because they are looking for things based on their own terms rather than willing to accept it on God's terms. And so the people who are called are the people who are saved not based on what they have done or what they deserve but because of God's grace. So those are the ones who are called and saved. Let's go on to verse 25. Does someone want to read that? Because the foolishness of God is wiser than man and the witness of God is stronger than man. Yes. This is why we don't move away from preaching the cross of Christ because although it may seem foolish to people, what may seem weak to people, what is wise in people's eyes is foolishness to God and what is the foolishness of God seemingly is much wiser than what we can understand. And what is the weakness of God on the cross is much stronger than anything that humans can understand. And so we will stick to the message of the cross because in that is true wisdom and true power. So we move on to the next part of this chapter. Someone read from verse 26 to 31 please. So you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called, but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty. And the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen and the things which are not to drink nothing the things that are. That no flesh should glory in his presence, but of him you are in Christ Jesus who became for us wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. That as it is written, he who glories, let him glory in the Lord. So we go back to that verse 26 what we talked about when we first began discussing the Corinthians. So there was definitely a division based on status within the church. So there were some who were from nobility from an elite background, some who were the manual laborers, the local people who were from a poor background or a lower status. And we can see that Paul is saying not many of you. So there were these people who were from a lower background, there were people who were who were of higher status, but that was not the majority of the church. And it may be because of how Paul chose to carry out his ministry doing the tent baking. So not many were wise, not many were mighty and not many were noble. So God didn't call them because of what they had achieved or who they were, God called them because of his grace. And so when they were going back to fighting over Paul or Paul or sort of relying on their status or on the wisdom that was displayed in their preaching, they were trying to go away from grace to say that human accomplishments are what we will find our identity in. So my identity is in Paul, my identity is in Paul's, my identity is in the leader I follow. And based on how impressive my leader is that I can take pride in that. So that's a problem where we have moved from I am nothing. I don't deserve to be saved, but it's God's grace that has saved me and I totally rely on God's grace for salvation to then finding human accreditation for our sense of identity or our sense of pride. So this is where Paul is saying, this is who you were when you were saved and it's so important to constantly go back to that, constantly go back to the gospel. Because when we go back to that time when we responded to the gospel and faith, we recognize that we responded to that completely out of dependence on God knowing that there is no way I can save myself. There is no way that I can live a life of holiness except by what Christ has done for me and except by the Spirit of God in me. That's how we come to this place of salvation. And so to go back to that place constantly and remember this is who I am, this is my identity as a believer. No matter how big we get in ministry, no matter how many people are applauding us, how many people are following us. When we go back to that core of I am completely and fully dependent on Christ for my salvation and for everything that everything else that I do. We can stay in a place of humility, not get distracted by the attention we are getting or the things that are happening around us but constantly remain in Christ, fully dependent on Christ. So in this verse 26 we see he's talking a little bit from Jeremiah 9 because later on he's going to go, he's going to quote a verse from Jeremiah 9, 24. So if someone can just turn to Jeremiah 9, 23 and read that and then keep that passage open because we'll read verse 24 in a few verses. Jeremiah 9, 23. Jeremiah 9, 23. Thus says the Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches. So we see the same idea that we don't find our glory in human achievements in what we own, not in the material possessions that we have. And so that's the same thought that Paul is sharing here in this verse. Verse 27 to 29, God has just like God chose what he knew would be a foolish message to people, the cross of Christ. He also chose what was foolish in the eyes of the world, that is he chose the weak people, he chose the people who didn't have a high status, people who were not considered important. He chose those kinds of people and he made them great, he made them wise. He chose them when they were of no importance to anyone else, God himself chose them and he gives them value, he gives them worth. So that none of us should try to take glory when we are in God's presence. So verse 29, no flesh glory in his presence. So we don't go before God and take an act like we have a glory that is separate from him. We look a little more at that use of glory and who true glory belongs to. But none of us can boast before God. None of us can glorify ourselves in God's presence. Because when we recognize we are nothing, God is made us who we are. We recognize that he's the only one in whom we can boast, the only one in whom we can find glory. Verse 30 says, but of him you are in Christ Jesus again. So it says, but because of him, but because of God you are in Christ Jesus and Jesus became for us wisdom from God, righteousness, sanctification and redemption. So the only reason we are in Christ is because of God. That's not because of anything we have done. There's nothing that we can boast about in our own, about what we have done to be in him. And Christ becomes everything. So he is our wisdom, these are righteousness, he's our sanctification, he's our redemption. More and more reasons why we have nothing to boast about. So if we are wise, it is because of Christ. If we are righteous because of Christ, if we are holy, it's because of Christ. If we are redeemed, it's because of Christ. So to remember that everything we are is because of Christ, because of the grace of God. And because we are now in Christ, we can, we have all of these things. We have God's wisdom, we have God's righteousness, we are holy, we are redeemed. All of that is because we are in Christ. And verse 31 says, as it is written, he who glories, let him glory in the Lord. So sister, we can just read Jeremiah 9, you read verse 23. You can read verse 24 now. Jeremiah 9. Jeremiah 9.24. But let him who glories, glory in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord exercising loving kindness, judgment and righteousness in the earth, for in these I delight says the Lord. Yeah, so it says that the one who boasts about this, that they have the understanding to know me. That is again, the same kind of thought that Paul is communicating in verse 31. He who glories, let him glory in the Lord. So if we have anything to boast about, anything to glorify ourselves about, it is in God himself. So if we give glory, we give glory to God. If we boast, we boast in God, because everything we are is because of him. And like Jeremiah 9.24 says, that they have understanding to know me. So even the understanding to know Jesus comes from God. So because, I can't even say it's because of my own understanding or because of my willingness to depend on the Holy Spirit that I have come to faith. And I can't boast in that because that understanding comes from God. So everything is the grace of God covering us through and through in this process of coming to salvation and then living out our faith in Christ. So with that, we can move on to chapter 2. I have here in chapter, in the beginning of your notes, that chapter 2 has been divided in a few ways. So we won't, that's how we will kind of follow the notes. So it says in verses 1 to 5, we're talking about proclaiming Jesus with power. Verses 6 to 10, the Spirit, it's this Holy Spirit who unveils the wisdom of God, who helps us understand the wisdom of God. Verses 11 to 12, it's a Spirit who reveals what God has given to us. Through the gospel, what God has given to us is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. And then verses 13 to 16, it is the Holy Spirit who enables us to have the mind of Christ. So because we are in Christ, the Holy Spirit that enables us to think like Jesus does and to know the things of God. So that's a general division of this passage. So let's begin with verses 1 to 5. Anyone want to read that for us? Should I read none? Harsha, go ahead. And I, President, when I came to you did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God, for I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling, and my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of wisdom, of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. Thank you. So Paul says there was, I came to you intentionally, not with speech that was impressive, or with using a lot of rhetorical skills that I could have used, but I came to you just with this one goal to preach Christ crucified. So he keeps going back to that Christ crucified. That's the core of what we preach. So he didn't choose to use anything that would attract people to his words. Rather if he wanted to attract people to the person he was talking about and to the message that he was proclaiming, and he intentionally chose a very simple way of sharing it with the people. Now his reason for choosing that he says clearly in verse 5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. So he could have gone. He was someone who had been trained. He was a well-learned man. And so even in this letter we can see how he is using, how he is defending what he has said, what he's done. So he is using rhetorical, using these skills of proclaiming something that he wants to say. But in that time when he took the gospel, there was intentionality in which he chose not to use that kind of language because he wanted to show people the power of God. So he preached very simply and then along with that were the signs, wonders and miracles that accompanied his preaching so that the message would be clear and simple for people to receive. But the power of the message would be revealed in what they were seeing as a fruit of the gospel, that people were being healed, that people were being delivered. So both the message and the signs that followed were important in his preaching. In verse 3 he says, I was with you in weakness, in fear and in much trembling. So it might be that was a response to some of the challenges he was facing because we see that there were people who were posing him. So when he is saying that he went in fear and trembling, it might be that because of the circumstances. So we see this or you're just trying to scroll down. So it says, if we go back to Acts 18 where Paul's visit to Corinth is recorded, it says, now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision and said, Do not be afraid but speak and do not keep silent for I am with you and no one will attack you to hurt you for I have many people in the city. So because he was facing some kind of opposition from people, it is possible that he was afraid. And so even though he continued to share the gospel, he didn't have maybe all of that power that maybe Apollos had in his preaching. And Apollos was also gifted as a preacher separate from Paul's giving. So Paul's giving was different and Apollos' giving was different. So when he says fear and trembling, it's possible that he was preaching in circumstances that were difficult so his preaching also was affected by that. But then he goes on to say verse four. So my preaching was not the persuasive words but in demonstration of the spirit and power. So when you think persuasive words, that word can also mean enticing. So some philosophers of that age, there were different views on this. Some of them would say if you're speaking the truth, you don't need to have a very convincing way to portray it because you know what you're preaching and if you're resorting to use rhetoric or resorting to use a very clear way of explaining and trying to prove to people that what he's saying is truth, then they would look down on you. But there was another group of people who said if you know the truth and you're not able to present it in a way that is convincing, then knowing the truth is a waste. So what Paul is saying is I know that I brought to you truth but I was not depending on my skills as a preacher to convince you of the truth. Instead I was depending on the Holy Spirit. So I was depending on the power of the Holy Spirit to convince you of the truth. So that's where the wisdom of God is, right? The truth doesn't need to come with... People do not need to be convinced of the truth by what we say but when they see that word working and impacting people, that itself will prove the truth of what we are saying. I'll just read a little bit from your notes which I really like this part says what you draw, it is commonly stated what you draw them with is what you draw them to. And so we don't want people to be drawn to or to base their lives on human wisdom or anything like emotion, entertainment, hyped up marketing, etc. Our goal is to have people's faith established in the power of God. And so when we take the message off the cross, we also want the power of God to be revealed and we want that to be the thing that convinces people of truth and draws them to God. So I think we just have a minute or two before we take our break. Anything that you would like to share, any learning or any questions, anything that we've covered so far today, nothing so far. Okay, maybe we'll just continue with the next two verses or the next verse how much ever we can complete before the bell goes off. So verse six, however we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age nor of the rulers of this age who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory. So we see here that Paul is saying, yes, we do preach a message of wisdom. It's not that we are always going to preach something very simple and very plain. No, there are things that are going to be filled with the wisdom of God. It's not the wisdom of this world, but it will be the wisdom of God and we will preach those deeper, heavier kinds of things to people who are ready to receive it. So it is to those who are mature. And we'll see later that Paul talks about the maturity of the Corinthians and whether they were even ready for such a message of wisdom. And the wisdom of God is a mystery which God ordained before time. So this is something that God has revealed to us, something that he had planned before time began and now has revealed to us something that will allow us to share in his glory. So through the gospel we share in the glory of God and that is what he has now revealed to us. So break time will continue from there once you're back. So we come back in 10 minutes. Thank you.


الحمد لله رب العالمين وصلى الله على السيدنا وحبيب قلوبنا وشفيع نفوسنا أبل قاسم محمد وعلى آل بيته الطيبين الطاهرين المعصومين لاسيما بقية الله روحي وأرواح العالمين لتراب مقدمه الفداء ومعباد رب العالمين وصلى الله على السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته أولاً أصدقائنا نحن نقوم برسالاتنا إلى المقامب أو إمام إمام صاحب العصري والزمان أريد أن نرى سيد زي نب عليها الله صلى الله عليه وسلم when we look at them however we want to analyze tonight inshallah why is it and what makes them great because on one instance when you come forth and anyone comes forth and asks us as the followers of the school of thought of Ahl al-Bayt the followers of the family of the prophet of Islam the prophet and his family when someone comes forth and asks us why is Fatima al-Zahra great and that's a question we're going to be asked time and time again what makes Fatima al-Zahra great what makes Sayyid al-Zaynab great inshallah tonight the basis of tonight's argument inshallah I would like to look at Sayyid al-Zaynab in this light someone may come forth and you want to take the example of Fatima al-Zahra someone may come forth with a reply that you know what she's the daughter of the prophet of Islam she's the daughter of the prophet of Islam now without a shadow of doubt that in itself gives her a great status that in itself gives her a position within Islam gives her a position within even Judas Prudence as in what she says because she's the daughter of the prophet of Islam it gives her a status nonetheless however is that what makes Fatima al-Zahra great is that the instance of what makes Fatima al-Zahra is it because Fatima al-Zahra is the mother of all the imams is it because Ali ibn ibn talib is Fatima al-Zahra's husband is that what makes Fatima al-Zahra as in the same instance we can take the example of Sayyid al-Zaynab when we look at Sayyid al-Zaynab alaihi salam do we say that she's great because she is the daughter of Fatima al-Zahra and Ali ibn ibn talib is she great because she's the sister of two imams is she great because she used the tragedy of Karbala to instill what we have today and the remains of the religion of Islam she upheld it with her stances within Khufa and Sham why is it what makes them who they are that's what we want to take from tonight's topic is it great because of the position that they hold as in is it great because of their lineage is it great because of who married them and what their offspring are or is it because of their essence when we look at Sayyid al-Zaynab when we look at Sayyid al-Zaynab people often overlook the massive massive thing that the parents have the massive influence that the parents have over their children yes it has an instance that's what that Ali ibn talib has taught Sayyid al-Zaynab she looks towards her father for strength for bravery for courage for patience after the prophet of Islam she looks towards her mother in the same instances yes it's great that she's learned from them however how many a time do we know of people from great ancestral backgrounds that have went astray and on the reverse angle how many people do we know from a very bad ancestral background however they turned out great people I'll give you an example the first example we have to look at is obviously and I'm not saying they become great people but I'm saying they're not going to follow the same footsteps as their parents let's take Muawiyah the son of Yazid Muawiyah the son of Yazid when he takes the khilafah after his father he's looking at it and he says you know what I don't want this khilafah this isn't rightfully mine this khilafah isn't rightfully my father's all my forefathers therefore you see the danger what happened he wanted to give it back towards Ahl al-Bait and then the calamity happened however we see what he didn't follow in the same footsteps as his father Muhammad ابن أبا بكر these are the disciples of Ali ibn Abi Talib as in he was sought out throughout the land after the time of Ali ibn Abi Talib because he was a companion until the time of Muawiyah he was butchered as in what we look at the example it doesn't matter that their parents were great did they turn out great and that's why we have to look at Zaynab not only was her father Ali ibn Abi Talib she was the sister of two imams her mother was Fatima Tuzara and her grandfather was the man that brought us the message of Islam but let's look at Zaynab as an example when she was little until she grew up what examples can we take from her life at the age of 4 to 5 when Fatima this is the first glimpse of the greatness of Zaynab when she was 4 or 5 years of age Zaynab goes up and says that amazing speech which is known as the speech of Fatima another term used for that particular speech is the speech of Fedek if you want to research it and Imam Sahab actually was a man he says what he says that as a mu'min and a follower وعليكم السلام ورحمة الله وبركاته he says as a mu'min and a follower of Ahl al-Bayt you have to make sure that this speech is one that you must read and undertake and learn from because of the examples she gives because of what's with held within that particular speech and what we need to learn from it say the Zaynab look at the greatness of Zaynab at that young age at that young age she's one of the narrators of Hadith of that massive speech if you go now and read it or if you listen to it on an audio tune we find that it may take up to 20-25 minutes such a long speech I looked at it and I tried to memorize it I tried to memorize it it's a speech that's very hard to memorize say the Zaynab once she hears it from فاطمة الزهراء عليه أفضل الصلاة والسلام and she's learned it she's learned it and she gives it and she teaches it as in one of the narrators of Hadith say the Zaynab at such a young age another example we can take from say the Zaynab at a young age علي ابن أبي طالب he takes her one day young age he begins to teach her as all fathers teach their children he's teaching her numerically the numbers she says he says to say the Zaynab say one so he says the Zaynab says one he says Zaynab say two and Zaynab wouldn't say two he looks at her again he says Zaynab say two look at the reply of this woman and at that young age you'll begin to realize what greatness she grew up to become what greatness and what stances she took in the 10th of Muharram and the aftermath of Karbala that had a pivotal position in changing the course of history a pivotal position in which upholding the message of Islam the message that her brother died for that he was martyred that her family was butchered for and we'll begin to realize what kind of stance and what kind of knowledge this woman had which made her great she says to Ali ibn Abi Talib she says this tongue that's uttered the oneness of God cannot bear to utter a number other than one صلى الله عليه وسلم that's say the Zaynab at such a young age and you begin to realize this is just say the Zaynab at a young age imagine what she became when she grew up when she began to teach Quran within her household Imam Ali when he shows us the protection he had for say the Zaynab the protection he had we begin to analyze that you know what there will become a time when say the Zaynab people would not know anything of her as in when when we come to the courtroom of Abidallah ibn Ziyad there's a particular speech that takes place between say the Zaynab and between Abidallah ibn Ziyad as you know the gist of it is what on one side he says are you Zaynab as in they didn't know what say the Zaynab looked like Imam Ali even in Khufa when he was in Khilafah Imam Ali people would come towards him and they would beg him it's Aid you're the Khalifa of our time we want a woman not us we want a woman to go towards say the Zaynab we want a woman to go and celebrate with the say the Zaynab as in nowadays everyone goes towards other people's houses and says you know what Aid mubarak let's celebrate together Imam Ali they ask him for permission to go oh Ali let us go towards say the Zaynab let us have a celebration let's give her the celebration of this a specific occasion what does Imam Ali say what does Imam Ali say he says no why he says I'm afraid why are you afraid just going to send Aid teleprations what is it to be afraid of he says I'm afraid that the woman may see the characteristics of say the Zaynab and when they in circles they'll begin to utter her characteristics that I will not have as in what do you know when say the Zaynab wants to go out and visit the graves of the Prophet of Islam and her mother Fatima who gives us the example of not a narration from any normal person or the Sahaba anyone like that one of the enemies of Ahl al Bayt he says to say the Zaynab what do you mention before in the courtroom of course where he says to say the Zaynab you are Zaynab he says you are Zaynab the one that Ali Ibn Abi Talib in the night look at the example given he says in the night he takes with him what we look at nowadays as a lamp or a candle he says in the night when he takes the candle with him and he goes in front of you and you have three brothers surrounding you one on either side and one behind you even in the night he turns off that flame why he says I cannot bear to let people see the shadow of say the Zaynab who says this about the life in this yard who is he the enemy of Ahl al Bayt he says you are Zaynab the one that Ali Ibn Abi Talib used to extinguish the light within the candle or lantern so people did not see your shadow you are that Zaynab that's how he refers to her that's why we look at the examples even not in just a female perspective even in a male perspective there is greatness yes when we look at the ancestral that the genes that do play a massive role that's why the prophet of Islam when he comes towards marriage he says make sure you know your spouses he says because genealogy is a very interesting thing to look at because in some genes they may be gene that which is unfavorable when you look towards the genetics when you look at who these people are make sure that the background is what is that of God fearing nature when Ali Ibn Abi Talib gives us an example when he goes towards his brother Aqeel that knew the genealogies at the time he says to him oh Aqeel he says I want a woman that will bring for me a son that will defend my son Hussein on the 10th of March find me a spouse because what even then Ali Ibn Abi Talib he knows that genealogy has a massive part to play in the upbringing of a child the essence of a child as in the battle of Safin when the arrows were pouring down like rain and he gives the flag towards one of his sons by the name of Muhammad in the Hanafiyah he says go out and bring us victory or go out and bring us victory or go out and break the ranks he goes out he sees the arrows flying like rain he goes back to Ali Nattari he says I can't I fear I have fear in my heart he says go out again he goes and he comes back he takes the flag of him he says what's happened he says you have a gene from your mother he says the sons of Ali and Fatima don't have that gene of fear he gives the flag to Imam Hassan and he goes out without a glimpse of fear without a glimpse of fear and he goes and breaks the ranks giving us the example that what yes on the first instance genealogy plays a massive part when you choose and the prophet says تخيور النظافكم إن الأرقاء the sons it tells you then and there however when we look at Zaynab yes she has all that characteristics she has the grandparents she has the parents she has the brothers but when we look at her greatness is when all that is taken away when all that when she is left on the plains of Karbala without a grandfather the mercy that brought the message without the father in which people used to look at him not just just look at him used to fee his name and tremble when they hear his name which was looked at as a source of guidance a source of power a source of backbone a source of bravery courage patience he wasn't there on the 10th of Muharram her mother Fatima died at a young age flower that Bailey blossomed taken away علي مطالبة the first one who says what he says Fatima came from heaven and she left her fragrance in my mind and she's gone back towards heaven Fatima wasn't there Imam Hassan was taken away Imam Hussein was butchered in front of her and all the family members therefore we want to look at Sayyid Zainab on that instance what did Sayyid Zainab do in that stance where can we see the greatest aspect of Sayyid Zainab and there's many great aspects to look at but it's that position when no one else is around when there's no one to have as a backbone or tie your belt to what does she do in that instance and that's what we have to look at in this instance to see what is Sayyid Zainab how great is this woman is when she goes on the planes of Karbala and as we know Imam Hussein after every martyrdom he takes that martyr and he offers him to Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala a sacrifice even he's 6 months old when the blood drips from his neck he gathers the blood from under his neck and he throws it towards the sky and he says God take until you are sufficed Sayyid Zainab what is in this instance after everyone's butchered she goes in the night between the bodies that lie on the planes of Karbala and you want to imagine this brothers a sister that grew up every day in the morning to the light of the face of Imam Hussein not any normal person to the face of Imam Hussein in which we have narrations and I stated a few weeks ago that the narration states that we have that Imam Hussein's face will illuminate paradise that people will forget there's something called حور العين that's the face of Imam Hussein Sayyid Zainab imagine waking up to that face for her whole life and on the 10th of محرم when she sees his head on a spear when she goes on the planes of Karbala imagine trying to find your brothers body without a head that's being trampled on by the horses and after people have come forth and taken every single garment and ripped off a finger from him to take that particular ring that he had imagine what state Imam Hussein's body was in sayyid Zainab to go on the planes of Karbala and hold Imam Hussein and offer him and raise him and say to Allah سبحانه وتعالى she says to Allah look at the powerful nature of this woman and this is what we can look at in Kufa we know that when sayyid Zainab was to speak people said it's the essence it's the aura of Ali ibn Abi Talib who is this great woman she lifts on the 10th of محرم after the calamity of the 10th of محرم lifts the body who was left of the body of Abba Abdullah and she says to Allah look at this sentence she says please accept from us this little sacrifice sayyid Zainab this is why we look at sayyid Zainab now and the example is what is that who people look at from the ancestry when you celebrate sayyid M'asumat tonight we don't celebrate it because she's a woman that has a brother that's an Imam a nephew that's an Imam we don't celebrate it because of that it's because of the woman that she is it's because the greatness and we know she has a great rank within the eyes of Allah سبحانه وتعالى when people go or mention her name in a nidr or they pray to Allah through her means and everything is accepted when Allah grants you that which you wish that's all aside Allah سبحانه وتعالى has elevated her name that's in itself should say it by itself and the reference point that we had tonight is sayyid Zainab the reference point that we had from tonight is to look at a person for who they are to look at a person and their greatness their attributes what they've done for the religion of Islam what stances they've taken and what examples we can learn not just look at them as an ancestral basis as in this was his father his must be great this was his mother she must be great no yet yes it does have a major influence yes but on the flip side what do we know about that particular person and that's what we have to ask ourselves about Fatima al-Zahra how many stories do we know about Fatima al-Zahra how many do we know about Fatima al-Zahra as Hijab and how many do we know about say the Fatima's patience how was say the Fatima a great wife a great mother a great daughter a mother being in itself if the prophet of Islam says that she's the mother of her father imagine what kind of mother she was to her children when we decipher such examples when we want to dissect these kind of people when we want to look into their lives this is what we need to hold on to when we open the chapters to learn from these particular people when we look at their stories we don't just flip the page no we want to see how much we've applied to our lives and how far we are from this religion we say that we're Muslim yes we say we're the followers of Ahl al-Bait how much of the Ahl al-Bait's teachings do we apply how much is Imam Sahib al-Asri was looking at us and saying you know what we've actually learnt from the Ahl al-Bait and are applying and I tell myself first and foremost because we're all together on this one massive boat wanting to clench onto the rope of salvation which is the rope of Muhammad و'Ali Muhammad Insha'Allah my time tonight has come to a close and I thank everyone for listening to this particular lecture Insha'Allah we can learn to look at the lives of these infallibles to look at these lives of these great great characters in history and try to learn from it not just because they're females that we mentioned tonight because all of us we have mothers we have sisters we have daughters let's try to be an influential factor in their lives by applying first and foremost to ours learning in order for us to teach and I end on this note brothers and sisters and I just want to bless Insha'Allah the Majlis with everyone reciting الصورة المباركة المباركة الفاتحة but before it Allow Salawat على محمد و'Ali Muhammad


It's going, you get married? Yeah, I'm just kidding. Something unfair about, like, being in Ocho Rios and having to come back to Washington, D.C., and all that. But you're sure you don't. We have plenty of stuff, yeah. And then, resume Thursday, Friday. Is that better? Work on Monday? Because we have to start. We have to start this. We can work for probably one day and a half of the week. Other day and a half of the week. At 12 o'clock, I'll call. OK. Right. She's real good. I don't mean to put you on the spot. We'll work it out. OK, well, all right, we'll work that out. We can find out how long. We can probably go longer then. We can go longer than any one of the day. So then Thursday, oh, where are you living? Without my name. I live in Laurel. Yeah. OK, well, that's, you know what? That, if I got a car pulled in, OK? But that'll look, that'll, I might be able to. Going tight on that. You got a full page of that? Yeah. Full shot of that? Let me do something to that. So the footage is here. Once it's here, then I'm pretty confident. And then you need windowed up to that stuff, right? Phytox? Phytox? Phytox? Phytox? Let me find out. I'm afraid it'll linger in there for a day or two. Mystery of morning. I'll probably even get symposium receded. Because I know the shot I got to be able to get the mystery of the morning in the safe title area. Yeah. And I got a little bit of the symposium for stadiums in it. Because the top of the safe title's on. That looks well. I tell you what, I'd center that. Go ahead and get M-U-F-O-N, 1992 International UFO. Yeah, exactly. No, you're cool. That's right. That's how many people would say that.


Okay, we're here at Intel Forecast 2012. I'm John Furrier with siliconangle.com and this is a CUBE conversation with Jason Lacksman who's the general manager, cloud infrastructure group at Intel. Welcome to CUBE conversations.  I'm always impressed with Intel. Just overall having their nose in the right place at the right time early and then the investment into R&D and then coming into the markets and doing that. You guys certainly had paid off for the company with the cloud investment years ago. You guys had made as a company and it's been well-documented in the news of late. But I want to talk to you about cloud infrastructure. So let's first talk a little about your role at Intel. Intel's changing, obviously. Always growing, the market's changing around computing. You've got storage and flash growing like crazy enabling cores on SSD cards, right? You know, for engine IO or violin memory systems, all kinds of cool new things. Storage has been very successful when you get the cloud group of the data center. They're all kind of coming together. So talk about the converged infrastructure equation right now inside Intel and how that relates to the marketplace. Yeah, so I think, you know, let me start with the customer first. I can hear what the customer's looking to do for a cloud is they really want to be able to take pools of compute network and storage and then be able to apply it to an application. And that fundamental way for what I think about a cloud and even before we started calling it cloud, we used to call it resource pools and that's what it was about. And so what we're thinking about and at the end of the day, we're not going to go sell a solution. We're an ingredient. We're a technology company. But we're always thinking about what are the underlying technologies? What do we have to bring the market that's going to help be a game changer that allow people to innovate and deliver solutions based off of it? And so, you know, when I look at compute, one of the big things that we're looking at right now is not just how do we keep driving more cores and make it more power efficient within the Xeon product line, but how do we come up with interesting compute that addresses a range of different needs? And so as an example, we are coming up on introducing some of our mic based products, which is the many integrated core and this is for HPC types of applications. So companies that have very big analytic types of problems can leverage IA compatibility, but bring it to something that's got 50 cores or more. We also are looking at introducing our first atom based SOC. So on the opposite side of the spectrum, you've got these ultra lightweight, many, you know, scaled out types of servers. And also looking at how you can put application specific enhancements into it. So one of the big trends we see right now is media acceleration in servers themselves. And we've got things and instructions and software development kits to go make that happen. On the storage front, it's a lot of cases, it's about scale out storage. So what people are doing is they've just taken a server, they're adding drives to it and the introduction of nonvolatile memory, interesting game changer there. So instead of having to continue to scale out just to drive IO, now you can introduce a solid state drives based on Intel technology, drive that IO, drive the number of servers down to get more performance, lower cost out of it. What's the biggest thing that you guys are enabling within the cloud?  You know, really creating that hardened technology that grew that whole application revolution. So for cloud, what are the key enablers that you guys are providing in there? For the, on the application side, that more on your OEMs are both. Yeah, so I think that there's sort of three basic buckets that I would say are important. I think number one is security right now. People want to know that the underlying infrastructure that they're deploying the cloud on is secure and they have the ability to audit those security requirements. So we are putting in fundamental technologies like our trusted execution technology to go make that happen. Second, it's all around performance. As much as people say performance doesn't matter, it really does. And yet to continue to drive more as law, we gotta drive, you know, more performance per core, more cores, and then make the systems themselves more efficient and deliver more performance. And then the third element is about efficiency. It's amazing how much cost goes into just the power consumption and that doesn't really do anybody any good. And so we got to go make sure that the performance divided by the energy efficiency is sort of the equation that we're driving. Those are the three probably most important ingredients, if you will, that are enabling a cloud solution today. So you guys always operate the cadence of Moore's law and how does that apply to cloud in your mind? Not necessarily from Intel. So if you take the, you know, the Intel perspective of Moore's law, doubling every, what, six months was it? Yeah, every 18 months. Doubling, so now the cloud sitting out there as a resource and we're just talking with Capgeminus. The view is consistent, the dust hasn't settled, these things are still in the air evolving. Where does that kind of Moore's law mentality really need to be focused on right now in the cloud? Is it at the past? Is it infrastructure as a service? What areas of the stack, if you will, needs the most work? You know, honestly, it's all of them. So let's take infrastructure as a service for a second. If I could tell you that the cost of your infrastructure was gonna be effectively cut in half because you can get twice as much performance every 18 months, that's a pretty compelling, you know, thing to go ahead and drive from the infrastructure as a service and your cost per VM. If you look at it on the flip side, software as a service, people that are developing software as a service on scale, they're not doing it at three servers, they're doing it at thousands of servers. And so if we can find a way to get twice as much capability out of that, it's a huge difference. And I'll just give you like one anecdotal example. We worked with two very large cloud service providers to figure out how we could accelerate their time to deployment to be ready with our new technology. So if we could- In terms of data center or the ability to preface in services? To be able to deploy, say, the latest technology in the server infrastructure. So let's assume they're deploying thousands of servers every month. If I can take the new technology and then accelerate it at six months, over a two-year period across just those two service providers, we're sitting $750 million to companies. That's the value of that infrastructure. That's the value in CapEx. And actually, I didn't even calculate the OpEx on top of that. Probably even more. Probably even more, yeah. Maybe you're pushing a billion dollars, right? But that's the type of volume economics. This is not- The people who are delivering cloud services, they're not the ones who are doing it through 1G2Z. They're doing it on a scale. And that's really the value and the importance of more laws. Delivering more capability faster, sooner at volume economics. Let's talk about the open data center of lives. There's been some criticism, not public criticism, people are polite.  Well, you guys have the relevance of this. The market's changing. Is it really relevant? I saw a little Marvin about this earlier. Share with the folks why the open data center of lives is relevant and how you guys are handling the change and why you guys are behind it. Yeah. So the open data center of lives for the people that don't know, right, is a group of 300 end users. And so it's the customers who are deploying their own clouds or they're using cloud-based services. And from my standpoint, that's hugely relevant because, you know, there was a forecast. You know, people always had bigger forecasts, right? But there was a forecast that I saw earlier today that said that almost a quarter of a trillion dollars per year is going to be driven by cloud by 2020. I mean, that's an incredible amount of money to go capitalize on. And the reality is there's so many barriers to people actually moving to cloud still today. You're going to have to be able to talk about this. So if you can get 300 companies to have a common vision that say, you know what, we want to be able to adapt to cloud, but you've got to solve my top five problems and make those top five problems clear. Well, now I've got a target that I can go solve. And what's in it for Intel? I mean, what we do is we help to go create industries. I mean, that's what we've been doing. That's what we do the PC industry. That's what we're trying to go do here with cloud. And that's why we're behind the open data center alliance. Listen to the customer, let them tell us what the problems are. Don't second guess them. Let's go solve their problems. And then the other hand. Kind of enable the ecosystem. One thing Intel's done really well over the years, just being close to the company is when you get behind something, there's a lot of ecosystem around it that develops. Exactly. Can you talk about that in particular from, because you're an interesting spot. You're not kind of, you're kind of in the front lines, but you're not in the front lines. But at the same time, you're enabling an ecosystem of service provider partners, people that work with directly with large enterprises. What is the ecosystem like right now? What's the sentiment within the ecosystem? Yeah, so I mean, with this whole event that we're at today is really about is bringing together the users of cloud and the service providers, that ecosystem together to go solve the problems. And I think the ecosystem, it's changing. It's changing and there's also some conflict, right? On one hand, you have people wanting to deliver very proprietary vertical solutions. There's a benefit to that. It's fast, you've got one throat to choke is good. The other hand is that there's the risk of lock in or inflexibility and also customers get paralyzed. They're just not sure, like I gotta go make a bet and that bet may be irrevocable for some period of time. And the result is they sit on the sidelines. That's not all you want, right? We want customers to be able to feel like they've got choices, that these things will work together, that they're going to have some flexibility. They start to go use cloud services and the overall industry grows. And so what we're trying to do is find the right balance between how do you enable standards, which is good, it's like paving the road and still allow enough flexibility that people can go different speeds, different directions. And that's really, I think, the challenge from a vendor perspective.  Because, you know, obviously the storage group now is bolted on from what I heard with an Intel, my name ain't that be public, I don't know, but, you know, that goes hand in glove, right? Storage and servers. Big data seems to be, by our estimation, much more disruptive than, say, cloud is right next. Cloud is more an extension of infrastructure, as you said, resource pools. There's no real upside down market there. It doesn't mean really, at the same time, the big data market that talks about instrumenting, whether it's data, manufacturing data, military data, down to the consumer, retail, across the board, data and applications will change the business models of companies. That's like the PC revolution, putting productivity in the hands of the user, big data is putting data in the hands of, you know, business people and analysts, not just geeks. So we're seeing a massive rise up of kind of a new type of industry. How do you guys look at that? Because you have to enable that because it's part of your infrastructure and group data has to be dealt with in the cloud. You can't just spin down data. If it's a retail bursting situation, I can grab that data, I got to park it somewhere. It creates more opportunity, essentially. But it's challenging. So what's your view there and how do you see that unfolding? So first of all, I wholeheartedly agree with you. I think this is going to be far bigger than cloud. I'll just give a couple of numbers. If you look at the entire IT market, it's about half a trillion dollars. And so if you took all the costs out of it, everything was free, that's your upside. That's the most essentially you're saving from cloud infrastructure or infrastructure as a service and the efficiencies of it. On the big data side, you're talking about revolutionizing problems that are trillions of dollars problems. Government, you know. Waste. Waste, thank you for you said it, not me. But you know, government excess, right? But innovations, manufacturing data, new ways to go market and deliver products, healthcare, huge opportunity for big data, education, right? So you look at all these things and you say it's trillions and trillions of dollars. Every single vertical. And people want to monetize. And I don't think by the way, any of the forecasts that I've ever seen really do a good job of getting their arms wrapped around it because it's just so, so amazing. The thing that I am trying to go do and kind of back to Intel is again, we want to be able to create an industry or a big data. So this goes everything from how can we make more intelligent devices? So people talk about an internet of things or they talk about sensor data. We want to be able to have a better way of tapping into and having consistency across intelligent platforms, whether those are cars, smart signs, and embedded machines and manufacturing video cameras, right? How can you make those devices more intelligent so that they become kind of that network? And the second is how do you on the data center side enable and foster the use of things such as a dupe or other types of frameworks that allow people to cost effectively tap into that information? And so if we provide those building blocks and I think by the way the other things there's a huge enabling effort here. You talk about ecosystems. We need more data scientists, right? We got to go do work with education. We got to do work in research. We have to kind of do for big data what Excel did for small data, right? We got to make it easy and accessible to use. If we can do those three things, we're talking about an industry that's got so much growth that again, no one knows what that looks like. It's like what you guys do. You guys abstract the way the complexity hardened the tech so it's easy to use or turn key. We hope so. If we can do that with the high-end roles, because right now if you're a data scientist you got to be a quant shock or a PhD to configure H-Base, right? Yeah. That's not the way it's supposed to be, right? But I think that's ultimately an opportunity for the market. So with that, let's talk about some of the innovations that are going to enable big data. What are your top three? Is it flash? Is it the storage? I mean honestly, the compute, the course are key. So for you guys it's cores and flash, right? What else do you have? Networking is huge. One of the big issues when especially if you're running a MapReduce type of job is you've got so many different servers that are connected together and the latency to be able to go run a job effectively, the latency is important and bandwidth is important. And so we're seeing they need to be able to move to 10 gigabit as an example. That's one of the key technologies to accelerate that and do it cost effectively. Another thing that's really important is solid state storage as you pointed out, having fast access to the data that is stored and caching tiers in that regard. And then the third is delivering, you know, actually the software. Making sure that the software is tuned and optimized. Because again, this is another one of the problems people- What kind of software? Actually, I'll just use Hadoop as an example. I was working with a company that is a world class e-commerce company. And we were looking at their Hadoop infrastructure and at large scale they were getting 4% efficiency out of that cluster. That is not good. Not good for anybody. In terms of the hardware. In terms of the hardware. The processor and everything else. You know, when you hear a problem like that, the first thing you gotta go do is you gotta look at the software and say something could be tuned more effectively. And I don't think people know that Intel is a huge software group to go work on those types of applications. How we make them more efficient. And that's a great example.  It's nascent. It's great stuff. Final question for Jason. In the future, what are you guys looking at that you see as important? That may not be being discussed right now on the radar of mainstream and or industry journalists and analysts. But what are you watching to see that's really going to be an important piece that you just see the puzzle? Yeah. Well, you know, it's a good question. You know, right now, big data. I know it's kind of now on the radar screen, but I think just that here's the part that I think people aren't spending a lot of time on. I'll give you two things here. One is I think a lot of the focus on big data is web data. A lot of the energy, the money is going into how do I go mine the information coming off of the web? How do I figure to use it to monetize advertising placement? And that's certainly a great business model. I think we still need to take a lot of the smart data scientists and apply them to healthcare problems, manufacturing problems, logistics problems, retail problems, that to me is, I think, an area where it's under real problems. And the reality is we're so focused on the web. I think that's one. I think the other thing, which I think there's a huge opportunity for us when you look at the number of screens. Today, everyone's so focused on the phone and maybe the tablets and they're focused on the PCs. But the reality is a lot of screens in the future are going to be cars. They're going to be smart science. They're going to be TVs and kiosks. They're going to be surveillance. All these sort of embedded applications. We've been doing some work in some retail centers to go make some of these shopping experiences more interactive. Getting more developers to think about the fact that not only are they developing for a platform, but they're developing for this range of platforms, I think is another thing that hasn't really come to the fore. I think the more developers can be educated that the distribution of their work can be pushed out to a different edge device whereas retail will be very refreshing to them. I think most can't get their arms around that. Okay, final question then, I guess final, final question is what's your on your agenda this year at Intel? Looking ahead to the next year, what's your agenda for the group? Yeah, so I mean, I'll give you sort of two higher level objectives and then I'll talk about some of my personal ones. I want to be able to see that we have helped really move the agenda on standards-based cloud computing forward. I think the work that's being done here through the Open Data Center Alliance is tremendous. I really want to make sure that we're starting to see that cycle come full circle and users are stating their requirements, solutions providers delivering to it and the proof of concepts to actually show that it all works together. That's one, and the second is is that I want to see the market start to mature around big data, that there are solutions to go tap into that huge amount of data that people aren't tapping into today. Big data is about real time and you guys help provide with great cores and the embedded systems. Jason Westwood of Intel will be right back with our next guest here at Intel, forecast 2012. This is CUBE Conversations. Thank you.