Good morning and welcome. Thank you for connecting on this session where we journey through the book of Acts and we will also study about the life of Apostle Paul. So far we have seen the first few chapters in the book. So we are going to go further and see all the occurrences that take place in the early church. So let's start with the word of prayer. Maybe I'll just start. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word. Lord, we thank you that it is a privilege of God to have your word, to study your word. Lord, to encounter you through your word for the God and be transformed by it. Lord, we ask for your grace this morning. Lord, we ask for your presence. Lord, we ask for your power of God. Even as we learn your word, we pray God that each of us Lord in our life circumstances and situations will experience you the way people experienced you Father in the book of Acts. Thank you once again, Lord, for your goodness and faithfulness in our lives. We bless you and honor you. In Jesus we pray. So till now we have covered up to Acts chapter 4 and what we saw in Acts chapter 4 is the like almost a trial, isn't it? Of Peter and John for doing something good. They were only walking in the power of God and they were accused of conspiring against the powers and authorities of the time. And when such a thing happened, we also noticed how by the power of the Holy Spirit they were so bold, facing a council, facing leaders, facing opposition and we saw how God made a way for them to actually come out of the situation and their strong connect with the rest of the brethren or the body of Christ and we saw how they went back, reported all the events that took place and together they responded with prayer in one accord and as they sought the Lord God's power was demonstrated among them the earth shook the scriptures tell us in verse 31 and in this manner they strengthened themselves in the Lord at a very difficult time and further to that we continue to see the features of the early church and we saw how the church was so caring and so kind, generous towards people who were in need. People even saw their possessions and they gave it to the apostles. It is likely that the apostles provided leadership in the spiritual matters as well as other administrative aspects. So when the people came and gave their offerings to the apostles, they would have even managed the finances of the church. So this is how we see the structure of the church evolving through this time and we stopped at a point where we were introduced to a new individual by the name of Barnabas and we noticed that he was somebody who had a great background so he is a Levite and also he seems to be a rich person because he possessed land it says and also we noticed that his name was called as the son of encouragement. Now even Barnabas was someone who came he sold the land and gave the money to the apostles so this is the point where we have stopped. Now we will continue and see what really happens in this caring, sharing church setting. So let's start reading from Acts chapter 5. I request someone to read from verse 1 all the way till verse 11. But a certain man named Ananias with Safaria, his wife, sold a possession and he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it and brought a certain part and laid it at the Apostle's feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to light to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself while it remained was it not your own and after it was sold was it not not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not light to man but to God. Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last so great fear came upon all those who heard these things and the young man rose and wrapped him up, carried him out and buried him. Now it was about three hours later when his wife came in not knowing what had happened and Peter answered her, tell me whether you sold the land for so much? She replied, yes for so much. Then Peter said to her, how is it that you have agreed together to test the spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door and they will carry you out. Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last and the young man came in and found her dead and carrying her out, buried her by her husband. So great fear came upon all the church, upon all who heard these things. Thank you, Zellie. So we've seen a portion of this book where some new people are introduced to us. This is a couple by the name of Ananias and Safaira. The story of Ananias and Safaira is a really disturbing one because totally the part of this church where miracles were taking place and God's abundant grace was seen upon this church, they did something which was not aligned to the nature of God. They lied to God and that brought them into trouble to an extent where both of them lost their lives. So what happened is that during this time when people were willing to share their possessions Ananias and Safaira also sold their possessions. It is important for us to note that there was no compulsion by the apostles for people to do such a thing but through the generosity of their heart people were doing it. So another important lesson for us today in our churches is that we don't impose giving upon people and say you have to give, you have to give so much or you need to sell your possessions and give because the early church never made a demand on the people. So it was like a free will offering or it was something that they did because of what God put on their own hearts. So Ananias and Safaira made their decision, they sold the possession and they kept back a certain portion and the remaining they came and they made it at the apostles' feet. Again, they made it at the apostles' feet means that it was submitted to the apostles for their decisions regarding the money. Now what happened is Peter asked Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to light of the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the prize of the land for yourself? So it is likely that Ananias claimed that he has given all the money that came from the selling of their possession to the apostles. So the problem was not that he kept a little bit back for himself but the problem is that he made it look like he is giving everything to the apostles. So there is a lack of integrity and a lack of honesty in what Ananias is doing and also another important part that we must notice is the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the people as well as the leaders of the church. So there is a word of knowledge that Peter is functioning with. How would Peter know that Ananias has done something like this? If he just comes up to Peter and says, hey here's all the money that I got from selling my land. But Peter has come to know by the Holy Spirit and that's what verse 3 says but Peter said Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to light to the Holy Spirit? How did Peter know about the word of knowledge? So Peter recognized through the operation of a gift of the Holy Spirit that Ananias was lying.  Now why did you lie saying that you have given all the possessions to the church? That was the problem. It was not that he kept something back but the fact that he lied or he demonstrated a lack of integrity and Peter by the operation of the word of knowledge is confronting Ananias of this matter and he's also rebuking him because towards the end of his statements he says you have not lied to men but to God.  But let's see Ananias's response in verse 5 when Ananias hears these words he fell down and breathed his last. Now we don't know what was in his heart and why such a thing has happened it's what we call as judgment. So in that very moment Ananias fell down and breathed his last. So we are not told very many things that were discussed ahead of this, done ahead of this and how Ananias really pre-planned all this but mostly Ananias wanted to gain fame. He wanted to be noted as a noble person among the church folk so maybe that is why he did what he did but it was very evil it got cycle and there was judgment right at the moment when Peter rebukes him Ananias fell down and breathed his last is what the bible tells us. So we understand here that in times of great power when the spirit of God is moving powerfully and sometimes we use the term revival to describe that. At times of great revival the judgment is also quite severe isn't it because we experience the presence of God in a heightened way we experience the works of the Holy Spirit in a very powerful way but at that time when there is sin in the midst of the move of God there is quite a strong judgment or the way we noticed you know there is a punishment for the wrong that Ananias's heart conceived and performed. So this is something for us to note at a time of revival the judgment also seems to be quite severe so then when such a thing happened great fear came upon all those who thought these things obviously because everything was going so well but now all of a sudden this has happened there is a man who died and the rebuke of the apostles and so people are gripped with fear and when something like this happened you know the young men of the church they arose they wrapped him up carried him out and buried him as would have been their practice so they're just doing the needful in a situation like this now after about three hours we are told that Ananias's wife came in she did not know what had happened so the chain of events would have been very quick so he died they quickly took him and maybe news couldn't travel that fast those days we don't know why there was a delay but she comes into the church without the knowledge of her husband having died you know a couple of hours ago and Peter is asking her as well tell me whether you sold the land for so much so immediately she says yes for so much now again the lack of integrity shared by both the husband and wife was something that God did not like now we have learned in scripture that there is power in agreement we have learned in scripture that you know it is God who brings people together and you know the marriage covenant and agreeing together in marriage is so powerful it can you know release the power of thought however in this situation unfortunately they have agreed for the wrong matter which did not please God so yes the husband was wrong but there was an opportunity for the wife to speak the truth but she has joined together with the life which Ananias had spoken and this was definitely not pleasing in the sight of God and so what is her fate Peter again by the Holy Spirit he recognizes that she is not speaking the truth so he asks her in verse 9 how is it that you have agreed together to test the spirit of God look the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door and they will carry you out that immediately she fell down at his feet and pray for the last so judgment to very severe judgment of in this case a couple who lacked integrity or honesty and this happened in a matter of moments and you know they had to be buried on the same day and when such a thing happened verse 11 says great fear came upon all the church and upon all we heard these things so it was really a matter that created fear in people's hearts fear of God because they understood that you know they cannot cheat God or they cannot lie to God isn't it so at a time when the presence of God is so powerful unfortunately people were functioning in their flesh but God did not ignore that and there was an immediate judgment upon these people so I'm just going to stop to ask all of you if there is anything that you are thinking at this moment you want to share your thoughts regarding this situation. Pasu is this just a I don't like to be sorry to ask also but do we see that God was very strict in the early church or is Grace more about me right now God is not doing it with that severity right now. So one thing we know John is that our God he is a very gracious God you know all along the very fact that Adam and Eve sinned and he sent his only son to redeem us and he had a plan to redeem us reveals how much God loves us and it also shows us that his plan is to redeem every situation like he was 725 he saves to the uttermost the scripture says so it is my belief that though it seems like in this particular incident that there was no opportunity for Ananias and Sapphira to respond and you know God was too strict with them or you know in that period maybe Grace is not looking that abundant my feeling is I'm sure God would have dealt with their hearts before this but it would be a matter of hardening their hearts and not responding to God over a long period of time which all those details we don't have because you see God is the one who who is a righteous judge isn't it he's enthroned on righteousness and justice scriptures tell us so if he's a God of justice definitely he will not do anything unjust so if the if this has transpired in a moment I don't think it's so much about the the availability of grace I think it's more about these two individuals and their journey with God they may not have responded to multiple prompts by God and so you know it finally ended up like this they would have received the grace of God is what I feel so what I mean what do you think Jaan yeah it should be right yeah thanks yeah yeah he's enthroned on righteousness and justice so obviously the most righteous king would never do anything which you know is like it goes at anything that goes against his own nature so yeah that's my good question Jaan thank you for that yes yes so we see in this scripture that uh so he actually bought a certain part he didn't give the full part of it that's that's the thing am I being right so he actually bought certain part of the money but he kept something to himself yeah yeah so uh but I just want to know where he actually lied or is it a rule like we should give the full amount is there is there a rule like that because I don't know where he lied and I also want to ask is lying that big sin is lying that big sin uh because uh is it mean and then I don't think no one has lied in their life uh I think we all do at certain points but uh doesn't really talks about lying or it talks about not being honest about like lying in front of that okay so uh yes definitely uh your first question was like do we need to give everything to god is keeping something back uh an issue but I don't think that is the issue here uh because Peter quite clearly says in verse 4 while it remained wasn't not your own so it was a decision that Ananias had to make unfortunately he was trying to paint a wrong picture it's not about the amount of money now let's say you know uh um he sold the land and he decided that he only wants to give a part of the money he could have just you know revealed to the people around or the apostles that he is giving a part of the money but what he tried to do is he is trying to show as if he has given everything to look good in front of people okay which was the problem so god is not telling us that any point in time we can we have to give everything to him now even when you go back to the construction of the temple uh uh and the instructions that were given or the tabernacle god told people to give what they can he said whatever each one can let them give so you never see a compulsion upon the people to uh give beyond their capacity so that that is not something we observe uh you know as a pattern so that we have to keep in mind I hope it answers your first question the second question that you asked is uh uh lying uh you know a big sin see when we consider god uh he's the god who said be holy as I am holy so when we compare any form of sin with holiness it is not acceptable someone once gave an illustration if you take a very white sheet of paper and there's just a very tiny ink dot on that piece of paper it it will get noticed even if it is so tiny it will get noticed because the rest of the paper is so white so it's somewhat like that when we think about god it's not the extent of the sin the very fact that it is sin it is uh uh away from god's nature it is away from uh the way things must be done it's contradicting the person of god and the nature of god so it's not acceptable if I got any sin so we can even talk about uh the garden of edith we can say you know just one god told them not to take that food but then they went and took it so what is so wrong with that they just made one mistake and for that you know the whole world has come under the corruption of sin uh and uh you know uh so many things changed because of one decision right but it's not so much about you know one decision or a big or small sin sin is sin and sin uh is unacceptable by god okay no matter no matter how big or small it is uh and which is why you know if if there's anything that we are being convicted of uh even if it is a tiny we have to repent and uh you know complete before god because sin separates us from god and we don't want that to happen I hope I've answered your question I know just want to know one more thing so in in verse 2 we see that he brought only a portion I just want to know in which scripture it says that he's he pictured it like he brought everything in where and like yeah so see it's implied uh we don't have a scripture which says that um uh you know he he uh just come again in your own words and it's pictured like yeah like as if he tried to make himself look good where does it say that it doesn't say uh that he tried doing that but we can understand from this passage because uh in verse 2 it says he kept back part of the proceeds his his wife also being aware of it okay and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles week so he has done this now Peter when he's speaking we know it's coming across like a rebuke and he's asking questions you kept back a part of a price of the land for yourself it is the reality it is the reality but why does Peter have to confront about a reality because the person has uh made it look like something else mr so it's quite basically like you know it's implied or after reading the passage we can come to that conclusion that he may have lied to the apostles so that's how okay roslyn uh pastor what if your boss asks you to lie to the client at workplace what should we are stand at that time I come across the situation often my friends ask me so roslyn obviously we shouldn't lie that is the answer so the boss asks us to lie we would need to say that you know we won't be able to do that and it's so tricky it's uh you know you're at risk of losing your job but that's your decision to make it's like joseph isn't it joseph who was trying to live with integrity when uh the situation was not easy for him isn't it in potiphar's house he was under pressure but uh we see how he says when potiphar's wife this is uh this is a different circumstance when he's coming under temptation but he makes a statement and he says you know I cannot um I cannot sit against God so even when we are asked to do something uh dishonest by our higher authorities um we cannot sit against God so we need to carry that resolve and that determination in our hearts and uh it's going to be tricky to let them know uh but God can still give the wisdom for us to come out of this situation yeah okay sure thank you all right um any other doubts questions regarding this uh occurrence I know it's so out of place in the book of acts when everything is going so wonderful suddenly uh two people are judged and they fall dead in moments so it's quite difficult to even accept what's going on but the works of the flesh are evident even at the time when the work of the Holy Spirit is so powerful in the church so let's look ahead and see what happens as a result of uh or not really as a result but after these things take place uh we saw that the fear there was fear among all the people great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things what else was going on let's read from verse 12 to verse 16 I request another person to please go ahead and read it okay class we have to back up we are in the book of acts uh you know full of fire so this book is all about fire so I want some you know fire from your side so as soon as we finish one section uh somebody can quickly just jump in and read the next section so now we are uh at verse 12 verses 12 to 16 and through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people and they were all with one accord in solvents porch yet none of the rest they've joined them but the people esteemed them highly and believers were increasingly added to the door multitudes of men both men and women so then they brought the sick out into the streets and gave them on beds and couches that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on them also a multitude gathered from uh the surrounding cities to Jerusalem bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits and they were all cute wow that is so powerful so we see the in the years that went by after starting with the baptism in the Holy Spirit the church is becoming spiritually very strong how what are some characteristics that make them strong now they are a people of prayer they are a people given to the doctrine of the apostles they are a people of fellowship they are a people open to the works of the Holy Spirit we can see the operation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit uh particularly now we saw Peter how through a word of knowledge he is leading the church guiding the church in the right direction so there is so much going on in the church and these are incredible times because the church is walking in the fulfillment of what Jesus had promised he had told them in Acts 1 8 and you shall receive power from on height and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth so uh the difference happened after this power that they received from on height that was the baptism in the Holy Spirit and what else do we see we see a manifestation of the power of God among God's people in this section we are noticing how God used the apostles but later on we will also observe believers in the church moving in the power of the Holy Spirit so the science wonders miracles are not limited only to the apostles but in this section Luke is recording that the apostles or the leaders of the church were people who were moving in the power of the Holy Spirit and what happened no science wonders were done among the people and they were all with one accord remember I said that one is of heart fellowship uh that was it continued with the people even though a situation like Ananias and Sapphira has happened um then what else we see that these people or the church was highly esteemed even though uh none of the rest dare to join them who are the none of the rest it's likely that they were Jews who heard the message of Jesus but maybe they didn't have the courage or the conviction to or they did not respond to the conviction of the Holy Spirit to accept Christ to their own life so they did not join the church but one good thing is that the church was highly esteemed or respected that's a powerful place so the church is strong spiritually but the church is also strong in the community because there is a respect which they are gaining from the uh uh you know surrounding communities and uh we see that the church is growing in terms of numbers as well so that's another strength of the church it's increasingly um uh you know people they're increasingly added to the church and we are told multitudes of men and women so we can picture that there is a church and then every Sunday there are more first-time visitors you know less seats and uh you know places kind of becoming less and we need ushers to be a little bit more uh uh sort of uh you know plan plan better and organize themselves better because the church is filling up and the church is overflowing maybe they were thinking about second service and third service an overflow area uh obviously they didn't have live stream right but uh they are trying to manage the growth of the church the church is really becoming so strong during these times and the powerful works of the Holy Spirit are continuing because uh sick people are being healed now where are these sick people coming from we are told that they were brought right they were brought and uh they were even out in the streets laid them on beds and couches I don't know how many of you have attended crusades uh it here in our city at least in my observation it's sort of the thing of the past we don't have so many crusades anymore as much as we used to have when I was a kid and I have attended some crusades back in those years uh oh when permissions were easier and I attended one particular crusade which was uh uh conducted by healing minister and uh at that point I was working for uh I mean obviously I was a little older and I uh was working in a hospital so part of the hospital team they had put us in charge of an area that was given only for the sick people so that was the first time in my life that I saw so many sick people who had gathered and that's the picture that comes to my mind when I see was 15 when it says the sick uh were brought out into the streets and you know they were all gathered together why would somebody do this at least at the crusade that I went to uh people had heard that healing stake place miracle stake place so they made great effort to bring their sick people in that I saw some on the stretchers you know with the with the IV lines and a lot of doctors even like the doctor knows they had all come so it was amazing to see that people had so much faith to actually be healed of their sicknesses and they had gathered to experience the touch of God the power of God so in the times of the book of acts it's so similar to that scene that there are so many sick people they have gathered that only goes to tell us that there was an expectation from the apostles that these guys that they come and they lay hands or they speak a word or you know whichever way they minister it healings will take me so the sick had gathered and even on beds and couches right so so many people had actually gathered and the way God worked is out of the box we are told that the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them so even the shadow of Peter was healing now this also teaches a lesson as far as the healing ministry is concerned God can work however he pleases we have generally heard of methods such as laying hands or speaking of you know command over the sickness we've even heard about using things anointing oil or you know pray over or over something and made upon the sick person so these are our common practices in the in the church but think about this an unusual miracle was taking place and that is people were getting healed by the shadow of Peter which is a non-material it's not even material okay so how do you explain this phenomenon we cannot explain it so the point is in various times of the move of the Holy Spirit God can minister however he likes so even when we study revivals we observe that the manifestation is so different the way people got healed is so different in each of these these revivals or you know each of the services each of the meetings Maria Woodworth Hitter if you've read about her meetings there was an unusual manifestation and one of which was that in the presence of God she would she would just go into a trance for hours and it is said that even maybe you know over a couple of days she would just be like a statue how can that happen we don't understand these things God can work any way in which he likes so we are no one to tell God what to do and exactly how to do it but when these things take place by the fruit of what is occurring we are able to tell whether something is God or it is so the manifestations are unusual in this particular situation in verse 16 you know a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits and they were all healed so it tells us that the fame of the church of Jerusalem spread far and wide beyond the city imagine imagine a city where God's presence is incredible to the extent where people from surrounding cities you know they are buying train tickets and bus tickets and you know maybe even flight why they just want to go to the city where the church is and they want to bring their sick people they want to bring their tormented people because something is happening there and God is on the move and in the power of God is manifesting and the people of God are moving in science wonders and miracles it's amazing to even think of a time like this and for us you know we may feel like wow I wish I was part of those years when these things were taking place but the beauty is that God has not spoken anywhere in his word and said that this is only limited to the early church in fact we could consider this as a time when God was revealing how the church is meant to be and the early church is really a prototype church where we can look at it and the desire for our churches to be like this that people will come from far and wide when they hear hey lives are getting transformed in that church sickness is getting healed in that church demons are fleeing in this church come on let's go even if it's a Sunday far away let's just go let's experience the power of God and that is the picture of the early church that we have okay any thoughts any comments before we move ahead into the next section all right so let's continue then let's see what is happening you know whenever something good is happening we we are rejoicing in it but there is also like an opposition that is rising against the church among those who don't believe so unfortunately even at this point we noticed that the authorities were noticing all that was going on at the church of Jerusalem and they came against the church so let's read the section from verse 17 all the way till maybe till verse 21 and then we can move on through the next passage verse 17 then the high priest rose up and all those who were this way which is the sect of the Sadducees and they were filled with indignation and laid their hands on the apostles and put them in the common prison but at night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out and said go stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this life and when they heard that they entered the temple early in the morning and stopped but the high priest and those with him came and called the council together with all the elders of the children of Israel and sent to the prison to have them brought in all right so just when you think everything is fine again there's another challenge to face so what is this challenge the authorities see a threat in what's going on so the high priest he rises up and he was filled with indignation it says which is anger he was very angry and laid hands laid hands to seize or to catch the apostles and put them in the prison now once they are put in the prison notice that whatever is going on in the church is not just the leaders and the people it's also God who is working with them so sometimes women feel like the minority we may feel like hey I'm feeling so alone doing God's work but we are not alone that's the whole point so I just want to share also whenever I share I talk about this I remember we have some we have a campus ministry it was known as campus elevates that used to go to colleges and get permission and all that so at one point I remember we had like I had one more person who would go with me to the colleges but there were times when she was busy and so she said hey Nancy can you go I can't go with you so I remember walking into these huge institutions trying to go to the you know principal's office the admin office but I'm alone over there right and I would think God I'm alone and I have to do this alone it's quite a intimidating scary thought but I was always reminded when we serve the Lord even though physically we sense that we're alone and we have to take the work forward by ourselves we're actually not alone we have the presence of the Holy Spirit and we have the most of angels we have God himself who's looking into the work that we are doing and so when we are moving as for the purposes of God we see his intervention whether it is through a wisdom the word of wisdom that he gives us in that circumstance or even to let's say send an angel in that moment or send people to come and assist us so we are never alone in the work of God that's the point that I want to make for us so when these apostles were caught by the High Priest what happened in the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors look at that so this is teamwork we are working with heaven and so God is sending angels to deliver his people so they came and opened the prison doors wow I it's like you I know there's already a movie but you could make another movie isn't it because so dramatic the things that are going on in the lives of God's people so they're in the prison in one at one moment at another moment divine intervention angelic intervention the angels go they open the prison doors and bring them out okay but it wasn't just that there was an instruction by the angels so sometimes God uses angels to minister instructions to us the angels may appear physically and provide these instructions or the angels may be a part of a vision or they may part of be part of a dream delivering a message to us so these are all ways in which God guides us and he speaks to us so notice how the acts of the apostles is actually the acts of the Holy Spirit the acts of God that are continuing you know passage by passage incident by incident so God is working at this time through the angels so the angel has come and the angel is giving an instruction what is instruction go stand at the temple and speak to the people all the words of this life and you're thinking what is this instruction we have to escape right now and protect ourselves save ourselves and the angel is telling us go back into the you know like the front lines the war zone get back into the war zone that doesn't sound like God is calling you into safety isn't it but God has a purpose so when God leads us it's according to his purpose and yes he will protect us he will take care of us but we have to follow the instructions of God think about the apostles at this time they were imprisoned so were they scared maybe they were but the instruction is go back to the temple right and speak to the people all the words of this life so putting themselves again you know sort of a dangerous situation but that's what God wants from them so according to God's instructions they heard they entered the temple early in the morning wow that means there were people with fire and passion if they were not excited about it they would go like you know wake up at 10 a.m and then go but the point we see here is they entered the temple early in the morning meaning they were excited they were passionate about the work of God so they showed up and they did the work of that God wanted them to do but you know once again high priest came and called the council and you know they were brought to be tried so we look at that trial pretty soon let's take a break now and let's meet in 10 minutes to continue thank you


Hello, and welcome to COVID Facts in 5, your comprehensive look at safety's management and mitigation of the novel coronavirus. I'm Humedy Mark. Daily measures can be adapted to slow the spread of COVID-19. One of the methods used by the Ministry of Health is contact tracing. Contact tracing aids with your protection and that of your family and community. This is most effective with the application of preventative measures like the use of personal protective equipment and maintaining a social distance of six feet. Let's further explore the significance of contact tracing with Marva Edward Okulia, a contact tracer from the Ministry of Health. Contact tracing is a key strategy used by public health officials to slow the spread of or even to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. And in this case, it is what is used in St Lucia to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Ideally, the process is important, especially because in the cases as in COVID-19 where there is limited treatment available or treatment options available, it serves to contain the spread of the disease because we understand that the more persons who are exposed by the virus, the implications it has for our health systems in terms of the rate of mortality and the impact on our socioeconomic for the number of persons in our country. A close contact can be a primary or a secondary contact. A close contact is a person who would have been within six feet of a person who's tested positive for a period of about 15 minutes. A primary contact would be persons within your household who you would interact with on a daily basis whereas a secondary contact would be your house, persons who you would work with, your friends, your neighbors, who you would not have the amount of interaction with as if you were in your home setting. The information that is required from close contacts include the demographics in terms of their age, their gender, where they work, where they live. We also seek to identify if they have any symptoms of the COVID virus. We try to establish or to confirm that they have been within the environment of the person who would have tested positive as a confirmation. Additionally, you would advise those persons on what to do if they are in quarantine as to how they can prevent the transmission to other members of their family. We also on some cases have to provide psychosocial support for some of these individuals because of in their cases some of them would have experienced some level of social stigma or there is the fear that they would experience the social stigma. Thank you Marva for the insight. Data collection for contact tracing is now easier with the 758 Keraloot app. Now available in your Apple and Android app stores. The app allows you to keep a log of your location and it notifies you of possible exposure to COVID-19. Download it today. This has been COVID Facts in 5. Don't miss the next one. I'm Huma DeMark.


How a nice win, an important win in today's round with the black pieces, give us your thoughts on your game today? Well, I think my opponent didn't prepare my, okay, Nbd7 line, but okay He was somehow too ambitious to play that Qb3 towards very dubious for him, but still his position must be fun I thought anyway black didn't have very much and but after My opponent somehow decided to sacrifice a pawn and try to get some I mean some space back But then his compensation was probably not enough at all and okay after that I think my position was just a better and think after he blundered something in time drop when my position was winning, but Okay, I think I also blundered something After the 40 small my position must be winning and they're okay I think I played not so correctly, but my opponent also did some mistakes Then I won the endgame So after he gave up the pawn he could never really prove his compensation. I don't know I thought his compensation was not enough, but okay anyway if I was white I wouldn't choose to I mean sacrifice that pawn Right now how you're returning after 10 years to Gibraltar. How's your experience been so far here? lot of strong players are playing and it's of course very good for the Festival and of course the organization was it's a high class. It's very clear Right. We wish you all the best for the remaining rounds. Thanks for taking our time. Thank you. Thanks


In this video, we'll discuss the different levels of communication and examine where public speaking falls in the context of broader communication studies. For the purposes of our discussion, we'll break down communication into five categories or levels, intrapersonal, interpersonal, small group, public speaking, and mass communication. While we don't have the time to have a comprehensive discussion of each of these levels right now, I will give you a little information on each so that you can have a better understanding of where public speaking fits in the larger spectrum of communication. Put simply, intrapersonal communication is communication with yourself. How many of you talk to yourself, either out loud or just in your head? Do you ever debate a difficult decision or make a mental to-do list, daydream? Of course, we all do. Don't worry, this is all perfectly normal. Put in the context of the communication models that we discussed in a previous video, intrapersonal communication simply means that you're both communicator A and communicator B. Interpersonal communication adds a second person to the equation. Sometimes called dyadic communication, interpersonal communication involves a dyad or two people. Interpersonal communication can be classified as personal, meaning that it takes place in some sort of relational context, think of your family and friends there, or impersonal, which does not involve a relationship. Think here of the cashier at Walmart or random people who strike up a conversation while waiting in line. While not all interpersonal communication takes place in a relationship, interpersonal communication is the foundation of all relationships. Our need for and use of interpersonal communication also changes over time. Small group communication involves a group of at least three people and can include as many as 12 or so. In order to be classified as a true small group, the group must have a shared set of goals and see themselves as a group. In other words, eight people who just happen to be walking on the same sidewalk at the same time are not a small group. They're just an aggregation of people. A small group is working towards some type of goal together and is conscious of doing so. The members of a small group also have some level of interdependence, meaning that the behaviors of one group member affects the other members of that group. Public speaking typically involves one person speaking to many people in a face-to-face environment. The language and style of communication used in public speaking is generally more formal than that of interpersonal and small group communication. Obviously, we'll have much more to say on the nature and practice of public speaking in subsequent videos. The final level of communication is mass communication, in which an individual or organization is communicating to a mass audience comprised, hopefully, of many, many people. There are two additional factors that set mass communication apart from the other types of communication. First, mass communication is mediated communication. That means that the channel always involves some sort of technology. The second difference is that feedback is always delayed in mass communication. Can you provide feedback? Certainly. But the person or organization sending the message won't receive that feedback simultaneously. The message will already be sent before they hear from you. Now, I have a question for you. In what ways do the other levels of communication, particularly intrapersonal, interpersonal, and mass communication, impact speakers and public speaking? Go ahead. I'll wait. If you need more time to answer that question, feel free to pause the video now. Otherwise, let's continue. In this video, we discussed the different levels of communication, intrapersonal, interpersonal, small group, public speaking, and mass communication, and examined where public speaking falls in the context of broader communication studies. Check out some of our other videos for more insight into the public speaking process.


Adam Adevino gets the call. What led you to believe that he was going to be able to get the job done in that situation? I mean, that's what he came over here to do.  So I think he knew how to attack him. And I mean, he made him have some bad swings and kind of froze him in the last pitch. And I was huge for our momentum going to the next thing. You tagged Bumgardner, a very solid pitcher, five runs on 11 hits. What was your approach coming into tonight? Well, you kind of got to push him out, because he's going to be heavy cutters inside. A lot of fastballs inside. And push him out over the plate, and take that cutter to right center, center approach. And a lot of guys, the off speed up, we were hitting the balls down on the corner. So we had a really good approach. And it's credit to Marcus. Great night for you in the batter's box, 3-4-4 with the home run. But it hasn't just been tonight. You've been pretty consistent all season long. What do you attribute your consistency to this year? I'm finally getting back to kind of where I was last at the end of the season last year, and trusting myself, like I took my hands off my shoulders. And just going back to being that guy that hits at the center, right center like tonight, and hitting them to all parts of the field. And it's just, believe myself, being confident, and being early and on time with everything. And the hits will come. Luke, thanks for the time. You're welcome.


Hello everyone. Before I begin, please hit that thumbs up button down below. Thank you. 10 reasons why narcissists manipulate and punish you. People with this disorder will exhibit a pervasive pattern of behaviour where they need excessive admiration while they have a lack of empathy and a tendency to engage in exploitative relationships because they believe they are entitled to privileges and special treatment and indisputable compliance with their wishes or demands. They may also demand perfection from themselves while projecting this same desire for perfection onto other people who inevitably fall short of their expectations. But although they may seem arrogant and entitled, they're actually very insecure. And believe it or not, but they actually fear abandonment more than anyone else because they felt abandoned by their parent or caregiver in their childhood and it was a very painful experience for them so they don't ever want to go through that again which is why they will often discard their victims first even though they may not want the relationship to end but they just don't want to be on the other end of it. So at least if it's on their terms, they can feel like they're in control of it but they will rely on their manipulation to prevent it from getting to that point by engaging in deliberate and deceptive behaviour which is intended to influence and control people for their own personal gain. You need to understand that these are predators and they are seeking vulnerabilities for them to exploit in their targets so that they can gain an advantage over them and get them to behave in the way that they would like. Narcissists are skilled manipulators. They have had years of practice that had identified vulnerabilities in people so they are masters at observing people's emotional states and life circumstances and they use this knowledge to create a false bond which then creates an illusion of intimacy and trust. So clearly manipulation is very important to Narcissists it's something they can't live without and there are many reasons why they do it. In this video I am going to give you 10 main reasons why Narcissists manipulate and punish you. 1. A need for admiration Narcissists have an insatiable desire for admiration they need to have the spotlight at all times they demand constant validation because they need to feel important but there is really no reason for anyone to notice them because they have no inner sense of value they have nothing to bring to the table which would be worthy of anyone's attention so they have to resort to manipulation to ensure that they do remain the center of attention even if they have to lie, future fake or even hurt people in the process because they don't really value friendship or connection it's just all about them so from their viewpoint relationships revolve around exploitation where they see people as objects for them to use as tools to serve their own desires and needs which is why they will use manipulation to extract attention and narration and even resources from those around them and they will do that because for them it's a survival tactic they believe that it's a dog eat dog world it's every man for himself it's survival of the fittest and unfortunately for them they're not in the best shape so for them to thrive in a competitive world they believe that they must manipulate people to secure opportunities, resources and relationships where they are ruthlessly and relentlessly driven to come out on top because they have a scarcity mindset they believe that there are limited resources or that they are unable to provide for themselves or other people which leads to intense feelings of anxiety where they endlessly obsess over what they lack and they're just constantly trying to hold on to whatever they can get while thinking that it's going to keep them afloat but it never does because they're never satisfied so no matter what they have they always need more and it's because they're obsessed with rejecting an image of whatever they deem to be successful or superior whether it's wealth, physical attractiveness or intelligence or maybe they have six toes it could be anything it's whatever they view as a source of power or whatever they see as their claim to fame but the irony is that they all walk, talk, act and dress exactly the same and yet they believe that they're special, important or interesting despite this they will still go to great lengths to ensure other people perceive them as highly trained or skilled in a particular activity two, lack of empathy narcissists don't care about anyone but themselves they are driven by their own excessive interest in and admiration of themselves and often their own physical appearance they're so self-centered that they even fail to distinguish themselves from external objects so they view people as extensions of themselves and they experience the world vicariously through them instead of experiencing it directly because they can't or because it doesn't fulfill them by doing it that way which is ironic because they lack empathy which means that they actually struggle to understand and relate to people's emotions and needs even while they're experiencing the world vicariously through us they don't fully understand how it feels for us they can't put themselves in our shoes even though they can see the world through our eyes they can't feel what we feel if they could then they would never harm us but they can't and this is what allows them to exploit us without experiencing guilt or remorse because they exist in a present inside their own minds they feel no connection to us they can only pretend 3. fear of rejection and abandonment narcissists may act bold and courageous as though they're unmovable and unfazed and they cannot be worried, disturbed or dismayed when this is actually just a front to compensate for the fact that they are terrified of being rejected and abandoned it's their worst fear and nothing hurts them more than that because they are heavily dependent on other people they can't be alone so without a constant source of admiration and validation they believe that they are nothing and in many ways they are nothing because all they have is a false self they have no inner sense of value and they can't generate any power or energy from within which is why they have to manipulate people to keep them close because without their much needed admiration they want to know what to do it really is their achilles heel they can't live without it 4. a need for control narcissists have an overwhelming and obsessive need for control in every aspect of their lives and it's because they're very insecure they lack self-confidence and they're very unsure and anxious about themselves so they need excessive control to compensate for that they will manipulate to gain power over people and the environment they plan and coordinate the elements of the situation to produce their desired effect and to ensure that they remain in a position in which they are able to control what happens because they're very insecure within themselves which then makes it nearly impossible for anyone to govern themselves or find their own independence because that then threatens the narcissist's need for control which they use as a source of stability and security to compensate for their internal state of chaos and dysfunction 5. arrogance and entitlement narcissists are very arrogant they're not just showing confidence in themselves it's not that they're certain of their abilities it's a delusion a fantasy that they have created inside their heads and because they've been successful at manipulating people in the past they have trust in people following their agenda and succumbing to their will to where they may fail to resist pressure, temptation or some other negative force and that is why they're so arrogant because they've thrown other people under the bus in the past so they assume that it's how it's going to go down for you based on their past successes to where they become very full of themselves, opinionated and self-important and they develop the sense of entitlement where they expect people to comply with their desires but their beliefs are enforced solely by their manipulation and they share delusion with their target rather than at any actual measurable success or achievement in reality it's just all in their heads and yet they take it as though it indicates their importance or significance when this is just all in their minds they haven't actually done or achieved anything 6. a desire for power and dominance narcissists are power hungry they have a strong desire for power and influence over other people to where they will be very dominant they will show themselves as more important, strong or successful than anything else of a similar type in an attempt of forcefully taking control of you because they want all of the power for themselves so they will use manipulation and control to reinforce their sense of superiority and authority and with little regard for personal boundaries 7. competition they will invade and violate boundaries without hesitation to maintain their control over you and they will even compete against other people in order to achieve their desired results they view every interaction as an opportunity to prove their worth and outshine other people so they will manipulate you to ensure that they stay ahead of the game and in a possession or situation which they are likely to win and succeed no matter the cost to those around them 8. to maintain their false self the more grandiose the exterior the more fragile the sense of self it's a facade they're projecting a false self image to the world and they manipulate to sustain their illusion which they use to protect themselves from the reality of their flaws and insecurities and it's why they will isolate you and control who you interact with and what information you receive to ensure that you become increasingly dependent on them so that you will continue to validate this illusion and false image and they will even use gaslighting to distort reality to make you doubt your own memory, perception and sanity so that it keeps you in check and protects their false image they will twist the truth and create detailed and complex falsehoods to serve their agendas so that they can craft false narratives to suit their needs because they thrive on drama and chaos so they need to create turmoil in relationships and situations to keep the spotlight on themselves and manipulation is their tool to orchestrate a dramatic sequence or development of events to feed their insatiable appetite for attention they also manipulate to perpetuate the cycle of abuse to where they alternate between being charming and abusive to restrict your movement and keep you emotionally tied to them to where you're uncertain about their intentions as you struggle to understand their purpose or goal 9. to avoid shame narcissists fear being exposed as imperfect or weak so they will manipulate in order to avoid shame and humiliation at all costs which may involve shifting the blame onto you or creating falsehoods and distorting reality in order to protect their fragile egos because beneath their facade of arrogance and superiority lies severe emotional instability narcissists experience extreme emotional fluctuations so they manipulate as a way of controlling these emotions by exerting dominance over you because it allows them to protect their shortcomings onto you instead of them having to accept their own flaws and imperfections manipulation helps them to divert attention away from their faults by accusing you of the very things that they have done to you 10. to play the victim narcissists are highly skilled at playing the victim card they will fabricate and exaggerate victim hood for a variety of reasons such as to justify abusing you to manipulate you as a coping strategy to seek attention or even just to evade responsibility they will manipulate situations to make it appear as though they were unfairly treated or wronged to gain sympathy and support from other people and further reinforce their control over you while being able to avoid accountability for their actions because their manipulation allows them to shift the blame onto you and deflect accountability for their mistakes which then allows them to maintain their faultless self-image when all in all it is a deceptive facade of success and it obscures their happiness because it is just a facade the truth is they have nothing they try to convince themselves that they're happy but the truth is that they're empty, hollow and lonely because they lack meaningful human connection in their lives all they have is their sources of supply superficial friendships, enablers and flying monkeys there's no one who sees the real them because there is no real them all they have is a false image and a false self and that's what people are validating but underneath it all they're still miserable because they know that it isn't real thank you for watching if you found this video helpful please give it a thumbs up share your thoughts in the comment section hit the subscribe button to receive the notifications if you would like to support the channel you can donate at paypal.me.narchsurvivor you can book a one-on-one with me on my website it's narchsurvivor.co.uk thank you for watching and I'll talk to you soon