Something FISHY going on

It really does strain the bounds of credulity.

This week  Lynne Cormier-Clarke from Nova Scotia was denied a personalised number plate by the government mandarins of her province.

Her request "IXOYE" was rejected because it conveyed a religious message.

When the minister in charge of number plates was asked what the word meant, he replied "I haven't a clue, but our computer red-

flagged the request."

Taking the question to the man in the street the most frequent guess was that the letters made up the code  "I love you." or "Hugs and kisses"

Ah, but there was a more sinister message implied and one that must be eradicated at all costs.

 The letters "IXOYE" spell the Greek word for "Fish" which in turn represents the symbol of the early church for "Jesus Christ Son of God and Saviour"

Never fear, the CIA of Nova Scotia discovered the subversion and cracked down on it before it had chance to spread to unwary motorists. Because of such vigilance we can all sleep a little safer in our beds tonight.

Jubilate.

Ian

Fazil Say

Fazil Say, the Turkish maestro of the piano, known across the world as a supreme virtuoso, maybe rattling jail house bars instead of tinkling the "ivories".

He is in court in Istanbul today for "inciting hatred and demeaning the values of Muslims."

This is  the charge but what exactly is the crime of which he is accused?

Comments made to his fans on twitter have been used as prima facie evidence against him.

The references are too numerous to mention but here is the most frequently quoted:

"I am not sure if you have also realized it, but if there is a louse, a non-entity, a thief, a low-life or a fool it is invariably a radical islamist."

To which, if you live in the West, you might respond:

"More power to you,Fazil" but if you live in Turkey such a comment will have you playing the Jail House Rock duet with your favourite pianist.

Jubilate.

Ian

The Big Fall.

When news began to leak out over a year ago that the greatest athlete of his generation might also be the greatest cheat, the thought was unbearable.

"Say it ain't so, Joe" was the lament of an adoring fan to Shoeless Joe Jackson, the baseball legend arraigned on charges of game fixing in the 1920's.

"Say it ain't so, Lance!" has been the cry of millions of sports fans for the past few months, and Lance Armstrong has obliged with a steadfast denial that he ever doped his way to victory in the Tour De France.

But today the Super Man, Super Clean image came crashing down.

In a single day Armstrong resigned his presidency of his charity, "Livestrong" and was dropped by his sponsors, Nike, as a chief ambassador of their product.

A thousand pages of testimony from former team mates and eye witness to his misdeeds was too much to deny. The game was up.

Winner of seven Titles in the Tour de France, Armstrong lost in the only race that really matters, the Race of Life, where probity, integrity,sportsmanship and character finish in the winner's circle.

Ah, Lance, listen to the words of Jesus.

"The First shall be last and the Last shall be first"


Ian

This day in History. The world on the brink

The Cuban missile crisis seems an age away and of little historical relevance, but fifty years ago, in October 1962, it brought the world to the edge of the abyss.

For a full two weeks the whole of the civilized world held its breath.

Would John Kennedy hold fast to his threat to destroy all Soviet bases in Cuba and would Nikita Kruschev retaliate by launching a nuclear attack?

Today we all know the outcome of this stand off. Both men pulled back from the brink and disaster was averted.

Now, half a century later, we are dealing with another power that seeks to arm itself with atomic weapons and terrorize its neighbours.

In tonight's presidential debate two contenders will spell out their positions on how the mad mullah's of Iran should be dealt with.

While they try and convince us as to which hand is qualified to hold the keys to the Nuclear Switch I want to comfort all believers by saying that the steadiest Hand of all is the one that has held the Helm of History since the dawn of time.

Regardless of who wins the election, you are in the charge of the unelected King of Kings and Lord of Lords and He will take good care of you.


Jubilate.

Ian






 

This Day in History. The Cell Phone.

I came across this photo of Martin Cooper and thought that it was worth passing on along with a comment.

Cooper, in October 1973, came out with the first hand-held, mobile phone.

From a party line, to the "Big Brick" , to the cell phone, to the iPhone with camera, to the super, voice activated, all encompassing, google interfaced, micro-everything that my son Mark bought last week is 40 years of evolution.

The number of cell phones in America has exceeded the population and in India, supposedly a 'Third World' nation, they have passed the billion mark in registered devices!





Much could be said about these statistics and what they portend for the future, but let me confine myself to a single thought.

It seems to me that with three billion cell phones on the earth everybody is talking but just who is doing  the listening?

And also, in this cacophony of human babble, who can find the inward solitude to listen to God. 

Three thousand years ago the psalmist wrote:

"BE STILL and know that I am God."

May I recommend that you take your ear buds out for a few minutes today and listen to what HE has to say!

Jubilate.

Ian

The Big Jump

 A few minutes ago I watched along with a world-wide audience as Felix Baumgartner launched himself into space in an attempt to break the world's free fall record.

A special balloon had carried him 23 miles into the stratosphere, a place where there is no oxygen, no other human being and no warmth.
Suddenly he was on his way, his dare devil leap captured by remote controlled cameras, to land five minutes later in the desert near Roswell, New Mexico.

After the initial "WOW!" we are caused to ask "Now What?"

Can a stunt like that be exceeded?

Actually it can and will be.

I read in 1 Thessalonians chapter  4 that shortly the Lord Jesus Christ will be arriving from heaven.

The event is described thus:

"For the Lord Himself shall descend with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, and so shall we be forever with the Lord."

That my friends is truly a WOW.

In fact we will call it the world's "FREE RISE" record.

And since it is about to happen take steps now by placing your trust in Jesus to make sure you don't miss it.

Jubilate

Ian