DO WE REALLY NEED LAWS?

 

US-President Theodore Roosevelt once said, "Ours is a government of liberty, by, through and under the law. No man is above it, and no man is below it."

Since we are back in MECQ, we do have to obey the old (new) quarantine laws - whether we like it or not. But there are many more laws without thinking about the pandemic.

“Do not steal your neighbor’s property!” “Don’t drive your car on the sidewalk!” And all the rest of it. How many times a day does someone tell you what to do? How often do you have to stop yourself from doing what you want, because you know that this action is prohibited or wrong?

It seems like we have laws, rules, and regulations to oversee just about everything. We don’t always like these rules. Yes, you can count me in! Yet to live in a civil society, we must have some rules to follow.

Laws are rules that bind all people living in a community. Laws protect our general safety, and ensure our rights as citizens against abuses by other people, by organizations, and by the government itself.  We have laws to help provide for our general safety.  These exist at the local, national and international levels.

Our bible answers my question i.e. in Deuteronomy: Be careful to obey all these regulations I am giving you, so that it may always go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord (12:28). Deuteronomy repeats verbatim many of the laws given in Exodus or Leviticus as well in Numbers. Yet it is far from a rule book.It focuses on motives, why people should obey laws.

Since senior citizens at the age of 65 are not allowed to leave the house at the moment, I obey the law and enjoy my home office by writing, doing translation work and online teaching. 

SONGS FROM THE HEART

In good and in bad times - I used to read the bible. Here at the very center are songs, rising up like a tune from the heart. Cries from the heart - songs for sorrow as well as joy. I am talking about the psalms. They capture the innermost thoughts and prayers of the Old Testament people - and they will speak directly to our needs.

For every motion and mood, you can find a psalm to match. The psalms wrestle with the deepest sorrow and ask God the hardest questions about suffering and injustice. Their voice is refreshingly spontaneous. They do not tip flowery compliments toward God: they cry out to Him, or shout for joy before Him.

In almost every psalm you find the presence of God, not as a philosophical principle, but as an active, strong, and loving ruler. Since reading the psalms, I found out that God really makes many differences in my life.

How did the psalms come together? They seem to have been compiled as hymnbooks for use in temple worship. Some psalms were written from an individual's experiences, but were adapted for congregational use. Directions for musicians were added.

Living by faith is not always easy - especially in these times of the "new normality". These powerful poems of worship and praise offer no magical formulas to make troubles go away. Yet, while real life questions, struggles, and discouragements have strong voices in these poems, more powerful still is the voice of joy and security in strength.

The best way to read the psalms is also the most common way: to make these ancient prayers your own and speak them directly to God. So many of the poems catch deep human feelings that you can't help being moved by them.

There are so many psalms. It is indeed the longest book of the bible. The richest lessons from psalms may come from difficult poems you must read again and again until you understand them. They merely ask time and close attention. My suggestion: read and reread them. They grow richer with careful study.

CAN YOU STILL ...

... ROAR WITH LAUGHTER?

"If I only knew how!" A friend of mine contacted me yesterday after watching the news and read his daily paper.

Another said, "This is hardly the time to do so." Understandable, if I consider his very personal situation. Anyway, it seems we have no more time and no reason for laughter. That can wait until tomorrow, or better until the day after tomorrow. Anticipation is better... .

Sure, the today's new really don't allow us even to smile... .

But keep in mind: our enemies laugh up their sleeves, and most of the time we miss to recognize the fortune still smiling at us. But hold on: he who laughs last laughs longest. Remember?

American neurologist Henri Rubenstein says, laughter lowers high blood pressure while aiding digestion and fostering sleep. Well, give me even a simple smile and believe in what  experts say: "Good humor can help the gravely or terminally ill to hear their ordeal".

Of course, if we look around us these days, we might really don't roar with laughter or split our sides laughing. Or even more then this! Have you heard about the incident at the Danish Imperial Theater in Copenhagen/Denmark sometime during the 1980's, when a spectator dropped dead of heart attack while watching the movie "A Fish Called Wanda" starring John Cheese of my favorite Great Britain's Monty Python Comedy Team? Sure, a heart attack is indeed not funny, and honestly, I still love to watch this movie on VHS.

Well, even if we think we don't have reasons to laugh,we should try to express mirth spontaneously, and we should try to be merry or gay. We still have reasons to start with the softest form of audible laughter - the vocalized smile. This is what I learned and experienced from the first moment on while travelling in Asia since 1978, and being an expat living in the Philippines since 1999 for good. Keep smiling - even you are overloaded with huge problems.

Experts also say,  good humor works because it helps people feel easier in mind. The French psychotherapist Sylvie Tenenbaum stressed, that, in her patients, laughter often signals the dawning of a wholesome awakening to reality. Gallow humor might be dubious in the eyes of others. But try to sing out loud, try to cry, but try to laugh!

As a devote Christian,  I do love reading the bible. Ecclessiastes 3:1-4 say: "There is a time for everything ... a time to be born and a time to die ,,, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh!"

Worth to think about it - even in times like now!

A most down-to-earth book

When tragedy strikes, it's easy to harden our hearts and cry out, "God, why did you let this happen?" Maybe then, we started praying. Before, when everything goes smooth, we would not even think a minute about praying... .

"To be a Christian without prayer, "said Martin Luther, "is no more possible than to be alive without breathing." Prayer is the only way of becoming what God wants us to be. This is the reason, why Jesus spent many hours in praying.

Unquestionable, our needs bring us to a place of prayer. Confronted with danger or tragedies, as I mentioned earlier, we look for God's help. Difficult times always cause the hearts of men to turn to God into prayer. 

Let me ask you: How long has it been since your're brought your burdens to God? Since you asked His forgiveness for your shortcomings? 

In his very interesting book "People in Prayer", Dr. John White reminds us that prayer is a divine-human interaction and it is always God who takes the initiative. White write: "God speaks and we respond. God is always speaking. To hear his voice is not usually a mystical experience. It consists merely of a willingness to pay heed to God who lays a claim to our lives."

Yes, God always speaks. It is up to us whether we will listen and respond to Him. Many think we are the ones who initiate prayer. But prayers begin and end with God. 

There was a time, I wasn't in the mood to pray any more. It seemed that God didn't listen my prayer any more. I didn't get what I prayed for. Of course, not... ! That's not the meaning of praying to God. All my wishes will be granted? Heaven forbid!

Sometimes, after we have prayed, God's answers may puzzle us. But as time times goes by and as events unfold we see God's purpose in his answers. We might get a larger vision, what HE likes. Not what WE like... .

Think about it for a moment" How does the idea that prayer begins and ends with God affect me now? Do I have the habit of listening to god? How do I respond to Him? How do I usually pray?

I confess that long time ago I have been trying to persuade God to change other people in my surroundings or circumstances. Nothing changed. Of course not, what a fatal attraction? I got confused because God never granted my requests. Meanwhile I got God's answers to my prayers. Maybe very simple: I was willing to let God change me... .This is how each one of us should start. Happy endings. Because I prayed according to His will... .

Talking about prayer, we also have to mention the probably most down-earth book in the bible which is  Proverbs. Its education prepares you for the street and the marketplace, not the schoolroom The book offers the warm advice you get by growing up in a good family. It covers small questions as well as large: talking too much, visiting neighbors to often, being unbearable cheerful to early in the morning. Proverbs simply tells how life works most of the time. 

I always love to quote proverbs, which express truth about life in an elegant, witty kernel. You should not hunt through it for proverbs you might like. You should study the whole book to get its overall point of view. This takes time, for Proverbs covers dozens of subjects in the subtle detail.

Roller coaster life

SAT, NOVEMBER 11, 2017 BY THE MINDANAO DAILY MIRROR LEAVE A COMMENT

IN MY OPINIONKlaus Doring

Yes, nowadays, for many of us life is indeed an emotional roller coaster. All over the world. Political instability, wars, terror attacks, climate change with extreme natural disasters, questionable global economical situations, illnesses or diseases.

A day starts with traffic jam and continues with terrible conditions at the workplace. The crab mentality seems to become nothing unusual now. In any case: everyone for himself. Each one by himself/herself/itself alone is quite nice, but together we have a problem. So what! It’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

Well, sweet words might be easy to say; nice things are easy to buy; but good people are different to find. Life ends, when you stop dreaming; hope ends, when you stop believing; friendship stops, when you stop sharing. A good friend of mine sent me this quotation. I commented back: So very true and very well said!

Our life is borrowed – from God. No rental charges are collected from us. Many of us have forgotten this and live life at his fullest. Our life is equal to a book from a library that lends one. But how insatiable and unbearable are we in disdainful acting towards life and therefore to ourselves?

Life seems to be nothing, just being ready to riddle one with bullets. Life seems to be nothing, just being broken through the indifference and unreliable and immoral behavior. Life seems to be nothing for those people who don’t understand cries from the heart of other people around them – cries for their hearts and families, for justice and for many other things.

Life with all its ups and downs, is just a loan, but for many of our fellow creatures it just seems to be nonsense to be littered like dump. And, if people try to survive, especially during these days, and if they just experienced (once more!) indifference, arrogance, ignorance or cheating by whomever – they will give up!

I can assure you that every one of us can at first help in prayers and, in reading the bible. “Proverbs” is the probably most down-to-earth book in the bible. Its teachings prepare you for the daily life, the street and the market place, but not for the schoolroom. The book offers warm pieces of advice you get; practical guidance for making your way on earth. Proverbs covers any kinds of questions you might have right now. Anybody can relate to the generalities of Proverbs, because this book simply tells how life works most of the time.

While writing this piece, I observed that more and more people struggle through life: tired, hopeless, experiencing their rock-bottoms, believing in fallacious “people” around them. I also observed a lot of people living a thief life, as if it has been giving them without limitation.

Is our world order in danger?