David Smarr, on how Jiu-Jitsu has helped him in life.

David is our instructor on Saturdays at the Blue Valley Gracie Jiujitsu training center. He has practised Jiu-Jitsu under Helio and also Royce Gracie and is a deep instructor. In his words,

"Jiu Jitsu's principles will help you with everything you do in life. Also will never out grow a technique or principle. Here are a few principles that have helped me.

1. Finding the most efficient ways to do things. This comes from Jiujitsu's principle; leverage over power.
2. You are never in a bad situation if you know how to get out. This comes from Jiu Jitsu's principle; that you are never in a bad position if you know how to escape.
3. Focus & Dedication as with anything in life you must work hard for acomplishments. Jiu Jitsu is no different you get out of it what you put into it. Nothing will be given without dedication.
4. Determination Everybody will find themselves in situations they struggle to get out of including me. You must learn to build on your weakness's first before you build on your strengths. You are only as strong as your weakest link.
5. Planning & Preparation As with anything in life you must first plan before you can execute. Jiu Jitsu has taught me the better you prepare for a goal or technique the deeper you will understand it and the more rewarding it is to accomplish.

Hope I helped. Have a good day

David"

Great messages

Our church, Vineyard at Overland Park had the Reflect Conference and their sermon audio is here.
I would recommend listening to at least a few of these life-changing messages.
They are listed here and are marked Reflect 2009 in the third column.
http://vineyardop.org/SiteResources/Modules/MinistryTools/Sermon/default.asp
My favourites are the sermons by Gary Best (4/24,4/25,4/26) and by our senior pastor Mark Warner (5/10,5/17,5/24).

Understanding why George Tiller performed partial birth abortions with an untroubled conscience

“These are the things we do,” he said, pointing to color snapshots of aborted fetuses. “Hydrocephalus, spina bifida, fused legs, open spine, lethal chromosome abnormality. Nature makes mistakes.”

George Tiller, Wichita abortion doctor, shot dead in June 2009.

Reading this quote in the newspaper article by Judy Thomas, I suddenly understood how someone who performed late term abortions could live with an untroubled conscience. Even though he was an usher at his liberal Lutheran church, he apparently believed that babies were created by Nature, not God. He believed that a woman, and the planet, should not be burdened by one of Nature's grotesque mistakes. In contrast, the pro-lifer believes that even deformed babies were created by God for a purpose, and that we do not have the authority to decide what the cutoff point should be - to grant life or death. Who knows what wonders God can do with a seemingly worthless lump of clay?
This is consistent with pro-life support for the death penalty. God, as described in the major religions, requires man to administer justice - even to the point of taking life.

Penalized for her religious views? A new low...

It is a given that free speech is protected in America. Unfortunately, in the Miss USA contest, Carrie Prejean was penalized for her answer opposing gay marriage, that marriage should be between a man and a woman. (news report here). As a result, she lost the crown.
Penalized for her religious beliefs? I am dumbfounded that this could happen in America. Another name for this is persecution.

For any Birthmother considering placing her baby for adoption

Thank you for having the courage to consider adoption. We are Rita and Anil, and would like to tell you about ourselves.

We have been married for twelve years now. We have no children and would love to have our lives filled with the joys and cares a child brings. We do have one cute child-loving dog, “Kacey”.

Anil is a quiet, sensitive person. Rita is an optimistic, sociable person. We are East Indian in origin but like a wide variety of foods, fashions and activities. We are American citizens now.

It is important for us to raise a child with lots of love, attention and prayer. We are committed to having Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives and our marriage. We look to God for guidance in big and small things. We have daily devotions. We believe in showing children love and affection and encouraging honesty, hard work, individual responsibility and academics.

Rita is in the dental field; Anil is a computer programmer. We live in a house in a neighborhood with lots of kids. We cook American, Indian and lots of other foods. We love to cook, garden, eat, watch movies, play games, train jiu-jitsu and visit new places. We are open to other cultures. English is our first language and we speak it at home.

Regarding Adoption: We are looking for a child under one year old, preferably a baby. We would like contact with the birth family, before and after the adoption – if the birth parents are okay with it. We would explain the adoption process to the child and speak about his/her birth parents in a positive way. We have undergone a background criminal check and a home study as part of our preparation to become foster/adoptive parents. We are licensed foster parents. Though we are not perfect people, we are honest and law abiding.

We are happy to provide you with any more information you require.

Sincerely,

Rita and Anil

Note: As you can probably tell, we are seeking to adopt!

Life is not Just, only God is - but when...?

Life is not always Just. Human systems are just as Unjust. When we are small, we are fed stories of how it all works out in the end. How the crooked are punished and how the righteous are finally rewarded. This carrot and stick helps one to live in the fear of evil, and embrace the good. It helps small children grow up into a well-mannered society.
However if you put aside the fairy tales, you will find, like the writer of Ecclesiastes, that it fails as often as it works.
Nowhere does it say that Life, Society, the Earth, the Church, your family, the Law [add your choice here] are Just. Only God is Just. And even He, will execute final justice only in the Great White Throne judgment. But then here is a heretical thought - will it matter then?
So perhaps while on this earth, victims should pursue Healing rather than Justice - easier said than done.

How to find Healing for Life's Most Painful Questions (or, Disappointment with God).

The most painful dilemmas in Life are not when the devil and his followers attack and wound you; it is when God fails you. Disappointment with God is a mortal wound.
for me these three were unresolved dilemmas:

1) How can the Holy Spirit be speaking to me one set of truths and under that prompting, I share it with the elders of my former church - only to be promptly expelled by them - under the influence, according to them, of the Holy Spirit?!
Alternately, as I asked myself for years, using this school geography illustration in my mind, how can sincere Christians come up with completely opposing doctrines?

2) "I believe I was following God when I did _[fill in the blanks]_ in faith. However it led to loss, grief and even evil".
Alternately, when I look back at my past, in many areas I see that if I had taken a small action or been aware of a certain fact, my life would have been far different. Now, I can only try to partially offset the losses in these areas. But then I stop and ponder... God knew then, and God promised that He would guide me, and I was his follower at the time. Why didn't He do so? If He spoke and I didn't hear, then why didn't He speak more clearly or loudly? However, so many years were lost, irretrievably. Why didn't God prompt me in this direction earlier? It would have made me into a better, more successful person and more fruitful Christian.
An alternate question: "what purpose was served by God allowing _[this evil or tragedy]_ or not alleviating this problem earlier?"

3) When I read Leviticus, I am horrified at some of the practices. How can the same God of Mercy of the New Testament have ordered seemingly unfair executions and repressive treatment of women and slaves in the Old Testament?

Many theologians have pat answers for these questions above. Many Christians have ready explanations and even more pat answers. So do I. However they are unsatisfying. Perhaps because the answers may be wrong, but even if they are partially correct or even correct and have biblical support, they do not heal - if we are honest.

I believe it is because the mind cannot heal the heart. Many people turn against God for reasons like these because they are unresolved.
Pain leads to Anguish leads to Bitterness leads to Hatred leads to Estrangement and Rebellion against God. They become disillusioned, abandon the faith and even become followers of Satan. Perhaps this was Judas' path?

After almost 25 years of struggling with such painful questions, I believe I have the key:

Trust and Thankfulness!

First disconnect your logical brain - stop wrestling with the dilemma. You will not fully understand nor explain it.

Trust that God is Love, is Good, is Merciful, is Just.
Question: Why should you trust God?
Answer: Jesus who is God, shed His blood for you and died for you.

Be Thankful even in a crisis. Important: Do not be thankful for the evil that happens - that came from the devil, not God - remember that Jesus was not thankful for the cross. Do not be thankful for misfortunes - they are either a result of the interactions of the laws of Nature that God created, or man's free will. However, be thankful that God moves all things to work for good to those that love Him. Be thankful for the things you can be thankful for - you will know them!

These two will heal you as it has started to heal me!

Trust and Thankfulness!

Bible passages to support these thoughts:

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28

He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me,
and he prepares the way
so that I may show him the salvation of God Psalm 50:23

Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. (God). Job 13:15

Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then [when we are in heaven] we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12

For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

Without faith, it is impossible to please God... Hebrews 11:6

Trust and Thankfulness!

Love in the Time of Prostate Cancer

touching article
(http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/09/love-in-the-time-of-prostate-cancer/)

A new idea for Internet Evangelism (and help prevent a suicide)

Would you like to help prevent a suicide? (and help spread the gospel across the internet)

There is despair and desperation across the world as financial systems are collapsing. Daily in the news we read of individuals and even families committing suicide.

If you would like to help spread the gospel across the internet and help people find a reason for living, then do one of the following:

1) When you post in a newsgroup or mailing list or forum or even in an email, as part of your signature, add the following lines:

Are you planning to kill yourself? Stop! listen to this song
broadband version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLHHB4YZucI
dial-up version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xL5WyBenUpM

2) Pick a Christian song, and inject a gospel message into it. Explain the lyrics using passages from the Bible. Look at the Toby Mac song clip I used above. I have another clip using a recording from a Muslim imam dying of AIDS miraculously healed by Jesus. Be sure you explain every bit of jargon you use. Concepts like repent, sin, sacrifice, crucify, eternal are alien to most unchurched people.


Why is this better?
Take most Christian songs - can anyone who was not steeped in Christianity listen to them and understand the message? I don't think so. There is so much jargon that only "insiders" would understand.
For example, take Toby Mac's "I was made to love". Most people will think it is about a boy singing of the girl he loves. Only an insider will understand it is about our relationship with Jesus.
I took the audio song clip and used a voice recorder to record the song as it was playing, then paused the player, spoke a bit explaining what was being said, play some more song, give a gospel message, and so on. For the youtube version, I have added captions.

How did I start this?
I did a precepts (Kay Arthur) study on the book of Acts (Holy Spirit) and it took me two years to complete as I was very slow. There were no personal opinions, only questions to answer and to write our observations in a notebook as the Holy Spirit taught - she got out of the way.
A few weeks later, in July 2008, a pastor Mike Hernandez, preached on the baptism of the Holy Spirit and laid hands on me after the service and prayed for me. I did not speak in tongues, but my study of Acts and an innovative idea to do internet evangelism using audio skypecasts was the basis for God to use me.

It was a powerful and innovative tool for internet evangelism since lots of people around the world, especially muslims from closed countries, flocked to Skypecasts as a community.

What were the results?
In 5 weeks, this resulted in 13 people around the world praying the prayer of salvation.

The skypecast feature was discontinued by Skype and two of the people turned hostile to Christianity (the devil took away the seed as in Luke 14:12), but I believe at least a few were saved. I am putting up those clips with captions added, on youtube.

Here is a list of those who prayed to receive Jesus (only first names to protect their privacy)

-----July week 3-----
Nikole, Bulgaria. 14 year old was abandoned and beaten by successive fathers and is looking for love from her boyfriend.
Thiago, Brazil. said he was in trouble and needed God's help.
Jefferson, Brazil. pray he will understand his salvation.
-----July week 4-----
Peder, Sweden. although he wept and prayed, has turned against Christ and said he is "controlled by Satan". He was in jail before. Pray that Satan's grip on his life will be broken.
Andre Abreu, Brazil. recommitted his life and he and his wife said his life was changed.
Aleksandra, Serbia.
Kitty, Ireland.
------Aug week 1-----
Elizeberth Hong, UK.
------Aug week 2-----
Ibrahim, Istanbul, Turkey. pray he will not turn away because of fear of persecution from Islam.
He is an architect and a muslim who spent 90 min. debating and trying to understand the gospel using a turkish-english dictionary to understand gospel jargon!
He was sincere and prayed the prayer of salvation.
------Aug week 3-----
Deepak, Chennai, India. Hindu. understood the gospel and prayed.
Aisha, Tortola, British Virgin Islands.
------October week 1----
Kurt, Svante. Sweden.
I prayed with them for Kurt's marijuana addiction and Svante's alchohol addiction to be broken.
A few days later, Kurt turned hostile to the gospel. This has been puzzling to me - Swedish people will pray sincerely and then turn hostile - 180 degrees around!

Unfortunately, the results were not all good. I got kicked out of my former church because the senior pastor did not like some of the thoughts I shared with the leadership.
(in case you are curious regarding what I said: 1. the church should be Christ-centered, not pastor-centered.
2. submission to the Word should be above submission to leaders.
3. our church should be a new covenant church, not an old covenant church.
4. the church is a wheat field, not a banyan tree.)

Are you planning to kill yourself? Stop! listen to this song...

Are you planning to kill yourself? Stop! listen to this song...
hope and meaning for life if you are depressed, sad and hopeless and want to kill yourself.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLHHB4YZucI

Vote McCain-Obama for Dual President

This article was submitted to the KC Star and the Washington Post - unfortunately, only 3 days before the election. It was rejected due to the large number of election related articles submitted, so I would like to publish this idea here.
---
I would like to share an idea with you - a practical way to bring healing, for a divided country to work together. Not McCain OR Obama, but McCain AND Obama. It is not a game, but a system that can be refined and improved.
After elections, each president receives "power coins" in the proportion of their electoral votes.
They use this power money to invest in decisions of governance. The outcome or score of a decision is decided by vote in Congress.
Each receives a return on their investment depending on the score. If a decision worked out well, then the one that heavily invested in it is rewarded with more power money.
The more his or her decisions are correct, the more payback a president receives - more power to wield in future decisions.
Decisions are minor or major, short term or longer term and have one or more evaluation points when they are evaluated by a vote in Congress which decides how well a decision has worked out by its results on the ground. Yes, a Democrat-dominated congress will tend to favor a left leaning decision, but the actual results cannot be ignored and the composition of Congress is tied to how the people want the country to be governed.
How are decisions made?
Congress as usual, drafts laws. An ombudsman or referee is sworn to secrecy and categorizes each decision that comes to the presidential inbox, by its impact and timeline and assigns a cost.
The two presidents attend the same meetings and discuss options openly but their decisions are made in secret and with only the referee present. Each president decides what the choice or response to a decision would be and the one that invests the most has the right to make the choice. A stronger conviction towards a course of action will result in more power money invested. If both want control, then they bid the price up. Both can craft a decision together.
A minimum investment is required by each. So each president buys into the decision - even if he disagrees. Also both have a stake and although they will compete against each other, they will collaborate. They will work to make the best decision and that brings the most return in power money. Their decision is released jointly, typed up by the referee.
The amount that each has invested is known only to the referee who also updates their power balances after a vote. To avoid divisiveness their individual opinions are kept confidential.
When decisions are secret, a president is less constrained by ideology or party loyalty, and can pick the best course. When congress does not know how their guy decided, they are less bound by party loyalty and can vote in the best interests of the country. To keep people from deducing how a president decided, their power money balances are published only at fixed intervals, and not after each vote.

violence against Christians in India

watch video CNN: http://www.yahoo.com/s/971741

BBC article: Fear and fundamentalism in India

The Dow is behaving like a dying animal

Looking at the stock ticker chart on Yahoo today, I am both fascinated and terrified. It is like watching the movie of a whale plunging to its depths in the sea, then coming up for air, fighting for its life.

Post script: 10-10-2008 was among the wildest rides for the Dow; a spread of 1000 points.

Don't kill yourself over the stock market

Two things I read today:

1) A news item

Karthik Rajaram, an unemployed Indian origin businessman in Los Angeles, killed his family and himself after seeing his finances wiped out by the stock market collapse.


Shocked by finding himself a pauper from a Millionaire overnight by the plunging US stock market, an unemployed Indian origin businessman took the extreme step of shooting and killing his wife, three children and mother-in-law, before taking his own life here.

Karthik Rajaram (45), who once made more than USD 1.2 million in a London-based venture fund, was found dead in his Porter Ranch home here along with his wife Subasri (39), mother-in-law (70) and three sons Krishna (19), Ganesha (12) and Arjuna (7).

2) Psalm 34

1 I will praise the Lord at all times.
I will constantly speak his praises.
2 I will boast only in the Lord;
let all who are helpless take heart.
3 Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness;
let us exalt his name together.

4 I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me.
He freed me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy;
no shadow of shame will darken their faces.
6 In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened;
he saved me from all my troubles.
7 For the angel of the Lord is a guard;
he surrounds and defends all who fear him.

If you are desperate like Karthik, then do contact me at my email address listed in my profile. I don't have any money to bail you out, but I can show you that God has good plans for you through His son Jesus - plans to give you a hope and a future.

11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. [a] I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.

alterations to the Bible?

This article by the BBC claims that "For those who believe the Bible is the inerrant, unaltered word of God, there will be some very uncomfortable questions to answer. It shows there have been thousands of alterations to today's bible."

Several comments by readers rebutted this biased article:

[Frank Hill] "My understanding is that this codex was compiled by a Christian sect who even then was considered unorthodox and whilst it is the oldest complete bible many earlier copies of the gospels predate this codex. It is these gospels from which modern bibles are translated. They are both more numerous and closer in age to the events describe in the New Testament."

[Bob] "The current Bible is God's word. Of course it was written by man, but it was breathed into life by God. The way that it has over time, evolved into is present form is not important. Only those scriptures, in the form that God intended, have presently become the Bible. What is important is that the message that God intended is there for us all, and it has the power to change lives."

When I share the gospel with Muslims on the internet, they inevitably ask about the "many versions" of the Bible to try and prove that it was corrupted and that there is only one version of the Koran.

What people miss out is the third person of the God Trinity - the Holy Spirit. The gospel was preached and spread by the Holy Spirit, using men and women.

In A.D. 325, Christian leaders gathered at the first council of Nicea. They prayed and under the direction of the Holy Spirit, gathered together the 66 books that comprise the Word of God.

There were many manuscripts, some forgeries, some deceptions, some material not from God. The Holy Spirit directed them to discard these false books. It is important to remember that the same Holy Spirit who did miracles in the book of Acts, compiled the Bible, and still directs us today.

My question for Barack Obama

Dear Barack,
As an immigrant in Kansas, I would love to see a 'person of color' become president - to shake up the prejudice among the white folks in the Midwest especially, your native Kansas.
However, the biggest obstacle which prevents me from voting for you is: For three years you voted against the Illinois Born Alive Infants Protection Act while you were a state senator. It required that babies born from botched abortions be allowed to live. This act of yours stops me cold. You see, when it is a baby crying, it is no longer an abstruse scientific, theological or religious question as to "when does life begin?" or "when does an embryo have human rights?".
It is no longer nuanced in meaning as in the Rick Warren sponsored debate with McCain. There are no loopholes. Can you not recognize that it is a fully formed human baby that must be protected, fed and cuddled? I require a plain and simple answer from you, because as I ask this, I also see rising up, the ghosts of Hitler and others who had little value for human life.
sincerely,
Anil Philip

Why the silence on Southern Sudan?

Every day, you read the newspapers and read headlines blaring about "genocide in Darfur". United Nations sanctions have been imposed and peace keepers sent. Sudan has been condemned internationally and even in the Olympics, Winter Games gold medalist Cheek, has drawn attention to his activism as founder of 'Team Darfur', when his visa to Beijing was revoked.

The American athlete who will carry the flag for the games, Lomong, is from Sudan. He fled as a refugee from a genocide that has been ignored and suppressed. He is not from Darfur where about 150,000 have died, but from Southern Sudan.

Only from unbiased news organizations like the BBC, and human rights groups, did we learn that 1.2 million people, mostly from the Christian and Animist South have been killed over a 20 year period.
The Islamist North tried to take over the South. Mass killings, torture, rape was done in a systematic and large scale way.

In contrast to the outrage over Darfur, there was a media silence on Southern Sudan.
Why?
In Darfur, the victims are Muslim. In Southern Sudan, they were Christian and animist. I believe that the American media imposed a blanket of silence because they tend to be anti-Christian in their leaning. Contrast the heavy coverage, military intervention, and sanctions Bosnia received even though various reports say 25-50,000 may have died - compared with 1.2 million in Southern Sudan. Also, I believe they did not want Evangelical Christians in the USA to launch a movement and an outcry.

The unnoticed genocide.

One of my favorites - Toby Mac, "I was made to love you [God]"

Made To Love [God] Lyrics

by Toby Mac

Verse 1
The dream is fading, now I'm staring at the door
I know its over cause my feet have hit the cold floor
Check my reflection, I ain't feelin' what I see
It's no mystery
Whatever happened to a passion I could live for
What became of the flame that made me feel more
And when did I forget that...

Chorus
I was made to love you
I was made to find you
I was made just for you
Made to adore you
I was made to love
And be loved by you
You were here before me
You were waiting on me
And you said you'd keep me
Never would you leave me
I was made to love
and be loved by you

Verse 2
The dream's alive with my eyes opened wide
Back in the ring you've got me swinging for the grand prize
I feel the hate is spittin vapors on my dreams
But I still believe
I'm reachin out, reachin up, reachin over
I feel a breeze cover me called Jehovah
And daddy I'm on my way
Cause I was made to love...

Chorus

Bridge
Anything I would give up for you
Everything, I'd give it all away
(Repeat 3x)

I was made to love you
I was made to adore you, made just for you
(Repeat 3x) from http://www.findlyrics.com/toby_mac/made_to_love/

28 Good Value tips in Paris

Over four years old, this list of 28 Good Value tips in Paris was originally posted in Fodor's on our only (so far!) trip to France. As you can see here, it generated some heat. I am posting them here so that it is available to others. However, some things may be outdated.
When we went, it was in May 2003. The Iraq war had just begun and there was plenty of Franco-American friction and anger. Now, of course, it is all water under the [Pont Noeuf!] bridge. Those of us who supported the war, now oppose it - and many in France now support the American view.
-
Someone emailed me asking for tips about our visit to France.
Here are a few 'value' tips from our experience. We visited in May 2003.
In general, France is more expensive than America - forget Walmart, SAMS Club, Costco, and their prices. Bring an umbrella. We paid $12 for a cheap umbrella which would have been worth $3 here.
The euro is even more expensive today, so consciously try to forget the exchange rate
and avoid comparing too much with the great deals at home.
thanks,
Anil Philip (with help from Rita!)
Kansas City, KS

0. We stayed at the Comfort Inn Abaca which was a good value as part of the Europe Express package tour, but more expensive ($80/night) if you try to extend your stay. It was extremely clean, rooms were small and their breakfast very good. The front desk staff are helpful.

1. Pickpockets: Avoid them (heh-heh!). I never met any perhaps because I do not look like a rich American tourist. Walmart sells a $7 money belt which was useful. However the best thing to do is simply put your wallet in your front trouser pocket and then when entering crowded places, put one hand inside the pocket, directly and firmly gripping the wallet. Avoid getting in the subway when there is a crush - you're on holiday and can take the next train, so sit around and watch the people.

2. Guidebooks: If you follow them too closely, then your trip becomes a canned Rick Steve's or Fodor's or Frommer's tour. However I found Rick Steve's detailed museum tours very useful (though my wife didnt like his book too much). Frommer's has a detailed map. Borrow all (and videos) from the public library to get a feel for them before you decide to buy any of them.

3. A picnic lunch on the lawns of the Rodin museum is nice. His work was In My Humble Opinion, over-rated and the sculpture of Balzac was disgustingly silly and vulgar. However his mistress' work of the threesome in a struggle for Rodin was poignant and touching.

4. Perhaps the best site (and the least well known) for me was the Holocaust memorial directly behind the Notre Dame cathedral. Remembering it still gives me the goosebumps. You go down a spiral staircase as though into a dungeon and inside, it is as though you are in prison, in Hades, in the pit. You can see the rays of light streaming in from above, but cannot go to it. A plaque on the floor reads, (paraphrase) "they went down into the earth, were swallowed up and were never seen again".

5. The War memorial Museum at Caen was good but for me the American section in the gardens outside, was unforgettable. There is a spring (actually a pool) that goes over a waterfall and the water flows over a plaque that reads "From the heart of our land flows the blood of our youth, given to you in the name of freedom.". President Chirac needs to see this.

6. Do not use your credit card - use an ATM. I found that Visa charges a processing fee and on top of it, they skim off (cheat) by charging a higher exchange rate than what the market rate is.

7. When you are out, you can get great sandwiches at charcuteries (deli) places that are good value.

8. Ed Epicier is a great grocery store with very cheap foods and wines. It is next to the supermarket (forgot the name but do not go there) at the Convention terminus (near our hotel).

9. If you are visiting other places, stay at Etap (a clean Motel 6)

10. Ask specifically for the Carte Orange in french, they will try to sell you the tourist pass, but resist it.

11. try to attend one of the Sunday concerts at the cathedral at Notre dame - it's free and wonderful.

12. Read the "Hunchback of Notre Dame" before you visit France, and then go up the towers.

13. My wife and I are from India but my wife speaks reasonably fluent french, so people were bewildered when I wore my USA T-shirt about. At the cathedral, I gave one frenchman our camera to take our picture and he seemed very upset and irritated - only because my wife asked him, did he agree. Much later on, I realized I had been wearing my USA stars and stripes T-shirt!

14. Take film from here. One roll over there costs over $5 - here, walmart sells a pack of 4 rolls for that price!

15. the Seine river cruise is worth it. at night it is romantic.

16. Avoid Rue Cler - there was absolutely nothing worth seeing - it has become yet another touristy spot after thousands of favourable reviews. However, the crepe stand is nice with delicious Grand Marnier crepes for $3 - but you can get that most places.

17. Get used to seeing dog poop, pee on the streets and the smell of human urine in the subway station.

18. One of my most memorable memories was listening to the poor street musicians at the subway play so superbly. the French are not generous (to put it mildly) so even if we gave them just one euro ($1.25), they were happy.

19. My wife liked the Louvre a lot perhaps because she could understand french. I did not. Because they are rather chauvinistic, all titles, everything almost, is in french which was annoying - since it is designated as a UN monument - so I had to get her to translate everything. If you are ever in Kansas City, visit the Nelson Atkins museum - it has more and better art by the great masters, Monet, Rodin, Van Gogh and it's free.

20. Be patriotic, support your troops in Iraq - dont apologise but dont argue either - simply explain the righteousness of our cause.

21. Strike up conversations in the subway - we did meet nice people this way!

22. Emmanuel Baptist Church is a nice church in Paris http://perso.wanadoo.fr/ebcparis/ We were unable to visit.

23. Near the hotel, there is a laundry. It is about $7 a load.

24. Other places we liked. the creme brulee at Le Colimacon was out of this world! It is near the Hotel de Ville at the Pont Noeuf bridge. Chartier is cheap but the food is bland and tasteless to cater to the tourist. Not worth it.
Thanks to editor Pauline Frommer for pointing us to Le Colimacon - formerly habited by President Pompidou.

25. Go to Notre Dame for the view. Also Sacre Coeur. Samaritaine roof-top was closed and they charge a fee to go up there. However if you buy anything from their store, they will let you to the roof with your receipt.

26. Get the Insider's good value guide to France free from the french embassy website. Get it now - it takes about a week to arrive.

27. At Saint Chapelle, try to recognise and pick out the Bible stories from the stained glass windows. It is fun. I was even able to recite the story of Esther to the entire tourist group there - to applause - and the official Cathedral guide (who did not know the story) took it very well!

28. Take one of the week-long package trips from gotoday or Europe Express or whatever. While booking it, ask them to extend the return date. This way you can travel on your own to other places in France and then come back to Paris on the last day to catch the plane back home. However, dont let the package tour people make travel/hotel arrangements for your extended stay. They will typically charge much higher rates piecemeal.

(to: Patrick, Margie, HowardR, )
Nelson-Atkins Museum (Kansas City)
Here is an article by Business Week columnist, Thane Peterson "...the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, which has a marvelous permanent collection that includes everything from works by Claude Monet and Georgia O'Keefe to native American art to one of the nation's finest collections of Chinese artifacts."
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/jun2002/nf2002064_7496.htm
http://www.nelson-atkins.org/
http://www.nelson-atkins.org/collections/european/european.htm
Even the gardens at the KC museum are beautiful, interspersed with sculptures by Henry Moore and Rodin's Thinker gazing down (the shrewd businessman! he made 27 of them).

(to: HowardR)
The "poignant sculpture" I was referring to was "Maturity" by Camille Claudel, Rodin's mistress.

(to: Patrick, Margie, HowardR)
Balzac IMHO, was disgustingly silly and vulgar because it depicts the honorable gentleman with a large you-know-what through his pants when he is aroused. A schoolboy's joke perhaps, but hardly in good taste, let alone good art.

Why do bad things happen? - 2

BBC news report:

"Twelve-year-old Elizabeth - not her real name - was walking in fields with her brother, following an aunt who had gone ahead to work on the family's plot of land near the town of Man in north-western Ivory Coast, when they were approached by "les casques bleues", as UN peacekeepers are known.

"Elizabeth" was raped by 10 UN peacekeepers in Ivory Coast

Her brother took a biscuit from one of the men; she refused.

As Elizabeth tried to run away, one of the soldiers seized hold of her. There were 10 of them.

I spoke to Elizabeth near her home. She said: "They grabbed me and threw me to the ground and they forced themselves on me... I tried to escape but there were 10 of them and I could do nothing... I was terrified.

"Then they just left me there bleeding..."

Elizabeth was raped by 10 peacekeepers and abandoned.

Her village elders say they tried to take the case to UN officials at the camp nearby. But Domade Jean-Baptiste, one of the village chiefs, said they were made to wait for ages and then sent away.

Elizabeth's brutal rape is one of an unknown number of sexual assaults carried out by peace keepers and aid workers, the very people who are brought in to post-conflict areas around the world to protect the vulnerable...."

I was outraged when I read this. Why did this happen?

This little girl's life is effectively over. She is destined to be filled with a life of anger, hate, promiscuity, shame, failure and ruin.

Following the logic of my earlier post, it was Satan who is Evil himself, collaborating with man using his free will to choose evil.

"the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8)

The devil has come to "steal, and to kill, and to destroy". (John 10:10)

Since God has legions of angels, even one of whom could have prevented this, why did He allow this to happen?

I don't know.

Mike Ensley of Exodus writes that "our suffering matters to God... He does not coldly survey the landscape of our brokenness but 'collects our tears.' "

You number my wanderings;
Put my tears into Your bottle;
Are they not in Your book? (Psalm 56:8)

If you are reading this, pray with me that this girl and hundreds of children like her will be healed in Jesus' name; healed in their bodies, minds, spirit and soul for the tragedy they have experienced.
Pray also that justice will be done and the evil perpetrators will be punished.
Pray that the devil will be defeated especially in that corner of the world.