The Mocked King:

 

 Prison of the Heart and Mind vs Prison of the Physical.

 

"Conditions in most prisons in the world are rife with cruelty and degradation, and executions only heighten the dehumanization. The victim being processed for death is usually reduced to something less than a man long before the authorities cut off his life as a man. Warders, soldiers and assistants, those who elsewhere in life are normal fathers, neighbours and colleagues, feel nothing personal against the victim, but often they vent their suppressed emotions in the thick of the grisly business of processing a person for death."

"So the high priest’s servants played a sadistic version of blind man’s bluff, and then in a mean mockery of the reputation of Jesus, they twisted the game into “Let’s see who’s the prophet now.” They were probably as skeptical about the supernatural as their masters, the Sadducees. In which case, they saw prophecy as a complete fraud, but Jesus provided a handy butt for their derision. Having beaten him, they blindfolded him, struck him while helpless and asked him, “Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?”
Then when Jesus refused to play their game, remaining silent before their humiliation, he was handed over from Herod’s guards to the Roman soldiers, and finally to Pontius Pilate, the governor himself."

" The climax of the torture has been captured in countless paintings of Ecce Homo—Jesus standing before his tormentors, suffering but silent, the crown of thorns pressed down on his head, the purple robe draped around his shoulders, the reed scepter thrust into his hands, hailed with the mock acclamations—and then the final parody of the trilingual inscription above his head on the cross: 'Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews'.”

Os Guinness, Fool’s Talk:

 

How you and I think often reveals how we approach life. How we view knowledge of Jesus' mock trials and subsequent crucifixion reveals more about our inner life than it reveals the attitudes of the religious correct of that timeframe in ancient history.

 

( Its my solo belief that similar to the political correct of our timeframe is to the religious correct of theirs.) 

 

 By Digital Anvil.

 

Drop by and comment below. 

Bare Bones of Truth:

 . Life is much more than reason, so it can never be captured and explained by reason alone—crucial and valuable though reason is. Apply reason as carefully and systematically as you like, and there will always be things it cannot explain, things that simply will not fit into its categories, however hard you push, press and pull.

Os Guinness.

 

It was von Neumann who conceived the idea of programming that led to the computer—the notion that you can break down a problem into a series of simple steps that can be manipulated as numbers are manipulated. But what works for a machine does not work for a human being. If only we humans were more logical, or were only logical

Os Guinness.

The bare bones of truth ? Is that the reality,what do you think ? Drop by and comment below.

By Digital Anvil.

Early Retirement

Many people are desperately trying to retire early for an easy life. But as one article put it…

“Early retirement… too often it turns into a nightmare void with nothing to do, ­nowhere to be...”

The Japanese have a term for men with nothing in their lives; it's nure ochiba, or ‘wet fallen leaf syndrome’, where men follow their wives around "everywhere like a leaf stuck to a shoe.”

So why is retirement so difficult?

 

 Because life with nothing to do, nowhere to be and nothing to achieve is actually pointless. If you want a fulfilling later life, it’s not found in retirement. It’s found by using your time in some useful endeavour, serving others or committing to a cause, it’s how God created you. Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord…”

Share this daily- reading:

Karl Faase,thanks.

( from Digital Anvil )

 Globalization:

 

 

"One of the effects of this level of globalization is plain. Active and interactive communication is the order of the day. From the shortest texts and tweets to the humblest website, to the angriest blog, to the most visited social networks, the daily communications of the wired world attest that everyone is now in the business of relentless self-promotion—presenting themselves, explaining themselves, defending themselves, selling themselves or sharing their inner thoughts and emotions as never before in human history."

 by Os Guinness.

Boys a-n-d Girls ( Quote )

Quote: Boys a-n-d Girls

When boys succeed, girls don't lose. Australia wins.

When East loves West, both succeed. World wins.

By Digital Anvil.

Be A "I Can" Person:

Be an “I Can” Person

“I can do all things through Christ.” Philippians 4:13 NKJV

Consider these examples of resistance to inventions that we now consider commonplace and enjoy every day: 

In Germany, “experts” said that if trains went as fast as fifteen to twenty miles an hour—considered a frightful speed—blood would spurt from the travellers’ noses and passengers would suffocate when going through tunnels. 

In America, experts said the introduction of the railroad would require the building of many insane asylums, since people would be driven mad with terror at the sight of the locomotives.

When the idea of iron ships was first proposed, experts insisted that they would not float, it would be difficult to preserve the iron bottom from rust, and that iron would play havoc with compass readings. In 1797, when the first cast-iron plow was invented, farmers in New Jersey rejected it, saying the cast iron would poison the ground and stimulate the growth of weeds.

 

 When the YMCA in New York welcomed the invention of the typewriter and announced typing lessons for women, protests erupted on the grounds that the female constitution would break down under the strain. Now consider these statements, each of which is a product of a negative mindset:

 (1) “Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible” (Lord Kelvin, President, Royal Society, 1895).

 (2) “Man will never tap the power of the atom” (Robert Millikan, Nobel Prize winner in physics, 1923). 

(3) “Everything that can be invented has been invented” (Charles H. Duell, U.S. Patent Office Director, 1899). If you want to accomplish great things and be used by God, become an “I can person."

Many thanks to Vision.org.au

( from Digital Anvil )

The War Against Boys 

was published 26 years ago. Are we ready to start listening to our gorgeous boys, our budding teens, and our precious young men?

Christina Hoff Sommers' The War Against Boys: How Misguided Policies are Harming Our Young Men remains one of the most important and courageous books written about boys' education and wellbeing. Published in 2000, it challenged a dominant narrative that portrayed boys as universally privileged while paying too little attention to the growing evidence that many were struggling academically, socially and emotionally. More than a quarter of a century later, many of the concerns she raised have become mainstream topics of debate...

Rather than criticising girls or opposing women's progress, Sommers argued for something much simpler: that boys also deserve compassion, fairness and evidence-based policy. She questioned educational practices, examined claims about systemic disadvantage, highlighted the decline in boys' engagement at school, and warned against ideological approaches that overlooked their needs. Her method was careful, deeply researched and driven by a desire to understand rather than inflame.

What makes this book exceptional is its empathy. Sommers refused to treat boys as problems to be fixed or stereotypes to be dismissed. Instead, she saw them as children worthy of encouragement, respect and opportunity. Her writing combines intellectual rigour with genuine compassion, reminding readers that good public policy begins by seeing people as they are, not as ideology insists they should be...

Perhaps most impressive was her willingness to challenge the orthodoxy at considerable personal cost. She asked difficult questions when few others would, modelling the kind of principled, evidence-led social critique that healthy democracies desperately need. In doing so, she laid the groundwork for many of today's discussions about boys' education, male wellbeing and gender equality.

The War Against Boys is more than a critique. It's constructive thought leadership. It remains essential reading for parents, teachers, policymakers and anyone seeking a more balanced, humane and evidence-based conversation about helping every child flourish...

Many thanks to Unknown Contributor:

( From Digital Anvil )

This recurring theme of  Boys  and  Girls essays on my blog with the costly revelations,trends and tremendous social capital that most adults give to boys a-n-d girls who in turn invest their lives into their children is cheering and wholeheartedly inspiring. But males, particularly boys and young men which are trailing girls and women with every measure and metric for decades in the education system needs to be addressed without downplaying women or girls role in modern society.