Frustrated With the Pace of Change, Rioters Storm Parliament Building in Libya

By David D. Kirkpatrick, NY Times, March 2, 2014

CAIRO—Dozens of armed rioters stormed into the Libyan Parliament in Tripoli on Sunday, setting fire to the grounds, looting furniture and wounding a prominent lawmaker in a spasm of anger at the clotted and chaotic transition after the ouster of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.

Less than two weeks after a vote to elect an assembly charged with writing a new constitution, the bedlam at Parliament dampened hopes of renewed momentum for the transition, or even of a break from the violence. Security guards outside the building encouraged the rioters, witnesses said, and looters running amok suspended the symbolic white chair of the parliamentary leader from a lamppost. Later, they set the chair on fire.

In Benghazi, Libya, at least three people were killed by gunshots, according to news reports, adding to an accelerating pattern of assassinations of former Qaddafi security officers and foreigners. Together, the events appeared to suggest that the newly elected constitutional assembly may face a race to finish its work before the country comes apart at the seams; it is already dogged by doubts about a turnout of less than 15 percent of the electorate and incomplete elections—disrupted by violence—that left 13 of 60 seats unfilled.

In Tripoli, the capital, the riot was kindled by impatience with the three-year-old transition.

Libya’s transitional Parliament had once pledged to disband by Feb. 7, 2014, but it expected the drafting of the constitution to have been completed by then. Now lawmakers are heatedly debating plans and schedules for some new system of early elections that might replace the legislature and government while the constitution is finished.

But outside the parliament building, continuous protests have been demanding the immediate dissolution of the chamber, even without a ready replacement.

By Saturday, protesters set up a tent blocking the entrance. In response, witnesses said, gunmen who appeared to be supporting the Parliament—possibly from rival militias—attacked the small sit-in, reportedly arresting or kidnapping activists. Some witnesses also reported gunfire.

When two protesters were returned unharmed at about 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, an angry crowd of about 75 was waiting, said Rawad Radwan, 23, a blogger who was there and filmed some of the events. As dusk settled, some fired guns in celebration, the crowd grew to a few hundred, and some of them started running for the Parliament, he said.

Witnesses said the Parliament’s security guards seemed to cheer on the protesters. “There were security guards, but they did not do anything,” Mr. Radwan said. “I heard one say, ‘Just go in—we are with you guys,’ “ he continued, suggesting that the Parliament “is not protected by the right people.”

The only resistance came from protesters intent on remaining peaceful, two witnesses said. “I saw people breaking into cars and looting stuff while other protesters were trying to prevent them from doing this, but it was really hard to stand against those thieves,” Mr. Radwan said.

News reports citing Libyan officials said that at least two lawmakers were shot as they tried to flee. One was Abdul Rahman al-Swehli of Misurata, who was said to be hospitalized but not critically injured.

Benghazi has been dealing with a low-grade guerrilla war between Islamist militants and security forces that defected from the former Qaddafi government. The security forces are now the closest thing to an army, and they have been facing a growing campaign of assassinations and bombings by Islamist militants for months.

In addition to an officer in the security forces, the victims killed on Sunday included a French citizen and an Egyptian, according to Libyan news reports.

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Interview: Karzai says 12-year Afghanistan war has left him angry at U.S. government

By Kevin Sieff, Washington Post, March 2, 2014

KABUL—Hamid Karzai was in the midst of negotiating a security agreement with the United States when he met a 4-year-old girl who had lost half her face in an American airstrike.

Five months later, the Afghan president’s eyes welled with tears as he described visiting the disfigured little girl at a hospital. He took long pauses between words. Sitting behind his desk Saturday night, the man who has projected a defiant image toward the West suddenly looked frail.

“That day, I wished she were dead, so she could be buried with her parents and brothers and sisters”—14 of whom had been killed in the attack—he said.

In an unusually emotional interview, the departing Afghan president sought to explain why he has been such a harsh critic of the 12-year-old U.S. war effort here. He said he’s deeply troubled by all the casualties he has seen, including those in U.S. military operations. He feels betrayed by what he calls an insufficient U.S. focus on targeting Taliban sanctuaries in Pakistan. And he insists that public criticism was the only way to guarantee an American response to his concerns.

To Karzai, the war was not waged with his country’s interests in mind.

“Afghans died in a war that’s not ours,’ he said in the interview, his first in two years with a U.S. newspaper.

In Karzai’s mind, al-Qaeda is “more a myth than a reality” and the majority of the United States’ prisoners here were innocent. He’s certain that the war was “for the U.S. security and for the Western interest.”

Such statements elicit scorn and shock from U.S. officials, who point out that Americans have sacrificed mightily for Afghanistan—losing more than 2,000 lives and spending more than $600 billion in the effort to defeat al-Qaeda and the Taliban and rebuild the country.

Some Americans call Karzai a delusional leader, an ally who became an adversary during the 12 years of his presidency.

In the latest blowup, he has refused for months to sign a security agreement that his government had negotiated with the United States that would permit a residual U.S. force to remain here beyond 2014. He has added several new demands in exchange for signing the deal.

But in a phone call with Karzai last week, President Obama said he will accept having the winner of Afghanistan’s April presidential elections sign the pact. Karzai indicated that he views that as a best-case scenario. He won’t have to submit to U.S. demands—such as the continuation of counter­terrorism operations—but the popular security agreement will probably still be finalized.

“It’s good for them to sign it with my successor,” the Afghan leader said.

On the security agreement, as with several other issues, Karzai’s antagonistic approach seems to have succeeded, in the sense that he has forced U.S. officials to move deadlines—and even to reshape policy.

His strong criticism of the civilian casualties caused by American attacks, for example, forced the U.S. military to revise its tactics, producing a dramatic decline in the number of noncombatants killed by American forces (although Taliban-inflicted casualties have increased).

His demands that the United States hand over the Bagram prison were eventually met, allowing Karzai last month to release dozens of high-profile detainees despite U.S. protests. Those experiences reaffirmed his conviction that public criticism of the United States is often his most effective diplomatic tool.

“I had no other weapon to resort to, no other means to resort to, but to speak publicly and get attention that way. In other words, I was forced to yell,” he said.

Karzai reiterated that he will not manipulate the April 5 presidential election. He has told his older brother to withdraw his candidacy to avoid the perception of interference. Qayum Karzai has refused, but he acknowledges what most Afghans believe:

“Without the president’s support, it will be impossible to win,” Qayum said.

Every day, candidates and elders plead for Hamid Karzai’s backing, pouring into his office and calling his aides as the election nears. Although his influence on the U.S. war effort is waning, he has never been more relevant, or at least more talked about, in Afghan political circles.

“People do come to me, a lot of people, every day rather. Groups of people, individuals—they ask me” for support, Karzai said.

Now that he has decided to leave office, he is reckoning with the same question that many Americans are asking: Was the war worth it?

“I am of two hearts here. When I see good, I am in approval. When I see the losses of Afghan people, our children, maimed and killed, I’m in disapproval,” he said, speaking in English. “Maybe I can give you an answer of yes or no two, three or five years from now, when my emotions have subsided. Right now, I’m full of emotions.”

Karzai is at his most emotional—and most hostile—when civilian casualties occur. Even his critics don’t doubt the sincerity of his feelings, although they might disagree with his conclusions.

He said Afghanistan’s “common cause” with the United States dissipated because of such casualties. He has also said that U.S. forces should have done more to target Taliban sanctuaries in Pakistan, rather than conduct operations in Afghan villages.

Karzai denied that he’s more vocal about U.S.-inflicted civilian casualties than those caused by the Taliban. But he has done little to dispel that characterization.

During a visit to the White House in 2010, he carried a photo of what he described as a family whose members were “just gazing with fright and fear” during a U.S.-led night operation. He showed it to Obama.

“I said, ‘President, this is what I’m trying to end, the intimidation of Afghan families at night, in the name of fighting the Taliban.’?”

Asked about Obama’s response, Karzai shrugged, indicating it was unsatisfactory. Then he said: “So we are really an angry people.”

One criticism of Karzai is that his anger has interfered with his ability to govern a country whose institutions have grown exponentially since he took office. Thanks primarily to the U.S. effort, Afghanistan now has a large security force and bureaucracy.

As U.S. funding tapers off, Karzai’s successor will have to keep those institutions alive on a much slimmer budget.

“Foreign assistance brought an expensive way of life to Afghanistan,” Karzai said. “This way of life is not sustainable. Afghanistan has to live by its means.”

Specifically, that means a smaller army built based on “efficiency and affordability,” Karzai said.

But without foreign funding, it’s unclear whether Afghanistan could afford an army that could keep the Taliban at bay. Maintaining Afghan forces at their current size will cost about $4 billion per year. In 2013, the Afghan government collected only $1.7 billion in revenue.

After leaving office, Karzai won’t go far: The government has built him a house a few miles from the presidential palace.

But before he steps down, Karzai has a few more messages to convey to his American partners. As he escorted two Washington Post journalists out of his office Saturday evening, he said: “To the American people, give them my best wishes and my gratitude. To the U.S. government, give them my anger, my extreme anger.”

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Despite its problems, Ukraine is a prize for Russia, Europe

By Will Englund, Washington Post, March 2, 2014

KIEV, Ukraine—Ukraine is in agony. In its 22 years of sovereignty, it has never had political leadership that could foster a national feeling among all Ukrainians. The previous, pro-Russian government was reviled by those who saw it as little more than an organized criminal gang. The new, pro-European government, propelled into power by the demonstrations in Kiev’s central square, has given those Ukrainians who opposed the protests very little reason to have confidence in it. The new government’s swift downgrading of the status of the Russian language made it appear to many that this was just another case of one clan taking power from another—and probably getting ready to snatch the spoils.

Ukraine spent 2013 dealing with the need to resolve a choice of its own making: whether to lean toward Europe or Russia. Both Europe and Russia showed keen interest in the outcome, and each tried to gain the upper hand. The result is today’s crisis.

But, given Kiev’s evident dysfunction, why were outsiders so interested in Ukraine?

Russia
* President Vladimir Putin wanted Ukraine to be part of his new Eurasian Economic Union, based in Moscow. If Kiev signed on with the European Union, thus reducing trade barriers to Europe, it would have scotched Putin’s plan.

* Part of the ideology behind the Eurasian union is that Russia and its neighbors have a different value system than the West. Putin has been pushing that idea hard. It contains a thinly veiled ethnic appeal, to fellow eastern Slavs. If Ukraine joined Europe, and prospered while abiding by European values, that would contradict Russia’s contentions.

* Russia feared that if Ukraine and the EU reduced trade barriers, European companies would use Ukraine as a conduit for flooding the Russian market. (Russian tariffs for Ukraine are lower than they are for Europe)

* Integration with Europe might be a prelude to integration with NATO, which Putin would see as a disaster. Russia bases its Black Sea fleet in Crimea; it would be unthinkable to maintain that base if Ukraine joins NATO.

* Much of the natural gas that Russia sells to Europe flows across Ukraine, and Russia’s state-owned Gazprom would very much like to gain control of Ukraine’s pipeline system.

* Putin was not a fan of ousted president Viktor Yanukovych, and he apparently decided that the way to handle him was to smother him in the Kremlin’s embrace.

* Standing up for ethnic Russians abroad—millions live in Ukraine—is good politics at home.

The downside: Russian dominance of Ukraine would force Moscow to deal with extremely strong anti-Russian feeling among a significant part of the population.

The European Union
* Poland was the most enthusiastic proponent of the Ukraine trade deal. Polish leaders believed that it would lead to having a competently managed, largely democratic, non-corrupt nation as a neighbor. And that, they thought, would be better for Poland than the Ukraine that currently exists.

* Many in Europe—and in the United States—saw Ukraine as a nation not yet fully formed, and worried that without assistance toward becoming one it could turn into a flash point of East-West tension. (They were right.)

* The EU has launched a legal case to force Gazprom to divest itself of pipelines feeding Europe. Allowing Gazprom to assume control of Ukraine’s pipeline system would be a step backward.

* European leaders were also not fans of Yanukovych, and they decided that the way to handle him was to smother him in their embrace.

* European leaders are not fond of Putin. Denying him control of Ukraine might take him down a peg or two.

The downside: Owning Ukraine’s myriad problems.

So what’s their prize?
* For Russia: Putin offered Ukraine a $15 billion bailout in the fall. He had committed $3 billion by the time Yanukovych’s government came undone. That’s a write-off, but Russia gets to keep the other $12 billion.

* For Ukraine: The country is appealing to the EU and the International Monetary Fund for short-term and long-term loans. They will most likely be forthcoming, and for far more than $15 billion.

* For Ukraine: The Ukrainian people will have to bear the austerity that comes with the international assistance.

* For the West: They will be blamed for the austerity.

* For Russia: It may decide to keep control of Crimea. It will gain Russia plenty of enmity in Ukraine—and elsewhere.

The really big downside: All bets are off if the Crimea crisis leads to war.

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Putin speaks out about Ukraine! Full Interview

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Deploying military force is last resort. Putin

s last resort, but we reserve right
Published time: March 04, 2014 10:49
Edited time: March 04, 2014 18:08Get short URL




Russian President Vladimir Putin (RIA Novosti / Alexey Nokolskiy)



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Russia will not go to war with the people of Ukraine, but will use its troops to protect citizens, if radicals with clout in Kiev now try to use violence against Ukrainian civilians, particularly ethnic Russians, Putin told the media.

Putin, who was given a mandate by the Russian senate to use military force to protect civilians in Ukraine, said there is no need for such an action yet.

Putin cited the actions of radical activists in Ukraine, including the chaining of a governor to a stage as public humiliation and the killing of a technician during an opposition siege of the Party of Regions HQ, as justification for Russia to be concerned for the lives and well-being of people in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Incidents like those are why Russia reserves the option of troop deployment on the table.

“If we see this lawlessness starting in eastern regions, if the people ask us for help – in addition to a plea from a legitimate president, which we already have – then we reserve the right to use all the means we possess to protect those citizens. And we consider it quite legitimate,” he said.

Russia is not planning to go to war with the Ukrainian people, Putin stressed, when a journalist asked if he was afraid of war. But Russian troops would prevent any attempts to target Ukrainian civilians, should they be deployed.

“We are not going to a war against the Ukrainian people,” he said. “I want you to understand it unambiguously. If we do take a decision, it would only be to protect Ukrainian citizens. Let anybody in the military dare, and they’d be shooting their own people, who would stand up in front of us. Shoot at women and children. I’d like to see anyone try and order such a thing in Ukraine.”

Putin dismissed the notion that the uniformed armed people without insignia who are currently present in Crimea are Russian soldiers. He said they are members of the Crimean self-defense forces and that they are no better equipped and trained than some radical fighters who took part in the ousting of Yanukovich.

He assured that the surprise military drills in Russia’s west which ended on Tuesday had nothing to do with the Ukrainian situation.




An attack of marines supported by combat vehicles during an exercise held by the Baltic Fleet coastal defense troops at the Pavenkovo training ground in the Kaliningrad region, March 2, 2014. (RIA Novosti / Igor Zarembo)


Sanction threats are counterproductive

Asked about criticism of Russia over its stance on Ukraine, Putin dismissed the accusations that Russia is acting illegitimately. He stated that even if Russia does use force in Ukraine, it would not violate international law.

At the same time he accused the United States and its allies of having no regard to legitimacy when they use military force in pursuit of their own national interests.

“When I ask them ‘Do you believe you do everything legitimately,’ they say ‘Yes.’ And I have to remind them about the US actions in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, where they acted either without any UN Security Council mandate or through perverting a mandate, as was the case in Libya,” Putin said.

“Our partners, especially in the United States, always clearly formulate for themselves their geopolitical and national interests, pursue them relentlessly and then drag the rest of the world in, using the principle ‘You are either with us or against us.' And harass those who refuse to be dragged in,” he added.

As for the sanctions Russia faces over Ukraine, Putin said those threatening them should think of the consequences to themselves if they follow that path. In an interconnected world a country may hurt another country if it wishes, but it would be damaged too.

Threats are counterproductive in this situation, Putin warned. He added that if G8 members choose not to go to Sochi for a planned G8 summit, that would be up to them.
Putin sympathies with Maidan protesters, rejects coup

Putin stressed that the Ukrainian people had a legitimate reason to protest against Yanukovich’s power, considering the overwhelming corruption and other faults of his presidency.

But he objected to the illegitimate way his ouster took place, because it undermined the political stability in the country.

“I strictly object to this form [of transition of power] in Ukraine, and anywhere in the post-Soviet space. This does not help nurturing a culture of law. If someone is allowed to act this way, then everyone is allowed to. And this means chaos. That’s the worst thing that can happen to a country with an unstable economy and an unestablished political system,” Putin explained.



He said that while he personally was not fond of months-long streets protests as a means to pressure the government, he sympathized with the Maidan demonstration members, who were genuinely outraged with the situation in Ukraine.

But at the same time he warned that what happens in Ukraine now may be a replacement of one group of crooks with another, citing the appointments of certain wealthy businessmen with questionable reputations.

Asked about the presence of snipers during the violent confrontation in Kiev last month, Putin said he was not aware of any order from the Yanukovich government to use firearms against the protesters. He alleged that the shooters could have been provocateurs from one of the opposition forces. He added that what he was sure of is the fact that police officers were shot at with lethal arms during the confrontation.

Yanukovich is certainly powerless in Ukraine, but legally speaking he is the legitimate president of the country, Putin said. The way the new authorities in Kiev replaced him did not enhance their credibility.



Asked if he felt for Yanukovich, Putin said “Oh, no. I have absolutely different feelings.” But he declined to publicly explain what those were. He also refrained from commenting on what mistakes he saw in Yanukovich’s actions, explaining that it would not be proper for him to do so.

At the same time Putin does not see any political future for Yanukovich, which he told the ousted Ukrainian president himself. He added that Russia allowed him to come to its territory for humanitarian reasons, because if he remained in Ukraine he could have been summarily executed.




Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych arrives for his press-conference in southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, on February 28, 2014. (AFP Photo / Andrey Kronberg)


Equal participation in Ukraine's future for all Ukrainians

The Russian government is currently engaging with the self-proclaimed govern of Ukraine with the goal of preserving economic ties between the two countries. However, any normal relations would only be possible after Ukraine has fully legitimate branches of government, Putin said. He considers that he has no counterpart in Kiev now, so he personally has no partner to communicate with.

The Russian president stressed that Russia wants to see equal participation of all citizens of Ukraine in defining the future of the country. The resistance to the authorities in Kiev, which is evident currently in the eastern and southern Ukraine, shows clearly that currently Kiev does not have a nationwide mandate to govern the country.

“Frankly, they should adopt a new constitution through a referendum so that all citizens of Ukraine feel engagement in that process, have an input on the formation of the new principles of how their nation should function,” Putin suggested. “That’s certainly not for us, but for the Ukrainians and the Ukrainian authorities to decide this way or another. I believe after legitimate government is formed, after a new president elected, after a new parliament is elected, they should return to this.”

Russia will be watching the planned presidential election in Ukraine, Putin said. If it is conducted in an atmosphere of terror, Russia will consider it unfair and will not recognize its results, he warned.

Putin commented on the issue of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, which Russia committed to preserve. He said that Western powers reject Russia’s assessment of the events in Ukraine as a coup and insist on calling it a revolution.

Some Russian experts, Putin warned that if Ukraine had undergone a revolution, then the nation that came out of it is not the same that it was before, similarly to how Russia transformed after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917.

If this is the case, Moscow may consider itself no longer bound by any treaties it has with Ukraine, Putin warned.

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Ultra-Orthodox Jews Stage Mass Protest Against Israeli Draft Law

Reuters, March 2, 2014

JERUSALEM—Hundreds of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews held a mass prayer in Jerusalem on Sunday in protest at a bill that would cut their community’s military exemptions and end a tradition upheld since Israel’s foundation.

Ultra-Orthodox leaders had called on their men, women and children to attend the protest against new legislation ending the wholesale army exemptions granted to seminary students, which is expected to pass in the coming weeks,

The issue is at the heart of an emotional national debate. Most Israeli Jewish men and women are called up for military service when they turn 18, but most ultra-Orthodox Jews, or “Haredim”, a Hebrew term meaning ‘those who tremble before God’, are excused from army service.

Police said hundreds of thousands took part in the prayer. Israeli media estimated that between 250,000 to 400,000 attended.

The ultra-Orthodox demonstration paralyzed parts of Jerusalem, blocked the main entrance to the city and halted public transport as the streets around swelled with streams of men in black hats and coats, the traditional Haredi garb.

Rabbis wailed prayers over loudspeakers as the standing crowds swayed back and forth, repeating a plea to God to stop the law from being passed.

Haredim say the study of holy scriptures is a foundation of Jewish life, that scholars have a right to devote themselves full time to the tradition, and that army service would deny them fulfillment of that religious edict.

Seventeen-year-old Israel, a seminary student who came to Israel from the United States, said his community would not give in. “There are so many of us that they cannot fight us. We are not worried. We do not want to fight them, but we are not going to do what they tell us to do,” he said.

Haredim make up about 10 percent of Israel’s 8 million people. They are a fast-growing and relatively poor social group. Most Haredi men are unemployed and live off state benefits, donations and their wives’ often low wages.

The ultra-Orthodox community is resented by many Israelis who accuse the Haredim of burdening the economy and sponging off the state while avoiding the duties that bind others.

Changing the so-called secular-religious status quo in Israel has carried significant political risk in the past for its coalition governments, which have often relied on the support of ultra-Orthodox partners.

But now, for the first time in a decade, Israel’s cabinet has no ultra-Orthodox members and main coalition partners have pressed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to enact reforms under a slogan of “sharing the burden”, so an ultra-Orthodox backlash poses little danger of destabilizing the government.

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One Hour a Day Keeps the Pink Slip Away

The Simple Dollar, 28 Feb 2014

Prior to 2008 (when I made the decision to write for a living so that I could have a much more flexible schedule for my family), I held a job in a research lab where I was involved with the processing and sharing of large quantities of scientific data. This required both computer programming skills and scientific skills—not only did I have to know how to manipulate the data, I had to know why I was manipulating it and what answers people would seek.

I was reasonably successful in that position. My exit from this job was entirely of my own choosing. I’m pretty sure I would still be at that job (or a very similar job) if I didn’t make a personal choice to change direction.

Along the way, I had a handful of wonderful mentors. One was a jovial older gentleman who loved to close his office door near the end of the day, open his window, and enjoy his pipe. Another was a quiet but incredibly thoughtful man from Germany, one of those people who might only say two or three things during a long meeting but each of those things would be insightful and thoughtful. Yet another was an incredibly friendly staff member who enabled my first big career opportunity.

All of them suggested one key thing that I should do during my professional career that would not only secure my job, but would secure almost every job I might want to get. It’s something really simple, too.

They told me to spend at least one hour a day focusing on learning something new related to my job. If I could possibly carve out an hour during a workday, I should spend that hour actively learning a new skill or studying a relevant topic. They also recommended trying to apply those skills to my own side projects that might bear fruit for something relevant to my job.

I really took that idea to heart. During the course of my career, I taught myself several programming languages and worked on several small projects on my own, including writing some great AJAX software near the end of my time there. I extensively studied genetics and read a small mountain of scientific papers. I learned the deep inner workings of several different database systems, even though my job didn’t involve database management. I studied a bunch of techniques for managing different data types and experimented with them, eventually implementing some of those ideas in my main work.

I spent at least an hour per day doing this whenever I possibly could (there were crunch times where that didn’t work, of course).

In the short term, this approach really wasn’t helpful. I would often have this long list of things that I needed to get done and by spending an hour or two learning something new, I wasn’t getting anything checked off of that list.

Over time, though, it became more and more and more useful. I found that by teaching myself different approaches and studying new ideas, I understood the tasks that I was responsible for on a much deeper level. Rather than just applying the same old techniques to a given task, I’d understand it differently from a scientific perspective or I’d know a new algorithm that I could apply to the problem.

I was able to solve these problems faster… but I was also able to solve them better. This made me drastically more efficient at work and people noticed. There were actually jokes about how I would have a “rough” implementation of a solution to a problem in place by the end of a conference call, simply because I had a lot of tools at my disposal. I had invested the time to learn new tools and new information and that learning consistently paid off.

This made me more valuable in the workplace. It also helped me to build a resume, as I was able to contribute and even take the lead on projects that I wouldn’t have been able to contribute to when I first started. I received raises, professional recognition, and other little perks as a result.

The key to this, without a doubt, was to simply spend an hour each day learning new skills and knowledge related to my job. It did not help me in the short term. It was purely a long term investment, but after a year or two, I saw that investment paying off almost every single day.

It doesn’t matter what your job is. There are always things to learn. There are always skills to build. There are always efficiencies you can improve. If you do it consistently, it will be noticed, and when it comes time to ask for a raise or take on a professional change, those efforts will reward you greatly.

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Não Desanime

Uma compilação

Sejam fortes e corajosos, todos vocês que esperam no Senhor!—Salmo 31:24[1] NVI

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Mantenha os olhos fixos no Céu, na meta, e a vitória no coração. ...Quando o Diabo o tenta a desanimar e desistir, lute! Não lhe dê ouvidos, muito menos se renda. Comece a fazer algo positivo; diga palavras animadoras e de encorajamento.

Quando se sente oprimido ou tem sentimento de culpa, não fique parado, tome uma atitude! Cante, grite, louve o Senhor, cite versículos! Revide o golpe do Diabo! Repreenda-o com a Palavra! Foi o que Jesus fez quando o Diabo o tentou e mentiu para ele no deserto. Ele apenas citou versículos: “Está escrito.”[2] O Diabo bem sabe que é um mentiroso; ele é o pai da mentira,[3] e não resiste à Palavra. “Resisti ao Diabo e ele fugirá de vós.”[4] Ele vai encolher o rabo e bater em retirada.

Vista o capacete da salvação e a couraça da justiça, protegendo-se com o escudo da fé para resistir a todos os dardos inflamados do Maligno; revista-se com a verdade, calce o Evangelho da paz e use a espada do Espírito, que é a Palavra de Deus, e acerte o Diabo no coração.[5] Afugente-o! Avise-o que não tem nada a ver com ele e ele não tem nada a ver com você!

Depois mantenha-se ocupado trabalhando, falando de Jesus e da salvação. Seja positivo. Ajude alguém. Fique tão ocupado com os problemas dos outros que não consiga pensar em si mesmo. Fique tão ocupado ajudando outros a serem felizes que não consiga evitar sentir-se feliz.

Fale de Jesus. Fale da Palavra de Deus. Fale sobre as necessidades das pessoas. Fale de coisas boas e positivas. “Tudo o que é verdadeiro, tudo o que é honesto, tudo o que é justo e puro, tudo o que é amável, se há alguma virtude e algum louvor, nisso pensai.”[6] “Não fale mal de ninguém”—nem de si mesmo.[7]

Guarde a fé. Mantenha os olhos em Jesus. Fique ocupado ajudando alguém que precisa e esqueça de si mesmo. Logicamente você é uma bagunça. Todos nós somos. Quando começamos a olhar para nós mesmos, realmente ficamos desanimados.

Vamos seguir adiante com Deus! Ele é o único que pode ajudá-lo a chegar lá, e o fará se lhe der uma chance. Agarre-se à Palavra e deixe o Senhor agarrar-se a você. Deixe ir e deixe Deus fazer! Existe uma antiga canção que diz: “Ele vai me segurar!” Eu não consigo me firmar sozinho. Só Deus pode ajudar-me. Ele é a minha única esperança.

“Àquele que é poderoso para impedi-los de cair e para apresentá-los diante da sua glória sem mácula e com grande alegria, ao único Deus, nosso Salvador” entregue seus caminhos, sua vida, mente, seus pensamentos e o seu tempo.[8] “Porque sei em quem tenho crido e estou bem certo de que ele é poderoso para guardar o meu depósito até aquele dia.”[9] Só o Senhor pode fazê-lo. Dê-Lhe uma chance. Mantenha os olhos em Jesus. Vamos falar de Jesus! Vamos falar de amor, do amor do Senhor.—David Brandt Berg[10]

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Adquira o hábito de procurar o positivo na situação, e então manter os olhos nele, em vez de olhar para o lado sombrio.

Não sucumba ao desencorajamento, por mais que reprimido ou incomodado que se sinta. A pessoa desencorajada fica indefesa. Não consegue resistir aos ataques do inimigo sozinha nessa condição, nem prevalecer na intercessão por outros.

Busque as promessas de Deus e diga em voz alta: "Esta promessa é para mim." Se ainda sentir alguma dúvida ou desencorajamento, abra o coração para Deus e peça-Lhe para repreender o adversário que o incomoda sem misericórdia.

Assim que der as costas para todo sinal de desconfiança e desencorajamento, o bem-aventurado Espírito Santo vivificará a sua fé e soprará a força Divina na sua alma. Ah se os olhos conseguissem ver toda a força e poder que lhe são concedidos quando se afasta das hostes das trevas e olha para Deus, sem dar a mínima para as tentativas do seu inimigo de angustiar, deprimir e desencorajar!

Todas as maravilhosas virtudes de Deus estão a favor daquele que crê e que, em nome de Jesus, com uma fé simples e confiança infantil submete-se a Ele e nEle busca auxílio e orientação.—Mrs. Charles E. Cowman[11]

*

“Embora os montes sejam sacudidos e as colinas sejam removidas, ainda assim a minha fidelidade para com você não será abalada, nem a minha aliança de paz será removida", diz o Senhor, que tem compaixão de você.—Isaias 54:10[12] NVI

*

Será que você não sabe?
Nunca ouviu falar?
O Senhor é o Deus eterno, o Criador de toda a terra.
Ele não se cansa nem fica exausto, sua sabedoria é insondável.
Ele fortalece ao cansado e dá grande vigor ao que está sem forças.
Até os jovens se cansam e ficam exaustos, e os moços tropeçam e caem;
mas aqueles que esperam no Senhor renovam as suas forças. Voam bem alto como águias; correm e não ficam exaustos, andam e não se cansam.—Isaias 40:28–31[13] NVI

*

O Senhor firma os passos de um homem, quando a conduta deste o agrada;
ainda que tropece, não cairá, pois o Senhor o toma pela mão.—Salmo 37:23–24[14]NVI

Publicado no Âncora em setembro 2013. Tradução Hebe Rondon Flandoli.


[1] NIV.

[2] Mateus 4:3–10.

[3] João 8:44.

[4] Tiago 4:7.

[5] Efésios 6:10–17.

[6] Filipenses 4:8.

[7] Tito 3:2.

[8] Judas 24–25.

[9] 2 Timóteo 1:12.

[10] Greater Victories (Aurora Production, 2002).

[11] Mananciais no Deserto

[12] NVI.

[13] NIV.

[14] NIV.

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Living Without Worry

A compilation
Audio length: 9:40
Download Audio (8.8MB)

Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?—Matthew 6:271

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Do you cross rivers before you come to them, dread troubles that never come, expect evil from the Lord instead of good? In other words, is your soul full of unnecessary care? For that is what the word “careful” means—unnecessary care.

“Do not worry” is a plain and simple command, but it is such a difficult one to follow. M. D. Babcock has given a few beneficial suggestions for the person who feels defeated because of the common ailment of worry. “The anxious Christian hurts more than himself; he hurts the faith of those who know him and the good name of his Lord who has promised to supply all his needs.” There is nothing which we cannot pray about. Go deeper into the text: “But in everything by prayer and supplication let your requests be made known unto God.” What we can take to God we can trust to God. What we put our fidelity into, He will perfect by His faithfulness. While we work for the best, He works the best for us. We may not succeed as we hoped; we may have discipline we little expected, but the Father knows what His child needs. What God has for us to do we can do, or to bear we can bear. Is there not enough in His ocean to fill our pitcher? With the needs of every day will come His promised supply—“My grace is sufficient for thee.”

Do not forget the words further on in the text: “with thanksgiving.” Be on the lookout for mercies. Blessings brighten when we count them. Out of the determination of the heart the eyes see. If you want to be gloomy, there's gloom enough to keep you glum; if you want to be glad, there's gleam enough to keep you glad. Better lose count in enumerating your blessings than lose your blessings in telling your troubles.

Unbraid the verse into three cords and bind yourself to God with them in trustful, prayerful, thankful bonds—anxious for nothing, prayerful for everything, thankful for anything—“and the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”—Thoughts for Every-Day Living2

*

God does not open paths for us in advance of our coming. He does not promise help before help is needed. He does not remove obstacles out of our way before we reach them. Yet when we are on the edge of our need, God's hand is stretched out. Many people forget this, and are forever worrying about difficulties which they foresee in the future. They expect that God is going to make the way plain and open before them, miles and miles ahead; whereas He has promised to do it only step by step as they may need. You must get to the waters and into their floods before you can claim the promise. Many people dread death, and lament that they have not “dying grace.” Of course, they will not have dying grace when they are in good health, in the midst of life's duties, with death far in advance. Why should they have it then? Grace for duty is what they need then, living grace; then dying grace when they come to die.—J. R. Miller

*

Do not begin to be anxious.3

Not a few Christians live in a state of unbroken anxiety, and others fret and fume terribly. To be perfectly at peace amid the hurly-burly of daily life is a secret worth knowing. What is the use of worrying? It never made anybody strong, never helped anybody to do God's will, never made a way of escape for anyone out of perplexity. Worry spoils lives which would otherwise be useful and beautiful. Restlessness, anxiety, and care are absolutely forbidden by our Lord, who said: “Take no thought,” that is, no anxious thought, “saying what shall we eat or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed?” He does not mean that we are not to take forethought and that our life is to be without plan or method; but that we are not to worry about these things. People know you live in the realm of anxious care by the lines on your face, the tones of your voice, the minor key in your life, and the lack of joy in your spirit. Scale the heights of a life abandoned to God; then you will look down on the clouds beneath your feet.—Rev. Darlow Sargeant4

*

A record of God’s faithfulness in the past combines with hope in a better future for one end: to equip us for the present. As Tolstoy said, we have control over no other time. The past is unchangeable, the future unpredictable. I can only live the life directly before me. Faithful Christians pray, “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” and then proceed to enact God’s will—love, justice, peace, mercy, forgiveness—in the present, on earth.

If I reflect on my entire spiritual pilgrimage at once, I usually end up nostalgic for those times when God seemed so much closer. Faith, I have found, is not something I settle into, a skill I learn to master. It comes as a gift from God, and I need to pray for it every day, as I pray for daily bread. A friend of mine, paralyzed in an accident, traces her turning point in faith to this very principle. She could not face a life of total paralysis; she could, however, face one day at a time, with God’s help. The Bible contains 365 commands to “fear not”—the most reiterated command in the Bible—as if to remind us daily that we will face difficulties that might naturally provoke fear.

“There is no fear in love,” writes the apostle John, “but perfect love drives out fear….” He goes on to point to the source of that perfect love: “We love because he first loved us.” In other words, the cure to fear is not a change in circumstances, rather a deep grounding in the love of God. I ask God to reveal his love to me directly, or through my relationships with those who also know him—a prayer I think God takes great delight in answering.—Philip Yancey5

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When a guide leads you down a path that’s new to you, he doesn’t tell you what you’re going to need to do before you get to the turn or the fork in the way. He waits till you get to the point where you need to know before he tells you what to do or where to go next—and that’s the way it is with the Lord. In most cases, you don’t need to know all the details of what you’re going to do tomorrow. Jesus said not to worry about tomorrow. You often have to plan ahead, but you’re not to worry about tomorrow. Just do what God knows you can do and what God asks you to do today, and be prepared to do the same tomorrow.—David Brandt Berg6

Published on Anchor March 2014. Read by Jon Marc. Music by Michael Dooley.


1 NLT.

2 Streams in the Desert, Volume 2 (Zondervan, 1977).

3 Philippians 4:6 PBV.

4 Streams in the Desert, Volume 1 (Zondervan, 1965).

5 Reaching for the Invisible God (Zondervan, 2000).

6 More Than Conquerors. A Mountain Streams book (Aurora Production, 2002).

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Provações São Benéficas

Uma compilação

Se por um lado, “muitas são as aflições do justo,”[1] por outro é reconfortante saber que “todas as coisas contribuem juntamente par ao bem daqueles que amam o Senhor, daqueles que são chamados segundo o seu decreto”.[2] Na verdade, para conseguirmos superar nossas muitas provas, provações, dificuldades, e tentações, é de suma importância incluir em nossas vidas esta vital promessa em Romanos 8:28.

Se não passarmos os acontecimentos do nosso dia a dia pelo crivo de Romanos 8:28, se não observarmos constantemente nossos desapontamentos, mágoas, provas, doenças, adversidades, à luz de Romanos 8:28, sinto dizer que deixaremos de aprender muitas e valiosas lições que o Senhor quer nos ensinar. Além disso, deixaremos de sentir a paz resultante da confiança nessa preciosa promessa e princípio.

Seaprendermos a simples equação: "provações = bem," teremos uma vida mais rica, aprenderemos maiores lições, sentiremos paz, e será mais fácil reconhecer a mão do Senhor em tudo que nos acontece. Faz uma grande diferença quando encaramos um dilúvio de problemas, batalhas, e tribulações esperando pelo pior, ou se encaramos essas dificuldades como desafios procurando descobrir tudo de bem que o Senhor vai gerar por meio disso. —Maria Fontaine

*

Deus frequentemente faz Suas melhores obras às ocultas. Ele não nos permite provações a esmo… Ele não permite batalhas aleatoriamente… Toda dificuldade foi desenhada por Deus para o nosso bem. Elas são o forno que Deus usa para nos moldar. Nós somos o barro, e Ele o grande oleiro.

O que Deus pode fazer de bem fora das nossas vistas? Seguem-se alguns dos milhares de resultados obtidos por Deus.



Ele nos faz depender dEle.

De fato, já tínhamos sobre nós a sentença de morte, para que não confiássemos em nós mesmos, mas em Deus, que ressuscita os mortos. —2 Coríntios 1:9 NVI

Batalhas e provações nos lembram da realidade de que dependemos desesperadamente de Deus. Não conseguimos agir separados de Deus. Não chegaremos ao Céu sem a graça do Deus que nos mantém e ressuscita. Deus nos deixar passar por dificuldades para reduzir nossa autoconfiança e aumentar nossa confiança nEle.



Ele gera perseverança.

Meus irmãos, considerem motivo de grande alegria o fato de passarem por diversas provações, pois vocês sabem que a prova da sua fé produz perseverança.—Tiago 1:2–3 NVI

Se não perseverarmos… seremos como uma semente que germina rapidamente mas não tem raiz. A nossa vida será sufocada pelos cuidados deste mundo. Deus quer que tenhamos uma fé constante e perseverante que não se deixa abalar facilmente pelas provações e dificuldades. As provações amadurecem a nossa fé e produzem perseverança.



Ele nos capacita a consolarmos a outros.

Bendito seja o Deus e Pai de nosso Senhor Jesus Cristo, Pai das misericórdias e Deus de toda consolação, que nos consola em todas as nossas tribulações, para que, com a consolação que recebemos de Deus, possamos consolar os que estão passando por tribulações. —2 Coríntios ­­­1:3–4 NVI

Quando passamos por dificuldades, sentimos o consolo de Deus de uma maneira ímpar. E conforme esse consolo permeia nossas vidas, também nos prepara para consolarmos a outros. Se não recebêssemos esse consolo de Deus, não teríamos condições de consolar outros. As dificuldades nos capacitam a consolar a outros.—Stephen Altrogge[3]

*

Nenhum de nós vai conseguir amadurecer sem o calor das batalhas. Assim como o sicômoro tem que ser machucado para amadurecer, e a espiga precisa ser debulhada para chegarmos ao grão de milho, e assim como o trigo não produz farinha se não passar pelo moinho, também nós não teremos muita utilidade sem antes sermos afligidos. Por que haveríamos de querer perder esses benefícios? Teremos que esperar com paciência, dizendo: “Seja feita a vontade do Senhor”. Ele esperou para nos dar a graça; então devemos esperar para Lhe dar a glória. —Charles Spurgeon

*

Confiarei mesmo que minhas embarcações
Retornem do mar devastadas;
Confiarei na infalibilidade de Deus,
Sabendo que o mal redundará em bem;
Ainda que desolado com a perda material,
Clamarei com o coração sempre leal:
“Em Ti eu confio!”

Confiarei mesmo que grande o pesar,
E avassalado por problemas;
Confiarei nas metas que desejo alcançar,
Impelido pela angústia e dor;
Ainda que tremendo com o peso da cruz,
Eu sei que as perdas trazem luz,
E vitória ainda maior!
—Ella Wheeler Wilcox

*

Nenhum médico jamais receitou um remédio com tanta exatidão como Deus dosa cada provação. Ele nunca erra na fórmula. —Henry Ward Beecher

*

Dificuldades, provas, quebrantamentos, mágoas, sofrimento e desapontamentos são causados por muitas coisas e ocorrem por diferentes razões. Mas não importa a sua origem, você pode ficar tranquilo na certeza de que todas as coisas contribuem juntamente para o bem daqueles que Me amam. Como você Me ama, posso transformar essas batalhas em bênçãos.

Se pudesse ver como Eu vejo — além de hoje, além deste momento e do sofrimento — entenderia melhor por que as batalhas equivalem a bênçãos. Entenderia melhor por que esta perda, esta dor no seu coração, este período de grande tentação e provação com o tempo se transformará em bênção.

O segredo para entender, a chave para entender, está na questão “tempo”. Se tiver fé que Eu atuo na sua vida e que todas as coisas contribuem juntamente para o bem, com o tempo, aquilo no qual acredita por fé, passará a entender e ver, e se tornará realidade em sua vida. —Jesus, falando em profecia

*

O meu bem mais valioso é um colete salva-vidas que uso para navegar no mar da vida. Se, ao contemplar o horizonte, percebo nuvens escuras, coloco o meu colete bem firme e fico pronta para enfrentar a implacável tormenta.

Minha pequena embarcação é açoitada pelas fortes ondas que ameaçam encharcar tudo e me afogar. Mas sei que com o meu salva-vidas vou sobreviver. Na verdade, vou fazer bem mais do que isso. Vou me reerguer, talvez exausta e machucada, mas vitoriosa.

Às vezes as tempestades me pegam desprevenida, e a fúria das águas fazem meu barco emborcar, me lançando nas águas geladas. Engasgo, cuspo fora água, pego ar, mas me vejo presa num redemoinho. Quanto mais me esforço mais a água me prende.

Ali, sozinha, indefesa e sentindo-me derrotada, minha esperança só vai se reduzindo e fico aguardando o fim. Afundo mais uma vez e ouço uma Voz saindo da tormenta:

— Agarre o salva-vidas! É a sua única esperança.

Esforçando-me para ver no escuro, percebo algo flutuando e vejo que é o meu salva-vidas — sempre perto quando mais preciso dele. Eu o visto e ele me leva à superfície.

Envolta nas trevas, as ondas espumando me jogam para lá e para cá, ameaçando me afogar. A chuva cortante continua machucando meu rosto, mas estou à tona, confiando, sentindo-me segura com meu salva-vidas e esperando a tempestade amainar.

Quer saber o segredo do meu colete-salva-vidas? É tão simples que você talvez nem dê importância. É o versículo da Bíblia: “Sabemos que todas as coisas contribuem juntamente para o bem daqueles que amam a Deus”[4].

Todas as coisas — tempestades, a chuva e os ventos também — são para o nosso bem.

Um dia, de alguma maneira, vamos entender. —Stellaris Jade

Publicada no Âncora em outubro 2013. Tradução Hebe Rondon Flandoli.


[1] Salmo 34:19.

[2] Romanos 8:28.

[3] Trecho extraído http://blogs.christianpost.com/guest-views/god-often-does-his-best-work-in-the-darkness-15992.

[4] Romanos 8:28.

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