Louvar É a Vitória

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E sejam agradecidos a Deus em todas as ocasiões. Isso é o que Deus quer de vocês por estarem unidos a Cristo Jesus.—1 Tessalonicenses 5:18[1]

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Em tudo dai graças, pois essa é Minha vontade para convosco. Ao agradecer por tudo, ao regozijar em meio à aflição ou problemas, essa alegria e o poder do louvor se tornam sua força e auxílio, seu consolo e a solução. Quando louva, recebe no seu íntimo a seiva do Meu Espírito. Sua força espiritual é protegida pelo louvor. O louvor é como um tanque de oxigênio que faz possível você escalar os picos mais altos. Se você se abastecer de louvor jamais ficará sem o puro e revigorante oxigênio, não importa quão difícil a escalada.

Quando se depara com problemas e Me louva apesar de tudo, libera os lindos dons do Meu Espírito para todos verem. E transforma essas situações em oportunidades para outros verem a Minha beleza em você e atrair muitos a Mim.

Quando se reveste de louvor, você se torna atraente para quem o vê. E usar o louvor como “roupa de baixo” torna a roupa linda e com um caimento perfeito. O louvor o torna atraente. A beleza que coloquei em seu interior é liberada pelo louvor. Se deseja que outros vejam a linda dádiva de salvação e amor que coloquei dentro de seu coração, manifeste-os por meio do louvor.


O louvor é como verniz

O louvor é como o verniz mais resistente usado pelo carpinteiro, protege a madeira de arranhões, água e cupim. Quando louva você enverniza o seu espírito, de modo que, não importa o que o Inimigo atire contra você, não causará dano algum.

Quando se encontrar em uma circunstância de extrema dificuldade, esse é o momento perfeito para empregar a arma do louvor. Quando ouve sua própria voz Me louvando e agradecendo no meio de um acontecimento que não considera ideal, isso aumenta a sua fé. E essa atmosfera de fé gera mais fé e inspira você e as pessoas ao seu redor.

Quando outras pessoas veem sua reação positiva a uma situação aparentemente negativa, ficam motivadas. Produz um efeito dominó de influenciar outros a confiarem em Mim não importam as circunstâncias.


Nas asas do louvor

Vejo e sei que seu coração está magoado e afligido. Eu o aproximo ainda mais do Meu seio nesses momentos de perda e angústia. Sei como é difícil deixar o sofrimento e a dor, e Me louvar. Sua natureza lhe diz para se agarrar à dor, ocultar e alimentar esses sentimentos. Mas se abrir bem as mãos para liberar esse pesar, ele voará embora nas asas do louvor, e Eu concluirei a cura. Abra seu coração e mãos, e deixe o louvor encher seu coração – louve pela maneira como vou sarar todo coração quebrantado e pesar. Farei tudo ficar maravilhoso novamente.

Diante de uma situação difícil, entre a espada e a parede, uma das armas mais eficazes que pode empregar para detonar ou transpor os obstáculos é o louvor. O louvor que emana do âmago do seu espírito; louvor que confia em Mim e que sabe por fé que tudo está bem, pois você está em Minhas mãos. Ativar essa arma o colocará no caminho da vitória.


O louvor é …

O louvor é o seu salva-vidas num oceano perigoso.

O louvor é o paraquedas que garante uma aterrissagem segura.

O louvor é um par de asas que o eleva acima da tormenta.

O louvor é o que sustenta a sua vida.

O louvor é a sua armadura que desvia todos os dardos inflamados e golpes do Inimigo.

O louvor é o segredo para você superar as batalhas e tribulações desta vida, ele o traz à Minha presença.


Louvor quer chova, quer faça sol

Quando consegue tratar o sucesso e o fracasso com dignidade, então é espiritualmente maduro. Quando consegue Me louvar na felicidade e na tristeza, na abundância e na necessidade, em situações seguras e perigosas, na saúde e na doença, na alegria e no sofrimento, na vida e na morte, então possui grande fé. É uma pessoa muitíssima honrada em Minha corte, por seu grande amor por Mim e confiança em Mim.

Eleve seu coração ao céu através do louvor, e a glória jorrará, levando embora toda a dor, temor, desespero, mágoa, tristeza, desânimo, ou qualquer coisa com a qual o Inimigo esteja tentando dominá-lo. Essa inundação é purificadora para você e destruidora para o inimigo. Você ficará limpo, revigorado, renovado e revitalizado.

O louvor emite uma energia espiritual positiva que gera mudanças imediatas nas circunstâncias ao seu redor. A mudança nem sempre é vista no plano físico, pelo menos não de imediato, mas, no plano do espírito, mudanças para melhor ficam imediatamente evidentes. Você pode Me pedir para abrir seus olhos espirituais para também conseguir ver a mudança e partilhar da força da energia positiva que o envolveu.


Crescer em fé

As batalhas e dificuldades da vida que hoje parecem tão grandes ficarão pequenas quando rever sua vida na terra e entender claramente como direcionei cada aspecto de sua vida. Se voar nas asas do louvor, aprenderá o que é verdadeiramente descansar em Mim e Me deixar levar os seus fardos

Quer que sua fé cresça? Aprenda a Me louvar em momentos difíceis. Não há louvor sem fé, porque se não acreditasse que sou capaz de fazer com que resulte em bem, então não haveria nada pelo que Me louvar em momentos difíceis. Então o fato de louvar demonstra que você tem fé, ou que está se empenhando para ter fé.

Mesmo quando sua vida for atingida por um desastre e você se sentir devastado emocionalmente, pode Me louvar sabendo que vou dar um jeito em tudo no céu. Enxugarei todas as suas lágrimas e o recompensarei por todos os sacrifícios. No céu, a vida será perfeita; então se tudo que consegue fazer é olhar para o futuro e dizer, “Obrigado Jesus, sei que um dia Você vai endireitar tudo isso,” você manifesta sua fé e confiança em Mim através de seu louvor.

Enfrentar uma situação sem louvar é negar a Minha influência na sua vida. Não importa a situação, problema ou desafio, estou sempre ao seu lado. Essa situação que o está atribulando e deixando tão infeliz, um dia, de alguma forma, vai contribuir para o seu bem.

Se orou por pão, mas parece que só lhe dou pedras, talvez seja porque estou tentando ajudá-lo a construir um forno, assim poderá assar todo o pão que precisar. A sua vida é por fé, não por vista. Por isso pode Me louvar por coisas que ainda não viu. Com a fé, o tempo é irrelevante. Você tem certeza que mais cedo ou mais cumprirei tudo que prometi, e isso é algo pelo qual vale a pena louvar.

A Bíblia fala de cidades e regiões inteiras onde não pude ajudar ou realizar muitos milagres por não acreditarem em Meu poder. Que essa não seja a história da sua vida. Seja-lhe feito segundo a sua fé. Se acredita que posso transformar qualquer situação para o seu bem de alguma forma, quer nesta vida quer na próxima, e Me louva por isso, então posso. Mas se acredita que uma certa situação está além da Minha capacidade de endireitar as coisas, vai se limitar com sua incredulidade, e essa triste atitude se tornará a sua realidade.

Quando oferece gratidão, invoca o Meu poder pleno para abençoar e fazer prosperar a sua vida.

Publicado originalmente em novembro de 2008. Adaptado e republicado em fevereiro de 2015.


[1] NLT.

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No Time to Be Nice at Work

By Christine Porath, NY Times, June 19, 2015

MEAN bosses could have killed my father. I vividly recall walking into a hospital room outside of Cleveland to see my strong, athletic dad lying with electrodes strapped to his bare chest. What put him there? I believe it was work-related stress. For years he endured two uncivil bosses.

Rudeness and bad behavior have all grown over the last decades, particularly at work. For nearly 20 years I’ve been studying, consulting and collaborating with organizations around the world to learn more about the costs of this incivility. How we treat one another at work matters. Insensitive interactions have a way of whittling away at people’s health, performance and souls.

Robert M. Sapolsky, a Stanford professor and the author of “Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers,” argues that when people experience intermittent stressors like incivility for too long or too often, their immune systems pay the price. We also may experience major health problems, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and ulcers.

Intermittent stressors–like experiencing or witnessing uncivil incidents or even replaying one in your head–elevate levels of hormones called glucocorticoids throughout the day, potentially leading to a host of health problems, including increased appetite and obesity. A study published in 2012 that tracked women for 10 years concluded that stressful jobs increased the risk of a cardiovascular event by 38 percent.

Bosses produce demoralized employees through a string of actions: walking away from a conversation because they lose interest; answering calls in the middle of meetings without leaving the room; openly mocking people by pointing out their flaws or personality quirks in front of others; reminding their subordinates of their “role” in the organization and “title”; taking credit for wins, but pointing the finger at others when problems arise. Employees who are harmed by this behavior, instead of sharing ideas or asking for help, hold back.

I’ve surveyed hundreds of people across organizations spanning more than 17 industries, and asked people why they behaved uncivilly. Over half of them claim it is because they are overloaded, and more than 40 percent say they have no time to be nice. But respect doesn’t necessarily require extra time. It’s about how something is conveyed; tone and nonverbal manner are crucial.

INCIVILITY also hijacks workplace focus. According to a survey of more than 4,500 doctors, nurses and other hospital personnel, 71 percent tied disruptive behavior, such as abusive, condescending or insulting personal conduct, to medical errors, and 27 percent tied such behavior to patient deaths.

My studies with Amir Erez, a management professor at the University of Florida, show that people working in an environment characterized by incivility miss information that is right in front of them. They are no longer able to process it as well or as efficiently as they would otherwise.

In one study, the experimenter belittled the peer group of the participants, who then performed 33 percent worse on anagram word puzzles and came up with 39 percent fewer creative ideas during a brainstorming task focused on how they might use a brick. In our second study, a stranger–a “busy professor” encountered en route to the experiment–was rude to participants by admonishing them for bothering her. Their performance was 61 percent worse on word puzzles, and they produced 58 percent fewer ideas in the brick task than those who had not been treated rudely. We found the same pattern for those who merely witnessed incivility: They performed 22 percent worse on word puzzles and produced 28 percent fewer ideas in the brainstorming task.

Customers behave the same way. In studies I did with the marketing professors Deborah MacInnis and Valerie S. Folkes at the University of Southern California, we found that people were less likely to patronize a business that has an employee who is perceived as rude–whether the rudeness is directed at them or at other employees. Witnessing a short negative interaction leads customers to generalize about other employees, the organization and even the brand.

Many are skeptical about the returns of civility. A quarter believe that they will be less leader-like, and nearly 40 percent are afraid that they’ll be taken advantage of if they are nice at work. Nearly half think that it is better to flex one’s muscles to garner power. They are jockeying for position in a competitive workplace and don’t want to put themselves at a disadvantage.

Why is respect–or lack of it–so potent? Charles Horton Cooley’s 1902 notion of the “looking glass self” explains that we use others’ expressions (smiles), behaviors (acknowledging us) and reactions (listening to us or insulting us) to define ourselves. How we believe others see us shapes who we are. We ride a wave of pride or get swallowed in a sea of embarrassment based on brief interactions that signal respect or disrespect. Individuals feel valued and powerful when respected. Civility lifts people. Incivility holds people down. It makes people feel small.

Even though a growing number of people are disturbed by incivility, I’ve found that it has continued to climb over the last two decades. A quarter of those I surveyed in 1998 reported that they were treated rudely at work at least once a week. That figure rose to nearly half in 2005, then to just over half in 2011. Incivility often grows out of ignorance, not malice. A surgeon told me that until he received some harsh feedback, he was clueless that so many people thought he was a jerk. He was simply treating residents the way he had been trained. Technology distracts us. We’re wired to our smartphones. It’s increasingly challenging to be present and to listen. It’s tempting to fire off texts and emails during meetings; to surf the Internet while on conference calls or in classes; and, for some, to play games rather than tune in. While offering us enormous conveniences, electronic communication also leads to misunderstandings. It’s easy to misread intentions. We can take out our frustrations, hurl insults and take people down a notch from a safe distance. Although in surveys people say they are afraid they will not rise in an organization if they are really friendly and helpful, the civil do succeed. My recent studies with Alexandra Gerbasi and Sebastian Schorch at the Grenoble École de Management, published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, show that behavior involving politeness and regard for others in the workplace pays off. In a study in a biotechnology company, those seen as civil were twice as likely to be viewed as leaders. Civility elicits perceptions of warmth and competence. Susan T. Fiske, a professor at Princeton, and Amy J. C. Cuddy, a professor at Harvard, with their colleagues have conducted research that suggests that these two traits drive our impressions of others, accounting for more than 90 percent of the variation in the positive or negative impressions we form of those around us. These impressions dictate whether people will trust you, build relationships with you, follow you and support you. The catch: There can be a perceived inverse relationship between warmth and competence. A strength in one can suggest a weakness of the other. Some people are seen as competent but cold–he’s very smart, but people will hate working for him. Or they’re seen as warm but incompetent–she’s really friendly, but probably not very smart. Leaders can use simple rules to win the hearts and minds of their people–with huge returns. Making small adjustments such as listening, smiling, sharing and thanking others more often can have a huge impact. In one unpublished experiment I conducted, a smile and simple thanks (as compared with not doing this) resulted in people being viewed as 27 percent warmer, 13 percent more competent and 22 percent more civil. Civil gestures can spread. Ochsner Health System, a large Louisiana health care provider, implemented what it calls the “10/5 way.” Employees are encouraged to make eye contact if they’re within 10 feet of someone, and say hello if they’re within five feet. Ochsner reports improvements on patient satisfaction and patient referrals. To be fully attentive and improve your listening skills, remove obstacles. John Gilboy told me about a radical approach he took as an executive of a multibillion-dollar consumer products company. Desperate to stop excessive multitasking in his weekly meetings, he decided to experiment: he placed a box at the door and required all attendees to drop their smartphones in it so that everyone would be fully engaged and attentive to one another. He didn’t allow people to use their laptops either. The change was a challenge; initially employees were “like crack addicts as the box was buzzing,” he said. But the meetings became vastly more productive. Within weeks, they slashed the length of the meetings by half. He reported more presence, participation and, as the tenor of the meetings changed, fun. What about the jerks who seem to succeed despite being rude and thoughtless? Those people have succeeded despite their incivility, not because of it. Studies by Morgan W. McCall Jr., a professor of management and organization at the University of Southern California, including those with Michael Lombardo while they were with the Center for Creative Leadership, have shown that the No. 1 characteristic associated with an executive’s failure is an insensitive, abrasive or bullying style. Power can force compliance. But insensitivity or disrespect often sabotages support in crucial situations. Employees may fail to share important information and withhold efforts or resources. Sooner or later, uncivil people sabotage their success–or at least their potential. Payback may come immediately or when they least expect it, and it may be intentional or unconscious. Civility pays dividends. J. Gary Hastings, a retired judge in Los Angeles, told me that when he informally polled juries about what determined their favor, he found that respect–and how attorneys behaved–was crucial. Juries were swayed based on thin slices of civil or arrogant behavior. Across many decisions–whom to hire, who will be most effective in teams, who will be able to be influential–civility affects judgments and may shift the balance toward those who are respectful. Given the enormous cost of incivility, it should not be ignored. We all need to reconsider our behavior. You are always in front of some jury. In every interaction, you have a choice: Do you want to lift people up or hold them down? These are the rude behaviors by bosses most often cited in a recent survey, in descending order of frequency. • Interrupts people • Is judgmental of those who are different • Pays little attention to or shows little interest in others’ opinions • Takes the best and leaves the worst tasks for others • Fails to pass along necessary information • Neglects saying please or thank you • Talks down to people • Takes too much credit for things • Swears • Puts others down These are the rude behaviors people most often admit to seeing in themselves. • Hibernates into e-gadgets • Uses jargon even when it excludes others • Ignores invitations • Is judgmental of those who are different • Grabs easy tasks while leaving difficult ones for others • Does not listen • Emails/texts during meetings • Pays little attention to others • Takes others’ contributions for granted • Belittles others nonverbally • Neglects saying please or thank you

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I went to prison, and it nearly destroyed my family

By William Tank Black, Washington Post, June 19, 2015 My youngest son was only 4 years old when I was sent to prison. He was so attached to me that any time I tried to go anywhere, he would holler and cry for me not to leave. He liked for me to read to him in the morning, and he would sit and listen and stare at the book while I read to him. We watched “The Nutty Professor” so many times together he knew the whole movie by heart. I taught him how to catch and throw a small football in our backyard. I never envisioned I would ever be separated from him. Three days into my incarceration, he kept telling his mother, “Ask him, Mom, ask him.” I asked her what it was. She told me it was Father-Son day on Friday at school, and he wanted to make sure I would be able to come. When I heard that, my heart broke into a million pieces. A feeling of desperation come over me that I had never felt in my life. I immediately had to go to my room and lie down and cry. That day I knew that my incarceration would have a devastating effect not only me but all of my family members. Our nation’s jail and prison population has sharply increased in the past few decades: 2.3 million people in 2010 compared to just 500,000 in 1980. These figures represented the highest incarceration rate in the world. Some 1.2 million inmates–more than half of the incarcerated population–were parents of children under age 18. Two-thirds of these incarcerated parents were serving time for a non-violent crime while one-third were serving time for a violent one. As a result, there are 2.7 million minor children who have a parent in jail or prison. In other words, one in 28 American children (3.6 percent) has an incarcerated parent. Just 25 years ago, the number was one in 125. A report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics found that half of the mothers (52 percent) and fathers (54 percent) in state prison stated that they were the primary provider for their children before their incarceration. Prisoners who are released are almost always far worse off than when they were first imprisoned. Most come out with no money, no transportation, no job and no employment or life skills. For my family and many others, the consequences of incarceration were devastating. I was arrested on July 5, 2000. I’d spent the morning talking with my wife and kids at the breakfast table about where we would go on summer vacation. We decided on Washington, D.C. and New Orleans. I kissed everyone and left on my way to my office. I was driving up Two Notch Road in Columbia, South Carolina, thinking how fast my kids were growing up, when an unmarked car flashed its blue lights behind me. I pulled over, thinking they were trying to get to a car in front of me, and it followed me into a parking lot. Before I could even roll my window down to ask what the problem was, a half-dozen police vehicles converged. Cops and detectives tumbled out, guns at the ready in my face. Next thing I knew, I was sitting in the caged back seat of a sheriff’s cruiser, hands behind my husky torso, cuffs biting into my wrist, looking out grimy windows, stunned by what was happening. I had no idea I wouldn’t be free again for more than eight years. Before my arrest, I owned Professional Management Inc., a sports management company worth more than $125 million. I was known as one of the few super-agents in sports, the first NFL agent to have five No. 1 picks in the same draft. My clients included Vince Carter, Barry Sanders, Sterling Sharpe, Shannon Sharpe and Andre Rison. I served on the boards of charities. I’d been a member of First Northeast Baptist Church board for 17 years. My family was thriving. My children were well-rounded, just kids enjoying life. On that day in July, everyone I loved had their lives turn upside down. I was arrested for conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering. I was convicted and, as a non-violent, first-time offender, sentenced to 142 months in prison. I would serve 105. (Later, on appeal, I was cleared of defrauding my clients.) I had no idea the impact my incarceration would have on me, let alone on my family and the people I love: financial instability, separation, loss of assets, divorce, fear, anger, loss of control, hopelessness and desperation. Upon my arrest, all my finances were frozen and later seized. A few months later, my wife and kids lost our home and moved from South Carolina to Tennessee to live with my wife’s parents. I was sent into transit from Lexington County, S.C. jail to the United States Penitentiary Atlanta to Detroit’s Wayne County Jail to Milan, Mich.’s federal detention center. This process took more than three months. I only spoke with my wife and kids four or five times a month for just a few minutes at a time. For the first time in my life, I had been taken away from my them and had very little communication with them. Federal prisoners only get 300 minutes a month of phone time, which comes out to 10 minutes a day. I never understood that rule. How can you even try to comfort your children and have any meaningful conversations with them with only 10 minutes a day? I was my children’s anchor and support base. In a blink of an eye, it was taken away from them. They struggled to find stability and direction. My daughter had just turned 14 when I was taken away. She had always been a daddy’s girl. Academics came easily to her. The only time my daughter made a B, she came home crying as if the world had ended. She and I decided to go meet with the teacher the next morning to plead for her to do something extra to bring her grade to an A. Thankfully the plea was granted. During my incarceration, my daughter, normally confident and determined, experienced uncontrollable crying spells and would go into a state of depression. She was no longer a straight-A student and no longer focused on becoming a doctor. She became angry and resentful. She attended the University of Chattanooga on a full academic scholarship but soon dropped out. She became pregnant and had her first child at age 19. I am certain had I not been incarcerated my daughter would have never dropped out of school, never would have gotten pregnant and she would be a doctor today. I am blessed to say my daughter is now married and attending college, earning a degree as a pharmacist. My oldest son, from a previous relationship, had come into my life for the first time in 1999, when I learned he was mine. He was 21 at the time, had a job driving a truck for a major grocery store and was doing well. We were both ecstatic to finally stand on the truth of our relationship. I bought him a new SUV, some clothes, paid his rent for a year and gave him some money–a small token of what I would have and should have been able to do for him. But by the time he turned 22, I was incarcerated. After I went to prison, he quit his job and started selling drugs, something he had never done. In 2009, he was sentenced to 54 months in federal prison for drug distribution. He was released in 2012. Finding a good job as a convicted felon has been difficult for him. My middle son, an introvert with a talent for computers and musical instruments, was 16 on the day I went to prison. He had to drop out of public school and get his GED because of the immense national and local negative press concerning me at the time. Everyone knew that I was his father, and he was heckled and unfairly badgered because of my incarceration. I thank God he did not turn to drugs and did the best he could dealing with the loss of his father and the comfortable life he was used to. My youngest son was just 4. We made a decision to tell him I was gone on a long business trip. Throughout my incarceration, he would continually ask me when I was coming home from my business trip. I would tell him I did not know when I was coming home, to which he once said to me, “Daddy, you have been gone one hundred thousand million days,” How do you tell a 4-year-old that you will not be coming home for years? My wife had never worked outside of caring for our children and our home. She had a rare case of lupus that attacked her nervous system without warning; the stress after I was taken away only added to her condition. My wife and I had our bumps in the road in our 20 years of marriage, but we were always able to overcome them. She came to visit me many times throughout my prison term, but after 60 months, she served me with divorce papers. We only got to talk less than 10 minutes a day and visit once every two months because of finances and distance. She felt like her life was at a standstill with me still facing more than three years. As I sat in the cold holding cell looking through the divorce papers, knowing that my incarceration had ended our decades of marriage, I was flooded with emotion. I thought back to when we first met and the many laughs and happy times we had shared. I worried what our kids would think and how it would affect them. Studies consistently show that incarceration during marriage is correlated with higher divorce rates. When one spouse has been incarcerated before getting married, the couple isn’t any more likely to split up–but when a spouse is incarcerated during the marriage, the odds of divorce increase. One recent study found that each year of incarceration increases the odds that the inmate’s marriage will end in divorce (before or after the inmate gets out of prison) by an average of 32 percent. Though my wife and I are good friends today, our marriage couldn’t survive prison. Today’s prisons do not provide any kind of substantial rehabilitation, and the vast majority provide no rehabilitation, employment skills or life skills. Inmates’ families are broken. At the very least our prisons need to provide employable job and life skills, such as money management, technical job skills training, resume and interview classes and credit repair. This would allow a major step towards helping to rebuild the family unit. Our system of justice is a failed one that has incarcerated millions of non-violent citizens who pose no serious threat to our society, at a cost of billions of dollars. Our system needs to utilize viable and sensible alternatives to incarceration for this group of non-violent citizens such as probation, house arrest, restitution and community service. For someone like myself who never dreamed of going to prison and does not have a criminal mind, incarceration is the closest thing to death. The emotional pain of losing your family and everything you have is unexplainable. Then upon your release you are branded a convicted felon for life. This Father’s Day, I thank God for bringing me through the storms of my incarceration and protecting my family. I have learned to appreciate the gift of life far more than I ever did. But it didn’t have to be this way.

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Pope Asks Pardon From Waldensian Protestants for Past Persecution

Reuters, June 22, 2015

TURIN, Italy–Pope Francis asked forgiveness on Monday for the Roman Catholic Church’s “non-Christian and inhumane” treatment in the past of the Waldensians, a tiny Protestant movement the Vatican tried to exterminate in the 15th century.

Francis made his plea during the first ever visit by a pope to a Waldensian temple on the second day of a trip to Italy’s northern Piedmont region, the center of the Waldensian Church, which has only about 30,000 followers worldwide.

While the movement is miniscule compared to the 1.2 billion member Roman Catholic Church, the gesture is part of Francis’ drive to promote Christian unity and it has taken on added significance ahead of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation in 2017.

“On behalf of the Catholic Church, I ask forgiveness for the un-Christian and even inhumane positions and actions taken against you historically,” he said. “In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us!”

The Waldensians, who now live mostly in Italy and Latin America, were founded by Peter Waldo in France in the late 12th century. He gave up his wealth and preached poverty but as the movement grew it came into increasing theological conflict with the papacy.

The movement, an early precursor of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, was branded as heretical and in 1487 Pope Innocent VIII ordered its extermination.

Some 1,700 Waldensians were killed in 1655 by Catholic forces commanded by the Duke of Savoy.

Today the Waldensians are part of the World Communion of Reformed Churches and the World Council of Churches. They have only two sacraments–baptism and the Lord’s Supper–as opposed to seven in the Roman Catholic Church, a member of the Italian branch said.

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Testado e Comprovado

link
Maria Fontaine

“Mesmo na velhice darão fruto, permanecerão viçosos e verdejantes.”—Salmo 92:14[1]

“Mesmo na sua velhice, quando tiverem cabelos brancos, sou eu aquele, aquele que os susterá. Eu os fiz e eu os levarei; eu os susterei e eu os salvarei.”—Isaías 46:4[2]

O Senhor deu lindas promessas para aqueles de nós que estão ficando mais velhos, mencionando as maneiras incríveis, mesmo que humilhantes, como nos usa e quer continuar usando. Eu acredito que ficarão animados ao verem que o Senhor juntou várias peças do quebra-cabeça de suas vidas. Ele tem um plano magistral e está colocando cada um de nós no lugar certo para desempenharmos a função que Ele espera e assim cumprirmos o nosso destino.

Todos que estão na Família há alguns anos possuem a bênção de toda a experiência adquirida no serviço a Deus. Conforme fazemos a nossa parte para ganhar o mundo para Jesus, cada um de nós dará fruto no Seu serviço. Sendo assim, é típico do Inimigo tentar se meter e dizer que o Senhor vai aposentar vocês conforme ficam mais velhos. Nada poderia estar mais longe da verdade! Por isso, se você tem remoído pensamentos de que talvez os seus dias mais emocionantes a serviço do Senhor são algo do passado, ou que não é mais tão útil e em breve será colocado para escanteio, repense!

Alguns de vocês ficam desanimados ou até preocupados com a necessidade de diminuírem um pouco o ritmo fisicamente. Chega uma hora quando o corpo de todo o mundo começa a reduzir o ritmo. É preciso fazer isso para se adaptar às mudanças do corpo, não extrapolar seus limites, e poder se manter saudável à medida que vai envelhecendo. É claro que, se a pessoa se exercitar regularmente, alimentar-se bem e cuidar bem do seu “templo”, isso ajudará o corpo a viver mais tempo sem sentir tanto os efeitos mais graves da velhice. Mas é inegável que, quanto mais velho se fica, mais difícil é trabalhar tanto quanto na juventude — sem sofrer as consequências do abuso. E, para alguns, ter que diminuir o ritmo exige uma grande adaptação.

Em um certo sentido é uma bênção maravilhosa, porque o Senhor quer nos ensinar a depender mais dEle do que da nossa própria força física. E quando a força física é praticamente ilimitada, fica difícil se apoiar nEle. Mas quando começa a perceber que não consegue fazer tudo o tempo todo, isso o obriga a se apoiar mais no Seu Espírito, e escolher investir seu tempo e esforço nas coisas mais importantes.

Cada um tem suas características. Uma pessoa pode começar a ter um problema de saúde aos cinquenta e poucos anos que cause um grande impacto no seu ritmo, já outras continuam ativas até aos oitenta anos. Ainda assim, o Senhor quer que todos, jovens e velhos, aprendam a trabalhar no Espírito, equilibrando as prioridades com o máximo de sabedoria, por mais energia física que tenhamos. Seja diligente e cuide bem do seu templo para o Senhor poder usar sua força física e energia o máximo de tempo possível. E entenda que, quando precisar diminuir o ritmo, o Senhor continuará usando você de novas maneiras conforme se apoia ainda mais nEle.

Conforme envelhecer, em algum momento terá que ajustar suas prioridades, porque não terá condições de fazer tudo o que está acostumado, ou no mesmo ritmo. Peter e eu já sentimos isso até certo ponto. Faz parte da vida. Alguns de vocês começaram a ter problemas sérios de saúde, o que pode aumentar ainda mais a falta de vigor.

Alguns de vocês me escreveram explicando as batalhas que travam com sua saúde, e a surpresa que foi perceberem que não têm mais a força e a energia de antes. Sentem como se ainda tivessem muito para contribuir no espírito, pois acumularam sabedoria e experiência, são pessoas dedicadas e têm paixão por servir o Senhor, mas as limitações físicas são alheias à sua vontade. Por mais visão, iniciativa e inspiração que tenham, simplesmente não conseguem continuar fazendo tudo o que faziam antes. Mas a realidade é que, em algum ponto na sua vida, o corpo vai começar a diminuir o ritmo, e às vezes o máximo que podem fazer é aprender a trabalhar em um ritmo mais lento.

O Senhor é sempre muito encorajador! Ele tem uma visão bastante diferente da nossa, e sabemos que tem planos de nos prosperar em cada etapa da nossa vida. Acredito que depois que mudamos nosso modo de pensar e aceitamos as novas fases da vida, torna-se mais fácil aceitar as mudanças, e em muitos sentidos é até mais gratificante.

“Coroa de honra são as cãs quando se encontram no caminho da justiça.”[3] Não importa a nossa idade ou o local onde o Senhor nos coloca, a seara ainda é grande e os ceifeiros poucos. E ele continua tendo um plano para cada dia das nossas vidas! “Porque eu bem sei os pensamentos que tenho a vosso respeito, diz o Senhor; pensamentos de paz, e não de mal, para vos dar o fim que esperais.”[4]
A vida continua

Vem a idade, mas não a aposentadoria
A batalha continua sempre real,
E é travada a cada dia
Até ganharmos a vitória final.

Avante, deixe pra lá o cansaço,
Batalhe sempre com liberdade.
O Salvador nos dá uma vontade de aço
E queremos acima de tudo a Sua vontade.

O corpo fraqueja com o passar dos anos,
O espírito, porém, sempre constante.
O fôlego de Deus não é humano,
É eterno, firme e abundante.

Sobrepuja o que é temporal,
Cada ano com mais destemor.
Então guia o meu íntimo
Até eu chegar à casa do Senhor.

O que é do mundo desvaloriza
A luz do alto é incomparável
Reduz o ódio do ser humano
O amor de Deus é mais afável.

Vou proclamar ao carente
Teu valor por todos os cantos,
Para na velhice ainda Te louvar,
E Teu bem-aventurado nome glorificar.

Quero trabalhar na Tua vinha
Mais do que até agora fiz,
Colher o que Tu plantaste,
Ser Teu aprendiz;

Um dia diante do Trono eterno,
Ter fruto para entregar,
Não Me gabar de obra minha,
Mas a Ti, meu Rei, glorificar.

—Autor anônimo

Publicado originalmente em setembro 2007. Adaptado e republicado em junho de 2015.


[1] NVI.

[2] NVI.

[3] Provérbios 16:31.

[4] Jeremias 29:11.

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From Here to Eternity

By D. Brandt Berg
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Audio length: 14:42
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The Bible and the words of God’s prophets are actually the only real newspapers or news books. Newspapers tell you what already happened yesterday, so they’re not reallynewspapers; they’re history papers. But the Bible tells us what is going to happen in the future. It is full of detailed prophecies describing specific people, places, times, situations and events thousands of years before they came into being.

Many of these prophecies are about the final period of world history, just before Jesus returns to set up His kingdom of love and peace on earth. These latter days of man’s kingdoms on earth are known in the Bible as the “time of the end,” the “latter days,” the “last days”—the time in which you and I are now living.1

When Jesus’ disciples wanted to know the future and asked Him, “What shall be the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world?” He didn’t reply with only one sign, but with dozens. In fact, the Bible gives hundreds of “signs of the times,” signs and signals that we are to look out for so that we can know how close to the very end we are.2

These signs include “famines, pestilences and earthquakes in diverse places,”3 “the gospel being preached in all the world for a witness to all nations,”4 a drastic increase in international travel, with “many running to and fro, wandering from sea to sea, as knowledge is increased.”5 A great “falling away”6 from the faith as “evil men and seducers grow worse and worse, deceiving many”7; “the love of many growing cold,”8 resulting in “distress of nations upon the earth and men’s hearts failing them for fear.”9 We are seeing the fulfillment of many of these signs today more than ever before.

One of the most important and final signs of the very end that the prophets predicted is the rise of a totally godless anti-Christ world government led by a dictator who will be possessed by Satan himself. He will come on the scene with a seven-year agreement or covenant in which he will promise the world peace and religious freedom, and he will somehow settle the current crisis in the Middle East.10

During the first half of the Antichrist’s seven-year covenant, people are going to think that he is wonderful, as he will have brought peace, restored the world’s economy, solved the Middle East crisis, etc. But suddenly, halfway through his seven-year reign, he will break the covenant, invade Israel from the north, and will forbid and abolish all traditional religious worship, declaring that he is God and demanding that all the world worship him.11

At this time he will place an idol, an image of himself, in the Jewish temple area, an “abomination of desolation” which may be some kind of a computerized robot, as it will speak and somehow even cause those who refuse to worship it to be killed. Jesus Himself said that when you see this idol, this abomination of desolation, standing there, then would begin the last three and a half years of man’s rule on earth, a time of “Great Tribulation.”12

During this three-and-a-half-year period people won’t use paper money anymore, because the Antichrist government is going to set up a one-world credit system, and all members of the system who worship this Antichrist will be permanently branded with a credit number in their hands or foreheads. The Antichrist government will use this new credit system to try to force everybody to either worship the Antichrist or starve to death, because no one will be able to buy or sell without this number or “Mark of the Beast.” But God’s children will refuse to worship him or receive his mark, and the Lord will take care of them, even if He has to drop manna from heaven to feed them.13

During this Tribulation period, ten “kings” will join the Antichrist and together they will destroy and “devour with fire Babylon, the great whore.”—A final judgment which, according to many scriptures, sounds like a nuclear first strike that will destroy this modern Babylon in one hour.14

This great atomic war, along with the Antichrist’s worldwide suppression and persecution of all who refuse to worship him, will make this Great Tribulation period a time of trouble such as the world has never known! That’s why God, in His Word, repeatedly tells us how long this period of Great Tribulation will last—exactly three and one half years, or 42 months, or 1260 days from the time that the Antichrist sets up his image in the temple—to encourage His followers to hang on and keep going for Him.15

Because at the end of that last three and a half years, just when the fiendish Antichrist thinks he has the world in his grasp, suddenly like a bolt from the blue, Jesus will return and snatch all of His children out of this world! Just after that darkest night in world history, we are going to have the brightest dawn. Jesus is going to come back and rescue His own, His church, His people, everyone who loves Him and knows Him and has received Him in their hearts.16

All of the Christians who have already died and gone on to be with Jesus will come back with Him to pick up their new resurrection bodies. And “the earth shall cast out her dead.”17 Then those who are alive and remain, having miraculously survived throughout the Antichrist’s reign of terror, will instantly be changed, transformed, and receive new, miraculous, supernatural, resurrection bodies—just like Jesus’ body after He was resurrected! And up we’ll sail toward the sky, “to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”18

All of the Antichrist’s people will be shocked as they see the Lord coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, lighting up the whole sky like permanent lightning! The powers of the heavens are shaken as the Lord descends with a great shout. A terrific blast sounds on the trumpet of God, and the graves of the saints burst open as the dead are raised! All of God’s children who are still alive will be transformed before their eyes, flying upward to meet Jesus. “Every eye shall see Him, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him.”19

Jesus will come back to catch His bride, His church, out of the evil clutches of the enemy and then whisk them away to the grandest, most glorious and thrilling wedding party that’s ever been held, the Marriage Supper of the Lamb in heaven. Then, right after the Lord rescues and raptures His bride to be with Him, the seven vials of the wrath of God are going to be poured out upon the Antichrist and his followers in terrible plagues such as the world has never known.20

God will pour out His judgments and wrath upon the Antichrist and his forces until the final wrath of all, when the wicked gather together at Armageddon in Israel to try to fight the very forces of God. Then Jesus Himself, along with His resurrected, glorified, heavenly forces, will return to earth on majestic white chargers out of heaven to utterly defeat and destroy the Antichrist and his forces in the supernatural, catastrophic Battle of Armageddon.21

Then the saints of God, along with our king Jesus Christ, will take over the world and organize it and rule it and run it the way it should have been run if man had yielded to God. We’re going to set up the kingdom of God on earth and restore the earth to the beauty of the Garden of Eden again! This amazing period will last for one thousand years, and therefore it is known as the Millennium.22

The Devil will be bound and cast as a prisoner into the bottomless pit for this thousand-year period, and God is going to be supreme and Jesus will reign from shore to shore, and His saints will rule and reign with Him. Then and only then, under the supreme and powerful rule and reign of Christ and God’s children, will all wars finally cease and the world will at last be governed fairly and well with true justice, liberty, peace, plenty, and happiness for all.23

During the Millennium, all the born-again, resurrected saints will be in new supernatural bodies, with miraculous powers such as indestructibility, no pain, sickness, or death. The rest of the people, those who have been spared and blessed enough to survive into the Millennium, are going to still be in their old natural bodies. Everyone on earth will see God’s glorious power and kingdom and everybody will believe then. So there won’t be any unbelievers, but I’m afraid there will still be some unreceivers who won’t yield and won’t obey and will still be stubborn, rebellious, and defiant.24

Therefore, as a final test and a final sifting, at the end of the Millennium Satan is going to be released from his prison in the heart of the earth for a “little season,” just long enough to deceive the unconverted wicked. These rebels will again follow him to the full, in open rebellion against the Lord and His government, resulting in the catastrophic Battle of Gog and Magog in which God sends down fire out of heaven to devour them completely.25

In fact, He will cause such a fire to come down that it will completely wipe out the entire surface of the earth, and the heavens shall be rolled back like a scroll and depart with a great noise! It’s all going to explode and be burned up, and the entire surface of the ball is going to be completely purged, cleansed, burned up, and re-created into a beautiful new earth.26

After this climactic battle of Gog and Magog, the unsaved of all ages will be raised to stand before God Himself in the final judgment in which “the books are opened,” and they will all be given their final sentences according to their works and will be assigned to their final places in the hereafter.27

God’s great heavenly city will then descend from above to the beautiful, re-created, Garden-of-Eden-like new earth. And God Himself will dwell with us right here on earth. It will be like God taking over the world by invading it from outer space, bringing down His heavenly city and restoring Himself as the King of kings forever!

It will be a better world then with better people, who will have learned their lessons of the law of the love of God and will be happier than ever before, because at last they will be purged and purified of their sins of rebellion against Him and healed by the leaves of the trees of life, which we shall minister to them from where they grow by the river of life within the City.28

If you truly want to know the things that will come to pass and if you hunger for the righteousness of God and thirst for His living waters that bring eternal life through His love and the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, you can find the truth in the Bible.29

Prepare for the future today by receiving Jesus now! Simply pray, “Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and forgive me for all my sins. Help me to love and live for You, to hunger for Your truth, to learn Your Word, and to tell others about Your love. In Jesus’ name, amen.” God bless you!

Compiled from the writings of D. Brandt Berg, originally published November 1983. Adapted and republished June 2015. Read by Simon Peterson.



1 Daniel 2:28; 8:23; 12:4.
2 See Matthew 24.
3 Matthew 24:7.
4 Matthew 24:14.
5 Daniel 12:4; Amos 8:11–12.
6 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
7 2 Timothy 3:13.
8 Matthew 24:12.
9 Luke 21:25–26.
10 Daniel 8:23–25; 2 Thessalonians 2:1–4; Daniel 9:27.
11 Daniel 9:27; 8:9–12; 11:21–24, 28–31, 36; 2 Thessalonians 2:3–4, 8–9.
12 Daniel 11:31; 12:11; Matthew 24:15–21; Revelation 13:14–15.
13 Revelation 13:16–18; 12:6, 14.
14 Revelation 17:12, 16–17; 18:1–10, 17–19.
15 Matthew 24:21–22; Daniel 7:25; 9:27; 12:7; Revelation 11:2–3; 12:6, 14; 13:5.
16 Matthew 24:29–31.
17 Isaiah 26:19.
18 1 Thessalonians 4:14–17; 1 Corinthians 15:51–57; Philippians 3:21.
19 Matthew 24:27–31; Revelation 1:7 NKJV.
20 Revelation 19:6–9; 14:14–20; 16:11–21.
21 Revelation 19:11–21; 17:14; 16:12–21.
22 Daniel 2:44; 7:18, 26–27; Revelation 20:4.
23 Revelation 20:1–3; Isaiah 2:2–4; Psalm 22:27–28.
24 Habakkuk 2:14; Isaiah 25:7; 29:18–19; 32:1; 40:5.
25 Isaiah 26:9–11; Revelation 20:7–10.
26 2 Peter 3:10–13.
27 Revelation 20:11–15.
28 Revelation 22:1–2.
29 John 5:29; Acts 17:11; Matthew 5:6.

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Origins of the Races

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Solutions: Laughing at Tyrants

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The Greater Good! The Vaccine Polemic

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The Vaccine Beat: Living the American Dream

Vaccine Beat 4: Living the American Dream Link

October 28, 2014, Posted by: Leslie Manookian,

While Americans want to trust that health officials are acting in the best interests of the public, one has to wonder if that is actually the case given some of the actions of some leaders, not to mention the huge payoffs at stake if they can jump from government to private industry or simply dance between the two. Now of course there is nothing illegal about moving from a federal agency to the private sector but the monkey business involving the 3 leaders we highlight in this video may make you stop to think.

For starters, Dr. Julie Gerberding headed CDC from 2000-2008. She famously said in an interview on CNN,

“So if a child was immunized, got a fever, had other complications from the vaccines. And if you’re predisposed with the mitochondrial disorder, it can certainly set off some damage. Some of the symptoms can be symptoms that have characteristics of autism.”1

So according to Dr. Gerberding, vaccines can cause fevers and complications that lead to the symptoms of autism, but they don’t cause autism. That may be the best example of semantics we have ever heard. If that is not bad enough, a CDC whistleblower, senior scientist William Thompson, has come forward alleging a host of fraud at CDC to conceal the MMR vaccine link to autism – all under Dr. Gerberding’s leadership.2 Gerberding even allegedly had Thompson removed from an upcoming meeting in which he intended to discuss the MMR vaccine-autism connection publicly, we guess so he wouldn’t spill the beans.3,4

Merck is the maker of the MMR vaccine and wouldn’t you know, Gerberding left CDC after her time was up and went to Merck where she now acts as president of Merck Vaccines globally.5

Next up is Dr. Elias Zerhouni, former director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Zerhouni’s time as director was severely marred by landmark investigative reporting of widespread corruption and conflicts of interest among NIH scientists as well as an ongoing Congressional investigation into these issues.6,7

Just four months after he announced his departure from NIH he was advising vaccine maker and pharma giant Sanofi’s CEO and within a few more months he was named head of Sanofi’s R&D. His speedy transition from NIH to the corporate world makes Dr. Gerberding’s year-long transition look like a snail’s pace.

But what if you could have one foot in both ponds – what if you could sit on CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) while you were a consultant to a vaccine/pharma giant? Wouldn’t that be the best of both worlds?

Well that is exactly what vaccine proponent and expert Dr. Paul Offit has done. He sat on CDC’s ACIP while he was being paid by Merck to develop a rotavirus vaccine called Rotateq. He voted in support of rotavirus vaccines and less than a year after he joined ACIP, rotavirus vaccines were added to CDC’s recommended vaccine schedule. Not only that, when Rotashield, the first rotavirus vaccine to market, was found to cause a dangerous bowel obstruction in babies called intussusception that killed some babies, Dr. Offit was allowed to participate in the discussions. Dr. Offit argued Rotashield’s problem could be unique to Rotashield implying that his rotavirus vaccine in development would not suffer the same side effects.

All told, Dr. Offit voted to establish a market for his own vaccine and earned tens of millions in the process.8 Dr. Offit walked away with an estimated $29-$55 million for his part in developing Rotateq which he argued would be different from the first rotavirus vaccine.

Unfortunately that is not the case and more than 200 babies have died of intussusception after Rotateq.9 Rotateq remains on the market and part of CDC’s recommended vaccine schedule.

While there is clearly nothing wrong with inventing products or being successful in business, it seems the line between influencing policy and profiting from that policy has become increasingly non-existent in recent years and these three individuals are a great illustration of that sad reality.

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