RSSHappy Easter from Scared Monkeys
HAPPY EASTER
It was a radiant Easter Sunday at the Vatican today. (Message)
Christians Celebrate Easter in Jerusalem
“Above All”
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Happy Easter to All!
Easter symbolizes a new birth. A resurrection from the dead. A new beginning. May we all find hope in its’ message as it is only a matter of time that we, too, will be joined with our loved ones. We live in world of violence but we carry that hope.
And while we’re here, we dream. We have faith in a better future for our children, our grand children and future generations with a sense of eternity in our hearts.
God bless you and your families.
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I Have a Dream, Dr. Martin Luther King
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we’ve come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.
In a sense we’ve come to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the “unalienable Rights” of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked “insufficient funds.”
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we’ve come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.
It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro’s legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.
The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, “When will you be satisfied?” We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. *We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: “For Whites Only.”* We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until “justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.” ¹
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest — quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of “interposition” and “nullification” — one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.” ²
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
And this will be the day — this will be the day when all of God’s children will be able to sing with new meaning:
My country ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim’s pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!
And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.
But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia. Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. Let freedom ring from every mountainside, let freedom ring.
And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last! ³
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This message of Dr. Martin Luther King does not only apply here in the US, but everywhere in the world. We will never be free so long as there is a hungry AIDS stricken orphan, a sexually mutilated girl, a battered woman, a child sold into prostitution, a man climbing a fence to feed his family, a homeless man walking the streets, a soildier laying down to die, a raped child, a murdered spouse, anyone living in fear,…
Chains know no color, no nationality, no religion, no sex, no bank account balance. Chains are what we put on the person we chose to hate, gossip about, deny an equal voice. We place chains on those we insult, threaten, & cheat. And in doing so we enslave ourselves as well. When one places chains on another, he holds the other end of the chain & ties himself to the commitment to hatred. We enslave ourselves to that life of hatred, the life of battle to hold on tight. We prevent ourselves from being free to learn, grow, and to know. Living in a house of hatred means we keep our doors locked against the hope of peace. As long as we kill there will always be war. As long as we hate we can never find love.
beautiful Patti, thank you.
The Pope did not have good things to say about Iraq
You’re welcome, Carpe.
We live in a world of oppression and it is up to the
governments of every democratic nation to see to it
that there is freedom, liberty and justice for all.
Let us dream as we seek out justice for the innocent.
Let us hope that there is brotherhood among all men…
that every man, woman and child can live in a safe
world, free of the violence that has been unleached
against the innocent. And, maybe, just like the dream
of Martin Luther King, it will become a reality.
Thank you Tom, Red and Klaasend (Scared Monkeys).
The moving words of the artist in the video presentation in regards to the ultimate sacrifice of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, brought tears to my eyes. However, we can all rejoice … the stone was rolled away … the grave could not hold Him.
HAPPY EASTER!
LUKE 24
On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” Then they remembered his words.
THE STONE IS ROLLED AWAY – HE IS RISEN – HE IS RISEN INDEED
I am sorry if this is alittle preachie and long, but if it helps someone please email me. That way I know that God worked in all this. Email- lookingfornatalee@hotmail.com
Hello to everybody. I wanted to say Happy Easter as we think about our risen Lord, Jesus Christ. He endured excruciating pain on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins. His resurrection made the way for us to be in Heaven with Him and our loved ones. He would rather experience the pain of the cross than to live without us.
(Ephesians 1:7. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace) and also (Acts 2: 38. Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.)
Not only did He give up His life, but He left the relationships he had, with people He loved dearly. Could you do that? My answer is NO. But the Holy Spirit lives in us as we try to live our lives like Christ wanted. That’s why I ask some of you to try and not hate those who took Natalee’s life, but in time we need to try and forgive them. No; it is not easy at all. I have had the same thoughts and ideas that have been posted; this is not how Jesus would want us to think or to act. Below is scripture from the Bible on how we are to live.
(Romans 12: 19. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.)
Now, under the circumstances, how hard is this? It says to do good to overcome evil. God is in control of this if we ask Him. Please Lord help us to do good and serve others. Please let your justice be done.
This is what awaits the evil found in Aruba and else where.
(1Tim. 5:24. The sins of some men are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them.)
(Jude 1: 13. They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever. 14. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of His holy ones 15. to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” 16. These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.)
I just wanted you to know this is what the Bible teaches. This is our test to see if we can live like this. If we can’t forgive people when they sin against us, then how can God forgive us when we sin against Him? We can’t live a perfect life, but we can live sinless through Jesus. Our best is like filthy rags to God, but when Jesus is in front of us, God the Father sees perfection. Our answer is Gods grace. If it wasn’t for grace we would not have a chance at Heaven. So I will sin at times but grace will take care of it. I can live in JOY that I KNOW that I have a home in heaven. I will see Natalee and other loved ones again. My relationship with them will be restored. God will reveal what happened in Aruba one layer at a time. So I ask all of you to pray for the next layer to be removed in Aruba. God Bless you… Steve Holloway
6. Steve Holloway
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Steve, thank you for your heartfelt post.
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I believe the Scriptures lay the foundation in regards to the issue of “forgiveness”. Prior to receiving Christ’s forgiveness we are called upon to bow and repent our transgressions. In other words forgiveness is not a free gift … it is dependent upon repentence/admission.
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I firmly believe that those who participated in the events that encompass the morning when Natalee went missing … those involved in the corrupt Aruban investigation that is denying Natalee justice and her family a measure of closure and … those who submit despictable posts to internet forums discrediting Natalee and her family … are not worthy of forgiveness IF repentance for their wrongdoing is not forthcoming.
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Steve, I believe when repentence is not forthcoming … those who have been victimized cannot be destroyed from within by hate … they just have to learn to let it go and stay focused on what is constructive to the situation at hand. Forgiveness does not have to enter the equation.
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In His Precious Name
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1 John 1:9
But God is faithful and fair. If we admit that we have sinned, he will forgive us our sins. He will forgive every wrong thing we have done.
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1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
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Colossians 3:13
Forgive the things you are holding against one another. Forgive, just as the Lord forgave you.
Bless everyone this Easter, but SPECIFICALLY God…
an extra special one for each family member
that has had to suffer through the
pain of a murder of a loved one,
or a missing person
case.
The pre-existance of the Christ is often referred to. He is called the only begotten Son; as he was God’s first creation and through him all things came to exist.
My favorite scripture is one that was written long before the coming of the Christ. It is one that gives us the insight to truly understand the extent of his love. It is the one, in my opinion, that shows that his love for mankind was something that he had long before he ever gave himself as a sacrafice for our sins.
Proverbs, Chapter 8:
Does not wisdom keep calling out, and discernment keep giving forth its voice? On top of the heights, by the way, at the crossing of the roadways it has stationed itself. At the side of the gates, at the mouth of the town, at the going in of the entrances it keeps crying loudly:
“To YOU, O men, I am calling, and my voice is to the sons of men. O inexperienced ones, understand shrewdness; and YOU stupid ones, understand heart. Listen, for it is about the foremost things that I speak, and the opening of my lips is about uprightness. For my palate in low tones utters truth itself; and wickedness is something detestable to my lips. All the sayings of my mouth are in righteousness. Among them there is nothing twisted or crooked. All of them are straight to the discerning one, and upright to the ones finding knowledge. TAKE my discipline and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold. For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it.
“I, wisdom, I have resided with shrewdness and I find even the knowledge of thinking abilities. The fear of Jehovah means the hating of bad. Self-exaltation and pride and the bad way and the perverse mouth I have hated. I have counsel and practical wisdom. I-understanding; I have mightiness. By me kings themselves keep reigning, and high officials themselves keep decreeing righteousness. By me princes themselves keep ruling as princes, and nobles are all judging in righteousness. Those loving me I myself love, and those looking for me are the ones that find me. Riches and glory are with me, hereditary values and righteousness. My fruitage is better than gold, even than refined gold, and my produce than choice silver. In the path of righteousness I walk, in the middle of the roadways of judgment, to cause those loving me to take possession of substance; and their storehouses I keep filled.
“Jehovah himself produced me as the beginning of his way, the earliest of his achievements of long ago. From time indefinite I was installed, from the start, from times earlier than the earth. When there were no watery deeps I was brought forth as with labor pains, when there were no springs heavily charged with water. Before the mountains themselves had been settled down, ahead of the hills, I was brought forth as with labor pains, when as yet he had not made the earth and the open spaces and the first part of the dust masses of the productive land. When he prepared the heavens I was there; when he decreed a circle upon the face of the watery deep, when he made firm the cloud masses above, when he caused the fountains of the watery deep to be strong, when he set for the sea his decree that the waters themselves should not pass beyond his order, when he decreed the foundations of the earth, then I came to be beside him as a master worker, and I came to be the one he was specially fond of day by day, I being glad before him all the time, being glad at the productive land of his earth, and the things I was fond of were with the sons of men.
“And now, O sons, listen to me; yes, happy are the ones that keep my very ways. Listen to discipline and become wise, and do not show any neglect. Happy is the man that is listening to me by keeping awake at my doors day by day, by watching at the posts of my entrances. For the one finding me will certainly find life, and gets goodwill from Jehovah. But the one missing me is doing violence to his soul; all those intensely hating me are the ones that do love death.”