The Bodies and Souls of Men: Part 2

Slavery Still Exists - SSE (Photo credit: Wolfram Burner)

     Did you know that slavery is alive in the world, including the United States, today? I know. You've talked to me recently, and you've heard my sermons. However, here are a few facts from a Baltimore Chronicle article from March 6, 2009. Iencourage you to read the whole article. http://baltimorechronicle.com/2009/030609Lendman.shtml

1.   Nearly half of all slaves are in the sex trade. (46%)
  
2.  This is followed by domestic slavery. (27%)
   
3.  Our world contains more slaves than at any other time. (27 million globally)
   
4. Ninety dollars is the average cost of a slave. During  the Civil War times, that cost was $40,000. With the cost of human beings so cheap, slave owners have no reason to conserve them. They are now disposable commodities.
  
5. Farmworkers are perhaps the poorest and most abused laborers in America. Around half of them earn less than $7500 annually, and their wages have been stagnant since the 1970s.

How much does your life impact enslavement? Here's a link to a survey that may give some surprising insight.  http://slaveryfootprint.org/

   

The Bodies and Souls of Men: Revelation 18

Human Rights Logo: Free as a Man

     Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry: "'Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power! In one hour your doom has come!' 11 "The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes any more— 12 cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble; 13 cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and bodies and souls of men. (Rev 18:10-13).


    Last week I explored the idea of Babylon the Great being an economic power house.This passage furthers the hypothesis. Today we concentrate our economies in one society, currently China. Overseas we find cheap labor and receive cheap goods--goods that cheapen our lives. And how do we do that? With the bodies and souls of men.
     Slavery exists, in the United States as well as overseas. Not only are girls and boys sold to the sex trade, we have enslaved migrants and servants and menial workers. But beyond the literal slavery, we enslave people in sweat shops. They toil long hours, away from family with no health benefits or vacation time or maternity leave. They work with no concern taken for their safety or comfort. And their toil for us is sanitized. We don't see it, so we waltz off to our box stores and buy more. And more. And more.
     Sadly, this disparity of basic human rights--or rather our God given rights--will last until the end of time. But that is not an excuse to allow it to continue. Be aware, we are allowing ourselves to become the "Great Whore of Babylon."

How To Please Your Man

Ideally, these should be in a heart shaped box

     Valentine's day. Ah, every woman wants a box of chocolates and a dozen long-stemmed roses. But we must remember there is another side to our love life. The man. How can we please him? I've got 5 fail-proof plans.

1. Men like to save money. They budget everything. Therefore, hit the sales. Often you can dove-tail a sale with a clearance item and really make him happy.
2. Men are visual beings. Therefore it is essential you look your best. Contact your Arbonne or Mary Kay representative and get a make-over.
3. And speaking of a make over, what good is the make-up and clothes with ragged nails. Manicure time.
4. If you're like me, hubby is your foot warmer at night. We do not want to scratch him with our jagged, winter-dried heels. Pedicures will cure that problem.
5. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Make your dinner reservations early.

     Do you have any ideas you'd like to share?

Who Is This Woman?

Image via Wikipedia

Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters.  With her the kings of the earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries."  Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a desert. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. This title was written on her forehead: MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.  I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. Rev 17:1-6

     As I don't understand much beyond the first three chapters of Revelation, it's not my preferred reading. However, we are currently immersed in a study of this book. This first jumped out at me though, and a lively discussion ensued about who the woman is.
     Most people believe it to be a church. Some believe this depicts a government. However, I see this as today's society because:
1. Society is obsessed with riches. Look at the stars. Our TV shows--from the ordinary to the reality ones on HGTV. Society loves its life glittering with gold.

2. Society is adulterous. How many people jump into live-in relationships? How long before one sleeps with one's date? Moves in?

3. And the filth of society's adulteries has morphed from the traditional heterosexual to homosexual and pedophilia.

4. Who is the only fair game to lambast? Christians. We cannot portray any other sub-group in an abominable manner. Muslims on their prayer mats are admired. Ethnic groups are celebrated. But let TV zoom in on a cross worn on a character and you know, that one is the evil one.

Any suggestions, with reasons for them, as to who is this end time whore ? I'd love to know. And if you have links, I'd love that, too.

The Real Swamp Monkeys of Nassau County

     The Florida of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings still exists. In the little hamlets of northeastern Florida only a few miles from the famed Okefenokee lay dirt roads leading to dirt roads wending their way through tupelo plantations, long pine and palmetto.
     It's here my niece and her family make their home. And here these "swamp monkeys" (so dubbed from my previous posts) live much like Jody and Penny and Ma of Rawlings famed book The Yearling.
     Every morning Kaitlin rises, grooms Joules, her pony, and rides her. And should Kaitlin be thrown from the horse, she climbs back up and keeps on going. Will and Zach lead me down the dirt roads where we scare up deer and armadillos, see no snakes or alligators even though they live around here.
     And two-year-old Callen? He comes along whenever he can.

This is me. I'm NOT one of the Swamp Monkeys

     What a world of "forts" off overgrown paths--isolated homes of neighbors who know their neighbors--of ponds of crystal water and the whitest sand where one can swim or fish or hunt.
     Of course these swamp monkeys love video games--Zach delighted in completing too many levels of my "Angry Birds." They enjoy TV, love to cuddle. But they still relish the lost culture of the outdoors--of reveling in the glory created, not by man, but by God.
     It's a delightful wilderness filled with lakes and fresh air and adventures. Both fortunately and unfortunately a part of Florida no tourist sees.
    

Florida Fandango: Okefenokee Pt. 2

     We continued our search for alligators along the car route and were rewarded with three juveniles swimming in a little pond as well as a young one sunning himself with head resting on a log. But our main objective was to see the Chesser Island Homestead.

     If you ever heard of this place, you would have read a much copied, word for word version of the settlement of Chesser Island. (Has anyone ever heard of plagiarism?) Our boat guide told us another tale.

     W.T. Chesser shot a man in a brawl. He did not want to go to jail, so he fled to the swamps and built his homestead. Forty years later he discovered a judge ruled the shooting a justifiable homicide. Therefore, W.T. essentially jailed himself for forty years in a mosquito plagued swamp known as "Trembling Earth" or the Okefenokee.

     This begs the question: Isn't it better to admit our failings and accept the consequences? Although the homestead is charming, I've been in enough swamps to know there's a reason people don't settle in these places.

     And an aside that has nothing to do with history, the water pump to the left intrigued Callen and the rest of the Swamp Monkeys. They all drank from it until the water ran green. At that point we all agreed, perhaps we shouldn't drink the water.

Florida Fandango: Okefenokee

     Okefenokee--what a way to start my Florida vacation. In size, it's bigger than 300,000 football fields. (Even the Pats would find touchdowns difficult in a field that size). This last summer, much of it burned up--but like God refining us in the fire, this will restore the swamp. If fire didn't kill the growth, the vegetation would suck up all the water and we'd be hunting gators on a freeway.
     As a matter of fact, engineers did try to drain the swamp, but they ran out of money and never connected it to the St. Mary's River and the outlet malls went elsewhere.

Getting up close and personal with the gators

Sandhill Crane

     And that was a good thing. The swamp is home to myriad species: Sandhill cranes, alligators, great blue herons and bunches more.
     The water looks like tea, and like tea, is dark because of tannic acid. But don't drink it! The temp is only 68 degrees and tepid tea is not tasty.
      One critter that is not as well known is the swamp monkey. Out in the midst of the swamp where methane rises like the bubbles in a lava lamp you can find this creature. One must lean over the sides of the boat and stare into the depths of the water. Inevitably, you will see the swamp monkeys. I was lucky enough to capture photos of six of them.

Swamp Monkeys Neil, Zach, Will

Kaitlin Swamp Monkey

rare picture of mamma & baby