Six year old Brandon decided one Saturday morning to fix his parents pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter, opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it on the floor. He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail in the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten. Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad. He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove, and he didn't know how the stove worked!
Suddenly he saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky. And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled up in Brandon's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was make them proud. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him. Then,
walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process.
That's how God deals with us. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets all sticky or we insult a friend or we can't stand our job or our health goes sour. Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything else to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him. But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to "make pancakes," for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and then they'll be glad we tried...
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
My photography gear...(After requests from my buddies..)
I have the Pentax K10D with a Tamron 18 - 200 mm I also carry a DSCW100 from Sony which come in very handy with an effective 8.1 mega pixel resolution.
To add to that I have brought the Celestron 100mm spotting scope too which will enable me to do some serious bird photography.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Queen Mary 2
I have been associated with ships when i was working as a system engineer. I used to get on war ships, like the INS Virat etc when they dock at the port, to check their computer systems.
But this was the first time I was seeing a huge ocean liner...
The RMS Queen Mary 2 is a Cunard Line ocean liner named after the earlier Cunard liner Queen Mary, which was in turn named after Mary of Teck, the Queen Consort of George V. It does not commemorate the reign of Queen Mary II. At the time of her construction in 2003 by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique, the Queen Mary 2 was the longest, widest and tallest passenger ship ever built, and at gross tonnage (GT) of 148,528 tons, was also the largest. She lost the gross tonnage distinction to Royal Caribbean International's 154,407 GT Freedom of the Seas in April 2006, but Queen Mary 2 remains the largest ocean liner (as opposed to cruise ship) ever built, and her width, length, and waterline breadth are unsurpassed by any other passenger ship.Moreover, the Queen Mary 2 displaces approximately 76,000 tons; the Royal Caribbean Freedom ships displace about 64,000 tons. The Queen Mary 2 was the first major ocean liner built since the Queen Elizabeth 2 in 1969.
Queen Mary 2's facilities include 15 restaurants and bars, five swimming pools, a casino, a ballroom, a theater, and a planetarium.
Photographs from my collection....
This was taken back in 2007,on my way to see Queen Mary 2 docked at the Cochin port.
Coffee Plant (beans)
This was taken at Bangalore...
Coffea (coffee) is a large genus (containing more than 90 species) of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. They are shrubs or small trees, native to subtropical Africa and southern Asia. Seeds of several species are the source of the popular beverage coffee. After their outer hull is removed, the seeds are commonly called "beans". Coffee beans are widely cultivated in tropical and sub-tropical countries on plantations, for both local consumption and export to probably every other country in the world. Coffee ranks as one of the world's most valuable and widely traded commodity crops and is an important export of a number of countries.
I am planning to add pictures from my collection over the years..
This was taken some time back when I took a break from work and went to a retreat center....don't know if this is the effect I expected...but somehow I like the symmetry of the picture...
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Skills every IT professional MUST have
A career in the field of information technology (IT) is one of the most sought these days. Most engineering college graduates land up in the IT industry. While, a job as a software engineer looks very lucrative at first glance, once you get into the industry, you realise that it is not just your technical skills that will keep you in the race.
You need something more to ensure that you are able to do a good job. In other words, you need some extra skills to ensure that you are able to keep the job after you land it. These extra skills are called 'soft skills'.
What are the advantages of soft skills?
Your soft skills or people skills decide how fast and well you climb the ladder of success. Here are some of the advantages that your soft skills can reap for you:
~ They help you grow in your career
~ They give you an eye to identify and create opportunities
~ They help develop relationships with your colleagues and clients
~ They develop good communication and leadership qualities in you
~ They help you think beyond dollars.
After reading the advantages your soft skills can get you, you would want to know what is it that you need as a technical person to grow as a professional and climb the ladder of success.
Here are some soft skills which will help you grow not just as a professional but also as a person:
~ A never-say-die attitude
Any task that comes to you or your team, undertake with a can-do attitude. Slowly you will observe that you and your team have become the favourite of the management. Every accomplished task boosts your self confidence and pushes you one step closer to success.
~ Communication
This includes verbal, non-verbal and written communication. Be sure that you are able to put across your point clearly and confidently. As an IT professional you will need to work with colleagues and clients of various nationalities and backgrounds. Ensure that you are able communicate clearly with them. This applies to teleconferencing as well.
~ Learn to listen
Listening is an essential part of communication. Ensure that you listen attentively. This will help make the other party feel comfortable while interacting with you and improve your communications.
~ Be a team player
Help your team members help themselves. Be friendly and approachable. If your team is stuck somewhere look out for ideas to overcome the obstacle together.
~ Learn to delegate
Chances are you will have junior members on the team. Recognise their strengths and delegate them the right work.
~ Give credit to those who deserve it
Do not all the credit for a job well done. Pass on praise or recognition from superiors to team members who deserve it. Doing it publicly or in front of your boss will further instill a feeling of confidence among your team.
~ Motivate yourself and others
As you look ahead to grow in your career you will need to deal with various people under you. You can not expect quality results from a team whose motivational level is too low. So, stay motivated and keep others motivated.
~ Develop leadership qualities
A leader is a person whom people are ready to follow. Develop qualities that will make people follow you not because they are required to but because they want to. Even while operating in a team, take a role to lead and facilitate the work for other members.
~ Control your sense of humour
When you are working with people from various cultures you need to be extra careful with your sense of humour and gestures. Behaviour that is acceptable among Indian colleagues might be considered obscene or disrespectful by people from other cultures. Stay away from controversial topics or ideas in the office.
~ Mentoring
This is a quality one needs to develop in order to grow. If you want to grow in the hierarchy, you need to help sub-ordinates grow. Be a good mentor. Help them understand things better. This not only improves the work environment but also improves your work relationships.
~ Handling criticism
When you are working with people, at times you will be criticised while at others you will be required to criticise your colleagues or sub-ordinates. Ensure that you take the criticism constructively and look at it as an opportunity to grow. Similarly, while criticising others shoose your words carefully and keep it professional. Destructive criticism will lead to loss of respect and trust. Let your criticism help the other person grow.
~ IT-preneur- Like an entrepreneur, have a risk-taking attitude. Learn to take responsibility for failures and pride in a job well done.
~ Managing spoil sports
While working in a team there will always be one or two people with a negative attitude. This attitude can be contagious. Employ tactics to deal with such people and improve motivation.
~E-tiquette
Keep an eye on your e-mails for proper language. Open up the e-mail with a suitable address and end with a thanking note. Your words should convey the correct meaning and invoke the desired action.
~ Multitasking
As you climb the ladder of success, you will need to handle work from various fields. For example, you will have to interact with your technical team on project success, with the HR department for team appraisal and recruitment, with clients on project requirements or problems etc. Organise and plan to fit in all the required activities into your schedule.
Once you have developed these soft skills along with your technical skills you will find that you are a lot more confident about your capabilities.
You need something more to ensure that you are able to do a good job. In other words, you need some extra skills to ensure that you are able to keep the job after you land it. These extra skills are called 'soft skills'.
What are the advantages of soft skills?
Your soft skills or people skills decide how fast and well you climb the ladder of success. Here are some of the advantages that your soft skills can reap for you:
~ They help you grow in your career
~ They give you an eye to identify and create opportunities
~ They help develop relationships with your colleagues and clients
~ They develop good communication and leadership qualities in you
~ They help you think beyond dollars.
After reading the advantages your soft skills can get you, you would want to know what is it that you need as a technical person to grow as a professional and climb the ladder of success.
Here are some soft skills which will help you grow not just as a professional but also as a person:
~ A never-say-die attitude
Any task that comes to you or your team, undertake with a can-do attitude. Slowly you will observe that you and your team have become the favourite of the management. Every accomplished task boosts your self confidence and pushes you one step closer to success.
~ Communication
This includes verbal, non-verbal and written communication. Be sure that you are able to put across your point clearly and confidently. As an IT professional you will need to work with colleagues and clients of various nationalities and backgrounds. Ensure that you are able communicate clearly with them. This applies to teleconferencing as well.
~ Learn to listen
Listening is an essential part of communication. Ensure that you listen attentively. This will help make the other party feel comfortable while interacting with you and improve your communications.
~ Be a team player
Help your team members help themselves. Be friendly and approachable. If your team is stuck somewhere look out for ideas to overcome the obstacle together.
~ Learn to delegate
Chances are you will have junior members on the team. Recognise their strengths and delegate them the right work.
~ Give credit to those who deserve it
Do not all the credit for a job well done. Pass on praise or recognition from superiors to team members who deserve it. Doing it publicly or in front of your boss will further instill a feeling of confidence among your team.
~ Motivate yourself and others
As you look ahead to grow in your career you will need to deal with various people under you. You can not expect quality results from a team whose motivational level is too low. So, stay motivated and keep others motivated.
~ Develop leadership qualities
A leader is a person whom people are ready to follow. Develop qualities that will make people follow you not because they are required to but because they want to. Even while operating in a team, take a role to lead and facilitate the work for other members.
~ Control your sense of humour
When you are working with people from various cultures you need to be extra careful with your sense of humour and gestures. Behaviour that is acceptable among Indian colleagues might be considered obscene or disrespectful by people from other cultures. Stay away from controversial topics or ideas in the office.
~ Mentoring
This is a quality one needs to develop in order to grow. If you want to grow in the hierarchy, you need to help sub-ordinates grow. Be a good mentor. Help them understand things better. This not only improves the work environment but also improves your work relationships.
~ Handling criticism
When you are working with people, at times you will be criticised while at others you will be required to criticise your colleagues or sub-ordinates. Ensure that you take the criticism constructively and look at it as an opportunity to grow. Similarly, while criticising others shoose your words carefully and keep it professional. Destructive criticism will lead to loss of respect and trust. Let your criticism help the other person grow.
~ IT-preneur- Like an entrepreneur, have a risk-taking attitude. Learn to take responsibility for failures and pride in a job well done.
~ Managing spoil sports
While working in a team there will always be one or two people with a negative attitude. This attitude can be contagious. Employ tactics to deal with such people and improve motivation.
~E-tiquette
Keep an eye on your e-mails for proper language. Open up the e-mail with a suitable address and end with a thanking note. Your words should convey the correct meaning and invoke the desired action.
~ Multitasking
As you climb the ladder of success, you will need to handle work from various fields. For example, you will have to interact with your technical team on project success, with the HR department for team appraisal and recruitment, with clients on project requirements or problems etc. Organise and plan to fit in all the required activities into your schedule.
Once you have developed these soft skills along with your technical skills you will find that you are a lot more confident about your capabilities.
Friday, July 17, 2009
I won an iPod
Yesterday I got a call from APC that I won an iPod after i entered a Quiz ( or was it something else, I don't remember, which was actually more than an year ago I think....
Couple of hours my home calls me and tell me that my iPod has finally arrived. Some great service I say because the lady told me over phone that its gonna take a week....
Couple of hours my home calls me and tell me that my iPod has finally arrived. Some great service I say because the lady told me over phone that its gonna take a week....
Thursday, July 16, 2009
My new gear
This is what I got latest for adding to my Photography gear...this is what the webpage talks about it - "The largest aperture scope in the Ultima line, the 100 mm Ultima offers more than 50% brighter images than the 80mm, allowing for better performance in low light conditions. The 100 mm refractor features excellent multi-coated optics packed into a portable and durable refractor design and comes standard with a 22-66x zoom eyepiece.
This series was designed to perform well in a range of viewing situations, making it a great all-around optical instrument. You’ll love it for observing nature and long distance spotting and since it is completely waterproof you can feel comfortable using it in extreme weather. The green rubber optical tube allows for subtle observation in any nature environment. Ultima spotters are a great companion for any nature or outdoor enthusiast. Soft carrying case included."
General Features
100 mm Refractor Spotting Scope
Multi-Coated optics
45° viewing angle
22-66x zoom eyepiece
Sight tube for quick targeting
Waterproof
Waiting for it to arrive and fix it to my camera...will keep posted on how its going....
Friday, July 10, 2009
Be a Friend
Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person’s life, for better or for worse.
As I was walking home from high school one Friday afternoon, a new kid from my freshman class was half a block ahead of me. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. Only a real nerd would bring all his books home for the weekend, I thought. I had quite a weekend planned myself—parties and a football game with my friends.
A minute later, a few other boys ran at Kyle, knocked his books out of his arms, and tripped him. Kyle tumbled to the ground. His glasses went flying and landed in the grass a short distance from him. As Kyle picked himself up, he looked my way. Even from half a block away, I could see that he was angry, frustrated, and humiliated.
My heart went out to him, so I jogged up to him. By this time he was down on his hands and knees, looking for his glasses. He tried to hide the tears in his eyes, and I tried to act like I hadn’t noticed. I handed him his glasses and said, “Those guys are jerks! They really should get a life!”
Kyle looked at me and said, “Hey, thanks!” He broke out into a big smile—one of those smiles that show real gratitude.
I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me. I asked him why I hadn’t ever seen him before, and he explained that he had gone to a private school till now. I would have never hung out with a private-school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.
I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends, and he said yes. We hung out all weekend, and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. My friends thought the same.
On Monday morning, there was Kyle again, on his way back to school with his huge stack of books. I stopped him and said, “Boy, you’re going to build some serious muscles with that pile of books every day!” He just laughed and handed me half the books.
Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. We decided on different schools, but I knew that we would always be friends. The miles between us would never be a problem. Kyle was going to be a doctor, and I was going to study business on a football scholarship.
Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn’t me having to get up there and speak.
On graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more friends than I had, and all the girls loved him. Sometimes I was jealous. Today was one of those times.
I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, “Hey, big guy, you’ll be great!”
He looked at me with one of those smiles—the really grateful ones. “Thanks,” he said.
When the time came, he stepped up to the podium and cleared his throat. “Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your brothers and sisters, maybe a coach ... but mostly your friends. I am here to tell you that true friendship is the best gift you can give anyone. I am going to tell you a true story.”
Then I watched Kyle with disbelief as he told the story of the day we met. He told how he had planned to kill himself over the weekend, and had cleaned out his locker so his mom wouldn’t have to do it later. That was why he had carried all his stuff home that Friday afternoon. Kyle looked straight at me and gave me a smile. “Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable.”
A gasp went through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. His mom and dad looked over at me with that same grateful smile. Not until that moment had I realized its depth.
Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person’s life, for better or for worse.
As I was walking home from high school one Friday afternoon, a new kid from my freshman class was half a block ahead of me. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. Only a real nerd would bring all his books home for the weekend, I thought. I had quite a weekend planned myself—parties and a football game with my friends.
A minute later, a few other boys ran at Kyle, knocked his books out of his arms, and tripped him. Kyle tumbled to the ground. His glasses went flying and landed in the grass a short distance from him. As Kyle picked himself up, he looked my way. Even from half a block away, I could see that he was angry, frustrated, and humiliated.
My heart went out to him, so I jogged up to him. By this time he was down on his hands and knees, looking for his glasses. He tried to hide the tears in his eyes, and I tried to act like I hadn’t noticed. I handed him his glasses and said, “Those guys are jerks! They really should get a life!”
Kyle looked at me and said, “Hey, thanks!” He broke out into a big smile—one of those smiles that show real gratitude.
I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me. I asked him why I hadn’t ever seen him before, and he explained that he had gone to a private school till now. I would have never hung out with a private-school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.
I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends, and he said yes. We hung out all weekend, and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. My friends thought the same.
On Monday morning, there was Kyle again, on his way back to school with his huge stack of books. I stopped him and said, “Boy, you’re going to build some serious muscles with that pile of books every day!” He just laughed and handed me half the books.
Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. We decided on different schools, but I knew that we would always be friends. The miles between us would never be a problem. Kyle was going to be a doctor, and I was going to study business on a football scholarship.
Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn’t me having to get up there and speak.
On graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more friends than I had, and all the girls loved him. Sometimes I was jealous. Today was one of those times.
I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, “Hey, big guy, you’ll be great!”
He looked at me with one of those smiles—the really grateful ones. “Thanks,” he said.
When the time came, he stepped up to the podium and cleared his throat. “Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your brothers and sisters, maybe a coach ... but mostly your friends. I am here to tell you that true friendship is the best gift you can give anyone. I am going to tell you a true story.”
Then I watched Kyle with disbelief as he told the story of the day we met. He told how he had planned to kill himself over the weekend, and had cleaned out his locker so his mom wouldn’t have to do it later. That was why he had carried all his stuff home that Friday afternoon. Kyle looked straight at me and gave me a smile. “Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable.”
A gasp went through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. His mom and dad looked over at me with that same grateful smile. Not until that moment had I realized its depth.
Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person’s life, for better or for worse.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
They say these really happened...not too sure...but sure is funny..
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his
sleep, he doesn't know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
______________________________ ______
ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the twenty-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: He's twenty, much like your IQ.
______________________________ _____________
ATTORNEY: So the date of conception (of the baby) was August 8th?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And what were you doing at that time?
WITNESS: getting laid
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: She had three children, right?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None.
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
WITNESS: Your Honor, I think I need a different attorney. Can I get a
new attorney?
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: How was your first marriage terminated?
WITNESS: By death.
ATTORNEY: And by whose death was it terminated?
WITNESS: Take a guess.
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: Can you describe the individual?
WITNESS: He was about medium height and had a beard.
ATTORNEY: Was this a male or a female?
WITNESS: Unless the Circus was in town I'm going with male.
______________________________ ________
ATTORNEY: Doctor, how many of your autopsies have you performed on dead
people?
WITNESS: All of them. The live ones put up too much of a fight.
______________________________ ___________
ATTORNEY: ALL your responses MUST be oral, OK? What school did you go
to?
WITNESS: Oral.
______________________________ ___________
ATTORNEY: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
WITNESS: The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.
ATTORNEY: And Mr. Denton was dead at the time?
WITNESS: If not, he was by the time I finished.
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a
pulse?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for blood pressure?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for breathing?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you
began the autopsy?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
WITNESS: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar..
ATTORNEY: I see, but could the patient have still been alive,
nevertheless?
WITNESS: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and
practicing law.
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his
sleep, he doesn't know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
______________________________ ______
ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the twenty-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: He's twenty, much like your IQ.
______________________________ _____________
ATTORNEY: So the date of conception (of the baby) was August 8th?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And what were you doing at that time?
WITNESS: getting laid
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: She had three children, right?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None.
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
WITNESS: Your Honor, I think I need a different attorney. Can I get a
new attorney?
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: How was your first marriage terminated?
WITNESS: By death.
ATTORNEY: And by whose death was it terminated?
WITNESS: Take a guess.
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: Can you describe the individual?
WITNESS: He was about medium height and had a beard.
ATTORNEY: Was this a male or a female?
WITNESS: Unless the Circus was in town I'm going with male.
______________________________ ________
ATTORNEY: Doctor, how many of your autopsies have you performed on dead
people?
WITNESS: All of them. The live ones put up too much of a fight.
______________________________ ___________
ATTORNEY: ALL your responses MUST be oral, OK? What school did you go
to?
WITNESS: Oral.
______________________________ ___________
ATTORNEY: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
WITNESS: The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.
ATTORNEY: And Mr. Denton was dead at the time?
WITNESS: If not, he was by the time I finished.
______________________________ ______________
ATTORNEY: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a
pulse?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for blood pressure?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for breathing?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you
began the autopsy?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
WITNESS: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar..
ATTORNEY: I see, but could the patient have still been alive,
nevertheless?
WITNESS: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and
practicing law.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
In Bollywood, everyone's related!
Is Aishwarya Rai Bachchan related to Mithun Chakravorty? Did you know Mithun shared a connection with the Kapoors through his wife Yogeeta
Bali... as do the Bachchans? Not to mention that Yogeeta's ex-husband Kishore Kumar's sister was Kajol's grandmother! Connect the dots!
The Kapoors, of course, are related to directors Manmohan Desai and Ramesh Sippy. And, while Hrithik is related to his wife's brother Zayed Khan and first cousin Fardeen Khan, the links stretch to sweep Tabu into the family too.
While Sanjay Dutt's sister Namrata is married to Kumar Gaurav
, Rajendra Kumar's son, he also shares a rumoured 'illegitimate' connection with the first family of India, the Gandhis!
Kajol, besides being Nutan's niece, also has 1950s actress Nalini Jaywant as an aunt, shares film historian Dinesh Raheja. He adds, "As for Kareena Kapoor, her mother Babita's cousin was Sadhana — the heartthrob of the 60s. It was Babita's father who introduced Sadhana to Bollywood."
Raheja reveals that director Kalpana Lajmi's mother was Guru Dutt's sister. Lajmi isn't sure of a family connection with Deepika Padukone, but suggests it's possible, as Guru Dutt's original surname was Padukone. "The Padukones belong to a small community of Saraswat Brahmins forced to migrate from Kashmir," she says.
Welcome to Bollywood, where everyone's related! Author and critic Anupama Chopra says, "Yes, it's not even six degrees of separation. Did you know that Mahesh Bhatt is related to Dharmesh Darshan?" Bhatt confirms, "Dharmesh is my sister's son. Emraan (Hashmi) and Mohit Suri are also my nephews."
Author Madhu Jain says, "Tinnu Anand is also distantly related to Raj Kapoor, while Ramanand Sagar is related to Vidhu Vinod Chopra." Anupama Chopra, married to Vidhu Vinod affirms, "Yes, they are half-brothers. Their father married Vinod's mother after Ramanand's mother expired."
Here are some more filmi connections!
HRITHIK, FARDEEN... AND TABU TOO!
Hrithik is related to Fardeen and Zayed. But, did you know there is... rather, was... a family link to Tab u , whose sister Farah mar ried and later divorced D a ra Singh's son. The strongman's brother Randhawa is married to Mallika, sister of yesteryear actress Mumtaz, Fardeen's m o t h e r- i n - l aw. Mallika's son Shaad made his debut in Woh Lamhe. Tabu is also famously Shabana Azmi's niece. Azmi is married to Javed Akhtar, whose ex-wife is Honey Irani, choreographer Farah Khan's aunt. Javed and Honey's children are directors Farhan and Zoya Akhtar.
AMRITA, SAIF, KAREENA... AND DILIP KUMAR!
The legendary Begum Para was married to Dilip Kumar's brother Nasir Khan. Their son Ayub Khan is an actor. Her niece Rukhsana Sultana was Amrita Singh's mother. Amrita's also writer and columnist Khushwant Singh's niece.
Amrita Singh's exhusband Saif is actress Sharmila Tagore's son. Incidentally, Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor's families were as close as brothers, according to Madhu Jain's current reprint of The Kapoors, and came from the same side of town in Peshawar. In switching from Amrita to Kareena Kapoor, Saif has just gone from one side of the fence to the other!
Saira Bano, meanwhile, is the daughter of Naseem Banu and aunt to actress Shaheen, married to actor Sumeet Saigal.
MITHUN, YOGEETA, THE KAPOORS, MANMOHAN DESAI, THE BACHCHANS & RAMESH SIPPY!
Mithun Chakraborty's wife Yogeeta Bali's aunt was Geeta Bali, actor Shammi Kapoor's first wife. This means Gen Now's Mimoh (Mithun's son), Kareena and Ranbir Kapoor are family! Shammi Kapoor's daughter is wedded to filmmaker Manmohan Desai's son Ketan Desai. Shashi Kapoor's son Kunal Kapoor married Ramesh Sippy's daughter. His brother Raj Kapoor's daughter Ritu Nanda's son Nikhil Nanda is married to Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan's daughter Shweta. Ramesh Sippy, incidentally, is also director Rohan Sippy's father and the son of producer GP Sippy. Raj Kapoor's wife Krishna's brothers were actors Premnath and Rajendranth. Manmohan Desai, when he passed away, was said to be engaged to yesteryear actress Nanda, the great-niece of filmmaker V Shantaram and daughter of actors Master Vinayak and Meenaxi. As for the other Kapoors... while Anil Kapoor's father Surinder Kapoor was Geeta Bali's secretary, the Kapoor families aren't related. "We're country cousins," says Aditya Raj Kapoor, Geeta Bali and Shammi Kapoor's son.
SUNIL DUTT, NARGIS AND NEHRU?
Motilal Nehru is rumoured to have been enamoured by Daleepabai, Allahabad's famous courtesan. The outcome of their relationship was allegedly illegitimate daughter Jaddanbai, who gave birth to actress Nargis. Meghnad Desai, who researched for the star's biography with wife Kishwar, has been quoted as saying that Jaddanbai even tied a rakhi to Nehru. If this is true, then cut to this generation... and Sanjay Dutt could be Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi's uncle!
NASEERUDDIN, RATNA, PANKAJ KAPOOR... & SHAHID!
Actor Naseeruddin Shah is married to actor Ratna Pathak. Her sister Supriya Pathak is married to fellow actor Pankaj Kapoor. Kapoor's son from his first marriage to Neelima Azeem is actor Shahid Kapoor. Shah's son Imaad has also made his Bollywood debut.
KISHORE KUMAR, KAJOL, RANI: CHALTI KA NAAM... FAMILY!
The youngest of the Ganguly brothers, Kishore Kumar was married thrice — to Madhubala, Yogeeta Bali and Leena Chandavarkar. His son is singer Amit Kumar.
His elder brother Ashok's daughter is actress Preeti Ganguly, comedian Deven Verma's wife. Ashok's grand-daughter is actress Anuradha Patel.
His sister Sati married Sashadhar Mukherjee, and their son Shomu married Tanuja, actress Shobhna Samarth's daughter and Nutan's sister. While Kajol is Tanuja's daughter, Nutan's son is Mohnish Behl. Sati was also aunt-by-marriage to Ram Mukherjee, actress Rani Mukherjee's father.
Bali... as do the Bachchans? Not to mention that Yogeeta's ex-husband Kishore Kumar's sister was Kajol's grandmother! Connect the dots!
The Kapoors, of course, are related to directors Manmohan Desai and Ramesh Sippy. And, while Hrithik is related to his wife's brother Zayed Khan and first cousin Fardeen Khan, the links stretch to sweep Tabu into the family too.
While Sanjay Dutt's sister Namrata is married to Kumar Gaurav
, Rajendra Kumar's son, he also shares a rumoured 'illegitimate' connection with the first family of India, the Gandhis!
Kajol, besides being Nutan's niece, also has 1950s actress Nalini Jaywant as an aunt, shares film historian Dinesh Raheja. He adds, "As for Kareena Kapoor, her mother Babita's cousin was Sadhana — the heartthrob of the 60s. It was Babita's father who introduced Sadhana to Bollywood."
Raheja reveals that director Kalpana Lajmi's mother was Guru Dutt's sister. Lajmi isn't sure of a family connection with Deepika Padukone, but suggests it's possible, as Guru Dutt's original surname was Padukone. "The Padukones belong to a small community of Saraswat Brahmins forced to migrate from Kashmir," she says.
Welcome to Bollywood, where everyone's related! Author and critic Anupama Chopra says, "Yes, it's not even six degrees of separation. Did you know that Mahesh Bhatt is related to Dharmesh Darshan?" Bhatt confirms, "Dharmesh is my sister's son. Emraan (Hashmi) and Mohit Suri are also my nephews."
Author Madhu Jain says, "Tinnu Anand is also distantly related to Raj Kapoor, while Ramanand Sagar is related to Vidhu Vinod Chopra." Anupama Chopra, married to Vidhu Vinod affirms, "Yes, they are half-brothers. Their father married Vinod's mother after Ramanand's mother expired."
Here are some more filmi connections!
HRITHIK, FARDEEN... AND TABU TOO!
Hrithik is related to Fardeen and Zayed. But, did you know there is... rather, was... a family link to Tab u , whose sister Farah mar ried and later divorced D a ra Singh's son. The strongman's brother Randhawa is married to Mallika, sister of yesteryear actress Mumtaz, Fardeen's m o t h e r- i n - l aw. Mallika's son Shaad made his debut in Woh Lamhe. Tabu is also famously Shabana Azmi's niece. Azmi is married to Javed Akhtar, whose ex-wife is Honey Irani, choreographer Farah Khan's aunt. Javed and Honey's children are directors Farhan and Zoya Akhtar.
AMRITA, SAIF, KAREENA... AND DILIP KUMAR!
The legendary Begum Para was married to Dilip Kumar's brother Nasir Khan. Their son Ayub Khan is an actor. Her niece Rukhsana Sultana was Amrita Singh's mother. Amrita's also writer and columnist Khushwant Singh's niece.
Amrita Singh's exhusband Saif is actress Sharmila Tagore's son. Incidentally, Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor's families were as close as brothers, according to Madhu Jain's current reprint of The Kapoors, and came from the same side of town in Peshawar. In switching from Amrita to Kareena Kapoor, Saif has just gone from one side of the fence to the other!
Saira Bano, meanwhile, is the daughter of Naseem Banu and aunt to actress Shaheen, married to actor Sumeet Saigal.
MITHUN, YOGEETA, THE KAPOORS, MANMOHAN DESAI, THE BACHCHANS & RAMESH SIPPY!
Mithun Chakraborty's wife Yogeeta Bali's aunt was Geeta Bali, actor Shammi Kapoor's first wife. This means Gen Now's Mimoh (Mithun's son), Kareena and Ranbir Kapoor are family! Shammi Kapoor's daughter is wedded to filmmaker Manmohan Desai's son Ketan Desai. Shashi Kapoor's son Kunal Kapoor married Ramesh Sippy's daughter. His brother Raj Kapoor's daughter Ritu Nanda's son Nikhil Nanda is married to Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan's daughter Shweta. Ramesh Sippy, incidentally, is also director Rohan Sippy's father and the son of producer GP Sippy. Raj Kapoor's wife Krishna's brothers were actors Premnath and Rajendranth. Manmohan Desai, when he passed away, was said to be engaged to yesteryear actress Nanda, the great-niece of filmmaker V Shantaram and daughter of actors Master Vinayak and Meenaxi. As for the other Kapoors... while Anil Kapoor's father Surinder Kapoor was Geeta Bali's secretary, the Kapoor families aren't related. "We're country cousins," says Aditya Raj Kapoor, Geeta Bali and Shammi Kapoor's son.
SUNIL DUTT, NARGIS AND NEHRU?
Motilal Nehru is rumoured to have been enamoured by Daleepabai, Allahabad's famous courtesan. The outcome of their relationship was allegedly illegitimate daughter Jaddanbai, who gave birth to actress Nargis. Meghnad Desai, who researched for the star's biography with wife Kishwar, has been quoted as saying that Jaddanbai even tied a rakhi to Nehru. If this is true, then cut to this generation... and Sanjay Dutt could be Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi's uncle!
NASEERUDDIN, RATNA, PANKAJ KAPOOR... & SHAHID!
Actor Naseeruddin Shah is married to actor Ratna Pathak. Her sister Supriya Pathak is married to fellow actor Pankaj Kapoor. Kapoor's son from his first marriage to Neelima Azeem is actor Shahid Kapoor. Shah's son Imaad has also made his Bollywood debut.
KISHORE KUMAR, KAJOL, RANI: CHALTI KA NAAM... FAMILY!
The youngest of the Ganguly brothers, Kishore Kumar was married thrice — to Madhubala, Yogeeta Bali and Leena Chandavarkar. His son is singer Amit Kumar.
His elder brother Ashok's daughter is actress Preeti Ganguly, comedian Deven Verma's wife. Ashok's grand-daughter is actress Anuradha Patel.
His sister Sati married Sashadhar Mukherjee, and their son Shomu married Tanuja, actress Shobhna Samarth's daughter and Nutan's sister. While Kajol is Tanuja's daughter, Nutan's son is Mohnish Behl. Sati was also aunt-by-marriage to Ram Mukherjee, actress Rani Mukherjee's father.
Friday, May 22, 2009
The Seed (again from Wendy)
The Seed
A successful businessman was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together.
He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you...." The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED..... I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring and the one I choose will be the next CEO."
One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow.
Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. &nbs p;By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure. Six months went by-----still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however, he just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - he so wanted
the seed to grow.
A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach. It was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right.
He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful.....in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him.
When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO."
All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure. Maybe he will have me fired."
When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed....Jim told him the story. The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim and then announced to the young executives. "Behold your next Chief Executive Officer!! His name is Jim." Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. "How could he be the new CEO?" the others said.
Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds....they were all dead....it was not possible for them to grow.
All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive Officer."
*If you plant honesty, you will reap trust.
*If you plant goodness, you will reap friends.
*If you plant humility, you will reap greatness.
*If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment.
*If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective.
*If you plant hard work, you will reap success.
*If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation.
*If you plant faith in God, you will reap a harvest.
So be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will
reap later.
"Whatever you give to live, life gives you back."
A successful businessman was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together.
He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you...." The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED..... I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring and the one I choose will be the next CEO."
One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow.
Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. &nbs p;By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure. Six months went by-----still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however, he just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - he so wanted
the seed to grow.
A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach. It was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right.
He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful.....in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him.
When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO."
All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure. Maybe he will have me fired."
When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed....Jim told him the story. The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim and then announced to the young executives. "Behold your next Chief Executive Officer!! His name is Jim." Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. "How could he be the new CEO?" the others said.
Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds....they were all dead....it was not possible for them to grow.
All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive Officer."
*If you plant honesty, you will reap trust.
*If you plant goodness, you will reap friends.
*If you plant humility, you will reap greatness.
*If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment.
*If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective.
*If you plant hard work, you will reap success.
*If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation.
*If you plant faith in God, you will reap a harvest.
So be careful what you plant now; it will determine what you will
reap later.
"Whatever you give to live, life gives you back."
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
A Daddys phone call
Rrriiiiinnnnggg, rrriiiinnnngg,
'Hello?'
'Hi honey.
This is Daddy.
Is Mommy near the phone?'
'No, Daddy.
She's upstairs in the bedroom with Uncle Paul.'
After a brief pause,
Daddy says,
'But honey, you haven't got an Uncle Paul.'
'Oh yes I do, he comes when you are not home and
Mommy told me to call him Uncle Paul
and he's upstairs in the bedroom with Mommy,
Right now..'
Brief Pause.
'Uh, okay then, this is what I want you to do.
Put the phone down on the table, run upstairs
And knock on the bedroom door and shout to Mommy
That Daddy's car just pulled into the driveway.'
'Okay, Daddy, Just a minute.'
A few minutes later
The little girl comes back to the phone.
'I did it, Daddy.'
'And what happened, honey?'
'Well, Mommy got all scared, jumped out of bed with no clothes on
and ran around screaming.
Then she tripped over the rug, hit her head on the dresser
And now she isn't moving at all!'
'Oh my God!!! What about the Uncle Paul?'
'He jumped out of the bed with no clothes on, too.
He was all scared and he jumped out of the back window
And dived into the swimming pool.
But I guess he didn't know that you took out the water
Last week to clean the pool.
He hit the bottom of the pool with a big splat... and I think he's dead.'
Long Pause
Longer Pause
Even Longer Pause
Then Daddy says,
'Swimming pool? ...........
Is this 486-5731?'
No, I think you have the wrong number........
'Hello?'
'Hi honey.
This is Daddy.
Is Mommy near the phone?'
'No, Daddy.
She's upstairs in the bedroom with Uncle Paul.'
After a brief pause,
Daddy says,
'But honey, you haven't got an Uncle Paul.'
'Oh yes I do, he comes when you are not home and
Mommy told me to call him Uncle Paul
and he's upstairs in the bedroom with Mommy,
Right now..'
Brief Pause.
'Uh, okay then, this is what I want you to do.
Put the phone down on the table, run upstairs
And knock on the bedroom door and shout to Mommy
That Daddy's car just pulled into the driveway.'
'Okay, Daddy, Just a minute.'
A few minutes later
The little girl comes back to the phone.
'I did it, Daddy.'
'And what happened, honey?'
'Well, Mommy got all scared, jumped out of bed with no clothes on
and ran around screaming.
Then she tripped over the rug, hit her head on the dresser
And now she isn't moving at all!'
'Oh my God!!! What about the Uncle Paul?'
'He jumped out of the bed with no clothes on, too.
He was all scared and he jumped out of the back window
And dived into the swimming pool.
But I guess he didn't know that you took out the water
Last week to clean the pool.
He hit the bottom of the pool with a big splat... and I think he's dead.'
Long Pause
Longer Pause
Even Longer Pause
Then Daddy says,
'Swimming pool? ...........
Is this 486-5731?'
No, I think you have the wrong number........
Monday, May 18, 2009
The mayonnaise jar and the 2 Beers
A friend sent it to me.....(thank you Wendy)
When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 Beers.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.'
The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else---the small stuff. 'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand...'
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.'
The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.'
When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 Beers.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.'
The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else---the small stuff. 'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand...'
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.'
The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.'
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Why is There So Much Suffering in the World?
Why is There So Much Suffering in the World? - Isaiah 45:5-11
Of all the questions that trouble the people of God, none is greater than the question posed in the title of this sermon. Sometimes, it is asked in other ways: Why do bad things happen to good people? Or, why do the wicked prosper, while the righteous take such a beating? Or, if God really has the power to stop human suffering, why doesn’t he use it? Eventually these questions become very personal. Why did my husband leave me after 15 years? Why did God allow my daughter to die in a car wreck? If God is good, how could he let my closest friend suddenly have a heart attack?
Several years ago, George Barna did a survey on this topic: “If you could ask God one question, what would it be?” The number one response was, “Why is there pain and suffering in the world?” I am not surprised, because this is one of the oldest questions in the world. One writer called it “the question mark that turns like a fishhook in the human heart.”
I want to begin by thinking about this issue in very personal terms. Shortly after the tsunami disaster in December, my friend Ramesh Richard, a professor at Dallas Seminary, sent an email that contained what he called a “dangerous” prayer. “Lord, do things we’re not used to.” The moment I saw that, I knew it should be my personal prayer for 2005. The following Sunday, I challenged the whole congregation to pray that prayer. For our family, part of the answer came during our trip to China in January. While we were visiting our oldest son Josh (who was teaching English in Beijing), God called our two younger sons (Mark and Nick) to go to China as well. Nick went this summer and Mark is there right now, teaching English for 11 months. That was totally unexpected and we’re grateful to God for putting China in the middle of our family’s personal agenda.
The Other Side of the Desk
Then in June, Marlene was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. To say this news came as a shock would be an understatement. It was like being hit in the face with a Mark Prior fastball. No matter who you are, cancer is a scary word. We all know people who have died from cancer. Since the initial diagnosis, Marlene has had two surgeries. Right now she is nearing the end of her radiation treatments. Since they caught it very early, she did not have to have chemotherapy. The doctors say the outlook for a total cure is very good. But there will be continued follow-up treatment and regular checkups for the rest of her life.
We’ve both learned a lot in the last few months. For one thing, cancer looks a lot different on the other side of the pastor’s desk. In my 26 years as a pastor, I’ve dealt with cancer almost every week. I know what to say and how to pray, but it looks different from the other side of the desk. And cancer helps you rediscover your own humanity. I’ve learned, once again, that my feet are made of clay just like everyone else. When we got the news, I don’t mind saying that my feet were shaky for about a month. I have the same worries and fears that we all have. Cancer also changes the way you look at life. Several years ago a man in Pittsburgh sent me a note about his own experience that included these words: “Cancer clarifies. Cancer makes concise. Cancer clears away the cobwebs.” When you learn that your wife has cancer, you discover in a heartbeat that some of the things that had been bothering you don’t really matter at all.
Through it all we have seen many evidences of God’s goodness. We have discovered his grace in an abundance of small things—a kind word, a phone call, a quiet evening, the sound of children playing, the boys laughing around the dinner table, the prayers of many friends, holding hands while watching TV together. I want to thank everyone who has prayed for us. We have felt it and have been made stronger by it. Marlene and I both thank God for this experience. Though we did not ask for it, it has been for the deepening of our faith. It has been good for us even though we are left with questions we can’t answer.
Hurricane Katrina
In the last few days we all came face to face with those questions on a much larger scale as Hurricane Katrina slammed into Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Like most people, I spent hours this week glued to the TV screen. It was almost mesmerizing to watch the scenes of destruction, death, sorrow and loss filled our homes. This hurricane has been called the greatest natural disaster in American history. The mayor of Biloxi, Mississippi called it “our tsunami.” One reporter in New Orleans spoke of “apocalyptic scenes” of devastation. As the long process of clean up and recovery begins, many questions linger:
Where is God in all of this human suffering?
One home is destroyed, the one next door has little damage. Why?
One man dies, another lives. Why?
Why did the storm go east of New Orleans and not west?
Why New Orleans and not Pensacola?
It is natural and inevitable that we should ask the question why. The psalmist often cried out, “Lord, where are you?” In times of trouble, we look to the heavens and shout, “Why me? Why now? Why this?” We cannot escape the question of evil in the world. It is the greatest theological problem we face. Although it is always there, accidents happen, cancer invades, disaster strikes, and suddenly the question comes front and center. Every crisis brings us face to face with this difficult issue. The question of suffering is the number one argument for atheism. Most people who have given up believing in God do so not because of some philosophical argument, but because their hearts were broken by something that happened to them or to someone they loved.
In his play J.B., Archibald MacLeish puts these words into the mouth of the lead character: “If God is God, he is not good. If God is good, he is not God. Take the even, take the odd.” That’s the whole case against God in a nutshell. If God is all-powerful and could have stopped this suffering but didn’t, then he isn’t good. If he is good and wants to stop this suffering, it must mean that he lacks the power. Either way (people say), I don’t want to believe in a God like that. So they don’t.
What answer does the Christian give? I realize that the greatest minds in history have wrestled with the question of suffering since the beginning of time. I cannot begin to give a complete answer in one sermon because there are many parts to a truly biblical answer. Instead, I will offer what seems to me to be the heart of the Christian response.
I. One Inadequate Answer
Many people look at the tragedies of life and conclude that they have no purpose at all. Stuff happens. Bad stuff happens. Terrible things happen. Calamity comes to all of us. It’s all chance or luck or fate. I cannot imagine a more hopeless philosophy of life. It explains nothing. Indeed it suggests there is no explanation for the suffering we see all around us.
II. One Partially-Adequate Answer
When asked about why God allows disasters, most Christians revert to some version of the freewill argument. I’ve often heard evangelical leaders on Larry King Live use this argument. It goes something like this. When asked why God created a world filled with hurricanes, pain, suffering and death, the freewill argument answers that God didn’t create the world that way. When God created the world, he made it perfect in every way. There were no hurricanes in Eden. And no looters either. And no suffering people waiting for days for help to arrive. And no one died there either. The pain and suffering we see around us didn’t come from God. So how did things get so messed up?
The answer goes back to Adam and Eve. God gave them the choice (the freedom) to obey him and be blessed or to disobey and be punished. Unfortunately, they made the wrong choice. As a result, sin and its attendant, suffering, entered the spiritual DNA of the human race. Genesis 3 also notes that creation itself was put under a curse by God because of Adam’s sin. Death entered for the first time. Pain and suffering became man’s constant companion. Paradise gained became paradise lost. Nature became red in tooth and claw. Instead of the lion and the lamb lying down together, the lion became the lamb’s mortal enemy. That’s why Romans 8:22 says that all creation groans in the present age, waiting for the day of redemption. Adam’s sin didn’t just impact him. It touched all of us. “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). What does all this have to do with you and me? In some mysterious way, you and I were there. When Adam sinned, you sinned with him and so did I. This is the doctrine of original sin in its plainest form. It means that when Adam sinned, you sinned. When Adam disobeyed, you disobeyed. When Adam fell, you fell. When he died, you died. To say it another way, although you and I were not historically there in the Garden, because we are descendents of Adam—part of his family tree—we suffer the consequences of what he did.
Imagine a school bus with enough seats for every man, woman, boy and girl on planet earth. Such a bus would be thousands of miles long. And let’s suppose that Adam is the driver of the bus of humanity. When he drove the bus over the cliff of disobedience, we all went down with him. And we all ended up crushed and broken on the jagged rocks of God’s judgment.
The world is the way it is because we humans messed it up. Even the hurricanes and tsunamis and the deadly earthquakes would not exist were it not for human sin. And certainly human sin accounts for the violence and mayhem we see all around us. And human sin explains our tendency toward hatred, unkindness, lust, a critical spirit, selfishness, greed, indolence, and our willingness to point the finger and blame others for our own problems.
If Adam had not sinned, New Orleans would not be a ghost town today.
That argument is biblical and true and useful as far as it goes. If I appeared on Larry King Live, I would use this argument myself because it makes sense to most people. But as it stands, the argument does not go far enough. By putting so much emphasis on freewill, it ends up sounding as if God has given over control of the universe to man. And you end up with an unbiblical dichotomy that puts pain and suffering on one end of the spectrum and God on the other end of the spectrum. It leaves the impression that God washes his hands of the problems on planet earth and says, “You messed it up. Let’s see you try to clean it up.”
Any solution to the problem of human suffering that separates God from human suffering cannot possibly be right. You end up saying that things like Hurricane Katrina are terrible disasters that serve no higher purpose. If you keep pushing in that direction, you end up with something very much like the first answer—that there is no purpose in the tragedies of life.
The freewill answer is very useful but something else needs to be added to it.
III. An Answer You Must Not Miss
The true biblical picture brings God into the midst of the worst things that happen in the world. Consider these four passages of Scripture:
A) God brings prosperity and creates disaster.
“I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things” (Isaiah 45:7). I remember Dr. Ryrie pointing out this verse during a theology class at Dallas Seminary many years ago. There is no easy explanation for this verse except to say that God is the Lord of all things. Even the darkness of the universe cannot exist apart from his divine permission. God is not the author of sin, but sin itself cannot exist apart from God’s decree that sin should be permitted to appear in the universe. While all of this leaves us with many questions, we do know that God’s decision to permit Adam’s disobedience that plunged the human into chaos and untold sorrow also revealed to the universe God’s amazing grace and his boundless love toward the worst of sinners. That love, displayed in the cross of Christ, would never have been seen, nor the wonders of redemption imagined, unless sin had first entered and destruction fallen on the earth.
B) God takes personal responsibility for physical disabilities.
“The LORD said to him, ‘Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD?’” (Exodus 4:11). This was God’s answer when Moses said he couldn’t lead the Jews because he was not an eloquent speaker. In this case, Moses’ apparent slowness of speech meant that he must depend upon God and not his natural abilities when he stood before Pharaoh. And his impediments meant that when victory came, God alone would get the glory.
C) God ordains the movements of the oceans.
“Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt’?” (Job 38:8-11). There are many questions regarding Hurricane Katrina. Why did the hurricane go east of New Orleans and not west? Why didn’t it go much farther east or much farther west? Why didn’t it stay at Category 5? Why didn’t it go down to Category 2 before landfall? On one hand, we have no certain answers to these questions. But this passage tells us that God determines the boundaries of the oceans. God put the Atlantic Ocean where it is. He determined the boundaries of the Mediterranean Sea. And he directed (through the natural causes he established) the path of Hurricane Katrina. We cannot answer the why questions with certainty, but we can answer the who question. Behind all the meteorological data stands the Lord God himself.
D) God calls us to accept both good things and troubling things he sends to us.
“Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” (Job 2:10). This brings us to the bottom line. We thank God for the roses. Do we also thank him for the thorns? We thank God for his blessings. Do we also thank him for the hard times he sends our way?
Tony Evans says it this way. Everything is either caused by God or allowed by God, and there is no third category. He’s right. Several times in recent years, as Marlene and I have faced hard times that made no sense to us, we have said to ourselves, “God is all over that situation.” We may not be able to see it or to feel it or to figure it out, but God is “all over” every situation in life—the good and the bad, the happy and the sad, the positive and the negative. He is always there, always present, always working out his plan. This means that nothing can happen to us that does not first pass through God’s loving hands.
That includes hurricanes and it also includes cancer. This does not transform hurricanes or cancer from bad things into good things, but it does mean that they do not and cannot exist apart from God. Often I have had a conversation with the Lord about the heartaches of life. It usually goes something like this. The Lord says to me, “So you don’t like what I just did?” “No, I don’t.” “You think I made a mistake?” “As a matter of fact, yes I do.” The Lord never seems bothered by that. He already knows how I feel about things. “Do you think I should have asked you for your advice?” “Yes, and if you had, I would have told you to do something different.” “Ray, that’s why I didn’t ask you in advance. I already knew how you felt. Just keep this in mind. I did what I did for my own reasons. But I did it without consulting you so you would know that I take full responsibility for what happened.” That conversation, often repeated, has been a great comfort to my soul. I find it easy to worship a God who can suddenly and without warning do things that make no sense to me. Only an Almighty God gives and takes life, rides upon the storms, sends prosperity and also trouble, answers my prayers and then leaves me speechless and confused, all without feeling any need to explain himself to me. The mystery of it all ends up building my faith. Why would I want to worship a God I could fully understand? “How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!” (Romans 11:33).
Two Choices
Where does all this leave us? The answer is, we’re all still hurting. We are still a death-sentenced generation living in a sin-cursed world. We all hurt every day. No one is immune from the sufferings of humanity. All the sons and daughters of Adam live in the wreckage of that bus Adam drove off the cliff. We live with pain and sadness every day. There is no escape from that reality.
When we hurt, we have two choices:
We can hurt with God … or we can hurt without God.
If you are hurting as you read these words, you may feel as if you have come to the end of your endurance. I pray that you will hang on to the Lord. If you turn away from Him, things can only get worse. Pioneer missionary J. Hudson Taylor founded the China Inland Mission to reach the multitudes of Chinese people who had never heard the gospel. During the terrible days of the Boxer Rebellion (1900-1901), when missionaries were being captured and killed, he went through such an agony of soul that he could not pray. Writing in his journal, he summarized his spiritual condition this way: “I can’t read. I can’t think. I can’t pray. But I can trust.” There will be times when we can’t read the Bible. Sometimes we won’t be able to focus our thoughts on God at all. Often we will not even be able to pray. But in those moments when we can’t do anything else, we can still trust in the loving purposes of our heavenly Father.
He Joined Us
There is one final piece we must add to the puzzle of human suffering. We often say that God is able to take the very worst that happens and bring the very best out of it. We utter those words with such confidence, but what do they mean in the face of Hurricane Katrina and the suffering of so many people? How do we know God can do that? Look at the cross! Here is the final piece of the puzzle. This is the ultimate proof that God does not stand aloof from the suffering of the world. Two thousand years ago he left the glories of heaven for the indignity of a borrowed stable. He gave up eternal light to be born in dismal darkness. He walked out of the ivory palaces and entered a world of woe.
He joined us.
He became one of us.
He walked where we walk.
He lived where we live.
He joined us in our sorrows.
He joined us in our pain.
He entered our humiliation.
He suffered what we suffer.
And what did we do to him? We hung him on a cross and spat on him. We screamed at him, mocked him, beat him, laughed at him, jeered at him, and then we watched him die.
God is no bystander to human suffering.
He died the same way we die.
Here is God’s final answer to the problem of human suffering. He joined our race, took our nature, entered our world, ate with us, drank with us, walked and talked with us, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.
He didn’t simply die with us.
He died for us.
Then, he came back from the dead so that we would not stay dead either. When he rose from the dead, he reversed the curse, he broke the chains, he tore down the bars, and he set in motion a chain of events that will one day mean an end to all the hurricanes and all the cancer and all the suffering and all the pain that plagues us and drags us down.
It helps to remember that we didn’t deserve anything he did for us. Ever since Adam drove the bus off the cliff, death and destruction have been our common fate. Jesus came with a “heavenly tow truck” to pull the bus out of the valley of judgment and put us back on the road to heaven. John Piper has some sobering words that put the suffering we have seen this week in proper biblical perspective:
Let us put our hands on our mouths and weep both for the perishing and for ourselves who will soon follow. Whatever judgment has fallen, it is we who deserve it—all of us. And whatever mercy is mingled with judgment in New Orleans neither we nor they deserve.
God sent Jesus Christ into the world to save sinners. He did not suffer massive shame and pain because Americans are pretty good people. The magnitude of Christ’s suffering is owing to how deeply we deserve Katrina—all of us. ("Was Katrina Intelligent Design?” September 2, 2005)
There is only one way to escape the flood waters of God’s judgment. It is not on the broken levee of human virtue, but on the high ground called Calvary. Run to that high ground. It is your only hope of safety.
On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain.
The cross sends a message from God to a rebel world: “I will never stop loving you.” The suffering of the world is great, but the love of Christ is greater still. We cannot escape suffering. It comes to all of us again and again, but we must not stop there. The road continues on from our pain into the arms of Jesus.
If you are hurting … run to the cross!
If you are doubting … run to the cross!
If you are in pain … run to the cross!
If you guilty … run to the cross!
God’s answer to your pain is not a sermon or a theory or a book you need to read. God’s answer to your pain is a Person. God’s answer is Jesus. Run to the cross and lay hold of the Son of God. Fix your gaze on him whose death has set you free. Embrace him in the midst of your pain. May God help you in this moment to turn to Jesus with all your heart. Amen.
Taken from : http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/2005-09-04-Why-is-There-So-Much-Suffering-in-the-World/
Of all the questions that trouble the people of God, none is greater than the question posed in the title of this sermon. Sometimes, it is asked in other ways: Why do bad things happen to good people? Or, why do the wicked prosper, while the righteous take such a beating? Or, if God really has the power to stop human suffering, why doesn’t he use it? Eventually these questions become very personal. Why did my husband leave me after 15 years? Why did God allow my daughter to die in a car wreck? If God is good, how could he let my closest friend suddenly have a heart attack?
Several years ago, George Barna did a survey on this topic: “If you could ask God one question, what would it be?” The number one response was, “Why is there pain and suffering in the world?” I am not surprised, because this is one of the oldest questions in the world. One writer called it “the question mark that turns like a fishhook in the human heart.”
I want to begin by thinking about this issue in very personal terms. Shortly after the tsunami disaster in December, my friend Ramesh Richard, a professor at Dallas Seminary, sent an email that contained what he called a “dangerous” prayer. “Lord, do things we’re not used to.” The moment I saw that, I knew it should be my personal prayer for 2005. The following Sunday, I challenged the whole congregation to pray that prayer. For our family, part of the answer came during our trip to China in January. While we were visiting our oldest son Josh (who was teaching English in Beijing), God called our two younger sons (Mark and Nick) to go to China as well. Nick went this summer and Mark is there right now, teaching English for 11 months. That was totally unexpected and we’re grateful to God for putting China in the middle of our family’s personal agenda.
The Other Side of the Desk
Then in June, Marlene was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. To say this news came as a shock would be an understatement. It was like being hit in the face with a Mark Prior fastball. No matter who you are, cancer is a scary word. We all know people who have died from cancer. Since the initial diagnosis, Marlene has had two surgeries. Right now she is nearing the end of her radiation treatments. Since they caught it very early, she did not have to have chemotherapy. The doctors say the outlook for a total cure is very good. But there will be continued follow-up treatment and regular checkups for the rest of her life.
We’ve both learned a lot in the last few months. For one thing, cancer looks a lot different on the other side of the pastor’s desk. In my 26 years as a pastor, I’ve dealt with cancer almost every week. I know what to say and how to pray, but it looks different from the other side of the desk. And cancer helps you rediscover your own humanity. I’ve learned, once again, that my feet are made of clay just like everyone else. When we got the news, I don’t mind saying that my feet were shaky for about a month. I have the same worries and fears that we all have. Cancer also changes the way you look at life. Several years ago a man in Pittsburgh sent me a note about his own experience that included these words: “Cancer clarifies. Cancer makes concise. Cancer clears away the cobwebs.” When you learn that your wife has cancer, you discover in a heartbeat that some of the things that had been bothering you don’t really matter at all.
Through it all we have seen many evidences of God’s goodness. We have discovered his grace in an abundance of small things—a kind word, a phone call, a quiet evening, the sound of children playing, the boys laughing around the dinner table, the prayers of many friends, holding hands while watching TV together. I want to thank everyone who has prayed for us. We have felt it and have been made stronger by it. Marlene and I both thank God for this experience. Though we did not ask for it, it has been for the deepening of our faith. It has been good for us even though we are left with questions we can’t answer.
Hurricane Katrina
In the last few days we all came face to face with those questions on a much larger scale as Hurricane Katrina slammed into Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Like most people, I spent hours this week glued to the TV screen. It was almost mesmerizing to watch the scenes of destruction, death, sorrow and loss filled our homes. This hurricane has been called the greatest natural disaster in American history. The mayor of Biloxi, Mississippi called it “our tsunami.” One reporter in New Orleans spoke of “apocalyptic scenes” of devastation. As the long process of clean up and recovery begins, many questions linger:
Where is God in all of this human suffering?
One home is destroyed, the one next door has little damage. Why?
One man dies, another lives. Why?
Why did the storm go east of New Orleans and not west?
Why New Orleans and not Pensacola?
It is natural and inevitable that we should ask the question why. The psalmist often cried out, “Lord, where are you?” In times of trouble, we look to the heavens and shout, “Why me? Why now? Why this?” We cannot escape the question of evil in the world. It is the greatest theological problem we face. Although it is always there, accidents happen, cancer invades, disaster strikes, and suddenly the question comes front and center. Every crisis brings us face to face with this difficult issue. The question of suffering is the number one argument for atheism. Most people who have given up believing in God do so not because of some philosophical argument, but because their hearts were broken by something that happened to them or to someone they loved.
In his play J.B., Archibald MacLeish puts these words into the mouth of the lead character: “If God is God, he is not good. If God is good, he is not God. Take the even, take the odd.” That’s the whole case against God in a nutshell. If God is all-powerful and could have stopped this suffering but didn’t, then he isn’t good. If he is good and wants to stop this suffering, it must mean that he lacks the power. Either way (people say), I don’t want to believe in a God like that. So they don’t.
What answer does the Christian give? I realize that the greatest minds in history have wrestled with the question of suffering since the beginning of time. I cannot begin to give a complete answer in one sermon because there are many parts to a truly biblical answer. Instead, I will offer what seems to me to be the heart of the Christian response.
I. One Inadequate Answer
Many people look at the tragedies of life and conclude that they have no purpose at all. Stuff happens. Bad stuff happens. Terrible things happen. Calamity comes to all of us. It’s all chance or luck or fate. I cannot imagine a more hopeless philosophy of life. It explains nothing. Indeed it suggests there is no explanation for the suffering we see all around us.
II. One Partially-Adequate Answer
When asked about why God allows disasters, most Christians revert to some version of the freewill argument. I’ve often heard evangelical leaders on Larry King Live use this argument. It goes something like this. When asked why God created a world filled with hurricanes, pain, suffering and death, the freewill argument answers that God didn’t create the world that way. When God created the world, he made it perfect in every way. There were no hurricanes in Eden. And no looters either. And no suffering people waiting for days for help to arrive. And no one died there either. The pain and suffering we see around us didn’t come from God. So how did things get so messed up?
The answer goes back to Adam and Eve. God gave them the choice (the freedom) to obey him and be blessed or to disobey and be punished. Unfortunately, they made the wrong choice. As a result, sin and its attendant, suffering, entered the spiritual DNA of the human race. Genesis 3 also notes that creation itself was put under a curse by God because of Adam’s sin. Death entered for the first time. Pain and suffering became man’s constant companion. Paradise gained became paradise lost. Nature became red in tooth and claw. Instead of the lion and the lamb lying down together, the lion became the lamb’s mortal enemy. That’s why Romans 8:22 says that all creation groans in the present age, waiting for the day of redemption. Adam’s sin didn’t just impact him. It touched all of us. “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12). What does all this have to do with you and me? In some mysterious way, you and I were there. When Adam sinned, you sinned with him and so did I. This is the doctrine of original sin in its plainest form. It means that when Adam sinned, you sinned. When Adam disobeyed, you disobeyed. When Adam fell, you fell. When he died, you died. To say it another way, although you and I were not historically there in the Garden, because we are descendents of Adam—part of his family tree—we suffer the consequences of what he did.
Imagine a school bus with enough seats for every man, woman, boy and girl on planet earth. Such a bus would be thousands of miles long. And let’s suppose that Adam is the driver of the bus of humanity. When he drove the bus over the cliff of disobedience, we all went down with him. And we all ended up crushed and broken on the jagged rocks of God’s judgment.
The world is the way it is because we humans messed it up. Even the hurricanes and tsunamis and the deadly earthquakes would not exist were it not for human sin. And certainly human sin accounts for the violence and mayhem we see all around us. And human sin explains our tendency toward hatred, unkindness, lust, a critical spirit, selfishness, greed, indolence, and our willingness to point the finger and blame others for our own problems.
If Adam had not sinned, New Orleans would not be a ghost town today.
That argument is biblical and true and useful as far as it goes. If I appeared on Larry King Live, I would use this argument myself because it makes sense to most people. But as it stands, the argument does not go far enough. By putting so much emphasis on freewill, it ends up sounding as if God has given over control of the universe to man. And you end up with an unbiblical dichotomy that puts pain and suffering on one end of the spectrum and God on the other end of the spectrum. It leaves the impression that God washes his hands of the problems on planet earth and says, “You messed it up. Let’s see you try to clean it up.”
Any solution to the problem of human suffering that separates God from human suffering cannot possibly be right. You end up saying that things like Hurricane Katrina are terrible disasters that serve no higher purpose. If you keep pushing in that direction, you end up with something very much like the first answer—that there is no purpose in the tragedies of life.
The freewill answer is very useful but something else needs to be added to it.
III. An Answer You Must Not Miss
The true biblical picture brings God into the midst of the worst things that happen in the world. Consider these four passages of Scripture:
A) God brings prosperity and creates disaster.
“I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things” (Isaiah 45:7). I remember Dr. Ryrie pointing out this verse during a theology class at Dallas Seminary many years ago. There is no easy explanation for this verse except to say that God is the Lord of all things. Even the darkness of the universe cannot exist apart from his divine permission. God is not the author of sin, but sin itself cannot exist apart from God’s decree that sin should be permitted to appear in the universe. While all of this leaves us with many questions, we do know that God’s decision to permit Adam’s disobedience that plunged the human into chaos and untold sorrow also revealed to the universe God’s amazing grace and his boundless love toward the worst of sinners. That love, displayed in the cross of Christ, would never have been seen, nor the wonders of redemption imagined, unless sin had first entered and destruction fallen on the earth.
B) God takes personal responsibility for physical disabilities.
“The LORD said to him, ‘Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD?’” (Exodus 4:11). This was God’s answer when Moses said he couldn’t lead the Jews because he was not an eloquent speaker. In this case, Moses’ apparent slowness of speech meant that he must depend upon God and not his natural abilities when he stood before Pharaoh. And his impediments meant that when victory came, God alone would get the glory.
C) God ordains the movements of the oceans.
“Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt’?” (Job 38:8-11). There are many questions regarding Hurricane Katrina. Why did the hurricane go east of New Orleans and not west? Why didn’t it go much farther east or much farther west? Why didn’t it stay at Category 5? Why didn’t it go down to Category 2 before landfall? On one hand, we have no certain answers to these questions. But this passage tells us that God determines the boundaries of the oceans. God put the Atlantic Ocean where it is. He determined the boundaries of the Mediterranean Sea. And he directed (through the natural causes he established) the path of Hurricane Katrina. We cannot answer the why questions with certainty, but we can answer the who question. Behind all the meteorological data stands the Lord God himself.
D) God calls us to accept both good things and troubling things he sends to us.
“Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” (Job 2:10). This brings us to the bottom line. We thank God for the roses. Do we also thank him for the thorns? We thank God for his blessings. Do we also thank him for the hard times he sends our way?
Tony Evans says it this way. Everything is either caused by God or allowed by God, and there is no third category. He’s right. Several times in recent years, as Marlene and I have faced hard times that made no sense to us, we have said to ourselves, “God is all over that situation.” We may not be able to see it or to feel it or to figure it out, but God is “all over” every situation in life—the good and the bad, the happy and the sad, the positive and the negative. He is always there, always present, always working out his plan. This means that nothing can happen to us that does not first pass through God’s loving hands.
That includes hurricanes and it also includes cancer. This does not transform hurricanes or cancer from bad things into good things, but it does mean that they do not and cannot exist apart from God. Often I have had a conversation with the Lord about the heartaches of life. It usually goes something like this. The Lord says to me, “So you don’t like what I just did?” “No, I don’t.” “You think I made a mistake?” “As a matter of fact, yes I do.” The Lord never seems bothered by that. He already knows how I feel about things. “Do you think I should have asked you for your advice?” “Yes, and if you had, I would have told you to do something different.” “Ray, that’s why I didn’t ask you in advance. I already knew how you felt. Just keep this in mind. I did what I did for my own reasons. But I did it without consulting you so you would know that I take full responsibility for what happened.” That conversation, often repeated, has been a great comfort to my soul. I find it easy to worship a God who can suddenly and without warning do things that make no sense to me. Only an Almighty God gives and takes life, rides upon the storms, sends prosperity and also trouble, answers my prayers and then leaves me speechless and confused, all without feeling any need to explain himself to me. The mystery of it all ends up building my faith. Why would I want to worship a God I could fully understand? “How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!” (Romans 11:33).
Two Choices
Where does all this leave us? The answer is, we’re all still hurting. We are still a death-sentenced generation living in a sin-cursed world. We all hurt every day. No one is immune from the sufferings of humanity. All the sons and daughters of Adam live in the wreckage of that bus Adam drove off the cliff. We live with pain and sadness every day. There is no escape from that reality.
When we hurt, we have two choices:
We can hurt with God … or we can hurt without God.
If you are hurting as you read these words, you may feel as if you have come to the end of your endurance. I pray that you will hang on to the Lord. If you turn away from Him, things can only get worse. Pioneer missionary J. Hudson Taylor founded the China Inland Mission to reach the multitudes of Chinese people who had never heard the gospel. During the terrible days of the Boxer Rebellion (1900-1901), when missionaries were being captured and killed, he went through such an agony of soul that he could not pray. Writing in his journal, he summarized his spiritual condition this way: “I can’t read. I can’t think. I can’t pray. But I can trust.” There will be times when we can’t read the Bible. Sometimes we won’t be able to focus our thoughts on God at all. Often we will not even be able to pray. But in those moments when we can’t do anything else, we can still trust in the loving purposes of our heavenly Father.
He Joined Us
There is one final piece we must add to the puzzle of human suffering. We often say that God is able to take the very worst that happens and bring the very best out of it. We utter those words with such confidence, but what do they mean in the face of Hurricane Katrina and the suffering of so many people? How do we know God can do that? Look at the cross! Here is the final piece of the puzzle. This is the ultimate proof that God does not stand aloof from the suffering of the world. Two thousand years ago he left the glories of heaven for the indignity of a borrowed stable. He gave up eternal light to be born in dismal darkness. He walked out of the ivory palaces and entered a world of woe.
He joined us.
He became one of us.
He walked where we walk.
He lived where we live.
He joined us in our sorrows.
He joined us in our pain.
He entered our humiliation.
He suffered what we suffer.
And what did we do to him? We hung him on a cross and spat on him. We screamed at him, mocked him, beat him, laughed at him, jeered at him, and then we watched him die.
God is no bystander to human suffering.
He died the same way we die.
Here is God’s final answer to the problem of human suffering. He joined our race, took our nature, entered our world, ate with us, drank with us, walked and talked with us, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.
He didn’t simply die with us.
He died for us.
Then, he came back from the dead so that we would not stay dead either. When he rose from the dead, he reversed the curse, he broke the chains, he tore down the bars, and he set in motion a chain of events that will one day mean an end to all the hurricanes and all the cancer and all the suffering and all the pain that plagues us and drags us down.
It helps to remember that we didn’t deserve anything he did for us. Ever since Adam drove the bus off the cliff, death and destruction have been our common fate. Jesus came with a “heavenly tow truck” to pull the bus out of the valley of judgment and put us back on the road to heaven. John Piper has some sobering words that put the suffering we have seen this week in proper biblical perspective:
Let us put our hands on our mouths and weep both for the perishing and for ourselves who will soon follow. Whatever judgment has fallen, it is we who deserve it—all of us. And whatever mercy is mingled with judgment in New Orleans neither we nor they deserve.
God sent Jesus Christ into the world to save sinners. He did not suffer massive shame and pain because Americans are pretty good people. The magnitude of Christ’s suffering is owing to how deeply we deserve Katrina—all of us. ("Was Katrina Intelligent Design?” September 2, 2005)
There is only one way to escape the flood waters of God’s judgment. It is not on the broken levee of human virtue, but on the high ground called Calvary. Run to that high ground. It is your only hope of safety.
On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain.
The cross sends a message from God to a rebel world: “I will never stop loving you.” The suffering of the world is great, but the love of Christ is greater still. We cannot escape suffering. It comes to all of us again and again, but we must not stop there. The road continues on from our pain into the arms of Jesus.
If you are hurting … run to the cross!
If you are doubting … run to the cross!
If you are in pain … run to the cross!
If you guilty … run to the cross!
God’s answer to your pain is not a sermon or a theory or a book you need to read. God’s answer to your pain is a Person. God’s answer is Jesus. Run to the cross and lay hold of the Son of God. Fix your gaze on him whose death has set you free. Embrace him in the midst of your pain. May God help you in this moment to turn to Jesus with all your heart. Amen.
Taken from : http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/2005-09-04-Why-is-There-So-Much-Suffering-in-the-World/
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
A cute Poem
The turkey shot out of the oven
and rocketed into the air;
It knocked every plate off the table
and partly demolished a chair.
It ricocheted into a corner
and burst with a deafening boom,
Then splattered all over the kitchen,
completely obscuring the room.
It stuck to the walls and the windows,
it totally coated the floor;
There was turkey attached to the ceiling, where there'd never been turkey before.
It blanketed every appliance;
it smeared every saucer and bowl;
There wasn't a way I could stop it;
that turkey was out of control.
I scraped and I scrubbed with displeasure, and thought with chagrin as I mopped,
That I'd never again stuff a turkey
with popcorn that hadn't been popped!
and rocketed into the air;
It knocked every plate off the table
and partly demolished a chair.
It ricocheted into a corner
and burst with a deafening boom,
Then splattered all over the kitchen,
completely obscuring the room.
It stuck to the walls and the windows,
it totally coated the floor;
There was turkey attached to the ceiling, where there'd never been turkey before.
It blanketed every appliance;
it smeared every saucer and bowl;
There wasn't a way I could stop it;
that turkey was out of control.
I scraped and I scrubbed with displeasure, and thought with chagrin as I mopped,
That I'd never again stuff a turkey
with popcorn that hadn't been popped!
Monday, December 1, 2008
Are we all sleeping???
"Cowardly terrorist attack in Mumbai just like 9/11"
"110 killed in Mumbai terror attack"
These are the headlines we saw in the last couple of days. Count yourself in those 110+ innocent people who died- people who were like you or me- people who were living their life as you and me do- people who went to these places as part of their daily lives.I say count yourself in those who are dead because tomorrow you or me will be at one of these places where the so called "cowards" (read terrorist) will be planning an attack, and there is no one who is going to help - not even the guys we vote and elect!!!!Help comes ones they decide whose credit(read vote bank) the whole thing goes too.... and yes your family will get a compensation, if they are lucky to survive- A few Lakhs from what we all give the government !!! irony is a victorious sports person gets crores and a soldier who dies fighting enemies of this land lakhs!!!
Yes India is angry every Indian is angry the way things are going around. The government who live on your and my taxes at the end of the day only has this to say - " this kind of things happen in big cities".The leaders who we elect even has the audacity to even say that "dogs" will not even go to a fallen soldiers home!!!
Fellow Indians where are we?? What are we up to?? Why are we just taking all this lying back??? Or do we really not care because we are not impacted - we didn't have anyone from our family who died to the bullets of these cowards or we didn't have a soldier brother who put his life at risk to save??? Are you really waiting to reality to hit your homes??? Brothers and sisters we don't have time to wait we need to wake up and fight back. Fight back the very system we support. Let these Public servants who live on our money realize that we need an accountability for the money we pay.Think it this way - when we work for others or employ others don't we hold ourself accountable or them accountable for all they have done??? Or is it that we don't care where our money goes??
Indian Managers are hired all over the world for their skills. We all are managers in one way or the other. Lets wake up and be good managers and make sure that the money we put into this land is used properly and not swindled by the very people we put our trusts in to take care of us.
JAI HIND !!!
"110 killed in Mumbai terror attack"
These are the headlines we saw in the last couple of days. Count yourself in those 110+ innocent people who died- people who were like you or me- people who were living their life as you and me do- people who went to these places as part of their daily lives.I say count yourself in those who are dead because tomorrow you or me will be at one of these places where the so called "cowards" (read terrorist) will be planning an attack, and there is no one who is going to help - not even the guys we vote and elect!!!!Help comes ones they decide whose credit(read vote bank) the whole thing goes too.... and yes your family will get a compensation, if they are lucky to survive- A few Lakhs from what we all give the government !!! irony is a victorious sports person gets crores and a soldier who dies fighting enemies of this land lakhs!!!
Yes India is angry every Indian is angry the way things are going around. The government who live on your and my taxes at the end of the day only has this to say - " this kind of things happen in big cities".The leaders who we elect even has the audacity to even say that "dogs" will not even go to a fallen soldiers home!!!
Fellow Indians where are we?? What are we up to?? Why are we just taking all this lying back??? Or do we really not care because we are not impacted - we didn't have anyone from our family who died to the bullets of these cowards or we didn't have a soldier brother who put his life at risk to save??? Are you really waiting to reality to hit your homes??? Brothers and sisters we don't have time to wait we need to wake up and fight back. Fight back the very system we support. Let these Public servants who live on our money realize that we need an accountability for the money we pay.Think it this way - when we work for others or employ others don't we hold ourself accountable or them accountable for all they have done??? Or is it that we don't care where our money goes??
Indian Managers are hired all over the world for their skills. We all are managers in one way or the other. Lets wake up and be good managers and make sure that the money we put into this land is used properly and not swindled by the very people we put our trusts in to take care of us.
JAI HIND !!!
Thursday, October 2, 2008
SMS
Jaya18- hi Im 21 f looking for true love!!!!!!!!! To start chatting, reply S jaya 18 msg to block the user SMS BLOCK jaya18
Sonali- love the heart that hurts you but never hurt the heart that loves you…..
Roja18 – hi gm I wanna chat with u
Jasmine – hi handsome had a coffee………………….
Ashi82 – hi ! how r u . this is ashita a 25 yrs married girl. My husband gone out of state . I am alone at my home feeling bore. Would u like 2 b my frnd. Will u plz give me
Jasmine- I wanna chat with u…….
pallavi_28 – hi wanna chat with me???????????????
Well these are not SMS from my Lover or girlfriends!!! They are messages from a very reputed mobile service provider.
Sometimes when I get these messages I really feel like knowing the faces behind them. Not because I am interested in having a friendship with one but to understand their mental state. I don’t understand how people can write to a complete stranger and ask for their numbers in the very first message. Or for that matter say that they love the other person without even knowing whether they are a man or woman!!!! or if they are old enough to be their grandfather!
(I strongly believe that this is machine generated!!!! I have reasons for that – there are some messages that say “ hi handsum if you love me send me 15 messages that you love me and I will give you my telephone number and address” and why wud someone on the first place need 15 messages to know that the stranger on the other side will write that unless he is a ……..)
And then there are the high end messages - “hi dear kya kar rahe ho??” “mera pati nahin hain….state ke bahar gaye hain…..mein bedroom mein akele houn… kya much se sexy bath karenge?”
My reply to this mess will be-
Arre bhai yeha to apne patni ke sath sexy bath karne ka time nahin hain to phir aap see kaise kare???
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