Brown's Daily Word 4-22-09

Good morning,
Praise the Lord for the Good News of Easter. The Lord gave us a very brilliant day yesterday. The daffodils are in full bloom. The forsythias are in brilliant bloom. Praise the Lord the way he makes the earth colorful and magnificent. Praise the Lord for the way He brings about the cosmic transformation. The manifold witness of it all testifies to His greatness and majesty. Our Lord uses emptiness to prove His fullness. He uses death to demonstrate life eternal.
I read the story of an Illinois man who left Chicago for a vacation in Florida. His wife was on a business trip and was planning to meet him the next day. When he reached his hotel he decided to send his wife a quick e-mail. Unable to find the scrap of paper on which he had written her e-mail address, he did his best to type it from memory. Unfortunately, he missed one letter and his note was directed instead to an elderly preacher’s wife, whose husband had passed away only the day before. When the grieving widow checked her e-mail, she took one look at the monitor, let out a piercing scream, and fell to the floor dead. At the sound, her family rushed into the room and saw this note on the screen: Dearest Wife, Just got checked in. Everything prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Your Loving Husband. P.S: Sure is hot down here. What could be more powerful than news from the other side of death? Easter is that and more. It is not an email message, but a living message. It is not from man, but from God. OUR STORY DOES NOT BEGIN IN THE LIGHT OF DAY. IT BEGINS AT DAWN, WHEN IT’S STILL DARK… A PLACE FAR LESS CLEAR. It begins with an individual, Mary. It is, perhaps, as fascinating and encouraging as anything God chooses to do. He focuses the greatest events, events of cosmic proportions, and on ordinary individuals. Mary was not what you would ordinarily call a traditionally religious person. She was from the city of Magdala along the sea of Galilee, and when Jesus came to town He looked into her soul. He clearly saw the wretched state she was in, under demonic power and authority, and He cast out those seven demonic powers. He did something for her that no one else could ever do, and she could never forget the greatness of His saving grace. Jesus, the Christ, spoke into her life with power. He looked her in the eyes, confronted the powers and set her free.Perhaps no one ever had so much reason to love Jesus as Mary Magdalene. The part that love plays in the story of Easter is extraordinary. It was Mary, who loved Jesus so much, who was first at the tomb. Jesus came to Mary because she needed him. We all need him. He knew better than she did that we all need a risen savior. She was only the first. She wasn’t to cling to his bodily appearance, for the hope that was alive was not in the limited presence of his body, but his unlimited presence, which would now transcend time and space as a living hope for all the world. In Valladolid, Spain, where Christopher Columbus died in 1506, stands a monument commemorating the great explorer. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the memorial is a statue of a lion destroying one of the Latin words that had been part of Spain’s motto for centuries. Before Columbus made his voyages, the Spaniards thought they had reached the outer limits of earth. Thus their motto was "Ne Plus Ultra," which means "No More Beyond." The word being torn away by the lion is "Ne" or "no," make it read "Plus Ultra." Columbus had proven that there was indeed "more beyond." The world could never be understood in the same way again. Likewise, Christ proved the was “more beyond” and life can never be understood the same. Recently was told the story of a woman who had been diagnosed with cancer and had been given three month to live. Her doctor told her to start making preparations to die -- something we all should be doing all of the time. She contacted her pastor and had him come to her house to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes. She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service, what scriptures she would like read, and what she wanted to be wearing. The woman also told her pastor that she wanted to be buried with her favorite Bible. Everything was in order and the pastor was preparing to leave when the woman suddenly remembered something very important to her. "There’s one more thing," she said excitedly. "What’s that?" came the pastor’s reply. "This is very important." The woman continued, "I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand." The pastor stood looking at the woman not knowing quite what to say. "That shocks you, doesn’t it?" the woman asked. "Well, to be honest, I’m puzzled by the request," said the pastor. The woman explained, "In all my years of attending church socials and functions where food was involved, and let’s be honest, food is an important part of any church event, spiritual or otherwise, my favorite part was when whoever was clearing away the dishes of the main course would lean over and say ’you can keep your fork.’ It was my favorite part because I knew that something better was coming. When they told me to keep my fork, I knew that something great was about to be given to me. It wasn’t Jell-O or pudding. It was cake or pie - something with substance. So I just want people to see me there in that casket with a fork in my hand and I want them to wonder, ’What’s with the fork?’ Then I want you to tell them, ’Something better is coming, so keep your fork too."
The Best is yet to be.
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LoqXUX8olo
News Regarding the Persecuted Christians of Orissa, India
Tue, 21/04/2009 - 9:11am Elections in Orissa rigged as extremists force Christians to vote for Hindu parties
By Nirmala Carvalho
http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=15028&size=
In Kandhamal villages BJP supporters kept an eye on polling stations, threatening Christian voters. Global Council of Indian Christians Chairman Sajan George says no violence took place but “these elections cannot be said to have been peaceful and calm.”
Bhubaneshwar (AsiaNews) – “Mark the lotus!” Christians in the village of Gujapanga, northern Kandhamal District, were repeatedly told on 16 April, first day of India’s election, or else. The lotus is the symbol of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its supporters have kept villages in this Orissa district under a watchful eye in order to intimidate Dalits and Christians.Global Council of Indian Christians (GCII) Chairman Sajan George told AsiaNews that he received reports from villages like Gujapanga with similar stories of intimidation.
“Extremists standing outside polling stations told Christians to vote for the ‘lotus’ if they wanted to avoid threats to their life.” Although no incident was recorded, “these elections cannot be said to have been peaceful and calm.”
Fr Ajay Singh, who heads Jan Vikas, a social organisation in the diocese of Bubhaneswar, visited several polling stations to “see the situation in person.”
“I left Gajapati District early morning for Kandhamal. Along the road trees had been uprooted to block the road. No one was around. When I got the polling station in my village I found out that I was the first voter to show up. Two hours after it had opened no one had come to cast a ballot. Only later, when villagers heard that someone had actually gone to vote, did a few others come out to vote.”
posted in: Current Issue, , East India
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Mon, 20/04/2009 - 9:00am Bajrang Dal activists vandalise Church in Maharashtra town
Nearly two dozen activists of the Hindu right-wing organisation Bajrang Dal allegedly attacked and vandalised a church in a Mahrashtra town Sunday morning( April 19th, 2009)‘Nearly two dozen activists, armed with sticks, barged into the Douglas Memorial Church here around 11 a.m. when the late Sunday morning prayer service was in progress,’
As the scared churchgoers - nearly 100 attending the service - dispersed, the Bajrang Dal activists went on a rampage and destroyed several chairs and tables inside the church.The priest of the church, Fr. Ramred Paul M. Sakhardevkar (53), who recognised some of the attackers, later lodged a complaint with the police, naming some of them including Sonu Bharaiya, Trambak Nanere, Bharadwaj and Dube, according to Gavi.Savner, with a population of around 35,000, including 1,500 Christians, is located in Nagpur district in eastern Maharashtra.
posted in: Current Issue, Persecution, North India
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Sun, 19/04/2009 - 6:46pm Unfair elections at Kandhamal ??? Voting denied to Christians
Dear Friends,
There had been questions raised by some concerned citizens to know the reality of elections held in Kandhamal. As one who participated in the election and cast my vote in Kandhamal I would like to share with you what I have seen, perceived and experienced.
I reached Kandhamal from Gajapati in the early hours on the Election Day. Along the way in six places, trees were felled down and roads were blocked. Hardly there was any movement of the people. My colleagues and I were scared of the situation. We somehow managed to reach Kandhamal. As I decided to cast my vote I reached the polling booth of my village. Even after two hours the booth was literally empty. We were the first ones to cast our votes. Hearing that we have casted our vote, some people came out for voting.
Later I visited almost a dozen polling booths: in villages, small towns, camps and market places.
* In a village, Sikermaha, there were enthusiasm among the voters as their village leader is standing for G.Udayagir MLA constitution.* In Dharampur (Phirigada), Raikia block; Kattingia, near Tiangia in G.Udayagiri block where 8 persons have been killed and Lingagada the affected communities were threatened with dire consequences if they do not vote for BJP. In Kattingia and Lingagada at the booths itself the voters were threatened.* In Betticola village of G.Udayagiri, where a Church was demolished and grounded and a temple being built nearby the people were on the market verandah. Not a single family of the 38 families was allowed to stay in their village. Among them seven members could not vote as they did not possess voter identity card. When they went to the booth they were asked to produce driving license or bank book or ration card. The people had answered, “We do not have bank accounts. Our ration cards, old voter ids and driving licenses were destroyed in the violence”. No id no vote! Rule is same for everyone and they were sent back by the officers.* Then I went to Nilungia, 7 kilometers from G.Udayagiri, a small village where a tribal Christian was killed. People told me that their relatives numbering about 40 had not been able to cast their votes as they feared that returning to the villages is not safe and preferred to stay back outside the district.* The way the district administration was making arrangements I thought that there would be 100 % polling at least in the camps. No one questions why there was only 90% voting in the closed door camps?* One must remember that thousands of affected people who are still living in Berhampur, Bhubaneswar, Jharsuguda, Maharastra, Gujurat had not exercised their franchise. I hope at least on this there is no dispute among the civil society organizations. Is it their fault? Who is responsible? Are these not citizens? It looks to me that even some civil society groups do not want to raise these important issues?* To see whether the situation is normal or not, one should visit Phirigada, Gunjibadi, Badabanga, Dodingia, Raikola, Betticola, Chanchedi, 43 families living in a pitiable condition in G Udayagiri market area, and scores of villages and then make a statement.
posted in: Current Issue, Persecution, East India
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Sat, 18/04/2009 - 12:40pm Extremists threaten Christians outside polling booth in Kandhamal district, Orissa
Extremists threaten Christians outside polling booth in Gujapanga village of Raikia Taluka, Kandhamal district, Orissa
Even as information of a peaceful polling in Kandhamal, GCIC has received information of threats and intimidation to the Christians in this mountainous village who went to caste thier vote on 16th April.
Outside the polling booths, extremists were warning people to chose for the LOTUS (Lotus is the election symbol of BJP).
The Christians were warned, that failure to vote for the LOTUS would invite serious life-threats, moreover, the christians were also warned that- the extremists would also know, if they did not vote on the LOTUS.
posted in: Current Issue, Religion, East India
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