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After working every day since last Thursday I found myself free on Tuesday. I squeezed in a session on my treadmill late on Monday evening making falling asleep much easier. I planned to have an extra lie-in on Tuesday morning and thankfully I wasn’t disturbed by telephone calls as usually happens when I want that extra rest. This meant that I arose just before ten o’clock, too late for breakfast and too early for lunch. I collected some clothes that needed washing and fed the washing machine with them before collecting my tools and setting about dismantling the drain pipe from our downstairs toilet as it entered the sewage pipe outside. I cleaned the sewage pipe collar ready to accept a new soil pipe later and covered it with a plastic bag to contain the wonderful sewage smells that would continue to emanate from the open pipe until the new pipe was connected. Following that I dismantled and disconnected the toilet pan, cistern, wash basin and all water pipes and drains ready for work to continue when I feel the urge. This will be the new wet room I promised E and myself last summer! We have most of all the necessary materials we will need to complete the task. All we need now it the time and the inclination! On Monday whilst purchasing a new distribution board for the job I was doing I finally got round to buying two of the new boards I have been thinking about buying for our own house. These boards each have a ten-way circuit capacity but I know I will need to buy a further two four-way boards later. I am waiting until the weather is warmer before tackling the installation of those boards. We do have a lot of electrical circuits in our house.  So it was that at 1.45 I was feeling rather hungry and thirsty too but was loathed to prepare anything and I told E that we would be dining out. She raised no objections either and off we went to enjoy the afternoon in one of our haunts. No wine this time but a couple of glasses of cider and on the way home E dropped me off at my local so that I could put in an appearance after seven weeks absence. I had but one drink and bought one drink for a friend before walking home a half-hour later behaving myself by not making a night of it but I may make another trip for that soon. On Friday, the 27th, I will have known E for exactly 40 years and I have already told her that I want to take her out for a special meal to mark the occasion. She is selecting the venue but she always does that anyway!

Shirley Anne

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Psalm 32

Of David. A maskil.^[a]

¹ Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

²Blessed is the one whose sin the LORD does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.

³ When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

⁴ For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.^[b]

⁵Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.

⁶ Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them.

⁷You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.

⁸ I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

⁹ Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.

¹⁰Many are the woes of the wicked, but the LORD’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him.

¹¹ Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous;  sing, all you who are upright in heart!

1. Psalm 32:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
2. Psalm 32:4 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 5 and 7.

How great it is to be loved by the Lord my God, to know that my sins have been forgiven, even paid for. Without such a love and compassion I would be doomed. It is better to be a child of God and to be loved and forgiven by Him than to be outside of His forgiveness because of unbelief. Acts 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” That name is Jesus Christ.

Shirley Anne

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• Truly Forgiven (cbnindiablogs.wordpress.com)
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• Dim Sum – Deliverance! (ptl2010.com)

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So here I am on Thursday. I wanted to write about Thursday as a day that is special but now it is here I find that it isn’t so special after all. Many things will happen today but that can be said of any day and that’s what makes this day no different from any other. Sunday will mark the beginning of a new year but only for those who observe the Western calendar and for other calendars it will not be 2012, so why do we make something special out of it? For many years now I have not celebrated the coming of the new year and that originally was because I never had anyone to share it with. Later in life there were opportunities to do so and like everyone else around me I went along with it but I was never that bothered whether I did or not. Eventually all my interest fell away as opportunities to celebrate became fewer. Now I realise that the event is nothing really to celebrate but just another day. People ask me why I don’t bother and cannot understand that I don’t but respect my wishes not to participate, or at least I think they do for I am asked almost every year. The point is this, I am not into the sentimentality of it all, even the falsity, nor even the alcoholic stupor that naturally follows such events. I can get drunk at any time should that be my desire. I just cannot see the point of it all. So Thursday, Sunday, this year or next year all makes no difference to me, they are all just the same, days in the life. Friday follows Thursday as it always does and each new day brings with it new things or not, there is nothing special in any of it. As for this Thursday, well who knows what this day will bring? Here is a link that will show you how we came to celebrate new year and why it is 1st January…..http://idkh.org/2011/12/26/what-we-may-not-know-about-new-years-day-2/

Shirley Anne

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This is the final working week before the holiday that is celebrated as Christmas. I say celebrated but in fact not everyone celebrates the day in accordance with its sentiments. When I was younger it was always the run-up to Christmas that was exciting, less so the day itself which always seemed to be a little of an anti-climax. Yes, the food, the presents, the giving and receiving, the family and friends were all good things to enjoy although the expectation had all but disappeared. I never was sure what that expectation was until much later in life. In those days I wasn’t a Christian and, like everyone who isn’t a Christian, my heart was set on other worldly things and having a good time. The message of Christmas never entered my thoughts. Christmas itself is a celebration that has hijacked a much older celebration or celebrations that were in existence long before. The early Church did not celebrate the birth of Christ for good reason, it wasn’t part of Scripture and therefore wasn’t a command of or from God. It was many years later that the early Catholic Church introduced the idea of celebrating Christ’s birth but to encourage people to join in the worship and subsequently become believers they introduced many of the artifacts and traditions of the pagan and mystic religions that people were drawn to at that time. So all the things which are now part of the modern celebration of Christmas have their roots in these non-Christian belief systems and really have no place in Christianity. Over the centuries these customs have become tradition and have become accepted as a right way to celebrate Christ’s birth. The early Church was warned to steer clear of the practices of ‘foreign’ religions by God Himself, not only in His word, The Bible (then the Old Testament) but also by His prophets. The New Testament follows in that same vein. The Church became corrupt when together with the celebrations instigated by the Catholic church, the ’festival of Christmas was declared to be celebrated as a normal practice by Emperor Constantine. Those who declared themselves to be Christians followed the practice through ignorance, mostly because the general population couldn’t read or write and relied upon the Church for instruction. It was only much later when people became more educated and were given the opportunity to read The Bible for themselves did they learn the true message it contains. However, old traditions were so ingrained that they remained and the celebration of Christmas went on unabated until today where it has taken on a whole new meaning, especially for the unbeliever. Notwithstanding, Christmas is not Scriptural and in fact goes against God’s will as a means to praise and worship Him for it is through Jesus Christ that we worship God. I look on in despair at the goings on in the Christian (so-called) world where believers still choose to ignore God in this instruction and think there is little harm in doing so. People may not think what they do is wrong and may even believe that it is perfectly alright to choose how they worship God but God says otherwise. Look at the mess that is the Christmas celebration. It has become hijacked itself being reclaimed as a pagan festival but is also now a totally commercial event coupled with old and new traditional values that have no root in God’s word or His will. What an obstinate and disobedient people we are. No, I do not like the run-up to Christmas as I once did and for reasons I once knew little about.

Shirley Anne

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It is the season to be jolly, goodwill to all men, presents, family get-together, food, drink, parties all in the name of Christ. Ooops, sorry, did I infer that Jesus was the reason for it all? Yes, it is all very nice to greet people with a smile, wish them a Merry Christmas and a Happy new year if it really is sincere and based upon Christ. The sad thing is few people include Jesus in their celebrations. That is one thing but did you ever consider that those you may be wishing these things may not support the festival maybe for personal reasons or for religious beliefs (such as myself). Not everyone is a Christian, some may be Muslims, some may be Jews, some may be Buddhists…..you get my drift…..but nevertheless people still insist on greeting others with this message. It is burnt into their memories, it is a traditional thing to do but it could be an insult to an unbeliever. Now I am a Christian, that is a follower of Jesus but over the last couple of years I have come to the conclusion that the way the mainstream Church celebrates Christ’s birth is unscriptural. Whilst it celebrates one thing it neglects others which are scriptural. The majority of people in this land would say they believe in God and Jesus and because their upbringing was based upon traditional things they assume it is the right thing to do. Tradition is very hard to break. It is like a bad habit that is hard to stop and the reason for that is because it is nice and gives us a sense of well-being. There is nothing wrong in having a good time of course, for those who enjoy it, like the majority of us, including me. A lady I did a job for recently, only a very small job, presented me with a Christmas card and wished me a happy Christmas. I had to tell her gently that I couldn’t accept the card and the reasons why I didn’t believe in the celebrating of Christ’s birth as it is celebrated in this country and elsewhere. Of course I celebrate His birth, I do it every day in prayer and the thought is with me all day long. I do not need to be told to have a happy Christmas, I do not need to have a card wishing me the same and sitting on the mantle for a couple of weeks only to be thrown into the waste bin afterwards. So please don’t wish me a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, I will not be able to reciprocate such a gesture in the same way. I want people to love each other under His banner of love. I want people to be nice to each other 24 hours of the day and 365/6 days of the year and not forget the reason they are supposed to be celebrating Christmas in the first place if in fact they believe anyway. It would be wonderful if we had a festival that wasn’t focused on Jesus. It would be filled with good things, food, drinks, parties, family and friends and all could wish each other well, but we already have one of those disguised as a religious festival. Then we could concentrate on Jesus all of the time, in the right way and for the right reasons. May God’s will be done.

Shirley Anne

Shirley Anne

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It all started in 1605 when a group of Catholic men, one of whom was Guy Fawkes conspired to blow up King James 1 and his followers when the king went to open Parliament on November 5th. Queen Elizabeth 1 had passed laws which endeavoured to make people visit a protestant church on a Sunday. Catholics were not allowed to follow their faith and anyone found doing so were in danger of losing their life. When King James came to the throne the catholic population had thought he might relax the laws but in fact he made it even more difficult for those who were catholics. The group of men, led by Robert Catesby included Thomas Winter and Robert Winter, Christopher and John Wright, Thomas Percy and someone called Bates together with Digby, Keyes, Rookwood, Grant, Tresham and of course

Since those days it has been customary to celebrate with fireworks and unfortunately in the past many children have been injured through their mis-use. Many organised events are held by local authorities so there is no real need to continue selling fireworks to the general public. Perhaps one day it will become law but in the meantime we have to be careful that our children are not maimed for life because of carelessness.

Shirley Anne

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The other day I received an email from a local supermarket encouraging me to shop early for Christmas and showing me what was on offer in their stores. I have no problem with promotions like this when I can simply move them to the trash can, which is where they end up anyway with me. This time I opened the email and saw the amount of goods they had on offer, not because I wanted to see them but because I wasn’t sure what the content of the email was. Either way it got binned. Having seen what the message was about made me think of all the years previously I had worried myself silly wondering what to buy family and friends for Christmas. Now I no longer have that problem as I ceased celebrating Christmas in that fashion last year. In fact I don’t celebrate it at all in any way now. It is my own choice based on what I believe to be consistent with my faith. I rely upon Scripture, The Bible, for instruction and although I haven’t got it all right I am endeavouring to do my best. The main point of contention is the fact that the whole ‘Christmas’ thing is a man-made affair and has no foundation in the Christian faith and teachings. There are other festivals which I think should be celebrated as Jesus Himself did but we neglect them. Many people, including Christians, are not aware of this fact and prefer to do their own thing, especially non-believers. I used to be concerned that people didn’t celebrate Christmas as a festival commemorating the birth of Jesus (even though it wasn’t on 25 th December) but rather indulged themselves in a form of hedonism and forgot all about the message in the Christmas season. Christians celebrate the fact that their Saviour was born and He later paid for their sins. Others think it is the ‘season of goodwill to all men’ but really have no idea on what that means if anything at all. The idea of giving gifts at Christmas stems from the Biblical  account of Christ‘s birth where the wise men (astrologers, mystics, kings of the Orient, whatever title you choose) gave gifts to the babe in the manger. In fact Jesus was a little older by the time He actually received any gifts. It was the custom to bear gifts to any new-born king and so a normal thing to do. Not everyone was given the same treatment but the practice has become the norm by the traditions of men. It is nice to receive gifts from anyone of course and at any time but to make it as being an essential part of what is in fact not a recognised festival nor recommendation in Scripture is a recipe for unnecessary hardship for some and a worry for others. Christ Himself would think it absurd to show love in this way, if love is the intended motive in the first place. A nice gift would be one given to someone in need, done anonymously and whenever that need arose, not because it was Christmas. I want to celebrate the birth of my Saviour so I do that every day of my life, giving thanks to God for His wonderful gift of life, the sacrifice of His Son Jesus for the forgiveness and payment for my sins. I have no need to stuff my face with rich food and wine, worry about buying presents and leave my purse lighter when I can use that cash for a more noble purpose. I expect people will wish me a merry Christmas but I shall not return the blessing. I shall probably give them a different message, more pertinent to the reason behind the birth instead. If I get any cards or emails wishing me the same I will not reply in kind. Yes, I am so glad I don’t need to worry about such things. As I write this the television is on and on the program they are discussing what they will be doing for Halloween. I worry about that!

Shirley Anne

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If there is a silly season in the year it has got to be around about now. We are approaching ‘Halloween‘, Bonfire Night (Guy Fawkes Day), Remembrance Day, Advent, Christmas, New Years, Mid-Winters Day. Most, if not all these events are based on superstition or are man-made and have no basis in truth. Halloween is messing about with forces of evil and showing disrespect to a loving God. Bonfire night is a celebration of an attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament, a wicked deed which should be condemned and not celebrated. Remembrance day pays honour to the forces of evil and not the memory of those who have fallen (see http://www.midnightministries.org.uk/funerals.htm ), Advent is a man-made festival which has no basis in Christianity, Christmas is likewise a man-made festival which celebrates Christ‘s death! That is what the word ‘Mass’ means. Not that many people celebrate Christmas for the right reasons anyway! Mid-winter festivals are based in paganism and New Year similarly so. People follow the traditions of men, want nothing to do with God unless it is a token gesture. If asked, many people wouldn’t be able to give a reason for why they follow blindly after the things their peers or friends do. Ask the question of yourself and if there is any benefit to you in this type of indulgence.

Shirley Anne

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I realised something yesterday about a previous post I’d written regarding not being bothered and how it seemed to picture me as a lost soul who was tired of living. That couldn’t be further from the truth as I love life and really do enjoy it. I realised too that every day I find myself laughing at something, in fact I cannot remember a day when I didn’t laugh even just a little. The only time that would not be true is when I am ill but that isn’t often. I see the funny side of things in life and find myself laughing at myself sometimes. The slightest thing can set me off laughing sometimes but I do have a serious side too. I think that if we cannot find humour in our lives we are indeed sad people. Many things in my life frustrate me but I never let them get the better of me and I never worry about anything, what’s the point? Worrying doesn’t change a thing. Life’s a long song, a gas, as the songwriters say and that is only true if you have the right attitude to it. I am not saying that I never feel down because I do at times but I make every effort to snap out of it. I find myself trying to justify my actions or desires and there is sometimes a tug-of-war going on in my brain as to whether I should or should not do something. It is at times like these that I find myself laughing at myself and then saying ‘Oh just get on with it’! One of the main priorities in life is to be happy and laughing is one of the ways we can show it. Life is a bit of a laugh at times isn’t it? Well for some people this doesn’t seem to be the case. I know of a couple of people who never seem to smile. It’s as if they have the problems of the world on their shoulders and some people I know just don’t know how to let their hair down and have a good laugh. Such a shame really. For myself I will continue to laugh and keep a smile on my face.

Shirley Anne