><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine - ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Issue 29 Vol 3 # 11 November 2002 ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> FreEzine is a free email magazine/newsletter containing articles of interest from a Christian perspective and is published no less than monthly. FreEzine is NOT Spam and is only sent to people who request it. If you ever want to stop (or start) receiving FreEzine you'll find instructions at the end of this newsletter. A special "hello" to all of our new subscribers. We welcome and appreciate feedback on how we can improve this e-zine for you. IF YOU FIND THIS NEWSLETTER USEFUL... ... PLEASE FORWARD IT TO FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES! ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> IN THIS ISSUE: Editorial: Knowing How To Answer What's On? Seminars & Workshops Repeatable Quotable: My Symphony By William Henry Channing Article: The Sudden Death of a Child by Dr Linda S. Mintle Havagiggle: Flattered Minister The Extensive Exposition: Explaining Suffering And Healing by Dr Chrystal Jaye The Funny Bone: The Philosophy of Toys Split Second Wisdom: Opposing the Bible Reader's Write: Life In The Manure Pile by Marsha Jordan Sermon Snippet: The Art of Thanksgiving Theologically speaking: Always Be Prepared to Give an Answer For the Children: Giving Thanks Take a Hint: Updating Websites When Your Computer is Idle Freebies: Real Estate Toolkit From My Case Files: More Value Than Many Sparrows Letters to the Editor Watch This Space Observation: FreEzine in Languages Other Than English Subscription & Other Information ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine -FreEzine ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Editorial: Knowing How To Answer 'Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man' (Colossians 4:6). Recently I went to the local International Airport to meet someone arriving from overseas. As I waited in the concourse area, I noticed that the gentleman sitting next to me was reading a book with the title, Defending Your Faith. When he put the book and his spectacles down for a moment to rest his eyes, I asked him if his faith needed defending. He looked closely at me, peered directly into my eyes, and waited for me to explain. I went on to ask, 'What do you believe that warrants reading a book on how to defend it?' An expression of panic coloured his countenance and he stammered, 'I don't believe anything except that I'm reading this book.' With that, he replaced his glasses and resumed his reading with feigned intensity. As we sat in silence, I pondered on what I would have said (on the spur of the moment) if he had asked me those same questions. What would you have said? I remembered reading Peter's admonition, 'Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear' (1 Peter 3:15). However, I also remembered the words of Jesus to his disciples, 'And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say: / For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say' (Luke 12:11,12). And again, 'They shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake. / And it shall turn to you for a testimony. / Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer: / For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist' (Luke 21:12-15). There is no anomaly here: it is not a matter of Peter saying 'Do this' and Jesus saying, 'No need to do this.' The balance between Peter's words and those of Jesus is in our choice to have such a relationship with God that we are willing to allow Him to speak through us whenever the occasion arises. You don't need to be an academic, as is not a matter of WHAT we know, but WHOM we know. You don't need to have any special societal status, as it is not a matter of WHO we are, but WHO'S we are. You don't need to have any special training, as it is not a matter of what WE PREPARE TO SAY, but whether or not we ALLOW GOD TO SAY His words through us (as a result of the relationship we have developed with Him). Although salvation is a gift, we nurture that relationship by obedience, by prayer & through Bible Study. This not only gives us hope, but also enables us to 'be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh [us] a reason of the hope that is in [us] with meekness and fear'. May you have this hope. Lionel Hartley, Editor. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> What's On? Seminars & Workshops: For free Seminars in your area, locally, nationally & internationally, visit . ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Repeatable Quotable: My Symphony By William Henry Channing To live content with small means; To seek elegance rather than luxury; and refinement rather than fashion; To be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy not rich; To study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; To listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; To bear all cheerfully, do all bravely, await occasion, hurry never; In a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common -- This is to be my symphony. (William Henry Channing was Chaplain to the U.S. Senate, mid 1800s. Source: Bits & Pieces, November 9, 1995, Copyright (c) Economic Press, Inc. ) ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Article: The Sudden Death of a Child The painful loss of a child by sudden death is not something any parent ever wants to experience. It's out of sequence and interrupts the normal family life cycle. Children are supposed to outlive their parents. However, when tragedy strikes, parents often find themselves asking specific questions. These questions are normal and part of the grieving process. Perhaps the most difficult questions for any person with faith is, 'God, why?' Children are the most important emotional focus in a family. They are extensions of us, representing our hopes, dreams and unfulfilled expectations. We want to give our children all that we can. We love and esteem them, and we can't imagine our lives without them. Nothing can be as painful as losing a child, an event made even more horrible by the aspect of sudden death. Most people view the death of a child as one of life's greatest tragedies and challenges. Children are not supposed to die before their parents; it's out of sequence. We expect to help our children grow and to launch them into the world. When they die suddenly, that launching never occurs, the family life cycle is interrupted and our dreams come crashing down. All members of the family are shaken and affected by the tragedy, and with sudden death, there is no anticipated grieving. Siblings are frightened, feeling lost and confused, and marriages come under tremendous strain. Sudden death raises apprehension about the future, brings on a sense of insecurity and is hard to grasp because of the overwhelming pain. Families who experience the sudden death of a child commonly ask several questions: ><> Did it really happen? It takes time for the full impact of the loss to register. The initial reaction is disbelief, shock or numbness. Could I have done something more? or differently? ><> 'If only!' It's normal to rehearse various scenarios in our minds as to how we could have prevented the death. ><> Am I worthy of living? 'What did I do to deserve to live?' This is known as survivor's guilt. Who can I blame? When we experience anything out of our control, we want to blame someone or something as a way to make sense of it. ><> Why do I have to deal with all the medical and legal authorities? At the time of a sudden death, no one wants to deal with questions from police, coroners, doctors, investigators and other officials. We feel they are invading our private moments of grief, and they are. Yet sometimes these intrusive questions are vital to obtaining needed information. We also feel a sense of morbidity when we deal with funeral directors, the county coroner and others trying to make funeral arrangements. These people are accustomed to murder and death. Sometimes they appear insensitive and uncaring. ><> Why can't I talk to him or her one more time? Obviously you can't prepare for sudden death because you don't know it's coming. The last thing said may have been pleasant and loving. Maybe you were able to give a last hug, smile at your child or tell her you loved her. Maybe you had an argument, were hurried that morning, didn't speak or had to discipline. Regrets and unfinished business are normal. Don't dwell on them. It serves no purpose. ><> God, why? It's OK to ask this, and you will, many times. There is no easy answer. You may never know, and that's the toughest part of saying goodbye. --Linda S. Mintle, Ph.D.,Kids Killing Kids, Creation House, 1999. <> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Havagiggle: Flattered Minister A pastor was leaving his area and was saying farewell to his congregation at the Church doors for the last time. He shook the hand of an elderly lady as she walked out. She said, "Your successor won't be as good as you." "Nonsense", said the pastor, in a flattered tone. "No, really", said the old lady, "I've been here under five different ministers, and each new one has been worse than the last." -- ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Each issue we will make available a longer article available by email free to those who request it. This is to keep the FreEzine a readable length yet make available more in-depth material for those who are interested. Articles provided under this section do not always reflect totally the beliefs of the editor. In some issues more than one article will be available under this section and articles will need to be asked for by name to save confusion. We have no separate mailing list for the automatic despatch of articles in The Extensive Exposition so a separate request will need to be made for each article. This month's article- Explaining Suffering And Healing (A comparison of Pentecostal and secular general practitioners) by Dr Chrystal Jaye, BA (Hons) PhD. Jaye is a lecturer in the Department of General Practice at Dunedin Medical School. She currently teaches research methods, and medical anthropology in the Masters of General Practice programme and supervises a number of fellows writing Masters and PhD theses. This is an original scientific paper extracted from the New Zealand Family Physician, 326 Volume 28 Number 5, October 2001, with permission. Articles may be obtained free by writing to the editor and asking for the article by name. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> The Funny Bone: The Philosophy of Toys Here's some philosophy of toys: Capitalism - He who dies with the most toys, wins. Hari Krishna - He who plays with the most toys, wins. Judaism - He who buys toys at the lowest price, wins. Catholicism - He who denies himself the most toys, wins. Anglican - They were our toys first. Greek Orthodox - No, they were OURS first. Branch Davidians - He who dies playing with the biggest toys, wins. Mormonism - Every boy may have as many toys as he wants. 7th Day Adventist - He who plays with his toys on Saturday, loses. Church of Christ - He whose toys make music, loses. Amish - Toys with batteries are surely a sin. Baptist - Once played always played. Church of Christ, Scientist - We are the toys. Jehovah's Witnesses - He who "places" the most toys door-to-door, wins. Pentecostalism - He whose toys can talk, wins. Non-denominationalism - Does it really matter where the toys came from? Communism - Everyone gets the same number of toys. Confucianism - Once a toy is dipped in water, it is no longer dry. Voodoo - Let me borrow that doll for a second... Hedonism - Hang the rule book! Let's play! Atheism - There is no toy maker. Polytheism - There are many toy makers. Evolutionism - The toys made themselves. Existentialism - Toys are a figment of your imagination. Baha'i - All toys are just fine with us. Taoism - The doll is as important as the dump truck. -- Daniel.Davis@nashville.com ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Split Second Wisdom: One evidence of the value of the Bible is the character of those who oppose it. - Anon. Source: Inspiration Point - www.geocities.com/ipoint.geo/quotationcorner.html ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Reader's Write: Life In The Manure Pile There was a time when my husband aspired to be a self-sufficient, back-to-the-land pioneer. He bought a windmill, some oil lamps, beehives, and a couple of pigs, which our son named Lois Lane and Clark Kent. This dirty duo caused me many headaches; from the day we took them home. Although tied in gunny sacks and secured in the back of our pickup truck, the Houdini hoglets managed to free themselves, leap from the truck, and head for the hills. We eventually got the slippery little fellows safely home, but only after a rough and tumble scramble through the woods. Lois and Clark were adventurous piglets who soon learned to scale their little pig house and jump off the roof to freedom outside their fence. Motorists on the busy highway near our home frequently reported seeing "two wild pigs" darting between cars. And more than once, I received angry phone calls from neighbours who found the pair digging up their flowerbeds. I was usually the only one home when the pigs went exploring, so the job of luring them home fell to yours truly. How does one convince two full-grown hogs to follow you? It requires a slop bucket full of cottage cheese, apple peels, and other goodies. Once I had to trudge through waist-high snow, leaving a trail behind me of table scraps. By this time, L and C had become man-eaters, so they followed close behind chomping at my heels. Yes, pigs BITE - at least Lois and Clark did. And once they tasted blood, they preferred it to their usual diet. That diet consisted of truckloads of stale bakery bread, sour milk from the dairy, and scraps from local restaurants. Keeping the pair of porkers fed was a job. Lois and Clark ate a lot - and you can imagine what else they did - a LOT. The manure pile grew into a mountain, which remained in the field long after Lois and Clark were transformed to bacon and pork-chops and laid to rest in our freezer. The following summer, I planted a huge garden. I weeded it, fertilized it, and tended it daily only to discover at the end of the season that my prized vegetables were dwarfed in comparison to the huge tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash that had sprung up from the manure pile. Why am I telling you more than you cared to know about pigs and manure? Because there is something to be learned here. (God has lessons for us everywhere, if we are willing to see them.) Most folk have felt the pain of seeing their hopes shattered and dreams destroyed. We all have felt at times like life is one big dung heap and we're living smack dab in the middle of a mountain of manure! The Bible says that God can produce beauty from ashes. He can take the smelly, disgusting pile of manure that our lives can sometimes be, and He can grow some prize-winning, life-giving fruit (and veggies) from what looks to us like garbage. So, you see, there is hope, even atop the manure pile. Just as the garbage in a compost heap makes a garden grow, the garbage in our lives can bring forth good things too and help us to grow. We may wonder why God allows the manure to pile up in our lives, but I'm sure it's no accident or surprise to Him. It couldn't happen without His approval. The good news is that we don't have to climb that manure mountain alone. Yes, trouble comes into every life, but we have a source of strength to uphold and guide us; and we have hope, the essential ingredient for making it through the dung heap. So grab a shovel and start digging. There's a harvest on the other side. -- Marsha Jordan (from Just-a-minute. Marsha has her own website: www.hugsandhope.com) If you have something you have written that you would like us to consider publishing, a free 60 page Style Guide is available online at , or from the Editor of this FreEzine. Submissions for FreEzine must not exceed 500 words and may be sent within the body of an email addressed to . ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Sermon Snippet: The Art of Thanksgiving The art of thanksgiving is thanks-living. It is gratitude in action. It is thanking God for the gift of life by living it triumphantly. It is thanking God for your talents and abilities by accepting them as obligations to be invested for the common good. It is thanking God for all that men and women have done for you by doing things for others. It is thanking God for happiness by striving to make others happy. It is thanking God for beauty by helping to make the world more beautiful. It is thanking God for inspiration by trying to be an inspiration to others. It is thanking God for health and strength by the care and respect you show your body. -- St Martins (NZ) SDA Bulletin. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Theologically Speaking: Always Be Prepared to Give an Answer By Hank Hanegraaff (www.crosswalk.com) Why do you spend so much time focusing on apologetics? Can't we just preach the gospel? Most Christians are aware of their responsibility to reach a dying world with God's message. No less of an authority than Jesus exhorts us to proclaim the gospel (Matt. 10:27) and make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:19). However, there is another dimension often neglected in evangelism; namely, the defence of the gospel. The very Bible exhorting us to preach the gospel urges us to contend for the faith as well (Jude 3), just as the first Christians consistently offered reasoned defences of their faith before unbelievers (for example, see Stephen's speech in Acts 7 and Paul's address in Acts 17:16-34). Giving reasons for our faith (apologetics) is neither an option nor a late feature of the Christian faith. Rather, it is an essential element of the biblical Christian witness. In a world steeped in mystery cults, the apostle Peter admonished believers to "always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have . . . with gentleness and respect" (1 Pet. 3:15). Only by meeting honest objections with biblical answers can "we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5). It was in this spirit that Paul vigorously defended the gospel (see Acts 14:8-18; cf. 17:2-3; 18:4, 19; Phil. 1:7, 16), charging others to do the same (2 Tim. 2:23-26). The need for apologetics today is crucial. Believers must realize that we are living in a post-Christian era with a host of worldviews vying continuously for people's commitments and, indeed, for their very lives. We must face these challenges head-on. Apologetics does not supplant faith, it supplements it. Nor does it replace the Spirit's working. Rather, the Holy Spirit uses apologetic arguments as vehicles for clarifying the truth of God's Word. The same verses commanding us to preach the gospel also instructs us to constantly be prepared to correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and careful instruction (2 Tim. 4:2). ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> For the Children: Giving Thanks Around this time of year in many countries as special time of thanksgiving is celebrated. We see the importance of thanksgiving when we observe that Paul the Apostle begins his biblical letters with words of thanksgiving when he writes to the Romans, the Corinthians, the Ephesians, the Philippians, the Colossians, and the Thessalonians. In America, in the year 1623, William Bradford*, the governor of the Plymouth Colony, made the following proclamation: "Inasmuch as the great Father has given us this year an abundant harvest of Indian corn, wheat, beans, squashes, and garden vegetables, and has made the forests to abound with game and the sea with fish and clams, and inasmuch as He has protected us from the ravages of the savages, has spared us from pestilence and disease, has granted us freedom to worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience; now, I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye Pilgrims, with your wives and little ones, do gather at ye meeting house, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12 in the day time, on Thursday, November ye 29th of the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and twenty-three, and the third year since ye Pilgrims landed on ye Pilgrim Rock, there to listen to ye pastor, and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings." According to John Yates**, "it was Abraham Lincoln who, in the midst of the Civil War, in 1863, established the annual (American) celebration of Thanksgiving". Now you and I do not need to specifically "gather at ye meeting house, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12" or wait for a Civil War, as we can find occasion at every meal-time to offer thanksgiving. In some faith systems the Grace, as it is called, is prayed after meals. In others it is prayed before the meal commences. Sometimes it may be sung. Here is an old traditional grace that you may like to sing. If you would like a free MIDI file of the music, write to your editor and ask for it. "Be present at our table, Lord Be here and everywhere adored. These mercies bless and grant that we May feast in paradise with Thee." --Editor. (*William Bradford's proclamation from James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, Wheaton, 1988 pp 263-264. **John Yates' quote from "An Attitude of Gratitude," Preaching Today, Tape No. 110) ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Take a Hint: Updating Websites When Your Computer is Idle Internet Explorer has a nice feature to customize updating of websites when your PC is idle. Save the desired site to Favorites by clicking on 'Favorites' and then 'Add to Favorites'. Check 'make available offline' and click on 'Customize'. Use the Wizard to set up how many pages to download and when, then leave the rest to your computer. Delete this arrangement by selecting 'Synchronize' under the 'Tools' menu to locate those sites no longer needed. -- ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Freebies: Real Estate Toolkit For free online tools (videos, calculators, info sheets, etc) to help with mortgage management, buying or selling, renovating, sale maximisation etc, visit ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> From My Case Files: More Value Than Many Sparrows After three decades of counselling, your editor (a retired sociologist) sometimes ponders some of the things that have come up in counselling that, in retrospect, contain an element of humour. This feature section will be included from time to time to share some of these snippets. Names have been changed to protect privacy. Egbert, quoting Matthew 10:31 (Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows) insisted that his wife, Maggie, was of more value than many sparrows? When I asked him to elaborate, he added, "That's because sparrows can't cook!" ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Letters to the Editor Cantos de poetry, Catchwords, Changes, Clamourings, Clichés, Commendations, Comments, Commercials, Complaints, Compliments, Congratulates, Credits, Cries, Criticisms, Critiques? We'll Take All! ---------------------- Elena (email) writes, 'I tried to install a program on my PC and it asked what version of Direct-X is running. I am using Windows 98. How do I find out without taking the computer to a service centre?' ><> Elena, to determine the DirectX version on any version of Windows you can use the DirectX Diagnostic Tool which comes with Windows. To use this tool, go to Start>Run> and type "dxdiag" {without quotes} in the Run box and press OK. When it opens to the main page (System), the current version is listed the last line in System Information box. (Another way is to go to Start>Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Information. In the System Information Utility window, select Tools>DirectX Diagnostic Tool.) -- Editor. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Watch This Space: Future issues include other sections not listed here. Why not write to us suggesting what you would like to see included. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Observation: FreEzine in Languages Other Than English FreEzine is distributed internationally, with subscribers currently in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, South Africa, Spain, UK, USA, and some subscribers whose location is unknown. FreEzine is published monthly in a number of other languages including German (FreiEzine Zeitschrift), Spanish (La Revista libre de Ezine), Italian (La Rivista di Ezine libera), and French (La Revue de Ezine libre), some issues by the editor and others by subscribers who re-distribute it in their own language. If you wish to have your FreEzine suppled in a language other than English, please write to the editor (using your subscription email address) and specify the language you require. If you are a translator/distributors not already on our contact list, could you please write to the editor as we are happy to have you continue and would appreciate copies of your translations to be available to other readers. ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> Subscription Information: FreEzine is a Free ezine magazine/newsletter, published by Lionel Hartley (A writer's profile is online at ) no less than monthly and sent out ONLY to those who request it. As FreEzine uses an opt-in email list, we never buy or otherwise obtain email addresses. Although we encourage our readers to forward a copy of FreEzine to their friends and invite them to subscribe, we have a strictly No Spam Policy. 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A note on the format: Your editor has considered many possible formats, including a colourfully illustrated E-book, webpage, Portable Document Format (.pdf), etc. Reluctantly, plain text was chosen to make this ezine available to the greatest number of users - DOS, Windows(R), Macintosh, etc. Address all correspondence to the editor Please do not use "Reply To Sender" email option as a commercial or other distributor, unrelated to FreEzine, may occasionally send out this magazine. Free offers in FreEzine of CD-ROMs, Back issues, software, posters, additional articles, screensavers, etc. have a time limit which is normally until the issue of the next edition of FreEzine. Special exceptions are sometimes made. Contact the editor for information. In order to cater for a variety of tastes and beliefs, the content of FreEzine does not always reflect totally the beliefs of the editor. Contents of FreEzine are COPYRIGHT and we make every endeavour to acknowledge sources. You may freely quote from FreEzine PROVIDED is cited as a reference source. Occasional contributions from Good News Australia are used with permission. YOUR contributions and comments most welcome. E&OE PS. This could be your next home: Check out ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><> : <>< : ><>