It’s not just opioids: ‘Diseases of despair’ claim a growing number of Minnesotan lives..

Minnesota Health Commissioner Dr. Ed Ehlinger says diseases of despair “…are brought on in part by a lack of hope, a lack of opportunity and a lack of paths out of poverty.”

Source: It’s not just opioids: ‘Diseases of despair’ claim a growing number of Minnesotan lives | MinnPost

Known as to much government ruining lives….

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Hey Racist Hate Group…

Why are you wearing masks?

Your proving your nothing.

Besides being noisy and violent…

Hate group…

 

St. Cloud, MN: a microcosm of the battle ahead for cities targeted by federal refugee program

Refugee Resettlement Watch

The dramatic change in demographic makeup and the escalation of tensions in St. Cloud came to my attention in the earliest days of writing this blog when my then blog partner, Judy, wrote in 2008 about how Somali students were harassing a service dog to such a degree that it caused the disabled student to leave the school.

See that story here.

It is a good thing that we captured some of that story because it seems to no longer be available at the St. Cloud Times, which surprise, surprise, seems to be the case for many of the articles we have reported on from St. Cloud in the ensuing 9 years.

Recommendation!  I can’t do it here, but when I look at RRW’s archives on St. Cloud (that began with the dog abuse story) what immediately comes to mind is that what has happened to the city…

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The Church

The Church

September 24

 

 

“Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you” (Lev 26:8).

The Church is called to impact the world. The biblical definition “church” is not an institution or building, but rather it is made up of individuals. Jesus said “wherever two or more meet together, I am in the midst of them.” The biblical word translated as “church” is ekklesia which is the original Greek meaning “the people of God.”

The New Testament used this word in two different ways. Sometimes it refers to people of God gathered together in congregations. That is our traditional idea of the local church. But other times it means believers in general, wherever they might find themselves.

God calls the Church to be transformers of society through their collective influence. Jesus prayed that His Church would be unified in order for the world to respond to Him. “May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (John 17:23). The enemy of the Church is secularism, a religion that says there is no God. When local congregations fail to come together as a collective voice and operate instead as individual silos in their community society is given over to the evils created as a result of an unbelieving society. Conversely, when the Body of Christ – the Church puts its collective resources together to solve societal issues, our enemies; crime, poverty, sexual perversion, etc. will fall by the sword of a unified Church.

God is birthing city coalitions of His Church among congregations in the city in order to fulfill John 17:23. Are you willing to be a catalyst in your community to see His Church take back your city?

Gold and Silver…

September 24
Gold and Silver…
For reading & meditation – Mark 1:14-28
“After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God.” (v.14)

Yesterday we looked at the final answer to dealing with unmerited suffering: reminding ourselves that in God’s universe, He only allows what He can use. Look again at the words of our text for today: “After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God.” After the finest and truest of prophets had been put in prison and his preaching silenced by a wicked and unjust king, Jesus came preaching the good news about God. How could there be good news about the God who had allowed such a thing to happen? But that is exactly what Jesus did proclaim – and proclaimed unashamedly. And why? Because Jesus knew that everything God allowed, He would use. By His action, He rejected the idea that a man like John should be exempt from suffering, and that God isn’t good when He permits such things to happen. Can you see now why God allows us to go through suffering? He does it so that, in the fires of affliction, we learn the secret of an alchemy which transmutes the base metal of injustice, and consequent suffering into the gold of character and the silver of God’s purposes. In one place in the New Testament, Jesus refers to being “perfected” by His death on the cross (Luke 13:32, AV). Just think of it: the worst thing that can happen to a man – crucifixion – turns out to be the best that can happen to Him – perfection. This is the attitude we must cultivate if we are not only to face, but use suffering.

Prayer:

O my Father, how can I ever sufficiently thank You for showing me this way of life? Nothing stops it – permanently. When men and circumstances concentrate on doing their worst – You bring out of it Your best. I see, I follow, and I am unafraid. Amen.

For Further Study

Psalms 12:1-6; Isaiah 43:2

1. What was David’s declaration?

2. What is your declaration today?

Dog Days …

To Start The Day …