Apparently it was self-reported that he had the interviewer in stitches with a lot of funny one-liners …that didn’t make the cut…

“When you’re married, you can only be as happy as the least happy person in the relationship. ” – Rules of Engagement

This weekend was pretty wonderful, I had myself a cleaning spree, I think it feels better than a shopping spree. I had the urge to start cleaning outside as well, but I thought I’d best leave that for Aaron, I assume he does it better, and my ankle is still a little sore when I have to wear shoes.

The kitchen looks marvelous, if I do say so myself.

Aaron has informed me that his roommate is starting to notice, it was occasional at first, and just basic dishes and light scrubbing of other areas. But now I’m wiping and scrubbing everything, and actually sweeping, I hadn’t noticed that previously…. the cat hair I found from just him running through the house to the garage… It was like a full cat, and I only swept the kitchen and hallway. Hard wood flooring I might add, but it had collected. That somewhat set me off. Not my place, not my decision.

Recent events and drastic measures needed to be taken mean I get my Chasie Poop soon. Once I’ve cleaned the garage and turned it into a hang out spot, one without cigarettes since Chase won’t have that. I refuse, he can do it to his cat, but Aaron won’t smoke around Chase.

Speaking of. XD

We can’t afford to get him what he does want, so he’s smoking much less cigarettes until he can afford to buy more at a time or wait for an electronic cigarette. I’m excited, smoking less means tastier kisses or tasteless ones rather. Thats exciting all by itself not to mention it’ll be fantastic. We’ve replaced his excess cigarettes and Dr. Pepper drinks for more expensive juices. So, he’ll be all sorts of healthier. And even though I found my 2 diets from my last purchase, he promised to rid of them somehow since even at a restaurant I can order water now.

This all totally went off topic.

I cleaned all weekend, and that was fantastic, so, when it came time for Aaron and I to head downtown to watch Game of Thrones with his friend Ramone, I decided I’d stay, I didn’t feel like changing into pants and semi watching a show I’m not greatly interested in, I like it, I just don’t love it.

So, instead I stayed at Aarons, planned on giving the pups a bath, put on a show that looked interesting. Rules of Engagement.

I watched about 5 episodes, I got kind of into it. I love the different views on relationships. A married couple, a newly engaged couple, and the single dumbass.

They showed a quote in the pilot, “When you’re married, you can only be as happy as the least happy person in the relationship. ” I thought it was interesting, and absolutely true. I’ve heard happy wife is a happy life, etc. etc. But I liked that one, because its not one sided, you have no chance at happiness if your woman is angry, but women aren’t always able to be happy when their men aren’t. Unless your man is always unhappy and you’re magically used to that?

Anyways. I just really liked the quote, and how true it really is.

The show was really good, I’d continue watching it on my own time if I felt like it, which I usually don’t. Aaron puts on enough TV for us, I can’t keep up with how many different shows him and Joe watch. I enjoy having stuff to clean or other stuff to do while they continue watching their shows, I like coming in to relax and see what they’re watching whenever a new bowl is packed or a blunt is rolled. Works perfectly fine for me, and I don’t think they mind when I clean as long as its not too loud, right?

Well Ladies & Gentlemen… We have officially began tracking the band! I am sitting here, in Nashville, in the studio just thanking God for being so faithful! I’m sitting here with Aaron Rice, Luke Buishas and Jorge Lopez, getting ready to track drums and bass on a song called “BIGGER!” We kicked off with prayer, and now we are rollin’! WAIT… WAIT… Before we jump into all of that, let’s go back a day or so…

Kelli and I just came through a LONG but GREAT weekend at the church. We had a “Wholeness and Overflow” Conference and sang our tails off! LOL! Then, after celebrating Mother’s Day, jumped into laundry and packing for my flight this morning. We seemed to get super side-tracked with so much happening around the house, running to Wal-Mart, etc… Needless to say, I didn’t get in the bed till after 1 AM, and had to be up at 4 AM to be at the airport by 5 AM… I tossed and turned, and ended up getting about 30 mins of sleep! I boarded a plane with very little money in my pocket but, a heart full of hope. I sat on the plane, and glanced through a magazine full of articles about pursuing dreams and the sacrifices we face when we give it all we have. (AIN’T THAT THE TRUTH?!?!?) All I could think about it how exhausted and broke I am! But, even then, God is still faithful!

So, fast-forward to now… HERE I AM… Still pursuing, taking “bigger” steps towards my dreams, making strides with every sacrifice! One thing I know is, eventually, something has to break. All I have to do is keep doing all that I can, and God will do the rest. Remember, you may become discouraged, broke, or exhausted but, you won’t be successful if you give up!

Stay tuned for some footage from the studio!

Have a blessed day!

Although there are several things that happen in this chapter, I want to comment on the circumcision. Even though God made a covenant with Abraham that his sons would be circumcised on the eighth day, the Hebrews were in Egypt for four hundred years, and enslaved for the majority of it, so many of the traditions could have easily fallen out of practice. Another possibility is the fact that Moses spent so much time in an Egyptian household that he may have not realized his son needed to be circumcised. Regardless, God’s covenant with Abraham established that anyone who didn’t circumcise his sons would be cut off. Therefore, Zipporah saved Moses’ life when she circumcised her son. Thus, a woman is once again responsible for the rise of Moses.

Moses and Aaron went to the pharaoh to ask him to let the Hebrews worship their God for three days in the wilderness. Pharaoh refused and ordered the taskmasters to be stricter on the Hebrews, claiming they were being lazy. The foremen of the people of Israel then appealed to the pharaoh, but the pharaoh didn’t relent. After that, the foremen accused Moses and Aaron of making things worse for the Hebrews and Moses asked God why this evil had been done to his people. God told Moses that He would deliver His people out of Egypt and instructed Moses to tell the pharaoh to let the people of Israel go. Once again, Moses doubted his abilities, but the Lord continued to instruct him to bring his people out of Egypt. Then, there was a genealogy of Moses and Aaron, who were descendants of Levi. It concluded with the same quote from Moses, when he doubted his abilities.

There is a lot of doubt in these chapters: The people doubt Moses, Moses doubts God, Moses doubts himself. Through all this doubt, God continues to proclaim His promise that He will bring Israel out of Egypt. Even though we have to struggle sometimes, God always has a plan for us in his time. God makes all things good in His time. Even though the Hebrews are struggling, they will prosper and be freed from Egypt in God’s time. This is hard for some people to understand. Why can’t God just fix everything immediately? Why do people have to struggle? God cannot simply swoop down and save us from our sorrows, because that would contradict our free will. Also, in the absence of evil, we cannot know good. Thus, without the evils of pain and struggle, we cannot know to goodness of love and success. Therefore, sometimes we have to experience pain so we can eventually revel in the glory of God’s love and goodness. Personally, I have had a lot of struggles in my life. Before I looked to God, I couldn’t find meaning in what I experienced. However, since I have established a healthy relationship with God, I see that many of those struggles were what finally led me to happiness. There are some struggles that I still don’t understand, but I believe all will be revealed in His time.

These are my thoughts on Exodus 4-6.

A couple of things stand out to me here. First, there is a lot of “God told Moses to tell Aaron to tell Pharaoh” or “God told Moses to tell Aaron to do…” Why didn’t God just speak to Aaron directly? And why is Moses the guy who we give all the credit to here? If it weren’t for his role as messenger between God and Aaron, Moses wouldn’t be useful at all, so why is he the biblical name everyone remembers? He must become more important later.

Again we see God purposefully making things harder than necessary by hardening Pharaoh’s heart to prove a point. Couldn’t he have just revealed himself to the Egyptians to prove he was God? Were plagues really necessary?

Also, this means that we may not get to make the choice to follow or not follow God. I think I’m an atheist because I’ve researched a lot about religion and not found compelling evidence that any of it is true. But, maybe I’m just an atheist because God is forcing me to be one in order to prove a point. (Occam’s razor would suggest the first…)

It’s also interesting that the Egyptian magicians are able to replicate the supposed miracles that Aaron is performing in the name of God. That means one of two things- 1) magic was real back in those days, and people really were using enchantments to do God-like things. Or 2) if we assume that the laws of physics have always been constant, and therefore magic has never really worked, that means that these “miracles” just had natural, repeatable causes. My money is on the laws of physics. 

It brings to mind that quote by Arthur C Clarke, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” If you were to give an iPhone to someone from the Middle Ages, they would think you’re a god, and apparently if you perform good slight of hand back in the days of Moses, people thousands of years later will think you were God’s prophet.

Verse 25 says that the water-as-blood thing continues for 7 days. After 7 days without water, there wouldn’t be any Egyptians left to hold the Hebrews hostage. Supposedly even the water in people’s jars and pitchers had turned to blood- they would have died from dehydration.

Chapter 8- God tells Moses to tell Aaron to Pharaoh to let the people go, or they will bring a plague of frogs to infest the water, land and people’s homes. Aaron and the magicians make frogs appear. Pharaoh agrees to let the Hebrews go sacrifice to their god if the frogs will go away. Moses prays, the frogs die and stink, Pharaoh changes his mind. God tells Moses to tell Aaron to turn the dust into lice. The magicians can not replicate this trick, and tell Pharaoh it must be God doing it. Pharaoh’s heart remains hard. Next comes a plague of flies. God makes a point to only afflict the Egyptians with the flies, so that they will see that the Hebrews are God’s special people. Pharaoh agrees again to let them go sacrifice to God if the flies go away. Moses prays, the flies leave, Pharaoh changed his mind again.

So, I previously had the idea that the Hebrews were exempt from all the plagues, but apparently they suffered the bloody water, frogs and lice before God started sparing them. With friends like God, who needs enemies? If, in at attempt to set me free, someone made me endure dehydration and swarms of frogs and lice, I’d tell them that I didn’t want their help anymore!

From my childhood, I remember “LET MY PEOPLE GO” as this powerful command to set free the slaves. Turns out, it’s still just “Let my people go into the desert for 3 days to sacrifice to God.” Not as inspiring.

Also, Pharaoh is an idiot. If you think all your slaves want is 3 days in the desert, and they’re capable of causing so damn much misery over and over, well… is free labor really worth it?

Chapter 9- God kills all the livestock of the Egyptians, but the Hebrew livestock survives. Pharaoh’s heart is still hard. Moses and Aaron scatter ashes from a furnace which causes boils to erupt on the Egyptians. The magicians are so miserable by this point that they don’t even bother to show up. God hardens Pharaoh’s heart again. A plague of hail-fire that kills servants, livestock, and plants comes next. This plague does not affect the Hebrews. Pharaoh apologizes for his sins just long enough to get Moses to stop the hail, then his heart is hardened once more.

So, with this livestock-death plague– the Hebrews owned livestock? Interesting that slaves had property of their own.

Also interesting is that all the livestock of the land of Egypt are killed in verse six, yet more Egyptian livestock somehow exist to be killed by hail in verse 25. The Bible can’t even maintain consistency for one measly chapter.

I’m also curious about Pharaoh’s hard heart. Sometimes it simply says that Pharaoh hardened his heart. Sometimes it says that Pharaoh hardened his heart just like God said he would. Sometimes it says that God actively did the hardening. I wonder if it even matters who chose to do the hardening, since it was all part of God’s plan to show off to the Egyptians anyway.

I know “hard heart” is a metaphor here, but I can’t help but think that Pharaoh must have had a wicked bad case of atherosclerosis.

After waking up, I gave my mother the new Bath and Body Works candle, in the Limited Edition 2013 scent, Summer Boardwalk. Its a sweet smell, that I felt she would love. 

The rest of the day was spent on the golf coarse. Now keep in mind, that I hate the game and never have played before. My mother on the other hand, loves the game and tries to play every weekend. 

It was a learning curve, on a warm, sunny day in florida. I didn’t do too bad, and my mother was thrilled that I was spending the day on the green with her.

At the ninth hold we went to the club house to eat,there was a special menu prepared for mothers day. The food was outstanding, and a nice break before proceeding the the back nine. 

By the time that the four of us had finished paying, it was well after 5. As we left for the day, I knew that nothing I had purchased would replace her memories that we created today. I was also reminded that a simple act of doing something you don’t like for the happiness of another, is a greater feeling than you can ever imagine.

I dont like golf, but I will reconsider if my other needs a friend in a pinch one saturday. morning.

I hope everyone had a day that they enjoyed, appreciating those that loved, and raised you, from the traditional aspect, to the non traditional. Every parent is a hero when it comes to raising their children. So to all the parents and parents to be, Happy Mothers day!

For today’s Writer’s Corner Interview, we shine the spotlight on AnotherFacelessAuthor!

The room is small, big enough to fit a desk, two chairs, and a handful of people. There is only one door, which appears to have no locks whatsoever. A lightbulb swings lightly in the high-ceilinged room, and shadows dance in a strange sort of orchestrated frenzy on the faces of the two Elementalists standing in the shadows. The interviewer sits behind the big metal desk, which is weighed down by several stacks of blank paper.

“Let us begin the interview.” He says in an emotionless voice.

The water Elementalist standing in the shadows shuts his eyes in concentration and a stream of ink flows across the pages, spelling out Noveljoy Weekly Newsletter: Interview with AnotherFacelessAuthor.

AnotherFacelessAuthor sits across from the interviewer in the metal chair, feeling “oddly calm” about the interview.

“Let’s start by you telling us who you claim to be.” The interviewer commands.

“I’m just a girl telling a story, at least, I am as far as you can prove.” says, AnotherFacelessAuthor.

The interviewer begins pacing around the small room. The air Elementalist hops out of his way, while using her powers to flip the inked up sheets over as quickly as the water Elementalist could get all the information about AnotherFacelessAuthor down. It was faster and more efficient than any court reporter. Besides, it was a great opportunity for the Elementalists to practice delicate control over their powers. The interviewer nodded in approval at their work, then returned his attention to AnotherFacelessAuthor.

“Do you know who we are? Noveljoy is just another organization we use as a front. We train Elementalists. Do you know what Elementalists are?” The interviewer asks the questions cautiously, as if afraid of how much AnotherFacelessAuthor actually knows.

“I know more than you think. The Elementalists are a very elite, very powerful group of people who started showing up awhile ago. They have a certain affinity for, or control over, a certain aspect of the four elements: earth, air, fire, or water. Strength varies between different Elementalists. Unfortunately, their arrival has brought on a lot of controversy. No one really knows what to make of them quite yet. Though I suspect some groups know more than they’re letting on. Such as an organization that creates ‘Asylums’ for such people.”

“Your story, The Theory Behind the Phoenix suggests you know a lot more than is prudent for someone like you.” The interviewer’s voice is edged with hints of unsaid threats. “For the record, tell us what that… propaganda pamphlet is about.”

“Okay, I’m assuming propaganda pamphlet means my story. “It’s a story really. A story about a girl who wakes up in one of these Asylums with no memory of who she is or was, just like every other Elementalist in the Asylum did. Due to her odd hair color, she is nicknamed ‘Red’. She, like the others, has powers over an Element. Her affinity is with fire. Red, though, is….shall we say….unique. Her powers are strong, very strong. Most people have limitations to what they can do. They can’t control the entire element, they control a certain part, a certain aspect of it. Red…well, we’ve yet to find her limitations. In addition to her stronger-than-usual powers, she has been getting flashes, hearing voices, from her past, and she will do anything to figure out who she was. When all the signs of not only who she was, but also of what she is points to something called The Phoenix Theory, Red will go to any length to figure out what it means.”

“How did you, on your own and without prior knowledge of our organization, make up sucha yarn of a tale?” The interviewer crosses his arms, as if he already knows the answer to his question.

“I don’t know what you’re implying. It’s a story, simply. A fable made to entertain. I came up with it on my own.” If you could put in that I like smiled or smirked there, that would be awesome. “I was inspired by a lot of other stories and authors. I’ve been dreaming up fantasies since I was little. I’ve always been a big reader and I started writing down my stories in 6th grade. I dream of being an author.”

The interviewer shakes his head in disbelief as he hears AnotherFacelessAuthor’s explanation of the story’s inspiration.

“Don’t lie to us!” He cries. “It’ll do you no good.” The interviewer appears visibly shaken, trembling a bit as he continues his interrogation, “We know you have her. The one you call, Red, in your little story. You must have spoken to her, or else how could you possibly write with such accurac–I mean, conviction? The story’s told in 1^st person point of view….almost as if you were simply recording her thoughts and actions as she told them to you. Why didn’t you do the smart thing and write in 3^rd person point of view? Now we have ample proof that you’ve been colluding with those troublemakers.”

AnotherFacelessAuthor was “shocked” about the logic of how writing in 1^st point of view can incriminate a person.

“Red is simply imaginary. She’s no one. It’s simply a point of view I’ve always found interesting and easiest to write in.”

“And what about these other characters, are they based on real life, or are you simply dreaming them up?” The interviewer jeered at AnotherFacelessAuthor as if to ridicule AnotherFacelessAuthor as one big liar.

“Fine. You want the truth, since you already know so much? Red is real, the Asylum is real, as real as you and I, and she has been most helpful. When she learned of my skills to write, she wanted to tell her story, make sure everyone knew about her and the other Elementalists. That’s right, they’re all real. Aaron, Kali, Katy, Simmons, Fredrick, and every person I have named in this so called propaganda pamphlet. We’ve all lived in the dark for so long, it’s time they learned what was happening! We need to make sure this stops and NEVER happens to anyone else ever again. It’s horrid and unjust and unethical in more ways than you or I could count. The Elementalists are here to help, you’ll see.”

The interviewer mops his forehead. He is beginning to sweat, as if he were the one under the spotlight, with AnotherFacelessAuthor grilling him, instead of the other way around. AnotherFacelessAuthor thinks that the interviewer is probably feeling “Nervous” because “clearly this wasn’t how he envisioned this interview going. He had probably assumed it would be easy, a routine questioning. He had been proven wrong, way wrong.”

After a few deep breaths whereby the interviewer seems visibly calmed, he asks, “Why are you so obsessed about creating dystopias? You took our organization, which is intended for the good of humanity, and twisted it into some sort of corrupted scheme for power. You have no idea what your words have done to our organization, do you? Words have power. Surely, someone like you would know that.” The interviewer snapped.

“You are very right. Words have tremendous power. Greater power than any Elementalist possesses. That is why I’m doing this. I may not know a lot about your organization, but I know a lot about the Asylum’s. They claimed that they were just training Elementalists, too. And they made the decision that wiping their memory was the best way to go about doing that. And trust me when I say the Asylums are aiming for power. And Red and her friends, including myself, intend to stop them. And if that means taking you guys down along with them, so be it. If your intentions are so pure afterwords, we’ll talk then.”

“And scientists, why are scientists painted to be so evil all the time by you people! This….Fredrick person,” the interviewer is sputtering, now, “even he seems to be up to something! Do you have something against science and the great advancement of knowledge? What message are you trying to spread about the government and organizations like ours and about scientists in general? You should be ashamed of yourself!”

“Science is all great and grand as long as you have ethical limitations and lines. Erasing memories? That crosses a huge line. These Elementalists are made out to be a whole other species, nonhuman. They’re treated like labrats for a purpose we’ve yet to identify. And Fredrick?! Oh, he was all sweet when Red first showed up, now look at him! He’s no better than the other watchdogs or observe the Elementalists! That shows that you can’t always trust who a person claims to be. And whatmessage am I trying to convey? Here’s a message: watch out for who you mess with. The Elementalists are strong and powerful and smart. They will come bring organizations like the Asylum down. And I’m pretty sure Red will personally burn them to the ground.”

“Well, you think you know about us, but your knowledge is based on lies. Lies likely told to you by that nuisance of a girl, Red.” He pauses, thoughtfully before launching into his next question. “But don’t forget that we know who you really are, AnotherFacelessAuthor. What we don’t understand is why you would waste your powers – waste your potential – in favour of writing stories?” He speaks softly, now, as if in pity. “Can you make money out of it? Can you secure your future? If you join our team, you are guaranteed food and shelter and all the facilities available to our Elementalists.” The interviewer waits patiently for AnotherFacelessAuthor to explain why the experience of creating a story could never compare with his offer. Expressions of – Irritation? Indigestion? Jealousy? – flit across his face as he listens to AnotherFacelessAuthor’s response.

“I couldn’t do that. Words mean something, not just to me: to others. Even if my story wasn’t true…it’s an escape that sometimes people just need. Sometimes people need to get out of their daily lives: whether they’re stressful, suckish, or just…dull. Books, stories, words….they take you somewhere else. Let you be someone else. They let you dare to dream. And writing is my dream. I wouldn’t give that up for anything.”

“Your writing is good, I’ll admit.” The interviewer replies, grudgingly. He grabs a pile of paper from a hidden drawer. “Even a person like me, who has the tedious job of interrogating miscreants like you, can learn to appreciate this writing.” He flips open to the first pages of the manuscript. “I like these descriptions. Hallways that hold hands with eternity. Hair that bleeds from the scalp.” He nods almost unconsciously in appreciation as he paraphrases lines from the pages he is reading. “Some people might like to know how to write good, original descriptions. Some people might like to know what inspires you to write so poetically like that.” He looks at AnotherFacelessAuthor with narrowed eyes.

“Honestly? I think it’s just the fact I read so much. I can finish a 400 page book in a day if I’m into it. I’m able to find sentences that sound good and I’ve learned from these authors. Also: practice. As I said earlier, I’ve been writing since 6th grade. Trust me, those first stories did not sound as ‘poetic’. Stories are my passion so learning how to write was kinda easy for me. It was simply a matter of doing what I love.”

“I can see why people continue to read flip through this manuscript. You end your chapters with these snazzy one-lined cliffhangers.  A member of our organizational front, Conquestador123, pointed out how the line, ‘Welcome to the zoo, Red. It’s a wild ride.’ was a favourite. Do you just naturally come up with those cliff-hanger one-liners at the end of every chapter?” The interviewer was now asking weirdly professional questions, as if he was trying to become a writer and learn some useful skills from another writer.

“I feel like you always should have some good cut off to a chapter. Almost as if each chapter should be a mini story in itself, or should make you scramble to get to the next chapter as fast as humanly possible. Sometimes they come naturally, other times I’m sitting for half an hour thinking of how to end this dang chapter.”

“Have you heeded the advice from any of your fans? Our sources tell us that a mysterious person named, The Wandering Scholar, has recommended that you market your story as ‘what happens when you combine Avatar: The Last Airbender and X-men, and put them into the real world’ as a sure-fire way of getting more views. What do you think about that advice?”

“I loved that review because Avatar was one of my inspirations, but I think I managed to turn into something that was my own. And I love hearing from my readers because when they comment it means they liked it well enough to put in the effort of commenting and that means so much to me. I feel like I can connect with my readers.”

The interviewer seems to have forgotten the original purpose for the inquisition. He begins to ask more and more questions about AnotherFacelessAuthor’s ability to tell a good story. AnotherFacelessAuthor is confused but plays along, all the while searching the room for some way to escape.  AnotherFacelessAuthor forms an escape plan:

“The door is unlocked, they probably figure no one would be stupid enough to attempt to escape. There were few guards milling around when she entered the building. Outside the window at the end of the hall there was a water drainage pipe. Sliding down that would be easy. She’ll just have to be quick enough. But she can’t let them keep her story. As true as the words are, and she wasn’t lying when she said the world needed to know, they couldn’t be exposed quite yet. There’s still so much work to do. If the Asylum get’s their hands on these papers….she guessed it was time to put Red’s teachings into action. All she need is a distraction, anything to stall them for a fraction of a second, and then she can get out of here. She needs to get back to Red and the others and tell them what’s happening.”

“And look, another fan of yours, Lythya, gushes about the lack of spelling errors. This is followed by a list of critiques. How do you handle critiques? Are you not upset by them?” Now the interviewer seems concerned that AnotherFacelessAuthor could have been upset? AnotherFacelessAuthor feels “slightly weirded out by the strange turn of events during this interview.” It just gets weirder and weirder!

“I really do try to keep spelling errors a minimal. I’m kind of picky about that too. Although, I’m not a great speller, so thank God for spell check. As for critiques…well, I’ve been lucky enough not to have yet received any harsh ones. I do openly accept critiques because if people don’t tell you what’s wrong, how do you expect to improve?”

There is a knock on the door. It was a perfect distraction for AnotherFacelessAuthor to put her escape plan into action.

The interviewer and other Elementalists didn’t even have a chance to

“stop her”

And for the he/she, I’m a she.

Before AnotherFacelessAuthor escaped, he/she placed his/her hand on the pile of documents that recorded the entirety of the interrogation. At his/her touch, the papers “burst into flames, completely ruined.”

I welcome you all to one of the many interpretations of the Scriptures from the light of Ras Tafari by, I, Lidj Yefdi (pronounced Lij, Yef-dee).

I assure you that if you are patient with me, come with a willing mind and heart(ready to learn), you will receive more than what you might have asked for in seeking the perspective of a Ras Tafarian’s I-sight (eyesight) into the study of the Scriptures.

So,with this Hebrew Shabbot(or Sabbath day) if those who actually open up their Bibles to read in a Jewish/Hebrew cycle of readings, & thoroughly discern, have more than likely have come to the Torah portion of Bamidbar-בְּמִדְבַּר  , for this week, in this mode of study; for those out in the diaspora or outside of Jerusalem or Israel.  From the Jewish or Hebraic Calendar in the year 5773 this Sabbath day would probably fall on the 1st & 2nd of the month of Siw(v)an-סִיוָן . (The Hebrew Calendar corresponds to a Lunar cycle of the Moon) but,  from an Ethiopic-Christian perspective and calculation these readings from the Scriptures would align to what is known as Midre Beda-ምድረ በዳ, on the 2nd(፪) & 3rd(፫)day of ወርኀ(month)- ግንቦት(Ginbot).  The Ethiopic calendar, which is solar (with its correspondence to the Sun) aligns to this Sabbath (or Senbet-ሰንበት) in the Ethiopian language of Amharic which is currently one of the languages of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church(the other language being Ge’ez-ግእዝ).

Readings:

Numbers 1:1-4:20

Hosea 2:  1-23

Romans 9: 22-23

As we go forward, in our studies, we’ve come to another book in the Torah.  This parsha study has brought us to Bamidbar(translated into English as; Numbers; or Midbar-מִדְבַּר =pasture/open field/desert, & Ba(e’)= בְּ , with Midbar, making the Hebrew word BaMidbar, either meaning, “In the Book of Numbers,” or “In the wilderness“)/the same in the Ethiopian-Amharic language with the word, Midre Beda-ምድረ በዳ= “the wilderness”.

Mount Sinai
הר סיני
በሲና ተራራ

In this study of the Scriptures, God speaks to Moses and tells him to number the children of Israel, by the generations out of the houses of their families(by Tribal origin).  Moses and Aaron, then take what might be known, in today’s society, as a census of the Israelites; while they’re in the wilderness of Sinai.

[Numb. 1: 1-16]

The Biblical references more than likely only mention the males(in some cases, it is because of the degeneration of the Scriptures’ translation & significance; but it should be noted that a focus on the male mentioning is because of the males’ responsibilities to his family: to protect, provide, & procure tranquil & secure surroundings for those they love and care for.)

This numbering of the tribes was to acknowledge and put in order the able bodies (especially the men), who were fit to go to war for Israel, if the time saw fit.  In taking in account, for the numbers of the people who came from specific lineages, it was then set into place that there should be an order by which the Tribes Of Israel, should align themselves in accordance to.  God wielded the specifics to Moses, and instructed him to take the tribes and order them in his fashion/order;  Moses & his brother, Aaron, did so. [Numb. 1: 17-49]

Moses & Aaron, numbered the children of Israel, then appointed heads of the households from the tribes.(…twelve men, each of their father’s house…)

Princes of Israel [Numb. 1: 44]

Moses & Aaron also received instructions from God, not to number the tribe of Lew(v)i with the rest of the children of Israel.  They were to have a separate responsibility among the people.  Just as they were to administer the duties of priests in Israel, in the Tabernacle, they were to continue in that way.  The tribes were then assembled orderly into an encampment around the Tabernacle. [Numb. 1:49- 2:34]

In this encampment every tribe would raise a standard(or banner), with an ensign for the tribes. [Numb. 2: 1-32]

Moses & Aaron, were to also assemble the Tribe of Le(w)i and consecrate them to keep the charge of Aaron(the High Priest), and for the entire congregation of Israel.  They were to keep the instruments of the Tabernacle and perform the service for the congregation. [Numb. 3 & 4]

Chapter 4- Moses feels unsure about his ability to speak to the Israelites and to Pharaoh. God gives him some tricks he can do to prove that God sent him. Moses is still unsure since he is “slow of speech,” so God agrees to have Moses’s brother Aaron do the talking. Moses takes his wife and sons back to Egypt. Along the way something(?) happens, and Zipporah circumcises one of their sons along the road. Moses meets Aaron; Aaron agrees to be the spokesperson. He speaks to the people who are happy to hear that God remembered them.

Verse 11, “So the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord?”" I know this verse is supposed to convey that God can work through people no matter what problems they have. But, the flip side of this verse is that God just straight up admitted to creating afflictions.

Verse 21, “And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your hand. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go.”" Way to intentionally make things harder than they need to be, God. This reinforces my view of God as the sadistic player of the Sims who lets people drown and suffer just to prove he’s the puppet master.

Then there’s this business with verses 24-26. “And it came to pass on the way, at the encampment, that the Lord met him and sought to kill him. Then Zipporah took a sharp stone and cut off the foreskin of her son and cast it at Moses’ feet, and said, “Surely you are a husband of blood to me!” So He let him go. Then she said, “You are a husband of blood!” – because of the circumcision.”

WTF?

Zipporah, circumcising her son with a stone knife. From the Brick Testatment

It isn’t really clear here who “him” is. In the preceding verses, God is telling Moses what to say to Pharaoh, so at first I thought ‘him” could be Pharaoh, but that doesn’t make sense. I guess it’s Moses, or maybe one of the sons. And, shouldn’t the son have already been circumcised at 8 days old? So maybe this was God’s retribution for waiting so long to circumcise…Whatever happened here, Zipporah wasn’t happy about it. And poor, poor kid who got his junk cut off with a stone on the side of the road.

Chapter 5- Moses and Aaron ask Pharaoh’s permission for all the Hebrews to go into the desert 3 days to sacrifice to their god (and they claim God will punish them if they don’t). Pharaoh refuses, and decides that this request means they have too much free time, so he gives the slave Hebrews even more work to do. This makes the Hebrews mad at Moses and Aaron, which makes Moses question God’s plan.

So, more lying in the Bible. Not that I think it was unwarranted. If I wanted to be free from slavery, I’d probably try to sneak out under some made up story first before trying the direct “Let me go” approach.

Also, Pharaoh is a dick. Add ‘forcing your slaves to maintain brick making quotas without providing them the proper supplies, then beating them when they fail’ to the list of things not to do if your goal is to avoid an uprising.

Chapter 6- God reaffirms that he will help Moses lead the Hebrews out of slavery, and uphold the covenant he made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Moses continues to question his ability to be the leader of this plot. We’re given a list of the heads of the Hebrew households.

We finally learn who Moses’s parents were- Amram and Jochebed- who just so happened to be Amram’s father’s sister. You know, at this point, I’m over the incest thing. If you’ve got the hots for your aunt, the Bible is okay with that. God said it, I believe it, that settles it, right?

Yeeeeaaah, not so much.

When Moses is expressing his concerns that he’s not the guy for the job, he says “How then shall Pharaoh heed me, for I am of uncircumcised lips.” Whoa, what? They did what to their lips? Google seems to think that was just a flowery way of saying “I’m not worthy” since uncircumcised things were unclean. But, let’s just leave that turn of phrase out of modern parlance, okay?

(I’m also quite glad Sir Alex retired now not in 2002, or I couldn’t have wasted 45 minutes of my life last night watching all 118 of Ronaldo’s goals at United. I say wasted. I fucking loved it.)

Quick-fire round:

Is Moyes a good replacement?
Yes tactically, no in terms of European experience. Doing well at a small club doesn’t guarantee success at a big club.

Will Ferguson be missed and is he the best manager of all time?
Yes and 35+ trophies in 27 years would lead you to think so.

Can Moyes do as good a job?
Potentially although Sir Alex is the toughest of tough acts to follow.

Should Moyes keep or scrap?
Keep, why change a winning formula? (Man City obvious exception to rule).

How strong is Sir Alex’s jaw?
Imagine Nick Clegg’s ‘chat shit’ muscles… About half as strong as that.

So what does Moyes’ appointment mean for us? Well it leaves 2 voids. One at Everton, and one he will try to fill at United. If the momentum from this season and previous seasons cannot be sustained for United, The Red Devils could see themselves slipping down the table. However with the presence of Sir Alex on the board, I can’t see that happening. I don’t think he’ll totally butt out of first team issues, put it that way, and anyone who thinks because Sir Alex has ‘gone’, he’s totally out of the picture forgets he’s still the feisty man we all know and… Tolerate.

But what about Everton?

Well, I can’t see a bright future for them on Merseyside. Moyes runs a slick, well trained, and well staffed club with high hopes and ambitions that always punch above their weight. Moyes has been such a central figure, seen by Everton fan’s reactions to his departure, that I really can’t see them sustaining the level they’re at unless Moyes could somehow clone himself. Early talk of Martinez or Laudrup as a replacement, however I think they’ll get stuck with Martin O’Neill. (He does seem to be a grown up version of that kid who just sat on his own in school at lunch and ate his packed lunch and smelled a bit weird doesn’t he?) Not a fan of him or his managerial skill, and that’s reflected in his results.

Now on to another matter. Have you ever mentioned Aaron Ramsey to a fellow football fan who follows a different team and almost felt embarrassed to say he is in our starting XI? Well don’t be embarrassed, because, unless you’re a total football nerd like me, you would just see him as another reason as to why everyone thinks Arsene has lost it. He hasn’t. Here’s some statty goodness:

- In our last 4 games Aaron Ramsey has attempted and completed the most passes (Mikel the Metronome who?)
- This season he has a 90.74% tackle success rate. (Better than everyone else in the BPL)
- The image at the bottom was Ramsey’s positioning against Everton. He was everywhere.
- His average pass accuracy this campaign has been 88%.

(Sources: FourFourTwo, SkySports, Squawka)

Ramsey is the catalyst for the changeover between defence and attack. A lot of our play goes through him, he tackles well, he has an excellent work rate and helps out all over the pitch. He is consistent, puts up with undeserving abuse and doesn’t even have a stupid haircut! What’s not to like! And he is only going to get better. Just because he doesn’t score worldies, have Cazorla control, Wilshere spirit or Arteta hair doesn’t mean Ramsey is not an important player.

Right, that just about wraps it up for today, and thanks for reading!

Aaron was the son of Jochebed and Amram of the
tribe of Levi, brother of Moses and Miriam, forebear and founder of the Israelite priesthood. It appears that Moses may have stuttered so Aaron served as a spokesman before both the Pharaoh and the Israelites. Aaron was empowered by God to cast his staff to the ground where it turned into a serpent before Pharaoh’s eyes.

Several of the ten plagues were instigated by Aaron wielding the staff. Aaron’s position was officially established when God ordered Moses to consecrate him and his sons as priests. Aaron and his sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, officiated at Moses’ side.

Like Moses, Aaron was not allowed to enter the Promised Land. Aaron died on Mount Hor at age 123 near the Edom border, and his son, Eleazar became the priest. In the New Testament, Aaron is seen as the imperfect priest when contrasted with the perfect priesthood of Jesus (Heb 5:7, 11).

Aaron, I am honored and humbled to have you as my husband. I am blown away that He created you to be so unique, so loving, so full of life, and for me to fall deeper in love with you. You are my best friend. The one I lean on, look for, and laugh with.

For years I have prayed for you and from the day I met you I knew my heart was for you. The many days we spent apart at the beginning of our relationship and as I faced the most difficult days of my life I knew I couldn’t live my life apart from you. More then that, I knew that your tender heart consistently displayed Christ’s love to me.  You are everything I need, prayed for, and hoped for.

Through the tears we shared, the heartache, the goodbyes we could barely stand, the flights, hours of driving, and nights spent in prayer together showed me your devotion and the love in your heart for me. Even in my physical weakness your love gives me unwavering strength, compassion, motivation and devotion. My love for you is endless, unyielding and saturating.

Our love story, despite the challenges we faced and the distance we overcame is absolutely perfect. Aaron, our love will believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things. Our love will never fail.  I pray our marriage will be filled with loving kindness, resiliency, endurance, forgiveness and grace. Marriage is the doing of God, and I pray that our marriage will always display God. It will always be threefold. Christ will be our center. For a three-stranded chord is not easily broken.

I promise my heart to you today, to be there for you, always. To seek to serve you daily, to never stop learning about who you are and how to love you, to show you love and affection, to cherish you always. I will care for you in sickness and in health and I assure my full devotion to you and one day to our children. I will walk with you through life’s uncertainties and never leave your side, my heart is committed to you. I will be your prayer warrior, your biggest supporter, encourager, and fan I will stand with you in the trenches, when we walk through the valley and on the mountaintop. I pledge to submit to you and respect you as you lead us as a family. I will laugh with you in the days to come. You are my smile, my light, my best friend and soul mate. I will always strive to build your character and your confidence. I will set out on new adventures with you. I pray my heart will be your shelter and my arms will be your home. I will support the biggest dreams and desires of your heart. I will always share my food with you; even give you the last bite. I will laugh when you fart, and say inappropriate things to make you laugh. I will hold your hand in prayer and know that the best days of our life start tonight.

You have held my hand through the darkest of days. You have held me when my fears are crippling and loved me through the days and moments I felt I couldn’t be loved through. You have helped me come so far in the past year. You have been strong when I am weak. Your love has allowed me to become so richly blessed. You are my favorite, forever and always.

Thank you for everything you are, for the impact you have had on my life and for always supporting me and believing in the dreams of my heart. I am honored to stand with you today as your bride and to become your wife. I’ve waited my whole life for this.

From this day forward you will never walk alone as I am giving you my hand to hold and my life to keep. I am yours, without reservation. I love you.

So there you have it, my words of promise, to the end of our time on earth together. I love you Aaron Michael Layden!

Photo credit: Micah Emily Photography

Monday

I had a load of homework due, that I didn’t get to do — actually, let’s start with last Friday.

Last Friday

I came home and immediately went to dance practice, we were cramming and I had to walk from Taco Bell back to her house which was an hour walk. We practiced till 10.

Last Saturday

Had an 8 o clock SAT Test to take. The ten sections took around 3 hours and from there I had to go to the mall to give my little sister money to buy things for the dance. After that I had to gather all my things because I had SAT PREP Sunday morning.

Last Sunday

SAT Prep, from 11 to 3. And guess what our first class was? AN SAT TEST! I had barely finished one the preceding day and now I had to take another…. Oi vey.

Monday

Had a load of homework that didn’t get done – my fault tho I know – such as reading Dante’s Inferno Canto 1-10. I had a quiz this day. Along with that I had a lab and a worksheet and book work to finish. But that honestly didn’t get done. Oh, and did I mention that over the weekend that I completely forgot about a History Presentation that I had to present for ten minutes on Tuesday?! Yea, I didn’t sleep until 2 am, and that’s because I didn’t get home until 10. I couldn’t make it to dance practice because I had SAT Prep that I almost arrived late to because I had 2 clubs to go to and a tutoring session. So it was
School 8am-2:30
Clubs 2:30-4
SAT 4:30-9
Homework 10-2:00am

Tuesday

Was presentation day that I managed to pull it off in spite of the situation of Monday. By the end of the day, I had a decent amount of homework, and two tests to study for. But before I could have started any of that when I got home, I had more dance practice from 3 to 9. Again, barely having any time to study. The first test I was fine with without studying, but the other, my APES test, I studied until I knew the material, I went to sleep at like 11:20.

Wednesday

Was a moderately good day. moderately. The two tests went swiftly, there was only one question I was unsure about. Wednesday was the last day to practice the dance, because our event was on Thursday. or so I thought. So today, practice was 4 to 8. But wait! Wednesday is also an SAT Prep day (5-8) so I did not go to practice, nor did my team make any progress either. I felt the doom of embarrassment creeping..

Thursday

The day of our event and WE DON’T EVEN HAVE THE DANCE FINISHED! I was praying because everyone was in a bad mood. We even came in late because we practiced all morning, only to walk into school with my tardy note being invalid because…..it’s a note. Idk why but that just added to our frustration. As the school day came a near, more problems arisen as we needed more practice time, some of us didn’t buy tickets wasn’t me though just saying and we had to pick up our clothes from home a come back to school. I’m going to cut you some slack when I say we got done what we needed to — the dance, the tickets, the clothes, the timing, and seating for my parents too.
And everything turned out great, especially the dance except for one thing: I did a full out split for the first time in my lifetime without knowing until I did it. I hyper pulled my right hamstring and had to MC 30 minutes later. But something just had to happen in those thirty minutes, right? My sister’s bf ran off, and my mom told me to go after him. He was going to walk home, and it was a 2+ hour walk and it was almost dark. I tried my best to run after him with my bummy leg but the effort was volatile. He got away even with my friend chasing after him. After finding ice I had time for 10 minutes of rest, then came my section to MC. Coming home at 10:30, I had little time to study for a state AP Lang test the next day.

Friday

AP Test day yay! No. No yay. I was very nervous but I proved to myself that my management skills aren’t too shabby. Although the test includes 50+ multiple choice in an hour and 3 essays in 2 hours, I managed to get everything done to the best of my ability. Hopefully my stretched hamstring and 80% studied will prevail. Anyway, after my test, I left early with my sister to go get ready for cotillion, which I really did not want to fit in my already busy week.. I had better things to do — like playstation. But with an urging mob of girls and my mother, I ended up going to cotillion, and rescuing my friends from bad salon jobs, which wasn’t that bad. It exceeded my expectations exponentially. However, while dancing, staring at the couples dance… I wondered about you… Aaron.. I knew that you would have enjoyed yourself with me… I would have taught you all the dances…. And then slow danced with you instead of dancing with Sara.. *sigh* I really miss you, you meanie…meanie meanie…I’m a meanie too.. *sigh*
I know we would have outshined everyone else…

Heartache + headache + pulled hamstring + Charlie horse = x_x

PS: I miss you, AaronBear.. If you don’t miss me it’s okay, if you do then I guess that’s the reason why it a little hard to sleep at night… ^_^

I wish I could get online tonight my love.. But that stupid wire is missing again and I’m oh so tired…

I love you..

.

God treats each of us the same, there’s no favorites. So, even though Moses and Aaron were leaders amongst God’s people and favored by Him they still had to uphold all His statutes and laws just like the children of Israel that they lead over. It’s so easy to become prideful when you’re in a leadership position. But no matter how you look at it, or justify it, pride is still a sin and it’s still something that the LORD hates (Proverbs 6:16-19; 8:13), so please be humble in the presence of the LORD and seek Him for all things.

I do believe that Moses and Aaron unintentionally committed this sin against God, but in the end it didn’t matter whether unintentional or not. Be careful never to attempt to exalt yourself, you’ll be foolish if you do. God deserves all the praise, honor, and glory! (Numbers 20:10, 12)

Proverbs 17

God does look at our heart and I believe that secondly He looks to what we say and lastly to how we act. I do believe that just as how out of abundance of the heart the mouth speaks, and the actions of the body follow not too far behind (Matthew 12:34-37) (Luke 6:45). So, please be cautious, ask the LORD to not let you rest until your heart is right with Him, and that we are seeking Him with all our hearts, minds, souls, and strength. Please, LORD guide our steps do not allow us to be foolish in our speech or actions.

James 3

Do not let nothing of this earth or the ruler of it control you or reign over you. God reigns and is on His throne, submit yourself to Him. LORD please humble us and show us Your truths. Not our will LORD but Your will be done.

In the future I would like us to get our trash down and our packing lighter, and also make it so each kid can carry more of their own stuff. And also I think we could go for a couple of days and be ok if we did that stuff. But we did well and the kids had fun. It is interesting to see how relaxed they become when you get them into nature. It is really something we should try to do somewhat regularly.

Anyway, pics:

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On if underrated is a good way to describe David Krejci…
I don’t know how he’s perceived, but I know that he quietly goes about doing his job. As I mentioned the other night, he’s always been a real good playoff performer for us, he seems to thrive in those situations. As you mentioned, maybe somewhere else, but in our surroundings and in our dressing room he’s certainly not underrated.

On how he would rate the physical nature of this series…
Well, it’s been physical, there’s no doubt about it. I think everybody realizes that it’s been a hard, clean, physical series. There hasn’t been that many cheap shots, or there wasn’t that many cheap shots, so far. That’s the way, I think, both teams have played. As much as there’s a serious competition here, there’s also a mutual respect between the two teams, respects the fact that both sides are playing hard right now; that includes us as much as the Leafs that maybe surprised a lot of people with their play. I’m going to tell you right now, I think our team’s played well, played hard, so have they. That’s why they’ve been tight games throughout the whole series. It’s physical. As far as the nature of hits, it depends; obviously in Toronto the hit column seemed real elevated. So it depends how they see a hit and they haven’t been as high over here, so you take it for what it’s worth sometimes.

On being 3-6 in non-Game 7 close out games under him and what lessons he takes from previous close out games…
Well, I knew something positive would come from you [laughs]. It’s a trend of yours. I’m trying to make it 4-6 tonight. How’s that?

On if there is sometimes more pressure on the team trying to close out a series than the team facing elimination…
I think both sides. I can only speak for us right now, we’re ready for this game. There’s no excuses. We know they’re going to come out and give their best, we have to do the same thing from our end of it. I think it’s pretty important that we come out ready to play hard and understand that desperation does a lot of things for teams. We’ve been on the other side as well, so that’s the way I look at it tonight. As far as the series is concerned, they’ve been hard fought games all along and I don’t see it being any different. There’s no reason in the world why we should take a different approach than to go out and leave it all out there.

On if Matt Bartkowski will be in the lineup tonight…
Well, we’ve got two [options]. Obviously, Dougie [Hamilton] and Bart [Matt Bartkowski]. One’s a right shot and one’s a left shot and we have to decide what we want to do with our pairings here. Once we decide that we’ll know who to put in. They’ve both been kind of told that, ‘We’ll let you know.’ It’s one of those two guys.

On if the fact that Bartkowski has been playing a lot factors into the decision…
That’s got nothing to do with it, no. I mean, maybe, if you talk about Bartkowski versus [Aaron] Johnson that’s a left shot, absolutely. Aaron hasn’t played in a long time, it’s been unfortunate that we haven’t been able to play him. Rules are rules, you can’t send guys down for conditioning, so it’s been an unfortunate position for Aaron. Right now, I think we’re favoring Bartkowski over Johnson because of playing time. The other part is right or left, so it’s got nothing to do with playing time.

On how much an advantage would it be for Bartkowski that he has playing games for Providence…
It’s good that he’s been playing. That’s why we sent him down there. At one point, we knew what we were going to start with in the playoffs, so because we had the ability to send him down we wanted him playing for that reason so that if we needed he wouldn’t be sitting for a long time. That’s exactly what happened right now, we’ve got a chance to bring him in. He’s played, now we’ve got to make a decision of right or left shot.

On what the team will be focusing on fixing for tonight’s game…
Obviously, our D-zone. They’ve done a good job of spreading us out and getting some opportunities from that. Every once in a while a rush when we give them too much space is something that maybe you want to tighten up there a little bit. Like I said, overall they’ve done a good job, they’ve played well and they’ve given real good games all the time. Sometimes it’s not just about what we’re doing wrong, but more what the other team is doing right. This series isn’t over. I’m not afraid to give credit, they’ve played well. From our end of it, a team that’s supposedly favored to win, we have the tendency to want to look at our team like we’re maybe underperforming, but we’re not. We’ve played some solid hockey and so have they. That’s why it’s a good series.

But my mind has been very still and focused, thinking of Carla and the trial she is facing. Her 26-year-old daughter Amy has been undergoing tests to formulate a treatment plan. Amy, mother of a 1-year-old son, has been diagnosed with an aggressive breast cancer.

I was thinking of another battle, found in Exodus 17:

11 As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight, but when he let his hands rest, Amalek had the better of the fight. 12 Moses’ hands, however, grew tired; so they took a rock and put it under him and he sat on it. Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands remained steady until sunset. 13 And Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the sword

Generally when we raise our hands to God, it is in praise and thanksgiving. I believe it is so important to look and to see things worth praising and worth thanking Him for, especially in our trials.

Even though this battle my friends have entered may be long, there is much to be thankful for and much for which to praise God. It’s already been a blessing to witness how many people have come alongside the family with thoughts and prayers and support.  I think we all will be their Aaron and Hur, helping support their hands and keeping them raised to God when they grow weary.

From my own experience, I have come to know and understand the Truth of 1 Thess 5: 18:

“In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.”

I read that passage the very morning my dad was admitted to ICU. I have sure pondered that a lot since then as God as led me through my own trials.

I pray for my friends and for all people who are in the midst of great trial. I ask God to strengthen them and to use their trials to draw them ever-closer to His own heart. Open their eyes and hearts to recognize your blessings and your presence in their lives. Please send the Holy Spirit to strengthen their faith and to fill them with peace. And bring them Aarons and Hurs to help support them.  In Jesus’ name, I pray.

Then We sent Moses and his brother Aaron, with Our Signs and authority manifest,

To Pharaoh and his Chiefs: But these behaved insolently: they were an arrogant people.

They said: “Shall we believe in two men like ourselves? And their people are subject to us!”

So they accused them of falsehood, and they became of those who were destroyed.

And We gave Moses the Book, in order that they might receive guidance.