I had something happen to me this past Sunday. We were sitting in church just a few minutes before it started. I was at the end of the row. I heard the lady at the end say to the guy she was sitting with "If we have to hold hands, I am not holding HER hands....look at her head."
What was she talking about? My Psoriasis spots of course. She was trying to whisper it to him, so I doubt that she knew I heard.
I felt like turning around and saying "It is Psoriasis and it is NOT contagious" but I didn't
I felt like that would be rude.
I don't think she was meaning for me to over hear her. But it just reminded me again that some people are ignorant. So I am taking upon myself to show you all pictures of Psoriasis. So that you know. When you see people with spots or patches of this stuff. IT IS NOT CONTAGIOUS.
Please don't make rude comments.
Please don't stare.
We are people too and we have feelings too.
Plus how do you think visitors feel when they hear someone talk about them like that?

What would the proper response have been? Just ignore like I did? Say something?
What would you have done if it was you?

Jer 1:13  And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.
Jer 1:14  Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.
Jer 1:15  For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah.
Jer 1:16  And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.
Jer 1:17  Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.

Tell them all. Not just the warm fuzzy. The church is doing a lot of that now days. They are just doing the warm fuzzy God loves you. Be happy etc.
God says you better be more concerned with Me then you are them. We need to speak the truth of the Lord.

Jer 1:18  For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.
Jer 1:19  And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.

They will fight against you but they will not prevail.

Jer 2:1  Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Jer 2:2  Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown.

People against him ... Everyone.
Go preach the word of the Lord.
God says I remember when you followed me out of Egypt.

Jer 2:3  Israel was holiness unto the LORD, and the firstfruits of his increase: all that devour him shall offend; evil shall come upon them, saith the LORD.

You were holy. Israel was holiness unto the Lord.

Jer 2:4  Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:
Jer 2:5  Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?
Jer 2:6  Neither said they, Where is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?

They forgot about God taking care of them.

Jer 2:7  And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination.

God blessed them and they misused it. What a shame when we misuse the gifts that God gives to us. That is what Israel did. This is a warning to us. What have we misused?

Jer 2:8  The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.
Jer 2:9  Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children's children will I plead.
Jer 2:10  For pass over the isles of Chittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there be such a thing.
Jer 2:11  Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit.

The true and living God was changed for Idolatry.

Jer 2:12  Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.
Jer 2:13  For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

They went from the Real God to idols. They went from wonderful fresh water to stagnant stale water.

Jer 2:14  Is Israel a servant? is he a homeborn slave? why is he spoiled?
Jer 2:15  The young lions roared upon him, and yelled, and they made his land waste: his cities are burned without inhabitant.
Jer 2:16  Also the children of Noph and Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head.
Jer 2:17  Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when he led thee by the way?
Jer 2:18  And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?

Haven't you thought? Are these people  going to help you? no

Jer 2:19  Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.
Jer 2:20  For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou wanderest, playing the harlot.

Spiritually unfaithful to God.

Jer 2:21  Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?

What happened?

Jer 2:22  For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord GOD.

You can wash and wash. You can scrub. I can still see your sin God says.

Jer 2:23  How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;
Jer 2:24  A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her.
Jer 2:25  Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, There is no hope: no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.

You are pursuing idols. You are wearing your shoes our chasing after idols.

Jer 2:26  As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,
Jer 2:27  Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.

Many people want God in a time of crisis. When there is crisis they cry out for God. When it is a time of pleasure though....then they want nothing to do with Him.

Jer 2:28  But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah.
Jer 2:29  Wherefore will ye plead with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith the LORD.
Jer 2:30  In vain have I smitten your children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your prophets, like a destroying lion.

You kill the people I send to warn you. (boy aren't you glad you weren't Jeremiah having to give this message, knowing they have been killing the people God sent before He sent you)

Jer 2:31  O generation, see ye the word of the LORD. Have I been a wilderness unto Israel? a land of darkness? wherefore say my people, We are lords; we will come no more unto thee?
Jer 2:32  Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number.
Jer 2:33  Why trimmest thou thy way to seek love? therefore hast thou also taught the wicked ones thy ways.

Why are you dressing up like prostitutes. You have become proficient in sin. You have made a study and an art of sin.

Jer 2:34  Also in thy skirts is found the blood of the souls of the poor innocents: I have not found it by secret search, but upon all these.

You are killing innocents.......You sin openly....You don't even try to hide it. I didn't have to look hard.

Jer 2:35  Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.
Jer 2:36  Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? thou also shalt be ashamed of Egypt, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria.
Jer 2:37  Yea, thou shalt go forth from him, and thine hands upon thine head: for the LORD hath rejected thy confidences, and thou shalt not prosper in them.

God will shake your trust in the places you are putting your trust in.

How was this for a job, to have to take this message to his nation. They weren't going "yeah, your right." No! They were going "who do you think you are?" They were killing people for telling them stuff like this.

Look at this nation. Look at America. Watch the news. Look at where we are as a nation. We as a nation are moving away from the True and Living God. We are called to be salt and light. You have a job like Jeremiah. You have that Job every day. As a Christian it is your job to go out into the world every day and speak the truth of the Word of God. Don't be afraid of them. Say what God tell you to.

God bless you as you follow Him today.

Act 13:1  Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
Act 13:2  As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.
Act 13:3  And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.
Act 13:4  So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus.
Act 13:5  And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister.

There were prophets and teachers.

Prophets guide. 1 Corinthians says their office is to speak edification and comfort.
Teachers ground. Teachers study the Word of God. They teach the Word of God.

Barnabas - Son of encouragement.
Simeon - Probably the same who carried the cross of Christ.
Lucius of Cyrene.... that is also where Simeon was from.
Manaen - Brought up with = eats with or member of the court, with Herod
Saul

As they ministered TO the Lord. Not FOR the Lord. They were ministering to the Lord.

They fasted. The Holy Spirit said....
was it outloud? to someone's heart? We don't know. Having fasted and prayed. Laid hands on them - commissioned them. They sent them away.
They commissioned them and sent them. They didn't take and offering etc. They commissioned them and sent them.

They were successful because God sent them.

They were successful because God called them.

If God guides, He will provide.

They were sent by the Holy Spirit. They weren't sent by men.

They preached the Word of God. They preached the whole councel of God.

They didn't write a book and preach the book. They preached the WHOLE word of God.
They preached in the synagogues. John (John Mark) helped them.

Act 12:20  And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king's chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king's country.
Act 12:21  And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them.
Act 12:22  And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.
Act 12:23  And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.
Act 12:24  But the word of God grew and multiplied.
Act 12:25  And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, and took with them John, whose surname was Mark.

Herod was angry. We don't know why. The bible doesn't tell us.

They asked for peace because He was the source of their food. Herod dressed up and talked to them. He showed disrespect for God.

He was eaten by worms. We don't know if this was natural or supernatural. You can get worms inside by eating pork. The bible doesn't tell us if it was natural or supernatural.

Josephus wrote about this. So we have a writting about this outside the bible too. Josephus says Herod was wearing clothes made of silver. They flattered him calling him a god. Herod got pain in his belly....(so the worms probably came from the inside)

There are things in our life that can be vicious (worms)

You know how frustrating a computer worm can be. How do you prevent a worm...antivirus...firewall

Spiritual worms can do damage to your heart.
Pro 6:16  These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
Pro 6:17  A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
Pro 6:18  An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
Pro 6:19  A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

We need to stay away from things God hate. These "worms" God hates.

Proud look - Pride is a vicious worm. Pride is what happened to Herod in Acts 12. What is the antidote for pride.... Mat 5:3  Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Hands the shed innocent blood - Mat 5:5  Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

A heart that plans wicked perversities - Mat 5:8  Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

Sews discord among the brethren - Mat 5:9  Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

Worms spread quickly. Be a man/woman of God's word. A man/woman of prayer. So the worm can not find it's way into your heart.

God wants to wipe clean your c drive and give you a fresh start. He wants to clean your hard drive and get rid of all the worms.

God bless you today as you seek to follow Him.

What are your thoughts??????

With the rising cost of health care and
prescriptions many people are caused to go without preventative or
immediate care for illnesses they have causing progression of the
disease or even worse death. Even if the care is offered the person
is denied by their medical insurance if they are lucky enough to have
insurance due to their qualifying health questions. As Christians we
are taught to love our neighbors as our selves and to help our fellow
man or woman. So the question is who would God deny? Who is unworthy
of life saving medical care? God allowed anyone to come to him
through his son Jesus Christ to receive what they needed should not
our health care be the same?

Last night my husband and I watched
Sicko by Micheal Moore. It really made me think. Some of you may
know that March 2007 I was hospitalized with pneumonia. We had
insurance but of course the insurance doesn't cover everything. The
bills started coming in. We called the hospital to set up payments.
We were told that they don't do payments. They wanted all the money
in one payment. We didn't have that type of money. They had the nerve
to tell us we should put it on a credit card. (We don't do credit
cards) So they ended up sending us a letter telling us we were banned
from the whole network (that is all the drs in this area and the
hospital). The bill was sent to collections which were very nice and
allowed us to set up payments and the bill is now all payed off.

This whole experiences really made me
think. It is bad when a person has to sit at home and tell their
husband that they could have afforded for the person to died better
then going to get help.

There are many people dying because
they can not afford the treatments that they need. There are people
loosing everything to pay for the treatments they need. All this is
happening here in American.

One-fifth of all Americans, 48.8
million individuals, were in families spending more than 10% of their
family income on healthcare in 2003, an increase of 11.7 million
persons since 1996. Of these, 18.7 million (7.3%) were spending more
than 20% of family income, a figure normally associated with home
ownership. The percent of middle-income Americans (22.7%) spending
over 10% of their income on healthcare was almost identical to the
percent of low-income Americans (23.7%) on healthcare (JAMA, Dec. 13,
2006).

Half of all personal bankruptcies are
caused by illness or medical bills. The number of medical
bankruptcies has increased by 2200% since 1981 (Health Affairs,
February, 2005). Two-thirds of people with a medical bill or debt
problem went without needed care due to cost (Commonwealth Fund,Aug.
2005).

Nearly 30% of low and middle-income
households with credit card debt cite medical debt as a contributing
factor; 69% of those had a major medical expense in the previous
three years (Borrowing to Stay Healthy: How Credit Card Debt Is
Related to Medical Expenses, Demos,The Access Project, January, 2007)

Uninsured, national — 46.8 million
(15.9% of the population), 2005, up from 45.3 million in 2004.
Hispanics highest rate of uninsured – 32.7%; African-Americans,
19.6%; Asians, 17.9%; whites, 15%; children, 11.2%; middle-income
($50k–$75k), 14.1%; work full-time, 17.7% (U.S. Census Bureau). 82
million, or one in three non-elderly Americans, went without health
insurance during 2003–2004 (Washington Post, Dec. 13, 2006).

Lack of health insurance causes 18,000
unnecessary deaths every year (Institute of Medicine, January 14,
2004), the equivalent of six times the number who died in 9/11.
(Louisville Courier-Journal, Jan. 30, 2006)

Underinsured, national — 17.1 million
people under 65 in 2003 (JAMA, Dec. 13, 2006). "Underinsured"
person defined as someone with health expenses exceeding 10% of his
or her income. Among the underinsured, 38% did not fill prescriptions
due to cost, 32% went without seeing a doctor when needed, 30%
avoided medical tests, treatment or follow-up care. 18% declined care
from specialists. 46% reported being contacted by a collection agency
about unpaid medical bills. 35% reported changing their lifestyle to
cover medical expenses (Health Affairs, June 14,
2005).

The United States is the only wealthy,
industrialized nation that does not have a universal health care
system.

Whether
a government mandated system of universal health care should be
implemented in the U.S. remains a hotly debated political topic.
What are your thoughts?

Common arguments forwarded by
supporters of universal health care systems include:

* Health care is a basic human
right or entitlement.

* Ensuring the health of all
citizens benefits a nation economically.

* About 60% of the U.S. health care
system is already publicly financed with federal and state taxes,
property taxes, and tax subsidies - a universal healthcare system
would merely replace private/employer spending with taxes. Total
spending would go down for individuals and employers.

* A single payer system could save
$286 billion a year in overhead and paperwork. Administrative costs
in the U.S. health care system are substantially higher than those in
other countries and than in the public sector in the US: one estimate
put the total administrative costs at 24 percent of U.S. health care
spending.

* Several studies have shown a
majority of taxpayers and citizens across the political divide would
prefer a universal healthcare system over the current U.S. system

* Universal health care would
provide for uninsured adults who may forgo treatment needed for
chronic health conditions.

* Wastefulness and inefficiency in
the delivery of health care would be reduced.

* America spends a far higher
percentage of GDP on health care than any other country but has worse
ratings on such criteria as quality of care, efficiency of care,
access to care, safe care, equity, and wait times, according to the
Commonwealth Fund.

* A universal system would align
incentives for investment in long term health-care productivity,
preventive care, and better management of chronic conditions.

* Universal health care could act
as a subsidy to business, at no cost thereto. (Indeed, the Big Three
of U.S. car manufacturers cite health-care provision as a reason for
their ongoing financial travails. The cost of health insurance to
U.S. car manufacturers adds between USD 900 and USD 1,400 to each car
made in the U.S.A.)

* The profit motive adversely
affects the cost and quality of health care. If managed care programs
and their concomitant provider networks are abolished, then doctors
would no longer be guaranteed patients solely on the basis of their
membership in a provider group and regardless of the quality of care
they provide. Theoretically, quality of care would increase as true
competition for patients is restored.

* A 2008 opinion poll of 2,000 US
doctors found support for a universal healthcare plan at 59%-32%,
which is up from the 49%-40% opinion of physicians in 2002. These
numbers include 83% of psychiatrists, 69% of emergency medicine
specialists, 65% of pediatricians, 64% of internists, 60% of family
physicians and 55% of general surgeons. The reasons given are an
inability of doctors to decide patient care and patients who are
unable to afford care.

* According to an estimate by Dr.
Marcia Angell roughly 50% of healthcare dollars are spent on
healthcare, the rest go to various middlemen and intermediaries. A
streamlined, non-profit, universal system would increase the
efficiency with which money is spent on healthcare.

* In countries in Western Europe
with public universal health care, private health care is also
available, and one may choose to use it if desired. Most of the
advantages of private health care continue to be present, see also
Two-tier health care.

* Universal health care and public
doctors would protect the right to privacy between insurance
companies and patients.

* Public health care system can be
used as independent third party in disputes between employer and
employee.

Common arguments forwarded by opponents
of universal health care systems include:

* Health care is not a right. As
such, it is not the responsibility of government to provide health
care.

* If universal health care is
provided by federally mandated purchase of health insurance, it may
be unconstitutional, since the Constitution does not give the federal
government this right and reserves all non-mentioned rights to the
States or the People.

* Universal heath care would result
in increased wait times, which could result in unnecessary deaths.

* Unequal access and health
disparities still exist in universal health care systems.

* Universal health care would
reduce efficiency because of more bureaucratic oversight and more
paperwork, which could lead to fewer doctor-patient visits.[citation
needed] Advocates of this argument claim that the performance of
administrative duties by doctors results from medical centralization
and over-regulation, and may reduce charitable provision of medical
services by doctors.

* Many problems that universal
health insurance is meant to solve are presumed caused by limitations
on the free market. As such, free market solutions have greater
potential to improve care and coverage.

* The federal Emergency Medical
Treatment and Active Labor Act requires hospitals and ambulance
services to provide emergency care to anyone regardless of
citizenship, legal status or ability to pay. The health care safety
net, which includes free medical clinics, charity care, nonprofits
and government-run community hospitals, provides necessary care to
the uninsured.

* The widely quoted health care
system ranking by the World Health Organization, in which the US
system ranked below other countries' universal health care systems,
used biased criteria, giving a false sense of those systems'
superiority.

* Empirical evidence on the
Medicare single payer-insurance program demonstrates that the cost
exceeds the expectations of advocates. As an open-ended entitlement,
Medicare does not weigh the benefits of technologies against their
costs. Paying physicians on a fee-for-service basis also leads to
spending increases. As a result, it is difficult to predict or
control Medicare's spending. Large market-based public program such
as the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and CalPERS can
provide better coverage than Medicare while still controlling costs
as well.

* Universal health care systems, in
an effort to control costs by gaining or enforcing monopsony power,
sometimes outlaw medical care paid for by private, individual funds.

So what are your thoughts? Are you for Universal Health care? Why? Are you against it? Why?

Do you have insurance? Any insurance horror stories?

Do you ever feel like it always happens to you? You know the feeling I
am talking about. It is so easy to say why me? Why me Lord? Why me?

That was my attitude earlier this evening. We had bad storms this
evening. The electric went out many many times. After the first time it
went out I shut down my computer as I didn't want anything to happen to
it. When the storms were past I turned it back on. Ready to sit down
and read my emails.

Go to get online.........

Seems my modem isn't working......

Why me Lord???? Believe it or not....I prayed for my modem.....still not working.

So easy to say why me Lord. I take such good care of my computer. Why me? I don't have money for a new one...why me?
So here I sit on an old old laptop that pokes along oh so slow...but I am here.

It is easy to say why me. But I shouldn't. I need to sit back and be
happy. The Lord kept us safe through the storm. There is a house near
here that the storm took the roof off. At my husband's work (he called
me on the cell phone) the phones aren't working and the system called
for the fire company for no reason....maybe because the phones are
down...I don't know.

It would be easy to say why me. But I need to remember my blessings. I
am blessed that God kept the children and I safe through the storm, our
lives are worth so much more then any computer. Hopefully my husband
will be able to put in the modem that he has from an old computer and
that will fix the problem...if not...well, I will just continue to
count my blessings.

It is so easy to moan and complain.....but we are so blessed.

And one big blessing I am so happy for right now is this laptop that
most people would have thrown out. This laptop with no battery so you
have to be hooked to wall. This laptop that is 7 years old and runs so
so slow. I am so happy for the ugly old laptop.

Thank you Jesus for old laptops and thank you for loving slow,
hardheaded people like us. Thank you Lord for lessons like these in
counting our blessings. We may not like to learn them but thank you
anyway for teaching us them and for being so patient with us.

ADDED Question: Would you wear something like this?

I have found online some pictures of
beautiful outfits that I wish were available in stores around my
area right now they can only be gotten online if you live in this area.

The style is called Shalwar
Kameez.

It
has elasticized baggy trousers (Shalwar), a dress-length loose shirt
(Kameez) and a long scarf (Dupatta) which can be draped in several
ways.

To those of you who asked about pictures.......

I will take pictures of me when I am finally able to get some of these. I don't know how long it will be before I am finally able to get some but when I do, I will share pictures.