We get so many conflicting reports, i have determined not to be among those who spread rumors, and will await the official report, hoping it's accurate and fair and correct.
The police in town and sheriff's deputies out here are on extra long duty, so on Sunday the officer who usually watches at our church could not be there.
Yes, we pay an off duty officer to watch at our church every Sunday, and have for years. Our church is in the middle of downtown, and we are happy to be there and to work with the homeless, the down-on-their-luck, the people who live in the area who need help. They are welcome to come, and if they come and are in need, they are helped.
We also have small children on our church campus, and have had homeless men who were obviously under the influence of something come in and wander the nursery hallways, so we are careful.
This past Sunday, we kept the front doors of the church open, with a couple of extra deacons there to welcome people. Other doors were locked, and deacons at those doors opened them as needed. Usually all of the doors are just unlocked, and i hope we can go back to that soon.
There was a small prayer meeting after the service and people from another church came. (Because i was in the baby nursery, i was late, and didn't catch which church they were with. One of the ladies also asked for prayer as she begins treatment for a brain tumor, and i've added her to my prayer list and asked her to come back and give us an update on how she is doing. If you are the praying sort, send a few up for Ms. E.) One of our church administrative team marched in one of the protests, with our full support, giving out water bottles. Pastors from several churches around town have done the same, joined at the protest sites to give out water, snacks, and hugs when needed.
Protestors have been told they are welcome to meet and march as long as they do not block streets. The authorities are sticking to that, making sure they are given their rights, and that they do not block access to others simply trying to go about their business.
Meanwhile, life will never be the same for #2 Son's friend at work, and the other members of Mr. Sterling's family.
Today is:
Alpenfest -- Gaylord, MI, US (a Swiss inspired festival for the whole family that includes "The World's Largest Coffee Break"; through Saturday)
Cow Appreciation Day® -- sponsored by Chick-fil-A; wear something cow-like and get a free entree!
Different Colored Eyes Day -- people with heterochromia, celebrate!
Etch-a-Sketch Day -- the toy was first manufactured on this day in 1960, timed to hit toy shelves for Christmas that year
Independence Day -- Kiribati(1979; a/k/a National Day); Sao Tome & Principe(1975)
Kronia -- Ancient Greek Calendar (date approximate, a festival for Kronos, part of which included masters and slaves switching places for a meal)
National Pecan Pie Day
Orangemen's Day (a/k/a Twelfth Day) -- Northern Ireland (Battle of the Boyne commemoration)
Rainmaker Day -- Salem, Oregon (while it is understood that in Salem, you are more likely to rust than sunburn, from 1892 until 2006, no measurable rain fell on this date in this normally wet city)
Simplicity Day -- sponsored by www.doonething.org on Thoreau's birthday, highlighting the concepts in the book Voluntary Simplicty by Duane Elgin, and advocating finding sustainable ways to live
St. John Gualbert's Day (Patron of foresters and forest workers, park services and parks)
St. Veronica's Day (Patron of laundry workers and photographers)
Anniversaries Today
Henry VIII marries Catherine Parr, 1543 (the lucky wife who outlived him)
Birthdays Today
Erik Per Sullivan, 1991
Michelle Rodriguez, 1978
Brock Lesnar, 1977
Anna Friel, 1976
Kristi Yamaguchi, 1971
Lisa Nicole Carson, 1969
Rolonda Watts, 1959
Mel Harris, 1957
Paul Guilfoyle, 1955
Cheryl Ladd, 1951
Jamey Sheridan, 1951
Richard Simmons, 1948
Denise Nicholas, 1945
Christine McVie, 1943
Bill Cosby, 1937
Van Cliburn, 1934
Andrew Wyeth, 1917
Curly Joe DeRita, 1909
Milton Berle, 1908
Pablo Neruda, 1904
R. Buckminster Fuller, 1895
Oscar Hammerstein II, 1895
George Washington Carver, 1861
George Ohr, 1857
George Eastman, 1854
Henry David Thoreau, 1817
Josiah Wedgwood, 1730
Debuting/Premiering Today:
"Northern Exposure"(TV), 1990
"Family Feud"(TV), 1976
"Evening At Pops"(TV), 1970
"The Adventures of Sam Spade"(Radio), 1946
"Baseball's Sad Lexicon (Tinker to Evers to Chance)"(Publication date), 1910
Today in History
England is unified by Athelstan of England, 927
Saladin's garrison surrenders to Conrad of Montferrat, ending the two-year siege of Acre, 1191
Fray Diego de Landa, acting Bishop of Yucatan, burns the sacred books of the Maya, 1562
Ostrog Bible, the first printed Bible in a Slavic language, is published, 1580
The United States invades Canada at Windsor, Ontario, 1812
The Commonwealth Franchise Act, granting women's suffrage in Australia, is given royal assent and takes effect, 1902
Pune, India floods due to failure of Khadakvasala and Panshet dams; half of the city is submerged and the death toll exceeded 2000, 1961
A fire destroys the entire 6th floor of the National Personnel Records Center of the United States, 1973
Boris Yeltsin quits the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, 1990
Israel invades Lebanon in response to Hezbollah's kidnapping of Israeli soldiers, 2006
A ticket holder in Britain wins the largest EuroMillions jackpot in history, 161,653,000GBP, 2011
The Rolling Stones, English rock band, celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of its first performance at the Marquee Club in Oxford Street, London, 2012
we used to pray for the end to war abroad. now we pray for peace at home. there are no easy answers, no cookie-cutter generalizations that are correct, not when human beings are involved. i pray for respect, kindness, goodness to outweigh fear, hate, the worst of us.
ReplyDeleteI had to Google the name to figure out what you were talking about. I don't know enough about this to comment on either. The way things have been going the press have been judge and jury minutes after these incidents. I'm guessing that hasn't changed in this case.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day. ☺
Those whole thing is terrible. Thank you to you and your church for the part you are doing for the sake of saving souls and bringing about peace in the city.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy that you belong to such a caring community. Sending my best wishes and prayers across the ocean.
ReplyDeleteYou do so many good things for your community. We need more people like you.
ReplyDeleteYou do some marvelous work in your community it's hard to come by sometimes these days
ReplyDeleteBless you :-)
Think of us watching the video of Mr. Sterling being shot and killed and of how upsetting it was to see and then, think of his family watching it. It is heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteI do not do traditional prayer but will meditate for you each morning sending peaceful thoughts and thoughts of tender love to all of you who are more closely touched by this tragedy.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the comments above, especially TexWisGirl. The news and social media are so exhausting, so predictable. So many loud voices out there are too quick to judge others and too slow to listen to those that have a differing view.
ReplyDeleteYou and your community are doing some wonderful work, and I hope that you're able to help those in need without any security concerns.
The Pedestrian Writer
Such sadness and tragedy all around. It's hard to have a full perspective as a Canadian - it just seems so different from us. I don't fully trust the media to report accurately these days either, and I suspect that the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. But too many lives are being lost for no action to be taken. All I can do is keep you all in my prayers.
ReplyDelete