People mixing truth with error is in style these days, and it has its roots from bad leadership from centuries before. People basing interpretation of religion and scripture based on feeling, opinion, convenience and tradition. Very few people have a Biblical basis of why it is they believe certain things. And much of Christianity today would be shocked to see many teachings are erroneous and are simply continuations of old church theology used to scare and manipulate people. However, the Bible warns against this, telling us to measure everything against scripture.
If only Christians would study what they claim to follow.
“There will be false dreams and false visions, which have some truth, but lead away from the original faith. The Lord has given men a rule by which to detect them:
“To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20).
If they belittle the law of God, if they pay no heed to His will as revealed in the testimonies of His Spirit, they are deceivers. They are controlled by impulse and impressions, which they believe to be from the Holy Spirit, and consider more reliable than the Inspired Word. They claim that every thought and feeling is an impression of the Spirit; and when they are reasoned out of the scriptures, they declare that they have something more reliable. But while they think that they are led by the Spirit of God, they are in reality following an imagination wrought upon by Satan.” Selected Messages, book 2, pp.98, 99, Ellen G. White
“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show you great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” Matthew 24:24
“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105
Hello dear friends,
Our hearts go out to the victims of the Boston tragedy. We also remember those who were in the accident explosion in Texas. May God give these families and the families who are victims of tragedies around the world comfort and peace.
I hope this week is a celebration of life. A week of peace. A week of courage; that we may keep pressing forward, no matter what. I was so impressed by the runners who completed the marathon and kept running two more miles to donate blood. No matter what the tragedy and our wickedness, we can still see God’s goodness in humanity.
1] Happy Earth Day! -April 22, 2013
“The world in which we live is a gift of love from the Creator God, from ‘Him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the springs of water’ (Revelation 14:7; 11:17, 18).Within this creation He placed humans, set intentionally in relationship with Himself, other persons, and the surrounding world. Therefore, as [Christians], we hold its preservation and nurture to be intimately related to our service to Him.” Adapted from statement on the environment, Seventh-day Adventists Executive Committee at the Annual Council session in Silver Spring, Maryland, October 12, 1992.
2] Video of the week: Without You-David Guetta for the United Nations
If there is anyone I can think of who deserves to be in a hall of fame, it is my good friend Beto.
This is a congratulations to my amazing friend. The most fiery, zealous, compassionate and hard working activist I have ever met in my life.
I first saw Jose “Beto” Soto when he came to campaign for Dave and the Progress Party in a CHISPAS General Body Meeting. He walked in with a Graduate Assistants United (GAU) T-shirt and a big Mexican, wide-brim cowboy-looking hat.
He was very articulate, and he struck me as a person I wanted to hang out with. After that, I would run into him in Turlington campaigning, and he encouraged me to join the campaign since it stood for my principles. I would sit long hours talking to people, telling them to vote and raising awareness about issues and swinging my feet, as I sat, covered in Progress Party Stickers, perched up on the brick wall.
Me, as I was getting involved.
He introduced me to SDS, and I became an “undergraduate ambassador and recruiter,” you could say, for the GAU. I spent hours going from graduate assitant office to office raising awareness, making friends and helping members register. I went to rallies, protests, and I held signs for the first time in my life. I learned so much about the campus, met so many people and learned so much from the leaders and Beto, especially. These were some of the most exciting moments for me at the University of Florida, and I think this shaped me. I took the person I was, everything I was exposed to and surrounded by in my life, and these experiences showed me my voice. I learned to not be afraid. To grab a sign, to inform others of what they were entitled to, to fight for what I believe in and to stop traffic if necessary so a rally could cross (wink).
A lot of this fearlessness and passion I owe to the admiration I felt and still feel for Beto. Sometimes, we don’t know all that we can do and the power of one, unless someone shows us.
He is an incredible human being. Jose was always standing in the front. He was the most social person I met. Everyone knew him, and he treated each person as if they were the most important person there. When my car was at the shop, he drove me to the mechanic to get it. When a friend of ours got hurt, we walked to the hopsital to go see her in the Florida heat. This man is special.
He would have a megaphone and would courageously face administration, police or whomever he needed to face. He would call out lies, and demand justice. He spoke for international students, graduate assistants, citizens, non-citizens and even University departments.
One time, I was exiting the language lab, and I saw a group gathered in Turlington Plaza. As usual, there was a police officer or two and some administration observing (even though things never got out of hand), and I heard one say in a thick southern accent, “Yeah, that is Beto Soto.”
They knew who he was. Everyone did.
I want to congratulate Beto on Graduating with his PhD and for leaving UF a better place. Thank you for igniting a passion in us who had the privilege to work with you and who are privileged to call you our friend.
UF will not be the same without him, but more importantly, he has taught many of us to fight for ourselves and for others for that time when he is not around.
May we always fight for the same causes, despite the distance that may separate us. We are always united in heart, and who knows what the future holds!
Beto, is deserving of the hall of fame and more.
Congratulations Beto Soto. Keep spreading that fire.
May God bless you always, and may you always do the Lord’s work.
God is leading him to do big things; and he is not afraid, I know it. As he would always say, “We are doin’ it live.”
It is about loving people and knowing what you believe in.
“The more closely connected man is with the source of all knowledge and wisdom, the more he will feel that he must advance in intellectual and spiritual attainments. The opening of God’s Word is always followed by a remarkable opening and strengthening of man’s faculties; for the entrance of His words giveth light. By contemplation of great truths, the mind is elevated, the affections purified and refined; for the Spirit of God, through the truth of God, quickens the lifeless spiritual faculties, and attracts the soul heavenward.” Bible Echo, Oct. 15, 1892
GABRIELA YARELIZ 