SOCIAL OSMOSIS

Osmosis is the movement of water molecules across a semipermeable membrane from a region of low solute potential to an area of high solute potential. This is a biological phenomen that explains how a solid material like cube sugar dissolves from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration through a semi-permeable membrane.

In everyday terms, it is apparent that when a tea bag is put in hot water, the soluble contents of the tea bag spreads throughout the hot water. This process is called diffusion by scientists. In the same way, when the spread of the solid molecules (which is the content of the tea bag in our example) is through a surface that is not totally permeable, the process is called osmosis.

In the socio-cultural set up of a given society, traditions and cultures from aliens keeps on entering and going out of the society. Since society is dynamic, social osmosis is always on-going. In comparing social osmosis to physical osmosis, it must be noted that before every culture accepts a foreign culture, there is always a number of obstacles that the foreign culture would face. Any attempt to force a foreign culture on a given people ends up with disastrous results.

The most reasonable means of explaining the cause of social osmosis stems from the days of the Tower of Babbel in Genesis 11. This was a point where the languages (and effectively the cultures of people) were confused by God. After that point, it is noticed that individuals began to live in groups that were significantly different in terms of their cultural practices.

JACOB AND SOCIAL OSMOSIS

After God called Abraham, He gave him a distinct culture and social system that was different from all the peoples who lived around him. Jacob also ended up getting the blessings of Abraham and he began to live according to the codes of God. In Genesis 34 when Dinah was raped by Shechem, Shechem was moved to marry her so he came and asked Jacob for her hand in marriage.

Shechem’s father made the move but Jacob gave him a condition of absorbing them into their family through social osmosis. In this proposal, Jacob and his sons told Shechem and the males in his family to be circumcised. This was their obstacle to being absorbed in the Abrahamic culture!

MOSES

After several centuries in the land of Egypt, the Israelites became numerous and they needed to be controlled by a set of laws. After the exodus, Moses gave the Israelite community a set of laws which was a set of principles that absorbed the Israelites to the Abrahamic covenant.

JESUS CHRIST

For many centuries, the law was for the Jews alone. When Jesus Christ began his ministry, he gave the touching parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:29-37 that proposed that a man should move with anyone he could move with irrespective of his religion or creed. This changed the concept of social osmosis amongst the few saved ones (who were then Jews). At this point, it became clear that one had to make compromises on the culture of people around them but make sure that he kept his customs intact to prevent persecution from God. This is method of social osmosis preached by Jesus Christ is what most nations are using to prevent discrimination in most nations of the world.

THE APOSTLES

After Peter got the vision in Joppa that the Gospel would be preached to the Gentiles, the process of social osmosis became pronounced. Since Christianity separates spirituality from issues pertaining to the state, it was absorbed into the culture of the nations where it was preached. This usually led to disagreements and persecution and this attempted to stop the social osmosis process of Christianity.

THE ROMANS

When the Gospel was accepted by the Romans after long periods of persecution, the Romans began to spread the religion through various means. Amongst them is the use of miltary force. The method the Romans used was quite interesting. It is summed up in the following steps:

1. The organisation of a powerful and strong army.
2. The mapping up of a territory that they wanted to conquer
3. Invasion with a huge indomitable army
4. Imposition of a Roman government in the territory, resident in a castle that could protect them from angry locals for a period of time (to enable military back up to be summoned in times of an uprising).
5. Levying of huge taxes to made it impossible for the local people to gather enough money to begin a rebellion.

Traditionally, the Romans were ecclectic in religion (they had many religious beliefs as Africans do today). However, when they accepted Christianity, the church was funded by the state. Branches of Roman Catholic churches were set up in the provinces that fell to the Roman Empire. Through this, many Europeans and territories in the Roman Empire had their peoples converted into Christianity and their customs were gradually influences to change into purely Christian practises. This was usually complemented with legal systems that had roots in the Laws of Moses.

ISLAMIC CONQUESTS

Mohammed, who some Jews even recognise as the ‘Ishmaelite whose teachings would assist in the fulfilment of the Abrahamic covenant’ began to rise mightily in the AD 600s. Mohammed’s teachings blended religion with the state since he believe that Islam was a way of life but not a mere religion. After his death, other successors began to spread the religion of Islam in two arms; one as rulers of states and two as religious disciples of the teachings of Prophet Mohammed.

The process of spread of Islam was tightly bound to the jihads of the mainly Arab Muslims. Their policy was to invade a nation, rule the people and in some cases, give them two choices; either to practise of Islam or die. Many argue that the early Islamic patriarchs were just behaving like the Romans. However, the only critical difference between the early Islamic patriarchs and the Romans is that the Romans conquered before Christianity came into the scene later on whereas the Muslims conquered whilst they were still Muslims! This issue on the procedure of social osmosis used by the Romans and the Arabs has been the centre-point of many debates concerning terrorism!

THE PRESENT SITUATION

Presently in our era of democracy and freedom, the only method of social osmosis is the proper use of information as a weapon. It is only by the use of diplomatic techniques and a very wise method of absorption that the message of a particular culture can be spread far and wide.

THE GHANA-NIGERIA SAGA

Citizens of these nations look very much alike in many aspects of their lifestyles and cultures but when it comes to mixing, the barriers of social osmosis are quite pronounced. Many Nigerians work together with Ghanaians with no problems in Europe, America and elsewhere in the world but in their homes, they mix amidst so many disagreements.

The apparent difference between Ghanaians and Nigerians seem to lie in their value systems. The commonest is the observation that many Ghanaians believe in working on the little details to achieve much whilst many Nigerians believe in working on much because when the ultimate is achieved, the little details would be take care of! These reflect in the attitudes of most citizens of these two nations. However, this appears to be a symptom of social osmosis and will die out with time. This prediction is rooted in the fact that there was a huge disparity in the mentality people in the south of Ghana or Nigeria saw people from the north of their countries. However, after almost 50 years of their nationhood, people in Ghana and Nigeria are uniting.

SOCIAL OSMOSIS IN THE CHURCH

With the Ghana-Nigeria saga, it takes maturity to deal with people from other nations. Most Ghanaians and Nigerians at the top in churches have learnt how to respect and honour their members and subordinates. However, amongst the members, there seem to be tensions and immaturity amongst them. This is seen by the fact that people from one nation refuse to sing songs from other nations and also the refusal of some citizens to relate with people from another nation. These could be solved in a number of ways like:

1. THE PRINT OUT OF POPULAR SONGS DURING SPECIAL OCCASIONS: Certain songs from one dialect that would be sang could be written down on papers and distributed on special ocasions. These would cause people who can read to try to sing songs in other languages. For a start, the words of Yoruba hit songs like Kilo Leshe, Anosibitoga or His Name is Jesus could be documented alongside the Akan songs Ayeyi wura and Onyame Kokroko to promote co-operations.
2. SOCIAL ACTIVITIES like businessmen’s groups could formed to promote tighter knit communication amongst people in a certain class of the church to interact since they are likely to have the same level of spiritual maturity.
3. FORMATION OF A DEPARTMENT IN CHARGE OF THE INTEGRATION OF BUSINESS AND SOCIAL NEEDS OF INDIVIDUALS: This could promote rent and business deals for multi-national members in the chruch.

THE RESULT OF JOSHUA'S DISOBEDIENCE

THE RESULT OF JOSHUA’S DISOBEDIENCE
God delivered the Israelites from the hand of the Egyptians and led them into the Promised Land. Before they entered the Promised Land, God gave the Israelites a firm commandment and this is spelt out clearly in Deuteronomy 7:2 that;
And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them:This commandment backed the promise God made to Abraham in Genesis 15:18-21 that
15:18 In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:15:19 The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites,15:20 And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaim,15:21 And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.
The scripture in Deuteronomy 7:2 was a direction of God that had to be followed to fulfil the promise of Genesis 15:18-21. However, because Moses could not lead the Israelites to the Promised Land, Joshua was given the mandate to lead them.
JOSHUA’S MISTAKE
In the year 1406 BC, Joshua entered the Promised Land with the Israelites. In Joshua 9, the Gibeonites came to Joshua with a deception. They said in Joshua 9:9-11 that
9:9 And they said unto him, From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of the LORD thy God: for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt,9:10 And all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, which was at Ashtaroth.9:11 Wherefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take victuals with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your servants: therefore now make ye a league with us.Joshua mistakenly made a covenant with the Gibeonites in verse 15 which says "And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them."
Later on, Joshua found out that the people had tricked him. However, because of the covenant that was made in Joshua 9:15 which was directly against the commandment of God in Deuteronomy 7:2, Joshua could not kill them as the Lord had commanded.
Verses 26-27 says
9:26 And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not.9:27 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the LORD, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose.
The elders of Israel therefore concluded that the Gibeonites should become hewers of wood and carriers of water. They lived as slaves under the Jews for the generations that followed. They were not allowed to intermarry with the Jews because of their roots.
After the reign of King Solomon, Israel was divided into two; there was the Northern Kingdom and Judah in the south. Generally, the people in the Northern kingdom, which was dominated and described by God in the prophecies as Ephraim were called Israelites. The people of Judah became known as the Jews amongst the international community.
THE RESULT OF THE ‘MERCY TREATY’
In the year 586 BC, which was 820 years after Joshua signed the treaty, Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian Army conquered Jerusalem. The people of Judah were taken captive first and then the people of the north were taken away later. In this conquest every able bodied Israelite and Jew was taken as a slave to Babylon.
The few who were left in the land were the poorest of the poor in the land. These poorest of the poor were the people who were involved in the worst menial jobs like carriers of water and hewers of wood. They were the descendants of the Gibeonites who had tricked Joshua into entering into a treaty with them.
Whilst the Israelites were in exile in Babylon, these remnants of the Gibeonites intermarried with the local Canaanite tribes and they continued to worship idols in the Holy Lands. This was probably because they felt they had no portion in the blessings God had promised the Israelites so they got closer to their neighbours who were more comfortable with idol worship.
With time, some of the Israelites came back home and they intermarried with the remnants of the Gibeonites who had also intermarried with foreigners. Some of the descendants of these marriages formed a proportion of the population of the city of Samaria.
The descendants of these Canaanites, Gibeonites and Samarians lived in the midst of the Israelites and they continued to practise strange religions. After Roman Rule, Jerusalem finally fell to Islamic rulers from the Arabian Peninsular in AD 638.
The Arabs converted the descendants of these people Joshua had refused to kill. The Jews were however adamant. They refused to convert to Islam and many had to be killed, pay excessive taxes or leave the Holy Lands totally. Most of the Jews ended up in Europe as minorities and a few stayed back and they were oppressed by their former slaves.
By 1900, the Turks or Ottoman Empire was controlling Israel. They had little value for the lands and most of the rent of the local inhabitants of the area were farmed by peasants who were descendants of these Gibeonites Joshua failed to kill who were mainly converted to Islam. At that time, nobody in the region had a plan of consolidating the people into a nation so after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire and British victory in the 1st World War, Britain was given the mandate to rule over the former territory of Israel.
In the 1920s, the Wahabbi tribe of Arabia, led by the House of Sauds waged a large scale war and conquered the tribes of the Arabian Peninsular. They formed the state of Saudi Arabia and established a monarchy.
Also, the Hashemites who were Britain’s allies in the 1st World War were given the territory east of the Jordan to rule. As the years rolled on, the 2nd World War broke out and the Jews were persecuted. Over six million Jews were killed by 1945 when the war ended.
After the heat of the war, the Jews began to mobilise themselves into group to return to their home in the Middle East. When they returned, there were tensions between the local Palestinian Arabs who can trace their roots to the days of the Gibeonites. The British who were controlling the territory called the Israelites and the Arabs to the negotiating tables on several occasions. Whereas the Jews said they wanted to build a modern Israeli state, the Arabs said they hated the Jews and they only wanted them dead.
Finally, war broke out. People from 12 Arab nations sent support to the local Arabs of Palestine. However, the Israelites stayed strong and they fought back strongly. The armies from foreign Arab nations withdrew. Jordan made an offer to take up all the displaced local Palestinians but they objected. These local Palestinians continue to live in the midst of the Israelites. Whereas Israel continues to build its modern state, the Palestinians who are the seed of the Gibeonites continue to pursue their dream of killing all the Jews as they promised in 1945.
Now, over 3,000 years after the disobedience of Joshua, in the view of showing mercy, the descendants of the Israelites are paying the price dearly.
OBSERVATIONS
Disobeying God’s commandments brings a curse.
A curse that results from disobeying God’s commandments last for thousands of years
The longer a curse from disobedience stays, the more difficult it is to break it.
Until a curse from disobedience of God is broken, it will continue to fight you until you stop it.
No matter how unpleasant a commandment of God may be, one has to obey it
When it is time for war, showing mercy has serious consequences.
References
The False Prophet, Ellis Skolfield
The Haj, Leon Uris
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopaedia.

INFERTILITY

INFERTILITY
The International Council on Infertility Information Dissemination (INCIID) considers a couple to be infertile if:
· they have not conceived after 12 months of unprotected intercourse, or after 6 months if the woman is over 35 years of age. The reduced duration for women over 35 is because there is a rapid decline in fertility after this age and help should be sought sooner.
· there is incapability to carry a pregnancy to term.
Infertility affects approximately 10% of people of reproductive age 15% of couples. Roughly 40% of cases involve a male contribution or factor, 40% involve a female factor, and the remainder involve both sexes.
Healthy couples in their mid-20s having regular sex have a one-in-four chance of getting pregnant in any given month. This is called "Fecundity". There are some health insurance companies that cover diagnosis of infertility but frequently once diagnosed will not cover any treatment costs.
CAUSES OF INFERTILITY
There are two types of infertility, Primary Infertility and Secondary Infertility. Primary Infertility occurs when a couple cannot conceive their first child. Secondary Infertility is where a couple have one child but find it difficult to conceive a second child.
FEMALE INFERTILITY
Factors relating to female infertility are:
· General factors
o Diabetes mellitus, thyroid disorders, adrenal disease
o Significant liver, kidney disease
· Mental factors, mainly Hypothalamic-pituitary in nature:
o These are mainly issues connected to the brain and the portions that stimulate sexual activities and activites in the environment. The pituitary glands secret hormones that promote human growth and sexual functions whilst the hypothalmus regulates activities in the body. The major disfunctions in these two systems lead to the following;
o Kallmann syndrome
o Hypothalamic dysfunction
o Hyperprolactinemia
o Hypopituitarism
· Ovarian factors
o Amenorrhoea: Absence of Mestrual periods
o Polycystic ovarian syndrome: Extremely Irregular Menstrual Cycle
o Anovulation: This reduces levels of a protein in the blood, the sex-hormone binding protein, leading to higher levels of free testosterone circulating in the bloodstream.
o Diminished ovarian reserve: Reduction in certain hormones necessary for pregnancy to occur
o Luteal dysfunction: Dysfunction of a certain cell in the ovary
o Premature menopause
o Gonadal dysgenesis (Turner syndrome): Inability of the ovary to produce eggs
o Ovarian neoplasm: A cancerous growth in the ovary
· Tubal/peritoneal factors
o Endometriosis: a condition in which tissue resembling the lining of the womb, the endometrial tissue, is present in an abnormal position in the body, that is, outside the womb. In endometriosis, tissue resembling the endometrium can be found in various unusual locations in the body, but most commonly in or around the ovaries, vagina, pelvis, abdominal scars, and the small and large intestines.
o Pelvic adhesions: This is where there are fibrous adhesions in the fallopian tubes which prevent the safe passage of the egg.
o Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID, usually due to chlamydia): These are mainly sexually transmitted infections and veneral diseases.
o Tubal occlusion: Closure or blockage of the tube
o Tubal dysfunction: The tube failing to perform its natural function.
· Uterine factors
o Uterine malformations: Increase or abnormal sizes of the uterine usually in the form of tumors.
o Uterine fibroids (leiomyoma)
o Asherman's Syndrome
· Cervical factors
o Cervical stenosis: Abnormal narrowing of the cervical canal or passageway
o Antisperm antibodies: an antibody is any of the millions of normally occurring protein molecules that are produced in the body of cells called lymphocytes and act primarily as a defence against invasion by foreign substances. If an antibody is against sperms, it will destroy all sperms that move in the female reproductive system.
o Insufficient cervical mucus (for the travel and survival of sperm)
· Vaginal factors
o Vaginismus: involuntary spasm of the muscles in the vaginal wall. This occurs when attempts are made to introduce an object into the vagina, for example, during sexual intercourse, insertion of a tampon, or when a doctor or nurse attempts to perform an internal examination. This occurs as a result of emotional conditions for example where a woman has been raped before.
o Vaginal obstruction: This results from the slipping or falling out of certain organs that must be intact to allow conception. There are four possible causes; three of them are natural and one is acquired through veneral diseases like gonorrhoea.
· Genetic factors
o Various intersexed conditions, such as androgen insensitivity syndrome: Where a person has both male and female hormones and characteristics.

MALE INFERTILITY
Factors relating to male infertility include:
· Pretesticular causes
o These are causes out of the testicles.
o Endocrine problems, these are disorders that affect the organs connected to reproduction i.e. diabetes mellitus, thyroid disorders
o Hypothalamic disorders, mental sutuations i.e. Kallmann syndrome
o Hyperprolactinemia
o Hypopituitarism
o Hypogonadism due to various causes
o Drugs, alcohol
· Testicular factors
o Genetic defects on the Y chromosome
§ Y chromosome microdeletions
o Abnormal set of chromosomes
§ Klinefelter syndrome
o Neoplasm, e.g. seminoma Tumors
o Idiopathic failure: Arising from no cause
o Cryptorchidism: Where the testes do not descend to the sac
o Varicocele: Where certain veins in the testicles become enlarge. This can be corrected by surgery.
o Trauma: The result of a bad past experience.
o Hydrocele: Disorder in which serous fluid accumulates in a body sac (especially in the scrotum)
o Mumps: Acute infectious disease caused by virus, similar to the one that affects the salivery glands.
o Testicular dysgenesis syndrome: Infertility within the testicles, thereby producing no sperms at all.
· Posttesticular causes
o This mainly affects the transportation of the semen from the testes out of the penis.
o Vas deferens obstruction
o Infection, e.g. prostatitis
o Retrograde ejaculation: The semen expelled in a frequency and direction that makes it flow to the wrong places.
o Hypospadias: An abnormal condition in males in which the urethra opens on the under surface of the penis
o Impotence: Inability of a man to make love
o Acrosomal defect/egg penetration defect: Acrsome is a process at the anterior end of a sperm cell that produces enzymes to facilitate penetration of the egg. Where this enzyme are non existent in the male sperm, it is impossible to conceive.
· Smoking
o According to a study conducted by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine smoking is one the most prominent factors contributing to low sperm count in men.
Some causes of male infertility can be determined by analysis of the ejaculate, which contains the sperm. The analysis includes counting the number of sperm and measuring their motility (ability of individual sperms to move by themselves and independently) under a microscope:
· Producing few sperm, oligospermia, or no sperm, azoospermia.
· A sample of sperm that is normal in number but shows poor motility, or asthenozoospermia.
In the majority of cases of male infertility and low sperm quality, no clear cause can be identified with current diagnostic methods. It has been speculated that random mutations of the Y chromosome may be an important factor. As the human Y chromosome is passed directly from father to son, it is not protected against accumulating copying errors, whereas other chromosomes are error corrected by recombining genetic information from mother and father. This may leave natural selection as the primary repair mechanism for the Y chromosome. Microdeletions in the Y chromosome have been found at a much higher rate in infertile men than in fertile controls and the correlation found may still go up as improved genetic testing techniques for the Y chromosome are developed. (Existing test kits for Y chromosome microdeletions with PCR markers cover only a tiny fraction of the chromosome's 23 million base pairs and therefore very likely still miss most mutations. The gold standard test for genetic mutation, namely complete DNA sequencing of a patient's Y chromosome, is still far too expensive for use in epidemiologic research or even clinical diagnostics.)
COMBINED INFERTILITY
In some cases, both the man and woman may be infertile or sub-fertile, and the couple's infertility arises from the combination of these conditions. In other cases, the cause is suspected to be immunological or genetic; it may be that each partner is independently fertile but the couple cannot conceive together without assistance.
UNEXPLAINED INFERTILITY
In about 15% of cases the infertility investigation will show no abnormalities. In these cases abnormalities are likely to be present but not detected by current methods. Possible problems could be that the egg is not released at the optimum time for fertilization, that it may not enter the fallopian tube, sperm may not be able to reach the egg, fertilization may fail to occur, transport of the zygote may be disturbed, or implantation fails. It is increasingly recognized that egg quality is of critical importance and women of advanced maternal age have eggs of reduced capacity for normal and successful fertilization.
SYMPTOMS AND SIGNS
MALE INFRETILITY
The history should include prior testicular (penis) insults (torsion, cryptorchidism, trauma), infections (mumps orchitis, epididymitis), environmental factors (excessive heat, radiation, chemotherapy), medications (anabolic steroids, cimetidine, and spironolactone may affect spermatogenesis; phenytoin may lower FSH; sulfasalazine and nitrofurantoin affect sperm motility), and drugs (alcohol, marijuana). Sexual habits, frequency and timing of intercourse, use of lubricants, and each partner's previous fertility experiences are important. Loss of libido and headaches or visual disturbances may indicate a pituitary tumor. The past medical or surgical history may reveal thyroid or liver disease (abnormalities of spermatogenesis), diabetic neuropathy (retrograde ejaculation), radical pelvic or retroperitoneal surgery (absent seminal emission secondary to sympathetic nerve injury), or hernia repair (damage to the vas deferens or testicular blood supply).
FEMALE INFERTILITY
Female infertility occurs when the woman does not conceive after one year of attempting to become pregnant. Other signs and symptoms depend on the underlying cause of the woman's infertility.
DIAGNOSIS AND TESTS
MALE INFERTILITY
The diagnosis of infertility begins with a medical history and physical exam. The provider may order blood tests to look for hormone imbalances or disease. A semen sample may be needed. The volume of the semen is measured, as well as the number of sperm in the sample. How well the sperm move is also assessed.
The cornerstone of the male partner evaluation is the history. It should note the duration of infertility, earlier pregnancies with present or past partners, and whether there was previous difficulty with conception.
A complete examination of the infertile male is important to identify general health issues associated with infertility. For example, the patient should be adequately virilized; signs of decreased body hair or gynecomastia may suggest androgen deficiency.
The scrotal contents should be carefully palpated with the patient standing. As it is often psychologically uncomfortable for young men to be examined, one helpful hint is to make the examination as efficient and as matter of fact as possible.
The peritesticular area should also be examined. Irregularities of the epididymis, located posterior-lateral to the testis, include induration, tenderness, or cysts.
FEMALE INFERTILITY
Diagnosis of infertility begins with a medical history and physical exam. The healthcare provider may order tests, including the following:
· an endometrial biopsy, which tests the lining of the uterus
· hormone testing, to measure levels of female hormones
· measurements of thyroid function (a thyroid stimulating hormone(TSH)level of between 1 and 2 is considered optimal for conception)
· laparoscopy, which allows the provider to see the pelvic organs
· measurement of progesterone in the second half of the cycle to confirm ovulation
· Pap smear, to check for signs of infection
· pelvic exam, to look for abnormalities or infection
· a postcoital test, which is done after sex to check for problems with secretions (not commonly used now because of test unreliability)
· special X-ray tests
Diagnosis of infertility should be made by physicians who are fellowship trained as reproductive endocrinologists. Reproductive Endocrinologists are usually Obstetrician-Gynecologists with advanced training in Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility (in North America). These highly educated professionals and qualified physicians treat Reproductive Disorders affecting not only women but also children, men, the postmenopausal woman. These specialized professionals treat primarily, infertility for both sexes.
Prospective patients should note that reproductive endocrinology & infertility practices do not see women for general maternity care. The practice is primarily focused on getting their patients pregnant.
TREATMENT
· Fertility medication which stimulates the ovaries to "ripen" and release eggs (e.g. clomifene citrate, which stimulates ovulation)
· Surgery to restore patency of obstructed fallopian tubes (tuboplasty)
· Donor insemination which involves the woman being artificially inseminated with donor sperm.
· In vitro fertilization (IVF) in which eggs are removed from the woman, fertilized and then placed in the woman's uterus, bypassing the fallopian tubes. Variations on IVF include:
o Use of donor eggs and/or sperm in IVF. This happens when a couple's eggs and/or sperm are unusable, or to avoid passing on a genetic disease.
o Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) in which a single sperm is injected directly into an egg; the fertilized egg is then placed in the woman's uterus as in IVF.
o Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT) in which eggs are removed from the woman, fertilized and then placed in the woman's fallopian tubes rather than the uterus.
o Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) in which eggs are removed from the woman, and placed in one of the fallopian tubes, along with the man's sperm. This allows fertilization to take place inside the woman's body.
· Other assisted reproductive technology (ART):
o Assisted hatching
o Fertility preservation
o Freezing (cryopreservation) of sperm, eggs, & reproductive tissue
o Frozen embryo transfer (FET)
· Alternative and complimetary treatments
o Acupuncture Recent controlled trials published in Fertility and Sterility have shown acupuncture to increase the success rate of IVF by as much as 60%. Acupuncture was also reported to be effective in the treatment of female anovular infertility, World Health Organisation, Acupuncture: Review and Analysis of Reports on Controlled Trials (2002).
o Diet and supplements
o Healthy lifestyle
PREVENTION AND EXPECTATION
MALE INFERTILITY
Some cases of male infertility may be avoided by doing the following:
· Avoid drugs and medications known to cause fertility problems, like steriods and some antifungal medications.
· Avoid excessive exercise.
· Avoid exposure to environmental hazards such as pesticides.
· Avoid frequent hot baths or use of hot tubs.
· Avoid tight underwear or pants.
· Eat a diet with adequate folic acid, and vitamine C and Zinc loaded food.
· Get early treatment for sexually transmitted diseases.
· Have regular physical examinations to detect early signs of infections or abnormalities.
· Keep diseases, such as diabetes and hypothyroidism, under control.
· Practice safer sex to avoid sexually transmitted diseases.
· Take a lycopene supplement.
· Wear protection over the scrotum during athletic activities.
FEMALE INFERTILITY
Some cases of female infertility may be prevented by taking the following steps:
· Avoid excessive exercise.
· Avoid smoking.
· Control diseases such as diabetes and hypothyroidism
· Follow good weight management guidelines.
· Get early treatment for sexually transmitted diseases.
· Have regular physical examinations to detect early signs of infections or abnormalities.
· Limit caffeine and alcohol intake.
· Use birth control to prevent unwanted pregnancy

ADVENTURE

ADVENTURE

An adventure is an activity that is comprised of risky and uncertain experiences that are undertaken at least in part for the sake of physical or emotional excitement. According to two psychologists, Yerkes and Dodson, adventure creates physiological and psychological arousals that can be interpreted as negative (for example fear) or positive (for example flow). In other words, when one enters into a risky and uncertain experience, he either fears for his life or adapt to suit the situation.

Amongst most people, particularly the youth, adventure is undertaken for the purpose of fun and excitement. In this context, people do dangerous things that they know can jeopardise their lives but because of the taste of fun, excitement and retelling to other people, they undertake them willingly.

THE BIBLE AND ADVENTURE

In the Bible, many incidents took place that was more of adventure. Some of the incidents ended up being disastrous whilst others were profitable:

ADAM AND EVE

This couple were blessed but when Eve was lied to by the serpent, her eyes led her on a journey of adventure. She ended up eating something that was forbidden, not for the purpose of disobeying God but trying something new and unusual to see what happens, to feel what it feels like to be on the same level with God.

LOT

Lot was connected with Abraham but because he wanted to see new and more exciting things, he moved and settled in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. At the end of the day, he lost everything in the fire that destroyed the cities.

POTIPHAR’S WIFE

This was a woman after sexual pleasure. She was married to a soldier who was trained to have special skills in protecting the most important citizen of the most powerful nation of the world at that time. It is apparent that Potiphar was strong and powerful but she wanted to experience the excitement of sex with a 17 year old man and bear the risk of sleeping with a boy in the home of her powerful husband without being caught by anyone.

ACHAN

This was a man who stole what was meant for God. From records, the people from the tribe of Judah were the richest in Israel in those days. Achan was from the tribe of Judah but he hoarded certain things meant to be put in the temple of God not because he had nothing but because he wanted to take a risk that would put him ahead of the rest and probably get something to talk about with his contemporaries.

SAMSON

Samson was a prophet by birth. He was called on to marry in Israel but for the sake of adventure; taking risk and experiencing unusual things, he married a Philistine woman. It is also on record that Samson slept with a number of prostitutes not because there were no women in Israel but because he wanted to take the risks for the sake of adventure.

DAVID

This was a man who took a lot of risks, some of which were positive and some of which were negative. Positively, David trusted in the Lord. He used the anointing to go before Goliath and fight him when everyone believed he would die but he survived. He engaged in a lot of battles but he survived because of the glory of God on him. On the other side, David’s crave for adventure caused him to count the people of Israel when it was against the will of God and also, he slept with a woman he knew not when he had over ten wives all in the name of adventure.

SOLOMON

He loved adventure so much that he ended up taking very civil adventures that made him marry 300 wives and also get 700 concubines.

THE LEPERS

In II Kings 7:3-12, certain lepers took a big risk and entered the camp of the Syrian army in a time of acute hunger. These lepers went to the camp in search of food when they knew very well that there was a likelihood that they could die but they went ahead. However, they survived and ended up saving themselves and the people of Israel.

GEHAZI
He sought for adventure in a major international issue between Israel and Syria. He took a gift rejected by Elisha, the prophet at the centre of this case in the name of enjoying them only to be cursed.

JESUS CHRIST

The second temptation of Jesus Christ by the devil was more of a test of his sense of adventure. In Luke 4:9-11, the devil took Him to Jerusalem and set him on a high point of the temple and told Him to jump down if He was truly the Son of God. This temptation was just to test the sense of adventure of Jesus Christ. However, He resisted this and refused to show off His powers as son of God

In today’s world, this trick of the devil continues to be used to destroy lives all over the world. Many young people become drug addicts, social deviants and criminals because of their taste for adventure. It begins with ‘can you do this’ ‘who can do this?’ ‘how can?’ amongst peer groups and this ends up carrying people beyond their bounds.

In other cases, particularly in secondary and tertiary institutions, when younger students enter, they look at the lifestyles of the older students particularly the worst in character and imagine how it feels to live their lives. After a few years in the institution, particularly after the first year, these young students begin to experiment the lifestyles of the older students that were negative. They end up becoming social deviants. It is through this crave for adventure that certain bad habits remain in some institutions forever.

After hitting the most negative limits, people begin to form groups and cliques within which they can discuss and brag with the things they could accomplish and go unharmed. For example in a group of marijuana users, they are likely to discuss how they smoked in a group and escaped police arrest. In a group of young drivers would gather to discuss the time they were able to move from one spot to another driving at full speed. The list goes on and on.

Adventure is certainly the key to the destruction of the morals of many young people. It is interesting to note that people who were victims in the Biblical adventure cases were mostly young people who wanted something new to talk about with their peers! With a strong control of adventure amongst the youth, many problems in society would be curbed.

On the other side, it appears that no one has undertaken an adventure in the name of God and failed. Anyone who took a step with God ahead of him ended up being successful. Notable amongst them was David who survived many battles in the name of God until he died at an old age.

SCHISM

SCHISM

Schism is defined as “division of a group into opposing factions”. In the Judaeo-Christian setting, the main schism point of the Judaism and Christianity can be identified at time after the crucifixion where the New Testament states that the High Priest and the other Elders bribed the Roman soldiers who saw the resurrected Christ to state that Jesus Christ was still dead. Though the bribery of the High Priest is not proven, the faith and belief of anyone in this issue effectively spells out his or her faith. However, I personally believe that the Jewish people are a race special to God which He wants to protect and conserve to the end of time. Therefore, I stand firmly to condemn every form of Anti-Semitism of any kind. Christianity has and will always be the best mechanism to transport Gentiles to God.

In the Christian Church, the Great Schism is a term that refers to both the break away of the Church into the East and the West in 1054 and also the break within the Western when three popes simultaneously claimed to be popes around 1400.

THE EASTERN AND WESTERN CHURCHES

This break came about because of the influx of Germanic practices to the Western Church and the sustained use of Hellenistic or Greek practices in the Eastern Church. This leaked into the political set ups of the East and the West. Although the Eastern Church recognised Rome as the capital of the Church and the power of the Roman Emperor, they despised the command of the Pope and the Roman Church. In the time of Pope Leo IX, the demands for subordination of the Eastern Church to the Roman Church were amplified.

In 1043, Patriarch Michael Cerularius became Patriarch in the Eastern Church at Constantinople. He began a bitter campaign against the Latin churches in the city and closed down all of them. His campaign was against the use of unleavened bread in the Latin churches and the filioque, a portion of the Nicene Creed that was changed to include the statement “I believe in the Holy Spirit which proceeds from the Father and Son.” Patriarch Michael Cerularius had support of the Hellenistic church because the change in the Nicene Creed was made by the Pope and the Romans without consulting the Eastern Church and secondly because it reflected teachings of the Trinity which most of the members in the Eastern Church objected.

The Church in Rome sent a Cardinal to Constantinople. The Cardinal concluded that Patriarch Michael Cerularius was simply narrow minded so he was excommunicated from the Church. This act was interpreted by the Church in Constantinople as an excommunication of the whole church! Patriarch Michael Cerularius formed a Synod responded in kind by also excommunicating the Pope and the rest of the Roman Church from the Church. This mutual excommunication stayed in force from 1054 until it was abolished in 1965 by Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I.

THE WESTERN CHURCH

In 1378, a new pope was supposed to be elected one man who had so much charisma and love amongst the Roman people was elected because the masses threatened to riot if he was not selected. That man was finally selected. His name was Pope Urban VI. As Pope, Urban VI put up an erratic behaviour. In line with this, the Cardinals who elected him withdrew their support saying that he was chosen out of duress. They then selected a new Pope, Clement VII.

Pope Urban immediately excommunicated Clement VII as well as the Cardinals who elected Clement. Pope Urban began a new College of Cardinals of his own. Clement moved to Avignon in France and won the support of the French King. In no time, each king in Europe gave support to either of the two Popes.

Finally, the Council of Constance was formed between 1414 and 1418 and they demanded the resignation of both Popes. Eventually, Martin V was elected Pope and he ruled universally as the Pope of a unified church.

This Schism in the Western Church led to two things, first the Concillar Theory and ultimately, the Protestant Reformation. The Concillar Theory stated that in an issue where the Pope cannot act immediately, a council should sit and take a decision that would be binding on the whole church.

These two incidents set a great precedence for:

Dealing with perceived insubordination in the church
Succession of a successor.

The use of excommunication in the church must be undertaken carefully. These two cases were all as a result of the hasty excommunication. From these landmark cases it can be inferred that excommunication in matters that are not universally and conclusively illegal can lead to break ups of churches, no matter how big it might be. This calls for careful inquiries and exhaustive investigations of matters that occur within churches.

Sometimes beliefs that people bring up in church are divine and these beliefs must be allowed to exist side by side with the known doctrine of the church by careful monitoring and supervision of the people at the top. Power in the church tends to corrupt. Peter exhibited this very sign the very moment when Jesus declared that he will be the rock on which He will build His church. Peter in the following chapters began to exhibit his personal beliefs by standing against the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. This abuse of power is common with many people when the get church position. This calls for close contact and regular monitoring of people who are put in charge of units in churches. However, because beliefs from subordinates are not always wrong, it is always prudent to question subordinates whenever they exhibit new traits and correct them when required.

Also, in case of succession, the problem mainly arises when the leader in charge has charisma and all it takes to do all the work. In that case, the followers follow without thinking of tomorrow. So in the absence of the leader confusion becomes rampant. It is therefore a good idea to put in place checks and balances for the future when the leader is not present.

Sources
Microsoft Encarta

WHAT IS SPECIAL ABOUT ISRAEL III

WHAT IS SPECIAL ABOUT ISRAEL III
"A Jewish beggar is not impossible, perhaps; such a thing may exist, but there are few men that can say they have seen that spectacle."
This is a quote of the distinguished American writer, Mark Twain documented in 1899. He made this remark after spending a considerable time of his life observing the lifestyle and history of Jews. This observation has in fact proven to be true all over the past century. An average Jew is either a flourishing business man or an excellent professional. Currently, in the USA, Jewish households on the average are the richest. They are followed by the Japanese who are noted universally for their extreme hard work and discipline. Now the main question that comes to mind is; what is the secret of the Jew?
After rigorous research one notices that the Jews have a culture and lifestyle that attracts wealth to them individually and collectively as a people, irrespective of their geographical location or prevailing economic conditions. Basically, the Jews have components in their laws that cause them to do things that bring wealth. The most conspicuous ones are a positive mentality to wealth creation, individual justice or equity and sacrifice or giving.
Steven Silbiger wrote in his book The Phenomenon of the Jews: Seven Keys to the Enduring Wealth of a People that the secret of the Jews can be summed up in seven values which he recommends all individuals to take up. They are:
1. Understand that real wealth is portable; it's knowledge
2. Take care of your own and they will take care of you
3. Successful people are professionals and entrepreneurs
4. Develop your verbal confidence
5. Be selectively extravagant but prudently frugal
6. Take pride in individuality: encourage creativity
7. Be psychologically driven to prove
Wealth is a good thing. Unlike most Christians of today, Jews continue to believe in the importance of wealth and they work towards it. It is interesting to note that in many Christian churches, people see amassing of wealth as sinful. This is a misconception. In the life of Jesus Christ, it is observed that there was an advocacy of the separation of religion from secularism. He chose to focus mainly on the spiritual aspects of life. The portions of the New Testament after the life of Jesus Christ focuses on the life, practises and beliefs of a Church that was meant to expand to all corners of the earth. By this, there was a focus on spiritual and religious beliefs rather than national and state issues. This does not mean that science, wealth and national success are sinful. NO! They have their roles in life and must not be undermined. It is so sad that many Christian Pastors and Preachers in Africa tend to seek the downfall of their fellow Church leaders who encourage their members to create wealth.
Individually, Jews believe in the principle of reward for good deeds and punishment for evil deeds. With this at the back of each Jewish mind, there is nothing like cheating or taking advantage of another person he transacts a business with. The Jews work with fairness and equity and they seek the benefit of everybody. Issues like theft, hatred and undermining are just out of the vocabulary of a Jew. This is a policy of the Jews which when adopted by Africans can promote us as a people also.
Most importantly, the Jews believe in a Power higher than all! They believe in their God and they follow His principles. What are some of the principles that improve their earning capacity; the main one is tzedakat. Attempting to pronounce this Hebrew word as an African makes it sound quite familiar; it means ‘charity’ but it is transliterated in English as ‘righeousness’. Tzedakat is a duty that makes it obligatory for all Jews to give at least ten percent of their income to charity. This could be given to the poor, a religious body, educational institution or to a colleague in need.
Giving is a secret that has worked in the lives of Jews for many centuries. It brings prosperity and prevents havoc and catastrophes from falling on an individual or a nation. Since the message of independence spread through Africa like wild fire five decades ago, African nations have been receiving continuously without giving to anyone, yet we continue to be poor. What about attempting to give as nations? If giving has worked for Jews, it would surely work for Africans. All we need to do is to give it a try whether on an individual level or as national institutions.
Above all, the Jews love each other. The mutual love between Jews has been a secret that has kept them together for centuries. It has acted as a method of social security that has protected the Jews as a people from destruction and from oppression. The Jews are an example of the saying that unity is strength. United we will stand as Africans. Finally, if you want to be successful, consider the principles outlined in this article critically. Live by them and teach others and gradually, we will get there as a people. Shalom.

WHAT IS SPECIAL ABOUT ISRAEL II

"The Jew is not a disturber of the peace of any country. Even his enemies will concede that. He is not a loafer, he is not a sot, he is not noisy, he is not a brawler nor a rioter, he is not quarrelsome. In the statistics of crime his presence is conspicuously rare — in all countries. With murder and other crimes of violence he has but little to do: he is a stranger to the hangman. In the police court's daily long roll of "assaults" and "drunk and disorderlies" his name seldom appears ..."
These are the words of Mark Twain who lived between 1835 and 1910. Twain goes further to say "These facts are all on the credit side of the proposition that the Jew is a good and orderly citizen. Summed up, they certify that he is quiet, peaceable, industrious, unaddicted to high crimes and brutal dispositions; that his family life is commendable; that he is not a burden upon public charities; that he is not a beggar; that in benevolence he is above the reach of competition. These are the very quint-essentials of good citizenship."
These quotes as a result of very independent and reliable analysis and have been proven by all standards of measure. Between AD70 to this day, the Jews have and continue to live as minorities in most of the prosperous nations of the world. The Jews are in most cases quiet, reserved, orderly and distinct. They follow their culture without the least breach, irrespective of the community they live in.
Inspite of all these attributes, Jews have been discriminated against consistently wherever they live. A critical view of the situation reveals that the root of the causes of discrimination against the Jews or antisemitism is that the Jews are too successful! That is not their fault, they prosper everywhere they go; they know what they are about and whatever you do to undermine them is just not good enough to stop them from reaching their often impossible goals. People who try to stop the Jews generally fail so the next common feeling is to hate them. In other places where antisemitism exists, when one Jew does something wrong, all Jews have to suffer for it together. This is also one of the manifestations of tribalism here in Africa. With the antisemitism however, hatred often ends up getting the Jews higher than they were.
Antisemitism or discrimination against the Jews could be compared with Aparthied in South Africa and Racial Segregation against Black people in America. The main evil of antisemitism is that, most at times it entails blocking persons with the skills and potentials from getting what they want and in most cases it maifests as nationalism. In some places, it is so ironic that many Christians blame the Jews for killing Jesus Christ. This justification of antisemitism is Anti-Christ rather than Christian because Jesus Christ had to refer to Peter (the first leader of all Christian) as Satan because he tried to prevent the Jews from the crucifiction. This connotes that Jesus Christ was in favour of the crucifiction!
Feeling hatred and discrimination in all aspects of life for many centuries, the Jews began to seek freedom from discrimination. They therefore formed a movement which became known as the Zionist Movement in 1890. As Zionism developed, the members began to advocate for a free Israeli nation where all Jews could live in peace. All fingers pointed at Israel, which had been renamed Palestine by the Romans.
Palestine around 1890 was ruled by the Ottoman Empire (currently, Turkey). These Ottomans collected rent from the local inhabitants who were mainly Arabs. The Ottomans were approach by certain Jewish groups for the purchase of land rights in Palestine. These Jews were wealthy and could pay for rent that would be collected from the local Arabs in 50 years in a single payment. Naturally, the Ottoman princes and land barons took the rent from the Jewish community in return for land rights. Initially, the local Arabs in Palestine protested but the princes of the Ottoman Empire continued to sell the lands to the Jews.
During the 1st World War between 1914 and 1919, the Germans who had an aggressive foreign policy led a war against many nations including Britain, France, USA and Japan. These nations went to war against a German led coalition indirectly because of the control of foreign markets. Due to the harsh nature of German foreign policy, most of the Jews in Europe joined hands with the British led allies in defeating Germany. One German soldier who suffered temporal blindness during the war regained his sight in the hospital only to hear the news of the defeat of Germany in the world war. He blamed the German loss on the Jews. His name was Adolf Hitler.
In 1918, the British defeated the Ottoman Empire with the help of some Arabs and Jews. The promise made to the Jews was the right to a Jewish state in Palestine. The Leage of Nations, the then equivalent of today’s United Nations gave the right to rule Palestine to the British. Around that time, the Zionists began to build institutions and structures for a future independent state. Albert Einstein played a major role in this.
Zionism was never taken serious in Europe and USA because the natives believed the Jews had citizenship and equal rights in the West so there was no need for a Jewish nation. In 1933, Adolf Hitler became the leader of Germany on the ticket of the Nazi party. Due to his conviction that the Jews were a threat to the vision he had for Germany, he decided to kill them and anyone who was also a threat to his proposed German Empire that would last1000 years. This led to the Holocaust and the 2nd World War.
The Holocaust was an evil thing. By the end of the 2nd World War in 1945, 6 million Jews were killed in territories Germany controlled during the 2nd World War. At the time of the 2nd World War, Ghana had a population of just about 4million. Now there are 20 million Ghanaians. Logically, one can conclude that those 6 million Jews represent 30 million people who could have been living today!
After the 2nd World War, the Jews were reminded that Europe was not their home. It was at this point that the message of Zionism became clearer. The Jews were insecured and they began to move back to Palestine. The local Arabs in Palestine did not like the idea. There were threats and riots between the local Arabs and the Jewish immigrants (known as oleh). The British rulers of Palestine noticed that war was inevitable. The British were at the centre of the balance between an Arab people who provided fuel for all their military vehicles during their international wars and a Jewish people who led the elite institutions of Britain and its dependencies.
The British had to play a mediating role. They called the local Arabs and the Jews to the negotiation table on several occasions. Whereas the Jews said they wanted to build a modern nation where they could live as a people, the Arabs said they wanted all the Jews who are ‘invading their lands’ out of Palestine.
This confirmed the fears of a possible war. The British stayed neutral as hostilities went on for months. The British referred the matter to the United Nations who proposed that to prevent a war between Arabs and Jews, Palestine, a land that had been barren for centuries and had few people should be divided into two; an independent Jewish state and an independent Arab state. Within these two states, the UN also proposed an international zone that would be controlled by the United Nations. The proposal was endorsed by all nations under the sun at that time through a voting process. The Palestinian Arabs however rejected the proposal.
The Jewish leader at that time, David Ben Gurion however accepted the UN proposal and set a date for the declaration of independence for the Jewish State- Israel. The Arabs in Palestine and in large Arab nations described that as a catastrophe. They declared war on the Jews a few hours later. Days on, armies were dispatched and a war began. After tough times and battles, the Jews defeated the Arabs and declared independence on 14 May, 1948, the date set by David Ben Gurion.
This was how Israel was built. They moved on to attract more of their brethren in the Diaspora and encouraged them to resettle in Israel. Now the dream has come to pass. Israel is a nation that is considered as a world class prosperous state. Their goal of establishing a world class modern nation has been successful.
Most African nations became independent within 15 years after the indepence of Israel. Can we say we have been successful as a bloc of modern nations as Israel has? Are we more threatened than Israel? I think the answer to both questions is ‘no’.
Currently, there are enough Africans in the Diaspora as the Jews had before 1948. There are enough educated Africans who can move our nation forward but why are we not making it? I believe we can take a cue from Israel. I observing their history, five things become conspicuous;
Their belief in a Power above the physical; their trust in God
Their love for one another as a people.
The presence of a progressive culture
Their belief in punishment for evil deeds and reward for good deeds and
The crave to put the past behind them and look to create a beneficial future for everybody irrespective of the obstacles ahead of them.
Clearly, Africa does not have a single common culture. For years of hatred, disunity and foreign intrusion, we have evolved into a people who just survive. This is the chance of Africans to make it to the top. This is the chance for us to build a unified culture and attract our peoples in the Diaspora to resettle in Africa and also help with their expertise because this is what every successful nation did. This is the culture every great nation adopted. The time has come for Africa to take her turn. However, with the situation of Africa, the question is who should start? Who should pay the first price. I have decided to take this trip. If we are not ready to adopt the best culture for progess as a people, I am ready to do so as an individual, what about you?

WHAT IS SPECIAL ABOUT ISRAEL I

"If the statistics are right, the Jews constitute but one percent of the human race. It suggests a nebulous dim puff of star dust lost in the blaze of the Milky Way. Properly the Jew ought hardly to be heard of, but he is heard of, has always been heard of. He is as prominent on the planet as any other people, and his commercial importance is extravagantly out of proportion to the smallness of his bulk. His contributions to the world's list of great names in literature, science, art, music, finance, medicine, and abstruse learning are also away out of proportion to the weakness of his numbers. He has made a marvellous fight in the world, in all the ages; and has done it with his hands tied behind him. He could be vain of himself, and be excused for it. The Egyptian, the Babylonian, and the Persian rose, filled the planet with sound and splendor, then faded to dream-stuff and passed away; the Greek and the Roman followed, and made a vast noise, and they are gone; other peoples have sprung up and held their torch high for a time, but it burned out, and they sit in twilight now, or have vanished. The Jew saw them all, beat them all, and is now what he always was, exhibiting no decadence, no infirmities of age, no weakening of his parts, no slowing of his energies, no dulling of his alert and aggressive mind. All things are mortal but the Jew; all other forces pass, but he remains. What is the secret of his immortality?"
These were the words of Mark Twain, an accomplished American writer who could analyse things critically and put them into writing. From observation, we know that this piece, written in 1899 reflects facts that can be proven to this day. But the question still remains, what is the secret of the Jewish people? In answering who the Jews are, we will get clues by examining the history of the people of Israel.
Israel began as a slave people in Africa, to be precise in Egypt along the Nile. They laboured all day to build the palaces and pyramids of the Egyptians, taking rest late in the nights only to get fit for another day of hard work, under the intimidation of the whips of the Egyptian slave masters. Thousands of Jews died and others had to survive sicknesses and harsh treatments day and night for over 400 years.
Finally, the Jews escaped from Egypt through Sinai. They settled as a nation and established the State of Israel and built the Temple. Many neighbouring nations attacked but the Jews survived as a people. Mighty empires began to grow nearby and beginning with Babylon, they conquered Israel and took the healthy Jews to Babylon as slaves. The Babylonians were defeated by the Persians who freed the Jews and allowed them to go home, to Israel. In Israel, the Jews had freedom for centuries until the Greeks, led by Alexander the Great conquered the south of the nation. A revolt by the local Jews was begun and they succeeded in driving out the Greeks from the land of Israel.
Around the time the Greeks were thrown out, the Romans found strength and they planned to establish a gigantic empire. They began by conquering neighbouring lands to get more taxes to be able to bring their dream to reality. In the year 40 BC, the Romans conquered Israel, added the territory to the empire and renamed the province Judaea. Six years on, Jesus Christ was born in Israel.
70 years after Jesus Christ, a Jewish army began an uprising against Roman rule in Israel. The uprising was successful to a point but the Roman Emperor at that time, Nero was angered about the Jewish war for independence. He sent a very cruel General to Israel who crushed the uprising and killed many Jews. The Temple was burnt to the ground and the territory was renamed Palestine by the Romans. A second revolt was began by the Jews against the Romans in AD 135 but this could not stand as well.
These two defeats marked the beginning of the dispersal of the people of Israel. Many of them were sold into slavery whilst others moved and resettled voluntarily in territories in the Roman Empire. It is in these foreign lands that they were tagged with names like ‘Jews’ in correlation to their religion which became known as Judaism. A few however remained in the old Israel that was now known internationally as Palestine. Between AD70 and the year 1900, Israelis were dispersed all over the world but they remained faithful to their culture and principles for all these centuries. Within this time also, many people of non-Jewish descent settled in and ruled the location of the former state of Israel which had been renamed Palestine.
Black Africans also began from the Nile region but not as slaves. However, the inability of Black Africans to build a state is due to the fact that they never got the chance to live as a single large unified community as the Jews did. As a result of that, there are many cultures throughout Africa and consistency has always been lacking, leading to disunity. The few early instances where Black Africans had the chance to live as a unified people in Empires took place in the interior of Western Africa but these were thwarted by light skinned invaders from North Africa. This left Africans living in small groups which acted as the impetus of many centuries of tribal wars and chaos.
Local wars took a different dimension when the European led Trans-Atlantic slave trade took the centre stage. Guns were introduced as well as a more humane way of disposing of the enemy; an active slave market in the European castles on the coasts of Africa. At that point, it was impossible for Africans to live as a unified people. No Black African knew where captured slaves were taken to by the Europeans. Some speculations stated that the slaves were eaten by the Europeans! Nobody wanted to end up on the plate of some strange White people so the only way to survive was to capture your neighbour and sell him or else he would capture you and sell you to the Europeans. The only way out was to hate your Black neighbour with perfect hatred. As a result of this intrusion, Black Africans have no culture. This is a topic hotly debated but in a continent where you meet a new and distinct culture meant to undermine the next tribe every 20 kilometres you travel, you cannot say that the people have a culture but methods of adapting to the status quo.
The Jews however had a culture and methods of doing things that yielded tangible and lasting results than every other culture. The most basic of these are; Belief in God, love for a neigbour and the believe in the reward for good deeds and evil deeds. This culture survived many generations and persecution. This is what has kept the Jewish people going for many years.
This time is the chance of Africa. It is understandable that animosity could grow in a continent where there is the need to fight to survive. Our forefathers did that because they had no choice. The legacy they left for us is to take precaution in each and every situation we may find ourselves in. The underlying principle of this mentality is to attack before the enemy attacks, as a result of this, many of us Black Africans in our modern times think of unseating our neigbours before they unseat us even when there is no eminent danger. We therefore look out for the weaknesses of our neigbours only. This continues to plague us as a people.
However, we are special. All what we need is to seek to explore our mights and power and be the best we can be by creating positive things that can help all of us. Remember that the foundations we lay today is what will be carried on by our children and their children. If we believe in God, love our fellows and seek their welfare genuinely, each one of us will make it. The Jews are a living proof of the efficacy of these principles. If we follow their footsteps and build a positive culture like the Jews, we would be blessed and have tangible for generations to come.

THE ATOMIC THEORY AND THE NUCLEAR BOMB

THE ATOMIC THEORY AND THE NUCLEAR BOMB

Knowledge has always been gained by asking questions. Many attempts were made to answer what humans and other substances in the universe were made of. The earliest sources of wisdom were always given from the supernatural and spiritual realms.

The biggest of these questions was what the smallest unit of a substance is. Many like Socrates and other earlier scholars in ancient Greece had to commit suicide because their developments in knowledge in the physical sciences were seen as blasphemes against the gods. After years of evolution, the Greeks divided knowledge into three main branches; the arts, sciences and religion.

In the Bible, the book of Daniel is most acquainted with knowledge. The Bible even predicts in Daniel 12:4 that knowledge will increase. “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.”A group called the Atomists tried to answer the question of what the smallest unit of a substance is. They tried to separate pure particles into atoms of the same kind and called them elements. This was around the 4th Century BC

Many attempts were made to develop the Atomic Theory further but they could not be authenticated clearly. In 1897, J. J. Thomson discovered that the atom was the smallest unit of every substance but it had other components. He concluded that the atom is not a small article but rather a system of small articles that made up a tiny invisible unit.

In 1911, Rutherford a former student of J. J. Thomson undertook an experiment. He fired tiny alpha particles at solid objects like the gold foil. He found that most of the alpha particles passed through the gold foil whilst some bounced back. He also noted that amongst the alpha particles that went through the gold foil, some of them were deflected at an angle, indicating that the atom had holes in them. Rutherford concluded from the gold foil experiment that an atom is made up of a dense core which he called the nucleus that made the alpha particle bounce back. He also found out that there were other particles orbiting around the atom from a distance away from the nucleus. This later became known as the electrons. The distance between the nucleus and the electrons explained why some of the alpha particles passed through the gold foil. Also, some of the alpha particles were deflected because they hit the electrons.

Later in 1932, it was finally concluded that the atom is made up of three principal sub-units; the electron, protons and neutrons. Whilst the electrons were located a distance from the nucleus, the protons and neutrons could be found in the nucleus of the atom. Whereas the neutrons are neutral, the proton is positively charged and electrons are negatively charged.

Bohr, a Danish scientist identified that electrons moved in a definite path or shell over a definite distance around the nucleus. He also argued that the number of shells an atom had determined its chemical properties.

DIAGRAM OMITTED

In the physical sciences, it is said that the maximum number each shell can hold is given by the formula 2n². Therefore the maximum number of electrons the first shell can hold is 2, the second is 8, the third is 18 etc.
ADVANTAGES OF THE ATOMIC THEORY
It enables scientists to investigate and find out the properties of elements in their simplest form. This gives the opportunity to study and know the properties of such elements in reactions from very simple perspectives. This acts as the foundation on which complex researches can be undertaken.

THE PERIODIC TABLE

The Russian chemist, Dmitri Mendeleev tried to arrange atoms of different elements in a tabular form based on their chemical properties. The table is what has become known as the Periodic Table. As at now, the Periodic Table has 118 elements. The elements are grouped on the Periodic Table based on their electronic configuration or properties of the electrons that move around the nucleus of the atom.

Every element is numbered according to the number of electrons it has. For example Potassium with the chemical symbol K has the number 19 on the Table. It connotes that it has 19 electrons in all and it is arranged as 2 electrons in the first shell, 8 in the second and 9 in the third shell.

In the periodic table, elements with the same number of electrons in the last shell or valence shell are collectively called a group or family and they are all in the same vertical column on the standard periodic table. Also, elements with the same number of shells are called periods and they are arranged on the same horizontal row.

DIAGRAM OMITTED

ADVANTAGES OF THE PERIODIC TABLE
The main advantage of the Period Table is that it gives scientists a pre-prepared document of elements with similar characteristics. This gives a rough idea of the resultant effects in subjecting the various elements to reactions. In other words, it gives a framework within which reactions can be predicted with a level of accuracy.

THE NUCLEAR BOMBS

There are two methods of producing a nuclear bomb. They are:
Fission (to produce the Atomic Bomb)
Fusion (to produce the Hydrogen Bomb)

ATOMIC BOMB

The atomic bomb is the product of nuclear fission. This explodes with the attempt to split the nuclei of the uranium atom, thereby producing another set of atomic nuclei that also react to produce massive heat and fire.

DIAGRAM OMITTED

From the diagram, when the first nucleus is fired into the mass of uranium 235 nuclei, some of them break of forming individual nuclei that produce heat. Other masses of nuclei are produced and they are also divided by the individual nuclei that have broken off. This forms a continuous chain of reactions that produces excessive heat.

DIAGRAM OMITTED

On the battlefield, this is what the nuclear bomb looks like. When the cork is broken, the detonating head sinks violently with great pressure and attempts to divide the uranium nuclei. This divides with great heat and then goes further to detonate and explode the larger mass of uranium lying deep within the bomb

DIAGRAM OMITTED

When the bomb is dropped from an airplane, the bomb detonates in the skies and begins to radiate. As it radiates, it covers a large area of the atmosphere like a cloud of excessively hot smoke. Then when it falls down finally, the excessively hot smoke spreads and begins to burn and destroy anything in sight. The energy produced by the explosion of a sphere about the size of a tennis ball produces an explosion equal to 20,000 tonnes of ordinary bombs.

THE HYDROGEN BOMB

This is the product of nuclear fusion. They can be over 1,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb. Only six countries are known to have the hydrogen bomb; United States, Russia, United Kingdom, People’s Republic of China, France and possibly India.

It works like the Atomic Bomb but the difference is that the nucleus of the element is made up of a two different atomic nuclei that are fused to form a single heavier nucleus. It works in a way similar to the scientific properties that makes the sun shines. When it is detonated, it goes through two stages; the primary stage and the secondary stage. This produces millions of tonnes of energy that the ordinary bomb would emit.
NUCLEAR WARFARE

Nuclear warfare is the definition of either fighting or avoiding nuclear war. The fear of nuclear bombs is great and mighty because of the mass biological destruction a single bomb can produce.

Nuclear deterrence is warding off potential attacks by a nuclear weapon by threatening nuclear retaliation. There are two ways of nuclear deterrence. One is to maintain a second strike status; that is staying in a point where you can strike and destroy all your enemy’s nuclear weapons completely when he strikes first. Another method of nuclear deterrence is to strike first and destroy all the nuclear weapons of the enemy. Due to this kind of strategy, nations with nuclear bombs keep their locations hidden, particularly in trains and submarines so that the enemy cannot track them easily.

PROTECTION FROM NUCLEAR WARFARE

Missile Defense: This is a method of destroying all nuclear weapons that are fired into a nation’s territory before it lands.
Civil Defense: Finding a method of detecting and evacuating civilians quickly before an attack is launched into a particular area.

From one school of thought, the nuclear weapons are meant to prevent nations from going to war because the fear of the entire humanity being wiped out will force nations to negotiate rather than going to war over simple issues. However, the use or threat of use of nuclear bombs is against the Advisory Opinion issued by the International Court of Justice.

The nuclear non-proliferation treaty is meant to prevent all signatories from developing nuclear weapons. Due to the fear of mass destruction by certain nations tagged as ‘rogue nations’ like Libya, Iran, Yemen, North Korea and Pakistan, a lot of money has been spent to prevent them from trading in nuclear weapons and also undertaking nuclear tests.

Sources:

Wordweb Dictionary
Microsoft Encarta
Wikipedia Dictionary.
Visit our website on www.preacherswithoutborders.faithweb.com

By Samuel Owusu-Yeboah

DONT LET SCHOOL INTERFERE WITH YOUR EDUCATION

“DON’T LET SCHOOL INTERFERE WITH YOUR EDUCTATION!”


“Don’t let school interfere with your education” was the most powerful maxim and quote of Mark Twain. Born, Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910), he wrote many humours articles, satires and novels under the pen name Mark Twain. He was also a good lecturer and the most popular celibrity in America during his time.

The quote, “don’t let school interfere with your education” was made at a time when America had a few institutions of formal education. As a result of that, many Americans dropped out of school and began learning different forms of trade at early stages in life. Mark Twain gained popularity with this statement because it was a source of insipration to many. By this maxim, America was able to make maximum use of all its citizens including those who did not get the chance to go through formal education.

Africa appears to be in a state similar to America in the time of Mark Twain. Formal education is lacking in most parts of Africa. From the current trend of events in Africa, it appears that the chruch is the institution from which a social revolution to empower those who did not get formal education can be initiated.

It is observed that the African continent can make do with this statement from two perspectives:

1. Helping those who did not have the chance to be educated in schools to gain confidence and the skills to do something meaninful in society. In the church this can be done mainly through Spirit-backed oratory sermons that will challenge and spark up the potentials of the members in this category to go into action AND
2. Redirecting those who have had formal education: Due to the poor structure of formal education in Africa, many people go through school and instead of using their knowledge to improve society, they brag with their certificates and cause confusion with the education they have attianed. As observed form the sermons of Pastor Enoch Aminu, many people must be encouraged to become selfmade, rather than driven people so that they can give their best to society irrespective of the limitations formal education may bring.

Aside this popular statement, Mark Twain is identified with many maxims and quotes. Some of them are valid and very strong in influencing the society of today, whereas others are not very much of significance in today’s world. They include:

1. A habit cannot be thrown out the window, it must be coaxed down the stairs one step at a time.
2. Don't go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.

3. Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest

4. To succeed in life, you need two things: ignorance and confidence (similar to Jesus’ requirement of his followers being like children).
5. Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear--not absence of fear.

6. I was gratified to be able to answer promptly. I said I don't know.

7. There is no distinctly American criminal class, except Congress (Politicians)

8. Truth is our most valuable commodity - let us economize.

9. Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company

10. Man is the only animal that blushes - or needs to

11. The difference between the right word and almost the right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug (a fire fly).

12. A man is never more truthful than when he acknowledges himself a liar.

13. 'Classic.' A book which people praise and don't read.

14. Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society

15. The lack of money is the root of all evil

16. It is by the goodness of God that in our country we have those three unspeakably precious things: freedom of speech, freedom of conscience, and the prudence never to practice either of them."

17. October: This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August, and February

18. There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics

19. [The human] race, in its poverty, has unquestionably one really effective weapon—laughter

20. When I, a thoughtful and unblessed Presbyterian, examine the Koran, I know that beyond any question every Mohammedan is insane, not in all things, but in religious matters. When a thoughtful and unblessed Mohammedan examines the Westminster Catechism, he knows that beyond any question I am spiritually insane. I cannot prove to him that he is insane, because you never can prove anything to a lunatic—for that is a part of his insanity and the evidence of it. He cannot prove to me that I am insane, for my mind has the same defect that afflicts his... When I look around me, I am often troubled to see how many people are mad."

21. I do not take any credit to my better-balanced head because I never went crazy on Presbyterianism. We go too slow for that. You never see us ranting and shouting and tearing up the ground, You never heard of a Presbyterian going crazy on religion. Notice us, and you will see how we do. We get up of a Sunday morning and put on the best harness we have got and trip cheerfully down town; we subside into solemnity and enter the church; we stand up and duck our heads and bear down on a hymn book propped on the pew in front when the minister prays; we stand up again while our hired choir are singing, and look in the hymn book and check off the verses to see that they don't shirk any of the stanzas; we sit silent and grave while the minister is preaching, and count the waterfalls and bonnets furtively, and catch flies; we grab our hats and bonnets when the benediction is begun; when it is finished, we shove, so to speak. No frenzy, no fanaticism --no skirmishing; everything perfectly serene. You never see any of us Presbyterians getting in a sweat about religion and trying to massacre the neighbors. Let us all be content with the tried and safe old regular religions, and take no chances on wildcat (Other religions and New Age movements).


OTHER RELATED SAYINGS BY FAMOUS PEOPLE
Mother Teresa

1. The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread.
2. If you judge people, you have no time to love them.
3. We can do no great things - only small things with great love

Margaret Thatcher
1. Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by traffic from both sides.
2. Being in power is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't.
3. Don't follow the crowd, let the crowd follow you

Clarence Thomas
1. Government cannot make us equal; it can only recognize, respect, and protect us as equal before the law.
2. I don't believe in quotas. America was founded on a philosophy of individual rights, not group rights.

Lewis Thompson
1. Life Lives On Hope

Henry David Thoreau
1. That government is best which governs least.
2. If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because hehears a different drummer. Let him step to the music he hears, howevermeasured or far away.

James Thurber
1. It is better to ask some of the questions than to know all the answers
Paul Tournier
1. Nothing makes us so lonely as our secrets.
Robert Townsend
1. When you get right down to it, one of the most important tasks of a leader is to eliminate his people's excuse for failure
Henry Truman
1. I studied the lives of great men and famous women, and I found that the men and women who got to the top were those who did the jobs they had in hand, with everything they had of energy and enthusiasm.

Harry S. Truman
1. I have found the best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it.
2. It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.

Turkish proverb
1. No matter how far you have gone on the wrong road, turn back.

Donald Trump
1. I like thinking big. If you're going to be thinking anything, you might as well think big.

Dale Turner
1. The greatest of all faults is to be conscious of none. Recognizing our limitations and imperfections is the first requisite of progress. Those who believe they have arrived believe they have nowhere to go. Some not only have closed their minds to new truth, but they sit on the lid.

Lana Turner
1. A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend. A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

Sun Tzu
1. Invincibility lies in the defense; the possibility of victory in the attack. One defends when his strength is inadequate; he attacks when it is abundant.




References:
1. Wikipedia Encyclopedia
2. Redsat Inc. website, Quotations for last names starting with T.htm

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ANOINTING FOR WICKEDNESS

ANOINTING FOR WICKEDNESS

This topic sounds absurd and controversial but I want you to follow through the lines and you will be smiling with me by the time we get to the end. Christianity is not stupidity! According to Jesus, if someone strikes you on the right cheek, you have to take it calmly and turn the left cheek. Well, with that, He goes further to tell you to go and pray for the person who has just given you the double slap. Good! But I do not believe that the prayer you have to pray is one that would give the enemy more strength to come and cause more pain to you. No! Come with me.

Sin is falling below or above the standard required by God. Sin occurs when God is displeased with the activities of man. Sin is seen as wickedness before God. When God identifies that someone has sinned, there are several ways God punishes the person. The commonest way God punishes people is by releasing the anointing of wickedness on his chosen ones to destroy sinners. This was a role played by the Israelites for many generations.

The anointing of wickedness is an anointing that is necessary for everyone who wants to live life and enjoy the fruits of life. Without the anointing of wickedness, evil will finally overtake you and destroy you totally in a manner that is mysterious. That is why the Bible makes it clear in Ecclesiastes 3, that

3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:3:2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;3:3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;3:4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;3:5 A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;3:6 A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;3:7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;3:8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.
MANAGING NEGATIVITY AND POSITIVISM

In the above scripture, every component has a positive attribute and a negative attribute. This connotes that negativity is part of humankind. No one can live without negativity and positivism. It is a vital part of life and the earlier people realised it, the best.

When a man identifies this as part of the world, he owes himself a duty of looking out for negativity and working with it safely. In this direction, a comparison can be made to fire; fire can be negative and it can burn a whole house. However, it is through the same fire that man cooks and undertakes many industrial activities. Therefore in using fire, man must have the skills and knowledge to control the negatives of fire. Telling yourself that fire can never be negative is a big deception with serious consequences because whether you like it or not, a time will come where fire will be destructive and you will have the duty of controlling it!

Wickedness is something that is part of life. No one can deny wickedness as something that exists on earth. It is therefore necessary for everyone to be strengthened by God for the anointing for counter-wickedness!

When one becomes a born again Christian or yields to the call of God, he or she becomes united with God. This means that the blessings of God are meant for him or her. In the same direction, the enemies of God are also the enemies of that person. Also, the genuine enemies of a person chosen by God are also the enemy of God. If a Christian fails to deal with the enemies of God and himself, he fails to honour God and this itself is sin!

Whereas some enemies can be dealt with by simple prayers, holiness and other minor activities, there is the need for the anointing for wickedness to deal with certain stubborn enemies of God. This is a divine direction and failure to do it makes a child of God an accomplice of sinners and thereby makes him an enemy of God! In the long run, such a person will end up disappointing God more than he believed he would have been.

There are certain comparisons that outline the importance of the anointing for wickedness.

1. ABRAHAM AND ISAAC: In Genesis 14, Abraham went to war with some other kings. Though he had 318 soldiers from his household, he was victorious and he killed his enemies. After the war, he became rich and paid his tithes. There were few instances where Abraham entered problems. Isaac on the other hand was peaceful. He always negotiated and was very gently. He never went to war and at the end of the day, he gave his blessings to the wrong son and later regretted.
2. JACOB AND ESAU: Esau thought there was the need to stay gentle and the birthright would come on a silver platter. Jacob, filled with the spirit of war took the precious blessings of Isaac and his descendants are enjoying to this day.
3. MOSES AND JOSHUA: Moses was very careful in obeying the statutes of God. Though he did all the will of God, he erred along the line and failed to do something God required him to do. On the other hand, Joshua, a man of war fought many battles and wherever he captured a city, he killed all the inhabitants. This was the anointing for wickedness at work, meant to destroy people who were wicked towards God. He executed it and he died a natural death.
4. GIDEON AND SAMSON: Gideon was a man of war. He was a successful general and he slew when he was supposed to slay. Samson on the other hand had sympathy towards Delilah when she was claiming he was wicked. When Samson failed to be as wicked as he was supposed to be in the sight of God, his enemies took him and used him for a sport.
5. SAMUEL AND SAUL: Samuel, though he was a prophet of God was given instructions from God. He made sure he instructed Saul the King. However, Saul had sympathy and he kept the king he was instructed to kill. Finally, he was beheaded by the supporters of that same king.
6. DAVID AND SOLOMON: David was a man of war. He was anointed with the oil of wickedness and he killed all his enemies and the enemies of God. Even God told him not to build the temple for him because his hands were soiled with blood. However, he ruled and died peacefully. On the other hand, Solomon was very gentle and wise. However, because he removed war from his agenda, the kings he aligned himself with, used subtle means to wage war against him silently and destroyed him with their daughters.
7. ELIJAH/ELISHA AND JEHU: Perhaps Jehu is the embodiment of the anointing for wickedness. Jezebel and Ahab were wicked. They needed a stronger wickedness to counter their wickedness. Elijah fled from Jezebel because he did not have that anointing for wickedness to counter it. Elisha avoided Jezebel totally because he did not have the anointing for wickedness to deal with Jezebel. However, when Elisha sent a prophet to go and anoint Jehu with the anointing for wickedness, Jehu waged war and through the war, Jezebel died and Israel became rid of idolatry.
8. ISAIAH AND JEREMIAH: Isaiah did not tolerate certain abuses from the kings of Israel and Judah. He dwelled calmly in his dwelling place and no one could come to him to talk of punishing him for delivering God’s messages. He delivered the message of God just as he was supposed to deliver it; on a ‘take it or leave it’ basis. On the other hand, Jeremiah was very gentle and persuasive. He was too sympathetic with the Jews who had become enemies of God and as a result of that, he was maltreated by the Jews. Eventually, the message he gave them were not taken and the people of Israel went to exile.
9. STEPHEN AND SILAS: Stephen found himself in the midst of the Jews but he accepted his situation. He was killed and he went to heaven. That was a good thing. However, Silas found himself in prison with Paul but he praised God and his chains were broken. He later walked away because he did something about the wickedness of the enemy by praising God. Through that, Silas probably preached to more people and ended up in Heaven.
10. PETER AND PAUL: Peter was the Rock on which Jesus promised to establish His church. Paul on the other hand, came into the scene later. He however had knowledge of wickedness but he was the first to identify that wickedness is from the spiritual realms in Ephesians 6:12. He admonished people to wrestle with wickedness from the spiritual realms. Because of this, Paul himself was always on his guard spiritually and he waged war spiritually from the spiritual realms. Because of that, Paul got a more effective method of spreading the Gospel. It is evident that Paul got that far because he was anointed with wickedness to deal with wickedness that would come ahead of him.


OBSERVATION

In life, whatever thing that benefits one’s enemies goes against him. It can be compared to the accounting theory of debit and credit, or the theory of positives and negatives in mathematics or science. When you allow the enemy to be wicked and you do not check it in ample time, it will go against you.

Life is not without wickedness. As you think positively, others think evil against you. Some wickedness demands a stronger counter-wickedness mechanism

When you live without the anointing for wickedness, you become soft and lax. You fail to draw the line between good and evil. It must be stressed that major attacks by the wicked does not come with a flag placed on it or with a mark that makes it look huge. Rather, it comes silently like any other attack. Dealing with such a major attack in a soft and gentle manner is a recipe for disaster. Without the anointing for wickedness, you become soft when you are supposed to be firm. This makes it compulsory for everyone to ask for the anointing for wickedness to counter wickedness from the camp of the enemy!

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