T.J.I.F.A.
THANK JESUS IT'S FRIDAY AGAIN!
PASS IT ON...& ON...& ON...& ON.
SEPTEMBER 19, 2003
SUBJECT: BIG FAT FROG AND THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.
LAST WEEK WE RECEIVED A COPY OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS EMBEDDED IN EXODUS CHAPTER TWENTY. THIS WEEK OUR FRIEND, BIG FAT FROG, SPEAKS OUT ABOUT THE CONTROVERSY NOW RAGING AND HIS COMRADES, CINDY AND FREDERICK ALSO HAVE SHARP OPINIONS WORTH WEIGHING. WHERE DO YOU STAND? IS THIS YET ANOTHER SCHEME TO TAKE AWAY IMPORTANT BOUNDARIES WHICH GOD HAS ALREADY SETTLED? WANT TO WRITE TO TJIFA? SEND YOUR COMMENTS TO TJIFA@READYWRITER.COM.
NOTEWORTHY: WE'LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME.
FRIDAY'S WORD: INFRASTRUCTURE
IN THE MIRROR: SLC LOOKS AT A SHORT STORY
O TASTE AND SEE! CHICKEN, RICE AND VEGETABLES A REAL GOOD AND QUICK MEAL..FREEZE IT IN INDIVIDUAL PORTIONS . READY FOR LUNCH OR DINNER QUICKLY. ENJOY!
LOOKING FORWARD
SEE YA NEXT TIME
TER
B.F.F. TEN COMMANDMENTS
From: Exodus twentieth chapter.
As he sat on his front step waiting for Cindy to pass his house, Big Fat Frog listened to the round up of the News. "The 5000 pound edifice of the Ten Commandments has been successfully removed from the Montgomery, Alabama Court House Rotunda. It is now locked in a sealed room."
This News wasn't good to the appetite of Big Fat Frog. He wondered how much more blatant disrespect was to be observed without retribution. As he sat there, in quiet cognitive repose, he couldn't help but think about his report which was due today. He wondered how most of his classmates would feel, and ultimately express themselves pertaining to his subject.
The assignment was a three minute personal commentary on any top news story. The students were to read the paper every day for five days, then decide on what they would personally comment on, like a Talk Show host, or News commentator.
Cindy finally came, running and slightly out of breath. "Frog!" She greeted. "Did you finish your commentary?"
"Yep!" He assured her. "Let's go. I'm hoping to be one of the first to be called to report."
"Why do you like to be first? You're always aiming at being first." She inquired.
"I don't play many sports and I believe that we should shine where we are able to shine. Frederick isn't real good at sports either, but, he is extremely smart in book knowledge. I just what to be first in my presentation. I'd rather be first, then others won't accuse me of imitating their work. That's all;" replied Big Fat Frog. And off they scampered to school.
As they continued, Frederick caught up with them. Boasting, he casually mentioned his topic for the presentation,"I'm going to talk on the Ten Commandments and all of the stir it's making in our country." Big Fat Frog swallowed a large lump in his throat. Frederick continued, "It's sickening what people will protest, isn't it? Oh, I forgot; You are in favor of all of that junk aren't you? Well, today, you'll get a dose of reality. The truth. Catch you in class, O Boy." Frederick ran ahead of BFF and Cindy.
Cindy knew that BFF was upset, so she limited her remarks. "We'd better hurry, Frog."
"Yeah. We'd better hurry." Replied BFF. His thoughts were only on the presentation and the comments of Frederick.
When they arrived in the classroom, Frederick was talking with the teacher, in his matter of factual way. BFF knew that Frederick was preparing the teacher for his presentation. BFF thought to himself, ‘What will I do?' Then, as if he asked for real, his answer came swift and sure. ‘All things work together for the good...'
Frederick's presentation was first. He walked to the front of the class, pulled out a chair, and placed his Lap Top Computer on the table. He was dressed in his three piece suit, and his horned rim glasses were clean and sitting straight on his face. He started by clearing his throat, then, "Good morning ladies and gentlemen, we are here to discuss, ‘The Ten Commandments. We all know that this antique commemoration of an improbable journey from Egypt to Israel was perhaps the most fictitious allegory in all of the known world.
In order to preserve it's place in time, it has been exalted and declared to be, ‘The Law of Moses, written by GOD.' We all know the Politically Correct stand is that this document has worn out its welcome in our society, and that the Judge had no authority to place this huge mountain of stone in the rotunda of the Alabama Courthouse. It should not cloud the thinking of clear minded individuals who refuse to be obligated to an ‘Unseen Authority.
There is a clear statement in the Bill of Rights in our Constitution which declares,'Separation of Church and State. Those who are standing up for this Judge, are showing, by their behavior, their ignorance of our founding fathers principles; And so, I close hoping that you will be able to make informed decisions about the issues of today." He snapped his Lap Top down, pushed his chair in, straightened his bow tie and walked to his seat. The class room applauded him with whistles and claps.
Cindy walked to the front of the class. She timidly started her presentation, "The subject of the "Ten Commandments," indeed, has been headlines for several weeks. In hearing the varied and multitudinous debates and rationales, I took this opportunity to look up and study the two Amendments in question. They are: Amendment number one and Amendment number ten. They read as follows:
AMENDMENT ONE:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
AMENDMENT TEN:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
These Amendments were ratified December 15, 1791.
To obtain a complete copy of all of these Amendments just point your browser to: Keyword: The Bill of Rights.
I will now read to you the Ten Commandments, and I have xeroxed copies of these Amendments along with the Commandments for each of you who want it." She patiently read every one of the Ten Commandments, then closed by saying, "Political Correctness is not mentioned in the Bill of Rights, nor in the Ten Commandments, so it wouldn't be accurate for me to associate Political Correctness with either of these infrastructures which have bridged the gap of time and human intemperance."
Big Fat Frog gave her a standing ovation. The rest of the class quietly looked around, and especially at Frederick. Then they also clapped, but not as enthusiastically as BFF.
The teacher called on, an already standing BFF. He quickly came forward. His self confidence now in sync with his desire to deliver his presentation. He walked to the front of the room smiling and glad that his friend Cindy had presented her material in such a professional manner.
He was still clapping when he arrived in front of the class. His appearance, as always, clean and a bit disheveled. Today, he had his Sunday slacks and white shirt opened at the neck, with a beautiful gold cross on his left, well starched collar. His clothes always seemed too small, but in reality, they just fit right next to his large frame. BFF began:
"My subject has been well introduced by Frederick and Cindy. They have had different view points and ways of presenting about the same general topic. I will report to you as a, Born Again Christian News Reporter. It is important that we have all aspects of information in order to assimilate, and produce a sound decision. Every side has been represented this morning except that of the Born Again Christians. Those who some call ‘jerks' who are quietly fighting for the right, not only for them, but for all Americans. We've been told through the News media that, to have The Ten Commandments hanging or represented in the public forum is a disregard for the first Amendment to the Constitution. We have accepted this untruth because we were ignorant of what this Amendment said, and how it read. You, as young American Citizens, can most likely decipher that in reference to the first Amendment, ‘Separation of Church and State' doesn't apply.
Amendment ten is being used to keep states from deciding what they will or will not exhibit in and on the walls of the people's court house. This seems trivial to most, but may I speculate, and hopefully bring out the horrific injustice that is being perpetuated against our society.
Those who are making these claims about Amendment one, and ten, know that what they are saying is false; likewise, those who say that the Ten Commandments are out dated, know that is impossible. The Ten Commandments have held boundaries by establishing laws of conduct. The Bill of Rights clarifies the United States Constitution. Both of these expressions of ‘order' are finding themselves under the scrutiny of unlawful and biased observers whose only goals are to see the eventual downfall of the United States of America, and the Jewish-Christian Ethic upon which it is based.
It seems cute to proclaim these protestors to be fanatics, and to misrepresent the Bill of Rights, and to say that the Bible was written by aliens....BUT there is coming a day. A day when we will all know the truth, and that truth will make us free. In that day when there is no law, many of you will long for the days when our society was established on the Ten Commandments, and ruled by the Bill of Rights. In that same day ‘Thou shalt not steal and thou shalt not kill' will mean nothing, and dialing 911 gives you a recording that says, ‘This is no longer a working number.'
All of these efforts are an attempt to remove ‘Unseen Authority' which is, ‘Faithful GOD' from our midst. The most transparent understanding that we can have is that GOD will not be promoted, or demoted by his creation...man.
What can you do? You can PRAY! Pray for the Alabama Judge and his constituents; PRAY for the other states which have been mentioned like Georgia, Carolina and Indiana. Pray for Houston Texas, who recently wanted to remove an open Bible from the center of their town. PRAY for truth to prevail."
BFF walked back to his seat, his classmates clapped sparingly and used the bell as an excuse to hurriedly rush from the class. Frederick sought out BFF and angrily rebuked him for belittling his speech. He told BFF that his commentary would count for nothing after the class heard BFF's.
Big Fat Frog was feeling too joyful to reply to Frederick's foolishness, so he quietly asked Frederick, "Where is your Lap Top? Frederick reviewed his things, then took off running and screaming ,"That's my father's Lap Top! That's my father's Lap Top!"
BFF casually commented to Cindy, as they watched Frederick, "I'm glad I wasn't first, this time."
Cindy, in her own sweet way, reminded Frog, "The first shall come last, and the last shall come first."
Big Fat Frog and Cindy gave one another high five and then walked home together talking about their commentaries. And both are...
Looking Forward
See Ya Next Time!
TER
FRIDAY'S WORD: infrastructure; in*fra*struc*ture(noun) underlying foundation;
something on which another thing is reared or built; or by which it is supported
IN THE MIRROR:
The Homecoming :
A man returning from a trip was greeted by his family in the baggage claim area of the airport. He reached for his younger son and gave him a loving hug. "I missed you so much," he said to the boy. "Look at how big you are."
"I missed you, too," the boy said, holding on to his father. An older boy approached the two, hugged them both and said, "So much happened while you were away, Dad. I can't wait to tell you everything!"
"I can't wait to hear about it! I know you took care of things while I was gone." The man hugged his sons again and then looked upon the smiling face of his wife.
"Welcome back honey," said his wife, inviting him into a lengthy, amorous kiss.
A stranger moved by this display of genuine affection asked, "You have such a beautiful family. How long have you been married?"
"Twelve years," the man replied proudly, still gazing into his wife's adoring eyes.
"Have you been gone a long time?"
"Yeah, two days. I'm so happy to be back home with my family."
"Two days? Wow!" said the stranger. "I hope that some day when I get married I will still feel that passionate after 12 years."
The smile faded from the man's face. He looked the stranger in the eye and said, "Don't hope my friend. Decide." He smiled once again and retrieved his bag from the carousel. Before he walked away with his family, he nodded to the stranger and repeated, "DECIDE!" Taken from; Bit's & Pieces , August 2003 Issue.
Philippians 4:8,9, Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things which ye have both learned, and received and heard, and seen in me, do, and the GOD of Peace shall be with you.
It's my prayer that you can't help but to see some connection between the short story of our friend at the airport, and how Paul ministers, and leads his fellow laborers in the pathway of obtaining Peace with God.
If I were allowed to illuminate a thought with you today, it would have to be; How very important difference, a ‘decision,' makes. The man in our story only had to ‘decide' after witnessing what he saw. We witness so much in Paul's entire life. Now all we have to do, is but; "DECIDE!" S.L.C.
O TASTE AND SEE!
CHICKEN, RICE AND VEGETABLES
1 ½ CUPS RICE. (UNCOOKED)
½ BAG TYSON GRILLED CHICKEN STRIPS
1 MEDIUM ONION CUT UP.
1 TBLSP. GARLIC POWDER.
1 BAG FROZEN MIXED VEGETABLES.
1 CAN CREAM OF CHICKEN SOUP.
1 CAN CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP.
DIRECTIONS:
COOK RICE AND SIT ASIDE. MAKE SURE THAT IT IS TENDER BY ADDING ADDITIONAL BOILING WATER IF NEED.
PLACE TYSON GRILLED CHICKEN STRIPS IN LARGE POT AND BRING TO A BOIL.
ADD ONION AND GARLIC , SALT AND PEPPER TO TASTE. BOIL TOGETHER APPROXIMATELY 10 MINUTES, OR UNTIL CHICKEN STRIPS ARE TENDER.
ADD VEGETABLES AND ADDITIONAL 2 TO 3 CUPS OF WATER. CONTINUE TO BOIL. WHEN VEGETABLES ARE TENDER ,ADD SOUPS TO THIS POT. TURN HEAT TO LOW AND LET SIT WHILE CHECKING RICE FOR TENDERNESS.
ADD RICE TO LARGE POT. MAKING SURE THAT ALL RICE IS COVERED WITH THE SOUP AND VEGETABLE MIXTURE.
SERVE WITH SPRIGS OF COOKED BROCCOLI. THIS RECIPE SERVES EIGHT
AND REMEMBER TO ...ENJOY! TER .
NOTE: THIS IS A GOOD RECIPE TO FREEZE AND HAVE ON HAND. IT COOKS EASILY IN THE MICROWAVE AFTER THAWING.