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Spotting and Preventing Professional Suicide
by Dorothy M. Neddermeyer, PhD
"This job is killing me!" That statement may seem to be an exaggeration, but in looking closely at the work environment, it has become apparent there is a serious malady affecting the productivity of organizations. This malady has been coined 'professional suicide,' by a company which was among the first to become aware of the problem.
Professional suicide, a widespread but rarely studied phenomenon is costing companies not only dollars and cents, but the talents and skills of many bright, creative and committed key employees. The syndrome affects talented hard driving employees with strong accomplishment needs. Those most likely to be affected are good employees who constantly operate in a crisis situation because of management's lack of planning or leadership. These initially highly motivated employees begin the suicidal process within three to five years after developing a solid record within the organization. The despair of not achieving what they want in what seems by now to be an absolutely hopeless situation has begun to undermine their self-confidence and bruise their egos.
These upwardly mobile employees suddenly reverse course. Their work begins to deteriorate. They lose interest and fail to keep up with new on-the-job developments. They develop physical complaints, many classically psychosomatic (migraine headaches, ulcers, high blood pressure, frequent colds or flu) and seem unable to change this downward spiral. Sometimes they quit on the flimsiest of pretexts and take another job beneath their capabilities. Many times they become disruptive, overstep policy bounds, or do things they surely know they will be fired for doing. In short, in many ways they rapidly and illogically destroy their careers and sometimes themselves.
What causes this apparent self-destruction? It is the result of a battle between specific characteristics of both the individual and the organizational environment. In the individual, problems have arisen in the satisfaction of basic needs common to all human beings. These basic needs described by Maslow as the "Hierarchy of Human Needs" are recognition and a sense of self-esteem, growth and development (self-actualization), a sense of purpose and a structure from which to view the world. When people are unable to meet these needs in the organization they leave or become disruptive because they're frustrated.
A frequent cause of professional suicide is that the behavior required for survival demands unacceptable violations of a person's values. Not being able to be totally candid with individuals on projects is one example. On projects, the rule is that team effort is expected, but in the end individuals aren't rewarded-the team is king. If an individual works only in team efforts they will seldom receive individual recognition. This lack of individual recognition begins to erode their egos and self-esteem.
Sometimes people are asked to falsify records, or to sign off on unfinished projects. (A classic example of falsifying or signing off on records is the Karen Silkwood case at Kerr-McGee. Silkwood believed she discovered numerous violations of health regulations, including exposure of workers to contamination, faulty respiratory equipment and improper storage of samples. She also believed the lack of sufficient shower facilities could increase the risk of employee contamination. She decided to take legal action, but ended up paying with her life.) These professional breaches of ethical standards leave an employee struggling with their ethical values-their responsibility toward colleagues pulls from one side and a sense of personal honesty and integrity pulls from the other.
If the way to survive in an organization requires individuals to lie or be deceptive or surreptitious, they will either avoid doing what it takes to get ahead in that organization and retire in place, or do what it takes and feel guilty when they survive and progress. The degree to which the situation degrades, devalues, or shames the person is highly individual.
The organizational characteristics that create and foster professional suicide are in direct opposition to basic individual needs. These characteristics are manifested by management's lack of setting specific goals and objectives or the 'rules of the game' are confusing, illegal or unethical. Cohesive work groups and teams are not fostered or are non-existent. Evaluation, feedback and individual performance reviews are carelessly managed or ineffective. Reward systems based on organizational results (merit increases) are non-existent or poorly defined. Anxiety, competition, and guilt, rather than a reward system are used as motivators. And ambiguous communication (or none at all) with employees is the norm rather than the exception.
This lack of clear communication provides a powerful scapegoat for managerial incompetence. If subordinates get into trouble when tasks were poorly defined; they take the blame, after all, they were told-albeit the communication was ambiguous.
Dr. Donald W. Cole, author of Professional Suicide, a Survival Kit for You and Your Job (1981, McGraw-Hill) conducted a study of corporate life. The style of corporate leadership he identified as necessary for keeping people healthy and productive offered a clear vision for the future-engage the employee in goal setting and planning; provide performance evaluations on a regular basis along with recognition and rewards. This style of management may seem self-evident as a good one, but it has proven remarkably difficult to convince many companies to implement it.
It has long been known that people need to have a sense of direction. People need to have the security to anticipate what is going to occur as a result of the actions they plan to take or have taken. They need to know if what they are doing is important and valued. And finally, they want to have a sense of belonging to an organization that provides opportunity for growth and development.
When management doesn't provide adequate information for employees to anticipate probable outcomes, anxiety ensues. Employees need to have feedback to stimulate growth and development. Without feedback people begin assuming the worst and the anxiety that results leads to reactive behavior, which is actually a protective response. This protective behavior occurs so the employee can survive in what s/he perceives as an unfriendly environment.
Thus, the once bright, creative and committed employee retires in place merely treading water until official retirement. The cycle of productive decay is the deterioration of the very skills companies need to stop the spiral of productivity loss. These employees figuratively and literally get into a cycle of personal and professional suicide.
The threat posed by professional suicide to the employee and its equally dangerous threat to the organization is obvious-individuals lose their careers and the organization not only loses its best employees, but also incurs the expense of replacing them, which is estimated to be approximately $60,000 per person. In some organizations this could mean the difference between success and failure.
In order to prevent employees and the organizational structure from the suicidal cycle, hiring practices need to look for managers and leaders with vision and the ability to set goals and define a purpose. Communication, feedback, support and encouragement provide a sense of personal worth and freedom from work overload.
Management can take the following steps to reduce the incidence of professional suicide and increase the effective management of highly motivated employees
1. Establish specific organizational goals. This reduces the nebulous character of organizational objectives and establishes a framework against which personal goals can be set.
2. Develop a plan for meeting organization and personal goals and objectives.
3. Develop team building activities and manage by group commitment.
4. Implement formal and informal performance reviews at regular intervals. Initiate a reward system (merit pay) based on the achievements of the individual, thus avoiding rewarding psychological one-upmanship.
5. Implement training programs in interpersonal competence to improve communication and provide opportunities for more effective problem solving.
6. Executive management needs to assume responsibility for clarifying the rules of the game, the reward system and what it takes to get ahead.
7. Provide opportunities for decompression and periodic revitalization through sabbaticals, conferences, stress reduction programs and the like.
8. Reduce anxiety by goal setting and corporate clarity about purpose and function.
9. Establish skill inventory for each employee and maintain a workforce planning effort for career paths.
10. Conduct continuous studies to continually promote organization improvements and correct organizational deficiencies.
In addition to improving productivity and retaining highly motivated and talented employees, organizations can reduce the number of discrimination suits by taking these steps to prevent professional suicide. It has been established that the majority of discrimination lawsuits occur as a result of poor supervisor-to-employee relations. Poor relations derive from lack of communication, support, goal-setting and letting employees know they are valued. This being the case-corporate leaders are well advised to seek out, train, and reward those employees who have vision and can effectively communicate with their employees. Without this leadership we can only anticipate an escalation of professional suicide as we become more and more technologically advanced.
In looking for the signs of professional suicide one will often see nothing. It takes a keen eye and ear to detect the subtle behaviors that are the beginning stages of the suicidal process. These signs are often considered temporary and thus are not equated with the downward spiral of an individual's performance. When the suicidal process begins it's usually the little things that go unnoticed until the employee's performance has slipped dramatically. At this point management recognizes that something is drastically wrong and confronts the employee, whose self-esteem has already deteriorated. When confronted the employee responds defensively while feeling both neglected and unworthy of attention at the same time.
The subtle signs of professional suicide begin with minor infractions of the established norm of the department, workgroup or organization. These infractions are often contrary to the established norm of the individual as well. Any behavior change in the employee is significant and needs to be noted to determine whether it is temporary or the beginning of a suicidal process. If the employee has had personal changes or difficulties that would explain a change in behavior or work habits, and agrees that a change is necessary, management can assume that the current infractions are only temporary.
However, close observation is important to note whether or not, after a reasonable period of time, the behavior remains on a positive course. If the employee's behavior does not meet the established norm, then further discussion is warranted, for both the individual's and the organizations sake.
These minor infractions are not alarming unless they become habitual or chronic. Management needs to tread a fine line between being nosy and noticing the beginning of a trend. It's important for management to address reasons for the existence of minor infractions before they become habitual or chronic.
These bothersome and perhaps suicide indicative infractions include consistently arriving to work late with no explanation (or spouting poor excuses) long lunch breaks, coming late to or missing meetings, falling asleep during meetings, little or no participation in meetings, failure to return phone calls to customers, clients, or colleagues, missing deadlines, poor quality of work, and lack of enthusiasm and interest.
When management does not ask the employee what has caused his/her behavior to change, the employee may perceive that s/he's not important or respected. Otherwise, the employee reasons, why are these infractions unnoticed? Whether the infraction is due to a personal problem or burnout, the employee wants to be noticed. If the infraction is not corrected within a reasonable length of time it is important that management contact the employee again. Thus, the unacceptable behavior is corrected before it deteriorates further. If management fails to handle the corrective process adequately, the second stage of the deterioration begins-disruptive behavior, more serious infractions that are manifested as psychosomatic illness and deterioration in dress or appearance. The situation has reached a crisis, and the final stage of the suicidal process begins. This final stage is often manifested by severe self-destructive behavior, such as substance abuse, obesity, anorexia, accidents and inability to 'get along' wit the rest of the staff. In this last instance, the employee usually manages to find others to blame, therefore avoiding taking responsibility for their current situation. The final stage may last one to two years before the individual is fired, quits or succumbs to self-destruction.
The problem is often viewed as an individual's inability to conform to the organization, which leads management to attempt to get the individual to conform. While this may be true in part, management needs to look at the needs of the individual. For most people a sense of self-worth is a bigger factor than the job and the contribution to the world. People want to grow and develop and have a sense of self-actualization. People need a safe and secure place from which to view their present, past and future in order to be creative and productive. When the management meets the needs of the individual, the individual can better meet the needs of the organization.
If you believe you are in an organization which fosters professional suicide, the following steps can prevent you from becoming a victim:
1. Negotiate with management to develop organizational and individual goals and objectives.
2. Establish good communication with management
3. Initiate establishing formal and informal performance reviews and goal setting
4. Develop a plan for meeting the goals and objectives
5. Initiate team building activities within your work group
6. Attend training programs in interpersonal competence
7. Engage in activities that provide decompression and periodic release of stress and frustration
8. Reduce your anxiety by checking information, with, management. Avoid assuming the worse
9. Establish your skill inventory and plan to manage your career goals
10. Conduct ongoing evaluations of your organization and how you can improve and correct organizational deficiencies.


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State Audits Find New Budget Shortfalls in Newark
Auditors reviewing the state-run Newark, N.J., schools have uncovered more unpaid bills and debt in the troubled district, bringing the total red ink to about $70 million in the system—$12 million above a shortfall that was reported in February.
With six different outside audits going on simultaneously in the 44,000-student district, state officials admit that the amount could go up even higher. ("Red Ink in Newark Mars State Takeover," Feb. 2, 2000.)
"It's true. As long as we have auditors in there, it could change depending on what they find," said Robert A. DeSando, a spokesman for David C. Hespe, New Jersey's commissioner of education. "We are talking about millions of dollars of unpaid bills."
To date, no evidence of criminal wrongdoing has been found, he added. Under state law, investigators would have to prove that school officials knowingly spent money they didn't have in order to establish that a crime had been committed.
"It appears all monies have been spent on programs and services," Mr. DeSando said. "Absent the proper budget and accounting procedures, it is uncertain whether people knew they were spending money they didn't have."
Looking Ahead
A full, final accounting of the problems is several months away, he said. The troubles go back to 1995, when Newark became the third New Jersey district, after Jersey City and Paterson, to fall under state control.
Meanwhile, local and state administrators are trying to fill in the fiscal gaps for this year, while simultaneously planning a budget for the 2000-01 school year.
Marion A. Bolden, the state-appointed superintendent of the Newark schools, said the district so far has been spared major cutbacks, thanks to emergency measures and promises of help from state leaders.
Ms. Bolden, who took over as the Newark schools chief last summer, admitted to being frustrated by the current situation. "It's very distracting," she said. "I took the position because I know we can make a difference on the academic side, but that's not where I spent most of my energies this year."
Vol. 19, Issue 33, Page 3Published in Print: April 26, 2000, as State Audits Find New Budget Shortfalls in Newark
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A Series of Unfortunate Events is Netflix's take on the fantastic book series that follows the miserable lives of the Baudelaire orphans on their many woeful tales. I don't particularly read often as I'm too busy, but this was one series I've always loved and I hope that brings some extra context when writing this review as I come from the background of folks that know the literature. In season one they've split each book that's covered into two 50 minute episodes.
This is actually a perfect format so far as each book has been adapted exactly from the pages with some side improvements as well. The first season covers; The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, The Wide Window and The Miserable Mill. Things start off by quickly explaining the skills that each of the orphans present in a fashion that feels almost Wes Anderson esque if only toned with the melancholy of a Tim Burton film.
The story focuses on the three orphans, but also is heavily narrated and guided by Lemony Snicket (Patrick Warburton). This is great as it helps to explore various literary topics while also providing more context for scenes. Warburton is just perfect for this role and I never thought his performance would be so excellent.
When it comes to the orphans we have Violet (Malina Weissman), Klaus (Louis Hynes) and Sunny which is a baby. Violet is incredibly smart and gifted when it comes to inventing. Klaus is also highly intelligent though towards discovering things and a gifted reader. Sunny also shows some signs of higher knowledge though her skill is sharp teeth that bite anything.
The orphans were actually exactly how I imagined them from reading and it'll be great to see them age with their book characters over a few seasons. I also found the casting for their guardians and relatives to be fantastic, with each beautifully bringing the characters to life. I particularly loved Aasif Mandvi as Monty and Sara Canning as Jacquelyn. I've also saved the best for last with Count Olaf being played by Neil Patrick Harris and he absolutely killed it. The character had a fantastic balance between being purely sinsister and comedic while also giving a musical spin to it which was appreciated.
I could probably go on forever when discussing this series as it's one of my favorites and with that in mind this Netflix take captures A Series of Unfortunate Events excellently. The cast is perfect with the orphans coming alive, the extra bits of added story helped flesh out future characters and Neil Patrick Harris is a great Count Olaf. The show also brings each iconic location to life though in a bit odd of a way.
I was initially slightly put off by the CGI as it can be glaring at times, but grew an appreciation of it over the course of the season. It eventually felt more natural in creating this type of book world where it's supposed to have almost digital extremes. That aside, I can't wait to see more in the future and this is another must watch Netflix series. There were some great musical elements, the meta jokes were hilarious and it stayed faithful to the source material which I appreciate.
A Series of Unfortunate Events Review at Home with Streamed Viewing


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What is Business Process Monitoring?
What is Business Process Monitoring?
As it sounds, it is about monitoring processes using analytics. BP Monitoring involves keeping track of performance of processes in terms of time, cost and quality. Every process cycle has defined SLAs, based on which process efficiency can be measured. But for this, establishing a versatile analytics in the organization is the key. These analytics should provide rich reports, dashboards, balance scorecards etc. at click of a mouse. In monitoring, three aspects become important. One is Functional Monitoring. Second is Process Monitoring and third is Technical Monitoring.
Functional monitoring:
This should help management team to analyze the core functional performance of a process, as per KRA's and KPIs laid down. For example if it is an Underwriting process, one of the ideal KRAs should be the time taken for each underwriting. In this case, the reports should indicate what is the average underwriting time being taken, number of tasks above the set target, number of tasks below the target etc.
Process monitoring:
This part of the monitoring is usually to assess the health of the process in terms of average process cycle time, number of processes terminated prematurely, number of process errors, average cost of the process cycle etc.
Technical Monitoring:
To keep monitoring the technical efficiency of an application is always mandatory. It takes a little more effort to keep a tab on the response-times, down-times, processing errors etc.
- Written by Chandrasekhar PS, a Certified Process Professional from BP Group
Synergy has been helping many clients implement BPM from last six years, whether it be a core process or support processes. Synergy carries over 200,000 manhours of BPM implementation. Synergy has been supporting clients in the entire BPM life cycle right from identifying right BPM software or tools, developing process models, Analysis of As-Is processes, Designing the new processes, Business Process Monitoring and implementing new BPM applications. In effect, Synergy has witnessed clients benefiting from drastic process improvements.
Contact Synergy for an informative, no-obligation consultation today. Let's address your goals and challenges together. firstname.lastname@example.com


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Founded in 2008, Victory Tailgate is the largest manufacturer of custom tailgate games in the United States. Victory Tailgate prides itself in its products having the highest standards of quality and durability, along with unlimited graphic design and customization capabilities. A majority of Victory Tailgate tailgate games are designed, manufactured, and shipped from our Orlando, Florida facility. Victory Tailgate is proud to be licensed partners with over 600 colleges, major professional sports leagues, and numerous iconic brands.
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In an age in where environmental and social issues are so important, Victory Tailgate aims to embrace responsibility for our company's actions and encourage a positive impact through activities on the environment, consumers, employees, and communities. We strongly believe that today's organizations must be increasingly mindful of the impact that their operations have and that the Corporate Responsibility Program must be a fundamental part of company's targeted practices, broad objectives, and overall culture.
Contact Details
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Orlando, FL 32824


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Tuesday, 1 January 2013
Lambo loves snow!
Jon Olsson is a famous freeskier and a crazy petrolhead. With his job he's always in contact with the snow and does not arise problems to use as his daily drive even in the worse road conditions, a quite unique Lamborghini fitted fitted with some parts of the LP560-4, a noisy exhaust and a ski box on the roof! The Gallardo is 4WD, and with proper tires there shouldn't be problems to use it and have fun with it in the snow!
Follow me on Google+ : http://bit.ly/MarchettinoGPlus
Follow me also on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MarchettinoYT
Posted by Marco at 03:24
Labels: gallardo, jon, lamborghini, lp560-4, olsson
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text: This is a summary of the AM report for Week Ending 14 Aug 2005. 5 applicants became maintainers. David Moreno Garza <damog> My name is David Moreno Garza, I'm 20 years old, studying Computer and Electronic Engineering at UIA, in Mexico City. I started using Debian just a couple of years ago, introduced by some friends in high school, and since then, I've seen a wonderful concept, a nice ideology for knowledge, community and freedom. I started helping Debian doing some translations to Spanish, specially DWN, and the d-i installation manual. Also, I have several packages on the archive, aimed to desktop or mathematics related, which are the areas where I work with in the real world. I'm helping also, with a couple of Ruby packages, language I find pretty elegant and fun. Recently, I started dcontrol subproject of Debian Desktop. dcontrol stands for Debian Control Center, where we are working to bring a complete configuration panel for desktop/newbie users of Debian, which we believe more work is needed. Lots of people are interested and starting to help. The idea is to bring a tool unified for anything configurable on a Debian system, without any pain. What I plan to do for Debian also, is to work with the QA team, packing desktop (specially GNOME) stuff and probably, in the future, support organizing Debconf6 in Mexico. And, of course, keep on packing interesting software and bringing it to Debian. Yutaka Niibe <gniibe> Well, my little history. It was 1988, when I first read GNU Manifest. It was 1990, when I first sent bug report to RMS. It was 1992, when I knew Linux. I became PLIP driver maintainer of Linux, it was 1993-1998. I've ported Linux (kernel) to SuperH architecture, it was 1999, and maintained. We established the Free Software Initiative of Japan in 2002. The reason I work for Free Software is, it is very important to our society, and I believe Free Software is the best way of cooperation. Cai Qian <caiqian> I am current a postgraduate in China. I have used Linux for 4 years with a variety of distros, and finally find Debian. I must say: Debian is best one for me. As I use it more with everyday work, I am eager to involve in and help this project. I think this is a way to give back to free software community. On the other hand, lots of chinese people want to involve in Debian, but they faces some kinds of problem, such as reading English docs, hard to get PGP signed with a offical DD(there are only 2 chinese) and etc. So I think I can help them in some way and introduce more softwares to Debian to benefit them. Martin Zobel-Helas <zobel> I am an 26 year old computer science student living in Rossdorf (near Darmstadt), Germany. I discoverd the world of open source software and Linux somewhere around 1996 and installed my first Debian about 4 years later. I was delighted on the easy update mechanismn Debian had. I attended the real life Bug Squashing Party in Munich in April 2004, and helped later on in organizing the real life BSPs in Darmstadt in August and in Frankfurt in November. I also try to help with porting issues in ways of giving access to hardware platforms. I also helped on several fairs to run a booth for the Debian project. I am interessted in helping bringing up support for debian-volatile (which mirror-coordination i currently do). I would be also interested in maintaining further parts of volatiles infrastructure. Kilian Krause <kilian> Kilian is involved in packaging pwlib/openh323/gnomemeeting and other packages; see http://lists.debian.org/debian-newmaint/2004/02/msg00001.html for more information. -- Martin Michlmayr http://www.cyrius.com/


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Whatever her genetic makeup, Lily and my youngest daughter Sophie grew up as puppies together. They shared toys, floor time and vied for my attention.
Lily started as a cocktail party dog, segued in her middling years as an intimate dinner party dog, and because I put effort into it, settled into her role as a dinner party girl.
She taught subsequent dogs -- some permanent members, others for shorter stays -- the way of her world. And she was just, fair, clear and direct. Once you earned her trust, she was yours for life. You can't ask for more than that.
It's hard to put into words all that she has been in her 10 years. What I do know is she has advanced canine hemangiosarcoma, discovered 10 days ago. Her time is measured by days or at most weeks, and there's little to do but make her comfortable.
While her energy level is fading and she is steadily losing weight despite efforts to feed her more food and lots of treats, she still savors lots of petting, ear strokes and car rides. She greets all visitors and still nudges old friends for more of that petting. I am grateful I can modify my schedule to spend lots of time with her, and I can only hope that she stays comfortable until the end.


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Our customer sought to replace the old water dunk testing system with an operator-independent system that would result in increased uptime, reliability, and flexibility. Along with automated calibration and validation, they wanted the ability to conduct "audit" test on the system at 100 times better sensitivity than the production reject limit. Other requirements included custom tooling that could be upgraded or changed out with minimal cost and effort.
We engineered a custom helium accumulation system featuring a unique gas recirculation system. With a standard tooling platform that enabled simple chamber and fixture upgrades, and two systems using a single leak detector, we engineered a system that produced increased reliability and significant cost savings.
Key Features
- Accumulation system with unique gas re-circulation system
- Integration of two systems to one leak detector and controller for cost efficiency
- Standard tooling platform for simple chamber/fixture upgrades
- System designed with locking casters for quick production line layout changes
- Integrated helium calibrated leak standard for calibration and verification


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Pastor Scott L. Harris
Grace Bible Church, NY
October 3, 2010
The Superiority of Christ to Legalism
Colossians 2:16-17
Epaphras and reported to Paul about clear and present dangers facing the church in Colossae. The result was Paul's letter to the Colossians to commend them for their response to the gospel and present faithfulness, but to also warn them of the dangers that were present due to those among them that were advocating false doctrine. In the first part of Colossians 2 Paul gave general warnings. He did not want them to be deluded with persuasive argument (Colossians 2:4). False logic and skilled speech can cause confusion and even sway some to wrong belief and practice. The defense against that was to walk in Christ just as they had received Him, for the Lord had firmly rooted them in the faith and was building them up and establishing that faith even deeper so that they could respond with overflowing gratitude (Colossians 2:6-7) (See: The Superiority of Walking in Christ).
Paul also warned them about being taken captive, being carried away as booty, by empty and deceptive philosophy which was rooted in the tradition of men and the elementary principles of this world (Colossians 1:8. – See: Avoiding Capture by Philosophy). The defense against this was to be captured by Christ who is superior in every way. Jesus is superior in His nature, His work in the believer, His position and He gives to the believer a superior circumcision, baptism, life and victory. We examined each of those in some detail last week. (See: The Superiority of Being in Christ).
Jesus is superior in position because the full measure of the essence of deity dwells in Him permanently. He is both fully God and fully man. He is superior in His work in the believer because we are made complete in Him. He has redeemed us, forgiven us our sins, reconciled us to the Father and supplies all we need to become godly though His divine power and precious and magnificent promises. He is superior in position being the head over all rule and authority. He provides a circumcision superior to that given Abraham because He circumcises the heart as part of the new covenant. His baptism is superior since it is the baptism with the spirit and fire that makes us part of His body, the church. Jesus provides a superior life making us alive together with Him though we had been dead in our sins. He has forgiven all our transgressions having paid the penalty of them and satisfying the decrees against us when He died as the atoning sacrifice on the cross. And finally, Jesus is superior because He has triumphed over the devil and death giving us a hope for the present and an eternal future with Him.
This morning we are going to start examining the specific warnings Paul gives to the Colossians at the end of chapter 2. It is from these specific warnings that we know what three types of false doctrine were being taught there – legalism, asceticism and mysticism. This morning we are going to concentrate on the legalism, but please follow along as I read the entire section in Colossians 2:16-23 to set the context.
16 Therefore let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day– 17 things which are a [mere] shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on [visions] he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God.
20 If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, 21 "Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!" 22 (which all [refer to] things destined to perish with the using)– in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? 23 These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, [but are] of no value against fleshly indulgence.
License and Legalism
There have always been two great errors that have occurred in the church which are at opposite extremes from each other. One is legalism and the other is licentiousness. One places all sorts of restrictions on conduct while the other removes those restrictions. Legalism focuses on keeping law as a means to godliness while licentiousness rejects law believing they have spiritual license for the things they practice. Both claim to be the expression of true spirituality, but the reality is that both are poor substitutes for true spirituality often leading to blatant sin.
Licentiousness. The rise of Gnostic thought increased the practice of licentiousness because in making a dichotomy between the material and spiritual, there were those that reasoned that since the material was evil by nature and could not be changed, then it did not matter what you did physically. They viewed salvation in Christ as only a spiritual issue with little to no effect on behavior. The apostle John corrected this error stating in 1 John 3:9-10, "No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother."
An error that developed among the Corinthians resulted in them living in licentiousness. They became spiritually proud thinking that they had all spiritual gifts and were living spiritual lives even though their church had developed many factions and some of their practices were blatantly sinful. Paul had to correct their practices and explain the true nature of spirituality in 1 Corinthians 12-14 is expressed in godly love for one another (See: True Spirituality). Such love corrects sin instead of tolerating it as they were doing (1 Corinthians 5). Such love would not be taking one another to court before unbelievers in legal actions nor visiting the temple prostitutes (1 Corinthians 6). Such love uses liberty in Christ properly in consideration of seeking the good of other believers rather than flaunting it to their detriment or in acting sinfully (1 Corinthians 8-10). Tragically, the error of the Corinthians is still common
ly found today with many doing whatever they would like claiming they have liberty in Christ to do so with some making it even worse by claiming they were following the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Over the years I have heard people claim the Holy Spirit's leading in trying to justify their sinful behavior. It is simple. The Holy Spirit does not lead people to violate the commands, principles and precepts of God's word. The Holy Spirit does not lead you to abandon your spouse and shack up with someone else as one woman claimed. The Holy Spirit does not lead people into idolatry, fornication, adultery, homosexuality, theft, coveting, greed, materialism, drunkenness, reviling, lying, or any other sin. Christians who practice sin and seek to justify it instead of repenting of it have stepped into licentiousness and will experience the Lord's chastening if they are legitimate believers (Hebrews 12:4-8).
Legalism. Legalism is the opposite of license. The term legalism has been used in a variety of ways within Christianity and there are a lot of different ways in which it expresses itself, yet, it is always the same at its core. It defines spirituality by a strict code of conduct determined by men instead of God. To be sure, those holding to these codes can often cite particular Scriptures to back up particular rules, but even in those the context is ignored so that God's actual commands are overturned and replaced by the code of men. Jesus had strong words for the Pharisees for doing this. In Matthew 15:9 He gave a strong warning against them saying, "But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men." In Matthew 23:23-24 Jesus pronounced a woe the religious leaders saying, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24 "You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
An examination of the lives and practices of the Pharisees reveals that they were not purposely trying to replace what God had said with their own teachings nor were they purposely trying to neglect anything in the law. They were actually, as Paul describes in Romans 10:2, zealous for God, but not in accordance with knowledge. Paul describes himself in similar terms. In Galatians 1:14 he states he had been extremely zealous for his ancestral traditions. In Philippians 3:6 he explains that it was his zeal as a Pharisee that had led him to persecute the church because he thought the followers of Christ were opposing Judaism and therefore God. All of their various teachings and traditions started as an effort to obey God. They were greatly concerned for what God had commanded and thought of all sorts of ways to protect themselves from breaking a command even by accident if possible. For example, they would not use God's covenant name for fear they might use it improperly and so take it in vain breaking the third of the Ten Commandments. Even when reading the Scriptures they would say "Adoni," meaning Lord, instead of saying "Yahweh," God's covenant name. But zeal without proper knowledge can be very dangerous.
The strongest language Paul uses was expressed in the book of Galatians concerning a legalism that had arisen there that was placing them in danger of turning their backs on the grace of God that comes through faith in Christ. There were those advocating a return to earning righteousness by works of the Mosaic law. Paul called what they were teaching "another gospel" and said that those that preach it should be accursed (Galatians 1:8-9). Such a serious condemnation demonstrates the danger of such an extreme legalism.
The situation in Colossae was serious, but not as severe as what Paul was battling in the book of Galatians. There was a legalism being advocated, but it was not so extreme as to threaten the replacement of the message of the gospel that man is saved from sin by God's grace through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ. This legalism sought to define godliness according to adherence to religious rituals, self-denial and practices arising out of mysticism. In other words, the legalism in Colossae was not attacking how you get saved, but it was redefining what it means to be a Christian who was living a godly life. It was a redefinition of righteous living from living in submission to the Spirit of God to living according to their code of conduct and practices. The particular practices Paul mentions in verse 16 fit well with practices that occurred within Judaism and especially those of the Essenes. In fact, some commentators have suggested that it may have been someone with an Essene background that was causing the problems.
Legalism still exists today in a variety of ways ranging from the extreme of distorting the gospel itself, as had occurred among the Galatians, to those that push a little too hard with their personal convictions about the manner in which a righteous person will live. But again, the common element among all of them is defining spirituality by some code of conduct determined by men instead of God through His word.
The Command
Paul begins this section with a command instructing them to not let anyone act as their judge in regard to particular things Paul then lists out. The common position of legalists is to set themselves up as judges who render verdicts without a trial and condemn those who do not keep the same standards of conduct that they do. Jesus spoke against this mindset in Matthew 7:1-4, "Do not judge lest you be judged. "For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? "Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' and behold, the log is in your own eye?"
The Pharisees often condemned Jesus and His disciples for the things they did. Matthew 15:1-9 records their condemnation of the disciples for eating without ceremonially washing their hands first. Something that is not required in the Mosaic Law. Jesus pointed out that while the disciples may have been violating Jewish traditions that had developed, the Pharisees were violating the Lord's commands in preference to their traditions. By comparison the disciples had a speck in their eye of being indifferent to the Pharisees cultural sensitivities while the Pharisees themselves had logs in their own eyes of violating God's word and yet they were judging the disciples for the speck.
In Matthew 12:1-2 the Pharisees accused the disciples of breaking the Sabbath when they were picking heads of grain and eating them as they walked on their way. What the disciples were doing was directly in keeping with the Mosaic Law in Deuteronomy 23:25, but the Pharisees had made up many of their own rules of what it meant to keep the Sabbath. Later in the same chapter Jesus purposely healed a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath to teach them that God desires compassion, not sacrifice (Isaiah 1:17; Micah 6:8) and that He, the Son of Man, is Lord of the Sabbath. They then condemned Jesus not only of breaking the Sabbath, but also of healing a demonized man who was deaf and blind by the power of Beelzebul – another name for Satan. Legalism can become very vicious.
It is very important at this point to examine the rest of what Jesus says in Matthew 7:5 because many people have concluded that Christians are never to judge one another which is not true. Throughout the Sermon on the Mount Jesus is contrasting the actions of self-righteousness and true righteousness and He is doing the same here. Jesus continues saying, "You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of
your brother's eye." Jesus was not prohibiting all judgment, but was rather warning against a certain manner of judging. We could never help a brother who is in sin as Jesus commands in Matthew 18 without being able to first determine that what they are doing is sin. This is a call for the righteous to be humble when helping others with their sin issues recognizing that they probably have their own. Paul expands on this same principle in Galatians 6:1-4 in calling on those who are spiritual to help restore those who are caught in any trespass by helping to bear their burdens, but to do so with a spirit of gentleness and examining themselves first.
The Pharisees had placed greater importance on keeping their traditions than in obeying God and showing compassion. That is the nature of legalism for it removes context from what is being done and places higher value on traditions developed by men than what God has actually said. This still commonly occurs today and it occurs among both the theologically liberal as well as theologically conservative. The only difference is the particular traditions that are being used as the standard.
We also recognize that the opposite problem also occurs in which people demand the right to do nearly anything they want and then intimidate those who question it accusing them of judging. Our pursuit as Christians is to walk with our Lord in holiness and righteousness that we might glorify His name while showing love to our brothers and sisters in helping them to do the same.
Food Restrictions
Paul mentions several particular areas in which the Colossian legalists were judging others. The first issue was in regard to eating. This would encompass both what they would eat, the manner it was prepared and how they would eat it. There are dietary restrictions in the Mosaic Law and some commands concerning the manner in which certain foods would be prepared or meals would be eaten such as Passover (See Exodus 12:43-49). There were two issues that would bring about the judgment of the legalist. The first was actual violation of dietary laws in the Mosaic code, and the second was violation of traditions that had been developed around those laws.
An example of the manner of eating is the tradition of ceremonial washing hands before you eat that the Pharisees condemned the disciples about that was mentioned earlier. An example of food preparation is Deuteronomy 14:21 which prohibited boiling a kid in its mother's milk. From that verse arose a tradition in which two sets of cooking ware and dishes had to be used. One used for things that had milk in them and the other for things that did not. Paul's command is to not let others judge you according to their traditions of how to prepare food or the manner in which you eat it. The Christian is not obligated to keep the traditions of men. We are obligated to submit ourselves to the Holy Spirit and obey the Lord.
Violation of Mosaic dietary laws is a slightly different issue because there were clear restrictions placed on the nation of Israel of what they could and could not eat as part of making them distinct from all other people as a people holy to the Lord. Leviticus 11 records particular kinds of animals they were not to eat including mammals such as pigs, rabbits and rock badgers as well as moles, and mice, aquatic animals that do not have fins or scales, birds such as eagles, vultures, pelicans and storks and reptiles such as geckos, crocodiles, lizards and chameleons. (I am sure that some of those restrictions may have even been welcomed – you might like the fact that you will not get a gecko for dinner). They were generally restricted from eating insects except locusts, grasshoppers, crickets (The exceptions may not have been considered good news by some). In addition, those animals that they did eat had to be killed in a certain fashion and they could not eat what they found dead.
All the restricted animals were considered to be unclean and this gave the early church a difficulty to overcome because a large portion of it was Jewish. We know from Acts 10 how hard it was for even Peter to understand that the ceremonial laws would not be required for salvation and those who would make up Christ's body, the church. This was a point of contention that the Apostles and Elders in Jerusalem dealt with in Acts 15 concluding that Mosaic Law did not have to be kept either be saved or be good Christians. Paul' went on his second missionary journey in large part to spread the news of their conclusion. However, many of the Jews that professed faith in Jesus still had a hard time with the idea and would put a lot of pressure on others to still keep those dietary restrictions. In Galatians 2 Paul recounts that he even had to oppose Peter on this issue because he no longer ate with the Gentiles, but had withdrawn and become aloof, fearing the party of the circumcision.
It is important to note that there is no requirement anywhere that the dietary laws must be disobeyed. People can still voluntarily follow them if they desire as long it does not become a requirement for themselves or others or a point of pride. Dietary restrictions neither bring additional favor from God nor make someone spiritually superior. Paul addresses this issue in Romans 14:1-4. "Now accept the one who is weak in faith, [but] not for [the purpose of] passing judgment on his opinions. 2 One man has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats vegetables [only.] 3 Let not him who eats regard with contempt him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats, for God has accepted him. 4 Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and stand he will, for the Lord is able to make him stand."
Paul's own practice was to use his freedom in Christ with wisdom to further the gospel. He explains in 1 Corinthians 9 & 10 that he would voluntarily restrict himself when he was with Jews since they were under the law and he did not want to unnecessarily offend them. He would use his freedom to eat when with Gentiles so as to not appear aloof. In addition, he would also voluntarily restrict himself whenever it might cause someone else to do something which would violate their conscience because their faith had not yet matured in that area (Romans 14).
Those who demand that dietary restrictions be kept, whether they arise from the Old Testament or some other source or tradition, tread on dangerous ground. Paul warned Timothy about them in very strong terms in 1 Timothy 4:1-5. "But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, 2 by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, 3 [men] who forbid marriage [and advocate] abstaining from foods, which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with gratitude; 5 for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer." Most of you can think of religious groups that have fallen to the doctrine of demons as explained here.
Drink Restrictions
The second issue Paul warns about is in regard to drinking. The same principles that apply to eating also apply to drinking. As Paul said in Romans 14:17, "for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." True righteousness is not a matter of keeping dietary laws. It is a matter of walking in the Spirit of God. As Paul summarized in 1 Corinthians 10:31, "Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
However, I must caution here that this does not mean that the strong Scriptural warnings about wine and strong drink are to be ignored. While true righteousness is not determined by wha
t you drink or the manner of its preparation, consuming an intoxicating drink to the point of drunkenness is sin (Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 5:18; 1 Peter 4:3; etc.). Be wise and heed the warnings such as in Proverbs 20:21 and 23:29-32. "Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, And whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise." It is a viper that brings on woe, sorrow, contention and wounds. If you drink wine, beer or liquors beware of their dangers and use utmost caution.
Calendar Duties
The third area Paul warned them not to let themselves be judged on by others is in regard to holy days which he lists out in three specific types – a festival, a new moon and Sabbath. The Mosaic Law designated quite a few feasts or festivals that were to be kept which include Passover, Unleavened Bread, First-fruits, Pentecost, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Feast of Booths. In addition to these there were monthly sacrifices to be made at the new moon, and the keeping of the weekly Sabbath. In many ways Jewish life centered around these calendar events, but a major change was made with the coming of the Messiah. There would be a freedom of worship that came with the Holy Spirit that would supersede calendar worship.
Paul explains in Romans 14:5-9, "One man regards one day above another, another regards every day [alike.] Let each man be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God. 7 For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; 8 for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord's. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived [again], that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living."
Again, Paul is in no way telling them they must disregard the festivals, in fact we know that Paul continued to observe many of them after he became a follower of Jesus. In addition, those of Jewish descent have every reason to continue to observe them as part of their heritage and God's grace to their people. What Paul is saying is that how well someone observes any of them, if at all, was no longer an indication of true spirituality, so they were not to be used as a basis for judging. Most people seem to understand this principle in regards to the festivals and new moon observances, but there has been and is a greater difficulty concerning the Sabbath.
Why don't Christians observe the Sabbath? First, it is not a requirement under the New Covenant as already alluded to in citing Romans 14 and the freedom the believer has in regard to the observance of days. There are no New Testament commands for Christians to observe the Sabbath, and there are no commands in the Hebrews Scriptures for the Gentile nations to observe the Sabbath, which give strong indication that it was a part of God's covenant with Israel and not a universal requirement. In addition, neither the Jerusalem Council imposed it nor did Paul ever warn about not keeping it. In fact, here in Colossians and Galatians 4:9-11 he warns about requiring such observances since they are "worthless elemental things." Why do most Christians worship on Sundays? Only because it became the practice of the early church in honor of Jesus' being raised from the dead on a Sunday (Acts 20:7), though there is nothing wrong for observing a different day if so desired (Romans 14:6). In other words, there is nothing wrong for Messianic congregations gathering to worship on Friday evenings, or for Seventh Day Adventists gathering on Saturday mornings, or for other churches to meet Saturday night as they desire as long as they do not make that a requirement for all Christians to observe.
Shadow vs. Substance
Paul points out in verse 17 the very practical reason not to let others judge you on these issues of eating, drinking or observance of holy days. They are "things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ." A shadow can reveal the basic shape of the reality that casts the shadow, but it has no substance in itself. The substance is only in the reality that cast the shadow, and in this case, that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul's point is simple, why let someone judge you based on shadows when you have the reality?
Jesus is the fulfillment of the types and shadows of the old covenant. He is the bread of life who came out of heaven that satisfies our hunger and brings eternal life (John 6:35-58). He is the one that provides the living water that satisfies the soul so that the one who believes has a spring of water springing up to eternal life (John 4:10-13; 6:35; 7:37-38). He is the fulfillment of the feasts for He is our Passover (1 Corinthians 5:7). He is the first-fruits from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:20-23). He poured out His spirit and gave birth to the church on Pentecost (Acts 2). He atoned for our sins and redeemed us, forgave us and reconciled us to God (Colossians 1:13-22; Hebrews 9, etc.). He is the life and the light of the world (John 1:4). We have the reality, don't trade it for a shadow.
Legalism is dangerous because at minimum it replaces the reality of true life in Christ by walking in His spirit with the shadow of religious observances. It can be so severe as to replace the gospel of God's grace with the false gospel of self-righteousness by works which Paul warned about so strongly in Galatians.
And while we do not want to fall into legalism, neither do we want to stumble into licentiousness which is just as much a problem, perhaps even more so, in American Christianity. We are not under the law of Moses, but we are under the law of Christ learning to obey whatsoever He has commanded (Matthew 28:20). Therefore let us walk by the Spirit of God, and not in our flesh, and bring glory to our God by living holy lives reflecting our Lord living through us.
FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION on the topics of legalism and licentiousness, see the sermon series Holy & Free
Parents, you are responsible to apply God's Word to your children's lives. Here is some help. Young Children – draw a picture about something you hear during the sermon. Explain your picture(s) to your parents at lunch. Older Children – 1) Write down all the verses mentioned. 2) Count how many times the word "legalsim" is used 3) Talk with your parents about how to avoid legalism
Questions to consider in discussing the sermon with others. How is Christ superior to philosophy? What is licentiousness? What was John correcting in 1 John? What was Paul correcting in 1 Corinthians? How does true spirituality manifest itself? What would be a good indicator that a Christian has stepped into licentiousness? What is legalism? What are some of the warnings Jesus gave to the Pharisees about their legalism? How did the legalism of the Pharisees develop? Are there similarities between the Pharisees and legalists of our own time? How did the legalism among the Galatians manifest itself – how did Paul react to it? How was the legalism in Colossae manifesting itself? How does Jesus' command in Matthew 7:1-4 explain Paul's command in Colossians 2:16? What are some of the ways that the Pharisees accused or condemned the disciples and Jesus Himself? Does Jesus prohibit Christians from judging others? Why or why not? Explain Matthew 7:5 and Galatians 6:1-4. What does the legalist value more than obedience to God and showing compassion? What were some of the Mosaic Law's restrictions on what they could eat, how it was to be prepared and the manner of eating? What are some Jewish traditions that go beyond the Mosaic Law? What is the Christian's obligation toward the traditions of men? Why was it so hard for the early Jewish Christians to give up their dietary practices? What is the principle Paul teaches in Romans 14 about eating and how to treat one another? What was Paul's own practice concerning dietary restrictions? Why did he do what he did? (See 1 Corinthians 9 & 10). What religions do you know would fit the warning given in 1 Timothy 4:1-5? Must Christians abstain from alcoholic beverages? Why or why not? What warnings do the Scriptures give concerning intoxicating drink? What were the Mosaic requirements regarding festivals, new moons and Sabbaths? What principle guides in the observance of days – Romans 14? Must Jewish people cease celebrating the festivals? Why or why not? Why do Christians not have to observe the Sabbath? Why do most Christians observe Sunday as a day of worship? How are the dietary restrictions and the holy days shadows of what is to come in the reality of Christ? How does Jesus fulfill the various Jewish festivals? How can you avoid legalism? How can you avoid licentiousness?
Sermon Notes – 10/3/2010
The Superiority of Christ to Legalism – Colossians 2:16-17
Paul warns the Colossian believers of clear and present ____________ in their midst
He warned them about being ________by persuasive argument or be captured by empty, vain philosophy
Jesus is ___________by His nature, work & position giving a better circumcision, baptism, life & victory
Paul warns about _________, asceticism and mysticism – Colossians 2:16-23
License and Legalism
Licentiousness rejects law believing they have spiritual ___________ for the things they practice
1 John is written to correct the error of _____________ based licentiousness – 1 John 3:9-10
1 Corinthians corrects the licentiousness based in spiritual ________.
True spirituality is expressed in Christian _________ – 1 Corinthians 12-14
Some people ____________ their sinful behavior by claiming the Holy Spirit's leading
Christians who sin and try to ____________ it instead of repenting have stepped into licentiousness
Legalism defines spirituality by a strict code of conduct determined by _________ instead of God
Jesus ___________ the Pharisees for it – Matthew 15:9; Matthew 23:23-24
Legalists are often __________for the Lord, but are ignorant of His will (Rom. 10:2; Gal. 1:14; Phil. 3:6)
Most legalistic traditions start as a means to _______________ breaking one of God's commandments
The legalists in Galatia had perverted the _____________ – Gal. 1:8-9
The legalists in Colossae were only redefining righteous ____________, not the gospel itself.
Legalism still ___________ today in a variety of ways and extremes
The Command – let no one act as your judge in regard to . . .
___________ spoke against this kind of judgmentalism – Matthew 7:1-4
Matthew 15:1-9, the Pharisees condemn the _____________
Matthew 12:1-2, the Pharisees ___________ the disciples of breaking the Sabbath
Jesus heals people and the Pharisees accuse Him of healing by the power of _______________
Matthew 5:7 – Jesus was not prohibiting all ________, but only the wrong manner of doing so (cf. Gal. 6)
They placed greater importance on keeping ______________than obeying God and showing compassion
Food Restrictions – what was eaten, how it was prepared, and how it was eaten
Traditions: washing hands (Matt. 15), __________ sets of dishes to avoid violation of Deut. 14:21
The Christian is not obligated to keeping the traditions of ____________
Mosaic Law – restrictions on particular animals (Leviticus 11) considered ______________
Early Christian ____________ had a hard time letting go of the dietary restrictions of the Mosaic Law
It is not required to _________Mosaic dietary laws, but keeping them must be voluntary & without pride
The principle – Romans 14:1-4
Paul's use of his _____________ in Christ – 1 Corinthians 9 & 10
1 Timothy 4:1-5. Paul's warning about the ___________ of legalistic practices and God's view of food
Drink Restrictions
Romans 14:17 – True _________________ is not a matter of dietary laws, but of walking in the Spirit
1 Corinthians 10:31 – living for God's ____________
_________against intoxicating drink: Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:18; 1 Peter 4:3. Proverbs 20:21 and 23:29-32
Calendar Duties
Three specific types in the Mosaic Law – a _____________, a new moon and Sabbath
The principle – Romans 14:5-9
They do not have to ________________ the festivals, but they are not required to keep them.
Keeping the Sabbath is not part of the _________ covenant
Most Christians worship on Sunday out of honor for Jesus' __________________ (Acts 20:7)
Shadow vs. Substance
Why let someone judge you based on shadows when you have the _____________?
Jesus is the ________________ of the types and shadows of the old covenant
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30 July, 2011
Wishing I was thereHave a blast in Canada... I will def be thinking of the show.. I had a blast 2 years ago and Tuesday night... So jelous I wont be there tonight. I am anxiously waiting for your next tour.. I will be going more than twice next time... LOVE U GUYS....
30 July, 2011
Drowning manWell if we are requesting songs to be played tonight make it drowning man for all the fans (including my sister) drowning in the rain over there. And yes a LIVE FEED for all the fans at home would be very much appreciated. Hell i think we paying members here deserve it . Greetz from dutchelevation.nl
29 July, 2011
BANG! Not a whimper in Moncton!Please add me to the list begging for a live feed from the last show. U2 360 (and the fans) deserve to GO OUT WITH A BANG - NOT A WHIMPER! DC/Vegas/SLC/Denver/Baltimore - I could really use another fix! PS - Nothing wrong with playing Unknown Caller ...
29 July, 2011
rainctpaddy - the rain in MN just made it better... have a blast!!!
29 July, 2011
Irish Spirit comes alive at Small Town PIn a small town called New Glasgow....just 2 hours outside of Moncton is home of The Dock Food Spirits & Ales pub. A local owner who was born and raised in Cork, Ireland is home to the best food and drink in the town. One of the oldest commerical properties in Nova Scotia would love to have U2. DARE TO BE BOLD???? Give us a try. Cheers:)
29 July, 2011
FROM Montreal to MonctonSEE YA THERE :):) Take 4 of this tour :)
29 July, 2011
Bloody SundayMy Dad is a survivor. We 5 are Canadians because of it. This country has been very good to us. Do us proud boys and dont let the rain stop ya.
28 July, 2011
The best summer of my life!After September 16 and 17 shows in Toronto in 2009, and shows in Montreal on July 8th and 9th and then Toronto on the 11th this year (to which I brought my 11 year old daughter to her first U2 gig - a highlight of my life!), I am today packing up and making a 15 hour journey to Moncton with the family for the final gig of the 360 tour, which my wife and I will take in. Blessings on the band, crew and support staff for well-deserved rest and time with family after the Moncton show. At the risk of some immature hyperbole, thank you for your part in giving me the best summer of my life!
27 July, 2011
Taking requests for Moncton?Bullet the blue sky and Running to Stand Still... Zoo TV style would be awesome... Please? Gone? how but showing Pop some love... Magnificent, Crumbs from your table, Electrical Storm, Breathe, One Tree Hill, Miracle Drug... Thank you for giving us all a great life filled with the energy and spirit of U2.
27 July, 2011
Spring Hill Mining Disaster!!The town of Springfield is only about an hour away... what a cool opportunity to perfrom it live!!
27 July, 2011
Live Broadcast?If at all possible, a live broadcast would be deeply appreciated!
27 July, 2011
is the band staying around moncton....?does anyone know if they are coming and staying in mocton ?
27 July, 2011
Make my life!!Please please end the tour with Bad. I see you played it last night.....
27 July, 2011
subscriber audio broadcast for MonctonDear U2.com, LiveNation, Principle Management, Universal Music, Magnetic Hill Music Fest, and all other interested/invested parties. This is an ardent appeal from the U2 faithful who are graciously, respectfully, earnestly, imploring you to act, to advocate on their behalf for an official Moncton feed. The U2360 World Tour has touched many lives, many fans have followed the band for several gigs. All they ask is for just one more. Please. With thanks for your time and consideration, CO. And so many more...
27 July, 2011
Moncton Live FeedDear U2 and all involved parties, As a loyal member of U2.com, I would like to request, or beg on hands and knees, on behalf of myself and other paying members, a live feed of the Moncton show. When we have not been at the shows, we have followed them in the Zootopia forum. As the final show of such an amazing tour, it would please us immensely to be able to follow a good live feed. Your consideration to this suggestion would be much appreciated. And as another member pointed out, this would be a good opportunity for gaining memberships, as things do tend to die down after the tour is over. Thank you, mich40
26 July, 2011
Coming from VancouverSaw you in BC place, coming to hear you without the reverb. It was still awesome
26 July, 2011
I might just try again...Would love to hear Springhill Mining Disaster. Cannot wait for the final show. What an honour!
23 July, 2011
Please fellowsPlease fellows I would like to hear: She Moves In Mysterious Ways/Sugar, Sugar (the Archies)/Union of the Snake (Duran Duran)
22 July, 2011
CAN HARDLY WAIT!!!ALL U2 SHOWS WERE AMAZING BUT THIS ONE IS MAGNIFICENT. THIS GUYS ARE LIKE WINE THEY GET BETTER WITH THE YEARS!! Blessed to be able to see them again. The last show< WOOOOOOOW!! LUCKY US MONCTON CROWD!!
08 July, 2011
Road Tripthis will be my 4th 360 tour concert - boston, munich, paris, moncton- friends for ireland and boston are all in for this U2 ROAD TRIP
02 July, 2011
first and lastyep ... i was at barca and just organising to go to moncton ... plane tix done and leavin dublin on 26th
25 June, 2011
Always go to the first and last night...Who else was in Barcelona.....?
13 April, 2011
love U2 and CarneyHey guys im from Ireland so no chance of me being at this show but there is a band playing before u2 and arcade fire on this night called Carney and they are tipped to be the next biggest band on the planet. I was just hoping someone could tape a couple of vids of them or record some audio and upload maybe on youtube would be fantastic guys thanks. :) I also believe U2 are releasing a new album in October can't wait. :)
13 April, 2011
Are we sure?we are ready to leave the ground for U2, from Italy, my whole family will be there...but are we sure this show will really be the last of 360° tour???? please give us a kind of certainty about it Love U
Yahweh is Lord
22 March, 2011
MacNaughton Family ReunionThe MacNaughton Family Reunion is being held in Fredricton the same weekend as the concert. Just a hop, skip and a jump away. A few folks are worried about getting a hotel room. Others are getting tickets to the show. This is going to be the best reunion ever.
18 February, 2011
FinallyI used to play in a rock band 25 years ago. We used to do about 8 or 9 U2 Songs. people thought we were from outer space. Songs like two hearts beat as one Pride, Sunday bloody Sunday, & of course I will follow, now I can finally say to those people; I bet your not asking me now!! who that band U2 is.JUST THE BIGGEST MOST NATURAL BAND IN THE WORLD David
18 February, 2011
Can't WaitLove to meet the guys Hope they do Two hearts beat as one I'm bringing my whole family wife & two boys
06 February, 2011
Welcome to Moncton U2Since the first big concert (Rolling Stone concert) in Moncton, I have been waiting to see U2 play on the hill. Finally after all the rumor and the waiting we have an opportunity to see the biggest band alive. Welcome to Moncton U2
04 February, 2011
Bienvenue en Acadie!!!Welcome to Moncton, U2!!! We have the best lobster, the best city in Canada, the warmest water north of Virginia, the best looking girls. For the rest of the world, come to the Hill, and discover a wonderful place. You will love us!!
03 February, 2011
Springhill Mining DisasterI think any true U2 fan and Atlantic Canadian would appreciate hearing Springhill Mining Disaster. Hope the boys decide to play it! U2 Concert #7! Yea!


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Winning Dissertation Topics in Nursing: Expert's Choice
Nursing is not a neglected profession as many educated female graduates enter into nursing to build up their careers. A nurse is a good assistant to help surgeons to complete the complicated surgery. She must be efficient to identify different surgical appliances and terms. She should be well educated with computer literacy. She must have patience to understand the problems of patients. Nursing professionals must be co-operative to help patients to move, take medicines and talk to experts. When students write dissertations in nursing, they are given a list of topic s to choose. Experts recommend few current topics in nursing. However, students should do research well to have more interesting nursing topics to illustrate the content.
Tips to Find Interesting Nursing Topics
- Internet browsing is the best way to get numerous topics to write dissertations in nursing
- Online friends at social media portals are helpful to find the best topics in nursing
- Online experts have shortlisted keywords to help students to search for good topics to write academic papers in nursing
- Extensive self-discovery research in online sites is effective to people to handpick different attractive topics to write content in nursing.
Take Assistance from Experts to Choose Different Nursing Topics
There are different categories or disciplines in nursing and medicine. You must choose the best category to write informative and research based content in nursing. For instance, the childcare is now a global concern as many children die due to negligence. They are manhandled by incompetent nurses and doctors. So, you can project different views of experts to make an argumentative dissertation paper on nursing. The role of competent nurses to take care of children in hospitals and clinics can be evaluated. Nurses in midwifery are required to assist high risk pregnant women who have pre-existing diseases. As a nurse, what is your role to play? You must know different techniques to give relief to a pregnant woman from stress. Discuss elaborately and bring new points to illustrate the content more strategically. Nurses are also required in many lunatic asylums and mental hospitals to tackle patients who have mental retardation with loss of memory. Therefore, you need to prioritize the selection of the best topics in nursing in the sphere of mental health. Many complicated issues about the negligence in mental hospitals can be raised. These problems need to be solved to give more security to patients who have lost connection or rapport with the society. So obviously you must be bold to broach up these issues in your academic papers.
Nursing must be exempted from politics and people have to be much more conscious about their health. Visit online sites and research to have interesting facts to create good content writing topics in nursing.


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Theatre Review: APT visits 'The Island'
Thursday, April 28, 2016 [1] by PAUL WILLISTEIN email@example.com [2] in Focus [3]
The sound of a drummer fills Christ Lutheran Church, Allentown, as four men in khaki prison garb dance rhythmically and in unison down the outside aisles. Two continue dancing and a drummer continues drumming in the center aisle. The other two walk onto the stage.
The setting for "The Island," which continues April 29, 30 and May 1, is Robben Island (where Nelson Mandela was held), South Africa. The actors on stage, John (Ryan Fields) and Winston (Jamil Joseph), are prisoners. The two dancers (Chiedu Mbonu, Theophilus Timothy) and drummer (Vernon J. Mobley) augment the dialogue on stage with drumming and dancing during between-scene segues.
John is the driving force for the first half of the one-act, one-hour and 20-minute drama, cajoling Winston into participating in a production of Sophocles' "Antiqone" in what seems to be a prison talent show. John will play Creon. Winston is reluctant to play the female role of Antigone.
The balance shifts when John learns he is soon to be released from prison. Winston must continue to serve his term. Winston relents and plays Antigone.
"The Island," written by Athol Fugard, John Kani and Winston Ntshona, is presented by Allentown Public Theatre and directed by Anna Russell, APT artistic director.
"The Island," which opened in 1974 in the Edison Theatre, received Tony Awards for Play and Actor in a Play.
The Allentown Public Theatre production's raised and raked stage creates an island, if you will, of visibility and intimacy in the cavernous Christ Lutheran Church sanctuary.
The plain-spoken dialogue, peppered with profanity, bespeaks of two frustrated men at wits' end. Fields plays the role of John with the right touch of levity. Joseph plays Winston with deep bitterness and resignation.
Russell directs with a realism that transcends the minimalist staging, lighting and production values. The production has the quality of Brechtian theater, a kind of "Waiting for 'Antigone.'" Here, "Antigone" arrives, but not as the prisoners or the audience expects.
The actors are convincing in their portrayals. The change in dyamics between John and Winston is managed well by the actors. The underlying dramatic tension is compelling under Russell's direction.
The often poetic dialogue leads to a dream sequence of alter ego. There is also singing with background harmony and drumming.
"The Island" is a captivating visit to a place not so far away.
"The Island" is part of the Lehigh Valley arts series, "Voices of Conscience: Toward Racial Understanding." Allentown Public Theatre is presenting a private performance for Lehigh County Correctional Center residents.
"The Island," Allentown Public Theatre, 7 p.m. April 28, Christ Lutheran Church, 1245 Hamilton St., Allentown; noon, 5 p.m. April 29 and 2 p.m. May 1, Allentown Arts Park, Fifth and Court streets, Allentown. Tickets, at the venue and: AllentownPublicTheatre.com, 888-895-5645


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Former Vice President Dick Cheney seized an opportunity to attack President Obama during an interview on CNN last Sunday, saying Obama's policies "raise the risk" of another terror attack in the U.S. Offering more class than his former VP, former President Bush yesterday declined to criticize Obama. In a seeming rebuke to Cheney, Bush said, "I love my country a lot more than I love politics," he said:
"He was not my first choice for president, but, when he won, I thought it was good for the United States of America," Mr. Bush said.
"I want the President to succeed," he added, "I love my country a lot more than I love politics…I'm not going to spend my time criticizing him. There are plenty of critics in that arena," he continued.
Bush said that Obama "deserves my silence and if he wants my help he can pick up the phone and call me," adding, "I think it is essential that he be helped in office." Bush's desire to see Obama succeed stands in stark contrast to many of his Republican friends on Capitol Hill and their leader, Rush Limbaugh. Will Limbaugh criticize Bush for not sharing his hope that Obama fails?


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Nasdaq Expands Services With Thomson Reuters Investor Relations Deal
Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. has agreed to acquire Thomson Reuters Corp.'s investor relations, public relations and multimedia services businesses for $390 million in cash, as the exchange operator looks to build out its corporate services.
The businesses, which have more than 7,000 clients worldwide, will be integrated into Nasdaq's corporate solutions segment. The segment will become a large investor-relations outfit and a provider of PR and webcasting services, giving Nasdaq more offerings it can sell to corporate clients.
With trading volume weak, Nasdaq has been working to build up a range of technology and data services and products to sell to its traders and listed companies that create recurring revenue contracts. To do so, Nasdaq has embarked on a series of acquisitions.


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In 2014, Markair Components re-engineered 1200mm Ex'd' Rated Axial fans for several of Esso's offshore Natural Gas platforms in the Bass Strait.
With the application being such a hazardous environment, strict conformance with IECEx requirements were achieved, while maintaining fan longevity by utilising our skills fabricating a full 316 Stainless Steel case and motor mount at our Mulgrave production facility.
To ensure that the fan was fit for purpose, a specially designed copper lining was fabricated and installed inside the fan case, to ensure the custom designed impeller could not induce sparks during operation of the fan assembly.
The project was completed within the required time frame to ensure that the platforms were non-operational for a very minimal time frame. This was achieved through close co-ordination with the on-site engineers and installers.


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For a software component were using we need to provide 2 input files. One with a list of nodes (nodeId, lat, lon) and one with ways (fromNodeId, toNodeId, oneway, maxSpeed, lenght).
To create these 2 files I created a custom postprocessor class, you can find the code here: https://gist.github.com/anonymous/5047904
To get the Nodes I read the "tn_raw.2po" file, for the ways the "sw_all.2po" file. This works great, but now my node output files contains all osm nodes. What I would like, is that the file only contains the nodes used in the ways file.
Is it possible to only output the used nodes in a file?


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Mannford (MHS) Class of 2003 Alumni List
Help us Update the Mannford 2003 Class List by adding any names missing from the list below:
Registered Alumni
2003 Class List
Know Mannford Class of 2003 graduates that are NOT on this List? Help us Update the 2003 Class List by adding missing names.
The top movie in theaters during 2003 was The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, grossing over $377,845,905 in its lifetime. The most popular television series for 2003 was CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Reunions and Mannford High School News
More 2003 alumni from Mannford HS have posted profiles on Classmates.com®. Click here to register for free at Classmates.com® and view other 2003 alumni.
The Mannford High class of '03 alumni are listed below. These are former students from Mannford High in Mannford, OK who graduated in 2003. Alumni listings below have either been searched for or they registered as members of this directory.
You can share memories of those activities that you were involved with at Mannford HS and you can view other alumni and read what other former students have posted about the time they spent at Mannford.


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Add an Online Calendar to your website
Create an Online Group with Online Calendar and link to your website! Now you can have your own social network and Online Calendar for your members.
What's really cool about online Group Links is that each one you create is actually its own social network, kind of like a "meeting place" for your group, where you can view or send information to all the Group Link members in one handy spot. And every home page has a Shared Online Calendar so all your group members stay well-informed.
Easy steps to setup a Group Link home page with Shared Online Calendar, and ADD TO YOUR WEBSITE!:
- First, hover over the red Create button on your dashboard and choose "Group Link" from your dashboard.
- Second, choose the "Open" option at the bottom of the assistant screen that follows, and continue creating the details of your group (don't forget to add logo/photo!).
- Third, once your Group Link is created, you'll see a "Share" button at the top right of the group home page. Click it, and take the URL and put on your website! Many of our users create a "portal logo" to put on their site and embed the URL. Your viewers will be impressed that you have your own social network!
- Now anyone who clicks on the link can join your Group page and view the shared online calendar! And because your Group Link page is also your own social network, you can interact with all your members, share info, post events, and more in one handy place!
- Includes settings to allow only you to add events, messages, etc., or allow group members to post info too. It's up to you!
Your Group's Online Calendar. Here's what your viewers will see when they click on your calendar link…
With Findandremind, you also get your own private Personal Online Calendar. And all your group events show up on it too!
It's easier than ever to keep all your group members literally on the same page, so why wait?
Sign up now to better connect with your members, or click here to take a tour and see all the other amazing organizing tools you can have!
Additional Resources to Learn More About Findandremind Group Links:
Blog Articles for Group Links
Sign up for your Free Online Group Links


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Thunder is rumbling across the sky sending shivers down my spine, how I do so love the storms of spring. Iron clouds of battleship grey undulate outside my window, rain sluicing down the glass even as it trembles, washing winter's touch from the surface of the world.
Rain is a lovely thing. Its damp entrance does indeed make my bones ache but it accomplishes one thing that even my husband despairs to achieve -- it makes me pause. Traps me inside, leaves the tools and stones and seeds outdoors...and I rest. At the moment, I'm rather relieved as the bruises have accumulated a bit faster than usual lately. Last week I spent seventeen hours on a ladder scraping, sanding and painting the porch ceiling a delicious dark chocolate to match the shutters. Painted the porch and rails, scrubbed the siding to a blinding white (which I fear has been before our purchase of this place since last occurring), potted up the ferns, filled the hummingbird feeder and cleaned the grill in anticipation of long delicious evenings.
I only fell off the ladder once.
And then the roses arrived.
Frustrated with the anemic shrubs that crouched along the front of the house like anorexic tarantulas, I took the plunge and sent off for three rose bushes of a new variety: low on sun, blooms from spring through the crisp of fall, resistant to mold and spot--essentially heaven with honey colored petals.
Did I mention that I've never planted roses before?
Tucked within the neat brown wrapping along with rooted plants, was a small innocuous book. "How To Plant Anything." Page twenty: Roses. Did you know a two foot wide, two foot deep hole dug into the earth for every plant is required? (I certainly did not) Fill the bottom with gravel for good drainage, mix the loam and soil and pile into a cone shape upon which you sill spread out the baby roots which have been soaking for a day....
Two hours past dinner, dusk not far off, I'm on my knees in the front yard. A tear in my jeans leaves smears of black and brown on my knee. My old Chuck Taylors slipping in the mud and grass, I lugged buckets of broken rocks to the edge of the now prepared (holed) brick edged flower bed. My husband came out to watch for a bit...."More than you anticipated, hmmmm?" I think I panted an answer of a grunt, heaving dirt up onto the tarp I'd spread out to protect the lawn.
One neighbor offered rootbeer which my husband enjoyed, and another brought me a strawberry alcoholic beverage that I slurped down like a nine year-old with a slushy. (we do have such lovely neighbors) My back ached. The muscles in my arms were hard and felt like wire twisted too taunt beneath my flesh as the leather gloves chafed the soft skin on the inside of my wrists. I had grit on my cheek and bits of grass in my hair, but as I held the already budding canes carefully still while gently pouring the soft dirt that smelled of life and wind and rain to cover roots that I whispered prayers of deep growth over, the satisfaction was nearly a flavor on my tongue.
Such is planting.
Some of my earliest memories were of my mother in the garden. I remember watching the miracle of tiny black seeds sprouting into heads of cabbage and mountains of tomatoes and squash long before ever stepping a foot inside school. I think my first true love might have been dirt. (and I had the laundry to prove it--and to some extent, still do) The possibilities within the dark earth...ground well-tilled, aired out and tumbled with nutrients, fertile land within which to grow and flourish. Nourishment of the soul as well as the body whole.
It's work. It's painful. I've nine bruises, two scrapes and this is what happened when my hand slipped on the shovel, stoving my middle finger. *sigh*
But oh, the seeds we plant regardless; some with care, some without. In our children, our relationships, our futures. I look back and clearly see the years my garden was....lacking. My investment was terribly visible in the harvest. Sparse and dry. Perhaps this understanding comes with age? Watching a thought bulge into an idea and then unfold into a plan. Exertion and discipline and sweat. And then luscious, succulent fruit. Or maybe the recognition of a kindred soul, infused with time and kindness--and friendship follows. Journals written, talents explored, horizons challenged...
The air is heavy, saturated with rain and promise.
What are you planting this spring?


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'Breaking Dawn – Part 2′ Pics: Take a Good Look at Renesmee
It was just yesterday when we got a slight sneak peek at 'Breaking Dawn - Part 2' Bella and Edward Cullen's new rapidly growing bundle of joy, Renesmee. The wait is finally over, 'Twilight' fans. Now you're able to get a real look at the half-human/half-vampire young girl in a series of new images released today.
Along with the first real look at Renesmee, we're treated to several new photos that show our favorite vampires and werewolves in action. There's even a couple of pictures with Bella Cullen (Kristen Stewart) acting very maternal in her new vampire form. We can certainly feel the undead love.
But they're not the only people you see. 'Twilight' fans should be delighted to know that we're getting a first look not only at Renesmee but a couple of the vampire tribes that team up with the Cullens before their big battle with the Volturi. If we're already getting so many teasers on the highly anticipated final film this early, then it's safe to say we'll be seeing a good amount of footage at this year's San Diego Comic-Con. 'Twilight' fans rejoice.
'The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2' centers on Bella Cullen (Stewart), a woman who's experiencing the world now as a newly turned vampire and a mother. Unfortunately for her, not everyone is happy about the arrival of Renesmee. The Volutri are furious to find out that a half-vampire/half-human child has been born into their world. Now they're hell-bent on destroying the young girl, but the Cullen family won't let them take her without a fight. They band together a group of vampires, and seek the aid of Jacob and his wolf pack in order to protect Renesmee from the wrath of the ancient vampire clan.
Go ahead and check out the series of new images below, provided by EW. 'Breaking Dawn - Part 2' is finally out in theaters on November 16th.


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Without stress – my mind has difficulty discerning when I'm "in action."
When ease is present, I habitually judge myself as "unproductive", "off the clock", "ineffectual" and "passive."
While there is surely such a thing as "slacking off"- i.e. not doing what there is to be done – it's quite different from easily doing what needs to be done and enjoying yourself the rest of the time.
The deeper I go into the Emergence Process, I see less that needs to be done. And the more clear I become about what needs to be done in order to accomplish what really matters to me.
How often do you find yourself "busy" just for the sake of doing something?
Does something have to be "hard" to be worthwhile and are you making your life harder so you can feel better about yourself?
If you could live without stress, would you even be willing to do it? How else would you know that you were doing a good job?


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9 Fun Things To Do In Bali Indonesia
Check out the list of fun things to do in Bali, Indonesia. Waterbom Bali Located in central Kuta, Waterbom is an oasis in the heart of the bustling tourist area and is Bali's most popular waterpark – and for good reason. Featuring numerous thrilling rides and child-friendly attractions, the park has something for everyone. Adults can enjoy massages or a tropical drink at the swim up bar whilst kids can head to the slides and wet play areas. Brave the pride of the park, a 70km/hr ride called Climax. Or…Read More


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- Color: Yellow
Product Details
Yellow Mustard Heidi' Flare Skirt
This feminine flared mini gets a modern update with Liverpool fabric blend. Designed in ponte, super-stretchy fabric that holds you in and accentuates your shape.
- Elastic Waist
- Textured Material
- Flare
- Stretchy
Yellow Mustard Heidi' Flare Skirt Yellow
- Dimensions: 1.0 inches (H) x 10.0 inches (W) x 15.0 inches (L)
- Weight: 0.9 pounds
- Included in the box: Skirt
- Made in China
For post-purchase inquiries, please contact customer support.
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