What is Christmas?

 

What is Christmas?

Christmas is a statement of the God who gives richly. It’s a celebration of feasting and giving and joy. The Christmas tree is a symbol of everlasting life, after Jesus’ death on the cross of the timber of a tree; a symbol of forgiveness and hope eternal. 

The decorations of the tree reflect splendour, kindness and beauty, and the lights of the tree represent His light, as we celebrate the One who is ‘the light of the world.’ 

The Christmas feast; a time to eat and drink, to celebrate before the Lord. There’s a wonder and fullness to the celebration of Christmas. Laughter comes, as does love, giving and receiving, but to some also comes a sadness, as lost loved ones are remembered by their absence: an empty seat under the table. 

Reach out to those in need at Christmas. Remember the Lord and all He has done for you. If you’re lucky enough to be blessed at this time, cast your thoughts to those who find this time of year difficult. Include others in this wonderful time of celebration: those who aren’t feeling so blessed, those who can’t afford the finer things of life, those who are lonely, broken and broken hearted. 

The above photo is of our beautiful man, Kai, who isn’t with us this Christmas. He is not forgotten. Our loved ones are never forgotten, whether two legged, or four. Take time for reflection, during this celebration season. It’s important to remember those we love. It’s important to remember the sacrifice Jesus made, so we can celebrate Christmas with joy and thanksgiving.  

Share this wonderful celebration and show the world – God is a good, good Father.  

When Fear Grips.

 

                      When fear grips.

How do we get through those tough times, when fear takes a hold, when anxiety awakens us in the middle of many a sleepless night? When the fear is so real, you can taste it? When fear grips at your heart, until you think you can’t endure? How do you handle it?

Apart from the fear of the Lord and fear of sin, all fears are from Satan. Satan sends fear to confuse and weaken us, to cause anxiety so deep, we think we will collapse under it. 

The acronym for fear is; False Evidence Appearing Real. And fear does feel very real. Satan doesn’t have a lot of tools in his armoury and tends to use the same ones, over and over. He loves to bring you into fear, to cause you to turn back, rather than courageously march forward.

The Israelites of the bible said to Moses, as he was leading them to the promised land; …have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? (Exodus 14:11) 

…for it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness. (Ex 14:12) 

Fear had taken hold. The Israelites had forgotten how dreadful their life was, before they left Egypt. They wanted to turn back, rather than march forward.

Sometimes God brings terror to the land and the people, as in Ezekiel 32:32 For I have caused my terror in the land of the living. Some fears are from God and we need to know the difference between what God brings upon the people and what the devil brings. 

The key to having victory over fear is to hand all your cares to God. Instead of allowing your fears to take root and grow, paralyzing your attempts at life, identify and confront those fears. Prayerfully go to God with the confidence that He will handle the situation for you.  

1 Peter 5:7 states; casting all your cares upon Him, for He cares about you.

Trust God. Reject all fear, as soon as it arises. …be vigilant: because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5:8) 

These are not just words on a page, but words from the living God, written in all truth, written to guide and protect you from the ways of the evil one. The Lord gave us His word on fear in Psalm 91: He is my refuge and my fortress…He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler (the evil one)...with long life I will satisfy you.

If we faithfully follow God and His word, we shall overcome our fears and march forward into our destiny, our place of victory. Fear isn’t the last word, God is.

*Biblical quotes: Holy Bible NKJV.

Alexandra Grose - A photojournalist and author for over twenty years. Writing is her passion and her dream and helping others achieve their dreams, through her written work, is Alexandra's greatest aspiration. 

 

#Integrity; truthfulness, honesty and reliability, in all things.

I believe one should....be truthful in everything you say and do. Keep all relationships open and honest. Be reliable, punctual and organised and if you say you'll do it - do it. 

If you want to soar like an eagle, make an effort, not an excuse. 

alexandragrose@amazon.com

Sometimes we just gotta do the hard stuff.

 

Sometimes we just gotta do the hard stuff.

The permanent, eternal part of you is Spirit (conscience).  The earthly part is soul and the soul is all about feelings. Feeling comfort, feeling peace, feeling fed. The soul is never satisfied and always wants more. More money, grander homes, bigger mountains to climb. The eternal part of you doesn’t need that. Spirit is about love, peace and joy. This is God’s will for all people.  

There’s always a remnant, someone who carries the torch to the next generation. 

We hire people to serve and protect, not to tell us what to believe, or where we can go. 

There is a small sum of influencers, who are given the responsibility of ruling the people. This small group at times, run in the wrong direction and it’s during these times the majority don’t agree, but the minority are running the show. 

Read the history for yourself and see how this plan is repeated throughout the centuries. Black segregation, Jews of the holocaust, the Berlin wall. None of this happened at once. It was a gradual input from the ruling people, into the minds of the common people, until the people could no longer tell right from wrong. 

We’re now being told what we should see and hear, where we can go and who can go, who has to stay home. You have to step out of the soul realm. You need to be guided by Spirit (conscience).  

With years of seduction to perusing wealth, you compromise what you feel led to do. We’re so afraid of loss; loss of our job, loss of our home, loss of our status, that we’re willing to relinquish our rights, rather than lose what we’ve worked for and look a failure to the outside world. We compromise our integrity and our Spirit, our meter to truth, right and wrong. 

Lawlessness will overtake, when the Spirit is removed. Don’t be deceived: this is a battle of good and evil. The soul is selfish. When you walk in Spirit, you walk in love. When you walk in soul, it’s all selfishness. It's all about what’s in it for me, what I can get, rather than give any thought to your neighbour. And the domino effect is set into motion. 

Hatred turns into violence and subtly, little by little, we’re taken to the point of segregation, to the point of calling right wrong and wrong right. And we end up with another holocaust. Think this couldn’t happen? The Germans were so programmed, little by little over time, that they had no compulsions in snitching on their neighbours. Do you see where this is taking you?

The Berlin Wall, the Holocaust, the segregation of race, religion, gender, all starts with the minority in power and the people listen and follow. Remember the sheep know the Shepherd’s voice, but there are fox’s in sheep’s clothing, mingling amongst the flock. Be mindful who you follow.

Evil is powerless, when the good are unafraid. When left unattended, the light of freedom will be extinguished. We all need to stand, whatever the cost, against the evil regime. Do the hard stuff, come together, become the remnant carrying the truth. The people are begging for release from the tyranny and it’s going to take all of us standing together in unity. 

This isn’t about a little hiccup. This is about control. Have your cake, if you wish. Don’t have your cake, if you don’t want it (if you get my drift). Either way, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that we stand together, not in separation, nor segregation, but stand together despite our differences. Rise up and be counted: together!

Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tender-hearted, be courteous…1 Peter 3:8 (biblical excerpt from NKJV 1982).

You May Not Agree, But Let's Agree To Disagree.

 

You May Not Agree, But Let’s Agree To Disagree.

Australia’s national statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research, confirms no person should be subject to coercion, or pressure in deciding whether to participate in clinical trials. It is important that one never feels forced to take part in a trial. 

The Australian Human Right Commission Act 1986 article 7…no one shall be subjected without his/her free consent to medical or scientific experimentation. 

The declaration of Helsinki 1964 by the World Medical Association is a statement of ethical principles for medical research involving humans. Under the heading “Informed Consent” it acknowledges; “participation by individuals capable of giving informed consent, as subjects in medical research, must be voluntary”.

Article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirm the right of people to work and not be forced to choose between the ability to work and the right not to be subject to cruel treatment. Those who choose not to have vaccine, see mandated vaccine for an experimental trial against the choice to work, as cruel and unjust.

Article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, a treaty signed by 173 nations states; no cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment. (Degrading and punishing being unable to work and provide for family.)

To force a vegan to eat meat, for some would amount to torture, as is forcing vaccination on some, seen as torture. Both would violate their human rights. 

The Nuremberg code of 1947...

Free power of choice without force, fraud, duress, constraint, coercion. Experimental subject of the trial should be made known. It should be conducted, so as to avoid unnecessary physical and mental suffering.

Scientists in charge must terminate the experiment, if it’s believed the experiment to be risky, or to result in injury or death. Have you seen the clips on people who’ve had adverse reactions? Why have they not terminated this experiment?

The Nuremberg code serves as a blueprint, ensuring the rights of subjects and the necessity of protecting people. It includes the consent of the people and the right to withdraw from the experiment at any time.  

The Hippocratic oath to at least do no harm and its expanded ethics to protect the rights of the people, is a joke when you consider: No jab, no job. This makes a mockery of the Hippocratic oath and it’s “do no harm”, as the choice between coercion and pressure to take the jab, or be unable to afford to feed and house your family means there are no rights for the people here.

The Ezekiel declaration which states avoidance of segregation, as well as opposition to vaccine passports, where Christians feel the demands being made upon them, are demands that are objectionable to conscience. Conscience, one part of the backbone of Christianity.

Then there’s the government’s own Doherty report, which states that giving the vaccine to children between the ages of 12-15 causes minimal impact to the outcome of the trials. Why then are we subjecting our children to these trials? And yet we are being forced to vaccinate our children, when we don’t know the long-term effects, just so they can participate in school and sport, which is a right, in a free and democratic country.

The acceptance from Pfizer, of the vaccine for 2-year-old children, is abhorrent to many. With barely any testing, how can this be acceptable?

The same people, who are giving the vaccine away at the moment, will in in the future be charging for said vaccine. The same people who want you to have a double vaccine, are already pushing for the third vaccine. The same people who are making the vaccine, are also making the rapid antigen test kits (RAT) and they will also come at a cost – to the worker. 

If the flu vaccine is $45 per person (which it normally is) and you only need it once a year, imagine a vaccine every six months, plus the cost of the RAT. By the way, you can’t find the price of the rat online, although I did hear on a television program the cost could be $70. What if you need to use your kit more than once? Now you’re paying $45 x 2 (twice yearly vaccination) plus $70 (and maybe another $70 for a second kit to keep on hand - let's hope you don't need a third - not to mention double income families with children, who are already struggling with the cost of living. Now those costs are getting quite expensive). 

At the end of the day “big pharma” will be bringing in a lot of revenue on this. 

For those who choose to have the vaccine, that’s great. There should not be an ‘us and them’ mentality. If you want the vaccine, have it. If you don’t want the vaccine, don’t have it. The choice should be ours to make, not forced upon us by the government we’ve elected. 

This isn't about the vaccine. It's about our right to choose. 

*Yes, the above photo is of a pen, not a syringe. I don’t have any stringes, or needles that would fit a syringe. As this snippet of writing was penned (excuse the pun) by me, I thought a pen would do for the pic. 

Doing it badly...

 

Doing it badly, is better than not doing it at all and spending your time decaying away in front of the telly. I used to take dreadful photographs, but with practice, I’ve become a much better photographer and I can honestly say I enjoy the photos I take now. 

I thought all I needed was a good camera, to take a good photo. How wrong I was. I got myself that “good camera” and my photos were still really bad. It was then I realized: it’s not what’s in front of the lens, but who’s behind the lens, which makes a good picture. 

Once I realized it was me, I had to make the decision to learn, if I wanted good photos. You too, need to make a decision to work towards what you’d like to see happen in your life. What would you like to achieve? Work towards it, until you get it right.

When you first learned to walk you fell often, but you didn’t quit and eventually you became an expert at walking. It was the same with driving a car. You had to practice, until it became second nature and you became good at it. Life is like that. You start your new venture badly, keep going, get better, keep going some more, until you become expert at it. 

It doesn’t matter that you start badly. It matters that you keep trying, keep going. Work out what’s not producing the results you’re after and you do this by either reading (or you tube) how others did it, how others overcame their issue, or by trial and error. Wouldn’t you rather learn by another’s failure than create your own?

Even then, there’s no guarantee failure won’t visit you, but you will have a greater understanding; failure is the process you take and the progress you make, on the way to success. By reading what others have done you can avoid many of the pitfall’s others fell into and you’ll have less, if not none, of those pitfall’s and failures yourself. Not only that, have you thought: You might just succeed? What then?

Do what’s meaningful, not what’s expedient. And that’s hard to do. Doing the meaningful takes effort. With effort comes more responsibility. Be responsible.  Once you do, you will find the success you’ve been looking for and you can be proud of your efforts. 

You're Never Too Old To Create A New Path.

 

You’re never too old, to create a new path for your life.

If life isn’t going the way you want:

Remember things change and nothing stays the same forever. In the meantime, find one thing you can do and work at it, build on it and one day your hobby becomes your future income. This is exciting news, if you’re one of the many, who hate their job.

If you feel trapped and you feel like this is your future, that there’s no hope, know that it’s not true. If you want to set out on a new path and you have an idea – feed that idea, water it, make it happen and watch it grow. 

We all have different interests and skills. If you don’t know what they are, search for them.  Find what you’d love to do and work out how to be the best at it. 

The more responsibilities you have, the more limited your time will be.  Financial obligations mean you may have to keep working, leaving you able to only snatch moments to work on increasing skills, but snatch those moments when you can. 

Lighten your debt burden. Study wealth creation, while at the same time reducing your debt and one day, you’ll be debt free and have the knowledge and the money to invest in where and what you want. 

Do it like your life depends on it, because it does. You don’t want to spend all your working life in a job you hate. Be caffeinated and motivated. Be disciplined and go for what you want. 

Learn, fail, learn more. Failure is good for growth. If you never fail, you’re not trying. Failure isn’t proof that you suck, but an opportunity to do better. 

Victory is the greatest feeling, but often we go through failure, before we become victorious. There’s a progression that others don’t see, but it does take place. There’s a starting point, a working towards, a pursuing, (hopefully with passion) and in time, you get better, until you “get there.”

Although life is temporary, one day, God willing, you will be old. Do you want to be where you are, until you’re old and you die? Get your fun out, get your life out, get excited, get up and get it done, with the understanding that you don’t have to stay in the rut you’ve created. 

Search out happy, inspirational people and you’ll be inspired. Be happy while you work towards what you love. Love people and strive to make their day the best day they can have. Extend a warm smile, a kind word and a helping hand. If you’re surrounded by happy people, you’ll be a happier person. I know you’ve heard it before but, treat people the way you’d like to be treated.

Get onto a healthy routine. You know you should. Do all the ‘stuff’ you know you should be doing. Make an effort and stop making excuses. Eat healthy, reduce stress, reduce debt, meditate, get enough sleep, work out, study what you love. 

Learn investing. Believe it or not, it doesn’t take a lot of money to invest. To reap a harvest, you have to plant the seed. You don’t need a lot of seed to start. You don’t need a lot of money to start, you just need to start. And once you build wealth, you can teach others how to build wealth. Wealth is good for everybody. 

Don’t believe the lie that money doesn’t buy happiness. Imagine how happy you can make someone if you can pay their debts, buy them a car, or a home. When you see their happiness, it will produce happiness in you.

Decide not to be a loser anymore (not saying you are, but we all know, we can all do better). Work at something, so your kids can be proud of you. If anyone else can do it, know that you can do it too. 

Write your own movie, with you playing the lead role of the hero. What do you need to do, to be that hero? Don’t sit around spiralling in negativity, complaining and doing nothing about it. Go out and fix what isn’t working in your life. 

I wasn’t always confident. I wasn’t always happy. I was broke. I was suicidal. My health was poor. I didn’t know what to do, or how to do it, but I’ve since done it and I’m telling you, not only that it can be done and that you can do it, but also how to do it. 

How to do it is really quite simple: Form a plan, be disciplined, show up every day, do the work and you will get there. And don’t think for a minute, because you’re more mature, it’s too late. It’s never too late. Make an effort, not an excuse and watch your life change. 

 

Is this the beginning of the end?

There is no sitting on the sidelines....

Corona means crown in Spanish. In Spain it's known as coronita, or little crown. What's a little crown, if not a prince? (Satan - the prince of this world - perhaps?)

Incidentally the Corona brand of beer has a "crown" logo on its lable. Corona beer has been advertised as representing relaxation in paradise. Although not related to the beer in any way, Covid19 is called Coronavirus, because of it's crown like shape.

Corona beer originated from Mexico and has been in production for around 90 years. It began exportation in the mid 70's, during a lengthy time of peace in the western world.

Could we be living with a false sense of security in this day and age, trusting the government and pharmaceutical industry to deliver us, rather than relying on God and His written Word? Have you read the Psalm of Deliverance?

Psalm 91 is not only called the Psalm of Deliverance, it is also known as the soldiers psalm (as many soldiers recited it), and the Protection Prayer. Psalm 91 was read in Canberra, at the 2016 National Day of Prayer.

Three times Psalm 91 makes mention of a deadly pestilence: He will deliver you from the deadly pestilence, I will not fear the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, no plague will come near your tent.

The number three in the bible represents God's presence, harmony and eternal life.  There are many other significant events related to the number three, in the bible.

The psalm ends by saying; ...and give you a long, victorious and satisfying life.

As we move closer to what's known as the biblical end times, we come to Revelation in the bible and that of the four coloured horses, the first being a white horse.

The white horse in revelation starts out looking like it's delivering peace (as we live with our false sense of security), however the rider is given authority to smite with sword, famine and pestilence. The rider is wearing a crown and carries a bow (with no mention of arrows).

The crown is given by God, as authority to conquer. The bow is suggestive of a counterfeit truth. No mention of arrows is symbolic of a poisonous dart (injection?).

A poisonous, or fiery dart, is used in spiritual warfare. A powerful metaphor of tactics used by Satan, even to this very day.

The white horse is deceptive; appearing as glorious and noble, but comes with the intent to kill and destroy.

Some think the rider on the white horse of Revelation is Jesus, but Jesus is seen opening the seven seals of the scroll (the only one worthy of doing so), not riding the white horse.

Pestilence is understood in the bible, not as a punishment but as a consequence of disobedience, which results in a loss of God's protection.

In biblical times, the most practical solution to disease, was social isolation - perhaps one of the things we're getting right, in all of this.

The white horse is symbolic of the beginnings of the end times, or labour pains, before a birth.

One final point: Corona's crown logo is representative of the crown that adorns the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Our Lady is alleged to have ended a deadly epidemic in Mexico City in 1736  -  37.

No longer can we sit on the sidelines. Every one of us has a choice to make and we base our decisions on the knowledge we have. You may not agree with this article. I'm not trying to force any opinion upon you. The choice is yours to make, but it does give you something to ponder upon.

Alexandra Grose - A photojournalist and author for over twenty years. Writing is her passion and her dream and helping others achieve their dreams, through her written work, is Alexandra's greatest aspiration. 

 

 

#Integrity; truthfulness, honesty and reliability, in all things.

I believe one should....be truthful in everything you say and do. Keep all relationships open and honest. Be reliable, punctual and organised and if you say you'll do it - do it. 

If you want to soar like an eagle, make an effort, not an excuse. 

alexandragrose@amazon.com