Friday, May 31, 2019

Influence

Don’t adapt to the energy in the room. Influence the energy in the room.”  (Anonymous)

We all use energy every day to heat, power, and light our homes. Using energy wisely can help slow the rate of climate change, have a positive impact on local air and water quality, and help our individual (and group financial expenditure. There are many “energy myths” that are a waste of time, money, or are even dangerous.

When searching for energy-saving tips, it is extremely common to stumble across both energy myths and realities. Whether you’re wondering if you should keep your air conditioning vents open or closed or if your appliances use energy when they are turned off, need to have the knowledge to identify common energy myths and avoid them.  Here are 10 common energy myths that you shouldn’t believe and why:

1.   Appliances don’t use energy when they are turned off-Thanks to standby power settings; most appliances constantly use energy in order to be ready for immediate usage. These “energy vampires” cannot be turned completely off without unplugging the device altogether.

2.   Closing vents and registers in unused rooms saves energy-All systems produce enough airflow to fill their ductwork systems and will continue to do so even if one or more of the air vents in your household are closed. Closing air conditioner (AC) vents simply redirects the airflow into other rooms of the home via other open vents. With this extra airflow being transferred to other open vents, the overall air pressure increases and the system works even harder. Closing vents to save energy is a nice thought but never the actual case.

3.   Electronic chargers don’t use energy if plugged in and disconnected from the device-Although this may be true for some chargers, most chargers use “vampire power” while plugged in but not connected to their device. If your charger feels warm to touch, it is most likely using vampire power. It is best to just assume that all of your chargers use this type of power and to unplug them when they are not being used.

4.   Hand-washing dishes rather than running them through the dishwasher can save you energy-Hand-washing a load of dishes requires a lot of hot water, and therefore a lot of energy. Today, most dishwashers have energy-efficient settings. These settings typically allow you to run a load of dishes using less water and less energy.

5.   It’s cheaper to keep the heat on all the time on a low setting-Keeping the heat on all the time means that you are warming areas of your house that do not need to be warmed 24/7. This constant heat usage is an incredible waste of energy. Turning the heat off while a room is unoccupied saves energy without causing discomfort. Another good fact to keep in mind is that homes and their contents store heat very effectively, allowing them to stay warm for a long time after the heat is turned off.

6.   Keeping a fan on cools a room-Fans are designed to move air around, not to cool air. Having a fan on allows people inside of the room to feel cooler, but not the air in the room itself. Leaving a fan on when you leave your home is simply wasting energy while the room temperature is not cooling off at all.

7.   Leaving a light on uses less energy than turning it off and on several times-Even though a higher level of current is needed to turn on a light, this higher level is only used for a fraction of a second. When a light is kept on, it uses a lower level of power but for much longer. Leaving a light on for longer than a few seconds uses more energy than turning it off and back on as needed.

8.   Most heat is lost through windows-While heat can be lost through windows, window heat loss is only a small percentage of the total heat loss in a home. Typically, walls account for much more heat loss because of their large surface area. It’s best to consider insulating walls before upgrading windows since heat loss through windows is usually minimal.

9.   Setting the thermostat temperature to a higher degree heats the home faster-No matter what temperature you set your thermostat, your furnace or boiler will work equally as hard and fast to meet that goal. The only difference achieved by setting the temperature to a higher degree is that the system will work for a longer period of time, therefore using more energy. The same applies to air conditioners when set to a lower temperature than desired.  Another downfall of setting the heat higher is that eventually the air conditioner may kick on to cool the room back down to your actual desired temperature.

10.       Sleep mode or hibernate mode is just fine for computers overnight-Putting your computer into sleep or hibernate mode, rather than shutting it down, suspends it from waking and sleeping modes. Quite a lot of energy is used to accomplish this state so that the computer can be ready to pop back on at a moment’s notice. It is best to shut your computer down all the way overnight or when you are planning on not using it for a while. 

 “The energy of the mind is the essence of life.” (Aristotle) [i]




[i] Sources used:
·        “10 Common Energy Myths You Shouldn’t Believe” by Think Energy

·        “Energy myths” by Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

 

Thursday, May 30, 2019

The Scent

“Sometimes we should express our gratitude for the small and simple things like the scent of the rain, the taste of your favorite food, or the sound of a loved one's voice.” (Joseph B. Wirthlin)

Rain is water that falls from the clouds when it gets too heavy. Rain is actually gravity in motion. The earth’s water cycle pulls water from the ground, rivers, oceans, lakes and streams up into the sky. This is called evaporation. The evaporated water is warm when it leaves the earth’s surface, but the farther up into the sky or atmosphere it goes, the cooler it gets.

As it cools, it clumps together. This is how clouds are formed. Depending on the temperature of the surface and the air nearest the surface of the earth, rain can also be snow, sleet, ice, and hail. Raindrops are spherical when they first take shape, and then they flatten out into more of a hamburger bun shape as they collide with other raindrops on their way to the ground.

Clouds are formed when a warm air mass meets a cold air mass. Usually, the warm air gets pushed up over the cold air. As the warm air rises, condensation occurs – meaning the air cools to a point where it will condense from its gas state into a water state. Because warm air rises, the rising air pulls the drop up, effectively catching it before it can fall down to Earth’s surface.

The two most common types of rain-producing clouds are nimbostratus clouds and cumulonimbus clouds. The nimbostratus clouds are dark, grey, and low. It’s a continuous rain cloud that means rain is imminent. Cumolonimbus clouds are thunderstorm clouds that usually take the shape of a mountain or tower, with a darkened bottom. These are the clouds that also produce hail and tornadoes.

This is called an updraft. And updraft may occur many times during a storm and all the while, more water is condensing onto the raindrop. This determines how heavy the raindrop is and if it eventually turns into something like hail. It finally falls to the ground when its density is heavier than the cloud from which it originated, or when the updraft dies out.

Did you know that…

·        Desserts get less rain than any other type of climate except the continent of Antarctica. It is the driest continent on Earth.

·        More rain falls in tropical places than in any other type of climate.

·        Most raindrops are very tiny—no more than ¼ inch in diameter.

·        Rain is also used to create electricity. We call this hydroelectricity or hydropower.

·        Raindrops fall at a speed of 5 to 18 miles per hour depending on the size of the raindrops.
 Rain and snow fall from the sky. They don’t return without watering the ground. They cause the plants to sprout and grow. And the plants make seeds for the farmer. And from these seeds people have bread to eat.” (Isaiah 55:10, ICB)[i]



[i] Sources used:
·        “5 things you didn't know about rain” by Chanie Kirschner

·        “Rain Facts” by Science for Kids

 

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Shoulder

“I've had an angel on my shoulder all my life. “ (Barbara Hale)

If we’re going to be genuine followers of Christ, then we have to believe everything that Jesus tells us. One of the things that He tells us about is that angels are real. In scripture, God commands His armies to watch over His people, protect His people, and even serve His people. For those in Christ, God is always and in every way taking care of business and employing His massive resources, which includes armies of angels. If you ever saw an angel in its natural form, you'd probably fall to the ground in shock. Here is what you need to know about angels:

1.     Angels are always in contact with God-Even when they are paying attention to us, they are glorifying God and receiving whatever God wants them to know. Since they are beings outside of space, they can be present to more than one thing at any moment. This means that they operate on earth without ever leaving Heaven.


2.     Angels are beautiful-Because they are more like God than we are, they are more beautiful, because God is Beauty. Artists try and capture the beauty of angels, but they will always fall drastically short because there is nothing in this world that can describe or show such beauty.


 

3.     Angels are very smart- Angels were never people. People will never be angels. Angels are God's servants and only carry out His will. People are created by God. In Heaven they will have glorified bodies that don't have any defects and never get hurt or get tired.Angels don’t think like humans do. We use logic to get from one thought to the next. Angels just know that God loves everyone instantaneously. They don’t take any intermediate steps. Angels just reach that conclusion. They have insights constantly, and because of this they are constantly contemplating things such as humans, other angels, and God.

 

4.     Angels can assume bodily form-If you’re like me, then you may think that angels have halos and wings, or are infants or women, but always as tough male warriors. Both cases are incorrect. Angels are pure spirits that are presented in bodily form as tough male warriors in the Bible. The assumption of a body is sort of like how we dress up for Halloween. Two angels in the Bible are Gabriel and Michael. The third is Lucifer. Satan was an angel before he rebelled against God.

 

5.     Angels can change themselves-As every single angel is unique, different, and can change their form from any other angel, so that each angel could be considered a different species. This means that every angel has their very own, very different personality. Hebrews 13:2 (ERV) says to, “Always remember to help people by welcoming them into your home. Some people have done that and have helped angels without knowing it.

 

6.     Angels can’t get bored-Because they are outside of our space-time, angels have no chronological time, which means that they never wait, and they can’t get bored because they are part of the immaterial world. Not only that, but guardian angels are never bored because humans are the subject of their attention, and humans don’t end, they just keep going.

 

7.     Angels don’t have a gender-Gender is biological; it has nothing to do with the personality or spirit. Masculinity and femininity, on the other hand, transcend biology. This means that some angels may have more feminine personalities or more masculine personalities, but that doesn’t mean that they are male or female. All angels that appear in the Bible appear masculine, most likely because in the culture back then, males were the authoritative figures. The tasks that the angels performed (guarding and delivering messages) were those of the male back then as well. Angels are solely intuitive beings, so they might be on the same sort of mental wavelength as the female populace.

8.     Angels love us-It naturally follows that love follows knowledge. Because angels have the power to think (they are conscious) and the power to choose (they have free will); angels will the good of us, which is the precise definition of love. They have no other motive except to see us in Heaven, where we belong.


 

9.     Angels should not be prayed to-Prayer is an act of worship and we only worship God. Also, Jesus was very clear about how to pray. He said to pray like this, "Our Father…." No angel will ever be your father. Pray to your Father like Jesus did.

 

10. They inspire us-Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night and an idea popped into your head that you just had to write down so you wouldn’t forget it in the morning? Have you just been inspired to do something out of the ordinary, and it turned out to be extremely fruitful? Angels are always trying to inspire us with things that will lead us to Heaven. Angels are real and there is one that is protecting, guarding, guiding, enlightening, and loving you at this very moment.


“God not only sends special angels into our lives, but sometimes He even sends them back again if we forget to take notes the first time.” (Eileen Elias Freeman)[i]




[i] Sources used:

·    https://d.adroll.com/cm/index/out?advertisable=EXVVNMW2CBB6TKMDCMGHQ4https://d.adroll.com/cm/index/out?advertisable=EXVVNMW2CBB6TKMDCMGHQ4https://d.adroll.com/cm/index/out?advertisable=EXVVNMW2CBB6TKMDCMGHQ4”15 Things You Didn’t Know About Your Guardian Angel” by matt muhich

·        https://d.adroll.com/cm/n/out?advertisable=EXVVNMW2CBB6TKMDCMGHQ412 Important Things to Know About Angels “By David Ruzicka
 


Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Change

What’s clear is that the farm-to-table movement is not a passing trend. It’s designed to change the culture around how we eat.” (Cinnamon Janzer)

It’s impossible to talk about the rise of farm-to-table without discussing the fall of the processed food empire. Packaged goods thrived after innovations in food processing and storage, and peaked with the canned food during the 1950s. Processed food continued to reign supreme until the 1960s and 1970s. At that point, the hippie movement using local and organic food swept the States.

After a few years, hippie preferences began showing up in formal food structures. In 1979, the non-profit “Organically Grown” opened in Oregon. In 1986, Carlo Perini founded the Slow Food Organization in Italy. Back in the States, pioneers like Alice Waters arose, who was a champion of local, sustainable agriculture, opened the Chez Panisse in 1971. In 2003, Kimbal Musk started The Kitchen in Boulder, CO. The main driving forces behind the farm-to-table movement have to do with the ethics of food production. Here are four pillars of the movement:

·         Food security-The farm-to-table movement increases the scope of food security to move beyond the food needs of individuals or families and look at the needs of both the larger community, with a focus on low-income households. It has a strategic goal of developing local food systems.

·         Proximity- The farm-to-table movement hinges on the notion that the various components of a food system (or a restaurant) should exist in the closest proximity to each other as possible. The goal is to develop relationships between the various stakeholders in a food system such as farmers, processors, retailers, restaurateurs, and consumers. Additionally, proximity reduces the environmental impact of transporting ingredients across states or countries.

·         Self-reliance-One of the goals of farm-to-table is to generate communities that can meet their own food needs, eliminating the need for outside resources, or long distance transportation of food.

·         Sustainability-The core idea here is that farm-to-table food systems exist in a way that doesn’t stifle the ability of future generations to meet their food needs. This means that it doesn’t destroy resources in the process.

Below are the benefits of a farm-to-table lifestyle for today’s consumer:

·        Local food is often more nutritious-Because it’s not shipped long distances, locally grown food is often tasty and healthy. Food that’s shipped is often flexible to travel. A study of 16 popular fruits and vegetables showed the average was transferred nearly 1,500 miles before being sold. In addition, 39 percent of fruit and 12 percent of vegetables were imported from outside the United States. To keep food from going bad during travel, some fruits and vegetables are picked before they are able to completely ripen and absorb nutrients. While this allows produce to ripen en route so consumers have access to fresh foods year-round, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says this mean foods often lack nutrients that would be there if allowed to ripen before being picked and shipped.

·        Local food is better for the earth-Not only is local food better for your health, it’s also better for the environment. For instance, the average 18-wheeled semi truck travels about 5 miles per gallon of gas. That means about 500 gallons of diesel fuel is needed to haul produce an average distance of 1,500 miles.

·        The local economy also benefits when consumers buy their food locally-Because a large volume of produce is shipped upward of 1,500 miles before reaching the consumer, the local areas where the food was grown and raised don’t always benefit from the sale of the food. On the other hand, buying food locally can improve the economic vitality of small, local farms.

·        Farm-to-table eating offers diners a wide variety of choices when it comes to food-Farm-to-table offerings include any type of whole food imaginable just as long as it’s in season. This not only means fresh fruit and vegetables, but also meat, cheese and other dairy products, nuts, and baked items.

·        The concept of farm-to-table is not only being adopted by restaurants, but the idea is also being instilled in younger generations- A farm-to-school movement is growing nationwide. This helps support small- to- mid-size local farms by giving them regular business, and in return, students get healthy locally grown food. Many schools also offer nutrition education that aims to teach kids where food comes from and to be healthy eaters.

 “Many countries have food safety systems from farm-to-table. Everybody involved in the food supply is required to follow standard food safety procedures. You would think that everyone involved with food would not want people to get sick from it.” (Marion Nestle) [i]




[i] Sources used:

·        Local food: 5 benefits of farm-to-table eating” by The San Diego Union-Tribune

·        “The History of the Farm to Table Movement” by Cinnamon Janzer
 

Monday, May 27, 2019

In Shoes

“The preaching that this world needs most is the sermons in shoes that are walking with Jesus Christ.” (D.L. Moody)

When you read the word “ordinary,” what do you think of? Common synonyms include unimpressive, typical, normal, and common. As soon as you attach these synonyms to a noun, you will draw conclusions: My day was typical. The movie was unimpressive. The concert was average. When we think about a pastoral ministry we are tempted to do the same thing: My pastor is unimpressive; rather average and nothing special. He does not speak at conferences and has not written any books. He is just ordinary.

Here is the reality: an ordinary pastor is not likely to be esteemed in a society that gauges success in terms of church size, book sales, and social media influence. However, the biblical perception of success is bound up in the pastor’s faithfulness. In other words, a faithful pastor is never less than an ordinary pastor.

About 95% of solid Christian pastors labor almost in an unnoticed way: visiting the sick, weeping in prayer at night, preparing sermons (with which they are never happy), struggling with illness and personal shortcomings, preaching to people on Sunday, baptizing, leading wedding services, and crying at a gravesite with other Christians.  Here is a week in the life of an ordinary pastor:

Monday

On his regular day off from church duties, the pastor volunteers to take the twenty senior citizens of his church on a day trip to an outlet shopping mall two hours away. Once there, one of the elders of the church confides this to the pastor, “Don’t tell anyone, but I went to the doctor last Friday. She says I have pancreatic cancer, and have less than six months to live.” A hour later, one of females present pulls the pastor aside and says, “The sermon you preached Sunday was such a blessing. It convinced me to read my Bible daily.”
 Tuesday
On Tuesday afternoon, the pastor is pulling into the church parking lot after a long lunch meeting with a member when his phone rings. “Hello pastor. As you know, my wife is still recovering from surgery. It’s been a really hard couple of weeks, and I just wanted you to know that nobody has cared for us. Well, a little, but not like we expected. I appreciate you coming to the hospital to pray with us, but we won’t be coming back to your church.” The pastor offers an apology and hangs up the phone—discouraged.
An hour later, he makes a call to check on a sick member. “Pastor, thank you so much for making the call. We’ve been so overwhelmed and blessed by the way the church has loved and cared for us during this crisis. Thank you for everything.” After praying with them, he hangs up the phone—grateful.
As he prepares to leave the office for the day, a deacon drops by unannounced. “Hey pastor, do you have a minute? Listen, some folks are really struggling with what happened in that last business meeting. They don’t feel they had much of a voice in the decision, and they’re pretty upset. I just thought you should know.” The pastor leans back in his chair—fearful.
That evening, at a local restaurant, another deacon stops by his table on the way out. “Good to see you, pastor. Listen, I want you to know that we are thankful for your leadership. We support you and the other leaders. Let me know if there’s anything I can help with.” He finishes his meal—encouraged.
Wednesday
The next morning, he takes a break from preparing for Wednesday Bible study and checks his email. “Good morning, pastor. I was hoping to meet up, but everyone’s busy. Anyway, I wanted to let you know that we’re going to start visiting other churches. Just looking for something different.” He hangs his head and lets out a deep sigh.
Later in the day, he opens a card that came in the mail. “Pastor, thank you for preaching the Word each week. My family has grown so much in the Lord, and we appreciate your hard work to carefully teach us the Bible.” He tucks the card in his Bible so that he can read it often.
That evening, his phone rings at 10:20 p.m., which is unusual. “Hey pastor, Mom isn’t doing well. The hospice nurse says it won’t be too much longer.”
“Okay, I’ll be right over.” He gets out of bed and gets dressed.
Thursday
After returning home in the middle of the night, a notification on his phone wakes him at 8:45 a.m. It was a long night, but he grabs his phone and plays the voicemail. “Pastor, I came by to see you at the office . . . again. Where are you? I need to talk to someone and nobody is ever around. Call me.” He hangs up the phone—exhausted.
Friday
This was supposed to be the pastor’s regular day to clean the church. While at home in the morning and before his ten year-old daughter got on the school bus, she tripped and broke her left arm. Pastor and his wife spent the majority of their day in the emergency room (ER). The magazines in the waiting room were outdated, the vending machine food was stale, and he was struggling in trusting God for the safety of his only child.
Saturday
Early Saturday morning he sits at his kitchen table, working on the sermon he tried all week to finish by Thursday. He types out the next sentence feeling disappointed in himself—yet another Saturday where he still has sermon work to do.
Saturday evening, around 10:30 p.m., after a full and fun day with his family, he kisses his wife goodnight and makes his way back to the kitchen table to finish up his sermon. Finally done hours later, he quietly crawls into bed and falls asleep praying.
Sunday
The alarm goes off early on Sunday morning. The pastor prepares for the day. He gathers with the saints to worship Jesus, enjoy the fellowship of believers, and preach about the grace and comfort of Christ.
He walks among the flock, shaking hands, listening to prayer requests, and welcoming new faces. After lunch, he grabs a quick nap in his recliner before it’s time to head back for evening activities. His heart is thankful for the call to be a shepherd to Christ’s flock.
 “If your Christianity depends upon a pastor's preaching, then you're a long way from being where you should be.” (Aiden Wilson Tozer) [i]





[i] Sources used:

·        “A Week in the Life of an Ordinary Pastor” by Chris Griggs

·        “The Life of an Ordinary Pastor” bReformed Reader


The Ordinary Christian Pastor” by Erik Raymond


 


HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY 2019

 

Everything

  “Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you.” (Saint Augustine) It shouldn’t be surprising th...