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REVIEW – TERMINATOR SALVATION 5 out of 10 It pains me to say this but Terminator Salvation really isn’t very good.   It is an action packed spectacle with absolutely no soul.   All the prior Terminator films in the series, including the underappreciated third entry, are infinitely better than Salvation, in every possible way.   Hell, even the recently cancelled television series, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, is far superior. Basically all of the elements that made the Terminator films work in the past have been thrown out the window, in favor of mind numbing, overblown action sequences with terminator robots all over the screen.   In theory, watching a battle scene that features a bunch of the indestructible, killing machines seems like it would be awesome, but in reality it is like being stuck in a video game you have no control over.   Then there is the terminators themselves.   Because Salvation takes place before the terminators in the first 3 films were created, the robots in this movie come off feeling antiquated, like rejects escaping from some demented theme park.   Call it Westworld on crack.   The film is also very bleak due to the post apocalyptic landscape and this makes it even more difficult to get involved in the action.   It also made me wonder… what exactly are the humans and machines fighting for at this point?  Control of a dead planet!?  At this point, can’t we all just get along? One of the major elements of the first films that is lacking here, is the time travel aspect.   This is a monumental core to the series and though I understand that Salvation takes place in 2018 as John Connor is growing into his role as leader of the resistance, I feel as though it would’ve been easy enough to bring some time travel flavor to the story.   In fact, any flavor at all added to the story would’ve been a welcome relief. As far as the acting goes, no one really has much to do in this movie other than running around and firing guns while screaming their heads off.   Christian Bale as John Connor brings nothing of substance to the character at all.   Truly the only thing he does in the whole movie is yell and scream a lot.   In fact after seeing the movie, it is easy to understand his now infamous tirade on the set of the film.   He literally probably forgot how to speak without raising his voice.   There is not one moment in the film, where Bale shows us the humanity of this character.   Sure he prattles on and on about saving the captives of the machines before attempting to blow up Skynet (don’t make me explain), but we never see any fear behind his eyes or any emotion at all for that matter, other than yelling and more yelling.   Perhaps if he were given more screen time, there would be more to his performance.   He is seriously in only about half the movie, the other half belonging to Sam Worthington as a prototype human/robot hybrid.   Worthington doesn’t know that he is half robot during the first half of the movie, but you wouldn’t be able to tell based on his performance.   He is so bland in this movie that it almost makes Bale’s performance compelling.   The other actors including Helena Bonham Carter, Bryce Dallas Howard and Moon Bloodgood are seriously underutilized and really can’t even be critiqued based on what they were given to do.   The only actor that brings any type of personality at all to the film is Anton Yelchin (Chekov in Star Trek) as the teenage version of Connor’s father, Kyle Reese. One of the major problems with this movie is the lack of character emotion.   The first Terminator is driven by the blossoming love between Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese.   T2 was propelled by the fierce devotion of mother Sarah Connor, willing to do anything to keep her son John safe.   It also had the added benefit of Schwarzenegger’s robot becoming more and more human throughout the movie due to his interaction with John.   The robot embracing humanity was also a big part of T3 and make no mistake about it; Arnold’s presence in Salvation is sorely missed (although he does make a cameo appearance).   Terminator 3 was also infinitely better due to Nick Stahl’s soulful performance as John Connor, a man who is afraid to accept his destiny even as it is unfolding right in front of him.   Stahl plays Connor as a reluctant hero, whereas Bale plays him more as a… terminator.   You felt for the characters in the other 3 films and I can’t say the same for this one.   There isn’t one tender moment in this film.   I know it is the Terminator, but maybe a shared hug or a kiss between John and his wife would’ve reminded us (the audience) what exactly these characters are fighting to protect. To sum it up, Terminator Salvation is a soulless movie, lacking any trace of the humanity the main characters are so fiercely fighting to defend.

VA Loan Limits for 2009 The update VA loan limits have been updated a distributed by the VA. The chart below represents the maximum 100% VA loan limit by county for 2009. All other counties not listed below will remain at the conforming limit of $417,000. Please keep in mind that it is still possible through VA to get a home loan above and beyond these current limits. However, a 25% down payment is required on the difference. For example, if a qualified veteran borrower purchases a house for $600,000 the minimum required down payment would be calculated as such:1. $600,000 (Purchase Price) minus the $417,000 (maximum 100% limit for a normal cost area) = $183,0002. 25% of $183,000 is $45,750, or just 7. 6% of the purchase price3. The applicable VA funding fee over the $417,000 limit would need to either be paid by the veteran borrower or seller. VA Loan Limits for 2009 – for 100% financing STATE COUNTY 2009 VA LIMIT Alaska ALEUTIANS EAST $ 625,500. 00 Alaska ALEUTIANS WEST $ 625,500. 00 Alaska ANCHORAGE $ 625,500. 00 Alaska BETHEL $ 625,500. 00 Alaska BRISTOL BAY $ 625,500. 00 Alaska DENALI $ 625,500. 00 Alaska DILLINGHAM $ 625,500. 00 Alaska FAIRBANKS NORTH $ 625,500. 00 Alaska HAINES $ 625,500. 00 Alaska JUNEAU $ 625,500. 00 Alaska KENAI PENINSULA $ 625,500. 00 Alaska KETCHIKAN GATEWAY $ 625,500. 00 Alaska KODIAK ISLAND $ 625,500. 00 Alaska LAKE AND PENINSULA $ 625,500. 00 Alaska MATANUSKA-SUSITNA $ 625,500. 00 Alaska NOME $ 625,500. 00 Alaska NORTH SLOPE $ 625,500. 00 Alaska NORTHWEST ARCTIC $ 625,500. 00 Alaska PRINCE OF WALES $ 625,500. 00 Alaska SITKA $ 625,500. 00 Alaska SKAGWAY-HOONAH-ANGOO $ 625,500. 00 Alaska SOUTHEAST FAIRBANKS $ 625,500. 00 Alaska VALDEZ-CORDOVA $ 625,500. 00 Alaska WADE HAMPTON $ 625,500. 00 Alaska WRANGELL-PETERS $ 625,500. 00 Alaska YAKUTAT CITY $ 625,500. 00 Alaska YUKON-KOYUKUK $ 625,500. 00 California ALAMEDA $1,094,625. 00 California ALPINE $ 503,750. 00 California CONTRA COSTA $1,094,625. 00 California EL DORADO $ 516,250. 00 California LOS ANGELES $ 737,500. 00 California MARIN $1,094,625. 00 California MONO $ 575,000. 00 California MONTEREY $ 525,000. 00 California NAPA $ 643,750. 00 California NEVADA $ 518,750. 00 California ORANGE $ 737,500. 00 California PLACER $ 516,250. 00 California SACRAMENTO $ 516,250. 00 California SAN BENITO $ 937,500. 00 California SAN DIEGO $ 593,750. 00 California SAN FRANCISCO $1,094,625. 00 California SAN LUIS OBISPO $ 610,000. 00 California SAN MATEO $1,094,625. 00 California SANTA BARBARA $ 656,250. 00 California SANTA CLARA $ 937,500. 00 California SANTA CRUZ $ 805,000. 00 California SOLANO $ 435,000. 00 California SONOMA $ 566,250. 00 California VENTURA $ 650,000. 00 California YOLO $ 516,250. 00 Colorado BOULDER $ 437,500. 00 Colorado EAGLE $ 887,500. 00 Colorado GARFIELD $ 450,000. 00 Colorado HINSDALE $ 460,000. 00 Colorado LAKE $ 887,500. 00 Colorado OURAY $ 456,250. 00 Colorado PITKIN $1,094,625. 00 Colorado ROUTT $ 690,000. 00 Colorado SAN MIGUEL $ 962,500. 00 Colorado SUMMIT $ 785,000. 00 Connecticut FAIRFIELD $ 556,250. 00 District of Columbia DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA $ 812,500. 00 Florida COLLIER $ 487,500. 00 Florida MONROE $ 575,000. 00 Georgia GREENE $ 560,000. 00 Guam GUAM $ 625,500. 00 Hawaii HAWAII $ 625,500. 00 Hawaii HONOLULU $ 783,750. 00 Hawaii KALAWAO $ 656,250. 00 Hawaii KAUAI $ 775,000. 00 Hawaii MAUI $ 681,250. 00 Idaho BLAINE $ 497,500. 00 Idaho TETON $1,000,000. 00 Massachusetts BARNSTABLE $ 441,250. 00 Massachusetts BRISTOL $ 463,750. 00 Massachusetts DUKES $ 736,250. 00 Massachusetts ESSEX $ 506,250. 00 Massachusetts MIDDLESEX $ 506,250. 00 Massachusetts NANTUCKET $1,094,625. 00 Massachusetts NORFOLK $ 506,250. 00 Massachusetts PLYMOUTH $ 506,250. 00 Massachusetts SUFFOLK $ 506,250. 00 Maryland ANNE ARUNDEL $ 537,500. 00 Maryland BALTIMORE $ 537,500. 00 Maryland BALTIMORE CITY $ 537,500. 00 Maryland CALVERT $ 812,500. 00 Maryland CARROLL $ 537,500. 00 Maryland CHARLES $ 812,500. 00 Maryland FREDERICK $ 812,500. 00 Maryland HARFORD $ 537,500. 00 Maryland HOWARD $ 537,500. 00 Maryland MONTGOMERY $ 812,500. 00 Maryland PRINCE GEORGE’S $ 812,500. 00 Maryland QUEEN ANNE’S $ 537,500. 00 MP NORTHERN ISLAND $ 570,000. 00 MP ROTA $ 446,250. 00 MP SAIPAN $ 575,000. 00 MP TINIAN $ 578,750. 00 North Carolina CAMDEN $ 812,500. 00 North Carolina CURRITUCK $ 498,750. 00 North Carolina DARE $ 425,000. 00 North Carolina HYDE $ 525,000. 00 North Carolina PASQUOTANK $ 812,500. 00 North Carolina PERQUIMANS $ 812,500. 00 New Hampshire ROCKINGHAM $ 506,250. 00 New Hampshire STRAFFORD $ 506,250. 00 New Jersey BERGEN $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey CAPE MAY $ 450,000. 00 New Jersey ESSEX $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey HUDSON $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey HUNTERDON $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey MIDDLESEX $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey MONMOUTH $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey MORRIS $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey OCEAN $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey PASSAIC $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey SOMERSET $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey SUSSEX $ 747,500. 00 New Jersey UNION $ 747,500. 00 New York BRONX $ 747,500. 00 New York KINGS $ 747,500. 00 New York NASSAU $ 747,500. 00 New York NEW YORK $ 747,500. 00 New York PUTNAM $ 747,500. 00 New York QUEENS $ 747,500. 00 New York RICHMOND $ 747,500. 00 New York ROCKLAND $ 747,500. 00 New York SUFFOLK $ 747,500. 00 New York WESTCHESTER $ 747,500. 00 Pennsylvania PIKE $ 747,500. 00 Rhode Island BRISTOL $ 463,750. 00 Rhode Island KENT $ 463,750. 00 Rhode Island NEWPORT $ 463,750. 00 Rhode Island PROVIDENCE $ 463,750. 00 Rhode Island WASHINGTON $ 463,750. 00 Tennessee CANNON $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee CHEATHAM $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee DAVIDSON $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee DICKSON $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee HICKMAN $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee MACON $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee ROBERTSON $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee RUTHERFORD $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee SMITH $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee SUMNER $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee TROUSDALE $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee WILLIAMSON $ 427,500. 00 Tennessee WILSON $ 427,500. 00 Utah DAVIS $ 423,750. 00 Utah MORGAN $ 423,750. 00 Utah SALT LAKE $ 652,500. 00 Utah SUMMIT $ 652,500. 00 Utah TOOELE $ 652,500. 00 Utah WEBER $ 423,750. 00 Virginia ALBEMARLE $ 475,000. 00 Virginia ALEXANDRIA $ 812,500. 00 Virginia AMELIA $ 582,500. 00 Virginia ARLINGTON $ 812,500. 00 Virginia CAROLINE $ 582,500. 00 Virginia CHARLES CITY $ 582,500. 00 Virginia CHARLOTTESVILLE $ 475,000. 00 Virginia CHESAPEAKE $ 498,750. 00 Virginia CHESTERFIELD $ 582,500. 00 Virginia CLARKE $ 812,500. 00 Virginia COLONIAL HEIGHT $ 582,500. 00 Virginia CUMBERLAND $ 582,500. 00 Virginia DINWIDDIE $ 582,500. 00 Virginia FAIRFAX $ 812,500. 00 Virginia FAIRFAX IND $ 812,500. 00 Virginia FALLS CHURCH $ 812,500. 00 Virginia FAUQUIER $ 812,500. 00 Virginia FLUVANNA $ 475,000. 00 Virginia FREDERICKSBURG $ 812,500. 00 Virginia GLOUCESTER $ 498,750. 00 Virginia GOOCHLAND $ 582,500. 00 Virginia GREENE $ 475,000. 00 Virginia HAMPTON $ 498,750. 00 Virginia HANOVER $ 582,500. 00 Virginia HENRICO $ 582,500. 00 Virginia HOPEWELL $ 582,500. 00 Virginia ISLE OF WIGHT $ 498,750. 00 Virginia JAMES CITY $ 498,750. 00 Virginia KING AND QUEEN $ 582,500. 00 Virginia KING WILLIAM $ 582,500. 00 Virginia LANCASTER $ 481,250. 00 Virginia LOUDOUN $ 812,500. 00 Virginia LOUISA $ 582,500. 00 Virginia MANASSAS $ 812,500. 00 Virginia MANASSAS PARK $ 812,500. 00 Virginia MATHEWS $ 498,750. 00 Virginia NELSON $ 475,000. 00 Virginia NEW KENT $ 582,500. 00 Virginia NEWPORT NEWS $ 498,750. 00 Virginia NORFOLK $ 498,750. 00 Virginia PETERSBURG $ 582,500. 00 Virginia POQUOSON $ 498,750. 00 Virginia PORTSMOUTH $ 498,750. 00 Virginia POWHATAN $ 582,500. 00 Virginia PRINCE GEORGE $ 582,500. 00 Virginia PRINCE WILLIAM $ 812,500. 00 Virginia RICHMOND IND $ 582,500. 00 Virginia SPOTSYLVANIA $ 812,500. 00 Virginia STAFFORD $ 812,500. 00 Virginia SUFFOLK $ 498,750. 00 Virginia SURRY $ 498,750. 00 Virginia SUSSEX $ 582,500. 00 Virginia VIRGINIA BEACH $ 498,750. 00 Virginia WARREN $ 812,500. 00 Virginia WILLIAMSBURG $ 498,750. 00 Virginia YORK $ 498,750. 00 VI ST. CROIX $ 625,500. 00 VI ST. JOHN $ 677,500. 00 VI ST. THOMAS $ 625,500. 00 Washington KING $ 550,000. 00 Washington PIERCE $ 550,000. 00 Washington SAN JUAN $ 525,000. 00 Washington SNOHOMISH $ 550,000. 00 West Virginia JEFFERSON $ 812,500. 00 Wyoming TETON $1,000,000. 00 What are the benefits of a VA Jumbo loan?1. No punitive interest rate increase under VA Jumbo loans. Unlike conventional and FHA jumbo loans that can carry up to a full 1% increase or more; this can save you thousands of dollars. 2. No monthly mortgage insurance premiums (PMI) which are required on most mortgages without a 20% down payment which will save you hundreds of dollars per year. 3. Little to no down payment required, so you can keep more money in the bank. 4. VA Jumbo loans do not require perfect credit.

Subaru of America Inc. said Tuesday its June U. S. auto sales fell on declines in demand for its Legacy and Tribeca models. The lagging sales of vehicles manufactured at the Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. (SIA) plan in Lafayette contributed to a sixth consecutive month of lesser domestic sales for the automaker.

The Japanese automaker sold a total of 17,108 vehicles, down 7. 4 percent from 18,476 in June 2006. Adjusted for one additional selling day in June 2007 compared with the same month a year earlier, Subaru sales dropped 10. 8 percent. Legacy sales dived 16. 5 percent to 7,420 vehicles.

Sales of the Tribeca, a sport utility vehicle, fell by 29 percent, to 1,336 units. The 2008 Tribeca, which recently began arriving at Subaru dealer’s showrooms, features a new bumper, grill, and lights and completely revamped front, rear and side panels. The SUV recently received top rating in crash tests conducted by the U. S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration New Car Assessment Program.

Sales of the Baja, a sport utility vehicle which has been discontinued, fell 83 percent, to 70 units. Subaru discontinued production of the Baja in May of 2006 due to poor sales. The SIA-built SUV received five stars in both the frontal and side-impact crash tests for the driver and passenger seating positions.

“Safety is a true hallmark of the Subaru brand and the Subaru Tribeca offers our customers the peace of mind of a comprehensive, proven safety package,” said Tom Doll, executive vice president at Subaru of America Inc.

During recent evaluations of sport utility vehicles, Consumer Reports magazine gave the Forester and Tribeca “recommended” ratings among small and midsized SUVs, respectively. “A former top pick, the Forester still does well in our ratings. But this aging design has lacked stability control and curtain air bags,” said Consumer Reports in its findings.

“With a new Forester not due until 2009, Subaru has added stability control to the XT Sports model. The Forester is quick and agile, particularly this turbocharged model. But the interior is plain and fairly noisy. Reliability has been excellent,” noted Consumer Reports.

So far this year, Subaru sales dropped 6. 1 percent to 90,154 vehicles from 96,026 at the same time in 2006. Adjusted for two additional selling days in the first six months of this year compared with the same period of 2006, the Japanese automaker’s sales are down 7. 3 percent.

Sales declines were partially offset by a 24 percent increase in Impreza sales to 4,137 vehicles and a 4. 5 percent increase in demand for the Forester to 4,145 vehicles. Only the Japanese-made Impreza and Forester models showed sales improvements when compared to the same month in the previous year. Impreza sales increased 24 percent, to 4,137 units; while sales of the Forester gained four percent, to 4,145 units.

At the 2007 New York Auto Show, the Japanese automaker launched the next generation Impreza WRX. The the new Impreza is offered as both a four-door sedan and five-door hatchback. The EJ255 engine carries over from the previous generation to power both the 2. 5i and turbocharged WRX trim levels. The Impreza also is crammed with cutting-edge Subaru auto parts and innovative equipment.

The Forester, the compact crossover SUV, received exterior styling update for 2006. There were only two models built – the 2. 5 X featuring naturally-aspirated 2. 5 L flat-4, 173 horsepower, and the 2. 5 XT Limited equipped with turbocharged 2. 5 L flat-4, 230 horsepower. This year, the automaker expanded its Forester line to five variants – 2. 5 X, 2. 5 X L. L. Bean edition, Sports 2. 5 X, 2. 5 XT Limited, and Sports 2. 5 XT.

Business owners and directors should take careful notice of recent terrorist incidents in Afghanistan as the ripple effect will continue to spread across the world. Terrorism and counterterrorism tactics come under the global spotlight this week after the slaying of 5 British soldiers by what the UK military call a rogue Afghani Police officer. This unprovoked and cowardly attack saw the 5 soldiers shot by one of the Afghan police officers who had been receiving training and mentoring from the British soldiers. Terrorism and counterterrorism gains prominence as the terrorist alert status escalates in Afghanistan. This, counter terrorism expert outlines new terrorist targets by the security expert article, delves deep into one of two recent terrorism incidents against British Soldiers & UN staff. Jihad terrorism escalates & new tactics must be implemented for countering terrorism, as terrorism experts ask, “who will protect the protectors. “Despite putting their lives on the line protecting residents and serving police officers,a treacherous terrorist coward who had been living in a compound with the soldiers opened fire on them as they took a tea break. This coward brought a new form of terrorism threats raising the terrorist alert status up another notch. The British Prime Minister has informed MP’s that the Taliban admitted responsibility for these killings, and the wounding of eight others in the same attack. He also admitted that the Taliban may have infiltrated the Afghan police force. Any counter terrorism expert with knowledge of associated jihad terrorism must be wondering how such a breach of basis security enabled a terrorist to gain such close proximity to the British protectors. Terrorism experts will surely question how such an effective military force tasked with keeping the peace and countering terrorism failed and became terrorist targets. The security expert is on record as stating that most terrorism incidents can be prevented by implementing strict access control systems. It’s never been any great secret that the Afghan police force is badly paid and incredibly corrupt. Given this freely available information, at the very least the initial threat assessment should have flagged the real probability of Taliban infiltration. Just about every counter terrorism expert and close protection instructor I have ever known preach the following two basic commandments of countering terrorism to every rookie entering the war on terror arena. The first rule of combat is. . . there are no rules. The second rule of combat is. . . Trust no-one. Terrorism and counterterrorism has to factor in that perpetrators of terrorism incidents in Afghanistan are primitive warriors’ hell bent of bringing their own version of jihad terrorism into a country crying out to embrace a modern world of freedom and democracy. International terrorism experts have long taken comfort in the fact that every member of the British armed forces is a highly trained professional military specialist, who is also a volunteer. Supported by our coalition partners, their role in Afghanistan is to facilitate the transition of power to the new Afghan government. To designate these brave professionals as legitimate terrorist targets is a crime against morality. At the very least the terrorist alert status has to be elevated for any member of the 41 nation coalition forces operating in any Afghan theatre of operations. These latest terrorism threats have led to Gordon Brown insisting that security will be stepped up. One of the security expert’s training policies is to conduct a critical analysis after every critical incident. This terrible tragedy is no different. Commanding officers obviously have to re think their entire outlook on countering terrorism and get our brave military personnel back to security basics. Until our troops and military police officers are trained to understand the relevance of the first rule of combat i. e. , there are no rules, and trust no-one, there can be no chance of real security. Another aspect of training which should be revisited is the subject of security complacency. Our brave troops were operating in a war zone and yet complacency and/or familiarity appear to have set in. Why else would professional soldiers tasked with combating terrorism in the very heart of the conflict remove their body armour during a break. Trust no-one is a big issue in relation to terrorism threats, especially those linked to any form of jihad terrorism. One only has to trawl through some of the main high profile assassinations to understand that terrorism incidents are frequently perpetrated by people who have gained inside access and built a level of trust. Trust no one, is not some Hollywood movie cliché, it is a basic foundation of good security. If I sound paranoid, then understand that I have been trained to be professionally paranoid by some of the finest terrorism experts in the world. Every counter terrorism expert will watch the subsequent investigation and the ongoing manhunt for the rogue assassin believed to be named police officer Gulbuddin. Terrorism and counterterrorism experts understand that despite this terrible tragedy, the ongoing training of Afghan military and police will be a critical aspect of countering terrorism and preventing the increase of western terrorist targets. The Taliban leadership fear this coalition presence as it has proven to be highly disruptive to spreading their war on terror. Security Expert Update: 92 UK armed forces personnel have been killed during 2009 which is the highest number of British military personnel killed since 1992 during the Falklands War. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends of these heroes who paid the ultimate price of sacrificing their lives, while protecting the lives of others. This terrible tragedy certainly raising the burning question of, who will guard the guards.

by Roy Witman

Just say “South Pacific” and immediately images of little grass huts, palm trees swaying in the balmy breeze and electric-blue water pop to mind. Defined by Princess Cruises and other cruise lines as the Hawaiian and Tahitian islands, the South Pacific comprises several of the most popular “one day” destinations on the earth (with most people promising themselves they’ll go there “one day”).

It’s well worth the effort and the money! The term “paradise” really doesn’t do this region justice. “Perfection” may be more in line with what you’ll find. The natural scenery everywhere you look is simply astonishing. Mother Nature has created displays in this area of the world that aren’t replicated anywhere else. For those who love beauty, warm weather, gorgeous beaches and a variety of water activities, the South Pacific may be calling to you. Hawaii

The Big Island of Hawaii may be the most frequently visited of the seven islands with Maui and Oahu following close behind. But don’t discount Kauai, Molokai or the others, as each offers a diverse experience all its own.

Known for its exceptional collection of active volcanoes, the island of Hawaii offers many opportunities to fly, ride, bike or walk right up on the rim of these massive mountains. Fire pits, lava tubes and more will keep you enthralled. If walking a green is more appealing than walking the rim of a volcano, world-class golf with some of the most awe-inspiring fairways in the world can be played on Hawaii.

Famous for Pearl Harbor and the final resting place of the U. S. S. Arizona, Oahu has a lot to see and do. Tour Pearl Harbor and visit the museum, which depicts the events of that fateful day. Pay your respects to those entombed in the Arizona and reflect on what was considered both our most horrific and finest hour. But Oahu offers much more than history. Surf the famous north shore of Haleiwa, known throughout the world for some of the best waves anywhere.

From whale watching in the Pacific Ocean to jungle tours in the lush island of Kauai, each of the Hawaiian Islands brings a unique vacation best experienced via cruise ship. Princess and other cruise lines give you the ability to jaunt between all the islands in order to partake of what each offers… all without unpacking your bags or changing hotel rooms!Tahiti

Further south from Hawaii is a culture much like that depicted in the movie South Pacific. Local pearl farms in Polynesia, the extremes of the Cook Islands - from rainforests to windswept beaches plus waterfalls and lagoons, brightly colored flowers, lush jungles and much more keep you busy, as you explore until your heart is content.

Exceptional reefs at French Polynesia give snorkelers and scuba divers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to view sea life from this region up close and personal. Hiking through the forests, jet skiing across the open Pacific, visiting the legendary lagoons of Bora Bora, exploring the ancient temples of Moorea and more will keep you busy for days on end.

Like with the Hawaiian Islands, the islands of Tahiti are best discovered via cruise ship. With a wide selection of itineraries, you can pay one price and then be ushered from island to island without having to change hotels or unpack.

Regardless of whether you choose to tour just one island or the entire South Pacific region, your vacation will be filled with amazing memories of a tropical paradise that really does live up to its reputation.

Children of the City’s annual “Just One Gift” campaign in December in Brooklyn, New York provides and receive a new gift and encouragement. New Yorkers and people from around the country generously donate toys.

Here’s why. In Brooklyn alone there are 17 thousand cases of child abuse with a 48 percent high school drop out rate. Of about 30 thousand students, 15 thousand are dropouts. One out of every three families lives below the poverty line. Believe it or not, some of the children even wear sandals during the cold winter. There are drugs, disease, gang violence and crime, along with about a thousand deaths annually.

Four years ago Rocco Basile was seeking volunteer his time to a charity that helps children in need and decided to join the Board of this organization to help do something about these statistics. Why? Because the problems were happening right in his own back yard in Sunset Park. The charity work that this wonderful charitable foundation did was a perfect fit for Rocco Basile.

“Hundreds of people are in need of intervention, including families in need of counseling and children that need educations. Our motivational quote is that Children of the City is an organization making a difference,” said Basile.

However this year, the annual toy drive ran into an unforeseen obstacle course when scheduling problems caused a benefactor to push back the delivery date on a pledge for 300 toys. This year’s toy drive had secured many donations and so they had organized events for gift wrapping. Most of the toys were scheduled to arrive by a certain day, when a dozen volunteers from NYCares were supposed to help wrap the toys. It was carefully planned so that each volunteer would have plenty to do.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans. Stormy clouds and snow, sleet and rain hit the tri-states causing delays. Not even half of the deliveries made it to the charity’s headquarters in time for the events. Sixty willing and able gift wrappers from Volunteer NYC, Old Navy, and several high school students, patiently waited for the toys.

Just in time Rocco Basile’s family car pulled up like Santa’s sleigh with a numbger of hot toys and 12 Razor scooters purchased by the Basile Builder’s Group business associates,family and friends. Rocco Basile spent the prior weeks soliciting toys from anyone who would listen.

Volunteers were happy to get busy and wrap up Barbie, Bratz and Hannah Montana dolls that would be handed out to the children.

More than eight companies and organizations gave toys, while there were 89 people volunteering to wrap gifts over a three day period. A total of 890 new toys were donated, and there were 100 bags of assorted groceries to distribute to those in need.

400 children ages 4-15 attended the annual holiday event which included 76 volunteers who were visiting from Virginia and Ohio. At the charity event the children learned that gifts are not just charity donations that are items purchased with money. They were encouraged with motivational sayings to see themselves and their unique talents, abilities, time, and acts of service as gifts to the ones they love and to the world. They were also encouraged to forge ahead amidst their many challenges; to believe in themselves and to make the right choices to positively affect their lives and their community.

Jesus the pattern Son  Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin. He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper His hand (Isaiah 53:10, emphasis added).  In the beginning God purposed to bring many sons to glory and through sufferings perfect the Captain of their salvation. The vision of Christ was to see His seed. This was fulfilled on the cross. Without the cross there is no covenant and thus no fulfillment. For the joy that was set before Christ, He endured the cross, despised the shame, and purchased us for His own possession. By one offering He has perfected those who are being sanctified. We who were separated from Him in Adam were brought back. Now He will again be in us and we in Him as it was in the beginning. He in us refers to Christ being one Spirit with us and we in Him means that we are placed as members in His body. The vision of God and of Christ is our vision, which is to know Him as Father and to mature in Christ as His sons. It is to receive the testimony of sonship in which the Father is well pleased in us and we find our joy and fulfillment in Him.  Therefore the Lord Jesus is not ashamed to call us who are in Him, brethren. Through suffering on the cross the Lord Jesus Christ completed the work necessary for our salvation and sonship. He needs to do nothing more because everything is completed and finished in Him. We only need to rest in His salvation and to grow up like newborn babes, in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ in maturity into the full measure of the stature of the Son of God. Our cry is to know God, as Father and God’s cry is to know us as His sons.  God has not subjected the inhabited world to come to angels but to the sons of man. For a while He made man little lower than the angels. He has crowned him with glory and honor and set him over the works of His hands and brought all things in subjection to him. He has left nothing that is not brought into subjection to man. Presently we do not see all things put under man (Hebrews 2:5-8). This was said about Jesus whose life is the prophecy of those who are in Christ. Although Christ has made this provision on the cross we know that since the transgression mankind has never moved in this level of authority.  Man has achieved much but has not come close to what God has in mind for him. Man can move down into the depth of the ocean with a submarine but outside the protection of that vehicle he will die. He can move into outer space to a planet but outside the sealed capsule around his body, he will die. These are achievements that belong to the natural realm that is far lower than the realm of Spirit, which belongs to the kingdom of heaven.  God never had a limited plan for us in mind but He saved us and placed us in His Son to be bodily filled with the fullness of the Godhead. Christ is the fullness of the Godhead bodily and we are to grow up in all aspects into Him. It means if Christ is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent we will be transformed into the same likeness. God who determined that all creatures would bring forth after its own kind call us His offspring. Therefore, as God is, so we will also be. It is also written, “I said, ‘You are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High’” (Psalm 82:6). Jesus quoted this scripture, in John 10:34, to the Jews who accused Him being a man, making Himself God. So God is bringing forth after His own kind, He produces gods. It is not a picture of how important we are but of how much He loves us. For all eternity we will be in Christ and Christ will be in us so that the excellence of His power may always be made manifested in us who have believed. For all eternity the power and the glory and the wisdom will only belong to God and the Lamb so that no creature will glory in His sight. Although God has blessed us with His immeasurable glory in Christ Jesus all worship for all eternity will only belong to God and the Lamb (Revelation 19:10).  As God dwells in the supernatural realm of the Spirit He desires for us to live now in heaven where He is. He wants us to be with our bodies on earth but with our spirits in heaven. We need to be more at home in the Spirit (heaven) than in the flesh (earth). When we move in the revelatory gifts of the Holy Spirit, God shares with us some of His omniscience. The revelatory gifts of the Holy Spirit are prophecy, word of wisdom, word of knowledge, discernment of spirits and the interpretation of tongues, dreams and visions. It is knowledge obtained through the Holy Spirit. So, it is knowledge received supernaturally that belongs to the realm of Spirit. It is a wonderful privilege to learn from books but to be taught by the Holy Spirit surpasses all instruction. To share some of God’s omniscience is just a foretaste of the fullness of what God has prepared for us. We have received the Holy Spirit in a measure, which is just a small deposit of what God has in mind for us. The end of it will be to be partakers of the fullness of His omniscience. Omniscience is to possess a complete knowledge, understanding and insight of all things and to have an infinite and eternal awareness of all things, in all realms and dimensions of eternity at the same time.  When we are dreaming spiritual dreams or seeing visions the Holy Spirit shares with us some of His omnipresence. Omnipresent is to be present at all places, in all time zones of eternity, in all realms and dimensions of the universe at the same time. So God is the One that fills all things and all places of all times of eternity with His presence at the same time. Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold you are there (Psalm 138:7-8). When you see a prophetic vision concerning the future God is there to reveal His glory in the days of its fulfillment. God, through His Holy Spirit, enables you to witness future events, phenomena and marvels because He is there. In the natural some marvelous achievements were accomplished with life television broadcasting. For example millions of people over the Globe can simultaneously witness the Olympic games or the inauguration of a new president of the United States of America. They can even witness rebroadcasts of such an events and other historical events. The natural man can record the past and forecast the outcome of a future event but cannot guarantee the accuracy of its prediction. Neither can a person know the future by reasoning it out with his or her mind. This is also valid for all past events for which there are no recorded account or hard evidence. Man lives in the uncertainty of his own mind. Charles Darwin tried to understand the origin of creation with His fleshly mind. As he did not like to retain God in his knowledge, God gave him over to a debased mind being filled with deceit and being deceived he invented the evolution theory in his evil-mindedness. His theory asserts that widely divergent groups of plants and animals have arisen from common ancestors as a result of natural selection of offspring which develop slight variations that make them better adapt to their environment. Through that ridiculous explanation he led many people, open to his deception, astray. The Scriptures do not refer to plants and animals having common ancestors but stated emphatically that God created every living thing after its own kind. And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good… And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good (Genesis 1:12,25).  When we experience prophetic dreams and visions God share with us only a glimpse of His omnipresence. We have received the Spirit of God only in measure. Imagine what it will be when the fullness of God is poured out in us bodily. God’s desire for us is to have the fullness of Christ’s omnipresence.  When the power gifts of the Holy Spirit are manifested, God shares with us just a foretaste of His omnipotence. The power gifts of the Holy Spirit include the gift of faith, gifts of healing and the working of miracles. The omnipotence of God is a display of His infinite power and authority and excludes the workings of men. Marvelous achievements were obtained through science. Some monumental achievements include organ transplants in the medical field, space technology and electronic technology. These are nothing in comparison with the workings of the Spirit. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are just shadows of what God has prepared for us. To share some of God’s omnipotence in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, gives us an indication of what the fullness of God’s omnipotence would be. We have received the Holy Spirit only in measure. Imagine what it will be when we are immersed in the fullness of God. God has in mind for us to be partakers of the fullness of His omnipotence. Omnipotence is to possess unlimited power and authority over all realms and dimensions of the universe. We learned that God through His Son made the worlds and uphold all things by the word of His power. What a display of His power and authority. If He turns His face away from creation it will disintegrates.  The greatest ever display of His power and authority was made manifest in love. God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that the earth through Him may be saved. About three o’clock the afternoon of the crucifixion the Lord Jesus Christ yielded up His Spirit and the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. Immense pain flooded the being of the Holy Trinity as the Father and the Spirit for a moment in time forsook the Son. The Father was devastated and the Holy Spirit heartbroken, yet victorious. For a moment in time the Holy Trinity was not a trinity as the Son was forsaken. It happened when Jesus uttered in torment, “My Father, my Father why hast thou forsaken Me. ” To ease the pain, They thought about us, the heirs of salvation. Forever the veil of partitioning was removed between God and His people. God through the Lord Jesus Christ has reconciled all things to Himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. From that time forward the heirs of salvation obtained the right, in Christ, to boldly draw near to the throne of grace through the blood of the Lamb into the presence of Almighty God. One song of worship expressing our love and gratitude to the Holy Trinity for what They have suffered on our behalf will be a greater work than the creation of another universe.  Jesus is the way to the Father. He said in His Father’s house is many spiritual places of existence. If it were not so He would have told us. He told us that He went away to prepare us a place of glory, power and authority that He might receive us unto Himself so that where He is we may be also. Where is Jesus? He is at the right hand of the Father. He is in our hearts, we are in Him and He is in the Father that we may be one. The universe is in Him for He is exalted above all things. He fills the universe; He fills eternity with all its realms and dimensions with all of His glory. This is the place where He is and where we already dwell by faith. Our spirits are alive to God because of righteousness but our bodies are still dead because of sin. You can perceive God and the rest of the spirit world through the Spirit. Because your body is dead to God you cannot enter the realm of Spirit with your body. You cannot hear God or see Him or touch Him with the body of flesh. For this reasons no flesh and blood shall enter into the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. But at the last trumpet, those who went before us, the dead in Christ, who were sowed in corruption, will be raised with an incorruptible body, and those who will be alive with their mortal bodies will be clothed with immortality. I believe this is the time when we will move into the full manifestation of the image of God where we will put on all the divine attributes of the Son, which include His omnipotence, omnipresence and omniscience. All the hero’s of faith and the rest of the family of God that is captured in the cloud of witnesses has not received the fullness of this glory yet because it is written that they should not be made perfect apart from us. For if those in heaven has found this glory, the book of Hebrews would not have spoken of this perfection to be inherited. We who believe will enter into this glory at the last trumpet.  Many things must take place before this glorious day. Jesus is our vision and the pattern Son that have paved the way toward our sonship. To study the life of the pattern Son is to interpret the prophecy concerning our lives. Why? He is the first among many brethren and those to follow will follow along the same way. There are three major events in Jesus’ live that needs to be mentioned to follow the course of events that will follow our lives. These are His birth and maturing process, His baptism when the Father declared Him Son and His glorification on the cross.  Jesus’ natural birth placed Him in the kingdom of God for His own Spirit is the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9). Though Jesus is God He came into this world, as one of us, a mortal being yet without sin. Coming as a perfect man into the world He said He could do nothing of Himself but confessed His utter dependence on His Father. The Father who sent Him was in Him and He in the Father so that the excellence of the glory and power was from God in Him. Though Herod sought to destroy Him, He survived the onslaught on His life and then kept Himself busy with the things of God, His Father’s business. In this He grew up and become strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him. He increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.  The parallel to the birth of Jesus is to be born again. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His (Romans 8:9). If you are not born again you cannot see the kingdom of God. If you believe in God and in His Son, Jesus Christ, God will place you in the body of His Son and you will be delivered from your transgression and you will be justified in His sight. You will be joined to the Lord Jesus Christ and become one Spirit with Him. It is not a mixture of your spirit with His but you become one spirit with the Spirit of Christ, which means He is in you, one with you, and you are in Him, one with Christ in His body. A mixture of spirits would indicate a mixture of your glory (earthly glory of the flesh) with the glory of Jesus Christ (glory of the Spirit of God). God will not share His glory with anyone. One spirit with Him means there is only one glory, the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. God gave us only one glory, Christ in us the hope of glory. This glory is the image of His Son, the only image He gave us to grow into by faith.  Over a 30-year period Jesus was maturing into sonship by occupying Himself with His Father’s business according to the anointing that was working in Him. Then John baptized Him, the heavens were opened to Him, the Spirit of God descended like a dove and remained upon Him and the Father declared Him, His beloved Son. The Father also gave testimony that He was well pleased with His Son. Enoch received the same testimony of sonship that Jesus received. Before He was taken he had this testimony that he pleased God. The first 30 years of Jesus’ life show you the road to follow from being birthed by the Holy Spirit until you mature into sonship. One of the characteristics of sonship is the testimony from the Father that He is well pleased with His son. This means to walk with endurance with God.  Christ is the first born of many brethren to follow. Before the foundation of the world God predestined those whom He foreknew to be conformed to the image of His Son. Thus, God made Christ’s life the prophecy, pattern or blue print of the lives of the other brothers to follow. Like Him we are to be concerned about our Father’s business. Our Father’s business is the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God consists of our relationships toward God, our neighbors and toward all of the earth. Since born again believers are one Spirit with Christ they share His life and relationships with Him. Any ability other than Christ’s, which is the fountain of life and the source of light, is independence from Him and of necessity death and darkness. The ability of the flesh is of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and is death no matter how good or attractive its appearance. Sonship is the manifestation of the Son in the sons.  When the fullness of time came Jesus bought our perfection in Him with His own blood. When Jesus ascended on high He gave men gifts to equip them to grow up into a perfect man, the full image of Christ. Through the work of the cross Christ provided everything for us that pertain to life and godliness. We need not to revert to some formulae of legalism to attain to our own perfection. He has done it all for us. We only need to appropriate His provision through faith and rest in His victory to the glory of the Father. But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons (Galatians 4-5). Spiritual growth is a natural process through faith by being obedient to the knowledge of the truth.  In the Near East, during biblical times, the word adoption had an entire different meaning than in our present Western civilization. The Western civilization perceives adoption as an orphan or a homeless child being adopted by foster parents. This is not the biblical meaning or the way the people in the Near East understood it. In Israel and in the Near East, adoption was a public ceremony where a young man who had proved his responsibility and faithfulness over time serving his father was proclaimed a son. The ceremony is called adoption.  At the ceremony of adoption, with friends, neighbors and relatives present, the father publicly proclaimed his matured boy his son. This proclamation gave the son certain privileges not enjoyed by him before this time. Firstly, the son was given power of attorney. He could buy or sell or do business in his father’s name. Secondly, he received his inheritance, and thus was able to use the wealth that his father had provided for him. It was his from then on and he did not need to ask any question about its distribution. Thirdly, the son was given equality with the father.  The adoption ceremony of the Lord Jesus took place when John baptized Him and the Father declared Him, His Son. Since the foundation of the earth God predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself. Because of Adam’s transgression all creation was subjected to futility, not willing, but by Him who subjects it in hope of being delivered from bondage of corruption into the same liberty of the sons of God. Presently our bodies are dead to God because of sin. Because of hope all creation groans and labors eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God together with us who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, which is the redemption of our bodies. If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in us He who raised Christ from the dead will quickens our mortal bodies to God through His Spirit who dwells in us. Thus, the Spirit of God (the Father) brings redemption to our bodies, even the manifestation of our sonship. We are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God (the Father) dwells in us. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God (Romans 8:14, KJV).  When Jesus was born he was a mortal. When the Father declared Him, Son, He received the Spirit of God without measure and His mortal body put on immortality through the Spirit of His Father. He became the Christ or Messiah or Anointed One of God. Nobody took His life from Him. He had the power to lay it down and to take it up again because He was Son. Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father (John 10:17-18).  The Son of Man was glorified on the cross, which means He underwent death to the honor of God and in His resurrection He was adorn with luster, clothe with splendor and glory was poured into Him. He was full of majesty, made renowned, rendered illustrious and exalted to the highest rank, even the right hand of God. The Father has glorified Jesus with Himself, with the glory, which Jesus had with Him before the world was. The redeemed body and glorified body is not the same. Jesus the pattern Son is our prophecy. When Jesus was declared Son people recognized His appearance. When He was glorified Mary stood outside the tomb weeping did not recognize Jesus when He asked her why she was weeping and whom she was seeking because His glorified body took on a different shape. Once again He was omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent. So shall we also be at the last trumpet.  To sum up, Jesus emptied Himself from the glory He had with the Father before the world was made and become one of us yet without sin. He matured in the grace of God. He was declared Son and did the will of God and accomplished His works. He was glorified on the cross and returned to the glory He had with the Father before the world was made. So there are three phases in the plan of God for us, namely our conversion and spiritual growth, sonship and final glorification at the last trumpet.  Those who wait for the rapture cannot ignore sonship, neither can those who believe in sonship ignore our final glorification with the glory the Lord Jesus had before the world was formed. The manifestation of the Lord Jesus in the flesh as the firstborn of many sons is the pattern of God’s plan or prophecy for our lives. To explain the vision of God’s plan for us in detail will necessitate an entire book on the subject, which I hope I will write shortly.

Cruising as a vacationing option is gaining popularity. While the Caribbean is a much preferred cruise destination, a European cruise is no less exciting. When it comes to these cruises there are several options that you can choose from like, the Mediterranean, the North Sea, Scandinavia and many more. The cruise ships designed to take you around Europe come in all sizes too, ranging from a capacity of one hundred and going up to three thousand.
A river cruise on the Rhine or Danube is a good way to cruise Europe. These European cruises are designed so that they stop at several ports allowing passengers to explore them. These luxury cruises are not tall as they have to move under bridges across rivers and are smaller too with a general capacity of 50-200 passengers and gently pass down the rivers taking in the panoramic scenes and cities that they pass.
Another similar European cruise idea is a barge cruise. These barges that have been converted into luxury cruise ships are very small carrying no more than 6-12 passengers. So, if you are out to have an intimate and romantic holiday with your partner, this is the ideal European cruise. The only thing to consider is that you must have time on our hand because these are slow moving ships that halt overnight at small villages.
If you wish to take a conventional large cruise ship to tour Europe, you can opt for the new ships that are offering these type of cruises. These are large ships with greater amenities like private balconies, spas, pools and a variety of entertainment options.
You must ensure that you book a European cruise that takes you to many ports in different countries. A 12 to 14 day cruise will be suitable for this purpose. Before booking a cabin you must go through the cruise details thoroughly. Take care to find out what services are included in the expenses like, meals, drinks, transportation etc, and the amount of time devoted to exploring the ports.
If you are interested in smaller cruises ships for a European cruise, some of the options are Silver Sea, Windstar or Radisson where luxury and quality service are the hallmarks. Large cruise lines like, Princess, Celebrity etc carry a large number of passengers on a European cruise.
Before embarking on a European cruise you must realize that you will not have a lot of time to explore every port that you visit in different countries. However, you definitely will have the opportunity to get a feel of the place, its people and culture. This experience can be handy in selecting cruises in the future for places that you specially liked.
So, make your cruising experience an exciting one and go along on a European cruise, getting a feel of the ancient culture and modern ambience that Europe is renowned for. It is a certainty that you will be left asking for more.

Dreams   Then He said, “Hear now My words; if there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream (Numbers 12:6, emphasis added). Dreaming is a product of the imagination of the heart. During sleep our reasoning is inactive, while at the same time our imagination continues to be active. Imagination is the ability to form a mental image of something or somebody not present or even something or somebody that was never seen before and then interpreted by the senses in the brain. A dream is a story or incident that is playing off in the imagination of the dreamer during sleep. It is normally an audiovisual experience that involves the feelings and emotions of the dreamer and it may include other people and/or objects in the dream. Although the contents of a dream usually seem unrelated to actual events, it often relates to real life situations and issues of someone or it may reveal the state of the heart of somebody. Some dreams are pleasant, others alarming and some are frightening nightmares. God uses all dreams to get our focus set on Him. Without a dream people perish. All things started out in God, even dreams. He made the worlds and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He said, “all things” it includes dreams. The first four words in the Bible are: In the beginning God. Dreams were never created as it was in the beginning with God. In the beginning dreams lived in the imagination of God. The worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things, which are seen, were not made of things, which are visible. So, the things, which we see today, first lived in the imagination of God before those things came into being by the word of God. Before the beginning of time, God had it in mind to establish an everlasting kingdom, and the dominion of the eternal King will never cease. This kingdom shall never be destroyed; and this kingdom shall not be left to another; it shall break in pieces and consume all other kingdoms, and it shall stand forever (Daniel 2:44). This is the dream of the Almighty God. So, God created the heavens and the earth, with its entire host, in six days and on the seventh day God ceased from all His works and He entered into His rest. So there was His kingdom. Unfortunately, Adam and Eve sinned and by doing so caused the entire human specie to sin. God knew it would happen. So it did not distracted God from His purpose to have an everlasting kingdom. Neither caught it Him by surprise. Since the foundation of the earth God had appointed His Son, Creator and Maintainer of all things, also Redeemer of that which He has created; His everlasting kingdom. When men began to multiply on the face of the earth, the earth grew violent and was filled with wickedness. God saw that the intent of the thoughts of the hearts of men was continually evil. So the dreams of men did not harmonize with the dream of God for His eternal kingdom. So God, the Righteous Judge, had another dream of destroying man, whom He has created, from the face of the earth. After about 1 650 years from Adam, God destroyed the earth with a flood leaving only eight survivors. Sadly, the fallen nature of Adam survived the flood and was perpetuated in the offspring of those eight people. It took another 2 380 years before God, in His boundless love, nailed the old nature to the cross so that we may receive a godly nature in Christ. Firstly, God had to prove to man that His dream about an eternal kingdom was His dream and there was nothing man could do to bring it about. So God was about to prove to man that every man is a liar and God alone is the truth. So He established a covenant with the people of Israel, in the form of the Mosaic Law, whereby the doers of the law shall be justified and be blessed. Because the law was weak through the fallen nature of man, no flesh was ever justified through the works of the law. So, God proved every man a liar. Enoch, Elijah and all the Old Testament faith heroes were justified through faith and not the works of the law (Hebrews 11). God took away the old covenant, which man could not keep in his fallen state and established an eternal covenant with man in the blood of His Son. Jesus fulfilled the law on man’s behalf and suffer God’s wrath on behalf of his sin. By His eternal sacrifice man is forgiven of all his sin, justified, sanctified and blessed forever. He paid the price to make man an eternal kingdom of priests unto God. He was the One who fulfilled God’s dream. Thus, He is the alpha and the omega and the beginning and the end of man’s faith. Every man is a liar and God alone is the truth. The kingdom of God is planted in the heart of man when he or she is birthed by the Holy Spirit through faith in God and Jesus Christ whom He sent. All the dreams of the redeemed started out in God and are according to His purpose. Often we dream dreams, which reveal some aspects of God’s dream for us in His eternal kingdom. Thus, some of our dreams are fragments of the dream of God. Biblical examples include Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the great image and the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Book of Revelation. Even dreams about ourselves, may be God’s way to show us how to prepare ourselves for His unfolding everlasting kingdom. We all dream, but some people hardly ever recall their dreams. Sometimes we remember our dreams, but very often forget them. Mostly we treat them as junk mail because we perceive them as worthless. The very questions that are in the hearts of people, God often answer in dreams but because of unbelief they ignore those important messages. Do you know that most dreams are meaningful? Have you ever consider that God would like to speak to you through your dreams? Dreams from God in the Book of Genesis include Abimelech’s dream about Sarai, Abram’s wife (Genesis 12:10-20), Jacob’s dream about the ladder (Genesis 28:12), Jacob’s dream about the flocks that conceived (Genesis 31:10-13), God’s instruction to Laban concerning Jacob (Genesis 31:24), Joseph’s dreams about his exaltation (Genesis 37), the chief butler’s and chief baker’s dreams (Genesis 40) and Pharaoh’s dreams (Genesis 41). There are many other examples of dreams from God in the Bible. All these dreams relate somehow to God’s dream, since all God’s endeavors are purposeful, because in Him is no vanity or idleness. Everything He does reveals His will. His dream and His will is one. He does everything according to the counsel and pleasure of His own will. Dreams are just one of many ways of instruction in which God reveals His will to us, that He may draw us into His kingdom, by us conforming more to the image of His Son. How often He revealed to us good things but though we have eyes to see we do not perceive. Because we are so busy with our own business He often needs to bypass our estranged minds during sleep to seal instruction. For God may speak in one way, or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls upon men, while slumbering on their beds, then He opens the ears of men, and seals instruction (Job 33:14-16). Dreams originate either in the spirit or in the soul. Dreams are often the product of much activity. If you dwell predominantly in the realm of soul your dreams will originates largely from the soul. If you dwell predominantly in the realm of Spirit, God will answer your questions in that realm. The Holy Spirit dwells in your spirit and if you make it a habit of communicating with Him, He will honor you on that level. I do not lay it down as a rule; I just relate to you my experience. The greatest problem is to discern between spiritual and natural (soulish) dreams or revelation. Spiritual dreams The Holy Spirit prompted and inspired various desires, questions and expectations that have to do with the will of God for one’s life. It has normally to do with your calling in the kingdom of God, according to His divine will. Sometimes it may be a prophetic dream. The Holy Spirit generates inspirational input into our spirits and then that message is relayed into our minds. In contrast, natural dreams are a product of the turmoil that is present in our souls. A spiritual dream is the inspirational input from the Holy Spirit into our spirits and then into the imagination of our minds revealing the will of God to us. All spiritual dreams relate to God’s kingdom. Spiritual activities like prayer, waiting on the Lord, meditation on the word of God, and a general awareness of Him that comes about by diligently practicing His presence often activate spiritual dreams. To be of service to others may also result in openness to God to receive revelation. God will answer you on the realm or domain of your dwelling. The state of your heart determines the realm of your dwelling. The faith, hope and love of Christ in you are in the realm of Spirit but all motivations that originate from self (even your own faith, hope and love) are found in the realm of soul. Christ in you is the only hope of glory that God has given you. He in you, with His character and power, should be the focus of your faith. This is the key to release Christ in you. You must learn how to relate to God and others with your spirit (faith, hope and love that is generated by revelation in the word of God and power of the Holy Spirit) and not your soul (feelings, emotions and your own ideas and desires). The Holy Spirit may also supernaturally intervene in your life to lead and to guide you in truth and to warn you about errors. Errors are that which miss the will of God. A spiritual dream may occur anytime during the night. However, my observation of my practical experience in my life shows that spiritual dreams occur mostly in the early hours of the morning, toward the end of a person’s time of sleep. At this point of the night, the subconscious mind has been cleared of all pressures and conflicts through natural dreams. We are then open to receive revelation from the Holy Spirit. A dream inspired by the Holy Spirit can have a literal meaning where no interpretation is required. It can also be in parable format or be partly literal and partly in parabolic format. The dream where God instructed Abimelech to restore to Abraham his wife Sarah is literal in content and requires no interpretation. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, “Indeed, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife. ” But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also? Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she, even she herself said, ‘He is my brother. ’ In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this. And God said to him in a dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all that are yours (Genesis 20:3-7). The dream that Pharaoh had about seven lean cows that consumed seven fat cows was in parabolic format and needed interpretation. Suddenly there came up out of the river seven cows, fine looking and fat; and they fed in the meadow. Then behold, seven other cows come up after them out of the river, ugly and gaunt, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the river. And the ugly and gaunt cows ate up the seven fine looking and fat cows. So Pharaoh awoke (Genesis 41:2-4). An example of a dream that was partly literal and partly in parabolic format is as follows: A woman had a dream where she saw people in a large swimming pool. A large angel came and stood in the air above the pool and cried out with a loud voice, “Hate what God hates and love what God loves. ” The message from the angel needs no interpretation. The swimming pool with the people in it can be interpreted as enjoying the things of this world. The message means that you must hate what God hates and love what God loves while enjoying the pleasures of this earth. It does not mean to hate what God hates and love what God loves while you are swimming and enjoying yourselves in a large swimming pool or in that specific swimming pool. Natural dreams Dreams occur in sleep because the rational intellect is at rest and therefore the mind can work through the day’s activities and through issues that rest heavily on the mind. A natural dream is the outflow of the tension of impressions and stress stored in our conscious and subconscious mind. It is therefore the product of emotional stress due to irritation, doubts, quarrel, defeat, hidden desires, traumatic experiences or much and/or intense activity. For a dream cometh through the multitude of business… (Ecclesiastes 5:3a). When we are dreaming during the night, we relive these unpleasant situations and events in our dreams.   This is the way God has fashioned us, to rid us from these emotional stresses. Even nightmares assist us in coping with built-up fear, suffering and sorrow. Then again we can also relive pleasant situations and events. Either way if these dreams are not interpreted, they still fulfill an essential restorative function. A dream can be an accurate mirror image of the soul, which God uses to reveal deep-seated problems in our hearts. A person may experience vile dreams due to unhealthy meditation. I use to have violent dreams because of my past. Even after I came to Christ, confess my sin and have repented thereof the dreams continued and even got worse. In the beginning I was heavily alarmed because of this defilement; but the consciousness of sin was busy to flow out. The same goes for any other problem. Eventually after I understood the grace of God and I could forgive those who sinned against me I had my last violent dream. I only came to understand what it meant to be without condemnation when I started to develop a friendship with the Holy Spirit. Dreams sometimes involve the revelation gifts of the Holy Spirit like wisdom, knowledge and discernment of spirits (discerning God’s Spirit, man’s spirit or demonic spirits). Occasionally a natural dream is the result of demonic input into our minds. It is said that the mind is the playground of the devil. If you are open to demon activity or was involved in the occult, a demon inspired dream is possible. Have you ever had a dream where you are paralyzed and cannot move even sometimes after waking up? That is a demonic inspired dream: normally attacks from demons responsible for spiritist activity. I know off a person that was innocently involved in the occult. Afterwards he came to the Lord and then he started to experienced demon inspired dreams that manifested in nightmares. After the person confessed his involvement in the occult to the Lord and was prayed for he still experienced these nightmares for about eighteen months after which it disappeared. His release came, as he grew strong in the word of the Lord. I also know a god-fearing believer that had a dream, where the devil appeared to him coming out of the ground, and voiced a negative prophecy over his life. He prayed to God and humbled himself before the Lord, according to the Scriptures, and then resisted the devil by worshipping the Lord. It is now many years later. The Lord has protected him and keep him save until this day. The devil could not snatch him out of God’s hand. Every dream that encourages unrighteousness, rebellion or any work of the flesh or stimulates fear, unbelief or heresy is from the pit of hell. Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities (Jude 8, emphasis added). Demon possession can also produce demonic inspired dreams. An example may be where a familiar spirit inspires the contents of a dream. It is very important not to give the devil any place in your life. God uses even our natural dreams to get our focus back on Him. All things, even our dreams, work together for good if we love God, and if we are called according to His purpose. Often our natural dreams will reveal the arrogance of the deception of our carnal hearts. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked (Hebrew: incurable); who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9). We are born deceived and we live deception if we walk according to the flesh. Through faith, however, we can please God. Jesus has nailed our deceptive arrogance on the cross so that we need not to walk under a cloud of condemnation; we only need to believe Him and to walk according to the measure of our faith. The measure of our faith is the measure of revelation we have received from the Holy Spirit. To please Him is the cry of our spirit. To please Him is what we are living for. So, we should walk by faith and not by sight or feeling. Jesus died for us and nailed our inadequacies on the cross and transferred His adequacy to us. This happened when we were joined to Him and become one spirit with Him through the born again experience. We should always remember that we only need to share the life that Jesus has given us with Him. We need not to live in our own strength but to express the excellence of His power through faith. Dreaming the dream of another It happens occasionally that another person may dream your dream or you may dream somebody else’s dream. My wife had a spiritual dream on my behalf a couple of months ago. I asked God what we would do after the end of this dispensation on earth. I did not believe I would sit on a cloud and play the harp for all eternity. She dreamed that I must go away and oversee a planet somewhere in the universe. I will be like God (not God, but like Him) to this planet. Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father (Galatians 4:1-2). She saw that at this moment in time an angel is fulfilling the overseeing duties. This angel must move on and I must replace him. Although, I am not God I will be like God. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever (Revelation 22:4-5, emphasis added). This was only a dream but I honestly believe God has shown us something about the destiny of the saints. This is a very good example of how God has revealed His kingdom in the future. I was also transported into the future in the times to come of the millennial reign of the Lord Jesus Christ on earth where I witnessed some of the shape of things to come. Where your heart is there your treasure will be also. If you set your heart on the things above your believing eyes shall see these things in dreams, visions and revelation.

The rise and fall of Woollies . By Peter Carroll. Many of us will truly miss shopping in Woolworth’s. It seems as though it is part of an institution, just the thought of this famous store closing is sacrilege!For me it has been there for a three score and fifteen lifetime- my first recollections still vivid in the mind - browsing around each individual counter manned by one or two assistants according to how busy they were, each counter, about ten to sixteen in all, offering a different display of goods that most all could afford for the price of sixpence (two and a half pence) . My Dad was an incurable flirt, quite harmless, and all the female assistants in our local store knew him for his charm and humour, I never felt uncomfortable about the way he was because he had the ability of even making the most glum of people smile. We were comparatively poor in the nineteen forties when only Dad was the breadwinner, so like so many others at that time Woolworth served a great purpose on offering the hard up public what they needed for a real price they could afford, similar to stores like £-stretcher today because I guess a sixpence then would value £l today. For example Dad used to repair all our shoes and various shapes and sizes of cut leather were always available. That’s how in 1912 Frank Woolworth - opening his first ‘five and ten’ store - given the backing of his former employer, William Moore and selling merchandise for five and ten cents - was an instant success. He formerly worked as a sales assistant in 1873 in the Augubury & Moore Dry Goods store in Watertown, New York, having gained all the experience he needed to enthusiastically launch such an adventurous new project and of course he had his critics, that he could never build a business on such small profits, but he argued that ‘give ‘em what they need at a price they could manage and they would come in their hoards. ’ His reasoning that even though profits were low selling in huge quantities would compensate. He was a man of vision, like his counterparts in Britain, Marks and Spencer who started off as barrow boys and his venture was about to pay off in a way no one could have envisaged at the time. Along with William Moore - given sheer hard work and determination he pulled in family and friends who could see they were onto a good thing - and in 1912 they all merged to form the later familiar F. W. Woolworth Company. Soon the stores sprung up everywhere in the US. Frank was not one to sit in his Directors chair and let his success take its course, complacency in his mind was like a bug just waiting to destroy all the good work achieved. He visited his supplier’s factories particularly in his European tours, he showed American businessmen how to design and configure machines to build glassware, china and such, emulating their European counterparts who were streets ahead. He showed others how to make mouldings for toys and dolls. He systematically found new sources for all the items previously sourced from Europe, and was well rewarded for his ingenuity by way of extra discounts, and in 1916 sales and profits rocketed and the American company truly found its feet , so much so that it its name was entered in the American dictionary which became known as the synonym for no frills high quality production. Frank liked the British. He wanted to introduce his stores abroad and Liverpool seemed a good place to start. There he opened his first 6d store in Church Street on Guy Fawkes day, 1909. His primary aim was to test the reaction of the British buying public. Now given the name retail therapy, Frank was probably the first to introduce the idea of enthusing a feel -good factor to those who entered his store He gave a lot of thought to the placement of his merchandise and the design and red colour of his counters which created a sense of warmth and well being. and on that first day of opening in Liverpool, remarkably his aim was not to sell anything, but simply to give customers the opportunity to lavish their eyes on the quality of the goods on display at really unbelievable prices. He even laid on a free buffet in the new restaurant, it seemed like a party, happy prospective customers were entertained by a full brass band. ‘Give ‘em some of the Yankee razzmatazz ‘ Frank was heard to say and it worked to a treat. His forthright charisma enticed a multitude of shoppers into the store the next day and the Woollies in Britain success story had started. Very soon Frank started a rapid programme of openings in Preston, Manchester, Leeds and Hull followed by the southern counties. In the 1930’s F. W. Woolworth had 375 stores in the larger UK towns and in 1934 the 600th store opened in Wallington, Surrey and by 1939 they had grown to 759 stores, the 760th store in Weybridge, Surrey was kept closed throughout the 2nd World War and used a relief head office for much of the blitz. A remarkable story indeed but sooner or later the tide of time changed, and the course of events took their toll. F. W. Woolworth became simply Woolworth’s - part of the Kingfisher group . The familiar red and gold raised nameplate disappeared and somehow, even then, for me, Woollies had lost its certain charisma. Its look and appeal dwindled, it became much like any other large store. I will always remember browsing and feeling the magic of Woolworth’s with my dad. Perhaps if someone in the Woolworth family was there to follow Frank’s steps, it would still be successful. But pure genius’s are not a family trend and time marches onwards regardless. I am just glad I have lived to share the Woolworth exuberance in its true glory!