Home > Online Magazine > Online Magazine: Edition 58 - December 2015 / January 2016

Online Magazine: Edition 58

December 2015 / January 2016

Welcome to the Fifty-eigth Edition of the Online Magazine of the Thornleigh Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Articles

Editorial

by John Morris

I remember as a child the belt that my father often wore. It was a Scouting belt with the motto "BE PREPARED" cast with the buckle. These words were selected by Lord Baden Powell, the initiator of the Scout movement as a simple means of getting across to members of the scouting movement keys to ideal behaviour.

Powell spoke often using Be Prepared as the key to his words as if they were the only 2 words that were necessary in the English language.

The Scout Motto is: BE PREPARED which means you are always in a state of readiness in mind and body to do your DUTY.

Be Prepared in Mind by having disciplined yourself to be obedient to every order, and also by having thought out beforehand any accident or situation that might occur, so that you know the right thing to do at the right moment, and are willing to do it.

Be Prepared in Body by making yourself strong and active and able to do the right thing at the right moment, and do it.[1]

Things often happen for which we are not and perhaps can never be fully prepared. On Saturday November 14 terrorists smashed the peace of France with the use of the gun. Over 128 innocent civilians with which the terrorists had no quarrel lost their lives, and close to 200 were wounded in the same bloodbath. These numbers are likely to increase. One might say that, thankfully, 7 out of 8 of the terrorists took their own lives by exploding a belt bomb.

How do we handle such an event? We cannot guarantee that we can develop defences, plans, skilled anti-terrorist police or soldiers that can prevent another mass shooting. A brief glance at USA newspapers is all that is needed to confirm this fact. We can reduce the risk if we have the gumption to so do. Prime Minister Howard (1996-2007) following the Port Arthur massacre introduced with the agreement of the states and territories gun control legislation. The impact of the legislation to put the controls into effect is very evident in the reduction of gun deaths. The risk is reduced. We cannot eliminate the problem completely. The USA has not been able to introduce legislation given the size and impact of the gun lobby and the inclusion of gun rights in the constitution.

Do we sit around doing nothing? No we prepare by doing what we can to minimise the risk starting with elimination of the risk generator if possible. Pick up some defence tools or mechanisms. Learn from the example of others. And, importantly, review where we are in the history of this world and remember that there is a better world around the corner. This gives us confidence that although we might be unable to provide complete defence against evil men or women we can handle today's problem or better still, we have a God who can provide support in these otherwise untenable situations.

John 14:1-3 is worth putting into the memory cells. "… I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am there ye may be also." There is an out, it may not happen in the way you think that it should, but one day Satan, the Devil, that old serpent will be destroyed. There will be no terrorists, no death, no sorrow; HAPPY DAY

So be prepared !

References

1. Baden Powell, Robert. Scouting for Boys - Campfire Yarn No 3 "Becoming a Scout"

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