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Sunday at the Book Festival

The image above of Mary Robinson is via courtesy of MONUSCO Photos [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)]

A Selection of Highlights for Tomorrow: Sunday 25 August 2019

Mary Robinson 11.45am

While the realities of climate change are not always visible, the realisation that our grandchildren will live in troubled times can catalyse action. After becoming a grandmother, former Irish president and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson travelled the world to learn about the fightback. In Climate Justice, she describes the people working to overcome the threat.

This event is part of the WWF Series

Kerry Hudson & Sarah Smarsh 1.30pm

Two writers revisit their experiences of working-class life in Britain and the US. In Lowborn, prize-winning Scottish writer Kerry Hudson returns to the poverty-stricken towns of her youth to discover what being poor means today, while Heartland by Sarah Smarsh is a touching memoir on the destitution of Kansas farming life and ‘being broke in the richest country on Earth’. Hear two honest takes on wealth inequality.

Mike Berners-Lee 2.00pm

Warnings of looming environmental catastrophe rain down on us with increasing frequency and only the most ardent climate change sceptics deny we live at a crucial point for the Earth’s future. Join sustainability expert Mike Berners-Lee in conversation with WWF’s Tanya Steele, as he cuts through the noise with practical advice on how we can avoid calamity, drawn from his book There is No Planet B, a ‘Handbook for the Make or Break Years’. 

This event is part of the WWF Series

Thomas Keneally 5.00pm

The Booker Prize-winning Australian author of Schindler’s Ark, Thomas Keneally comes to Edinburgh having woven another masterpiece in The Book of Science and Antiquities. Ancient human remains are found in Western Australia, causing controversy: was the man Aboriginal, or does he signify an even older culture? Documentary maker Shelby investigates, sure that ‘Learned Man’ connects the planet’s earliest inhabitants with our troubled environmental future.

Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi & Geovani Martins 5.00pm

Manchester-based Ugandan author Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi and Brazilian writer Geovani Martins live half a globe apart, but their searing short story collections both centre on being an outsider. Makumbi’s Manchester Happened features moving stories of Ugandans living in England, while Martins’s The Sun On My Head is set amid the inequalities of a notorious Brazilian favela.

Colson Whitehead with Kirsty Wark 8.30pm

Following the success of The Underground Railroad – named by Barack Obama as one of the most important books of his presidency – new novel, The Nickel Boys sees Pulitzer Prize-winner Colson Whitehead visit 1960s Florida, a period of American history fraught with racial tension.

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“Everything in moderation, including moderation,” says Geneticist and Author Dr. Giles Yeo.

Dr. Yeo (Image above kindly provided by the Edinburgh International Book Festival) discussed his book Gene Eating in an event chaired by journalist Ruth Wishart at the Edinburgh International Book Festival on Monday 12th August 2019 , examining topics including fad diets, veganism and how our genetic makeup impacts weight loss.

Yeo says there are two factors the brain takes into account every time we eat…

“Your brain needs to know two pieces of information in order to influence your food intake.

First, it needs to know how much fat you have, and why? Because how much fat you have is how long you would last in the wild without any food, if food stopped today.

And secondly, it needs to know what you have just eaten and what you’re currently eating.”

“If you lose any weight, your brain hates it because it considers it a reduction in your likelihood of survival. So it will always make losing weight difficult.“

If anyone tries to sell you an effortless way to lose weight, they are lying.

When queried about veganism being used as a tool for weight loss, Dr. Yeo said:

“It’s now become mainstream because people think it’s healthier. So, the cold truth is we probably eat too much meat as a society. This is true. Okay, does this mean all of us need to suddenly become vegan? Well I think it suits some people and for some people, it’s something to do. I think all of us need to probably eat ten – twenty percent less meat or even something more rather than eat no meat at all, but I guess this is the point if the kernel of truth is being vegan will help you lose weight. Not because it’s magical, because you eat less calories.”

His new book examines how genetic predisposition comes into play with how humans, as individuals, digest and process food.  He started off by saying

“Body weight is not a choice. Now obesity just happens to be one end of the spectrum from being skinny and being average size. So, it’s a spectrum, okay, it’s not a choice. Now let me just caveat this, clearly it’s my choice if I choose to eat the cookie or not and I appreciate that, but remember we don’t gain weight overnight. We gain weight over a year, over a few months.”

“People think that when you gain weight, you gain fat cell.  Okay, maybe you get more fat cells. This is not true. Fat cells are like balloons and they get bigger and they get smaller, and when we gain weight they get bigger, and when we lose weight, they get smaller. The safest place to store fat is in your fat cells as they do this because that’s their professional job. It’s when they’re not in the fat cells, and they go into your muscles, your liver, other places, that’s when you tilt into disease. But what’s interesting is, all of our fat cells expand to differing amounts individually.

“So when we carry too much fat we will become ill, but how much fat we can carry, that is going to be down to our individual genes.”

For those interested in finding out their genetic mapping for food digestion, Dr. Yeo offers two free solutions. “The first is very depressing, but if you actually just look at your parents, when you just imagine anything about your parents, their shape and size, the size of their bottom, also what diseases they have.  That is free and far more predictive than any genetic testing. Second of all, if you have to lose the weight, if you are honest with your own failing behaviour, so for example, do I respond to stress by eating or not? Do I prefer chocolate, or what have you, then at least you have a fighting chance of controlling the environment you can control, meaning your household.

“So until we get to the point where genes can actually help in this prediction, I think look at your parents and be honest with your own feeding behaviour. I think those two things together are probably going to be quite effective.”

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The Great Escape from The Kingdom of Fife at a cost of an extra £2.33 paid to ScotRail

My plan. To venture out of the Kingdom to do some work at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. I missed the Stagecoach by a whisker. It was an Express, a coach and an X57. The good news is that a classic double-decker arrived, a 7B at 8:15 am (On school days this service does not run) prompt.

The 7B has many destinations but the main ones are Dunfermline and then onto Kelty. It was a pleasure to see. The blue, orange and red branding was a delight to my eye. It came to my rescue. Just in time.

It does stop at my local station but the train service from Fife in my view does not seem to be reliable. Many trains are cancelled (See recent late trains and cancellations at the bottom of this article) and rail staff reduce the number of carriages at peak times.  Therefore, they cram travellers into what seems to be carriages the size of sardine cans. 

Therefore, I headed for my nearest main station, that is Inverkeithing. However, just before I entered the station I pulled my discount card out of my wallet and I discovered it had expired.  Then I remembered…

It was that moment when I had a tiny twinge of conscience. The moment that I decided to go paperless or in this case card-less, This was a very small bid to save the planet. So I swapped my discount card for a discount app from National Rail (not ScotRail) on rail ticket prices that now resides on my mobile phone.

As I approached the station I happily liberated my phone from my pocket. On opening, I clicked on the Rail Ticket App. Hey presto the phone whirred and made some comforting noises

After what seemed to be forever, it then came back with a message…

‘Something went wrong please try again later.”

Well, I did, almost immediately! I needed that ticket. I had to be in Edinburgh sharpish.

More Whirs and a beep.

Then this very interesting message appeared

‘Something went wrong please try again later.”

My immediate reaction cannot be published here but I quickly jerked out of my pocket over £6 in cash. £6 for a single fare to Edinburgh! Ouch!

The train surprising ran on time but for some reason the 8:37 am was cancelled. I wonder why there is yet another cancellation

I fixed the app. Surprise, surprise it needed an update. So at the touch of a screen, the issue was fixed. Ticket lady said there could be no refund. Lesson learnt it will be back to the paper version next time I renew. I must say £2.33 discount on a ticket is a lot to lose.

Happily, I arrived at the Festival in time to hear all about the Victoria and Albert (V and A ) Museum in Dundee. You should be able to read the story here in the near future.

But I am still very puzzled why the app did not simply say…

‘Please update your app’ or ‘App out of date please go to Apple Store’

There really is no excuse for vague error messages like this in 2019

< – – – Some Recent Cancellations – – – >

 

August 12, 2019 at 02:40PM | 13:53 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 14:52 | 13:53 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 14:52 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 11 minutes late.

August 12, 2019 at 04:09PM | 15:53 Glenrothes With Thornton to Tweedbank due 17:51 | 15:53 Glenrothes With Thornton to Tweedbank due 17:51 will no longer call at Kinghorn, Burntisland, Aberdour, Dalgety Bay, North Queensferry, Dalmeny and South Gyle.

August 13, 2019 at 08:01AM | 08:44 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 09:47 | 08:44 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 09:47 will be started from Inverkeithing.

August 13, 2019 at 03:10PM | 15:40 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 16:45 | 15:40 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 16:45 will be started from Inverkeithing.

August 13, 2019 at 06:35PM | 17:44 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 18:49 | 17:44 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 18:49 has been delayed between Rosyth and Inverkeithing and is now 8 minutes late.

August 14, 2019 at 03:26PM | 14:39 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 15:44 | 14:39 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 15:44 is being delayed between Rosyth and Inverkeithing and is now expected to be 8 minutes late.

August 14, 2019 at 03:37PM | 15:00 Edinburgh to Arbroath due 16:48 | 15:00 Edinburgh to Arbroath due 16:48 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 9 minutes late.

August 15, 2019 at 11:14AM | 10:26 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 11:29 | 10:26 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 11:29 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 10 minutes late.

August 15, 2019 at 11:34AM | 10:05 Perth to Edinburgh due 11:33 | 10:05 Perth to Edinburgh due 11:33 has been delayed between Inverkeithing and Edinburgh Gateway and is now 10 minutes late.

August 15, 2019 at 01:26PM | 12:28 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 13:39 | 12:28 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 13:39 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 11 minutes late.

August 15, 2019 at 01:26PM | 12:41 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 13:42 | 12:41 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 13:42 is being delayed at Inverkeithing and is now expected to be 10 minutes late.

August 15, 2019 at 01:47PM | 13:48 Edinburgh to Glenrothes With Thornton due 14:51 | 13:48 Edinburgh to Glenrothes With Thornton due 14:51 will no longer call at Haymarket, Edinburgh Gateway, Dalmeny and North Queensferry.

August 16, 2019 at 03:17PM | 14:40 Edinburgh to Glenrothes With Thornton due 15:38 | 14:40 Edinburgh to Glenrothes With Thornton due 15:38 is being delayed at Inverkeithing and is now expected to be 10 minutes late.

August 16, 2019 at 04:47PM | 17:44 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 18:49 | 17:44 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 18:49 will be started from Inverkeithing.

August 17, 2019 at 11:46AM | 12:23 Cowdenbeath to Edinburgh due 13:06 | 12:23 Cowdenbeath to Edinburgh due 13:06 will be started from Inverkeithing.

August 17, 2019 at 03:19PM | 16:24 Cowdenbeath to Edinburgh due 17:10 | 16:24 Cowdenbeath to Edinburgh due 17:10 will be started from Inverkeithing.

August 17, 2019 at 04:19PM | 16:24 Cowdenbeath to Edinburgh due 17:10 | 16:24 Cowdenbeath to Edinburgh due 17:10 will be started from Inverkeithing.

August 19, 2019 at 01:52PM | 13:21 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 14:24 | 13:21 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 14:24 will no longer call at North Queensferry, Dalmeny and Edinburgh Gateway.

August 19, 2019 at 10:52PM | 22:05 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 23:09 | 22:05 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 23:09 is being delayed at Inverkeithing and is now expected to be 8 minutes late.

August 20, 2019 at 10:25AM | 09:23 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 10:34 | 09:23 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 10:34 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 10 minutes late.

August 20, 2019 at 11:06AM | 09:23 Arbroath to Edinburgh due 11:13 | 09:23 Arbroath to Edinburgh due 11:13 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 10 minutes late.

August 20, 2019 at 11:15AM | 10:05 Perth to Edinburgh due 11:33 | 10:05 Perth to Edinburgh due 11:33 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 10 minutes late.

August 20, 2019 at 11:45AM | 13:21 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 14:24 | 13:21 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 14:24 will be started from Inverkeithing.

August 20, 2019 at 02:36PM | 13:48 Edinburgh to Glenrothes With Thornton due 14:51 | 13:48 Edinburgh to Glenrothes With Thornton due 14:51 has been delayed between Edinburgh and Inverkeithing and is now 10 minutes late.

August 20, 2019 at 06:18PM | 17:03 Perth to Edinburgh due 18:29 | 17:03 Perth to Edinburgh due 18:29 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 10 minutes late.

August 21, 2019 at 08:37AM | 07:09 Dundee to Edinburgh due 08:48 | 07:09 Dundee to Edinburgh due 08:48 has been delayed between Dalgety Bay and Inverkeithing and is now 10 minutes late.

August 21, 2019 at 12:03PM | 11:38 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 12:39 | 11:38 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 12:39 will no longer call at North Queensferry, Dalmeny and Edinburgh Gateway.

August 22, 2019 at 10:19AM | 09:23 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 10:34 | 09:23 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 10:34 has been delayed at Inverkeithing and is now 13 minutes late.

August 22, 2019 at 10:38AM | 09:37 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 10:38 | 09:37 Glenrothes With Thornton to Edinburgh due 10:38 has been delayed at North Queensferry and is now 11 minutes late.

August 22, 2019 at 03:19PM | 14:37 Edinburgh to Perth due 15:55 | 14:37 Edinburgh to Perth due 15:55 has been delayed between Edinburgh and Inverkeithing and is now 8 minutes late.

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July is Mobile Phone Courtesy Month

July is Mobile Phone Courtesy Month

Therefore here are a few tips…

We all know about this issue. Especially when we are on a bus, train or in any other public place because we become an audience to someone else’s conversation.

Sometimes when we speak on a mobile phone we forget our manners!

Therefore do try to make the most of Mobile Phone Courtesy Month. You can do so if you follow these tips about mobile phone etiquette:

– When you are in a meeting: don’t check your phone constantly for texts and emails. But do concentrate on the people you are with.
– In a court, official room, theatre, or place of worship set your mobile phone to silent or vibrate
– Don’t embarrass yourself… If you know you are going to make an intense emotional call save it for when you are somewhere private. The public at large have no need to know about your relationship issues. That is unless you are a celebrity of course!
– Do check your personal volume levels. It is very easy to start shouting into your phone. Instead speak softly and everyone in your vicinity will enjoy the peace and quiet. They will also appreciate your good manners.

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The Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25 – 37)

I had a challenge finding a hymn for this one.  The bad news is that I could not find anything from CH4 or Mission Praise to describe the story.  After the service, I did have a thought and my immediate reaction was why did I not think of that earlier.   But more about that later.

Therefore, I searched and the best I could find was…

CH4 562 Through the Love of God our Saviour verse 2 and CH4 231 that is verse 2.  Interestingly both can be sung to tune 562 ‘All through the night’

Verse 2 of CH4 562

2 Though we pass through tribulation,
all will be well.
Ours is such a full salvation,
all, all is well.
Happy, still in God confiding,
fruitful, if in Christ abiding,
holy, through the Spirit’s guiding,
all must be well.

Verse 2 of CH4 231
Please see the words of verse 2 here ‘For the fruit of all creation’

The two hymns – that is one verse each were sung as the Anthem

Below is the story of the Good Samaritan from Luke 10:25-37 King James Version (KJV) of the Bible.

25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?

27 And he answering said ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself’.

28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.

29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

32 And likewise, a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?

37 And he said He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

Our minister highlighted the importance of willing hands.  That is willing hands that God can use in the time of an emergency,  In this case, those helping/willing hands came from a Good Samaritan (The Samaritans were not liked by the population in those days).

Now, what was the hymn I had forgotten about?   Simply, it was “He put in the oil and the wine”.   You can hear it here.

 

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Rock of Ages Cleft for Me – 1 Kings 19:1-18

These are the words that I needed from Rock of Ages Cleft for Me. 

That is verses 2 and 3…

“Not the labour of my hands
Can fulfil Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All could never sin erase,
Thou must save, and save by grace.

Nothing in my hands I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress,
Helpless, look to Thee for grace:
Foul, I to the fountain fly,
Wash me, Savior, or I die.”

If you look at Church Hymnary 4  CH4 hymn 554 you will find it is set to the tune Petra.  I must say not one of my favourite tunes – but the Late Rev. Bob White always reminded me that these tunes were the pop songs of the day.  Sadly one of a set of tunes that I struggle to look at as a pop song.  For me, it sounds like a dirge.   Other people may well enjoy, but it is not in my top 10.

As usual, I sent an email to our choir members.   I mentioned that words also fit the tune for the carol  ‘As with Gladness men of old’.  Secretly, I was hoping this would be ok.

Quickly, I received an email back – we know the tune.    ‘Oh dear’,  I thought.  Nothing for it, but I will try and rearrange Petra, perhaps break the chords or add a variation in the bass.

Today I arrived at church for the choir practice.   Played the tune Petra, it was not recognised, by anyone.   Nothing to do with the arrangement!  I then checked the CH3 hymnary and the tune was Petra. – it was there again!   Only, one more source was left…   Mission Praise.  There I found the tune Toplady and that was a perfect match.   Do have a  look at Mission Praise MP 582 (ii).  To my mind much superior to Petra.   Had to transpose by two semitones – but the organ magically did all that for me! 

To hear the tune click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah6xIq4mL0I

 

 

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112 Which Service Do You Need…

This is a poem inspired by the images of Fife beaches and thoughts of BREXIT

Like all my poems, there is little rhyme, rhythm, metre and the words may defy logic.

Written after a minor accident on Thursday evening.  That is using one finger on a mobile phone.   Other fingers bruised.

We live on an island.
No, not of the desert kind
An island that is not one
Except in the beauty of my mind

Beauty is hidden
not seen by the many,
but only the few

A pleasing pleasure,
the blue clouds of peace.
A beauty that beams light,
that laps the storms of the sea
Are those waters part of the fleece?
And does it destroy their coming plight

So why do we fight
To destroy the float of white wool?
Better to do thine will every night
Why ignore the gift of God and his might?
As it is something precious that mixes, melts and multiplies his light

Random drops of heavenly manna
Drops that dance like hot snowflakes and not a spanner
Snowflakes that land on a raucous world.
And how I do love Apple Pie,
Snowflakes, Apple,  and the planet wearing a mandatory bow tie.
All, of course, a delight to my eye

Yet in itself, the world is a bit,
a very small shot, a very small mitt
Yes – It is Minuscule and Mountain crushing
But is all well and is all fit?

Planet earth is Yes…
And it will, yes it will survive
But what is more beautiful
Better than the world and something that will revive

Better than this island
Surely, it must be
Yes… An island of Paradise.
One that is alive

A Paradise that lives, lives inside.
A Paradise of life
An Island within itself that cannot hide
An isle of the Great with some strife

The Great United people, that have boats near a buoy
The United In a Kingdom full of joy
Sadly, not for the many but the few.
And nearly everything is broken and little is new.

Split by discord,
a broken chord of love.
What do we do? 

Is it an emergency

                 Dial 112

No!   I made a mistake – sorry operator

But…  Mirror, Mirror on the wall who is the most beautiful of them all…

The most beautiful is within…
“it is within”
“Within What?”
“Within the innards”
“Within What?”
“Within the innards” 

The magic of  inside
explored by a naive surgeon’s knife
The magic of you plus
The magic of two beaches in Fife
The magic of a bride walking down the aisle
of golden sand to become a wife

But can we Ignite that passionate spark?

Remember we are the many and not the few”.

But what are we?
We are the people
But who are the many?
We the people are the many
Where are the few?
That is the mystery…
And how do we grow and find out what is true?

All these questions and there is someone in the know
There is only one thing to do…
Speak to someone to release your life and make it go
and he will help you no matter even when you feel low…

Try Prayer https://www.trypraying.co.uk/about

Beaches at Milesnilk by Aunty Ana Gram

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Faith – Hebrews 11 – Joshua fought the battle of Jericho

I am preparing for a prayer meeting tonight and looking for something to read before prayer.  On that note, Hebrews 11 comes to mind.  So here goes…

1Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen

2 For by it the elders obtained a good report.

3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

4 By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.

5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

7 By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:

10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

11 Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.

12 Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.

13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.

15 And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.

16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.

17 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,

18 Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called:

19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.

21 By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff.

22 By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones.

23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper (comely – pleasant to look at) child; and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment.

24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter;

25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;

26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.

27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.

28 Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

29 By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.

 

Joshua fought the battle of Jericho see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3QUS4B0iaM   and see… https://hymnary.org/text/you_may_talk_about_the_men_of_gideon

30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.

31 By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.

32 And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:

33 Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions.

34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.

35 Women received their dead raised to life again: 

If you are observant you will notice that I have missed something.   And yes you are right.  It is a final couple of verses in Hebrews 11.  These should be here to provide balance and the full story about faith.

and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:

36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:

37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;

38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.

39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:

40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect (since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect). 

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Cycle and Pedestrian Routes info

Subject Cycle and Pedestrian Paths in general Scotland

  1. Cycle and pedestrian paths are 100% funded by Sustrans (a UK wide charity based at Bristol that supports cyclists).
  2. Sustrans design these routes with the cyclist in mind.  That is to encourage cycling and exercise.
  3. My comment… There is also another group that use the routes.   That is pedestrians,  I must say that any General Practitioner recommends walking as a means of exercise.  Therefore, in a mixed-use environment, the safety of all users need to be considered, not just cyclists.  Therefore, there should be clear instructions to cyclists and pedestrians to take care on these traffic ways.  This is important as it is not the usual custom for cyclists to ride in what could be considered a pedestrian space.
  4. It is also noted that on a Sunday on one recently upgraded Sustrans cycle/pedestrian path at about 9:40 am a cyclist came at speed on a pathway towards some pedestrian traffic lights.  At that day and that time, there were no others on the pathway. (I suspect but don’t know but that the route may have been designed to 18mph standards  – here there should also be a sign asking cyclists and pedestrians to take care).  More markings are needed on any such pathways to make clear the mixed usage.  
  5. More Info: Resources Transport Scotlandhttps://www.transport.gov.scot/media/14173/cycling_by_design_2010__rev_1__june_2011_.pdf

  6. More Info: Resources Sustrans

https://www.sustrans.org.uk/sites/default/files/file_content_type/sustrans_handbook_for_cycle-friendly_design_11_04_14.pdf

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The earth for ever is the Lord’s (Psalm 24)

The earth for ever is the Lord’s (Psalm 24)
Hymn Written by Isaac Watts 17 July 1674 to 25 November 1748
Tune Amazing Grace

The earth for ever is the Lord’s,
With Adam’s num’rous race;
He raised its arches o’er the floods,
And built it on the seas.

But who among the sons of men
May visit thine abode?
He that has hands from mischief clean,
Whose heart is right with God.

This is the man may rise and take
The blessings of his grace;
This is the lot of those that seek
The God of Jacob’s face.

Now let our souls’ immortal powers
To meet the Lord prepare,
Lift up their everlasting doors,
The King of glory’s near.

The King of glory! who can tell
The wonders of his might?
He rules the nations; but to dwell
With saints is his delight

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