True Power

True Power

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

My Womb is Your Womb: Who Am I To Disagree

Part of my Eve Syndrome thesis deals with symptom #3: You find it difficult (as a female) or out of the norm of religion and society to be your own glory as a child, teen, young woman before marriage (becoming your husband's glory) or childbearing. The Bible encourages marriage and having children. Paul explains in the New Testament because of Eve's original sin she was punished with pain while childbearing, but, there is still hope for her after being easily deceived.
1 Timothy 2:15 says "But women will be saved through childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness with propriety." In chapter 9 in my book "When Will Eve Be Forgiven?" I had to address the question: How is the woman saved who is unable to have children? The answer is Orthodox and uplifting.

The sin of Eve eating from the Tree of Knowledge is brought up in the Bible and on several occasions a woman's value is directly correlated with her ability to have children. To be barren was seen as a curse. When Jacqueline Kennedy married into the Kennedy family she felt pressured to be fertile and produce a large number of children.

Psalm 127:3-5 tells us "Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate." 
The pressing need to have many children should seem like a time long gone and far away, but this is not true.
Police: Afghan Mom Killed for Having Girl By AP / AMIR SHAH and HEIDI VOGT Monday, Jan. 30, 2012

(KABUL, Afghanistan) — An Afghan woman has been strangled death, apparently by her husband, who was upset that she gave birth to a second daughter rather than the son he had hoped for, police said Monday.

This brings me to the subject I began with; can you revel in your own glory without a husband or being a mother? I am not against marriage and family. I have just heard so many stories in quiet whispers from women and I just came to a point where I believed no one will burst into flames if they discuss the difficulties they face as a woman living a fulfilled Christian life. When there is opportunity to discuss troublesome feelings the less likely extremes will have an opportunity to take root in your heart and spirit.

I ran across a group which openly discuss their feelings belonging to a particular way of living out their religion. The point of the group for me was not condemnation of anyone, but understanding, compassion, and an opportunity for reflection. I hope you will take the time to stop by the facebook page or website to read some courageous stories of women who had to make life changes to live a life of glory.

Vyckie Garrison started No Longer Quivering to tell the story of her “escape” from the Quiverfull movement.The Quiverfull movement saddles women with a life of submission and near-constant pregnancies. One mother explains how she embraced the extreme Christian lifestyle -- and why she left.

http://nolongerquivering.com/what-is-quiverfull/
Over time, NLQ has developed into a valuable resource of information regarding the deceptions and dangers of the Quiverfull philosophy and lifestyle. Several more former QF adherents are now contributing their stories to NLQ and our collective voice makes these Quiverfull warnings impossible to dismiss or ignore.

NLQ is a gathering place for women escaping and recovering from spiritual abuse.


Michele Bachmann Victor of Eve Syndrome or Causualty of Eve Syndrome?

One aspect of The Eve Syndrome is the woman not being seen as anything other than alive to support others or another's life and well being (husband, children) and/or not knowing supporting your own life is a high priority.

Michele Bauchman should not in any way be seen as a victim of the Eve Syndrome. She has had a dynamic and sucessful career.

Minnesota Congresswoman and 2012 presidential candidate Michele Bachmann is a Republican congresswoman from Minnesota who came to national attention during the presidential election of 2008, after a television appearance in which she encouraged the media to "take a great look at the views of the people in Congress and find out, are they pro-America or anti-America?" She was running for re-election in Minnesota's 6th district that year, and the remarks sent more than a million dollars in donations to her opponent in the race, but Bachmann won anyway. A former lawyer for the U.S. Treasury Department, Michele Bachmann began her political career in the 1990s as an advocate for charter schools and a critic of taxes. She was elected to Minnesota's state senate in 2000 and for six years made her name in local politics as an opponent of taxes, gay marriage and the teaching of evolution in public schools. Although a newcomer to national politics, Bachmann's congressional campaign in 2006 was strongly supported by the Republican National Committee, and she had help in her campaign from such luminaries as Karl Rove and then-president George W. Bush. Her re-election in 2008 looked like a done deal until her remarks about anti-American representatives in congress on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews. In the same program she said candidate Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama concerned her because of their "anti-American" views. Howling critics have called her the reincarnation of Senator Joe McCarthy (and worse), but Bachmann has a fan base of conservative "tea party" Republicans who don't mind her factual blunders and intemperate remarks. She announced in June of 2011 that she was running for the Republican nomination for president; she stayed in the race until January 4, 2012, when she dropped out after finishing sixth in the GOP Iowa caucus.

She ran into what some may consider a pitfall when it came to the intersection of her marriage and religion.
One of the most talked about moments at Thursday night's GOP debate on the Fox News Channel came when Bachmann of Minnesota was asked a question that raised some eyebrows. The question stemmed from a speech she gave in 2006 when she was running for Congress. Bachmann told a church in Brooklyn Park, Minn., that she hated taxes, but went on to study tax law in order to be "submissive" to her husband.

"My husband said, now you need to go and get a post-doctorate degree in tax law. Tax law, I hate taxes. Why should I go and do something like that? But the Lord says, 'Be submissive.' Wives, you are to be submissive to your husbands," Bachmann told the crowd at the Living Word Christian Center. "Never had a tax course in my background, never had a desire for it, but by faith, I was going to be faithful to what I thought God was calling me to do through my husband, and I finished that course of that study."


The teaching is rooted in the fifth chapter of Ephesians in the New Testament: "Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything."
It's open to different interpretations, but a supporter of Bachmann said he believes Bachmann would run the country as other women in authority have, using the example of Queen Elizabeth, who acts as the head of state in the United Kingdom, but reportedly lets her husband make family decisions.


And just as John F. Kennedy said he would not take direction from the Vatican in the White House, Bachmann would not run the nation under husband Marcus' authority,

Debra White Smith of Real Life Ministries in Jacksonville, Texas, who has written five books on Christian marriage and lectured and written extensively on the topic, said there are two camps on the submissive wife issue, and she only teaches one point of view. She says some evangelical Christians -- incorrectly, in her point of view -- believe in a "subordinate, insubordinate" relationship between the husband and wife.


"There is a strong camp within Christian evangelicals that have a dysfunctional view on submission where literally the husband is the head of the wife and is responsible for her as a father is responsible to a child," White said.

Micheles also demonstrated her faith in her marriage and motherhood roles.
Michele Bachmann bore five biological children and didn't stop there -- she and husband Marcus welcomed into their home the at-risk offspring of other mothers who also chose to grant their babies the gift of life.  Not only that, but the Minnesota congresswoman also shared her commitment to the "dignity of life from conception until natural death," which is a view that -- especially on the cusp of ObamaCare, the costs of which are sure to run over budget -- is not only ill-timed, but most assuredly unappreciated.
What could be worse for pro-choice America than a woman with a brood of children, smiling and firmly proclaiming without obfuscation, wavering, or uncertainty the following belief: "I am 100 percent pro-life.  I've given birth to five babies, and I've taken 23 foster children into my home.  I believe in the dignity of life from conception until natural death.  I believe in the sanctity of human life."

Even after all of the tenacity and courage Mrs. Bachmann demonstrated throughout her campaign, proudly displaying her religious convictions, marriage, and motherhood capacity; she was struck with a blow she could have never forseen.

Tales from the Trail» Analysis & Opinion HomeFollow Tales from the Trail


Santorum staffer questions whether God wants women presidents by Lily Kuo Jan 18, 2012 10:11 EST

A staffer in Rick Santorum’s presidential campaign is under fire for an email suggesting a female commander-in-chief could be at odds with the Bible’s teachings.

The Des Moines Register last week reported that Santorum’s Iowa coalitions director, Jamie Johnson, sent an email over the summer asking, ‘Is it God’s highest desire, that is, his biblically expressed will … to have a woman rule the institutions of the family, the church, and the state?”

Michele Bachmann, a social conservative who campaigned heavily in Iowa, competed with Santorum over the conservative evangelical vote in the Iowa caucuses. She dropped out of the race after a dismal finish in the Iowa race.

This weekend Peter Waldron, Bachmann’s faith outreach coordinator, said the email was proof that Santorum had engaged in a “sexist strategy” to sabotage Bachmann. He demanded an apology from Santorum and called for Johnson’s firing.

The recent spat brings the issue of sexism in conservative politics to the fore again. When Bachmann ended her campaign, political observers wondered whether conservative perceptions of women and Bachmann’s own alignment with the Christian right and disavowal of feminism had been her undoing.

The Des Moines Register said that in the final weeks of her campaign Bachmann’s aides began to complain that sexism was a problem in Iowa’s religious conservative community, even as her aides deflected questions from reporters on the topic

Despite the bad press, Santorum has not issued a response and Johnson is unapologetic. In an interview with NBC he said his ideas were based in “classical Christian doctrine.” “They were reflections on over 25 years of formal, theological study,” Johnson said.


This is just an example of the trials Christian women can encounter during their religious journey. Will society forever determine the voice and active hand of God? Where is the place for a Christian woman in our world? No one stood firmer for the beliefs of Christianity and yet in the end it came down to the fact that she was a woman without authority to govern men.

Will Mrs. Bachmann's attention turn to be a better more worthy Christian life or will she seek to reconcile there is no place outside of marriage and motherhood for a gifted Christian woman. Questions I am sure her loyal followers have been pondering themselves.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Oakwood Baptist Church invited me to be a guest speaker

Oakwood Baptist Church,

Merrivale, Southgate, London N14 4TE, United Kingdom.
Website:www.oakwoodbaptistchurch.org.uk


I am Pastor Gordon Penman from Oakwood Baptist Church in London UK. We want you to be our guest speaker at this Year DIVINE OAKWOOD BAPTIST CHURCH CONFERENCE 2012 which will take place In here The UK .We are writing to invite and confirm your booking to be our Speaker at these year OAKWOOD BAPTIST CHURCH CONFERENCE 2012.Other Ministers Of God are coming from Different part of the World.
The Venue as follows:
DATE:5th -7th March 2012
VENUE:Merrivale, Southgate, London N14 4TE, United Kingdom.
We came across your profile on dirt2diamonds.blogspot.com and we say it’s up to standard and we will be very glad to have such an outstanding personality in our mist for these overwhelming gathering. With your multi-talented speech more lives will come close to GOD. Arrangements to welcome you here will be discussed as soon as you honor our invitation. If you have any more publicity material, please do not hesitate to contact me. A formal Contract Agreement Letter would be sent to you as soon as you honor our invitation. We are taking care of your traveling and Hotel Accommodation expenses including your Speaker fees.
**I replied to the e-mail and received more correspondence***

Calvary greetings unto you Dorothy Guyton,


We appreciate your confirmation to be our guest speaker to our wonderful event. Without any further delay the event organizing committee have earmarked preparations on how to summon your arrival as swift as possible. Preparations are stated below.

1) Find attached is a LETTER OF INVITATION AND CONTRACT AGREEMENT which you are to sign and forward back to us via E-MAIL at your earliest convenience for proper documentation. All information you require is stated in this contract.

2) Your speaking fee is amounted to $8,500.00 us dollars to be paid on installment, first part payment of $5000.00 us dollars and second payment of $3500.00 us dollars that will be issued to you as soon as
you procure your work permit.

3) With reference to figure (2) of these letter concerning work permit the E.O.C (Event Organizing Committee) wants to notify you that due to new British rules a work permit is necessary if you want to be
bonafide for these speaking engagement and has decided to connect you with the UK BORDER AGENCY OFFICIAL with the address below.

Name: DR Britt Kelvin Smith Email: drbrittkelvinsmith@europe.com

NOTE: All expenses you make to procure your travel document shall be fully reimbursed. Make sure you forward to me a copy of your procured document for the approval of your deposit.

4) Confirm to us the closest airport to your residence for airline tickets bookings,and as stated in our previous mail,your hotel accommodation,feeding including tangible unforeseen expenses will be taken care of by the E.O.C (Event Organizing Committee). The Chauffeur assigned to pick you up from the airport is Mr Larry Williams.

5) You need not to worry about speaking equipments like microphone,megaphone,transfix board,cables and projectors as all these items will be provided by the E.O.C (Event Organizing Committee).

6)The theme of these year's conference is tagged "SHOW THE LIGHT AND THE PEOPLE WILL FIND THE WAY" While the topic you are to give a speech upon gged "THE EFFECTS OF COMPROMISING GOD'S STANDARD".We hope you should be able to enlighten the audience more about being honest and to be very well discipline so they can inherit the eternal kingdom. You are to prepare a speech as different session of crowd will be attending the conference each day.

7) You shall receive your event brochure as soon as you get to the event venue on the day of your arrival.A cab is to pick you up from the airport and drive you straight to your hotel rook thereafter a welcome dinner party would be held. NOTE:We are trying to make every necessary preparation before the event date therefore we will advice you start acting about these preparations, more so you must arrive a day before the event day. We urge you to go through the contract agreement and event preparation very carefully to the best of your knowledge for any further inquiries you can contact us via - EMAIL or Direct Mobile at +44 702 402 4745


We are so ecstatic to be having such of your wonderful personality in our midst.


PEACE BE UNTO YOU.

Oakwood Baptist Church

Pastor Gordon Penman

The church is affiliated to the Baptist Union of Great Britain and the London Baptist Association, our trustees are the London Baptist Property Board, and we are members of the Evangelical Alliance.

Waiting to hear more details about the work permit situation

What Happy Women Know

I found this great book What Happy Women Know by Dan Baker, Ph.D which I have suggested to people on my 'Get Caught Reading Campaign' on facebook (please join in on the conversation). but there was a great tool in the book I think will free women from some self torture in their lives and it the acronym VERB

V= Victmization
E= Entitlement
R= Rescue
B= Blaming

There has never been a happy victim. We can chose to wallow or get stuck in the heartaches of life and yes, even the tragedies of life or we can find a way to transcend these rough and tumble times and channel it into something that brings meaning to your life or even better, into the lives of others.

Entitlement believes the world owes me/you something. None of us are the center of the universe and thinking so leads to us sitting around being miserable when what we hoped for doesn't come our way. Entitlement is a stunting, passive approach to life.

Rescue is waiting for somebody or something to save you; putting the responsibility onto the shoulders of someone else. You have to rescue yourself from that horrible job or not finding the right mate. You need to make the changes in your own life instead of waiting to be rescued.

Blame unloads a sense of responsibility on someone else.

In the context of revenge you become the victim of your own misery, you feel entitled to something better, you are waiting for someone to rescue you. and you can't wait to lay blame on the person who put you in that position in the first place. Chaapter 5, pages 93-96.

Happy women have to know many things, but the good point is-they are a few simple things.

I think this is a wonderful book and surprise surprise; it is not a male bashing book. It is a book more focused on how much of your energy are you going to expend on things and people that does not make you happy.

I learned how to quilt, bake, trying to can fruits, and other things because it was what all of the other women around me did and seemed happy doing. I hated quilting and baking and all of the other things that were suppose to define me as a woman and I went through the VERB dance feeling like a victim, I was entitiled to a better life that did not include sewing and sweating in a hot kitchen, I wanted my husband to rescue me and say 'oh, honey, I think you are just as much of a woman even if you can't do all of those things', and blaming myself for living in the community I actually loved and felt safe in raising my children in. Was I happy? Not in the least. Could I have been happy? Absolutly.

Happy women understand the importance of having personal power, which means their lives belong to them, and no one was holding a gun to my head telling me to quilt or can fruit. And I learned I had many more qualities that fulfilled my definition of what a woman was/is and it is a very satisfying list to/for me

New year, same old people.

Welcome to the year that has a prophecy saying the world is going to end in December 2012. At the moment there is skepticism and no serious efforts to bunker down as when we were told the world would collapse in 2000.

One interesting thing I have noticed is those same people who built the bunkers and loaded up on can goods and rice in 2000 are still alive and well. The other thing I noticed is that the religious climate of doom and gloom has ramped up but does not really encourage the Golden Rule of living. Pointing out the Anti-Christ seems to be in vogue instead. In fact in the last 3 years, there has been race baiting, political diversity, economic warfare between the have's and have nots. Whether the date can be determined by man as to whether/when the world is going to end; a lot of us are living as if we want our final destination to be 'HELL' and we are even willing to advance this eternity by tourturing the living on earth.

Yes, 2012 is here and we are getting familiar with all of the political candidates running for president, but more importantly, we ae becoming more familiar with their supporters. To say it has been a jaw dropping time filled with red meat for savage animals is an understatement. I guess I am fully engaged in the blame game. America has entered a new year but we have carried over the same people dug into their ideas and their own blame games. It is always the 'others' ruining America and not 'me.'

I have heard we are in a battle for the soul of America and I think the battle is bigger and on a more intense level; we are in a battle for our own eternal souls. Crisis will come and go, but how we react to each of them will be the test. Will you pull your own hair out or will you pull your neighbor's hair out, or will you pull your enemie's hair out? And after all of the hair pulling is done, will the crisis be solved?

I suggest before December 2012, whatever you believe about this date of doom, that you would want to face this day and everyday before and after with a person (yourself) that you can be proud of. Will a large bank account make you a proud person? Will offering a kind word or assistance to someone less fortunate make you a proud person? The question and answer has to begin with you.

Opportunity is a proud part of the American dream. I say there may be a slowing in the opportunity for monetary success, but there is a wealth of opportunity to be a decent caring hunan being. Never devalue the need and importance of the Good Samaritan. The man in need did not have to fill out a questionaire to prove if he was moral, virtuous, lacked self blame before he was offered help. The value of the parable was: who was kind enough to stop and to care.

This Could Be Me At Your Next Event

This Could Be Me At Your Next Event
Author And Public Speaker

NEED A SPEAKER FOR YOUR NEXT EVENT?

Do you have an upcoming gardening, church, or women's event planned and need a speaker? Contact me. I can speak on various topics such as:

1. Detangling Ancient Mythology From Christianity
2. The Female Presence In The History Of Christianity
3. Superstitions and Gardening In The 21st Century
4. The Politics Of Prayer: The Bible Speaks
5. African American Geneaology: Pride From The Grave


Contact me at rizerfall@yahoo.com for booking arrangements

Book Reviews

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