“Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”
On 09/06/2011,
in faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, society,
by Daniel Christian
On 08/29/2011,
in faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, society,
by Daniel Christian
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
On 08/23/2011,
in faith, relationships,
by Daniel Christian
“When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your unfailing love, LORD, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.”
“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”
On 08/18/2011,
in business, corporate / business world, economics, faith, future, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, morals/values, relationships, society,
by Daniel Christian
Brian Kuhn writes a solid posting at “Greed, Economy, and Education”
Excerpt:
I am about 60% of the way through Freefall: America, Free Markets, and the Sinking of the World Economy by Joseph Stiglitz. Joseph is a recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Studies and covers this topic very thoroughly. Freefall is an fascinatingly honest retelling of the 2008 great recession and an exposing of the greed and corruption that essentially caused one of the greatest transfers of wealth in recent history. Self-serving banks loaned money to people who couldn’t afford it based on the “value” of their home growing perpetually and the government allowed it to happen. Wealth has evaporated from millions of people through loss of home and job around the world – wealth has been transferred to already very rich individuals from poor and middle class people. The US government has borrowed at unprecedented levels (the burden is on “the people”) and through bailouts given 100’s of billions of dollars to banks with virtually no strings attached due to the fear that the banks are “too big to fail”. Banks in turn paid out huge bonus and salaries to their leadership who essentially caused the failure of the financial system, toppled the economy, and ruined millions of peoples financial future and well being. Isn’t it government’s job to protect and support “the people” rather than to reward greed and failure of corporate leaders?
From DSC:
I remember posting a graphic/item on this very item back on an old website on 12/30/08:
I remember posting a graphic/item on this very item back on an old website on 12/30/08:
A MUST READ: The End –from Portofolio.com, by Michael Lewis
NOTE: The language is not appropriate for kids.
From DSC:
Greed is at the heart of this matter…and speaking of hearts, we Americans need to tend to our often cold and non-caring hearts, which also contributed greatly to the problems that we are now facing. It’s a very disturbing article; and it points out the critical need for all of us to be standing on solid moral ground. Don’t get me wrong, I know that I’m a sinner (and so is everyone else) and my sin is ever before me. But when you mess with other peoples’ lives, money, and futures…you need to have your feet on some solid ground and at least strive to do the right thing!It also points out that we Americans don’t often want to hear the truth until we have to hear the truth or until we need someone to point the finger at and blame for the issues we face. For example, how many politicians have been discarded in the past because they delivered some harsh, unpopular truth and plans of action? This same thing happened to some of the prophets of old who had to deliver some unpopular truth. Perhaps these struggles will be the 2×4 onside our collectives heads to get our attention and move towards caring about others.
Current update/further reflection from DSC (8/18/11):
When I look at this situation, I take solace in the Word that comes to us from Psalm 73:
Psalm 73
A psalm of Asaph.
1 Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;
I had nearly lost my foothold.
3 For I envied the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 They have no struggles;
their bodies are healthy and strong.[a]
5 They are free from common human burdens;
they are not plagued by human ills.
6 Therefore pride is their necklace;
they clothe themselves with violence.
7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity[b];
their evil imaginations have no limits.
8 They scoff, and speak with malice;
with arrogance they threaten oppression.
9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven,
and their tongues take possession of the earth.
10 Therefore their people turn to them
and drink up waters in abundance.[c]
11 They say, “How would God know?
Does the Most High know anything?”
12 This is what the wicked are like—
always free of care, they go on amassing wealth.
13 Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure
and have washed my hands in innocence.
14 All day long I have been afflicted,
and every morning brings new punishments.
15 If I had spoken out like that,
I would have betrayed your children.
16 When I tried to understand all this,
it troubled me deeply
17 [until] I entered the sanctuary of God;
then I understood their final destiny. (emphasis DSC)
18 Surely you place them on slippery ground;
you cast them down to ruin.
19 How suddenly are they destroyed,
completely swept away by terrors!
20 They are like a dream when one awakes;
when you arise, Lord,
you will despise them as fantasies.
The point is…none of us should want to be someone who “has received their reward in full (see Matthew Chapter 6)” and I’m indebted to an old friend of mine who, years ago, pointed me towards Matthew 6:33:
33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Because if a person has had the best that they will ever have (in this life/age), I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes for what takes place in their eternity. The problem is…this type of thing is so easy to say and so hard to live out in our daily lives — especially when we see the same folks (seemingly or for real) getting wealthier all the time.
On 08/17/2011,
in faith, hearts -- matters of the heart, higher education, Michigan, relationships, student-related, United States,
by Daniel Christian
See what a summer day in West Michigan can offer.
Los Campesinos’ “You! Me! Dancing!” used with permission of Turnstile Music.
“[To the Church in Laodicea] “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”
Psalm 46:1
For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth.[b] A song.
1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
…
10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
On 07/26/2011,
in faith,
by Daniel Christian
“[Faith in Action] Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
From DSC:
The older I get, the more I believe that many of the most important things in life are not visible, but rather invisible.
On 07/24/2011,
in faith, relationships,
by Daniel Christian
““But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.””
Ephesians 3:20-21 — BibleGateway.com
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, 21 to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
On 07/18/2011,
in faith, relationships,
by Daniel Christian
…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
From DSC:
Thanks LORD for your patience with me.
On 07/18/2011,
in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, Daniel S. Christian, faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, religion, robotics, society,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
Items re: The Singularity:
- The Singularity just got a lot closer — from Benzinga.com
New tool by ai-one inc. allows programmers to build artificial intelligence into almost any software application.
“…ai-one’s “biologically inspired intelligence” is a virtual brain that learns without human intervention.” - Kurzweil Accelerating Intelligence — www.kurzweilai.net/
… accelerating change articulated in Ray Kurzweil’s landmark books — notably The Age of Spiritual Machines and The Singularity is Near — and updates these … - http://www.singularity.com/
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity
- Michael Vassar and Michael Anissimov Talk About the Singularity on Supreme Master TV (12/27/10)
- Excerpt from The Illusion of Control in a Intelligence Amplification Singularity (7/1/11)
From what I understand, we’re currently at a point in history where the importance of getting the Singularity right pretty much outweighs all other concerns, particularly because a negative Singularity is one of the existential threats which could wipe out all of humanity rather than “just” billions. The Singularity is the most extreme power discontinuity in history. A probable “winner takes all” effect means that after a hard takeoff (quick bootstrapping to superintelligence), humanity could be at the mercy of an unpleasant dictator or human-indifferent optimization process for eternity. - IBM’s Watson | IBM’s Deep QA Project| Human vs. Machine
From DSC:
I don’t mean to suggest here that just because someone is pursuing the development of AI, robotics, etc. that their heart isn’t right — that’s just not accurate and such a perspective would be painting a broad and bogus swath across mankind.
But from some of the robotic and AI-related sites and blogs that I’ve seen (and not necessarily those listed above), I’m becoming a bit more skeptical of peoples’ motivations in this space, as many of these folks seem to be saying they can create better than God can. Alternatively, some don’t believe in a Creator at all, and thus want to make themselves the ultimate creator. When inventors, entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, military leaders, and other relevant parties have “hearts of flesh” that are compassionate, caring, and giving…these technologies can be very useful and beneficial. But I’m more concerned if these types of technologies are warped into a pathway for power, personal gain, military applications, etc.
Also see:
- Last Look: War of the machines? — from cnn.com
- The DIY Terminator: Private Robot Armies And The Algorithm-Run Future Of War — from FastCompany.com by Greg Lindsay
In the latest installment of the Butterfly Effect: Predator drones are just the start of unmanned, autonomous warfare technology. But as the tech becomes more democratized and more deadly, what happens when anyone can assemble an army of killing machines?
On 07/18/2011,
in faith, relationships,
by Daniel Christian
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.